Chapter 25: Six Hours of Silence

Amazingly, Sea Horse and I managed to withstand the frog's attack.

[Party] Proposal: It actually works?

[Party] Proposal: Honestly, I was ready to run because I thought we’d both die, lolol

[Party] Ro: Dang, dang

Seriously. I was so nervous, thinking I’d die, too.

[Party] Celestial: Hmm, is the buff including Tough Skin?

[Party] Sea Horse: Oh really? lol

[Party] Happy: What’s Tough Skin?

[Party] Celestial: Hardened Skin.

[Party] Celestial: It was a buff from early days.

[Party] Sea Horse: Increases mob defense.

[Party] Woong: Yup, PK made player defense more important, and the increase rate wasn’t great back then, so nobody used that buff.

[Party] Celestial: At that time, player feedback was active, so the skill was deleted and replaced with integrated defense boost.

[Party] Happy: Oh, with Shining Skin?

Come to think of it, there was a buffer skill like that.

[Party] Celestial: Yeah, it’s gone now, but sometimes GMs run full buff events and it pops up randomly, lol

[Party] Woong: But stats are different on Another Server than the main one.

[Party] Proposal: So the defense boost got overblown, lololol

[Party] Sea Horse: Right, lol, anyway if we have Tough Skin up, it’s good, right?

[Party] Ro: No wonder it didn’t hurt as much on the prairie earlier, maybe that’s why, haha

[Party] Proposal: Me too

[Party] Proposal: I just thought I was getting tanky enough to graduate, lol

I understood right away.

If we’d just entered the prairie, maybe we wouldn’t have noticed, but after spending so long there, hoping to move to the next map, we hardly felt the increased defense buff.

It was only after entering the higher-level Ruins map that we noticed it.

“By the time even mid-lower levels have adjusted to the main hunting maps, I guess nobody notices these things.”

Anyway, this was a great opportunity for us.

Celestial immediately started a damage test with the DPSers.

I watched, hoping for something, but the Ruins were tough as ever.

When the frog’s HP dropped to just above half, everyone was shocked.

“Wow. Even Celestial can only drop its HP by half?”

Luckily, Ro and Proposal joined in, and a simultaneous attack managed to finish it off.

Of course, it depended on landing a max critical; sometimes, when we tried a few more, some frogs survived with a sliver of health.

[Party] Sea Horse: Still, not bad at all

[Party] Sea Horse: If I tank up front and Happy covers the area, I think we’ll be good

[Party] Happy: Yep, yep

Normally, debuffers should start playing their class role from the Ruins onward… but that’s just how it is on the main server.

On the main server, PVE and PVP are balanced, but on Another, which is PVP-focused, speedy growth comes first.

“It’s better to protect the DPS than to debuff.”

So, I just had to keep being a tanky debuffer, as always.

As expected, Ro, Proposal, and Woong, the three DPS, had low defense and were often in danger.

So I had to run ahead, draw aggro first, and for ranged-attack monsters, always use Slow to delay their attacks.

It was a bit risky, but I survived by chugging potions like crazy.

“It’s fine. I’m rich for now!”

Half-hypnotizing myself, I gradually adapted to the Ruins.

Once in a while, I died, but after about 30 minutes, I got the hang of it.

We steadily settled into a stable rhythm.

Of course, the higher-level map kept us on edge, but it was still comfortable.

We could focus on hunting, without worrying about fighting the Hana Guild.

On top of that, Sea Horse mapped out our route pretty well. He picked a path with fewer ranged monsters, making it safer each time.

Meanwhile, since we hadn’t been seen on the prairie for ages, Hana Guild finally reacted.

[Guild] Hungry: The Mushin guys are hanging out by the portal

[Guild] Hungry: Looks like they’re looking for your party, lolol

A bit later, the Mushin Party appeared in the Ruins.

Items owned by others were scattered near the entrance—definitely the Mushin Party’s doing.

“Sharp guys… By the way, if I can tank this much, then Gomae should survive, too.”

Gomae is ranked just below me, number 5.

Plus, he’s a tanker, so he should be able to take at least two or three hits.

Mushin, who’s number 1, goes without saying.

“Are we going to fight here now? Then maybe it’s best to use ranged mobs to kill them with monsters.”

While my mind was racing, the Mushin Party appeared at the edge of the screen.

I was hurriedly moving my mouse as the charging characters approached.

“Oh, mobs…!”

By chance, two frogs and three salamanders—melee monsters—spawned right in the middle.

The five monsters were closer to the Mushin Party, and unfortunately, their weak DPSers were passing right by the frogs.

The frogs’ tongues lashed out, one after another, flattening Pineapple, Shinyeong, Hope, and Overseer.

Mushin and Gomae, the survivors, stopped for a moment, then turned tail and fled.

“What…was that?”

I was still dazed as I finished off the remaining monsters.

[Party] Woong: What was that

[Party] Sea Horse: lololol what idiots

[Party] Sea Horse: But that timing tho, lololol

[Party] Proposal: That was hilarious

[Party] Celestial: lololol

After that, the Mushin Party came and went several more times. The result was always the same.

Really, it was unfortunate… but without the GM buff, there was no way for them to function in the Ruins.

In the end, the Mushin Party gave up on the Ruins and went back to the prairie.

Well, each side got their own map, so maybe it’s a win-win.

Even Team Leader Go’s party, who’d been rotating through the prairie, moved on to the 2nd floor of the Guild Dungeon.

Either way, it was a happy ending.

---

The difference between the prairie and the Ruins was staggering.

After the guild war, I think we spent about six hours grinding in the Ruins.

Before the guild war, Woong had been ranked 6th, but in a flash, he shot up to 5th.

Seeing Gomae drop to 6th made my jaw drop.

“Wow. The Ruins are really the best.”

And it was a gold mine.

Not only did the monsters drop money, but selling all the items we picked up filled my inventory nicely.

Thanks to the Sale Card effect, we had no money worries… even after splitting the loot six ways, it was plenty.

Best of all, “Return Scrolls” would drop every so often.

Those become common in the late season, but early on, when drop rates are low, they’re extremely valuable.

Once those rare items started appearing, I couldn’t help but get excited.

“Did we finally break into the high-level maps?”

Of course, there’s still a long way to go.

There are about twenty more major hunting grounds above the Ruins.

The Ruins are just the third or fourth map from the starting point.

Honestly, what a no-life game…

“Ugh, I’m exhausted…!”

The party grind ended when our bodies were about to give out.

Well, it was more like we finally got a break.

[Party] Celestial: Okay, let’s meet up again at noon~ The subs will take over then!

[Party] Proposal: Ok ok, got it

[Party] Sea Horse: Great work, everyone!

After the party disbanded, I got up from my chair right away.

“Six in the morning… I’ll do laundry later… Vacuuming can wait… For now, I’ll just tidy up, shower, and fill my stomach…”

I rushed around, taking care of the urgent stuff. Only after eating cereal in my freshly-washed state did I finally feel at rest.

I glanced in the mirror at my shut-in face and felt a bit of a reality check… but I couldn’t shake off the fun I was having.

“Isn’t anyone else sleeping?”

Maybe because it was the weekend, the guild chat was still bustling with chatter.

[Guild] Taki: lolol The alt who was running Guduke’s sub just took all the kids and left

[Guild] Sea Horse: Huh, really?

[Guild] Taki: So now Tree Guild is in chaos, lol

“Is this about the main server?”

I fiddled with my phone, sneaking glances at the chat.

[Guild] Green: Isn’t that a guild that can’t run without subs anyway?

[Guild] Ariel: Did they move to another guild?

[Guild] Taki: Nope, they said the main owner was abusing power, so they jumped to another game

[Guild] Hungry: lolol Didn’t you see the signs from their usual behavior

[Guild] Sea Horse: But aren’t they all young?

[Guild] Sea Horse: Isn’t that their wage sub? How are they going to live now, lol. Are they going to work manual labor?

[Guild] Taki: Looks like they’re moving to VR

[Guild] Green: What, virtual reality? That one’s got strict ID checks, isn’t it hard to make a living as a sub there—  —

[Guild] INFP: There’s a few that aren’t that strict if you look

[Guild] Blue: Nord

[Guild] Blue: You can run a sub there, lol. Plus, there was an announcement about reopening soon

[Guild] Sea Horse: Oh, really??

[Guild] Gadfly: That game still isn’t dead?

[Guild] Sea Horse: But can you really make money off that, lol

[Guild] Blue: Hey~ Who knows, if they run a killer reopening event…

[Guild] Gadfly: Still, betting your life on a game is a bit much;;;

[Guild] Blue: It’s been months, they’ve probably fixed everything now, right?

[Guild] Taki: Nah, they’re not actually going to Nord, lol, why are you guys saying that

[Guild] Death: Are VR games really fun? haha I want to try, but I’m too old ㅠ

[Guild] Blue: They’re fun, but some games limit what you can do depending on your physical ability ㅠ

[Guild] Celestial: That’s why Monster World is still surviving…

[Guild] Taki: By the elders, for the elders, of the elders…

[Guild] Green: That little brat—

[Guild] Gadfly: lololol teasing the oldies

Recently, the names of a lot of games had been popping up in the chat.

Having been hooked on Monster World, I didn’t know much about what was going on outside, but it seemed that game everyone was talking about was finally back on track.

“Didn’t Proposal say he wanted to try Nord…?”

Wondering if he’d been tempted by all the talk, I glanced around.

But Proposal just had his character standing in town, not moving. Same with Ro.

“Did they both go to bed? They wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye… Maybe I should too…”

I moved my character out to the outskirts, somewhere quiet. I rarely logged out, since I didn’t like missing chat when the general chat got flooded.

But apparently, Proposal was busy chatting with Ro in the group chat.

Since I’d set chat notifications to silent, I only joined in late.

(Bae Hojun)

[Still, I just can’t get attached~ really]

[I’m not the only one, right?]

(Jeong Jiho)

[Me neither, haha]

I skimmed the earlier messages—they were talking about the guild.

“So, I’m not the only one who can’t get attached.”

(Bae Hojun)

[And when the GM showed up earlier—  —]

[It felt really fishy]

(Jeong Jiho)

[Felt kind of like showing off, lol]

(Bae Hojun)

[I mean, even if they showed up because their pride as the ops team was hurt, that was too fast]

[At that speed, it’s a direct line]

[If it’s a direct line at past 10 PM, that says it all, doesn’t it?]

“Yeah, it means it’s not just a casual connection. Either that or they’d already talked about it before.”

(Bae Hojun)

[And there’s more than one GM here, right]

[Imagine if they’re even divided into factions]

[If it’s GMs tangled up with Karma and Hana, too…]

[That’d be a real headache—  —]

“Oh…”

I didn’t know how the company was structured, but seeing how things were going, it didn’t sound impossible.

But if it was true, wouldn’t that be beyond just rotten?

For some reason, I felt like gaming life was only going to get more complicated.

“Huh? There are people creating characters at this hour?”

The spot where I always idled was the training hall where new characters spawn.

It was strange to see characters moving there at this hour.

“Are they people moving over from the main server?”

Given the season, there’s no way they were newbies, so I watched them without thinking much.

An unarmed warrior was tapping at an unarmed mage, following them around.

[Normal] Papak: Hey, hey

[Normal] Majestic: ? Who are you

[Normal] Papak: It’s me, Papa

From how they were confirming identities by username, they must know each other.

“Are these main server people? Which side are they from?”

I started watching, more interested than before.