Chapter 298 - Temporary Alliance
Min Juri turned her body without even having time to think deeply.
An ancient dark tree was staring at her intently.
"Oh...!"
She was trapped.
She had been moving forward without thinking about what was behind her.
Crack!
A branch reached out towards her, emitting a terrifying scream.
Whoosh!
"Oh..."
Min Juri gasped as the branch passed by her side.
If she had delayed a bit longer, it would have pierced her heart.
"I thought it was slow, but it's incredibly fast!"
Her legs were slow, but the attack was quick.
Min Juri quickly jumped as if to say this was not the right time for this.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Dodging and dodging, she ran like crazy, covering the distance.
She didn't think she could beat a tree that moved at that speed.
She simply relied on her legs, boosted by the speed increase.
When she thought she had gained some distance, Min Juri looked back.
"It seems they can't follow me, they were only fast in the attack."
She felt relieved, but Min Juri had overlooked something.
She hadn't paid attention to the path while fleeing.
Oh?
Oh?
"Oh..."
Three monsters were staring at her, leaving Min Juri frozen in place.
"I have to go back the way I came..."
Turning around, Min Juri couldn't help but be surprised to see Seo Arin not far away.
"What's going on? A moment ago, we were 500 meters apart..."
The fact that the distance had shortened while she was busy with the monsters was obvious.
Just as Seo Arin noticed Min Juri, she stopped her steps.
Though their eyes met, there was no time to exchange greetings.
"Run! The monsters are chasing us!"
Min Juri briefly warned Seo Arin as she hurried past her.
But Seo Arin didn't seem to intend to run, as she showed no signs of panic on her face.
In fact, she moved in the direction of the monsters.
Min Juri stopped her run with a look of disbelief on her face and shouted.
"What are you doing? That side is dangerous!"
Thud, thud.
As three golems crossed, two soul knights appeared beside the monsters, cutting the branches.
Clang, clang!
Crack!
The monsters howled in pain as four fairies shot rays at them.
Crash!
The trees, now pieces of lumber, were quickly eliminated by the relentless soul knights.
Watching this in astonishment, Min Juri felt a strange confusion.
The warning to be careful seemed useless now that the monsters had been eliminated.
"What did you say earlier? That it was dangerous?"
"...I knew, I thought it was dangerous."
Min Juri suddenly changed her attitude and looked at Seo Arin with a distrustful gaze.
"But then, why did you follow me?"
"Follow you?"
"Don't pretend you don't know. Don't you think Seo Arin approached me?"
"Approach? Me?"
"Didn't you notice the distance between us was shortening?"
Seo Arin exhaled deeply at those words, showing an incredulous expression.
"I don't know what you're thinking, but I was just looking for a place to hunt. And I ended up coming here."
"So, you didn't follow me?"
"Why would I follow that path?"
"Well, you have enough reason."
At Min Juri's words, Seo Arin exhaled again.
"Are you implying that I was chasing you to kill you?"
"That's the only logical conclusion I can draw, from my perspective."
"Huh? You're seeing me as a killer? Even though we're rivals, I would never consider killing Black Scythe."
"Black Scythe? What are you talking about? You said you liked Ryu Min."
"Ah!"
Seo Arin gaped for a moment, closing her mouth as if trying to hold back a secret.
Her confusion in mixing Ryu Min and Black Scythe led her to make a mistake.
"Yes, it's true. I like Ryu Min."
"But a moment ago, you said you were going to capture Black Scythe."
"I misspoke... I made a mistake."
"There are no mistakes you can make. They are completely different people in style..."
"..."
Min Juri murmured to herself, but that was all.
She didn't insist on the topic anymore.
Seo Arin, secretly relieved, breathed deeply.
"Black Scythe asked me to keep his secret, so I shouldn't say it."
Anyway, it would be useless to tell her. Wasn't it Min Juri who didn't even believe when told directly that it was Black Scythe?
"Although it's somewhat doubtful, how can she not realize? Is it because they were high school classmates?"
Perhaps precisely because they were high school classmates, she had no reason to suspect.
The image of a weak Ryu Min in high school might be etched in her mind.
"But still, how can she be so naive...?"
Seeing Min Juri's disdainful look, Seo Arin stared at her intently.
"What is it? Why that unpleasant look?"
"Nothing."
"Saying that just makes me feel worse."
"Do you think I wouldn't feel uncomfortable hearing that from someone younger than me?"
"What difference does a few years make?"
"Isn't it just two years of difference for you? Maybe you were friends with your senior in school?"
"What are you saying?"
In the midst of an untimely altercation in the forest, they exchanged words.
Though the situation was not conducive to a conversation due to the monsters around, they seemed willing to criticize each other.
"Why did you enter this forest if you're so weak?"
"You're not wrong. Do you think I entered here because I wanted to? This was the starting point."
"If I hadn't appeared, would you have stayed there trembling in fear?"
"Do you have to fear shit? I don't need to fight if it's not necessary."
"So, could you have escaped the forest on your own if I wasn't here?"
"Obviously, I can handle it by myself."
"Then, who was the one running scared a moment ago?"
"I told you I was avoiding unnecessary trouble."
"So, could you have gotten out of the forest without me?"
"That's how you met."
"Alright, I'll go ahead. I'll leave some monsters for you to hunt, so don't worry, Min Juri."
"Yeah, yeah. Thanks."
While exchanging verbal blows, they both turned their heads simultaneously, as if disgusted with each other.
"You can find the exit if you go back the way you came, Seo Arin."
With that thought, Min Juri started walking, and Seo Arin also turned in the direction Min Juri was in.
So, while they walked in opposite directions and the distance between them widened.
They both stopped their steps simultaneously, as if they had made a tacit agreement.
What happened was that a message reached them.
[The first death has occurred.]
[The deceased's nickname is 'Muy bueno'.]
[Since 10 minutes have passed since the death, we will proceed to eliminate the player.]
[Remaining players: 142]
[Eliminated players: 1]
[Time remaining until the end of the round: 71:31:38]
They didn't even know that a death notification had appeared.
They had no idea who the person with the nickname was.
The only thing they knew was that it was not the time to argue.
"A player has been eliminated..."
"Not even half an hour has passed since we started..."
Cautiously, Seo Arin and Min Juri looked at each other as if they had made an agreement.
It was not the time to waste emotions.
They could be in danger if they weren't careful, they could be the next target of another player.
Although they couldn't be sure if the player died at the hands of a monster or another player.
"Hey... Seo Arin?"
"Yes, what is it?"
Min Juri bit her lower lip as if she were determined.
"W-well, how about we stick together for a while?"
"..."
"No, I mean... they just sent that message. Someone died. We still don't know if it was killed by a monster or another player... don't you think it would be dangerous to walk alone?"
"I'm not in danger. My summons are strong enough to protect me."
Although Seo Arin was reluctant, Min Juri took more courage.
"But you're not at Black Scythe's level to handle it alone. You don't know when a threat might arise."
"W-well... that's true."
"So, even if you don't like it, how about we form a temporary alliance? If I give you a buff, you and your summons will be twice as strong."
"Um..."
Min Juri's words left no room for doubt.
It would be foolish to miss the opportunity to become twice as strong.
"But that doesn't mean I trust you. I don't forget that you were the one who attacked me."
"If that makes you feel better, then fine."
"And... you have to stop mentioning Black Scythe. I mean... Ryu Min. Is that okay?"
Min Juri nodded as if she agreed.
"We shouldn't betray each other. Neither I nor Seo Arin."
"No, I would never betray you. I can't abandon Ryu Min."
When the topic of Ryu Min came up, Min Juri's gaze became more serious.
Seo Arin also showed a serious expression, as if she couldn't abandon him.
"Then give me the buff. I'll ask my summons to protect Min Juri."
"In the end."
Min Juri cast a set of three buffs on Seo Arin.
And so, Seo Arin, along with her summons, became stronger.
Since the summons were strengthened according to Seo Arin's stats.
"Thank you."
"It's nothing."
"This place is dangerous, so let's get out of the forest first."
"Okay."
Seo Arin led the way with her summons, while Min Juri followed her.
Crunch, crunch...
The ancient dark trees were quite strong monsters, but they were no match for an excavation.
"Stay closer. It's dangerous if we separate too much."
"Oh, understood."
When Min Juri, who was walking apart, got closer...
Whoosh!
A branch shot out from the side!
However...
Slash!
The scream didn't come from Min Juri, but from the monster.
Seo Arin's soul knight appeared at the right moment and cut the branch.
"Don't worry. My soul knight will protect Min Juri."
"Oh... thank you."
"It's nothing."
The two who were now cooperating decided to get out of the forest first.
They would like to go after Black Scythe, but tracking was impossible.
Most of the players who saw the mission were bewildered.
More than the fact of surviving for 72 hours, it was the part that said they had to reduce the number of players to less than 72.
Christine felt the same way.
"Do I have to kill someone again? I can't do that..."
She already knew that in the fourth round, they could resurrect, so she could do it without staining her hands with blood.
But this time, she really had to kill someone.
And besides, if they died, they would be extinguished after 10 minutes with no possibility of return.
"Can I really kill someone?"
Although she had a profession that saved lives, now she had to join the slaughter.
Christine's face darkened, but only for a moment.
She realized that she didn't necessarily have to kill.
It was when she saw the message of the first death.
"Do I need to kill someone if others will do it?"
If that was the case, there was no need to dirty her hands.
She simply had to wait until the number of players was less than 72.
Then she could survive without spilling a drop of blood.
Unlike the fourth round, where they killed each other, this time, survival was the ultimate goal of the mission.
"If it's about surviving, I'm confident. After all, I have healing skills."
The healing skill restored not only wounds but also health.
Although Christine didn't have combat skills, she was confident in her resilience.
"I should go to a place without monsters as much as possible."
But Christine's starting place was none other than the forest.
When she activated her scanning skill, she realized it was full of monsters.
"I have to get out of this forest. Somehow..."
It was then.
[The second death has occurred.]
[The deceased's nickname is 'abcdef'.]
[Since 10 minutes have passed since the death, we will proceed to eliminate the player.]
[Remaining players: 141.]
[Eliminated players: 2.]
[Time remaining until the end of the round: 71:23:52.]
"Another death? Hasn't it been even 10 minutes since the first death?"
Would she really want to kill a companion with whom she had shared life and death in the previous round?
Hadn't they worked together to face the demons in the previous round?
"I'm not sure... for now, I must worry about my life..."
With those thoughts, when she was about to turn around...
Stomp...
Christine's body froze like ice.
A monster known for its ferocity, an ogre, was staring at her intently.