Chapter 8
Chapter 8
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Murderer
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“Hyun-soo?”
“Yeah.”
“Did you really have to turn them down so bluntly?”
Song Ha-na asked with a cautious expression.
“There’s no need to team up with them, is there?”
“Well, sure, but joining forces with others isn’t a bad choice either.”
“Joining forces? Do we need to?”
Song Ha-na shook her head at Kang Hyun-soo’s question.
“Do you want to help those people?”
“I wouldn’t say the thought hasn’t crossed my mind. You helped three people in the second tutorial too, Hyun-soo.”
‘She still hasn’t fully shed her Earth ways.’
A faint smile crept onto Kang Hyun-soo’s lips.
To Kang Hyun-soo, whose memories of being a modern human had faded, Song Ha-na’s lingering modern sensibilities didn’t seem so bad.
“Can you trust those people?”
“Huh?”
“Can you trust them enough to watch your back, to guard your sleep?”
At Kang Hyun-soo’s words, Song Ha-na recalled the second tutorial.
There had been five participants in the second tutorial.
But just like the third, only Kang Hyun-soo and Song Ha-na had stood watch.
They had hunted alone together.
‘Someone to watch my back, to guard my sleep. Could I trust them?’
Impossible.
How could she trust people she’d just met today?
‘But Hyun-soo trusted me.’
Though less than a day had passed since they met, he had believed in her and slept.
He had turned his back to her while hunting monsters.
And she had done the same for him.
It was truly wondrous.
“I don’t think I could.”
Having sorted her thoughts, Song Ha-na answered Kang Hyun-soo’s question.
“Right? Me neither.”
Kang Hyun-soo smiled in response.
“Hey.”
“Yeah?”
“But how did you come to trust me?”
Song Ha-na asked carefully.
“You just seemed trustworthy.”
Song Ha-na’s face flushed red at Kang Hyun-soo’s reply.
“And you, Ha-na?”
“Same here.”
Kang Hyun-soo and Song Ha-na gazed into each other’s eyes, filled with trust, then burst into awkward laughter.
They resumed their hunt.
‘Yeah, she really hasn’t shed her Earth ways yet.’
To think she took his “just seemed trustworthy” at face value.
Since arriving in the Atlantis dimension, Kang Hyun-soo had never once fallen into a deep sleep.
He always took light naps while staying vigilant.
The reason he could turn his back to Song Ha-na during hunts was his confidence in his own abilities.
Confidence that he could subdue her instantly, no matter what she tried.
Song Ha-na was a player suspected to be the one once called the Emperor of Assassins before his regression.
There was no way he could truly trust her.
‘I wonder if I’ll ever be able to trust her for real someday?’
He hoped that day would come.
But it wouldn’t be easy.
Kang Hyun-soo had the bitter experience of being betrayed and killed by those he had trusted.
Night fell.
Kang Hyun-soo and Song Ha-na entered the cave.
The cave was a good size, and a stream flowed right beside it.
They had a simple meal and settled down to sleep.
Kang Hyun-soo fell asleep first.
Song Ha-na stood watch, hunting monsters that approached to drink from the stream.
Crunch, crunch.
Footsteps came from beyond the bushes.
Shing.
Song Ha-na drew her sword and prepared for battle.
But what emerged from the bushes wasn’t a monster.
It was a person.
One she had met before.
“Whoa, we meet again here.”
The man in the lead smiled brightly and spoke to Song Ha-na.
It was the group of players they had encountered earlier that day.
“What brings you here?”
Song Ha-na asked in a wary tone.
“We were looking for a place to spend the night as it got dark. We followed the sound of water, but didn’t expect to find someone already here.”
“Now that you know there are prior occupants, why not look elsewhere?”
“Hahaha, you’re so prickly. Alright, we’ll go find somewhere else.”
As the group seemed to back off willingly, Song Ha-na lowered her guard.
Whoosh!
Three arrows flew at her simultaneously.
“Shield!”
Startled, Song Ha-na activated her defensive skill.
Boom!
The shield perfectly blocked the three arrows.
But at the same moment, nine men drew their weapons and charged.
“Hyun-soo!”
Song Ha-na urgently shook Kang Hyun-soo awake.
Kang Hyun-soo sprang up in an instant.
In truth, he had woken the moment they approached.
He had merely pretended to sleep to see how Song Ha-na would handle it.
Clang! Clang!
The clash of metal rang out as a 2-versus-9 battle erupted.
‘These bastards are pretty strong.’
This was beyond what players at this stage should possess.
Their items were high quality and plentiful.
And that wasn’t all.
Their levels were high, and they had a wide variety of skills.
Song Ha-na struggled as multiple foes pressed her.
Slash!
“Urk!”
The armor protecting Song Ha-na split, and small wounds began to appear one by one.
‘Murderers, huh?’
Slash!
Kang Hyun-soo’s sword cleanly severed one enemy’s neck.
[You have achieved a remarkable feat.]
[Title: Tutorial Murderer C-Rank acquired.]
[You have achieved a remarkable feat.]
[Title: Tutorial Murderer Hunter B-Rank acquired.]
[You have achieved a remarkable feat.]
[Title: Tutorial Justified Revenge A-Rank acquired.]
Severing one player’s neck had netted him three achievements.
And the gains didn’t stop there.
[Skillbook: Chain Assault – E-Rank]
One of the dead player’s skills dropped as a skillbook.
[Level up.]
He even leveled up.
PK.
Player-versus-player combat carried great risk, but the rewards were equally immense.
‘I didn’t expect murderer groups to form this early.’
Murderer groups typically activated after the third tutorial was halfway done.
‘Well, it’s not absolute.’
Slash! Slash!
Each swing of Kang Hyun-soo’s sword sent the heads of charging players flying.
With every kill, he gained skillbooks and substantial experience.
‘Skills like these need to be learned right away.’
Kang Hyun-soo immediately absorbed the skills dropped by his enemies.
The foes seemed experienced in player combat.
But they couldn’t match Kang Hyun-soo’s experience from over thirty years of battling monsters and players before his regression.
‘Chain Assault, Acceleration.’
Kang Hyun-soo wielded his sword while aptly using his new skills.
The enemies’ numbers dwindled rapidly.
“What the hell? Why are they so strong?!”
“Cheol-jin’s dead!”
The players who ambushed Kang Hyun-soo and Song Ha-na appeared genuinely flustered.
They had never encountered this before.
Their battles always ended in victory.
And they claimed the spoils accordingly.
But not this time.
“Kill that bitch first!”
The murderer group’s leader issued orders and charged at Kang Hyun-soo.
Clang, clang!
Kang Hyun-soo calmly dispatched the enemies one by one.
All the while, he kept an eye on Song Ha-na.
She hadn’t killed a single foe yet.
Partly due to their fierce assaults.
But mostly because her heart recoiled at taking a life.
‘Not yet, huh?’
As Kang Hyun-soo wore a regretful expression—
Splat!
The head of an enemy lunging at Song Ha-na exploded.
Song Ha-na, who had only used defensive skills, now unleashed her powerful offensive magic.
The enemies, lacking any magic resistance, were swept away in an instant.
Slash!
The leader fell to Kang Hyun-soo’s sword.
“Eek!”
One terrified enemy fled.
Kang Hyun-soo prioritized killing the one who had turned his back.
The nine enemies were reduced to two in moments.
“H-Ha! I surrender! Please spare me!”
“Me too! I surrender!”
Seeing the tide turn, the two survivors dropped their weapons and begged.
Facing them with just two against nine had been suicide enough; now it was hopeless.
“What should we do?”
Kang Hyun-soo glanced at Song Ha-na and asked.
But no reply came.
Hiss...
Song Ha-na stared blankly at the sight of residual mana from the fallen corpses flowing into her body.
‘She’s out of it.’
It must be her first kill.
Even Kang Hyun-soo had been shocked by his first kill before regressing.
But.
‘Dwelling on it too long isn’t good.’
She needed to snap out of it quickly.
“Ha-na?”
Kang Hyun-soo called her name and tapped her shoulder.
“Y-Yes? Yes.”
“They’re surrendering. What do you think we should do?”
Kang Hyun-soo asked again.
“Uh, well.”
Song Ha-na hesitated, unable to answer easily.
The two surrendered players exchanged glances.
“We’re sorry! Please spare us! It wasn’t our choice. That guy forced us!”
“Same for me! He threatened to kill us if we didn’t join. What could weaklings like us do?”
Tears and snot streaming, they pleaded desperately with Song Ha-na.
‘What will she decide?’
Kang Hyun-soo watched with curious eyes, awaiting her response.
To him, whose mindset was fully attuned to Atlantis dimension life, killing them was the obvious answer.
No need to leave future troubles.
But Song Ha-na was different.
“What do you think we should do, Hyun-soo?”
“Kill them. No point leaving loose ends.”
Song Ha-na’s eyes trembled faintly at his calm reply.
“Please spare us! I’m innocent!”
“Same here! We were just forced to fight!”
The two clung to her even more desperately.
They realized Song Ha-na was their only hope for survival.
Whoosh!
Song Ha-na swung her sword.
Slash!
Red blood sprayed as both heads soared into the air.
“Huh.”
Kang Hyun-soo was genuinely surprised.
He hadn’t expected her to behead them.
“Didn’t you want to spare them?”
He asked Song Ha-na, puzzled.
“I did.”
“Then why?”
“They were lying.”
“Lying?”
“Yeah.”
“How can you be sure? They might really have been coerced.”
“If they were telling the truth, they would’ve sided with us when the fight was even. But they fought us with everything they had until just before surrendering.”
A satisfied smile formed on Kang Hyun-soo’s lips at her answer.
“I see. Is that all?”
“No. One more reason. They’re no threat to us, but they are to other players. Sparing people who kill for experience and items would just create more innocent victims.”
She was right.
“And...”
Song Ha-na paused briefly before continuing.
“If you try to kill others, you should be prepared to die yourself.”
‘Perfect.’
Excellent.
If you try to kill others, be prepared to die.
To Kang Hyun-soo, it sounded less like words for the dead men and more like Song Ha-na steeling herself.
Her mentality was properly armed now.
Whether she was the Slaughter Emperor or not didn’t matter.
‘She’s already an outstanding player.’
Far beyond sufficient as a subordinate—she was overflowing with potential.