“Huah.”
Checking the alarm, Sa-yoon let out a deep breath. He hadn’t even realized he’d been holding it. The moment he became aware, his lungs screamed for oxygen.
As he took a deep breath, the ranking list for contribution in the siege battle appeared. Sa-yoon, upon confirming the popup, once again forgot to exhale.
1st Place: Chasa – 73,811 points
2nd Place: noise – 68,310 points
At the very top, in first place, was Chasa’s name.
Was this real?
Two conflicting thoughts struck him at the same time.
“See? Warlocks are OP.” And, “They’re not gonna use this as an excuse to avoid buffing Warlocks again, are they?”
It was a mix of emotions.
If they were reasonable, they’d finally buff Warlocks now. Clinging to the last thread of his hope—now as thin as rice paper—Sa-yoon shook his head. Pushing away ominous thoughts, a smile crept onto his lips.
Either way, he’d aimed for the rankings, and the results had turned out even better than expected.
[‘Chasa’ has defeated the War God Ares.]
So he got the last hit. Sa-yoon scrolled up with his mouse to check the message again. In siege battles, both the first strike and the final blow on an enemy granted extra points.
That was why he’d gone all out, stacking DoT effects like crazy earlier. Luck was seventy percent of it, skill the other thirty—who would’ve thought a Warlock would ever have a day like this?
What should he do first?
Screenshot it, obviously. Then post a “How to Rank 1st in Siege Battles as a Warlock” guide on the Warlock forum.
The treasure vault wouldn’t open until tomorrow anyway, so there was plenty of time. Finding a party would still be a struggle, but being the top contributor had to count for something—surely, some group would take him in.
With that conclusion, Sa-yoon instinctively pressed the screenshot button.
Bang!
A sudden explosion sounded from his screen. At the same time, a new message popped up in the general chat.
[‘GegulGegulFrog’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
When he turned his view, he found himself in the middle of a crowd. The Killer gang had silently crept in and completely surrounded him.
“…Living up to the name, huh.”
Just moments ago, the area had been so packed with players that the frame rate was dropping. But now, the battlefield was empty—most had probably left to avoid the lag.
Sa-yoon normally would’ve done the same right after the siege ended, but he’d stuck around to check the contribution rankings.
Looking around, the scene felt… off. It looked suspiciously like an old-school shakedown.
[‘Freedeal’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
[‘Oath’s Vow’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
[‘furple’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
[‘Shokrates’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
Sa-yoon watched the emotes flash across his screen, then quietly adjusted his settings. Once he enabled other characters’ visibility, their avatars appeared beneath their names.
At some point, GegulGegulFrog had managed to get his hands on a frog costume. Judging by the spotted pattern on the back, it wasn’t the Blue Frog outfit he had desperately wanted, but rather the common Marsh Frog variant.
Though, with its red dye job, it looked more like a poison dart frog than anything else. The guy was hopping around like crazy, relentlessly setting off fireworks.
Sa-yoon chuckled as he instinctively identified the frog costume variations—only to drop his smile.
Truth be told, he had every single one of them blocked, but objectively speaking, they’d never actually harmed him. If anything, they’d been helpful.
Except for one person.
The one Killer who started it all.
And that Killer, the root cause of everything, was standing there among them, still as a statue.
Staring at the group, Sa-yoon opened the chat window and began typing.
[General] Chasa: Not sharing my customization.
After a brief hesitation, he added another line.
[General] Chasa: Take care.
With that, he pushed through the group and walked away. Since this was an online game, he could simply pass through other characters without obstruction. He was heading for the portal that had activated upon the siege’s success.
This was the last he’d see of them.
They were all the killer’s acquaintances anyway. Now that he’d made it clear he wasn’t sharing his customization, they had no reason to be nice to him. That meant this connection was already over.
[‘GegulGegulFrog’ weeps bitterly.]
Contrary to his expectations, the moment Sa-yoon took a step forward, GegulGegulFrog rushed out and used an emote. A sorrowful wailing sound played.
With that frog costume, the guy looked ridiculously fitting—curled up on the ground, crying his eyes out. He clearly had something to say, but what would be the point?
If Killer had been the only one here, Sa-yoon wouldn’t have hesitated to leave. But having spent so much time around them, he hesitated.
Half a year ago, back when Killer had started following him around, Sa-yoon had already had more than enough conversations with him.
He’d made it clear that he wasn’t going to share his customization. He’d told him to stop bothering him. He’d even told him to fuck off.
None of it had ever gotten through. The guy was stubborn beyond belief.
While Sa-yoon hesitated, held back by the frog’s antics, Killer suddenly moved.
[‘Killer’ offers a sincere prayer.]
The man dropped to his knees right in front of Sa-yoon, bringing his hands together. It was the in-game praying motion, but among players, it was often used as a groveling emote—an apology.
Standing beside him, the rest of the Reaper Guild lined up and began setting off fireworks.
[‘Freedeal’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
[‘Oath’s Vow’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
[‘furple’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
[‘GegulGegulFrog’ sets off a celebratory firework.]
Flutter, flutter.
Colorful confetti drifted down over Killer’s head.
Preset #6—completely generic, with an unremarkable middle-type face. A barnacle-tier fashion disaster.
A guy who had chased after Chasa’s customization so obsessively that he’d even been scammed over it.
So that’s why he kept asking me how much—because he actually spent money on that mess.
[General] Chasa: I have nothing to say to you.
[‘Killer’ offers a sincere prayer.]
[‘Killer’ offers a sincere prayer.]
[‘Killer’ offers a sincere prayer.]
A sigh escaped him.
Sa-yoon hated it when people tried to appeal to his emotions. He was too soft-hearted—he’d always end up giving in.
That was exactly why Killer pissed him off even more.
When he’d just thought of him as a stalker, it had been easy to treat him like trash. But now? Now, he couldn’t.
[‘Killer’ offers a sincere prayer.]
Especially when he went full-on grovel mode like that.
That boring-ass Preset #6 face somehow even looked like it was about to cry.
Just one last time?
For a brief moment, that pathetic thought crossed his mind.
And that’s exactly when the server chat exploded.
[Server] noise: Or is it a hack? Lol
[Server] noise: Ah, misfire. My bad.
[Server] RedAlert: Be real—how do you solo that much damage if it’s not a bug?
[Server] BlackPropaganda: No wonder he was telling people to use the slabs however they wanted. LOL.
[Server] GreenLight: Should we report him for bug abuse? Lmao
[Server] SweetPotato1: Who are we talking about?
[Server] RedAlert: You know, the one whose score shot up out of nowhere. Hahaha.
[Server] SweetPotato1: Oh.
[Server] SpringPotatoesAreDelicious: I mean, it is kinda weird.
[Server] GoldStarElectronics: Yeah, I thought it was odd too. A Warlock, really?
[Server] SweetPotato1: Exactly. He wasn’t even in a party, so how did he get that score…?
Watching the chat unfold, Sa-yoon felt his patience thinning.
Noise had started it under the guise of an innocent mistake, and now his guildmates were fanning the flames. It didn’t take much for a bunch of brain-dead idiots to get swept up in the tide, and soon, public opinion had turned against him.
[Server] noise: Oh, but hehe, if you’re reading this, don’t take it the wrong way~ No offense! Hehe.
Even his final remark was obvious bait.
There was no mistaking it—this was a direct attack on him.
Sa-yoon took a deep breath and typed calmly.
[Server] Chasa:?
[Server] Chasa: If you’re so curious, why don’t you come ask me directly?
[Server] Chasa: What’s with the passive-aggressive bitching in public chat?
By his standards, that was calm.
[Server] BlackPropaganda: Whoa, why so mad? Lol.
[Server] noise: I mean, isn’t it a fair thing to question?
[Server] RedAlert: Ooooh, someone’s feeling guilty~
[Server] Chasa: Lol?
[Server] Chasa: So if someone plays well, it’s automatically a hack? Thanks for the compliment.^^ LMAO.
[Server] GreenLight: Yeah, nah, he’s definitely hiding something.
[Server] RedAlert: Chasa~ I’m really curious. How do you set up your skills?
[Server] RedAlert: If I play a Warlock, can I rank first too?
[Server] BlackPropaganda: Nahhh, that’s only for our gorgeous Warlock overlord. TT TT.
The moment he responded, they started drumming up their own circus. It was like watching a pack of hyenas scrambling for scraps.
[Server] TomatoUncle: Guys, stop fighting in server chat.
[Server] AlmondQuokka: Who died and made you king? Server chat’s for everyone.
[Server] FireproofTumbler: What’s even the topic right now?
[Server] RedAlert: The Warlock damage exploit. We’re waiting for an explanation.
Yeah.
The chat exploded even further at RedAlert’s words.
A damage exploit? Seriously?
The fact that there were actually idiots buying into this nonsense was beyond comprehension. Where the hell had they left their brains?
[Server] noise: ※※※ If you’ve got nothing to hide ※※※
[Server] noise: ※※※ Then please post your skill setup and damage logs on the server forum ※※※
