The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 52

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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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Chapter 52
Chapter 52
After leaving the Hunter Guild.
I confirmed that the promised time had passed and hurried to the meeting place.
“There they are.”
I could immediately recognize who Kang Ju-hyuk was without even hearing his name.
And for good reason.
“How can he be so consistent?”
Kang Ju-hyuk’s attire was identical to the games we had played together before First.
The martial artist he always chose, proclaiming that “bare-knuckle fighting is the ultimate truth!”
True to his style of not being overly concerned with equipment, he wore only the essential lightweight gear.
Even on his fists, instead of the gauntlets that martial artists typically wore as standard, he had wrapped bandages around them.
“Hey, Kang Ju-hyuk.”
“Ooh! You’re finally here! Why are you so late? Shouldn’t the senior arrive first and wait, not the junior!”
“Senior, nothing. Sorry for being late. I was just going to collect my quest reward, but a linked quest came up.”
“A linked quest?”
“I told you I received a quest from the Guild Master. That one.”
“Wow, I’ve never even seen the Guild Master once, and you’ve seen him multiple times? You monster.”
As expected.
My suspicion was correct—it really was Kang Ju-hyuk.
Well, since this is a game and not reality, I should call him by his nickname instead…
“And don’t call people by their real names in the game! Call me Kang Ju-fist here!”
“That’s childish.”
“Childish?! A man is his fists! Strong fists! Kang Ju-fist! How cool is that?”
“You just changed one character from your real name.”
“Says the one who kept your real name as is!”
“My name sounds fitting even in a game.”
“Kang Ju-fist is cool too!”
Kang Ju-fist.
Kang Ju-hyuk, Kang Ju-fist.
It’s an absurdly simple nickname, but it’s the unique moniker he’s stubbornly insisted on using consistently since long ago.
Considering the outfit that matches the nickname, his concept is certainly solid.
“Should I buy you a meal? Want to grab something and talk?”
“I just ate some jerky. I’m already full.”
“Jerky?”
“The Guild Master gave me some drake jerky.”
“Wow, drake jerky? That’s a fitting snack for a Hunter Master. Well then, should we head straight to the training grounds? Let me teach you a thing or two!”
“Sounds good.”
No point in wasting time.
Even though we’re meeting for the first time in the game, we already know each other, so there’s no need for further pleasantries.
Second Crown doesn’t have much time left anyway, so there’s no point in wasting each other’s time, is there?
Since I still wasn’t familiar with Labelt’s geography, I followed behind Kang Ju-hyuk.
“Oh, want me to tell you about Second Crown on the way? Any questions?”
“I did look up the basic information from the notice that came out this time and the league information from last year. Got any insider tips?”
“Insider tips? Is there even anything worth calling a tip? If I had to say something, just stay at the upper limit of the level range eligible for the league?”
“That’s not something I can do right now.”
“There’s probably nothing you can do right now anyway? Honestly, the fact that you’re already level 150 and participating in the league doesn’t even make sense.”
“And here I thought you’d have at least one tip.”
“But I’m still your senior!”
By the time we finished chatting, we’d arrived at our destination in no time.
The place Kang Ju-hyuk brought me to was none other than.
[ Labelt Duel Arena ]
“Here it is!”
“It’s bigger than I expected.”
“It’s Labelt after all. You can see the Colosseum behind there, and even when it’s not Second Crown, PVP tournaments like this are held fairly often, but this is the only place worth practicing properly.”
It was a duel arena.
A place that existed for exactly what its name suggested—duels between players.
As I drew closer, the crowd was no joke.
The entrance queue stretched down the street like a serpent.
“Is it always this crowded?”
“No? Normally it’s not this bad, but everyone’s preparing for Second Crown, so that’s why.”
“Can you practice alone?”
“Of course. You can practice against simple dummies, or you can choose someone from among the people who came to the arena or duel randomly.”
“Oh, that’s pretty nice.”
“What else would be the flower of a game if not PVP? They hold tournaments, so they should have facilities like this.”
Fortunately, the line moved quickly.
I was wondering how they managed to accommodate all these people when the arena must have had a capacity limit.
“Would you come this way?”
“Yes.”
“Once you step onto the magic circle, you’ll be transported to a private space. When you’re ready, I’ll begin the transfer.”
Once I stepped inside, I could understand immediately.
The arena’s facilities weren’t physical structures.
Of course, physical facilities were constructed quite well too, but what mattered more was the magic circle installed inside.
“Don’t be nervous and just stand there. They create a magical space for duels or practice and transport you there? Something like that anyway. I don’t understand the magical principles myself.”
The arena used these magic circles to transport players into magical spaces.
Thanks to this method, they could accommodate players beyond physical limitations.
“Beginning the transfer now~”
Right after the Tower Guide’s voice reached my ears.
A brilliant light burst from the magic circle, engulfing my vision.
And moments later.
As my vision cleared, I found myself in a new location.
“Is this a practice space?”
“Pretty convincing, right?”
It was an indoor space.
An interior that matched perfectly with the architectural style of the Duel Arena I’d seen from outside.
If not for the magic circle, I might have thought I’d simply walked into an ordinary building without realizing it.
So this was a magical space.
Once again, I couldn’t help but marvel at Second’s practicality.
“I’ve set it up as a two-person duel arena for now. If you need individual practice, I can switch it to a solo training ground, or I can match you with other players—just say the word.”
“Is there any need for that?”
“I suppose not.”
“The duel arena has a level-matching function, right?”
“It does. But it’s not perfect. Even if levels are lowered and item performance is adjusted, differences in skills, Achievements, and elixirs consumed are unavoidable. Is that still okay?”
“Doesn’t matter.”
Kang Ju-hyuk—or rather, Kang Ju-mok—might have more skills than me.
But honestly, in terms of skill grades, I’m several steps ahead without question.
Not to mention All Master’s passive skill, the skills I just obtained like ‘Black Insect First Flash’ and ‘Black Sand Flowing Shadow’ are all incredibly high-grade abilities.
Even though I haven’t been playing long, I’ve already accumulated quite a few Achievements.
As for elixirs consumed, I probably have more than he does, honestly.
While I was thinking this, he opened the system and manipulated something.
[ Player ‘Mir’s level is being adjusted to 200. ]
[ Player ‘Kang Ju-mok’s level is being adjusted to 200. ]
Our levels had been adjusted.
“Now, show me the power of a senior!”
“Even with levels equal, you think you can win?”
“Of course! Even with equal levels, there’s such a thing as Second experience, you know?”
“If I count First too, my experience is several times higher.”
“In Second, only Second experience counts!”
And then.
[ The duel between player ‘Mir’ and ‘Kang Ju-mok’ is beginning. ]
The duel had started.
Since he was being so full of himself about being a senior and offering to go easy on me, I took the first move as he desired.
“Luke.”
– Yes, Master.
The first weapon I drew to face him was.
[ Sharp Fine Rain ]
( Non-tradeable )
Form: Bow
Grade: Heroic
A Heroic-grade bow.
I pulled out the quiver I’d prepared and slung it around my waist, then loaded an arrow into the Sharp Drizzle.
Whoosh!
I fired.
“What? You’re an archer?!”
Kang Ju-hyuk flinched in surprise, dodging the arrow.
But this was only the beginning.
The Sharp Drizzle was a rapid-fire bow designed for successive shots.
Whoosh-whoosh!!
Arrows flew in rapid succession.
The item’s performance was excellent, and with my All Mastery+ applied, the bow’s rate of fire increased even further.
Even so, rapid-fire bows like this had the disadvantage of lower attack power.
“Ugh!”
Kang Ju-hyuk’s class was Brawler.
Moreover, he was wearing equipment as light as possible.
In such a state, even these short arrows felt inevitably lethal.
He dashed at high speed, evading the arrows.
However, he seemed to realize he couldn’t just keep dodging like this.
“You think I can’t break through this?!”
True to his Brawler nature, he rushed toward me with rapid movements.
– Kang Ju-hyuk uses the skill Parry.
With that, he deflected the arrows I fired using his Brawler skills.
He couldn’t block every arrow, but he parried as many as possible and redirected the ones he couldn’t block to areas that would take minimal damage.
I continued firing arrows while backing away, but naturally, his charge was faster than my retreat.
“Why’d you pick an archer?! Do you know how disadvantageous archers are in duels?! Let me show you why, junior!”
He rapidly closed the distance and raised his fist.
Wind swirled around his fist as a Brawler would, and he seemed about to unleash a powerful attack.
[ Lake’s Spear ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Form: Spear
Grade: Heroic
I naturally dropped the short bow, and a new weapon materialized in my hand.
A spear with a blade that gleamed brilliantly like a lake.
“What, what?! Weren’t you an archer?”
He panicked and twisted his body to evade the thrust.
Thud!
“Gasp!”
Instead of thrusting, I rotated the spear shaft and struck his ribs hard.
Then I immediately created distance again and fired arrows.
When he approached, I drew the spear again to attack and maintain distance.
‘For short-range classes like Brawlers, this is their biggest problem.’
I’m not accustomed to dueling other users.
But I’ve faced far more monsters that are similar to users—no, stronger and more skilled than users.
Monsters aren’t just beasts; there are plenty of humanoid enemies like bandits, and I’ve recently fought skeletal and zombie-like creatures with human forms.
Having defeated so many monsters, it made no difference whether my opponent was a user or not.
“Argh! You cowardly bastard!”
“Cowardly? You’re just ignorant.”
Like rain gradually soaking through cloth.
He seemed to be dodging vital points somehow, but as the battle dragged on, my arrows and spear strikes kept landing, whittling his health down to less than half.
Realizing this approach wouldn’t work, he suddenly shifted his gaze with renewed determination.
He batted away my arrows and rushed forward, then delayed his movement by half a beat to evade my spear swing.
Immediately after.
– Kang Ju-hyuk uses the skill ‘Shoulder Tackle’.
He rapidly closed the distance between us.
I managed to dodge the tackle itself by stepping back, but this brought me within his attack range.
“Now it’s my turn!”
The moment he threw his fist.
[ Knight’s Plate Armor ]
Black flames engulfed me as my equipment swapped.
Thud-thud-thud!
His fists hammered repeatedly against my chest.
“What?!”
But the damage I took was minimal.
Seeing his panic, I graciously explained the brawler’s weaknesses to him.
“A brawler’s first weakness is short reach, and the second weakness is precisely this.”
With that, I drew a weapon usable even at close quarters.
Long blades shaped like beast claws slipped between my fingers.
[ Raven’s Grudge Talons ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type: Claw
Rarity: Rare
“Lacking a weapon or having weak weapon attack power means your single strike damage is pathetic.”
“Damn it!”
Slash!
“Gah!”
Three deep claw marks raked across Kang Ju-hyuk’s chest, and our first battle came to an end.

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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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