[No title provided]
World rank 15, Kou, hid among the undead and charged forward with over 200 knights clad in black armor.
With all the undead wiped out, he was now forced into an all-out war against the Korean players.
Plans going awry was disconcerting.
But having clashed directly, it seemed winnable.
After about an hour of fighting, the Koreans had only logged out around 50 Chinese players.
Especially memorable was his duel with I-hwan.
Korea's sole ranker in the top 50.
He was undoubtedly exceptional. Yet Kou hadn't been logged out in their clash.
On the contrary, he'd driven I-hwan to flee into the castle.
I-hwan right now could be described like this:
'Wearing clothes that don't fit.'
He mainly wielded greatswords but still hadn't found an artifact suited to him.
Inevitable, really.
The number of legendary artifacts in Korea was about 1/30th that of China.
And the artifacts produced by blacksmiths rarely carried the exact effects he desired.
A tragic player, robbed of a proper weapon by the misfortune of his nation.
Kou clicked his tongue.
But then...
"They're coming again."
Kou sneered.
Though I-hwan outleveled him, there was no fear.
One difference this time, however.
I-hwan was wielding a greatsword.
Kou charged lightly.
Clashing blades, Kou faltered in shock.
'What the...?'
He wore an expression of utter incomprehension.
Just one exchange of strikes, and his entire body buzzed with vibration.
Kou understood weapons well too.
Greatswords were hard to swing and slow.
While a normal longsword could strike three times, a greatsword managed one.
Yet that speed just now—it was fast enough for two swings in the time of three longsword strikes.
"My normal Sword Mastery is Advanced level 6, but Greatsword Mastery is Supreme level 7. Plus, these famed Twin Dragon Swords are 40% lighter than a standard greatsword."
Kou panicked.
"Where the hell does a weapon like that even exist?"
"Right here."
It was real.
The speed of I-hwan's Twin Dragon Swords defied all common sense for greatswords.
Even more shocking was the destructive power.
The speed held steady, but the force was several times that of a longsword.
The moment it struck his armor squarely—even his near-legendary gear shattered.
"Hyun made this. You guys don't have Hyun, right?"
Kou reeled twice over. I-hwan's expression was like a kid bragging about a shiny new toy.
I-hwan glanced around.
"Drool! Drool!"
"You guys don't have Hyun!?"
"Our Hyun's artifacts are so good!"
The battlefield's momentum had shifted.
And as I-hwan overwhelmed Kou, even he could scarcely believe it.
'How is this artifact so perfect...'
It maximized the greatsword's strengths while patching its weaknesses to the utmost.
Artifacts usually came saddled with useless features.
Plus, as Hwarang Guild Master, I-hwan had sent recruitment letters to Hyun steadily, only to be ignored.
It had soured him a bit(?), so he'd held off subscribing.
But now his mind changed.
'Subscribing the second continental war ends.'
Suddenly, chills ran down his spine.
"Puhahaha, you guys don't have Hyun iiiii!"
"Th-these bastards are crazy!"
Hyun's Forge sold weapons at about 40% above market price, but it had given Korea wings.
Even he himself was now resolved to subscribe.
Then...
'The viewers...?'
He swallowed dryly.
But he acknowledged what deserved it.
'Long live Hyun.'
Suddenly, his weapon rental timer came to mind.
'1 hour 32 minutes.'
3 million won ticking up per hour and 32 minutes.
"Raaaaagh!"
I-hwan gritted his teeth to squeeze out every last drop.
***
Surveying the battlefield, Nel noted that eight hours had passed.
'We're starting to get pushed back.'
After the initial clash, it had been a tense back-and-forth.
High-rankers' battles tended to drag on longer than expected.
They'd held out several hours beyond the experts' predictions.
And surprisingly, Korean players were quite strong.
But Nel faced reality squarely.
514 Korean survivors versus 631 Chinese.
The Korean numbers were dwindling faster now.
Polarization had begun.
'This polarization accelerates like a dam bursting at some point.'
Nel assessed coldly.
'We did well.'
The best.
No one would deny lavish praise.
Truth was, Hyun's Forge members weren't built for this stage.
Strong in Korea, sure—but here, such players overflowed.
'Everyone satisfied...'
Soon, seeing their faces, Nel realized her own shortsightedness.
"One more! Just one moreee!"
Ian ground his teeth, loosing arrows; Bak swung his shield at five foes, straining with all he had.
Bellia prayed endlessly; Tae-hoon and Han-ul fought on with overtaxed bodies.
"......"
Nel realized she'd been complacent.
Their competitive fire still burned.
Something she'd missed, not fighting herself.
"Raaaaagh!"
Even as the tide turned against them, they thrashed to hold ground.
Nel clenched her fists, trembling at her powerlessness to help.
She felt their sorrow.
The inferiority, envy, desire lurking behind Hyun-soo's feats.
Inevitable.
Anyone would crave stardom.
But they were just 1 in 1,000 participants.
......Ting...
......Ting...
A sound pierced the battlefield din, audible only to Nel.
Hotter than ever before.
'...Hyun-soo.'
Perhaps he knew their hearts.
Then, Nel's eyes wavered.
'Fond, Riu...'
They were on the move.
***
Fond and Riu had waited for the Koreans to tire.
Though Fond had once fallen for a scheme, he wasn't brainless.
Time to push polarization to the extreme.
A green-black orb shot into the sky.
Poison King Riu lived up to his name.
The ultimate debuffer in Ares.
The orb burst like rain over the Korean lines, exploding like fireworks.
Resistance failed.
All stats -20%.
Nausea, chills, and dizziness assail you.
A force rivaling a named NPC boss.
Riu's ultimate was pure calamity.
Enough to ignite the deepening divide.
"Ugh, raaaagh!"
"Gahk!"
"You bastard, I was winning until just now...!"
"Hey, why are you two ganging up... kghk!"
Polarization steepened because as Korean numbers fell while Chinese held steady, each Korean faced more foes.
Riu's poison accelerated it.
"Ugh, raaaagh!"
"Gahk!"
"Insane..."
Koreans evenly matched at the gates were pushed back.
Another figure descended there.
Fond.
His sword severed three Korean necks in a flash.
Landing, he drew swiftly.
In that instant, 450% cutting power bisected twenty Koreans.
Fond grinned in delight.
'The massacre begins!'
As Fond raised his hand, Chinese players unleashed skills.
He sneered at the Koreans scattering without a trace.
Before long, about 100 Koreans had fallen to the Chinese onslaught.
Not intentional—just crumpling helplessly.
"Ah, guys, show some mercy."
"Public execution, too much!!!!"
"Skills?"
"Commander, permission to use skills."
Riu shook his head.
"Kill with basics. We've got a long way to go."
An excuse.
Not for distance, but to broadcast the basic-attack kills live.
Though the "long way" gave plausible deniability.
Soon, horrors unfolded.
Some shot arrows to log out Koreans.
Others bashed heads or slashed madly.
Their numbers plummeted exponentially.
Finally, the gates creaked open.
Screeeeech...
Fond, Riu, and over 500 Chinese surged toward the shattered gates.
Then Fond frowned curiously.
Something surged from somewhere.
'A forge?'
Too fast to pinpoint.
Flash—
Spotting it in the sky, Fond squinted to confirm.
But it was too quick.
It plummeted in a dive.
Crashing into the castle interior.
A massive greatsword over ten feet long, etched with red runes.
◈ "Even to the gods..."
◈ "Twelve remain."
◈ "Twelve ships still sail."
"Kee, kihehehehehak, kuhahaha!"
Fond laughed.
Zhuge had dissected Hyun's Twin Dragon Swords thoroughly.
Imperial Warship: Twelve Remain.
Its power infused a target with Blacksmith Hyun's might.
Like briefly elevating Ian to legendary heights.
"What can one guy do?!"
Right—who could he kill? But one against all?
Then.
Black Night
Darkness blanketed the world once more.
Humans adapt.
Fear of the known fades on repetition.
Even engulfed in shadow, Fond laughed.
Then, abruptly—tack—light returned.
'...Huh?'
His laughter died.
Bak, Riesel, Bellia, Hye-ji, Tae-hoon, Han-ul, Ian.
They placed hands on the Twin Dragon Swords.
Some on the blade, some the hilt, some the flat.
The world zoomed in on them.
***
'Sir, you look happier lately.'
Bored with routine, real estate tycoon Bak had found new life.
'...Joining the continental war? I believe in you.'
Hanseong Group's youngest, Riesel, bore his father Chairman Lee Tae-seong's expectations.
'The genius trio? Well, in continental war... whatever.'
Hye-ji, Tae-hoon, Han-ul.
Deep trauma lingered; public scrutiny terrified them.
'Scary...'
Bellia hated fighting but battled to protect her guildmates.
Each with personal reasons, shared thoughts.
'So powerless...'
'Me, this irrelevant?'
'Fuck...'
Endless despair.
Like ordinary folk expecting greatness from "special" tales, they'd hoped for their moment.
But their feats? Meager.
Just one of 1,000.
Yet in the darkness, Hyun-soo's guild chat glowed.
Drawn like moths to the sword's glow even in shadow.
'True meaning of the Twin Dragon Swords...?'
'What could that be?'
Twelve ships.
Us, who achieved nothing here?
Soon, all gathered before the blade.
Bak reached first; others followed, grasping the Twin Dragon Swords.
The blades erupted in massive resonance.
The most perfect twelve ships are complete.
We weren't such grand figures.
Bak owned much yet drowned in nightly voids.
Riesel endured executives' whispers: "The young master's gaming now?"
The Olympic trio bore jealous barbs: "They're living off old glory."
He felt it too—we all did.
Not patriotism, just selfish souls.
Craving spotlight cheers, chasing a better Hyun's Forge than yesterday.
But that's not what the Twin Dragon Swords saw.
The legend of the nation-savers responds.
The Twin Dragon Swords asked:
Why board this ship?
This turtle ship may mean your death. Against those 500 Chinese beyond the gates.
The answer was simple.
'We had to board.'
Had to defend this sea.
No—to stop them from breaching the castle.
At last, flames from the Twin Dragon Swords engulfed them.
They burn the hottest.
They became the twelve ships, clashing against 500.
Regaining senses, they'd carved a new mark in Ares.
And learned:
Saga. Those who had no choice but to board are recorded.
That day, perhaps Joseon had no choice but to board their ships.
Just like us.