[Random Champion Matching has been activated.]

Of course, it wouldn’t match me immediately.

I had experienced waiting anywhere from a few hours to a whole week for a match before.

In the meantime, I checked the equipment purchase list on my Device.

The gold I currently possessed was a mere 5 gold.

I didn’t expect there would be any equipment I could buy with this amount.

Still, I could at least do some window shopping.

Among them, the equipment that caught my eye the most was a helmet.

I needed something that could conceal my face.

The cheapest option that suited a shieldbearer while hiding even a fraction of my face was…

‘Is this it?’

─────

Name: Steel Visor

Category: Helmet

Grade: Bronze

Performance: Defense +2, Critical Resistance +2

Price: 35G

─────

It was better than the basic equipment with no stats, but I wasn’t sure if it was worth spending 35 gold on.

The pinnacle of inefficiency.

But for me right now, it was the only means of upgrading my specs.

Until I took the Mana Booster, my body was incapable of undergoing Body Enhancement.

‘Can I earn 30 gold in three days?’

For now, I set a goal to buy the Steel Visor before the private battlefield in the northern region began.

The odds of failure were high, of course.

Finding a player who would continuously hire a 1-Cost Shieldbearer like me was difficult.

Still, I had a certain degree of confidence.

Confidence in my ability to persuade a player.

Had it been about an hour since I applied for a match?

The opportunity came faster than expected.

<Dimensional Battlefield Bronze – 003156 has summoned Mr. Shin. You will be moved in 10 seconds. Please prepare.>

The battlefield called me.

A familiar yet thrilling emotion.

It had been a while since I participated in a battlefield as a champion.

Flash-!

As the announced time passed, the Device on my wrist emitted a bright light.

Only after the light subsided could I look around.

A space all too familiar. It was the champion waiting room.

Clank-!

The door in front of me opened.

Bright light seeped through the cracks of the door.

I followed the long trail of light stretching to the entrance, my steps feeling unusually light today.

‘Is it because of the Body Enhancement?’

Having undergone maximum health increase five times, my maximum health had risen to 225.

Perhaps because of that, the heavy scrap iron armor and shield no longer felt cumbersome.

Stepping outside, I saw the grid-patterned battlefield and the champions already deployed.

Seeing only two champions, it seemed they had just finished the monster hunting round.

The player was frowning, seemingly pondering something while looking at his Device.

Did he not notice me approaching?

“Greetings.”

When I offered the first greeting, he startled and looked at me.

A boy who hadn’t quite shed his youthful air.

His attire was quite luxurious; he looked like a typical wealthy family’s young master.

A kid like this couldn’t possibly be a former champion, so he must have purchased his player qualification with gold.

From my perspective, he wasn’t the ideal player.

Because a former champion player understood a Champion’s heart best.

Clack-

“Um, please go to the very front.”

The boy immediately designated my position.

Fortunately, it seemed I could participate in the battlefield immediately upon being hired.

Since it appeared to be Round 2-1 just starting, I could potentially stay in the battlefield for a while if luck was on my side.

Of course, whether my employer would keep using a shieldbearer was uncertain.

Clank-

Unlike before, where I passively participated in battlefields, this time I planned to take a proactive stance.

I needed to win the Player’s heart to be granted more opportunities.

Naturally, this was only possible if I had confidence in my abilities.

Before moving to my designated position, I spoke with confidence.

“If you trust me, I will repay you with victory in combat.”

“Ah, yes. Do your best.”

Champions had diverse personalities, and among them were many who overflowed with enthusiasm.

Perhaps thinking I was one of them, the boy Player’s reaction was indifferent.

Long words weren’t necessary in the first place.

He would feel it once he saw me in action.

‘My body is light.’

Was it because I had increased my maximum health five times?

I felt as though I had shed sandbags tied to my limbs.

Right now, I felt like I could turn previously impossible movements into reality.

“Good luck out there.”

On the way to the battlefield, two ranged champions offered words of encouragement.

Only if I, the vanguard, held the line could they remain safe.

Those words meant I had to face three champions.

Phew-

I took a deep breath and exhaled.

Dong- dong- dong-!

The battlefield bell rang, and the walls crumbled.

‘Two Swordsmen and one Gunslinger.’

The Swordsman synergy possessed formidable attack power.

But with high attack power came the weakness of low health and defense.

Two Swordsman champions swung their blades at me.

Simultaneously, the sound of gunfire rang out, and a lead bullet pierced through the air, flying toward me like an arrow.

My dynamic vision allowed me to track every attack trajectory with my eyes.

Vroom-!

I swung my shield horizontally, drawing a thick line.

A single line capable of intercepting all three trajectories.

Taeng- Taeng-!

Tap-

The blades were deflected off the shield, and the lead bullet left a deep mark on it before falling lifelessly to the ground.

Perfect defense.

Even so, my health must have decreased. Still, thanks to enhancing my maximum health five times, I still had plenty of room to spare.

Now it was my turn.

Vroom-!

I swung the shield following my instincts.

The enemy tried to block the attack with a resolute expression, but the shield somehow reached its target.

Boom-!

“Keuheok-!”

The shield moved as if it were alive.

Clang-!

Boom-!

Block and strike.

Could there be another champion who could execute this simple battlefield rule so perfectly?

Of course, my health continued to deplete during the process.

Health hitting rock bottom.

But taking attacks meant my mana also filled up rapidly.

<<Solid Exoskeleton (★)>>

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

Since my maximum health had increased to 225, the shield value also increased to 90.

A total health pool of 315.

Three champions had their limits in whittling this down, and ultimately, I survived to end the battle in victory.

“Impressive…”

The ranged champions supporting me from behind sent looks of awe my way.

A 1-Cost Champion who fought this well didn’t exist even in their memories.

The one who showed an even more passionate reaction was the boy player who had summoned me.

“Wow- You fight incredibly well.”

Furthermore, the boy promised to run a Shieldbearer-centric deck during the build-up phase for me.

Since the Item combination formula the boy possessed didn’t suit a shieldbearer, we wouldn’t be able to stick together until the late stages of the battlefield.

Hearing that, I did some calculations in my head.

‘I’ll probably only earn about 10 gold at most.’

It wasn’t a small amount of gold, but perhaps because my standards had risen recently, something felt lacking.

To earn a large amount of gold, champion enhancement was essential.

Once a champion underwent enhancement, the base gold per round increased to 3 gold.

Until then, no matter how well I performed, I could only earn 1 gold per round, and given the limitations of being a 1-Cost Champion, my prime wouldn’t last long.

I had displayed an overwhelming performance in the previous battle, but truthfully, that was only possible because it was an early round.

Once the Item combination formula was completed and synergies gradually activated, there would be a limit to how much I could achieve alone.

Looking at myself objectively now, I was a champion who could be of great help during the build-up phase but would struggle to take the main role.

I hadn’t escaped the fundamental limitation of being a 1-Cost Champion.

***

Boom-!

‘I died again.’

Entering the mid-phase of the battlefield, the damage piercing through my defenses exceeded the limit.

On my first and second deaths, the boy player rehired me.

But on my third death, there was no news.

Ultimately, the place I opened my eyes to after leaving the battlefield was a soft bed.

By this time, I had already participated in 10 battlefields.

Buying and selling champions during the deck-building process was a natural occurrence.

There was no need to feel disappointed.

‘Is my body the same?’

Returning from the battlefield, I tried using Solid Exoskeleton just in case, but as expected.

Along with a throbbing pain, the skill did not activate.

‘Is the Mana Booster the only answer?’

“Huu-“

I let out a deep sigh to forget the pain I experienced in the battlefield.

Still, my situation wasn’t too bad.

I had simply died because my health was depleted; I didn’t feel excruciating pain.

Thanks to that, I could shake off the aftermath quickly.

Clench.

‘This isn’t enough.’

Merely participating in battlefields as a champion couldn’t earn me enough gold.

I had only undergone Body Enhancement five times, yet the gold required for the next enhancement was a whopping 35 gold.

It was almost time.

The 100+ rating private battlefield to be held in the Western Region of Trivik.

Once I obtained the Bramble Armor offered as a reward there, I could execute my plan.

To do that, I would need to take first place in the northern region’s private battlefield.

I applied for a match once more, waiting with steely resolve.

***

Three days passed.

During that time, I participated in two battlefields and managed to earn a total of 46 gold.

Thankfully, a player enhanced my champion, allowing me to earn more gold than expected.

Rustle-

I packed my backpack, which contained my robe and mask.

Today was the day the private battlefield I had planned for was being held.

Before that, I should drop by the settlement Office to convert my gold.

Unsettled gold couldn’t be used.

Chatter- chatter-

Stepping outside, the streets were bustling with people.

Most of them had well-trained bodies; it seemed many champions had come after hearing rumors about the ruins.

This was the most densely populated place in Solar, the 3rd Plains.

I had arrived here yesterday.

Because the location of the private battlefield was within the 3rd Plains.

With so many people, the city’s infrastructure was well-maintained, making it easy to find my destination.

Jingle- jingle-!

The settlement Office in Solar was quite different from the ones I had encountered so far.

There was no staff to greet me.

And people were standing in line in an orderly manner.

At the front of the line sat a machine; people extended their wrists in front of it, and when their Devices touched it, a beeping sound rang out, completing the settlement.

An automated system.

I watched the scene with curious eyes, like a monkey discovering fire for the first time.

Having only lived in underdeveloped cities, I had no idea the world had advanced this much.

My ignorance aside, Magic Engineering was continually developing and being applied to society even now.

As I was marveling at the settlement machine…

A voice full of irritation came from behind me.

“If you’re not going to line up, move.”

Tap-!

Someone shoved my back.

It seemed my lingering at the entrance had annoyed them.

The person who shoved me walked past, shooting me a look that asked what I was going to do about it.

Dark circles sagged under his eyes, and his face looked full of exhaustion, as if he had just returned from the battlefield.

Those who suffered from battlefield Aftermath were bound to be sensitive.

There was no need to get into a confrontation, so I moved to the adjacent line and began waiting for my turn.

Ding-!

[Current Gold: 51G]

The settlement was incredibly simple.

Just holding up my Device automatically calculated and deposited the gold.

It was a truly convenient system, different from the shieldbearer Guild or the settlement Office in Yukantar.

It guaranteed personal privacy and eliminated the need to waste unnecessary manpower, making it nothing short of revolutionary.

‘To me, it holds even greater value than that.’

My biggest concern right now was that if I earned too much gold, people might start finding it suspicious.

Once or twice might be fine, but continuously acquiring large amounts of gold was clearly abnormal.

Yet I couldn’t exactly control how much gold I earned.

With an unmanned settlement machine like this, all those worries would be resolved.

‘There should be settlement machines in the Western Region too, right?’

Of course there would be.

The northern region was more developed than the eastern region, and the Western Region was more developed than the northern region.