Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Slash-.

Smoothly, necks were severed. Magic imbued into the spear’s tip acted as a blade. Using the extended reach of his spear, Schneider fought as if his arms extended.

‘Impressive.’

The display even captured Un Hyang’s attention. The colossal screens surrounding the coliseum displayed Schneider’s battle against dozens of players.

‘He handles the spear well. His movements are fluid. Above all—’

“Aaah-!”

“Hey, don’t run!”

“This is just a trial! Don’t be scared!”

“Even so, this is too one-sided—”

Boom-!

Another player’s head exploded.

‘He’s executing a one-sided massacre without even using skills.’

Despite her bias towards Suhyuk, Un Hyang had once thoroughly researched Schneider. Famous players had lots of data available, and Schneider was no exception.

She knew what skills he primarily used and his preferred fighting styles. From that perspective, Schneider didn’t seem to be going all out yet.

‘A slaughter.’

Swoosh-.

With a soft sound, Schneider’s spear pierced another player’s chest in two. Spears were typically designed for thrusting rather than slashing.

Yet his spear wielded the power reminiscent of a long sword.

“He’s skilled. I’ll give him that.”

Un Hyang nodded. Professionally, she had seen countless streams, including those renowned for showcasing exceptional skills.

She had also watched numerous rookie fights on Players Channel. Yet, the number of players she acknowledged could be counted on one hand.

“Well... The same goes for this one.”

-Wow, that’s 24 kills.

-Sweet, sweet.

-Boring. Schneider, come out@@

On Suhyuk’s stream. Suhyuk had just taken down his 24th opponent on the road and was moving towards his next target. Even though it was a solo match, most players moved in teams.

The size varied, ranging from two to five members. But Suhyuk didn’t seem to care at all.

“I’d prefer meeting a large group next time....”

Instead, he seemed to be hoping to encounter more players at once.

-LOL crazy

-Usually, hiding is the best tactic, LOL.

-If they come all together? Even better.

And such atypical situations were precisely what the viewers loved the most. Un Hyang, observing the stream’s atmosphere, checked the viewer count.

『Viewers: 9,451』

The viewers were rapidly increasing. Surpassing ten thousand was just a matter of time. And likely, the tipping point would be.

“If they clash, it’ll be a beautiful sight.”

The moment when Schneider and Suhyuk faced off.

***

『Survivors: 1,342』

Suhyuk checked the number of remaining survivors. The rate of elimination was faster than expected. It explained why he had encountered so many players—it wasn’t a coincidence.

“The field isn’t that big, it seems.”

It would’ve been nice if more players had remained. 200 points per kill. Once the preliminary round ended, this lucrative mission would be over, too.

“How many kills do I have now?”

-97 kills

-No, it’s 98.

-It’s 98. You caught that one who tried to escape.

98.

That was the number of kills Suhyuk had racked up in this preliminary round. It meant he had encountered an immense number of players.

No wonder.

Thud-.

Not far away, the ground caved inwards, descending into an abyss. The land was slowly disappearing. It was designed to prevent players from hiding in one spot indefinitely.

The system was driving players toward a single point. This would likely continue until only a thousand remained.

“Where should I go to meet someone?”

While the stage was narrowing, Suhyuk didn’t head straight for the center.

Whish-.

He examined the ground. Footprints and trampled grass indicated recent passage.

‘A lot of movement. At least ten... no, maybe more?’

As time passed, group sizes grew larger. With a thousand survivors possible, players were banding together to increase their chances of survival.

But Suhyuk wasn’t wary of these movements. Rather. He welcomed them.

“It’s that way.”

Suhyuk’s focus zeroed in on the tip of Schneider’s spear. He couldn’t afford to lose sight of it. The spear extended farther than it appeared.

Rather than gauging distance, he needed to watch the spear’s direction.

Crash-!

As Schneider swung his spear, a strike cleaved through the ground in its path.

The spear’s power surpassed that of a sword. Simply clashing head-on was ill-advised.

『’Nameless Magic Sword’ absorbs user’s stamina.』

『All stats rise proportionally to consumed stamina.』

『‘Selfish Sacrifice Lv4’ resists damage from ‘Nameless Magic Sword.’』

A red impact radiated from Suhyuk’s sword. With the magic sword’s effect, his stats surged momentarily.

Crash-.

The clash between Suhyuk’s sword and Schneider’s spear sent shockwaves. Schneider’s spear continued its relentless assault.

Bang, bang-!

Suhyuk deftly evaded and parried the spear strikes targeting his vital points. As if performing a choreographed act, he closed the distance between them.

Once the gap closed sufficiently, Schneider halted his spear. He allowed Suhyuk to come closer. And in that instant.

Zip-.

Suhyuk dashed straight towards Schneider. Red impact trailed along his path, the magic sword’s power boosting his stats dramatically. In a blink, the distance was gone.

Within spear range, Suhyuk’s sword aimed for Schneider’s neck.

Clang-!

Ssss-.

Sparks flew as their weapons clashed. Close enough now, Suhyuk glared at Schneider. Few moments brought opponents so face-to-face as when they aimed for each other’s throats.

“Your movements are swift.”

It wasn’t pure admiration. Schneider’s face held a hint of dissatisfaction.

“Why aren’t you using your lightning?”

Schneider was waiting for the lightning. The skill that made many know him. Lee Suhyuk’s iconic skill. Only then would this fight hold its true value.

However.

“It’s too precious.”

“Too precious?”

“If I show it now, wouldn’t it spoil the surprise? This is just the preliminaries.”

“What are you—”

Suddenly, a realization hit Schneider. Survivors. This battle had an implicit time limit.

『Survivors: 1,012』

Only twelve more. The rate at which survivors were decreasing surprised them.

Why so fast?

As Schneider wondered,

“The closer the survivors get to the target, the more temporary alliances fall apart.”

Suhyuk revealed the reasoning. The preliminaries were a solo affair. But over time, players who understood the trial began to form teams.

Forming a group would increase their survival chances, that much was clear. However, the purpose of those groups was solely to make it through the preliminaries.

As the number of survivors neared the threshold of 1,000, there was no longer any need to stay in teams. That was exactly why the survivor count had plummeted so rapidly.

‘Could it be that he...’

Schneider’s gaze wavered.

‘Was he dodging my attacks while keeping track of the number of survivors?’

That slight error in judgment could easily lead to a fatal wound. He had believed that narrowly avoiding his attacks was Suhyuk’s goal.

But he was wrong. Even in the heat of the moment, Suhyuk had been watching the survivor count and conserving his lightning.

‘Could that even be possible?’

Moments later.

『Survivors: 1,000』

『The preliminary round has ended.』

『You will now be transported to the finals.』

Woooo-.

The scenery began to blur. The remaining players faded, signaling the end of the preliminaries. Right in front of him, with their blades still crossed, Suhyuk mouthed silently.

‘See you in the finals, ten thousand points.’

With those words, Suhyuk’s image vanished. Schneider looked down at his own body, slowly fading, and his expression turned incredulous.

“Ha, ha... unbelievable.”

He had considered the possibility of encountering Suhyuk in the preliminaries. But he hadn’t anticipated this kind of ending.

‘I underestimated him.’

Schneider recalled Suhyuk’s movements.

‘He’s not just some fool relying on lightning.’

Grin-.

Schneider’s lips curled upward. Impressive. Yeah, this explains why he was so confident.

“Well, this is just the preliminaries.”

There was no rush. After all, only he had the capability to defeat Suhyuk. As he slowly advanced towards the finals. It wouldn’t be long before he faced Suhyuk again.