I Gave Up Being Stronger

Bong King livestreamed alongside his partner, Kang Mi-Na.

“The cheers for Chul-Soo’s first appearance will be indescribably massive, guys.”

The crowd went wild as Chul-Soo got on the stage.

-Wow, it’s insane how loud they are! Lol.

-They say Bong King’s cheers were nothing in comparison.

-The difference in class is ridiculous!

Bong King was not particularly surprised. He had expected the initial cheers to be like this. After all, his opponent was a universe-level Eltuber with billions of real-time viewers.

The protest was peaceful and somewhat festive. Some individuals gave political speeches, while others told jokes. Singers sang, and dancers danced. After all these performances, awards were given in each category.

‘I’ll win the Best Speaker Award today,’ Bong King thought.

Chul-Soo’s voice came from the front of the stage. “Hello, today…”

As soon as Chul-Soo opened his mouth, another wave of tremendous cheers erupted. It felt like the ground was shaking.

‘He just said two words!’

Every time Chul-Soo spoke, it was as if the sun exploded. Even backstage, one could feel the intense energy of the crowd. It was as though what he said did not matter; people were ecstatic just to hear him breathe.

All Chul-Soo had said was a simple greeting and ‘Today…’

“I have a lot of things to say, but it seems like I can’t say all of them,” Jin-Hyeok said. “Thank you.”

That was it. Jin-Hyeok’s speech could hardly be called a speech. He said so little that it was hard to understand why he had even gone up there.

Yet, the cheers and applause were deafening.

‘Why won’t the cheers stop?’ Bong King wondered. These cheers were far louder and longer-lasting than those he had received after finishing his grand speech.

***

Cha Jin-Hyeok had not gone on stage to make a political statement. He wanted to show the Chul-Soo Landers that he was safe and explain Stage (18) of the universe-level Scenario and how he had skipped multiple Stages. It was not unusual for singers to sing, comedians to tell jokes, and Eltubers to talk about their livestreams.

‘Uh… Isn’t this getting a bit dangerous?’ Jin-Hyeok thought.

Many people were hugging each other and bursting into tears. That would have been fine for Jin-Hyeok, but the world was not so simple. A few people had to be taken to the hospital due to hyperventilation.

“Today…”

The atmosphere was so intense that it was impossible to continue the speech. With so many Chul-Soo Landers fainting, the situation had become chaotic. Jin-Hyeok had no choice but to end his speech prematurely. He could not cause another incident after so many had suffered last time.

“I have a lot of things to say, but it seems like I can’t say all of them today. Thank you.”

Once again, the crowd erupted in cheers. Ironically, Chul-Soo’s speech had touched the hearts of many.

-Look at his face!

-I feel like I’m melting from that melancholic gaze.

└It has already turned me into goo.

└From today, I am liquid.

Jin-Hyeok looked like a tragic hero with a thousand words in his heart that he could not express. The video was turned into a short clip and spread throughout the universe. The titles varied.

[SSS-Class Handsome Man’s Epic, Record-Breaking Speech.]

[Shocking Speech by Universe-Ranked Eltuber.]

[Earth-born Eltuber’s Ultra-Epic Speech that Shocked Arvis and Made Hell Bow Its Head.]

[Kim Chul-Soo’s Speech.]

Many versions of the video spread, but the keywords were very similar for all the videos.

“What a dirty word!” Bong King shouted as he squeezed his eyes shut.

Chul-Soo received the Best Speaker Award that day for saying just a few words. They said that his silence, which showed his inability to express the words pent up in his heart, was the best speech of all.

“It’s just because he’s handsome!” Bong King was briefly depressed at the thought that he could not surpass Chul-Soo even in speech skills, but he soon changed his mind.

One could not improve by just despairing at reality. He made a checklist to compare his speech with Chul-Soo’s.

[1. Did the speech receive overwhelming support from the masses?

Kim Chul-Soo (O) / Bong King (△)

2. Did the speech have a definite impact on the public?

Kim Chul-Soo (O) / Bong King (O) (△)]

If the impact was similar, the person who gave the shorter speech could be considered more skilled.

[3. Was the speech short?

Kim Chul-Soo (O) / Bong King (X)

4. Did the speech have an impact across the entire universe?

Kim Chul-Soo (O) / Bong King (X)]

Bong King threw down his pen. It was a complete defeat no matter how he looked at it. He never thought he would lose to a speech that was barely a sentence. It was just “Hello, today, and thank you.” Bong King barely had any chance of surpassing Chul-Soo in speech ability either.

‘If not speech, what can I beat him in?’

Bong King began to ponder it.

***

“Chul-Soo Hyung, your speech skills are incredible!” Bong King said.

“You’re joking, right?”

Jin-Hyeok had not expected his speech to become such a heart-stirring address of a great hero. He had only stopped because he feared Chul-Soo Landers could get seriously hurt or be in danger again. He felt quite regretful for not being able to say what he had intended. In this situation, Bong King’s words felt half like mockery.

“I am not joking. I did not know you were strong even in the field of public speaking. As expected of the Korean Region’s number one!”

Though losing to Jin-Hyek was bitter, Bong King was not so petty as to refuse to acknowledge defeat. Rather, he was the type of person who had a much stronger desire to grow from this experience.

“I’m not that good at public speaking,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“No, you’re strong, Hyung!”

Jin-Hyeok glared at Bong King.

Bong King flinched.

‘Why is he acting like this?’ Bong King was not sure, but it seemed he had triggered Jin-Hyeok. ‘Is it because I dare to aspire to surpass him? But isn’t he the type to tolerate and understand that level of ambition and aspiration?’

Bong King did not want to be disliked by Jin-Hyeok.

‘What did I do wrong? Could it be that calling him the Korean Region’s number one had offended him?’

“Ah, I see, I made a mistake,” Bong King said. He knew very well that calling a first-place person second place would upset them. Realizing his error, Bong King grinned. “I misspoke a bit. You’re the strongest in the universe, of course.”

***

Jin-Hyeok began recording. This was separate from his preoccupation with the thought that he should stop getting stronger.

“I had originally intended to show you guys on stage, but it did not quite work out. I did not reveal it last time, but a new Stage of the universe-level Scenario has been unlocked. The previous Stage was (12). Can you guys guess which one was unlocked?” Jin-Hyeok dragged out the livestream a bit to create an editing point before continuing. “The next unlocked stage is Stage (18)! Looking back now, it was a bit disappointing.”

As time passed, the rewards from the Universe-level Scenario were becoming increasingly inadequate compared to the content and scale of the Stages. This could mean that a large reward could be concentrated in a single Quest. For example, a story like ‘Stage (12), (13), and (14) give meager rewards, but they were all stepping stones for the definite reward in Stage (15)!’

“I’m very curious about the rewards for Stages (13) through (17), but I guess it can’t be helped.”

Jin-Hyeok then revealed the content of the Stage (18).

[(18) The specter of the old era has faded as it should, and a new sun will rise.]

Fortunately, the underline allowed him to elaborate on the details. If this had been all, he might have been criticized by the viewers for being too bland.

[-Find the sword of the old era sleeping in the Swedeen Imperial Palace’s secret chamber.

-Endless glory awaits the one who draws the sword of the old era.]

“As you can see, the Quest clear requirements are detailed like this. What do you think this means?”

Usually, when Quest clear requirements were spelled out so kindly, it meant the difficulty itself was very high. Jin-Hyeok grinned. Finally, this universe-level Scenario seemed to be helping him.

“It will not be an easy journey.”

Jin-Hyeok was so happy to hear that the Quest was making him go to Swedeen Imperial Palace’s secret chamber. It was a secret space that had never been revealed since the empire’s founding. It was a forbidden sanctuary that even Angel Girl, who used to torment Jin-Hyeok before his regression, had not dared to approach. It was said that even the emperor could not freely enter and exit the secret chamber. This was great content material, especially when he had been worried about becoming too strong.

“I will proceed while keeping many possibilities open,” Jin-Hyeok said. He smiled at the thought of releasing this recording at an appropriate time in the future. ‘This time, it should be quite difficult, right?’

***

Deliark, the newly crowned Emperor of Swedeen, held a press conference and willingly acknowledged his abdication. It was the first time in imperial history. Then, a terrible incident occurred.

[Tragedy Overnight!]

[The Miserable Downfall of the Imperial Family!]

All direct family members of the imperial family staying in the palace were poisoned to death. Although the culprit was not officially identified, Deliark was the prime suspect. They had all fallen victim to the White Snake King’s poison. At this point, Deliark was the only one with access to the White Snake King’s poison, so it was assumed he had made this extreme choice.

However, Deliark had vanished without a trace.

The Swedeen Empire was shaken to its core, but fortunately, the empire had Gridle, the Sage of the Sword, who was even more respected than the emperor. With him and the Pisat Family still standing, the Swedeen Empire did not fall. Many rallied around him.

“I’m too old. I’m not suited for a position like that of the emperor,” Gridle announced. The Sage of the Sword refused to accept the position of emperor. Instead, he pointed to someone else. “Wouldn’t the Sword Emperor Unit Captain Kyle be perfect?”

Thanks to Chul-Soo’s livestream, Kyle’s public support was skyrocketing. His spirit of sacrifice and excellence as a Swordsman had deeply moved the people of the Swedeen Empire.

“In the end, we should follow the will of the imperial citizens. I propose a vote.”

This opinion was ultimately accepted by the citizens, and a vote was quickly held. Several formidable candidates emerged, but in the end, Sword Emperor Unit Captain Kyle was elected as the new emperor. There was some discussion about whether he should be called Prime Minister rather than Emperor, but to avoid confusion, it was agreed to call him Emperor.

All of this happened in just three months.