Chapter 37

Do-Jin had known from the very start that things would turn out like this, and that was the whole reason he stalled for time. But Rōnin Guild? They never saw it coming.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake! What the hell is this now?!”

“If you’ve got time to scream, throw out some goddamn curses instead! Our weapons aren’t doing shit!”

Still, these guys weren’t newbies. They’d spent years hopping from game to game, racking up PK kills. They shook off their panic fast and started fighting back.

For a party of ten, a mass spawn event was annoying as hell, but it wasn’t necessarily a crisis. Well, it wouldn’t have been if they weren’t also dealing with Do-Jin.

“

Gahh

!” A sharp scream tore through the battlefield and was abruptly cut off.

One of their mages had been casting a curse when he suddenly jerked back in pain. A Wind Arrow had pierced right through the opening in his defenses, interrupting his chant. It wasn’t as powerful as Wind Blade, but it didn’t need to be. Do-Jin had only learned it recently, so the damage wasn’t impressive, but it was more than enough to throw off a half-assed mage’s focus.

“

Tch

!” The mage gritted his teeth as a small trail of blood dripped from his lips.

The attack itself didn’t do much damage since mages had naturally high magic resistance. The real problem was the backlash from his spell getting interrupted. Because of his low skill level, the chance of mana recoil was higher, and the damage from it was even worse.

“Keep casting the fucking curses!”

“Bajetu, what the hell are you doing?!”

“Goddammit! Quit bitching about curses and do something about that bastard! I don’t care if you hit him, block him, or throw your goddamn body in the way! Just stop him!”

The sudden break in their curse cycle threw Rōnin Guild into total disarray.

This is exactly why people say casters in this game are trash

,

Do-Jin thought with a scoff.

Without missing a step, he tore through the golems in his path. Every single spell he fired hit its mark, and the moment a golem tried to lunge, it crumbled into a pile of iron-infused rubble. With the Grimoire of Truth fully deployed, Do-Jin didn’t hold back on his mana usage. To him, the Closed Iron Mine’s regular mobs were no different from training dummies.

“So, they’ve still got enough fight left in them to think about counterattacks?”

Even as he handled the golems, Do-Jin kept his eyes on Rōnin Guild. Just as expected, the enemy mage started preparing a new spell. A faint red glow flickered around him and a Magic Circle started forming in the air.

Do-Jin clicked his tongue.

He’s using Flame Wave in this situation? Does he have a head just for decoration?

Sure, it’s a fairly powerful spell that can cover a decent area, but...

Tier 3 magic takes way too long to cast at our level.

Even Do-Jin, when not borrowing the power of the Grimoire of Truth, needed about five seconds to cast a single Tier 3 spell. Considering that he got a head start with free proficiency thanks to the cheat-like function of analysis, others who had to build their spell proficiency from scratch would inevitably take longer. Some might’ve thought it was just a minor difference, but in a tense battle, every second counted.

This time, they had even assigned a dedicated defense team to cover the caster, trusting in that protection so he could go for a big move, but it was a foolish choice.

There was no point in wasting effort stopping the spell. Just the fact that it had a ridiculously long cast time meant there was plenty of time to react.

Do-Jin began preparing his own spell, aiming at a spot in the distance where he and his party would arrive in a few seconds.

“When the shield forms, hide behind it,” he said.

“

Huff, huff

... W-what did you say?” asked one of the party members.

“Just stick close behind me.”

“DIE!” A furious shout cut through the battlefield, loud enough to be heard over the chaos.

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

The Rōnin Guild mage grinned with smug satisfaction as a wave of flames burst from his fingertips, surging forward. A torrent of fire rolled out like a tide, but in that moment, Do-Jin’s spell activated. With a clatter, the shattered remains of the golem shot up rapidly, forming a shield.

[Rock Barrier]

He had accounted for the enemy’s casting time, distance, how long the spell would take to hit him, and even his own movement speed. Without missing a beat, Do-Jin slipped behind cover as the scorching wave of fire crashed into the barrier, flames licking around the edges.

A blast of heat washed over Do-Jin, Sang-Soo, and Soso, but that was all it did. It wasn’t nearly enough to actually take them down.

Sang-Soo let out a deep sigh. “Man... I swear, after this, I’m sleeping for three straight days.”

“Don’t say that. It’s creepy. I was thinking the exact same thing.” Soso shot him a glare as they both stared at the charred ground beneath their feet.

Their conversation didn’t last long. Do-Jin took off running without a word, forcing them to follow. Finally, they reached the exit through the very passage that he’d previously blown open.

“Once you’re outside, act like you were just hunting and got injured. Most people won’t bother you if you leave the dungeon naturally.”

Sang-Soo and Soso turned to him hesitantly, their eyes silently questioning, “You’re not coming with us?”

Do-Jin shook his head. “I still have some unfinished business. Now go. The longer you stall, the more you’ll rack up in medical bills.”

Sang-Soo glanced between Do-Jin and the Rōnin Guild assholes still screaming at him from inside the dungeon. Then, with a nod, he smirked.

“Those bastards really picked the wrong person to mess with. They’re in for a rough time,” he said with a bitter smile before hurrying toward the exit.

Following behind him was Soso, who turned back to look at Do-Jin. “You’re more interesting than I thought.”

“You’re saying this out of nowhere.”

“You don’t even realize you’re smiling right now, do you? You look like you’re having the time of your life. I never forget the bastards who mess with me, and I get the feeling you’re the same way. That’s all.”

With that, she sprinted forward to catch up with Sang-Soo.

Do-Jin reached up and touched the corner of his mouth. He really was smiling. Now that he thought about it, this was only natural. In movies, TV shows, or even novels, revenge scenes were always the most satisfying.

Deep down, everyone wanted to pay back the assholes who pissed them off. These pricks had blocked his way when he was already dead tired, tried to jump him to steal his loot after a boss fight, and worst of all, gave him a headache with their shitty roleplay. It was only natural that the thought of having kicked their faces in made him excited.

It had nothing to do with his personality being fucked up. It was just human nature.

At least, that was what Do-Jin told himself as he lifted his gaze. “

Haa

... For someone as full of love for humanity as me, being forced to play the executioner... truly, a tragedy.”

And where did bad people go? Straight to hell. Preferably, as fast as possible.

“Don’t you dare run, you sneaky little chink bastard!” a mage’s voice rang out from behind him.

Do-Jin’s brow twitched. “Who the fuck are you calling a chink, you dumbass Jap?”

How could he be Chinese when the government regulations over there didn’t even allow for VR games? Do-Jin’s annoyance instantly skyrocketed, and he responded by flinging a spell directly at this racist piece of shit. Just before it hit, a few of his guildmates jumped in, blocking the attack.

Clang! Clang!

They skillfully deflected the ice shards Do-Jin had just sent flying, but that had only been bait. Through the gaps between the bulky golems, Do-Jin had also let loose a Wind Arrow, aimed right at the mage’s exposed flank.

“ARGH! Fuck! What the hell are you idiots doing?! You can’t even stop one fucking spell?!”

His cast was interrupted yet again, and just like before, the mana recoil hit.

“HEAL! Get me a fucking HEAL!”

“We don’t have time! How much longer on the curses?!”

“We can’t do shit with that asshole running around free! Just fucking kill him already!”

Listening to their increasingly frantic yelling, Do-Jin casually fired off another spell. Just small, constant jabs with Tier 1 magic to keep them on edge. He didn’t need to do a lot of damage. He only had to chip away at their stamina, drain their focus, and most importantly, prevent their mage from getting off a single fucking curse.

“GODDAMMIT! This is fucking bullshit! You fucking chink bastard! How about you fight fair and square, huh?!” The Rōnin Guild mage was foaming at the mouth at this point, spitting insults with every breath.

Do-Jin grinned, then shouted back, “Oh? You think it’s unfair? Alright. Let’s make it fair, then.”

The moment the words left his lips, he let loose, unleashing a relentless barrage of spells not just at the mage, but at everyone, healers included. His attacks came in waves, some getting absorbed by the golems, others deflected by enemy players, and a few missing outright, but he didn’t let up. He just kept hammering away, and his assault was as unrelenting as a storm.

“How the fuck does this guy have infinite mana?!”

“

Kyaaaah

!”

“H-HIROMI?!”

Infinite mana, my ass. He had already burned through half of it, but the sound of their screams was music to his ears. Then, without warning, he froze for a split second before springing back in the blink of an eye.

“Fuck!”

Right where Do-Jin had been standing just moments ago, Kaminari suddenly appeared, his dagger swinging at nothing but air. His attack had missed completely, and in his panic, he sucked in a sharp breath.

The bastard had been clinging to the wall in stealth mode, sneaking up like some discount horror movie villain. Of course, Do-Jin had seen that coming a mile away.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t notice when a fatass like you suddenly vanished from a ten-man group?”

“

Tsk

!”

Kaminari gritted his teeth and tried to slash again, but Do-Jin was faster.

BAM. BAM. BAM.

A barrage of Tier 1 spells slammed into Kaminari’s flabby body, staggering him. And the moment he froze up, a massive spike of stone shot up, piercing straight through his gut.

[Earth Spear]

Kaminari let out a choked gasp, staring in disbelief at the jagged rock impaling him.

“H-how...? How the fuck did he see that coming?!”

His words barely came out as a weak whisper, but Do-Jin answered anyway.

“That’s a secret.”

Kaminari the Rogue vanishing was something Do-Jin had noticed immediately. From that moment, it had been obvious what was coming next. The problem was that low-level stealth was never perfect. The bastard had tried to be clever, using the golems as cover while hugging the wall to limit his movement options. That was exactly what gave him away.

Do-Jin had simply kept up the act, pretending to be focused on other targets while watching for the exact moment Kaminari had to break cover to attack. The second he saw the telltale movement, he pulled back just enough to dodge, and the rest was history.

He tilted his head, smirking down at the fat bastard struggling to process what just happened.

“Did you seriously think you, out of all people, had a chance of doing shit to me?”

Then, for good measure, he raised his flaming spear and blasted Kaminari’s fat head off.

“You motherfucker!”

Whether it was because they’d just lost a teammate or because all their plans had just gone to shit, Rōnin Guild snapped. The ones who had been holding back defensively immediately rushed in full force, not that it did them any good. The golems kept barreling through, making it impossible for them to coordinate a proper attack.

Do-Jin sniped them off one by one, starting with the mage, then the healers. As for the rest? He didn’t even bother. Instead, he let them flail helplessly against the golems, sitting back and enjoying the show. With nothing but Tier 1 spells, he took his time with each and every party member, making it as painful as possible. He even had time to casually sip a mana potion mid-fight.

Finally, the only one left standing was Gato, who was holding on by sheer willpower and trying to fend off the golems, all while snarling at Do-Jin.

“Listen up, you piece of shit. No matter where you go, no matter what you do, Rōnin Guild is gonna hunt you down. Over and over and over again,” he warned, his eyes burning with hatred. “You think this is over just because you won once? We’re just a small part of Rōnin. You just signed up for a never-ending nightmare.”

“You? Hunt me?” Do-Jin laughed like he’d just heard the dumbest joke imaginable. “I’ve never even heard of your guild.”

His smirk widened, eyes gleaming with amused disdain. “Today, tomorrow, or the day after... your third-rate guild will keep rotting in the dirt while I climb to the top.”

As far as Do-Jin was concerned, their guild wasn’t even on his radar. To drive the point home, he continued dragging out the fight, poking Gato with various spells but not killing him. Finally giving in, his opponent made a desperate run for it, scrambling to escape the golems closing in. Just as he made his final leap for safety, Do-Jin shot him down.

As Gato hit the ground hard, the golems swarmed him. He barely had time to scream before they hammered him into the dirt over and over until there was nothing left but paste.