Even if I Make It Roughly, Ex-rank Items Continue to Accumulate - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Even Hastily Made Ones Keep Stacking Up as EX-Rank (27)

Coincidentally

“From now on, Stage Zero will!”

“Begiiiiiiiin!”

The caster and commentator’s resounding declaration announced the start of Stage Zero.

“Now! Before we officially begin, let me briefly explain this ‘Stage Zero.'”

“Yes, yes. There must be people watching for the first time today. Please switch the screen!”

A massive rocky mountain appeared on the live broadcast screen.

And below it, a single Gate rippling mysteriously could be seen.

“Caster, where do you think this is?”

“This is exactly! The main stage where Stage Zero takes place. The so-called… ‘Corridor of Selection’!”

“Yes, that’s right! The Corridor of Selection. Unlike regular Gates, it doesn’t disappear even when cleared.”

“That’s right. Instead of disappearing, it ‘resets’ back to its pre-clear state! This means re-entry is possible multiple times!”

Considering that normal Gates disappear immediately upon clearing and the exact same Gate never appears again, this was a very unique property.

“The testers from each booth will enter the corridor alone!”

“After entering like that, the goal is to conquer all 12 plazas, 3 lakes, and the final boss using artifacts!”

“And in that process, they earn points. Four categories in total. Please show the subtitles!”

Flash. Large fonts appeared below.

 

[1. Combat Power Category]

[2. Initiative Category]

[3. Adaptability Category]

[4. Stability Category]

 

“These categories are a kind of system score that the Corridor of Selection, the Gate itself, assigns to artifacts.”

“That’s right! Which means external interference is absolutely impossible. Very objective, isn’t it?”

Soon the screen switched again.

Starting from where the broadcasting booth was located, it quickly zoomed out, and the entire Grand Stadium began to come into view.

Tens of thousands of spectators. They were scheduled to vividly watch the interior of the corridor through the large screen in the center of the stadium.

“Now the explanation seems almost finished! Isn’t that right, Caster?”

“Wait a moment. I think we missed something.”

“What?! We mi-mi-missed something?!”

Laughter erupted from the audience seats at the exaggerated acting tone.

“Hahaha. That’s right! Correct. The testers’ levels will vary greatly from each other, so isn’t this too unfair a competition? That’s what you’re saying, right?”

“Exactly! Since Stage Zero is an event to verify the actual performance of artifacts, if other factors interfere, it would lose its original purpose.”

“Then you don’t need to worry!”

The commentator winked at the camera.

“The moment they enter the corridor, all testers’ abilities are equalized. Plus, our Corridor-chan is quite strict. She considers and scores even the smallest differences.”

“Our Corridor-chan, haha. Anyway, good! Then the explanation is really sufficient now. From now on, let’s meet the first booth!”

‘Finally starting.’

Lee Si-hyeok swallowed nervously at the palpable tension.

He was currently watching the live broadcast from the waiting room. It was a room provided by the Association, quite spacious and stocked with various snacks.

There were 30 teams participating in Stage Zero in total.

After the Association President’s brief greeting ended, they proceeded in order as determined by the morning’s lottery.

The booth operator would come out to finish their artifact presentation, followed by an introduction of the tester Hunter.

‘The lineup is quite impressive.’

Even from Si-hyeok’s perspective, there were quite a few remarkable Hunters.

Names that were impossible not to know when studying Magical Engineering. Each booth must have worked hard to recruit them to show the maximum efficiency of their artifacts.

After the introductions ended, the tester would enter the ‘Corridor of Selection’ carrying the artifact.

After that, it was simple.

Break through the alternating plazas and lakes, then defeat the final boss to clear.

‘Hmm.’

Si-hyeok watched the live broadcast with his arms crossed.

His turn was in the latter half, so with time still remaining, he was checking if there was anything to learn by observing other teams’ progress.

Artifact design, circuit structure, magic stone placement arrangements, and so on.

Of course, there wasn’t any new knowledge, mostly things he already knew.

However, just reviewing and going over them again was quite helpful, so Si-hyeok had no intention of wasting this time.

 

Everything depends on how you think about it. Even with the same time, it was a markedly different approach from other teams who just kept checking internet reactions or were consumed by nervousness, wasting time.

How much time had passed like that?

“Thank you for waiting, everyone!”

“Finally here! Chronos Industry!”

With tremendous cheers, Chronos Industry’s director stepped onto the platform.

The roar was so thunderous it could be heard through the walls all the way to the waiting room.

‘…Pyo Jae-hwan.’

The research director who was newly appointed a few years ago, and a central figure who completely reformed Chronos’s previously closed-off approach.

Seeing Pyo Jae-hwan begin his presentation, Si-hyeok remembered what Department Head Yoon Seo-jin had said recently.

—Rather than resentment, there’s this disgusting guy there. Like my nemesis.

‘Certainly.’

Si-hyeok wasn’t one to judge people by their appearance, but now he had to somewhat agree with Yoon Seo-jin’s harsh expression.

Eyes that were impossible to tell if they were open or closed, half-closed as if squinting.

That alone gave off an unsettling atmosphere, and on top of that, a gentle smile hung at the corners of his mouth.

Gentle yet sinister.

As if something was lurking beyond that facade.

‘And that’s actually the case.’

The previous stalking incident and yesterday’s YouTuber affair.

Since Pyo Jae-hwan would have orchestrated all those sinister schemes, it wasn’t just his appearance.

The artifact Chronos prepared this time was a ‘dagger.’

The same type as the that Si-hyeok had created.

With a competitive structure already established in public opinion, it seemed the comparisons would intensify in various ways during Stage Zero’s progress.

Pyo Jae-hwan’s artifact presentation ended.

“Huh?”

And in the tester introduction that followed, Si-hyeok found himself muttering unconsciously.

“Black Vein?”

It was because a heavyweight Hunter he had never expected appeared.

The spectator seats also fell into silence as if momentarily speechless.

However, Si-hyeok was surprised for a slightly different reason than them.

“Did you know about this?”

Black Vein’s real name was Herbert Reynolds. As you could tell from his surname, he was a member of Britain’s Reynolds Family.

In other words, Isaac and Black Vein belonged to the same family.

“…Why is Herbert participating here?”

However, Isaac also seemed flustered.

He, who had been lying down the whole time, sat up, folded a pink cot he had gotten from somewhere, and approached Si-hyeok.

“You didn’t know either?”

“I couldn’t know. Our family may share the same last name on the surface, but that’s just a shell. In reality, we’re no different from complete strangers.”

Isaac paused briefly, took Si-hyeok’s coffee, gulped it down, and continued.

“I’ve already left the family following Boss. I don’t know what the family thinks of my actions, but contact has been cut off for quite a while.”

“It would be natural not to know…”

Si-hyeok nodded and went to get coffee again. All that coffee had disappeared already. Si-hyeok had no choice but to roughly dump the remaining ice into his mouth and crunch on it.

How did Chronos manage to recruit Black Vein?

That was the first question that came to mind. Money? Honor? As if. The Reynolds Family had those things rotting in abundance.

Then it must be something that couldn’t be converted into conventional value…

Lee Si-hyeok shook off his thoughts. There was definitely some scheme at play, but there was no way to know right now. Instead, he focused on the present.

‘Black Vein’s participation is actually good for me.’

Chronos had prepared daggers, weapons for assassins, just like Si-hyeok.

That meant Black Vein was also an assassin. In fact, he was famous for always ranking among the top assassination-type hunters.

So what about Isaac?

The pinnacle of assassination-types.

Not just high-ranking or top-tier, but literally the pinnacle. An existence that had reached the extreme in the field of assassination.

Though abilities would be equalized inside the corridor, there were differences in innate talent. Clear and definite differences that couldn’t be revealed by simple numbers.

Then when the two were compared, it was obvious who would have the upper hand.

And if the Hollow Trace that Si-hyeok had created joined the mix, it wouldn’t even be a comparison.

Crunch. Si-hyeok’s molars cheerfully crushed the ice.

Before long, Black Vein’s corridor conquest was coming to an end.

He had no intention of underestimating him out of personal feelings. Rather, because of that, Si-hyeok tried to capture every process without missing a single scene.

As expected, it was incomparable to other booths. The artifact’s design was near perfect, and Black Vein’s skill level was tremendous. If he excluded personal emotions, it was impressive enough to make him want to applaud.

By the time all the ice had disappeared, Chronos’s turn was over.

Knock knock.

At the same time, a knocking sound was heard. An operations staff member who entered through the open door gave guidance.

“Pale Artist, it’s time to proceed.”

Coincidentally, Si-hyeok was scheduled right after Chronos.

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, in the VIP viewing section of the Grand Stadium, Research Department Head Yoon Seo-jin was sitting with a happy smile.

“Hehehe.”

It was thanks to successfully concluding the expo’s first day yesterday evening.

With results that far exceeded expectations, plus all the buzz. In fact, she hadn’t even imagined it would be this successful.

That was understandable, since this expo had been practically written off.

Between Chronos’s participation and the artifact they were exhibiting being targeted at a small number of non-awakened individuals rather than aiming for mass appeal.

But an unexpected turn occurred.

‘Our Si-hyeok.’

With just a few days left before the expo, the advice Si-hyeok had casually given as if it were nothing.

The idea behind that advice itself wasn’t particularly remarkable. It was a topic Seo-jin had thought about several times before.

However, the way he solved it was extraordinary.

The idea of a Legacy Artifact?

For Seo-jin, it was so complex she could barely keep up. It was precise, intricate, and felt mysterious to the point of being profound. Honestly, she still didn’t fully understand it. She had only skimmed through it superficially by eye.

Still, since it was advice from that Si-hyeok, she somehow managed to create it despite being pressed for time. It would have been impossible without the notes he had left here and there.

What she exhibited as a result was the Termion Clearline.

And as expected, her expectations weren’t betrayed.

How much did the results exceed expectations that Chairman Lee Young-hoon personally called her?

Yesterday was truly a festival atmosphere all day long. They even improved the corporate image with ‘Termion, a company for the non-awakened!’

Perhaps when this expo ended, the Chairman would call Si-hyeok and give him plenty of rewards?

Then Seo-jin was planning to add her comments with a joyful heart.

A joyful heart.

Yes, with a joyful heart.

“…”

However, Seo-jin’s expression had now turned cold.

She looked at the scoreboard displayed on the large screen and clicked her tongue.

 

[RANKING: Corridor of Selection]

[0th. ■■■ – ■■■,■■■ points]

[1st. Black Vein – 54,210 points]

[2nd. Guardian of Light – 49,170 points]

[3rd. Green Night Beast – 48,950 points]

[…]

 

‘Why is Black Vein suddenly appearing?’

Setting aside the 0th place, which had been a mysterious, unknown ranking that existed since the Corridor of Selection was discovered.

Black Vein suddenly appeared and took 1st place with about 5,000 points ahead of 2nd place.

For Seo-jin, who had always had negative feelings toward Chronos, this couldn’t help but be displeasing.

To be more precise, it would be her feelings toward Pyo Jae-hwan rather than Chronos.

‘Speak of the devil and he appears.’

Seo-jin, who had been pouting, saw two people walking toward her.

It was Pyo Jae-hwan and Black Vein, who had finished their turn.

“Hello. It’s been a while.”

She didn’t respond. Yet they sat in the seats next to her as if they didn’t mind.

“There are plenty of other seats, aren’t there?”

“My seat is here. Sorry.”

Jae-hwan showed his ticket. VIP-A3. It really was his seat. Seo-jin looked at the ticket with furrowed brows, then turned her head away sharply.

“Sneaky bastard.”

Her mood got even worse.

But moving seats first would also hurt her pride, so she took out her smartphone without even glancing at them.

 

[Me: Si-hyeok^^ What are you doing?]

[Me: Thanks to you, the expo was a complete success!!!hehehe]

[Me: You’re not reading]

[Me: Are you busy?]

[Me: ??]

 

These were messages she had sent just before Stage Zero started, after finishing up Termion’s booth.

But it seemed he hadn’t read them yet.

She had heard that he didn’t look at his phone during work, but as far as she knew, he had quit the delivery job recently…?

“How long has it been? I think this is the first time we’re meeting since graduation. Right, Seo-jin…?”

“Don’t call me that.”

A cold voice flowed out reflexively.

“It’s disgusting.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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