Chapter 26
Chapter 26
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 26
>Chapter Title: Steak Hunting
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
God Ose had arenas.
The places commonly known as PvP. They weren't perfect, but the system applied some balancing to even out the playing field, allowing players to compete purely on skill.
Players could also engage in duels with mutual consent out in the open world, but those came without any balancing.
Even so, duels remained quite popular.
Who wouldn't want to show off their hard-earned gear? No one wanted to fight while being held back.
Plus, you could jump into a fight anytime, anywhere, with ease.
In that sense, God Ose was incredibly lenient when it came to combat.
It let everyone brawl to their heart's content—how generous was that?
But no matter where you went, there were always a few who refused to follow the rules.
“Duels? What's the fun in that? Life's about real action.”
“Tormenting someone weaker than me is pure bliss~.”
Instead of using the perfectly legal duel system, there were players everywhere who opted for unauthorized slaughter—PKing.
They existed in Demlock, in every other RPG out there, and God Ose was no exception.
For the thrill of it.
Because they coveted the loot.
Out of sheer spite.
To force someone to quit the game...
A decent number of players PKed for all sorts of reasons, making it something everyone either experienced firsthand or heard about constantly.
Ask any of them who the worst offenders were, and nine times out of ten, they'd say the same thing.
“The newbie gankers.”
“Those idiots who PK just for kicks? The devs need to perma-ban their asses.”
“Fuck, I still rage thinking about dropping that rare item because of those pricks.”
The worst were the ones who PKed purely for amusement.
And among those, the absolute scum of the earth were the newbie gankers who deliberately targeted beginners.
They even formed dedicated teams to systematically strip newbies bare.
They'd hit graduation level but refuse to graduate, instead preying on players who had just entered the city and looked like they had halfway decent gear.
Loot for them, laughs for them.
High-level players weren't coming back anytime soon, so as long as they steered clear of anyone tied to major guilds, it was paradise.
“Hey, time for a big score today.”
“Starting to get bored of this grind... No decent marks lately. Their reactions are all the same—no fun.”
“Kekeke, you're my buddy, but damn, you're ruthless.”
Assassin Boy, If You're Jealous Do It Too, Not Hitting Right.
These three were demons thriving in that paradise.
All three had reached level 24—the graduation threshold—but they deliberately skipped the graduation quest.
It was only natural.
“Why the hell would I?”
“Graduate? All that gets you is getting stepped on by everyone else. Why volunteer for that headache?”
Why leave Raven, where they could play kings?
They'd never make ranker status anyway, and right now, they were having a blast while earning decent pocket money.
The joy of picking up death penalty drops and flipping them for cash was addictive.
And.
“I'm rotting here for life.”
“No better spot for griefing~.”
The moment they graduated, pulling off these ganks would get a lot harder.
Arde was a level playing field—no death penalties, no skills, everyone in parties.
From the next city on, players had guilds, three or four skills each—tough sledding.
More rivals, harder ganks, connections mattered more.
Raven was the ultimate haven in every way.
Today, as always, they were scouting for suitable prey.
Nothing immediately jumped out.
They'd been working too hard lately(?), and word had spread—players were sticking to parties more rigorously now.
Solo players popped up occasionally...
“That guy over there—isn't that him?”
“Yeah, the one Hero Guild's backing. Pass on that.”
“Right, we rolled good gods for once. Don't want to get blacklisted.”
A few were recognizable faces.
Mostly rookies big guilds had their eyes on, or folks backed by solid mid-to-large guilds.
Touch the wrong one, and things got messy in all sorts of ways.
They weren't about turning fun into a chore.
“What about that one?”
“Hmm... Don't know the face, but the gear looks meh.”
“This prick's gotten picky with gear lately. Used to gobble up anyone.”
“You can't live on kimchi stew and soybean soup forever. Gotta slice into a steak now and then, right?”
By kimchi stew, Assassin Boy meant total fresh newbies—zero backing, zero nothing.
So steak was?
“No backing, but pockets full of cash—something perfectly ripe for the picking~?”
If You're Jealous Do It Too and Not Hitting Right shook their heads at Assassin Boy, who licked his blade and hummed a tune.
He was a normal enough guy in real life, but in-game, his eyes lit up like a shark's.
‘Eh, it's fun for us.’
It was just a game—who cared?
He was a master at screwing with people, always coming up with twisted new ways to toy with them. Following him led to endless entertainment.
Remember that last mark? Promised to carry him, gathered a huge monster pack, then stealthed out scot-free.
Just thinking of their betrayal-fueled freakouts brought a snicker.
“Where's my steak~? Oh oh!?”
That was when it happened.
A player caught Assassin Boy's eye as he chanted “steak” like a lunatic.
A guy decked head to toe in red and black, with a massive greatsword slung on his back.
“Holy shit... jackpot. Isn't that the Warrior Set?”
“What? Where... Whoa, for real? Must be loaded.”
“Some guild snag him already?”
Assassin Boy shook his head after pondering Not Hitting Right's question.
“Nah. Buddy of mine scouts Arde—latest intel says no one like that. Checked today, solid.”
If a Warrior Set wearer got scouted, word would spread among scouts fast.
The lack of buzz meant...
“Hoo?”
“Then...”
Assassin Boy met their eyes and grinned.
“Nouveau riche asshole. Solo grinding without a care.”
His casual remark drew matching smirks on the other two.
Vile, ravenous grins.
“Heh heh... Design looks delicious, just like steak. Cognac time after ages.”
“Friday windfall! Booking a room stat.”
“Hey hey, how much you think that sells for? Over 500 easy?”
“Dunno, dumbass—it's pure honey either way.”
They were already chattering like the loot was theirs when they froze.
The guy, who'd been taking a breather, suddenly started goblin hunting.
And his power was no joke.
Swoosh—dodge, thrust—goblin down.
Whoosh—slash!
Then he slid in an instant, one-shotting a goblin on the opposite side.
No way this was some average newbie.
“...That the power of a fresh grad?”
“Strongish... but can't top level 16. What's hard about it?”
“Gear carry, obviously. We sell it, we bank.”
“Heh, fair enough.”
Of course, that was the end of their critique.
A rich gear-carrying newbie couldn't beat them, no matter what.
One guy versus three at graduation level.
Traits, unique abilities—whatever. At low levels, raw level was king.
“Still, play it safe. Needle first.”
“Kukuku, paralysis poison?”
“Fun's secondary this time—money first. Go get 'em.”
Assassin Boy waved an OK sign as he strolled off, then activated Stealth.
His kit: Stealth, Paralysis Poison, Dash Slash, Ankle Lock Kick.
True to his name, he'd specced full assassin—and he was confident it was the best PvP build for this level bracket.
Two rare-grade skills, after all.
[Unique Ability 'Ambush' is active.]
[Successfully attack undetected: deal a lethal blow.]
[Trait 'Fairly Sharp Dagger Skill' applied.]
His god was a heroic one, no less.
The Creepy Shadow Dagger God—one of the assassin-line gods.
Not the highest-rated among assassin heroics, but hero class was hero class.
Its unique ability more than covered for the meh traits.
‘Nothing optimized for ganking like this.’
Especially for an assassin who loved stealth-ambush PKs, it was unmatched.
Useless if ambush failed, but success unleashed potential worth the risk.
The target?
‘Charge Slash one-trick.’
He'd pick up two skills from Arde, maybe a third—but he wasn't using it, so probably trash.
Or maybe a buff pumping that DPS.
Didn't matter.
‘Stealth in, poison stab, bleed tickle, then dogpile. Clean.’
This wasn't a fair fight.
No—this was a hunt.
One gear piece drop, and they'd book a room for cognac party tonight. He was already mulling happy dilemmas for the evening when—
Flinch.
‘...Huh?’
Assassin Boy halted mid-approach.
A sudden chill prickled his skin.
‘Did our eyes meet just now?’
Hallucination?
It sure felt like eye contact...
He tilted his head at the unease, then shook it off.
‘Ridiculous.’
Fresh Arde grad hunting Raven plains.
Swordsman class, to boot.
No skill pierced rare-grade Stealth.
Never heard of such a trait.
Later on, items and skills could detect it somewhat—but that was far off. Common sense said detection now was impossible.
‘Yeah, just my imagination.’
See?
He was right up close now, and the guy was strolling along calmly.
Assassin Boy drew his dagger.
Green liquid dripped along the blade.
Rare skill: Paralysis Poison.
‘Still creepy—make it quick.’
He crept closer for the backstab to the ribs—
Whish—.
“...!”
The guy moved.
In a flash, he spun, smacked the wrist—dagger clattered free.
Before panic could set in, a brutal grip seized his throat.
“Gahk! Khurk!”
Stealth shattered as Assassin Boy dangled midair, neck crushed in that vise.
Stealth's one weakness: vulnerability to AoE.
Any hit broke it.
‘How the...’
But this wasn't AoE.
How he'd pierced stealth was baffling enough—but that insane strength defied belief.
‘...Can't budge an inch!’
No matter how he thrashed to pry free—no give.
Like solid rock.
Assassin—even at level 24.
Losing strength this bad to a <=16 scrub?
Impossible...
“Who are you?”
The man finally spoke.
“Wow... Had a hunch, but you're really griefers, huh.”
Utterly nonchalant tone.
No trace of fluster, despite nearly getting ambushed.
If anything, he seemed intrigued—yet his face was chillingly cold. The mismatch terrified Assassin Boy.
“Y-You fuck... What are you?!”
His instinctive yell brought his waiting buddies popping heads over the bushes.
“Huh huh!?”
“What the hell's going on?”
They yelped in confusion.
The man slowly took in the sight and smirked.
“Well, well? Real pros. Serial offenders, eh?”
Assassin Boy's pupils quaked at that icy voice.
For some reason, the man loomed gigantic.
Like he could squash vermin like him without effort.
But the man—Do-hyun—hadn't even glanced at him.
His gaze sat a hair higher.
[Eye of Truth activates.]
‘Didn't know it pierced stealth too.’
An unimaginable new perk from the Eye of Truth.