Chapter 360 - An Sang-cheol in Episode 101 (below)
Earthquakes, floods, typhoons, tsunamis, etc.
A common point of natural disasters is that they are difficult to predict.
"Without prior signs, there is no way to prepare."
This was also a calamity without prior signs.
Who would have imagined that an angel would suddenly appear and abduct the souls of 1.8 billion people?
There was also no way to know that in another world he would have to hunt 100 goblins.
"And, moreover, alongside Seo Arin."
The actress Seo Arin.
With a refined and charming appearance, with feline features that could make anyone fall in love.
She was an attractive woman, but to An Sang-cheol, she was nothing more than a property of the representative, nothing more.
He was busy protecting that property from the goblins.
"She's surprisingly good at fighting."
Seo Arin, who was fulfilling the mission of capturing 100 goblins in the first round alongside him, showed quite agile movements.
She had nothing to envy him, who had been part of the special forces.
"Did she perhaps find some rune that increases overall stats?"
For him, capturing goblins was not difficult.
He hadn't obtained his position as head of security for nothing.
Moreover, he had acquired a rather useful rune.
[Rune of the Sword]
Effect: Reduces damage from bladed weapons by 30%. Increases damage from bladed weapons by 30%.
Although it didn't seem like much, the goblins' daggers were also bladed weapons.
They said it increased damage, and they certainly pierced better.
Stab!
"Kieek!"
Stab, stab!
"Kek!"
While methodically eliminating the goblins, he also kept an eye on Seo Arin.
Protecting the representative's property was more important than his own life.
At that moment, he saw a goblin trying to attack Seo Arin from behind.
Swoosh! Stab!
"Kyaa!"
After throwing the dagger and hitting the target, he spoke indifferently.
"Be careful."
"Ah... Thank you, Mr. Guard."
An Sang-cheol, averting his gaze, continued eliminating goblins one by one.
Protecting someone while fighting enemies was not an easy task, but there was no need to worry too much.
Seo Arin could handle the goblins on her own.
Honestly, at first, he had underestimated her, considering her a burden, but she had useful skills.
"I have one goblin left, and you, Arin?"
"I have nine left."
"From the looks of it, if you finish first, you'll be trapped in a pillar of light and I won't be able to help you. It’s better if we eliminate them together, so I'll help you."
"Ah! Thank you!"
Thus, almost at the same time, both managed to capture 100 goblins and completed the round.
During that time, the angel took Black Scythe somewhere, promising a special reward for the first place, but that didn't matter to him.
"The representative isn't here?"
He looked around the meadow but saw no one resembling the representative.
He might have changed his appearance, so he could only wait for the round to end.
"Why isn't the angel coming? Don’t tell me they're not going to send us back home."
He was having those doubts when suddenly the round ended automatically without the angel appearing.
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"Ah!"
Waking up in his original body, An Sang-cheol looked around.
He was back at the place of the bell ceremony, where he had lost consciousness.
"Are you alright, Mr. Guard?"
"Of course."
"What happened? This couldn’t have been a dream, right?"
"It seems it wasn't a dream. The status window is still active."
"Excuse me?"
Surprised, Seo Arin muttered "status window."
Just like him, she was looking into the void, observing the status window.
"It wasn't a dream."
Being dragged to the other world was a reality.
That meant the representative had also been dragged.
'Representative...'
Worried, An Sang-cheol contacted Ma Gyeong-rok faster than anyone.
Fortunately, he answered the call.
Shall we meet and talk in person?
"Understood, sir. I'll bring Miss Seo Arin with me."
Agreed.
---------------
The three met in Ma Gyeong-rok's hotel room.
"It's a great relief to know you're alright, sir."
"I'm glad to see you're safe too, An Sang-cheol. And actress Seo Arin as well."
"Thank you. I’m safe thanks to the guard protecting me."
"Oh, really?"
Ma Gyeong-rok looked at her with a playful expression.
Realizing what he meant, An Sang-cheol hurried to clarify to avoid misunderstandings.
"I was just doing my duty."
"Hmm, was there no personal feeling involved?"
"No, not at all."
Ma Gyeong-rok laughed with a sly smile and then shared information about the other world.
"It seems that people who were together at the beginning get divided into different zones."
"Then, if we're together in the second round, will we be assigned to the same zone?"
"I don't think so. Each zone seems to have its own angel in charge. They are probably already assigned from the first round."
"Then, I won’t have a chance to meet with you..."
An Sang-cheol commented in a disappointed tone.
They didn't know at that moment that the zones would merge later on.
"But at the end of each round, seeing the results, you'll be able to know how I'm doing."
"What do you mean by that...?"
"Didn't you see the results of the first round? My nickname was there."
He saw it but didn't know.
How was he supposed to know the representative's nickname?
Suddenly, he remembered a nickname.
"Don't tell me... are you Black Scythe?"
"Black Scythe? Ah, that nickname that ranked first in all the zones? No, that's not it."
Ma Gyeong-rok quickly denied it.
"My nickname is Cheonma. I took it from Cheonma Consulting."
"Ah!"
He had seen it in the ranking results.
Third place in the ranking of all zones.
He had noticed it resembled the representative's company's name but never imagined it was him.
An Sang-cheol's expression changed from surprise to joy.
He felt proud that his boss was in third place in the general ranking.
"That's impressive! Third place in the ranking!"
"It's no big deal. Catching goblins fast isn't that difficult."
Though he spoke modestly, An Sang-cheol was genuinely impressed.
Even he, being an ex-special forces member, wasn't faster than Ma Gyeong-rok.
"Did he perhaps get some special rune?"
He was curious but didn't dare to ask.
He felt he would cross a line if he did.
"An Sang-cheol, keep protecting actress Seo Arin. Make sure she isn’t eliminated in the round."
"Thank you for your concern, sir. You too, take care."
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When the second round began, a strange mission called [Select the Representative of the Area] appeared.
'Will we really survive just by voting?'
It was suspicious.
Even Seo Arin, who wasn't foolish, expressed her doubts.
"The mission seems too easy... could it be a trap?"
"I don't know."
As the three hours passed deciding what to do.
"Look at that."
Seo Arin pointed at Black Scythe entering the forest.
"Why, instead of voting like the others, is he heading there?"
"It seems he has no interest in voting."
"It's a good opportunity. Let’s follow him and talk quietly with him."
"Do you really think proposing to work together is a good idea?"
"Yes. Maybe he'll accept."
"It will be a waste of time. People like him are too proud to team up."
An Sang-cheol was pessimistic, but he wanted to hear Black Scythe's opinion.
So he didn’t stop Seo Arin and they both followed Black Scythe.
However, they were discovered sooner than they thought.
"I don't know who you are, but come out. If you don't reveal your intentions, prepare to die."
"I... I'm coming out now."
Seo Arin raised her hands and stepped out, followed by An Sang-cheol, who stopped following them and revealed himself.
When they were trying to justify their presence, something unexpected happened.
"Actress Seo Arin? I didn't expect to see you here."
"Do you know me?"
"Of course. You live on the floor above my house."
"W-what? Then, are you the neighbor from the floor below?"
"Yes. Did you enjoy the rice cake?"
Black Scythe revealed his identity first.
'Now that I think about it, Seo Arin mentioned someone from the floor below brought rice cake yesterday.'
Although he didn't see the man at that time because he was busy, it seems that neighbor was Black Scythe.
'Why did he reveal his identity? What does he gain from that?'
While An Sang-cheol looked at him suspiciously, Black Scythe said something even more bewildering.
"Soon a group chasing Seo Arin will appear."
It seemed like he was making a sudden prediction.
Though initially, they looked at him as if he were crazy, Black Scythe proved it.
A group led by someone with the nickname Hwang Yong-min really appeared.
After brutally defeating Hwang Yong-min's group and driving them away, Black Scythe explained.
"I have the Rune of Future Sight. I can see several years into the future."
"Ah... That’s why you knew they would appear."
"The target of those men was Seo Arin. They planned to kill An Sang-cheol and take Seo Arin."
Though hard to believe, they had to accept it.
After all, Black Scythe had predicted the appearance of Hwang Yong-min's group.
'Can he really see the future?'
The situation was so precise it almost seemed staged.
But who in their right mind would let themselves be beaten so brutally just to act?
'Moreover, when Hwang Yong-min was discovered, he got extremely nervous. It's proof they really planned to attack us.'
Therefore, Black Scythe became their savior, also protecting Ma Gyeong-rok's property.
"I’d like to reward you somehow..."
"No need."
Black Scythe left coldly, as if he needed nothing more, letting An Sang-cheol release a held breath.
Though he didn’t show it, that man commanded a lot of respect.
"Should we hunt like Black Scythe?"
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They finished the voting and completed the second round without issues.
An Sang-cheol immediately went to inform the representative about Black Scythe.
"So that's what happened. We owe Black Scythe."
The representative's eyes gleamed in the dark.
He seemed increasingly interested in Black Scythe.
At that moment, An Sang-cheol had no idea he would get deeply involved with Black Scythe in the future.
He only considered it a passing relationship.
"Ehm, representative. I have a question."
"Go ahead."
"Could you tell me where to get class change items?"
"It's no big deal. Just by hunting monsters, class change items appear."
"Really?"
Though he said it as if it were no big deal, for An Sang-cheol it was valuable information.
He shared the information with Seo Arin and, a few hours later, received even more surprising news.
"What? You contacted Black Scythe?"
"Yes. Somehow he knew where I was and found me. And he introduced himself as a prophet..."
He didn't expect that neighbor from the floor below to seek the representative personally.
"What did he say?"
"He made two predictions. One, that the coins would skyrocket in a month. And another, about the third round."
"Ah."
Though hard to believe, he had nothing to lose by trying.
---------------
From the information obtained from the representative, they focused on hunting monsters in the third round.
The most important thing at that moment was the class change.
They needed to change class to escape the control of the area representative, 'Life is a documentary.'
'Currently level 8. I just need to level up 2 more to change class.'
Thus, they blocked waves of monsters in the third round, gaining experience until reaching level 10.
At that moment, the condition was fulfilled, and an item left by a monster appeared in his inventory.
'What’s this? [Knight's Beliefs]?'
Reading the description indicating it was a class change item, he used it immediately.
[You have changed your class to Knight. Congratulations!]
[As a reward for the class change, you have obtained a 'Long Sword.']
[As a reward for the class change, you have received the 'Rune of Sword Handling.']
[The acquired rune will be automatically engraved on the player's body.]
[You have learned the Knight's exclusive skill 'Continuous Slash.']
[The next skill will be learned automatically at level 20.]
[Rune of Sword Handling]
Effect: Increases understanding of the sword and significantly enhances swordsmanship skills.
With the rune obtained as part of the class change, he became even stronger.
'I had already been increasing my strength and agility stats, and now I change class to Knight.'
[Exclusive Skill – Continuous Slash]
Effect: Quickly attacks the target consecutively.
After a Continuous Slash, the attack speed increases by 20% for a certain time due to acceleration.
He had obtained a skill, and also a long sword as a commemorative item for the class change.
'Definitely, there is a big difference between changing class or not.'
He felt he could defeat the monsters more easily and completed the third round.
----------------------
"Knight... It’s an impressive class."
"By the way, Seo Arin is also at the same level. Though her class is different, she is a Summoner."
"Summoner?"
Thus, they continued their daily reports to the representative.
Though the stress of being dragged into the monthly survival game was considerable, they could endure it.
Largely thanks to the predictions of Black Scythe, Ryu Min, in each round.
'It's definitely useful. Knowing about the next round makes a difference.'
At first, the prospect of surviving until the twentieth round seemed daunting, but now they began to see a path.
The importance of the prophet grew, and the representative also started to rely on Black Scythe.
'It's natural. Our survival is at stake.'
Then, one day, the representative changed.
"Director An. When we select targets, from now on let’s focus on violent criminals."
"What?"
The representative, who used to order to target anyone with a criminal record without mercy, changed his mind.
"Representative, may I ask why the sudden change?"
"Black Scythe, he suggested it would be better this way."
'Him...?'
An Sang-cheol felt something strange seeing Ma Gyeong-rok use a respectful title he had never used before.
"Representative, with all due respect, I don't think it's wise to blindly follow Black Scythe's words. Don’t you have your own path?"
"Director An, do as I say. Understood?"
He even got angry.
'He’s definitely changed. The representative.'
That certainty was reinforced as time passed.
As they overcame the rounds, Ma Gyeong-rok continued to praise Black Scythe.
He didn’t even mention his nickname, always referring to him with that respectful title, which clearly showed his change in attitude.
Even when Ryu Min sold 31% of the company’s shares, causing a crisis, he didn’t show a hint of anger.
What had happened?
The reason was clear.
'Everything started after meeting Black Scythe.'
An Sang-cheol, who previously had no desires, now had one.
If he managed to survive the survival game and reached the wish room, he already knew what he would ask for.