Chapter 119
Kim Myeongjeong.
After gaining practical experience at leading dungeon development companies overseas and returning to Korea, he took office as SG Group’s CEO this year at the young age of 42.
SG Group had no choice but to find a new CEO because Ryu Hyeonsu, or Zephyros, who had been handling the group’s actual management, had been promoted to Director of the National Intelligence Service.
SG Group had considered promoting someone from within, but after weighing their experience and abilities, it decided that CEO Kim Myeongjeong was the best person for the job. And so he took the helm.
And the first call he received from the group chairman was shocking.
─I'm hitting Level 70.
He said it as casually as if he were going for a stroll around the neighborhood, but the matter itself was anything but simple.
Kim Segyun reaching Level 70.
Did he even understand the ramifications?
“Um, Chairman. The ramifications of reaching Level 70 and all that...”
─I'm telling you in advance so you can minimize the impact.
“No, I mean...”
─Why? Is that impossible?
“...I'll try... No, I will.”
Kim Segyun had been chairman for a while now, and his words had acquired a touch of authoritarian “do as I say” energy. The new CEO had no choice but to go along with it.
He'd never dared(?) to speak that way to Zephyros, but...
The new CEO found it difficult to voice his opinions to Kim Segyun.
CEO Kim Myeongjeong was deep in thought about how to use this advance information.
“The easiest thing to do is short the market.”
That meant placing short bets with the company's money.
The problem was...
“More than half of South Korea's stock market belongs to SG Group. We can't bet against our own stock.”
No one in their right mind would short their own stock, even if they knew it was going to fall.
Even if they made money in the short term, the crash would quickly spiral out of control.
What's more, having the ‘whale’ that accounted for more than half of South Korea's stock market bet on its own collapse...
Would be little different from betting on the collapse of all of Korea.
The fact that the market was nearly monopolized was turning into a problem.
“...SG Group will take the biggest hit, but an international downturn will be unavoidable. Then we profit from the biggest market in the world, the United States, and use that money to defend the group's stock price. That's the only way.”
CEO Kim Myeongjeong felt as if he were being put to some kind of test.
The problem was that the test was a real battle of money, with hundreds of trillions... even thousands of trillions of won on the move.
And just as he had bet, the moment the Level 70 alert appeared, the global dungeon market suffered a catastrophic crash.
Everything that had been priced in because of Kim Segyun's existence returned to normal.
And then prices began falling even lower than before.
With the enormous funds he earned in the process...
CEO Kim Myeongjeong began buying up SG Group's own stock, now trading at a fraction of its former value.
The price was so low, and the company had accumulated so much in reserves, that buying up shares was an obvious move to defend the stock price.
Just when he thought he'd managed to hold the line...
It happened.
**
After Kim Segyun reached Level 70,
the Kang Minguk administration, known for running an efficient government, responded quickly.
“To prevent disruption to South Korea's financial markets, all forms of short selling are hereby prohibited for the next 90 days.”
The Financial Supervisory Service's ban on short selling couldn't stop the market from crashing, but it did prevent a truly massive collapse.
The problem emerged about a week later.
“This is an unfair practice under the WDDO agreement.”
“Are you saying our government can't even regulate trading on our own stock market?”
This wasn't the first time it had happened. The government had occasionally banned short selling to prevent excessive turmoil in the stock market.
“Take a look at this.”
The Ministry of Economy and Finance official beside them turned pale as he looked at the documents presented by the U.S. government representative.
“This is...”
“Yes. These records show that SG Group made massive profits through short selling on the U.S. stock market before the incident. We believe this was large-scale insider trading based on advance knowledge of Hunter Kim Segyun reaching Level 70, and the SEC intends to launch an investigation.”
“It's customary not to classify trades based on information about Hunters' growth as insider trading!”
Strictly speaking, it was insider trading, but Hunters were treated as a special case.
Considering the dungeons they cleared and how long it took them, the timing could be estimated to some extent even by people other than the Hunters themselves or those around them.
So it was treated as ‘public information.’
“Hunter Kim Segyun's case is an exception. A sudden leap from the Level 40 range straight to Level 70 isn't normal.”
“Where has anything like that happened before? If it's a custom, it should be applied equally! And do people who know Hunter Kim Segyun's abilities really say that? If he wanted to, couldn't Hunter Kim Segyun level up in a day or two?”
At the Ministry official's outburst, the U.S. State Department representative backed down a little.
“Understood. That's not what we're here to discuss.”
“...Then what is?”
“A fair game.”
The Ministry official understood perfectly.
They were saying: if you'd made money shorting the market, don't stop us—let's compete fairly.
The problem was...
“The difference in our weight classes is enormous! How is that fair...”
“If that's how you feel... you shouldn't have attacked first. You hit us as hard as you could, and now you want to change the rules from stand-up fighting to grappling? How is that fair?”
“......”
After letting out a sigh, the Korean official asked,
“What are the terms?”
“Just lift the ban on short selling. There will be no SEC investigation or retaliatory tariffs.”
“That sounds like you're saying you'll do those things if we don't lift it.”
“You're perceptive.”
“...We'll consider it.”
The negotiations were reported to the Presidential Office immediately.
President Kang Minguk let out a deep sigh for the first time in a while.
“If American capital comes in, how much are we talking about? Can we stop it?”
“We've built up a large stake in our own shares, so that's not an issue. The problem is cash liquidity.”
“Cash?”
“We've already spent most of our cash buying up shares to defend the stock price, and our revenue has fallen sharply.”
The reason for the drop in revenue was obvious: the newly generated Level 70 Gates had broken pacification.
“We also have to reorganize all the personnel we've assigned based on the existing pacified state.”
Since pacified Gates were at least 20% weaker, there had been no problem deploying Hunters several levels below their usual level.
The gaps that would arise while those Hunters were temporarily reassigned...
And the need to retrain Hunters for Gates whose difficulty had risen now that pacification was broken...
“Even with a rough estimate, it'll take months to return to normal.”
President Kang Minguk squeezed his eyes shut.
He felt a moment of resentment toward Kim Segyun for suddenly reaching Level 70, but that emotion quickly passed.
It must have been unavoidable...
Besides, Korea had gained far more than it had lost thanks to Kim Segyun.
As long as a Hunter on the level of a guardian opened the door to the Over Seventy era, it wouldn't be a problem in the long term.
The immediate problem was that they had no idea what resources Level 70 and higher Gates would yield—and whether even Kim Segyun could clear a Level 70 Gate.
“So America... no, Wall Street is getting impatient.”
No one knew when Kim Segyun would usher in the Over Seventy era, but the general expectation was that he would deliver the first victory within the next few months.
Before then, they wanted to take advantage of the Korean stock market as much as possible, but the government had changed the rules, and now they were furious.
“The worst-case scenario is if Level 70 Gates produce nothing worthwhile.”
Higher levels didn't necessarily mean better yields.
In fact, one of South Korea's most lucrative Gates was the Level 50 Great Gate at Namsan.
There, Hunters could follow a strategy devised by Zephyros called a ‘speedrun’: quickly mine only mana stones, then reset the Gate. That method produced an enormous amount of mana stones.
“Still, it is Level 70...”
“Come on, it can't be that bad...”
“That's right.”
The key ministers all spoke up in response to the president's muttering, but President Kang Minguk's expression didn't soften at all.
As if something still bothered him, he fell silent, his face tense, then finally spoke.
“Where is the only Level 70 Gate in the world right now?”
“The United States.”
After Kaiser was the first to reach Level 70 and made his announcement, the world had been terrified and started controlling its Hunters' levels.
“Then where do we have the most information about Level 70 Gates?”
“The United States...”
“D-don't tell me...”
The United States kept that information classified, so other countries knew nothing about what lay inside Level 70 Gates.
But they'd set their Hunters' levels at 69 from the start. If they lifted level control just to satisfy their curiosity and pacification broke everywhere, the result would be an uncontrollable situation like the one they faced now.
“Could it be that the United States is certain Level 70 Gates are more trouble than they're worth?”
If they entered the market with short positions and Level 70 Gates turned out to yield an enormous amount of resources...
It would be the worst possible outcome.
And yet, they were acting with far too much confidence.
“If that's the case...”
“Lifting the ban on short selling could spell disaster.”
It wasn't just a matter of stock prices crashing.
If they were forced to sell off their accumulated shares or issue new ones because of their cash-flow problems...
The pride of South Korea's dungeon development industry—
SG Group—could end up in American hands.
“But we can't just ignore the pressure from the United States. We're caught between a rock and a hard place.”
“...There's no guarantee our country's Gates are the same as America's. Why don't we wait and see for now?”
“So we brace ourselves and hold out. Fine.”
And so the largest dungeon development company in South Korea...
And Wall Street, with the largest pool of capital in the United States—or the world—
Were about to begin their showdown.
**
“The Over Seventy era.”
Kim Segyun's arrival at Level 70 and the long-running Under Seventy status quo he might break.
The media focused on that, putting it in the spotlight.
But they had no idea what he was actually taking on.
Only Kaiser knew what Kim Segyun was challenging.
“If the Gates and dungeons up to now were the Hope version... then from Level 70 onward, it's Despair.”
Unlike the dungeons below that level, where monsters differed from one another or had their own unique traits,
there was only one kind of monster from Level 70 onward.
‘Shadows of Time’
These Shadows of Time recreated historical events and played them out.
One of the first places in America where a Level 70 Gate opened was Pennsylvania.
When he entered the Gate there,
Kaiser saw it.
A total of 160,000 troops on both sides.
The largest battle of the American Civil War—the worst in American history, with a total of 60,000 dead and wounded.
The Battle of Gettysburg.
The monsters known as ‘Shadows of History’ had taken the form of hundreds of thousands of Confederate and Union soldiers.
Even their combat stats were incredible.
Kaiser had been assigned as one of the Union cavalrymen, and he could barely kill a few Confederates after fighting for his life.
It was only natural. They weren't ordinary soldiers, but transformed monsters known as ‘Shadows of Time.’
Their durability was incredible, and their attacks were no joke.
At the height of his power, Kaiser should have been completely unharmed by bullets. But he underestimated them, attacked recklessly, and nearly died from a few shots.
The bigger problem was...
“You don't get anything out of it.”
No items, no loot.
The shadows you killed simply scattered and disappeared.
Just in case, he entered a few other Level 70 Gates, but the situation was much the same.
Each one dealt with a historical event.
And they were all Hell difficulty.
The moment Kaiser realized this, he couldn't help but worry.
When humanity's expectations for ‘Level 70’ began to fade...
His own winning streak would be over.
He had to be humanity's hope and salvation.
He had to be its one and only messiah, capable of fulfilling humanity's ideal of Level 70.
He had completely given up that role now.
Instead,
he decided to pose a question to the new ‘messiah.’
“Can you handle it if you shatter people's expectations?”
**
Honestly, people around the world were sick and tired of the status quo that had become the Under Seventy era.
So was I.
I'd wondered just how difficult it could be for things to get this bad.
[You have entered Level 70 Gate ‘Ascension Chapter ─ Jeollanam-do, South Korea.’]
When I first entered the newly emerged Level 70 Gate in Jeollanam-do, a message appeared before my eyes.
[From Level 70 through Level 79, the ‘Ascension Chapter’ will take place.]
[The Ascension Chapter will put your abilities to the test.]
[Your enemies will adapt to your abilities.]
[The adaptation will apply to all ‘Ascension Chapters’ in the ‘South Korea’ region.]
Then what unfolded before my eyes was...
“The sea?”
...I was on a ship.
It was...
A wooden ship, the kind people might have sailed on a long time ago.
Soldiers dressed as naval troops in historical dramas were bustling around me.
As I stood there bewildered...
Miniature Baal appeared beside me and muttered.
“Shadows of History, huh? I've never seen this many before, either.”
“What are they?”
“They're a particularly nasty bunch. They take up a corner of great historical events, steal causality, and grow stronger. They especially love ‘war.’”
...I couldn't make heads or tails of that.
“They appeared in the Demon Realm several times, but were destroyed before they could grow in power. But it seems they managed to grow enormously strong in this world without being destroyed.”
“In other words, they're strong.”
Well, even if they were strong monsters...
My attacks should still get through, right?
But something about the atmosphere here felt strange.
As I looked out toward the sea in the distance...
Hundreds of ships began to appear, blackening the horizon.
“Could this be...”
“It must be one of the great wars of your world. That's the kind of history they attach themselves to.”
“...This is Admiral Yi Sun-sin's...”
I didn't know exactly which naval battle it was.
One, two, three, four...
“Thirteen ships.”
Looking at the thirteen large ships, the panokseon,
even someone as clueless about history as me could tell.
This was Myeongnyang.
And I was aboard a ship in the Joseon navy.
Or rather, I was aboard what looked like one.
The ships blanketing the distant horizon...
Were probably Japanese ships.
“But this is a battle we're supposed to win even if I don't get involved, right?”
I looked around and spotted a stern-faced general on a ship flying a commander's banner.
Was that really Admiral Yi Sun-sin?
If so, there was no way we'd lose.
“Tsk, tsk...”
At least, that was what I thought until I heard Miniature Baal click his tongue.
At almost the same time,
the ship carrying Admiral Yi Sun-sin vanished like dust.
And dozens more Japanese ships appeared on the other side.
Our ships...
Kept disappearing.
There weren't many to begin with.
The last ship left.
And I was left standing alone on it, with not even a single naval soldier beside me.
[The combat environment has been altered to account for the difference in combat power between you and your opponents.]
“I told you. They're nasty.”
It suddenly felt like I was facing an army of tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, all by myself.
“But we've got more numbers on our side.”
When it came to sheer numbers, we had the overwhelming advantage.
The Gluttonies, now well over a quadrillion in number, caught the sea breeze and began flying toward the Japanese ships, which numbered well over a thousand by my rough estimate.