Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Guild (3)
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《Guild》 - (3)
01.
Jeju Island, Seogwipo.
— Bwooooooooh!!
"...Fireball."
Han Yeonhwa, guild master of Korea's number one guild Legend, hurled a blazing fireball at the last remaining Minotaur.
The fireball, radiating insane heat, shot out at a speed too fast to follow with the naked eye and struck the hulking monster squarely in the abdomen.
— Bwooo, bwooooooooh!!
Upon impact with the burning fireball, the Minotaur was soon engulfed in massive flames. In agony from the horrific blaze enveloping it, the giant beast let out a hideous roar.
But there was nothing it could do, and soon it crumbled into ashes, vanishing into thin air.
— Bwoooo...
The echo of its roar slowly melted into the air, and at last, silence hung over the city of Seogwipo.
"It's closing!!"
"The rift is closing!!"
"......"
As the massive beast turned to ash and disappeared, someone immediately looked up at the sky and shouted. At that hopeful cry, everyone gathered there raised their heads to gaze at the clear blue sky above.
"The rift..."
"It's closing...?"
What they saw was a thin slit of light emitting a blue aura, gradually beginning to seal shut.
The rift commonly known as the "Light Rift," which had endlessly spewed monsters from the VR game Season Off Fantasy. A rift that no physical attack or modern weaponry could close. It slowly faded from view until it completely vanished.
...They had succeeded in closing the rift by defeating an A-rank or higher boss monster.
"We won!!"
"It's over! Over!!"
With the final rift sealed, Seogwipo's sky was restored to its pristine, unblemished blue.
Having successfully eliminated all the rifts that had appeared over their city, the crowd erupted in cheers and triumphant shouts.
...Closing all the rifts meant no more monsters would pour in additionally—at least in Seogwipo.
If they could just handle the remaining stragglers and any monsters trickling in from other areas, Seogwipo would earn the title of Korea's first "safe zone" post-incident.
"Phew..."
After four grueling days, having finally fully reclaimed one city, Han Yeonhwa sank to the ground with a sigh of relief.
"That was tough..."
She murmured while wiping sweat from her brow after removing her glasses. Among the guilds on Jeju Island, only her own Legend had the combat strength and scale to handle this, so it had taken several times the effort.
But Legend was currently Korea's top-ranked guild. Though their numbers weren't vast, every member was high-level or a ranker.
With their strong unity and teamwork, they had reclaimed Seogwipo swiftly without major crises.
"This is just the beginning, though..."
But what they'd reclaimed was merely the single city of Seogwipo—not all of Jeju, let alone the entire country.
Fiercer battles lay ahead.
Still, as the first full "city"-level area reclaimed, it would be hugely encouraging news for the public.
It would give them hope that their own cities could soon be retaken.
"The other cities..."
Han Yeonhwa pondered the reports from other regions she'd received last night. Even isolated Jeju Island was this chaotic; the mainland Korean Peninsula was far worse.
Kim Deoksu, nicknamed Typhoon Man and leader of Diamond Guild, was locked in a brutal two-day battle in Busan against hordes of Sand Worms.
As Korea's second capital—vast and populous—reclaiming Busan would take a ton of time.
"Seoul..."
...The capital region, handled by Yun Sol—nicknamed Sol-sol—and her Ace Guild, was in even worse shape.
Compared to the mere 300 rifts over Seogwipo, Seoul had over 10,000—a level of chaos incomparable to here.
"Ace... I'm worried..."
And what kind of guild was Yun Sol's Ace?
Among Korea's top four guilds, Ace was the only one that accepted members without interviews—purely on volume. They boasted overwhelming numbers, but that meant plenty of weak players, troublemakers, and dead weight too.
Plus, too many members made unity tough. A overwhelmingly capable guild master could manage, but Yun Sol wasn't that kind of leader.
"Sol..."
Yun Sol.
She was a completely different type from the other top four guild masters.
If Han Yeonhwa led with charisma and results, Diamond's Kim Deoksu ruled with his upbeat personality and top-tier PvP skills, and Fate's Dark Ghost carefully interviewed to build a roster of cooperative players.
But Yun Sol?
She was more "idol" than guild master. Her stunning cat beastkin customization, witty banter, and flirtatious charm.
Put nicely, she unified her guild with her looks and appeal. Put harshly, she was the classic guild "queen bee."
Han Yeonhwa recalled the monthly sponsorships and pricey items Yun Sol got from members—figures dwarfing major corp salaries.
... Ace was her kingdom, a fanatic idol-fanclub hybrid devoted to the pretty, charming her.
Of course, clearing 11 stage bosses over six times was no small feat, but thinking of the young Yun Sol's judgment, recklessness, and her fanclub blindly following her every word made Yeonhwa dizzy.
"Haah..."
A sigh escaped her.
In-game, she'd ignore whatever choices Yun Sol and Ace made. But now? One death ended everything.
...Seoul's ten million lives hung on Yun Sol's decisions.
She'd seemed confident, but Yeonhwa worried sick over her past antics, Ace's members, and her "kill it first, ask later" attitude toward stage bosses like Selverion or whatever.
"Should've just asked Fate..."
Han Yeonhwa adjusted her glasses with a deep sigh.
Fate, led by archer world rank one Dark Ghost, was steamrolling Chungcheong Province. Regret flooded her—should've begged him to handle the capital too.
"Or the 'Dessert Club'..."
Another option crossed her mind.
By her memory, Seoul's second-top guild after Ace was Dessert Club, led by chef rank two.
Its members were all highly skilled, especially the leader—a female chef whose sharp judgment had landed her in global rankings despite being support-class.
In last month's guild war, if not for Ace's numbers overwhelming them, Dessert Club would've handled the capital instead.
"Better contact them..."
Leaving the capital solely to inexperienced Yun Sol and Ace felt too risky. Yeonhwa resolved to reach out to Dessert Club soon for joint security duties.
— Vrrr. Vrrr.
"Hm?"
Then her pocket phone buzzed. She pulled it out naturally and checked the caller ID.
[Minato (Lee Minjun, Ace Vice-GM)]
"Minato...?"
Calling her was none other than Ace's vice-guild master, Lee Minjun—nicknamed Minato.
By memory, he'd been a skilled Scientist tormenting them with dirty tricks in past guild wars against Ace.
They knew each other but weren't personal friends, so Yeonhwa tilted her head curiously as she answered.
"Hello?"
— H-hello? Han Yeonhwa? Or, uh, YH, right?
Minjun's panicked voice crackled through the speaker. Hearing it, Yeonhwa instinctively knew something had gone down in Seoul with Ace.
"Yes, that's me. Minato, what's up? Trouble in Seoul?"
— Y-yeah, big trouble. We need help.
"...Calm down and explain slowly."
Yeonhwa frowned, soothing the agitated Ace vice-GM. From the receiver came deep breaths as he steadied himself.
His voice came back calmer.
— Okay, sorry. I'll explain properly.
"...Go ahead."
— ...
Minjun paused, as if it were huge news. From calm, reliable vice-GM of Seoul's handlers, this reaction tensed Yeonhwa up too.
— Thing is, in Seoul right now,
"Yes, in Seoul."
— ...Selverion has appeared.
"Pardon...?"
...Minjun's words matched her tension perfectly. But he barreled on without pause.
— But that's not the problem.
"Huh? Not the problem?"
If Selverion appearing wasn't it, what was? Another stage boss simultaneously?
— Sol-sol, I mean the guild master,
"......"
— ...immediately started prepping a Selverion raid.
"Ah..."
...Worse than another stage boss. A total disaster.
This crazy bitch, Yun Sol.
A curse slipped from Yeonhwa's lips automatically.