I Alone Am an EX-Class Summoner

Chapter 10 The Test is Fast (2)

[Warning! Warning! Warning!]

[A boss monster is appearing!]

Thump, thump!

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

“This is my first time seeing the real thing. A giant slime.”

He had caught countless ones in the top-level Tuesday dungeon.

But here, in a low-level dungeon, its size was almost laughably cute.

“Furry Gorilla.”

– Roooaaarrr!

The Furry Gorilla’s attack speed stack had built up significantly over the past five minutes.

Though it wasn’t boosted by Lamba in her prime, there shouldn’t be any major issues in dealing with a monster of this level.

“Charge.”

At Baek Jin-woo’s command, the Furry Gorilla pounded its chest and charged forward.

The slime, now aware of the gorilla, jumped up, intending to slam down with force.

Kwa-ga-ga-ga-ga!

But it was too late.

The slime couldn’t withstand the lightning-fast punches of the gorilla.

The Furry Gorilla’s relentless barrage tore the slime apart mercilessly.

Puh-puh-puh-puh!

Its quivering body exploded in all directions as the gorilla, unable to contain its excitement, ravaged the slime’s innards.

In the blink of an eye, the boss was finished off.

And that by an F-rank Furry Gorilla, no less.

‘This is the absurd power of Lamba’s abilities.’

If even the Furry Gorilla could do this, what would happen when he summoned better melee creatures later?

He’d be unstoppable.

[You have defeated the boss monster!]

[Dungeon Clear!]

[Clear Time – 00:05:32]

‘Five minutes and thirty-two seconds.’

That was slow.

Considering JinuGod’s previous record of five seconds, it was definitely slow.

‘Of course, back then, I used the Dragon of Destruction’s breath for the record.’

Even without that, he had always cleared dungeons in under a minute.

Other rankers had probably taken about the same time as well…

[Congratulations!]

[You have broken the highest record in South Korea!]

[You have achieved a special accomplishment!]

‘What?’

Baek Jin-woo’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The highest record in South Korea?

This was insane!

‘No way.’

How low was the standard in Korea if a five-minute record was the best?

He hadn’t expected this at all.

“……”

He was honestly speechless.

[A reward for your first achievement has arrived.]

[Three high-grade summoning scrolls.]

[Rewards have arrived.]

[Two low-grade polishing agents.]

Wooong!

The rewards appeared in his status window.

[The dungeon is disappearing.]

Fwoosh!

His vision shifted.

***

In both Day Dungeons and Raid Dungeons, there is a system called Time Attack.

Players are ranked according to their clear times, and rewards are given based on those rankings.

Records are measured once per country and once again globally.

And, of course, rankers in every country have already claimed the top spots to receive the first-achievement rewards.

What about South Korea?

In the low-level, mid-level, high-level, and top-level dungeons…

All of them were held by the top ranker, Kang Gun-ho.

“Huh?”

In front of the Day Dungeon building, a staff member in charge of the leaderboard suddenly stood up.

“What is it?”

“The record… it’s changed.”

“What? Where?”

“The low-level Tuesday dungeon! 5 minutes and 32 seconds!”

“Low-level? But no rankers entered the low-level dungeon today. Let me see.”

A more experienced staff member checked the leaderboard.

“…Baek Jin-woo?”

The name was clearly written there.

“Not Kang Gun-ho?”

“Right. But who’s Baek Jin-woo?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never heard of him before. He’s not a ranker, is he?”

“It doesn’t seem like it… But how did a non-ranker break the record? And the top-ranked one at that?”

Of course, the average global record on the leaderboard was in the three-minute range.

And…

[Low-level Tuesday Dungeon]

[World Record Holder – Rachel]

[Clear Time – 00:02:25]

Only Rachel from the UK had a time in the two-minute range.

It wasn’t just the staff who were shocked.

“W-what the hell!”

Even the examiners tracking the scores were wide-eyed in disbelief.

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

He trembled.

“H-hahahaha…”

Unbelievable.

An unregistered player breaks the national record in his first run in a Day Dungeon?

‘This is incredible.’

There was no room for doubt.

Baek Jin-woo had proven himself three times already.

Once during the fight with the gang.

Once during the written exam.

And now once again with this Time Attack.

‘He’s a true gamer. The kind considered a national treasure worldwide…!’

This was…

He had to recruit him by any means necessary.

He didn’t have to join the headquarters, but they had to ensure he remained active in South Korea.

‘At the very least, we need to prevent him from defecting.’

If he ever did defect?

It would be disastrous.

South Korea would remain trapped at the bottom forever.

“Alright.”

Senior examiner Park Chang-seok nodded firmly.

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

“No Player Duel?”

“What’s the point of a Player Duel when he’s just broken Kang Gun-ho’s record? I believe special privileges should be given to those with talent.”

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

It was a summoning underdeveloped country.

They couldn’t even handle the crimes rampant in the streets, and they desperately needed national-level talent.

“I agree.”

“I agree as well.”

Within the headquarters, Park Chang-seok’s position was solid.

When he spoke strongly, there was no opposition from the other examiners.

Bang!

The stamp of approval was sealed.

Baek Jin-woo.

Player registration.

Complete!

* * *

Meanwhile.

“Ahhh.”

Baek Jin-woo let out a dazed sigh, furrowing his brow.

This had been a mistake.

A clear mistake.

‘I should have checked the records before entering.’

He never imagined a five-minute time would be South Korea’s best.

‘Now I’ve obviously attracted attention.’

“Mr. Baek Jin-woo.”

Sure enough.

From a distance, Park Chang-seok came running over in a hurry.

“That was amazing. To break South Korea’s record on your first try in the dungeon…! And especially since the maze in the Tuesday Dungeon is known to be complex…”

“Haha, yeah.”

Baek Jin-woo scratched his head.

To be honest, it felt like this.

A college student being praised for doing basic addition and subtraction?

That’s how simple and easy it had been for Baek Jin-woo.

“You must have been quite the gamer! Here, take this.”

“What’s this?”

“It’s your Player License. As of this moment, Mr. Baek Jin-woo, you are now an officially registered player.”

“Ah.”

So quickly?

That was nice.

“Thank you.”

“On another note, may I ask how you managed to break the record?”

Park Chang-seok asked cautiously.

He knew that past gamers had strategies for Battle of Summoners.

But these strategies were top-secret.

Gamers from each country never leaked their strategies to outsiders.

They shared them among themselves.

There’s a reason for this, which I will explain later: it’s because of the national ‘League’ system.

Benefits are awarded based on rank!

It’s a competition between nations.

‘Hmm.’

Baek Jin-woo pondered while chewing on his lip.

‘What should I do?’

Even during his time as One Heaven, he hadn’t been one to carelessly share his information.

Especially when it came to vital details like score records.

‘Honestly.’

If he were to reveal all the know-how he had, South Korea’s rankers could drastically improve their average rankings.

Perhaps they could even aim for the world rankings.

If he showed them just a glimpse of what he knew?

It would go one of two ways.

He’d either be forcibly recruited by the government and have all his knowledge wrung out of him.

Or he’d be showered with honors and wealth, supported by the nation.

Should he trust the country?

Or trust himself?

“About that question.”

After much thought, Baek Jin-woo finally spoke.

“Yes?”

“Are you aware that was quite a rude question?”

“I apologize. But please understand, it’s because South Korea is that desperate.”

“Yes, yes. I understand.”

He could see where Park Chang-seok was coming from.

In fact, his behavior was almost patriotic.

‘He doesn’t have a bad personality.’

He had paid the reward neatly, and when he saw promise, he immediately registered him as a player.

In many ways, he was a sharp man.

‘In that case…’

Instead of worrying about being exploited by the nation, why not try using the nation to his advantage?

If the country cooperated, he could grow faster than if he worked alone.

Baek Jin-woo’s mind quickly spun into action.

Then, at last.

“Examiner.”

“Yes.”

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

“S-sure!”

Park Chang-seok replied with sparkling eyes.

* * *

They moved to a nearby quiet café.

“I’ll get straight to the point.”

It seemed like Park Chang-seok had also organized his thoughts during the walk, as he immediately started speaking.

“The headquarters needs your knowledge, Mr. Baek Jin-woo. Please, help us.”

He bowed his head from his seated position.

Park Chang-seok knew.

‘It’s possible.’

That the knowledge in Baek Jin-woo’s mind could far surpass the combined expertise of all South Korean rankers.

It was his gut feeling.

This man in front of him felt different from normal players.

“You said you had been bedridden for three years?”

“……You even investigated me?”

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

“I apologize. As I mentioned before, highly skilled unregistered players often have ties to gangs.”

Right.

It made sense.

“Now that I’m registered, there’s no need for further investigations, correct?”

“Y-yes.”

“I’d appreciate it if you’d refrain from doing so.”

“Understood.”

Sweat dripped from Park Chang-seok’s brow.

At the same time, his evaluation of Baek Jin-woo shifted once more.

‘He’s not an easy one.’

An ordinary person would have tried to cooperate as much as possible when facing a powerful entity like the government.

But?

Baek Jin-woo stood firm.

A posture that only someone who knows their value better than anyone could take.

“Very well. I’ve thought about this on the way over.”

Now it was Baek Jin-woo’s turn to speak.

“What benefits do I get from helping the country?”

‘Yes!’

Park Chang-seok’s eyes filled with excitement.

The easiest people to deal with in the world are those who clearly understand profit and loss.

As long as you offer them proper rewards, they’re easy to win over.

“My cooperation.”

“Your cooperation?”

“It may not seem trustworthy, but I hold a fairly high position within the headquarters. I’m in the top ten.”

“Ho, really?”

“Yes. Do you know why the members of the headquarters are called representatives? It’s because they’re elected by the public vote. With meaningful accomplishments, one can rise higher with more votes.”

“I see.”

So, he was like a politician?

Baek Jin-woo clicked his tongue.

“Within my authority, I can provide you with any support you need.”

Hmm.

What should he do?

Baek Jin-woo fell into thought.

For now.

The rewards weren’t very specific.

Since the person worked for the government, he probably couldn’t freely use funds either.

It wouldn’t be too late to make a deal after figuring out how to make use of this person named Park Chang-seok.

“Then let’s do this.”

“Yes, please, feel free to speak.”

Park Chang-seok’s face brightened.

“One month.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’ve just been registered as a player. Give me one month to grow while receiving your support.”

“And then?”

“If I’m satisfied, I’ll work with you. If I’m not, I’ll either return what I received or provide knowledge equivalent to the support.”

“…?!”

The bright expression on Park Chang-seok’s face grew ambiguous.

So what he was saying was…

He was going to treat him like a secretary for a month?

‘It’s a bold move.’

But honestly, Park Chang-seok had no choice.

Baek Jin-woo was clearly in a position of power here.

Besides, hadn’t he always intended to offer his support?

To prevent defection.

And to be frank, just watching his progress would likely be valuable enough.

“Hah, very well.”

Park Chang-seok smiled warmly.

When a bearded man smiles brightly, there’s something both creepy and cute about it.

“Let’s do that.”