Tearing the Gate Apart - Chapter 21

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 21.
Ha Gyeong couldn’t help but feel puzzled.
Why was a journalist suddenly latching onto him?
He had never done any broadcast work.
He was a man who’d spent his life quietly buried in the Abyss.
As Ha Gyeong looked at him with a bewildered expression, Moon Jeong-hun scratched the back of his head.
“Ha ha! Nothing special happened, really. I just came by to cover some celebrities.”
He had a rough idea of what this was about.
The Immortal Demon King—wasn’t that what they’d called him?
That was Ha Gyeong’s nickname, which Dae Hyeon-ja had mentioned.
The truth was, Ha Gyeong’s name had become somewhat known in the industry.
He’d performed well each time he joined as a guest member.
And as an Awakener who guild masters kept watch over.
But he wasn’t famous enough for the general public to know.
Ha Gyeong shook his head and spoke.
“I’m not that famous, though.”
“Oh goodness! No, sir. There are so many rumors about you floating around the industry right now.”
“Rumors?”
“Ha ha! Let me correct myself. Rumors. Yes, rumors. Look at this.”
Moon Jeong-hun pulled out a tablet.
He then showed him several posts.
They were posts on an Abyss community forum well-known enough for Ha Gyeong to recognize it.
[Recruitment] Mega-prospect appearing like a comet—where will Ha Gyeong go?
―Black Water, Chang-un, Iron Heart, Cheon Il-hong—who else? There are tons of guilds keeping their eyes on this guy. Even rumors of record-breaking contracts are flying around.
└Wait, who is this person that four major guilds are involved? His nickname is the Immortal Demon King? Isn’t that overselling it?
└Right. Besides Black Water, they’re just upper-mid tier guilds, but even so, his credentials are impressive.
└I heard Sharp Force and Death Hound also talked about it.
└Don’t make me laugh. Then why isn’t Raiders on the list? They recruit anybody.
└There was friction with them in the Fusion Abyss. Bet they didn’t even try approaching him.
Ha Gyeong merely blinked quietly.
‘How is this so detailed?’
Of course, what happened in the dungeon wasn’t exactly a secret.
But he didn’t expect even private conversations to be spreading around.
Thinking about it, Ha Gyeong figured out the reason.
‘The guild masters probably didn’t leak it. The Awakeners listening in nearby must have spread it.’
Guest members especially could gossip freely.
In any case, there seemed to be quite a bit of talk about Ha Gyeong.
It made sense, really.
The Awakener industry was starved for talent.
And it was especially sensitive to the emergence of skilled individuals.
There had to be a reason guild masters offered such enormous contracts.
It was because reinforced strength raised survival rates.
Ha Gyeong shrugged.
“Let’s shower first and talk. Regular people can get hurt if they’re exposed to Abyss Energy.”
“Oh goodness! Yes, of course.”
Moon Jeong-hun exaggerated his movements as he backed away.
Yet he didn’t forget to hand over his business card.
There really could be actual danger.
In a way, he was quite a remarkable person.
So relentless at that.
After showering, Ha Gyeong changed into casual clothes.
As he was loading his gear into his vehicle, Moon Jeong-hun approached.
“Looks like you’re finally done.”
If he hadn’t shown up by now, Ha Gyeong would’ve just left.
Sure enough, the man was persistent.
Ha Gyeong turned back reluctantly.
“Keep it brief. I need to settle accounts.”
“Ha ha! Much obliged.”
The two men headed to a nearby cafe.
Truth be told, Ha Gyeong had nothing to say.
What could the person in question possibly say about talk spreading behind the scenes in the industry?
So Moon Jeong-hun spoke first.
“Have you ever received recruitment offers from any guild?”
“Just cut to the chase. You want to know if the four major guilds have made moves, right?”
“Hm hm! You’re sharp.”
“You kept mentioning them in the comments anyway. You just need confirmation, right?”
“To be honest, yes.”
“I did receive an offer from Black Water, but I turned it down.”
“What about the other guilds?”
“Chang-un and Raiders made similar offers.”
“From the way you’re speaking, you turned them all down?”
“That’s right.”
“Hmm…”
Moon Jeong-hun let out a hollow laugh.
The community rumor had been surprisingly accurate.
Though there were some inaccuracies mixed in, of course.
After finishing his notes, Moon Jeong-hun posed his second question.
“Then you have no plans to join a guild?”
“I don’t think I have to be completely alone forever. I suppose I’ll need comrades eventually.”
A fight with an Abyss Ruler wouldn’t be easy.
Axis Prime’s elite had been defeated, after all.
To field a stronger force than back then would be difficult.
Roughly, he’d need about one hundred twenty people like himself.
It would be hard, but he had to accomplish it.
That’s why he was maintaining good relationships with certain Awakeners.
People like Ma Do-hyeok and Dae Hyeon-ja.
However, establishing a guild should only be done when he had a certain level of confidence.
Ha Gyeong bit his teeth together privately.
‘I’m still not enough. I need to become stronger.’
A brief silence followed.
After organizing his thoughts, Moon Jeong-hun spoke again.
“Then I’ll ask one last question.”
“Yes.”
The Association recently announced it would introduce a Ranking System.”
“Pardon?”
It was an abrupt topic.
Moreover, Ha Gyeong had never heard of it before.
A Ranking System? Out of nowhere?
From Ha Gyeong’s perspective, it seemed like a meaningless endeavor.
When simply surviving in the Abyss was already a struggle.
What good could come from Awakeners fighting each other?
But Moon Jeong-hun’s expression was serious.
“The Abyss is exclusively an Awakener’s space, isn’t it? What happens inside only gets passed along by word of mouth.”
“That’s true.”
“The public is naturally curious about how Awakeners fight and what abilities they possess. That’s why related internet broadcasts are so popular.”
“So you’re saying they’re holding a tournament just for the sake of profit?”
“The Association said they’d use the revenue to support new Awakeners.”
…….
Ha Gyeong fell silent.
If they’re nurturing newcomers, what could he possibly say against that?
He looked directly at Moon Jeong-hun.
“So the question is whether I’ll participate or not, right?”
“Ha ha! Exactly.”
“Since it hasn’t been established yet, I can’t give you a definitive answer. But the purpose does seem worthwhile.”
“Thank you for agreeing to the interview.”
“Yes, then.”
Ha Gyeong stood up immediately.
Though his answer had been evasive, he had no intention of participating.
What good was this ranking business?
Exploring the Bottomless Pit would be far more beneficial with that time.
Shortly after, Ha Gyeong headed to the trading post.
At that very moment, Dae Hyeon-ja turned from a window counter.
“Ah, you’re here. Ha Gyeong.”
“You’ve already finished registering?”
“Yes, I’ve listed all the artifacts and spoils. Since we’re doing a public auction, it’ll take some time.”
The Overgrowth Ring was a useful artifact for Awakeners from the Summoning Series.
Naturally, Ha Gyeong and Dae Hyeon-ja.
Or their teammates couldn’t use it.
That’s why they’d put it up for public auction.
Ha Gyeong took out the Titan Mace.
Putting this artifact up for public auction would bring in more money, too.
But he had no intention of doing so.
“First, we should check if anyone’s interested in an internal trade.”
“You’re really going to do that?”
“Though I caught it almost single-handedly, Kim Sang-woo did draw its attention. That’s a fact.”
“Oh! Then I’ll go make a call.”
Dae Hyeon-ja stepped away to make a phone call.
In this raid team, there was only one person who could use the Titan Mace.
Kim Sang-woo, the tank, was the only one.
“Huff! Huff! You’re… you’re going to do an internal trade?”
“Yes, if the price is reasonable.”
“The current market rate is… wait a moment.”
Kim Sang-woo, who’d rushed over, hurriedly manipulated the tablet.
His fingertips trembled—he was clearly very excited.
Unknown Grade artifacts typically went for over ten billion won.
The Titan Mace had high utility, so the price would be considerable.
It would likely go for at least fifty billion won.
Kim Sang-woo’s face went pale after checking the amount.
Even for a highly skilled Awakener, it was a substantial sum.
So it was no wonder Kim Sang-woo nervously picked at his fingernails.
After observing briefly, Ha Gyeong gave a light shrug.
“As an internal trade, I can lower it to around forty billion won.”
“You… you really mean that?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll buy it right now!”
“Good. Let’s proceed with the trade.”
Ha Gyeong immediately drafted an artifact trading contract.
He received the payment through the Association’s guarantee system.
That’s how Kim Sang-woo obtained the Titan Mace.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
“It’s nothing. We’ve been through life and death together. I can certainly offer this much consideration.”
“Sob! How could I… show such territorial behavior to someone like you… I’m sorry.”
Kim Sang-woo shed tears freely.
He seemed moved by Ha Gyeong’s generosity.
Of course, Ha Gyeong hadn’t expected this reaction at all.
‘I just did it because I don’t have a reliable tank otherwise.’
Tank and healer positions received premium treatment.
It was always beneficial to know many skilled Awakeners.
Kim Sang-woo was only somewhat lacking in Provocation ability.
His tanking, sense of responsibility, and combat sense were quite solid.
That’s why Ha Gyeong had readily lowered the price.
But he hadn’t expected such a reaction.
As Ha Gyeong smiled awkwardly, Dae Hyeon-ja quickly tidied up the situation.
“Everyone must be tired, so let’s head back. I hope we can work together again next time, Ha Gyeong.”
“Yes, I’d like that too.”
That seemed to wrap up the post-raid procedures.
Just as Dae Hyeon-ja was turning to leave, he suddenly came back to Ha Gyeong.
“One moment, Ha Gyeong.”
“Yes?”
“Did you perhaps do an interview with a media outlet?”
“Ah, yes. I had a brief chat with them just now.”
“Well… an article like this came out.”
Dae Hyeon-ja immediately showed him his phone screen.
An online article had just been posted.
With a tone quite different from what Ha Gyeong had actually answered.
[Exclusive] The biggest FA commodity in the Awakener industry—’Immortal Demon King Ha Gyeong’—to challenge the Ranking Tournament.
―Ha Gyeong, a close-range dealer receiving interest from prestigious guilds, is reported to enter the Association-sanctioned official Ranking Tournament. Given that he hasn’t accepted any recruitment offers yet, analysis suggests he’s raising his market value. Meanwhile, the Association maintains that it’s preparing various rewards for the Ranking Tournament to attract participants and drive profitability.
Ha Gyeong found it absurd.
He’d never said he would participate.
And the market value bit was ridiculous.
Since he wasn’t going to join any guild anyway.
What good would raising contract offers do?
At his bewildered expression, Dae Hyeon-ja bristled with indignation.
“I can see what happened here. I’ll look into it. Fortunately, I know someone in this field.”
Dae Hyeon-ja was about to call Moon Jeong-hun.
But Ha Gyeong casually waved his hand.
“No, wait.”
He focused on the article’s content.
The part about the Association preparing various rewards to drive profitability.
There was something there that could catch Ha Gyeong’s interest.
Actually, artifacts didn’t interest him much.
The line that caught his eye was one thing.
‘The Ultimate Abyss Fragment is offered as a prize?’
It seemed Moon Jeong-hun’s fabricated article would become truth.
If the Ranking Tournament opened, Ha Gyeong would definitely participate.
Ripping Open the Gates
Author |
Moraetop
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Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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