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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Tables Turn
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The center of the island.
Lee Joo-ho, who had seized it early alongside his followers, kicked furiously at the ground with an enraged expression as he bellowed,
"Damn it! What the hell is going on here?!"
Rage born of disbelief at the events unfolding before his eyes.
Of course, it hadn't started that way.
-The hyenas will take him out quick.
Right up until the game began, Lee Joo-ho had been convinced Choi Shin-hyeok would drop dead in no time.
But that assumption started to crumble once Choi Shin-hyeok's name began filling up the kill log.
And as time wore on, with his name refusing to vanish from it, Lee Joo-ho finally halted his farming and combat ops, heading straight for the center.
After that, he set traps all over the place and handpicked players to team up with him.
"Damn! Damn! Damn!"
Even so, Lee Joo-ho's fury refused to settle.
Choi Shin-hyeok's kill log kept climbing even while he was busy with preparations.
It was all thanks to the bounty Lee Joo-ho himself had posted, but with no way of knowing that, he just kept venting his pointless anger on the ground.
"How many players do we have on our side right now, including you and me?"
"Twenty-one."
"Tch. Can we take him down with this?"
"A Useless Scrub like that? Easy—"
"Idiot. This guy's racked up thirty kills solo. He's not the scrub we thought he was."
The player acting as Lee Joo-ho's second-in-command furrowed his brow at the blunt rebuke but bowed his head anyway—he couldn't afford to defy him.
Lee Joo-ho grumbled at the back of his head as he stared, only for the survivor count to catch his eye.
Survivors: 36
"...Down to less than half already."
"A third of that's gotta be Choi Shin-hyeok's work."
"Are we really gonna win this?"
A single player who'd taken out a third of the starting hundred.
The very thought of facing him had Lee Joo-ho's assembled team in a panic.
"Quiet down, all of you. It's just one guy in the end. Kill him, and we're golden! Stick with me, and I'll fork over a hundred million each—separate from the bounty!"
"R-Right. We've got over twenty people."
"Farming went great too."
"Let's take him out and claim that bounty!"
But once Lee Joo-ho promised a hundred million per head, their anxiety flipped to burning greed.
Relief washed over Lee Joo-ho as he watched them, though it came with a sigh and a curse.
"Damn it. Everyone else is probably seeing this. What a humiliation."
The Dimension Arena could be viewed on TVs, computers, phones—any electronic device.
And with the Placement Exam happening just once a year, the citizens of every nation tuned in to their own country's event.
In other words, every single thing Lee Joo-ho was doing was being broadcast live.
Of course, it was all part of his ability, so no real issues there—but he couldn't escape the backlash and mockery, which only fueled his irritation.
"He's coming!"
"There's Choi Shin-hyeok!"
"...Yeah. Let's take him out first and figure the rest later."
But at the scout's shout, Lee Joo-ho rose to his feet.
He climbed atop the wall he'd built like a makeshift barricade and came face-to-face with Choi Shin-hyeok.
"Choi Shin-hyeok."
"Lee Joo-ho. Looking like a mole hiding in its burrow."
"...Tch. Looks like you got some lucky break, but that doesn't change the fact you're still a Useless Scrub."
"Oh yeah? Then come out here and prove it."
"...No need to dirty my own hands. Kill him!"
"Got it!"
"He's mine!"
At Lee Joo-ho's roar—who ground his teeth at Choi Shin-hyeok's taunting finger wag—the players shot forward.
Tatata!
The sight of every close-range fighter charging at him—save for the mages and archers—was nothing short of epic.
Like a scene straight out of a blockbuster movie, Choi Shin-hyeok lazily crooked a finger amid it all.
"Charge."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Rattle!
At that instant, Choi Shin-hyeok's skeletal soldiers hidden in the shadows of the buildings emerged.
"Wh-What's that?!"
"Necromancy!"
The players, charging in with momentum, froze at the sudden appearance of his allies.
"But how? No F-rank Necromancy can handle that many skeletons."
"Did he acquire the skill himself or something?"
There were two ways to acquire skills in the Dimension Arena.
One was through skillbooks obtained as rewards.
The other was earning the Arena's recognition through your own ability.
The former always granted F-rank, but the latter could yield higher grades.
While the players floundered in shock—never dreaming Choi Shin-hyeok had self-taught Necromancy—
⚙ KILL LOG ⚙ [Choi Shin-hyeok → Lee Do-gun]
"...He's shooting arrows too?"
Choi Shin-hyeok had already nocked an arrow on his bowstring.
Ping—thunk!
He downed one player in a flash, then—protected by his skeletons—unleashed a barrage like a madman.
Pipipiping!
"Crazy! Why's he got so many arrows?!"
"Must've farmed 'em off the others he killed!"
"Damn, Necromancy plus Archery. He came prepared."
"A Useless Scrub like that..."
Unlike his first shot, accuracy suffered now, and with players ducking behind cover, none dropped.
Thud, thud—
"The skeletons are coming!"
"Break through somehow!"
But while they were pinned, dozens of skeletons slowly encircled them—that was the real problem.
Caught between Choi Shin-hyeok's arrows and the approaching horde, the players panicked and bolted.
"Run!"
"Back to base!"
Some fled to their stronghold.
"Kill him!"
"Just take out the summoner, and the Necromancy ends!"
"You cowards scared of one guy?!"
Others charged straight at him.
Crack! Thunk! Crack! Thunk!
His skeletons crumbled fast under their assault.
⚙ KILL LOG ⚙ [Choi Shin-hyeok → Kwon Se-hee][Choi Shin-hyeok → Min Hye-ri][Choi Shin-hyeok → Jeon Joo-wan]
Of course, their numbers dwindled steadily in exchange.
And—
"Rise."
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Grind!
No need to mention how the skeleton ranks replenished to match the fallen players.
The players' fear of the endless horde was short-lived.
"I broke through!"
"Me too!"
"Quick, kill him!"
A few began slipping past the skeletons to reach Choi Shin-hyeok, grinning ear to ear as they closed in.
⚙ KILL LOG ⚙ [Choi Shin-hyeok → Hong Dae-in][Choi Shin-hyeok → Lee Seong-soon][Choi Shin-hyeok → Pyo Jin-tae]
Their heads flew from a swing of his sword.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ [Skill: Swordsmanship [B] Acquired]
"Figures they'd rate Swordsmanship high."
Swords had been Choi Shin-hyeok's main weapon pre-regression.
As such, it boasted his highest skill grade back then too.
Evidently reflected here, he nodded in satisfaction at acquiring B-rank Swordsmanship right off the bat, then scooped up the weapons littering the ground.
"Axe, spear, and knuckle guards, huh."
He eyed the trio's dropped gear before equipping it all.
With guards on his fists and axe and spear in each hand, the players jeered.
"Necromancy, Archery, Swordsmanship—impressive, sure, but you got no clue about Axe Mastery, Spear Mastery, or Fist Fighting, do you?"
"Idiot. Works in our favor."
"Kill him!"
As skeleton numbers thinned, more players pierced the guard.
All who rushed him while mocking—
Crack—thunk—boom!
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ [Skill: Axe Mastery [D] Acquired][Skill: Spear Mastery [D] Acquired][Skill: Fist Fighting [E] Acquired]
[New weapons mastered on first use]
Got their skulls caved by the axe,
chests impaled by the spear,
heads burst by his fists.
"What the...?"
"He can use those too?!"
"He's supposed to be a scrub! Nothing above average! What the hell is this?!"
As they flailed in chaos,
Pipipipiping! Kwarararara!
The archers and mages back at base lent support fire.
They stared like it was divine intervention—but sadly, no.
"Gahk!"
"Why us too...?"
The arrows and spells discriminated not between friend or foe.
"Did we get him?"
"You bastard?"
Someone blurted the wrong words at the wrong time, mouth swiftly covered.
"Phew."
Choi Shin-hyeok brushed back his hair inside a translucent barrier, exhaling.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡ [Skill: Shield Acquired]
[Basic Magic Sub-Skill]
"...Shield."
"Magic too?!"
Shield.
A basic defensive spell under foundational magic.
But with his arsenal already overflowing, unveiling yet another left them utterly deflated.
The players who'd closed in? All cut down by friendly fire.
But it didn't end there.
"He grabbed a staff...!"
"And a blade?!"
"No way he knows those too?!"
Staff and saber.
New weapons again—the players were speechless.
Combat spirit shattered, Choi Shin-hyeok leveled them at the paralyzed foes and beckoned.
"Come on."
"...!!"
Still about ten left, yet utterly dominated by one man.
Every weapon around might as well have been his.
With no one daring to move, Lee Joo-ho finally stepped up.
"Damn it! Move already! Move, you mongrels!"
"Uh..."
"Er..."
The players fidgeted helplessly as he stomped and urged them to fight.
Right then.
"Ah. Or how about this?"
"...?"
"Drag Lee Joo-ho to me, and I'll give you ten billion."
"...!"
Choi Shin-hyeok smirked and made his offer.
Lee Joo-ho.
Capture him and haul him over.
His teammates blinked in shock at the abrupt proposal—but
"You mean it?"
"You saying the Shinwa Group's name ranks below Oseong Group's?"
"...No way."
"You bastard!"
Lee Joo-ho's self-proclaimed second-in-command's question sent him into a rage, grabbing the man's collar.
But that sparked it.
"Honestly, been sick of him."
"All bark, no bite from the start."
"Guess his rank climbs on our corpses after all."
Resentment toward their bossy leader bubbled up.
As players slowly surrounded him, Lee Joo-ho desperately reached out.
"Two billion! No, three! Just go take that guy out!"
"Hah, still bossing us to the end."
"And you think we'll trust you after you betrayed us once already?"
"Grab him."
"Mmph! Mmmph! Mmmpgh!!!"
One hand can't block ten.
In the end, Lee Joo-ho—dragged like a dog by his own teammates—was hauled before Choi Shin-hyeok.