YM778.TV Chapter 54: The Ultimate Fan (2)
Chapter 54: The Ultimate Fan (2)
“...Can I really count on you?”
“Of course.”
I took the microphone from the Black Witch. She still looked concerned, but it really was fine. I had the ultimate trick up my sleeve.
I cleared my throat a couple of times before I spoke into the microphone. “Hello, everyone. I’m the Hunter who received the title of Death King. It’s nice to meet you all for the first time.”
The speakers carried my voice into the crowd.
The flashing of cameras that replied turned into one big wave of light. It didn’t really faze me. Perhaps the experience of being surrounded by the crowd of cameras yesterday had inured me because it was considerably easier to put up with the constant bombardment of lights.
“Your name is... Mr. John Evans, yes?” I asked.
“That’s right.” The young reporter looked straight into my eyes; his eyes were burning with the spirit of a true reporter. He wasn’t going to miss any of my movements and was determined to expose me.
It was quite stressful, but only one thought occupied my mind as I faced him: to never become like the Fire Emperor.
“I believe that all of the concerns are raised because of my inadequacy.”
“Pardon?” The reporter blinked, the microphone he held momentarily forgotten. He probably hadn’t expected that answer.
I remembered the cocky Fire Emperor.
“I’ll say it again: I believe that all of the concerns are raised because of my inadequacy.”
My ultimate trick was very simple: always say the opposite of what the Fire Emperor would say. I was no expert at interviews. I was certainly not the Black Witch. I didn’t have the abilities, the gifts, or the experience to captivate a crowd with my speech.
However, I knew what others didn’t: the interviews of the world’s cockiest Hunter!
If I act the opposite of the Fire Emperor, I’ll at least make it halfway.
I had been the Fire Emperor’s fanboy for almost ten years, so I had a library of all the Fire Emperor’s outrageous acts and words tucked away in my head. If the Fire Emperor had taken the microphone now, he would have said, “I cleared the twentieth floor because I’m great, you dimwits. So what? I worked my ass off to clear those floors, so of course the items and experience points from the floors are mine. Hey, Mr. Media Jackal. If I don’t get them, then who do you think I should give them to? Your daddy?”
I didn’t make this up. He had actually said that at the conference before my regression!
The Black Witch’s face was so pale back then...
It had later been dubbed the “Your Daddy” incident. Of course, all hell had broken loose. The Black Witch had quickly ended the conference, but it was too late; the reporters’ swearing had already been aired live. It had been an absolute disaster.
And even though the broadcast had been stopped, the tragedy didn’t end. Yoo Soo-Ha had decided to fight fire with fire and spew all the curses in the world at the reporters, their parents, their in-laws, and the rest of their families. And the streamers had aired the entirety of it.
He was called the Fucker for a reason.
According to the rumors, the Black Witch had been bedridden for a week. The Your Daddy incident was almost certainly why she had grown sick of Yoo Soo-Ha and he had grown apart from the major guilds.
The Fire Emperor messed up the conference miserably. In other words, I just have to say the opposite of the Fucker.
The opposite of the worst was the best! I kept Yoo Soo-Ha’s outrageous remarks in mind, and adjusted my grip on the microphone.
“I cleared the twentieth floor because I’m great, you dimwit.”
“I know how much attention is on me right now, but you’re giving me too much credit. If I didn’t have help from the Black Dragon Master and Sword Star over here, I would have never gotten to the twentieth floor so that I could clear it on my own.”
“So what? I worked my ass off to clear the floors.”
“Of course, I’m confident that I gave it everything I had. To achieve my goal of preventing any casualties, I made an excruciating effort, but I don’t necessarily think I sacrificed anything. That is something I should do as a human and a Hunter. All else aside... I did it because I wanted to.”
“Of course the items and experience points from the floors are mine. Hey, Mr. Media Jackal. If I don’t get them, then who do you think I should give them to?”
“So I have no intention of claiming rights over those floors. That’s why I let the guild leaders have all the rights to the eleventh through the nineteenth floors. Earlier, you said that I have exclusive rights to the twentieth floor, but no. The twentieth floor will serve as a sort of greenbelt area. The original residents will continue to live there. I’m satisfied with just the role of managing the floor.”
“Your daddy?”
“That would be my answer, Mr. Evans. Do you have another question?”
The young, eager reporter was left stammering, “N-no, I don’t.”
Good. I quickly thought about what the Fire Emperor’s response would be.
“Alright. If you have nothing else to say, get lost, you American pig.”
I had no problem imagining it. He would also show how long and thick his middle finger was.
Let’s see. The opposite of that would be...
“Thank you,” I said. “Oh, if anyone else has questions, I’ll be happy to answer them.”
A very brief silence hung over the plaza.
“Me! It’s the Retrospective Newspaper!”
“Please take my question, Mr. Death King! I’m from Youtower News!”
“I’m from the Babel Tower Broadcasting System!”
“Mr. Death King!”
The reporter’s arms shot into the air. As soon as they realized that I was someone they could talk to, they threw themselves at me to squeeze an article out of me. They were like baby ducks waving their beaks at their mother.
I was amazed. Wow... This strategy worked great.
Indeed. The Fire Emperor may be the shittiest, most reprehensible psychopath in the world, but he was a constant moral compass. Even at this moment, he clearly showed me which direction I shouldn’t take. I recalled the Fire Emperor’s words once again.
“What? Retrospective Newspaper? I’ll never do an interview with you. Your company is full of geezers. I can smell how old you are just from your newspaper. Hey, if you want to call yourself a reporter, at least take a shower.”
I gestured to the reporter from the Retrospective Newspaper. “Why don’t you start first?”
It worked wonders. I answered the reporters’ questions for over an hour, but my tongue didn’t slip once. The conference ended in a grand success. It was actually kind of hard to end the conference—the reporters were desperate to get one more line for their articles, and in the end, the Black Witch had to take my microphone and apologize to them.
“Everyone! I understand that you want to learn all about our new hero. Unfortunately, we don’t have much time left.” The Black Witch pointed at the sky.
[00:05:27]
The countdown was close to its end; only about five minutes were left before a new stage opened up. There was no better excuse to end the press conference.
“Our day off is over, so we’ll start focusing on clearing the Tower. Please keep watching us and cheering us on. We’ll try our best to make sure we keep coming back with no casualties.”
The people sighed, disappointed that it was over. Just when the press conference was about to really end, one brave soul held up his hand. “B-Black Dragon Master! Please answer one last question!”
“Okay. The conference will really end after your question.”
“What is your relationship with the Death King?”
The people’s eyes sparkled—mostly with pure interest, but it was slightly mixed with naughtiness. Since the dawn of human history, our greatest interest had always been in dating, so the reporters were eager to put me and the Black Witch together like that.
The Black Witch looked at me with eyes that sparkled with childish mischief.
“Our relationship, huh...” The Black Witch’s lips slowly formed the quote of a century. “...We’re comrades that are more than friends.”
The reporters buzzed. They looked confused. Should they focus on the fact that we were more than friends? Or should they focus on the comrade part? Even the man who had asked the question looked taken aback.
“A-are you saying you two are more than friends?” he asked.
“Well,” the Black Witch leisurely answered, “I’ll say it again. We’re comrades that are more than friends. That’s it. I hope my answer doesn’t cause any misunderstandings.”
“Misunderstandings...?”
“That will be all for the Black Dragon Guild’s press conference today.” The Black Witch stood up from her seat. “Once again, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to those of you who watched our journey and cheered us on. That will be all from me, the Black Witch and the leader of the Black Dragon Guild. I hope all of you have a great day.”
The reporters stood up too.
“B-Black Dragon Master! You can’t leave like that!”
“Please clarify your statement!”
“Black Dragon Master!”
“Mr. Death King, what do you think about her statement just now? Mr. Death King!”
Wow. The reporters were practically screaming themselves hoarse, but the Black Witch didn’t even blink. She merely guided me backstage with a grin.
“Let’s go.”
I glanced back at the reporters, who couldn’t look sadder if they tried. “...Are we really leaving after the fire you set?”
“I watch a lot of dramas.” The Black Witch gave me a playful wink. “A fire at the finale leaves the deepest impression.”
Her words carried the experience of the guild leader who practically ruled the Tower.
***
Backstage, we walked until no one would be able to see us anymore. Only then did the Black Witch heave a deep breath and grab my hands.
“That was perfect, Death King!” The Black Witch’s eyes were shining. She really didn’t look like the same person who had maintained her poker face throughout the press conference. “When did you learn how to do an interview? Great job!”
I just did what the Fire Emperor wouldn’t do.
“Your politeness was a big plus factor! People like a hero, but what they like better is a hero who’ll bow to them! Sure, you shouldn’t be too polite since that would make you look servile... but your balance was perfect! It was incredible!”
I just said what the Fire Emperor wouldn’t say.
“I didn’t know you were good at handling the media too. Ahhh... Where have you been all this time, kid? You clear the Tower and create a good media image on your own. My shoulders feel ten times lighter...!”
What? I felt a prick in my conscience when I saw her this happy, but I really couldn’t tell her that I had just acted the opposite of a psychopath.
“Tell me whenever you want something. Money? Fame? Power? A lover? Don’t worry, I’ll get you anything that’s in the Tower.”
“Well, it’s okay. I’m already taking what I want... Black Dragon Master, what was with that ’comrades that are more than friends’ earlier? I didn’t let it show, but I was really surprised.”
“Oh, that?” The Black Witch shrugged nonchalantly. “It’s nothing. I intentionally put up a bit of a smokescreen.”
“Smokescreen?”
“Yeah; even if it isn’t true, the media will be all over your so-called romance scandal. It’ll damage your image, so it’s better to put up a smokescreen and draw attention to you and me.”
“Is that so...?” I wasn’t sure if that was true because of my lack of experience in handling the media.
The Black Witch chuckled. “Don’t worry, Death King. I’ve been handling the media on my own for years, so you can trust me on this one. Leave the expert in charge. Do you understand?”
“Ah, okay.”
It felt weird for some reason... Yes, I felt like a mysterious monster was out to get me, but I was in Babylon, not a hunting ground. There was no monster. Was I imagining things?
—Tsk, tsk, tsk. The Guardian clicked his tongue. You’re pathetic, Zombie. You have a head, but not a brain. So how can I not call you Zombie? You call yourself a Hunter and yet you don’t know you’re walking to your death. Gosh.
What the heck are you on about?
—You’re pathetic! Pathetic! The Guardian pounded his chest in frustration. He already looked ape-like, so pounding his chest really made him look like a gorilla.
Just then, loud shouts erupted from the opposite side of the stage. They were a little different from the cheers meant for us.
“Ten!”
“Nine!”
“Eight!”
They were counting down together. I stopped talking to the Guardian and looked up at the sky.
[00:00:05]
The time for the twenty-first floor’s opening was approaching.
“Three!”
“Two!”
“One!”
[00:00:00]
The countdown burst into a shower of light, making the crowd cheer wildly. As if answering their excitement, the particles of light gathered again, taking the form of a goddess.
[Greetings to the warriors who climb the Tower.]
[Congratulations for breaking through the Demon King’s shadow of resentment.]
It was the opening of a new stage. Perhaps because the people had seen the goddess before, they just chattered joyfully.
—Zombie, the Guardian said in a concerned voice.
I nodded. Yes. It’s okay. I won’t let my guard down.
However, I had experienced the Tower in the past, so I knew that the twenty-first floor was entirely different from the twentieth floor; it was just as drastic as the transition between the first ten tutorial stages and the whole new stage that had greeted us on the eleventh floor.
[This is a shelter for the outcast.]
[You could have given up on challenging the Tower’s stages.]
[You could have chosen to stay on the first floor of the Tower forever.]
[However, you made a choice when you cleared the tenth and twentieth floors.]
Her voice reverberated in the vast sky.
[You have decided to see the Tower’s top.]
[Therefore, it is only right to answer your determination.]
Without a warning, white light enveloped us. It wasn’t just me and the Black Witch—I could hear panicked voices coming from the plaza.
“W-what?!”
“I-I didn’t say anything...”
The biggest difference from the last time was that the white light took us even though no one said “Send me.”
Bewildered, the Black Witch looked at her feet. “...Wait, the Tower is teleporting us by force?”
She was right.
[Those of you who decided to climb up the Tower..]
[Those of you who climb up the Tower.]
[Those of you who readily received your new names and became the Tower’s warriors.]
The goddess held her hands together against her chest as if she were praying for someone.
[Only you, the chosen warriors, shall carry out the honorable mission.]
The white light covered my vision.