WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Natty
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Seven-Time Hero Goes Live ◈
Chapter 17: Mana Punch (2)
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Potential Rank affected not only growth rates and experience efficiency, but also Class selection.
A quick look at the community posts made that clear.
[I’m D-rank and it says I’m an archer. Do I seriously have to shoot a bow? I can’t shoot for shit.]
[What kind of Class is this for E-rank? A farmer? What am I supposed to do with that?]
[Do mage classes start at C-rank??]
The Classes available differed by Rank.
‘There’s Class discrimination by Rank?’
The difference was obvious enough for even Jun-il, who did not have a Class, to notice.
E-ranks were mostly production classes.
They were not combat professions in the first place.
‘How do they level up?’
They did not level up through combat, but through production activities.
[Pro tip: I’m a farmer, and planting some weird seeds gave me experience.]
[Do blacksmiths level by fixing people’s weapons? No, they need to tell us what we’re supposed to do first, fuck.]
In some ways, they were better off than combat classes when it came to survival.
[I wanted a mage class, damn it. I have blind dates coming up, so why the hell is my Class Tanner? lol]
The downside was that it could be a little embarrassing.
‘Tanner is a bit...’
But the truly awkward Rank was D.
Swordsmen, archers, rogues, and the like.
Were they not the lowest-quality combat Classes?
They faced the most danger while being the weakest.
C-ranks, on the other hand, started seeing occasional magic-using professions.
They were divided into Classes like Flame Mage, Frost Mage, and Earth Mage.
These magic combat Classes were currently treated the best.
They fought from the rear and had plenty of firepower.
‘So that’s why those big guys were bragging about being C+ mage classes.’
Things got even better at B-rank.
Spellswords who wielded swords and magical power, Tricksters who used magical power as rogues, Elementalists who had mastered every element, Summoners, Druids, and more.
They were rare, unusual professions at a glance.
As Jun-il looked down at the goblins, he thought:
‘Then there must be Dark Mage types too.’
Of course there were Dark Mages.
Once he assumed that, Jun-il could understand the cause of this situation.
Why the goblins kept gathering in one spot, and why they were not actually breaking into the house.
‘They’re drawing out the Awakeners.’
This was bait.
They were trying to lure Awakeners out.
‘Is the goal to kill Awakeners?’
Awakeners did not only fight monsters, after all.
Farmers leveled up by farming, and blacksmiths by repairing weapons.
‘What about Dark Mages?’
Maybe they leveled up by consuming other Awakeners.
Black magic required someone’s sacrifice.
That was why it was taboo.
‘If that’s the case...’
Jun-il deliberately muttered out loud.
“No matter how I look at it, the goblins are gathering around that guy on the roof... It’s strange.”
-?
-Is it?
-He’s drawing the most aggro, that’s all.
-Aren’t they gathered there because they’re trying to get him?
-Legendary wrong conclusion. What are you doing up there?
-Go down and help already.
The Constellations had no idea what was going on.
‘These guys really don’t know.’
There could not be too wide a gap in understanding between Jun-il and the Constellations.
How shocked would they be if he suddenly slit that man’s throat?
‘I should lay more groundwork.’
That was why Jun-il was setting things up first.
So they would wonder who the man calling for help from the rooftop really was.
“Doesn’t this look like a lure?”
Jun-il tilted his head once, then kicked off the ground.
Bang!
His body shot through the wind like an arrow.
-A lure??
-Your delusions are getting bad.
-Come on, lol.
-What would he be luring people for?
-It kind of does look like it. He did make that post...
* * *
The man on the roof sensed something cutting through the wind.
“!?”
Tremendous speed. An overwhelming presence.
‘What the hell?’
Thud!
Before he could even process it, his opponent had landed behind him.
Shiver...
Goosebumps spread across his skin.
‘What is this?’
He had felt it instinctively.
That speed he had just witnessed, and the vibration that had spread through the rooftop’s concrete floor upon landing.
‘A mask?’
And that bizarre black cat mask, paired with the look of a veteran player.
‘He’s strong.’
This was someone strong.
‘Good. Someone strong.’
A broad grin spread across the man’s face.
“You came to save me! Are you S-rank!?”
The man smacked his lips as though asking a butcher about the grade of Korean beef.
Jun-il answered.
“Hey. Dark Mage.”
“?”
He had no intention of being eaten.
* * *
Ram was wildly excited at Yulian’s sudden appearance.
“When did this bastard get here!?”
Fairies were different from Constellations.
They could not watch every place at every moment.
They had lost track of Jun-il’s movements for a while, and before they knew it, he had entered the same space as their protagonist.
No, it was worse than that.
“That’s Kang Hae-il’s job! Damn it!”
He had stolen the role meant for the protagonist.
Ram’s wings trembled with rage.
“Calm down, Ram.”
Sam soothed her from beside her.
“That guy can never win.”
“...Really?”
Ram was only the planner.
Sam handled the actual work.
Sam knew every detail of the setting’s combat-power data.
“Are you sure?”
“The one dispatched this time... has joined hands with a demon. An F-rank like that cannot even dare meet his eyes.”
“B-but...!”
“?”
Ram struck the Goblin Slayer pose.
“But he’s the Line 4 Goblin Slayer!”
This was insane. What was she doing?
Sam was dumbfounded, but he did not panic and kept shouting.
“Even the Goblin Slayer can’t beat him! He’s someone even S-rank Kang Hae-il will barely manage to defeat!”
That was right.
This man was the first formidable enemy who would give even Kang Hae-il, once he had grown into the setting’s strongest, a hard time.
He was like the boss of the first installment.
Even at B-rank, his current combat power exceeded his potential through a demon contract.
“This actually makes things easier.”
Sam pushed up his glasses and smiled.
“He’ll die on his own.”
“!”
Ram’s eyes widened.
“I see!?”
“Yes. We’ll just put a little insurance in place here.”
“Ah... Good! That’s easy!”
Clink!
Ram tossed a coin.
Making a slight difference did not cost many coins.
Hummm!
[Combat Power +7%]
[Luck +12%]
An unknown favorable energy surged into the Dark Mage.
* * *
Jun-il asked again.
“You’re a Dark Mage, right?”
The man was thrown off by Jun-il’s relaxed manner as he picked at his ear like it was obvious.
‘What’s with this guy?’
His confident eyes trembled after being identified as a Dark Mage.
‘Stay calm.’
What was wrong with being a Dark Mage?
Dark Mages always appeared in games, did they not?
Had they ever been criticized by players for that?
Never.
“I-I’m something like a Dark Mage... Is there a problem? I only asked for help.”
“Hmm... It’s not necessarily a problem. But it’s strange.”
“W-what is?”
“Black or white, mage classes are the elite among elites right now. Why are you asking for help instead of breaking through yourself?”
“...W-well, I’m a production-type Dark Mage.”
“Really?”
“Yes!”
In this world, a Class could be whatever someone called it.
Something like making witch soup could actually exist.
But even if Jun-il accepted that, it did not resolve what was strange here.
“Then why aren’t the goblins killing you?”
The goblins were only making a racket. They were not doing anything.
They were merely pretending to.
“Huh? Because they can’t climb up here.”
“They can’t climb? Goblins?”
“You must not have seen many goblins. They’re bad at climbing high places.”
“Ha ha ha?”
Jun-il laughed.
“Do you know who I am?”
“How would I know? You’re the one wearing that weird mask. You’re the real Dark Mage...”
Jun-il struck the pose he had used when filming with the girl who had been running.
“Would it help if I said I’m the Line 4 Goblin Slayer...?”
-Ugh.
-This bastard is getting way too into it, lol.
-Lmao, fuck.
-What the fuck even is this?
-L4GS viral marketing, fuck lol.
-Lmao.
-Buying eyes that haven’t seen this...
The Constellations mocked Jun-il’s behavior.
But the man was different.
His eyes shook badly.
‘T-the L4GS!?’
That famous person was this man?
‘It seems real. That pose.’
Could anyone recreate such a bizarre pose exactly, down to the smallest detail?
Unless their Class was some kind of pose specialist?!
“I-is it true?”
“Yeah.”
Jun-il nodded while holding the pose.
At that point, the man had no choice but to believe him.
“H-ha ha... The Goblin Slayer... came to help me.”
The man’s voice trembled.
But it was not fear or worry.
It was excitement.
‘Something delicious has come to me...!’
The Dark Mage’s eyes gleamed wildly.
Jun-il sneered at him.
“Help you? It’s the opposite.”
The words were meaningful, but the man did not care.
He no longer had any reason to hide his identity.
It was as good as confirming the prey’s grade.
This was 1++ Korean beef.
“The Line 4 Goblin Slayer!”
A shrill voice suddenly rang out.
“K-keuhahahahahaha?!”
The man lowered his gaze and sneered.
“You walked in here on your own! Are you insane!?”
The man continued laughing.
His mouth twisted into an unnatural grin.
“If you noticed something... you shouldn’t have come, should you?”
His raised lips reached his ears.
Riiip...
They tore all the way to his temples.
His mouth gradually thrust forward into a snout.
His body became wrapped in dark energy, and enormous wings sprouted from his back.
[Demon’s Devouring]
Hummm!
The skill activated.
[Rank: B]
[Mastery: ★★]
[The Demon of Devouring possesses you and consumes your opponent. Under the contract, the demon shares its power with you. The stronger the opponent, the greater the power you receive.]
Fwoosh!
His eyes burned with black-red energy as he charged.
“GRAAAAAAH!”
Only his snout bulged grotesquely from his black-wrapped body.
Rat-a-tat-tat-tat...
He was clearly nothing like the Awakeners Jun-il had seen before.
He needed to run immediately.
-Whoa.
-We’re fucked.
-Run! What are you doing?
-This is crazy.
-???
-Shouldn’t he run?
The Constellations thought so too.
But Jun-il did not move a muscle. He merely raised his box cutter slowly and observed the man.
‘A type that contracts with demons.’
There were many kinds of Dark Mages.
Those who acted on the power gained by contracting with demons were the most common, and their endings were the most miserable.
Giving their body to a demon meant exactly that.
Throwing away the future for overwhelming strength now.
That overwhelmingly strong being was charging at him solely to consume him.
Rat-a-tat-tat!
-Why is he standing still?
-Huh?
-Is he lagging?
-Oh no.
-Goodbye.
Jun-il still stood in place.
‘Not yet.’
Behind the cat mask, Jun-il’s eyes glanced toward one edge of his vision.
[Current Constellations Watching: 97]
Was it because of the danger Jun-il was in?
Or because this place had drawn the Constellations’ interest?
The number of watching Constellations had surged.
It had increased by nearly twenty from eighty.
[Inheritance of Incarnation ‘Hero - Yulian’]
[0.97% in progress]
For the first time, the first digit was about to change.
But...
“I’m going to savor every bite! Ehehehehahaha!”
Fwoosh!
The demon’s black-flame-wrapped form was too close.
It was already ten meters away.
‘Fast.’
Even Jun-il had to admit that this man was fast.
The demon contract had been worth it.
“SKREEEECH!”
A sound no longer human echoed out.
Its gaping maw, dripping dark-red, bloodlike drool, opened wide to swallow Jun-il in an instant.
Four meters.
-Ah.
-Fuck.
-Is this the end?
-We’re so screwed.
-I bet on this guy. I’m fucked...
Three meters.
The Constellations’ voices of despair seemed to ring in his ears.
‘Soon...’
Jun-il knew.
「Still, plenty of people came to see the ending.」
The numbers Pam had shown him.
Even in the runs with the worst results, the final number had always been higher than the one before it.
No matter how awful someone was, people wanted to check the ending.
It was the same with viewership ratings for dramas in the modern world.
The final episode always had higher ratings than the episode before it.
Someone’s ending was, by nature, something that drew attention.
“I’ll enjoy this!”
Thump!
With one final leap, the distance vanished in an instant.
Two meters, one meter...
Close enough for the creature’s flying saliva to splatter his face.
-Thank you for loving Moon Jun-il until now.
-I came to watch because it looked like he was about to get fucked up.
-So this is how he goes.
-This guy is the L4GS?
-Even his exit is a work of art, huh?
Zero meters.
Right before his nose.
Their forms completely overlapped.
[Current Constellations Watching: 109]
‘Now.’
Whiiine...!
Eyes filled with blue light flashed.
‘One percent of Yulian’s power.’
His hand took it in.
Hummm!
[Inheritance of Incarnation ‘Hero - Yulian’]
[1.09% in progress]
One percent of the power that had stopped worlds from ending seven times.
Footnotes:
L4GS is an online abbreviation for the Line 4 Goblin Slayer.
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