The Return of the Divine Archer
The northernmost tip of the Korean Peninsula.
Beyond the "Gate Hazard Zone" where numerous unauthorized gates regenerate lies a space forbidden to ordinary citizens if one travels further north.
The border of the Republic of Korea.
Perhaps the most mysterious place of all.
Shrouded in auroras year-round from rampaging mana, the terrain itself shifts due to mana interference.
There are no proper roads. Paths made today vanish tomorrow, and in a day or two a massive mountain may rise in their place. It is one enormous maze, and without the special compass crafted by military command, even visiting is nearly impossible.
The true heart of the Gate Hazard Zone.
Here stands the Republic of Korea's elite force, the Fracture Defense Command.
And Han Jeong-do stood at its entrance.
"You may pass."
"……."
The moment the masked soldier granted permission, a bizarre sound rang out. The steel framework guarding the entrance disassembled geometrically, and the sealing magic unraveled with it.
Han Jeong-do trudged through the open gateway.
Shortly after, several masked soldiers glanced at his retreating figure and tilted their heads in unison.
He had changed beyond recognition.
Han Jeong-do, once praised as the best-maintained among the Legendary Three Kings. Even past sixty, he had looked barely forty, carrying an intellectual, refined air that drew countless female fans regardless of age.
Yet only days after the regular season ended, he was utterly broken.
His once-firm skin was creased with wrinkles, his once-sharp eyes now unfocused. Above all, the confidence and sophisticated presence that defined him had vanished, replaced by entirely different emotions.
— "As expected, you couldn't win even once. Your instincts must have dulled. Heh, you haven't forgotten our promise, have you? If you lose the final round too, you'll step down as raid leader. And don't even think about saying the playoffs are still left. It's pathetic, old man."
The helplessness of being dismissed by Kim Ji-ah, a woman younger than himself.
— "Han Jeong-do, do it properly for once. What's the point of being this troublesome when you're already old? Tch. Just stay quiet like a dead mouse for a while. Once things calm down, I'll talk to my father. Oh, and clean up those vulgar lovers of yours. You're still my husband, after all—it's embarrassing."
The sting of defeat, pitied even by a wife who felt more like a stranger.
And then……
— "You're here. Sit. So, Representative Han Jeong-do. Or should I say, my son-in-law. Don't you have something to say to me?"
The man who had given Han Jeong-do everything—wealth, women, fame, power.
Kim Jang-chun, chairman of the Girin Group, spoke.
— "The girl was obsessed with hunters, so bringing in someone much older wasn't strange. It's not like she's the heir anyway. Why that face? Do I seem cold?"
Han Jeong-do had sought to fulfill his desires through social ascent. Kim Jang-chun had wanted the mana stones his lifelong rival and nemesis, Lee Sang-byuk, could never obtain.
They formed a partnership through the most classic yet certain bond of blood, and together they dominated the league with resounding success.
But that success had collapsed.
In the worst possible way.
— "The Kim Jong-pil you sent out as a power play proved it brilliantly. My Girin Guild has become the foolish guild that cast out its own legend."
Kim Jong-pil's performance had shattered trust in his judgment.
— "It only took one year. One year to lose a league we'd ruled for decades to Lee Sang-byuk's brat."
Defeat at Lee Shin's hands had destroyed faith in his ability.
— "What disappoints me isn't your lack of skill. It's that you had time! You had time, you bastard!"
Yes, he was not wrong.
From League 4 to the majors—Lee Shin was called the symbol of upheaval, yet ironically, he had walked the straightest path of all.
It was the very point experts emphasized when praising him.
If Lee Shin had leveraged Ido Group's backing to debut directly in the majors, this level of syndrome would never have occurred.
— "Lack of ability can happen. In this world, there are always those called geniuses. Just as I had Lee Sang-byuk, you had Kim Jong-pil!"
Lee Shin might be a genius. Someone heaven had blessed with talent and tasked with changing the world.
Just as he had spent his life unable to surpass Lee Sang-byuk, no ordinary person, no matter how desperately they struggled, could reach a true genius—only brush against them at best.
Then you should have prepared! With that "pull" you were so proud of! With the instincts even I, Kim Jang-chun, acknowledged!
— "I won't drag this out. Start wrapping things up."
Kim Jang-chun had delivered his final words to Han Jeong-do.
After all these years together.
Grinding his teeth, Han Jeong-do climbed the stairs.
Why did those words sound like "after all these years of use"? His jaw trembled uncontrollably, emotions impossible to hide.
It was humiliation.
The humiliation of a man who had always dreamed of being the protagonist, treating everyone around him as disposable tools, only to realize he himself had been a tool—discarded once worn out.
'But at least I gave my life everything I had.'
He knew his methods were neither just nor clean.
He knew he had been calculating and cold enough to cast aside even his lifelong friend.
Yet.
Even if it was greed, it was true that Han Jeong-do had done his best.
'This time too, I'll do my best.'
Reaching the top of the stairs, he saw clouds.
With the cold air came the lake visible beyond.
As Baekdu Mountain's Cheonji greeted him, he trudged toward a shabby wooden cabin.
Han Jeong-do knocked on the door of the roughly assembled hut, built from trees he had likely felled himself.
Knock, knock.
The door opened the instant the sound rang out.
In that moment, Han Jeong-do dropped to his knees without a word.
"Save Yul."
"……."
A man sat languidly in a chair, chin resting on his hand.
Despite his ordinary attire and somewhat indistinct features, his mere presence crushed the surrounding space.
A talent so extraordinary it might appear only once in a thousand years.
A genius so transcendent it defied the world's common sense.
Therefore, an archer of the highest order who rewrote the rules themselves.
The ultimate weapon of Korea, raised by the Mountain King.
Rank 1, Divine Archer Son Yul.
"I've wanted to face my prime teacher since long ago."
This should be fun.
Behind Son Yul as he rose, a screen played.
On it was Mountain King Kim Jong-pil.
※ Playoff 2nd Round
VS
— "Ah……"
— "I have no words. I don't even know what to say."
The match that had become the hottest of the playoffs thanks to the Divine Archer's return news.
The casters had come prepared to let their excitement run wild for this historic matchup.
But the moment the game began, their expectations were shattered—the casters couldn't even raise their voices.
All because of the man standing in mid lane.
"……"
The instant Divine Archer Son Yul, clad in white robes, released his bowstring, Light Sword Jong-yu's earlobe was pierced.
Another release, and his shoulder was pierced. Another, and a hole opened in his side.
Light Sword, renowned among rankers for having top-tier speed alone, possessed reflexes sharp enough to dodge even an ADC's projectiles with his eyes. Yet the Divine Archer pierced him with every shot, and finally……
Ended him.
【 'Son Yul' has slain 'Jong-yu'. 】
— "……Light Sword, two deaths. We must remember this: both deaths were solo kills by the Divine Archer alone."
— "It may have been a while, so some might not remember, but there were many stories about the Divine Archer's arrows. Arrows that couldn't be dodged. Arrows that ignored the concept of distance…… But it seems he's evolved even further."
— "The Divine Archer, who was pressuring the mid tower, turns his gaze to the jungle. Eyes closed, string drawn!"
He had transcended the realm that relied on sight.
The caress of wind against his cheek, the scent of the forest in his nose, the sound of footsteps in his ears, even the faint will carried by mana.
When the Divine Archer Son Yul's senses, pushed to their absolute limit, gathered every scrap of information and recreated the world—
'I see you.'
The moment Guardian Yeo Eun-seo's figure emerged from the darkness.
He fired.
Divine Archer Son Yul drawing his bow.
The arrows launched toward the sky locked onto their target and plunged straight down.
Thud, thud.
"Damn it, you monster freak!!"
Guardian Yeo Eun-seo, who had been hunting an objective, yanked the arrow from her shoulder and hurled it away. She retreated, swallowing her frustration.
The stealth objective she had attempted to seize back the initiative had been rendered meaningless by a few of the Divine Archer's arrows.
— "The reason the balance-breaker, the ultimate weapon, the Divine Archer is truly terrifying is that range. A distance that can dominate over half the map."
— "The only difference is that before, he played as an ADC, but upon returning, he switched to mid lane."
— "There was a lot of talk until just now. There's still controversy. Was it really necessary to move the Ten Thousand King to support just to change positions? But the reason is exactly what you're seeing."
Seizing control with overwhelming firepower.
Spreading that control across the entire canyon with an absurd attack range.
Guardian Yeo Eun-seo had tried to break through the Divine Archer's pressure with her renowned game sense, but after several ganks were spotted by "vision arrows" and several plans thwarted by "stun arrows," even her extraordinary mind began to falter.
The only move left for Yeo Eun-seo in this situation—
— "Royal Sword's brilliant rotation! Four-man dive on mid!"
— "That's it. That's exactly it. The current Girin Guild is different from the old one. They're playing entirely around the Divine Archer in mid. Conversely, if you can just kill the Divine Archer, there's still a chance!"
— "As expected of the Guardian! Even in a desperate situation, she catches the timing! If they get this kill, who knows!!"
An all-in rush with everything committed.
Even if they had to give up one or two, killing the Divine Archer was all that mattered—a desperate gamble by the Guardian. But instead of calling for help, the Divine Archer was simply loosening his neck.
"Push your lanes."
Distance.
The archer's greatest strength and greatest weakness.
When attacking an opponent, distance becomes an archer's advantage. It creates the ideal scenario where you can hit them while they can do nothing.
But the moment an opponent closes the gap, that same distance becomes a fatal weakness.
Not only can you not aim properly, but once entangled, an archer is literally helpless.
The Divine Archer had wanted to overcome this dilemma of distance as an archer.
That was why he had entered secluded training under the pretext of injury, and this was the best answer he could offer now.
With the shortbow slung at his waist, the Divine Archer gripped arrows in both hands.
A moment later, his figure blurred.
He slipped past Yeo Eun-seo's attack by a hair's breadth. The stone pillar fired by Royal Sword's top laner struck only the Divine Archer's shadow, and the CC shot by their supporter split empty air.
When the Divine Archer, who had also perfectly predicted and dodged Light Sword's light beam, turned around—
Arrows were embedded in their chests.
— "Double kill! Triple kill! Quadra kill!! Not only dodging the dive, but killing all four—Divine Archer!!"
— "Wh-what?! What the hell?! Don't tell me he shot the arrows with his bare hands, without even using a bow?!"
— "Point-blank trigger! I have no idea how that's possible. It's a technique impossible to follow with the naked eye. We need slow-motion footage."
— "Slow-motion, hurry!!"
But the casters' cries went unanswered.
Because it wasn't over yet.
The Divine Archer now held a longbow in his hands.
The massive longbow's string, reaching down to his feet, was drawn taut. He aimed at the final remaining enemy in bot lane and fired.
【 PENTAKILL 】
— "Aaaaaagh!!"
— "Pentakill!! He hit the enemy all the way from mid to bot!! Pentakill! Pentakill!! This is the Divine Archer. Everyone, this is the Divine Archer!!"
The one who had conquered both close and long range.
Therefore, the one who ruled the very concept of distance.
Therefore, the one whose single arrow could strike even the sun.
Divine Archer Son Yul had returned.
The pinnacle of archery. Ignores distance and obstacles. Arrows fly at the speed of light toward their target and will never miss, no matter what the target may be—even the sun itself.
And at that moment.
Lee Shin, watching through the screen.
— "I can't believe it! What are we witnessing? Is this even possible?"
— "Son Yul! This is Divine Archer Son Yul!! The man who performs miracles. Korea's strongest man. This is Son Yul!!"
He replayed the highlight and gave a bitter smile.
"Well, well. So he's awakened 「He Who Shoots the Sun」."
He had wondered if returning so early meant he hadn't awakened it yet, but that wasn't the case.
The Divine Archer Son Yul on screen was exactly the monster he remembered—the one with 200/200 potential.
"Heh heh heh, this is going to be a pain."
Even as he said it was troublesome, Lee Shin smiled.
The plane carrying Lee Shin soared across the distant sky.
Its destination: France.