The Shadows of the Central Command
Lee Siwoo.
The guild master of Five Star Guild, one of the top four guilds in the Horizon Korean server, was also famous as part of the royal family of the Ohsung Group, South Korea's number-one chaebol.
Because of that, people naturally assumed Five Star Guild was backed by the Ohsung Group.
Yet, in reality, the situation was far from that.
In fact, it was quite different.
First, Lee Siwoo had never received any support from the Ohsung Group.
One might think the guild's assets and manpower were enormous.
But that was nothing more than the price of a transaction.
The capital poured into the Five Star Guild was all the funding the family had spent in exchange for acquiring the Meta-Amazon business, the record-breaking mega-hit that had swept the industry in the United States.
With both the eldest and second sons eyeing him as a rival for the succession, the family could offer no further support.
That was why Lee Siwoo had clenched his teeth and expanded his power in Horizon.
This time, I will create my own domain—one no one can interfere with. My own Ohsung!
A kingdom that belongs only to Lee Siwoo, untouched by the family's interference!
"Sir."
"Ah, sorry."
"It's time."
"Is it? We should start moving soon."
Upon hearing his secretary's words, Lee Siwoo snapped back to attention.
He walked straight toward the command post, and the sight of the battlefield and the headquarters came into view at a glance.
"Retreat? Are you insane? If you pull back, I'll make you swallow every coin in your account! Block them now!"
"What are you doing? This is because we poured in cash!"
"Send more reinforcements! They cannot break through there!"
Although the headquarters of the various guild alliances had always been quiet, the current scene was far more chaotic than the bustling market street.
Lee Siwoo strode right into the center of it all.
"What?"
"It's Five Star Guild's guild master?"
"You should be on the right flank, right?"
The gazes of the guild masters gathered at the command post turned sharply toward him.
"What's going on?"
"I'm busy right now. If you have something to say, we'll talk later."
An order was issued to clear the area, almost without any pretense.
Without caring, Lee Siwoo arrived at the podium and took a deep breath.
"Members of the Five Star Guild! Advance and earn glory!"
-I have used the Legendary skill Spirit of the Hero.
-All stats of the Five Star Guild members have increased by 20%.
-All attribute resistances of the Five Star Guild members have increased by 10%.
-The morale of the Five Star Guild members has risen dramatically.
The Legendary skill purchased for the price of a building! The members of the Five Star Guild, who had been waiting, all began to advance at once.
The players advancing without regard for the left, right, or central battlefields!
"What the hell is this!"
"If the alliance collapses because of this, will you take responsibility?"
The shocked guild masters of the alliance immediately questioned him in unison.
"Why are you doing whatever you want on your own!"
"Don't you know the respect for seniors? We let you lead the guild because you were young, and this is how you treat us...!
Lee Siwoo's lips curved into a mocking smile.
"If you don't immediately withdraw your troops and return to the promised position..."
"If I don't?"
"What... Guk!"
The guild master who tried to stop him grabbed his nose and collapsed. Lee Siwoo swung his fist and knocked him senseless.
"You idiots, if you were so eager to fight, just watch. From now on, I'll show you something fun."
Lee Siwoo's cold response was met by the appearance of Five Star Guild's rankers right beside him.
"W-what...?"
"Suppress them."
As the command was given, the rankers immediately moved.
"You bastards...! You dare to stage a coup!"
Swish—a guild master with a distinctive night-orchid beard drew his sword.
Cheolhyeol One-Sword of the Iron Blood Alliance.
A ranker ranked in the top tier of the overall rankings at level 188.
"A coup?"
Lee Siwoo chuckled.
"What nonsense. In a war game, if a commander plays like shit, the seat gets stolen."
"You bastard!"
At that moment, a middle-aged man with slightly graying hair blocked Lee Siwoo's path.
Clad in plain leather armor and wielding a longsword, he was the one who had approached.
"Die!"
Whip—the Iron Blood One-Sword's blade flew toward the leather-armored middle-aged man. A full-power strike aimed at Lee Siwoo.
"Hmm."
The middle-aged man reacted the moment he saw the blade.
Clang.
A light strike that twisted an infant's wrist passed by. The very next instant, the neck of the Iron Blood One-Sword fell to the ground.
"Hah..."
"W-what...?"
The other guild masters gasped in shock.
"T-that... what was that?"
"What skill did you use just now?"
There was no noticeable skill effect, yet the neck was severed in an instant.
"Who the hell is that guy...?"
"A ranker ranked around 50th in the arena, known as Barrion."
A guild master who recognized the middle-aged man muttered.
"Apart from being the arena's top ranker, he had no notable achievements. What the hell was that just now...?"
That was the end.
When one guild master was cut down, the other alliance guild masters, as if by agreement, stopped their actions.
"Is that all?"
"..."
As silence fell over the field, Lee Siwoo smirked.
"Well done, Barrion."
"What? Sir, leave the rest to me."
"Very well."
Thanks to Barrion's performance, the command post was cleared earlier than expected.
If I just stand around like this, I'm wasting an unexpected bonus.
Lee Siwoo first disarmed the alliance guild masters and said,
"Given the situation, from now on, I will personally command the battlefield. You won't regret it."
It was the moment when Five Star Guild's power truly surfaced.
***
Five Star Guild's battle formation consisted of five large armies.
Each army had 30,000 members.
Except for the carefully selected 1st Army under Lee Siwoo's command, the other armies were largely similar.
"Kwaaaa!"
"Ka!"
The Five Star Guild members blocked the high-spirited orcs.
"Raise the flag!"
Five stars appeared on the flag, and a warm light spread through the surrounding guild members' bodies.
-Morale has increased.
-Attack power has increased.
-The chance of falling into status-effect skills has slightly decreased.
Unlike the flags of other guilds, the Five Star Guild's flag granted multiple buffs to its members.
"Commanders, forward!"
Commanders' job players were scattered throughout the Five Star Guild's formation.
They were not particularly useful in normal hunting or boss raids.
But in a multi-player battle like this, commanders could achieve impossible efficiency.
"Shield wall!"
-Receiving the commander’s command.
-Defense skill effect has increased by +15%.
"Line up and hold firm!"
-Receiving the effect of the Battlefield Command skill.
-Additional defense has increased by 115.
-Additional warrior buff has been received.
-Attack and defense have both increased by an additional +6%.
Commanders who had acquired officer and deputy positions while growing through guild support and their buffs!
The Five Star Guild members, whose stats had suddenly nearly doubled, were now strong enough to face three orcs each.
"Before the orcs organize their lines, we’ll wipe them out."
Large fireballs covered the orcs' heads, and wind spears chopped the remaining orcs to pieces.
Their casting speed had increased dramatically thanks to the command, and their accuracy and combos had become even stronger!
"Hah! Those humans are strong!"
"I heard the humans were strong! Be careful!"
The orcs tried to retreat quickly, but the Five Star Guild's knights had already sealed off their rear.
Knights wielding spears struck the orcs from behind one by one.
"This is the power of the Five Star Guild."
A simple scene showing orcs that had dominated a military-style guild being dominated once again.
It was enough to showcase the guild's strength.
If this had been a novel, the community opinion department would have already begun its activities.
I'll have to face this kind of guild at the top later too.
Since the goal is to stand at the top against all users, Five Star Guild is naturally included in that target.
This is going to be tough.
Fafnir smirked.
It's worth challenging enough.
The gamer's challenge spirit ignited within him.
If beating Flush meant fighting the original novel's author, then this was the instinct Kim Ganghan had possessed as a gamer long before that.
"Wow..."
"They're pushing back."
Meanwhile, the Umigan gang members nearby saw their reactions shift again.
"If we charge in now, wouldn't this be a huge win?"
"Yeah, the orcs are getting wiped out like that?"
The orcs, who had pushed toward the command post, were now being driven back in reverse.
Kindorhan grumbled,
"Ah, that's why I told you to fight in front! If we had, I would have already jumped in and taken a share!"
"..."
Fafnir looked at Kindorhan calmly and said,
"Don't get so worked up. After the battle ends, we're the ones who will earn the most contributions anyway."
"Really? For real?"
"Yeah, more than anyone over there on the Five Star side."
Kindorhan's mouth snapped shut again.
***
On the morning of the third day.
After finishing his morning workout, Kim Ganghan opened the website window.
"As expected, the news broke quickly."
[Sudden Massive Orc Offensive!]
[In a critical moment, Five Star Guild showcases overwhelming performance.]
Most of the articles on the homepage's main page were about the orc offensive of the second day and how Five Star Guild had stopped it.
[Five Star's Lee Siwoo, the appearance of a sleeping dragon?]
[Commander job players have been nurtured since the early days of Horizon... noticing the potential of group battle content.]
[Obtaining 25,000 contributions in a single day and threatening Fafnir's position in contributions.]
[Battlefield highlights of the second day. MP4]
Highlights video clips shot from various angles were added.
But there was plenty of noise as well.
[Iron Blood Alliance Guild Master Iron Blood Patriarch 'Unbelievable Rampage']
[Guild alliance guild masters being held captive... the situation is urgent, but this is intolerable.]
The fact that they had left the agreed-upon formation and captured other guild masters was also an issue.
However, public opinion was largely cold toward the guild alliance.
"Well, it's safe to say the third-day command falls to Five Star Guild."
Recalling the content from the novel, Kim Ganghan immediately logged into Horizon.
A battlefield morning filled with the movement of supplies and soldiers as formations were being built!
Walking to a corner of the formation, Kim Ganghan spotted Kindorhan tending a bonfire and a pot.
"Did you get a good night's sleep yesterday?"
"I slept well. I slept like a dead man."
Kindorhan, boiling a cash-item ramen, grumbled.
"Because you kept telling me not to get involved, I only managed to stay out of it properly."
"So there are no casualties so far."
The three-day event of the unified front allowed resurrection one day after death in real time. With a three-day cycle, it practically meant that access was only possible after the big event ended.
"Two people. They got killed by the orcs' thrown spears while defending."
"That's not bad."
Recalling the novel's content, Fafnir continued,
"Today's battle is likely to be a big one."
"That makes sense. The event log says it's going to be intense."
The public information released by the kingdom NPCs also included that the army of the northern duke was descending.
The orcs knew this too, so they would pour everything into destroying the central army before it arrived.
The fierce battle would continue.
"So yesterday, we held back our strength to prepare for today? Once the reinforcements arrive, we'll wipe them out all at once."
"That's true for the first part, but false for the second."
"Then why do it?"
Clink—the ramen finished, Kindorhan extinguished the fire and asked.
It was time to tell him the truth.
Fafnir calmly raised his finger and pointed.
"The place we'll be fighting today is right there."
"What...?"
Kindorhan's eyes widened as he looked in that direction.
"The command post?"
The kingdom's military command post where the king and generals gathered.
Fafnir's finger was clearly pointing toward it.