Shhhh-

A cool, flowing river.

Lush green grass.

A checkered battlefield positioned above it.

This land, which I had stepped on countless times as a champion, felt entirely new today.

Sssp-

“The air is crisp.”

A sentiment only a player could feel.

I had been confident that if I just obtained player qualifications, I could reach the summit.

How far had I run for this?

Finally, I stood at the same starting line as everyone else.

“Huu-“

The sentimental mood lasted only a moment. Calming my racing heart, I quickly began to assess the battlefield.

I had grasped many things while experiencing the battlefield as a champion, but this was my first time as a player.

‘What’s this?’

Before me floated a paper inscribed with a unique emblem.

As I stared at it quietly, information about the item surfaced in my mind.

Champion Summon Scroll (★)

– Summons one random 1-Cost champion.

It was an item I’d never seen before, but the method to use the summon scroll naturally came to mind.

Shing-!

As I tore the paper, light flickered…

Clank- clank-!

Something materialized in the air.

A shabby suit of scrap iron armor. A shield plated with iron over leather. Familiar equipment.

‘A shieldbearer? My luck’s good.’

The thought of a pleasant start lasted only a moment.

Hm?

Even as the light faded, the champion’s figure was nowhere to be seen.

And then.

Shhhh-!

The masterless equipment flew toward me.

‘W-What?’

Something was going wrong.

Did a problem occur when I gained player qualifications?

Should I not have entered the battlefield so carelessly?

Amidst all these thoughts, the shieldbearer equipment clung to my body.

In the quieted battlefield, instead of a summoned champion, there was only me, wearing the shieldbearer equipment.

Just like when I was summoned to the battlefield as a champion.

Flustered by the inexplicable situation, I checked the message log and couldn’t help but be startled.

Lee Shin (★)

– Shieldbearer

– Health: 200/200

– Mana: 0/70

– Skill: Solid Exoskeleton (★)

– Grants a shield that absorbs damage for 8 seconds. The shield is applied at 40% of maximum health.

The summoned champion was none other than me.

“… …”

I think there’s been some kind of mistake?

‘Is it because of how I obtained the player qualifications?’

That was the only thing I could guess.

From the battlefield’s perspective, my existence was a sort of error.

Because I wasn’t an officially registered player.

Perhaps because of that.

The battlefield seemed to recognize me as a champion.

As a 1-Cost champion, a shieldbearer.

Since the champion to be summoned was already on the battlefield, using the summon scroll didn’t summon another champion.

If this wasn’t a coincidence, the same situation would occur in future battlefields.

A player and a champion.

That was me on the battlefield.

‘Wouldn’t it be a big deal if I got caught?’

It wasn’t unreasonable to think so. I had never heard of a case like mine.

If this fact became known…

Gulp-!

As Hans had said, I might really become an experimental subject at the Magic Tower.

I hadn’t anticipated this situation, but coming to Trivik was the right choice.

Trivik was a special city untouched by the Empire’s reach, making it the optimal condition to hide something.

‘I should lay low for a while.’

At first, I was flustered. But upon careful reflection…

How much gold could I earn if I stayed on the battlefield from start to finish?

This might be an opportunity to earn at once what would normally require dying dozens of times.

‘Enjoy the honey while you can.’

It was a truth passed down among gamers since ancient times.

Dong- dong- dong-!

The bell signaling the start of the round rang out.

In the early stages of the battlefield, time is given to organize champion compositions before the full-scale battles with other players begin.

For this purpose, there is the ‘Monster Subjugation’ round.

Subjugating monsters yields a certain amount of gold, and there was also a chance they would drop items.

Grrrr-

“Nice to meet you.”

That was why I had to catch that guy right in front of me.

A Dire Wolf.

It was a familiar beast, having encountered it a few times while active as a champion.

Clack- clack- clack-!

As I gripped my shield and charged forward, its long fangs lunged right before my eyes.

I quickly raised my shield to block the front.

Screech-

The shield held firm with a strenuous metallic screech.

“Keureureureu-“

Viscous drool dripped from its maw, fouling the shield.

Kaeng-!

As if trying to clear an obstacle, it kept biting and pulling the shield. Lowering my center of gravity, I held the shield tight, waiting for the beast’s strength to wane.

After a brief standoff, when the pulling force slackened.

Taat-!

I pulled my right shoulder back hard and stepped clockwise. A powerful force was momentarily applied by centrifugal force.

Screech-!

I barely managed to tear the shield from its jaws. Two deep, bifurcated tooth marks were left embedded in the shield.

Stagger.

The beast staggered, losing its balance. Not missing this opening, I twisted my waist in reverse and swung the shield hard.

Whooosh- whooosh-!

A heavy yet tingling sensation in my hand.

The shield, possessing heavy mass, was a weapon in itself. By shifting its center of gravity, its full power could be properly unleashed.

Keoheong-!

Something scattered like sparks in the air. It was a beautiful sight created as its sharp fangs shattered.

The Dire Wolf appearing in the early stages of the battlefield had no proper means of attack other than its fangs. The moment those fangs broke, its threatening elements vanished.

“Come here, you mutt.”

Grrrr-

A fearful whimper. Unlike its aggressive charge earlier, its tail now drooped.

Yelp-!

I beat it mercilessly with the shield like a dog on a hot summer’s day. Though its claws scratched my face and drew blood, I eventually seized the upper hand.

Jingle-!

It left behind a few spoils and disintegrated into light.

“Heo-eok- Heo-eok-“

My breath came in ragged gasps after the intense physical exertion.

Unlike the game, a single click didn’t resolve the battle.

Executing combat relied solely on the champion’s capabilities.

Meeting similar levels meant the difference wouldn’t be huge, but there were cases where a champion’s skill determined victory or defeat.

【+1G】

▶ 1 gold has been granted as a basic reward.

【Acquired: Leather Armor】

▶ Leather Armor: Increases defense by 15 when equipped.

Fortunately, I was able to obtain an item in the first round.

The average number of items obtainable in a battlefield was around six. Getting an item early meant gaining the driving force to pull ahead.

【+2XP】

▶ Reached Level 2! You can deploy an additional champion.

Thanks to the experience gained from combat, my level rose.

To hire an additional champion, I’d need to use the shop.

Operating the Device brought up the shop list, and there were three options.

《LV.2 Shop》

Guardian (★) – 1G

Spearman Corps (★) – 1G

Gunslinger (★) – 1G

Unfortunately, no champions with the shieldbearer synergy appeared.

Instead, I hired a Gunslinger champion capable of dealing reliable damage.

【-1G】

▶ Hired a Gunslinger for 1 gold.

*Gold Owned: 0G

A ten-second wait.

Light flickered, and the hired champion revealed himself.

Klein (★)

– Gunslinger

– Health: 140/140

– Mana: 0/40

– Arcane Attack (★): Uses mystical power to deal 50 magic damage to the target.

‘Thankfully, he’s not a Blank.’

Klein possessed a skill unbecoming of a Gunslinger. He was likely a former Mage who switched to the Gunslinger profession for easier employment.

Especially since the Gunslinger meta was trending lately.

– Nice to meet you. Please head over there.

From the front lines of the battlefield, I secretly operated the Device to use the Player’s functions.

A pillar of light indicating his position would be visible to Klein, so he moved precisely to where I wanted him.

I equipped the ‘Leather Armor’ obtained from the Dire Wolf.

There was no need to hesitate. I didn’t have any item combination formulas, and I would remain on the battlefield from start to finish.

Thanks to this, the clunky scrap iron armor was replaced with leather armor.

Whooosh-

A cool breeze blowing through the gaps in my clothes.

It might seem like my defense weakened on the surface, but I knew from extensive gaming experience that the more skin exposed, the better the item.

Perhaps thanks to that, I could secure victory more easily in the following round.

Jingle-!

【+2G】

▶ 2 gold has been granted as a basic reward.

【+2XP】

▶ Reached Level 3! You can deploy an additional champion.

The reward for dealing with two Dire Wolves was a mere 2 gold. I spent all my gold to hire two new champions again.

Peiri (★) – 1G

– Archer

– Health: 150/150

– Mana: 30/80

– Rapid Fire (★): Increases attack speed by 50% for 5 seconds.

Johan (★) – 1G

– Shieldbearer

– Health: 210/210

– Skill: None

‘A Blank.’

Based on experience, the easier it was to acquire a profession, the higher the frequency of Blanks.

A low barrier to entry meant anyone could do it.

But it didn’t matter much.

Right now, activating synergies was more important than champion performance.

Shieldbearer (2): Blocks 10 damage from all incoming attacks.

– Nice to meet you. Please head over there.

Perhaps because it was his first time experiencing this. The shieldbearer Johan, who looked like he had just reached adulthood, wore a flustered expression.

It made sense, as I knew all too well how champions without skills were treated.

“I’ll do my best!”

Before the battle with the player, the champions finally deployed on the battlefield were the Gunslinger Klein, the shieldbearer Johan, and.

Another shieldbearer, me.

“Hello! I may be lacking, but I look forward to working with you!”

The shieldbearer Johan, who came to my side, offered a greeting.

“Yes, I look forward to it too.”

To keep my secret, I had to act like a hired champion on the battlefield.

“Huu- Huu-“

Perhaps because the next round was a battle between players, his shoulders were stiff as a board. In the early days, everyone fears death.

Well, he’d get used to it soon enough.

“Don’t be too nervous. Just do exactly as you’re told.”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

As a shieldbearer with quite a few years under my belt, I had enough combat experience to lead a guy like Johan.

In the remaining time, I checked the champions’ deployment through the Device.

I placed two shieldbearers on the front lines and the Gunslinger champion at the very back.

The undeployed Archer Peiri naturally headed to the champion waiting room.

Dong- dong-!

Along with the bell signaling the battle, the walls obscuring our vision crumbled.

‘Two Mages and one Archer.’

Vwoomm-

“Run!”

The shieldbearer Johan and I kicked off the ground to approach the enemies positioned in the rear.

Whizz-

Tududung-!

Mana orbs and arrows slicing through the air flew toward us.

Taeng-!

Thanks to the defense increase effect attached to the Leather Armor, the arrows were easily deflected.

‘Keuhyuk-‘

Even though I blocked the mana orb with my shield, significant damage still came through.

The Mage synergy had increased the spellpower of the enemy Mage champion.

“Euak-!”

Unable to withstand the impact, the shieldbearer Johan following beside me fell backward.

Flop-!

“Get up quickly!”

“Y-Yes!”

Due to the difference in range, we had no choice but to take their attacks one-sidedly until we closed the distance.

Melee champions had to be accustomed to taking hits without flinching, but for a rookie shieldbearer like Johan, it was a difficult task.

“Heo-eok- Heo-eok-“

Shiver.

Perhaps due to his lack of battlefield experience, as he allowed consecutive attacks, Johan’s hands holding the shield gradually lowered.

“Snap out of it and raise your shield!!”

Bang-!

Another mana orb flew in. I blocked it with my shield, but as the orb exploded right before my eyes, a wave of vertigo rushed over me instantly.

Beeeep-

Endure and run.

The enemy champions were shouting something as I closed in on them, but perhaps because my eardrums had burst from the impact, I couldn’t hear them properly.

I captured him in my shaking vision. Then, I swung my shield blindly.

Thump- thump-!

The adrenaline surging from the fierce battle stimulated my toes, legs, torso, and shoulders in turn, and where the shield finally stopped.

Boom-!

Was his face.