Harassment from Afar
Duke Amur and his massive army entered the Beujaken Kingdom.
"Hurry up!"
"Yes, sir!"
The artisans moved busily, repairing the crumbled walls. In the meantime, follow-up troops flooded in, firmly planting their flags across the Beujaken Kingdom and shifting into full alert mode.
They had achieved a perfect occupation.
"You lot, head out immediately and seize the villages and small cities."
The four groups scattered.
The 1st Group, under Mu-hyuk's command, headed northwest.
After easily capturing the small city there, he ordered the users to rest. Using the spare time, he finally got in touch with Rakak after a long while.
"Haven't been able to contact you at all lately—been too busy."
"No issues, right?"
"Well, yeah. With the war going on..."
"I'm good. Once I cross over to the Forma Continent, I'll head straight there. Oh, and contact me if anything comes up."
Well, I've left it in Rakak's hands, after all.
No doubts whatsoever.
Just pure trust that he'll handle it perfectly.
"Got it."
He casually checked in and ended the communication.
Soon after, a mage approached.
"Incoming call."
He took the crystal orb, and Duke Amur's face appeared.
Duke Amur: So, a village?
"Yes, Your Grace."
Duke Amur: It seems the Quenn Empire has finally started gathering outsiders in earnest. Reports say a large number have assembled at the Quenn Empire's south gate. Their movements look suspicious.
"Hmm. They're finally reacting."
Duke Amur: Tough battles lie ahead from here on out.
"I figured as much."
Duke Amur: The good news is we've fully conquered the Quenn Empire's south. Supplies, provisions, and reinforcements are pouring in steadily.
"Impressive."
Duke Amur: Heh heh, not time to relax yet. Which is why I have a special order for you.
Mu-hyuk's eyes flashed sharply.
"A special order...?"
Duke Amur: The outsiders gathered in the Quenn Empire will surely come down to reclaim their lost territory. But they're not moving yet. Assemble a team of your finest and harass those at the Quenn Empire's south, slowing their advance. Meanwhile, we'll form an encirclement and wipe them out in one go. Can you handle it?
Several ideas flashed through his mind in an instant.
Sounds solid.
Safe, effective harassment.
If it's just summons...?
"I'll give it a shot."
Duke Amur: I count on you.
"Yes, should I move out right now?"
Duke Amur: Yes, do that.
"Understood."
He handed the crystal orb back to the mage and stepped out of the building.
"Amplify my voice with magic, please."
"Yes, sir."
Once the spell was cast,
"Everyone, listen up."
Mu-hyuk's voice spread softly yet clearly.
"We'll assemble users with vision-sharing summons and a few others, then head to the Quenn Empire. We'll keep our distance and harass them solely with summons."
Someone raised a hand.
"My range is pretty long. Might be good to include others with long-range skills too, right?"
"Hmm."
Not a bad idea.
"If you want in, I won't object."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Users with long-range skills and summoners, step forward."
More stepped up than expected.
Sung Min-woo and Yerin were among them.
"Priests and tanks for emergencies too."
Kim Ji-yeon naturally joined.
They ended up with a solid group.
Roughly 250 strong.
30 priests, 30 tanks, 140 summoners, and 50 elite ranged users.
"And Geppen."
"Yes, Mu-hyuk-ssi."
"Hold down the fort while I'm gone. The mage will relay Duke Amur's orders via crystal orb."
Geppen pondered briefly.
"Shouldn't be too hard."
Mu-hyuk nodded gravely.
"Mm, got it."
"Count on you."
Mu-hyuk immediately led the elite squad north.
Low-level Kairon users along the way shot them dirty looks full of resentment. The vibe was subtly different from yesterday.
"What the hell are they?"
"Heading to the Quenn Empire? Hey, that's Mu-hyuk!"
"Yo, post it on the homepage!"
"Yeah, good call. Just in case."
Their chatter furrowed his brow.
"What the fuck are those guys?"
Sung Min-woo fiddled with his knuckle gloves beside him.
"Just kill 'em?"
"Nah. Obvious noobs."
"Tch, fine. Sparing you."
But they smirked slyly at Mu-hyuk and Sung Min-woo's attitudes, trailing them while hurling insults like they were hot shit.
"Figures, they spare noobs."
"Hilarious. Heh heh."
"So they won't kill us?"
"Looks like it."
"Hey, film it and spread it around. If we scout their forces too, even better."
"Smart idea?"
He'd only shown mercy to avoid pointless hassle.
But they'd crossed the line.
"Just kill 'em."
Sung Min-woo grinned and stomped the ground.
"Wha—huh? What the—?!"
"They kill noobs too? What the fuck...!"
He barked at the panicking bunch.
"Shut the fuck up and die, you retards."
Then he threw a casual punch.
Thud, thud.
That alone ended the low-level users.
"Whew, nagging from the side. Fucking annoying."
"Next time some asshole picks a fight, just kill 'em outright."
"Right?"
This was the battlefield between Kairon and Forma Continents, after all. Mu-hyuk decided to dial back the newbie mercy a notch.
Of course, he had no intention of hunting down polite passersby. Just clearing the obstructive pests.
The Quenn Empire's south gate plains.
Countless elite users positioned everywhere.
"Ugh, such a mess."
"When the hell do we even head out?"
"Waiting's a drag."
The noble still hadn't shown.
About two more hours passed.
Finally, someone noble-looking appeared.
"You've waited long. I am Count Solbern of the Quenn Empire."
His casual speech from the start made some users twitch their brows.
One hothead couldn't hold back.
Short but stern-faced, he looked tough at a glance.
"Hey, Lord Fancy Pants. Casual talk on first meet?"
A knight beside Count Solbern drew his sword.
"You bastard!"
"What, gonna do something about it?"
"How dare you...!"
No remorse whatsoever. Count Solbern flushed red.
"Truly, such vulgar rabble."
"What'd you say?"
"No wonder outsiders get a bad rep."
"Ha, starting off shitty. Came all this way hoping for good rewards!"
"Eyes only on loot. If you hate it, don't join."
"What kind of asshole says that?"
"That's my line."
The back-and-forth between Count Solbern and the users was intense.
"Ah, what the hell. Right from the start."
"Casual talk was the first mistake, no?"
"Noble means jack?"
"Yeah, pisses me off."
As users, most disliked the count's attitude.
The commotion grew, some even approaching aggressively, ready to fight.
"Cross the line further, and we'll take it as a declaration of war against the Quenn Empire."
"Ha..."
The squabble only delayed things more.
"Form ranks, didn't I say?!"
"Ugh, we're doing it!"
Some users checked the homepage for info.
Hmm, incoming?
Mu-hyuk's name was in the mix—anyone would know it.
Should I report it?
But the nobles just barked orders forcefully.
"Hey, you see that?"
"What?"
"Mu-hyuk, you know him? Word is he's leading like 100-200 users up here."
"Where'd you hear that?"
"Homepage."
"Hmm, tell 'em?"
Their eyes turned to Count Solbern.
His face twisted instinctively.
"Nah, forget it. Just 200? Whatever."
"Yeah, should be fine?"
"Ah, screw it. Too annoying. They'll handle it."
"Tch..."
In the end, the info never reached Count Solbern's ears.
Meanwhile,
Mu-hyuk and the elite squad reached their destination.
The Quenn Empire lay below.
"We'll descend the mountains and close the distance a bit more."
They moved down quickly, but the users at the south gate were still milling about. He hurriedly sent summons to scout.
"Hmm, looks like they're arguing among themselves."
"Really?"
"Yeah, gonna take a while before they move."
"What now?"
"Scout the area, get familiar with the terrain. Find a few good hiding spots too."
"Hiding spots?"
"Yeah, we'll damage them via summons from there. If hostile users approach our spot, ranged users step in to harass alongside. Tanks protect the ranged. Deal with anyone closing in, then shift to another spot and repeat."
"Mm, why bother moving spots?"
Mu-hyuk answered the question.
"They could post our locations on the homepage."
"Ah...!"
"Let's move, then."
"Y-Yes!"
After the rough briefing, they got to it.
Scout surroundings first.
Mark hiding spots with numbers.
"Starting with Spot 1."
Summoned his crew, buffed them with spells, and sent them to the south gate.
Only vision-sharing summoners were picked, so command was smooth.
"Spread your summons. Surround the south gate in a semicircle, then advance together."
The users focused at his words.
"Left flank—black skull spirit user, you're too far out."
"Ah, sorry."
"Center's sticking out too. White wolf tamer, focus up."
"Yes!"
Summons moved per Mu-hyuk's directions.
Soon, a perfect semicircle encirclement formed.
"Good. Now, let's play."
The summons picked up speed, charging.
Toward the Quenn Empire's south gate.
Swarming with users.