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Chapter 57
My Dark Past Is Too Strong
First PVP (2)
Ugh! What a jackpot.
Meeting Derek was mentally exhausting, but the rewards were enormous.
An artifact obtainable only with the Essence of Good and Evil, plus a ticket to the Holy Flame Forge!
And, on top of that, a voucher to summon Derek whenever I want to make a deal!
“Next time I meet him, I need to ask what he remembers.”
There wasn’t much time, so I couldn’t have a long conversation with Derek. All I could do was listen to what he said.
And I couldn’t exactly ask, “Hey, I’m in a bit of a rush. Can you answer my questions first?” — that would be embarrassing.
“Well, at least I got the crafting materials and artifact with the Essence of Good and Evil, so that’s something.”
Still, it felt a little disappointing.
If I had known, I would have prepared more. Then I could have taken advantage of the high-fatigue boss and gained even more Essence of Good and Evil.
“Well, I’ll do better next time.”
With that thought, I left the Demon Palace and headed back to the company.
Today was Oh Hyun-ah’s midterm check, and I was late because the dungeon strategy took longer than expected.
“She’s definitely going to scold me the moment she sees me.”
I could already picture her nagging about me breaking my promise.
Just as Oh Hyun-ah’s scolding medley echoed in my mind, I spotted Insu and Hyun-ah across the street.
I waved to greet them, but—
“…What’s going on over there?”
A group had gathered around Insu and Hyun-ah.
Judging by the tense atmosphere, it didn’t look good.
I couldn’t hear the conversation, but it was clear Insu and Hyun-ah were being threatened.
Then one of them threw a cigarette in Hyun-ah’s face.
“That crazy bastard!”
Rage surged through me instantly.
I wanted to summon the Seven Deadly Sins and crush them, but I barely restrained myself.
As I was considering which one to deal with first,
“We won’t let this slide.”
“…Arrogant brat.”
The one who appeared to be the leader of the group and Insu started a PVP.
“…Maybe I should just watch for now, see Insu’s skill.”
This was his first PVP.
I couldn’t always step in every time he got into trouble, so he needed this experience.
The outcome didn’t matter. Whether Insu won or lost, those guys would still end up in pieces because of me.
“Still, try to win, Go Insu. This is a great stage to build confidence.”
Insu voluntarily entering PVP meant he had already made some calculations.
The leader summoned a legendary-grade summon, “Solrun, Magician of the Great Nature.”
The classic fast-kill Chinese strategy: overwhelm the opponent instantly.
“How will Insu counter that?”
From Insu’s summon pool, dozens of possible combinations could counter this reckless Chinese player.
If he followed my teachings, he could handle this deck.
Li Haoten was inspecting a new management company called Ascend under orders from higher-ups.
Yet he couldn’t understand why he had been given this task.
From his perspective, Korea was insignificant, like a stone on the ground.
So he was already in a bad mood, but something interesting happened.
“What confidence makes him accept PVP? Those brats’ power is obvious.”
The one he thought was weak got angry when stepped on.
He was already irritated with the trivial task, but a good punching bag appeared, which lifted his mood.
“What kind of summon will he bring?”
It didn’t matter what deck it was.
Korea was a minor adventurer nation. Despite its recent stirrings, he had never lost to a Korean in PVP.
Soon, Go Insu summoned his team.
“One legendary, three heroes. But one knight and three priests?”
It wasn’t even a laughable setup—it was almost pitiful.
That wasn’t a PVP combination.
“Going all-in? Hah, typical brats.”
A 1-tank, 3-heal setup, obviously aiming to drag the fight out.
Would they call reinforcements after that—police or allies?
They miscalculated in multiple ways.
“Will they last until then? And what if reinforcements come?”
After the great upheaval, from China’s perspective, Korea was like a dirty little puppy.
Always wagging its tail when they showed up, occasionally growling but quickly rolling over if scolded—a pathetic rural dog.
The nation’s public authority was no different.
“True. A small nation before a great one can only obey.”
Li Haoten immediately activated his summon’s skill.
《Blazing Supporter Shiny Flame uses Exciting Blaze.》
《Increases allies’ speed (medium) and attack (medium).》
“I got first turn. I’ll melt them in a blink!”
The speed of China! Charging forward faster than anyone else.
Even if the enemy summon activated some effect outside its turn, it didn’t matter.
He was controlling four legendary summons. A mediocre deck with no DPS had zero chance.
“Next!”
《Silent Devotee Baekryeong uses Firmly Closed Heart.》
《Applies buff restriction and speed reduction debuffs to all enemies.》
Baekryeong’s skill hit both debuffs despite not being fully set up.
“They didn’t even prepare resistance? Are they suicidal?”
The tide of victory leaned toward Li Haoten.
However, Go Insu’s expression remained calm, as if everything was going according to plan.
《Fearless Dash activates.》
Li Haoten’s brow twitched.
“What? Why does that message keep popping up?”
Fearless Dash, Go Insu’s priest, the unstoppable young lady Athena’s skill.
If enemies are buffed, his action gauge increases by 10% per buff.
“Smooth. He has no idea about my setup.”
Go Insu maintained a poker face, secretly smiling.
“Take this, brats!”
After running the buff/debuff cycle, Li Haoten got another turn and attacked the lone knight directly.
Eliminate the knight, and only the three low-damage priests remain—victory was guaranteed.
“Burn him with the armor!”
《Blazing Breaker Hwarun uses March of the Flame Wheels.》
Hwarun’s eyes blazed.
“I’ll crush anything in my way!”
Flames engulfed his body as he dashed straight through the battlefield.
Flare!
Hwarun charged like a burning chariot.
“Argh!”
Hwarun hit Go Insu’s knight, Arhan, and the shield blocked the flames.
“Gah! You attacked while I was standing still? You… you started it!”
《Twisted Shield Knight Arhan’s skill ‘Fickle Sword’ activates.》
Li Haoten’s eyes widened.
“A counterattack? And AoE?”
Go Insu clenched his fist.
“It worked!”
Arhan had a 30% chance of AoE counterattack when hit, and he had a 20% chance to grant additional counter opportunities from the Revenge Set.
Although his damage wasn’t high, this deck was perfect against extreme speed-focused opponents like the Chinese player.
“All his equipment focused on speed and attack—survivability is low.”
Arhan threw his weapons into the enemy ranks. When the sword clashed with the shield—
BANG!
Shockwaves from the shield hit all of Li Haoten’s summons.
《Fickle Sword hits all enemies.》
Go Insu smirked. Seeing Li Haoten’s expression twist confirmed his plan worked.
“Flustered, huh?”
As Arhan moved, the weapons flew back to his hands. Li Haoten panicked.
“Revenge Set?”
The set was long out of meta. Few summons could utilize it well, yet the kid brought it. Arhan, considered a weak legendary knight.
“…Damn it, so what now!”
Next would be Solrun’s ultimate. A wipe could reverse the battle. But why…
“…Huh?”
It wasn’t Solrun but the kid’s summon that acted first.
《Unstoppable Lady Athena uses Silence Order.》
“Shut that mouth now!”
Athena waved her feathered wand. All ally debuffs were removed, speed and defense increased.
Go Insu laughed.
“Let them pay for ignoring Athena!”
If he were the target, he would have attacked Athena first, not Arhan.
《Silence Order 2, ‘Shut Your Mouth’ activates.》
《Solrun is silenced.》
“No way… Did he even calculate the timing?”
Li Haoten was tearing his hair out, completely outplayed by an unknown deck.
Flustered, he couldn’t issue his next attack command. Solrun, acting autonomously, attacked Arhan.
“No?! Stop!”
《Twisted Shield Knight Arhan’s skill ‘Fickle Sword’ activates.》
“Argh!”
Arhan’s shield struck again, the shockwave leaving Li Haoten’s summons on the brink of death.
《Solrun HP 15%.》
《Hwarun HP 22%.》
Li Haoten’s hands trembled.
“I’m losing? To that rookie? This is impossible. Something’s messed up!”
He turned to call his group for help.
Guild members from Gwanghwi were arriving just then, having come for deck consultation.
“Tch!”
Li Haoten retracted his summons.
“Consider yourself lucky!”
Watching them flee, Oh Hyun-ah shouted,
“You were lucky!”
Once Li Haoten’s group left, Go Insu exhaled deeply.
“Phew. Thought I’d lose.”
“See? Our master is incredible. Look at that guy’s face—completely red with panic. Ah! I should’ve taken a photo.”
Go Insu and Oh Hyun-ah laughed as they headed to the cafe.
And silently observing all this, Oh Hyun-woo quietly followed Li Haoten.
“Whatever else, don’t touch my people.”
He had just received information from Caligo about a useful item for situations like this—a perfect chance to test it.
A deserted alley in the dead of night.
Li Haoten kicked the wall in frustration.
“Argh! Should’ve killed those idiots!”
“Calm down. That guy wasn’t ordinary.”
“What? Skill? That wasn’t skill—it was luck!”
The group remained silent, bowing their heads.
While Li Haoten raged alone, a strange voice spoke:
“Luck is skill, too. Just like you were born with a stupid brain.”
“Who’s there?! Who said that nonsense?!”
Li Haoten looked up. Three figures stood on a utility pole, backlit by the moon.
“I wonder how their brain works to be so dumb. Could be a research topic!”
“Enough chatter, Caligo. Carry out your master’s orders quickly.”
Li Haoten’s heart sank.
He had never seen the man with the demonic weapon before, but the woman in the dress and the tall man were familiar.
“It wasn’t a setup…?”
The woman in the dress descended in front of Li Haoten, scratching his face with sharp nails.
“Fool. How dare you covet theirs? You should’ve stayed trapped in your filthy world.”
“My… my world?”
“Hertia! Are you speaking so he understands? Your world! That filthy country called China!”
Li Haoten’s eyes hardened, and he summoned his own summon.
“How dare they insult my homeland?”
There was no need to fear.
They were adventurers of a great nation. Hertia and Caligo were just remnants of the past.
No relics of the old era could match the strategies and power of today’s adventurers.
Reading the situation, his group also prepared for battle.
Observing through skills, Oh Hyun-woo instructed Hertia:
“Leave not a single summon standing. Tear them all apart.”
