The Hunt

One hour before Pernok departed for the arena.

Yak descended underground under the pretense of running errands.

“Guards, you’re working hard today as well.”

Perhaps because they’d frequently met faces until now, the guard keeping the door welcomed Yak gladly.

“You look better every time I see you. Is Number 15 treating you well?”

“I always eat my fill.”

“You advanced from livestock status. But what brings you here?”

“I have an errand.”

“Number 15?”

“Yes. He told me to extract one person from inside there.”

“What will he use them for?”

“I don’t really know that far. I only heard he received permission from the manager.”

The guard turned his head to the side, but his colleague shook his head.

“Did you hear anything?”

“No, there were no instructions?”

Doubt bloomed in the eyes of the guard looking at Yak again.

“Did you really get permission?”

“Ye-yes. You can go check with the guard captain or manager.”

Then the guard scratched his cheek as if troubled.

Each time matches between VIP players began, key personnel were deployed toward the arena.

To prepare for possible dangerous situations, they strictly controlled even others’ entry and exit.

Getting an answer from the guard captain would require at least half a day.

The guard’s worry wasn’t deep.

‘There’s no way this bastard lied.’

Unless he wanted to die, would he spout lies that would be exposed immediately?

He could ask the guard captain separately after the match ended about the fishy parts.

“And this is a small token of sincerity that Pernok separately told me to convey to you precious people who are working hard.”

Opening the basket, the precious wine he’d collected from the manager revealed itself.

“A-ahem. Why go to such trouble.”

“Even if permission came down, aren’t you two the ones in charge of guarding this place?”

“Well, that’s obvious! The guard captain always asks us before taking people.”

“I’m giving this in gratitude for readily accepting despite the sudden notice. Will you go down and drink it with the other guards?”

“My, Number 15 really knows etiquette unlike other players. Hahahaha!”

The guard laughed heartily and said to the guard beside him.

“Jack, watch carefully who comes.”

“Leave plenty of dried fruit.”

Jack opened the triple lock. The path descending underground opened, and the guard led the way with an excited expression.

Passing many sentries, they arrived before the jailer.

“It’s the manager’s order. Extract one.”

“Yes. Understood.”

Yak smiled and handed the basket to the guard.

“Huh? What’s that alcohol?”

“You trying to drink alone stingily?”

Seeing the guards passing by swarm, Yak entered inside with the jailer.

Before the subjugation battle waiting room that looked like a beast cage, the jailer asked.

“Who are you looking for?”

Yak looked around and pointed to a healthy-looking person.

“That fellow.”

“Room 3? Strange. He shouldn’t have any connection with Room 15.”

“I heard he’s from Pernok’s hometown. The manager told me.”

“Really? To use as an errand runner.”

It was the moment the jailer opened Room 3’s door without suspicion.

Thunk!

At the sudden pain, the jailer turned his head to the side.

“…?”

Before he could understand the situation, he collapsed with a thud.

A green line blooming from the spot pierced by something sharp spread to his heart in an instant.

‘It really was an extreme poison.’

Yak looked down at the expired jailer and stuck out his tongue.

Pernok had coated several objects and food with poison stolen through magic.

The dagger Yak just stabbed was coated with extreme poison that would kill those without mana without even letting them scream.

Yak pulled the dagger from the jailer’s back and opened Room 3’s door.

“Wha… what…!?”

Room 3’s only man showed a flustered expression.

Yak stole the jailer’s keys and took a deep breath.

“Don’t worry. I came to release people imprisoned here like you.”

“Di-did you come from the castle?!”

“No, I was also a monster bait in subjugation battles like you. But I met a benefactor capable of overturning this place. If you lend your strength to help that person, we can escape together.”

The man seemed unable to believe easily, but alternately looking at the dead jailer and Yak, his expression soon hardened.

“Is that possible?”

“It’s already spilled milk. Will you follow me, or become monster food here?”

The man abruptly stood up.

“Right. A good choice.”

“Do you perhaps know me?”

“I don’t. I just needed someone to help arbitrarily, so I rescued you first since you had the best build.”

“What should I do?”

“Release all the people here and follow me to the monster cages. I’ll release all the monsters there.”

The man’s complexion turned pale.

“Re-release the monsters?”

“You alone can’t handle the guards. We need to scrape to this place’s bottom and make it a pandemonium. Even if monsters are released, they’ll ultimately be exterminated while fighting guards, so don’t worry.”

“Understood. But how do we release the monsters?”

“Aren’t there tools right there?”

Yak led the man and walked out to the corridor. Guards had collapsed foaming at the mouth.

To the surprised man, Yak said.

“That wine had poison in it. These guards are quite lazy, so most fellows probably drank the wine.”

“Then did you kill all the guards on this floor?”

“Most are probably dead. We can handle the rest.”

Yak searched the guards’ belongings and found a bundle of keys.

“While I open the monster cages, use this to liberate the people. And when I give the signal, everyone go up together and vent our grudges!”

Possible or impossible no longer mattered.

When a weapon to fight back appeared, hatred toward those who kidnapped him bloomed in the man.

“Leave the hard work to me!”

“Let’s move before other guards come down. Hurry!”

Yak and the man split up and moved busily.

* * *

And now.

Iron Man had died.

The manager in the VIP seats quickly grasped reality and hardened his face.

‘That crazy bastard killed him? Iron Man?’

Just in case the plan twisted from being hit by a blind blade, he’d matched him with a mage Pernok’s capabilities could absolutely never beat.

Yet Pernok decorated the impossible match with victory.

“This bastard…”

A chilling silence hung over the VIP seats, and the manager just stamped his feet in anxiety.

There was only one way to resolve it before the VIP’s fury burst forth.

“Kill Pernok immediately!”

Simultaneously with the manager’s cry, monsters intruded.

* * *

The arena filled with screams.

Winged monsters flew in the sky, and a giant snake climbing the walls swallowed spectators.

In the hellish chaos where people and monsters mingled, Pernok smiled at the guard captain.

Since the plan succeeded, the need to be wary of the guard captain disappeared.

“You should have controlled your subordinates well. Isn’t this what happens when there are no superior’s eyes watching?”

At the meaningful words, the guard captain hardened his eyes.

“Could it be… your doing?”

“Who knows. Disciplining negligence of duty is your role, isn’t it?”

The guard captain ground his teeth.

He didn’t know how this situation occurred, but it wasn’t too late to grasp after everything was sorted out.

The important thing was that Pernok deliberately drew even monsters in.

It was resolve determined to settle things here.

“Your guts are crazy. You dare raise a rebellion against your master after eating poison?”

At the word poison, Pernok smirked.

“When people get fixated on one thing, their thinking becomes simple. Especially the more certain they are they’ve caught it in their hands.”

Pernok lowered his stance while pointing his sword at the guard captain.

“Hold hands together and ponder why you died.”

“You won’t even leave a corpse!”

The guard captain displayed passionate emotion for the first time.

Simultaneously, a bundle of silver threads spread out.

Pernok met head-on the swift sword that seemed focused on penetrating power.

But no collision sound was heard.

Pernok’s sword stuck to the silver thread and didn’t detach.

‘This is…’

A phenomenon where sword and sword’s sides stuck together and followed no matter how you moved.

‘…He’s completely reading my movements?’

Weapon technique that read the opponent’s movements and responded accordingly.

Usually used often when an expert absorbed and deflected a novice’s weapon.

‘This can’t be.’

The guard captain couldn’t believe he was being toyed with.

Pernok’s learning ability was exceptional, but he ultimately judged him a Level 2 mage.

Even during the individual match winning streak, he thought he’d overcome a mage one level higher than himself through compatibility.

Upper Level 2 and timber that would someday rise to Level 3.

The guard captain recognized Pernok as merely a mage overflowing with sense.

Actually, even the mana distinguishing levels was merely Level 2.

‘What is this mana?’

The guard captain only then felt the eeriness flowing from Pernok’s entire body.

The moment the mystery ringing alarm bells in his head combined with mana in his belly, Pernok emitted mana one level higher than the manager’s.

“…!”

Mana of at least Level 4 or higher burst forth in an instant.

At the unexpected flood of mana, the guard captain abandoned understanding and concentrated on survival.

Wooong!

The guard captain barely escaped from Pernok by bursting all his mana.

Simultaneously lowering his stance, he added force to the silver thread.

Thread and thread connected to expand into a surface.

It soon became a massive silver wall and shot toward Pernok.

The essence of penetrating magic connecting mana into threads.

‘This kind of application is also possible?’

Pernok’s hair stood on end after a while. But he didn’t feel the need to dodge.

[Steel Body Lv.3]

He mixed the magic stolen from Iron Man into Mana Reinforcement and pushed through as is.

Kwang!

The sword tore apart the curtain.

Beyond the curtain scattering like fragments, the guard captain with his chest pierced was vomiting blood.

“Th-this is… Iron Man’s…”

The guard captain noticed the magic deployed in an instant, but when Pernok pulled out the sword, he spouted a fountain of blood and collapsed forward.

Absorbing the surging spiritual power, the guard captain’s magic and mana flowed in.

As predicted, it was magic granting penetrating power to weapons.

“Guard Captaaain!”

About 30 guards entered from the corridor.

Low-level mages were mixed in too.

But the group to be concerned about leaped down from above.

Swoosh!

Pernok tilted his head to the left. The moment an arrow grazed his hair and stuck in the floor, the ground began freezing.

‘At least three.’

Dodging 2 arrows and leaping backward, a monster opened its maw wide.

Without even looking back, Pernok swung his sword behind him and slashed the monster’s throat.

A pitch-black spear blade pierced through bursting dark green blood.

Pernok tried to raise his sword diagonally, when shadows surged like a whip from the floor.

The spear stabbed into Pernok’s abdomen with both arms restrained.

Clang!

No, it seemed to stab.

“What?”

The Steel Body still remaining deflected the consecutive magics.

As soon as Pernok landed on the ground, he scanned the surroundings.

The archer loading an arrow on the spectator seats.

The spearman keeping distance.

The dagger user stepping on shadows.

‘VIP players?’

Examining the players who’d leaped down directly to suppress the situation, Pernok smacked his lips.

‘At least guard captain level or above.’

Prey with quality spiritual power and mana came on their own feet.

The stronger fellows were escaping the arena while guarding the VIPs.

The VIPs’ judgment that they could block with just this much was an opportunity beyond compare for Pernok.

‘If I devour these fellows, my spiritual power will rise quite a bit.’

Mana also recovered as much as absorbed.

Wars of attrition were meaningless to Pernok who grew stronger while killing.

“Now!”

The VIP players also didn’t intend to drag out time—they initiated a quick attack matching the pouring arrows.

Pernok slowly swung his sword amidst the rain of arrows shattering and falling like ice particles.

It was so exceedingly concise it was plainly visible to the eyes, and nothing existed in that path.

A dubious movement as if practicing swordsmanship in empty air.

But the next moment, the spearman and archer were shocked.

Swoosh!

Because the shadow that tried to ambush from beneath Pernok’s feet was slashed following the sword path as it surged up.

[Cycle Lv.3]

Pulls magic within a 5m radius before the eyes.

The dagger user couldn’t believe himself being split together with the shadow.

“Why…?”

The VIP players had heard Pernok was a physical enhancement type mage.

Naturally, when he swung his sword at empty air, they thought it an insane action.

Who could have predicted he’d pull in oneself moving while mixed with shadow magic into the sword path?

Fwoosh!

With the corpse spurting fresh blood beneath his feet, Pernok indifferently shook off his sword.