God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 153: Episode 30_My Person—No, My Otter (4)

7.

The gate was enormous.

With just a pinch of exaggeration, it was the size of a soccer stadium.

“Wow.”

The players of Kenji’s expedition, upon arriving, could do nothing but stand at a distance and stare. None of them dared to approach it rashly.

’Can we really break that?’

Doubt was the first thing that came to mind. One could argue, ’It’s just a game. In a world where you can smash stars if you have the power, what’s the big deal about breaking a gate?’ But people from modern society couldn’t help but be awestruck first.

That was how massive it was, and the atmosphere around it was dreamlike.

’Is this what it would feel like to stand before a Mayan ruin?’

It felt as if it had lain untouched by human hands for hundreds, maybe thousands of years, quietly buried in nature. It made you fall silent without realizing it.

And tense, too.

Even though they knew there were no more monsters left to block their way.

“Guild Master.”

“Yes. Hold position for now.”

Unlike the other players, Kenji raised his hand to halt the advance for a different reason. He wasn’t the type to be swayed by atmosphere. Even to him, it was undeniably imposing, and he did feel a twinge of guilt about whether they should really destroy it. But he was someone who could casually create things like this in reality if he wanted to. For him to stand around getting sentimental, especially on the verge of completing the Main Quest, was nonsense.

There was only one reason he ordered a pause.

To get the perfect shot.

This was the end of a months-long raid. Countless players had participated, countless more had watched with interest, and the quest had become a hot topic even among people who didn’t play 『Fantastic World』. They were standing at the very brink of that war’s conclusion.

No one needed to be told how important a clean ending was. No matter how perfect the build-up, if the ending felt off, the movie became trash.

You had to leave an aftertaste.

You created tension, making it feel like something was there even when nothing was. And the underwhelming finale that followed? Even that could be carried along by the solemn mood.

This movie wasn’t a comedy; it was a moving human drama about triumph against all odds.

’Eliminating a clue that could once again plunge the continent into danger. The countless monsters, hardships, and trials that stood in the way. Humans who refused to break. A long period of endurance. A miraculous comeback. And finally, victory.’

It was a shame that the final boss raid had been cut for unavoidable reasons, but that was fine. Once he edited the footage, the fact that they had failed to kill one measly Sudal wouldn’t even be noticeable in the dazzling final film.

He would gain fame from it. That was the ultimate goal Kenji sought to salvage from his irrecoverable losses.

And then—

Ppaeaek!

—he heard a cry from the sky, a cry that informed him this was all just a dream, and that this movie wasn’t a human-triumph drama at all, but an over-the-top action comedy full of betrayal and backstabbing.

* * *

Han Simin still hadn’t tamed Sudal.

If you compared it to a criminal investigation, he had merely “brought it in for questioning,” not “formally arrested” it. He wanted to get a warrant, but his level was too low. What could he do?

So he couldn’t order Sudal around as he pleased. For now, he had to keep it in a good mood and coax it along until he leveled up enough.

“Kku-eong.”

Sudal cried from high up in the sky as it looked down at the players surrounding the gate.

“What? That thing can’t be destroyed?”

“Kku-eong!”

Sudal nodded vigorously.

He had suspected as much, but still. Of course.

Watching Sudal fidget anxiously, Han Simin patted it with sad eyes.

“Those bastards. So they really did come into the mountains just to break that. What trash.”

“Kku-eong.”

He fell silent.

Apparently, he had already scrubbed the part where he took money from the Specialists to go break it himself from his memory, because he laid it on thick without a hint of shame.

Kang Yeseul clicked her tongue at the act, but he paid her no mind and kept soothing Sudal.

“So. Want me to help?”

“Kku-eong?”

“I may not have the strength to defeat all those vicious bastards, but I can at least make sure the gate you’ve been guarding doesn’t get destroyed by their hands.”

“Kku-eong!”

Resolute words.

To the not-so-bright Sudal, they were like a single rope of hope dangling down from heaven.

“Then you’ll do that for me?”

“Kku-eong.”

The otter nodded, its eyes glistening with emotion.

This human, at first, had been nothing but trash, someone it wanted nothing to do with. When he’d looted the entire mine, the otter had cursed not only the bastard himself but his parents and ancestors. And when they’d surrounded it and beaten it senseless, it had sworn that if it ever saw this man’s face again without wanting to tear it off, it was no true otter.

Yet now, those feelings were melting away as if they had never existed.

The resentment hadn’t vanished completely, but... he looked different now.

At the very least, this human was a little different from those humans.

’Maybe he even had his own reasons for robbing the mine.’

The otter was beginning to delude itself.

Watching this change, Han Simin put on a disingenuous smile and shouted to Squeaker.

“Let’s go, Squeaker! We have to make sure our new friend’s treasure has an honorable end!”

“Ppaeaeaeaeek!”

Circling high above, Squeaker let out a piercing cry at its master’s command and dove straight down. Its speed was like a bolt of lightning from a clear blue sky. This was the sight that finally made all the gold he had poured into its physical stats feel worthwhile.

’If you pull this off, it’s good for you too, you little punk. When this guy builds a mine, you think I’m the only one who benefits? If it turns into a gold mine, it’s basically yours. So do a good job, you hear?’

And so another secret pact was sealed.

Countless gazes snapped toward Squeaker as it suddenly appeared, but in that same instant, its body slammed into the gate.

A collective scream erupted from everyone who understood what was happening—everyone except Han Simin, the Specialists, and Squeaker itself.

“Kku-eo-eong!”

“Nooooooo!”

[You have completed the quest.]

[Scenario Quest: Act 2 has been cleared.]

[Scenario Quest: Act 3 has opened. Adventurers have proven their strength and earned the right to proceed to the third act.]

The movie ended with a backstab for the ages.

* * *

8.

Kenji had always believed a movie’s real charm lay in its ending, and he had poured his heart into crafting the perfect finale. In the end, he failed. He shut the stream off.

It wasn’t because he was merely angry.

If, in that brief moment, he had failed to suppress the rage that surged to the roots of his hair, he wouldn’t have even thought to turn the stream off. The only reason he managed it was because he was Kenji; he forced himself to think rationally.

If the stream had kept running, the hidden protagonist of his entire film would have become Han Simin.

He fell silent.

The movie was over. Though player complaints were pouring in, the field itself was quiet. Silence filled the air, followed by more silence.

“Hello, everyone.”

And into that silence stepped the very culprit who had caused the mess, Han Simin, greeting everyone cheerfully.

Because they were in a party, the Specialists had cleared the quest along with him. Having the decency to consider the mood, they switched to guild chat to laugh out loud. Nearby, Sudal trudged toward the shattered gate with the expression of one who had lost everything.

Amidst it all, Han Simin—a man who thought the post-credits scene was always more fun than the climax—turned his stream back on.

A special reveal! A chance to see the scene millions were dying to know about, for the low price of just $200.

The viewer count blew past ten thousand in an instant. Pricey or not, people who were too unsettled to sleep weren’t about to quibble over the cost. It was a perfect niche market, and a flawless last-hit steal.

He stole the quest, and now he was stealing the viewers.

The phantom thief, Simin, had made his appearance.

As he watched the viewers pour in, he waved nonchalantly. “Thank you all for your hard work on the Main Quest these past few months.”

Then he bent down and picked up a few items that had dropped from the gate. Up to that point, no one reacted. However, when he started to walk away laughing with the Specialists, they could no longer just stand by and watch.

“H–hey, wait!”

“Yes?”

Even the great Kenji’s voice was shaking, a testament to the shock he’d just received. It was only natural. It was a betrayal he had never imagined. Who could have possibly predicted it?

“You sold us the map... so why...?”

There was nothing strange about it, legally speaking. This was still just a game, and he had broken no rules. This was purely a matter of trust and common decency.

“You took our money... why would you...?”

“What about it?”

“You son of a—”

A curse slipped from Kenji’s mouth. Even so, Han Simin remained brazen.

“I only sold you the map. Don’t tell me you thought that was some silent promise not to participate in the Main Quest?”

Kenji was too stunned to speak.

Granted, the nuance of his earlier words had suggested exactly that. But if you got fooled, that was on you for being an idiot. Besides, life was unpredictable; fortunes could turn on a dime. Kenji was at fault for taking his time, one at fault for leisurely filming a movie instead of watching his back.

Han Simin stood his ground. That confidence spread to the other players.

’Well, he’s not wrong.’

’It’s scummy, sure. But it’s first come, first served, right?’

This was what most players thought, especially those who knew that destroying a gate rarely dropped anything valuable. Compared to getting a few coins from Kenji’s guild, watching this train wreck unfold live was far more entertaining. And most of those players were the main fighting force of the expedition. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Not that any of them were dumb enough to say it out loud. Kenji and his guild members certainly didn’t see it that way.

“From this moment on, the Kenji Guild is putting the Specialists on a permanent kill-on-sight list! We will wage war until 『Fantastic World』 shuts down! Anyone who records themselves killing them will receive a bounty of fifty gold coins per kill. And for Simin—that bastard—we’ll pay double! Anyone who reports their location will receive a separate reward!”

His roar was filled with rage. He had turned off his personal stream, but his money-splurging declaration was being broadcast live to the entire world through Han Simin’s stream, and it was spreading just as fast through the streams of the other players gathered there.

The terms were shocking. Even if you did nothing but hunt the Specialists all day, you could earn a fortune that would make a lottery win look tame. $5,000 per kill. If you managed to wipe out the whole group, that was $25,000.

People swallowed hard. At the same time, they tilted their heads.

’Can we even kill those monsters?’

’Us? Is that even possible?’

The money was tempting, but they also had to consider the stakes. Killing them would be incredible, and the reward was immense, but if they charged in and failed, all they would get was their own death and the loss of an item. And there was no way a guy who had just swooped in and stolen the Main Quest at the very end would kindly overlook a few small-fry who came at him.

So, despite Kenji’s bold declaration, the players only gulped and remained silent. They all knew how it went: the boldest soldiers on the battlefield are always the first to die.

But Kenji, having already lost his reason, drew his weapon. Then he charged without a word.

That, in turn, created an opportunity. Maybe, just maybe, if luck was on their side, they could land a single, fatal blow on one of those monsters. If they had followed the Main Quest all the way here only to get nothing, then perhaps this path offered a better chance. There were over a thousand of them, after all. The odds of any one of them dying were low.

“WRAAAAH!”

Off the record. The side story to Main Quest Act 2 had begun.

“Bring it on. If they come, it just makes my life easier.”

Han Simin’s bravado rang out to meet them.

* * *