Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Ace (2)
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《Ace》 - (2)
01.
'Fun... so much fun...'
I didn't show it on my face, but riding Kim Arin's pirate ship was incredibly enjoyable. The fantastical sensation of sailing across land was one thing, but the cool breeze hitting my entire body brought an involuntary smile to my lips.
It felt just like speeding down an open highway in a sports car. It was a long-forgotten sense of liberation and refreshment.
"......"
But contrary to my excited mood, the scenery of Seoul flashing by was devastating. The everyday landscapes we knew were buried under ashes and gone, replaced only by the stench of blood and the clamor of battle.
"They're focusing defense around apartment complexes, huh..."
Kim Arin's pirate ship was so fast I couldn't see details, but the national army and players inside Seoul seemed to have formed defensive lines encircling each apartment complex like fortresses.
From that brief glimpse, it looked like they'd gathered survivors into nearby apartments as much as possible, turning each complex into a temporary safe zone to operate from.
...Gather survivors at secure apartment complexes as bases, then have players push out to reclaim surrounding areas.
Not a bad plan. Just knowing there's a guaranteed safe shelter eases civilians' minds, and it makes it much easier for players to operate too.
On the flip side, regular residential neighborhoods and shopping districts were completely deserted—no rats scurrying about. They felt like abandoned cities, evoking the atmosphere of a world on the brink of apocalypse.
— Kyarrk?!
— Kerrrk!!
The only things roaming downtown were monsters that had spilled out from rifts. From D-rank to A-rank, all sorts were trampling humanity's former domains.
"Lady Selverion, hold on tight."
...Kim Arin, who'd been silently watching the carnage, gripped the ship's wheel hard and gave me a heads-up.
As soon as she spoke, the sails unfurled fully taut. With the tailwind boosting it, the pirate ship surged forward even faster.
"Excuse me for a moment."
Was she feeling her duty as a player? Even though she could've just plowed straight ahead, Kim Arin veered slightly to ram a group of goblins ahead without hesitation.
C-rank goblin trash like that couldn't withstand a level 2500 pirate's ship, of course. Soon, a gruesome crunch echoed, and dark red blood sprayed across the deck.
"Whew..."
After wiping out the goblin pack, Kim Arin looked refreshed. I didn't react to her actions, just blankly watched the rapidly changing scenery outside.
"......"
...And so we escaped downtown, reached the Han River, crossed Seogang Bridge, and headed toward Yeouido where the National Assembly was. As we finished crossing the bridge, Kim Arin cautiously spoke up.
"Lady Selverion! We're almost at the Ace office! Near the National Assembly!"
"Office near the National Assembly..."
An office near the National Assembly—prime real estate in Seoul, handed to the Ace Guild on a silver platter.
For a regular gamer stuck in their room, it'd be untouchable value. But they got a whole commercial building for free.
Gamers saving the country and becoming landlords just by sitting pretty. It really hit home how much the world had changed.
"...Uh, yeah, we're gonna crash right into the office on arrival, so brace for impact!"
"Got it."
Meanwhile, Kim Arin—clearly serious about taking down Ace and their guild master Yoon Sol—warned me about the crash impact.
...At this point, her words toward me seemed genuine. Still, making Ace's guild master pay for her repeated foolish choices was something I approved of, so I had no intention of stopping her charge now.
— Waaaaaah!!
"Hm...?"
But as we neared their office, unexpected noises started stabbing at my ears.
— Don't give up!!
— Lee Min-jun!! How dare you!!
— If you won't shoot, I will.
Chants from what sounded like a crowd, clashing weapons, groans—sounds screaming of a fierce battle echoing loudly around us.
As we got closer, a frown-inducing sight entered my view.
"Space battleships...?"
Six massive space battleships—summonable only by a Scientist's ultimate—hovered over the Ace Guild office.
And crimson flame magic circles spread above them to shoot them down. Ace was definitely fighting another faction.
"Huh? No way..."
Kim Arin, still at the wheel, stared blankly, as if she'd guessed something.
I caught her blatantly shifting expression and asked without hesitation.
"...Know what's going on?"
"Uh, yeah... I have a guess, but..."
"It's fine, spill it."
She scratched her chin, unsure. I nodded encouragingly. The pirate glanced toward the noise and spoke cautiously.
"Well, Han Yeonhwa told me yesterday that Dessert Club was coming to Ace today to persuade them."
"Persuade...?"
"Yeah, begging them not to mess with you, Lady Selverion, who's just sitting quietly—no raid thoughts or anything."
"......"
...Figures. I'd already warned them, and Ace alone couldn't beat Selverion. Other guilds had to desperately stop Ace from poking my wrath with suicidal antics.
The other Top 4 guilds were in the provinces, so Dessert Club—the only one in the capital who could—got the job.
Of course, this was just my guess. Things could be off.
Even accounting for that, Ace ignoring my warning and challenging me, always making dumb choices with their power, seemed certain.
"...Anyway, looks like persuasion failed, and now it's a guild war."
"......"
If peaceful talks fail, force is all that's left. To push their will and crush the enemy's, the two factions had clashed physically.
But if Ace aimed for my raid, they should've avoided a guild war that burned resources. Why clash with Dessert Club?
Did they fall for a taunt?
I couldn't comprehend their ongoing antics.
"Hm..."
Still too far to grasp the full scene.
But if Dessert Club lost, Ace's ego would skyrocket, and they'd keep making self-serving calls. That much I was sure of.
I couldn't just watch their pathetic arrogance. Let them crawl to me, point blades at me, without consequence?
Plus, Dessert Club losing—a faction friendly to me, a stage boss—would suck for me too.
...Better if I stepped in personally to teach them a lesson, rather than leaving it to Kim Arin alone. The thought swirled in my head.
"......"
But I didn't know who owned those battleships or which side was shooting them down.
Visually, no clue which was Dessert Club or Ace.
......Still, freezing them all would be fair enough. Before my endless cold, Ace or Dessert Club—equally equalized.
"Lady Selverion, we're here!"
"Yeah."
Soon, Kim Arin's arrival signal and the pirate ship's blaring horn. That's when I distinguished Ace from Dessert Club.
'Right side...'
The faction to my right had red diamonds embroidered on their collars—pure Ace. Left must be Dessert Club.
"...Good."
Positions confirmed, I activated the passive Ashen Snowstorm toward Ace's camp and leaped high from the pirate ship.
⚙ PASSIVE ACTIVATED ⚙ Ashen Snowstorm "......Frost Wave."
I immediately triggered the skill, freezing the magic circles over Yeouido, the space battleships—everything annoying in my sight.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ Frost Wave Pzzt.
The sky-blue wave I unleashed hit the magic circles and battleships instantly freezing them before they shattered into cold ice particles and vanished into the air.
...It swept a much wider area than before, so I was a bit worried, but for Selverion, it was nothing.
— I-Impossible...
— W-What...
— My battleships...?
Meanwhile, the players on the ground gaped in shock at the unbelievable sight.
— Hm...
I gazed down at one among them—a cat-eared beastkin woman slumped on the ground, her customization popping wildly.
— Ah.
Her face was famous from internet streams, so I recognized her instantly.
That girl was none other than my top priority target right now: PVE specialist guild Ace's guild master, Sol-sol.
I curled my lips into a sly smile toward the woman I'd longed to see and offered a light greeting loaded with meaning.
"...Hello."
02.
──── Hello.
"Aah......"
A voice as deep as the ocean's abyss and cold as Arctic ice pierced Ace Guild Master Yoon Sol's ears. The girl in the sky hadn't done much, but Sol's body stiffened, barely moving.
"Selverion..."
She muttered the name of someone utterly unwelcome—at least not now. It took real effort, like her lips were cursed, to spit out each syllable.
"W-Why are you here..."
Yoon Sol stared at the worst stage boss who absolutely shouldn't appear here. Her mere presence twisted all of Sol's plans.
No—beyond ruined plans, it put her on death's doorstep. Regret over her shortsightedness suddenly flooded in.
'Damn...'
...She'd told people Selverion might whimsically charge tomorrow. But why assume tomorrow? It could've been today.
This was reality, not a game. No constraints keeping bosses in their zones, and with clear intelligence now, they acted even more freely.
Especially with instigators egging them on.
'Kim Arin...'
Yoon Sol glared sharply at the blonde atop the pirate ship presumed to have brought Selverion.
She didn't know the details—how, by what means that brutal God of Ruin was dragged here—but Kim Arin and Selverion seemed on friendly terms.
"Ha."
Legend and Han Yeonhwa's scheme, or Kim Arin's solo act?
...Pulling Selverion to their side to block Ace's raid? Absurd, laughable.
And she'd surely snitched Ace and Sol's surprise attack plans on Selverion.
Otherwise, why would Selverion hit only them with Ashen Snowstorm, sparing Dessert Club?
"S-S-Selverion..."
"C-Cold..."
"Can't move, bro..."
"......"
Sol glanced back at her guildmates behind her.
Many were combat-incapable from Ashen Snowstorm or panicked at Selverion's sight.
"Fuck..."
Yoon Sol squeezed her eyes shut and cursed. Her first condition for conquering Selverion: never get hit by Ashen Snowstorm.
One hit meant heavy damage, freeze, and 20% drops in movement and attack speed. Impossible to beat Selverion like that.
They'd prepped masses of A-rank item Jupiter's Umbrella against it, but no one expected her here today—no umbrellas used, all direct hits.
...Worst start from the get-go.
"St-Status cleanse..."
"Urk..."
"Me too! Do me!!"
"......"
A few intact supports started cleansing guildmates' freezes.
But speed debuffs lingered even after freeze and damage fixes—situation still hopeless.
— Hmm...
And Selverion peered down at them intrigued from the sky. December's stage boss, Frost of Ruin, just spoke to them without further action.
— ...You tried to subjugate me, right?
"......!!"
Sol flinched hard. As expected, she knew Ace's plans. They'd ignored her final warning, so she must be pissed.
...Selverion continued blankly, emotions unreadable. Despite the distance, her cold voice rang crystal clear, like hammered into ears.
— You had the confidence to choose that...?
"Th-That..."
— ...Fine. If you're that confident, I'll face you myself.
Selverion's red eyes gleamed as her weapon—crimson chains—spread like wings behind her. Asphalt-freezing cold surged fiercely.
"Urk...!!"
"C-Cold..."
"Scary, impossible..."
"C-Can't move..."
"Damn..."
Like facing an Antarctic blizzard, the bone-chilling cold made Sol and all of Ace kneel instinctively, huddling.
"Fuck, a monster intimidating us? With that clear intelligence? How are we supposed to win!!"
"Psychological warfare from Selverion, haha..."
"......"
Panicked, deranged voices rose among guildmates.
As they said, Selverion was seizing initiative—psychological warfare absent from the game.
Crushing will to fight before battle even starts—chillingly smart.
She'd fully transcended game character limits, a perfect intelligent being.
......Or maybe, as Lee Min-jun said last time, someone swapped into Selverion instead of playable. Either way, unwelcome.
Meanwhile, eyeing the flustered Sol and Ace, Selverion dropped her final words.
— ...Come at me, then.
What followed was a smile beautiful yet cold as a double-edged sword. Beauty and terror intertwined in that icy smirk plunged Sol into deep thought.
Like a supercomputer, hundreds of thoughts raced through Sol's mind. Her pupils quivered like earthquakes.
'What, what do I do? Surrender? Raid?'
Most guildmates combat-ineffective, facing Selverion plus Dessert Club and top pirate Kim Arin. Ace win chance near zero.
'Surrender...'
Selverion's intelligent tendencies—giving last chances—and Dessert Club's Lee Ah-reum hating kills suggested surrender might spare them.
'......'
But after surrender?
Ace would lose capital guild rights to Han Yeonhwa and SPR for defying orders and pushing solo raid.
Lose the hard-won office, back to her stuffy curtained room.
Precious power slips away; worst case, 8 years poured into Ace dissolves.
And news spreads: villains endangering Korea, finger-pointed forever.
...Is living bowed in misery better than dying here?
'...No.'
Sol's resolve hardened. She wouldn't easily yield what she'd grasped. As always, she'd struggle to the end, clinging to power.
Besides, who'd cheer Ace's easy fall? Dessert Club and Lee Ah-reum, next in line.
Sol couldn't stomach them gloating, rising as Ace fell.
'Selverion.'
...Above all, hadn't Selverion tormented her and Ace for 8 years, branding them 'phantoms'? She couldn't kneel futilely on the 9th try.
She, Ace, would fulfill stage boss subjugation duty to the end.
Even if reality's blizzard froze her to the marrow.
"......"
Steeling herself, Yoon Sol gripped her twin blades and slowly rose. Eyes blazing fury and resolve, she yelled at the God of Ruin above.
"Yeah! I'm coming for you now."
— ....
"Arrogant bitch, I'll kill you today, so grit your teeth."
8 years of resentment poured from Yoon Sol's mouth. Selverion just stroked her soft hair, smiling.
— ...You're fun, you.
"Urk..."
Intensifying chill—like dropped in Antarctica. Murmurs rose among Ace guildmates.
"W-What, fighting? In this situation?"
"Guild master...? Our state right now..."
"Maybe tomorrow, but no prep now!! Raid's impossible!"
"Run first, run...!!"
"......"
Most stared at Sol's fight choice in this despair, flustered.
No.
Impossible.
Run.
"Urk..."
Those hated negative words hitting her nape reddened Sol's face again.
Veins bulging, she roared at her weak-thinking guildmates.
"Shut the fuck up?!!"
"...?!!"
"G-Guild master...?"
Sudden bellow stunned them. Always bubbly, cute Yoon Sol raging froze faces.
"You think we can run now?!"
...Ignoring reactions, Sol pointed at Selverion in the sky.
"Not some scrub—Selverion. Brutal, ferocious God of Ruin. With intelligence, you think she'll let us flee?"
"......"
"...Show backs, we're dead. Gotta do something for escape chance? Fighting's the answer now. We planned subjugation anyway. Don't panic, don't!!"
...Last words self-hypnosis too. No fear. Just the 12th stage boss to subjugate.
Worst situation, but experience would pull through.
"...What're you doing?! Mages! Spam bombardment! Archers! Arrows!!"
In crisis, no think time for the swayed. Push hard, command to bend minds to her will over theirs.
"Fuck it! Fireball!"
Finally, prodded, a flame mage squeezed eyes shut, firing five fireballs at Selverion.
"W-We can do it. Splitting Arrow!"
"Bards! Buffs! Bullet barrage!"
"...Good."
...Crowd psychology terrifying. Seconds ago fleeing in terror, now one actor and agitation turned all weapons on Selverion.
Sol's sway over their hearts undeniable, of course.
"......"
Sol frowned at fireballs, arrows, bullets flying at Selverion. Tracking trajectories, she planned next attack.
'...That won't work.'
Selverion no-sells space battleship aurora cannons; basic attacks useless.
Her sole 'weakness': relatively low physical defense. Exploit that.
She'd likely block with dedicated defense Ice Wall, so during summon gap, Sol and assassins flank fast for hit-and-run.
Most supports—priests, bards—intact, so guerrilla tactics viable few times.
...Hit-and-run had been most successful against Selverion before.
"Assassins! Fighters! Ready!"
Sol prepped fast flankers for Ice Wall timing.
"...Going."
Even one solid hit—even if not downing—would spark courage for counterattack start.
Ace Guild Master Yoon Sol believed without doubt.
...But she kept overlooking one crucial fact.
— Haa...
"Huh...?"
......This wasn't a game but reality—no fixed patterns.
Selverion no longer separated defense and attack; she did both simultaneously, fluidly activating skills.
Careless predictions always miss.
Yoon Sol overlooked it.
— ...Frost Wave.
"Huh...?"
...Instead of predicted Ice Wall, Selverion unleashed wide-area Frost Wave, turning all incoming projectiles to ice crystals.
Did she know hit-and-run was her biggest threat?
Not content freezing projectiles to nix ambushes, Frost Wave encased every Ace guildmate on ground too.
"Huh...?"
Something gravely wrong.
"Wh-What? B-Body?!!"
"Freezing! Supports! SUPPORTS!! Aaaah!!"
"C-Cold... Guild master..."
"Huh...?"
Every Ace member save Yoon Sol herself froze from toes up, then shattered like cracked glass.
"Huh...?"
...Hundreds of Ace elites one-shot in single attack.
Rare even in-game shock around her contracted Sol's pupils. Horror and shock filled them.
"What... what...?"
Frost Wave not Ice Wall?
Countering attacks isn't her style...?
What? Why?
Intelligence changed habits?
My thinking too shallow? Wrong?
Where?
When?
— ......Ace Guild Master.
"Huh...?"
......Cold voice calling snapped her. Sol slowly looked up: Selverion descending near ground, hand outstretched toward her.
— ...You must own your choices.
"What...?"
— ...I hope you regret everything.
"Huh...?"
A massive magic circle bloomed before Selverion. Sharp ice blades emerged from the blue hexagram.
"Urk...!!"
Then heavy pain stabbed Sol's gut. Unbearable agony she'd never felt spread through her body—no scream possible.
"Ah...?"
...Looking down, a huge ice blade pierced her chest precisely.