The Player Who Can't Level Up

“...?” Shin Yoo-Bin, and all the others in the room, stared at Gi-Gyu in confusion. Their eyes widened in surprise, and since Suk-Woo couldn’t control his curiosity, he asked, “Do you two know each other?”

Recognizing Suk-Woo, Shin Yoo-Bin bowed lightly and greeted, “You must be the Cain Guild’s guild master, Yoo Suk-Woo. No, I have never met this gentleman before. This is our first time meeting.”

However, Tae-Shik realized something, so he nodded and murmured, “I see…”

Tae-Gu whispered with curiosity, “Do you know something? Do you know how they know each other?”

Before Tae-Shik could explain, Gi-Gyu smiled and clarified, “We met briefly when you were very young. So I understand that you don’t remember me. Your father’s name is Shin Jung-Chul, isn’t it?”

“H-how did you know that?” When Shin Yoo-Bin stammered in surprise, Gi-Gyu replied, “I was Mr. Shin Jung-Chul’s tutorial guide a long time ago. Four years ago, Mr. Shin Jung-Chul and I became pretty close, so he often visited me to talk about the higher floors even after our partnership ended. Then one day, he introduced me to his daughter, who was my age.”

Remembering her late father fondly, Shin Yoo-Bin smiled brightly and answered, “That was me!” 

“Indeed. You were in high school at the time. I can see that you’re all grown up now.” Gi-Gyu seemed genuinely happy to see her. While he was researching Shin Yoo-Bin, he learned something fascinating. When he worked as a guide, this one player befriended him by telling him about the higher floors he conquered. But one day, this player stopped calling Gi-Gyu. Later, Gi-Gyu heard from others that this player passed away inside the Tower while battling a monster. 

Shin Yoo-Bin was this player’s daughter. 

“Ah! I remember! You’re that Guide Oppa!” Shin Yoo-Bin shouted in excitement. But immediately, her eyes widened in shock as she murmured, “But this can’t be! You were pretty good-looking at the time too, but… You weren’t this handsome.”

Gi-Gyu scratched his head and replied, “Well, a lot has happened since then.”

“And I thought you couldn’t level up either.” Shin Yoo-Bin still seemed shocked, so Gi-Gyu changed the subject. “I heard what happened to your father a long time after it happened… I’m sorry I couldn’t attend his funeral and visit you.”

“N-no, it’s all right,” replied Shin Yoo-Bin, suddenly feeling shy. 

Clap, clap!

“Now! You can chit-chat later!” Tae-Shik clapped and continued, “It’s time for the ranking match.”

“Of course. I’m sorry for my rude behavior.” Shin Yoo-Bin bowed toward Tae-Gu, Tae-Shik, and Suk-Woo. 

Schwing!

Calmly, she unsheathed her sword and announced, “We can talk later, Oppa.” As serenity embodied her, a torrential magic storm surrounded her. When she lowered her body into a perfect battle position, Gi-Gyu swirled both of his hands and smiled. He murmured, “I’m so happy to see how strong you have become.”

***

“I yield,” Shin Yoo-Bin announced weakly and sheathed her sword; the battle had left her shell shocked. 

“Good job,” Gi-Gyu replied calmly, and Tae-Gu murmured, “Hmm…”

“Then I hope you’ll vouch for Player Kim Gi-Gyu to the ranker association, Miss Shin Yoo-Bin.” When Suk-Woo asked Shin Yoo-Bin, she nodded and answered, “Of course. Please don’t worry about that. Regarding Kim Gi-Gyu’s worthiness as a ranker… I, the guild master of the Gypsophila Guild, will vouch for him completely.”

There was no question that Gi-Gyu won this battle, hands down. Actually, Gi-Gyu spent most of his strength trying not to hurt Shin Yoo-Bin accidentally. Despite Gi-Gyu not going all out, the fight ended in less than five minutes. Tae-Shik walked up to Gi-Gyu, tapped his shoulder, and congratulated him, “As of this moment, you’re a real ranker.”

Tae-Gu, Suk-Woo, and Sung-Hoon all cheered for Gi-Gyu, “Congratulations!” Yoo-Bin also approached Gi-Gyu with a bright smile and murmured, “Congratulations, Oppa.” Feeling shy, Gi-Gyu scratched the back of his head and nodded. 

“Gi-Gyu, I need to leave now. I still have much work left to do. We’ll meet later for a drink, okay?” When Suk-Woo announced, Gi-Gyu replied, “Of course. Take care.” 

Ever since Suk-Woo’s guild became a top ten guild, he was swamped with work, so he had to leave immediately after the match.

Before leaving, Tae-Gu said to Gi-Gyu, “When you get a chance, visit me.” Tae-Shik and Sung-Hoon looked like they wanted to stay longer to talk, but the association president dragged both men out with him. 

Suddenly, the sparring hall became dead quiet, with only Gi-Gyu and Yoo-Bin standing in its middle. After a long, awkward silence, Yoo-Bin said shyly, “Oppa, I’m still so shocked by all this. Are you even the same person I saw back then?”

Several years ago, Yoo-Bin, her father, and Gi-Gyu had one lunch together, but Yoo-Bin remembered it as well as Gi-Gyu did.

With a smile, Gi-Gyu asked, “Have you been well? I don’t think you were a player four years ago, right?”

“No, I wasn’t. After my father passed away, I got the invitation from the Tower,” Shin Yoo-Bin answered. Impressed, Gi-Gyu murmured, “You’re amazing. I can’t believe you became this strong in such a short period.”

“It’s you who’s truly amazing, Oppa. I mean… Weren’t you still working as a guide until recently because you couldn’t level up?”

“...” Gi-Gyu's eyes widened in surprise. How did Yoo-Bin know about that?

“Ah! I only know because I have some connections in the association. My father really liked you, so I asked about you out of curiosity.” Shin Yoo-Bin smiled and continued, “Whenever my father got drunk, he would tell me I should marry a guy like you, Oppa. He used to say you’re the perfect guy… Oops!” Yoo-Bin jumped with a blush. She murmured, “Sorry, I don’t know why I brought that up. I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“It’s all right.” Gi-Gyu waved his hand with a smile. 

Another silence fell until Yoo-Bin looked up at Gi-Gyu again. As if finally coming to a decision, Yoo-Bin bit her lower lip, walked up to him, and suddenly grabbed his hand. “Oppa, you’ll give me your phone number, right?”

***

-Oppa, it was so lovely to see you today. We should talk more when we get a chance. 

Gi-Gyu was on his way to meet Tae-Shik when his phone received a text from Shin Yoo-Bin, so he texted back,

-Okay.

‘Player Shin Jung-Chul helped me so much when I worked as a guide… Yet I didn’t even attend his funeral or visit his family after his passing.’

Gi-Gyu felt both happy and guilty after he saw Shin Yoo-Bin. When he was alive, her father was a good friend; sadly, Gi-Gyu learned of his death too late. But even after Gi-Gyu found out about it, he didn’t visit Shin Jung-Chul’s family to console them. Gi-Gyu felt guilty that he didn’t ensure the well-being of Shin Jung-Chul’s family.

-What nonsense are you talking about?

Lou seemed annoyed as he continued,

-At the time, you could barely take care of yourself, let alone your own family, right? I assume this man Shin Jung-Chul was doing much better than you, so why would you feel guilty about this? 

Gi-Gyu smiled bitterly at Lou’s blunt words. It was hard to hear, but it was the truth. When he heard about Shin Jung-Chul’s death, Gi-Gyu wanted to visit his family. However, he knew he couldn’t be of any help to them, so he avoided visiting. 

Gi-Gyu murmured defensively, “I didn’t mean anything by it. I know there was nothing I could've done for them back then. But now, I can try to be more helpful to that family.”

Lou sighed in frustration.

-Gosh, you’re such an idiot.

Brunheart chimed in.

-That’s not true, Lou! Master is so kind!

Knock, knock!

While his Egos chatted, Gi-Gyu arrived at Tae-Shik’s office. 

Creak…

When Gi-Gyu entered the office, he saw a large bruise on Tae-Shik’s face. It had only been an hour since they saw each other, so the bruise was bewildering. 

“What happened to your face, Hyung?”

“...”

“Could it be… Did someone punch you?” Gi-Gyu couldn’t help but laugh at the sight. Thanks to their recent spar, Gi-Gyu knew that Tae-Shik was still a powerful high ranker. All things considered, there was only one person who could hit him like that. 

‘The association president must’ve smacked him.’

That was the explanation Gi-Gyu came up with and found irresistibly funny. After all, where else but in a comic act could you find an elderly man punishing his middle-aged son? Then there was the son: Despite being a powerful player, Tae-Shik still acted like a boy in front of his father. 

Tae-Shik grumbled in a whisper, “Don’t laugh at me…”

“Why did he smack you, Hyung?”

“Dammit! That old man arranged a blind date for me! I told him I wanted to marry someone I love!” Tae-Shik screamed, vexed. 

“Umm…Does the president want an arranged marriage for you or something? Maybe for a political reason?” Gi-Gyu found it hard to believe that Tae-Gu would insist on something like this. But Tae-Gu and Tae-Shik lived in high society, so Gi-Gyu was unfamiliar with their lifestyle. Feeling awkward, Gi-Gyu turned a little rigid, but Tae-Shik shook his head as he replied, “No. He said I can marry the woman I love…”

“So, what’s the problem?”

With that question, an even darker cloud of depression covered Tae-Shik. “He asked me if the woman I love loves me back, and… when I said no, he said I would die an old bachelor. He said, ‘Just said go on a blind date and marry someone right away.’ He has no respect for me! I got so angry that I yelled at him. Then he got so angry that he… That old man!” 

Watching a grown man, a giant one at that, tearing up was not a pretty sight. Feeling uncomfortable, Gi-Gyu considered leaving the office for a moment; at length, he sighed deeply. 

“Haa…”

Finally making his decision, Gi-Gyu asked, “Hyung! Are you busy nowadays?”

“Of course I am. I’m always busy.”

Gi-Gyu’s eyes shined as he clarified his intention, “That’s not what I’m asking. I just want to know if you have the time to court my mother.”

Bang!

Tae-Shik slammed his desk as if he was ready to break it. He replied, “Of course! Totally! I have time! I have so much time that I don’t know what to do with it!”

“Then, you will take care of my mother’s and Yoo-Jung’s schedule. You will take my mom grocery shopping and drive her and Yoo-Jung around. You better take it very seriously.” When Gi-Gyu offered, Tae-Shik stammered, “R-really? You mean that?”

“I’ll convince my mom to let you help around, so”—Gi-Gyu’s face grew solemn— “If you don’t win her over in six months, you will have to give up on my mom. A man who can’t even date properly will never be able to make my mom happy.”

“T-thank you! Thank you, Gi-Gyu!” Tae-Shik jumped like a little child as he shouted. As their conversation dawned on him, he scratched his cheek and murmured, “Ahh…”

Changing the subject, Tae-Shik announced, “You’re officially a ranker now. Did you know the association pays a salary depending on your rank among the rankers? Well, that doesn’t matter since the association will take care of that. Just know that being ranker comes with numerous benefits.” 

Gi-Gyu shook his head and replied, “You know I didn’t come here to talk about that.”

Tae-Shik’s eyes turned serious. A slow grin appeared on his face as he asked, “You mean you wanna talk about the Iron Guild?”

“Exactly.”

Gi-Gyu was here because he needed to learn more about the Iron Guild’s Korean branch. 

Tae-Shik explained, “Tonight, all the major news channels will release the facts regarding the Iron Guild’s Korean branch. Iron Guild has already purchased the building it will use as its headquarter, which means this will happen very quickly.”

“What about the Global Players Association and the Angela Guild? What are they doing right now?” Gi-Gyu asked.

“To be honest, the Global Players Association isn’t really involved in this. After all, the Global Players Association’s job is to mediate among the associations of different countries. So the main group that’s actually involved is…” Tae-Shik trailed off.

“The Angela Guild.” 

“Indeed, but according to our research”—Tae-Shik took a pause—“Angela Guild will only participate in this process until the new branch gets established. We don’t think they’ll get involved any more than that. In summary, the Angela Guild will wash its hands of Iron Guild once the branch is established.”

Gi-Gyu nodded in understanding. These two guilds were never on good terms, so there was only one reason the Angela Guild would help the Iron Guild: They found some common ground.

Also, both the guild had been quiet until recently, so it was obvious they together decided to take action simultaneously. And to fight the Iron Guild, Gi-Gyu needed to figure out why.