The Colosseum of the Ancient Empire

This was a place that forced even those who usually maintained a decent image to show their true colors! Tae-hyun shook his head in disbelief.

I don't understand why people can't trust each other and have to fight so uglily.

"Get out of my way! I'm... I'm not the kind of guy who loses here!"

In the distance, Cain could be seen howling, trying desperately to push his way through the crowd. Tae-hyun clicked his tongue and turned away. For now, I'll just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠clear the first floor.

I just hope there ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠aren't any more places that require cooperation like this.

Fortunately, no such cooperation was necessary. Tae-hyun ran, rolled, dodged, and flew, barely managing to clear the first floor. Honestly, even for Tae-hyun, it was a highly unusual experience. Breaking through like this with only his bare body, completely devoid of stats and skills!

Ugh!

Of all things, it had to be Luck!

Whatever. It's fine. My goal was the treasure anyway...

Checking his stats, they had risen far more than he expected. A generous reward worthy of the Ancient Empire's name! ...Though the fact that it was Luck was the problem!

"!"

I get why I'm surprised, but you're a divine beast, why are you shocked?

...Thanks.

Unlike Carbanog, who was just playing along, the scroll was a much more powerful treasure than Tae-hyun had anticipated. It made all that suffering worthwhile!

It's a shame it's a single-use item, but this is more than enough.

Pan-On was a game notoriously strict about teleportation. If you wanted to get from point A to point B, traveling there physically was usually the easiest way. Even mages required all sorts of materials and preparation to cast teleportation magic. And if any disruption magic was active, the failure rate skyrocketed.

But this scroll was guaranteed to be the real deal! For someone with as many enemies as Tae-hyun, it was an incredibly useful item.

Hmm. If the first floor is this good, I'm getting greedy for more. The problem is...

Exactly.

Tae-hyun decided to check out the second floor while he was at it. The second floor was indeed worse. The moment he stepped onto the moving platform at the start, a message window popped up.

"......"

-Give up.

Tae-hyun gave up and stepped outside. He would have to start over from the first floor anyway, but he didn't really mind. He was already used to it. The problem was...

"Wait, does this mean I can't even clear the second floor until the other guys get here?"

"What a garbage training ground...!"

Tae-hyun instantly agreed with Carbanog. No wonder their empire fell!

"Well, nothing can be done. I guess I'll make a walkthrough video..."

Regretfully, Tae-hyun prepared to upload a video. If he revealed the route he took, the players with decent reflexes would be able to follow along on their own!

Tae-hyun didn't bother advertising that he had uploaded a walkthrough video here ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and there. Simply posting it on the Team KL account would cause millions of fans worldwide to swarm in and watch it of their own accord!

Lee Da-bi had seriously contemplated, Wouldn't we get tons of views even if we just uploaded a video of us cooking and eating under the Team KL name? But Cain had begged, "If you upload that, I'm going to get cursed out again, so please hold back," so she was refraining for now.

A Team KL walkthrough video. A walkthrough video uploaded by Tae-hyun! Seeing him coolly upload a video conquering an uncharted training ground that no one had cleared yet, everyone cheered and expressed their gratitude... Or not.

A walkthrough video ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that couldn't be walked through even after watching it! Many players shed tears of blood trying to copy Tae-hyun's video.

All of a sudden, walkthroughs of the walkthrough began to emerge. Starting from "Why did Kim Tae-hyun do it this way?" to "Here is how you guys should do it!" They followed Tae-hyun's path, but in a much easier way!

In any case, his objective was achieved. Even if things had taken a slightly bizarre turn...

Hmm. The Colosseum is pretty ordinary.

There were no active events or quests. It seemed to be because there was no one to run them.

It doesn't look like the building is particularly damaged... What's the reason? Do we need an NPC?

What's wrong?

???

So you're saying...

......

Tae-hyun's expression stiffened. Thank goodness it wasn't running! If it had been operating normally, he might have had to fight a beast like those giant monsters one-on-one.

Hmm. I shouldn't do this.

No matter how he looked at it, this quest had far more risks than rewards! Just capturing a single beast would be a massive chore, and if it somehow escaped... Nodranche would be completely doomed that very day!

I'm already stressed enough trying to manage the survivors.

Tae-hyun decided to just use the place normally.

"Player Kim Tae-hyun!"

"?"

Tae-hyun turned his head. Evangeline was running toward him, accompanied by several players he had never seen before. Though they all looked different, every single one of them was wearing gear befitting a high-tier ranker, and their eyes and faces were sparkling with excitement. The look of fans meeting their idol!

"I-I-I'm a huge fan! A real fan! Player Kim Tae-hyun, I've been a fan since Pan-On 1!"

"Get out of the way! Player Kim Tae-hyun, I've been a fan since even before that guy!"

"Hmm. I see."

Tae-hyun shot them a suspicious look. A fan since Pan-On 1? Aren't they assassins?

Evangeline, catching up a moment later, panted, "Huff, huff... These are the players."

"Daniel!"

"Scott!"

"I'm KingTaehyunNo1!"

"Wait. I heard something weird just now."

For the first time in a long while, Tae-hyun felt flustered. Hadn't there been a highly bizarre username just now?

"Could you say that again?"

"I am Daniel, a melee dealer for the Toronto team. My class is [blank], and I use a one-hand sword and a small shield. The specialty of my class is..."

"No, I'll hear about that later. Next."

Daniel stepped back, looking dejected.

"I am Scott, a melee dealer for the Toronto team. My class is [blank]. I use a flail, and the secret to my damage is..."

"No, I'll hear about that later too."

Scott also stepped back, looking dejected.

"I am KingTaehyunNo1, a melee dealer for the Toronto team."

"...Why on earth is your username like that?"

Tae-hyun tried his best to speak as gently as possible. Of course, one didn't have to use their real name in Pan-On. Tae-hyun used his real name, but Cain used a nickname... But KingTaehyunNo1 was a bit much, wasn't it?!

"Yes! It's because I respect you so, so much, Player Kim Tae-hyun!"

"Urgh. Look at that guy sucking up."

"What a cheap bastard...!"

The other players were even biting their nails in jealousy. Damn it! I'm so jealous! I should have named myself that too!

"My younger sibling's username is KingTaehyunNo2..."

"...You can stop right there."

Tae-hyun cut him off, not wanting to hear any more. He prayed to whatever gods were listening that he would never run into a player named KingTaehyunNo2 while playing Pan-On!

The Toronto team was a decent team. Their tanks were solid, and their healers knew how to play selflessly. This was a good start!

"-I've got aggro! Fall back!"

"-I'm casting heals! Hang in there! Don't die!"

Evangeline surprisingly had the makings of a head coach. The team's coordination was far tighter and more solid than he had expected.

More importantly, is that crazy person screaming in the back really Evangeline?

Tae-hyun stared at Evangeline with a bewildered look. To think that someone who looked so normal could turn into a screaming maniac the moment the match started, shouting things like, "Ah! How did you miss that?! Are your eyes just for decoration?! Is your helmet just a fashion statement?!"...

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Haha."

As Evangeline glared at him suspiciously, Tae-hyun subtly averted his gaze.

Furthermore, the damage dealers had potential. Looking at their past matches, there were quite a few games where they had been completely pushed back, only for the damage dealers to go absolutely wild and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. The only issues were their massive inconsistency, their poor situational awareness, and their tendency to charge in yelling, "I'm taking this guy down first!" even as their healers and tanks were dropping dead around them!

And their classes are all a bit...

Every single one of them had a class that seemed entirely blinded by offense! Tae-hyun knew this type of player all too well. Melee damage dealers who staked their lives on attacking! They were the type to ignore their own HP bar, focusing entirely on the enemy's HP as they lunged forward to get the kill first.

Hmm... What kind of advice should I give them?

-Teamplay! You know what I mean, right? Teamplay!

Evangeline sent him a whisper while making a desperate hand gesture. Please, teach these guys what 'teamplay' actually is!

-I'm trusting you, okay? I really am!

-Got it, got it.

Tae-hyun reassured Evangeline and entered the Colosseum with the damage dealers. However, Tae-hyun didn't really have much to say when it came to teamplay either.

Let's just forget about teamplay and help them optimize their damage skills instead.

Listening to their classes and skills, then mapping out the optimal combination for them was about all Tae-hyun could do. If Evangeline had heard his thoughts, she would have screamed, "Hey! Teamplay! Teach them teamplay!"

While Tae-hyun was lost in thought, one of the players asked in a trembling, excited voice, "Player Kim Tae-hyun! What goes through your mind when you fight an opponent in a match?"

"Me? I just think about absolutely shutting down at least one opponent, no matter what."

"Ohhh... Ohhhhh!"

The players' eyes sparkled with awe!