"If You Lose to Kim Tae-hyun, You Die"

"If you lose to Kim Tae-hyun, you die."

Lee Se-yeon's words sent a collective shiver down her teammates' spines. Normally, she was their reliable captain, leading them with polite dignity. Even with countless pro gaming teams cropping up, her teammates still viewed Lee Se-yeon as the perfect captain.

"??!"

"??!?!"

"...Is not what I'm going to say, but..."

Phew. It was just a joke.

No, wait. I don't think she's joking.

She claimed it was a joke, but her eyes screamed otherwise!

"But it certainly wouldn't feel very good, would it? To lose?"

"Y-Yes! Absolutely!"

"I totally agree, Unni!"

Lee Se-yeon's eyes flashed with pure, murderous intent. None of her teammates possessed the sheer audacity to say, I'd be happy with second place. Even Ryu Tae-su, Tae-hyun's biggest fanboy, couldn't bring himself to utter a single word.

She's terrifying!

Squeeze!

As Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon shook hands, the already deafening roar of the crowd seemed to multiply tenfold. A handshake between the two top players! Neither of them said a word. Yet, just by looking into each other's eyes, they knew exactly what the other was thinking.

We really should have been allowed to attack each other inside the dungeon. Right?

My thoughts exactly.

It had already been announced that the finals dungeon would have far less information available and a significantly higher difficulty than previous rounds. No matter how skilled Tae-hyun or Lee Se-yeon were, they couldn't just charge in blindly. Besides, both teams needed time to set up. Right now, it was all about analyzing and preparing!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Tae-hyun hammered away rapidly as he asked Choi Sang-yun, "Did you check the dungeon's special traits?"

"Looks like monster HP has been boosted. By about two to three times."

Dungeon traits were determined at random. This time, it was a monster HP boost! A simple yet brutal modifier.

But this is actually better for us.

The core strategy of Tae-hyun's team was to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠quickly herd the monsters into a single spot and wipe them out with overwhelming area-of-effect damage. Even with bloated HP pools, their raw firepower would carry them through.

The siege weapons Tae-hyun's team had carried around so far had all been of the launcher variety. While Tae-hyun's skills allowed him to craft far more powerful siege engines, launcher-type weapons were the most practical when considering crafting time and portability.

All done.

Having finished crafting, Tae-hyun activated his skill. It was a skill he had obtained after reaching the highest tier of his Engineering skill: Deus Ex Machina!

No one, including Manuel, had any idea. No one knew that Tae-hyun had kept such a devastating skill hidden up his sleeve all this time—even during the dragon raid!

Meanwhile, the Yuseong Gaming Team was also rapidly wrapping up their preparations.

"An HP modifier? Understood."

Lee Se-yeon nodded upon hearing the report. It was a challenging trait, but far better than other, more annoying modifiers. At the very least, it would minimize unpredictable ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠variables.

Bombs! They were small, lightweight, and capable of unleashing devastating firepower with zero cooldown. The only catch was their inherent instability, which carried a constant risk of malfunction or backfiring. Lee Se-yeon, however, had bypassed this fatal flaw using her golems' unique special effects.

Right at that moment, Lee Se-yeon finished her preparations and summoned a golem.

Manuel broke out in a cold sweat. It was a golem he had genuinely never seen before! Lee Se-yeon had completed multiple Legendary Quests, and had even clashed head-on with the Guild Alliance on the plains... and she hadn't used this golem even then?

How is that even possible?! What on earth was she thinking?!

Super-elite players were always pulling off the impossible with absolute nonchalance. Of course, rather than some meticulous strategic master plan, both of them had made their choices driven by a single, burning desire: I want to screw over my rival!

While Manuel panicked, the other casters shouted in pure excitement.

The Volatile Golem was indeed Lee Se-yeon's ultimate trump card. It was a summoning skill she had obtained as a reward for completing a Legendary Quest! Capable of packing itself with a massive stockpile of bombs and even detonating its own body, this golem boasted astronomical destructive power.

And Lee Se-yeon didn't stop there. She activated her Lich transformation along with every single buff and enhancement skill in her arsenal. She was laying bare the full, terrifying extent of her Legendary Class all at once!

Unni... you really didn't need to go all out right from the start...

Kim Hyeon-ah watched with a complicated expression. Lee Se-yeon was usually so calm and composed, but today was different. Just how desperately did she want to beat Kim Tae-hyun to go this far!

With the sudden reveal of an unexpected skill and the full deployment of her Legendary Class abilities, the stadium erupted, echoing with chants of Lee Se-yeon's name.

But less than a minute later, the crowd began chanting Tae-hyun's name instead.

Tae-hyun had made his move.

"Let's go!"

There was no time to waste. Tae-hyun and his party began sprinting forward. The animated cannon moved entirely on its own, just like a golem.

You should've done this from the start!

Now that he didn't have to haul heavy equipment, Cain felt a massive weight lifted off his shoulders.

The other casters nudged Manuel in the ribs. Get a grip!

A dazed Manuel shook his head. As a world-renowned analyst, he couldn't afford to lose his composure on live television.

It was a blatant, shameless subject change! Though taken aback, the other casters played along.

No manual reloading required! No need to craft and load ammunition! No need to lug it around and set it up! A giant cannon stripped of every single drawback inherent to siege weaponry was nothing short of a cheat code. Furthermore, with Tae-hyun's Engineering skill hovering near the absolute peak, the skill's potency was amplified to ridiculous heights.

This is great and all, but...

Do we... actually have anything to do?

We're literally doing nothing!

Thanks to the automated cannon, the rest of the party felt an acute sense of embarrassment. There were tens of thousands of spectators packed into the stadium, and tens of millions watching online...

Perhaps due to the dungeon's high-HP modifier, a few monsters managed to survive the relentless cannon barrage.

Seeing this, Cain and Choi Sang-yun shouted in unison.

"Aha! Some survived!"

"I'll... I'll take them!"

"...You two look suspiciously happy about that," Lee Da-bi remarked dryly.

"N-No, of course not! What are you talking about?"

But Tae-hyun didn't even give them that chance.

Flash! Flash! Flash!

Light burst from all directions as the remaining handful of monsters were instantly cut down.

Cain and Choi Sang-yun glared at him, shouting in unison with deep resentment, "Hey!!!"

"...?"

Tae-hyun blinked, looking at them as if they had lost their minds.

"L-Let us do something too...!"

"Why are you acting so weird all of a sudden? Move, quickly! Who knows what Lee Se-yeon is up to right now!"

Daniel, the mechanical engineering blacksmith, was struck with absolute awe as he watched the broadcast of the finals. It was a wave of inspiration similar to when he had first witnessed Tae-hyun wiping out rankers with bombs!

That... That's it! That's exactly it!

An animated, living mechanical device!

My thinking has been so narrow and rigid all this time!

After parting ways with Gabriel's faction of mechanical engineering blacksmiths—who were solely obsessed with bombs—Daniel's skills had grown at an explosive rate. He had single-handedly crafted every single item destined for the Power Warrior Guild members' random boxes. It was backbreaking, soul-crushing labor, but Daniel had loved every second of it.

Even so, he had recently hit a wall. A frustrating plateau where he felt unable to reach the next level of craftsmanship.

But watching Tae-hyun's broadcast today, a bolt of pure enlightenment struck him.

That... is exactly what I need!

In the past, his Engineering skill had been too low, but now, tempered by the brutal grind of crafting countless random boxes, he was ready. He could follow in Tae-hyun's footsteps.

As if possessed, Daniel began drafting blueprints.

A mechanical horse! A mechanical bird! A mechanical battle hound! A mechanical bladed unicycle!

The mechanical horse wouldn't be a mere mount. It had to breathe fire from its muzzle, summon lightning from its hooves, and fire volleys of arrows from its flanks! The other creations were no different. Perfect synergy of offense and defense—the ultimate weapons of war!

The difficulty of his designs must have been absurdly high, as warning windows continuously flooded his vision. But Daniel didn't care. Where was the fun in doing something easy?

"Hehehe... ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Muhahaha! Hahahahaha!"

Daniel burst into a manic laugh. To even be able to attempt such a challenge—he was incredibly lucky!

Outside his workshop, the Power Warrior Guild members whispered among themselves.

"What's wrong with Daniel now?"

"Just leave him be."

Daniel might have been a bit eccentric, but he was an incredibly hard worker! Still, there were times when he was genuinely terrifying.

"He looks exactly like those mad scientists from the cartoons I watched as a kid..."

"Shh! Keep it down."

This marked the birth of the legendary mechanical weapons that would later be known throughout Pan-On as "Daniel's Contraptions."