I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 173

“Hahaha! Yes, moly. I reclaimed the top spot yesterday, moly. Now that Park Terse has joined me, I can further solidify my position at the top, moly!”

Terse, guided by Mole Man, arrived at the Han River.

‘The river is wide,’ Terse thought.

It was a river of considerable breadth.

‘I don’t feel the presence of any powerful monsters.’

There was no need to rush. Taming required lots of time and dedication. Moreover, luck was on his side.

“Huh? Kim Chul-Soo started his livestream, moly.”

“How did you know?” Terse asked.

“I’ve already liked, subscribed, and clicked on the notification bell on his channel, moly.” Mole Man grinned.

As always, Chul-Soo’s livestream was in first-person view, and he had arrived somewhere along the Han River.

“Let’s join Chul-Soo, moly. If I am with the famous American Tamer, Chul-Soo will not have a reason to refuse, moly.”

“The Han River is a long river, stretching 494 kilometers. How do we plan to meet him?”

Not even a single bridge over the Han River could be seen in the livestream. It seemed like Chul-Soo was not in Seoul. The natural scenery was not particularly unique, making it nearly impossible to pinpoint his location on the river just from the first-person footage.

‘Maybe there is a reason this guy is the number one Navigator in Korea. He might have a solution.’

A Navigator definitely had their own methods. Terse wondered if Mole Man could find Chul-Soo with just a slight hint. He watched Mole Man with eyes full of expectation, curious about how Korea’s top-ranked Navigator would find Chul-Soo. Perhaps, Mole Man would generously demonstrate his skills and expertise.

“Hey, Chul-Soo, it’s me, Mole Man. I am currently with Park Terse. We want to join you, moly. Okay. Where do you want us? Give me the address, moly.”

After finishing the call, Mole Man put down his phone. Terse looked at him with a disappointed expression, but Mole Man started walking toward the Han River.

“What are you waiting for? Aren’t you coming, moly?”

Suddenly, a large duck-shaped mount appeared on the Han River. It was Mole Man’s mount, the Duck Man. Mole Man skillfully climbed aboard the Duck Man and asked, “Aren’t you coming?”

“Didn’t you say the Han River is home to a dangerous monster? You said that it swallows a crust ship whole.” Terse wondered if the Duck Man could have some special barrier to protect them from the Swallowing Croaker.

‘Maybe the top-ranked Navigator has something up his sleeve.’

“What the hell are you talking about?” Mole Man, who usually ended his sentences with the word moly during his Play, did not add the word this time. It meant he was quite displeased. But Terse did not understand that.

“There are no safe Plays in the world,” Mole Man added. Among Korean Players, Mole Man was one of the Players most influenced by Cha Jin-Hyeok.

“No, but you said there is a monster called the Swallowing Croaker that lives in the Han Ri—”

“I know, but what’s your point?” Mole Man frowned. “Am I making a mistake by bringing this amateur along, moly?”

“...”

“If you don’t get on in three seconds, I am leaving without you.”

Terse was confused. This style of Play was too different from that used in the American Region. A Swallowing Croaker was roaming the Han River, yet Mole Man was planning to travel across the Han River in this duck, of all things. It seemed like madness.

‘But I need to meet Chul-Soo.’

In the end, Terse boarded the Duck Man.

***

Jin-Hyeok recalled his memories of Park Terse.

‘In many ways, we were incompatible.’

Terse was unusually kind to monsters. He was a unique character who loved and communicated with them. It wasn’t that the world lacked such crazy Players, but most of them would get eaten or killed by monsters.

Monsters were naturally hostile to humans, an immutable law of nature. Yet, some Players defied this natural order, like Terse, a rare breed. For someone with a normal mindset like Jin-Hyeok, understanding Terse was difficult.

“Are you Kim Chul-Soo?” Terse asked. He looked much younger than what Jin-Hyeok remembered.

Mole Man hopped off the Duck Man and greeted Jin-Hyeok. “I brought Terse, but something feels off, moly.”

“What is it?”

“He seems to have a cowardly personality, moly.”

‘Terse? A coward? That’s impossible.’

Terse had even tamed a Thunder Dragon before Jin-Hyeok’s regression.

‘Wait, hold on... Now, since I have tamed the Thunder Dragon, well, it’s more like a contract than taming, does that make me superior?’

Defeating a top Player in any field was quite a joy.

‘Maybe I have some talent as a Tamer.’

“So anyway, why are you in Korea? Why did you look for me?” Jin-Hyeok asked Terse.

“I have something crucial to ask you.”

“What is it?’

“I am not yet worthy to ask. After we clear the Swallowing Croaker Scenario, I will.”

It was obvious what Terse wanted to ask.

“Why beat around the bush? You want to know how I tamed the Thunder Dragon, right?” Jin-Hyeok said.

“...How did you know?”

“Even a kid could guess that.”

It was not that big of a deal, so Jin-Hyeok decided to tell the truth. “I was just lucky.”

“You were lucky?” Terse laughed as if he found it ridiculous.

Not understanding what was funny about his statement, Jin-Hyeok reluctantly used Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance.

[...#Is he keeping it a secret? #I would too. #But I won’t give up. #I want to know his secret!]

Jin-Hyeok could not understand why Terse was overthinking a simple statement about luck.

‘Why won’t he believe me?’

Terse continued with a serious expression, “The Thunder Dragon was originally mine.”

‘He’s sharp.’

Before Jin-Hyeok’s regression, it had indeed been Terse’s, so technically, Jin-Hyeok might have taken it from him.

“So?” Jin-Hyeok replied.

“...What?” Terse tilted his head in confusion, seemingly surprised by Jin-Hyeok’s response.

[...#Why isn’t he angry? #Even though I am being unreasonable. #Why?]

“Are you proud that something of yours got robbed? Why are you telling me this?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“...”

[...#That is a weird way of putting it.]

“Why are you saying that the Thunder Dragon was originally yours as if it’s something to be proud of?”

“...I apologize. Seems like I lost my senses to jealousy for a moment.” Terse seemed to think that Jin-Hyeok harbored some incredible secrets. “Let’s talk in detail after the Swallowing Croaker Scenario. As you know, I am the top-ranking Tamer of the American Region. I might be of help.”

***

Jin-Hyeok started his livestream with a heightened tone. “I’ve thought a lot about the word Swallowing.”

Before Jin-Hyeok’s regression, Terse had successfully managed to draw the attention of the Swallowing Croaker. Subsequently, many top-rank Players, including an NIS team, had collaborated to subdue the monster.

Terse had wanted to pacify the Croaker and had reached an agreement with the NIS team to that effect. However, the situation spiraled into chaos when some Players initiated an attack, intending to kill the monster.

‘I remember Terse became infuriated and threw a tantrum, protesting that this was a breach of their agreement.’

Jin-Hyeok could not understand Terse’s perspective at that time, but he empathized with the sentiment. He knew better than anyone the frustration of not being able to Play as one desired.

‘But Terse getting angry was a minor issue.’

The important part came after. A tragedy occurred when the Swallowing Croaker ate several Players, including Lee Hyeon-Seong.

‘And the severely injured Swallowing Croaker escaped after swallowing the Players.’

However, around the time when a memorial march had begun for these Players, including Hyeon-Seong, they miraculously appeared at Ttukseom.[1]

‘Come to think of it, Hyeon-Seong was already the infamous Anus Destroyer even then!’

These Players had survived inside the Swallowing Croker, eventually escaping by breaking through its anus. A few days later, a gigantic fish, resembling a whale, had surfaced on the water, marking the end of the Swallowing Croaker Scenario.

At that time, Hyeon-Seong had been a Swordsman contending for the top spot with Jin-Hyeok. After the end of the Scenario, Hyeon-Seon had gained the number one spot and maintained it for about two weeks. Jin-Hyeok had been furious about that.

“Ultimately, it seems we need to be swallowed for this Scenario,” Jin-Hyeok said. He then turned his gaze toward Terse. “The top-ranking Tamer of the American Region has rushed to offer his help. Terse, with your abilities, you can surely draw the attention of the Swallowing Croaker, right?”

“...”

Terse was in a state of confusion, struggling to understand Jin-Hyeok’s way of thinking. “...So, because the Scenario is named the Swallowing Croker, you want to try being swallowed? Is that it?”

“Since we are on the air, let’s try to talk more formally, shall we? The translation technology is not quite advanced and is incapable of distinguishing between casual and formal speech, Mr. Park Terse.”

The sharp viewers of KimKnowItAllTV commented things such as ‘Huh?’ and ‘Usually, Chul-Soo speaks informally just fine?’, and Jin-Sol wrote “???’, but these were drowned by other comments such as ‘If OderMan says so, then that’s how it is.’

[You fools, do not judge OrderMan by your narrow perspective. Haven’t you seen the recent incident where he nobly beat the crap out of those people? Lord Chul-Soo is always right!]

[Written by: ChulSooIsGod]

[Just stop with that lame justification. He is just doing whatever the hell he wants. Isn’t that disgusting? Earthlings, you fawning over Chul-Soo with your Earth-centric views makes me sick to my stomach.]

[Written by: NoOverpackagingPlz]

As usual, a big fight broke out between the two Named users in the Korean Region Minor Gallery, with most people siding with ChulSooIsGod. NoOverpackagingPlz, or Joseph, who was actually on Wang Yu-Mi’s side, had played a successful role in solidifying Chul-Soo’s fan base by using overly provocative and offensive language.

Meanwhile, Jin-Hyeok continued with the livestream. “Why? You can’t do it? You just have to summon the fish here.”

“Why do you assume I can do it so easily?”

“I just thought Park Terse would naturally be able to.” Jin-Hyeok was a bit disappointed. Indeed, the Swallowing Croaker Scenario had occurred a few months earlier than it had taken place before his regression. However, after his regression, the Players around him were growing at a faster pace than before.

‘I thought he would be much stronger by now.’

Although the Scenario had occurred a few months earlier, Jin-Hyeok thought Terse could successfully summon the Swallowing Croaker even now. However, it seemed he had overestimated Terse.

“...You can’t do it?” Jin-Hyeok asked.

“...”

Jin-Hyeok had high hopes for Terse, so he was disappointed. His disappointment toward Terse was profound, almost feeling like a betrayal. If this was the case, there was no point in surpassing Terse at all.

‘What’s the point of being better than Terse, who is already weaker than me?’

“I should just call King Gook-Hyeon,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“King Goo-Hyeon?”

“He’s the top Tamer of the Korean Region. Don’t tell me you don’t know how King Gook-Hyeon is?”

Jin-Hyeok unconsciously slipped into informal speech. As Joseph pointed out, his standard seemed a bit inconsistent.

“Aren’t you even studying your competitors in the same field? And you call yourself a Ranker?” Jin-Hyeok said.

“I am not obsessed with rankings! I just enjoy communicating with lovely monsters, and through that communication, I found myself at the top of the rankings.”

This was Terse’s philosophy of Play. He never particularly sought competitive Play. He never strived to be at the top; it just happened while he did what he loved.

‘Even if he is Chul-Soo, he has no right to interfere with or criticize my Play philosophy!’ Terse thought.

As Terse glared at him, Jin-Hyeok spoke. “Do you seriously think you can tame the Thunder Dragon with that kind of attitude?”

“...”

“Even if you thoroughly analyze Players of similar caliber and try to fill your shortcomings and grow, taming the Thunder Dragon is still a long shot.”

“...”

It was the moment when Terse, a pure and passionate Tamer, began to falter.

“Fine, I guess I need to call King Gook-Hyeon,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“Wait!” Terse bit his lip. “I’ll do it. I will try what you suggested.”

The Swallowing Croaker Scenario officially began.

1. Ttukseom is a small park located near the Han River. ?