Is Guard Duty Such a Big Deal?
The man who had been standing guard in front of the blue gate for over five hours already spat curses under his breath.
'This is torture, damn it...'
If there weren't eyes watching around him, he would've flopped down right then and rubbed his aching back and legs. But as an employee drawing a salary from the Player Association, he couldn't make a scene like that. Especially not with broadcast reporters' cameras filming the gate and him live in real time.
'Talk about bad luck... Why'd I have to draw blue gate duty of all things?'
Whenever a gate appeared at any location, Association staff and military police were immediately deployed to guard it. It was necessary to prevent any unlikely incidents. No one questioned that fact. The grumbling was just inevitable.
Especially for blue gates, which could take anywhere from a day to three days to clear. What more needed to be said? Hungry, sleepy, legs aching... This job wasn't fit for humans.
'If I could sit around playing cards like those reporters while waiting, I wouldn't complain...'
At least there was one consolation.
'Shift change time's almost here. Finally, I can breathe.'
A faint smile crept onto the man's face as he glanced at his wristwatch. The moment had arrived to swap with that senior who had used his seniority to stick him with the chilly morning shift first. Just then, the rooftop door opened, and the senior staffer approached the gate.
"Good work. Go grab some food."
"No, you take care, Senior."
The man bowed his head quickly and hurried toward the rooftop door. He wanted to dump the tedious duty on that senior and finally sit down for a proper meal. What to have for this late lunch? As that trivial thought crossed his mind and he was about to leave the rooftop—
Ku-gu-gu-gu-!
"Huh?"
Sudden intense vibrations shook the rooftop floor. The man, along with the dozens of reporters there, jumped to their feet in a panic.
"Wh-what..."
"What's going on all of a sudden?"
"No way, an outbreak...? But it's not time for that yet!"
As the reporters scrambled to protect their camera gear in confusion, the military police went on high alert, their expressions sharp.
Amid those watching the gate, which was emitting powerful shockwaves, not a single one dared suggest such a possibility.
Step, step.
"Huh...?!"
"Th-those people walking out... aren't they players...?"
"My God. Does that mean..."
The possibility that the gate had been cleared.
As the mana waves rapidly diminished and the gate contracted, players began emerging one by one. Exhausted, covered in wounds here and there, barely relieved to have survived. Their pitiful state was heartbreaking, but that wasn't what caught the reporters' eyes. What they focused on was...
"What?! So the blue gate's already been conquered?!"
"Has that much time passed?"
"N-no, that's not it. This is..."
The fact that the blue gate had been conquered already.
And,
"Y-yes! 7 hours and 32 minutes! The gate was conquered in exactly 7 hours and 32 minutes!"
"No way... Not even a yellow or red gate, but a blue one in under seven hours...? Wait, what's the shortest record for a blue gate?"
"As far as I know, it's the 8-hour mark set by the S-rank couple..."
"Then this means...?"
The fact that the blue gate conquest time record had been broken for the first time in 13 years.
That was what all the reporters zeroed in on unanimously.
No, "zeroed in" was too mild a term—their state wasn't calm enough for that. Even these reporters, hardened by every imaginable breaking story, stared blankly, unable to easily comprehend the situation.
7 hours and 32 minutes.
Versus 8 hours...
More precisely, 8 hours and 3 minutes—the record set by the S-rank couple, effortlessly shattered!
With experts predicting it wouldn't be broken for the next 20 years, it was no wonder the reporters were speechless. As everyone gawked dazedly at the gate and players,
'Damn it. Why the hell did the gate close not even a minute after I switched with that guy?'
Lava bubbled furiously inside the man who had just been on guard duty.
For reporters, an "all-time record" was synonymous with an "all-time scoop."
Breaking news flooded out in real time, and reporters burning with zeal for the exclusive charged at the players with microphones thrust forward, their intensity ferocious.
"What happened inside the gate?!"
"Did you see who took down the boss monster?!"
"Just one word, please!"
The rooftop atop the skyscraper heated up under the reporters' fervor to snag even a scrap. Yet in comparison...
「......」
The players stumbling out of the gate reacted with icy coldness.
Just minutes ago, they had endured nightmarish horrors inside that blue vortex. Who wouldn't bristle at reporters shoving mics in their faces demanding interviews out of nowhere?
"E-excuse me, everyone! These are the players who just finished a grueling conquest! Please hold off on interviews for a bit...!"
"What? We've been waiting too!"
"We're protecting the public's right to know here!"
"This is media suppression!"
In the end, even Association staff stepped in, but it was futile against reporters whose eyes had rolled back in frenzy.
As this village farce unfolded abruptly on the skyscraper rooftop,
"Don't be such a nuisance."
A low voice laced with irritation echoed softly. Though quiet, the strong mana infused in it made it ring clearly in the reporters' ears like an echo.
"What? Nuisance?"
"That's a bit harsh. Who said th—"
The moment incensed reporters turned toward the gate where the voice came from, gasps erupted here and there.
"Any decent citizen wouldn't want their right to know protected by harassing heroes who just risked their lives fighting monsters."
The one who spoke in that biting tone was Jae-min.
The new S-rank whose popularity with the public was at an all-time high! No reporter there had the guts to demand he retract his words or apologize, backed as he was by overwhelming public support.
And above all...
"While I'm at it, let me make this clear..."
In the hand of Jae-min, emerging from the gate with the Black Lion Guild members.
A ore glowing with vivid blue light was gripped tightly.
To the reporters' eyes, that ore in Jae-min's hand looked like a bar of gold.
It was undoubtedly the boss monster's core.
Irrefutable proof that Jae-min was the top contributor to this conquest.
And at the same time, a symbol that Jae-min had seized control of the situation.
"......"
"...A-hem!"
With those words, the rowdy reporters fell silent like scolded children.
Meanwhile.
In the guild office, watching the news, Hong Seok-gyu trembled violently, his hand clutching the teacup spasming.
"Wh-what..."
Out of anger that the Black Lion Guild, supposed to be wiped out inside, had returned unscathed?
No.
Out of despair beyond mere shock.
It couldn't be helped.
"Wh-where are our guys...?"
Even as Jae-min handled the interview with surprising skill for his first press conference,
The faintly visible blue gate behind him had shrunk to barely allow one more person,
But the elite assault team of Mad Dog Guild, led by Kang Tae-sik, hadn't shown so much as a nose.
No matter how long they waited, the assault team didn't emerge?
There was only one possible reason.
A reason that, despite knowing it was the only one, made you desperately search for alternatives.
Annihilation.
"N-no way..."
Hong Seok-gyu's pupils quivered as he couldn't grasp where to even begin being shocked or despairing.
Not some ragtag second- or third-stringers.
This was the elite assault team.
A squad composed solely of the guild's core forces.
And now, suddenly, that elite team wiped out?
This might be a catastrophe threatening the guild's very fate...
No.
"U-ugh, uwaa...!"
As the person responsible for assigning that team, he needed to worry about his own neck first.
In that instant, Hong Seok-gyu looked a decade older, withered away.
"...Oh Chae-rin’s gonna kill me."
Suddenly clutching his chest and gasping, Hong Seok-gyu finally hit his psychological limit. His cheeks puffed out in a huff, and he started dry-heaving.
There had to be some way...
With his head bowed, spewing dry heaves, Hong Seok-gyu's gaze slowly turned to the TV.
There,
Kang Tae-sik was leisurely exiting the gate.
"Wh-what...?"
With a blank expression like he'd been possessed, he walked toward the interviewing reporters.
The ominous atmosphere silenced the scene momentarily.
The office where Hong Seok-gyu sat was no different.
'F-first...'
Lifting the teacup with trembling hands that wouldn't stop, Hong Seok-gyu took a sip of coffee to steady himself.
'K-Kang Tae-sik survived. There's still a sliver of hope.'
Of course, it wasn't joy at Kang Tae-sik's survival.
With Kang Tae-sik alive, there was at least a scapegoat to shift the blame to.
Not full exoneration, but enough to dodge the death penalty, at least.
A few on-site reporters, switching targets from Jae-min to him, shoved mics his way.
But who was Kang Tae-sik?
A guy who, at the slightest annoyance, would spew profanities at reporters even on live TV.
Shoving a mic at such a man? Utter folly.
'No matter what, I have to pin this on that bastard Kang Tae-sik. Whatever it takes!'
Knowing full well Kang Tae-sik would refuse the interview, Hong Seok-gyu ignored the news and pondered how to cut losses at Kang Tae-sik's level. He took another sip of coffee.
At the same moment, Kang Tae-sik on TV opened his mouth.
"Pfft—?!"
Hong Seok-gyu spat out his coffee.