Chapter 21

Chapter 21: I Alone Am an EX-Class Summoner

Inside the Day Dungeon Management Office, three individuals stood near the records bulletin board management station, shifting from foot to foot with clear anxiety.

They were the staff of 「Yubaek」.

“Wow, I still can’t believe this is actually happening.”

Secretary Kim Byeongjin rubbed the back of his neck with a nervous chuckle.

He had previously worked under Yu Jia as Park Changseok’s secretary, but now he served as the secretary for 「Yubaek」.

Such was the sheer influence of massive financial backing.

“To think he is actually making a run at a low-rank Day Dungeon time attack right now…”

“Honestly, it feels like he is rushing into this a bit too fast.”

Yu Jia merely offered a serene, quiet smile.

“We only handed those summons over to him a week ago. Even if he fails to break any records today, our job is simply to stand behind him and cheer him on.”

“Of course, I understand that. But even so…”

A shadow of doubt rippled across Kim Byeongjin’s features.

“Do you truly believe he has what it takes to completely rewrite the record books for every single Day Dungeon?”

“Oh?”

Yu Jia tilted her head slightly, elevating a single eyebrow.

The quiet gesture demanded that if he had further doubts, he should voice them openly.

“It is just that… while I fully recognize what he accomplished with the Tuesday dungeon record, we have absolutely no information on how he intends to conquer the remaining dungeons. It is not as if South Korea has a shortage of veteran players with more than a year of high-level experience under their belts.”

“That is true.”

“What if his claims turn out to be nothing more than empty bravado…”

Though Byeongjin’s voice was laced with deep concern, Yu Jia’s calm expression never wavered.

“Are you truly that anxious?”

“No, that is not exactly what I meant, but…”

“This entire enterprise is funded by my own personal capital. Even if your worst fears come to pass, your compensation remains entirely unaffected. You placed your trust in me and chose to follow this path, so I will personally guarantee that neither you nor Taeseop suffer the slightest setback in your careers.”

As a prominent figure of the Daesung Group, Yu Jia possessed more than enough financial clout and authority to back up those words.

Furthermore, she had her own internal convictions.

I am certain he is keeping even greater secrets close to his chest.

She recalled the absolute self-assurance and unbothered demeanor Baek Jinwoo had displayed right before stepping into the dungeon just moments ago.

He had conducted himself as though rewriting low-rank Day Dungeon history was a trivial matter unworthy of a second thought.

If that level of confidence was genuine…

Right at that moment—

CRASH! BANG!

A massive uproar shattered the quiet of the records bulletin board management room.

“W-we have another record!”

“What did you say?!”

“The Monday dungeon, low-rank! Four minutes and twelve seconds!”

“Are you insane?! That completely demolishes the old record by over three minutes! Who did it? Tell me WHO?!”

Hearing the chaotic shouts of the monitoring staff, Yu Jia felt her pulse begin to race violently.

Oh.

Is it real?

Did he truly pull it off?

He had actually shattered the record on his absolute first attempt, and by a margin far wider than she had dared to imagine.

“W-what in the world…”

Even Kim Byeongjin, who had been drowning in worry just a second ago, let out a stunned mutter.

“…Baek Jinwoo?”

“Wait, I recognize that name.”

“Isn’t he the exact same player who took down the Tuesday dungeon record?”

“Ah, you’re right. It is Baek Jinwoo!”

Amidst the frantic buzzing of the office staff around her, Yu Jia closed her eyes tightly and squeezed her hands into firm fists.

“We succeeded.”

They had won. This entire venture was a success.

At the bare minimum, it would be a highly profitable endeavor. At best, it was going to be an unprecedented, earth-shattering jackpot.

The Day Dungeons within the world of 「Battle of Summoners」 featured a highly convenient ‘auto-battle’ mechanism.

Once a player deployed a specific squad into a dungeon, those entities would continuously run the stage, eventually returning with a massive hoard of cleared rewards.

And this exact digital system had manifested perfectly within reality.

The entire process operated strictly on GMT +9.

It would run continuously until midnight struck in Seoul.

Once initiated, the chosen summons would tirelessly grind through the dungeon completely on their own.

And what happens when midnight finally arrives?

Every single piece of loot and all deployed summons would instantly transfer back into the player’s personal inventory storage.

Initiating the process was incredibly straightforward.

Upon completing a second successful run of any Day Dungeon, a specific notification would flash:

[Would you like to initiate 'auto-battle' with this team?]

A single confirmation tap on the ‘Yes’ prompt was all that was required to start the grind.

Baek Jinwoo unslotted Drill Sarge from Team 3 and replaced him with Ramba.

— Wait, what? Why am I the one getting picked for this?

“Drill Sarge has to stay behind to oversee the training of the younger ones. If you spend the entire day grinding out dungeons, you get a free pass from those hellish drills. You wouldn’t want to miss out on an opportunity like that, right?”

— Oh, come on, Jinwoo! Don’t play with my emotions like that! I’m in! I will absolutely give it my all!

Ramba’s entire expression lit up with unbridled joy at the mere thought of escaping that brutal training regime.

He didn’t care about cream buns anymore; at this very moment, being excused from Drill Sarge’s drills felt like the ultimate reward.

“Excellent. Make sure you keep the younger ones under control while you’re in there.”

This established the foundational blueprint for their routine moving forward.

The summons assigned to active dungeon grinding would focus entirely on farming, while the remaining roster would be subjected to endless, rigorous training drills.

As for Sundays? They were strictly reserved for rest.

While a Sunday dungeon technically existed…

The reasoning would be clear later, but running it repeatedly was ultimately pointless. Clearing it a single time to secure the top record was more than enough.

Proper recovery was vital, whether one was a human player or a summon.

Since Drill Sarge himself had emphasized that point, it was an undeniable truth. Taking a break would undoubtedly yield a highly positive impact on the overall Growth of the younger summons.

“Alright, it’s time to head back to the clearing.”

With Team 3 officially locked into their automated farming routine, Baek Jinwoo handed the recording gear back over to Yu Jia.

“Here is your equipment. I can just leave everything as is, correct?”

“Yes, Jinwoo.”

The intensity in Yu Jia’s eyes had shifted dramatically, reflecting a newfound, profound level of respect.

Meanwhile, Kim Byeongjin and Hwang Taeseop stood rigidly with deep reverence painted across their faces, their hands politely clasped in front of them.

Seeing them treat him with the immense deference reserved for a highly distinguished VIP filled Baek Jinwoo with a subtle sense of satisfaction.

“To be completely frank, I am utterly spellbound. I never truly anticipated that you would completely demolish the existing record on your very first run.”

“I told you from the start. I was going to break it.”

“Yes, you certainly said those words, but still…”

Who could have ever predicted that a madman capable of actually executing such a ridiculous feat truly existed in this world?

“All the necessary footage should be safely stored inside that device. If you require anything else, just drop me a text message. There shouldn’t be anything else left to take care of, right?”

“Ah, yes. However, how should we handle the media and public press regarding this new record?”

She was subtly probing to see if he desired to keep this achievement completely under wraps, just like the previous occurrence.

Doing so would mean leaning heavily on Park Changseok’s authority at headquarters once again, though accomplishing that a second time might prove exceedingly difficult.

Unlike the last instance, there were no other high-profile players setting alternative records to act as a convenient distraction for the public.

“Just leave it be.”

Baek Jinwoo provided a perfectly relaxed, unconcerned response.

“Wait, are you certain?”

“It isn’t as if I went out and shattered a global record. Getting overly worked up over a minor achievement like this… well, I still have an immense amount left to show everyone.”

From Tuesday all the way through Sunday.

He intended to sprint forward without stopping from this moment on. Getting overwhelmed by surprise this early in the game was out of the question.

Furthermore, Baek Jinwoo was fully aware that a rumor of this magnitude could never be truly suppressed, no matter how hard they tried to hide it.

“Just… please ensure that my family remains completely safe.”

His singular true concern lay with the safety of his household.

This was especially crucial in a version of South Korea where organized criminal syndicates operated with terrifying freedom.

“Rest assured. I will handle it personally.”

Yu Jia’s eyes flashed with fierce determination, silently communicating that he had absolutely nothing to fear.

She would never allow a single mishap to occur under her watch, even if it required mobilizing the entire authority and resources of the Daesung Group to prevent it.

“I will ensure that top-tier security personnel are deployed around them for the foreseeable future. Please focus entirely on your objectives, Jinwoo.”

Tuesday arrived.

Baek Jinwoo absolutely steamrolled through the Tuesday dungeon without breaking a sweat.

He could have easily memorized the optimal routes of the layout to execute a flawless speedrun, but he opted instead to simply plow through everything using the brute force of the Spotted Komodo.

Since they were actively recording footage for the time being…

If he truly exerted his full effort, dropping the time down below a single minute would be incredibly easy. But what would happen if he did that?

He would likely end up completely shattering the existing world record.

He needed to avoid that outcome.

A moderate level of domestic attention was perfectly fine, but he had no desire to draw the gaze of the overseas Five Emperors just yet.

Why?

Because there was no definitive way to know if those global powerhouses were genuinely benevolent individuals.

They shared a long history through the game, and he would certainly be thrilled to interact with them face-to-face eventually, but they were still people he had never encountered in real life.

There was a distinct possibility they might perceive his existence as an outright threat.

They could easily view his sudden, meteoric rise as a direct challenge to their own supreme authority and positions.

He sincerely hoped that wasn’t the case, but maintaining a low profile remained the wisest strategy for the time being. At the very least, he needed to wait until his Stormy successfully awakened its latent potential.

Regardless.

The tactical foundation for conquering the Tuesday dungeon relied heavily on two specific units.

The B-rank Spotted Komodo.

And the B-rank Wind Falcon.

The Spotted Komodo, which naturally preyed upon Giant Slimes as a primary food source, slowly crawled its way forward toward the final boss chamber.

Baek Jinwoo then cast the absolute gold standard of agility enhancements—the Wind Falcon’s ‘Movement Speed Increase’ blessing—directly onto the lumbering Spotted Komodo.

The immediate outcome:

[Engaging the boss monster!]

[Dungeon clear!]

[Clear time – 00:03:10]

A comfortable finish right at the low three-minute mark, completely obliterating the national record.

It was an achievement high enough to secure a spot on the global leaderboards. To be precise, it ranked seventy-ninth in the entire world.

If he recalled correctly, Rachel had mentioned her personal best was 2 minutes and 25 seconds.

Realistically, if he chose to outfit the Komodo with a dedicated swiftness rune while pushing the Falcon to its absolute maximum threshold, he could easily match that exact timeframe.

Naturally, if he brought Drill Sarge into the mix to force out their hidden capabilities, achieving a sub-one-minute run was entirely plausible.

But there was no need to rush that process. Time alone would naturally resolve everything.

“We have another long grind ahead of us today. Time to farm those valuable abrasives.”

The Tuesday record crashed down without a single complication.

The Wednesday dungeon presented a completely different challenge compared to the Monday dungeon; it was a specialized Day Dungeon that rewarded players predominantly with defensive attributes and protective runes.

The environment was set against a massive, snow-laden mountain range gripped by a punishing, sub-zero freeze.

The cold was so severe that simply crossing the threshold into the zone instantly afflicted a target with a severe movement speed reduction debuff.

[Summoning 'Frost Cat' (C-rank)!]

[Summoning 'Wind Falcon' (B-rank)!]

[Summoning 'Titanium Golem' (B-rank)!]

[Summoning 'Storm Dragon Sorcerer' (EX-rank)!]

[Summoning 'Horn Fairy' (C-rank)!]

Securing a summon capable of neutralizing freezing temperatures was absolutely paramount, and the absolute best option for the job was the C-rank Frost Cat.

— Mrrooowww!

A sleek, azure feline materialized, instantly enveloping all five active summons and the player himself with a perfectly balanced aura of cold immunity.

The core objective of the Wednesday dungeon mirrored Tuesday’s strategy closely. It required sprinting directly to the final boss as fast as humanly possible and launching a concentrated assault.

However, unlike the slimes that were trapped inside a static labyrinth and possessed zero aggressive instincts, the native yetis of the frozen peak were exceptionally bloodthirsty.

The very instant an intruder set foot inside their domain, they would unleash a barrage of massive snowballs and charge forward like rabid predators.

The specific asset brought out to perfectly neutralize that threat was the B-rank Titanium Golem.

— GWOOOOOH!

A towering colossus constructed entirely from heavy, reinforced metal let out a deafening roar, activating its defensive barrier to its absolute maximum for a full three minutes to act as the ultimate frontline tank.

“Wind Falcon, apply the speed enhancement.”

— SKREEE!

With the agility buff successfully applied, Baek Jinwoo commanded the metallic colossus to charge across the icy, snow-covered landscape.

Their target: the highest peak of the mountain.

And perched securely upon the massive shoulders of the sprinting colossus? The player and his remaining summons rode along together.

Whew, the height up here is seriously dizzying.

Riding on top of a massive golem that literally caused the earth to tremble with every thunderous step provided an incredible rush of adrenaline.

However, he needed to familiarize himself with this sensation quickly.

If he harbored any ambitions of conquering the Friday dungeon, he would have to master managing far greater intensities than this with absolute poise.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Completely disregarding the endless swarm of attacking yetis, the Titanium Golem crashed directly through their ranks without slowing down.

It utilized a highly unconventional pathing strategy.

Attempting to scale the mountain via the standard, front-facing pathway consumed an immense amount of valuable time. However, there was a nearly vertical, sheer cliffside along the rear perimeter featuring a climbing path that only a unit like the Titanium Golem could successfully scale.

By taking advantage of that route—

The golem achieved the staggering feat of scaling the entire mountain to reach the apex in under three minutes.

Boom, boom, boom!

The singular drawback to this hyper-aggressive ascent was that the violent shaking left his vision spinning completely.

Desperately stabilizing his balance, Baek Jinwoo commanded in a strained voice.

“Stormy, prepare yourself.”

— ……

Remaining completely silent as it always did whenever recording was active, Stormy quietly began gathering its immense magical energies.

The poised, quiet manner in which it channeled its mana carried an almost sacred, solemn weight.

WHOOOOSH!

Cleaving directly through the screaming blizzard winds, they continued their final charge toward the absolute peak.

[Warning! Warning! Warning!]

[A boss monster is appearing!]

— GRAAAAAAHHH!

An enormous snow mountain yeti, boasting an incredibly massive and terrifyingly muscular build, unleashed a thunderous challenge.

Heh.

It was honestly a massive relief that this was merely a low-rank instance. If they had been challenging a supreme-grade version of this dungeon? The entity manifesting before them would be at least three times more massive and infinitely more terrifying.

A shimmering, light-blue protective film wrapped itself tightly around the yeti’s body. Dispel-typing that specific defensive shield was the primary responsibility of the Horn Fairy.

Baek Jinwoo immediately seized direct manual control over the Horn Fairy, completely stripping the boss of its protective barrier in a single motion.

Because the boss entity belonged strictly to the ice element, it was vital to incinerate it using a summon aligned with the fire element.

Stormy was the flawless answer to this problem.

Other common players who lacked access to a legendary entity like the Storm Dragon Sorcerer would be forced to deploy a highly optimized, high-tier fire attacker to achieve similar results.

“Stormy, strike NOW!”

— ……!

FWOOOOOSH!

Acknowledging the command with nothing more than a sharp flash of its eyes, Stormy swung its magical staff in a massive, sweeping arc. A torrent of raging, incandescent flames erupted forward, completely consuming the towering yeti in a sea of fire. A mere handful of minutes later:

[Clear time – 00:04:22]

Exactly as he had calculated.

Yet another domestic record had officially collapsed.

And it was at this precise moment that everything truly began to shift.

The entire nation of South Korea was about to be turned completely upside down.