Episode 37 – The Master Strategist’s Gate (1)

In the dimly lit workshop of the Master Strategist, a calm atmosphere lingered.

Gone was the urgency he had shown recently. Instead, he leisurely brewed a cup of coffee.

Drip… drip…

The cup filled just to the brim, and he took a slow whiff, savoring the rich aroma.

“As expected. Quality beans make all the difference.”

Cradling his coffee, the Master Strategist settled in front of his monitor.

“It’s begun.”

On screen, a virtual character appeared—none other than Phantom.

Usually, he regarded Phantom as a thorn in his side, but today… today, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of pity.

“Impressive skills, truly… but—”

A crooked smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

“Skill alone won’t keep you alive in this world, kid.”

He had studied Phantom’s gameplay extensively. Phantom played with confidence, always walking a razor’s edge. He was the kind of streamer who thrilled his audience—a textbook star player.

“Deok-bae.”

“Yes, boss?”

The silhouette of a broad-shouldered man with a rough, streetwise face stepped into the room—Park Deok-bae. One glance was enough to peg him as a thug.

And he really had been one.

“Do you know why most people with dazzling talent never last long?”

“Not sure, boss.”

“It’s simple. They shine briefly… and burn out just as fast.”

Not just in streaming—across every field. Talented individuals popped up all the time.

But staying power? That was rare.

There were countless reasons: people, money, environment, society, the system itself. All kinds of obstacles.

“To become a true star, you need talent, hard work… and a whole lot of luck. No one makes it alone.”

“So that Phantom guy must be out of luck, then. Since he’s caught your attention.”

“Exactly. Poor bastard. Hehehe…”

The Master Strategist sipped his coffee, eyes glued to Phantom’s stream.

“Keep going, Phantom. Feed me more information.”

What he needed most right now was data—specifically, about the final boss’s location.

He already knew almost everything about the monsters guarding the area.

But the boss? That was the key. Considering Lost Land’s brutal difficulty, there was no way the final boss would be a pushover.

He could execute his plan at any time, but for it to be complete, he had to conquer the final boss himself.

“Deok-bae, get ready. Once Phantom reaches the final boss area, tell the lead strike team to focus entirely on his stream. The moment he finishes… we go in.”

“Understood, boss.”

Park Deok-bae bowed and stepped into his capsule.

The Master Strategist’s reflection on the monitor twisted into a greedy grin.

“When you finally reach the top, Phantom… I’ll be the one to pull you down. And that hundred million? I’ll take it too.”

His reflection shimmered like a demon lurking in the dark.

Meanwhile…

Yoo Hae-chul, fresh off his college entrance exams, was relaxing after school with a session of Knight of Legend.

The game ended with a familiar message:

[Defeat]

“Ugh, seriously. So many trolls these days, it’s infuriating.”

Hae-chul loved all kinds of games. He had a good eye for strategy and could read the flow of gameplay well—but in terms of raw skill, he was pretty average.

Just your everyday gamer.

Though he played nearly every title that came out, he never got too deeply invested in one. He just enjoyed them casually.

What really captivated him, though, was watching game streams.

He had a knack for spotting rising stars among streamers—and most of the ones he picked ended up making it big.

“Let’s check the community forums.”

Logging in, he smiled to see one of his edited videos trending at the top.

“Knew it. This one had flair. Smooth and stylish.”

One of Hae-chul’s hobbies was editing clips of his favorite streamers and posting them online. He’d been doing it since his first year of high school, even starting his own AllTube channel. He had talent—and viewers agreed.

Despite being a broke student, his videos pulled decent traffic and some income.

Lately, his main focus was on one game: Lost Land.

“What time was the stream again…?”

Right on cue, a notification popped up.

[Ding~]

A new post from Phantom, the streamer he was currently obsessed with.

“Tonight’s 7 PM stream will be hosted exclusively on SwitchTV.”

“What? Out of the blue?”

No explanation—just a short notice, hinting at a platform switch.

“Don’t tell me…”

A thought crossed his mind, one he didn’t like.

“Let’s hope not.”

He decided to wait for the 7 PM broadcast, hoping his hunch was wrong.

Beep beep~ Beep beep~

The alarm rang. It was 7.

Right on time, Phantom’s stream went live.

[Phantom’s Game Broadcast] is now live.

▶▶ How a Perfect-Score Rookie Clears Lost Land’s Gimmicks ◀◀

<Current Viewers: 10,418>

He broke 10k viewers instantly, and the number was climbing fast.

Hae-chul smiled with pride.

He’d been one of the very first five viewers when Phantom debuted.

He’d been there from day one.

[Hey everyone~]

The chat exploded in response.

Fan-hi!

On the dot at 7, nice~

Going for a full clear tonight!?

Finally, we’ll see that trash boss early game!

[As some of you guessed, tonight might be the grand finale. No school tomorrow, after all.]

Friday freedom for students, baby!

Got my fried chicken—let’s go all night!!!

Phantom’s basically the 100 million guy now

┗ So jealous, damn

┗┗ Me toooo

Tonight was a big deal.

The day the 100 million prize might be claimed.

All of Lost Land’s players were watching. Hae-chul included.

“Phantom’s seriously got the skills.”

He’d been watching closely since Phantom first took down an orc. His movements were sharp, calculated—even the tiniest actions felt deliberate.

The game progressed slowly—it was a grind through mobs en route to the final boss—but Phantom made even that entertaining.

“His decision-making is insane.”

He bypassed unnecessary fights, ignored small mobs, and kept up the pace. Even just watching him hunt was exciting, thanks to his speed and precision.

An hour in, and viewers had already surpassed 50,000.

“With these numbers, he’s a top-tier streamer now. Guess I don’t need to worry.”

Whatever had made Hae-chul uneasy earlier, he shook it off.

“Almost there…”

Onscreen, Phantom reached the final boss area.

[Looks like that’s it.]

From a mountain ledge, Phantom looked down. Thanks to shared vision, the whole audience saw it—a vast city, ruined by monsters.

From the architecture, it was clear: this place had once been a giant cathedral.

“Right, that was the lore.”

Munching on snacks, Hae-chul leaned in, fully immersed.

[There are a few big monsters down there.]

Phantom pointed to the ground.

The final boss waited in the cathedral’s second basement level.

But so far, no one had ever made it past the first.

Until now.

Phantom found the entrance and dove in.

▶ Entered Cursed Cathedral B1.

▶ Ding~ [Mirage] nullifies an unknown force.

Cheers erupted in the chat.

Finally solved the tracking spell!

If this gimmick didn’t work, the game would’ve died

LOL so true

Phantom’s gear is broken—he’s gonna steamroll the boss

Hae-chul agreed.

“If he keeps playing like this, he’ll reach B2 in no time.”

Others might not know, but to Hae-chul, Phantom was different.

Lost Land was enormous, easy to get lost in—but Phantom always knew the way. Likely, he was mapping routes in real time using subtle terrain cues.

Just as Hae-chul expected, Phantom was slicing through the maze-like B1, one-shotting every enemy in his path.

These mobs are spread out—maybe I could handle them too?

Nah, still tough

Why can Phantom see so clearly? My screen’s pitch black

It’s like a horror game. Freaky as hell, but the monsters drop like flies

┗ Bet they’ve never seen Phantom play horror games LOL

┗┗ “Horror games are for beating up monsters, duh ^^”

“Idiots. This isn’t even the same kind of gameplay!”

Right now, Phantom was an assassin.

A pure killer, eliminating everything in his path to the final boss.

It was the pinnacle of high-efficiency play.

“You’ll never see this kind of style in a regular RPG!”

Hae-chul was fired up, hammering away in chat while watching intently.

[Found the way down.]

Just as predicted, Phantom located the path to B2.

“Insane pace. What, 15 minutes tops?”

Hae-chul swallowed hard.

This was it—the first-ever look at the final area.

Phantom began to descend. The deeper he went, the darker the screen became, until it was almost pitch black.

Can’t see anything… this is terrifying

Why make an RPG this creepy??

I’m getting PTSD just watching, damn devs!

At last, Phantom stopped and said:

[Looks like we’ve arrived.]

With that, the screen shifted.

Torches flared to life, casting light across the room.

Ahead lay a long corridor… and at its end, a wide-open chamber.

A man stood waiting.

Phantom’s character approached slowly.

The moment he saw the figure, Hae-chul recognized him.

“Knew it. It’s Nell.”

He’d suspected it, based on the gimmicks and hints.

But this wasn’t the same Nell from before.

Now, above his head, a new name was displayed:

≪Demon of Death – Demon King Nergal≫

The true identity was revealed.