A Beautiful and Deep Pit
The player called Neugu swung a broad, crude bandit's cutlass, sending players logging out one by one with every sweep. The other, Neuga, charged forward relentlessly, ignoring the barrage of arrows and spells. He was like a walking fortress.
“Argh! He's coming this way! Block him!”
Three guild members armed with spears lunged at Cain.
Thud, thud, thud!
You possess extremely high Constitution. Resistance successful!
The demon blood flowing in your veins deflects weak attacks!
Cain's stats and skills completely ignored normal attacks! On top of that, those stats had soared even higher after being corrupted by a demon during the previous Great Chieftain quest. Hideous as he looked, he was an absolute beast!
“Bwahaha! I am Neuga! I'm the man who will become the Bandit King!”
“……”
Tae-hyun, who was fighting from behind, wore a deeply skeptical expression. Sure, I told him to play a fictional character, but that line is a bit...
“H-Hieee!”
Yet, the sheer bravado of the shout seemed to terrify the guild members instead.
“B-Bandit King? Is there actually a class like that?”
“Uh... maybe it's a Legendary class?”
There's no such thing, you idiots...
As the defending guild members collapsed one by one, the survivors began to flee. Tae-hyun didn't bother giving chase, simply shouting after them.
“Remember our names well! Neugu and Neuga! From now on, whenever anyone mentions bandit players, we're the two who will come to mind!”
“Are they gone?”
“They're gone. Let's loot.”
Tae-hyun returned to the wagon to inspect the items. It was loaded with high-quality steel ingots, various types of arrows, and a massive stockpile of weapons.
Hmm?
If it were just steel ingots, he might not have thought twice, but these consumable item sets felt different. It looked as though they were being transported for a very specific, urgent purpose.
Ah. I get it.
There was only one reason the Guild Alliance would be moving supplies like this right now: Sadiq's demonic beasts!
Though Sadiq's Avatar had been vanquished, the demonic beasts he left behind were still spawning near the border, battering forts and villages. Because of this, the Guild Alliance was shedding tears of blood trying to hold them back.
How did we end up settling in the Auston Kingdom and suffering like this!
Of course, they had only chosen the Auston Kingdom because it was the only territory left for players to claim, but it truly was a cursed land. As if the civil war between the princes destroying countless buildings and decimating the NPC population wasn't enough, players had constantly waged war against each other there too. On top of that, lunatics like Kim Tae-san had turned a massive chunk of it into a Plague Wasteland before leaving, and just when they finally managed to unify the kingdom, the evil god Sadiq made his grand entrance! It was safe to call it the most cursed kingdom in all of Pandemonium Online.
Hmm. Stealing from them under these circumstances makes me feel a tiny bit guilty...
“Huff, puff... Kim Tae-hyun. There's way too much stuff here.”
“Take what we can carry and bury the rest. Don't overload yourself to the point where it slows down your movement speed. If we bury it, we can always come back for it later.”
“You've really... done this a lot, haven't you...”
[Alliance_Member_A]: When are the arrows coming?
[Alliance_HQ]: I sent them, so wait.
[Alliance_Member_B]: We don't have steel, so the blacksmiths are just twiddling their thumbs.
[Alliance_HQ]: I sent the steel too, so wait.
[Alliance_Member_C]: Copycats of the Neure and Neupe brothers have appeared!
[Alliance_Member_D]: A demonic beast just broke the fort wall, but we don't have materials to fix it, so we're patching it with wood!
[Alliance_HQ]: I said I sent them!
[Alliance_Member_C]: I'm telling you, copycats of Neure and Neupe appeared!
[Alliance_HQ]: So what do you want me to do?!
[Alliance_Member_C]: We got robbed by them!
[Alliance_HQ]: ?!?! What kind of bullshit is that!
The Guild Alliance executive who had dispatched the supplies to the fort was utterly dumbfounded. What kind of suicidal lunatics would dare touch the Guild Alliance?
With the sheer number of players in Pandemonium Online, not everyone feared or respected the Guild Alliance. But at the very least, almost no one within the Auston Kingdom dared cross them. Whenever a conflict arose, the Guild Alliance made sure to demonstrate the terrifying extent of their power. If any friction occurred, they would mobilize their entire guild force to utterly crush the offenders! Other players avoided messing with them simply because dealing with their petty, relentless retaliation wasn't worth the headache.
Occasionally, a madman would pop up, but those types were usually hunted down so brutally that they ended up quitting the game. Pursuing and player-killing them until they deleted their account! That was the terrifying reality of an Alliance Kill Order.
“Who can we mobilize nearby right now? Eizen's party, right? Tell Eizen's party to track them down! Kill them, confirm their location, and keep spawn-killing them to teach them a lesson!”
The executive ground his teeth as he barked out the orders. They were already busy enough to lose their minds, and some rats had chosen this exact moment to pull a stunt like this.
“These rats will pay dearly!”
Whoosh— thud!
You have defeated all the bandits appearing near Mora City.
Reputation increases.
Contribution Points increase.
“You're a great shot.”
“I've been shooting since I was a kid, so I'm pretty confident. Honestly, this is the only thing I'm good at.”
“A bow is more than enough. There are plenty of people who can't even manage that.”
Lee Da-bi was roaming the outskirts of Mora City with Yu Ji-soo, clearing normal quests. Since Mora City had once been occupied by the Salavian Church, public security in the surrounding areas had deteriorated significantly. Fortunately, this meant a deluge of quests for the players of the Expedition.
Operating under the motto 'Don't just sit around; do something to earn even a single penny,' Lee Da-bi had naturally set out to work. Upon seeing this, Yu Ji-soo had offered to help and tagged along.
Hmm. What should I say to her?
While she appreciated the help, Da-bi was slightly worried. She and Yu Ji-soo had almost nothing in common. Yu Ji-soo was clearly a young lady from a wealthy family, with a gentle and sweet personality. Although Ji-soo looked up to her, Da-bi found it frankly a bit embarrassing.
Respecting me for running the Power Warrior guild is a bit...
If Ji-soo were just a regular Power Warrior guild member, she could treat her casually. But since Ji-soo was a junior Tae-hyun knew, Da-bi couldn't exactly say, 'Hey, want to walk around advertising the Power Warrior guild with me?' Even Lee Da-bi had a conscience.
What on earth should I talk about...
Despite her worries, the conversation flowed surprisingly easily. They had a shared topic of interest, after all.
“So Tae-hyun Opp... I mean, Senior poisoned the food, weakened the contestants, and then set the guild members on them?”
“Exactly. And then he captured every single one of them. I had no idea he was capable of that at first either...”
As Yu Ji-soo kept asking questions, Da-bi found herself reminiscing about her very first encounter with Tae-hyun. The Abalab City arena! Come to think of it, that was the turning point of her life. That was where she had met Tae-hyun. When we first met, I never in my wildest dreams imagined he was this kind of person!
“He was with Cain back then too, I see.”
“I-I wanted to go with him too... but once again, only Cain got to go...”
Yu Ji-soo muttered, her shoulders slumping. To think only Cain got to accompany him on this bandit raid. She had offered to bring the Tyrum Hunters along, but Tae-hyun had rejected the idea, saying, 'You guys stand out too much, and unlike Cain or me, it's too hard for an archer class to hide their identity.'
Da-bi nodded in agreement without thinking.
“I wanted to go with him too.”
“…?”
Yu Ji-soo tilted her head, looking at Da-bi. Da-bi's voice had sounded incredibly wistful. For someone who was supposedly just the leader of the Power Warrior guild working with Tae-hyun for mutual benefit, she sounded far too disappointed!
Wait...?
Only then did Yu Ji-soo realize something was off. Come to think of it, Lee Da-bi suited Tae-hyun far better than Cain ever did. Placing Da-bi next to Tae-hyun, everything clicked perfectly. Their personalities matched, they played well together, and she constantly helped him out with various matters...
A-Are the two of them dating?
If they were dating, all of their past behavior made perfect sense. From hanging out together to frequently having private conversations. In reality, those private talks were just because Da-bi's family lived in the apartment right above Tae-hyun's, but...
Yu Ji-soo's pupils dilated in shock.
They must be keeping it a secret to avoid a scandal since they're on the same team! And I... had no idea...!
Her heart ached with the pain of a heartbreak that had ended before it could even begin, but more than that, she felt incredibly guilty for being an oblivious third wheel. Pure guilt!
W-What should I do?
...That look in her eyes is the exact same one my guild members give me when they're having completely useless thoughts...
“You know, I thought your robberies would be a bit more flashy and cool.”
Cain muttered, swinging his shovel.
This is a truly beautiful and deep pit!
Shoveling skill increases significantly.
Beginner Shoveling → Intermediate Shoveling
Somehow, it felt like they were spending far more time using shovels than actually fighting.
“What did you expect?”
“I mean, in your Pandemonium Online 1 videos, there's always flashy stuff like *kaboom!*—explosions, digging traps, sudden ambushes...”
“And who do you think set all of those up?”
“!”
“Behind every flashy video lies an immense amount of preparation.”
The duo proceeded to log out several more pursuit parties sent by the Guild Alliance, starting with Eizen's. And in their spare time, they kept digging. There were plenty of reasons to dig. By digging as many holes as possible to create temporary warehouses, they could easily store stolen items later. After all, they couldn't exactly start digging when surrounded by enemies. Furthermore, it served to disorient and confuse their pursuers. Additionally, these pits could be modified and utilized as traps. For someone with Tae-hyun's level of Engineering skill, these pits were incredibly versatile tools.
“By the way... you're seriously good at shoveling. I've been doing this since Pandemonium Online 1, but I've rarely seen anyone as talented as you.”
Tae-hyun praised Cain in earnest. From the angle of his shovel to the speed of his swings, Cain was scooping out dirt in the most textbook, ideal posture imaginable.
“I'm not really... happy about this, because it doesn't feel like a compliment...”
“No, seriously, man. It's an incredible talent. You should've chosen the Miner class. Why'd you go and suffer as a Raider?”
“……”
Cain accepted the praise with highly conflicted feelings.
You have successfully dug a Heroic-grade creation!
You have achieved a result that is nearly impossible with your current Shoveling skill level. Shoveling skill increases significantly.
...Stop it...!
Even the game system felt like it was mocking him!
Thud—
“?”
Feeling his shovel strike something solid, Cain tilted his head. What was that?
Clack, clack— thud!
Cain struck down hard.
You have successfully located and shattered a weak point in the ground in a single strike.
An astounding sense of perception!
Shoveling skill increases signi—
“Oh, come on!”
Rumble—
Before he even had time to lose his temper, the ground beneath him collapsed, and Cain plunged straight down.
“?!?!”
“Cain, you really are... a master of shoveling. At this rate, you could easily aim for the Master, no, even the Legendary Shoveling skill.”
Currently, the highest skill level achieved by players was Master. The moment a skill transcended Master and reached Legendary, it would be fully mastered. The first and greatest honor! Naturally, it wasn't something just anyone could achieve. It required a natural aptitude for the skill, and far more importantly, an immense amount of effort. And Tae-hyun saw that raw talent in Cain. Now, the guy was literally digging straight down into the depths in a single strike.
“Stop talking nonsense and get me out of here!!”
“Got it. I'm coming down.”
Thud—
The hot and intense power of Sadiq attempts to burn the intruder...
[IMMUNE] You possess Sadiq's Authority. You are immune to the penalty.
[ALERT] Carbanog is horrified!
“Oh... what a place.”
Tae-hyun was genuinely surprised. Tae-hyun was well aware that Sadiq's demonic beasts were continuously appearing near the border of the Auston and Erangs Kingdoms. A hellish war of attrition that wouldn't end until Sadiq's Avatar was defeated! Because of this, everyone from the Guild Alliance to the guilds of the Erangs Kingdom was desperately searching for Sadiq's Avatar... But to think such a demonic beast spawning ground was hidden right beneath their feet.
Cain, who had been sprawled on the ground, stood up and approached. The massive eggs clinging to the walls writhed ominously as if alive, looking ready to hatch at any second.
“What should we do? Should we burn them?”
“No! Why would you burn them? Don't you feel any pity for these poor eggs?!”
“?!”