A Grudge Is a Grudge, but Money Is Money
Fighting a player who had been in the same guild as Cain? This was content incomparably more exciting than the videos they usually uploaded. After all, anyone and everyone could attack random passersby, raid other guilds' warehouses, or block roads to collect tolls. But this—this was the kind of raw, provocative stimulation the viewers truly craved!
The members of the Rudolf Guild, initially oblivious, realized what was happening a moment too late and panicked. What's with this sudden surge in popularity?
"What's going on?"
"I think it's because we're about to fight a guy who claims to have been in the same guild as Cain."
"We haven't even fought yet, and we have this many viewers?!"
Closs, the guild leader, asked in utter disbelief. He knew popularity was everything in Pan-On, but this was ridiculous. How hard had they racked their brains, plotting and planning to rob other players' wallets and pick fights? Yet all that effort was completely overshadowed by the mere mention of Cain's name.
And it wasn't even Cain himself! They were just fighting a guy who happened to know him.
This is actually starting to feel depressing...!
They knew Team KL was popular, but this level of disparity was downright sorrowful.
"Isn't this a massive opportunity, Boss?"
"Ugh. I suppose it is."
Oblivious to Closs's inner turmoil, the guild members rejoiced. They were simply thrilled by the skyrocketing view count.
"We can afford to buy a generous amount of potions this month."
"I need to replace my armor first. I still haven't been able to swap out the piece that broke last time."
Their conversation was incredibly pathetic, but this was the reality for most plunderer players. On stream, they projected a glamorous, well-to-do image—'If we want it, we take it! We are the elite plunderers!'—but in truth, the plunderer playstyle usually resulted in losing far more than they gained.
"Hey, I just had a great idea. What if one of us claims to know Cain too?"
"You're not the first to think of that. About a hundred people have already tried."
"...Really?"
"Yeah. Last time, some foreigner living in Nigeria lied about going to the same school as Cain. He got caught and absolutely roasted."
"......"
People all over the world thought alike. Whenever a celebrity emerged, there would always be those trying to ride their coattails for a free lunch. And surprisingly, Cain was targeted for this far more often than Tae-hyun. Tae-hyun seemed too intimidating and likely to expose them, so they targeted the relatively approachable Cain instead.
"Then how about this? One of us challenges Kim Tae-hyun, and then we upload the video as content."
"A thousand people have already done that too."
"...Why are there so many people ahead of us?!"
Once Tae-hyun's reputation transcended a certain threshold through tournaments and leagues, even his bitter enemies from Pan-On 1—who used to grind their teeth at the mere mention of his name—began to change their tune.
They realized they could monetize their suffering.
A grudge was a grudge, but money was money. Surprisingly, this kind of content made an insane amount of cash—enough to make their deep-seated resentment melt away into pure bliss. However, even this market had become a highly competitive red ocean. Because so many players had been beaten to a pulp by Tae-hyun, standard sob stories no longer stood out. To gain any traction now, one had to be at least on the level of Do Dong-su.
Enemies hiding wicked blades are targeting this dungeon!
"?"
"??"
Tae-hyun and Jackal's party stared at the message window in confusion. Even the ordinary plunderer players already inside the dungeon were startled by the unfamiliar alert.
"Huh? What's this? A sudden quest?"
"Whoa. I've never seen anything like this before. I hope it's a good one."
Jackal's expression grew serious. No matter how he looked at it, this was not a good sign. To survive as a plunderer for a long time, one had to be incredibly quick-witted. Given the recent strange destruction of dungeons, combined with a message like this...
"Hey. I think it might really be best for us to back off."
"Why?"
Jackal explained his reasoning. Tae-hyun nodded in genuine admiration.
"Excellent. You're much better than Cain."
"W-What... thanks for the compliment. But please don't say things like that, it's embarrassing."
Jackal felt his face grow hot. To hear such praise from someone who actually knew Cain was surreal. Logically speaking, there was no way he could be superior to Cain.
"No, really. I'm telling you, you're better than Cain."
"Ahem. S-Stop. That's enough."
Jackal cleared his throat, suddenly curious. "By the way, what's your name? I haven't even had the chance to ask."
"I'm Kim Tae-hyun."
At those words, Jackal let out a chuckle. "Ah, it must be annoying in many ways to share a name with a celebrity. Did you name yourself that on purpose?"
"No. It's my actual name."
Usually, when someone became famous, countless copycat names would flood the game. Kim Tae-hyun, Kim Tae-hyun, Kim Tae-hyun, KingTaehyunNo1, GeneralGodTaehyun, and so on.
The Pan-On AI really should ban those kinds of duplicate nicknames.
"Knowing Cain while being named Kim Tae-hyun... doesn't anyone ever misunderstand?"
"Not really."
"Is that so? How strange. Anyway, wouldn't it be better to retreat?"
"I'm going in, so follow me or not, do as you please."
"Wait..."
Without waiting for an answer, Tae-hyun strode forward. He was so coolly indifferent that the surrounding air felt chilly. Jackal's companions watched Tae-hyun's back in awe.
"Now that is true class..."
"Let's follow him, Jackal. We want to party play with Cain's associate too."
"He's not Cain, he's just from the same guild..."
"Same difference."
By that logic, aren't we technically party playing with Kim Tae-hyun right now? Jackal thought. Well, if you're connected by three degrees of separation, you basically know each other.
It's not the Idergo Cult assassins, is it? Tae-hyun worried.
The faction currently giving him the biggest chills was indeed the Idergo Cult. He had kidnapped their successor, annihilated their expedition, and destroyed their fleet. Even if their hatred for him had pierced the heavens and reached the Demon Realm, it wouldn't be surprising.
Carbanog says that kidnapping the successor was a bit much.
You agreed to it too, so let's not do this now, Carbanog.
If the Idergo Cult assassins had actually tracked him down, things would become incredibly troublesome.
"Wait! Stop! You can't come in here!"
The players who had arrived at the dungeon first blocked Tae-hyun's path. Tae-hyun asked, looking puzzled.
"Is there a problem ahead?"
"It's not that..." Jackal muttered. He could already foresee what was about to happen.
"This is our spot!"
"Ah..." Tae-hyun nodded as if he finally understood.
Jackal whispered from the side, "This is standard practice around here. Spot fights are incredibly fierce."
"Yeah. I don't care."
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!
"...!"
Jackal stared in absolute horror. Tae-hyun's face was still turned toward Jackal, but his hand had already drawn his sword, unleashing a rapid succession of skills that instantly brought the opponent down.
Just how much PvP did someone have to do to acquire that level of muscle memory?!
Furthermore, the damage was absurd. Judging by the loud boom and the way the opponent was sent flying backward, his attack power was monstrous.
"Uh... Uh! We're fighting, right?!"
"You bastards! How dare you! We have two rankers here who were in the same guild as Cain!"
Realizing the situation, Jackal's companions belatedly joined the fray. Flames erupted and auras flashed as a chaotic brawl broke out in the underground passage.
Wow, look at these selfish bastards.
The plunderers' style of combat was a far cry from organized party play. Even when gathered in large numbers, they lacked any semblance of coordination. There was no traditional setup of a damage dealer dealing damage, a tank blocking attacks, and a healer providing support.
It was pure survival of the fittest! In the first place, healers were extremely rare among plunderer players. Everyone had to look out for their own lives.
"You idiot! Why did you dodge that attack?!"
"Should I have just stood there and taken it?! Go wrap a bandage!"
"Don't bring them over here! Lead them to those guys!"
"Get out of the way or I'll trample you!"
It was a chaotic mess where players stood back-to-back with enemies while swinging weapons at their own allies. This chaotic environment was Tae-hyun's true spiritual home.
Tae-hyun refrained from using flashy skills or his newly acquired Authority skills. He relied solely on passive and buff skills, executing basic swordsmanship techniques. Yet, his movements were far more striking than anyone else's in the room.
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, he would lightly dodge incoming attacks to close the distance, counter frontal strikes to stun his opponents, and immediately rush to interrupt any enemy preparing a powerful spell...
His performance was extraordinarily extraordinary.
Wow, did this guy receive personal training from Kim Tae-hyun himself? Jackal marveled once again.
Not only did he share the name, but his skills were also on par with the legend. He was truly terrifying!
Enemies hiding wicked blades have appeared!
Ah! Tae-hyun clicked his tongue at the message window.
He had been so engrossed in beating up the plunderers that he hadn't noticed the unidentified enemies drawing near. Should he have finished them off faster?
It must be the Idergo Cult after all.
Carbanog also guesses that they are from the Idergo Cult.
"Plunderers, thieves, outlanders—all these filthy bastards must be expelled from the kingdom!"
"In the name of the Espa Kingdom!"
Oh? It wasn't the Idergo Cult?
"W-What? We're going to be surrounded! Run!"
"It's blocked here, where do you want us to run?!"
"They're coming from both the front and back!"
The plunderer players who had been getting beaten up by Tae-hyun tried to flee, but the situation was far from simple. Enemies had blocked both the entrance and exit of the passage.
"Step aside," Tae-hyun said simply.
The plunderers, who had been fighting him just moments ago, looked at him in confusion, wondering what he was talking about.
"Who do you think you are to give or—"
HP: 0 / [MAX]
Logging out!
"...I think it is perfectly fine for you to give orders."
"Aigoo, with this level of skill, you should definitely order us around."
Jackal marveled at Tae-hyun's ability to instantly dominate the unfamiliar plunderers.
Incredible!
Was this what it meant to be from the same guild as a top-tier Pan-On player? It wasn't just about having a high level. Tae-hyun quickly identified the loudest, most disgruntled troublemaker, pinpointed the leader, and focused entirely on shutting them down first.
Even a level 400 player couldn't pull that off without sharp intuition and tactical sense.
"Line up in a single file and block the ones coming from behind. You don't need to kill them all, just buy time. If you run, I'll kill you. If you let them through, I'll kill you. If I don't like how you did after this is over, I'll kill you. If you don't want to die, do your job right."
"......"
Where the hell did this crazy bastard roll in from?
The plunderers cursed inwardly but quickly lined up. They didn't want to die here, after all.
It was at that moment that new enemies appeared behind the assassins.
"How dare you attack our comrades!"
"?"
The Sun Bandit warriors have entered the dungeon to aid you!
"......"
This was not pleasing in the slightest.