I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 138

“A pleasure. I am Kwak Do-Hyeon, the leader of the Black Thorn Alliance. You must be the Assassin from the Avengers Army, Black Butterfly.”

An Assassin representing the United States and another representing Korea met.

“I heard my friend received great help from you, thank you,” Do-Hyeong said.

“Well, it was a mutual favor.”

The meeting between Do-Hyeon and Kaylin was the butterfly effect set off by Cha Jin-Hyeok. The root of this situation was Do-Hyeong’s close friend, self-proclaimed Hwarang, alternatively called Taekwon V, Kim Doo-Hwan. After suffering a resounding defeat at the hands of Jin-Hyeok, Doo-Hwan had an epiphany and began pioneering his own path. Guided, though not overtly taught by Jin-Hyeok, he emerged as a performance-type Player.

This development occurred much sooner than it had before Jin-Hyeok’s regression. Thanks to Jin-Hyeok’s help, Doo-Hwan started traveling the world sooner, combining his training with performance.

“My goal is to be a performance-type Player. My Play ultimately has meaning when showcased to others, and the stage where I perform is also my training ground. I will stand on stages around the world.”

Thus, Doo-Hwan decided to travel the world, and his first destination was the United States. The concept of a performance-type Player was still nascent, and especially in America, there was a tendency to overlook such Players. This led to significant conflicts with some Players in the United States, and that was when the relationship between Do-Hyeon and Kaylin began when Kaylin helped out with matters relating to Doo-Hwan.

“I was quite impressed by the way you handled Chul-Soo’s assassination,” Kaylin said.

“I had been defeated quite brutally then.”

“If you managed that much, you did well. I was completely overpowered without even putting up a fight.” Kaylin got straight to the point and asked, “How were you able to survive?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m asking why Chul-Soo was so lenient with you and your Alliance.”

Kaylin still had nightmares from time to time. In them, Chul-Soo approached her with an indifferent expression, only for his eyes to be suddenly filled with bloodlust as he stabbed her.

“He was not just lenient with me and my Alliance,” Do-Hyeong said.

“Then?”

“Chul-Soo is lenient with all Players, assuming they stick to the basics.”

The Chul-Soo that Do-Hyeon knew was the very embodiment of ideals. He was infinitely kind, gentle, and affectionate to Players who Played fairly.

“As you know, I tried to assassinate him and still attempt it repeatedly. If given a chance, I am always ready to stab Chul-Soo in the heart. I survived because he always looks favorably upon Players who stick to the basics,” Do-Hyeong explained.

“...”

After conversing with Do-Hyeon and returning to her hotel room, Kaylin had a profound realization.

“I didn’t stick to the basics...”

Reflecting upon it, an Assassin’s attack should always be a surprise attack. The very definition of a surprise attack was an unexpected, sudden attack.

‘What I did was not a surprise attack.’

She recalled the situation after escaping the Petronas Twin Towers when she attacked Chul-Soo. At that time, Kaylin, who had struggled for over ten hours to escape the Steel Centipedes that surrounded her, lost her sanity as soon as she saw him

‘I unknowingly exuded bloodlust and attacked fiercely.’

By that point, she had already revealed her presence to Jin-Hyeok. The surprise attack had already failed.

‘I should have chosen to flee or surrender then.’

Yet, she used her Chokehold Skill to attack Jin-Hyeok in that situation.

‘If I had attacked more like a true Assassin, if I had been more faithful to the basics, the outcome might have been more meaningful.’

She calmly devised a new assassination plan, targeting Jin-Hyeok, who had unexpectedly become the dream and ideal of Assassin worldwide.

The next day, Kaylin met Do-Hyeon again to talk.

“But what if, even after sticking to the basics, Chul-Soo retaliates excessively?” Kaylin asked.

Do-Hyeok looked slightly irritated.

“What do you mean by excessive retaliation?”

“If Chul-Soo sincerely retaliates, wouldn’t the Assassin likely die, or rather, have a high chance of dying?”

“Do you plan to act like an Assassin while worrying about trivial things like that?” Do-Hyeon frowned.

He threw a dagger. Kaylin swiftly turned her head to dodge, but a shallow cut appeared on her cheek, and a line of blood trickled down.

“Black Butterfly, I am disappointed in you. I hope we don’t cross paths again.”

***

Jin-Hyeok caught the wrist of the woman who had aimed for his heart.

‘It hurts, but...’

Still, he narrowly contorted himself to avoid a fatal stab to the heart. Though there was significant pain, it was not unbearable.

‘If I try to suppress her properly, it won’t work.’

He was already exhausted from clearing the New World. That was why he purposely exposed his chest and captured her wrist.

“It’s been a while, Black Butterball.”

By the way, this situation was currently being livestreamed worldwide. It was the moment when the Player name of Kaylin, a prominent Assassin from the Avengers Army, would be established. She looked at Jin-Hyeok with a momentarily flustered expression.

‘He recognized me immediately?’ she thought.

She knew that Streamers could read their opponent’s information with the Broadcaster’s Truesight, but Jin-Hyeok’s Skill seemed exceedingly efficient.

‘I even used the Deceiver’s Mask, but it was all for naught.’

With his left hand firmly gripping Kaylin’s wrist, Jin-Hyeok swung a dagger with his right.

“Keuk!”

The dagger pierced Kaylin’s chest.

“We’re even now.”

Kaylin tried to escape Jin-Hyeok’s grasp using the Skill Smooth and Flexible Body.

‘How strong is this Streamer...?’

She could not overpower him with strength alone. Amplifying the smoothness on her wrist with her Skill, she barely managed to free herself and quickly retreated. Then, she raised both hands.

“Enough. I surrender,” she said.

“Surrender? What the hell are you talking about?”

Kaylin felt that something was off.

‘What is going on?’

This was not the Kim Chul-Soo she knew. In the past, it was hard to detect any emotional fluctuation in Chul-Soo’s eyes, which were always filled with bloodlust. He was like a doll, indifferent to murder.

But currently, it was different.

‘He seems really angry.’

It was an incomprehensible situation for Kaylin.

‘I clearly succeeded in surprising him and even managed to land a significant blow on him!’

Despite her fundamental Play yielding a meaningful result, Chul-Soo seemed much more irritated than before.

“How dare you stab me here?”

She could see Chul-Soo getting closer and closer. It felt as if a gigantic mountain was looming over her. Kaylin grew desperate.

‘I’m going to die at this rate.’

She could feel death approaching. She began to melt.

[Black Butterfly has activated the Skill 「Liquifying to Escape」.]

Kaylin liquefied herself and hid in the cracks of the ground. As she retreated as far as she could, cold sweat poured down her back.

‘If I just stood there, I would’ve instantly died.’

***

Black Butterfly’s attack was quite threatening. Jin-Hyeok was significantly fatigued from clearing the New World, and it was true that he momentarily let his guard down in the euphoria of the Clear. It was the perfect situation to be caught off guard, and Black Butterfly took full advantage of that moment.

It was a commendable Play for an Assassin. It brought back the tension in Jin-Hyeok, which was relaxed for a bit, and was a great mock drill for future encounters. On a normal day, he might have even appreciated such a challenge.

But not now.

‘She ruined my livestream!’

Jin-Hyeok went through many challenges to clear the New World. He even unlocked the All-Clear Achievement.

“This is the third All-Clear I have achieved while Playing.”

An All-Clear was a rare Achievement. After his regression, he had achieved it only twice. Once in the Sareoga Mart Dungeon, and once in the Hope Rising From the Ruins.

‘But the Hope Rising From the Ruins was... a bit of a special case.’

It was somewhat forced upon him due to its connection with the 4th Seoul Scenario. As per his own experience, the only genuine All-Clear was the Sareoga Mart Dungeon. He achieved such a precious and rare All-Clear, and the fact that someone was trying to ambush him was utterly infuriating.

“I successfully achieved an All-Clear in the New World. There is an additional engraving on my right hand.”

‘Ah, the more I think about it, the angrier I get. I should’ve shared this with the viewers first. The flow of my livestream has been disrupted. Still, I have to show what needs to be shown.’

“I will share the All-Clear details.”

Jin-Hyeok replayed the recorded scene for the viewers to see.

[All-Clear (New World)]

[An Achievement that is given to those that All-Clear New World Dungeon.

1) Mark of the All-Clearer (on activation, appears on: right wrist)

-The Achievement bearer is recognized as the Pioneer of the new world and granted the right to move between Servers.

-The Achievement bearer has the ability to choose the first Server to be connected to the Earth Server.

2) Pioneer’s Privilege

-It is a privilege given to those who successfully connect worlds.

-Upon moving to another Server, one chosen Trait of the Achievement bearer gets an enhancement.

-The Achievement Bearer can assist the Planter to strengthen the Guardian Tree and acquire certain rights.]

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have shown everything to the viewers.’

In a rush to return to normal livestreaming, Jin-Hyeok might have been a bit hasty.

‘Well, hiding too much information might have a counterproductive effect.’

It might be better to reveal everything transparently. After all, it was an All-Clear Achievement. Jin-Hyeok did not want people’s imaginations to run too wild.

‘It’s not like I uncovered it just to show off.’

“Let’s take a detailed look from the beginning.”

Jin-Hyeok zoomed in on a part of the All-Clear Achievement effect and displayed it on the screen.

[-The Achievement bearer is recognized as the Pioneer of the new world and grants the right for Server Teleportation.]

“I am not entirely sure what they mean by ‘granted the right to move between Servers.’ We might need to observe this more closely to understand.”

[-The Achievement bearer has the ability to choose the first Server to be connected to the Earth Server.]

‘I get to choose this?’

A list of connectable Servers unfurled in his mind. Servers vastly different from the Earth Server were displayed in faint gray text, while those that could be connected were displayed in black bolded text.

‘Wow, this is amazing.’

Jin-Hyeok was able to selectively connect to a Server that was the most advantageous to him, a Server that was best for generating interesting content.

‘Moreover, I would be the first one to establish this connection, right?’

Anything labeled as ‘world premier’ always had its appeal. He felt like this could draw a lot of Eltube views.

“This seems to be like the Pioneer acts as a fuse, so to speak, to launch the Official Service. That’s good news. I am quite fortunate. Let’s move on and look at the Pioneer Privilege.”

[-Upon moving to another Server, one chosen Trait of the Achievement bearer gets an enhancement.]

‘Enhancing one Trait?’

Several pieces of information were transmitted into his mind.

“It appears that among Traits, there are those that are growth-type Traits. If I choose wisely, one of the Traits I possess can be powerfully enhanced. However, if the chosen Trait is not a growth-type Trait, then this effect vanishes. A careful selection seems paramount. Also, multiple selections are not permitted and the chance to choose only comes once.”

Jin-Hyeok realized that he could not choose a new Trait every time he moved to a new Server. Once a choice was made, it seemed to become a permanent setting.

His heart raced.

‘I already possess a growth-type Trait, don’t I?’

Jin-Hyeok knew this for sure because his Almighty Jack of All Trades Trait, which had consumed both the Sword Emperor Trait and the Genius Trait as ingredients, had been enhanced to the All-Rounder Trait.

“I need to think about this and attempt it later.”

The answer was already decided. He was planning on enhancing the All-Rounder Trait. However, he did not disclose this detail.

“Lastly, there is this part. It contains some interesting information."

[-The Achievement Bearer can assist the Planter to strengthen the Guardian Tree and acquire certain rights.]

“As many of you might know, that Planter is me.”

Though he was feeling physically drained and worn out, ending the livestream now was not an option. The momentum was built and it felt right to conclude this livestream properly.

‘I did bleed quite a bit and feel slightly dizzy, but a quick healing session should sort that out.’

He could not possibly stop the livestream just because he lost some blood.

“Oh, I had not even noticed this.”

Jin-Hyeok only now noticed the dagger lodged in his chest.

‘That’s pretty impressive. How focused on the livestream must I have been to overlook this? I must be doing well as a Streamer.’

“I will go straight to the Guardian Tree. In between, I will summon the Blood Priest to heal my wounds. I will catch up with you guys in Yeonhui-dong. Please subscribe, like, and press that notification button! If you set up your notification, you will not miss the livestream right after I arrive in Yeonhui-dong!”

Shortly after, he arrived in front of the Guardian Tree.