Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 268

270

The crisis within the Lewis faction was completely resolved with Gilliam’s confession. Having witnessed Rubin’s death right before his eyes, he was terrified and decided to withdraw from the incident. With all his sins already exposed and realizing he was a disposable pawn, he could no longer stay by Sheila’s side.

Thus, the situation was concluded. With Gilliam removed and the mastermind revealed, Beomseok’s work could be considered done. However, the way things turned out was deeply unsatisfying. He had lodged a complaint with the Economic Organizations Association through Vice Chairman Lewis to target Theresa and the Black Society, but unexpectedly, Piler got caught in the trap. Upon closer investigation, it turned out that the fool was actually planning to absorb the Lewis faction through Gilliam, with Rubin as his accomplice. And Theresa, the secretary-general, was merely a simple accomplice who provided funds according to the chairman’s orders, unaware of the true nature of the scheme.

But the absurd situation didn’t end there. Rubin’s death was concluded as a suicide. The poison used was found in his desk drawer, and Rubin’s diary, containing a passage about dying if he failed in this endeavor, was a major factor. It was ridiculous, but the box that contained the poison that killed Rubin melted away due to a strong acid, making it impossible to prove homicide. In the end, the case was swept under the rug, and the chance to strike at the mastermind behind the incident became distant.

Beomseok was furious, feeling completely outmaneuvered by Theresa, but there was nothing he could do. Without any evidence, there was no way to strike her. For now, he had to be content with the fact that he could buy Cazela cheaply in the next transfer season.

‘Whew~ Forget about that incident and focus on the promotion tournament. Theresa seems to be no ordinary person, so I need to prepare thoroughly before striking.’

Beomseok decided to pour all his energy into the promotion tournament. After the season ended, Gods Knights had secured a favorable position for promotion by winning the league with 29 wins, 6 draws, and 3 losses out of 38 matches. However, as feared, the Dark Hyenas and Snow Girls teams were relegated and descended into the Hein Central League. Now, there was only one spot left for promotion. One mistake could lead to immediate failure. Fortunately, they had accumulated many wins, allowing them to conserve stamina in the latter part of the league. From the 35th to the 38th league match, Gods Knights achieved a record of 1 win, 1 draw, and 2 losses. Except for the sensitive matches where relegation was at stake, they heavily involved the second-string players in all games, giving the starters a sweet rest. Moreover, their first match was against the relatively weak Silver Big Dogs team. If they could win all three matches decisively, the second match would become easier.

“Alright. Let’s get off!”

With Beomseok in the lead, the Gods Knights team members were disembarking from Aron. In front of them was the somewhat small-looking Colosseum. It was the Aldagan City Colosseum, where the first promotion tournament match would be held, the home stadium of the Silver Big Dogs team with 56,000 seats. However, they shouldn’t be underestimated just because it was small. The cheering atmosphere of the packed home fans intimidated the opposing team to an extent that couldn’t be compared to the half-empty, desolate Lima City Colosseum.

They soon entered the Colosseum under the guidance of the event staff. After a brief strategy check in the gladiatorial waiting room, they headed to the dugout.

“Waaaaah! Waaaaah!”

“Silver Big Dogs! We believe in you! You must advance to the second match!”

“Gods Knights are nothing! Just crush them!”

The cheers from the stands pierced through the acrylic partition and reached the Gods Knights’ dugout. It was enough to be intimidating, but Beomseok and his teammates calmly focused on their tasks. Four years of professional life had given them the experience to ignore most jeers. And the gladiators of Gods Knights only fought for their master, so they didn’t care much about the fans’ enthusiasm.

Beomseok was deeply engrossed in thought, carefully examining the electronic document in his hand.

‘Hmm. This is a bit frustrating.’

The gladiators who would be participating today were Beomseok, Oscar, Matilda, Violet, and Rafine in the vanguard. In the mid-guard were Erica, Reimei, Hestia, Chiria, Gelsomina, Lynn, Emma, Iphis, and Herse. In the rear-guard were Erfina, Venus, Agelia, Cathy, and Nikita. The problem was that these 19 were the majority of Gods Knights’ main squad. If there had been another injury besides Siya and Jeremia, who were excluded from the match due to shoulder stiffness and bruises, they would have had to play a truly frustrating match today. They would have had to resort to the unfavorable move of including a second-string gladiator in the entry squad. Currently, Gods Knights’ second-string gladiators were only semi-pro level skilled players.

‘Whew~ Things will get better when Cazela joins.’

The problem was that even if she joined, it would be troublesome if other gladiators left. Emma had now transformed into a woman who couldn’t live without him, so he was relieved, but Gelsomina, Chiria, and Siya were different. They were gladiators who could leave the team at any time, either by their own will or by their master’s.

He subtly turned his head towards Chiria.

‘The biggest problem when we get promoted is Chiria.’

If Gods Knights were to be promoted this season, Chiria’s usefulness, who was somewhat less skilled, would be significantly reduced. Then, naturally, her opportunities to participate would decrease, which would lead to dissatisfaction. Participation meant allowance, so there would be a big difference in her actual salary. With all her close colleagues already having left the team, this situation could lead her to request a transfer to another team.

‘And Gelsomina is also quite dangerous.’

Before he knew it, Beomseok’s gaze turned to Gelsomina. Her absolute non-transfer period was three years. Two years had already passed. In the meantime, he had built up a lot of favorability by meeting and building friendships within the team, but it seemed to take some time to conquer her. She was so quick-witted that she had noticed that he was in a relationship with Emma or Esther while living in the team. Thanks to that, her favorability for conquest was much higher than other women, and he had to invest a lot more time to barely prevent a breakup. Currently, many famous pro-gladiator teams, including Chaplin Whisper, were only looking for a chance to snatch her away.

Beomseok subtly got up from the bench and headed to Gelsomina.

“Gelsomina. How about today’s match? Are you confident?”

Gelsomina, who was wiping her sword with a cloth, raised her head.

“Of course. The Silver Big Dogs aren’t a very strong team, are they?”

It was obvious. The Silver Big Dogs could be said to be a strong team compared to other Wide League teams, but if you compare their superiority with other gladiator teams participating in the promotion tournament, they were extremely weak. At best, there were only 6 Central League-level gladiators, and the rest were all Wide League-level.

“Still, you have to be careful. The Silver Big Dogs team is strong enough to participate in the promotion tournament, and today is an away game. The game could be difficult.”

Gelsomina looked at Beomseok and Nikita alternately, then smiled. It was funny to consider the worst-case scenario with these two present. This year, Gods Knights had been showing a strong side, never losing or drawing in the games they wanted to win. Even if the opponent was a strong team with the advantage of being at home, it was never thought that they would lose.

“Come on. How can we lose when we have you and Nikita? Besides, we also have Rafine and the Iphis Herse sisters.”

At those words, Beomseok shuddered slightly. He couldn’t like the word ‘senior’ that much.

“Hahaha. Well, that’s right. How can we lose when I’m here? Hahaha.”

“Yes. That’s right. And I’m not easy to deal with anymore. I’m saying that I’m not an examiner who can be swayed by a team like that.”

Gelsomina’s eyes, looking out of the stadium, shone brightly. Confidence overflowed to the point of boiling over.

Currently, her physical abilities were rapidly developing due to personal lessons from Ellin, the physical coach. In addition, she originally had swordsmanship skills corresponding to the World League level, and she had gained practical experience over the past two years, reaching a more mature level. Even if she went to the Central League right now, she would play a big role, so she would never be swayed by a Wide League team like the Silver Big Dogs.

Beomseok nodded, knowing this fact well from watching her from the side.

“Huhu. How well would you do?”

“It’s all thanks to you, senior. I think I made a really good choice to choose Gods Knight during the rookie draft.”

Beomseok immediately agreed with those words. If Ellin hadn’t been assigned, she wouldn’t have been able to achieve such rapid physical growth. Gelsomina’s steep growth was all because of his consideration.

“Of course. Would I, as a senior, lead you, a junior, down the wrong path? Just follow me well. Then you can become a great World League gladiator.”

“Huhu. Yes. Please continue to take care of me.”

Beomseok covered his mouth with his slightly clenched fist and coughed dryly.

“Hmm. So, I’m saying this, let’s extend our contract for another year. In addition to the 25% increase in promotion, I’ll give you about 20% more. Of course, Ellin will continue to be your personal coach. This is my greed, but it’s also for you.”

In fact, that was what Gelsomina wanted more. In order to have a somewhat mature body, at least 8 years of training time was required. Thanks to Ellin, it was reduced to 4 years, but the time she had decided to stay at Gods Knights was 3 years. If she had one more year, she would reach a mature level, so there was no need to go to another team and waste two years.

And there were several good things about being in Gods Knights. Because there were few gladiators, she could play as a starter as much as she wanted, and the potential for development was good, so the expectations for the team were high. In addition, the salary was so abundant that most of it was left over, and the training facilities were good. If they advanced to the Central League and advanced to the World League within a few years, there would be no reason to leave the Gods Knights team at all.

“That’s a good condition. I don’t really want to leave the team either.”

Beomseok sighed in relief inside. Now that he had earned another year, he had more time to conquer Gelsomina. He really thought that trying to raise his favorability to the extreme without any romantic affairs was daunting.

“Okay. You thought well. Instead, I’ll give you a good gift later.”

“A gift? What gift?”

He subtly looked at Gelsomina’s mood. He was worried about whether it would be okay to say it now. But it wasn’t a direct love affair, and it was a natural thing that was laid out in the social base, so he answered with confidence.

“There’s something that adults give and receive when they become adults. Don’t you know?”

“Something that adults give and receive when they become adults? What is it?”

“Hey. You know everything. It’s a national policy, so you have to have a child, right? I’m saying that I’ll provide the genes at that time.”

Gelsomina’s face turned red. Even though it was an obligation for people living in this era to have children, she couldn’t help but be embarrassed to receive a sudden offer. But she never shook her head. If she thought about raising her children as talented gladiators or athletes, there was no gene as superior as Beomseok’s. His talent and skills were greatly recognized in the gladiator world.

“But, senior. Gladiators and athletes generally have children after retirement. I think it’s too early to talk about that already.”

Currently, under the law, people in certain occupations were given slightly increased obligations, especially female professional gladiators, and the period was very long. This was because modified humans could have babies until they were 70 years old, and women wanted natural childbirth, but the pregnancy period was 10 months. If they took a year off because they were having a baby, it would be a big loss for the professional team, so the professional sports association naturally put pressure on the government as a group, and such a clause was created. And the professional players didn’t want to take a year off, so they generally followed the clause.

“Would I tell you to have a baby already? I’m just saying it because I’m happy that you’re staying on the team. Anyway, if you ever go to another team later, come and find me if you want.”

“Yes. Thank you for your words. Then I’ll ask you at that time.”

Beomseok, with a bitter smile, looked at her with a subtle gaze. Of course, he would provide the genes, but he would choose the direct injection method. It was his job to fulfill his desires, so there was no reason to be thanked.

He patted Gelsomina on the shoulder and stood up.

“Okay. Then you have to do well in today’s game.”

“Yes.”

While Beomseok returned to his seat and rested, the signal for the start of the game went up. He immediately took the first round participants to the entrance tunnel and went to the center of the stadium with the broadcast announcement signaling the start of the game.

‘Hmm. The terrain is not very good after all.’

Beomseok frowned as he walked around the stadium. The terrain of Aldagan City Colosseum was a mud zone, and mud was rising to the ankle area with every step. Although he had trained for this in advance, he couldn’t adapt better than the home team, Silver Big Dogs. If he didn’t finish the game quickly, he expected extreme stamina consumption. But other than that, there didn’t seem to be any problems. The gladiators of Gods Knights had good physical conditions, so they showed strength in this terrain where movement was severely hindered. In other words, since both teams had advantages and disadvantages for this terrain, the conditions for determining victory or defeat were the same.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

Then everyone have a nice day. I’ll see you again tomorrow.