Ranker’s Return

Kim Junsik’s question and opened his mouth to respond, but no words emerged.

Dding-!

Once again, a cheerful sound was heard.
Kim Junsik stepped out while Kim Junho was still standing blankly.

“I am looking forward to it.
How truthful will you be? I’ll see you in a moment, Kim Junho-ssi.” Kim Junsik said that and then disappeared, whistling as he did so.

Thump!

Once Kim Junho was left alone, he leaned against the wall of the elevator like he had no strength in his legs.

***

A group of men exited the huge building. Most of them were busy staring at each other’s faces anxiously.

“It is too late to regret it.
We have to get revenge.
Isn’t it right to get payback after you’ve been hit?” Preby said as he turned to his men. He wasn’t trembling at all; there was no sign of fear. Instead, his eyes burned with anger.

“This is what will happen.
Bi Yoon here has the perfect plan.” Preby pointed to Bi Yoon who had the same expression as him.
There was even a bit of excitement in Bi Yoon’s expression. He was excited with the expectation that he could get revenge sooner or later.

Bi Yoon said, “Don’t worry.
Shake off your fear of him.
We were beaten in the past, but we’re different now.
He killed a drake alone? We killed it too.
Be confident.”

The anxiety was washed away from the men’s faces little by little as Bi Yoon’s words ended.
Preby glanced at them before approaching Bi Yoon and whispering, “Will it take a few days?”

“It will take some time to figure out the situation.
Isn’t it perfect for our side?” Bi Yoon chuckled.

The plan wasn’t quite reliable, objectively speaking.
Nevertheless, Preby liked it very much.

“Good, good.
Then I’ll ask the guild guys to contact you.
We have to do this.” Preby raised his hand to his mouth while pressing his thumb and finger together.

Bi Yoon replied, “Yes, yes.
There are many stupid guys.
There aren’t just one or two blind ones in the East Continent.”

Preby and Bi Yoon stared at each other and chuckled.
This was the moment when a conspiracy to target Alley Leader started.

***

A week passed, and many things happened in the meantime. Some of them were of interest to Hyeonu, in particular JT Telecom defeating its rivals and securing first place in the league. In fact, the Korean League was over. There was one match left, but there would be no change in the rankings.

It was a match between a strong and a weak team, so the current ranking would become the result of this season as long as there were no accidents. The players of JT Telecom gathered in the living room of the dormitory. They were holding a party like it was already confirmed they were taking the number one spot for the season.
The next opponent was the weakest in the league, so it wasn’t too much to have a party like this.

“Jinyong hyung, we will start gaining imperial contributions from tomorrow, right?” Do Jeonghyun asked the team’s oldest person, Kim Jinyong.

“I think so? There is some push from the club side.
I think they want to gain the territory on their own,” Kim Jinyong answered. 

Yoon Bin, the youngest, intervened in the conversation between the two: “So the focus is on monster subjugation as planned? That’s a bit boring…”

Do Jeonghyun pressed his hand onto the head of Yoo Bin, who was sitting beside him, and replied, “You can have fun after retiring.
Understood? Now is the time to be a machine.”

“Ah, Hyung! It hurts!! Stop, stop it!” Yoo Bin tried to remove Do Jeonghyun’s hand that was on his head. However, Do Jeonghyun’s strength was overwhelming.
No matter how hard Yoo Bin tried, he couldn’t remove it.

“Jinyong hyung, look at this.” Another JT Telecom player had just turned on the television in the living room.
The television was connected to his smartphone, so the screen that was playing on his smartphone was displayed on the TV.

“What is this?”

“It is an interview with Mascherano.
He is being interviewed about the next season.
He will probably talk about the territory.”

“Really? Quickly turn up the sound.
We should listen.”

The moment Kim Jinyong spoke, the voices of the men on the TV became louder.

-Our Red Bull America is already fully prepared for next season, Mascherano spoke in a confident voice as always.

“It hasn’t been disclosed, so I don’t think he has gained it.
Why is he so confident?”

Looking at Mascherano now, it was like he had already gained a territory.
Nonetheless, everyone knew this wasn’t the case. Otherwise, it would already be promoted news. It was natural. The disclosure of a territory was a boon to the team and its players. They would be a fool to hide it. Pro gamers needed just as much attention as they needed skills.
That way, they could become stars.

“Really? Currently, all 12 members of Red Bull America are in the East Continent.
How much can the miners gain?” Do Jeonghyun cocked his head like he couldn’t understand it.

It was the same with the interview host who asked, -What do you mean? Fully prepared? Are you saying you’ve obtained a territory?

On the screen, Mascherano shook his head.
-Not yet. However, we can get it before the winter season begins. We have almost 300,000 contributions, and this number will increase more and more quickly.

An imperial contribution of 300,000 wasn’t a big deal.
The important thing was confidence. Where did that confidence come from? The answer quickly popped out of Mascherano's mouth: -There is an answer in the East Continent. When you come, you will know how to get imperial contributions.  

Kim Jinyong raised the remote control and turned off the TV.

“Did you hear? Clean up this place—no.
Listen first before cleaning up.
Contact UK Heights or anywhere else.
Find two trustworthy clubs.
We are going to the East Continent.”