Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: First Defeat
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Chapter 39
Hers stared at the human in front of him.
A loach that had stirred up his pride and joy—his guild—into a muddy mess. No, comparing it to a loach didn't even capture the extent of the damage his guild had suffered.
"Are you Yuseong?"
Yuseong nodded at Hers's question.
"I never imagined you'd walk right into Verhil."
"I had a few quests I needed to pick up."
"Didn't you think we'd spot you?"
"I did."
Hers's eyebrow twitched. He figured Yuseong must have known they'd catch him, but hearing it admitted outright didn't sit well.
As the vice guild master had said, it just felt like Yuseong was looking down on them.
He wanted to unleash a torrent of curses right then, but he held back.
Hers, who saw himself as someone who had ridden the waves of the era to success and took pride in it, didn't want to show such an ugly, emotional side—especially not with so many people watching.
It wasn't for nothing that he insisted on polite speech even with his guild's "subordinates."
But that didn't mean he could stay completely silent.
"What gives you the guts? Did you really think you could escape Verhil alive? No, how did you even think of clashing head-on with our guild? Did you actually believe you could win?"
Yuseong had plenty to say. Hers's side had started the provocation in the first place, and they'd been the ones making impossible demands like real money to someone like him who wanted to settle things peacefully.
But he had no desire to refute each point. He'd never done arguments like this and wasn't used to it, plus the opponents were NPCs.
What mattered to him now was spiking his notoriety one last time.
So he spoke.
"Wanna fight or not?"
Yuseong's words hit hard. Hers's face twisted in fury. The other Hers Guild members around them reacted the same way.
The onlookers murmuring nearby grew restless too. Words like "jackpot" and "no cap" floated through the air.
"You...!"
Hers started to open his mouth again, but Yuseong brushed past him toward the city gates. Hers and the rest of the Hers Guild chased after.
Outside the gates, Hers Guild members were thick on the ground. It looked like they'd brought every available guild member.
Most were faces he'd seen before. Meaning, people Yuseong had killed at least once.
But there were unfamiliar ones too. Ones decked out in gear that screamed far stronger than anyone he'd faced so far.
'The guild master who popped up out of nowhere too. Like an elite monster that spawns when conditions are met?'
This was shaping up to be a tougher fight than expected. But he wasn't scared. No way he'd feel fear in a battle with no risk to his life.
Maybe cowed by the Hers Guild's presence, no one was passing through the gates. They just watched from a safe distance.
Yuseong kept walking. The distance between them shrank. Both Yuseong and the Hers Guild had weapons drawn.
A tense silence settled over the gates.
Yuseong's body slipped past the gates.
In that instant, the stillness shattered like an illusion, and everything erupted into motion.
Bang!
A bullet from his aimed barrel struck the head of a guild member attacking him dead-on.
But elite for a reason. The helmeted foe's head snapped back, but he didn't drop dead. In that gap, another guild member's spear blade came whistling in, swung cleverly along the boundary between Yuseong and the gate.
Yuseong dodged forward. Guild members slipped in to block him from retreating back inside.
'Too bad.'
He'd hoped to step out, fire a shot, and duck back in, but they clearly weren't letting that slide.
Hers Guild members charged from all sides. But their assaults felt somehow restrained. Not out of pity for Yuseong, of course.
'They want to lure me fully away from the gates first.'
He glanced in one direction. Ranged dealers like archers and mages stood with healer priests.
Their plan to drag him into open ground for a barrage was obvious.
Yuseong obliged, playing right into their hands.
A fierce exchange raged, but it hadn't escalated to full combat yet—an odd limbo. That lasted only until Yuseong reached the spot they wanted.
Tatat!
The guild members pressing from all sides pulled back in unison. Something big was coming. In the corner of his vision, a fireball the size of a person's face hurtled toward him.
Bang!
Fast, but not too fast for Yuseong to hit.
Boom!
The fireball burst in midair. But that wasn't the only spell incoming. A barrage of magic followed, all aimed at him.
They were coordinated, complementing each other in a practiced combo.
At the same time, Yuseong felt his movements slow. An enemy mage had debuffed him. But he dodged or shot down every spell anyway.
"What the hell!"
"His skills are legit."
Even the enemy Hers Guild members marveled. But they didn't slacken their assault.
Figuring one-sided magic wouldn't work? The scattered guild members closed in again.
As the fierce battle unfolded, Hers and the Hers Guild's main force watched from a short distance away.
"He's seriously impressive."
The vice guild master next to Hers clicked his tongue. They'd known Yuseong wasn't ordinary, but seeing it firsthand exceeded expectations.
"Isn't the damage piling up too much?"
As he said, the guild's losses were mounting. Plenty had already fallen to Yuseong's bullets.
The main force had come to Verhil to hunt the elusive Yuseong, but with him showing up on his own, they saw no need to step in.
Every Hers Guild member was gathered in Verhil now. They figured that many could handle him without elites. The regular members agreed.
They were the ones who'd taken the hits, after all. Plus enduring the main force's contemptuous stares. Naturally, they burned with grudge against Yuseong.
That's why only regular guild members were fighting him now.
But the battle wasn't going quite as planned.
"That's straight-up broken."
Someone muttered as another fell to Yuseong's gun—game over.
Even if Hers Guild was stricter on hierarchy than most due to the money involved, it wasn't a military. Organization wasn't perfect.
Still, they weren't untrained; they'd fall back under fire and have comrades cover.
The problem was the gun's raw power and Yuseong's pinpoint accuracy hitting vitals for crits, plummeting survival rates exponentially.
No time to retreat and heal—they just died, losses snowballing.
"What do you think, Master? Keep watching?"
"...No. Time for us to join."
Any fewer, and the encirclement might loosen, letting him slip away.
"Let's go."
The main force, who'd only observed Yuseong's moves till now, charged into the fray.
Whoosh!
Yuseong tried to dodge the sword flying at his back. But this attack was different from the rest.
Thud!
He missed by a hair. He'd taken hits before, of course.
But this felt worlds apart.
'Hers!'
Yuseong clocked his attacker. The man's sword whipped wildly.
Yuseong hurriedly checked his status window.
'Strong!'
HP had plummeted. Just a graze with this much damage.
Even more insane considering Yuseong had splurged quest earnings on the priciest armor around—not just pauldrons, full body.
His entry alone tipped the scales hard. And he wasn't alone.
Whoosh!
He dodged an incoming axe. Spears and blades alternated through his spot, occasional arrows sniping.
Thung!
A warrior with a massive shield bashed forward, shoving Yuseong back. Minimal damage, but he was pushed helplessly.
Boom!
Magic slammed where he landed.
Hers Guild elites' teamwork, worthy of their rep. Nothing like this level before.
Not flawless—gaps showed. That's how he survived spells that should've one-shot him.
But the gap between Yuseong and these elites was vast. Felt less like a bonus boss surround, more like top-tier monsters.
No breather for potions, no safe reload—attacks exploited every moment.
Meanwhile, guild members dipped back at low HP for heals from comrades. Pursuit? Checked by allies, no kills.
Things looked grim.
'Too much after all?'
Yuseong clicked his tongue inwardly. No real danger, but still disappointing.
Winning would've spiked notoriety huge, per the strategy guide.
'No helping it.'
Notoriety rose meaningfully anyway—he'd take it.
Yuseong accepted his first loss calmly.
But not going down easy.
His movements grew passive. Guild assaults intensified accordingly. Yet amid the storm, Yuseong's eyes stayed serene.
Thud!
Durability spent, his arm guard shattered. Inferior to theirs, sure, but armor nonetheless.
Without it, HP drain skyrocketed. Guild targeted the bare arm relentlessly.
Smart play. But it helped Yuseong—predictable targets.
Didn't make him advantaged, though.
He waited for an opening.
'Now!'
His guard slipped. HP drained fast. But his eyes locked on one: the nearest elite with an axe.
Bang!
Yuseong's shot nailed his head. Nothing new—this battle, plenty of elites hit. Just no follow-ups before.
The axeman tried retreating like before. Comrades fired check shots to cover.
Yuseong ignored, tanking them.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Muzzle flashed repeatedly. Axeman panicked. Cover fire grew frantic.
Yuseong pressed.
Bang! Bang!
Magazine empty in a blink. Axeman glared murderously. But briefly.
Thud!
He crumpled, then vanished.
"Shit!"
"Get him!"
Did elites share special bonds? Furious curses erupted.
As if Yuseong cared about that.
Target down.
Thud!
Hers's sword plunged into Yuseong's gut. All HP gone. Yuseong felt his body lock.
'This is death?'
Weird sensation. Something dodged desperately in reality, but game—no fear.
Just not pleasant.
Thus, Yuseong met his first in-game death.