CHAPTER 227: THE SEVEN STARS ASSEMBLY (3)

The Seven Stars Assembly took place at the Shanghai Tower in China. The skyscraper with a whopping one hundred twenty-seven floors spiraled like a dragon ascending to the heavens. Guests from all over the world and broadcasting crews eager to capture the scene crowded the area.

“Wow... this is basically an end-of-the-year awards ceremony.” Song Ha-Eun chuckled that she should’ve worn a fancy dress. Clicking her tongue, she glanced around at the packed crowd. “Still, is it really okay for an event that chooses the next Seven Stars to be so festive?”

“To the public, it’s basically a celebration.”

For the masses, the Seven Stars were symbolic heroes who protected humanity. Their existence couldn’t be kept secret. They had to be widely known since a symbol that no one knew about held no value.

Song Ha-Eun looked around in amazement. “I see a bunch of Awakeners I’ve only ever seen on TV.”

Around the tower stood Awakeners who had made significant contributions in monster subjugations and guildmasters of massive guilds with tens of thousands of members. This many high-ranking Awakeners had probably never gathered in one place ever since the first rift appeared.

“Damn, Oh-Jin... you’re rather famous back in Korea, but here, you’re like a nobody.”

“Shut up.”

With so many famous Awakeners around, Kwon Oh-Jin didn’t attract much attention. It felt like a Korean actor being completely ignored in Hollywood.

“Hehe. Even if you’re a nobody to everyone else, I’ll stick by your side no matter how worthless you feel. Don’t worry.” Song Ha-Eun laughed and slapped his butt playfully.

This is exactly why I wanted to come alone.

She had insisted on tagging along, so he couldn’t help but bring her.

She doesn’t even have anything to do here.

Since Kwon Oh-Jin was Korea’s sole representative, she didn’t have much to do aside from cheering him on.

“Sure, no one is paying attention to you now, but they’ll be flipping out and doing triple backflips in the air once they see you in the tournament.”

“What kind of reaction even is that?”

“When you return as one of the Seven Stars, I’ll have a special present ready. Do your best, okay?

Still, having her by his side somehow motivated him more.

“What kind of present?” he asked.

“Hehe. That’s for you to find out when you come back.” She winked and mischievously smiled.

Now he had another reason besides the Dragon Veins to become a Seven Star.

“By the way, how many candidates are participating?” she asked.

“I heard there are twenty-eight.”

“That many? But there’s only one from Korea.”

“Apparently, each country gets a different number of candidate slots.”

Stronger nations with more Awakeners could send more candidates to the Seven Stars Assembly. Nations like China, the U.S., and the U.K. each sent four candidates.

“Is our country ranked that low?” she said.

“We’re about in the middle, globally.”

Thanks to Cheon Sang-Gil, Korea was previously considered a country in the upper tiers. However, his death and the Heaven’s Grace Guild’s annihilation had dropped their ranking significantly.

“The countries below us aren’t even allowed to attend.”

Countries like Japan, which had no high-ranking Awakeners, were often referred to as Star-Forsaken Lands and couldn’t participate at all. In other words, Korea was at the bottom of the list of countries that could participate.

“Man, what a bunch of petty bastards.” Song Ha-Eun frowned in distaste. “Honestly, doesn’t it seem unfair to give different numbers of slots based on the country when it’s about choosing the Seven Stars?”

She was right. Logically speaking, it didn’t make sense.

“It’s probably because the Seven Stars have so much influence. They can literally sway the fate of an entire nation.”

Thinking about what happened to Korea after Cheon Sang-Gil’s death, the politics of it became understandable even though it wasn’t agreeable.

“Whatever, one candidate or four, it doesn’t matter,” he said.

In the end, Kwon Oh-Jin simply had to beat everyone else to become one of the Seven Stars.

“Someone’s feeling extra cocky today.” Song Ha-Eun smirked and poked him in the side.

Han Jun-Man, who had accompanied them as a guide, approached while they chatted casually. “Ah, there you are. Registration is done, so let’s head to your room.”

“What does the schedule for the tournament look like?”

“The main competition begins in two days. There’s a light opening ceremony tonight. Tomorrow, all the candidates will gather to receive a detailed briefing on the rules and safety measures.”

Han Jun-Man handed over a printed schedule and continued.

“Until the tournament begins, you’re free to use the training rooms inside the tower. If you need food or supplies, just let the management know and they’ll get it ready right away.”

Two days from now, huh.

The tight schedule showed just how urgent this Seven Stars selection was.

“Did they say how the tournament will be run?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.

“No, it’ll probably be announced tomorrow.”

Kwon Oh-Jin nodded and followed Han Jun-Man into the Shanghai Tower.

His assigned room was on the fifteenth floor. Considering the Shanghai Tower had a total of one hundred twenty-seven floors, the fifteenth floor was relatively low.

“Sorry about that. I tried to get a higher floor, but...” Han Jun-Man trailed off, awkwardly scratching his head. “I think our request was umm... miscommunicated. Haha.”

He avoided Kwon Oh-Jin’s eyes with a forced laugh.

Kwon Oh-jin could easily guess why he looked so flustered.

Priority was given to the other candidates.

Out of the twenty-eight candidates participating in the Seven Stars Assembly, everyone had reached at least nine stars except for Kwon Oh-Jin. Most of them possessed powerful Stigmas on the same level as the twelve Zodiacs. Even if Kwon Oh-Jin possessed a North Star Stigma, they would still treat him poorly among such elite candidates.

Actually, it’s probably worse because I have a North Star Stigma.

After all, desire always carried a hint of jealousy. Humans naturally harbored ill will toward those who possessed what they did not.

“Ahem. Anyway, here are your two rooms. Room one and room two,” Han Jun-Man said.

“We only need one.” Song Ha-Eun handed one of the keycards back. She grinned as she took the one keycard and waved it around playfully.

“I see...” Han Jun-Man enviously looked at Kwon Oh-Jin as if he would shed tears of blood. “Haaa. Please be at the banquet hall on the hundredth floor by seven tonight.”

Dragging his feet, he turned and walked away with slumped shoulders.

“Screw this, I’m getting a girlfriend too,” he muttered.

“Uh... maybe I shouldn’t have acted like that?” Song Ha-Eun scratched her head with a sheepish smile while watching Han Jun-Man’s retreating figure.

***

Three hours later, after resting with Song Ha-Eun in their room, Kwon Oh-Jin went up to the hundredth floor for the opening ceremony.

It’s packed here too.

Media broadcasters and renowned Awakeners crowded the floor just like outside the tower.

As Kwon Oh-Jin entered the banquet hall, all eyes turned to him.

“That’s him, right? The Thunder Wolf?”

“The only eight-star among all the candidates?”

“Ha

, a guy who hasn’t even hit nine stars wants to become one of the Seven Stars?”

Sneers and mockery echoed around him, but he ignored them and began eating the food laid out on the table. The prestigious event only featured melt-in-your-mouth dishes.

As he ate and waited, the host took the stage with a microphone.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we will soon begin the opening ceremony of the Seven Stars Assembly. Before we begin the official ceremony, we will hear from Mr. Wei Ogak, whose contributions made this assembly possible.”

A middle-aged man with a stylish beard took the stage.

“Thank you to all the Awakeners who have gathered here. In the past few months, humanity has faced great trials. The Avaricious Wolf and the Celestial Boat Star, who fought for the sake of humanity, were killed by the vile Black Star Society. There have been countless casualties around the world due to heinous acts of terror, but the Black Star Society isn’t the only threat. Reports suggest that Named monsters, who have been quiet, are beginning to move again.”

The boring speech dragged on.

“In this moment of crisis, humanity needs stars to guide the way more than ever before.”

At a gesture from Wei Ogak, twenty-eight spotlights lit up the candidates.

“Allow me to introduce you to the Awakeners who have gathered here in pursuit of becoming the next Seven Stars!”

Thunderous applause filled the room.

Clap, clap, clap!

“Representing the candidates, I now invite Awakener Namgung Hui from China to say a few words!”

Kwon Oh-Jin had heard of this famous high-ranking Awakener before.

I think he’s a high-ranking Awakener of Leo like Lee Woo-Hyuk.

Some rumors even stated that he had recently reached ten stars.

He stepped onto the stage. “Nice to meet you all. I’m Namgung Hui.”

With a sharp jawline and flawless skin, he looked strikingly handsome. Namgung Hui slightly bowed with a soft smile.

“As Mr. Wei mentioned, we are facing an unprecedented crisis. Perhaps even more dire than when the first rift opened.”

He clenched his fist tightly.

“But.”

His burning gaze swept across the crowd.

“As always, we will rise again. We will fight back against great evil!”

His passionate voice echoed throughout the hall.

“Look at the candidates who have gathered here to become the stars that will light humanity’s future!”

Twenty-seven spotlights shone down on the candidates.

“Jason Hardy, known as the Iron Fist! Orlando Vale, known for shooting arrows that pierce the heavens! Every single candidate here is more than qualified to become one of the Seven Stars!”

Cheers erupted as each spotlight revealed the candidates.

All this speech is going to wear me the fuck out.

Kwon Oh-Jin dryly laughed, feeling like he was attending some kind of end-of-the-year awards ceremony. Deciding to tune out the theatrics, he reached for his fork.

“Oh, but...” Namgung Hui’s gaze shifted to Kwon Oh-Jin with a smirk. “Except for one.”

All twenty-seven spotlights focused on Kwon Oh-Jin.