I Became a Childhood Friend of the Middle Boss

Chapter 20

Evaluation Round

As the dinner party came to an end,

People returned to their assigned rooms for a brief rest.

Then, at the appointed time, they gathered at the central entrance on the first floor.

Finally, the grandfather, who descended the stairs last, scanned the crowd.

“Are these all the people here?”

“Yes, sir. Except for those staying in their rooms due to poor health, everyone else has come out.”

“I see. Then let’s head to the artificial gate. If there’s anyone who might be late or has a change of heart and wishes to participate in the evaluation round, tell them to come to the artificial gate.”

“Yes, understood.”

The manager in charge of all the household staff reported the headcount.

The grandfather, nodding slowly, followed the manager’s guidance.

My family and I, along with other members of the family, soon followed the grandfather.

“You’re staying in your room as well…?”

“How can I wait in my room when Geonyu is participating?”

As my parents descended the stairs, they murmured to each other.

Internally, Father seemed uneasy about Mother, an ordinary person, entering the gate.

But Mother remained resolute.

Under the protection of the hunters of the prestigious family, just observing shouldn’t be too risky. Plus, you’re there, right?

“Mom! I’m here too!”

“Sigh… Fine, got it. Then, stay close by my side, okay? Yeeun, don’t fool around at the gate.”

“Yes, Mom.”

In the end, Father had to raise his hand.

I chuckled as I heard Mother respond following Yeeun.

“hahahaha. They seem close.”

I wonder if Grandfather heard too?

As Grandfather, who was walking ahead of us, smiled slightly, we could hear him say something that felt like a gentle scolding.

Glancing back at us subtly, it seemed he was right.

‘Before, they wouldn’t even give us the time of day…’

In the past, our family wouldn’t have bothered to listen to our words.

No, our family would have just kept their mouths shut, unwilling to be involved even a bit.

But now, by defeating Doseungwoo, I seemed to have sparked a change in the family’s emotions and caught Grandfather’s attention.

‘Not bad. No, good.’

As my standing within the family grew, their spirits rose accordingly.

With every step up in the family hierarchy, it seemed to invigorate them.

Another reason surfaced for me to shine in this upcoming evaluation match.

How much time had passed since then?

“The gate seems to be running smoothly.”

“….”

Shingum Do-ga Headquarters, Basement 3rd Floor.

We could enter the room where the artificial gate was installed.

It was evident that the gate was operational, as it was tinged with yellow.

At that moment, a hunter guarding the artificial gate approached us and explained.

“As the attack was launched in sync with the start of the banquet, unless something unexpected happens, by now they should have completed setting up the stage and be waiting inside.”

“Alright, good job.”

It meant that they had to some extent eliminated the dangers within the artificial gate.

After receiving the report from the hunter, Grandfather placed his hand on the yellow dimension.

“Well then, let’s all go in.”

After saying that,

Grandfather entered the gate.

Soon after, others followed suit.

In an instant, our sight was enveloped in yellow…

[Entered the gate.]

[Yellow: Domain of the Lord IV]

Whoosh!

When our sight returned to normal,

We were suddenly hit by a strong wind blowing from the other side.

“The wind is no joke.”

It was hard to open my eyes.

Urgently brushing off the messages with my hands, I raised both arms to block the wind.

Only after the wind calmed down could I take in the world before my eyes.

I lowered my raised arms.

“….”

Beyond that.

A vast jungle spread out.

It was only then that I realized I was standing on a cliff right now.

Below my feet, thick grass and steep cliffs caught my eye.

The height of the cliff was considerable.

Amidst that…

[The strategy conditions will be delivered sequentially.]

[Descend the cliff.]

A message appeared in front of me.

It was the first strategy condition.

“Descend this cliff….”

“How do they expect us to descend here?”

“….”

By that time, it seemed like others had also checked the strategy conditions.

The faces of the participants in the strategy session turned pale as they peered down the cliff.

Undoubtedly, it was terrifying.

I was momentarily taken aback as well.

“Let’s begin the evaluation match now.”

Nevertheless, the grandfather remained unfazed and calmly began speaking.

***

“You must have confirmed through the messages, but the conquest of this gate starts with you descending the cliff you’re standing on.”

“….”

“After descending the cliff, the gate will reveal the next strategy condition. According to the gate’s strategy conditions, you must break through the jungle over there and head to the lake at the center.”

The grandfather pointed with his finger.

People’s heads turned naturally.

“That lake.”

Even amidst the lush and dense trees in the jungle, the lake was clearly visible.

Under the sunlight, the lake sparkled, displaying its presence vividly.

It was a view worth pure admiration if not for coming to conquer the gate.

“In that lake resides the Sovereign. It’s a Rank 3 monster that one typically faces underwater, unseen beyond the lake’s edge.”

“….”

“Of course, I’m not suggesting you challenge the Sovereign by diving into the water, considering your abilities.”

Grandfather chuckled.

The participants who agreed to the evaluation let out relieved sighs.

Naturally, I felt the same.

“We’re not even students of the High Academy yet, and they want us to fight in the water; that’s truly absurd.”

Grandfather continued speaking.

“Considering your abilities… the first hunters who entered have captured the Sovereign and sealed it on the surface to prevent it from entering the water.”

“….”

“They’ve also weakened the Sovereign’s power and placed debuffs. So, as you weaken it further, in its weakened state, you just need to kill the Sovereign as it surfaces. With this setup, you should be able to conquer it easily.”

No one responded.

Fighting on the surface already demanded significant difficulty.

It was only marginally less challenging than entering the water, just a slight difference.

Moreover…

“It’s not just about facing the Sovereign.”

I estimated the distance from the cliff to the lake.

It seemed like I would expend quite a bit of stamina on the way to the lake.

Considering the possibility of encountering monsters hidden in the forest added to the challenge.

“Don’t worry. The hunters have already taken care of most of the monsters that might pose a threat to you.”

“….”

“There might be some monsters they overlooked… but if that happens, we’ll promptly come to your rescue.”

Grandfather gestured to one side.

The hunters had already set up seats for the family members to observe.

Grandfather took a seat on the main seat and gazed at the massive screen floating in the air.

The screen, divided into dozens of sections, displayed various parts of the forest.

“This is one of the artifacts used for communication within the gate. Through this artifact, we can monitor the forest in real-time and watch over you. There, young one.”

“Yes, Sir.”

“Give that to the children.”

When Grandfather instructed a hunter, he brought a box near the seating area.

Then, other hunters took items out of the box and distributed them to the participants of the evaluation.

It was a choker with a camera.

Named ‘Screen Choker.’

“I see this here.”

It was an artifact worn around the neck by students of the Academy in the Academy City when they had classes in the artificial gate.

It could be considered a video transmission device.

“During the evaluation, you must wear it at all times. This way, we can closely monitor your performance during the evaluation and, most importantly, track your location. That’s the ‘Gate Watch,’ which monitors mana levels and heart rate.”

Next, they received a wristwatch made of sweat-resistant material.

This, too, had appeared in the game.

“If you encounter any issues, we will immediately locate you through the artifact you’re wearing and send nearby hunters to assist.”

“….”

“Since safety is guaranteed, don’t worry needlessly and focus on conquering the gate. Be careful not to damage the artifact inadvertently.”

Even without Grandfather’s reminder, people handled artifacts as if they were precious items.

After that.

We learned how to use the artifact from nearby hunters.

“The evaluation match will last for 3 hours, so make sure to set the timer.”

◈

“After defeating the boss, the person who contributes the most to the conquest among you will be given the gate key. When that happens, don’t take the key outside; instead, hand it over to a nearby hunter and don’t forget to leave.”

The gate generated near the key.

Therefore, if one wanted to change the location where the gate was created, it was necessary to move the gate key to the desired location.

Grandfather had advised this in preparation for returning after the evaluation match.

If the gate key was taken away, the gate would be fixed in that location, requiring spectators to move to the lake.

‘Grandfather would be furious. Not just Grandfather, but others would be annoyed too…’

If one didn’t want to incur the family’s displeasure, it was essential to remember.

Of course, hunters waiting near the lake would prevent this from happening.

For the record, the fixed gate would remain for 24 hours from the moment the gate key was taken.

If 24 hours passed, the gate would completely disappear, and what would happen after that was unknown to anyone.

“Participants, stand at the edge of the cliff.”

Anyway, after all the explanations were done.

The time for the evaluation match was approaching.

Listening to Grandfather’s voice, I bid farewell to my family.

“I’ll be off then. Don’t worry, just watch over and wait for me.”

“Yes, but don’t get too confident in your skills. I know you won’t, but…”

“Of course not. Do you think I would?”

Father chuckled.

Having verified my skills before, he didn’t seem particularly worried.

Mother, on the other hand, was different.

“Don’t overdo it. Be careful not to get hurt. Promise me, okay?”

“Yes, don’t worry.”

Overwhelmed by the world of the gate, Mother repeatedly gave her words of advice.

Understanding Mother’s feelings, I nodded my head.

And Eunyeong…

“I wish… I could turn eight soon and participate in the evaluation match with my brother.”

“…I’ll be back, Eunyeong.”

“Yeah! Stay strong, big brother!”

Those who entered elementary school this year, whether direct or indirect relatives, all hesitated and eventually gave up on participating.

Eunyeong, on the other hand, occasionally got excited watching the monsters reflected on the screen.

She was a fearless younger sister.

I stuck my tongue out at Yeeun and balanced on the edge of the cliff.

“Everyone must have set their timers, right?”

“Yes!”

“Then, when the starting signal drops, press the timer.”

Including myself, there were a total of 17 participants in the assessment.

We gazed down below the cliff at a certain distance.

And then.

Shoo!

A hunter fired a gun towards the lake.

Red smoke cut through the air.

It was the signal marking the start of the assessment.

We immediately activated the gate watch with the set time limit.

03:00:00

The remaining time was displayed on the watch.

After confirming the artifact’s operation, I tightly held the rope descending down the cliff.

“H-How do I go down this….”

By that time, others were also grabbing onto the rope, preparing to descend the cliff.

Some hesitated.

Trying to go down the cliff, their bodies didn’t move as easily as they thought.

‘Don’t be afraid.’

To not become like them.

I tried to avoid looking down as much as possible and planted my feet on the steep cliff.

Thankfully, going down once wasn’t too difficult; afterwards, it was easier.

Having somewhat gotten used to the sensation, I let go of the rope while relying on the safety harness attached to my body.

My body swiftly descended.

“I-I give up!”

At that moment, a voice was heard from above.

It seemed like the first elimination had occurred.

As I heard the fading sound, I manifested my inner mana.

‘It’s okay.’

The instinct to evade was kicking in.

Entrusting myself to the gift, I grabbed the rope at the right timing.

Then, I swung in the air, pressing my body against the cliff.

And as my feet touched the cliff, I leaped down again.

――!

The sound of the wind was fierce.

It made my consciousness dizzy.

However, the instinct to evade was holding onto my consciousness, indicating the right time to move.

I reduced the time it takes to descend a cliff by repeating an action I had just taken.

Eventually, with not much ground left…

Thud!

I stepped on the rocks on the cliff like stairs to prevent a fall.

Activating the mana circuit in my lower body, I leaped from the remaining height.

The impact of the fall was absorbed through the two legs I placed on the ground.

And so…

“More manageable than I thought.”

I landed safely.

[I will now convey the next strategy condition.]

[Break through the jungle and move to the Lake of Acquisition.]

It was then that the message appeared.

After reading the contents, I jumped into the jungle that unfolded before my eyes.