The next day.
The arena was nearly full well before the semifinals began.
That just showed how many people were looking forward to it.
Of course, that included us too.
Go Hyeon-woo, , Seo Ye-in, and even Shin Byeong-cheol who had co to find us.
No need to ask what he was here for.
“Betting again?”
“Isn’t that obvious? We’ve made it to the semifinals; how could I not? The point cap’s even raised to 10,000.”
“Didn’t you say that if you bet again, you aren’t human?”
“I’m already a beast. Anyway, you’re in, right?”
I didn’t have to think long.
I’d profited from every bet I’d made so far, so even if I lost a little this ti, it wouldn’t be a big deal.
“Sure, why not?”
“That’s the spirit! Who are you betting on?”
At that, everyone turned their eyes to the bracket.
The players for the first semifinal match:
[Kim Gap-doo vs. Hong Ye-hwa]
Before making a decision, I asked,
“What are the odds right now?”
“Most people are betting on Hong Ye-hwa, obviously. Her skills are proven.”
In contrast, Kim Gap-doo hadn’t fought a single match since advancing to the main tournant. He’d gotten back-to-back “win by default”.
That’s why, even though he was also a club president, the evaluations were mixed.
Of course, public opinion rarely matches actual skill.
Judging by everything I’d seen so far, Kim Gap-doo actually had a slight edge.
Probably sothing like 53 to 47.
Just a slight one.
Once the match begins, anything could happen. So it’s not exactly an ideal situation for betting.
Even so, I said casually,
“I’m putting my money on Senior Gap-doo.”
“Why?”
“Just a gut feeling.”
For so reason, I had the sense that his streak of three consecutive wins by default might just keep going.
And if I lose, then so be it.
Then Seo Ye-in, who had been staring intently at the bracket, finally spoke up.
“…The toad.”
“Looks lucky, doesn’t he?”
“A lucky toad.”
And just like that, Lucky Gap-doo earned himself an unofficial badge of luck by Lucky Charm.
Go Hyeon-woo, for his part, chose Kim Gap-doo for an even simpler reason.
“If I’m going to cheer for soone, I’d rather support a fellow martial artist.”
Shin Byeong-cheol looked at the three of us, clearly surprised.
“How did all of you end up picking the sa person?”
“It happens. Who are you betting on?”
“Well, I was originally planning to go with Senior Hong Ye-hwa, but now you guys are making second-guess.”
At that mont, Hong Yeon-hwa walked up, waving at us.
“Hey…?”
She stopped right in front of Shin Byeong-cheol and Go Hyeon-woo, then gave them a silent, piercing stare.
“…….”
The two guys quickly scooted one seat over, clearing the space next to . Hong Yeon-hwa sat down in that spot and asked,
“What were you guys talking about…?”
“Who to bet on.”
“Oh…”
“If you’re interested, you can join in too.”
Hong Yeon-hwa’s eyes shifted toward the bracket.
But her answer was already obvious.
“I’m going with Unnie…”
Of course she’d want to root for her older sister.
Unless the win rates were drastically skewed, it was pretty much a fifty-fifty toss-up.
Just as she was about to say sothing else, Dang Gyu-young showed up, waving her hand.
“Hey guys, hi~ Oh, Byeong-cheol’s here too today. And Hong Yeon-hwa.”
“Welco, noonim!”
Eventually, Dang Gyu-young ca to a stop right in front of us, silently looking down.
There was no way Hong Yeon-hwa didn’t understand the aning in her gaze.
She had pushed the guys out of their seats the exact sa way, after all.
“…….”
Hong Yeon-hwa’s pupils darted around restlessly.
She glanced toward Seo Ye-in with a hint of hope in her eyes, but of course it didn’t work in the slightest.
That one doesn’t budge even when the human butcher gave her a look.
In the end, Hong Yeon-hwa slowly stood up from her seat and, along with the two guys, scooted one seat over.
“Squeeze…”
It wasn’t just her mood. She really did look twice as down as usual.
A flicker of guilt passed across Dang Gyu-young’s face, but she didn’t seem inclined to give up the seat.
Feigning nonchalance, she asked ,
“What were you guys doing?”
“Making bets.”
“Who’d you bet on?”
“ and her both picked Gap-doo.”
At that, Dang Gyu-young’s gaze shifted toward Seo Ye-in.
Black eyes and gray eyes t.
“…….”
“…….”
Whenever those two run into each other, the atmosphere gets awkward.
Like putting a fox and a cat in the sa room, I guess.
If they were openly hostile, I’d try to keep the balance but it’s not even that.
For now, watching quietly seed like the better option.
Whatever crossed her mind, Dang Gyu-young’s lips curled into a slight smile.
“Then I’ll go with the other side.”
“Are you betraying our Gap-doo right now?”
“How is it betrayal when he was never ‘ours’ to begin with?”
“So heartless. If Gap-doo heard that, he’d be Sad Gap-doo.”
“Hey, you’re the worst one here.”
Since she had a point, I quickly changed the subject.
“But what’s got you betting all of a sudden? I didn’t think you cared much.”
“I don’t, really.”
As a club president-level mber, it’s not like she’s hurting for points.
Especially since we’re only talking 10–20k at most.
Dang Gyu-young grinned and added,
“I just thought I’d raise the stakes a bit. Might make it more fun.”
It seed like those words were directed more at Seo Ye-in than .
But the sloth showed no sign of interest, half-listening at best.
That is, until Dang Gyu-young casually placed a hand on my shoulder.
“The winner gets a One-day Kim Ho usage ticket.”
“………!”
Only then did Seo Ye-in look back at Dang Gyu-young.
And with a subtle nod, she seed to say she was in.
At that point, I felt the need to step into the conversation.
“I don’t recall ever issuing a usage ticket.”
“Then make one now.”
“And how exactly do you plan to use it?”
“Let’s be honest. You’d do everything even without the ticket. And the ticket itself isn’t the point.”
It’s the act of winning it that matters.
Now that she put it that way, it actually made so sense. I nodded.
“Alright. One usage ticket, it is.”
“Um… Can I… join too?”
Hong Yeon-hwa chid in, raising her hand timidly.
As everyone’s eyes turned to her, her gaze darted nervously but she didn’t take her words back.
She must’ve mustered so real courage for that.
Dang Gyu-young asked,
“You’re betting on Hong Ye-hwa, right?”
“Ah, y-yes…”
“Then you’re overlapping with .”
They’d either have to share the ticket sohow or find a way to use it together.
But Dang Gyu-young didn’t dwell on it. She simply shrugged.
“I think it’ll be fine. We got along during the ntoring sessions.”
Back in the second round of ntoring, the three of us had lived in the sa place for about a month, and we’d often gone around town together.
So she probably figured there was no issue in doing it again.
To sum it up: the Hong-Qyu alliance versus the sloth’s bet.
The winner gets one official One-day Kim Ho Usage Ticket.
Just then, I felt a light tap on my shoulder.
Turning my head, I wasn’t surprised to see Sword Queen.
“You. Make a bet with .”
“I don’t have anything worth betting, though.”
By first-year standards, I had so decent items but compared to what an S-rank martial artist would consider valuable, they were nothing.
“You do. You got sothing from the Shadow Lord, didn’t you?”
“You an the elixir?”
“Not the elixir.”
“Are you talking about this?”
I pulled out a rolled-up scroll from my inventory. The Sword Queen gave a small nod.
[Secret Scroll – The Lord Who Is Not Evil (A )]
An item that shows a recorded scene to the user.
The difference from a Replay Orb is that it’s a one-ti use item.
Judging by the na, it likely contains the insights of a master nad “The Lord Who Is Not Evil”. And if it’s the Sword Queen, she might be able to learn sothing from it.
“If I win, give that.”
“Hmm… I’m not really feeling it.”
I put the secret scroll back into my inventory.
It was an item I had no use for at the mont, but it was also too valuable to just throw away.
The fact that Kim Gap-doo’s odds were about fifty-fifty also weighed on my mind.
As if she’d anticipated my hesitation, she imdiately made an offer.
“If you win, I’ll let you pick one item from my inventory. Anything below A .”
“……!”
A chance to raid the Sword Queen’s inventory?
That alone made the fifty-fifty gamble worth it.
I pretended to think for a mont, then nodded.
“I’ll do it.”
“Smart choice.”
“Do you think Hong Ye-hwa will win?”
“No idea. But it’s worth betting on. Isn’t that why you got involved too?”
“Well, that’s true.”
With the bet settled, everyone focused on the stage for their own reasons.
So for points, so for a chance to get the Kim Ho Usage Ticket, and others for items.
anwhile, Kim Gap-doo and Hong Ye-hwa were doing their final checks in front of the teleportation circle.
In the midst of that, only Kim Gap-doo was being relentlessly booed.
– Booo~ Just a lucky guy~
– Your luck’s about to run out~
Three straight wins by default were absurd, and plenty of people clearly didn’t see him in a good light.
But Kim Gap-doo kept a blank expression the entire ti, seemingly unfazed.
Once they finished their checks, they stepped onto the teleportation circle.
They knew each other but exchanged only a few words.
After just a brief exchange, silence fell between them, and the countdown began.
[3]
[2]
[1]
[Start!]
[Kim Gap-doo 100%]
vs
[Hong Ye-hwa 100%]
Whoooooooooosh!
As Hong Ye-hwa quickly cast her spell, lava erupted violently and took on a humanoid form.
Just like in her previous matches, her first move was summoning a Lava Golem.
As if he had expected that, Kim Gap-doo was already charging forward with his fist extended.
Booom-boom!
And he plowed straight through the Lava Golem’s body.
Hong Ye-hwa imdiately swung her staff.
The collapsing Lava Golem turned into a wave of molten lava and ca crashing down from behind Kim Gap-doo.
Booooom—!
A speed that was simply impossible to dodge.
Park Seong-jun had sidestepped it before.
But Kim Gap-doo didn’t try to evade it at all. He just kept charging forward.
As a result—
Booooooooom—!
He was completely drenched in lava.
[Kim Gap-doo 97%]
[Kim Gap-doo 94%]
[Kim Gap-doo 91%]
His health dropped rapidly.
But it didn’t stop there. Hong Ye-hwa generated another wave of lava and pushed it forward.
Whooooooooosh—!
Even then, Kim Gap-doo continued charging straight ahead.
Once again, he was engulfed in molten lava.
[Kim Gap-doo 87%]
[Kim Gap-doo 85%]
[Kim Gap-doo 81%]
At first glance, his decision seed reckless.
But Kim Gap-doo was anything but reckless.
He’s actually pretty sharp when it counts.
He had likely faced Hong Ye-hwa in duel battles before and probably watched her previous matches. So the two of them would have a solid grasp of each other’s abilities.
In other words, his current actions were the result of careful calculation.
He’s betting that if he can get in close, he can make up for all the damage he’s taken.
[Kim Gap-doo 74%]
Despite the constant harassnt, Kim Gap-doo finally managed to close the distance to Hong Ye-hwa.
His tightly clenched fist shot forward and the blast of his punch shattered her barrier and delivered a shockwave.
Boooooooom!
[Hong Ye-hwa 100%]
[Hong Ye-hwa 86%]
Hong Ye-hwa staggered backward from the impact.
I nodded, feeling a bit satisfied.
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