Chapter 67: First Regular Play
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 67: First Regular Play
“Libertas. Seeing the siblings Shin Ga-ryeong and Shin Gi-jun together, did the leader step out personally?”
At Kim Chi-sang’s words, the expressions of the man and woman standing before Jeong Su-hee crumpled instantly.
Just as it seemed the four were about to clash, Seo-un spoke up.
“If you’re going to fight, do it somewhere I can’t see you. This is private property.”
Kim Chi-sang looked at Seo-un, whose eyes were glowing as he drew a line in the sand. He replied with an intrigued expression.
“Does that mean you have no relation to them?”
“Yeah. And it means I won’t have any relation to you, either.”
“We’ll see about that. You never know how things will turn out between people.”
“There’s a saying that you don’t need to see the ending to know how the movie plays out.”
“Let’s just talk for five minutes. It won’t be a bad conversation. Somewhere away from these Resistance members.”
As he finished speaking, Kim Chi-sang’s eyes narrowed as he shifted his gaze toward the three.
Simultaneously, the three lunged at Kim Chi-sang. He leapt toward them in kind, drawing a sword from his subspace.
Clang! Boom!
The moment Kim Chi-sang’s sword and Shin Ga-ryeong’s spear were about to collide, Seo-un blurred into motion. He appeared between them and blocked both weapons with his bare hands.
The pressure erupting from his body pushed the two back instantly.
Seo-un, having also tanked the magic fired by Shin Gi-jun and Jeong Su-hee with his bare body, landed on the ground with an annoyed expression.
Brush, brush.
Seo-un brushed the remaining embers off his shoulder, his face grim.
“I believe I told you to get lost if you wanted to fight.”
Kim Chi-sang’s eyes narrowed as he watched Seo-un, who had blocked his blade with nothing but his palms.
As the hand holding his sword began to throb, a cold smile spread across his face, and a thick murderous intent began to radiate from his body.
Shin Ga-ryeong and Shin Gi-jun flinched, stepping back from the sheer weight of his bloodlust.
“Jin Seo-un. You’ve got guts, laying hands on someone from the Central Bureau. Let’s postpone our conversation for a moment.”
As Kim Chi-sang lowered his sword and took a combat stance, Seo-un’s patience finally snapped.
“Ha. This is bullshit. Isn’t it enough that you show up uninvited and spout whatever you want?”
Jeong Su-hee moved closer behind Seo-un as he tightened the Hamit wrapped around his hand.
“I’ll help.”
“Don’t get it twisted. I’m not stepping in for your fight. This is my fight. Don’t try to piggyback on this; just back off.”
At those words, Jeong Su-hee’s face contorted.
Without even glancing at her as she retreated, Seo-un lunged toward Kim Chi-sang.
Clang!
Kim Chi-sang’s lip curled as his sword, thrust at Seo-un’s reaching hand, was deflected with ease. He tightened his grip.
Swish, swish, swish!
Instead of retreating, he swung his sword even faster, creating an optical illusion as if the blade had multiplied into eight.
Feeling the pressure as if eight vital points were being pierced simultaneously, Seo-un withdrew his hand and focused on defense.
Clang, clang, clang, clang!
The exchange grew more violent, marked by a series of loud metallic clangs.
The surrounding onlookers watched with bated breath, mesmerized by the clash between Kim Chi-sang, who wielded his sword with insane speed, and Seo-un, who blocked every strike with his bare hands.
Gi-chan, his face stiff, pulled out his golden staff and began channeling mana.
As waves of energy spread out, over a dozen figures emerged from the foot of the mountain.
“For a guy who said he came to talk, you sure brought a lot of backup.”
Clang!
“Just in case.”
The sword and bare hand locked together. The two began to push against each other, a raw test of strength.
“I’m not really in the mood for a childish contest of internal power.”
At Kim Chi-sang’s remark, Seo-un’s lips twisted into a smirk as he concentrated his internal power into his hand.
The energies of the two collided as they struggled to gain ground. Before long, their expressions shifted in opposite directions.
Seo-un was smiling, while Kim Chi-sang’s face grew increasingly pale as he grimaced.
Seo-un, who was on the verge of reaching two cycles of internal power, had never imagined he would lose to anyone in a contest of raw energy.
Clang!
The moment the sword and hand separated, Kim Chi-sang’s eyes became bloodshot, and a trickle of blood ran down the corner of his mouth.
Even then, his swift swordsmanship as he retreated while emitting sword qi was commendable, but Seo-un had no intention of letting him create distance just because of some sword qi.
Whoosh.
A red haze rose from Seo-un’s hand as his Blood Bone Claw tore through Kim Chi-sang’s sword qi.
As Seo-un thrust his face forward and reached for Kim Chi-sang’s head, the man grit his teeth.
Boom, boom, boom!
Several spells flew in from behind Kim Chi-sang.
Naturally, Gi-chan hadn’t forgotten to fire his own magic from behind Seo-un.
As the spells from Gi-chan and the Central Bureau mages collided and exploded around the two, Seo-un’s hand was pushed back slightly.
Crackle!
With that sound, the distance between the two widened.
Seo-un glared at his opponent as he threw a blood-soaked piece of flesh to the ground.
With a pale face and a portion of his ear missing, Kim Chi-sang grit his teeth and glared back at Seo-un.
“I’ll withdraw for today, but next time…”
“Who said you could leave?”
Seo-un cut him off sharply and stepped forward. Over a dozen people stepped in front of Kim Chi-sang, taking a defensive stance.
“This is a remote mountain. You might have come here as you pleased, but you won’t leave the same way.”
—Hyung…
Gi-chan called out to Seo-un with a worried expression.
He knew. He hadn’t forgotten that this was reality.
However, he didn't want to leave any loose ends.
The opponent was the Central Bureau. He needed to give a clear warning to these people who were capable of anything.
—Don’t worry. I’m not going to become a murderer.
The moment Seo-un lunged forward, Kim Chi-sang, filled with fear, and the dozen people guarding him vanished.
Boom!
Seo-un stood up after slamming his fist into the ground, leaving a massive crater where they had been standing.
“Mass teleportation. Tsk.”
Gi-chan, who had been hovering with sparks flying from his staff, landed behind Seo-un.
“We missed them.”
Seo-un glanced at Gi-chan—who had been attacking alongside him despite trying to stop him earlier—and then turned a cold gaze toward the dazed Jeong Su-hee and her group.
“I’ve made a useless enemy because of you lot.”
“T-That’s…”
“Forget it. Get lost.”
Shin Ga-ryeong and Shin Gi-jun tried to protest, but Jeong Su-hee raised her hand to stop them.
“I guess today isn’t the day. Next time… I’m sure we’ll have a chance to meet in a better setting.”
Seo-un sighed as he watched the three disappear.
“Sigh. I acted on impulse and caused trouble, didn't I?”
“You took off the ear of a high-ranking official from the Central Bureau… That’s a major incident.”
“...”
Seo-un looked up at the sky in silence, then spoke as if he had just remembered something.
“By the way, what exactly is a guild?”
“I don’t know the details either. I heard that when several regular squads combine, they become a guild. I’ve only heard that new rules were created for a higher version of squads… Information regarding regular players is extremely scarce even in the community.”
“What a headache. It feels like annoying people just keep showing up.”
“Shall we stop training and go do something to clear our heads?”
Gi-chan said with a light laugh, recalling Seo-un’s recent display of murderous intent and fighting spirit.
* * *
Vroom! Vroom!
They rode their Hayabusas to a motorcycle shop.
“Welcome!”
A young employee with grease on his hands looked at the Hayabusa with its shattered fairings with a pitying expression.
“It’s taken quite a beating.”
“Yeah. I’m looking to buy two new ones. Please take this one as a trade-in.”
At Gi-chan’s words, a middle-aged man who appeared to be the owner came running out from the back of the shop.
“Is there a specific model you’re looking for?”
The two followed him inside and, before long, emerged from the shop riding different bikes.
Though the models were the same, Seo-un sat atop a bike with shimmering black fairings, while Gi-chan rode one with a sleek white body. They roared across the public road, the exhaust notes echoing.
—Let’s go straight to the electronics store.
—I’ll follow you.
Seo-un and Gi-chan spent the entire day hopping between electronics and furniture stores, shopping for items to fill their empty house.
After several days of receiving the furniture and appliances they had ordered, Seo-un picked up his phone.
—Yes, Hyung.
“It’s about time we head back down for training. We need to prepare for the next game, too.”
—Right. I’ll see you in Wonju, then.
“Yeah.”
Having finished their few days of relaxation, the two returned to their training spot and began practicing once more.
* * *
“Manager! Other countries are currently putting national effort into founding guilds. You know this, don’t you? At this rate, our country will fall far behind in gathering the strength of ability users. Japan and China are already—”
Slam!
“Hey, Jeong Su-hwa! Who do you think you’re lecturing?! The higher-ups said it’s fine! Stop doing useless things and just do what you’re told! Did you forget? Your job is to prevent social chaos caused by ability users, not to overstep. The people at the top care more about the nation’s future than you do, so just do your job.”
Jeong Su-hwa left the office with a scowl at the man’s words.
It was frustrating. She had investigated the strange movements of private organizations under the protection of the Central Bureau and the guilds that had been updated with new rules. She had even researched the movements of other countries and made suggestions several times, but no response ever came back.
She believed her judgment was correct: if they didn't recruit capable ability users and establish state-sponsored guilds led by them, it would become a threat to the security of the Korean Peninsula.
Yet, those at the top remained unmoved.
—Under the name of patriotism, you are merely committing unforgivable sins without guilt.—
The words of her younger brother, with whom she had lost contact long ago, came back to her with a particularly cold sting.
* * *
Over two months had passed since they had secluded themselves in the mountains of Wonju to train.
“So, it would be best to participate in a Quad game if possible.”
“The problem is that only Duo or Solo games have been matching for over two months.”
“Should we just join the next game even if it’s just a Duo?”
“I don’t know. It’s our first regular play, but there’s too little information. It would be best to get into a Quad and get information from teammates.”
“It can’t be helped. Matching is getting slower, too. For now, we should just join a game and see…”
Gi-chan’s words were cut off by a notification sound.
[Ding! A new game has been matched.]
[Difficulty: Mid-High]
[Game Version: 20-Quad]
[Would you like to participate? (O) (X)]
The two looked at each other simultaneously.
“20-Quad means…”
“A total of 2,000 people, right?”
“Shall we… join?”
At Gi-chan’s question, Seo-un nodded as if he had made up his mind.
“Excluding us, there are 18 teammates. This should be perfect for gathering information.”
The moment they decided and moved their hands to the ‘O’ button, their vision brightened and became clear.
[Thank you to everyone for participating in Cloyd Survival.]
[Participants: 2,000. Starting Cloyd Survival.]
[Language Synchro Rate… 30%… 90%… 100% Complete.]
[Starting the game. Difficulty: Mid-High. Reach the TOP 1,200. Attacks between players are nullified in the current waiting room.]
[The designated map is the ‘Ascension Site of the Forgotten Immortal.’ Rewards will be distributed differentially starting from TOP 200.]
[This game will last for one thousand days, and the playable map will be restricted daily.]
[The force field restricting the map will grow stronger by the day, so please be careful not to take damage outside the force field.]
[This game version is the 20-Quad version. You can apply for a Quad by looking at the person you like.]
[This game will continue until only one final Quad team survives. Those who finish the game or are eliminated will return to their original world.]
[Those who do not reach the TOP 1,200 will never be able to access Cloyd Survival again. The current total number of participants is 2,000.]
[We wish all players victory.]
[Please find teammates to proceed with the game and form a team. Time limit: 180 minutes. If you do not form a team within that time, you will proceed with the game as a Solo.]
The first regular game they accessed was significantly different from the games they had experienced so far.
In particular, the difference in the map was immediately apparent even from the waiting room.
‘Ascension Site of the Immortal?’
Seo-un looked around the waiting room, which had an unfamiliar map name and was subtly different from usual.
The trees filling the forest had changed into straight-reaching bamboo, and in the center, a strange stone statue stood tall.
“Hyung, could it be…”
“Looks like it, right?”
It wasn't hard to tell that the map had shifted from a fantasy world to a world of martial artists.
And the time given to form a Quad had also increased to three hours.
—22nd round! 3rd regular play! Looking for a Quad!
—35th round! 2nd regular play! Looking for a Quad!
People were shouting from all directions. Those with faint marks on their shoulders were recognizing each other and gathering in groups.
—Ludean Guild, gather over here!
—Muyounghoe Guild, this way!
As Seo-un was frantically observing the unfamiliar situation, someone approached him.
As a hand reached for his shoulder, Seo-un instinctively lowered his stance and rotated his body. The man, whose hand swung through empty air, looked at Seo-un with a faint, oily smile.
Seo-un, upon discovering him, also widened his eyes.