ACT 5 Save Nagaran’s Restoration Funds

It had taken 10 days to prevent Alan’s plan. He had invested a tremendous amount of time, money and effort into Silvana.

Hyun-woo disappeared into his room and barely slept as he tried to save Silvana. Therefore Hyun-woo only slept an average of two hours for 10 days. All his tension was released after the h.e.l.l River was sealed and he slept like the dead. But his sleep wasn’t comfortable.

“Waaaaahhhhh!”

“Fight. Do whatever it takes to save Nagaran!”

Kwa kwa kwa kw.a.n.g, kwa kwa kwa kw.a.n.g!

The intense battle situations which caused him a lot of stress replayed over and over in Hyun-woo’s head while he was sleeping. Screams and the sound of metal clashing had been ringing in his ears nonstop for the last 10 days. How long did he sleep?

Diririri, diririri.

He finally stirred as the shouts changed to a familiar ringing sound. Hyun-woo who was wandering the land of dreams heard the sound of the phone ringing.

“Ohhhh, what b.a.s.t.a.r.d…..? I don’t know, I don’t know. I don’t care even if the world is going to be destroyed today!”

Hyun-woo who had fallen asleep within the unit angrily snapped. The phone disconnected after a short time. But the moment Hyun-woo tried to sleep again, the phone once again began to noisily ring.

“Dammit!”

Eventually Hyun-woo cursed and got up. And he picked up the phone.

“Oh, Hyun-woo?”

“Jjak-tung hyung?”

“Yes, it’s me.”

“Why do you keep on calling in the morning?”

“What are you saying? This is the first time…… Were you sleeping?”

“…… I was sleeping. Hyung-nim woke me up before. I’m going to hang up and go back to sleep.”

Hyun-woo declared with a 120% petulant voice. Then Jjak-tung said.

“You can sleep later. The internet has been overturned!”

“Why should I care that the internet has been overturned?”

“Of course you should care! You are the culprit.”

“What are you saying out of nowhere? What did I do?”

“There’s no need to worry. Just connect to the internet immediately and search for the name Ark. Then you’ll know.”

Hyun-woo frowned and scratched his head after hearing Jjak-tung’s words. Hyun-woo had just woken up and he was still tired so he couldn’t understand what Jjak-tung was saying. But something must’ve happened judging from Jjak-tung’s excitement. Hyun-woo turned on his computer and accessed the internet. And he typed in ‘Ark’ in the search engine. Hyun-woo looked at his monitor with an astonished expression before stuttering.

“W-what is this?”

“Are you wondering what is going on? Everybody is talking about you!”

“Oh my G.o.d…..”

Hyun-woo moaned as he finally realized the situation. Hyun-woo was shocked by the contents of his computer screen. There were 14,680 results when he searched for ‘Ark’. The hero who saved Nagaran from 100,000 demons! Shortly after the battle of Nagaran finished, Hyun-woo quickly became famous. Previously Hyun-woo had used a different name when doing anything on a large scale. Yet the number of Nagaran’s allied forces who partic.i.p.ated in the battle was 60,000. In other words, 60,000 users had entered the battle with Hyun-woo and the 60,000 started talking about their experiences. And the story became a little…..no, a huge exaggeration.

-…….Ark directly commanded the troops and stopped the demons’ attacks. In fact, more than half the rumours about Ark had been inflated. It was to the extent that it made him feel lacking. Ark-nim treated the demons lightly and always fearlessly plunged behind enemy lines……

(Fact: It was to pick up the loot that Radun couldn’t.)

-…… Ark-nim grasped my hand and said. ‘If we give up here then we’re just soldiers. If we don’t give up then we’re heroes.’ After listening to his words, an incredible power rose in my body……

(Fact: don’t be mistaken. The power was just the effect from Nursing.)

-……We advanced all the way to Silvana but I almost gave up after hearing that they had already invaded deep into the secret dungeon. But Ark-nim carried out a complex operation using his summons and managed to transport us to the 60th floor of the secret dungeon. I had goose b.u.mps after listening to the explanation of the operation. And managing to stop 10,000 troops with just 2,000……

(This was true but the description of the battle made it seem like a hero movie.)

……..Anyway, Hyun-woo was a hero on the internet. In fact, if it was just this level then it would’ve been good. Hyun-woo’s face turned red as there were a few sentences he couldn’t bear to read at all. There were thousands of different types of posts flying around the internet. Ark’s fighting is so intense that one slap on the cheek from him would be enough to slap the life back in someone, his strategy is so good that it would pull the moustache of Zhuge Liang, he is willing to risk his life for his colleagues, etc…..

“What on earth? This Ark?”

Hyun-woo asked as he read the posts.

“Hehehe, I don’t understand either. Anyway, you’re a star! A star!”

Jjak-tung giggled and said. He fell asleep completely normally and when he woke up, he was a ‘star. It was only 11 a.m. when he checked the clock. Hyun-woo had sealed the h.e.l.l River at 3 a.m. so it was 7 hours since he pa.s.sed out. 14,680 posts had been published during that 7 hours. He couldn’t imagine how many more posts would appear. When it was to this extent, there were no users in New World who wouldn’t know Ark’s name. Just like in the past, people also knew the name of famous pro Starcraft gamers.

‘f.u.c.k!’

That was the first word that surfaced in Hyun-woo’s mind. Once again, Hyun-woo didn’t like drawing the attention of so many people. There were a number of reasons but the biggest one was that he would keep on being interrupted in the game. If he was famous then a lot of eyes and ears would concentrate on him. Then a lot of people would approach him in the game and waste his time. It would be a huge inconvenience for Hyun-woo. If that happened then it would be difficult to engage in business comfortable like he was now. If Hyun-woo slipped even just a little bit then it would become gossip on the internet. But was that all? He would soon become the target of jealousy and envy. While the impact of the Nagaran battle was huge right now and Hyun-woo was treated as a hero, there was no guarantee how long that would last. And people would start criticizing the hero for various actions taken. Didn’t Alan also walk that that dismal road?

‘It is best to be inconspicuous.’

That was Hyun-woo’s ideal game style. It was why Hyun-woo always broadcasted videos as Dark Wolf. But this time Dark Wolf wasn’t the one who saved Silvana. He had revealed to the 60,000 allied forces that Silvana’s Lord and Dark Wolf was the same person so Ark’s existence was revealed to the world.

‘d.a.m.n, I was too worried about Silvana that I didn’t pay any attention to this part.’

However, there was no way to stop it from happening. If he didn’t want to be slandered on the internet then he would have to act as a ‘good guy’ from now on. If he made even the smallest mistake then he might be labelled as a public enemy. And become a public enemy would make it difficult to play the game normally. He had to avoid that situation at all costs! Once again, Hyun-woo earned a considerable amount of his livelihood from New World.

‘I should’ve thought about this part before I gathered the Nagaran allied forces!’

Hyun-woo belatedly regretted his actions.

Diririri, diririri.

The phone rang again as soon as Jjak-tung hung up. The voice of a middle aged man was heard when he picked up the phone.

“Ark-nim, you’ve finally picked up.”

“Who…..?”

“I am the PD of the game exclusive news, Lee Yun-gyu!”

Hyun-woo looked doubtful as he heard the words. If it was the PD of the game exclusive news then of course he knew him.

After defending Lancel village against Jewel’s group, he had signed an exclusive contract with him for Hyun-woo’s videos. Hyun-woo was confused because the contract had already ended a while ago after sending 8 videos.

“I called you because I wanted to renegotiate the contract.”

“Renegotiate?”

“Yes, the edited videos that Ark-nim sent to the game exclusive news has been received quite well. Thanks to a lot of requests, the broadcasting station has decided to organize a ‘Dark Wolf’s Adventures season 2’.”

“Dark Wolf Adventures season 2?”

Hyun-woo’s eyes shone at Lee Yun-gyu’s words. He meant there was another chance for Hyun-woo to sell his videos to the broadcasting station? Hyun-woo’s previous contract gave him a copyright fee of 2.5 million won. In the past two months, he had secured a fixed income of 25 million won for 10 videos. With the name Ark now well known, he had been worrying about how to earn money in the future. But now the station called asking to renew the contract? His mind was still dull and sleepy. Yet Hyun-woo had to organize his thoughts as soon as he woke up.

“The reaction to the previous videos was quite good so I will give a copyright fee of 3 million won per video this time. The video of Nagaran’s defense will also have a special broadcast. The copyright fee for that video will be a separate 10 million won. Global Exos has already a.s.sented so we just need Ark-nim’s agreement for the contract.”

Lee Yun-gyu hurriedly said. Hyun-woo’s mouth dropped open. 3 million won for 10 videos would be 30 million won!

And the video of Nagaran’s defense was 10 million won! If he simply sent in videos then he could earn 40 million won in two months.

‘What kind of luck is this?’

Hyun-woo was about to give the OK sign without thinking. Then Hyun-woo realized that something was strange.

‘We’re the ratings of ‘Dark Wolf’s Adventures’ really that good?’

Hyun-woo never heard those words during the two months it was broadcasted. To be exact, Dark Wolf’s Adventure was like a bungle for the game exclusive news. The game exclusive news had spent 2 weeks collected and putting together the videos Hyun-woo sent. But by the time it was broadcasted, the Demonic War had begun. So the interest of the audience was concentrated on the demonic war. Of course, Hyun-woo also entered the Demonic War but there were thousands of videos about it so Hyun-woo’s videos weren’t that interesting. There was only a surge in ratings when Hyun-woo released the video related to information about the h.e.l.l River from Shangri-La.

‘Yet they’re planning season 2 and will even give an extra 500,000 won as a copyright fee?’

After thinking about it, questions would naturally rise. The broadcasting station wouldn’t do that without a good reason.

‘Something is fishy……?’

Hyun-woo was immersed in his thoughts until the image of the computer screen floated in his head. He had gained 14,680 posts in just 7 hours!

‘Yes, that’s what it is.’

Hyun-woo was beginning to wake up and started to understand the circ.u.mstances. That’s right. He didn’t know what would happen later but Ark’s fame in New World was currently at its peak! Thanks to 60,000 people spreading the words on the internet, there wouldn’t be anyone in New World who didn’t know Ark’s name. And the place that would be most responsive to that interest is the broadcasting station! Hyun-woo started to understand why the broadcasting station was offering a higher copyright fee. Of course, there were 60,000 people who entered the battle to defend Nagaran. There would also be a lot of related videos.  But Hyun-woo was the commander of the battlefield so his videos would naturally be different. The audience rating would explode even if there was only one advertis.e.m.e.nt stating that ‘Ark took the video directly.’ That’s why the station wanted to produce Dark Wolf’s Adventures season 2.

‘That’s right. Then the phone that rang before Jjak-tung hyung……’

The broadcasting station must’ve been the one calling. They were calling without any breaks to prevent other broadcasting stations from reaching him first. Hyun-woo completely woke up and thoughts began to turn over in his head.

‘Then that changes things.’

That’s right. If the broadcasting station were desperate to buy the video from Hyun-woo then the situation would change by 180 degrees. There was no reason for Hyun-woo to contract with the game exclusive news.

‘But won’t I make a lot of profit if I contract with the game exclusive news?’

There was a reason Hyun-woo should contract with the game exclusive news. The game exclusive news was known as the broadcasting program that supported Dark Wolf completely. If Hyun-woo became a hero and then suddenly went to another broadcasting station then the audience would treat him coldly. That was why the game exclusive news impatiently tried to call him. It was in order to defend the image of the station and prevent other stations from getting their hands on the videos. Hyun-woo was the valuable thing. Then it would be easy to maximize his profits. This chance might never come again. If the users’ admiration changed to jealousy then they might not watch Hyun-woo’s videos that were being broadcasted. Then it was better to raise it as much as possible while he could!

“Let’s see? The offer is appreciated but I’m quite busy these days so it is hard to give a definite answer.”

Hyun-woo tried a little fishing (?).

“Have you already been contacted by another broadcasting station?”

“Huh? No, t-that’s not……”

Hyun-woo deliberately stuttered. Lee Yun-gyu immediately grabbed the bait.

“I understand. Can you wait a moment without hanging up?”

Lee Yun-gyu put the phone on standby and disappeared somewhere. After being on hold for 3~4 minutes, he once again heard Lee Yun-gyu’s voice.

“I just consulted with the broadcasting station chief. We will pay 15 million won for the Nagaran defense video. And Dark Wolf’s Adventures season 2 will be a 10 part video, each 10 minutes long. We will pay 4 million won for each video. No other broadcasting station will offer a higher price. How about it?”

Hyun-woo felt his heart jump after hearing Lee Yun-gyu’s words.

‘1 video for 15 million won and 10 x 4 million is 40 million won. That is a total of 55 million won!’

The first amount that the game exclusive news offered was 40 million won. If he hadn’t received Jjak-tung’s call first then he wouldn’t have realized the situation and would’ve lost 15 million won.

‘What? I might’ve settled for 40 million won?’

He felt furious just thinking about it. And this was a long-awaited change to raise the price a bit more. But Hyun-woo soon shook his head. It was clear that Lee Yun-gyu already had a grasp on how much the other broadcasting stations would offer. Then 55 million won was the highest amount the game exclusive news would give. When taken into account the other broadcasting stations, the game exclusive news offered the highest copyright fees of all the stations. If he became even greedier and refused the price for the video then he might have to accept a lesser price from other broadcasting stations. When engaging in business, he had to know when to push and when to back off.

“I understand. I’ll accept that price. Do I have to go to the broadcasting station?”

“The recorded contents of this call will be the contract agreement for now. You can come to the broadcasting station whenever it is convenient to sign the written contract.”

“Yes.”

Hyun-woo calmly hung up the call while inwardly he was jumping with excitement.

‘Having my fame soar isn’t that bad. No, in the meantime I have only been thinking that it wasn’t good. If I’m the focus of the players then it wouldn’t be as easy to trade as before. But there is also a way to trade using my fame.’

Hyun-woo looked at this situation in a new light after talking to the game exclusive news. Therefore he woke up and connected to New World with an excited feeling.

———————————————————————————————————-

“Hah……”

A sigh naturally emerged from Ark’s mouth. Ark was the hero who organized an unprecedented scale of allied forces and defeated 100,000 demons!

Thanks to his accomplishments in New World, Ark managed to get fame and wealth at the same time in reality. However, when he entered New World a gloomy reality awaited him.

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