Chapter 61: First Return, First Wave (2)

“A duel?”

“It’s a basic skill. You should be able to use it too.”

“It wasn’t among the skills......”

“There are a few skills not listed. Duel is one of them.”

“You seem to know everything.”

Kang Junhyeok muttered in awe. Lee Taeyeon tilted her head.

“What kind of skill is it?”

“A skill that allows two players to compete. Except for the two, no one else can interfere. It can only be accepted if the other party agrees.”

Taesan pointed at Kang Junhyeok with the tip of his sword.

“In other words, if you accept, a fight will take place just between us.”

“Uh...”

Kang Junhyeok backed away with a trembling face.

“Wouldn’t it be meaningless for me to fight with you?”

The difference in their stats was too significant. He couldn’t even keep up with Kang Taesan’s movements, let alone learn anything from a fight in his current state.

“That’s why there’s a following statement, right?”

Taesan lightly said.

“The duel will take place on equal terms. The stats, attack power, and defense power; all of it will be adjusted to the lower party. In this fight, you and I are equal.”

“What about the skills?”

“I won’t use any activated skills.”

The conditions were almost identical, though not perfect. The only differences would be experience and proficiency.

“You don’t have the right to refuse. Accept.”

“Fine, I accept.”

Kang Junhyeok accepted with shining eyes.

[Duel established.] [Kang Junhyeok and Kang Taesan start the duel.]

“But can you die from this?”



“In a regular duel, yes, but this is a conditional duel. You won’t die even if you run out of health.”L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Ñøv€l--B1n.

“That’s good.”

Kang Junhyeok steadied his breathing and drew his sword. He took a stance and stared at Taesan.

‘If the stats are the same, I have a good chance of winning.’

Taesan was as strong as a monster. Not just because he had higher stats and more skills, he likely had good sense and movement.

However, that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Or rather, Junhyeok thought he himself was quite capable. His confidence had grown stronger as he made his way through the labyrinth.

He intended to prove to Taesan through this duel that he was not weak, that he was strong enough. Kang Junhyeok saw this as a sort of opportunity, and this thought was evident on his face.

Seeing the excited look on Kang Junhyeok’s face, Taesan chuckled inwardly.

“I’ll make my move.”

While Lee Taeyeon was watching blankly, Kang Junhyeok charged confidently. He quickly swung his sword down.

His movements were pretty good. He wouldn’t lose to a player of similar stats at this rate.

Taesan moved his sword.

Clang.

Their sword tips collided, and Taesan flicked his wrist. Taesan’s sword smoothly grazed Kang Junhyeok’s blade and brushed past it.

A mark was drawn on Kang Junhyeok’s forearm.

[8 damage to Kang Junhyeok.]

“Eh?”

Kang Junhyeok paused. He looked down at his forearm. There was a fairly deep wound, and blood was trickling down.

“Wha, what?”

“We continue.”

Taesan moved his sword. Kang Junhyeok, who had been standing dumbfounded, hastily blocked. Their sword blades collided.

Taesan pulled his wrist back, and their sword blades parted. The moment his sword completely cleared the other, he stabbed immediately.

Thud.

Kang Junhyeok’s shoulder was pierced.

“Won’t you block?”



Taesan spoke languidly while moving his body. Kang Junhyeok’s expression hardened. He gritted his teeth, focusing his senses to defend himself.

Clang.

But he couldn’t block.

Like a living creature, the sword ignored Kang Junhyeok’s defense and cut through. In an instant, large and small wounds appeared all over his body.

“What, what the...”

Kang Junhyeok couldn’t accept it.

Their stats were equal. The first attack was blocked without any problems.

But he couldn’t block any attacks after that.

“You guys don’t have Guard or Counter yet, right? It might not have been feasible until now, but it’s good to learn now. Depending on how you use it, these are skills you could use until the end...”

He taught them how to survive along with the necessary skills. He shared basic information. He didn’t give a perfect countermeasure but gave basic hints. Both Kang Junhyeok and Lee Taeyeon listened with serious expressions.

“That’s it for now. You can share it with the others.”

“......Thank you.”

Kang Junhyeok expressed his gratitude with a serious look.

“I’ll hear that after we’ve survived to the end. Both you and Lee Taeyeon. Don’t die.”

His words were composed but serious.

Both looked up at Taesan with slightly emotional faces. Taesan flinched.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“No, it’s just that your words were warmer than I expected... I thought you were a very cold person.”

“Do you think a cold-hearted person would be so generous with information?”

“Haha.”

Kang Junhyeok scratched his head. His perception was drawn from Taesan’s usual tone and indifferent attitude, not from the information given.

And this was something Taesan was not aware of.

To him, all of them were already dead. And most of them were bound to die.

No matter how hard he tried to save them, it didn’t change. Players in Easy and Normal Modes died in the aftermath of fights. It was an unconscious attitude to avoid attaching emotions from the start.

Lee Taeyeon changed the subject.

“But, what’s happening inside there now?”

Already six hours had passed. In six hours, the Wave was set to begin.

“I don’t know. We’ll know when we get there.”

Taesan casually stood up.

“Hoo.”

Kim Hwiyyn massaged her head as if she had a headache. Given the importance of her role, she was given a single room, but she wished she could just let it all go.

“This is driving me crazy...

“What happened?”

At the voice coming from behind her, she hastily distanced herself. She swallowed and smiled.

“When did you come in?”

“It’s best to keep the windows closed. If your stats are high, you can just break in.”

Taesan stood by the window, looking at her.

“I see.”

Hwiyun muttered quietly.

She found Taesan’s presence to be slightly uncomfortable.

She knew they were not enemies, and he was not a bad person, but his indifferent attitude and the way he killed people calmly made her slightly scared.

She hid her emotions and opened her mouth. This attitude was visible to Taesan’s eyes, but he didn’t point it out.

“First, as they’re coming from four directions, we plan to distribute our forces accordingly. There were people who resisted and questioned why they should do so, but what could we do? In the end, they complied.”

“To block them from inside?”

“No.”

Hwiyun shook her head.

“We think it’s best to block them from the outside, so we’ll move out before the quest starts.”

Wave. They didn’t know what it was, but they inferred it meant enemies would attack.

The city hall interior was too cramped for a hundred thousand people to move about. The idea was to move outside and deal with it in a broader space.

And that was the right answer. Hwiyun had used this formation in the previous world. Thanks to this, quite a few people survived.

‘About twenty thousand people survived, I guess.’

That was a decent survival rate. Taesan opened his mouth.

“I’ll handle one direction.”

“Pardon?”

“I can manage it. Redirect those people elsewhere.”

“Oh, are... are you sure?”

“I wouldn’t say it if I wasn’t.”

A complicated emotion crossed Hwiyun’s face for a moment. She quietly nodded.

“Thank you... really, thank you.”

“Let’s meet back here alive first.”

Time passed.

People waited in silence.

There were those biting their lips, gnawing at their fingernails. Some were panicking, but they were quickly subdued.

And so, six hours passed.

The monsters showed themselves.

Looking at them approaching from the edge of his sight, Taesan grasped his sword.