Martial Arts Returnee's Game Broadcast-Chapter 388: The Difference in Weight

1.

The Top Ten Guilds are powerful.

A government that once oppressed Awakeners—

A rebellion led by ten superhumans who rose against it and claimed victory.

2040.

The second-generation Awakeners stood at the forefront.

Heroes.

Each of them established their own guilds.

That was the beginning of the Top Ten Guilds.

And to protect the rights of all other Awakeners,

they created the Awakener Association.

Ever since Awakeners took control of society,

the government became obsolete.

Laws, once serving politicians, corporations, and criminals,

had long since shifted to serve Awakeners.

It’s been a long time.

Park Jae-ho endured for ten years.

Even as the Top Ten Guilds succumbed to greed and corruption,

he remained unshaken.

Not out of conscience.

Not because he was weak-hearted.

But because the Association still held power.

"Jo Il-seong. For the leader of the Top Ten Guilds to contact me himself... That means Hae-nam Sect isn’t going down as easily as you expected?"

—They’re a difficult opponent. That’s why we need the Association’s help. We’re opening a gate in Hae-nam District.

The first chairman of the Awakener Association had been nothing more than a government lapdog.

Park Jae-ho overthrew him and became the second chairman himself.

Yet, in the end—

This was what it came to.

His comrades had become the new face of corruption.

And he?

Reduced to Jo Il-seong’s pawn.

Is this humiliation?

No.

Because he still had power.

When the powerless endure, it’s humiliation.

When the powerful endure, it’s patience.

The cross-shaped scar above his left eye—it was proof.

"Summon Seong Mu-gil."

The Chairman of the Awakener Association.

One of the Three Great Executives of the Association, Park Jae-ho.

The Director of Strategic Planning.

One of the Three Great Executives of the Association, Baek So-cheon.

The Captain of the Special Forces.

One of the Three Great Executives of the Association, Seong Mu-gil.

With Baek So-cheon gone and himself unable to move,

the only sword left in the Association’s arsenal was Seong Mu-gil.

"I heard the Top Ten Guilds summoned you. What did they ask for?"

"To open a gate in Hae-nam Sect."

"And you’re complying?"

"Yes. We’re deploying large-scale mana waste shipments into Hae-nam District."

"...Goddamn it!"

Seong Mu-gil slammed the desk.

The stacks of documents flew into the air, scattering across the room.

"You know why I joined you! The only reason I worked under you in the Association was to destroy the Top Ten Guilds!"

"I know."

"Then why the hell are you telling me this?! Are you betraying me and siding with them?! Answer me, Park Jae-ho!!"

The chairman’s left eye remained closed.

Just as it had been eleven years ago.

Just as it had been one year ago.

And just as it was today.

Today was not the day for that eye to open.

"I made you a promise. That one day, I’d give you the chance to destroy the Top Ten Guilds."

But—

If there was one thing he could open,

It was Seong Mu-gil’s eyes.

"That chance has come."

"...A chance?"

"A gate is opening in Hae-nam Sect. While their members ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) are trapped in reality, the Top Ten Guilds plan to secure something inside Gladiator Growth."

"And what the hell am I supposed to do about that?"

"Death Trauma. Even Awakeners aren’t immune to its effects. And this time, it’s going to cripple the Top Ten Guilds’ strongest fighters."

Seong Mu-gil shuddered.

Virtual reality games.

Only a select few knew that something secret lay hidden within them.

But what was widely known was the danger of Death Trauma.

When a player dies, their brain and soul can be tricked into believing that they’ve truly died.

This psychosomatic shock disrupts the nervous system, dealing real damage to the body.

And until the trauma subsides—

Even an Awakener of equal rank would struggle to fight back.

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"You’re not just asking me to take down one person, are you?"

"At least five."

Even without the ‘Eye That Sees the Future,’ it was obvious.

This battlefield.

This game.

The day of reckoning was coming.

The day of revenge Seong Mu-gil had been waiting for.

"The Top Ten Guilds’ ten strongest members—the Ten Kings."

"...!"

"At least five of them will suffer Death Trauma at the same time."

With Hae-nam Sect stepping back, the opportunity would arrive.

The government had fallen.

The Top Ten Guilds had no true rivals left.

No one could stop them anymore.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

That’s why I stayed under the chairman.

To bet everything on this moment.

"But how can you be so sure, if you haven’t used your Eye?"

"Even without abilities, humans sense the future all the time. You know that gut feeling when something feels wrong?"

"...You want me to trust an instinct?"

"A Prophet’s instinct. Is that not enough?"

"...No. I’ll believe you."

If this were any other event, he wouldn’t have trusted even the chairman’s intuition.

But this was Hae-nam Sect.

And involved Ha Eung Eung.

Even if the analysts were only half-right,

she was still the strongest Awakener of this era.

"The first U-rank Awakener in history was ."

"And now, she’s the second."

"Untouchable. A force beyond comprehension. A walking natural disaster."

The ripple effect started by Dr. Johan II had dragged in the Top Ten Guilds—

And now, even the Awakener Association was being pulled into the storm.

By the time this war is over—

Either the Top Ten Guilds, the Association, or Hae-nam Sect will be gone.

And if the Association fell—

Then eleven years of patience and his prophetic power would all go to waste.

Seong Mu-gil. This isn’t just your gamble.

All of their ambitions were riding on this one chance.

Park Jae-ho closed his eyes once more.

Suppressing the fear of the future approaching.

2.

"Emergency report! A new gate has appeared in Hae-nam District! You need to log out immediately!"

Most Hae-nam Sect and Black Vanguard executives immediately logged out.

But Baek So-cheon—

He wasn’t given the time.

"So it’s finally begun."

"Kang Tae-baek. The Top Ten Guilds crossed the line."

"Hah! Now you’re acting all self-righteous? You did plenty of dirty work for the Association yourself."

With a grin, Kang Tae-baek smashed the wall with his blood-red fists and shattered the rubble with his palm.

Awakening Ability - Power of the Conqueror.

"Tch. So you’re not letting me go without a fight?"

The man-child who played with strong opponents until he got bored and then threw them away.

A rabid dog that had torn apart countless victims.

But unlike you...

Baek So-cheon had a code.

And you crossed the line.

And far away...

Inside Hae-nam Sect’s headquarters—

A certain Guild Master finally stood up.

"Time to take a trip to the zoo."

"And this time, I won’t be wearing a mascot costume."

Ha Eung Eung.

She was on the move.