Chapter 6

“Next Duel in 00:00:10.”

-Wind_Wind_Wind: 10 seconds left!

In the Earth chat room, several challengers started to countdown together with the timer.

-William: 9!

-Full Eyes: 8!

Their reaction dumbfounded Yoon-seok.

‘Do they think that it’s New Year’s Eve?’

They were counting down excitedly as if they were about to play some game.

-Shorty: 5!

-Black Dragon: 4!

-JWH904: Let’s all see each other alive!

Yoon-seok thought he must be the odd one out, but..

It seemed like that wasn’t the case. Yoon-seok couldn’t help but think that the people in the chatroom were all weirdos.

[Online: 3598/10000]

One-third of all the challengers were participating in the chat, and that big number included lurkers like Yoon-seok. The majority of the first-floor challengers didn’t participate with these weirdos.

What do you think they were all waiting for? Without another thought, there was just one answer. Just like Yoon-seok, most of them were wondering whether they would survive the next duel or not. Most of them were using pen names, which made it hard to guess their identities.

There was nothing like unity in this world. It was a place where only the strongest survives.

“Next Duel in 00:00:00”

「Get ready for your duel.」

The long twenty-four hours were over. Soon after the virtual message, Yoon-seok’s surroundings started to change. Now, the stone chamber was gone, and Yoon-seok found himself under the bright sun in the middle of an arena. As he looked around his surroundings, he frowned.

“It didn’t change.”

He stood in the same stadium, where about 24-hours prior, he had to fight in a fierce battle of life and death. The empty arena had no sign of the previous battle: the orc’s corpse was gone, and his next opponent was nowhere to be seen.

「Let the countdown begin.」

Yoon-seok let out a laugh as he saw the familiar message. Though it had only been a day, it felt like his last duel was a long time ago. Soon after, just like his previous battle, his body froze as the countdown began.

「3.」

Just then, his opponent appeared. Yoon-seok was shocked when he saw who it was. This time, it was another human being. He had prepared himself mentally for the past twenty-four hours, but this time, he gritted his teeth at the thought of murdering a fellow human being.

But he thought about the rules once more. As long as his opponent had a coin, they could revive themselves, just like in a game. So, technically, it wouldn’t be a murder.

「2.」

‘Yoon-seok..get a hold of yourself!’

The man in front of him was dressed the same way as Yoon-seok, with a simple gray top and pants. He hefted a longsword in his hands. The man’s hair was long and messy, and he had a matching beard to go with it. He looked like a stereotypical martial arts master.

Yoon-seok couldn’t help but feel surprised at what he saw. The chat room could be filtered into each of the four dimensions, and if he remembered correctly, there was a filter called Moorim.

「1.」

Yoon-seok’s intuition was telling him that his previous match would be nothing compared to this one.

「START!」

As soon as the signal sounded, the restrictions on their limbs disappeared. Yoon-seok hurriedly brought his sword and shield up and prepared for battle. But suddenly, out of nowhere, the man gave him a polite greeting.

“Nice to meet you. I am known as the Old Priest.”

The man had an accent that sounded Chinese. It threw Yoon-seok off-guard; he didn’t expect to be greeted politely in a kill or be killed situation. The man laughed at Yoon-seok’s reaction.

“Haha. Honestly, we’re not enemies, just two people placed in the same predicament. We could at least show some courtesy by exchanging greetings. For that, do you need to be on guard?”

Listening to such logic, he wasn’t wrong. As the old man said, they were all victims dragged into someone’s play.

“M-My name is Choi Yoon-seok.”

Looking at such an awkward and discomforted reply, the man couldn’t help but let out a hoarse laugh.

“Ahahaha! So, you are really from another world. By the way, are you from the military?”

“I used to be.”

Yoon-seok reluctantly replied. As a young, healthy Korean man, Yoon-seok had given his service to the military. But of course, it was completely different from what his opponent was thinking of.

“Ah, most of the soldiers in the army are strong; I’m wondering what you will show me. I’m looking forward to it.”

Was it about time to start? The man raised his sword and got in his fighting stance before continuing to speak calmly.

“This is my sword, Blue Dragon. I have trained and improved myself with this. My swordsmanship is my pride, and because of that, I can’t go easy on you.”

Yoon-seok had no way to confirm if what the man said was true. But soon after exchanging those pleasantries, the atmosphere in the arena changed. The good-natured old man that stood before him was gone.

The man standing before him now was someone who had been forged through countless battles. The aura he exuded felt as sharp as a blade, almost sharp enough to cut through Yoon-seok’s skin. He bit his tongue against the pressure. Otherwise, he would have frozen in fear.

“Then, here I come.”

Whoosh-!

He didn’t hear any footsteps, but the man was already upon him, narrowing the distance in the blink of an eye. The tip of the man’s sword flashed like lightning. Yoon-seok didn’t have time to dodge the attack, but fortunately, he raised his shield in time.

Kang-!

‘One block, one counterattack.’

His muscles automatically moved as he practiced. He had practiced the same movement thousands of times in the waiting room, allowing him to swing his sword with no hesitation. Hesitation was a luxury for someone whose life was on the line.

‘Do or die!’

What happened next made Yoon-seok realize that no matter how strong his will was, it was fruitless against experience and ability.

Chang-!

As if the man foresaw his attack, he effortlessly swung his Blue Dragon Sword to repel Yoon-seok’s blade. The inexperienced Yoon-seok stumbled back from the impact of the seemingly light and graceful block. Their physical strength was the same as per the rule, but one wielded his sword with both hands while the other could only use one.

It was natural that the old man was more stable and balanced after the impact. Without any pause, the old man then thrust his sword forward, forcing Yoon-seok to raise his shield desperately once more.

“..”

Yoon-seok nervously swallowed. He did save himself from the attack, but this time it was close. After the successful block, Yoon-seok swung his sword forward reflexively. However, his sword was met with nothing; it was as if his opponent vanished.

That man was already two steps away.

‘I need to stop him from charging. This shield is getting more and more annoying.’

Yoon-seok was breathing heavily, and his shoulders were getting heavier with every breath. However, his opponent didn’t slow down and fiercely charged towards him. Yoon-seok, feeling on edge, saw the man swinging his sword aggressively at him.

Like the previous clashes. Yoon-seok blocked the old man’s attack with his shield and swung his sword while the old man checked his counterattacks. Both stood their ground, but the old man was slowly gaining ground. And soon after, a change came to their tiresome exchange.

Aakk-!

The burly man, instead of charging with his sword, stretched his leg out for a kick. Yoon-seok didn’t expect it. His eyes were focused on the Blue Dragon sword and failed to catch the movement of the man’s legs.

The old man’s foot smashed against Yoon-seok’s stomach, the only blind spot that the shield couldn’t cover.

“Umph!”

Yoon-seok was shocked to his core, to the point he almost let go of his weapon. He could feel his organs screaming in protest. It was hard to breathe properly, but he had no time to be distracted. He desperately raised his shield.

Once more, the man charged forward.

Kang-!

Yoon-seok used all his strength to block the heavy blow with his shield, but the impact, combined with the pain he had wracking his stomach, was too much. He stumbled backward, almost collapsing. Still, the man didn’t give him a chance to recover. Not missing a beat, he swung the sword once more.

Yoon-seok made a desperate decision.

‘This is the only chance I have!’

He threw his shield towards his opponent. It caught the old man off guard as he didn’t expect Yoon-seok to dispose of his shield. Not missing the chance, Yoon-seok then charged forward and thrust with his sword.

Then..

Kacha-!

His sharp blade cut through the man’s flesh. It was the first successful attack he scored so far. However, it wasn’t a fatal blow. He only nicked the side of the man’s abdomen. Yoon-seok tried to slash forward once more, but the man swiftly stepped back and widened the distance between them despite his injury.

Now, there was a pause from both parties.

‘The shield! I need to pick it up!’

This was the only chance he had to pick up his shield. He must grab it before the man narrowed the distance between them again. Just as he bent over to pick up the shield-

His sixth sense warned him.

“..?”

His instinct took over his body even before his mind could register what was happening. As Yoon-seok stepped back, he felt a gust of wind against his face. The man’s sword was so quick that he only caught a flash of light streaking before him. The old man was genuinely surprised by Yoon-seok’s quick evasion.

“You seem to lack experience, but your judgment is very quick.”

Yoon-seok had no time to feel happy about the compliment. All he could think about at that moment was how he could have pointlessly died while trying to retrieve his shield. He decided to let it go.

‘Let’s give up the shield.’

In this duel, a single opening could lead to a fatal stroke. He would have no chance to pick up the shield that he once discarded.

“Throwing the shield was a good tactic. To use anything you could get your hands on..it reminds me of when I first started martial arts..”

Even though blood continued to drip out of the man’s wound, he appeared quite relaxed.

‘Does he even feel pain?’historical

Yoon-seok couldn’t help but shake his head as he thought about it.

‘It isn’t that. Of course, he’s in pain.’

But he realized that the difference between them was that this man had experienced pain before. Suddenly, the gap between their abilities seemed unsurmountable to Yoon-seok. He unconsciously took a step back, intimidated by the old man’s strength.

‘There’s no way I can win...’

Their physical level might be equal, but that didn’t take away the man’s superiority in skills. Yoon-seok was able to endure because he had a shield. But now, his shield was gone and irretrievable. All he had left was his flimsy sword.

‘I’m gonna die..’

Even if a coin could revive him, the pain of death was inevitable. It terrified Yoon-seok. As the old man observed Yoon-seok, his eyes were filled with disappointment.

“Boy, did you forget about me?”

As he looked at the familiar expression, Yoon-seok couldn’t help but recall a terrible memory.

—Hey, loser.

Kang Hyung-woo’s voice could be heard from somewhere far away. Yoon-seok froze like a well-trained dog upon hearing his voice.

—You’ve had several chances to fight back at me.

He was right. If Yoon-seok wanted to confront Hyung-woo, he could have, but he didn’t. It was because he thought he could never win.

‘How?’ he argued against the imaginary voice.

‘Y-you’re taller than me, and you’ve learned boxing. Argh, you had the talent!’

—Don’t you get it? You have talent, too. Haven’t you realized it yet?

“..”

After he was thrown here, Yoon-seok vaguely felt it too. Perhaps, he was even stronger than Kang Hyung-woo. He didn’t know because he never tried. Still, all he could think about was another excuse.

‘B-but if I did, my parents would...’

—A**hole, do you think my father would believe my words back then when we were just students?

“..”

—When we were freshmen..do you know how surprised I was? I never thought you’d rebel; I thought I perfectly tamed you.

When they were high school freshmen, Yoon-seok threatened to tell everyone about the bullying he suffered under Hyung-woo. The harassment stopped for a while after that, and Yoon-seok thought that their ill-fated relationship was over.

But around that time, his father’s factory had a massive fire accident. Fortunately, thanks to the JC Group, Yoon-seok’s family was spared from going bankrupt..

With his family in debt to the JC Group, Yoon-seok found himself strapped into Hyung-woo’s leash once more.

—You know, what? I was the one who turned that factory into ash.

With those words, something stirred in the pits of Yoon-seok’s stomach.

Something wild and dark.