Crash-!

The man who had been struck by my shield and sent sprawling desperately tried to right himself, but Klein, our team’s gunslinger, wasn’t just standing by idly either.

<<Arcane Attack>>

Uses mystical power to deal 50 magic damage to the target.

Fwoosh-!

The mage champion, struck directly by the skill, dissolved into light mere moments later. It was proof that my shield had dealt meaningful damage to him.

It had been a battle of countless exchanges. But without a vanguard to hold the line, a fight between a shieldbearer and ranged damage dealers could only go one way.

Ranged dealers inherently had low health, so they couldn’t withstand many hits.

Besides, having already weathered several attacks, his mana had filled to the brim.

‘First time using this.’

Thanks to that, I got to use a skill on the battlefield for the very first time.

<<Solid Exoskeleton>>

Gain a shield that absorbs damage for 8 seconds. The shield absorbs damage equal to 40% of maximum health.

Vwoomm-

I felt a transparent barrier wrap around my body.

Clang-!

An arrow fired point-blank was intercepted by the shield and vanished.

Combined with the shieldbearer synergy and items that reduced damage, a shield value of 80 was practically an impenetrable wall in the early stages of combat.

<The round has ended.>

“…I survived!”

Johan cheered the moment the battle ended.

‘He managed to survive, somehow.’

Two enemy champions had been targeting me. So Johan, who had only been attacked by one, was able to stay alive.

【+4G】

▶ Base reward of 4 gold has been granted.

*Gold held: 4G

‘Less gold than I expected.’

Looking at the reward, I realized what I needed to prioritize most on the battlefield.

Resource management.

The smaller the base gold reward, the more carefully I needed to spend it.

During the brief maintenance window after combat, I checked the shop first.

《LV.3 Shop》

Flame Swordsman (★) – 2G

Druid (★) – 1G

Mage (★) – 1G

‘A 2-Cost champion…’

From level 3 onward, there was a chance for 2-Cost champions to appear in the shop.

Champion synergies were divided into Class synergy and Lineage synergy, and starting from 2-Cost champions, they could possess Lineage synergy.

Class synergy represented a champion’s profession—shieldbearer, archer, druid, mage, and so on.

Lineage synergy represented specialized attributes—fire, ice, darkness, light, and the like.

The core of the battlefield was constructing a deck from the champions available in the shop to activate as many synergies as possible.

But there were no champions among my options.

【-4G】

▶ Spent 4 gold to purchase 4XP!

*Gold held: 0G

【+4XP】

▶ Reached level 4. You can now deploy an additional champion!

Experience points came at a fixed 2XP per round, and you could also purchase 4XP for 4 gold.

Choosing whether to spend gold on leveling up or hiring champions was a critical decision.

“Kahaha, pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine.”

The newly deployed archer Peiri and gunslinger Grace exchanged greetings on the battlefield.

Bow.

I too gave a slight nod, exchanging courtesies with my fellow combatants.

“Finally, some work.”

A smile formed at the corners of archer Peiri’s lips.

Since champions could only earn gold by participating in battlefields, no one enjoyed lingering in the waiting room.

Early-stage ranged champions were especially likely to survive, and the sooner they were deployed, the more opportunities they had to earn gold.

This practice was colloquially known as “Albakgi,” and gunslinger Klein seemed thoroughly pleased with the current situation as well, the corners of his mouth curling upward.

“Four of us right from the start—this player’s got gusto. I like it. Hahaha—”

The hearty laughter was quickly swallowed by the sound of bells.

Dong- dong- dong-!

“Combat’s starting. Get ready!”

“Heh, don’t you worry about me. Just focus on yourself!”

Both were veterans, and the moment battle commenced, all traces of levity vanished from their faces.

“Two champions up front. My target is the one on the right!”

“Mine too. Let’s focus fire!”

“Alright, let’s open with a bang!”

Bang-!

Whizz-

A bullet streaked through the air in an instant, followed closely by an arrow hot on its tail.

Their destination was the brawler champion positioned on the right side of the battlefield.

*Brawler (2): Maximum HP +100

Clang-!

“Tch—doesn’t seem like much damage.”

“Keep attacking! Our shieldbearers look like they can hold!”

Boom-!

The brawler, with synergy that boosted maximum health, against the shieldbearer, with synergy that reduced damage.

The fight between both sides was evenly matched.

Which meant the outcome of the battle hinged on the ranged champions.

After several exchanges.

“Alright! Mana’s full. Watch this!”

Klein, his mana brimming, unleashed his skill first.

Vwoomm-!

<<Arcane Attack>>

Uses mystical power to deal 50 magic damage to the target.

Boom-!

“It’s working!”

The enemy brawler champion staggered after taking the mana projectile that flew in a flash.

But at that moment, the brawler—who had been absorbing concentrated attacks—also activated his skill.

<<Triple Strike>>

Strikes the target three times in rapid succession, dealing basic attack damage and stunning the target for 1.5 seconds. The final strike is applied as a critical hit.

Whoosh- Whoosh- Kabaam-!

The shieldbearer collapsed as if briefly knocked unconscious from the powerful blows.

“Oof, that’s gotta hurt.”

After 1.5 seconds, he quickly regained his senses and resumed fighting.

“Let’s keep up the pressure for now!”

I couldn’t see their health bars, but one thing was certain: keep attacking, and eventually they’d die.

So we continued pressing the assault.

Clank- clank-!

“Got him! Took one down.”

Unable to withstand the relentless focused fire, the enemy brawler was the first to dissolve into light.

<<Solid Exoskeleton>>

Gain a shield that absorbs damage for 8 seconds. The shield absorbs damage equal to 40% of maximum health.

“Our side used a skill too! We can still hold.”

“Heh, shieldbearers are the foundation of any tank. Reliable as always.”

“Let’s keep pushing a little more.”

<<Rapid Fire>>

Attack speed increases by 50% for 6 seconds.

Clang- clang- clang-!

When archer Peiri activated his skill, the sound of bowstrings releasing grew noticeably more frequent.

A one-sided 2-versus-4 battle.

Defeat was all but certain. Yet the enemy brawler, as if refusing to lose, began his final desperate struggle.

<<Stomp>>

Stomps the ground forcefully, dealing 60 physical damage to nearby enemies.

Boom-!

“Gah—!”

In the end, a shieldbearer who couldn’t withstand the skill’s damage dissolved into light, and simultaneously, the brawler who unleashed the skill also scattered into the battlefield’s light.

“No enemies within attack range!”

“Hurry, move forward!”

Only one of the enemy’s ranged champions remained.

To close within effective range, the elf archer and gunslinger quickened their pace.

“Target acquired. Let’s begin the assault.”

Bang-!

“I see them too. Opening fire.”

“Yeah! We’ve got this battle in the bag. Shame about the shieldbearer who fell, though.”

The champions, certain of their victory.

This battle was a decisive triumph for our side.

The enemy ranged champion resisted with a skill, but it merely grazed the shield, failing to deal any meaningful damage.

“Heh, already earned 2 gold. If only every day could be like this.”

“As long as we don’t get dismissed, I’m happy. Will you keep hiring us?”

“Well, I should be satisfied with what I can get. Greed from a 1-Cost is unbecoming.”

With the archer and gunslinger’s casual banter, this round concluded in victory as well.

【+4G】

▶ Base reward of 4 gold has been granted.

【+1G】

▶ 2-win streak bonus of 1 gold has been granted.

* Gold held: 5G

‘Good. Smooth sailing.’

The enemy had included a 2-Cost brawler champion.

Fortunately, their champion’s skill was the polar opposite of shieldbearers, which allowed us to mitigate damage.

Triple Strike, which dealt three rapid blows, had each attack calculated separately, reducing damage by 30 per hit.

Of course, shieldbearer Johan had still died from the accumulated damage.

‘Couldn’t be helped.’

With a 2-Cost champion on the enemy side, it was an unavoidable sacrifice.

I called the fallen Johan back to the battlefield.

There were two circumstances in which health decreased on the battlefield.

Losing a battle.

And reviving a fallen champion.

【-1 HP】

▶ Used the Crystal Orb’s mana to re-hire shieldbearer Johan.

* Remaining health: 99HP

“You would re-hire me… I shall fight with every fiber of my being!”

Re-hiring a champion without any skills was highly unusual. Shieldbearer Johan offered his gratitude to the empty air.

This meant that even in victory, reviving a fallen champion required sacrificing health.

There was also the option of not reviving a dead champion and reclaiming the gold instead. But doing so would delay the completion of the deck.

Either way, when a champion died, whether you won or lost, there was always a cost.

Ultimately, it was best to win every battle without losing any allied champions.

This was the biggest difference between the battlefield and the game, so it demanded careful attention.

I immediately checked the shop to prepare for the next battle.

《LV.4 Shop》

Tree Druid (★) – 2G

Noble Archer (★) – 2G

Brawler (★) – 1G

A level 4 shop—one level higher than the others.

Thanks to that, the shop’s roster featured two 2-Cost champions.

First, I spent 4 gold to hire two champions.

【-2G】

▶ Hired Noble Archer (★).

【-2G】

▶ Hired Tree Druid (★).

*Gold held: 1G

Seira (★)

– Noble

– Archer

– Health: 160/160

– Mana: 10/80

– Piercing Arrow (★): Fires a piercing arrow at the farthest enemy. Deals 70 physical damage to all enemies in its path.

Fioren (★)

– Tree

– Druid

– Health: 230/230

– Mana: 20/120

– Skill: Parasitic Vine (★)

Summons vines on the enemy with the highest current health, dealing continuous magic damage and healing the user for the amount of damage dealt.

Then, I sent gunslinger Klein to the champion waiting room.

“Well, it’s a shame, but it can’t be helped.”

Having lost his position, Klein let out a regretful sigh.

“Hmm… not even going to show your face?”

I placed the newly hired Noble Archer, Seira, in the spot Klein had occupied.

Since I had issued orders through messages, the haughty Seira expressed her displeasure, but it was unavoidable if I wanted to conceal my identity.

Deploying Seira activated a new archer synergy.

<Active Synergies>

– Shieldbearer (2): Damage taken by shieldbearers from all attacks is reduced by 10.

– Archer (2): Gains 10% additional attack speed for each tile between the archer and the target.

Efficiently filled synergies.

Thanks to the busy maneuvering, the early build-up came together cleanly.

‘Another decisive victory.’

The player I faced in the next round had deployed only three champions on the battlefield.

It seemed they had chosen to hoard gold rather than level up quickly.

1 gold per 10 gold. Up to 5 gold per round.

It was a choice aimed at the late game to earn what was called interest—additional gold.

Thanks to that, I secured an easy victory in the ensuing battle as well.

【+4G】

▶ Base reward of 4 gold has been granted.

【+1G】

▶ 3-win streak bonus of 1 gold has been granted.

* Gold held: 6G

In the next round, everyone would reach level 4, so the battle could prove more challenging depending on force composition.

‘Time to clean up.’

Players could dismiss champions during the battle preparation phase.

In this case, the gold used to hire them would be refunded in full.

Selling and buying champions at the right time as you assembled your deck was a measure of a player’s skill.

【+2G】

▶ Dismissed Tree Druid Fioren.

Then I invested all remaining gold into experience.

【-8G】

▶ Spent 8 gold to purchase 8XP!

【+8XP】

▶ Reached level 5. You can now deploy an additional champion!

*Gold held: 0G

A swiftly achieved level 5.

Spending all your gold early to level up quickly like this was referred to as “pushing tempo.”

As long as other players didn’t match the tempo, you could win most of your battles. It was a strategy of supplying gold through early win streaks instead of interest.

Of course, if the streak was broken midway, the blow would be devastating.

‘They won’t be able to keep up with the tempo. Not in unranked.’