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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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Chapter 222: Unexpectedness (7)
Match-fixing by pretending to be weak.
Yeongwoo clicked his tongue at Dragos’ deception tactics and sat down to take a break.
It seemed that Dragos would continue his cunning act until enough public opinion was swayed to perceive him as the underdog.
‘This makes things a bit complicated.’
How many levels of deception could Dragos sustain?
Judging by his performance so far, handling the second stage seemed to be no problem.
‘The number of mutants appearing in stage 3 is the key. No matter how skilled he is at playing the weakling, it would be hard to deal with eight mutants alone.’
This was assuming that the number of mutants doubled with each stage: 2, 4, 8, 16, 32.
‘But they could also increase sequentially by two each time. This would make predictions even more difficult.’
In the latter case, it would be 2, 4, 6, 8, 10.
Even if it reached stage 3, there would only be six mutants, making it hard for Yeongwoo, who knew about the act, to make a decisive move.
‘Six mutants? Too ambiguous. With some skill, one could barely manage to break through.’
Moreover, Dragos was aiming for first place, so he would definitely continue his act until he reached his limit.
In fact, it was a prime opportunity to push out competitors who were betting on the survival of the weak.
‘No matter what he does, I should consider that he’s not at his limit until he suffers a substantial injury.’
For instance, losing an arm or a severe thigh wound.
‘How long does he plan to keep up this act? Even just holding on like that must be quite exhausting.’
As Yeongwoo thought this while looking at the screen, Dragos finally attempted a counterattack.
Just as an orc charged at him with bare hands, Dragos grabbed and tackled it.
‘Looks like he’s planning to finish it soon.’
Even knowing it was an act, the battle was intense enough to make Yeongwoo’s heart race.
Just as Dragos plunged his sword into the orc lying on the ground, a beastman closed in from behind and thrust a lance.
Hwayaang!
Sensing it at the last moment, Dragos instinctively twisted his body to dodge the lance, an act of genuine desperation.
“……”
At this point, even his misstep when entering the dungeon seemed calculated.
‘Maybe he’s not a beginner but a seasoned veteran.’
Why was someone like him only the second best swordsman in Brasov?
Realizing his naivety, Yeongwoo corrected his thought.
‘No, titles can be changed at will. He might have been the second best at some point in the past.’
Just as Yeongwoo had this epiphany, the European on the screen kicked the beastman’s shield, creating an opening to stab through.
Finally, his first-stage battle ended.
「Stage 1, Strong Survives. Weak Survives.」
「Stage 1 Complete.」
As the completion message appeared, the betting results were announced.
「17 participants gained 1 betting point.」
Then, Yeongwoo’s personal scoreboard appeared.
[Jeong Yeongwoo07]
|Betting Points: 1
|Current Rank: Tied 17th (17 people)
*Rewards are given from 5th place.
*If there are many ties, ranks do not rise.
‘So the rankings start from the bottom.’
Merely predicting the first stage correctly wasn’t enough to receive rewards.
This was likely due to the high number of ties.
‘To get rewards, there must be many who fail their bets.’
Yeongwoo finally understood the strategy for this dungeon.
The dungeon was designed for players to rise through match-fixing.
‘And this control is essentially given to the two representatives.’
This clarified why the quest forced Dogo to stand out as a strong player.
However.
「Stage 2 will begin shortly.」
「Due to the presence of many ties, special rules will be applied from Stage 2.」
‘…Special rules?’
This dungeon was far more malicious than Yeongwoo had anticipated.
Because.
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[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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「From now on, all participants except the representatives can enter the arena.」
The dungeon system had rules in place to ensure that no one could easily claim rewards.
‘Allowing participants into the arena means… they can create the desired outcome directly if needed.’
For instance, if all 18 participants in the waiting room rushed into Arena 1, a previously impossible scenario like the ‘strong dying’ could happen.
However, since uniting the 18 participants of different nationalities and races was difficult, they would likely consider changing the outcome in favor of the weak first.
But the problem was.
‘For one’s rank to rise, there need to be fewer ties, so not everyone will bet on the weak dying or surviving. Some will inevitably bet on the opposite outcome.’
This meant that even among the participants who entered the arena for the weak, there could be conflicts.
Those betting on the weak surviving and those betting on the weak dying could each use force to achieve their desired outcome.
‘This is going to be a complete mess.’
Foreseeing the chaos, not only Yeongwoo but also other participants in the waiting room had complicated expressions.
Then, the dungeon system introduced another special rule to alleviate their concerns a little.
「Additionally, at the end of Stage 5, the participant with the lowest betting points will be killed.」
「If there are multiple participants with the lowest points, up to three will be randomly selected and killed.」
This meant that up to three participants with the lowest points just before the final tally would be randomly killed.
Thus, participants were encouraged to bet their best throughout the five stages and, if necessary, enter the arena to change the outcome directly.
‘Of course.’
It was the same as always in the dungeon.
Yeongwoo closed his eyes, as if he had expected this.
However, participants in the waiting room, who could end up in the lowest point group at any time, were shouting in horror.
Although Yeongwoo couldn’t hear them, it was a scene where you could almost hear the screams just by watching.
The situation in the waiting room, as seen on the broadcast screen, was just like that.
「In the upcoming Stage 2, the number of mutants each representative will face is four.」
‘So, it’s still four mutants up to Stage 2.’
But the number of mutants was no longer of great significance.
Now, the critical factor was the psychology of the remaining 18 participants.
Would they bet on the strong surviving and the weak surviving as in the previous stage?
Or would they bet on the weak dying to try and turn the tables?
What choice would the three participants who failed in the first stage, now at the bottom, make?
Would they rush into the arena to alter the outcome to their liking once the match began?
With the countless possibilities and the tension from the new rule allowing participants to enter the arena, the atmosphere in the waiting room was now more intense than in Arenas 1 and 2.
「All participants must complete their betting within 5 minutes.」
Finally, the betting for Stage 2 began, and as before, the four betting options appeared.
[1] Strong survives, weak survives.
[2] Strong dies, weak survives.
[3] Strong survives, weak dies.
[4] Strong dies, weak dies.
“……”
The options were the same as in Stage 1, but they felt much weightier now.
Of course, Yeongwoo immediately bet on option 1 again.
‘Even with the lowest points death rule, would anyone risk their life to create variables this early? For now, everyone will have to act conservatively.’
Thus, those who were truly anxious were likely the three at the bottom who had taken a gamble in the first stage.
‘Even if the current lowest scorers succeed in their Stage 2 bets, they will still be in danger of being the lowest since most participants who scored in Stage 1 will likely succeed in Stage 2 as well.’
Therefore, the only way for the lowest scorers to survive was to make others fail in their bets.
‘Otherwise, they would need to succeed in all their bets from Stage 3 onwards while hoping that others fail in their predictions… which is no easy task.’
A dilemma.
In any case, if the three lowest scorers did nothing, they would likely die due to the rule targeting the lowest scorers.
‘But there’s still some hope. Dragos is acting really well.’
After placing his bet, Yeongwoo sat back down and waited for time to pass.
This time, the full five minutes were used without early completion of betting.
The 18 participants in the waiting room were likely contemplating their life-or-death decisions.
「All bets for Stage 2 are now complete.」
After five minutes, the betting results for the 20 participants were announced.
[Stage 2]
|Option 1 – 8 votes
|Option 3 – 12 votes
“Whoa…!”
A surprising result.
This time, significantly more people bet on option 3, indicating the weak would die.
‘It seems most of them still don’t know Dragos is acting.’
Regardless, this outcome was advantageous for Yeongwoo.
This would greatly reduce the number of tied ranks.
Now, Yeongwoo’s remaining task was to ensure that Dragos did not die during Stage 2.
‘Twelve people bet on the weak dying….’
What if they decided to interfere in the arena to prevent Dragos from passing Stage 2?
‘If I use a laser strike… my infamy would skyrocket, right?’
Yeongwoo imagined it.
A laser cannon firing from the Returnee’s Room, striking down on the heads of the 12 participants who entered Arena 2.
“Kwaaah…!”
Making the sound of the laser cannon with his mouth, Yeongwoo placed his hand on the artifact as he saw the iron gate clattering again.
「With all bets completed, Stage 2 will now begin.」
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HEL SCANS
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
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