Chapter 269

Chapter 269. Privileges Built on Reputation (1)

“……”

I stood silent before the calamity human beings had created.

Even with the power that far exceeded human limits, the shock was intensely real.

‘Terrifying.’

I had anticipated the aftermath would be significant, but witnessing it firsthand was different.

‘Still, the effect is undeniable.’

There were no coal or gunpowder in Biharin.

Due to the presence of magic, science hadn’t developed, and they relied on wood and oil to light fires.

For this reason, there was no magic to block bombs.

The reason the first shelling at the start of the main scenario was with bombs and not magic was precisely because of this.

And the finale also utilized the most brutal massacre weapon created by modern science.

Surely, on Earth, due to the problem of nuclear fallout, no one would dare think of using it.

But in Biharin, which was on the verge of destruction, it was a different story.

The explosion’s aftermath caused the island to break into pieces and start collapsing.

Watching this scene, I sent a message to report the situation.

-K: It exploded successfully. The island is collapsing.z

– Lily: Thank goodness. I was worried what would happen if the item costing 30 billion didn’t work.

I almost shuddered at that staggering figure as well.

‘With 30 billion, we could have recruited three Platinum ranks……’

The opportunity cost of this choice was considerable.

Yet, it was worth every penny.

I stood there, silently watching the distant mushroom cloud.

It was an outcome created by the contributions of all players.

‘Even I contributed a fair amount.’

I watched the artificial island disintegrate and fall for a long time.

And only after the island’s debris was no longer visible did I turn away.

Thus, the first scene of the second act in the main scenario ended with Earth’s victory.

* * *

I returned to Earth a few days after the main scenario concluded.

It was because I had to deal with the consequences involving fairies.

‘It would’ve been pointless to rescue them if they got captured again.’

The uneasy feeling was a secondary concern.

Although the main scenario had significantly weakened the mages’ power, it hadn’t completely eradicated them.

There were still those who were conscripted, including leader-level entities and black mages.

Thus, I couldn’t leave the fairies unattended in the corrupted areas.

For this reason, I gathered all those whose locations were detected through Dennis.

Fortunately, most of them hadn’t been able to leave the Alder Momens Forest.

Afterwards, I stashed them at our party’s base in Habon.

‘They will remain calm if they don’t want to be hunted as traitors in the middle of Habon.’

Thus, after handling the fairies with some measure of isolation, I returned to Earth five days later.

During those five days, the 5th round of selection and updates proceeded as scheduled.

‘Or should I call it a downgrade?’

The community had disappeared, the inventory vanished, and the auction function was no longer usable.

The most inconvenient change was the inability to use the chat function.

‘I’ll have to adapt.’

To communicate, I only needed to be patient for a short while.

We could form a communication network with electronic devices on Earth.

I heard the online network was already set up.

There exists a license issued by the association once a player registers.

With that license, one could sign up for the players-only website.

‘I should sign up and start posting guides.’

Under normal circumstances, one must personally go to have the status window verified to receive the license.

However, I could skip this procedure.

Yang Haewon had managed all the procedures on my behalf and sent me the license when the gifting function was still available.

Turning on my phone, I checked Yang Haewon’s message among the piled-up notifications.

Attached was a link to the player-exclusive website ‘Guardian’.

‘The naming is quite direct.’

To be honest, it sounded a bit corny and cheesy.

But in the grand scheme, it wasn’t bad.

I signed up for the site after a few verifications.

Then, I copied and pasted the contents of the ‘Damned System’ I had organized and posted it.

Finally, I lightly donned a baseball cap and exited Jonghun’s lab.

“Kang Hyunwoo has returned.”

At that moment, I heard my name in the hospital corridor.

Turning my head slightly, I saw a man standing at a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

As soon as he caught my gaze, he dropped his eyes.

I looked at him quietly and resumed walking.

‘It isn’t pleasant.’

It was natural for the government to try to pinpoint my whereabouts.

I had, indeed, told Yang Jochul the location of the gate myself.

I informed them with the condition that security should be thorough without having to scout.

‘It seems there aren’t any journalists yet.’

Seeing the effort on their side, there seemed no need to poke the beehive.

I decided to ignore the agent near the gate.

Instead, I dialed a saved number on my cellphone.

‘Let’s appease Jinwoo.’

Because Jinwoo, who was more reserved than Yeonwoo in expressing emotions, probably fretted quite a bit, I called him first.

「The number you have reached is currently powered off…….」

“He’s not picking up……”

It wasn’t a school class time since it was Saturday.

‘Neither is it academy class time.’

Maybe they were in the library?

Thinking Yeonwoo might be with him, I tried calling Yeonwoo.

「The number you have reached is currently powered off……」

The same situation repeated, weighing my heart with a foreboding sense.

Could something have happened to my family during the days the community function was closed?

‘No way.’

If it had, Yang Jochul would have left a message.

I checked my brimful messenger, but there was no such message.

‘The watchperson I passed moments ago had no mention of it.’

I struggled to suppress my anxious heart, calling another number.

「Yes, I picked up.」

It was Jaehyuk who answered after a short ring.

「Are you just getting back? You’re a bit late? Other players returned right away last week.」

“I had some affairs to settle.”

「…… Are you hurt?』

“Not a scratch. By the way, the kids’ phones are all off; did anything happen?”

「Happen, there was.」

My eyebrows twitched unconsciously.

Wondering just what happened, I was about to ask hastily when—

“Hey? It’s K.”

I heard a familiar word from the side.

Did they recognize me? Should I have worn a mask too when I came out?

Feeling a bit embarrassed about stealthily pressing my hat down when it was already pointless, I noticed no one recognized me.

“I saw that.”

“Real-time video ranked number 1, right?”

Only after hearing those mysterious exchanges did I notice the strangeness.

People waiting for the eight-lane signal were all looking at the same place, engaging in conversation.

They were looking at the electronic display board of the building across the street.

Monochrome footage was playing on that screen.

Judging by its quality and angle, it looked just like a typical surveillance CCTV found on streets everywhere.

Upon watching it, a peculiar sense of déjà vu flooded over me.

‘What is that?’

The strangely familiar back of someone running down a rather familiar alley in the footage.

‘Where have I seen that?’

Barely had I tilted my head in curiosity when captions appeared on the videotape.

「Granny!」

The problematic footage segued into a scene filmed from another angle.

On screen were two men.

A burly man and an older lady.

Next to the older lady was a handcart filled with scrap paper.

By then, I recognized what it was and felt more bewildered.

‘Why is that playing there……?’

As the man in the video turned his back to the grandmother and lowered himself, I grew more puzzled.

The footage showed the man galloping off, both the elderly lady on his back and gripping the handcart piled with scrap papers.

“……..”

I stood dumbfounded, rendered speechless.

In the meantime, a clearer, colored video clip began playing.

The man in the footage saved a child from an abductor wielding a knife.

Awkwardly smiling, he received a certificate of commendation, kneeling to converse eye-to-eye with the child who brought a bouquet.

Then came the disaster footage, referred to as a week of nightmare, that depicted the battle I engaged in.

If one considered a helicopter-borne film crew had captured it, the constant shake made sense, though distinguishing its form wasn’t hard.

Captions typically seen in news bulletins scrolled below.

「Player official ranking number one, K.」

I unconsciously blurted out at that moment.

“Ranking……?”

Did something like that exist among players? Since when?

Despite my bewilderment, the footage continued.

A video clip capturing me during a press conference.

「Please do not forget that players are working hard to protect their homeland.」

And interviews from people in my past reminiscing about me.

「He was someone who seemed bound to succeed in anything.」

「The school environment was really great when Hyunwoo was around. He couldn’t stand bullying or discrimination……」

「He always took the lead, was responsible, academically excellent, and had a promising future.」

Everything was being bombarded my way.

I stood there, slightly dumbfounded, watching the display.

“……?”

Then, as if an oddly familiar face had flitted by, I lowered my eyes.

“What on earth is that……”

I hadn’t seen wrong. A bus that just passed by had a massive banner with my face plastered on it, paired with a statement as breathtakingly surprising as it was absurd.

「Guardian of Korea, Hero of the Nation K!」

“Hero?”

But it wasn’t exclusive to the display screen or the bus.

On the smartphone screen of the person next to me, there was also an image of me.

“A very nice young man.”

“That, you know, they say he’s the strongest in the world?”

“They said Korea’s unusually low damage was thanks to K?”

I seemed to pop up even in the conversations of passing strangers.

Everything was plastered with K, so much so that it left me at a loss as to why I hadn’t noticed sooner.

‘Sure, I did say they could use my name.’

But I imagined the government utilizing my name to suit their communication rather than to this extreme.

In press conferences confronting journalists, or in diplomatic negotiations where there might be friction with other countries.

I intended for them to use the value of my name or presence to smoothly handle affairs, not to manufacture me into a propaganda item plastered everywhere, both near and far.

「Kheuk, khuek… ha-ha, ahem. Did you see the bus advertisement?」

As I stood frozen in bewilderment, Jaehyuk’s voice reached my ears.

「It’s filled with your stories, right? The kids turned off their phones because of it too.」

“Pardon?”

「My dad and I are currently blocking strange numbers due to the hospital work. But we’re planning to switch numbers soon.」

My mood sharpened momentarily.

I had explicitly insisted to Yang Jochul that our family’s personal information should be shielded.

If that pact wasn’t honored, I had no reason to tolerate the absurd spectacle I was witnessing.

Fortunately, the situation hadn’t reached the worst scenario.

「It didn’t spread publicly, ironically. Somehow, photos or names aren’t being mentioned. It’s just seeping through curious people on SNS.」

Only then did my sharp mood mellow out.

As I relaxed and reassessed the conversation, I began understanding the situation.

Due to certain persistent journalists and suspicious individuals, it seems they turned their phones off out of annoyance.

‘To be exact, it was probably because of the latter.’

Somehow, someone managed to procure the twins and the Seo family’s SNS and extracted personal information, incessantly bombarding them with calls and messages without respite.

「Yang Jochul said the fuss will simmer down in a week or two, so we’re just waiting out the storm for now.」

“…….”

「They are even managing our comings and goings quite conveniently, letting my old man and me commute smoothly for now.」

Consequently, the twins resigned from their part-time jobs.

At this very moment, they would likely be in a library with restricted access to outsiders.

Even after attaching National Intelligence Service agents, some journalists were still lurking, leaving no other option.

It was something I had anticipated when deciding to make my personal information public.

Yet, witnessing my loved ones being inconvenienced due to me left a bitter taste in my mouth.

“It must have been cumbersome. I’m……”

「If you know this much, treat this big brother well.」

Before I could even apologize, Jaehyuk interrupted me.

That interruption was undoubtedly Jaehyuk’s effort to shield me from feeling responsible.

A patronizing joke from me was all I could offer in return.

“Yeah, should I offer you some gold coins?”

「Have you made some? They say there tends to be a lot of unclaimed money where players roam?」

“Not just some, you know.”

「Ooh ooh ooh.」

With slightly lightened spirits, I continued the call.

After relaying the necessary information and discussing a couple of consent issues, the all-too-brief call concluded.

I surveyed my surroundings.

On the display was a scene from a press conference led by Lily a few days ago.

Advertisements on the bus were of varied sorts.

The individuals watching footage about me or talking about me had already dispersed.

They were no longer there but had certainly been.

Once I calmed down, I could revisit these recollections more objectively.

‘This wasn’t just a haphazard spread.’

Bit by bit, they clearly bore a singular, underlying purpose.

Realizing this, while my brain spun, trying to untangle it—

‘For now, let’s visit the kids.’

I deferred my ponderings and flagged a cab.

My first stop was with the twins.

There was much to discuss, but more importantly, I needed to show them that I returned safely.

Damned System