Chapter 30: Illusions of Success

“Kiyaaaaa~ I’m getting drunk on this!”

Dunkin, the warrior player whose real name was Choi Sung-woo, let out an exclamation of admiration as he watched the Amtosrin video he had uploaded.

The reason was simple.

Though the video was barely over a minute long, its views had already surpassed ten million.

“Oppa, oppa, have you seen the subscriber count?”

“Yeah, I saw it~ Just one one-minute video and it’s already over 100,000 subscribers.”

The couple’s hastily created WarTube channel was none other than ‘Busan Couple’.

Thanks to their first Amtosrin video, Busan Couple had already surpassed 100,000 subscribers.

“Have we decided on our concept yet?”

“Since we’re both beginners, why not just make it about the growth of a newbie Warlord couple?”

“What about editing?”

“For now, we’ll outsource it urgently, and if a creator company contacts us later, we can hand it over to them.”

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

“Hey, Hyun-kyung, did you see this?”

“What is it?”

Sung-woo pulled Kim Hyun-kyung over and sat her on his lap. Then, manipulating the mouse, he showed her an email.

“What’s this?”

“It’s an advertising email saying they want to put ads on our video.”

“Seriously? For real?”

“Yeah. Even though we only have one one-minute video, it’s been featured on Hotclip and has over ten million views. They want to put ads on just that one video.”

“Wow, that’s awesome. Our subscriber count already met the conditions, so now we can earn ad revenue too, right?”

“Guilty, guilty.”

“But what kind of ad is it?”

“Don’t know the details, but they want to meet and talk. I’ve already set the time and place.”

“When and where?”

“In about 15 minutes, at WarLord.”

“Huh? Why are you telling me now?”

“What does it matter? I know you don’t have plans anyway. I was keeping it quiet as a surprise.”

“Ah, why are you like that, oppa?”

“Yeah, like that. When we get the ad money, let’s buy some beef.”

“Yay, that’s sweet!”

Hyun-kyung was ecstatic.

They had only uploaded a single video, yet things were going so well it almost made her feel like she might die from happiness.

‘Ah, now I can live a trendy and luxurious life as a full-time WarTuber.’

A pink-hued future painted itself automatically in her mind.

After some more cozy moments, the two hurriedly logged into WarLord so they wouldn’t be late for the meeting.

[Connecting to WarLord.]

[May you become a shining hero amidst the great war.]

Upon logging in, the familiar messages appeared.

Having just recovered from death penalties, the two opened their eyes again in their last login location, Herum.

Immediately after logging in, Dunkin—Sung-woo’s ID—received a friend request.

[Seong-ho has sent you a friend request.]

[Do you accept?]

Seong-ho was the ID of the advertiser they had been briefed about.

Dunkin quickly accepted the friend request, and as soon as Seong-ho was added, a whisper arrived.

-Seong-ho: Are you Dunkin of Busan Couple?

-Dunkin: Yep, that’s me.

-Seong-ho: I heard you’re in Herum. If it’s not too much trouble, I’ll send you a teleport scroll. Would you be able to relocate?

-Dunkin: There are two of us. Is that okay?

-Seong-ho: Oh, of course. I’ll send it right now.

[You have received a package from Seong-ho.]

As soon as the agreement was made, the teleport scroll arrived.

It was Dunkin and Dnas’s first ever meeting with an advertiser, so everything felt fascinating.

-Seong-ho: Did you get it?

-Dunkin: Yep, received it. We’ll teleport right away.

-Seong-ho: Okay, see you then.

Dunkin pulled out the teleport scroll from the package and handed it to Dnas.

With pounding hearts, the two used the teleport scroll simultaneously.

[You have used a teleport scroll.]

[Transporting to designated location.]

Flash!

Their vision flickered.

The blurry view cleared again.

But the place they arrived at was rather dark.

‘Why is it so dark here?’

Pitch black, without a single ray of light.

Then—

Pang!

Like stadium floodlights turning on, lights suddenly blazed all around.

The illumination focused dazzlingly on Dunkin and Dnas.

Frightened by the sudden situation, Dnas hid behind Dunkin.

“What… what is this?”

Dunkin was confused as well.

Then, a strange voice came from beyond the lights.

“Are you the Busan Couple?”

“W-who are you?”

“Did I ask if you’re Busan Couple?”

“Y-yeah, but who are you?”

“Me?”

Bang!

With that reply, the surroundings brightened.

Only then did Dunkin and Dnas realize where they were.

They were in a prison.

Beyond the prison bars, over a dozen men wearing white crow masks and black robes surrounded them.

“Those guys?”

“Yeah, that’s them. They just said so themselves.”

The crows chuckled among themselves.

Flustered, Dunkin shouted.

“Damn it, what the hell is this? Who the hell are you?”

“Us?”

At Dunkin’s question, one of the chuckling crows laughed wickedly.

Then—

[Friend status with Seong-ho has been removed.]

Suddenly, their friendship with the advertiser was severed.

The crow said,

“Well, now there’s no way for you to whisper to us anymore... Welcome to our workshop.”

“Workshop? Who are you?”

More than a dozen men in crow masks. The advertiser’s unilateral friend deletion.

Everything was bizarre and terrifying.

Gripped by fear, Dnas was already in a panic, unable to say a word, clutching Dunkin’s arm tightly, trembling.

Dunkin realized the gravity of the situation.

The welcoming crow said,

“You don’t need to know who we are, and since we’re busy, I’ll get straight to the point. We thought it over, and it seems you two are the owners of that Amtosrin that appeared in Herum. Because when we watched the video, you guys died first to Amtosrin. But you know, right? Summoned boss mobs always aggro their summoner first.”

The crow calmly began to voice their analysis.

And, surprisingly, most of the crow’s analysis was fact.

“...So we’re sure. You’re the summoners who called Amtosrin. So, here’s the thing, we want you to tell us the summoning method for that guy. We’re pretty interested in it. Oh, and don’t even think about lying. Until we properly summon Amtosrin, you won’t leave here.”

“W-what the...!”

“Why, does it sound like a joke? If you’re curious, try opening the auction house once. I bet it won’t open. Because this is our own special workshop made deliberately in a special region.”

As the crow said, whenever Dunkin tried to call up the auction house,

[This area cannot be used.]

only a rejection message returned.

The crow continued,

“Since you’re just starting as Warlord beginners, you probably don’t have teleport or recall scrolls, and your movement skills are too pathetic to mention. And I don’t recommend suicide escape using resurrection points either. Our guys are at the nearest resurrection point. Oh, and you know even if you log out, you’ll reconnect here, right?”

“W-why are you doing this to us? Hey!”

Realizing the situation was far worse than expected, Dunkin finally lowered his stance.

But whether he lowered himself or not, the crows showed no interest. They only repeated their instructions to get what they wanted.

“So just tell us the summoning method for Amtosrin quickly. Oh, and just in case, if you somehow escape here with some unpredictable method, from then on, expect us to chase you until you quit the game. By the way, we’re good fighters. Even if a hundred of you came, you wouldn’t win.”

“Kwahahaha!”

“Gehahahaha!”

The crows laughed cheerfully at their own words.

Their true identity.

They were none other than members of the ruthless, profit-driven ill-mannered group called the ‘Black Guild’.

“L-logout!”

Patt!

Frightened by the crow’s warning, Busan Couple logged out immediately.

Watching the two disappear from the prison, the crows sneered and muttered.

“Idiots. Keep wracking your brains all you want, no way out.”

From that moment—

Busan Couple’s nightmare began.

---

[You have succeeded in enduring Rubik’s trial.]

[Rubik grants you Energy Bolt.]

[Energy Bolt’s information has been updated.]

“Wow, finally...!”

After a grueling five-hour grind,

Levan had succeeded.

At first, he thought it was an impossible mission.

How could anyone maintain the water peacefully when jumping on a trampoline, causing the water to fall due to gravity?

But since he was told to do it, Levan tried every possible method without giving up.

Eventually, he realized the trap hidden in the trial.

‘Damn you, Rubik...’

The strange trap behind the trial.

It was simply that only the water in the cup needed to be saved.

Realizing this, Levan cautiously covered the top of the cup with his remaining hand.

Then, floating above the trampoline, sure enough, a mission success notification popped up.

It was a hollow victory.

Right after Levan succeeded,

“Heh heh! You’ve finally understood, heir. Next time, be a little more perceptive.”

A cheerful voice came from somewhere.

It was Rubik.

But Levan did not see Rubik.

Instead, his vision faded and he returned to where he originally was.

“......”

He felt completely drained.

But he couldn’t be angry.

Rubik was surely watching somewhere.

So as soon as he returned to the real world, he quietly grabbed his club.

At that moment, a monster passed nearby.

“Smash.”

[Smash is activated.]

The power of Smash surged into his club.

Legally, the only outlet for his rage was the monsters.

“Uaaaaaaaah!!”

Kurik?

The monsters peacefully passing by

were suddenly killed by the unexpectedly appearing berserker.

---

...After swinging the club for nearly thirty minutes to vent the five hours of accumulated rage, Levan finally calmed down.

“Phew...”

Sweating, he felt much better.

Having vented all his frustration, Levan finally sat down and drank a potion.

He wasn’t injured.

He just often used this carbonated potion to relieve stress.

After finishing the potion, Levan checked the information on Energy Bolt.

[Energy Bolt]

-Grade: Common.

-Rank: F (0.0%)

-Effect: Summons one non-elemental energy bolt. The summoned energy bolt deals magic damage 300% higher than base attack and lasts for 2 seconds.

-Cooldown: 60 seconds.

-Proficiency Options

*Using 22 Cubes reduces cooldown to 60 seconds.

*Using 33 Cubes reduces cooldown to 40 seconds and increases energy bolt duration by 1 second.

“...What?”

Reading the updated info on Energy Bolt, Levan momentarily doubted his own eyes.