Chapter 60: Six-Quad Survival Strategy
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 60: Six-Quad Survival Strategy
With his bowstring pulled taut, Seo-un waited for his moment, silently observing the chaotic battlefield.
A Duo-Quad consisting of a mage and a knight had seemingly formed a silent alliance with a Triple-Quad made up of two martial artists and a mage. Together, they were concentrating their attacks on the team Seo-un recognized.
It wasn't blatant teaming; they still maintained a subtle, wary distance from one another, but their target was clear.
Amidst the fray, one martial artist wielding a particularly sharp saber was resisting aggressively, pushing forward rather than staying back to protect his mage. It was a high-risk playstyle that would be impossible to pull off without absolute trust in his teammate, the knight.
As his saber carved through the air, dozens of streaks of Saber Qi erupted, shattering the Duo-Quad mage’s shield.
In that instant, Seo-un’s eyes flashed.
Whiz!
A black shadow flickered past the mage’s forehead. A trail of red blood trickled down between the man's brows, and he collapsed to the ground instantly.
The sudden anomaly caused every player on the battlefield to flinch. They froze on high alert, scanning their surroundings, paralyzed by the unknown.
‘Impressive.’
It was a brief, cold observation.
The speed of the arrow he had just fired was incomparable to the ones he had used during his recent sniping duel. Although it was technically only a 55% increase in speed, the perceived velocity felt like much more.
In fact, the players hadn't even realized what had hit the mage yet.
Furthermore, this dungeon was a place where the Cloak of Stealth could exert 100% of its power. In an underground environment where sunlight never reached, there were few items as reliable as the Cloak of Stealth.
While the players were paralyzed by confusion, Seo-un repositioned. He slotted another pyeonjeon into the tonga and drew his bowstring once more.
The mage from the Triple-Quad frantically cast a double layer of Shield and Barrier, cowering in fear. It was only natural to be terrified after seeing a fellow mage taken down in a heartbeat.
With the enemy right in front of them and the foul sensation of being targeted by an invisible foe, no one dared to move. However, the team that had been fighting at a disadvantage didn't hesitate—they charged.
Though only one mage had been removed from the equation, the team Seo-un was protecting found the fight much easier. The shift from a five-on-three to a four-on-three was a significant numerical change, but the primary reason was that the mages were now locked in a one-on-one duel.
Among the players fighting tentatively while guarding their surroundings, the martial artist wielding the saber was the only one pouring out aggressive attacks. Since they had been losing anyway, he didn't hesitate now that a path to victory had opened. Saber Qi exploded in all directions from his blade.
‘He was just as reckless back then.’
Seo-un remembered him charging at an overwhelmingly superior master with desperate resolve. His saber seemed even faster now than it had been before.
However, it wasn't enough to break through two martial artists and a knight on his own.
The lone knight from the Duo-Quad was now desperately clinging to the Triple-Quad, actively assisting them. He likely realized that siding with them was his only chance of survival.
‘Fool. You should be thinking about running away and camping right now.’
Seo-un felt a pang of pity for the knight, who was desperately trying to prove his worth to a temporary ally. If it were Seo-un, he would have fled the moment the mage died without looking back.
In fact, the moment the mage was killed by a mysterious attack, the smartest play for everyone would have been to disengage from the battlefield entirely.
‘Everyone’s getting rattled by the 24-hour limit.’
It was obvious they were overextending themselves due to the pressure of the Wraith’s resurrection.
Just as the tide of battle began to tilt toward the Triple-Quad—thanks to the knight’s valiant efforts to gain their favor—two Ice Lances formed over Seo-un’s shoulders. They streaked toward the enemy mage with a slight delay between them.
The mage was the first to sense the mana fluctuation and turned his gaze toward the direction where Seo-un was hidden. The moment the Ice Lances shattered his Shield and Barrier, the two martial artists hurriedly stepped in front of their mage to block.
Having sensed Seo-un’s presence as his stealth broke, the martial artists’ reactions were remarkably swift.
However, Seo-un was already moving while drawing his bow, blending back into the darkness.
As soon as he regained his stealth, he infused a massive amount of Internal Power into his bow and pyeonjeon, then released the string.
Whiz!
Blood sprayed from the temple of the mage, who had been trying to cast a new Shield. As he collapsed, the two martial artists frantically reached out for him, but their opponents weren't foolish enough to watch idly.
As Saber Qi and magic spells rained down on them, the martial artists and the knight couldn't hold out for long. They were eventually reduced to item boxes.
The three remaining players hesitated, guarding their surroundings without even opening the loot. They seemed unable to choose between pursuing the mysterious sniper or claiming their prizes.
It was then that Seo-un appeared before them, shedding his Cloak of Stealth.
“We meet again.”
At his sudden appearance, the expressions of the three players, who had been prepared to attack, turned peculiar. Seo-un gave them a genuine smile as he watched their faces flicker with a mix of relief, hostility, and wariness.
Though they had shown a hostile side at the end of their last encounter due to their greed for martial arts, the bond they shared from their previous battle was deeper than that of mere enemies.
Whether he recognized the sincerity in Seo-un’s expression or was simply confident in his own skills, the martial artist was the first to relax. He sheathed his blade and approached.
“I figured you’d be alive and hiding somewhere, but it’s good to see you again.”
“I’m glad to see you too. Especially at a time like this.”
The martial artist’s eyebrows twitched at the emphasis Seo-un placed on his last words.
“It seems you didn't help us for free. I just hope the price isn't too high.”
He spoke jokingly while tapping the saber at his waist, but Seo-un liked that confidence.
“Before that, when did you enter this dungeon?”
“We’ve been in this underground area for about ten days.”
“Then you probably don't know much about the teaming?”
“Teaming? What alliance are you talking about?”
As expected, having entered the dungeon early, he hadn't noticed the organized groups.
“Currently, three or four quads are teaming up. Until recently, they were targeting quads at the entrance, but now that the force field is closing in, they’ll start hunting in a pack. There are only two ways to deal with it: join them or form a resistance.”
At this new information, the faces of the martial artist and the mage turned serious. They were veterans of Cloyd. They had formed temporary alliances before, but they had never seen large-scale teaming in a Quad game.
If more than three quads had joined forces, there was practically no way to oppose them. Unless one possessed overwhelming power, total annihilation was certain the moment they clashed.
“Why are you guys overthinking this? He says the enemies are holding hands and pushing in with numbers. We’re basically comrades who fought a powerful foe together. We just need to group up and fight back.”
The knight looked back and forth at the two who were deep in thought and spoke lightheartedly. The mage and the martial artist let out a sigh.
Though they didn't say it, their thoughts were written clearly on their faces: Must be nice to be so simple-minded.
In a Squad game, you cannot form a team after the game starts, except for the teammates you chose in the waiting room. This meant you couldn't expect perfect trust from a stranger met during the match.
Thus, the mage and the martial artist had no choice but to calculate and doubt Seo-un’s true intentions.
Just then, Gi-chan and Lyle appeared beside Seo-un.
“We’re not saying we should stay together until the very end. We’re saying we should work together at least until we break the teaming alliance,” Gi-chan said.
Seo-un added to Gi-chan’s words.
“As you’ve probably seen, there’s a master among the enemies who uses Gang-gi. Besides… Jurokuana is likely still alive as well…”
The mage was shocked by the name Jurokuana, and the martial artist was stunned by the mention of Gang-gi. Since they usually only checked the number of remaining players rather than the kill logs, they had missed these details.
“The Divine Archer is in this game?”
“Gang-gi… Have you actually seen it?”
The two asked simultaneously.
“I’ve clashed with Jurokuana. As for the martial artist who uses Gang-gi, I haven't seen him personally, but I don't think those two players would have been eliminated by now.”
The martial artist and the mage locked eyes and nodded.
“Let’s do it. Though I don't know how long it will last.”
Seo-un smiled as he looked at the martial artist, who put weight on his ominous closing words.
“I’m Jin Seo-un.”
“I am called Li Min.”
Seo-un watched Li Min perform a fist-and-palm salute and returned the gesture. Having read his share of martial arts novels, he knew it carried a meaning similar to a handshake.
“I’m Dump. Looking forward to working with you.”
Dump stepped forward and slammed his shield into the ground. Seo-un accepted the greeting, guessing it was a form of knightly etiquette. The thought crossed his mind that the name suited his simple nature perfectly.
“I look forward to it as well.”
Seo-un replied casually, but Dump didn't seem to mind.
“You can call me Seide. I hope we can all achieve a good result.”
Once their introductions were finished, Lyle and Gi-chan also introduced themselves.
After the greetings, the group finished scavenging and moved to a different location to discuss their future plans, but they struggled to reach a consensus.
“Since things have turned out this way, it’s right to move aggressively and find the enemies. There are barely 17 hours left until that Wraith resurrects.”
Seo-un shook his head at the mage’s words.
“Not yet. Even if we’ve filled our numbers, the gap between us and the teamers is more than double. Besides them, Jurokuana and the mysterious master who uses Gang-gi are still out there. It’s better to use variables to create a situation where we can profit; that way, our survival rate is higher. If we’re lucky, they might even fight each other and end up in a mutual destruction scenario.”
“That’s too much of a gamble. There’s no guarantee those variables will work in our favor,” Li Min argued.
“It can’t be helped then. Let’s decide by a majority vote,” Gi-chan suggested, and everyone nodded.
Just then, Seo-un spoke up.
“Before that, take this. It’s an item I don't need, but I think it’ll be different for you.”
He pulled out a Sword Manual and tossed it to Dump. Dump’s eyes doubled in size as he caught it.
“T-This is!”
He was floored. It was a Sword Manual of a regular knight from the Cueren Empire. If it was a regular knight, it was undoubtedly the manual of a complete knight who had received the title of Sword Emperor.
It was an item that he, a mere trainee knight, had been desperately searching for in Cloyd.
Seo-un maintained a composed expression as he looked at Dump, who was staring at him with eyes full of gratitude. He spoke as if it were no big deal.
“An item only reveals its true value when it goes to the person who needs it.”
In reality, it was a locked item, and since he had already cataloged it, he could bring out as many as he wanted as long as he had enough coins. However, the simple-minded Dump looked at Seo-un as if he were his savior.
“Shall we vote now?”
Li Min and Seide looked back and forth between Gi-chan, who had timed his intervention perfectly, and Seo-un, shaking their heads. This vote was a foregone conclusion.
Everyone except Dump himself noticed Seo-un’s blatant manipulation, but they couldn't exactly find a reason to complain.
“I guess we have no choice. But this result is literally nothing but a gamble.”
Seo-un smiled at Seide’s words.
“Actually, that’s not necessarily true. I have a hunch about the resurrecting Wraith.”
“A hunch?”
Li Min and Seide focused their attention on Seo-un with anticipation.
“The resurrection of the Wraith will likely be a monster on par with a Boss Monster, or perhaps even higher.”
The two nodded in agreement. They had expected as much. Only Dump looked startled.
Ignoring Dump, Seo-un continued.
“And once that thing resurrects, players will surely gather toward the monster, and a massive battle will break out.”
At that point, Seide interjected.
“I can’t agree with that. They’ve encouraged players by adding a time limit. I think they’ll release a terrifying monster that no one would even dare to try, just to speed up the game.”
His point was also valid.
“Perhaps. But even so, players will do their utmost to take it down.”
As Seide was about to voice his opposition again, Li Min nodded.
“That’s true.”
Seide looked at Li Min, confused.
“It’s obvious. If it’s a high-level monster stronger than a Boss Monster, they’ll be even more tempted by the rewards.”
“Ah!”
Only then was the mage’s doubt resolved. The common trait of all players was their greed for items.
Seo-un curled his lips into a smile that made him look like a movie villain.
“And what if we hit them from behind then?”
*
Skreeeee!
As Li Min’s saber, coated in Holy Water, cleaved through a Specter, the monster vanished into scattering pieces with a clinking sound.
“With this, we’ve revealed the entire map for this area.”
Seo-un nodded as Li Min naturally sheathed his saber with a reverse grip.
Their eyes gathered on a gem embedded in the wall, which was emitting a faint, white glow.
It was a gem they had discovered recently. Wherever Specters appeared, this gem was always embedded nearby. Once all the surrounding Specters were defeated, the gem would lose its light, only to glow again and summon more Specters after 24 hours.
“If Rimin were here, we could have found out more, but this is clearly the medium that anchors the Specters.”
“It definitely lost its power when placed in the Subspace, right?”
Seide nodded at Seo-un’s question.
“I’ve checked twice.”
Seo-un leaped toward the gem and reached for it where it was firmly embedded in the stone.
Crunch!
He pried the gem out as if digging into the wall and placed it into his Subspace. Gi-chan looked at him.
“That’s the tenth one. Since there are twenty to thirty per gem, that’s roughly over two hundred monsters. Even if they’re just Specters, that’s a burdensome number.”
“Not yet. Even with five hundred, I’d still be uneasy.”
Suddenly, Gi-chan, Lyle, and Seide widened their eyes and looked at Seo-un.
“The Alarm Magic in Sector A-1 has been triggered!”
“Run!”
Having installed Alarm Magic across the revealed map, Seo-un—who had focused on collecting gems while avoiding enemies as much as possible—was now leading the group.
Only a few days had passed, but no one questioned Seo-un’s orders.
Day 38 of the game.
Survivors: 39/400