I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 89

The world had entered an era of great upheaval. Various nations were nurturing Players, led by their intelligence agencies, and a handful of corporations were also sparing no support in raising their own Players.

The Shinil Group’s Milky Way Alliance was no exception. By leveraging its vast capital, the Shinil Group had gathered promising talents from all over Korea and was in the process of nurturing them with full-fledged support. Among the Players the Shinil Group was most ardently cultivating were assassin-class Players, especially those in the long-range sniping-class Players. This was the will of the Shinil Group’s Chairman, Choi Ik-Hwan.

“I shall assign the first official mission.”

Ik-Hwan called together the five who could be considered the leaders of the Milky Way Alliance. Within the Milky Way Alliance, they were known as the Pentagram. Three of them were snipers from the special forces, and the other two were members of the national shooting team.

“We are going to annihilate Kim Chul-Soo and his party completely.”

The Pentagram stood at attention before Ik-Hwan, listening intently to his words.

“Start with the leader, Kim Chul-Soo, no, Cha Jin-Hyeok first.”

“Shall we kill them one by one?”

The Pentagram thought that it would be efficient to wipe out Chul-Soo’s entire party at once. That way, they would not be able to defend themselves properly. However, Ik-Hwan’s thoughts were slightly different.

“Make sure to kill them one by one, slowly.”

Ik-Hwan exhaled a cloud of cigarette smoke.

“That way, they will realize who they dared to touch.”

Ik-Hwan wanted them to die slowly, one by one. They had to sense the impending death and tremble in fear.

“That feeling of powerlessness and terror that they can’t escape, no matter how much they struggle… That’s what we must bestow upon them.”

The first target was Cha Jin-Hyeok.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Cha Jin-Hyeok smiled. It seemed like the grandfather was much smarter than his grandson. The grandson had even mobilized non-Players to attack Jin-Hyeok, but the grandfather had brought in skilled snipers.

‘Yes. Now I remember.’

Among the Alliances that had made a name for themselves in the early stages of Play, there were these guys called the Milky Way Alliance. It was an Alliance under the Shinil Group.

‘The ones leading the Milky Way Alliance were called the Pentagram or something like that.’

He remembered them all being snipers.

‘And that’s why the Milky Way Alliance disbanded.’

He could only conclude that the Shinil Group’s Chairman, Choi Ik-Hwan, had failed to read the current trends properly. While snipers certainly performed exceptional roles, it was hard to see them possessing the abilities that fit a leader.

Leaders should naturally be set as Rulers. The Milky Way Alliance failed to adhere to even this fundamental aspect, meaning that they were shaking from the very basics. They could never last long if the foundation were not solid.

“I will start the livestream. It is going to be an exciting show. I almost got a hole in my head just now.”

Perhaps for the sake of his Eltube content, his cell phone started to ring loudly.

“I have a feeling that the person calling me right now is the head of the faction that’s trying to kill me.”

He hoped that would be the case.

—How was my gift? Did you like it?

“It was okay.”

It was undoubtedly Choi Ik-Hwan, the Chairman of the Shinil Group. Unconsciously, Jin-Hyeok’s tone rose a bit. He was thrilled because this could spice up his livestream.

—Do you happen to like blowfish?

“Blowfish? No, I haven’t tried it yet.”

—Blowfish can’t swim fast due to its round body and small fins. When a predator approaches, it swallows water to inflate itself.

Jin-Hyeok covered his cell phone slightly and explained what was going on to the viewers.

“I have no idea what he’s talking about, but let’s just listen to him.”

—Not only that, but it also makes a crackling sound to threaten its predator.

“What are you trying to say?”

—It means that you can’t fool me. I can hear the deep fear behind your contrived voice.

Jin-Hyeok sincerely tilted his head in confusion.

‘Me? Deep fear within me? What part of me made him think that? Let’s think from the viewers’ perspective.’

Though Ik-Hwan was not his viewer, he was close to a viewer in this situation. There had to be a clear reason Ik-Hwan felt that way after hearing Jin-Hyeok's voice.

—This is going to be your last night.

“Really?”

Jin-Hyeok kept feeling more excited.

—Remember, you cannot hide your fear, even with your exaggerated voice.

“You’re right. I’m scared.”

Jin-Hyeok forcibly held back a laugh, showing a scared and fearful expression on his face.

‘I think I have gained inspiration from this old man.’

Pretending to be scared.

Pretending to be fearful.

Pretending to be overwhelmed by terror.

This could become a part of his act, too! As a Streamer, he maintained his expression well and spoke solemnly, “I will do my best to survive.”

Jin-Hyeok was talking to the viewers, but Ik-Hwan misunderstood.

—That is not going to be possible.

The call was disconnected.

However, it felt a bit strange. If he could send an Assassin, Jin-Hyeok wondered why he seemed unaware that Jin-Hyeok could also send an Assassin.

‘Does he really think he’s the only one who can use Assassins? Ah, come on. He wouldn’t be that dumb.’

Jin-Hyeok disapproved of his theory. Anyone with a smidge of common sense would not think like that.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Jin-Hyeok hid behind a utility pole and continued the livestream.

‘This is kind of exciting!’

There was a saying that a situation could change a person. Hiding behind the pole and pretending to scan the surroundings, he felt an unexpected sense of tension. He hoped that this tension, the uncertainty of when and where a bullet might fly, would be conveyed well through the screen.

‘I shouldn’t block the attack too easily.’

Earlier, he blocked too easily. Having been harassed by Assassins so often, the sensation had become second nature to him.

‘I guess I’ve grown again.’

He felt proud that he seemed to be putting on a better production as a Streamer. He moved cautiously, like the protagonist in a spy movie.

Bang!

A mana bullet grazed the pole as he slightly leaned out his head. He spoke in a hushed, tense voice, “If he were a truly excellent sniper, he wouldn’t attack me like this. Truthfully, Yeonhui-dong isn’t a great place for sniping. There aren’t many hiding spots for the snipers.”

This was a quiet residential area. Most houses were at most two stories high, and there were very few places for cover.

“There aren’t many hiding spots. I can guess where the enemy is hiding.”

The direction from which the bullet came, and the angle at which it hit the pole, all led Jin-Hyeok to a few possible spots. He used Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance to look in that direction.

[LV58/Shin So-Ryong[1]/Jeet Kune Do Striker/Skills/108 Combo Strikes]

“Now I know why the sniper didn’t run away.”

Jin-Hyeok threw himself toward the next utility pole.

“He’s got someone to protect him.”

Just like before, he once again hid behind the pole. Playing like this was really fun. It felt like playing hide-and-seek as a child and had a unique charm.

“However, in my opinion, this is a very wrong decision.”

Having a guard like that by his side lowered the sniper’s stealthiness. And an excellent sniper would have packed up and fled as soon as the first shot missed. But this one kept trying to snipe, trusting that the guard was by his side.

‘He lacks the basics.’

The sniping skills themselves seemed outstanding, as did his stealth abilities. He was not visible through Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance, perhaps because of the distance.

‘But without the basics, it’s meaningless.’

Jin-Hyeok slowly closed the distance. Eventually, he climbed onto the roof of a house. Right now Jin-Hyeok was Level 63. Although he didn’t possess the physical attributes of a Thief, nor was he a combatant class Player, he had enough physical abilities to climb fences and roofs.

“I’ve finally found him!”

Just as Jin-Hyeok had anticipated, there were two of them. As he closed the distance, he caught sight of the sniper’s description.

[LV59/Steel Sniper/Sniper King/Skills/All Target Clear]

It had been a while since Jin-Hyeok had seen a 9-Star Job, and the Level was quite high. Steel Sniper slowly rose from his position.

“He’s quite fatigued,” Steel Sniper said.

A chill ran down his spine.

‘Wow, I’ve grown.’

Though the opponent was not tired at all, the fact that Jin-Hyeok allowed himself to believe that he was tired, meant Jin-Hyeok’s production skill was outstanding as a Streamer. He felt pleased as if his ability had been acknowledged.

Shin So-Ryong, who had been standing beside Steel Sniper, walked toward Jin-Hyeok. She was a slender and small-statured woman, seemingly in her late twenties.

“Player name Shin So-Ryong. She possesses the impressive Achievement called the 108 Combo Strikes,” Jin-Hyeok said.

He wasn’t usually interested in others’ Achievements, but this one piqued his curiosity. The name seemed to ignite a fire in a man’s heart, so Jin-Hyeok took a closer look.

[108 Combo Strikes]

[I have successfully attacked one hundred and eight times.

Ah… The attacks move like Wushu.

Smooth yet strong, heavy yet fast.

Achievement Effects:

+2% stacking damage on successful strikes.

+1% attack speed on successful strikes.]

“It’s an effect where if you succeed in a combo attack, the damage continues to stack, and the attack speed also increases. Quite good, don’t you think?”

Such an Achievement was valuable because of its compounding effect. It continuously added two percent due to compounding. Theoretically, if the attacks were successful 108 times and with the compounding two percent keep being applied…

‘Let’s see… Hm… Anyway, So-Ryong’s attacks become really strong.’

Kim Jeong-Hyeon had something similar, and he could even unleash tenfold destructive power.

“I will take out a calculator and check the numbers.”

He pulled out his phone and started doing the calculations with the calculator app, all the while ignoring So-Ryong’s best attempts to attack Jin-Hyeok.

“For those who may be new to my livestream, let me explain that I am currently using this.”

Jin-Hyeok displayed an explanation on the side of the screen.

[Complete immunity to physical attacks below Level 80.

┗Partial immunity to physical attacks below Level 100.]

So-Ryong amassed roughly eighteen hits so far, but the impact on Jin-Hyeok had been minimal. Steel Sniper yelled in frustration, “So-Ryong! What are you doing? Stop messing around!”

To Jin-Hyeok, Steel Sniper was the one who was more frustrating. He should be leaving this place to find another sniping spot. Jin-Hyeok didn’t know what Steel Sniper was doing over there.

“Ah, theoretically, if she succeeds in about one hundred combo attacks, she can unleash a whopping eight-fold destructive force! The attack speed will increase by roughly 2.8 times. I think she has succeeded in about thirty hits so far, but there is still no significant damage.”

Since it was compounded, Jin-Hyeok imagined the first part of her attacks could be weak. Jin-Hyeok had been gathering data on his own.

‘A basic attack from an 8-Star Martial Artist who is lower Level than me is not hurting me at all. My body seems pretty strong.’

With Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance, Jin-Hyeok closely read So-Ryong’s movements. Jin-Hyeok began to feel a little confident.

‘Maybe I should take some hits before the attacks get any stronger.’

This kind of experience was not common—an experience of fighting a Martial Artist trying to kill him, and an experience of taking the fists of an 8-Star Martial Artist with his body.

‘Once I cross Level 150, this will be difficult.’

The pleasure that could be enjoyed now had to be enjoyed at this very moment. Jin-Hyeok switched the applied Achievement to remove the Defensive Attributes.

Jin-Hyeok blocked the fist flying toward his cheek.

Thump!

It was a rather dull sensation.

‘She’s pretty strong!’

Jin-Hyeok created some distance between him and So-Ryong, and she agilely closed the gap once again. She kicked toward his head.

[Shin So-Ryong used the Skill 「6 Combo Strikes」.]

For a moment, it looked like she had three legs. The attack came in an instant.

‘She’s quite fast.’

It was difficult to react by just watching with his eyes. The voice of Steel Sniper came through, “That’s enough playing! Just finish him quickly!”

It seemed he thought Jin-Hyeok was on the losing side. Jin-Hyeok felt proud again, thinking that he was acting so well for his livestream.

“The consecutive attacks are too fast. There is no time for me to even breathe!”

Jin-Hyeok continued to fend off So-Ryong’s attacks. His body was gradually pushed back, reaching the rooftop railing. Before he knew it, her attacks were nearing the eightieth attack. At this point, it became quite burdensome to take the hits without using appropriate Achievements.

‘I see. So around the eightieth attack, it becomes hard to block.’

Jin-Hyeok was in a good mood, thinking that he was gathering useful data.

‘Simply blocking is practically impossible.’

From here on, he had to utilize Broadcaster’s Barrier intermittently. Using Broadcaster’s Barrier made blocking much more manageable.

‘But look at her eyes.’

The look in her eyes said she had something up her sleeve. It was an expression so transparent that Jin-Hyeok could see right through her.

‘Doesn’t she know that she should thoroughly hide such expressions when fighting?’

Seeing this kind of thing made him a little angry.

‘I know she’s trained hard, and she is not even a Level Grinder!’

People like her kept overlooking the basics, despite having decent skills.

She finally managed to hit Jin-Hyeok one hundred times. It was an impressive display of consecutive attacks. By now, fending them off with only Jin-Hyeok’s body had become almost impossible.

‘Activate Star Shield.’

At one point, Jin-Hyeok had to use Star Shield to protect his jaw. That was all well and good, but that fierce look in her eyes, hiding her ace in the hole, was really getting on his nerves.

“It’s over.”

‘Really now? Showing your intention through your expression and then kindly warning me on top of that? Do you think Playing is easy?’

“This is crossing the line,” Jin-Hyeok said.

He might tolerate her trying to kill him, but this, he could not stand.

1. So-Ryong, or 소룡, is the Korean name for Bruce Lee. ☜