Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 30

30

“Hahaha. I have no idea what you’re talking about. Do you know me?”

“I thought I would know if we met. But looking closely, I don’t think you remember either. Could it be that you had the procedure last year or the year before, instead of this year?”

Emma’s question, delivered with a confident expression, cornered Beomseok even further. According to the setup, he was supposed to have received the procedure this year, and that was how it was recorded in the information agency’s computer network. If he lied in this situation and said he had received it last year or the year before, as she suggested, he could be in a serious situation where he couldn’t do anything about it if it was ever exposed.

He briefly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with the gauntlet on the back of his hand.

“No, no. I definitely had the body modification procedure this year.”

“Well, I called a few of my seniors on the way here, and they said they didn’t know anyone named Beomseok.”

‘What is this? Did she extend her reach that far to corner me? I almost got caught if I had lied. Still, she said she came in a hurry, but she investigated everything.’

Beomseok thought that this wouldn’t do. He didn’t know what Emma’s true identity was, so he couldn’t figure out what to say. He decided to look into her information, even if it didn’t help much.

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Name: Emma Holson.

Classification: Modified Human (Year 0).

Affiliation: None.

Fame: 21.

Notoriety: 0.

Favorability: 36.

H Experience: None.

Stamina: 6100/8200.

Social Skills: 48+10, Strength: 63, Constitution: 61.

Agility: 63, Sense of Balance: 59, Intelligence: 94+10.

Mental Strength: 67+10. Judgment: 78+10, Skill: 37.

Luck: 45.

Current Skill/Potential: 615/824.

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Trait: Excellent Knowledge.

Special Notes: A member of the Black Society, a group of people who received free modified body procedures from the Federal Government. She joined Zeros Bank as an employee but was laid off due to a sudden recession.

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‘Black Society? What kind of mafia-like name is that? Damn it, I’ve really been caught.’

After checking the special notes, he found out that she was a member of the Black Society, a group of people who received free modified body procedures from the Federal Government. However, this information was too fragmented to know what kind of trick he should use to overcome this difficulty. To make a perfect excuse, it was essential to obtain more reliable information.

‘Still, her abilities are amazing. Her potential is 824. If I raise her well, I can even use her as a candidate in the World League.’

Before he knew it, his eyes were drawn to the ability stats above. It was because Emma’s abilities were too outstanding to ignore. Her physical abilities were high enough to adapt to the Area League, and all of her mental abilities, including knowledge, were above average, except for social skills. In addition, her trait, ‘Excellent Knowledge,’ permanently increased her mental stats by 10, which was always good for maintaining consistent abilities.

‘What should I do? I want to recruit her, and I need to escape from this difficult situation.’

However, the recruitment issue was not a big concern. The fact that she came to this place meant that she was willing to join his team. The only thing that bothered him was why she suddenly decided to become a gladiator, even though she had been laid off from the bank due to the recession.

“But who are you, Beomseok? Why don’t we know you, even though you received the free modification procedure provided by the Federal Government?”

Startled, Beomseok closed the information window and repeatedly cleared his throat before asking a question instead.

“Before that, let me ask you one thing. Are you a member of the Black Society?”

“Ah, yes. So you know what the Black Society is?”

“Well, I’ve heard about it. I heard that people who received free modified body procedures from the Federal Government formed a group. But can you explain the Black Society to me? I don’t know much about it.”

“That can’t be. The seniors should have come to the hospital where you had the procedure and explained it to you in detail, right?”

“Well, I’ve only heard that it exists. I haven’t heard any details, and no senior has ever come to visit me.”

Emma tilted her head at his insistence and eventually began to talk about the Black Society.

“The Federal Government was providing free body modification procedures to 100 students with good grades every year, and all of them were undergoing the procedure at the same national hospital. Thanks to this, they developed a deep bond while they were hospitalized, and eventually formed an organization called the Black Society to maintain a close relationship even after entering society. And they demonstrated their talents in various fields by borrowing the power of their unique genius and the Black Society, a friendly group. Most of them held high positions in various fields such as public institutions, corporations, and banks.”

“Oh, that’s great. But why is it called the Black Society?”

“There’s a high-end Chinese restaurant in front of the hospital where we had the procedure, and its name is Black Society. They say that’s where they held meetings with the juniors who were discharged every year, so they named it that way.”

The members of the Black Society were only the modified humans who received free body modifications, 100 people each year. The number was very small, so each person was very precious. So the seniors did not spare the effort to visit the juniors when they were discharged and brought them into the organization. When they entered society, they took care of them materially and spiritually and nurtured their talents. And those who were successful with the help of their seniors maintained the organization by attracting juniors again, and they have been widely publicizing their reputation throughout society for decades.

“Oh, it has a long history. I’ve heard a lot.”

“Then can you explain it to me now? How can we not know each other’s faces when we received the procedure and were hospitalized in the same hospital?”

Beomseok wore a relaxed expression. If he had information, he could easily come up with a solution.

“Because we are completely different beings.”

“What does that mean? Does that mean you didn’t receive the free procedure? You said you did earlier. Did you lie to me?”

“No. I received the free procedure. However, unlike you, it was not a procedure based on academic achievement, and the hospital where I received the procedure was not the Central National Hospital, but another hospital.”

“If not grades, then what did you get it for?”

“Fencing. The Federal Government thought it was unfair to provide free body modification procedures only for academic achievement. So they looked for students who showed genius in the field of sports, and I was the first example of that. So there’s no way we could know each other. The agency that gave you the free procedure was the Ministry of Education, and the agency that gave me the free procedure was the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.”

Beomseok was making up and blustering as much as he wanted. As long as it didn’t deviate from the setting, the game system would turn his words into truth to a certain extent. Hiding the player’s existence was a very important element in the game.

“Oh, so that’s what happened. I knew those rumors in some political circles didn’t come out of nowhere.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It hasn’t been clearly formalized, but…….”

Emma began to talk in detail.

“The social position of the Black Society was very significant, despite its small number. Since a force of no more than 10,000 people was wielding enormous influence, there were many who were jealous of them. So they have been trying to undermine them in various ways, and the Black Society has been protecting the organization by fighting against these subversive forces with their own strength. But the recent rumors were enough to make the Black Society nervous. The Black Society members were advancing into office work with their unique intellectual abilities and were on the road to success, so the discussion was whether it was right to waste the budget and turn them into modified humans. This was because the body modification procedure only improved physical abilities and did not improve intellectual abilities. It was understandable enough, but it was an opinion that the Black Society could never accept. If the policy continued according to this rumor and the free body modification procedure by the Federal Government disappeared, the Black Society would no longer be supplied with members. Then, the power of the organization would gradually weaken and eventually collapse.”

“Well, why don’t you accept other modified humans as members?”

“That’s not allowed. Then the meaning of the founding of the Black Society will be diluted, and the solidarity of the organization will be weakened. The foundation of our strength starts from the strong bond that we were reborn with our own strength without the help of our parents.”

Faced with this situation, the Black Society came up with a clever idea. It was an opinion to have one of the members born this year advance into the sports field. The claim came out because their members did not engage in jobs that used their bodies, so if a professional player with some recognition came out of the organization, they could sufficiently refute their claims. And since they didn’t have their own area in the sports business, they could use this opportunity to expand their influence to that field.

Accordingly, the Black Society had Emma, who was the most physically outstanding of this year’s class, leave the bank where she worked in the form of a voluntary resignation in order to advance into the sports field.

“Huhu. I understand, but why a voluntary resignation? You could have just quit.”

“Then you can receive three years’ worth of salary and a certain amount of consolation money. If you just submit your resignation, you won’t receive severance pay because it hasn’t been a year since you joined the company. It can be said that it is all the consideration of the seniors.”

Beomseok nodded and glared at Emma with strength in his eyes, unlike before. He understood her situation and was greedy for her potential, but the fact that she participated in today’s tryout with skills that would be obvious even without seeing them seemed too brazen.

“Okay. I understand everything. But for what reason did Ms. Emma come to this place today? You wouldn’t think you could pass the test just by relying on your friendship, would you?”

“That, that…….”

In fact, she thought Beomseok was a free procedure recipient who had not joined the Black Society. No matter how enthusiastic the seniors were, there were some who refused this offer and went their own way. The typical examples were those who were reluctant to belong to somewhere or those who were rich from the beginning and did not feel the need to join. But even if he didn’t join the Black Society, there was a connection that he had spent a long time with in the same hospital. So Emma tried to use this as an excuse to ask him to let her join the Gods Knights team.

“Solicitation? You want a professional player, right? As you know, we are just newly launched amateurs.”

“That’s true. Which professional team would hire me as a player? The Black Society’s influence doesn’t work in the sports field. So I was looking for an amateur team with a high possibility of advancing to the pros, and I found Mr. Beomseok’s team. According to the content on the site, the Gods Knights team has many professional gladiators who have played in the Wide League, and it says that they are aiming to become a professional team in the future.”

“So you were thinking of getting buried with us when our team went pro and becoming a pro?”

Emma reluctantly nodded. No matter how she thought about it, she felt shameless. But now that the Black Society’s work has become urgent. It was necessary for her to enter the pros as soon as possible, and the Gods Knights team was the most suitable for that condition. Although they received the procedure in different hospitals and had no connection, he was a person who was reborn as a modified human through his own efforts without any support. Maybe he would listen to her request in the same situation.

“Yes, that’s right. But you can’t just become a pro. You have to participate in the game and make a certain contribution to the team. That’s the only way the Black Society can get visible results that they can refute.”

Beomseok began to worry. It was difficult to use her as a force right now, but considering her potential, she would grow enough to make a great contribution to the team someday. His honest feeling was that it was too wasteful to kick her out with her current abilities.

“Well, I understand your unfortunate circumstances, but I can’t just accept Ms. Emma, who is no different from a beginner. If there’s a reason, it wouldn’t be bad to consider it, but what should I do?”

“If you let me join, the Black Society will give you a lot of help. In addition to a considerable amount of donations, it will be easier to find a good corporate sponsor if you advance to the pros in the future.”

Then the story was different. The reason for choosing skilled gladiators was to strengthen the team’s strength. Similarly, raising money was also an example of strengthening the team’s strength. If there were plenty of funds, they could recruit excellent gladiators, and the team would become stronger.

“In that case, there’s no reason to drop you. I’ll create an additional spot for now and decide whether to join depending on the amount of the donation.”

“Really? Thank you so much.”

Emma was assuming that she had been accepted outright. There was a condition that it would be decided based on the amount of the donation, but there was no way the Black Society couldn’t raise enough money to satisfy him.

Looking at her, Beomseok carefully threw out a word.

“And today’s conversation is a secret to the team members. It can be a factor that harms the team atmosphere if it is known. You just came to the team as a trainee. Got it?”

“Trainee? Then what about the matches?”

“I can’t send you to important games yet. I can’t put you, a beginner, in a game that the team’s survival depends on. I can only put you in when I meet a weak opponent or when the team is likely to win. I’ll also have Raymi give you professional training so you can grow quickly. Then someday, the day will come when you play as a starting member of our team.”

That was enough for Emma to be satisfied. It was clear that it would be unreasonable for her, who had never even held a sword, to go to an important game, and she said that she would prepare a special training schedule for her development. It would be difficult to receive more treatment than this even if she went to any other team.

“Okay. But you have to let me play often.”

Beomseok nodded and took her back into the dojo, where the second test was in full swing. He carefully watched the sparring of the applicants until the end and announced the 15 gladiators who had passed on the spot. With only a few weeks left until the start of the GA Cup, he couldn’t waste time announcing the successful candidates.

And for a few days, Beomseok received several calls. It was from various national institutions and private companies, including the Sports Promotion Corporation, and they were expressing their intention to provide subsidies and donations that they had not even applied for. It was a huge sum of 15 million Krang [currency unit] in total. At first, he was reluctant, but soon he thought of Emma and the Black Society and quickly took it.

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I’ll go again next time.