For You (2)
The Red Hood Guild ranked around 200th among Korea's guilds.
Guild master Hel was a level 335 user, holding third place in the national archer rankings.
And the Red Hood Guild was one that most people avoided clashing with.
The guild itself had formed as a murderer guild—a band of utterly mannerless players.
High-rankers didn't avoid them out of fear.
Do you dodge shit because you're scared of it? No, because it's filthy.
In any case, every member of this Red Hood Guild was strong.
The entry requirement was level 300 or higher—elite users only.
And there were a whopping 40 of them.
They especially welcomed players who reveled in bad manners.
That was how the Red Hood Guild had been forged.
Not long ago, when Red Dragon Squad leader Kuhn arrived with a massive sum of gold, Hel had welcomed him warmly.
"A massacre? That's our specialty—don't you worry."
Hel and his guildmates had taken part in countless massacres before, and requests came in fairly often.
Why did people seek them out?
Because they could kill large numbers in a short time, at high speed.
Unlike knights or assassins who had to get up close, they could drop people with a single arrow.
Why just one arrow?
Simple logic.
The targets of these massacres were usually ordinary civilians.
"Guilt? Over killing some NPCs? Please."
Hel had always enjoyed this kind of hunt.
The thrill of a person dropping dead with one arrow—pick!
And today was no different.
As the guild members loosed their arrows in unison to wipe out 100 captives at once, something impossible happened.
Whoosh—roar!
Their hundred arrows turned to ash and scattered in an instant.
Then their client, Kuhn, suddenly flew backward.
Hel couldn't tell who had caused this bizarre event.
'Who the hell is it?'
An unofficial ranker?
One who even wielded a legend above legend artifact, no less.
But Hel could only scoff.
Just one guy—what could he do?
At that moment.
Screeech—!
With a harsh whistle, an arrow slammed into the heart of the guildmate right beside him.
Thud—boom!
That arrow—much shorter than a standard one—pierced the guildmate's armor clean through and sent him flying about 10 meters.
"Fils, you okay...?"
Level 301 archer Fils.
Hel turned to him, utterly bewildered.
"Gah, arghhh, what the—aaah!"
He thrashed as flames engulfed him, then burned to ash.
"One... one shot?!"
Hel couldn't hide his shock.
In Ares, the three classes with the lowest HP were well-known.
Mages had the lowest, then assassins, then archers.
Archers dumped most of their stats into agility for accuracy and power.
'Even so, one arrow?!'
At that instant.
Krunch—boom!
Splat!
Crack!
Hel watched his guildmates fly back from arrows striking every two seconds.
"Arghhh!"
"What the hell!"
"Gurk!"
"Gah!"
At first, he thought the enemy was firing fire arrows. But no.
Plain arrows hit, and flames ignited on impact.
'N-no way... how is this even possible...'
And then.
Screeech—!
Hel felt an arrow pierce his chest.
"Arghhh!"
Hel, third-ranked archer.
He flew about 7 meters, flames licking hot at his body.
Flames that won't easily extinguish have ignited.
-22% HP
Hel hurriedly patted out the flames, his face a mask of disbelief.
More unidentified arrows kept raining down.
Crack—boom!
Power enough to shatter boulders.
'I-is this a basic attack?'
He realized it only after taking one himself.
He'd thought it was a skill, but no—this was a plain basic attack.
'Guildmates logging out from one basic hit?!'
Jumong's Composite Bow had attack power in the 600s.
Normal user bows ranged from 350 to 400.
Plus, Jumong's Composite Bow massively boosted crit chance with its accuracy bonus.
On top of that, the destructive power of Baby Arrow, synergizing with the bow to amplify it further.
But the real absurdity.
Crack—boom!
Another arrow nailed the guildmate beside him.
'500 meters?!'
A range that defied common sense.
His guildmates fired arrows at the enemy.
The shots lost momentum and fell to the ground.
Meaning that bow's range was at least double theirs.
You have been attacked by Ian.
Since the attacker is a Kao user, you will not enter Kao state.
Hel was even more shocked to realize the target was the fallen ranker Ian.
Hel was one of the anonymous users who mocked Ian daily on the Hyun's Forge forums.
'No way...'
Then Hel came up with a plan.
"Everyone, hide behind the rocks and charge toward the prisoners!"
If the enemy was far, they'd close the distance into their own range.
As the entire guild rushed toward the prisoners, the incoming arrows stopped.
The enemy was closing in on them.
300 meters.
250 meters.
200 meters.
When he finally appeared, Hel shivered with excitement.
'Finally in range...!'
Seeing Ian up close now, Hel sneered.
'You're dead now...'
Then Hel's eyes widened.
A massive blaze erupted around Ian as he nocked a single arrow.
Whoosh—roar!
Flames soared 5 meters high, sucked into his arrow.
Twang!
The moment he released the string, Hel's eyes bulged.
A concentrated mass of raging infernal fire.
Flame Guidance Shot
That single arrow pierced the lead guild member.
Whoosh—!
The guildmate's flesh ignited instantly, turning skeletal, then crumbling to bone dust.
But the arrow didn't stop—it kept going.
Number two.
Number three.
Number five.
"Wh-what the hell is this arrow?!"
Krunch!
Number six.
Splat!
Number eight.
"Gahhhh!"
Number nine.
Splat!
"Arghhh!"
It scorched ten before hitting the ground.
'An arrow that pierces ten in a row?!'
Only then did Hel realize one truth.
Ian, once fallen.
He would go down in history as Korea's true top archer.
'No... maybe even...?'
As an arrow pierced his heart, forcing logout, Hel thought.
'The world’s best?'
***
It was always the same.
In moments of inevitable crisis, Hyun-soo burned with the will to stand firm and win.
Your Own Quest: Victory Over Red Dragon Squad Leader Kuhn
📍 Rank: SS
📍 Restriction: Your Own Story Trigger
🎁 Reward: Astonishing Negotiation Degree increase
📍 Failure Penalty: Death of all prisoners
📍 Description: A story solely for you has triggered, maximizing rewards. Defeat Red Dragon Squad Leader Kuhn.
Hyun-soo was startled by the alert.
He'd heard it many times before.
"A new story begins."
But this was different.
A story for you begins.
You have overcome great crises and new stories in your own way.
Those tales connect, finally crafting your own new story today.
Ding!
Your own story will grant rewards far greater than any new story.
Hyun-soo understood.
The trials and hardships he'd overcome many times.
The system's special favor for them.
Rewards far superior to any standard new story.
Ding!
New stories always made Hyun-soo's heart race.
Tension and fear, followed by anticipation and joy at the rewards.
'This story... prepared solely for me.'
Astonishing Negotiation Degree increase as the reward.
How much would it be? He could hardly wait.
He chewed and swallowed the grapes in his mouth.
EXP acquisition rate and artifact drop rate increase by 50%.
All stats are maximized.
All stats increase by 26%.
Tremendous power surged through Hyun-soo's body.
Please select a skill to activate twice in succession.
Hyun-soo already knew this foe was no pushover.
A 80-level gap.
'My remaining HP is just 12%.'
The enemy's was 89%.
And then.
Assassin's Domain
Radius of 100m becomes his domain.
Assassin's movement and attack speed double within.
Kuhn unleashed his peak power, sensing the danger.
Krunch!
The moment the bastard stomped the ground, he vanished from sight.
Left.
Right.
Above.
Too fast to track, Kuhn closed in from everywhere and stabbed a dagger into his heart.
Splat—boom!
But Hyun-soo didn't budge. He gripped Kuhn's right hand with both of his.
At that instant.
You possess Asnium.
HP has fallen below 10%.
HP recovers to 15%.
Hyun-soo's eyes flashed open.
It was true—he couldn't have blocked that attack.
That's why he'd chosen this.
In that split second, Hyun-soo had plotted his path in his mind.
Just these two times.
'In these two, I have to kill an assassin with 90% HP.'
So he'd mapped it out meticulously in his head.
You have selected Ghost Step.
Total stable activations: 16 times.
"Ghost Step."
His form vanished.
Ghost Step activated solely on one target.
Krunch!
Splat!
Thud thud!
Splurt!
Crunch!
Crack—boom!
Splat!
Boom!
Krunch!
"Grk!"
Eight afterimages of Hyun-soo etched onto Kuhn.
And the final strike was an uppercut.
Kuhn flew upward.
Kuhn's HP below 50%.
Kuhn was the leader of the Red Dragon Squad.
He'd once witnessed Ben's Ghost Step firsthand.
Hyun-soo didn't know, but Kuhn was aware Ben could reach 24 activations at full power.
Yet this guy managed only 8 in one go.
And that in 0.4 seconds longer than peak.
Kuhn was certain.
The moment Ghost Step ended, his final dagger thrust would reduce him to ash.
"Ghost Step."
Hyun-soo activated it once more.
Crack—boom!
Splinter!
Krunch!
Thud!
Stab!
Screech!
Plus, Kuhn dominated this space, transcending his normal limits.
Twaang!
He parried the sixth sword.
Splat!
Blocked the punching fist with both arms.
Whoosh!
Twisted away from the sideways sword swing.
The prowess of an assassin group's leader defied norms.
"You've lost."
Kuhn's HP below 18%.
Kuhn, still sturdy, was convinced of victory.
In that instant, Hyun-soo calmed.
In the past, at the banquet hall, he'd hit 9 in one second.
He recalled that sensation.
'Like this.'
0.4 seconds still remained.
Hyun-soo kept moving without pause.
Ninth.
Slash!
Kuhn panicked as his side was gashed.
'Wh-what?!'
Tenth, eleventh. Swords rained from all directions.
But Kuhn wasn't just taking it.
Slash!
Krunch!
He slashed Hyun-soo's afterimages, dealing damage.
Hyun-soo's afterimages didn't stop.
Twelfth.
Krunch!
Thirteenth.
Splat—boom!
Kuhn couldn't believe the kick that tripped him.
Crunch!
Fourteenth, fifteenth.
'Impossible...'
A mere blacksmith pulling off 15 Ghost Steps.
But Kuhn realized he'd barely won.
He still had 5% HP left.
Whereas this blacksmith Hyun-soo seemed one dagger away from death.
Then.
Crackle—!
Kuhn saw the sword suddenly in his hand.
"Frost Flower."
The blade froze the surrounding air. In that moment, Kuhn understood.
'The first Ghost Step to throw me off...'
During the second, Hyun-soo had used a power off cooldown.
Too focused on Ghost Step to notice.
His arm, thrusting to pierce Hyun-soo's chest, wouldn't obey.
The blade's chill had frozen his exhausted arm solid.
Clang!
As his arm froze, Kuhn dropped the dagger.
Soon, Red Dragon Squad leader Kuhn's entire body was encased in ice.
Hyun-soo, falling with him, soon heard a harsh sound.
Crash—shatter!
Kuhn breaking apart.
Having barely won, Hyun-soo wondered.
He currently had double Negotiation Degree application, plus 1.5x EXP gain.
And victory over Kuhn in this "story for you" would grant astonishing Negotiation Degree.
'How far will I climb today?'
Negotiation Degree.
It determined his title and proved all his achievements so far.
Thud!
Late to land, a flood of notifications hit Hyun-soo.