Chapter 129

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 129: Siege Warfare (4)

"Lee Eunho!!"

Rocket Punch roared.

The guy I scanned with my 'Third Eye' had no abilities of his own.

That meant all the powers he had shown so far were skills bound to his items.

So, I simply took it.

‘Bomber’s Gauntlet.’

"It was you, wasn’t it?! Give it back right now!!"

Well, at least he wasn’t completely clueless.

He figured out that I took it.

Of course, I had no intention of returning it, so I ignored him and focused on assessing the situation.

「0:31:59」

Just over thirty minutes left.

That should be enough time.

If things go well, I might be able to keep them occupied here and even seize the American stronghold.

Just as I was about to speak,

"Hey, over there!"

Someone suddenly shouted in alarm.

"Troops are approaching!"

"They're heading toward the Americans? Are they reinforcements?"

A group was moving around our stronghold toward the American forces.

Maybe five or six hundred people.

They looked like they had already been through a battle—completely worn out—so they didn’t seem too threatening…

"It’ll be a problem if this drags on too long."

"What? What do you mean?"

▣ Quicksand of Death

- A mystical orb imbued with immeasurable sand-based power.

- When activated, it turns a designated area into a sand pit.

- However, the maximum range and duration depend on the caster's rank, so use with caution.

- Usable count: 5 times

The effective range of the spell.

In other words, the area that will be turned into quicksand is determined by my rank .

Since I had no way of knowing the exact extent of it right now, the only way to find out was to try it.

Sssss—

As I wrapped my hands around the cold orb, a familiar voice pierced the air from afar.

"Clone Technique!"

"…?!"

Pababababak!

The group that seemed to be merely five or six hundred strong suddenly doubled in size.

"Did he just say Clone Technique?!"

"Then… they’re not Americans?"

Even though their faces weren’t clearly visible, and their numbers were too large to count properly, their identity was obvious.

I had already fought against that ability yesterday.

"They're Japanese…? It’s Saito!"

"There are Turkish and Indian people mixed in too! Don’t tell me… it’s the group from yesterday…!"

"Why are they here?!"

The nearly thousand clones moved in unison.

They glided across the ground as if walking on water, wielding familiar weapons.

Pababababat! Clang!

Thousands of shurikens rained down on the enemy forces.

Not our forces, but the enemy .

"W-wait! Instead of attacking us, shouldn’t we be working together to take down Korea—ugh!"

"I refuse."

This… it was hard to believe, but—

"They’re here to help us."

"!!"

"Unbelievable! Is it because we saved them from Silver Blade last night?"

"Damn, that idiot even gave them a place to stay."

"Oh, yeah! They must have been really grateful!"

I had killed the Ghouls to earn welfare points, and I had let them stay in an empty room simply because there was space.

"Once my training is complete… I will become your sword."

I had definitely refused that offer.

But it seemed like he still wanted to repay the favor in his own way.

And as for the Turkish and Indian factions…

"We won’t be much help… but we came to return the favor!"

"At the very least, we’ll try to slow them down!"

Most of their people had died to the Ghouls last night.

And yet, the few who remained had still come all this way to support us.

Watching the reactions of my teammates, Yeon Bora suddenly waved her hand and asked,

"But they have their own strongholds, don’t they? What about those?"

The one who answered was Park Gongchan.

"They’ve already given up."

"Given up? Their stronghold?"

"Either that or it was already taken."

I followed Park Gongchan’s gaze toward the Japanese stronghold.

The flag that once read ‘JP’ had been replaced with ‘RUS’ .

The Japanese forces had numbered around seven hundred.

And aside from the Clone Technique, they didn’t seem to have any special abilities.

Saito alone wouldn’t have been able to turn the tide.

"So, basically… they already lost this mission, so they decided to help us instead?"

"That’s what it looks like."

Hah.

They came to help without us even asking.

I was grateful, but still—

"Jieun."

"Yes?"

"Can you lift me up?"

I had something in mind.

* * *

With Jieun’s help, I hovered above the heads of our reinforcements, positioned between the stronghold and the siege army.

And then—

Hoo!

I took a deep breath and shouted,

"STOP!"

My voice crashed down upon the hundreds of Saito’s clones and the reinforcements below.

Freeze!

All the clones halted in place at once.

And then—

"I appreciate your help, but please step back for now."

Swish!

The clones smoothly withdrew, tucking their shurikens away and widening the gap between us.

It took less than five seconds.

To show my appreciation, I gave them a small nod, and they all turned their gazes toward me at once.

Their expressions seemed to ask—Do you have a plan?

In the distance, the Americans, who had been in a state of panic, spotted me floating in the sky and started murmuring.

"That guy…"

"It’s Lee Eunho!"

"He came alone? Is he suicidal?"

Some of them even raised their weapons and growled.

But I wasn’t worried.

"Think you can kill me?"

"W-what?"

I was flying at a height far beyond their reach—even if a giant tried to jump, they wouldn’t be able to touch me.

"You guys don’t have any ranged attackers."

They were all melee fighters, without a single ranged dealer among them.

"How do you know whether we do or not?!"

"If you did, you would have used them during the siege instead of just waiting in the back, relying only on Rocket Punch."

"W-What? You need a bullet in your head to stop talking so cocky…?"

"But you’re not using them. Not since earlier."

"!!"

There were plenty of people carrying guns, but few actually fired them.

They must have planned to push forward and seize the fortress in one swift attack.

But they ran into the lavender-colored earthen walls.

'Maybe they don’t have much ammo left to begin with.'

If they had been fighting against gunmen in previous missions, then they must have already exhausted most of their resources.

With those now tongue-tied fools beneath my feet, I spoke.

"This is your warning. Leave now."

"You think we’d listen to you?"

"Why the hell should we?!"

Of course, my words didn’t get through to them.

So—

"Well, then, I guess there’s no helping it."

"What the hell are you saying…?"

"Activate."

I murmured softly.

Srrrk—

The words I let out dispersed like smoke.

Sssssssssst—!

Dust and dirt gathered and clumped together, forming a massive sphere.

Like a cloud made of yellow dust.

'!!'

Just looking at it made my eyes sting.

The dry air pricked at my corneas.

I hadn’t done anything, yet my lips felt parched, and my throat stung.

"T-There, up there!"

"What is that?! What the hell are you trying to do?!"

And as if resonating with the mysterious sphere, the orb I had kept in my pocket began to hum—wooong—before a long-awaited message appeared.

[Activating 'Quicksand of Death.']

[Select a target area!]

I raised my index finger.

I pointed at the last remaining key force of America.

[Area selection complete.]

[Target: 'Lee Eunho.' Borrowing an unfathomable power.]

[Due to the user's inferior rank, power is significantly reduced.]

[Remaining uses: 4/5]

"…You little rat, what trick are you pulling this time…?"

Dwoooong—

The ground trembled.

The giant’s face stiffened.

Ssssssst—

The earth undulated.

Some people lost their balance and fell.

"…Khak!"

One of them clutched their throat the moment they hit the ground.

"I-I can’t breathe…!"

"My legs…!"

"W-What is this…?"

Even the giant, his face turning noticeably pale, lifted his head.

"You bastard… What the hell did you do?!"

His massive body shook as he bellowed.

At the same time, he tried to escape the ground beneath him—

Ssssssssst—!

But the churning sand had already swirled into a massive vortex, grabbing hold of his ankles.

"This much…!"

His knees sank.

"N-No! Wait!"

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

His waist was swallowed.

"Aaaaaaaaah!"

His chest followed soon after.

That’s how quicksand works.

The heavier you are, the harder you struggle—the faster you sink.

Just like that guy.

"Pull me out! P-Please pull me out!"

The giant's face twisted into one of despair and fury as he gasped.

"Oliver! Shrink your body!"

"I can’t! I still need time…!"

Ah.

So once he enlarges his body, it takes time to shrink it again.

──┤Target: Oliver├──

[Giantification (Lv.12)], [Hardening (Lv.5)]

──────────────

I had already confirmed he had no mobility skills.

"You won’t die. Just take a break while we finish the mission."

"You… You…!"

As I quickly calculated the strengths and limitations of my power and my opponent’s, I realized—

By now, Saito had erased all his clones and was staring at me in a daze.

"…Just how far does your power reach?"

"Who knows."

Technically, it was the power of an item, not mine, so I kept my answer vague.

Then—

"W-What are you doing?!"

People were using the giant as a stepping stone to escape the swamp.

"You idiots! You’re sinking me even more!"

"The ones who want to live… have to survive!"

"We can’t stay trapped here without even getting to siege the fortress!"

"Yeah! Oliver, you already had your moment in the spotlight!"

Had they been harboring resentment all this time?

They stomped on the giant’s arms, shoulders, and head as they scrambled to solid ground.

"There! Over there!"

Tap, tap!

A few who reached the edge of the swamp planted their feet on solid ground.

Seeing them, the rest rushed in like a riot.

Trampling over the heads of those still sinking, using them as stepping stones.

"Crazy…! What the hell are they doing?!"

"We had to fight each other to make it into the top 100 anyway!"

A brutal display of self-preservation, indifferent to the fate of others.

China had been ruthless, throwing bodies in front of Sun Ming to shield him.

But this—this was just as bitter.

"You disgusting worms…!"

"Kyaaaaah! Let go of me!"

[Cooperation is great, but survival comes first!]

Just as the host had hoped—

They clawed, trampled, and betrayed one another in their desperate struggle.

‘Oh?’

And suddenly, an idea came to me.

"Looks like we don’t need to fight."

"…What do you mean?"

Saito, who had been silently watching the massacre unfolding in the sand, lifted his head.

A glimmer of hope flickered across his pale, exhausted face.

"I found it. A weakness."

No need to be played any longer.

* * *

[Hmph, hmph~]

Sera couldn't hold back her humming.

She had been worried when the higher-ups suddenly called her to a meeting, but it turned out they had been paying close attention to this year's new employee training.

Seeing how much they praised her, there was no doubt she’d be rewarded—whether it was a bonus or some other incentive.

Shaa—

While adjusting her hair in the restroom mirror, she noticed someone step up to the sink beside her.

[Hmm?]

A figure so short they had to step on a platform to reach the sink.

A lacy dress, twin braids.

A familiar face.

They weren’t close, since the person was known for being rather prickly, but today was a good day.

[Oh my! Isn't this Harona?]

Sera greeted her with a bright smile.

Harona gave a slight nod in return.

[Congratulations, Sera. You did a great job on the report.]

[Ah! You saw it?]

Sera let out a modest laugh, pretending to be bashful.

[I only reported things as they were, but it seems they liked it…]

[You sure know how to sell the light.]

[…What?]

Sera froze.

[What did you just say…?]

The sudden remark, almost like an insult, made her question her hearing.

[Oh? First time hearing it? I meant you're quite good at embellishing things.]

[…What exactly did I embellish?]

[Ah, you know, how you said the candidates were ordinary but the process was exceptional—stuff like that.]

[…]

Sera bit her lower lip slightly.

Come to think of it, Harona was the one who discovered the candidate.

Candidate: Lee Eunho.

Did she think Sera had stolen credit for something that should have been hers?

Well, Sera had focused more on her presentation skills rather than the candidates' abilities to make the report flow smoothly.

But she had no regrets.

Departmental competition for results was nothing new, and presenting things in the best possible light was practically a skill in itself.

[I don’t know what you’re talking about.]

She shrugged and turned to leave.

Or rather, she tried to leave.

Ding!

A notification stopped her.

【There is one post tagged with the keyword "Sera."】

【Would you like to check it?】

Huh…

Sera glanced at Harona, who seemed to be waiting for her to react.

It was obvious she wanted Sera to ask.

After a moment’s hesitation, curiosity won, and Harona reluctantly spoke up.

[Why? Is there something interesting?]

[Oh, just lots of people looking for my channel. Want to see?]

Sera eagerly showed her the post.

▧ Looking for channel recommendations in District 13. ▧

Any good candidates to check out? Should I just look at Sera’s channel?

[You know, no training host has ever been as popular as me, right? They're calling me the best host ever!]

[Hmm—looks more like they’re talking about the candidates, not you.]

[…What?]

Harona smirked.

Confused, Sera scrolled through the comments.

Comments flooded the page:

⇒ The new recruit who made the pledge seemed sharp.

⇒ Lee Eunho is the real deal. No one else even compares.

⇒ Lee Eunho is amazing! My boss saw him once and immediately wanted him on our team. I’m putting in a request early!

⇒ What are you talking about? He’s my recruit!

…

Sera’s eyebrow twitched.

Her name was nowhere in sight.

It was all about Lee Eunho.

On top of that—

【A viewer has left.】

【A viewer has left.】

【A viewer has left.】

…

The audience was leaving the public channel en masse.

[W-Why all of a sudden…?]

Just then—

Ding! Ding! Ding!

Harona’s notifications started going off.

[Oh my! They’re all flocking over here.]

【Candidate Lee Eunho’s ‘Eyes’ has been selected as a trending live channel!】

Sera’s pretty face twisted.

How could a raw, unedited candidate feed suddenly outshine the official public channel, which had professional editing and effects?

This had never happened before in the history of new employee training.

[What?! Why is this happening?!]

[Ah! Looks like it's because of this.]

Harona pointed at a comment.

⇒ Breaking news! Lee Eunho found a surefire way to win siege battles. The training mission needs to be changed.

[A surefire method? Who’s spreading this ridiculous rumor?!]

What the hell had happened in such a short time?

Sera, her forced smile vanishing, frantically waved her hand.

Fwoosh—!

A screen materialized in front of her, revealing—

[What the hell is he doing?!]

Lee Eunho's absurd antics.

Sera let out a shriek.

[Phew, he’s always like this.]

Harona sighed and shook her head.

[No way! Why is he giving away his own castle?!]

[Oh, there's a reason for that.]

[And why is he messing with the magic circle?!]

[Hmm—he’s using his head, don’t you think?]

Sera clutched her head in frustration.

[This is insane! Who even does something like this?!]

[How is it? This is your first time seeing something like this, right?]

Harona's lips twitched upward in satisfaction as she watched the scene unfold.

At that very moment—

‘Time’s up.’

‘Final mission: Siege Battle is now concluded.’

On-screen, the system announced the end of the siege battle.

‘Due to an unprecedented outcome, the calculation of merit points is currently delayed.’

‘Please wait a moment!’

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]