Chapter 197 - The 12th Round Begins
As the last day of the month arrives, players become more sensitive.
The moment they cross over to the other world, their bodies in reality are left defenseless.
There's no more security to protect those who fall into paralysis.
It was December 1st and there were only 30 minutes left until midnight.
"Why don't we hire a common bodyguard?" Jang Chen suggested after hearing the explanation. Immediately, he received a blow to the head from his superior for expressing disagreement.
"Hey, idiot. Do you think players, who only trust themselves, would hire someone else? And what if they get beat up like now?"
"Well, would a bodyguard really attack a sleeping player? They wouldn't make money by killing him."
When the superior raised his hand again, Jang Chen flinched.
"This bastard doesn't understand. Another player who has hired an assassin would pay up."
"Even bodyguards are being used for contract killings now?"
"Yeah, idiot. You can't trust anyone in these times. Anyway, this guy trusts people too much, it's his weakness."
"Hehe..."
Jang Chen chuckled foolishly as he rubbed his sore head.
"Now I understand. That's why this guy, called Black Scythe, doesn't have bodyguards."
"Yeah. No matter how strong you are, if your throat gets cut while you sleep, you're on the fast track to heaven. In that situation, would you want someone by your side?"
"But isn't that villa very neglected? It looks old and easy to break into."
"Players live in secure houses. He probably thinks a place like that is safer."
"Well, it makes sense. Truly, you have exceptional insight, brother."
"Don't flatter yourself. Do you think I'll praise you for that?"
Though the superior replied roughly, the corners of his lips were already forming a smile.
Though the junior who got carried away wasn't adorable, that made him more reliable.
Plus, he had impressive sword skills and sometimes looked cute when giving compliments.
"But, how much longer do we have to wait? We've been here for an hour like this."
"Ah, idiot. Why do you always complain so much? Shut up and wait, damn it."
The mention of "cute" was canceled.
When he thought carelessly, his hands automatically moved towards his junior's head.
Talking led the superior to glance at the five youths of the underground society in the darkness.
Including himself, they were a total of five people.
It was enough for a surprise attack.
Indeed, it could be considered a considerable number.
A single individual could have been enough to snap the neck.
"Wait a little longer. There are still 25 minutes until midnight."
"Though my legs are getting numb, I'll endure. After this, we were promised a good bonus..."
"Don't worry, guys. Our boss always delivers on that kind of thing."
Smirking cunningly, they patiently waited until the time came.
And time passed until it arrived.
"Oh, did the lights go out?"
The villa lights, which had been on all the time, went out.
Checking the clock, there were five minutes left until midnight.
"It seems like the target is getting ready to go to the other world."
It was obvious, but they already knew exactly which room Black Scythe was in.
They had already received information from Yang Qiwen and personally verified it.
The figure of Black Scythe opening and closing the window.
"Should we move now?"
"Do you want to die? The boss said we move exactly at midnight."
"Exactly at midnight?"
"Yes. The time you fall into withdrawal syndrome is like a knife. Even if you move at that moment, you won't be late. You don't need to move cautiously. Even if a bomb explodes right next to him, that guy won't wake up."
"Ah, I see."
Jang Chen impatiently looked at the clock.
Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock.
It was exactly midnight.
"Alright. Now, let's mo..."
The boss, who was about to start the operation, lost his words suddenly.
Plop, plop.
Jang Chen was plunging a knife into his comrades' throats while covering their mouths.
Plop, plop.
"You, you bastard...!"
The senior tried to respond quickly upon seeing his comrades fall, but Jang Chen's agility was faster.
Plop.
"Kuak!"
Plop, plop, plop, plop.
The boss, who received dozens of stabs in the stomach, looked at him with incredulous eyes.
It was as if he was asking how he could betray them like that.
"Don't look at me like that. My master has his own affairs."
Jang Qiwen lifted his head and looked at the death of his comrades, excluding him.
"Let's go back now."
The massacre was not yet over.
There was one more mission.
Jang Chen glanced at the villa sideways and turned in the opposite direction.
------------------
Ryu Min opened his eyes as soon as he saw the colorless space.
The 12th Round had begun.
And after a few minutes, he realized his body was unharmed.
Jang Chen had killed his comrades as planned.
"It's really useful. Yamti's power."
Thwarting Yang Qiwen's plan wasn't difficult.
It was enough to control one of the members of the criminal organization who entered Korea and make him betray them on the day of the operation.
"I had to reveal my appearance to prove I was in the villa. I had no other choice."
Indeed, Ryu Min stayed in the villa until the last moment to make it seem believable.
He told his brother he would leave for a week's leave.
"Although it seems like my girlfriend got confused by that, it doesn't matter. As long as I can protect Won."
Just in case, he left his true home empty and decorated the villa as if it were his residence.
Although he would eventually seek revenge against Black Scythe, there was no resentment, as Lost Yak used to live in that villa anyway.
"It's not just the order I gave to Jang Chen."
By this point, the guy who killed his comrades was probably heading back to China.
It was easy to kill the members of the criminal organization since they were on the same side. Probably most of the organization's members would die.
When the round ends, Yang Qiwen will know.
That he was betrayed from behind.
And given the magnitude of the failed attack, Yang Qiwen will be quite furious.
"But why bother with a lion that's quiet?"
Ryu Min's mouth corner lifted slightly.
Now that Qiwen Won's strategy had failed, he had no choice but to follow the plan Swingman proposed.
"By now, John Delgado must have realized too. That Yang Qiwen's plan failed."
He probably searched for the name Black Scythe and realized he's still alive.
"Although maybe he doesn't know it, right now he's probably sighing. After all, he'll have to apologize to Black Scythe, whom he detests so much."
John must head towards Black Scythe according to the strategy leader's plan, Swingman.
"Will John Delgado really swallow his pride and come looking for me?"
The probability of him not coming was higher, but he decided to wait.
After a few minutes of clenching his fists and waiting, someone else finally arrived.
"Mr. Black Scythe!"
An inseparable ally, Min Juri, was there.
"Long time no see, what a joy to see you!"
"Can you say that after two months? I thought it had been several years."
The last time Min Juri saw Black Scythe was in round 10.
They couldn't meet in round 11 because of Ryu Min's prophecy not to meet Black Scythe.
"If we team up this time, will you also include me in the group? My buffs could be helpful."
"Team up? It seems you already know in advance what this round's mission will be."
"Wait... that's not true. I'm just saying if there's a team mission, you'll include me, right? Haha..."
Juri, trying to conceal her bewilderment with her own joke, looked quite cute.
"As Min Juri said, this round's mission will be a cooperative search. We need to form teams of five."
He had already thought about whom to include in his team.
"Of course, Min Juri should be included."
Although Min Juri mentioned she should be included in the team because of Ryu Min's prophecy, he decided to act as if he didn't know.
"If you need a team, I'll include you as a member. As a buffer, you could be very helpful."
"Really? Thanks. Just let me know anytime. I'll give you buffs aplenty!"
"Thank you."
At that moment, another group seeking Black Scythe was also present.
It wasn't John Delgado. It was Seo Arin, Ma Gyeong-rok, and An Sang-cheol.
"Hello, Mr. Black Scythe."
"...."
"...."
Although Seo Arin greeted cheerfully, Ma Gyeong-rok and An Sang-cheol couldn't do the same.
After all, in the previous round, they didn't get any points because of Black Scythe.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't Black Scythe's fault, but that didn't matter.
"Hello, Min Juri."
"Hello, Seo Arin, An Sang-cheol, Ma Gyeong-rok."
As they greeted each other, Ma Gyeong-rok's gaze towards Min Juri was different.
"That guy. He's eyeing Min Juri."
There was no other possibility.
After receiving some buffs several times, he himself realized how much a buffer could help.
"I've always felt it, but you three are always together, right?"
Min Juri asked, and Seo Arin responded.
"Ah, yes, we're from the same agency."
"So you've been dealing together since round 1, right?"
"More or less."
But Ma Gyeong-rok and An Sang-cheol didn't know that Seo Arin was discreetly distancing herself.
They were just thinking of intercepting Min Juri from Black Scythe.
"Min Juri, where do you live?"
At Ma Gyeong-rok's sudden question, Min Juri hesitated before answering.
"...In Seoul."
"Oh, really? Where in Seoul?"
"In Yeonhui-dong."
"Oh, Yeonhui-dong, that's close. I live in Gangnam. Can we meet someday? I'll introduce you to our company and agency."
"Company?"
"You might not have heard of Apple Market. I'm the CEO there."
"What? Oh, I see."
When Min Juri made a surprised expression, Ma Gyeong-rok became perplexed.
"Why? You don't know?"
"No. I know. I've gone in and had a look around several times."
Although Min Juri spoke calmly, the reason for her surprise was different.
She knew Ryu Min was one of the business partners of Apple Market.
"So, this person works with Ryu Min...?"
Min Juri, who had discovered Cheonma's true identity, fell silent.
She didn't want to give away information about Ryu Min by speaking without thinking.
"Have you only been observing? Haven't you tried using it?"
"Yes..."
"Why not? You can get cash through transactions. Or you can even find items you want. I'm even considering introducing a point transaction system in addition to the recent gold transactions."
"Oh, I see. But I really don't have anything I want to buy or sell."
That was true, but in reality, it was because of Ryu Min's previous mention.
"Ryu Min told me never to join Apple Market."
Although she didn't know the reason, she had followed that request until now.
Therefore, Ma Gyeong-rok had no choice but to savor his disappointment.
"Ah, if I had joined Apple Market, I could have easily looked up the members living in Yeonhui-dong."
Then it would be easy to find out Min Juri's actual address.
As Ma Gyeong-rok looked at Min Juri with regret, an angel appeared.
"Hello, humans? Welcome to Round 12. First, let's take a headcount of participants."
The angel manipulated the air with its fingers and made a sound.
"The number of survivors has decreased to 39,402, 619 fewer. But what should we do? In this round, teams of five must be formed. Unfortunately, if we divide by 5, there are 2 people left, and... well."
The angel was worried, but Ryu Min already knew.
Everything was part of a calculated set of actions.
It had already been decided how to handle the two remaining people.
"There's no other choice. Form teams of five, and the remaining two people will be eliminated automatically."
"What?"
"Hey, isn't that unfair?!"
"If forming teams quickly is a skill, then it's a skill. There's nothing we can do about it."
Although the angel spoke like that, there probably was no other choice.
Originally, it was set up so that players who couldn't form a team would be eliminated by the system.
"Well, if you don't want to be part of the unfortunate two, you should form teams quickly, don't you think? So why don't we check the mission of Round 12, since everyone will be interested?"
A while later, the mission window appeared in front of everyone.
---
(Up to '45' more ch4pt3rs)
Publication of up to 6 weekly ch4pters, thank you.