<Chapter 51: The God of Battle Who Regressed to Level 2>
* * *
Tap-tap-tap-tap.
Lee Hae-yeon, with her hair tied up, was furiously typing away on the keyboard.
Her face looked more serious than ever.
Behind her, Lim Ga-young, who had been watching, shook her head.
After all, the screen on Lee Hae-yeon's monitor was none other than a Battle.net betting site.
"Sure enough, the bookies are really quick."
"So, you're admitting it's a betting site."
"Ah, correction. The gamblers are really quick with information."
"......Haa. So, what makes you think that, miss?"
"The odds for Ji-han are not as high as I thought. Only about 1.8 times."
Low odds mean that people see a high chance of Ji-han coming in first.
Despite the news of Ji-han joining the TOP 100 promotion match being out for only a day, it seemed the gamblers had already completed their research on him.
"Is that considered low?"
"Yes. If you rank by the lowest odds, he's second. Well, anyone who has seen Ji-han's videos would know how different a player he is."
"Of course. Someone who has never missed first place."
"Right. If we bet on him for both first place and most kills......?"
When they bundled the bet to include most kills with Ji-han, the odds increased to just over 3 times.
"At this rate...... I can recover a significant amount of my lost capital, even though it's a bit disappointing."
"3 times and you still can't recover your capital?!"
"......Don't ask for details, okay?"
"Understood."
Just how much money did this gambler lose?
Sighing inwardly, Lim Ga-young decided to follow the lady's request.
Instead, she changed the topic.
"But who is the person with the highest odds, surpassing Ji-han?"
"The one with the lowest odds? Right. Ah... here it is."
A player who was considered a strong contender for the TOP 100 promotion match in this Bronze League.
Seeing his name, Lee Hae-yeon frowned.
"Baron Williams from the United States."
"Baron. He's participating in this promotion match."
Baron Williams.
A powerful mage who dominated the New York 1 Area, known for having the strongest players among the Bronze ranks in the United States.
"Didn't he reveal his gift in a recent interview?"
"Yes. He boasted about having an SSS-grade gift, 'Two Status Windows.'"
With an SSS-grade gift, being white, and good-looking.
The mage was already gaining popularity in the United States, comparable to any Diamond player.
"Although he didn't always come in first like Ji-han...... he still won 75% of the time in 'New York 1.'"
"Yes. Given that the level of play in New York 1 is much higher than in Gangnam 1, it seems people are betting more on Baron."
The world's strongest nation, the United States.
In terms of Battle.net, the United States boasted the best infrastructure, and the players were of the highest caliber.
Especially, the minimum gift grade for players in the New York 1 league was S.
Due to the unparalleled level of play, New York 1 was recognized as the world's top league.
Baron Williams, who boasted a 75% success rate in such a league, naturally had the lowest odds.
"Hmm......"
Before placing her bet, Lee Hae-yeon searched for information on Baron.
Despite being a Bronze player, countless highlight videos of Baron were available.
Each scene was beautifully edited.
"Wow, this guy is no joke."
In the videos, Baron was a mage who dominated everyone.
With a wave of his hand, the surroundings turned into a sea of fire.
The ground split, and lightning struck.
Warriors disappeared in flames before they could even approach.
Arrows from archers lost their power mid-flight and fell to the ground.
"Can't even get close."
"Is it because of his special power... his gift?"
"Right. Isn't that magic?"
"Yes. Honestly, it seems like there's no such thing as game balance in Battle.net."
"What are you going to do about it, Ga-young?"
While watching the video, they couldn't think that Baron's power was the same as Ji-han's telekinesis.
Baron's way of using force felt more like a mage blocking the enemy's approach.
Anyway.
Seeing Baron Williams, who possessed overwhelming firepower and a special method to prevent enemy approaches, Lee Hae-yeon fell into deep thought.
"Baron looks really strong...... can Ji-han win?"
"Who knows."
Lee Hae-yeon bit her nails.
"What should I do...... what should I do?!"
"Didn't you bet on Ji-han?"
"Baron just seems stronger."
"Since your nail-biting jinx is showing, why not just bet on Ji-han?"
"Ah. When did I ask? Hmm...... No! I was going to bet on Ji-han, but I bit my nails, so maybe this means I shouldn't bet on Ji-han and should bet on Baron instead?!"
It was her own convenient interpretation.
In the end, Lee Hae-yeon placed a large bet on Baron.
"For Ji-han...... I should bet a little for business, right?"
However, the amount she bet on Ji-han was less than 20% of what she bet on Baron.
'This reminds me of the Liberation Day match.'
Watching from behind, Lim Ga-young quietly took out her phone.
'I should bet on Ji-han.'
While Baron looked strong to her as well, Lim Ga-young trusted 'Lee Hae-yeon's jinx' more than the visible difference.
'Please do your best, miss.'
* * *
"Baron was also a Bronze player at this time."
Seeing Baron's name on the Battle.net betting site, Seong Ji-han's eyes sparkled.
Baron Williams, the world's top-ranked player.
He started in 2020, which Seong Ji-han didn't know.
'I'll pay back the debt from American First.'
The American First guild, led by Baron and Seong Ji-han, had discriminated against him.
Even though he had legally naturalized as a U.S. citizen, his nationality in Battle.net remained Korean.
'That's why I didn't get the nationality bonus.'
As the tutorial ended, more content was gradually unlocked in Battle.net.
Among the unlocked content were numerous upgrade elements for players.
Nationality-based bonus effects were one example.
Thus, players from powerful nations like the United States and China received nationality bonuses and became even stronger.
On the other hand, players from fallen nations carried their fallen nationality and didn't receive any bonuses.
The gap in abilities grew, and discrimination based on nationality worsened.
'Come to think of it, I managed to reach 7th place in the world rankings without the nationality bonus in my previous life.'
For a player from a fallen nation, reaching 7th place in the world rankings was a miraculous feat.
It was possible due to his exceptional abilities.
So, while Baron discriminated against Seong Ji-han for not being American, he still used him as a useful tool.
"Still, I'm grateful."
Seong Ji-han smiled at Baron, who had the lowest odds.
Thanks to Baron's participation, his own odds had increased.
'I'll take it all.'
Seong Ji-han poured the money he won from the Liberation Day match into himself.
Although the odds were only slightly over 3 times, which was different from the Sword King era, the potential return was significant due to the large amount bet.
'If successful, my wealth will exceed 100 billion.'
"Uncle, what are you doing?"
"I'm betting on myself."
"Ah, the TOP 100 match?"
"Yes. I'm certain I'll come in first, so this is the time to make money."
"......But Baron looks strong too."
Yoon Se-ah, pointing to Baron Williams on the screen, spoke cautiously.
"I heard no player has dominated New York 1 to that extent."
"True. Two Status Windows is a pretty OP gift."
"Right."
"But I'll win. He's a Valkon."
"Valkon?"
"Ah, don't you know what Valkon is? It means controlling with your feet."
"Ah, I know that."
Yoon Se-ah tilted her head.
Seeing Baron's overwhelming presence in the video, how did he know about Valkon?
"Uncle, if you're that confident...... should I bet too?"
"You too?"
"Yes."
"No. I don't want to encourage my niece to gamble."
"But isn't this different? You're definitely going to come in first."
"No. Gambling is still gambling."
Regardless of the outcome, the act of betting and the thrill of the potential return.
Seong Ji-han was concerned that Yoon Se-ah might get hooked.
"Really...... you, a former gambling addict, have a lot of credibility."
"Things like this shouldn't be touched in the first place."
After all, with Yoon Se-ah's potential, she would earn plenty of money as she grew.
It would be wrong to expose her to the highly addictive Battle.net betting.
"Fine...... I understand."
"Good thinking. But...... why are you wearing your school uniform? Didn't you quit the academy?"
"Yes, I will. But I still need to submit my resignation."
It was common for students who received and awakened their gifts to drop out of school.
It was better to join a guild and receive care than to continue attending school.
Even as a top student and student council president, Yoon Se-ah didn't need to continue at the academy if she decided to live as a Battle.net player.
"Then this is your last day. Let's go."
* * *
"Yeeek......! You......!"
Kim Hee-soo shouted when she saw Yoon Se-ah at school.
On Yoon Se-ah's birthday, she had suffered greatly after her hair and eyebrows were pulled out.
She had tried her best to cover it up and look normal over the weekend.
The memory of being mercilessly plucked by Seong Ji-han was still vivid.
Seeing Yoon Se-ah so calm while she had suffered so much over the weekend, she felt a deep sense of frustration.
"Hi. Your eyebrows look good. Your hair...... a wig? It's better than before!"
"......You. Why are you so calm? Do you even know what you did?! My brother's leg is completely broken. He needs a cast!"
"Then get a cast. But isn't it a problem that a Silver player broke a Bronze player's leg?"
"What?!"
"Or are you going to sue? My uncle?"
"Top 100 player in Korea after 4 years?"
At this, Kim Hee-soo flinched.
A player who made it to the TOP 100 after 4 years.
Even though he was Bronze, the weight of 'TOP 100' was significant.
Seong Ji-han's face was already prominently displayed on the main pages of portal sites.
The media was vying to highlight this fact.
A large, promising Battle.net player from Korea, appearing after a long time since the Sword King!
Even if it was the Korea Daily, they couldn't easily touch Seong Ji-han.
"......You. Do you really think we can't do anything?"
Kim Hee-soo tried to say this, but her voice was already trembling.
"Right. I don't think you can."
Yoon Se-ah smiled and stood up.
"You. Where are you going!"
"To submit my resignation. I was going to wait for the teacher, but I don't want to sit here anymore. I feel like my hair is going to fly away again."
Yoon Se-ah pointed to her eyebrows and left the room calmly.
On the other hand, Kim Hee-soo couldn't stop trembling.
To be ignored by a lowly commoner like this......
She turned to her friends, who were watching the scene with interest, and shouted.
"Hey! Are you just going to stand there?!"
"Why, do you want us to join in?"
"Are we crazy? Of course, we'll just watch."
"What are you going to do if Yoon Se-ah got a good gift?"
These people......
They used to talk behind Yoon Se-ah's back.
Kim Hee-soo gritted her teeth.
'Her gift......!'
The start of all this was the attempt to get an exclusive interview with Yoon Se-ah's gift.
Recalling that day, she suddenly thought of the CCTV in the gift room.
'......Maybe there's something useful there?'
Rattle.
Kim Hee-soo stood up from her chair and left the classroom.