Chapter 92: Deal (2)

After graduating from the prestigious Korea University with a degree in Business Administration, Kang Min-Gu went to the United States and joined Pegasus Corporation. Following that, he was continuously promoted as his abilities were acknowledged, and eventually, he was appointed as the head of Pegasus Corporation's Korean branch, becoming a legendary figure. He was like an elite racehorse, galloping down a smooth path!

Kang Min-Gu looked at the scenery through the window of the office that he had worked for over the years. He could see the winding Han River and the forest of buildings densely packed next to it.

But his usual confidence was missing from his expression.

“

Sigh

...”

He had quit smoking some time ago but he really wanted to smoke one right now.

Recalling the orders from headquarters he received just a few days ago, he showed a bitter expression.

Player Kai... So, they want me to buy a video from Han Jung-Woo that would prove to the people that he's not using a bug?

That was utter nonsense! In Kang Min-Gu's view, Han Jung-Woo was a smart and cautious guy.

If not, there would be no reason for a player with a Mythic job class to move so cautiously. He must be drawing a big picture, whatever that may be.

Everyone sought fame. Especially when they achieved something others hadn’t, their hands and mouths itched to show off!

This world is full of idiots who boast about their discharge as a sergeant for a lifetime. If he was the only Mythic class player in the world, it wouldn't be strange to be full of arrogance because whatever he did, he would succeed.

Kang Min-Gu's thoughts weren’t wrong.

In fact, if Kai revealed his job class right now, his face would be on the front page of every TV station, newspaper, and magazine. That was how deeply

MID Online

had naturally been implemented into reality.

In a world where even rankers are doing commercials, singing, and even acting, a player of Kai's skills would undoubtedly get high-end CF offers continuously.

However, by hiding his identity, Kai pushed all those conveniences away himself.

Doesn't he have any greed? I don’t understand.

Of course, from his perspective, it was natural not to understand. He would never have imagined that a game addict, distrustful of humans and isolated from society, would acquire a Mythic grade job!

The mysterious concept was a smart move. He knows how to market himself. Currently, the Unknown character he plays is a secret in everything from job class to his level. If those things start getting revealed one by one in the future...

Eventually, when his job was revealed, his fame would span the globe.

Thinking this far, Kang Min-Gu couldn't help but take out a piece of nicotine gum and chew it.

Sigh... why would a guy like that accept our offer?

A transaction happens only when both sides want something. A deal could never be made if only one side wanted something. But he had been ordered by the headquarters to do whatever it took to get Han Jung-Woo to sell the video.

Of course, Kang Min-Gu also thought that, from Pegasus's standpoint, it was the best transaction scenario.

But the best scenario for our side means Han Jung-Woo will suffer a loss.

That was because a transaction usually involved one side bearing a slight loss. Furthermore, Han Jung-Woo held the absolute advantage in the current situation.

Kang Min-Gu couldn't hide his troubled expression.

“Then first, I should alter the conditions.”

Balancing the tilted scale was the first thing that had to be settled.

Calming himself by chewing nicotine gum, he thought as he closed his eyes,

There is only one way to make a mutually satisfactory deal in this world.

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

A win-win transaction was something that only happened in a situation where one had something the other wanted, which they couldn’t get anywhere else, while desiring something from them in return.

In that case, what does he want at this point?

It had to be something Kai wanted and something he could offer. At the same time, it also had to be something only Pegasus could provide.

After thinking for a moment, Kang Min-Gu sighed.

I guess information is the only way to go.

Information about

MID Online

was no different from currency. Depending on its use, it could not only bring money but also enhance fame and level, making it a versatile currency.

For this reason, Pegasus Corporation did not even post basic strategy guides on their homepage, which everyone else did.

We realized the importance and value of information early on. No, we intentionally made it that way.

Kang Min-Gu thought Han Jung-Woo wanted to catch up with the rankers.

Judging from the last time he caused a major disturbance against the world's top ten guilds... he’s not the type to bow his head and just be a frontman somewhere.

If Han Jung-Woo truly wanted to catch up with them, he would inevitably need information that could help him grow faster than others and narrow the gap with the frontrunners.

“

Sigh

... I’m going to get reprimanded for this.”

With a grimace, Kang Min-Gu made a call to someone through his hotline.

The name displayed on the screen was so famous that anyone would recognize it. After all, the person on the other end of the call was Marco Fredrick, the CEO of Pegasus Corporation.

***

“Hmm.”

Kai scanned his message log.

The XP distribution ratio when I kill monsters is nine to one.

In other words, unless Blizzard was slacking off, hunting together would accelerate growth! Moreover, he could restore the original XP ratio by unsummoning Blizzard.

“Not bad. Not bad at all. I’ve roughly figured out what I needed to know, so time for some hunting... hmm?”

Kai squinted and looked at the notification flashing at the bottom of the interface.

It’s early morning right now in the real world. But an email at this hour, huh... did the items I listed at the auction house already sell?

As he opened his inbox, his face crumpled like a discarded plastic bottle on the street.

“What is this?”

[Hello. This is the administrator. I have something urgent to tell you...]

“...It's spam mail.”

There used to be such scammers back when he played PC games. They would impersonate administrators and ask for players’ IDs and passwords, a scam tactic as old as elementary school tricks!

It’s ridiculous, but there were idiots who fell for it.

Supply followed demand. The presence of victims kept such scams flourishing.

But in this day and age...

Shaking his head, Kai was about to delete the email when he suddenly stopped.

“...Wait a minute, this is my personal email.”

That was right. The email had arrived in the personal email he used to verify his account when signing up for the game.

There are spam letters offering gold loans overflowing in my in-game inbox, but... they wouldn’t know my personal email, would they?

He wondered if his information had leaked through Michael, whom he had entrusted with video production.

Furrowing his brows, Kai read the email’s contents once again.

“Hmm...” A subtle groan escaped his mouth.

This really seems to be from an actual administrator.

Not only did the email belatedly congratulate him on obtaining a Mythic job class, but it also mentioned how they always enjoyed watching Unknown’s videos and, being a fan, hoped for an autograph someday.

However, the most important content was something else.

Is it because I swept all the rankings in the instance dungeons?

He ranked first place in the solo instance dungeons and his records were such that they would never be broken!

Of course, Kai also knew from browsing the community that he was the subject of rumors.

At first, I thought it would die down as always, but...

It seemed he had more anti-fans than he thought as the flames of the rumor that Unknown was a bug player grew stronger over time.

I even suspected that the Black Bee guys had hired people to leave comments.

However, Kai had enough discernment to recognize the truth.

The people talking about him were ordinary players. They knew well how unbelievable Kai's record was and were skeptical because of it because a sudden entity had produced a result that no ranker had ever achieved before.

And all in just three days.

Kai, feeling bitter, smacked his lips and looked at the email again.

A proposal at this point in time... it seems Pegasus is also taking a hit, huh?

In fact, Pegasus's stock price had slightly dropped on the day the rumors spread. It was the first time the graph, which had only been rising since

MID Online

's launch, had fallen!

That was likely what prompted them to take action.

If I were in Pegasus's shoes, what would I ask from a handsome player like me?

They would ask him to prove he wasn’t a bug. In simpler terms, they would eventually ask for his gameplay video.

Kai’s mind raced.

Undying Will is a skill that must be kept hidden, but...

In this case, it was a bit different. The Undying Will skill resurrected him when he took fatal damage, but that fact wasn't revealed in the video of Kai running the dungeon.

I had already used it when fighting the nagas in the sea. No one watching this video would have realized I was in an invincible state.

No one would think there was an invincibility skill that could last through four dungeons.

Therefore, in the video, Kai just seemed like an extraordinarily tough player.

As long as I insist on not revealing the Undying Will skill, it’s not a video I can’t hand over.

The most important thing was what he could get in return for providing the video.

Kai wasn’t intimidated by negotiating with the gigantic corporation Pegasus.

Isn't it the thirsty man who digs the well?

Even if this deal fell through, he would only get flamed on the internet, and not by his real name, nor by his specific player ID. It would only be the mask of Unknown getting cursed out!

For Kai, this was a light matter he could watch with a yawn and a scratch of his belly.

But from Pegasus's perspective...

They’d be burning with anxiety.

If they didn’t explain this rumor properly, both players and Pegasus's shareholders would be unsettled. They wouldn’t want their investments and company stocks to turn into mere data and paper scraps.

And there’s something even more important.

Kai, with a nonchalant expression, stretched.

“Seems like the experience from the last time paid off.”

Kai had experienced flexing his power to the fullest during the impromptu auction against the world's top ten guilds!

Even now, the master of the Titan guild—Goliath—might wake up in the middle of the night to grab the back of his neck, pissed.

“If not for this opportunity, when would I get to make demands of Pegasus Corporation again?”

With the eyes of a predator hunting prey, Kai promptly replied to the administrator’s email with an overly polite and pretentious tone, like a wolf in sheep's clothing.