Chapter 64
The Calm Before the Storm (3)
The administrators must have lost their damn minds.
They announced it was an A-rank raid… and then just changed their minds.
If there was ever such a thing as a complete reversal, this was it. One thing’s certain now — those bastards from the Abyss Administration must really want humanity to go extinct.
“We’re interrupting the program for an emergency broadcast. The difficulty of the 3rd-floor raid has abruptly changed to S-rank, so we’ve invited experts to discuss the situation. Here with us are Professor Oh Young-pil from Korea National University and famous influencer Daeho. Professor Oh, may we start with you?”
“Yes, I’m Oh Young-pil.”
“Professor, what’s your take on this? Most foreign media outlets are saying things like, ‘It’s tragic, but we should prepare for failure.’”
“A sudden change in raid difficulty has no precedent. It’s as if a ‘transference phenomenon’ occurred within the raid. Historically, the survival rate for S-rank raids overseas has been reported to be around seventeen percent.”
The day before the raid.
While everyone else was losing their minds over the abrupt difficulty change, I was sitting on the sofa, lazily chewing on jerky.
The TV kept replaying the same coverage — people arguing about the new S-rank designation.
Today’s broadcast featured Professor Oh Young-pil — a regular viewer of my stream and someone I’d started chatting with occasionally.
“So this is a crisis situation, isn’t it? I heard the Chinese government ordered its citizens in Korea to evacuate this morning.”
“When has China not overreacted? Of course S-rank is dangerous. But we have something they don’t — a secret weapon.”
“And what might that be?”
“The player Meteor. That’s right! Just trust Meteor! If you’ve watched his MiTube channel, all your worries will disappear.”
“Uh, we’re on live television — we shouldn’t name specific channels…”
“Trust me. Believe.”
…And here I thought I never paid that guy a single won. Guess that’s one way to never get invited back to public broadcasting.
“Professor Oh tends to overestimate Meteor.”
“Oh, so Mr. Daeho, you disagree?”
“We need to deploy military units around each Abyss Gate and prepare for collapse scenarios—”
“What’s he talking about? The guy can’t even broadcast inside the Abyss without admin permission, and he wants to lecture a real player?”
“What did you just—”
Seriously, end-of-the-world vibes. Watching people argue like that on national TV almost felt refreshing.
Anyway, time to check the online reactions for the day.
Yesterday everyone was treating the raid like some kind of festival, but today? Completely different story.
[Post title: Should we just run away?]
Content: Maybe I should smuggle myself out of the country or something. Anyone know how? I’ve never even gone on a single college mixer — it’d suck to die like this;;
ㄴ Don’t worry bro, even if you did go to college, no one would’ve mixed with you lol
ㄴ You think smuggling yourself out is like playing Jaws?
ㄴ Let’s just accept our fate.
ㄴ Why’s everyone acting like it’s the apocalypse? I gamed all day yesterday — someone fill me in.
ㄴ Go watch the news, dude.
ㄴ Doesn’t the explosion only destroy the Gate area if we fail?
ㄴ The problem’s that monsters pour out when it blows up lol
ㄴ Damn; came to the U.S. yesterday — guess I’m not flying back.
People were going nuts — talking about building arks, meeting God, whatever.
Even my phone blew up with messages.
“Raid leader, I’m so sorry. I won’t be able to join.”
“I broke my arm during training this morning… I’m really sorry…”
Six people dropped out overnight.
Twenty-five down to nineteen.
The same people who’d fought for front-line positions were now running away the moment it became S-rank.
I sighed, tossed my phone onto the sofa, and glanced at Binna noona.
She was calmly folding laundry and yawning, utterly indifferent to the chaos outside.
“Are you not worried at all?”
At my question, Binna noona shook her head.
“Seong-woo.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re going to fix it anyway, aren’t you?”
“…Yeah.”
“So what’s there to worry about when you’ve got Uncle Ian — the guy who survived hell itself?”
Her words made me think back to the days I spent in Avalon.
Out of all those endless battles, what were the odds of me surviving to the end?
Maybe ten percent at best.
That world was full of monsters seething with hatred and malice, and yet I somehow restored peace.
Barely.
I survived only because I wanted to return — to my brother, to Binna noona, to everyone waiting for me.
Compared to that nightmare, Earth is still heaven.
“You’ve got a point.”
I smiled faintly, glancing between Binna noona and little Ian, who was sleeping peacefully, unaware of the world’s panic.
“This might actually be fun.”
I meant it.
S-rank difficulty?
When I beat that Abyss Administrator — Yushin or Yushim, whatever his name was — he told me something.
Even administrators weren’t free from the balance of the scales.
If they suddenly boosted the difficulty like this, they must’ve placed something of equal weight on the other side —
Bigger rewards. Greater treasures. Massive loot.
Forcing an A-rank into S-rank means they’re making quite the gamble.
“Maybe I’ll take it easy today. When’s hyung coming home?”
“He’s got a court session this morning, then he’ll be home. He said we should eat lunch together.”
“Steak?”
“Sure. I already bought the meat yesterday.”
“Lunch beef… works for me. Saves me cooking.”
“I’ll grill it with magic.”
“It was tasty last time.”
In Avalon, I endured everything for the sake of returning.
But here on Earth, things are different.
Now I have a reason to fight — people I want to protect.
If the raid’s hard?
Even better.
The bigger the fuss, the bigger the audience.
Everyone’s going to be watching my stream tomorrow, biting their nails.
This time, I have the exclusive broadcast rights for the raid.
After this, I should film my silver and gold button unboxing.
Might as well post a notice on the channel while I’m at it.
[Title: Tomorrow’s Broadcast Notice]
Content:
Solo coverage of the 3rd-floor raidㅇㅇ
Raid starts at 1PM, stream begins 30 minutes earlier. Be there.
Let’s relax for the rest of the day.
Tomorrow’s going to be long.
7.
Another day passed, and raid day arrived.
I woke up early, washed up, and ate breakfast with my family.
The mood was… subdued.
Hyung looked particularly grim.
But Ian, as always, sent me off with a bright smile.
“Samchon! Dinos! Dinos!”
Guess I’ll pick up a dinosaur toy for him after the raid.
Binna noona was her usual calm self, but hyung spoke up, his voice heavy.
“Let’s all go out for dinner tonight.”
He said it casually, but what he really meant was Come back alive.
If he’s worried, then I’d better make sure I don’t get even a scratch today.
No dramatic heroics this time.
He promised sushi tonight — can’t miss that.
Today, I wasn’t heading to the Abyss alone.
Deputy Director Choi Seong-hoon from the Ability Management Bureau personally came to pick me up.
Normally, I’d have refused, but the city felt tense.
“Some citizens are evacuating, I hear,” he said as he drove.
“That serious, huh?”
“Given how much the failure probability increased… it’s understandable.”
I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this serious before.
“Players from the Bureau will be replacing those who dropped out,” he added.
“They’re not scared?”
“Most of them are former soldiers. They know how to live with fear.”
The car sped through the city.
Apparently, the rumors were true — the highways leading out of Seoul were jam-packed, while the roads into the city were nearly empty.
It was an eerie sight.
When we reached Yeouido, home of the Seoul West Abyss Gate, the streets were deserted.
“The stock market’s closed today,” Choi said. “Given the circumstances.”
“Are you nervous too, Deputy Director?”
“…I’d be lying if I said no.”
It’s amazing how quickly a country’s atmosphere can change in just one day.
Still, I get it.
This is a national-level crisis — people’s lives are at stake.
Yesterday’s festival mood was what didn’t make sense.
“The minister asked me to tell you personally — if the situation becomes hopeless, you have permission to retreat.”
“That minister sure loves sending messages through others. I’d love to meet him someday. In-seop says he’s a real character. Maybe I should invite him on my stream?”
“The minister is currently attending the National Security Council meeting. But I’ll pass your words along.”
“See? Efficient as always. What about the president? Think I could get him on too?”
“…That might be difficult.”
“Joking, joking. You look way too tense.”
I can always invite the president later — plenty of content ideas anyway.
As we chatted, the car finally rolled up to the site.
The sky was gray, thick with clouds but no rain.
Above the empty streets loomed a towering violet spire — the Abyss Gate.
A perfect, grim backdrop.
“Deputy Director.”
“Yes, Player Meteor?”
“You think anything’s really going to happen? Don’t worry so much. Man, it’s a shame the market’s closed — I would’ve gone long today.”
“…You trade futures?”
“Just a figure of speech. Did I ever tell you I used to be too broke to even think about investing?”
We’d arrived.
The Seoul West Abyss Gate.
Normally, this area would be crowded with players, but today it was packed with TV cameras instead.
Deputy Director Choi got out first and politely came around to open my door.
I beat him to it, stepping out on my own.
“Thanks for the ride.”
“Just doing my duty.”
“Still — much appreciated.”
I smiled faintly and walked forward.
Reporters, standing behind the barricades, immediately thrust their microphones toward me.
“Player Meteor! As the raid leader, could you share your determination?”
“Do you think you can clear it?”
“You’re attempting Korea’s first S-rank raid! Do you have any special strategy?”
Man, journalism really is a tough gig.
Coming all the way to a place that might literally explode, just for an interview.
Then again, I’ve heard there are reporters who dive into the Abyss for coverage.
Gotta respect that kind of dedication — hardworking people deserve rewards.
“Hmm.”
I stopped and thought for a moment. What should I say?
Ah, got it.
“You asked about the raid, so I’ll answer.”
I took a breath and looked straight into the lenses glittering before me.
People say most get nervous in front of cameras — even my brother does.
But me? Cameras make me want to stir things up.
Because that’s my natural habitat.
“To be honest… I’m not confident.”
The reporters started murmuring, but before they could twist it—
“I’m not confident… that I’ll lose.”
With that, I pulled out my drone and started the live broadcast.
Who even knows what number stream this is anymore.
Another Meteor Raid Stream.
[Broadcast title set: “I’m Not Confident — That I’ll Lose.”]
[Start stream?]
“The 3rd-floor raid, live on MiTube. Please like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell. Citizens of Korea — let’s begin.”
Now starting the broadcast.
