Chapter 28
Trigger Government Building conference room. Minister of National Defense Lee Gyu-cheol nodded in satisfaction, fingers steepled.
"Just as we expected."
Kim Dae-gon was dead. Or missing, technically. But the government coalition was treating this unknown "evaporation phenomenon" as death.
"We just tossed out the bait, and she bit so easily."
Prime Minister Shim Hyun-baek stroked his scruffy beard. The ministers from each department chimed in.
"She must've been scared of dying herself."
"Choi Ah-rin... turns out she's more of a coward than we thought."
"You could tell from how she's been stirring up the international community, right?"
Indeed. Choi Ah-rin had taken the bait properly. The so-called "negotiation team" dispatched by the government coalition was blatantly different from the extermination squads formed to assassinate anti-government figures.
It consisted entirely of pro-government players. And no extermination squad made solely of pro-government players had ever gone missing before.
Yet they vanished before even meeting Choi Ah-rin.
"She must've been terrified."
The Minister of Foreign Affairs snorted derisively. There was no other explanation: Choi Ah-rin, fearing the government coalition's retaliation, had overreached and struck first.
Now they had their justification.
"We can finally uproot those pesky anti-government bastards completely."
President Han Seong-ho let a sinister smile creep across his face. The most crucial element in attacking another faction was, without a doubt, justification. Anyone who'd dipped a toe in politics knew you could fabricate it if needed to smear and undermine your opponent.
Blind aggression would only make you the target.
This was common sense, even between nations.
The anti-government forces had initiated sustained terrorism against the pro-government side. Thus, the pro-government coalition had no choice but to launch an operation to eliminate them.
The frame was perfect.
All that remained was resolve.
Han Seong-ho drew a deep breath and finally uttered the words he'd long awaited.
"Assemble the forces and move supplies as pre-planned. In two days, we'll launch a total assault on Silver Tree and the Star Guild alliance."
His heart raced with excitement he could barely contain. Soon, the Republic of Korea would be firmly in his grasp.
The players affiliated with the government coalition were outraged by news of the "negotiation team"'s disappearance.
"It was Choi Ah-rin, that bitch!"
"That crazy woman's been murdering us!"
"Isn't it obvious now? Even the negotiation team vanished!"
"Damn it, how long do we have to put up with this?!"
In that atmosphere, the official government directive was more than enough to ignite their patience, stretched to the breaking point.
"Huh? They're attacking Silver Tree and the Star Guild alliance?"
"Where, where?"
"Holy shit, war in two days!"
"Fuck yeah, finally we can crush those bastards!"
Pent-up emotions erupted like a bursting dam. The worry etched on their faces twisted into fierce, savage glee.
"Choi Ah-rin, you're dead if we catch you."
"Let's pay them back double for what they did to us!"
Especially toward Choi Ah-rin, seen as directly linked to the disappearance—their rage pierced the heavens.
They immediately checked their gear and shifted into war footing.
A small flame is weak. No matter how carefully tended, it flickers out if you look away.
But near gunpowder? That's different.
Like a butterfly's wings gathering into a typhoon.
Layer upon layer of accumulated resentment.
Meeting the trigger of war, it explodes on an uncontrollable scale.
"Death to Silver Tree! Death to Star Guild!"
"Grab those terrorists and tear 'em apart!"
Nothing could quell their fury now.
The advancing super-military legion would crush everything.
The players' voluntary cooperation against terrorists left even the international community speechless.
This was no longer the government coalition's "path to dictatorship."
It was the righteous judgment of the Korean people against Silver Tree and the Star Guild alliance.
"So it comes to this after all..."
Silver Tree Guild leader Choi Ah-rin gazed wistfully at the fortified plaza.
Iron bars, barricades, and multiple layers of defenses built from players' items blocked enemy approaches tightly.
But it wasn't enough. This alone couldn't handle the government coalition's vast numbers.
Her fist clenched in her palm, trembling.
Was I incompetent? Should I have done better?
Negative thoughts flooded her mind, but Choi Ah-rin shook her head.
Her convictions were unshakable.
She'd clung to what was right until the very end.
"Anyone who wants to leave may go."
She said quietly to the guild members arrayed behind her.
A few swallowed hard, but most stayed silent. As if only empty space filled the ranks.
They must be scared. They want to deny it. Fighting alongside her meant certain death.
But fleeing meant the country would fall.
Choi Ah-rin couldn't force them. Both choices carried crushing responsibility.
But she had to choose too.
"I'll... fight to the death. I won't bow to the government coalition's tyranny."
The weight of her decision pulsed in her heart.
Fate's thread tightened.
"At least I can die proud, without a shred of shame."
With that, she gripped her weapon.
A massive shield and long spear. Her holy paladin armor, infused with sacred energy, glowed platinum.
She wouldn't retreat, standing at the forefront.
Until this shield and her legs gave out.
She would protect the people.
"Even in death, I'll bury my bones before justice."
Soon, Star Guild members would join them.
Gazing at what might be her final sunset, Choi Ah-rin offered a bitter smile.
The rising sun burned red. Sunlight fractured through clouds like particles of blood, illuminating the world.
"It'll start soon," Cha Eun-joo said, overlooking Seoul from a rooftop.
The government coalition hordes had swarmed across Mapo Bridge like ants all night, ferrying food and war supplies. Now it was nearly complete.
Players, fully arrayed and gleaming with gear, converged in one spot.
"Guess we should head to our positions too."
I turned indifferently. War prep takes time by nature.
But this was faster than expected. They'd planned meticulously.
No matter. It was within projections.
Battlefields shift unpredictably. Better to anticipate every possibility from the start.
"That Titan thing ready?"
"Yep, mods done two days ago! Ready to deploy anytime!"
"Contacts secured?"
"Got 'em all from Soyeon and saved them. Planted agents in Silver Tree and Star Guild passed everything along too. All set—just hit the button and..."
"Hmm. Curious how it'll play out."
I arrived at Seoul Forest, where the guild waited.
Lee Min-ho, Yunsia, Kim Min-seok, Hwang Cheol-ho, Tier.
From the founding members to those from Hyeonwol, Flame, and Immortal guilds. New recruits too.
I scanned their faces.
Each joined with their own stories. That's how we made it this far.
They held the key to clearing my misunderstandings.
Their mere presence was immense strength.
True power isn't from force.
I closed my eyes, inhaling the tense wind.
No failure. Not until now.
For me, the world boss, this was the chance to gain a foothold.
The war deciding Korea's fate.
In the heart of a battlefield history would record.
I declared to my guildmates.
"Let's march."
Two colossal forces on direct collision course.
Between them.
The lurking David uncoils to slay Goliath.
Players burned like the midday sun. Hyeonwol Guild leader Kang Min-cheol stood on a truck, arms crossed, smirking down at his guild.
They checked gear and weapons, bracing for the coming war.
Soon, Korea would be theirs alone.
Top predators reign where rivals vanish.
Korea Guild Ranking #1, Hyeonwol's leader—but Kang Min-cheol craved more.
"Hey, you guys ready over there?"
His booming voice drew a glance. Immortal Guild leader Lee Cheol-woong approached, his massive frame clad in inky armor, resembling a discarded car by the roadside.
"Coming along fine. You?"
"Haha, no issues here. What about Flame?"
Lee Cheol-woong grinned amiably, glancing aside.
Kang Min-cheol closed his eyes briefly.
"Ask her yourself."
"Eh, it's fine, don't worry."
Chae Hwa-yeon, Flame Guild leader in violet robes, approached with an annoyed look.
Kang Min-cheol glared.
"Speak of the devil..."
"So? When do we roll? Wanna wrap this up quick and rest..."
"Once we're ready."
"Yeah, fair. Hyeonwol's got the numbers."
Then a Hyeonwol member approached.
"Guild leader! All set!"
Kang Min-cheol nodded and leaped down.
"Time to move."
Shing— He drew his crimson claymore one-handed from his back.
Striding to the front, he bellowed.
"No delays. Don't give the enemy time to prepare!"
"Yes sir!"
"Here we go."
Tension rippled through the 7,000-strong crowd like waves.
Footsteps and clanging metal filled the earth.
A cornered pup snaps at the wolf.
The wolf lunges to hunt the pup.
But the wolf didn't see the tiger's stripes lurking behind.
The clash of three disparate forces loomed.