The first day was ordinarily the most difficult part of the Sentinels & Raiders mission. Afterward, things became easier.
Most importantly, we had lost no Guardian Stones during the first night.
‘We did waste a few, but either way, it means we have an abundance of Points.’
I allocated some of the remaining Points to myself, but I also spent a portion of them fortifying the Urban Map.
Upgrading the city had to be treated in the same way as purchasing personal equipment.
We had to survive here before we could proceed to the next mission.
Of course, I did not spend only my own Points.
I relayed the plan through Park Gilsu and persuaded the others to contribute their Points voluntarily.
[Fortification Wall construction complete—Guardian Stone assigned.]
[Urban Area repairs complete—Guardian Stone assigned.]
[Spatial Expansion complete—Guardian Stone assigned.]
….
[All requirements have been fulfilled. The Sentinel Zone has been promoted to Stage 2.]
I had everyone invest a fixed percentage of their Points into the building upgrades. Once the Stage 2 requirements were satisfied, the area was automatically promoted.
Strangely, merely constructing a facility did not make it usable.
A Guardian Stone had to be assigned before its functions could be activated properly.
In other words, it was impossible to install more upgrades than the number of Guardian Stones we possessed.
[Constructing the Gate.]
Unlike Stage 1, when we had crudely blocked off the open Urban Map ourselves, concrete walls now formed a fence around the area within a fixed radius.
A Gate materialized at the center.
It had been constructed from scrap metal and debris taken from the ruins. Although it looked crude, its sturdy appearance made its strength obvious.
The enemy could no longer approach from every direction as they had during Stage 1.
They would have to break through the firmly closed Gate.
“This is why Defense becomes easier from Stage 2 onward.”
We only had to concentrate our forces in one location.
Of course, the Raiders also gained ways to counter the fortifications.
They could destroy the Gate with a Battering Ram or climb over the walls using long Siege Ladders.
It resembled a medieval siege, although there were several notable differences.
“It is a shame that we do not have an Anti-Aircraft Gun.”
We lacked the Points required to upgrade to Stage 3, so we did not have an Anti-Aircraft Gun.
Some Players possessed flight abilities, while others could use Jump Spots to descend into the base like Airborne Troops.
One effective response was to fire an Anti-Aircraft Gun indiscriminately into the sky and prevent aerial entry altogether.
However, we did not have enough Guardian Stones to employ that method yet.
“We will have to hope the Skirmisher Unit fulfills its role.”
All I could do was hope that Sledgehammer and E-Bolt, whom Kang Sujeong had spared, successfully disrupted the Jump Spots.
Their task today was to prevent as many enemies as possible from invading through the air.
‘Still, they received Guardian Selection. They should not be defeated easily.’
All Stats +10 and an increased Mana Recharge Speed meant they were stronger than most sixth-week Raiders.
“Leader, the preparations are complete. As you instructed, we moved every Guardian Stone underground.”
Park Gilsu approached me as I inspected the area from atop the wall.
“Excellent work. You should return to your position and prepare as well, Mr. Park Gilsu. You remember how important your role is today, correct?”
“Yes. I will stop him, no matter what it takes.”
“I trust you.”
Park Gilsu bowed his head and returned to his position.
Despite what I said, I did not actually trust Park Gilsu.
I did not trust anyone here.
No amount of preparation was ever sufficient when dealing with people.
Even when someone understood exactly what they had to do, they behaved differently in actual combat and inevitably made mistakes.
I had realized long ago that people were not pieces to be trusted, but pieces to be moved across a board.
I had given Park Gilsu one instruction.
If someone with a Time Acceleration ability appeared near the Guardian Stones hidden underground in preparation for an aerial assault, he was to activate Sphinx of Thebes immediately.
By the time they noticed the enemy’s presence, there was a high probability that the Guardian Stones would already have been stolen.
That was why I had created the Sharp Matte Thread—the thread of Arachne.
The thread had been placed around the Guardian Stones like a barrier.
The moment it showed any unusual reaction, Park Gilsu was to activate Sphinx of Thebes while the Shield Unit and Ranged Unit established a field of fire to prevent the intruder from approaching easily.
‘And I told him to signal me immediately.’
It was a simple device.
After being frustrated by our lack of communication during the previous battle, I used the materials left over from creating the Sharp Matte Thread to install an extremely primitive communication network.
[Telegraph of the Ruins]
Rank: Unranked
Attributes: Communication, Wired
Description: A simple communication device created by combining broken electronic components and parts from destroyed vehicles found within a city devastated by nuclear war. It can transmit a telegraph message to multiple recipients simultaneously.
I had modeled it after the String Telephones children played with.
Had it been capable of transmitting voices, it might have reached Magic rank. Since it could transmit only signals comparable to Morse Code, it had not been difficult to create.
“Not that we need actual Morse Code.”
Morse Code was not something people could easily memorize and understand.
Therefore, I established several simple rules.
BEEEEEP. BEEEEEP.
Two prolonged signals meant that the area was safe.
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
Three rapid signals meant danger.
BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP.
A continuous series of rapid signals meant that the Time Acceleration user had appeared.
The devices had been installed throughout every area, and all of them could both transmit and receive signals.
I made certain everyone understood how to use them so that we could respond quickly if an enemy broke through or a dangerous situation arose, unlike during the previous battle.
“Every preparation is complete.”
It was time to face the enemy.
“This is a rather well-developed Stage 2 base. It looks like they survived the first night more successfully than I expected.”
Helmen studied the Stage 2 Sentinel Zone standing before him like an impregnable fortress.
“Ha, fuck. Why does that place look so sturdy?”
“They must have secured plenty of Guardian Stones during Stage 1. The walls are active, so they must have assigned Guardian Stones to them. Does that not make them difficult to destroy even with magic?”
“We should not have chosen a Stage 2 base. At this level, the difficulty is practically the same as Stage 3.”
“It is almost time to begin, so finding another Stage 3 base now would be difficult. Damn it.”
Everyone began sighing the moment they saw the walls and the Gate.
Helmen clicked his tongue inwardly as he watched them.
‘Tsk, tsk. Pathetic. All they can think about is smashing through it with brute force. Have they still not understood how this place works?’
The ordinary method was to break through the walls and Gate using abilities or advance behind a Siege Engine.
However, there were other routes besides such direct methods.
Helmen ignored them and waited for the mission to begin.
“All right, everyone. Anyone with an ability that makes their skin highly durable should board first, and anyone with a destruction-related ability should ride with them.”
The man attempting to organize the group wore goggles fitted with an elaborate lens.
The equipment looked fairly high-ranked, and he appeared to be a Raider who had survived for quite some time.
“You expect only us to do the dangerous work while the rest of you take the reward? I will not agree to that.”
As expected from Raiders who struggled to unite, a large, muscular man immediately stepped forward and objected to the organizer’s proposal.
“Ah—then we will make an Oath. Why do we have to go through this every time?”
The Raiders’ Oath.
It could only be used once, but it was the sole method that allowed Raiders to cooperate reliably.
They were not truly invading the Sentinels.
They were going there to steal Guardian Stones, so individualism ran rampant among them.
To prevent that, they placed an Oath upon anyone undertaking an important role.
It was a promise that the Guardian Stones would be distributed once they were secured.
The arrangement aligned everyone’s interests.
Guardian Stones were ordinarily obtained most easily by those who were fast or possessed exceptional combat abilities.
Meanwhile, those whose combat abilities were mediocre or who possessed nothing but durability were merely used to buy time and rarely obtained Guardian Stones themselves.
That was why an unusual phenomenon occurred among Raiders: the longer they survived, the fewer Tanks and Support users remained among them.
Such people generally chose one of two methods.
They either targeted only poorly defended Stage 1 bases or boarded Siege Engines like this one.
“Our lives are at stake, so of course we need an Oath. Hurry, everyone. Gather around!”
At their urging, everyone approached to make the System-enforced Oath.
Anyone who refused and tried to enter alone with the intention of freeloading would be beaten by everyone present, so they all trudged forward.
Naturally, the beating still counted as inflicting injury and cost the attackers Points.
However, since everyone shared the burden, the individual cost remained relatively small.
Despite knowing that, Helmen and several others continued resting while ignoring the gathering.
“What is wrong with those bastards? Why are they not coming? Are they planning to freeload while the rest of us do all the work?”
The muscular man who had gathered everyone lowered his thick arms and began walking toward Helmen and the others, but several people beside him quickly held him back.
“Ah, is this your first time, brother? Leave them alone.”
“What?”
“They are Commandos. Leave them be. They are already gambling with their lives.”
“Commandos?”
“The people who use the Jump Spots.”
“Ah, I have seen that a few times. Is that not practically suicide? They willingly do it?”
“It might be suicide for us, but it clearly is not for them. They must possess a hovering ability such as Fly or have some unusual method of landing safely. Why else would they try it? Every time I have seen them, those people were always the first to reach the Guardian Stones. That tells you everything.”
“What? Then will there be nothing left for us?”
“Do you think the Sentinels are fools? Can you not tell from the fact that they were promoted from Stage 1? What kind of idiot gathers every Guardian Stone in one place and waits to be wiped out in a single attack? Do not worry. They will have hidden them throughout the area like buried treasure. But you look like a veteran. How do you know so little?”
“Ahem. Never mind that. Let us establish the Oath.”
The muscular man did his best not to reveal that he was only in his third week.
Helmen listened to their conversation and nodded.
‘Jump Spots.’
They were usually unnecessary until Stage 3 or higher. Even then, their high mortality rate meant that they were rarely used.
However, there was no more effective method of approaching the Guardian Stones.
As the name suggested, a Jump Spot only launched the user into the air.
Landing was the Raider’s responsibility.
Some could fly.
Some trusted their exceptionally durable bodies to survive the fall.
Others descended using specialized equipment purchased with Points.
The important part was that using a Jump Spot allowed a Raider to cross the defensive area the Sentinels had painstakingly prepared and enter the base at once.
Most Sentinels focused entirely on the front while paying less attention to the sky and their rear.
Using the launch platform therefore made it comparatively easy to secure a Guardian Stone.
Helmen possessed Hermes’ Shoes.
It was a Rare ability that granted both Time Acceleration and Gliding.
This place was practically his playground.
[00:00:03]
[00:00:02]
[00:00:01]
[The stage has opened. Secure the Guardian Stones!]
“WAAAAAAAH!!”
“CHAAAAARGE!!”
A truck fitted with an enormous Battering Ram surged forward at full speed.
It was not particularly fast, but its overwhelming mass raised the spirits of the Raiders running behind it. Combined with their mismatched equipment, the sight made them appear even more deranged.
GRRRRRR-.
“WAAAAAA… Huh?”
“What is that?”
VRRRM-! VRRRM-! VROOOOOOOOM!!
Something unexpected disrupted the charging Raiders.
The firmly sealed Gate opened with a deafening rumble.
Five motorcycles with distinctly raised handlebars burst from within, accompanied by sharp exhaust notes like exploding fireworks.
The thunderous roar of their engines swallowed both the Siege Truck and the Raiders’ War Cries as the motorcycles raced across the rugged wasteland.
BRRRRRRRRR-!!
“Kill every last one of them!!”
“ROOOOOOAR-!!”
At the front, Kang Sujeong charged toward the approaching Siege Truck in a rugged Biker Jacket, leading Sledgehammer, E-Bolt, Seongwon, and Yonghyeok.