Chapter 61: High Risk High Return

–Bang!

The gunshot rang out. Yoo Hee-yeon and the other A-Class members wore confused expressions.

It was as if they were thinking, wondering whether they had truly heard a gunshot. Their reaction was completely

understandable. The only gun user in F-Class was Lee Hyun-seung. It was incomprehensible for the long-range

specialist, Lee Hyun-seung, to be alive and revealing his location.

–Creak

Yoo Hee-yeon, grinding her teeth, shouted.

“Everyone, move to the sound of the gunshot! If you miss him, you’ll regret it!”

Amidst Yoo Hee-yeon’s frantic shouts, a man with a sword and messy hair, Kang Jun-hyung, spoke to her.

“Yoo Hee-yeon, calm down. No matter how urgent it is, you have to assess the situation. Don’t forget we’re in a

conquest battle. Capturing Lee Hyun-seung is secondary to capturing the objectives.”

Kang Jun-hyung calmly tried to persuade Yoo Hee-yeon. Even if they chased after and caught Lee Hyun-seung right

now, it wouldn’t guarantee victory in this match.

To win the class extermination battle, they needed to either eliminate all of F-Class or capture all six conquest points.

Rushing after Lee Hyun-seung would not only be inefficient, but it was also an irrational choice. But Yoo Hee-yeon’s

judgment was different.

–Crackle

Yoo Hee-yeon glared at Kang Jun-hyung, her expression showing a clear challenge. Kang Jun-hyung shook his head

in frustration.

‘She looks at me like that after I said something reasonable.’

He already knew Yoo Hee-yeon’s personality. He had expected a similar reaction, but seeing her act in such a

predictable way was still frustrating.

“Mr. Kang Jun-hyung, are you overthinking this? The opponent is just F-Class. Even if they rush to the conquest

points or set up traps, their strength difference is overwhelming. What can they possibly do? Do you think a bunch of

ants can harm a person?”

Her eyes began to lose focus. In this state, no one could stop Yoo Hee-yeon. Kang Jun-hyung eventually withdrew his

argument.

“No, you’re right. I misspoke.”

Once Kang Jun-hyung admitted his mistake, Yoo Hee-yeon spoke in a tone that seemed like she was doing him a

favor.

“If you’re so worried, you can stay behind and guard the points. Take a few people with you and go secure points 1 to 6.”

Yoo Hee-yeon assigned 18 people to secure the six conquest points. Only three people were assigned per point, a very

small number.

“This is not enough. What if F-Class gathers together?”

Kang Jun-hyung raised a valid counterpoint, but Yoo Hee-yeon cut him off.

“If three A-Class members gather, no matter how many F-Class members there are, we should be able to win, right?

With this number, we have enough troops. Don’t argue further and go quickly. Unless you want to argue with me.”

–Groan

Kang Jun-hyung clenched his fist tightly, holding back the urge to shout insults at her. If he hadn’t clenched his fist,

he would have immediately called her a foolish b*itch. He couldn’t believe they had such a foolish commander,

someone who was too emotional to see the situation clearly. All he could do was sigh at the fact.

“Fine.”

Although Yoo Hee-yeon used formal speech and Kang Jun-hyung spoke informally, their hierarchy had already been

well-established and was clear despite the difference in speech.

Yoo Hee-yeon’s father was the leader of the Artemis Guild. There was no benefit to making her angry, as it could

have consequences not just for him but also for everyone around him. People feared the Artemis Guild because they

had the power and wealth to do anything they wanted.

–Tap tap tap

Kang Jun-hyung quickly ran toward the conquest points. After dividing his 18 people into groups, he shouted.

“Team 1 to 6, head to conquest points 1 to 6. Our numbers are small, so even though we’re up against F-Class, don’t

let your guard down. Especially since Jeong Eun-seo, a powerful magic user, is among them. Jeong Eun-seo is the

daughter of Theoer, the Guild Master. Her strength is on par with A-Class members, so give it your all.”

Kang Jun-hyung urged his team to stay alert, but the others merely responded with skeptical looks and half-hearted

nods. It was only natural—after all, they were going up against F-Class. Who would need to be cautious about that?

When asked to fight a child who hadn’t yet grown, would an adult feel any tension? Class A thought of themselves as

adults, while Class F seemed like mere children in their eyes.

• Swoosh.

“Stop.”

At Kang Jun-hyung’s gesture, the members came to an abrupt halt. Fifteen had already moved to different control

points, and only three people, including Kang Jun-hyung, remained by his side.

As Kang Jun-hyung suddenly stopped, the nearby mage, Jeong Sae-ron, asked with a puzzled expression.

“What’s going on?”

Following Kang Jun-hyung’s gaze, Jeong Sae-ron noticed that at control point number 2, the members of Class F had

already arrived.

‘What? How did they get there so quickly?’

Despite the brief delay caused by a minor argument with Yoo Hee-yeon, the speed at which Class F had reached the

point was astonishingly fast.

‘Could it be…?’

With a growing suspicion, Kang Jun-hyung focused his attention on the distant members of Class F, scrutinizing

their faces carefully.

‘Jeong Eun-seo.’

The Epic-class mage with the combat strength of Class A, Jeong Eun-seo. She was standing with her arms crossed,

looking down at the control point with an air of superiority, as if daring anyone to challenge her.

“Prepare for battle.”

Kang Jun-hyung and his companions began preparing for the confrontation with the approximately 20 members of Class F.

Meanwhile, at the location where Lee Hyun-seung was positioned, he was running around the area of control point number 1.

• Thud thud thud thud!

With each step, the bushes around him shook as they were violently pushed aside.

The reason Lee Hyun-seung was able to run so fast was simple.

• [C] Gunslinger’s Agile Step – When equipped with firearms, the user’s movement speed temporarily increases. The amount of speed gained depends on the current class level and skill level.

Since his Gunslinger skill recently reached level 2, his mana consumption for skills had decreased, allowing him to

control his abilities even more efficiently than before. Thanks to the Legendary-class bonus effect of the Agile Step

skill, Lee Hyun-seung was able to move faster than most swordsmen renowned for their physical prowess.

“Phew… Phew…”

• Rustle rustle rustle.

From a distance, the sounds of people chasing after him could be heard. The bushes were parting as voices from

behind grew louder.

“Where’s Lee Hyun-seung! Find him quickly!”

Lee Hyun-seung sped up, pushing his legs harder. Additionally, the messenger bag he was given at the start of the

stage, though small and equipped with limited storage, was conveniently strapped to his body, allowing him to carry

various items easily.

• Swoosh.

Lee Hyun-seung pulled a magic stone from the bag, a precautionary measure in case things went awry. He held the

stone to his mouth and bit down on it.

• Crunch!

Meanwhile, the external spectators, including the Artemis Guildmaster, Yu Han-beom, were observing the match. Yu

Han-beom couldn’t help but reflect on what he had seen.

“To think he’d actually eat that… It’s completely absurd.”

The moment a magic stone is consumed, it restores a player’s mana, but it also brings along side effects. These side

effects can range from paralysis, headaches, to a reduction in skill effectiveness, and more. For this reason, even if

players are low on mana, they would never be foolish enough to bite into a magic stone in reality or during a test. If a

side effect like paralysis occurs, they’d be unable to do anything and would lose immediately.

Next to Yu Han-beom, the vice guildmaster of Artemis, Bae Gi-young, spoke up.

“Tch, what a shame. It seems like he’s using a skill while biting into the magic stone due to a lack of mana. But he

won’t last long like that. He’s lucky that no noticeable side effects have appeared yet, but if something like paralysis

kicks in, he’ll be done for. Running away won’t get him anywhere.”

Bae Gi-young then turned to Yu Han-beom with a question.

“Guildmaster, I don’t understand why you have such a high opinion of someone like him. He’s been shooting guns

into the sky from the start, being chased, and now, he’s foolishly biting into a magic stone while running. His actions

are far too risky.”

Yu Han-beom looked at Bae Gi-young and spoke with a tone of disdain.

“Do you really think Class F could beat Class A in a normal way?”

“Well… no, but…”

“Since he knows a direct confrontation won’t work, he’s willing to take big risks. The truth is, if there’s no risk, there’s

no reward. A person who can’t manage risk is just a fool with no ability.”

Then, Yu Han-beom added one final thought.

“If you can fully control the risk, everything changes.”

• Crack!

Lee Hyun-seung bit into another magic stone. At that moment,

• Buzz buzz buzz.

Paralysis began to take hold of his body. The pursuers, who had been chasing him at high speed, were almost upon him.

“That gunman stopped! Kill him!”

In that instant, Lee Hyun-seung aimed his gun at his own chest and fired.

“What… What the…!”

The scene erupted into chaos.