CRUNCH—!
The more the hammer swung, the more the eyes of the Mage and Archer behind Shin Jaeha gradually changed.
When he first said he would hold off monsters of that scale alone, they had been doubtful.
Handling a Bronze-level Defense alone was something only a Silver-rank Warrior could even begin to consider possible.
They had thought there was no way a fellow Placement Exam Player could do it. They had entered the strategy already resigned to tearfully giving up on the match, but—
‘He’s holding on much better than expected...?’
‘No, this is way beyond holding on?!’
He was truly fending off the Monster Wave alone, without a shred of help.
He had even wiped out the first wave.
Since Defense grew more difficult with every wave, the first was comparatively mild. Even so, a Warrior wiping out a wave meant to be held off by five people lay far beyond common sense.
“Wow....”
The two were briefly left entranced by Shin Jaeha’s play.
“Focus, please!”
BANG—!
Jo Ikdeok slammed his Chinese halberd into the ground and brought them back to their senses.
“Isn’t our brother buying us time? We must hurry!”
“Y-Yes!”
“I know!”
The Mage prepared his magic, while the Archer nocked an arrow.
Their targets were not the monsters in front of them.
BOOM—! BANG—!
They attacked the cliffs on either side.
Following Shin Jaeha’s orders, they concentrated their attacks not on the monsters, but on the cliffs.
Exploding Mana and arrows that struck without pause made the rock strata unstable.
“Hmm.”
Meanwhile, Snake Eyes, who had been sitting in the back and watching everything, raised one corner of his mouth.
‘I wondered what kind of amazing strategy he would come up with.’
It was not much beyond expectation.
Holding off the wave alone was certainly impressive, but every other Position was doing something completely pointless.
‘Is he trying something else because he thinks it won’t work? Or... Aha! Is he trying to drive the others’ contributions to zero, collect all the points for himself, and be the only one to perform?’
“Heh heh heh!”
Snake Eyes was actually a Player infamous in this rank bracket as a malicious Troll-Poor.
He had once dreamed of going pro, but after being frustrated by those with talent, he had given up. Then, nursing a snake-like grudge, he had become a piece of trash who maliciously interfered with talented Players.
That was why he had watched Taeya’s stream and attempted to Stream Snipe him.
To hinder the rise of the new star named Shin Jaeha, even if only a little.
Or perhaps it would not have been bad to watch a future star offer him Credits and bow his head humbly.
He had luckily been placed in the same game, but Shin Jaeha had chosen to clear it without him.
“He certainly has the skill to be confident, but unfortunately, he’ll start out in Stones or at the very bottom of Iron. Heh heh!”
No matter how much Shin Jaeha struggled, as long as Snake Eyes had gotten involved, he would not be able to write a legend like Nam Siwoo’s.
The thought made him so happy he could go mad.
“Phew...!”
In truth, Shin Jaeha was gradually becoming exhausted.
He had already stopped three waves without allowing a single monster through.
[The Fourth Wave begins!]
The next wave began immediately.
There were twice as many monsters as in the third wave.
-You expect him to stop this alone? This difficulty is insane.
-...He isn’t supposed to stop it alone?
-Ah.
-LOL, right. This was a Team Match.
Shin Jaeha clicked his tongue at the approaching monsters.
‘From this wave onward, I can’t stop all of them alone.’
It might have been possible if he at least had a Class.
But he only possessed two Skills at the moment.
Trying to shoulder the fourth wave alone, a wave that a team of five Bronze Players had to pour their full strength into stopping, would have been arrogance.
That was why the Positions changed from this wave onward.
“Ha ha! At last, it is this humble one’s turn!”
Jo Ikdeok entered the gravity zone as though he had been waiting for it.
His Position for this wave was, as expected, Supporter.
More specifically, he would serve as a dedicated Supporter responsible only for Shin Jaeha.
It was a rather late entrance for someone helping the primary damage dealer, but—
‘Wondering why I’m only deploying that Korean Zhang Fei now?’
Jo Ikdeok’s Skill answered that question.
“HOOOOOO!”
He shouted as he activated his Skill.
[Battlefield Roar: Changban Bridge] (C+)
▶Recreates the bridge from the legend on the battlefield. Grants the ‘Foe of Ten Thousand’ Buff to one designated target standing on the bridge for 30 minutes. (Required Attributes: Mana 10, Strength 8, Luck 8)
In an instant, the canyon passage transformed into the form of a massive bridge.
The original Battlefield Roar was a Supporter Skill that applied an attack-power Buff to nearby allies.
Jo Ikdeok had created a new Derived Skill by concentrating all of that power on one person.
“Jaeha, brother! Go!”
“Thanks!”
Strength returned to Shin Jaeha’s exhausted arms and legs.
A savage crimson aura mixed into the violet gravity, making it even fiercer.
[Buff: Recovery Acceleration(Lv.3), Luck Increase(Lv.3), Foe of Ten Thousand(Lv.1)]
The newly added Foe of Ten Thousand Buff had a simple effect.
In proportion to the number of enemies being faced—
RUMBLE—!
His Attributes increased dramatically.
The image of a valiant general overlapped Shin Jaeha’s body.
“You won’t cross this bridge today!”
His momentum restored, Shin Jaeha brought down his hammer.
BOOM—! BOOM—! BOOM—!
The air exploded, the bridge swayed, and monsters burst apart.
An intoxicating sense of omnipotence flooded his entire body.
Moving both his Mana and body without rest, he slaughtered the incoming monsters one-sidedly.
-What? I thought he was finally going to be overwhelmed this time.
-He’s suddenly beating them down one-sidedly again.
-Shin-saster! Shin-saster! Shin-saster!
-Honestly, he looks fucking cool.
Shin Jaeha did not collapse in the fourth wave. Instead, he began tearing through it once again, leaving the viewers confused and exhilarated.
[You have forced numerous beings to their knees with powerful gravity.]
[‘Gravity Field(D)’ evolves!]
At that moment, the Skill rose by one stage, and the gravity zone settled down even more heavily.
[Gravity Realm] (C)
▶Spreads a barrier centered on the user, where gravity increases. The size of the barrier can be freely adjusted to control gravity’s intensity. (Required Attributes: Mana 15, Strength 10, Stamina 10)
Along with the strengthened gravity came an additional ability.
From now on, he would be able to adjust the range and intensity of gravity with even greater ease.
“Nice timing!”
What had merely been a field had grown into a barrier, making the gravity zone far more enclosed.
And for Shin Jaeha, the Master of Gravity, this place was—
“YAHOO!”
—the most ideal and greatest battlefield.
With Foe of Ten Thousand and the evolved Skill as his foundation, he successfully finished the fourth wave.
It should have been utterly impossible, yet—
“All clear!”
Shin Jaeha had made it possible.
“Kuh! Well done, brother!”
“I told you not to call me brother.”
They had achieved the feat of stopping the fourth wave, but it was still too early to be optimistic.
The fifth wave, the final wave and worst horde, would arrive soon.
‘The final wave comes with a Boss Monster.’
Even if Snake Eyes suddenly turned over a new leaf and decided to participate, the current team would never be able to stop it.
“Let’s return quickly. Before the final wave arrives.”
“Understood!”
Shin Jaeha immediately dismissed the barrier and returned to the Statue of the Goddess of Hope.
By now, enough damage should have accumulated on the cliffs.
After that, the strategy would proceed easily.
At least, that was what he thought.
“Are you back, Jaeha, sir?”
Until he saw that sight.
“Ugh... Ugh....”
“Ahh....”
The Mage and Archer were sprawled on the ground, wounded.
“R-Run...!”
The Mage, his glasses shattered, painfully stretched out a hand.
“As soon as the fourth wave began, he suddenly attacked us...!”
Before he could finish, Snake Eyes ground his foot against the Mage’s head.
“Well~ I didn’t think you would make it all the way to the fourth wave. I was honestly moved.”
“You bastard...!”
“I started wondering whether you might really clear it like this. I said all that earlier, and if you really clear it without me....”
Snake Eyes widened his eyes and contorted his face.
“I’d look like a fucking fool.”
That was why he had attacked the Mage and Archer.
No matter what plan they were preparing, if those two fell, Shin Jaeha’s strategy would fall apart.
“I roughed them up a little. If you had just given me Credits, none of this would’ve happened.”
“......”
“Say something~ At this point, I could let it go if you give me 10,000 Credits and get on your knees to beg.”
Shin Jaeha lowered his head deeply, and his shoulders trembled.
The genius Warrior who had stopped four waves all by himself was furious and despairing because of him!
A thrilling pleasure made the backs of Snake Eyes’ knees quiver.
“B-Brother....”
Even Jo Ikdeok looked flustered as he reached out to pat Shin Jaeha’s back.
“Hihihih....”
Suddenly, laughter brushed against their ears.
They leaned in closer, wondering whether they had misheard.
“HAHAHAHAHA! KAHAHAHAHA!”
Shin Jaeha spread both arms wide and burst into mad laughter.
“You know how deliberately attacking an ally in a Team Match brings down a severe penalty, right? But do you know when the only exception to that clause applies?”
It was when—
“You attack someone who attacked the team first!”
Snake Eyes had attacked the Mage and Archer with the intention of deliberately ruining the game.
In other words, he had become an Outlaw.
People could easily think an Outlaw was merely a wanderer living outside the law, but its actual meaning was this.
‘You can kill this bastard and the law won’t punish you, so do whatever you want.’
And Shin Jaeha had been waiting for this moment.
The moment that snake-eyed bastard became an Outlaw.
CLACK—!
As Shin Jaeha gripped his hammer, Snake Eyes raised a fist and manifested Mana.
“You want to fight? My level is higher, and I even have a Class. On top of that, you’re tired, Jaeha, sir. There’s no way you can beat me...!”
“Man, you sure do talk a lot.”
He took one step forward.
“Annoying.”
A violet barrier spread out.
[Gravity Realm] (C)
This time, he did not spread it out widely.
Instead, he shrank the barrier to an incredibly narrow range, barely enough for only two people to fit inside.
As a result, the gravity within the barrier became—
“Ughhhhh?! Aaaaaah!”
—strong enough to easily crush a Player at the bottom of Bronze.
The snake-eyed man, who had suddenly shared a deep kiss with the ground, screamed.
“H-How did this happen...?! I can’t... move my body...!”
“What was your Sensory Synchronization Rate?”
Within the gravity barrier, Shin Jaeha lightly slung his hammer over his shoulder and walked toward the spot where Snake Eyes was pinned.
“I hope it’s below 40. Otherwise, you’re going to have some lingering effects for a while.”
“S-Spare me!”
He raised the hammer high with one hand.
“One hit!”
CRASH—!
“Two hits!”
He struck again.
“Three hits!”
“Four hits!”
“Five hits!”
CRASH—! BANG—! CRUNCH—! CRASH—!
Five hammer blows were enough to eliminate Snake Eyes and expel him from Channel.
[A Player has died.]
[Remaining Teammates: 4]
“Phew, that felt refreshing.”
Shin Jaeha swept his bangs up and smiled with satisfaction.
“Magnificent, brother! The way you personally punished injustice was just like General Guan Yu from Romance of the Three Kingdoms!”
“Hehe... No, not quite that much....”
The sudden praise made him awkwardly scratch his head.
“By the way, what do we do now? There seems to be too little time to continue the strategy.”
As Jo Ikdeok said, Snake Eyes had properly trolled, and things had become slightly complicated.
The only fortunate thing was that the accumulated damage to the cliffs was not yet beyond hope.
RUMBLE...
Dust continued to fall, and a few cracks had formed.
It looked as though only a little more force would be needed, but the Archer and Mage, the team’s ranged damage dealers, were seriously injured.
There was no time to wait for Recovery Acceleration to take effect, and the Supporter on their side specialized in Buffs rather than healing.
‘If we approach and strike it ourselves, we’ll definitely get caught in the collapse.’
If they were caught in it, they would definitely die.
Death in Channel meant defeat.
Even in a Team Match, if someone died, it would be counted as an automatic loss regardless of the team’s eventual result.
“This Jo Ikdeok! If it is for you, I can even offer my life...!”
“Don’t talk nonsense. I have no intention of abandoning anyone.”
It seemed there was no choice but to use Plan B.
[The Final Wave begins!]
[Boss Monster, ‘High Orc General,’ leads the final advance!]
The final wave began.
A massive High Orc clad in iron armor advanced while leading a monster legion with at least five times as many creatures as before.
“SQUEEEE!”
I had no idea what it was saying, but it sounded roughly like it was shouting, “Vengeance for our fallen brethren!”
‘A High Orc General, a superior variant of the High Orc.’
It was strong enough to be classified as a Boss Monster, but that was fine.
If this gamble succeeded, I could take it down in one blow.
Shin Jaeha stepped forward and pulled out an item.
[Low-Grade Magic Scroll] (D)
▶A scroll containing every Low-Grade Spell. Upon tearing it, one Low-Grade Spell activates at random.
It was the item he had obtained earlier by clearing the Astria quest.
All he had to do was draw an offensive spell.
Preferably one powerful enough to further weaken the nearly collapsed cliffs.
“SQUEEEE!”
“SKREEEEEE!”
“HEE HEE!”
The moment the monsters entered the narrow passage and arrived beneath the cliffs—
RIP—!
Shin Jaeha tore the scroll.
Whether the magic he wanted would appear or not depended entirely on luck.
He did not particularly enjoy battles that relied on odds like this, but—
“This time, I have something I can rely on.”
A Buff that occupied one slot in the Buff window.
A Buff that no one had expected to be of any help.
[Luck Increase(Lv.3)]
[<Low-Grade Magic Scroll> is affected by ‘Luck Increase.’]
[The user’s desired outcome is reflected in the probability.]
FWOOSH—!
Mana flowed from the torn scroll and quickly formed a magic circle.
What emerged was—
[<Fireball>]
—a ball of flame of moderate size.
It was one of the more powerful Low-Grade Spells.
BOOOOM—!
The Fireball flew into the spot Shin Jaeha had designated and struck it.
The explosion widened the cracks running through the cliff.
“SNORT?”
The High Orc General sensed something wrong and looked up.
But it was already too late.
[Excessive impact has accumulated on the cliff.]
[The cliff begins to collapse!]
Once the cliff began to collapse—
RRRUMBLE—!
—it could not be stopped.
“SNORT?! SQUEAL!”
A landslide of rocks crashed down over the panicked monster legion.
A wave of rock, a downpour of stones, a storm of falling boulders.
“SKREEEE!”
“GRRRK!”
RUMBLE—!
A moment later, the cliff had vanished without a trace.
All that remained was a mountain of rubble and the monsters—or rather, what had once been monsters—buried beneath it.
[You have successfully stopped the Final Wave.]
[You have defended the ‘Statue of the Goddess of Hope.’]
[Defense Clear!]
It was a perfect clear recognized by the System.
Jo Ikdeok, who had watched all of it from behind, opened his mouth more than five times as wide in shock.
“Uh....”
Shin Jaeha let out a hollow laugh as well.
No matter how many times he saw it, it was still a sight he could not get used to.
That stalwart monster legion being wiped out all at once.
“This is so easy it’s almost anticlimactic.”
The second Placement Exam had ended.
Naturally, with an unprecedented record.
Which also meant that the chat began to boil as though a riot had broken out.
The same went for the unknown number of big shots likely watching this broadcast.