Unmoved Victories
The cheers continued for quite some time.
"Hurry up and start!"
"Come on, come on!"
"Woooooo!"
A single voice pierced through the roar.
"Attention, please."
It was the examiner.
"The match will now begin. First, Group A No. 2 and Group A No. 187, please come up to the arena."
Group A No. 2 was the user who had been with Dark.
"Kilimanjaro."
His opponent was.
"Death."
The examiner nodded.
"Begin the match!"
Kilimanjaro drew his bow, while Death pulled out his sword and shield.
Death advanced first.
Kilimanjaro smirked and released the bowstring.
Pa-aaang!
His hand moved at tremendous speed.
"Huh...?"
Death tilted his head.
There was clearly only one arrow.
What the hell?
He easily swatted away the arrow closing in right in front of him.
With a pak sound, one arrow flew off to the left, yet arrows were still approaching.
Th-this!
It wasn't just one.
Dozens of arrows had been fired so perfectly that they looked like a single one.
He couldn't block them all.
He threw his body sideways.
Hup!
But then something bizarre happened. The arrows, streaking forward, suddenly curved sharply and began chasing Death as he rolled on the ground.
In a panic from their lethal momentum, he hurriedly raised his shield. The arrows struck it one after another.
Thud, thud-thud-thud!
The problem was that Kilimanjaro was still moving his hands.
Pa-aaang!
Arrows rained down like a storm.
*
The winner of the first match was Kilimanjaro. Three more matches followed.
And now, the fourth.
"Group B No. 98."
Mu-hyuk's number was called.
He stood and climbed into the arena.
"Group B No. 331."
He turned to check his opponent.
It wasn't Adion.
"Name?"
"Mu-hyuk."
"Miracle."
The spectators watching erupted in cheers.
"Woooaaah!"
In truth, few in the crowd knew the players stepping into the arena by name. But anyone who had made it this far had to be skilled, right?
"Beat him, whoever!"
That's why the cheers didn't die down.
"Yeah, crush him!"
"Smash him to bits!"
The stands were in a frenzy of excitement.
The cameramen kept an eye on the crowd, capturing it all. Among them, one who had watched the entire second preliminary round from start to finish spotted Mu-hyuk and smiled.
There he is.
Fundamentally different from the others.
Not flashy, but captivating.
Most players fought alone, focusing solely on skills. Their patterns were similar.
No matter how intense or fun the fights, seeing the same scenes over and over got boring.
The one who shattered that boredom.
That was Mu-hyuk.
Alright, let's capture this properly.
Even better than before.
The cameraman shifted position to frame Mu-hyuk's face perfectly.
Start already.
"The match between Mu-hyuk and Miracle begins!"
The examiner stepped down.
Without any warning, the air trembled.
Yes, this is it.
The cameraman's face lit up.
Dozens of skeletons appeared with a heavy thud.
Their overwhelming presence made him swallow hard.
Over two meters tall, clad in sturdy bone armor.
What if they all charged at once?
Just imagining it sent chills down his spine.
Let's get this on camera!
The cameraman darted around busily.
Kirrik.
The skeletons began to move.
His opponent's reaction?
He panned to Miracle, Mu-hyuk's foe. Through the helmet slit, his eyes shook violently.
Skeletons he'd subtly dismissed. Now they exuded massive pressure—no wonder he was rattled.
Gripping his sword and shield tightly, Miracle backed away hesitantly, stopping at the arena's edge. He steeled himself and assumed a stance.
The skeleton horde advanced on him.
Tension peaked.
Kiaaaak!
The battle erupted with a bizarre skeleton's screech.
"Woooah..."
The cheers didn't last long.
Why?
The fight was too one-sided.
Ruthlessly so.
*
Mu-hyuk didn't move an inch.
His skeletons alone overwhelmed the opponent, Miracle.
"Damn it! I can't lose like this...!"
Miracle screamed, but Mu-hyuk ignored him.
The victor was truth itself.
Mu-hyuk commanded his Armor Knights.
One powerful strike.
The diverse weapons of dozens of Armor Knights glowed.
They swung, and with a massive crash, Miracle vanished.
His HP hit zero, ejecting him from the arena. The examiner climbed up and shouted.
"Mu-hyuk wins!"
Only then did the cheers explode.
"Woooaaah!"
"Insane!"
"That was straight fire!"
The skeletons filling the arena vanished.
Mu-hyuk stood alone, towering.
He scanned the crowd briefly, then descended slowly.
His expression said it all.
Victory was only natural.
From his perspective, yes. Losing to a non-elite, non-top ranker was impossible.
He hadn't played this sloppily.
With all that knowledge fueling his growth, defeat would be the real anomaly.
Of course, against hidden experts or top rankers, it might differ. Their talents were exceptional.
Just look at White Wolf.
The real fight starts at the round of 16.
He'd face the winner of the third match in the round of 32 anyway.
Not that impressive, so skeletons alone would suffice.
Just keep his senses sharp.
Mu-hyuk would move after that.
Save the real power for them.
To pierce even the slightest complacency.
"Woooaaah!"
Ignoring the ongoing cheers, he headed to the winners' lounge.
Victors lounged on chairs or beds scattered around.
He glanced at Kilimanjaro, the first to pass prelims.
High chance of facing him in the round of 16 after winning round of 32.
No doubt Kilimanjaro would advance.
He faced forward and claimed an empty bed.
Matches lasted one to five minutes.
56 players left—28 matches.
Average three minutes: 84 minutes tops.
Now 2:15 p.m.
Round of 64 ends before 4.
Plenty of time.
Mu-hyuk rested fully, then entered his private space on the right, pulling out disposable crafting tools.
Master crafting ASAP.
The item revolution was coming.
Could outsource to other blacksmiths, but initial costs would skyrocket. He had money, but no need to waste.
Wiser to craft steadily himself, even if slower.
You struck the grain perfectly.
Progress (6.3%) has increased.
High dexterity and strength synergized for faster work.
Returning Dagger crafted.
He shoved the dagger aside and started the next.
One, two, three.
Crafting skill level has risen.
Crafting leveled up after ages.
Now level 17.
Three more, and mastery.
Almost there.
Mu-hyuk set down the hammer and checked his status for the first time in a while.
Level 120 and countless titles jumped out first. Then the core stats brought a smile.
Impressively high for his level. Items helped, but they were his all the same.
After admiring for a bit, he checked the time.
3:12 p.m.
Exiting the private space, many players now filled the lounge.
"Hey, where've you been?"
"Workshop."
"Workshop?"
"Yeah."
Sung Min-woo looked baffled.
"Crafting in this situation?"
"Plenty of time."
"You never change."
He shook his head and approached.
"Rest up. Almost done."
"Yeah? How many left?"
"Three teams."
About ten minutes.
"Quick."
"Yeah, winner tonight maybe."
Mu-hyuk chatted while scanning around.
Adion, Asrahan, Rudolph, Esca.
All through to round of 32.
Minutes later, another winner entered. Two teams left. Soon another, then the final.
The examiner nearby.
"10-minute break, then round of 32. Out in five."
Five minutes flew.
They filed out to the arena one by one.
"Hurry up!"
"Can't wait!"
"This is boring!"
Ignoring the crowd's clamor, they waited.
The examiner mounted the arena.
"Round of 32 begins now!"
First match: Kilimanjaro vs. a mage.
The mage unleashed fire AoE from the start.
Dodge or block? Kilimanjaro didn't budge. No defense either.
Just nocked an arrow.
As puzzlement spread, he fired.
One, two—suddenly ten.
Incredible rapid fire. First arrow hit the spell.
Sizzle.
It melted pathetically, but two, three, ten, twenty arrows followed, weakening the magic visibly.
Then a glowing arrow pierced it clean.
It slammed into the mage's shield.
Kang!
Startled, the mage attacked again.
But same story.
Kilimanjaro just kept firing endlessly.
Countless arrows sapped the magic's power, skills shattered it, impacts battered the shield.
Boom, kwaaang!
He won without taking a single step.
"Kilimanjaro wins!"
"Next..."
Mu-hyuk vs. archer.
"Summon."
Eerily similar to Kilimanjaro. Mu-hyuk summoned skeletons and didn't move either.
"Neither budged an inch."
"Not even a finger twitch."
"Damn, impressive."
As Mu-hyuk descended victorious.
"Wait a sec."
"What?"
"Round of 16 first match: Kilimanjaro vs. Mu-hyuk!"
"Whoa, really!"
They noted the hype matchup and watched the next.
Meanwhile.
Though through to round of 16, Mu-hyuk's expression was slightly tense.
Not the tournament ending, but Sung Min-woo's upcoming match worried him. He waited below the arena instead of the lounge.
Several matches later, their turn.
"Next: Group F No. 61, Group F No. 79!"
Sung Min-woo stood.
"I'll win and be back!"
"Do that."
Casual reply, but inwardly different.
This might be tough.
Opponent was a hidden expert.