Objective – Hunt the Lich ‘Deathmond’


  Time Limit: 25 Minutes

  [Complete the objective within the Time Limit.]

  [If you cannot, you will die.]

  [The Raid begins in 3 minutes.]

  Once the Operator completed her mission briefing, the White ‘Bear Hunter’ said

  “Well, I think we should introduce ourselves before we begin. We are going to be fighting for our lives, and trying to yell ‘Hey Master Hunter, help me!’ might take too long.”


  The White man was looking up at Sungjin’s title above his head.

  “I will start. My name is Henrik Sondegaard. Since my family name is long, please just call me Henrik. What are your names?”


  Henrik must be from the Northern Europe.

  “Kultu. I am from Nepal.”


  The man Sungjin assumed to be from India was actually from Nepal. And finally the ‘Mid-level Samurai’.

  “My name is Watanabe Hiroaki. Shorten my name and call me Hiro.”


  ‘What a lively youth.’


  Until now, he should have been through life and death struggles, forced to kill or be killed, yet he maintained such a positive attitude. He must be like this naturally.

  The only two remaining men who didn’t reveal their names were the ‘Master Hunter’ Sungjin and the ‘Veteran Spearman’. Once the three men stared at him, Sungjin spat out words he had prepared beforehand.

  ‘I am K.’


  Henrik nodded.

  “Ok. Kei.”


  He must have liked that his name was short. The last one remaining was the ‘Veteran Spearman.’ But he only stared blankly. After he had taken turns looking at the others, he said

  “Akanna”


  And thus the introductions were over. The ‘Bear Hunter’ Henrik did his best to rally the team and exert leadership.

  “Let’s work hard together. Don’t we all have a family we wish to save?”


  The ‘Mid-level Samurai’ gripped his hands hard at Henrik’s words.

  “Yes. My mother and sister are being held by them……”


  Sungjin thought Hiro was perhaps not as crazy as he first seemed. The Nepali Kultu also nodded.

  “I probably have the largest family to save. Since there are 30 members in my immediate family.”


  Once again, Sungjin and the African were the last ones left. Sungjin, in particular, didn’t have anything to say; He grew up in an orphanage. The people the Operator showed him as a ransom for clearing the raids were just some orphanage workers.

  They were good people, but it was nothing like a parent. No one knew what Akanna thought. He only blinked his eyes with a vacant stare. He did not speak up.

  It wasn’t like he couldn’t speak, nor unable to understand. He didn’t seem normal.

  [The Raid begins in 1 minute.]

  The Operator informed the group about the remaining time. Now, the other men became nervous.

  “You read the information pamphlet, right? Arrows don’t work against Skeletons. I will deal with the skeletons with my axe, so please take care of the zombies and ghouls if I am busy.

  “Understood.”


  Hiro approached Sungjin meanwhile.

  “Hey, Kei, what country are you from? You’re definitely not Japanese. Chinese? Korean? Probability wise, you’re most likely to be Chinese, but I feel like you might be Korean.”


  Hiro might have been interested in Sungjin for choosing the same weapon. Sungjin continued to stare expressionlessly, but Hiro did not stop there.

  “Wait, you’re still using the basic katana! Where did you spend all of your Black Coins? And what is that shackle for? Why are you swinging your sword while being bound with chains?”


  Sungjin frowned.

  ‘.……Annoying.’


  Even though Sungjin did not give a single word in reply, Hiro continued to speak.

  “I actually finished 1st place in Kendo Regional Championship in Osaka. After taking the regional title, I was preparing for the Nationals, but I ended up here instead.”


  That last part sounded interesting. Sungjin had also taken Kendo. If he had taken first place in Osaka, he must have had considerable skill. So Sungjin gave a single word of reply.

  “So…… that’s how you got the title of Mid-Level Samurai.”


  “Yeah! This Operator or whatever has good eyes. This Title is awesome. It gives 20% increased damage to all attacks done by a Katana. How is it? Amazing isn’t it?”


  Sungjin was at a loss for words. He wanted nothing less than to quickly kill the boss and search for the hidden boss.

  “What’s that title, though? Master Hunter? It sounds really cool. What are the effects?”


  Sungjin sighed.

  “.……Go get it. You’ll know then.”


  “Yeah, I’m going to smash this Raid or whatever! I’ll take all the titles and all the items!”


  His confidence was great. But his contribution from this particular raid wasn’t going to be high at all. Unless Sungjin decided not to participate.

  ‘How should I proceed with this raid?’


  Sungjin took a quick glance at the others. These were all somewhat talented individuals with potential. At their level, they should be able to survive this chapter without protection.

  ‘Problem is contribution……’


  But the most important factor is ‘who are the last few survivors at the end’. There was no reason to be considerate with every random stranger he meets at the beginning.

  Because the chances of them surviving to the end was minuscule. The only ones who are needed to complete all raids and objectives are the final few individuals.

  To eliminate uncertainty caused by having to rely on good teammates and cooperation, he needed to be overwhelmingly powerful. Enough to finish all the raids solo if need be.

  Sungjin decided on his course of actions. And just like he had done every time, he let the others know.

  “I…… Will go alone.”


  And as was with Hiro, the others turned to look at him.

  “Truthfully, I am more of a lone wolf. If there is any need of my assistance, I will come to help. Please……stick together as a group of four and hunt only the normal monsters.”


  Henrik, who tried hard to encourage teamwork, was shocked.

  “What? What’s wrong now? Why are you saying this?”


  Kultu also chimed in.

  “He’s right. Isn’t it better to hunt together?”


  Hiro was actually impressed.

  “Ho…… Kei. How cool. Alright! It’s a race!”


  Finally, the Operator began her countdown.

  [The Raid begins in 10 seconds. 10,]

  Sungjin took out his Katana, and stood in front of the gates of ‘Greysoul Cemetery’.

  [9, 8, 7]

  Henrik tried one more time to change Sungjin’s mind.

  “Hey Kei, don’t do this. Let’s talk about this.”


  But Sungjin only turned to say

  “I can’t. This raid…… It’s like this.” (TL NOTE: at the bottom for context)

  Henrik’s eyes grew wide. Sungjin felt pangs of guilt.

  “Just…… consider me a troll. You probably had one or two until now.”


  [3, 2, 1, 0]

  And the moment the gates opened, Sungjin ran ahead. Alone.

  TL NOTE:

  This part is REALLY SUBTLE. In the Korean version, this sentence implies that betrayal is part of the raid’s design; One person sacrificing the entire group to take all the reward for himself. He’s basically apologizing to Henrik for screwing him over for the next round.

  He considers his own action as a direct threat to the well-being and survival of his teammates in the next round; Same as if he attempted to kill them himself. Hence, he considers himself a ‘Troll’.

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