[You have obtained the title 'King of Kings - Bronze'.]
After the match, Seong Jihan was greeted by a barrage of system messages.
'Indeed, the TOP 100.'
The reward was substantial, befitting the grand title of being the top among all Bronze players worldwide.
As Seong Jihan checked each item on the reward list, he focused on one of the titles he had obtained this time.
[King of Kings - Bronze]
- A title given to the winner of the TOP 100 Promotion Match.
- All stats in the Silver League increase by +5, and experience gain increases by 50%.
This title was essentially an advanced version of 'Ruler of the Bronze League'.
'Finally, I can remove the title of the one who dominated the tutorial.'
Seong Jihan replaced the title he had been using and continued to check the system messages.
[You have won the TOP 100.]
[You have completed the special achievement 'Winning the TOP 100'.]
[You have earned 10,000 achievement points as a reward.]
[You have won the TOP 100 without a gift.]
[You have completed the special achievement 'First Place Without Talent'.]
[You have earned 50,000 achievement points as a reward.]
'Should I thank the wandering godless man?'
After the godless man took away the F-grade gift, the achievement points he obtained in its place already amounted to 90,000.
Especially the achievement of winning the TOP 100 without a gift was as significant as the achievement points reward from an epic quest.
This clearly demonstrated how difficult it was to reach this level without a gift.
'How should I use this...?'
Just as Seong Jihan was happily pondering how to strengthen himself with the rewards.
Bang!
"Uncle!!!"
The door burst open, and Yun Seo-a rushed in.
Her expression was extremely serious, and her face was pale from anxiety.
"Ah, Seo-a. I just came back..."
"Check yourself."
Before Seong Jihan could finish his sentence, his niece began examining him.
Once she confirmed there were no injuries, Yun Seo-a seemed to relax and asked for the details.
"I thought something terrible had happened. The screen was fine until you broke the barrier, then it went completely dark... Are you okay?"
"Of course! I'm fine."
Although his arm was cut off by the shadow sword, such injuries were common in BattleNet.
Since the current BattleNet is like an online game, there are no real-world consequences when you return.
"Look, my shirt is still intact."
Seong Jihan raised both hands to show her.
The right arm, which had been burned by the Wall of Thunder, was restored along with the shirt.
The left arm, which had been cut off by the soaring dark sword...
"Uncle, this part is cut off, right?"
From the elbow down, the shirt was missing, revealing bare skin.
"This is...?"
Seong Jihan's brow furrowed.
Was the side that was cut by the throne still affecting him in the real world?
Although it was fortunate that only the shirt was missing and not the entire arm.
Such relief was short-lived.
Yun Seo-a panicked and stomped her feet.
"U-Uncle! Your arm, your arm!!! What's happening!"
"..."
Seong Jihan's left arm turned black, and the part where it was cut began to disappear as if swallowed by darkness.
Eventually, it vanished completely, as if it had never existed.
Seong Jihan calmly assessed the situation.
The sensation in his arm was normal.
'It doesn't feel like it's gone. I might even be able to move it...'
Seong Jihan tried to move his left arm.
At that moment.
Swish-
The left arm, which had been swallowed by darkness, suddenly reappeared intact.
"What, what? You have an arm?"
"Yes. It feels normal to me."
"Um... Uncle? There's a strange tattoo on your elbow?"
"A tattoo?"
Seong Jihan turned his arm to look, and indeed, there was a black tattoo on his elbow.
Upon closer inspection, it was a symbol resembling the sun.
Seong Jihan turned his arm again to look, and indeed, there was a black tattoo on his elbow.
It twitched-
Moreover, the edges of the symbol were moving in a circular motion.
As they both fell silent, trying to understand this mysterious situation.
[------.]
A mysterious sound came from the symbol, similar to the language spoken by the dark elf with black eyes.
"Seo-a. Can you hear this sound?"
"Huh? What sound?"
"..."
The sound was only audible to Seong Jihan, and Yun Seo-a couldn't perceive it.
Seong Jihan was frustrated, unable to understand what was being said.
As if to reflect his frustration, a system window appeared before him.
[Shadow of the Sun (Curse)]
- Level: ? (Cursed State)
- A terminal of the Throne 'Shadow Queen'.
- It is embedded in the body in a cursed state.
- It absorbs the user's GP and experience until the curse is lifted.
'Shadow of the Sun?' Did it come with the arm when it was cut off?
From the description, it was a terrifying curse that absorbed the experience and GP, which are the foundation of a player.
Of course, it was unknown how the player would change once the curse was lifted.
'I have a lot to do, but I can't afford to lose experience and GP to this.'
He couldn't just cut off his arm.
He tried sending holy power to his elbow, but the black sun mixed with the power without any effect, as it was different from ordinary dark energy.
'Hmm...'
Seong Jihan reviewed the message he had received earlier.
The format of the message was clearly the same as when item descriptions were displayed.
Therefore, he could infer that the Shadow of the Sun was treated as an item.
'Then, can I use Emergency Restoration?'
Seong Jihan purchased and used Emergency Restoration from the achievement shop.
As expected,
The Shadow of the Sun was active on the list of items that could be restored with Emergency Restoration.
'Great.'
Since he had earned a lot of achievement points this time, using 10,000 wouldn't be a problem.
"Emergency Restoration."
[Restoring 'Shadow of the Sun (Curse)'...]
[The curse of 'Shadow of the Sun (Curse)' is extremely severe, and only a part of it can be restored.]
'It didn't work in one go.'
Unlike the brush of Dongfang Shuo or the monocle of Hermes, this was an item containing a curse from a throne, so it couldn't be fully restored with a single use of Emergency Restoration.
Seong Jihan decided to use Emergency Restoration one more time.
[Restoring 'Shadow of the Sun (Curse)'...]
[The curse of 'Shadow of the Sun (Curse)' is extremely severe, and only a part of it can be restored.]
Seong Jihan frowned.
'...One more time, for the last try.'
He had already used it twice, and it would be a shame to give up now.
Seong Jihan used Emergency Restoration one last time.
[Restoring 'Shadow of the Sun (Curse)'...]
[The curse of 'Shadow of the Sun (Curse)' has been lifted.]
[Shadow of the Sun]
- Level: SS
- A terminal of the Throne 'Shadow Queen'.
- Maintains a connection with the throne and enhances shadow control abilities.
- Can transform into the shadow sword 'Eclipse'.
- Can be upgraded through the power of the throne 'Shadow Queen'.
[This is the tutorial period. The function of 'Throne Terminal' is limited.]
Seong Jihan's eyes grew calm as he read the new item description.
Level SS.
If the power of the throne is granted, it could potentially be upgraded further.
At first glance, it seemed like a very useful item...
'But it's only a partial item.'
The prerequisite for using this item was the ability to control shadows.
To obtain the ability to control shadows, a connection with the throne was necessary.
However, the 'Throne Terminal' function was limited during the tutorial period.
'Might I have to wait until next year?'
If so, he wouldn't have needed to spend 30,000 achievement points right away.
As Seong Jihan stared at the black sun, thinking this.
[...What did you do just now?]
The language of the dark elf, which he had never understood before, was automatically translated.
"Just now?"
[Yes...? Can you hear me?]
* * *
Meanwhile.
The broadcast team for the Bronze League TOP 100 Promotion Match was in chaos.
= The screen isn't showing!
Suddenly, the broadcast screen was covered in darkness, and the transmission stopped.
= Even changing to the player's first-person view doesn't work...
= This is unprecedented in BattleNet broadcasting history!
= This shouldn't happen. The BattleNet system is in charge...
The broadcast only carried the voices of the commentators.
The screen turned completely black, showing nothing.
= Christopher! How will the match result be determined like this?
= I don't know either! This is the first time such a situation has occurred.
Meanwhile.
Lee Hyeon, watching from home, was clutching the TV and screaming.
"Aaaah! What's going on?!"
Since the Baron, on whom she had placed a large bet, had failed, she needed Seong Jihan to win first place to recover at least some of her bet.
But what was happening now?
She couldn't tell what was happening inside, so she had no idea how the game would end.
'The game could have ended!'
Why did he save the other players instead of letting the shadows kill them?
Could he not be thinking of winning?!
Lee Hyeon, who didn't know about the epic quest, couldn't understand Seong Jihan's actions.
After a few minutes of staring at the black screen with a dazed expression.
[Last Survivor - Seong Jihan]
A short system message suddenly appeared on the black screen.
Whatever happened in the darkness, Seong Jihan had won first place.
"Phew..."
Finally, Lee Hyeon let out a sigh of relief.
She had survived.
Fortunately, she managed to recover a little money.
As she listened to the American commentator.
= Well... We don't know what happened, but player Seong Jihan! He has won the TOP 100 and graduated from the Bronze League!
= With the revelation of such a powerful player without a guild, the competition for recruitment will be intense.
= Yes. With my five years of commentary experience, I can