Chapter 66
Chapter 66
Translator: Penny
Chapter 66
Martial Arts Theme.
It was said to be the only theme where killing was impossible.
Even if you die, you resurrect according to the theme's rules.
Even if you die several times in the Martial Arts Theme Exchange Meeting, you return to your Stairway waiting room or Stage once the theme ends.
I felt relieved.
It meant that, at least in this Exchange Meeting, I could act as I pleased without needing to be bound by emotions.
[Recruitment Quota: 36 people]
Indeed, as Jjuhdak had mentioned when I first entered the Tower, an unusually large number of people were recruited.
The maximum recruitment for an Exchange Meeting was 50, but he had said that it usually didn't exceed 5 to 10 people.
He said that the number of participants noticeably increased only during the Martial Arts Theme.
It wasn't hard to guess the reason.
Dungeon-type or quest-type themes have objectives that must be completed.
In contrast, the purpose of the Martial Arts Theme is solely Sparring.
If only 10 people were gathered, the Exchange Meeting might end too quickly.
Whoosh-
The vision obscured by light returned to normal.
36 people, including me, were seated.
Vast yellow structures stretched out.
Next, I examined the faces of the 36 players.
One notable thing was the absence of the numbers above their heads, which had been common in the previous two rounds.
No player had their residential Stairway number displayed.
Something was different.
The gazes of those who were looking around like me all stopped on me.
Well, that was to be expected.
I was wearing a rabbit mascot.
The pure white rabbit and the jet-black armor of Phaethon were too unbalanced.
So, I even went to the trouble of buying outer appearance modification items for the top and bottom from the Coin Shop to match the colors.
I had anticipated this level of attention.
[We will now explain the upcoming Sparring.]
An alert window appeared before my eyes, and a delicate voice was heard.
[The Sparring - Battle Royale will begin in 1 minute.]
The players began to murmur.
[2 people per team. A total of 18 teams will begin the survival.]
"It's Sparring, though. What's with the survival?"
"S-So, we have to kill each other? In the Exchange Meeting?"
[Engage in fierce combat to become the final team. Since it is a Martial Arts Theme, even if you commit murder, the player will not actually die and will only return to their original Stairway.]
A series of relieved sighs were heard at the mention of not dying.
"What, we don't die? Why not?"
Among them, there were some strange guys who showed a reaction of being let down by the fact that they wouldn't die.
I wondered why they suddenly added survival to the Martial Arts Theme.
I guess they wanted to create a situation where players could kill each other without consequences.
[In this Martial Arts Theme, the number of the Stairway will not be displayed above your head, but the number of people you have killed in this Exchange Meeting will be displayed.]
[Regardless of whether your teammate survives, you can be the winner if you become the last one standing.]
[The Exchange Meeting reward criteria will be given by combining survival time score and player elimination score.]
[Now, check your assigned teammate at your respective teleported locations and head towards first place.]
Once again, light covered my vision.
When the light faded, the scenery had changed again.
A space with yellow walls.
I looked at the man who appeared next to me.
He tilted his head as soon as he saw me.
"...Rabbit?"
I responded to his words.
"Yeah, it's a rabbit."
I put the man who seemed to be my assigned teammate behind me for now and looked at the man in front of me.
The man with noticeable brown hair drew a Dao from his waist.
The man strode towards me.
"Sorry, but you'll have to die right now."
Unlike the man next to me, he seemed to have immediately grasped the situation and was trying to act accordingly for this Exchange Meeting.
The same went for the male teammate next to the man.
Judging by their looks, they seemed to have added each other as friends before this Exchange Meeting.
I looked at the charging man and activated Bodyguard Qi.
I extended my leg.
Towards the man's right leg.
Low kick.
Crack-
The man's body suddenly collapsed. To the floor.
"Huh...?"
The man's leg was bent strangely.
I opened my mouth.
"Don't break."
I had to stick to the concept.
"Even if you break, get up in that broken state."
"What...?"
The man, the Chinese Zhou Xin, looked at the rabbit mascot, Han Yoo-seong, who was looking down at him, as if he were crazy.
Anyway, Zhou Xin.
He was really trying to get up.
But it was impossible.
'His ankle is completely shattered.'
The rabbit's voice was heard once more.
"Can't you get up?"
"You're the one who made me like this...!"
The rabbit picked up the iron club lying on the floor.
Clang-!
He struck Zhou Xin's head.
The rabbit looked at John, Zhou Xin's teammate, who had died instantly.
"Are you confident that you won't break?"
What the hell was this crazy bastard talking about?
"Haha, I don't really understand the intention of the question."
John swallowed hard.
'Ah, he's trying to judge whether I'm someone he can make his comrade or not.'
John continued to think.
'It could be for a purpose like a decoy instead of a comrade... well, it's better to be alive even if I'm being used.'
John raised both hands high.
"Hehe, Easy. If you just spare my life, I'll do my best as a decoy or whatever."
Immediately after John answered, the rabbit threw another question.
"Your level and Stairway."
John swallowed hard.
"17th floor, level 23. How about it, still useful, right?"
At John's answer, the rabbit, Han Yoo-seong, thought.
'Still, he's over level 20, so he can use Sword Qi, right?'
Compared to himself, a resident of the 11th floor with level 45, his level seemed terribly lacking, but seeing him confidently declare his usefulness, he seemed to be on the higher end of the same Stairway.
"You can kill me at the end, and it's okay if you just let me eat the survival points, okay?"
John saw it.
The iron club falling like lightning.
There was no chance to do anything or add a single word.
It wasn't the kind of attack that could be blocked, it felt like an irresistible natural disaster.
Clang!
Another instant death.
"A guy whose heart is already broken is useless."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The rabbit repeatedly swung the iron club in the air.
Not forgetting to say a word according to the concept.
Both times, he condensed the Qi at the end of the iron club at the last moment, so there probably wasn't much pain from the club.
Of course, it was a choice made to completely kill the opponent rather than for the purpose of such consideration.
'As expected, a sword is better.'
He was using it quite well, but he didn't really like the club.
It felt like it wasn't very clean.
'Did I ever have the luxury of worrying about the weight of a weapon or something like that?'
Han Yoo-seong inside the rabbit mascot was very calm.
Pandemonium.
After experiencing continuous life-threatening situations while walking that difficult path, now that a situation where his head wouldn't be blown off had arrived, he couldn't adapt to it.
Nothing appeared next to the two corpses.
Even though the Dao that Zhou Xin was holding had fallen to the floor, he couldn't pick it up.
Han Yoo-seong drew the sword from his waist.
The conclusion was reached.
Only items acquired within this Exchange Meeting Stage or items that he originally had could be used without problems.
"Hey."
At Han Yoo-seong's words, Gabriel, who had become his teammate, widened his eyes.
"Uh, uh..."
He nodded very obediently.
"Can you see the number floating above my head?"
At Han Yoo-seong's question, Gabriel stared above the rabbit mascot.
< 2 >
"Uh, I see a 2."
"I see."
Gabriel suddenly started introducing himself.
"I'm Gabriel, a Normal Difficulty 17th floor player. Level 22."
"Okay."
Gabriel had expected the same self-introduction from the rabbit's mouth as he had done, but those words didn't come out of the rabbit's mouth.
"The goal is first place... right?"
"It'll be done as we go. Let's move."
"Uh, uh!"
Gabriel didn't object to Han Yoo-seong's words at all.
'I don't know what kind of dog-like concept he's taken on, but he's strong, so I can't say anything about it...'
Gabriel followed Han Yoo-seong.
As they left the yellow building, the outside wind blew.
Han Yoo-seong was still standing on the railing of the building, observing the surroundings.
Beeeeeep!
A crimson light burst from the sky.
A red object in the shape of a loudspeaker that suddenly appeared was floating in the air.
Han Yoo-seong and Gabriel stopped walking.
[Broadcasting an announcement.]
[5 minutes have passed since the Battle Royale began!]
[The number of players who have died so far is six!]
[Current survivors: 30]
[The number of survivors will continue to be displayed in the sky!]
[Introducing two ruthless players who eliminated two people alone as soon as the Battle Royale began, two people to watch out for.]
Gabriel's eyes widened.
"...What, is it a beam projector screen?"
He had seen it to the point of being sick of it before being summoned to the Tower, but he was surprised because it was the first time he had seen such a sight in the Tower.
The shape was familiar to Han Yoo-seong even in the Tower.
Because it was similar to the video screen projected by the Transcender Gallery Terminal.
Inside the screen.
-Stab! Stab stab!
A man with a mosaic face was stabbing a man's abdomen several times.
-Hehe! Hehehe! This is the feeling!
"Wow, that guy's pretty crazy too."
'Too'.
Gabriel, who had already spoken as if he had seen a crazy person before, realized it and covered his mouth, but Han Yoo-seong didn't care.
The screen changed.
"......"
Gabriel's open mouth showed no sign of closing.
Even if they put a mosaic on the rabbit head, it was still a rabbit head.
-
Don't break.
-
Clang!
The iron club being swung.
-Thud!
Blood splattered on the rabbit mascot.
The screen went off.
Gabriel looked at Han Yoo-seong with a dazed face.
[Kyaaaaak! As you can see, predators have already appeared!]
[But don't worry, even those of you who haven't done anything!]
[There are ways for the weak to kill the strong hidden throughout this Stage! First, save your lives and survive!]
"Let's move."
"...We should."
Gabriel hunched his body and scanned the structure.
The rabbit walked slowly with the blood-stained iron club resting on his shoulder.