God Su-hyeok's Carry
"Get him!"
Jeong Su-hyeok's friends, who had been frantically dodging the barrage of fire arrows, spotted a lone Paladin left standing below. Their eyes lit up with predatory glee.
"Kill him!"
"Get him!"
Their current swagger was a far cry from moments ago, when they had been rolling and crawling on the ground just to survive the magical storm. They were the very picture of majestic triumph.
"Wh-whoa! Aaaah!"
Left entirely on his own, the panicked Paladin stumbled backward. His immediate priority was to open up some distance. Of course, his opponents had no intention of letting him slip away!
The Paladin unleashed a skill to keep them at bay: Spinning Axe!
It was a rare ranged attack skill for a Paladin, though it wasn't particularly powerful. After all, one of the class's biggest weaknesses was the lack of decent ranged options. The Paladin hadn't expected much from it either; it was merely a zoning tool to buy him enough time to retreat.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A glowing axe blade materialized in midair and hurtled toward Jeong Su-hyeok's friends.
Thwack!
The friend struck by the axe collapsed instantly. His HP plummeted to zero, resulting in an immediate elimination!
"..."
"..."
The Paladin who threw the axe, the friend who got hit, and the players standing right next to him were all utterly dumbfounded.
He died from just one hit?!
As it turned out, Jeong Su-hyeok's teammates had also taken massive damage while caught in his chaotic magical storm. Completely oblivious to their own critical health, they had recklessly charged down the hill to secure the kill!
"What... the heck?"
Down below, the Paladin—who had barely participated in the actual fighting so far—was still in pristine condition. If he charged right now, he might even win a three-on-one fight, but he was still struggling to comprehend what had just happened.
Seeing a golden opportunity, Jeong Su-hyeok, who was still up on the hill, screamed down in a panic.
"Hey! Don't rush it! Take it slow! Surround him and coordinate your attacks! Don't do anything reckless!"
He meant for them to play it safe and not charge blindly, but his friends interpreted his words in the exact opposite way.
"Got it, Su-hyeok! Don't worry! Urgh!"
"We have to pull our own weight too! Ack!"
One friend tried to circle behind the Paladin to form a perimeter, only to get struck and die instantly!
Another tried to help him, only to get caught in the Paladin's sweeping attack and die as well!
An overwhelmingly advantageous five-on-one situation had devolved into a two-on-one in the blink of an eye. Even the victorious Paladin looked dumbfounded by his own success.
"Boo! What kind of garbage play is this?!"
"Are you kidding me?! What the hell are you guys doing, you absolute trash?!"
Jeers and boos rained down from the spectator stands. Fortunately, the soundproofing kept the noise from reaching inside the arena, but the crowd's reaction was white-hot. A Mage player named Jeong Su-hyeok had just pulled off a legendary, highlight-reel play, only for his teammates to follow it up with such a pathetic display. The sheer absurdity of it left everyone speechless.
"...Die!"
The opposing Paladin finally seemed to regain his bearings. Having cycled through fear, confusion, and sudden realization, he now understood that the tables had turned in his favor!
"Aaaah! Su-hyeok! Su-hyeok! Cast a spell! Cast a spell!"
"But you're standing right next to him!"
"I don't care! Just blow us both up!"
"O-Okay...!"
Rumble! Crash!
Jeong Su-hyeok dumped the rest of his remaining MP into a final magical barrage.
A brief silence descended upon the arena, followed by...
Winner: Jeong Su-hyeok!
"My eyes are bleeding. What on earth was that?"
"Hey, but that Mage was incredible. Did you see that? When the Paladin charged him, he blasted himself with his own magic to trigger a counter-reflection. I literally got goosebumps watching that."
"Yeah, but still, that ending was a disaster. It was so painful to watch."
"True, true."
As the match concluded, the spectators buzzed with chatter. The general consensus was unanimous: Jeong Su-hyeok was a genius, while his teammates were an absolute embarrassment.
Hearing their comments, Jeong Su-hyeok felt like dying.
That... was an accident...!
It had been nothing more than a bizarre coincidence—a clumsy mistake overlapping with an Akisus magic skill. Yet, in the eyes of the public, it was interpreted as pure, calculated genius.
Unadulterated skill!
Clips of that specific moment were already flooding the community boards. Considering how many players had entered the preliminaries and how most matches were buried without receiving a single glance, this level of attention was truly extraordinary.
[Crazy Melee Combat Skills of an Insane Mage Player.gif]
[Carrying the team all by himself... God Su-hyeok...]
Videos with titles that would make Jeong Su-hyeok kick his blankets in sheer embarrassment were being uploaded one after another. That was just how powerful the impact of his play had been.
"Guys...!"
His friends were trudging out of the arena booths. Jeong Su-hyeok called out to them, his face filled with relief.
"Guys...!"
The public was praising his blunder as a masterclass. But surely his friends, who knew him best, would understand the truth of the situation and offer him some comfort!
"Su-hyeok, we're so sorry!"
"Huh?!"
"You were carrying us so hard, and all we did was drag you down...!"
"We were too busy fighting to see it then, but we just watched the clip on the forums. We saw how insanely hard you carried us!"
"What clip?!"
"We don't even have the right to look you in the eye!"
"It might be late to start now, but we're going to do our absolute best so we don't embarrass you again!"
"Yeah! We can't just sit around! Let's practice! Practice!"
His friends were practically burning with newfound motivation. Jeong Su-hyeok opened his mouth to stop them, but hesitated.
Come to think of it, wouldn't it be better to just leave things as they were?
Suddenly, Kim Tae-hyun's advice flashed through his mind.
"Su-hyeok, if people choose to misunderstand you in a positive way, just let them. There's no need to go out of your way to correct them."
Senior... did you foresee that a day like this would come...?!
Of course, Tae-hyun had not.
"...He's actually quite good. Though something about it feels a bit off."
Ju Ga-yeon nodded as she spoke. Even she was impressed by Jeong Su-hyeok's performance. The sheer audacity to blast himself with magic just to catch his opponent off guard!
Because of this, Yoo Ji-soo was looking thoroughly depressed.
"I-It's okay, Ji-soo. You'll do much better than him."
"Really?"
"Looking closely, that Mage is skilled, but his spells seem to have a high degree of randomness. It's likely a penalty of some sort. Otherwise, there's no way he could spam magic like that."
Ju Ga-yeon had instantly seen through the mechanics. In fact, any highly skilled player who watched the video would have guessed as much.
"Besides, they're a one-man team centered entirely around that Mage. They won't last long. They might have gotten lucky once or twice to make it this far, but that's their limit."
"I don't want that... I want to face him directly and prove that I'm stronger."
"...Would there even be any point to that?"
As Ju Ga-yeon spoke, a sudden thought crossed her mind.
Her team, the Pied Guild team, had entered the tournament with the sole objective of reaching the main event. It would be a tough road, but she didn't think it was impossible. Her team was comprised of exceptionally skilled players, after all.
But if they made it to the main tournament...
Won't we end up clashing with Kim Tae-hyun's team?
She wondered how Yoo Ji-soo would react if that happened. In fact, she doubted Ji-soo had even thought that far ahead.
"Whoa! It's Lee Se-yeon!"
"Lee Se-yeon! Lee Se-yeon!"
"??"
Ju Ga-yeon turned her head.
Lee Se-yeon? If the legendary Necromancer had actually appeared, it made perfect sense why the crowd was suddenly swarming in that direction.
"Ji-soo, looks like Lee Se-yeon is here."
Ju Ga-yeon had made the comment casually, simply reacting to the presence of a massive celebrity. However, Yoo Ji-soo's expression darkened even further.
Ah, shoot.
Ju Ga-yeon realized her mistake. Lee Se-yeon was currently one of the few players officially confirmed to be on the same team as Kim Tae-hyun!
"After all, compared to Miss Lee Se-yeon... I'm nothing... My skills are lacking, my level is lower... Miss Lee Se-yeon is amazing at the game, she's incredibly beautiful, and she has such a great personality... *sniffle*..."
If Kim Tae-hyun had been here to hear this, he would have scoffed and snapped, What kind of absolute nonsense is that?
But Tae-hyun was nowhere to be found. Only Ju Ga-yeon was here to witness the pity party.
How exhausting...!
Though she found it incredibly tedious, Ju Ga-yeon kept her thoughts to herself. She was, after all, a truly magnanimous and exemplary Guild Leader!
"That's not true, Ji-soo. You have your own charms—"
"Lee Se-yeon is handing out a quest!"
"???"
Ju Ga-yeon's head whipped around once more.
Lee Se-yeon was handing out a quest? Regardless of whether they actually accepted it, the sheer curiosity of what kind of quest she was offering was too juicy to ignore!
While Lee Se-yeon did stream, she rarely partied with random players. She was strictly a solo player, occasionally clearing quests with only a select few of her own guild members.
And now, that Lee Se-yeon was distributing a quest to the public?
"Ji-soo."
"...?"
At the sudden, commanding tone in Ju Ga-yeon's voice, Yoo Ji-soo looked up.
"Let's go check out that quest! I'll listen to the rest of your self-pity later!"
"..."
Lee Se-yeon was indeed a seasoned professional. A calm, effortless confidence exuded from her every word. She spoke slowly and deliberately, keeping her audience thoroughly engaged without letting the pace drag.
The crowd listening to her already looked completely spellbound. They were fully convinced that this quest was a once-in-a-lifetime jackpot.
Some had fallen hook, line, and sinker for Lee Se-yeon's subtle, persuasive rhetoric. Others simply wanted to tag along and watch her in action, regardless of the quest itself. Already, a massive crowd had gathered like storm clouds, eager to participate in the campaign to subjugate the Sadique Order.
Yet, not everyone was so easily swayed. A few players, like Ju Ga-yeon, tilted their heads in skepticism.
They were the ones questioning her motives: Why on earth is Lee Se-yeon doing this?
"Subjugating the Sadique Order? Why is Lee Se-yeon leading this? Is there something special about the Sadique Order?"
"Come to think of it, Hyung... I mean, Oppa also has a massive grudge against the Sadique Order. Wait... could Miss Lee Se-yeon be doing this to help Oppa?"
It was a chillingly accurate deduction!
Though, if one were to look at the actual details, the underlying reasons were quite different...
"Lee Se-yeon? Really? Are they actually close enough to—ah, wait."
Ju Ga-yeon quickly trailed off. There was absolutely no need to voice the question: Are Lee Se-yeon and Kim Tae-hyun really close enough for her to do him such a massive favor?
"They... look... so good together..."
Yoo Ji-soo's aura was so gloomy she looked ready to dig a hole and crawl deep into the earth.
With no way of knowing the actual truth, the actions of Lee Se-yeon and Kim Tae-hyun naturally looked entirely different to the two onlookers. To them, it seemed like a heartwarming display of mutual care and consideration between a stunningly handsome man and a beautiful woman!
"No, Ji-soo. That might not be it at all. You shouldn't jump to conclusions before we even confirm—"
Before Ju Ga-yeon could even finish her sentence, Lee Se-yeon, who was speaking in the distance, added another detail.
"By the way, Kim Tae-hyun will also be participating in this quest, so if anyone is interested, feel free to seek him out."
"Kim Tae-hyun too?!"
"Yes, indeed. Actually, Kim Tae-hyun absolutely loves receiving attention from people. He gets especially thrilled when people ask him for autographs, so don't feel pressured—just approach him and strike up a friendly conversation when you see him."
"Whoaaaaaaa!"
Lee Se-yeon had driven the final nail into the coffin before Ju Ga-yeon could even attempt to deny it!
Ju Ga-yeon realized she couldn't let things go on like this.
"Let's go, Ji-soo."
"Huh?"
"You should join the quest too. We still have plenty of time before our next preliminary match starts anyway."
"But... that's a bit... I'd feel too guilty toward the other guild members."
"Nonsense. The others will definitely want to join once they hear about this."
And she was right. Now that Lee Se-yeon had organized such a massive, server-wide event, there was absolutely nothing to lose by participating. Just being there to witness it with their own eyes would be a massive gain!
"...Alright!"
Yoo Ji-soo leaped to her feet. Moping around here wasn't going to change anything. What mattered was taking action!
"Huh? Lee Se-yeon is gathering people for a Sadique Order subjugation quest?"
"They say Senior Kim Tae-hyun is going to be there too! Su-hyeok, what do you want to do? It looks like it's nearby."
"Let's go. We should help him out, even if it's just a little. We have plenty of time before our next match anyway."
"I knew you'd say that!"
Choi Jin-hyuk and the rest of his friends looked incredibly excited. To think they could participate in a quest that Tae-hyun was clearing! Just watching him in action was thrilling enough, but...
Since Su-hyeok is close with Senior Tae-hyun...!
The moment the possibility of partying up with Tae-hyun crossed their minds, they lost interest in everything else. They absolutely had to join!
"Alright! Let's go!"
"What should we say when we meet him? Huh? What do we say?"
"Let's figure that out after we actually meet him... Stop stressing over it already."