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With a burst of thunder, the sword swung. Schneider clearly heard the sound. Mixed within was the noise of flesh and bone being split. And then, the next moment.

Thud, thud—

Ferius’s head fell to the ground. A moment of silence ensued. Suhyuk’s feet were still hovering in mid-air.

‘What just happened…’

Schneider couldn’t see clearly. Even from a distance, Suhyuk’s movements were too swift for the eye to follow. His speed had more than doubled compared to just a moment ago.

Moreover, in the final moment, he moved through the air instead of on the ground. For Ferius, who was up close, it must have seemed as though Suhyuk had simply vanished into thin air.

‘Is that even possible? For a player on the third floor like me?’

Many players looked at Schneider with the same thought. How could a player on the third floor exhibit such skills?

But right now, Schneider himself was asking that question. That’s how incredible Suhyuk’s performance had been. Suhyuk had reached a level far beyond that of a third-floor monster player, Omar Schneider.

“Ha, haha…”

Any lingering resentment Schneider had about losing the tournament vanished. With such skills, it was only natural Suhyuk would win.

Thump—

After floating in the air for a while, Suhyuk landed back on the ground. At the same time, he quietly exhaled within his mask.

“Whew—”

Suddenly, his legs lost strength.

Thump, thump—

His heart pounded rapidly, causing a painful sensation in his chest. Had he pushed his output too high? Or was it due to exhaustion?

For a moment, his body felt utterly drained.

Regardless—

‘I did catch him.’

He glanced at Ferius’s head on the ground. He would likely find out what had happened to Ferius next. After taking a moment to compose himself, Suhyuk stood up.

And at that moment—

Whoosh—

A large sword came flying from behind him.

Buzz—

Flattening his body to dodge the sword, Suhyuk leaped forward. As he distanced himself and turned his head, he saw Paul Rimen, looking disappointed.

“Damn…”

Failing his surprise attack, Paul Rimen issued an order.

“Everyone, attack! Don’t give him any time to recover!”

He was well aware of the mechanics of Lightning. The stronger Suhyuk’s displayed abilities, the harsher the penalties caused by Lightning.

They couldn’t give him any time to recover his stamina. Paul Rimen’s assessment was quite accurate.

However—

“You think I’m an easy target just because I’m tired?”

Suhyuk was the one who fought to the end, even at a fatigue level of 90, and managed to take one of Kim Ilsoo’s eyes. He had no intention of collapsing just because he was slightly exhausted.

– Let’s go for the vulture kill.

– Vulture incoming!

Swish—

Suhyuk leapt into the midst of the charging players. He moved through the stabbing blades and spears as if sliding, slashing throats as he went. Avoiding infernal skills sent his way, the players, out of sync, ended up hitting each other instead.

His movements were fluid and without waste. Even without using Lightning, Suhyuk’s skills were impeccable.

‘Isn’t he supposed to be exhausted?’

Thunk—

Another player fell as Suhyuk’s sword pierced their throat. Paul Rimen gritted his teeth.

‘No, he’s definitely exhausted. The fact that he’s not using Lightning proves it.’

His guess was accurate. But his mistake was underestimating one fact. Even when exhausted, Suhyuk was still Suhyuk.

‘To take him down…’

Paul Rimen glanced to the side.

“Schneider!”

Omar Schneider. He needed his help.

“What are you doing! Aren’t you going to help?”

For some reason, Schneider was merely watching the fight. He showed no intention to help or interfere. He even had his arms crossed.

“I have no intention of getting involved.”

“What?”

Paul Rimen was baffled by his firm response. No intention of getting involved?

If things continued, Suhyuk would conquer Thunder Cave.

“What about the reward?”

“That belongs to him.”

“The guild won’t stand for this!”

“I don’t care.”

Schneider shrugged his shoulders.

“I joined Blue Zone just to get support for raiding Thunder Cave. Now that it’s no longer my role, what does it matter if the guild kicks me out?”

With Schneider willing to give up even the guild, there were no persuasive words left to sway him.

“Damn it…”

It was clear Schneider would not intervene. Given that, there was only one option left.

“Suhyuk—!”

Raising his sword high, Paul Rimen called out Suhyuk’s name. His shout caused Suhyuk and the players charging at him to halt.

“I have a proposal.”

“A proposal?”

“Join Blue Zone! If you do, we will yield all the rewards from Thunder Cave to you.”

It was a surprising offer. The rewards of Thunder Cave were already Suhyuk’s to claim; such was evident. And knowing this, Paul Rimen continued his proposal.

“In addition, we’ll offer you the treatment of a semi-ranker. This isn’t just from me but a message from the top of the guild!”

“Semi-ranker…?”

“For a player on the third floor?”

“You possess the Lightning. Moreover…”

While it seemed like a ridiculously generous offer, everyone started nodding in understanding. They had seen and experienced Suhyuk’s prowess firsthand. It was a radical recruitment proposal from Blue Zone.

If they offered semi-ranker treatment now, it was clear he would soon climb to prominent positions within the guild.

‘Originally, I should have gotten the Lightning and taken that spot…’

Paul Rimen ground his teeth in frustration at the missed opportunity.

‘It can’t be helped. Recruiting Suhyuk is the next best option.’

Even this much was a significant achievement. Blue Zone had repeatedly tried to recruit Suhyuk, but meeting with him had proven difficult. But now, they were in Thunder Cave.

Paul Rimen had the chance to meet Suhyuk directly and thus could extend the scouting offer.

“How about it? Seems like there’s no reason for us to fight anymore.”

Step—

With a grin, Paul Rimen approached Suhyuk. Slowly, the distance closed.

“There’s every reason.”

Suhyuk finally responded to his offer.

Slash—

A thin line appeared across his neck.

‘…What?’

His thoughts slowed, and his vision blurred. Even though his legs stood still, the world seemed to move on its own. As his head dropped to the ground, the last thing he thought was, “Wait…”

“Your offer is declined.”

Paul Rimen’s consciousness ended.

*

On her way home. Yerang’s steps slowed.

“He’s going to be mad, right?”

She had boldly promised to bring back Minjae’s keepsake, yet she was returning empty-handed. She could already envision Shiwoo’s reaction. Just as she had, he undoubtedly hoped to retrieve Minjae’s keepsake.

Moreover.

‘I didn’t fail to get it; I chose not to.’

The winner was Lee Suhyuk. The streamer who shared the name with her friend. They both knew his recent activities through his streams, and they knew Yerang had not gone near him.

More than anything else—

‘Pretending otherwise, that guy is definitely watching Suhyuk’s streams.’

They both silently acknowledged this fact. Both of them watched Suhyuk’s streams.

“Ugh…”

As her home came into view, Yerang slowed down even more. The thought of enduring Shiwoo’s nagging was already making her tired. How was she supposed to explain it?

“Ugh, that guy’s temper is… huh?”

Yerang blinked in surprise. As she got closer, the house’s appearance became clearer. The house was white and frosty. Certainly, it was Shiwoo’s doing.

“He’s really upset….”

She genuinely didn’t want to go inside. With a heavy heart, she shuffled slowly toward the house. She quietly opened the door and stepped into the living room.

Moving with stealth, she tried her best not to make a sound. Even Shiwoo wouldn’t notice her if she was careful enough.

“Attack at the same time, you idiots!”

“Schneider! Why aren’t you helping…?”

“Damn, why did it miss?!”

Shiwoo’s loud voice came from his kit. Hearing Schneider’s name, it was clear he was watching Lee Suhyuk’s stream.

‘As expected, he knows.’

Should she run away now?

Yerang was lost in her thoughts for a while when—

“Just come out. I won’t get mad.”

Startled, Yerang shivered at Shiwoo’s words. How did he find out?

“Ehh…”

Sighing, Yerang slowly revealed herself. Standing behind him, she approached him cautiously. As she drew closer—

“Whoa! You scared me.”

Shiwoo jumped up from his seat as Yerang’s presence startled him.

“What? Why are you surprised? You knew I was here.”

“I didn’t really think you’d actually be here.”

“What?”

“Thinking you’d come back empty-handed, I knew you’d sneak in.”

Yerang’s eyes widened in shock.

“Did you… expect me?”

“After muttering to myself about ten times, it started to get boring.”

Knowing each other too well was the problem. Shiwoo couldn’t detect her stealth, but he knew exactly how Yerang would act.

“Haha…”

Yerang laughed awkwardly and took a step back. It seemed she had been caught.

“So, you’re not really not angry then?”

Shiwoo nodded.

“Half of it.”

“Half? Why half?”

Now that she thought about it, it was odd. She had expected him to be furious, to rage at her for failing, but he was calm and collected. Just like Shiwoo could predict her, Yerang could also predict his reactions.

“You purposely left it behind, didn’t you?”

“Uh… well…”

“Be honest.”

At Shiwoo’s words, Yerang nodded slightly. Having a mouth felt useless. She had no words to say.

“Why did you do that?”

“…Because.”

“What?”

“Because he… he’s too similar to Suhyuk. Suhyuk is.”

“You saw his face?”

“No, who said anything about his face? It’s just the feeling, you know.”

She knew it sounded absurd, but it was her true feeling. Lee Suhyuk reminded her a lot of her friend. Although his current skills were far inferior, his talent and demeanor overlapped with Suhyuk.

To sever Suhyuk’s legs and take Minjae’s keepsake?

She couldn’t bring herself to do it. As Yerang’s head lowered with this thought—

“That’s exactly how I feel.”

Shiwoo wasn’t angry; instead, he nodded.

“I was actually worried. Worried he’d join Blue Zone eventually.”

“Join Blue Zone?”

“Yeah, just like Cha Minwoo. There’s no way Kim Ilsoo would let a player with Lightning go. He’d use them symbolically in many ways.”

Shiwoo thought that no matter who it was, even if it was Suhyuk, they had to take Minjae’s keepsake back. Otherwise, it would become Blue Zone’s property once more.

But then—

“This time, it seems your intuition was correct.”

“What do you mean? Explain it so I understand.”

“Suhyuk, I mean.”

With a rare, genuinely happy smile, Shiwoo spoke.

“He turned down Blue Zone.”