Kill the Hero Chapter 25
TL: Uncle Choi
Editor: Bait
Year 2020, when players arrived from around the world, people hoped that living conditions would finally improve. They once dreamed that the players would save the world.
As time went by, however, the living conditions of the people became even more miserable rather than get better.
Especially when monsters that couldn't be killed with firearms emerged in 2025. The last hope ordinary people had of protecting themselves by using powerful modern weapons was shattered.
Some people who had lost hope began to riot and the frequency of looting and arson increased.
Amidst this calamity, countries started to compete fiercely in order to secure stronger items and more talented players.
Laws were meaningless in such a process.
The players could do and did do just about everything inside the dungeons, where literally anything could take place.
At some point, it became common for an ally to betray them and fight over items.
It was the start of an age where people cared more about the distribution of loot rather than completing the actual hunt.
Kim Woo-jin, who had survived through a such fierce and cruel period before, was well aware of the importance of taking care of the dangers that laid hidden behind him.
'As expected.'
When fighting with the Orc Champion, Kim Woo-jin already knew there was an observer around him.
"As I speculated, there was a person taking care of the scouts from each party."
It was also expected that surveillance was not their only objective.
It was based on the fact that there were no rumors spreading regarding Kim Woo-jin taking the Orc Lord's Fang from the Orc Champion.
It was impossible that there were no witnesses.
Even if it was the first day, there would have been more than one party that sent observers to check on the situation of the Orc Champion.
Meaning, it was highly likely that there was someone silencing the witnesses.
Of course, it wasn't Kim Woo-jin.
'If you want to hunt half of the players in the dungeon, removing their eyes first is the right answer.'
It was just a scheme planned by a group of people in order to hunt the players here.
Anyway, it was nothing unusual for Kim Woo-jin.
In fact, it was routine for him.
He had experienced many similar situations, to the point that he was sick of it. He knew the perfect way to respond against it.
The reason why Kim Woo-jin purposely relaxed after hunting for the Orc Champion was also to give the observers time to act.
"You. You b.a.s.t.a.r.d. How…"
It was frankly impossible for his prey to realize what actually happened.
"Wa, wait a minute! There must be some kind of misunderstanding…"
The prey was so fl.u.s.tered that he didn't even realize that he was acting out of order.
"Th, this, what happened here was…"
Even though he knew he was already caught in Kim Woo-jin's trap, and that there was a dead player who he had killed him right next to him, he was trying his hardest to think of an excuse.
He was clearly in a state of panic.
Kim Woo-jin did not bother talking to him. He didn't even meet his eyes.
He certainly wasn't going to explain how he had set up his trap and what his intentions were.
There were already enough bad guys who explained everything to their enemies before executing their plans in the movies.
He also had no intention of obtaining information through useless torture.
Seug!
The Orc Champion's Scimitar in Kim Woo-jin's hand cut his opponent's throat in one fell swoop. "Khuk!"
His prey let out a dying gasp.
"Hukk, huk…"
At that time, life in his opponent's eyes began to fade.
As soon as the light disappeared from his prey's eyes, Kim Woo-jin finally met his eyes.
The notification sounded in his ear.
The second day of the battle ended abruptly.
"Back off!"
"Get out! Just get out of here!"
All of the players resigned from the field at the same time.
"We need to understand what happened first!"
"We don't know what's going to happen, so let's retreat for now!"
Of course, the death of the Orc Champion was what forced the players to leave.
Who defeated the Orc Champion?
They weren't retreating because they were curious.
'Everyone's concentration is broken.'
'If we fight like this, the rate of casualties would be high.'
The first reason was that a player's concentration could collapse due to the unexpected death of the Orc Champion.
'We don't know how the orcs will react to losing their leader either.'
'It would be fine if they just retreated, but there is also the chance that the orcs would lose their mind and charge at us in anger due to the loss of their leader.'
The second reason was that they didn't know how the orcs would react over the loss of their leader.
'We have to make a new plan as well.'
'I'm sure they feel the same way. We have to meet and talk to each other in order to avoid suspicion.'
The third reason was that they had to throw away their plans of catching the Orc Champion.
However, not everyone stepped down from the battlefield for that reason.
"Where are the rest?"
The reason why the groups wearing skull masks resigned from the battlefield was different.
"I believe they are cleaning up."
Skull Guild.
Although it's been a bit over a year since it was established, it became relatively well-known due to their solid financial powers and connections, which allowed them to use popular celebrities to boost their public image.
The guild was well-known for making all of their players wear a skull mask as well.
In the end, they also were able to partic.i.p.ate in the rank dungeon, which was at the center of interest of the whole world.
"Anyway, he really took on the Orc Champion by himself?"
"Yes, I'm glad the Phoenix Guild isn't on the list."
But the Skull Guild's goal did not involve hunting the orcs.
"Yeah, we don't have kill that monster."
Their prey were none other than the players.
The reason was simple.
"Still, he may have gotten a legendary item… why don't we try to go after him at least once?"
"If that really is the case, we're going to hit it big when we catch him!"
It was much better for business to catch players rather than monsters.
In actuality, the comparison was pointless.
While the orcs usually only dropped normal and perhaps rare items if they got lucky, most of the players here were plastered with unique items.
In other words, it meant that killing players would net them billions of won at a time.
"Don't be too greedy. Didn't we decide to go for the players because we weren't confident in getting the legendary item?"
"Yeah, you're right."
"Items like that are for the Messiah Guild or the Phoenix Guild to take."
It was far more reasonable than trying to overcome the Messiah Guild or the Phoenix Guild in order to secure the legendary item.
"All we have to do is to let everyone know who he is. Then someone else will take care of it. All we have to do is to stay low, make enough profit, and then shut our mouths. If we shut our mouths, no one will know what happened here."
"Right. In a dungeon, even if you die to an user, it's just an accident."
"As for the items, all we have to do is to sell them overseas."
When considering the special aspects of a dungeon's environment, there was no better business than this.
"Uh, someone's coming."
At that moment, their colleague appeared.
"Huh?"
"What? Why is he running?"
A fellow guild member in his skull mask was running toward them in a hurry.
Everyone wearing a skull mask was immediately alert.
Soon after the arrival of their guildmate, the man who was leading the conversation till now said.
"What is it?"
"He is here?"
"He?"
"The guy who killed the Orc Champion. He's coming here with his skeletons after figuring out our ident.i.ty."
"Over there! That skeleton right there!"
At the end of the report, three orc skeletons appeared before them.
The sight of skeleton soldiers equipped with swords, shields and helmets was frightening already.
"d.a.m.n it!"
Facing such a perilous situation, the Skull Guild's members also drew their weapons. They didn't relax when they took out their weapons.
They couldn't relax.
'That monster came?'
's.h.i.t, why is this happening?'
While most of the players in the dungeon didn't know that the person attacking them was a monster who killed the Orc Champion alone, they knew.
It would be strange if they did not panic.
The pressure and anxiety felt by Lim Sun-joon, the leader of the party, was even greater. "Were our ident.i.ties discovered?"
"Yes."
In particular, Lim Sun-joon was shocked to learn that their ident.i.ties and intentions may have been revealed.
'How?'
Secrecy was critically important.
Wasn't it obvious that once the truth leaked outside, their lives and as well as the Skull Guild itself would be over?
'How much does he know? Don't tell me that the Phoenix Guild knows who we are? Did the information leak?'
A surreal reality complicated Lim Sun Joon's mind.
'We need to get a grasp on the actual situation. Is he the only one who knows who we are, or does the Phoenix Guild know too…?'
They could flee if the opponent only wanted to attack them.
They didn't really want to fight.
But if the other person knew who they were, it was not something that could be solved by running away.
Therefore, Lim Sun-joon could not choose to flee.
'If the Phoenix guild knows, we will be tracked by all the players as soon as we run away.'
No, they actually had nowhere to run.
'It's better to die than getting caught then tortured for information. We can't afford to damage the corporation.'
Above all, there was something more important for Lim Sun-joon.
By the time he arrived at a decision, Lim Sun-joon was already prepared to fight.
"Get ready to hunt!"
He grabbed the bow on his shoulder and gave out orders.
The order hardened the faces of the Skull Guild's members.
'Fight that monster?'
'Instead of running?'
The order they were waiting for was not an order to battle, but an order to split up.
'd.a.m.n it. Should I just run?'
They were thinking of running away if they had to.
"If our ident.i.ty is revealed, we will be finished as soon as we leave. If you want to live, we have to kill him here!"
However, Lim Sun-joon's words forced them to abandon their thoughts of running away.
'f.u.c.k!'
They realized that there was nowhere to run even if they fled. Upon realizing this, everyone clenched their teeth.
Tteolgeuleog! Tteolgeuleog!
Meanwhile, skeletons charged towards them.
In order to fight against the skeleton soldiers, everyone focused all their senses and attention on the skeleton soldiers.
Lim Sun-joon was about to shout.
"Initiate the battle!"
He was going to give out such order.
Seug!
"Kekk!"
But at that moment, what came out of his mouth was the sound of a sharp object penetrating his throat.
'Wh, who?'
Lim Sun-joon tried to scream for help, but he couldn't even do that.
'Eup!'
Even Lim Sun-joon's mouth was blocked so that he wouldn't even be able to scream. Only then did Lim Sun-joon realize.
'No, no way?'
Who approached him.
And what he wanted.
Lim Sun-joon, who had learned the truth, swallowed his last words.
'ちくしょう(s.h.i.t)…'
/ /
Kill the Hero Chapter 26
TL: Uncle Choi
Editor: Bait
One of the most annoying cases you could encounter while hunting was when the prey ran away.
Even the strongest predator rarely had success when chasing prey that immediately ran away.
And when one was chasing multiple prey, then there was no need to explain.
In that sense, the Skull Guild was a difficult prey.
They were several members, and their faces were concealed with masks.
They were also clever enough to throw away their colleagues and run away at a moment's notice.
Ultimately, they were aware that Kim Woo-jin was a scary predator.
If Kim Woo-jin were to try to hunt them, they would undoubtedly run away rather than fight back.
Moreover, if they were to successfully escape, it was likely that they would hide themselves until the dungeon was cleared.
If they were to come out of the dungeon in a such way, Kim Woo-jin would certainly find himself in a lot of trouble.
So Kim Woo-jin played a trick.
He disguised his ident.i.ty and hid among them.
Then he put a shackle around them, leaving them only one option — face him and kill him.
I know your ident.i.ty!
For them, there was now an absolute need to kill Kim Woo-jin even if they didn't want to.
Kim Woo-jin used the skeleton soldiers to distract the members of the Skull Guild and swiftly removed himself from their focus.
From that moment, the battle was virtually over.
Stats from just the Orc Lord's Fang made a comparison between himself and players under level 20 pointless. The fate of preys that could not run away was already decided. They had to face the hunting dog equipped with the strongest weapon for his level range, the Orc Champion's Scimitar, along with his five skeleton soldiers that behaved like him in every way.
"Aggh!"
"Huk, hukk…"
All seven members of the Skull Guild laid on the floor while covered in blood.
Not all of them were dead.
"Kkeueu…"
Rather, only two of the seven died, and five were still alive.
Of course, Kim Woo-jin didn't save them because he was full of mercy.
'I got all the guys in his memories.'
When hunting preys that knew how to run, the crux of it was not killing them. Rather, it was making sure that they couldn't get away.
Moreover, Kim Woo-jin didn't have a reason to keep them alive.
Finally, the cleanup began.
Tteolgeuleog! Tteolgeuleog!
"Hey, go away! Get away from me!"
As if understanding their owner's wishes, the skeleton soldiers gladly finished the job in his place.
"Kuk!"
Then, a man came into Kim Woo-jin's attention.
Lim Sun-joon, the leader of the group who was dealt with by him.
Though he could not even breathe properly due to the deep wound on his throat, he was barely able to stand and glare at Kim Woo-jin.
His eyes were filled with determination.
'I'll never give you any information.'
He was determined to seal his secret with his own death.
Lim Sun-joon acted his resolution right away.
"Keuheub!"
With an arrow in his hand, he squeezed out the last of his strength, and stabbed himself through the neck.
Lim Sun Joon died in a such a manner.
Indescribable resolve could still been flowing out of him.
The Skull Guild's members who were still alive gaped at the scene.
'Wait, what?'
'Sui, suicide?'
They didn't think their leader would make such a decision.
They just couldn't imagine that a player who didn't give a s.h.i.t about the world or their own well-being would commit suicide.
Kim Woo-jin showed little to no emotion despite the turn of events.
It was always good to see such a strong determination.
'He has something.'
What mattered to Kim Woo-jin was that he had something precious enough to claim his own life.
That was all.
Then he read Lim Sung-joon's memory.
'This little b.a.s.t.a.r.d…'
At that moment, Kim Woo-jin's face crumpled.
'He belonged to the Yamato Federation.'
When the world turned into a game, many things changed.
A government's structure and its authority changed as well.
The const.i.tutions that mankind developed for over a century had to adapt in the face of players, monsters, and items.
It was none other than j.a.pan that attempted the biggest changes.
After the right-wing government took office, the j.a.panese, who wanted to build an army that could invade other countries rather than maintaining just the JSDF, built an army that no longer the surrounding counties into consideration. In the process, war criminals who were hiding in society due to public opinions and pressure from surrounding counties began laying the groundwork for another war.
At the center of it was a household called the Yamato Clan.
With the ultimate goal of establishing j.a.pan's primeval nation, the Yamato Federation, they seized power within the j.a.panese government and planned to escape the boundaries of the j.a.panese islands.
The occupation of the Korean Peninsula was their foremost objective.
It was not a simple invasion.
Due to their defeat in the previous war, the leaders of the Yamato Federation realized that the war for territorial expansion would once again result in a defeat. Most of all, they thought that having a large territory would only hinder them in the end by obligating them to take care of all the monsters and dungeon gates that would sp.a.w.n over a large area.
It was far more wise to capture only the Korean Peninsula, which would allow them to have an impact on the continent yet also have a favorable geographical advantage.
To achieve that end, the Yamato Federation plotted systematically and covertly.
Lim Sun-joon was a member of the Yamato Federation sent to South Korea to carry out the conspiracy. Kim Woo-jin was able to see Lim Sun-joon's experiences through the Eyes of Anubis.
In addition, Kim Woo-jin experienced the results of the conspiracy they had planned.
I've seen firsthand that Korea's flagship players sell valuable items and players to j.a.pan, which were like national a.s.sets.
Of course, Kim Woo-jin had personally responded to it.
Those who carried out such ambitions were punished by none other than Kim Woo-jin.
'From that point onward, the Messiah Guild's influence was solidified'.
Under the name of Messiah.
'Lee Se-joon became a true savior.'
And in front of the name of Messiah Lee Se-joon.
This event caused a great stir in the world's order.
j.a.pan, a powerful nation, initiated an invasionary war to occupy Korea. However, it was not only blocked but also prevented by the members of the Messiah Guild.
It was a proof that Messiah guild's power outweighed the government itself. Cheers for the Messiah Guild spread all over the world, and the influence of the Messiah Guild across the world reached a point that could not be stopped even by the government.
The popularity in Korea was even more evident.
The Messiah Guild, which prevented j.a.pan that couldn't bear even losing at rock-paper-scissors, was revered like a deity by Koreans.
Only those who spoke in favor of the Messiah Guild were elected in the general election and even the presidential election was decided based on who was the candidate backed by the Messiah Guild. 'It was pretty good back then.'
Kim Woo-jin was happy recalling those events.
If the Messiah Guild could shine so brilliantly, he was more than willing to give up his life for it.
But it was different now.
'Maybe even this was planned by the Messiah Guild…'
Kim Woo-jin had no choice but to hypothesize that even that might have been planned by the Messiah Guild.
'I'll have to confirm it first.'
It was necessary to confirm the hypothesis.
'Anyway, I've got a lot more useful information than I thought I would.
At the same time, in Lim Sun-joon's memory, Kim Woo-jin was able to obtain valuable information.
A list of spies from the Yamato Federation who were in Korea. Their plans and the routes they used for smuggling items…
'To think they made such a detailed a.s.sa.s.sination list.'
He even got the the list of people they wanted to a.s.sa.s.sinate!
It was a situation where Kim Woo-jin had gained far more from one person than he could get from just the dungeon.
'I guess there's no reason to stay in this dungeon anymore.'
In other words, he didn't have anything else he wanted in the dungeon.
'Now, I will clear the dungeon.'
On the second day of the battle, players who gave up on their primary goal of killing the Orc Champion were forced to set a new goal.
'The only thing that's left for us now is to hunt the thousandth one.'
'Kill everything no matter what. Kill every one of them you see!'
People put everything on the line to fulfill the second reward condition, being the thousandth orc hunter.
"Since there is no Orc Champion, there is no need to worry about the Orc Champion! Let's just kill them all."
They poured all their anger and frustration from not being able to hunt the Orc Champion onto the other orcs.
The third day of the battle was extremely b.l.o.o.d.y from the moment it started.
"Push!"
"Just go in! There's no Orc Champion anyway!"
"Sweep away!"
Players who no longer had a reason to fear facing the Orc Champion pushed forward without looking back.
Everyone stepped on the acceleration with full force.
Likewise, the difference that was not seen until they were driving at 150 km/h was starting to become apparent.
"Those guys from the Phoenix Guild are certainly not normal."
"Items are items, but their skills are undeniably on another level."
Of course, the members of Phoenix Guild were among the leading runners in the race.
Korea's No. 2 guild. In front of Korea's most promising talents who were equipped with the best equipments, orcs were nothing more than sacrificial lambs.
Of course, there were others who were even faster than them.
"Did you see the Messiah Guild?"
"They're monsters. Every one of them is killing an orc by themselves."
"I saw them hunting 30 orcs without any injuries."
The Messiah Guild's hunting speed was even faster than the Phoenix Guild.
It was only natural that they were faster.
"The scarier difference is that they don't seem to care whether they get injured or not."
"I saw their warriors just throw themselves against the orcs."
"I'd rather just drive into a wall. At least an airbag comes out when that happens, right?"
The top priority for the players of the Phoenix Guild was taking care of their bodies.
On the other hand, the Messiah Guild's members, armed with a sense of purpose, threw themselves aggressively without caring about their well-being.
"f.u.c.king Messiah b.a.s.t.a.r.ds."
In front of such stupidity, even the Phoenix Guild players could not be help but to stick out their tongues.
"Those crazy b.a.s.t.a.r.ds just can't wait to die, huh."
Break time. A player from the Phoenix guild thought of how fast the Messiah Guild hunted and stuck out his tongue.
Soon after, a colleague next to him chipped in.
"It's better this way. They're fanatics who just can't wait to die."
Fanatics.
Everyone lost their words after thinking of that expression.
When they thought of what kind of G.o.d the Messiah Guild believed in and what that G.o.d's goal was, they couldn't help but feel that they really were selfish trash.
Finally, one person came up with another subject to avert the truth.
"Anyway how do you think he's doing?"
"He?"
"Yeah, you know, that guy. That b.a.s.t.a.r.d who's renowned for backstabbing others."
"Kim Woo-jin?"
"Yeah, him."
To the Phoenix Guild, Kim Woo-jin was like a chewing gum meant to be chewed when bored. Immediately afterwards, everyone chipped in one by one.
"Why the h.e.l.l did that b.a.s.t.a.r.d come as our kkakdugi?" What if he stabs us in the back?"
"Isn't that why they put him in? We, of course, and guys from the other parties won't work with him."
"Well, by that standard, there's no one more reliable than him. I wonder what he's doing?"
Soon, the conversation went to the part about what Woo-jin was doing.
"Well, maybe he's dead."
"From what I've seen, I think he will hold on and hide till the dungeon is cleared."
"Why would the guild accept such a sc.u.mbag?"
Of course, none of them could really predict what Kim Woo-jin was doing.
Puhwat!
Kim Woo-jin was catching orcs as if he were catching rabbits. The truth was that he was just casually leaving the orcs he captured behind for the skeletons behind him to kill.
The startling reality was that he was also using 120 percent of his newly acquired skills.
'That'll do.'
Furthermore…
'Since they couldn't have killed a lot of orcs on the second day, the number of orcs they caught so far should be around 700 to 800… If I a.s.sume that only about 200 are left then… two hours will be enough.'
No one expected the dungeon would last only about two more hours.
/ /
