Chapter 247

Not long after the gate had appeared, news of China’s National Treasure Jiang Lei entering to clear it quickly spread.

Within several hours, crowds from China and Japan filled Gwanghwamun. And after three days, the crowds had only grown larger.

China has managed to stake its claim on Korea.

At last, we have a foothold to advance into the archipelago!

Damnit, these useless Koreans can’t even hold up their own pants. How could they let the opportunity to challenge the gate fall to the Chinese...

The Chinese reporters were full of joy, while the Japanese reporters were red-faced with anger. As for Jae-Hyeok, who’d entered alongside Jiang Lei and his group, no one paid him any heed.

For one, Korea’s national power was simply too low to take seriously. China and Japan's governments and, indeed, their populations as a whole shared the sentiment that Korea’s National Treasure candidates wielded power comparable to the A-class at most, which was incomparable to China and Japan’s own candidates, who could eat A-class players for breakfast.

Secondly, the Yaksha’s name had all but disappeared across Asia. The situation in Korea went without saying. And as for China and Japan... much of the Yaksha’s past glory had involved forcing these two countries to eat losses. Naturally, the Yaksha was hardly mentioned in their media and education systems. As a result, the Kang surname meant little in the ears of Chinese and Japanese people, so the public weren’t asking about Jae-Hyeok, and the Chinese and Japanese media were disinclined to cover him.

Moreover, as far as the Chinese and Japanese reporters gathered at Gwanghwamun were concerned, Jae-Hyeok was already as good as dead.

S-grade first clearance rewards were simply too valuable. Neither the Chinese nor Japanese reporters believed for a second that Jiang Lei would share the rewards when he could simply kill Jae-Hyeok and take everything for himself.

After all, there were no third-party witnesses, and upon clearing the gate, not even Jae-Hyeok’s corpse would remain to testify...

National Treasure Jiang Lei would never share with some Korean brat.

Kang Jae-Hyeok... Isn't he allied with Pirate King Yeon Ho-Ryeong? Eliminating that brat would serve as a strong warning to Yeon Ho-Ryeong and the Korean government.

Compared to the Chinese reporters, the thoughts of the Koreans weren’t much different. Still, they hoped against hope for Jae-Hyeok to return in one piece.

Like thieves in the night, the Chinese players had taken advantage of Korea’s tardiness in a blatant attempt to steal what should be Korea’s newest asset. Jae-Hyeok had been the only one present halfway qualified to fight for Korea’s interests. And, clearly, Jae-Hyeok had entered the gate with the Chinese players to do just that.

Even knowing he would probably die, he chose to fight for the interests of his country...

He’s just a boy... yet as young as he is, he chose to put his country before himself...

Emotion welled in the hearts of the Korean reporters and onlookers.

Jae-Hyeok has shown himself to be a true noble.

They had finally understood why the Kang family was a ducal family.

In light of the recent chaos Jae-Hyeok had caused in the Association and the military, many had begun to doubt whether Jae-Hyeok deserved his candidate status. Now those doubts melted like spring snow, replaced with clear love and affection.

“Bah, fools.”

The Chinese reporters chuckled at the crowd of onlookers, who by now had gone quiet and had their heads bowed.

After three days, I’m afraid that young Korean candidate is already a rotting corpse. Korea really is the land of the ignorant; even their prayers are naive...

They look so serious... Hmph. Good. This way, the reality of that kid’s death will be all the more crushing. Korea needs to learn: the peace and security it enjoys are granted by China. And there are no free lunches in this world.

At this time, the Japanese reporters calmly evaluated the situation in Korea.

Meanwhile, the Japanese reporters idling by the barricades spared the crowd several neutral glances.

“What is with this crowd?” one asked in his mother tongue.

“Beats me—”

Just then, a commotion at the gate drew everyone's attention. The portal flared, and a group of people emerged.

Exhaustion was clear on Lou Xin’s face, and the other person...

"Waahh!"

“It’s Kang Jae-Hyeok! He’s back!”

“Isn’t this unbelievable?”

The Japanese reporters asked on behalf of the dumbfounded Chinese reporters.

“Are you the only two survivors?”

“Jiang Lei! Where’s China’s new National Treasure, Jiang Lei?”

Questions poured in from the Japanese reporters.

Jae-Hyeok ignored them and raised a hand to the Korean reporters, who’d been squeezed to the back.

Jae-Hyeok’s gesture was measured and refined, exuding both the grace and authority of a noble. Paired with Jae-Hyeok's ethereal features, which were currently the picture of serenity, Jae-Hyeok gave off a sense of threat without being threatening; before such a high presence, the shouting reporters seemed like clowns interrupting an emperor’s morning court. Let alone others, even the clowns in question felt this. Their prattling shrank away, and the surroundings fell quiet.

Once Korean reporters found a place at the front of the group, Jae-Hyeok replied.

“The two of us are the only survivors.”

Jae-Hyeok’s black eyes fell on the pale Chinese reporters.

“Jiang Lei made a name for himself in China, but even he was no match for the king of the Twilight Orcs. It’s really regrettable.”

Twilight Orcs?

Even a lord?

Bewilderment and anger flared in the Chinese reporters.

“How could a Twilight Orc Lord appear in an S-grade gate?”

“And if there were really such a monster, how did you survive?”

“Tell us the truth!”

Let alone the Chinese, even the Japanese reporters were skeptical. Jiang Lei was a National Treasure after all. He might’ve been recently appointed, but he was a Chinese National Treasure nonetheless.

Outside of foul play, how could he have died in an S-grade gate? And speaking of grade, how could a Twilight Orc Lord appear in an S-grade gate? The presence of a normal Twilight Orc is already considered the upper threshold of what could appear in S-grade gates.

“The Twilight Kingdom,” Jae-Hyeok explained. “That’s the name of this gate.”

At those simple words, the reporters’ expressions changed.

S-grade gates with the “kingdom” qualified were almost a grade of their own; the wonders and dangers therein frequently broke common consensus. And seeing as the gate was named “Twilight Kingdom,” even the Chinese players had to admit the presence of a Lord-grade Twilight Orc made sense.

In that case, Jiang Lei’s death makes sense. But...

“Then, how did you survive?”

Because I’m stronger,

Jae-Hyeok thought, but he knew better than to say as much. After all, he still had many fish to catch. He saw no need to detail the extent of his capabilities for his enemies—especially when much of his success so far stemmed from that very information asymmetry.

Thinking as much, Jae-Hyeok put on a sad smile.

“It’s all thanks to Jiang Lei’s dedication.”

“?”

“As expected, China’s National Treasure is deserving of respect. He sacrificed himself to protect us, believing he should save the youth who represent the future of the nation.”

Jae-Hyeok’s eyes glistened as if with unshed tears. It wasn’t excessive and only those looking closely would notice, but that sold their believability.

“How can that be?”

An old Chinese reporter with grey hair roared furiously.

“Are you saying that a National Treasure of our country sacrificed himself for mere rabble, no, juniors? That’s absurd!”

Lou Xin was the successor of the Won family’s main branch, an open target of ridicule among the Chinese media. Meanwhile, Jae-Hyeok was a player from another country, and the son of the Yaksha at that. The grey-haired reporter wasn’t fooled at all; Jiang Lei would never have sacrificed himself for these two.

Jae-Hyeok’s aura abruptly changed as he blinked his eyes and tilted his head. “Do you have some type of grudge against Jiang Lei?”

He looked every bit like a pure and naive teenager.

“Jiang Lei, rest his soul, has already passed. Even if you don’t like him, please don’t distort his heroism and belittle his achievements. He deserves better.”

At this, the grey-haired reporter’s eyes twitched uncontrollably. But he realized there was nothing he could do; he couldn’t refute Jae-Hyeok’s words without smearing Jiang Lei’s reputation.

Damn sly snake.

Seemingly sharing his thoughts, the grey-haired man’s colleagues also glared at Jae-Hyeok.

Meanwhile, the Japanese reporters stole suspicious glances in the direction of the Chinese reporters.

Are China and Korea scheming something?

The Yaksha’s son... Is China possibly nurturing him secretly? Is that why Jiang Lei protected him?.

For centuries, China and Japan competed for dominance over Asia. With such an intense rivalry, it was no wonder the Japanese reporters’ first instinct was to doubt China when something didn’t make sense.

Jae-Hyeok inwardly smiled.

Be angrier and more suspicious.

It had taken Jae-Hyeok three days to complete the Twilight Kingdom’s quest and sweep up the first clear reward. Naturally, his gains along the way had not been small, either.

He was now level 133. He only needed sixteen more levels to reach the peak of S-class, at which point he could begin preparing for his first thunder tribulation.

Moreover, beyond levels, his time in the Twilight Kingdom had also netted him several achievements, significantly increasing his stats.

[Name: Kang Jae-Hyeok.

Profession: Knight (Growth Type)

Level: 133

[Strength: 479], [Stamina: 509], [Agility: 354], [Magic: 449], [Insight: 354]

Skills: [Noble Chivalry], [King’s Roar], [Farming]

Who would dare to say that this was an S-class player?

His present stats and means sat comfortably amid the realm of National Treasures. That much was clear simply from his overwhelming victory against Jiang Lei.

However, the Japanese and the Chinese news reporters didn’t know this.

Let them suspect each other.

In their eyes, he was nothing but a low-level pawn. But Jae-Hyeok didn’t mind; from his vantage point, he could clearly see the gears turning in the reporters’ heads, and they served as a fitting microcosm for how China and Japan would respond.

Almost certainly, China would continue to send people to uncover the truth behind Jiang Lei’s death, while Japan would interpret the situation differently and draw incorrect conclusions.

I need to be smart and hold on.

Revenge for his father, the resurrection of his homeland... Too much was at stake. He had to settle relations with China and Japan first.

Moreover...

I still need to get stronger.

Jae-Hyeok reconfirmed his determination.

Meanwhile, a tearful Lou Xin leaned over.

“What should I do?” she whispered.

For the past three days, she had witnessed everything by Jae-Hyeok’s side. After killing the traitors, he’d gone on to kill countless more Twilight Orcs before eventually reaching the Twilight Orc Lord.

Teruchan, King of the Twilight Orcs, was as big as a small mountain or a huge fortress, but for as terrifying as it looked, it had greeted Jea-Hyeok with surprising kindness—even if its words were somewhat incomprehensible.

Teruchan had said something about his eyes resembling those of his god’s, and that in seeing them, it was glad to have reminisced about old memories.

In response?

Jae-Hyeok had merely smiled and, from there, took to listening and chatting in a calm manner. From beginning to end, not once had Lou Xin seen Jae-Hyeok fazed. It was almost as if he had years of experience in everything he did.

Betraying someone like that... no thanks.

Jae-Hyeok was destined to become a global powerhouse. Rather than kick an iron plate, Lou Xin hoped against hope to grab onto this rapidly growing thigh.

If I can, then maybe the revival my family isn’t so far off...

Jae-Hyeok could also guess what Lou Xin was thinking. Having gotten to know her over the last three days, he would be lying if he said he felt no sympathy for her.

“What should you do? If you want to survive, you have to work with me even when you go back to your country. Insist that Jiang Lei was a saint like no other in the world.”

Behind the tears, Lou-Xin’s eyes flashed.

“Yes.”