Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 29

In the afternoon, the dojang [training hall] was buzzing with activity. A little over 200 individuals, all aspiring reclusive gladiators and their owners or relatives, had come to try out for Beomseok’s God Knights team. They all carried themselves with confidence, suggesting considerable skill. Beomseok had offered an annual salary of 150,000 krang [fictional currency], targeting only those with some experience. This would cost about 2.25 million krang a year, but it would significantly raise the team’s overall quality.

‘I have to pick 15 from these guys.’

Excluding the owners, there seemed to be about 100 applicants. With that number, he could assess their potential and skill to a great extent through the information window [a game interface showing character stats]. Even if he spent just one minute checking each person, it would only take about an hour and a half.

He sat down with Venus at a table he had prepared in advance.

“Alright! First, we’ll conduct interviews and distribute the exam registration forms. Applicants, please line up in front of me.”

At their owners’ urging, the elf gladiators lined up at once. They didn’t seem particularly nervous as they sat before Beomseok in turn. The questions were simple, like their name and where they lived, so they thought it was just exam registration disguised as an interview.

However, this interview was a test that would determine their actual acceptance or rejection. Beomseok would mark O or X next to their exam number, and then Oscar, Raemi, and Erpina, who were in charge of conducting the test, would casually exchange a few sword strikes before deciding on the first round of acceptance based on the information sent to them.

“Name?”

“Hina.”

“Where do you live?”

“Beautiful Apartment, 3224, in central Lima City.”

“Desired position?”

“Mid-tier.”

Beomseok stared at Hina’s information window, wrote down her number and name, and secretly marked O in the OX check box next to it. According to the information window, all her stats exceeded 60, and she had some professional experience, so she seemed quite useful as a starter.

“Good. Hina, your exam number is 11. Go to examiner number 2, Raemi.”

“Yes, I understand.”

As he continued the interviews, an unexpectedly familiar face sat down in the front seat. It was Polia, whom he had bought from James at the Walker Auction Market to be Erpina’s companion. The problem was that they had parted on bad terms, so she shouldn’t be here.

“Hey, Polia, how did you end up here?”

“I heard about it from Erpina.”

Beomseok glanced at Erpina before continuing the conversation.

“So, you’ve been keeping in touch?”

“Yes. I was worried. At first, I thought you were a pretty bad person.”

“Oh? And now?”

“Now, neither I nor my owner think badly of you. Erpina said that you never recruit elves without owners onto the team.”

Beomseok nodded in agreement. He didn’t specifically have such a principle when choosing gladiators, but as a result, there was no place for elves without owners on his team. He was wary of the potential issues that could arise if he recruited an ownerless elf.

“Hmm, that’s right. Our team doesn’t want to see elves unhappy. As before, there will be no elves without owners on our team in the future.”

“So, my owner and I decided to put the past behind us. If people like you had been the chairmen of the sports market all along, we wouldn’t have had to live in fear for so long. At least you’re much more of a person than other pro team officials.”

It was the first time he had been praised for doing something that could be considered morally questionable. Beomseok cleared his throat loudly and asked what she wanted.

“Ahem. Then why are you here today?”

“I want to play on this team too. I can see Erpina often, and I want to participate in gladiator matches with a truly enjoyable mindset for once. And I want to help my owner financially.”

“Why? Did James get fired from his company?”

“Not really. The company’s not doing so well because of the economic crisis, so the recent salary has been delayed for a while. Still, many colleagues have been laid off, so he seemed a bit worried.”

Beomseok nodded and marked ‘O’ next to the assigned number without hesitation. Even though she was older and her physical abilities had declined, she was Polia, who had been a professional for decades. She could work as a starting gladiator right away, and if they went pro in the future, she could be converted into a coach.

“Okay. What position do you want?”

“Guardian gladiator in the rear [defensive position].”

“Alright. Then go to examiner number 3, Erpina.”

“Yes, I understand. Thank you.”

As Polia left, the applicant elves continued to come forward for interviews. An hour later, most of the applicants had left the dojang. Deciding whether to accept them based on the information Beomseok sent, the first test proceeded quickly. So now only 28 applicants remained. They were hugging their owners, who were congratulating them, and enjoying the feeling of passing.

‘Okay, shall we start the second test?’

The second test was to have the remaining applicants spar with each other. Since the information window couldn’t accurately show their swordsmanship skills, they had to evaluate their true abilities based on the data obtained through sparring. However, Oscar and Erpina had to be in charge of conducting the test for the rear. Their main task was to protect the captain gladiator rather than defeat the opponent, so they had to prioritize defensive abilities.

“Alright. The second test will be decided through sparring, except for the rear. Of course, winning or losing will have a big impact on whether you pass, but even those who lose can pass if they have outstanding skills. So, do your best to show off all your skills in this sparring. However, the rear position will be tested separately by Oscar and Erpina after the sparring is completed, so stay on one side.”

At Beomseok’s shout, about six elves holding swords and shields simultaneously left the group and went to the corner of the dojang. He soon ordered his elves to create a schedule for each position. Raemi gave instructions to the applicants and began the sparring.

‘Hmm~ Not bad, but a bit……’

The applicants who entered the second test were all showing outstanding skills. In particular, the gladiators named Hina and Stephanie were at a professional level. However, most were better than amateur gladiators, but still a step below the professional gladiators in the Area League, who were said to have the lowest skills. This year, they could somehow lead the team while playing in the amateur league, but if the team went pro next year, a major team reorganization would be inevitable.

‘The problem is money.’

Even a team struggling in the relegation zone in the lowest league, the Area League, was said to cost at least hundreds of millions of krang. This was possible because such a large amount was assigned to the value of being a professional, but it also included some asset value. Of course, Beomseok still had a huge sum of 36.67 million krang left, but that was for the general public. It was hopelessly insufficient for the cost of creating a professional team. Moreover, after deducting the annual salary of 2.25 million krang and the purchase cost of 600,000 krang for the physical reaction suits to participate in the competition, only about 34 million krang would be left.

‘First, I need to make money by participating in as many competitions as possible.’

The competitions that the God Knights could participate in this year were the GA Cup held in the summer, the Semi-Pro Cup held in the fall, and the Promotion Tournament held in early spring next year. If they achieved satisfactory results here, they could earn more than 10 million krang in prize money alone.

Thump.

It was then. A young human woman with white hair burst in, looking around frantically. And shamelessly, she shouted loud enough to fill the dojang.

“Excuse me! Has the entrance test started?!”

She seemed to be late. Beomseok sighed deeply and approached her. If she was late for an important entrance test, she was out, no matter how capable she was. He had to kick her out so she wouldn’t interfere with the test.

“Hey. You look like an entrance applicant, but do you even know what time it is? The test is almost over. Just go.”

The white-haired woman looked at him with an apologetic expression.

“I’m sorry. I just saw that there was an entrance test here today. I rushed as soon as I checked, but I was still late.”

Beomseok also stared at her. What could he do if she had only found out about the entrance test just now? And her pretty decent appearance for a human woman was somehow appealing.

She was about 160 cm tall, looked like she was in her early 20s, had an oval face, and her skin was so fair that it was hard to distinguish from her hair. Her figure was hidden by the suit, but overall, she was quite a beauty.

“Are you a modified human?”

“Yes, that’s right. I just had the surgery this year and came out of the hospital.”

Then she had at least met the minimum requirements to join the team.

“Swordsmanship experience?”

“Um, well. That’s… I don’t have any. To be honest, I’ve never even touched a sword.”

Beomseok was speechless at her honesty. Even though it was an amateur team, his team was a semi-pro team. So, he had issued a gladiator recruitment notice offering an annual salary of 150,000 krang, and he had strict qualifications. Of course, beginners were not allowed.

“Did you happen to visit the recruitment notice or our team’s website?”

“Yes, I looked at it very carefully. That’s why I came here.”

“Then you know that we don’t recruit beginners, so what nerve do you have to come here?”

“Please, cut me some slack. We’re not strangers, are we?”

“What? You and I know each other?”

“Yes. I’m Emma. Don’t you recognize me?”

Whether she was Emma or a mistress, he had never heard of such a name since he started the game. No, he was seeing a modified human with white hair for the first time today. He frowned, thinking that she might be trying to flirt with him.

“No. Looking at it, it seems like I’m seeing you for the first time today. How do you know me? Have you ever seen me before?”

“Weren’t we in the same hospital?”

It wasn’t a hospital, but he had been going to the treatment center from time to time because of Venus. But she was in a private room. There was no reason for him to meet other elf patients or their owners.

“Well, one of my owned elves needed treatment, so I went to the treatment center for a while. Did we meet there?”

“No. Not the treatment center. The hospital that humans go to. According to the personal information on the site, you received free physical modification surgery sponsored by the federal government as a top student this year, but is that a mistake?”

Beomseok was taken aback. He had never played it directly, but in the setting, he was supposed to have received physical modification surgery at the hospital. He scratched his head with an awkward smile.

“Ha, haha. That happened. Oh, right. I went to the hospital to get surgery. I forgot for a moment.”

“Then you must know me. I also received free physical modification surgery sponsored by the federal government. Everyone who was eligible at that time received surgery at the Central National Hospital.”

Beomseok looked very nervous. It was because someone had appeared who could contradict his established backstory. This was something that could bring great chaos to this world, and he had to overcome this crisis to avoid an absurd ending. Beomseok quickly grabbed her wrist and went out of the dojang to avoid everyone’s attention.

———

I’ll be back again next time.