NOVEL NEXT chapter 26
26 – 1st Floor, 3 vs 3 Team Battle.
[BATTLE 62.]
“`
[TEAM Madogwang VS TEAM Eunseoryeong]
The players waiting in the waiting room for the betting to start checked the members of the two teams.
“No matter how you look at it, it doesn’t seem like Madogwang will lose, right?”
“Of all things, there’s an Earthling on that team.”
The players’ choice was Team Madogwang.
Many people expected Madogwang’s perfect victory.
And for good reason.
There was no player who could accurately assess individual skills.
It was impossible to interact during the week of training under the Ascendant.
Relying on race-based predictions was the best they could do.
When Madogwang defeated Eunseoryeong, the cheers reached their peak.
“What can an Earthling do?”
“Finish it quickly! And give me the gold coins!”
“There was a reason they were so confident from the start.”
A celebration erupted in the players’ waiting room.
The Earthling stepped forward.
It was an Errorian.
The Errorian took a clumsy stance.
Compared to the warriors who had fought earlier, it was quite awkward.
“…?”
“What is this?”
“Madogwang, what are you doing! You b*stard! Why aren’t you winning!”
Madogwang never considered the possibility of losing.
Likewise, the players who bet on him never thought they could lose.
How could a martial artist lose to an Earthling?
Tutorials, crew making, voucher battles…
While being invited to and participating in the Tower of Struggle, the players learned the importance of resources.
If I lose, I fall behind my opponent that much, so I had to cherish it almost as much as my life.
Therefore, the gold coins bet on Team Madogwang could never be lost.
They cheered for him with all their might.
“`
“Kill him! Damn it, kill that b*stard!”
Madogwang is being pushed back.
It doesn’t look like it on the surface, but Madogwang’s anxiety can be felt in his swordplay.
Those who have trained in swordsmanship noticed the subtle change.
Is Madogwang self-destructing?
Just when they thought so, Madogwang made his final move.
He drew out his innate energy.
“…That brute is smarter than he looks.”
The martial artists who understood the meaning behind Madogwang’s choice clapped their hands in admiration.
“It’s over.”
“The Earthling put up a decent fight, but he’s far from being able to defeat a first-rate martial artist who has drawn out his innate energy.”
Right now, Madogwang has temporarily reached the threshold of his peak.
His senses are sharpened, and his abilities are inflated.
How could an Earthling possibly win?
“It’s a pity.”
The martial artists expressed their early condolences to Eunseoryeong, who had met the wrong person and was about to be eliminated.
“…Huh?”
But then.
Boom-!
The person who should have fallen didn’t fall?
It was an unbelievable sight.
Not only the martial artists but also the Earthlings were surprised.
They knew he had monopolized the points, but they didn’t expect it to be to this extent.
─ H-how…!
Madogwang had no intention of showing mercy to the error person.
He poured all his strength into his ultimate move.
He had even drawn out his innate energy, so saying he held back would be a joke.
Not only did the person withstand such a blow, but he was also standing there unscathed?
Is that even possible?
─ I can’t believe it. I can’t believe it!
Life force is slowly wearing away.
He felt the aftermath of breaking his own dantian on his skin.
‘It’s okay.’
As long as he could defeat that b*stard, as long as he could avoid elimination!
Such injuries could be healed with the help of the administrator.
Madogwang swung his sword.
A thrust followed by a continuous strike.
He struck at the gaps in the Error Man’s defense.
─ Your damage formula. I’ve figured it all out.
Kaang-!
At some point, the Error Man lowered his sword.
Without even thinking of blocking, he allowed Madogwang’s attack.
─ You, you b*stard!
Was he ignoring him?
Did he think he was a dead man walking?
Madogwang brought his sword down.
He was ready to split the Error Man’s head in one blow.
Kang-!
The sword and the head collided.
But was that sound right? He wondered.
“…Are you really human?”
The players were in shock.
─ This can’t be….
Madogwang was the same.
He was even more shocked than the players.
Because he had swung the sword himself.
He knew how much force he was putting into it.
He couldn’t believe the Error Man’s durability.
─ Is it finally over?
As Madogwang slowly pushed his sword away, the Error Man took a step forward.
Madogwang couldn’t bear the fear and took two steps back.
─ Ugh, ugh!
The sight of him fleeing, dragging his innate energy, was utterly pathetic.
That scene was being broadcasted to all the waiting rooms through the television.
The overwhelming force of Oryuin.
─ …Forget the sword.
Oryuin casually tossed the sword aside.
He thought that familiar kicks would be better than awkward swordsmanship.
He took his stance.
He stepped forward.
His agility stat of 37 assisted his movements.
Whoosh, whoosh-!
After a few more rotations, the accumulated momentum of the spinning kick struck Madogwang’s head like a lightning bolt.
Smack-!
─ Gah!
It felt like his rusty senses were awakening.
It was refreshing.
Thud, thud-!
Madogwang stumbled forward and rolled on the ground.
His vitality had already dropped to 1.
─ Ah, no! I can’t lose like this! I, I am…!
Confirming his vitality, Madogwang screamed a near-hysterical cry.
He desperately tried to fight on.
Thwack-!
─ Ugh. Ugh, aaah! Die! Damn it!
Oryuin toyed with him as if playing with a toy.
Thwack-. Thud!
─ You earthworm-like b*stard! You, you dare…!
As his vitality didn’t drop below 1, Madogwang didn’t die and kept charging.
Like a zombie.
The innate energy gradually fades.
The blood energy that once flowed like a river has now weakened to mere droplets.
─ …….
The rough breathing stopped at some point.
Even breathing became difficult.
With blurry vision, Madogwang stared at Oryuin.
Oryuin did not look at Madogwang.
All the players watching this match.
He told them.
─ Do not underestimate Earthlings.
With that, Oryuin lightly jumped and kicked backwards.
Unable to withstand the pushing kick, Madogwang’s body collapsed backward.
Sighs.
Sighs leaked from the waiting room.
Clearly blocked by a wall, it sounded as if the voices from the next room could be heard.
“Is this, is this even possible?”
“This shouldn’t be happening. Of course, the martial artist should win!”
While everyone lamented their lost money.
A few shouted with joy.
“Sujeong! I told you! Ryuin-hyung never loses! There’s a reason the Ascendant gets special treatment!”
“Y-yeah. I got it. I got it, so stop!”
* * *
The 62nd match ended noisily.
There was no particular reason for it.
‘I have to repay what I received.’
It wasn’t a special request from Jusohee.
It was my whim.
‘The small recognition engraved today might help someone.’
63rd match.
A brawl among Earthlings unfolded.
“Die! Damn it! Just die!”
A game of the weak struggling not to be weeded out.
It caught the players’ attention.
The scene of pounding the opponent’s face from the mount position was indescribably horrific.
Regardless of such emotions, investments were made coldly.
My gold coins grew without rest.
Sometimes there were losses.
Only sometimes.
“…This, this can’t be. Wrong again.”
Eun Seoryeong, who had suffered a major injury.
With the help of the manager, she was able to recover quickly.
As soon as she recovered, she turned to gambling.
The result was disastrous.
She lost even the gold coins I gave her as a gift.
“Senior Eun doesn’t seem to have a talent for gambling.”
“…Baeksong Dojang….”
Unlike Eun Seoryeong, who was left penniless, Baeksong steadily increased his gold coins.
The number reached as many as twenty.
‘If you ask me who looks more like a master, I would firmly say Baeksong is the real master.’
One gold coin per game.
His patience in adjusting the stakes was considerable.
“…Kim Minseong.”
A familiar face entered the arena.
Kim Minseong stood in the arena with a tense face.
Behind him followed Lee Sujeong and a man.
The opponent was a team composed entirely of Earthlings, just like Kim Minseong’s team.
It was a match with a fair chance of winning.
A bloody battle.
To the extent that the blood shed by Baeksong and Eun Seoryeong seemed like nothing, they fiercely threw their punches.
Especially Kim Minseong gritted his teeth.
Since their lives were on the line, it was only natural.
Kim Min-seong survived.
The defeated opposing team cried and screamed.
─ S-save me. Please.
─ I don’t want to die! You b*stard!
The man, driven by anger, ran towards the manager.
Unable to hold back, he swung his fist at the manager, and then he turned to dust and disappeared.
「Shall we move on to the next?」
The game continued.
Each time, three people were eliminated and died.
If you think about it one game at a time, it doesn’t seem like many people die.
But looking at the whole picture, there’s nothing as brutal as this test.
‘…No matter how much you struggle, half of them die.’
I could feel anew what kind of place the Tower of Struggle was.
After a week of playing around in a tournament, my dulled senses were sharpened again.
「It’s finally over!」
The number of games was enormous.
It wasn’t easy to watch them all.
「All surviving players have earned the right to move up to the 2nd floor! Congratulations!」
Blinky appeared on the television screen.
Seeing its bright smile gave me chills.
「Before you go up to the 2nd floor, there’s something you need to use, right? I’ll tell you where you can use the gold coins you earned from the mini-games!」
With a snap of Blinky’s fingers, a tablet appeared in the waiting room.
「I can’t give you unlimited time! So it’s best to finish shopping quickly! Remember, if you don’t buy quickly, items might sell out!」
I made eye contact with Baek Song.
We quickly grabbed the tablet and looked through the product list.