He returned from the Demon Realm to find himself back home.

On the monitor in front of him, a recorded video of Choi Young-jun’s personal stream was still playing.

‘Thank you.’

Lee Shin expressed his gratitude to Choi Young-jun.

Thanks to the lesson learned from the match with Choi Young-jun, he had been able to defeat the formidable Joachim Murat.

In addition, Choi had presented him with the concept of "space."

If he could completely master that, Lee Shin would be able to evolve even further.

His gameplay would surpass even that of his flawless prime, which hadn't required such deep contemplation!

Truly, space craft — the end of humanity’s potential would be revealed.

2020 World SC Grand Prix.

The festival awaited by esports fans around the globe — and especially by Korean fans — had come to a close.

Disappointingly, Twin Star Electronics was eliminated just before the quarterfinals in the team event.

However, as usual, no one had really expected much from the team match, since Korea had never made it to the medal rounds before.

Korean fans' real interest lay in the crown jewel of the competition — the individual event to determine the world’s top pro gamer.

This year, although Lee Shin — who had routinely claimed the gold medal — was absent, there were more emerging powerhouses stepping up to carry on his legacy.

Choi Young-jun, Park Young-ho, and Hwang Byeong-cheol, among others.

Fans hoped these players, comparable to Lee Shin, would sweep the gold, silver, and bronze medals and uphold Korea’s pride as the birthplace of esports.

But the results were disappointing.

Hwang Byeong-cheol — eliminated in the preliminaries.

Choi Young-jun — bronze medal.

Park Young-ho — silver medal.

They did earn three medals, so the performance wasn’t entirely poor on paper.

In particular, Park Young-ho and Choi Young-jun faced off in the semifinals in a fatefully matched "Twin Star Battle" that thrilled fans worldwide with a fierce and worthy rival match.

Though Park Young-ho had lagged behind Choi Young-jun in the Pro League, in the multi-set semifinal, he overcame Choi’s overwhelming unit production with his trademark iron-wall defense and infinite expansion strategy.

However, in the final, Park Young-ho suffered a shocking 1–3 loss to the French player Enzo Juan.

Choi Young-jun managed to narrowly secure the bronze medal with a hard-fought 3–2 victory over American player Michael Joseph in the 3rd/4th place match — a duel nearly as intense as the Twin Star Battle.

What shocked Korea most was that both Enzo Juan, the gold medalist from France, and Michael Joseph, the 4th place finisher from the U.S., had playstyles eerily similar to Lee Shin’s.

A playstyle that relentlessly chipped away at the opponent through constant harassment!

Twenty-one-year-old white male Enzo Juan dazzled with witty feints and precise control that disrupted his opponents’ psychology, making him the biggest star of the year.

Nineteen-year-old Black youth Michael Joseph unleashed a storm of harassment at hyper-speed tempo that was nearly impossible to defend against even when anticipated.

It was as if the two players had split Lee Shin’s prime abilities between them.

Korea was not only disappointed by the failure to win gold — it was stunned.

[There was no successor to Lee Shin in Korea.]

[Korea fails to win gold in the individual event for four consecutive years]

[The current state of Korean esports]

[(Column) Korea wakes up from the sweet dream named Lee Shin]

[Individual Gold Medalist Enzo Juan: “Even happier to beat Korea”]

[Gold medalist Enzo Juan and 4th place Michael Joseph: A win by superior infrastructure. What about Korea?]

[Countries like the U.S. and France have been analyzing and studying Lee Shin for years]

The infrastructure in developed nations, which had invested enormous capital upon recognizing the potential of esports, was indeed formidable.

To recreate Lee Shin’s prime performance, they had spared no expense.

Medical teams designed reflex and multitasking training programs, while strategy teams — including large numbers of mathematicians — analyzed opponents down to the second and crafted response strategies.

Their scientific systems ultimately surpassed what had once been dubbed Korea’s "national trait."

Disappointed fans immediately turned their attention to Lee Shin.

- Tsk tsk, I knew this would happen.

- So much for the “Post-Shin” hype, lol.

- Enzo was insanely good. Even looked like a successor to Lee Shin with his handsome face.

- Joseph was great too. That Black guy’s reflexes were crazy.

- Joseph’s probably gonna dominate next year. Is this the age of Black players in esports now?

- Damn it, they talked like gold was guaranteed! Got my hopes up for nothing!

- Foreigners took over Lee Shin’s style that we let die out. What the hell was Korea doing?

- I was so pumped when Park Young-ho won the first set, then he lost three in a row, lol.

- I almost had a stroke, seriously. ㅠㅠ

- So we really can’t win gold without Lee Shin.

- Knew it was BS when people said the Twin Stars had surpassed Lee Shin.

- While foreign countries were trying to emulate Lee Shin, we were trying to forget him. That’s why the whole “Post-Shin” push for the Twin Stars and Hwang Byeong-cheol happened.

- Lord Shin, please return.

- We are weak and insignificant. Please come back and win us the gold! Amen!

- Meanwhile, Hwang Byeong-cheol’s early elimination was hilarious, lol.

- Never had any hopes for that guy anyway.

- Hwang Byeong-cheol’s fans must be fuming, haha.

In the end, it had to be Lee Shin.

Korean esports still needed him.

As public sentiment boiled over, the number of reporters and fans crowding Lee Shin’s commute grew with each passing day.

Surrounded on his morning commute, Lee Shin frowned as he was forced to answer interview questions.

“Lee Shin, what do you think of the Korean national team’s performance in the individual event this year?”

“I think they did well overall.”

“Even though they didn’t win gold, you think they did well?”

“It’d be more ridiculous to say players who won silver and bronze did poorly.”

The reporter who asked the question fell speechless at Lee Shin’s reply.

Other reporters continued asking questions.

“Park Young-ho lost to Enzo Juan 1–3 in the finals. What did you think of that match?”

“His defense was solid, but his understanding of the map structure was lacking. That’s why he was vulnerable to harassment using the mobile turret’s range. Map structure research is something that should be trained at the team level, so I think that difference came from the capabilities of the respective teams.”

“Enzo Juan’s style closely resembled Lee Shin’s. What are your thoughts on that?”

“I think it did resemble mine.”

The crowd burst into laughter. It was a question from a reporter who didn’t know Lee Shin very well yet.

“What do you think about Hwang Byeong-cheol’s elimination in the preliminaries?”

“He’s done for. I have no idea what his problem is.”

The reporters’ eyes gleamed as if they had caught a big scoop, furiously scribbling down his words.

“Due to the disappointing results of this Grand Prix, fans are hoping for your return. When do you plan to make your comeback?”

“The Korean national players weren’t disappointing in this Grand Prix. They didn’t win gold, but they showcased extremely high-level gameplay.”

“When is your player comeback?”

“……”

Lee Shin hesitated and couldn’t answer immediately.

A tense atmosphere fell among the reporters.

As if he had made a firm decision, Lee Shin finally spoke.

“In the near future.”

“What?!”

“You’re coming back?”

“Then, in the latter half of this season…!”

Lee Shin pushed past the reporters and entered the broadcasting station.

[Lee Shin: “Park Young-ho and Choi Young-jun did quite well.”]

[“Park Young-ho’s loss in the finals was due to his team.” Lee Shin criticizes JKT]

[Lee Shin’s direct hit on Hwang Byeong-cheol: “He’s done for.”]

[Lee Shin: “Player comeback is coming soon.”]

“Hey, did you really say all that?”

Manager Bang Jin-ho asked.

Lee Shin glanced over the news headlines and nodded.

“Yes.”

“Including that part about coming back soon?”

“Yes.”

Manager Bang Jin-ho suddenly grabbed Lee Shin’s wrist and pulled it up to inspect it closely.

He examined the wrist this way and that.

Lee Shin, who disliked physical contact, frowned.

“Is it fully healed?”

“Almost.”

Manager Bang Jin-ho stared sharply at Lee Shin.

“Bullshit. It healed a long time ago, didn’t it?”

“It didn’t.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I know you. Your wrist healed a while back, but you kept delaying your return because of your damn perfectionism.”

It was an accurate observation.

Ironically, the person who understood Lee Shin best in the world was his archrival, Manager Bang Jin-ho.

“Why so quiet?”

“Soon.”

“What?”

“I’ll do the first team test soon.”

“You mean for Judy?”

“It’s not for Judy.”

“Then…”

Manager Bang Jin-ho’s expression slowly shifted to one of shock.

“It’s you?”

“Yes.”

“If I go up against ten players and get a 100% win rate, I’ll return.”

“A 100% win rate? Are you dreaming? If you get over 50%, come back immediately, you bastard.”

“That’s my decision, and it should be stated in the contract.”

“……!”

Indeed, it was.

The contract stated that match participation required the player’s consent.

“Even if I lower the bar, it’s 90% minimum. If you don’t like it, cancel the contract.”

Manager Bang Jin-ho scowled, then suddenly shouted as if something came to mind.

“Player_SIN, that’s you, isn’t it, you bastard!”

“It’s not me. I really don’t know who that is.”

“It’s obviously you!”

“I said it’s not. Why are you so persistent?”

“Persistent? That’s exactly what that guy says to me all the time!”

“It’s not me. You should spend your time figuring out how to recruit that player instead.”

Manager Bang Jin-ho glared at Lee Shin like he’d kill him if he were caught. Of course, Lee Shin didn’t even flinch.

Judy participated in an amateur tournament.

It was her second time entering the monthly amateur competition, and this time she was completely different from the last.

Thanks to Lee Shin’s coaching, Judy’s skills had grown rapidly, and she went on an undefeated winning streak without dropping a single set.

Trained by Lee Shin under the theme of “farming noobs,” Judy’s experience in the amateur league was nothing short of a slaughter fest.

She won first place in her group, Group B, earning semi-pro qualification, and went on to win the overall championship in the playoffs where all group winners competed.

The group winners were all trainees affiliated with pro teams, so it wasn’t easy competition. Yet Judy still didn’t lose a single set.

An amateur league champion—who happened to be a foreign girl!

And her personal coach was none other than Lee Shin.

With Lee Shin regaining attention recently, Judy appearing with him caused a huge buzz.

“Why are you bothering me so much these days?”

Lee Shin grumbled as he barely managed to escape from the Yongsan eSports Center.

He had come to the amateur tournament with Judy and got swarmed by reporters and fans.

Korea was already in an uproar from his recent statement about returning to competition soon.

Given the timing, there was no way he wouldn’t be recognized at the eSports center.

But Judy looked all smiles and cheerful.

She had just won the amateur league’s overall championship, after all—it was natural.

And since she had to push through crowds asking for autographs, photos, and interviews, she had held tightly onto Lee Shin’s hand. That made her even happier than the win itself.

“I really should start driving or something.”

Lee Shin grumbled as he summoned a taxi with an app.

Not owning a car made moments like this frustrating. Going outside to catch a taxi meant exposing himself to people.

Even during his prime, it wasn’t quite this intense. He didn’t understand why public attention had suddenly skyrocketed.

Lee Shin began seriously considering driving.

‘Though actually getting behind the wheel is a pain.’

Just then—

“Coach.”

“Hm?”

“I have a car.”

“You have a car?”

“I’ll call it now.”

Judy beamed and sent a text message somewhere.

A moment later, a limousine pulled up.

“Miss, how was it today?”

“I won.”

“Oh, that’s great.”

Their conversation was in English, so Lee Shin couldn’t understand it.

But Lee Shin stared intently at the foreign chauffeur with a face that clearly said, ‘This is it.’