Chapter 44
Chapter 44
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Trial of Hard Difficulty
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"C is absolutely out. Never!"
"Yeah, I agree."
"What's this 'close contact trial'? It screams virus-related mission."
"Th-then B's out too."
"So A, then?"
"Fresh air."
"Makes sense. The air here's pretty stuffy anyway."
There was a vent fan whirring on the ceiling, but this was a gym sealed tight with no doors or windows.
A fair number of people figured option A, 'Trial of Fresh Air,' looked like the best bet.
Meanwhile, Dokgo Hyun listened to the chatter while observing the key players.
'I've noticed it before, but people tend to clump up by their origins.'
As the sole survivor of zone H-44, Dokgo Hyun didn't have that luxury.
He mentally sorted the groups and their vibes anyway.
'But how do we pick? Majority vote? Or draw one person at random and make them choose?'
As Dokgo Hyun ran through scenarios in his head,
"The first person to jump at least a meter in place gets to choose!!"
the TV Guy suddenly shouted.
Dokgo Hyun leaped up quick,
Thud...!
Whoosh!!
but Lee Hyun-jun beat him to it.
'What...!'
It was a jump so blindingly fast, Dokgo Hyun's eyes went wide.
The speed kicked up a gust that made everyone nearby stumble.
"Oho! Two jumpers! But Player Lee Hyun-jun was first!! As expected from a Hell difficulty clear!"
"......I'll take A."
Lee Hyun-jun murmured quietly.
"Ack!"
"No way!"
"A was Hard difficulty?!"
The players panicked hard.
Some glared at Lee Hyun-jun like it was his fault for picking Hard.
Lee Hyun-jun just calmly waited for the TV Guy's explanation.
"Kukukuku. You just had to pick Hard, huh? Fine by me! Player Lee Hyun-jun must want to breathe some new life into this place. Hihihihi!"
The TV Guy cackled wickedly.
"Trial of Fresh Air! The mission is... this!"
"Wh-what the hell?!"
"Fresh air? Then why balloons?!"
"Pop at least 2?! That's killing two-thirds of us!!"
The players were horrified.
This was leagues more brutal than prelims 1 and 2.
'Not what I expected, but still works in my favor. It's over.'
Lee Hyun-jun muttered under his breath.
Shhrrk.
Suddenly, a 30cm string sprouted from everyone's left handback, a colorful balloon bobbing at the end.
Dokgo Hyun's was yellow.
"Mission start!!"
The TV Guy yelled, and players eyed each other warily.
Battle royale meant everyone but you was the enemy.
Thud!
Dokgo Hyun bolted to the wall at the edge.
He tucked his left hand and balloon behind his back, watching the chaos.
'Gotta watch that machine gun girl...!'
Right then—
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!!
Kang Se-rim with her [Infinite Magazine SMG] moved first.
But not for mass murder.
She targeted only the top dog here, Lee Hyun-jun's balloon.
Lee Hyun-jun, leaning sideways, murmured a skill.
"[Airflow Shield]."
Whoosh...!
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!!
A shield of compressed turbulent air formed before him, bullets twisting wildly off-course.
The light rounds couldn't pierce the dense air layer, despite their speed.
Thud!
Thud thud...!
Most hit the floor; some grazed him, but he held his artifact longsword up at an angle.
Its broad blade doubled as a long shield.
Clang!
All bullets blocked.
Sizzle...!
The SMG's barrel glowed red-hot.
"Tch!"
Infinite mag or not, overheating meant cooldown.
"Get her!"
"Kill that selfish bitch first!"
Five or six harboring grudges charged her.
"Idiots."
Kang Se-rim clicked her tongue and backpedaled.
"She cleared Hell! And she's got dangerous skills—take her out first...!"
"You're more dangerous!!"
Her words fell on deaf ears.
Self-inflicted mess of blockers and swappers.
Then—
Boom!!
Air blasted from under Lee Hyun-jun's feet.
The gust was so fierce it staggered fighters and fleers alike.
He rocketed up, nearly hitting the ceiling.
"Whoa!"
"Wind?!"
"Using air like rocket thrust?!"
"Not just shields?!"
Yep.
Lee Hyun-jun's skill's true nature.
"My skill is A-rank special manifestation [Airflow Control]."
A powerhouse dominating air currents entirely.
Summon, banish, compress underfoot for rocket jumps—easy.
That's why he picked A without hesitation.
Fresh air mission? Auto-win for him.
"Listen up."
He declared from near the ceiling.
"No personal beef, but most of you die. Ultimate activated: [Wide-Range Airflow Control]."
Players braced for a typhoon.
He could've, but chose elegance.
Fwwwwooom...!
Countless balloons swelled from within.
[Wide-Range Airflow Control] covered ~80% of the gym floor.
Just expanded the air inside every balloon.
Pop!
Pop pop!
Pop pop pop!!
About 480 players and balloons.
450 burst from one ultimate.
"Huh?!"
"My balloon...!"
"Wh-what? Is it over for me...?"
Most couldn't process it.
The hundreds with popped balloons swelled up,
Pop pop pop pop pop...!!
and burst.
Like cartoons—no blood, just fresh air and gone.
"What...!"
"Insane...!"
Everyone but ~20 near the east, west, and south walls—nearly 450—wiped.
Kang Se-rim included.
"Fhew."
Lee Hyun-jun rode the wind down gracefully.
"About 90,000 coins."
450 kills.
200 coins each this mission, not 100.
90k total.
"No way."
"That's cheating...!"
"Solo 90k coin hog."
"And he's already a monster."
Not just the slaughter.
The untouchable coin lead was worse.
"Listen."
Lee Hyun-jun spoke; they hid balloons, wary.
"Not hunting you one by one. My ultimate has limits."
"What're you getting at?"
Kang Oh-su—one of the handshake masters—asked.
"Swear not to touch me till mission end, and I'll swear the same."
He emphasized [Swear].
They didn't get it.
Patiently, he explained.
"Player oaths on our real names aren't just words—they engrave as [Oath] in the status window. Break it, system punishes. Like this."
He summoned his status window, sharing partial view.
"I, Lee Hyun-jun, swear not to kill until end of Mission 3. Self-defense excepted."
"Like that. So? Go ahead, kill each other. I'll chill."
He plopped near the stage, staring at his status window.
Mulling how to spend the haul.
"Hmm."
"He's for real."
"S-so we fight among ourselves...?"
Having seen his power, they sighed at the timer.
All in under a minute. Unreal.
Then Dokgo Hyun moved from the corner.
Stood before seated Lee Hyun-jun.
"Busy?"
"What's your deal?"
"Picking a fight."
"......"
Lee Hyun-jun dismissed his status and looked up.
"Wanna die?"
"Trying to live. If I don't kill you now, you'll kill us all later."
Yeah.
90k coins? Way too much.
Let him be, and he'd dominate next competitive missions.
"Justice thing?"
"Huh?"
"Killing innocents makes me the bad guy, so you're after me?"
"Nah."
"......Looks like you've killed plenty for coins and efficiency too."
Mana-charged eyes pierced Dokgo Hyun.
He didn't deny it.
"You're probably top 5 here. But you know you can't win yet."
Dokgo Hyun knew.
Even his cheat S-rank [Time Distortion] struggled against current Lee Hyun-jun.
Sole Hell tutorial clearer.
What hell he'd conquered? Unknowable.
Sky-high stats, battle sense, hidden knowledge.
"Supervisors seem to like gritty kids. Not me. Quit while I'm nice."
"If I can't kill you in 2 minutes, I'll off myself."
"......No joke, huh."
Lee Hyun-jun stood.
"Fine. You'll die anyway—don't hate me."