“There are only three conditions.” 

The six Team Leaders listened closely. 

“First. The representative will be affiliated with the Association so as not to be biased toward any particular Guild.”

“Second, the participating Guilds will be dispatched to areas on the 2nd floor where they have a high amount of influence and are able to gather an adequate amount of information.”

“Third, the participating Guilds will hand over the full extent of information that Specter requests without concealing anything.”

That was it for Specter’s conditions. The rest would be rewards for being compliant. 

“Once Specter receives the information that he requests, he will publicly acknowledge the affiliated Guild’s contribution.”

The Team Leaders fell deep into thought as they listened. 

‘The contract isn’t complicated.’

‘Specter is saying that he will give us legitimacy…’

‘...In exchange for information.’ 

‘He’s too good at this. He’s experienced.‘

They were silent. They had finally realized what Specter was doing. In last night’s press conference, he had heavily criticized the Players and Guilds. It had only been a day, but most people already agreed with him. 

‘People are mad at the Guilds for keeping their bellies full instead of keeping the fiends in check.’

‘Once a controversy like this begins, it goes on for a while.‘

‘And the Big 6 will be affected the most as a symbol of the Guilds.’ 

‘He planted the poison and is now offering us the antidote… In the end, he’s the one that’ll profit the most.‘

Specter’s perfect plan gave them goosebumps. If one Guild refused his offer, they would be the only one with a negative image. But with their constant state of competition, they wouldn’t let that happen. 

‘Damn. I thought that Specter was naive like Kim Woo-Joong…’

‘He’s good at this. Considering his level of skill and influence… He’s dangerous.’ 

The Team Leaders all made the same decision. 

“I’m sorry. I don’t think that this is something that we can decide on our own.”

“We’ll need to discuss this with the Guildmaster.”

“I understand.” Seo Jun-Ho nodded. This wasn’t something that a mere Team Leader could sign off on. “I look forward to your responses. I have another appointment, so I’ll take my leave.”

The Team Leaders could do nothing but watch as he casually strutted out of the conference room. When he left, Heo Junsu let out a long sigh. 

“So much for all our plans.”[1]

“As long as Specter keeps Seo Jun-Ho as his representative, no one can recruit him.”

“...Does that mean that Seo Jun-Ho has as much potential as one of the 5 Heroes?”

“With the way things are unfolding, it’s possible.”

“We already know that Specter-nim has a good eye for people.”

“The gunslinger, you mean?”

It was a famous story. Gilberto Green only had D-rank skills.[2]While others brushed him aside, Specter was the only one that had seen his potential. This was why Seo Jun-Ho had piqued their interest even more.

“I want him even more now, knowing that Specter has acknowledged him…” Kiora muttered, her eyes sparkling. Gong Ju-Ha snorted. 

“There’s no use talking like that. He has rejected all of us.”

“.....”

No one could deny that. 

***

“Mr. Snake Head!”

“Mr. Snake Headdd!” 

Seo Jun-Ho stopped and turned around. It was a voice he had heard often in Las Vegas. 

“Team Leader Gong?”

“It’s been a while, ehe.” She seemed a little embarrassed, but she congratulated him first. “You acted really cool when we parted ways… But this isn’t how I expected us to meet again.”

“You’re right. Didn’t we agree to meet on the 2nd floor?”

“Yes, but I didn’t know you’d accomplish something so amazing. I bet you’ve been getting a lot of love calls from Guilds.”

“Well, yes.” As soon as the news of him breaking the Cave of Trial’s records spread, he started to receive tons of calls. 

‘I didn’t even know that there were that many Guilds.’ 

Thanks to that, Cha Si-Eun had gotten a lot busier. He instructed her to reject all offers from Guilds that weren’t part of the Big 6. 

“I’ve been quite busy lately because of it.”

“Wow, I see.” Gong Ju-Ha stared at him expectantly. 

Mistaking her gaze for something else, Seo Jun-Ho hastily stopped her. 

“If you’re expecting special treatment because of our personal relationship…”

“Ah, no! It’s not like that! I wouldn’t want it even if you offered!” She quickly shook her head and cleared her throat loudly. “...I was just wondering if you’re close to Specter-nim.”

“Close? It’s just a business relationship.”

“Have you met him in person?”

“You saw him yesterday, didn’t you?”

“Not like that, I’m asking if you’ve met him privately.” 

Seo Jun-Ho thought for a moment. He saw him every day in the mirror when he brushed his teeth and washed his face, so he supposed he did see him a lot. 

“Yes, I have.”

“Then…” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a book. “By any chance, can you get his autograph for me the next time you see him?” She looked like a puppy wagging its tail, begging to be fed. He couldn’t refuse. 

“...I’ll ask him..”

“Really?! Okay!” Her face brightened as she gave a very detailed request. “Please tell him to write ‘To my precious fan Ju-Ha.’ With a heart, if possible.”

“Do you think he’d do something so cringey?”

“It’s not like you’re the one that’s writing it! But if Specter-nim doesn’t want to, it can’t be helped…” She wilted a bit. 

Seo Jun-Ho scratched his head. “I’ll ask. He… Well, I suppose it will depend on how he feels that day.”

“Yes yes, I’m counting on you.” With her mission complete, she started to study Seo Jun-Ho. “You’ve grown a lot in the last two months that it’s scary, Mr. Snake Head.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I feel terrible that I couldn’t recruit you back then.”

“I think it's a little too early to say that…”

“It’s a compliment. You haven’t forgotten our bet, have you?”

“I still have four months left. I’ll go up to the 2nd floor within that time.”

“I’ll give you a present in exchange for the autograph then.” She waved and started down the opposite direction of the hallway. “I’m counting on you for the autograph! Tell him I’ll make it my family heirloom!”

“...You like him that much?” Seo Jun-Ho looked down at the book that she gave him and chuckled. 

[Great Figures of Korea - Specter]

“She really is obsessed.”

The book had been published 26 years ago when he was still active as Specter. 

***

Seo Jun-Ho arrived at the training room and changed into light workout clothes. Before he began, he checked his status window as he stretched. 

[Seo Jun-Ho]

Level: 29

Title: Bringer of Spring (2 more)

Strength: 96         Stamina: 112

Agility: 100           Magic: 143

He had a total of three titles including Helper of Ascension and Limit Breaker. The status window only displayed the first one to make it easier to read. 

‘And if I equip Black Armor on top of all this…’  

His stats would be insanely high. He even wondered if he could match the stats from when he was level 60 with his current level. 

‘But even if it gets that high…’ 

He still wouldn’t be the unstoppable force he was in the past. 

This was just the beginning. 

Once he reached the 2nd floor, Seo Jun-Ho would truly become a rookie. That was why he was using his fame to use the Big 6’s resources to gather information. 

‘I’m investing in the Association, but we’ll need time to increase their influence and ability to gather information.’ 

It was already publicly known that humanity had dominated up to the 2nd floor. But that didn’t mean that every nook and cranny of the 2nd floor had been explored. 

‘I heard that there are a lot of uncovered areas.’ 

And the Players who had been to the 3rd floor were only a minority. Just as the 2nd floor required you to reach level 30, the 3rd floor had its own requirements. 

‘Until the Association creates a better information network, I’ll use the Big 6 to help them grow.’ 

He didn’t feel guilty for using them. It wasn’t like he was using them for free. In addition, he wasn’t someone who would give them a bad image. 

“Now, then…” He pulled on the gloves that were in the corner of the training room. It was the same item he had used while taking the licensure examination, and it let him touch holograms. “Is this how you use it?” 

He connected to the training room’s system and pressed a few buttons. A human-shaped sandbag hologram appeared in the center of the room. 

“Let’s see…” Seo Jun-Ho landed a straight punch without magic. 

Bang!

The impact reverberated, and the sandbag turned red. To the left of where the head should be, words appeared right away.

[Congratulations! 9,523 points!]

[An outstanding destructive force!!]

“This reminds me of the punch machines they used to have in old arcades.”

He slowly unraveled his magic, his arms overflowed with power. 

“Hup!”

His fist struck the head again with a violent force. 

Boom! 

The sound was much louder than before, and the numbers rose. 

[Congratulations! 101,518 points!]

[A score that’s unattainable without magic! You’re a Player, aren’t you?]

“Phew…” Seo Jun-Ho let his magic scatter when he saw the score. The punch was more than 10 times more destructive than before. This was the technique he had been using this whole time. He would charge his strikes with magic at certain moments. It allocated magic to a very fine degree, so it was a magic-efficient technique. He often used this technique back then as Specter, when he didn’t have as much magic as he had now.

‘But there’s a downside to it.’ 

There was a slight delay when he summoned his magic, and it wasn’t as powerful. 

‘It’s a given. I made the technique to optimize the use of my limited magic.’ 

So he created another technique to make up for its weaknesses. 

‘Skaya helped me a lot with it.’ 

They had put their heads together. It was a useless skill if you lacked control, focus, or mental willpower. 

‘Booster.’ 

His circuits started to burn like wildfire, circulating throughout his body at high speed. 

One lap, two, three…

His magic didn’t know how to stop. It kept going. 

“Keuk…” Seo Jun-Ho groaned. His body temperature rose, and he started to drip cold sweat. His magic was circulating 13 times faster than usual. This was why he needed fine control, focus, and mental willpower. 

‘The only downside to this skill is that it consumes a lot of magic…’ 

And it made you hot. It would've been a flawless support skill if it weren’t for those two things. In addition, it only served a single purpose—to strengthen the entire body. 

When Seo Jun-Ho used this technique, he became a superhuman. No enemy had ever defeated him in this state. 

“Well, it’s been 25 years since then, so there are probably a lot of people now who can use a similar technique.”

His body overflowed with power. Seo Jun-Ho tapped on the settings and summoned a full-body mirror. Vigor spilled from his body, and his eyes sparkled like stars. 

‘I’ll have to be careful when using this.’ 

The person in the mirror was no longer the simple-minded Seo Jun-Ho he had been masquerading as. He had become a dangerous, powerful man. 

Seo Jun-Ho turned to the hologram sandbag. “I wonder how high the score will be this time.”

His body flew forward like a ray of light, and his fist made the head explode. The entire quality of the sound was different. It was like the roar of a bomb. 

“...” 

Seo Jun-Ho's lip curled when he read the words that appeared. 

[Congratulations! 215,748 points!]

[Are you a Ranker in the Frontier?]

In his Booster state, his magic output shot up. Although he had used the same amount of magic as the earlier punch, the destructive force was twice as powerful. 

Of course, the aftermath was also strong. 

“Ack, I won’t be able to use this for long.” Seo Jun-Ho quickly released his magic before his body became even hotter. In the blink of an eye, his body had become as hot as a computer that had been running for a long time without a proper cooler.

‘I think it’ll take about… One week to tame this technique.’ 

“If I can pull in the reins of Booster, I’ll go to the Winter Castle.”

And if things went as expected, it would be the last Gate he would clear on the 1st floor. 

1. The Korean idiom used here was 닭 쫓던 개가 지붕 쳐다본다 which is directly translated to being in the same position as a dog chasing a chicken. It is an idiom in which a dog chases a chicken and just as the dog’s about to catch it, the chicken flies up to the roof and the dog’s left staring at his escaped prey. All the hard work and nothing coming out of it. ☜

2. It may be a single skill. It’s not clarified. ☜