AECS 10

Chapter 10

The Test Goes Fast (2)

[Caution! Caution! Caution!]
[A boss monster has appeared!]

Thud, thud!

A slime the size of three fully grown men combined jumped threateningly.

“This is the first time I’ve seen one in person. A giant slime.”

Having fought them countless times in top-tier Tuesday dungeons, he was familiar with them.

But since this was a low-tier dungeon, its size was almost laughably cute.

“Tergo.”

• Uwaaaah!

For five minutes, Tergo the fur gorilla’s attack speed stacks had accumulated quite a lot.

Although not as strong as peak Lamba’s buffs, it was more than enough to handle this monster.

“Go.”

At Baek Jin-woo’s command, Tergo thumped his chest and leapt forward.

The slime, recognizing its opponent, tried to jump and slam down with all its might.

Kugagagaga!

It was already too fast for the slime to handle Tergo’s fists.

Like flashes of lightning, Tergo’s rapid consecutive strikes tore the slime apart mercilessly.

Pfbbrbrb!

Chunks of gooey flesh splattered everywhere as Tergo, unable to contain his excitement, ravaged the slime from the inside out.

In the blink of an eye, the boss was defeated.

And this was all done by an F-rank Fur Gorilla.

‘This is Lamba’s absurdly broken ability.’

If just Tergo could do this, imagine using a stronger melee summon later on—it would be unstoppable.

[Boss monster defeated!]
[Dungeon cleared!]
[Clear time – 00:05:32]

‘Five minutes and thirty-two seconds…’

That was slow. Considering that Jinwoo’s previous record was five seconds, this was definitely slower.

‘Of course, that time he had used the annihilation dragon’s Breath for the record…’

Even without it, he usually cleared it in under a minute. Probably other top-ranked players did about the same…

[Congratulations!]
[New record for South Korea!]
[Special achievement unlocked!]

‘What?’

Baek Jin-woo’s eyes widened.

A new South Korean record?

Insane!

‘No way.’

How low must the domestic standard be for a five-minute record to be the best?

Completely unexpected.

“….”

He had no words.

[First Achievement Reward Arriving]
[Advanced Summoning Scroll x3]
[Reward Arriving]
[Low-tier Polishing Stone x2]

Bzzzz!

The rewards appeared in his status window.

[The dungeon disappears.]

Woosh!

The scenery quickly flipped.

Time attacks are a feature of both weekday dungeons and raid dungeons.

Players are ranked, and rewards are given according to their position.

Records are tracked both nationally and globally.

Naturally, these records are constantly updated by top-ranked players.

In South Korea?

Low-tier, mid-tier, high-tier, top-tier… all were dominated by Kang Geon-ho’s records.

“Huh?”

In front of the Tuesday Dungeon building, the staff managing the leaderboard jumped up.

“What’s this?”

“Why…”

“The r-record… it’s changed.”

“What? Where?”

“Low-tier Tuesday Dungeon! Five minutes thirty-two seconds!”

“Low-tier? No top-ranked players have attempted the low-tier today… let’s see.”

The experienced staff checked the board.

“…Baek Jin-woo?”

The name was written clearly.

“Not Kang Geon-ho?”

“That’s right. But who is Baek Jin-woo?”

“I don’t know. Never heard of this player. They aren’t a ranked player, right?”

“Yes, seems so… but how does an unranked player break a record? And surpass the number one ranking?”

Of course, the global leaderboard’s average record is around 2–3 minutes.

And…

[Low-tier Tuesday Dungeon]
[World Record #1 – Rachel]
[Clear Time – 00:02:25]

Only Rachel from the UK holds a sub-three-minute record.

It wasn’t just the staff who were shocked.

“C-crazy!”

Even the judges keeping score widened their eyes.

Especially Park Chang-seok, who was observing the scene in real time.

His hands trembled.

“Hah… hahaha…”

An unregistered player breaks the national record on their first dungeon attempt?

‘This is huge.’

No doubt about it.

Baek Jin-woo had already proven himself three times:

• Once against the gang.
• Once on the written exam.
• And now with the time attack.

‘A genuine gamer. A national treasure-level player…!’

This was…

They had to capture him by any means.

He didn’t even need to join the headquarters officially.

They just had to make sure he could operate in South Korea.

‘At the very least, don’t let him naturalize.’

If he ever did?

It would be catastrophic. He’d remain untouchable at the bottom, forever.

“Okay.”

Senior judge Park Chang-seok nodded.

“Let’s allow Baek Jin-woo to register immediately.”

“No player battle first?”

“After breaking Kang Geon-ho’s record, does a player match even matter? I believe special talent deserves special treatment.”

South Korea was still not in a position to follow strict laws and regulations.

A summoning underdeveloped country.

Unable to handle the overflowing crimes on the streets, in urgent need of national treasure-level talent.

“I agree.”

“I agree as well.”

Park Chang-seok’s position within the headquarters was firm.

No judges opposed him once he strongly insisted.

Bang!

The acceptance stamp was struck.

Baek Jin-woo.

Player registration.

Complete (End)!

Meanwhile…

“Aah.”

Baek Jin-woo frowned, muttering to himself.

This was a mistake.

A clear mistake.

‘I should’ve checked the records before entering.’

He never imagined that a five-minute record would be the best in South Korea.

‘No wonder I stand out.’

“Baek Jin-woo.”

Sure enough, Park Chang-seok was sprinting over.

“Truly amazing. How did you break the South Korean record on your first attempt… especially considering the Tuesday Dungeon maze is notorious for its complexity…”

“Haha, right.”

Baek Jin-woo scratched his head.

It felt like… a CS student being praised just for doing basic addition and subtraction.

Simple and easy for him.

“You really were an incredible gamer! Here, take this.”

“What’s this?”

“This is your player license. As of now, Baek Jin-woo, you can operate as an official player.”

“Ah.”

Just like that? Nice.

“Thank you.”

“Separately, may I ask how you broke the record?”

Park Chang-seok asked cautiously.

He knew past gamers had strategies for Battle of Summoners.

But that information was top secret.

Gamers from each country never leaked their strategies externally—they shared only among themselves.

This is because of the national “league” system.

Differential benefits are granted according to rankings.

A competition system between countries.

‘Hmm.’

Baek Jin-woo bit his lip, thinking.

‘What should I do?’

Even as Ichil (一天), he never released his information recklessly.

Especially something critical like a score record.

‘Honestly…’

If he shared all his knowledge, he could drastically raise the average ranking of South Korean players.

He might even aim for world rankings.

If he showed just that?

Two possibilities:

• Be forcibly exploited by the state for information.
• Or gain both honor and wealth with the state’s support.

Should he trust the state? Or himself?

“About that question just now.”

After a long moment, Baek Jin-woo spoke.

“Yes.”

“You realize that’s an extremely rude question, right?”

“Sorry. But please understand—South Korea is desperate for talent.”

“Yes, yes. I understand.”

Park Chang-seok’s perspective made sense.

In fact, his actions were almost patriotic.

‘Not a bad character either.’

He gave rewards cleanly. Registered him immediately. Quick thinking, clever.

‘Then?’

Rather than worrying about being used by the state, why not leverage the state?

If the state cooperates, growth could be faster than going it alone.

Baek Jin-woo’s mind raced.

And then…

“Judge.”

“Yes?”

“I’d like to have a deeper conversation. Shall we move somewhere?”

“Y-yes, let’s do that!”

Park Chang-seok’s eyes shone.

They moved to a quiet nearby café.

“I’ll be direct.”

During the walk, Park Chang-seok seemed to have organized his thoughts and spoke immediately.

“The headquarters needs your knowledge. Please help us.”

He bowed while seated.

Park Chang-seok knew.

‘Perhaps… the knowledge in Baek Jin-woo’s mind is far beyond all South Korean ranked players combined.’

It was instinct.

This player in front of him felt different from ordinary players.

“You said you were bedridden for three years, right?”

“…Did you even check my background?”

For a moment, Baek Jin-woo’s face showed displeasure.

“Sorry. As I said before, unregistered skilled players often have gang affiliations.”

True.

“Now that I’m registered, you won’t need to investigate, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Please be careful.”

“Yes.”

Park Chang-seok began sweating.

At the same time, his evaluation of Baek Jin-woo changed.

‘Not an easy person.’

An ordinary person would have cooperated as much as possible in front of the state.

But?

Baek Jin-woo was upright.

Only someone who knows their own value could behave like that.

“Good. I’ve thought about it too.”

This time, Baek Jin-woo spoke.

“What benefit do I get by helping the state?”

‘Good!’

Park Chang-seok’s eyes lit with delight.

The easiest people to deal with are those who clearly understand gains and losses.

Give them proper benefits, and they’re easy to persuade.

“My cooperation.”

“Your cooperation?”

“You may not trust me, but I hold a high position in the headquarters—within the top ten.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. Why is a headquarters member called a member? Because they are elected by public vote. If you achieve significant results, you can get more votes and rise higher.”

“Ah, I see.”

Like a politician?

Baek Jin-woo licked his lips.

“I can provide all possible support within my authority.”

Hmm.

What to do?

The reward was vague.

Being in government, he probably couldn’t just spend funds freely.

Better to see how he can leverage Park Chang-seok before committing.

“Then, here’s what we’ll do.”

“Yes, please go ahead.”

Park Chang-seok’s expression brightened.

“One month, exactly.”

“Excuse me?”

“I just registered you. Let’s spend one month growing and requesting support.”

“And then?”

“If I’m satisfied, we continue. If not, you can return the support or share knowledge equivalent to it.”

“…?!”

Park Chang-seok’s previously bright expression turned awkward.

So he basically said:

He would serve as a one-month personal aide?

‘Bold, but…’

For Park Chang-seok, there was no choice.

Baek Jin-woo was clearly the one in charge.

And he hadn’t originally intended to help him in every way anyway.

To prevent naturalization.

Plus, honestly, just observing his actions would provide plenty of insight.

“Fine.”

Park Chang-seok forced a friendly smile.

The furry man grinned widely—somewhat gross, yet cute.

“Let’s do it that way.”