Losers' Resurrection
It was the first day of the team battle. Large and small clashes broke out all across the field, and far more players were eliminated than anyone had anticipated. Some fell in glorious battle while desperately defending or seizing flags, but just as many were cut down without achieving anything of note, eliminated in futile silence. Others lost their flags after stepping away for reconnaissance or ambush tactics. For players who felt the sting of such unfair defeat, the team battle featured one special rule.
Night has fallen.
With the sun fully set behind the mountains and darkness blanketing the land, faint, hazy afterimages began to appear here and there along the edge of the lightless forest.
15% of randomly selected players who were eliminated without dying have been summoned to the field.
“Huh?”
“...What the hell is going on now?”
The few chosen players who had been summoned to the field stared at one another in a daze. Their bodies still wouldn’t move freely since the summoning wasn’t complete, but every face wore the same expression of pure bewilderment.
Special mission assigned.
Losers' Revival Opportunity
Theme: Event
Difficulty: Event
Description: You are among those eliminated after your flag was stolen without dying. Make full use of the time granted to you each night to reclaim the flags that were taken from you. Successful recapture will restore your eligibility to rejoin the team battle.
Mission: Reclaim the stolen flag.
Reward: All surviving players will be revived.
Failure Penalty: Death during the losers' revival results in permanent banishment to the lobby.
※ All stats will equal those of the ‘coordinate that stole the flag.’
※ Time limit is ‘3 hours.’
A new mission floated before their eyes. No one had expected a losers’ revival system. Simply retrieving the stolen flags would resurrect every single person who had been absurdly eliminated. There appeared to be no additional penalty for dying in the process.
After enough time had passed for them to read every detail, the invisible force binding their bodies finally released them.
“……”
“……”
Yet the players simply stood there, staring at one another in heavy silence. It was only natural. The people summoned around them weren’t all from the same coordinate. Any one of them could have started a fight to eliminate rival losers right then and there, but instead they only eyed each other warily, unable to take any decisive action.
Realistically, what do we gain from fighting these guys right now?
If we lose, it hurts. If we win, we still lose out. Right?
That single thought dominated every mind. For the first time since entering the team battle, they had reached something close to unanimous agreement, and it hadn’t taken long for them to realize it.
“Hey. You there.”
The man in the black robe spoke to someone from a different coordinate. At his short, gruff call, several players turned their heads. The man continued carefully.
“I think it’d be best if we losers don’t fight each other for the time being. What do you think?”
A being with violet skin gave a slight nod.
“I agree. Only fifteen percent of the survivors came back. Fighting among ourselves would just be throwing our lives away. I have no interest in doing something that stupid when I finally have a chance at revenge.”
Representatives from the other coordinates nodded in agreement. The swords they had instinctively drawn were quietly sheathed at their sides. They had only three hours. From identifying who had taken their flags to planning an operation and actually reclaiming them, there was simply too much to do. They were about to disperse when—
“You’re really going with just that number?”
“……”
The violet-skinned man turned back with an indifferent gaze at the black-robed man’s words.
“I’m asking if you need support. Even if our stats have been equalized, recapturing a flag with so few people won’t be easy.”
“So? You’re suggesting an alliance?”
“Temporary. Only until we’ve all revived. How about it?”
It was reasonable. Logical. Practical. But precisely because it sounded so sensible, the violet-skinned man voiced his doubt.
“What if our targets are the same? I have zero intention of yielding.”
If the coordinate that had stolen their flags turned out to be identical, only one team could be revived.
“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Call it friendly competition.”
“It’s stupid, but not bad.”
They were the kind of people who might stab each other in the back at any moment, yet an alliance formed for the sake of their individual goals.
With a burst of motion, the groups merged. Now boasting the fighting power of more than one full coordinate, they began scouring the forest like a fine-toothed comb. Echion’s players in black robes, Tauron’s warlocks, and what appeared to be three additional coordinates. Together they searched until they found a hidden spot at the edge of a cliff. There, the Earth players who had eliminated all five of those coordinates were camped.
Swish!
Clang!
What the hell is this…!
I knocked away the ominous violet magic arrow flying toward me and spun around. The campsite was under surprise attack before we could even assess the situation. The enemies had poured in from the direction guarded by the other two, not the path Han Gamin and I were watching.
“Eyes front!”
Clang!
“Ugh!”
Even their stats were roughly equal to mine, currently locked at Lv. 15. But the most shocking part was that these were the very people who should have had their flags taken, been eliminated, and sent back to the lobby.
Quick Comprehension (C-)
The passive triggered as my mind grew chaotic. Once the situation slowly came into focus, I raised my sword and violently drew out the mana within my body.
Moonlight Sword Art
New Moon
My blade caught the moonlight and erupted with brutal radiance. The enemies flinched, their vision momentarily impaired. I sliced through one in an instant and shouted at Han Gamin.
“Run for the campsite!”
Snapping back to her senses, she immediately sprinted toward the camp. There might be casualties. But in a team battle, nothing mattered more than the flag and its owner. As long as we could secure those two, we would still have plenty of opportunities.
Thunder-Chasing Footwork
I followed the path she had taken, barely managing to deflect the spells and blades flying toward her. Yet the closer we got to the campsite, the louder the clamor of battle became. The ring of steel on steel. The sound of magic piercing flesh and flames devouring the wooden barricades. The fortifications had bought us a little time, but with enemy numbers constantly swelling, it was clear the defense would collapse soon.
“Siin! Gamin!”
Realizing I needed protection, the others abandoned the campsite and rushed to meet us. Park Jocheol and Namgung Cheonho, their bodies already covered in blood from fierce fighting, shouted.
“Siin, what the hell is happening?”
“Those purple-skinned bastards! Aren’t they the ones we eliminated?!”
I held off on answering their stunned questions and yelled instead. Their identities weren’t what mattered right now.
“Run along the cliff! Protect Gamin!”
The two men nodded with grim faces and took the lead, guiding the group forward.
I never saw this coming.
Every player I had encountered so far had been careful to preserve their own lives. They had things to protect, rivalries between coordinates, and their own strategies. That was why I had believed the campsite would be safe. No coordinate would launch a preemptive strike against a stronger one while risking heavy losses of their own.
But these people—
“Hahaha! Die!”
“The flag! Where did you hide the flag?!”
—were vengeful demons with nothing left to lose. Even while dying, they fired one last spell. When their right arm was severed, they simply switched the sword to their left and drove it into an enemy’s throat. The Earth coordinate players were overwhelmed by that fanatical killing intent. The moment their will to fight broke, more than half of them were slaughtered.
“A-ahead!”
By the time we reached the forest, someone’s shout made the sprinting group look up. We found ourselves facing another group of players lying in ambush. Beings with violet skin stood with both hands raised, chanting. A massive sphere of black mana was forming above their heads. The Earth players could only stare at it in utter despair.
“What is that…!”
Goosebumps rippled across everyone’s skin. The concept of black magic the rabbit had mentioned. Developed solely for destruction and curses, it radiated a murderous aura that made the simple spells they had learned seem like child’s play.
Slowly, the warlocks turned their hands toward us. The cloud-like mass of mana hurtled forward in perfect sync with their gesture. Players were charging at us from behind and from the right. Ahead lay black magic, to the left a sheer cliff. A perfect trap.
“Is this how it ends?”
“Damn it… I thought I could actually accomplish something this time…”
Resignation spilled from their lips. Since death here didn’t mean permanent death, some trembled but still spoke of trying again next time. Yet it was said that people facing mortal danger could summon superhuman strength.
There is a way.
I wasn’t ready to give up yet. The thought that had flashed through my mind moments ago might have been nothing more than a fleeting illusion, but what did it matter? I reached into my pouch and pulled out one of the items I had never quite figured out how to use since the tutorial stage.
◈ A pill that manipulates the causality of the consumer.
◈ Upon consumption, one random effect occurs immediately.
◈ Effects:
— Resets memory by 24 hours.
— Resets physical state by 24 hours.
— ???
Three black pills inside a red pouch. I still had three moves left before checkmate.