At Han Seongdae’s words, the blue-team members hesitated and lowered their weapons.

“Kang Seongbin? The son of Rank 7 Kang Hocheol?”

“Fuck, that was a close call…”

Kang Seongbin. He was famous among players.

The child of the Rank 7, a prodigy who’d walked the elite track since childhood.

And he had a reputation for being arrogantly violent and utterly reckless.

For an S-Rank player like that to suddenly show up…

From the blue team’s perspective, it was anything but welcome.

Kang Seongbin ignored Han Seongdae’s offered handshake, hoisting a greatsword onto his shoulder.

Then he fixed his gaze on the altar at the center of the hall, his face turning cold.

“Hand this place over to me and get lost. Go in as you are and you’ll be wiped out.”

‘Wiped out?’

Jo Seunghyun looked at Kang Seongbin, his brow furrowing.

Jo Seunghyun knew Kang Seongbin well too. Wasn’t this the bastard who’d fought against hyung-nim in the Tutorial Tournament?

But showing up out of nowhere, spouting crap about a wipe-out, and telling them to hand over the monsters—it wasn’t sitting right with him at all.

“Mind the order. We got here first. If you really want this Quest, you can try after we fail.”

Jo Seunghyun suppressed his irritation, trying to reason with Kang Seongbin.

If we fail? That wouldn’t happen, but with odds like his, he’d probably wait without a word.

‘…’

Kang Seongbin stared back with a cold, settled expression, boring holes through Jo Seunghyun.

‘Figures words wouldn’t work.’

He’d stepped forward only to save time.

But sure enough, talking didn’t get through.

Anyway, in a short while his turn would come.

Without another word, Kang Seongbin sat down against the cave wall.

“Thank you.”

Seeing that, Jo Seunghyun dipped his head in a curt bow.

And so the Blue Team stepped into the vast hall.

Jo Seunghyun led from the front.

Thud—

He swallowed dryly, advancing one deliberate step at a time.

Traps that even Bae Heena’s Detection couldn’t find.

Thud—

This very movement might trigger a trap.

Thud—

But Jo Seunghyun didn’t stop.

Each footfall brought a chill that crawled up his spine.

Thud—

He kept going.

Thus the breathless minutes crawled by.

“What? Nothing’s here.”

The Blue Team reached the altar far too easily.

Up close, details invisible from afar came into focus.

Worn black tiles. A brilliant magic circle atop the altar. At its center, a sinister hand jutted upward.

In its grip, a foreign darkness.

The cave’s treasure.

“Guess I worried for nothing.”

“What? Annihilation? Cut the bull—you think you can just freeload? Grab it already!”

Glee flickered across the team’s faces.

An epic march of over seven hours. The final trial lay before them.

Jo Seunghyun said nothing to his teammates. He stepped up onto the altar.

The foreign darkness clutched in a withered hand. It took the shape of a mask.

‘Almost there!’

His face set with resolve, Jo Seunghyun reached out.

Thump— thump—

—If you grab it like that, you’ll all die.

At that moment, Kang Seongbin’s warning echoed in his ears.

Thump— thump—

But Jo Seunghyun didn’t stop.

A mere ten centimeters remained. One more gesture and it would all be over.

Or so he thought.

But then—

Snatch—!!

The withered hand seized his arm.

“Aaahk!!”

Jo Seunghyun screamed in shock.

Thump— thump—

His heart lurched.

He collapsed onto the floor, staring straight ahead.

Ding-

[The guardian deity of Keibarnto, Bato, has appeared!!!]

A single system window rose before him.

Crack—

Something began rising from beneath the altar.

Parched skin. Leather stretched over bones and nothing else.

Even the mummy’s eyes were dried hollow—empty sockets staring at nothing.

“Guardian?”‘

Jo Seunghyun stared at the guardian deity Bato with a dazed expression. Bato bent down and picked up Keibarnto’s treasure off the floor.

A mask carrying alien darkness. The moment Bato put it on—

CRACK!!!!

Veins bulged across his desiccated frame. Muscles swelled until they seemed ready to burst.

“URGHHHH!!!!”

Bato’s roar filled the vast hall.

“What the fuck is that!?”

“Everyone take your positions!!!!”

The Blue Team started their raid against the guardian Bato.

***

“Hahh… hahh…”

Jo Seunghyun collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath.

“Agh!!!!”

“S-save me!!!!”

Screams and pained groans echoed coldly through the air.

THUD!!!!

An eerie impact hammered the ground.

‘No way…’

Seunghyun forced himself upright and stared straight ahead.

The guardian Bato, wearing a horrifying black mask.

He had a massive, muscular body. He dropped into a mount position and drove his fist toward a man.

Without fail, the fist came down—THUD!!!! An explosion of force slammed into the earth.

“What do we do…”

Seunghyun clutched his abdomen, where a terrible pain spread, and barely managed to stand.

FWOOSH—THUD!!!!!!

In that brief moment, the Boss’s strike smashed into a man’s skull.

CRUNCH!!!!

Horrific blood burst from the stricken man’s head.

FWOOSH—THUD!!!

FWOOSH—THUD!!!

The Boss beat the man with brutal relentlessness. But the man still wasn’t dead.

Just how high was his Defense to withstand that kind of punishment? His tanking was top-tier.

But there was a problem.

“Fuck!! Run!”

“At least open your Inventory…”

The party members had already lost their will to fight.

“Stop it!!! Everyone snap out of it!!!!”

But one Player hadn’t given up yet.

Her name was Bae Heena.

Heena forced herself upright, grabbed her bow, and aimed at the Boss.

TWANG!! The arrow flew.

FWOOSH—it tore through the air, then CLANG!!! The moment it struck the Boss’s shoulder—

CRUNCH!!

“Kyaah!”

Instead, Heena grabbed her own shoulder and screamed.

“N-no. Someone help me…”

Heena sank to the floor with a dazed look, sobbing.

The man being attacked by the Boss was the person Heena followed and respected: Han Seongdae.

“U-ugh!!!”

Players screamed and fled.

“S-save me…”

Players writhed in pain, bleeding on the ground.

The Blue Team was one step away from total annihilation.

‘Impressive.’

But there were no casualties.

All because Han Seongdae had held the boss’s Aggro from start to finish. The boss never looked away from him.

Jo Seunghyun had no idea what skill Seongdae used, but the man gave everything he had as a Tank.

‘Damn it!’

That was exactly why Jo Seunghyun was seething.

‘If only I’d been a little stronger…’

Guardian Bato. Thanks to Seongdae drawing Aggro, Seunghyun had plenty of chances to strike.

But the moment his blade—

Sank into Guardian Bato,

Ding-

[Guardian Bato reflects Damage.]

The flesh of Seunghyun’s abdomen peeled away.

A boss that reflected attacks.

The party members, unaware, had poured their full power into their strikes. And this was the result.

“Haaah… haaah…”

Jo Seunghyun forced air through his lungs and staggered forward.

A man’s words suddenly clawed through his skull.

-Leave this to me and get out. If you go in as you are, it’s a wipe.

Kang Seongbin’s advice before the fight.

The moment Seunghyun heard it, he thought,

‘That smug bastard needs to rein it in.’

Kang Seongbin — an S-Rank Player. Objectively, he was excellent.

The power he’d shown fighting Ha Gangwoo was damn near monstrous.

But Seunghyun had written it off as arrogance.

*Leave it to me and get lost.*

Twenty-five players in the Clear party. And every one of them above average. Jo Seunghyun had been certain.

‘No way we can’t clear this.’

But it was he who had been arrogant.

‘My fault.’

Jo Seunghyun berated himself.

The failed attempt was his fault — the leader’s lack of competence. He wanted to make it right somehow.

Clutching his throbbing abdomen, Jo Seunghyun looked toward the cave entrance.

Kang Seongbin stood there, arms crossed lazily, watching. His expression carried no change — as if he’d already known this would happen.

‘How damn good does he think he is.’

Jo Seunghyun ground his teeth, staring at Kang Seongbin.

How good did you have to be to carry that kind of calm?

Rage swelled up his throat.

‘How much more do I have to fucking earn?!’

Over ten years. He’d lived and struggled for this day. And now this was the end?

Seunghyun’s eyes went cold.

‘Use it.’

Bracing himself for death, Jo Seunghyun lowered his sword.

*Clang!* The blade struck the cold floor and fell — at that instant—

Ding-

[You have used Freezing Crystallization.]

*Crack-crunch-*

A wave of brutal cold radiated from around Jo Seunghyun.

*Crunch-* The air itself froze.

“Haaah… haaah…”

Each breath he let out froze the atmosphere solid.

‘If only I’d had the Inventory.’

Seunghyun grimaced as he felt his body temperature plummet.

Just one step — but *crunch-* every muscle in his body screamed.

Ding-

[You have suffered Frostbite.]

[You have taken 450 HP of Damage.]

And so, Jo Seunghyun walked toward Guardian Bato.

Hwoong—THUD!!! CRACK!

Hwoong—THUD!!!

Guardian Bato was still hammering Han Seongdae.

CRACK!!!

With each blow, fresh red blood began spreading across the black floor.

Han Seongdae had reached his limit now.

Jo Seunghyun stood behind Guardian Bato and reached out.

Hwoong—THWACK!!!

But Guardian Bato swung his fist as if Seunghyun didn’t even exist.

Whether it was Seongdae’s taunt skill working or the Guardian simply ignoring him, Seunghyun found the dismissal infuriating.

“Hahk… hahk…”

Gasping for breath, Seunghyun tapped Bato’s shoulder with an ice-cold palm. Tap.

The moment he did—CRRRRRACK!!!!!—frigid ice crystals began spreading from Bato’s shoulder joint.

-KYAAAAAH!!!!!!

Bato let out a scream of agony.

Ding—

[Bato reflects the Damage.]

This time too, Guardian Bato reflected the attack, but—

“Hahk…”

Seunghyun’s expression didn’t even flicker.

Cold mist already encased his entire body. Even reflected, the frost was the same—it didn’t matter.

-Grrrrrrr

Guardian Bato grabbed his frozen shoulder, eyes flashing.

‘Now you see me.’

The attack had landed properly; the Guardian’s Aggro shifted to Seunghyun.

A body packed with muscle, a dark mask rippling eerily across his face.

-KYAAAAH!!!!

Guardian Bato roared and charged—THUD!—straight at Seunghyun.

A speed that made Seunghyun think he’d vanished for an instant.

‘Fast!’

Bato easily outstripped Seunghyun’s Agility Stat.

But Seunghyun didn’t panic.

Hwoong—

Bato’s fist drove toward Seunghyun’s abdomen.

THWACK!!!!

A crushing blow detonated into Seunghyun’s stomach.

CRRRRRACK!!!!

“Ngh!!!”

For a moment, Seunghyun’s spine bent at an unnatural angle. But—

Ding—

[Freezing Crystallization absorbs the impact.]

The layer of frost covering his whole body absorbed the blow.

-KYAAAAH!!!

Instead, it was Bato who grabbed his own hand, howling in pain.

Freezing Crystallization.

A skill that ground down even its caster—and that was exactly why it had such a broken Trait.

Ding!

[HP is below 20%.]

[You have contracted Frostbite.]

[You have taken 450 HP of Damage.]

Seunghyun clung desperately to his fading consciousness.

“Hahk… hahk…”

His breathing came ragged. Every exhale felt like his lungs were freezing solid, a pain that clawed at his chest.

‘No time!’

Seunghyun was certain. Less than thirty seconds left. So he made his call fast.

‘End it!’

“KYAAAA!!!!”

Seunghyun sprinted at Guardian Bato with everything he had.

Crunch.

The ground beneath his feet froze solid.

And then he was within arm’s reach of Guardian Bato.

“Kuaaaaah!!!”

Bato screamed as he swung his fist, *Hwoong-*.

*Thwack!!* A colossal impact slammed into his temple.

For an instant, a *Ting-* shock severed his consciousness, but—*Grab!* Jo Seunghyun wrapped his arms around Bato.

“Die!!!”

*Ding-*

[The effect of Freezing Crystallization is amplified.]

*Crackle-*

Jo Seunghyun squeezed out the last of his Mana.

A chill that would destroy even his own flesh erupted, *Crack!!!* freezing the surrounding terrain solid.

“Kuaaaaah!!!”

Bato cried out in agony.

*Crackle!*

Starting from his abdomen, then his shoulders, legs, and finally his head.

That was how the Guardian Bato froze.

After that desperate thrashing ended, only the cold frost remained, *Hwoong-*.

“Haaah… Haaah…”

*Ding-*

[Freezing Crystallization has been released.]

Jo Seunghyun gasped for breath and slumped onto the icy floor with a *thud*.

*Crackle-*

Though the Freezing Crystallization was over, the ground beneath him continued to freeze solid.

[You have been afflicted with Frostbite.]

[You have taken 250 HP of damage.]

[HP is below 13%.]

Jo Seunghyun stared at his trembling hands.

Over 50% of his body was already crystallized.

‘That was close.’

But thankfully, the lingering chill on his body gradually receded.

Jo Seunghyun clenched his fists and smiled in triumph.

“I did it!!!”

To take down a boss that had seemed impossible all by himself—as expected, the System didn’t betray hard work.

Jo Seunghyun couldn’t hide his joy, overwhelmed by a sense of achievement.

But that joy was short-lived.

*Crack! Crackle! Thud-thud-*

“Huh?!”

Cracks began to form in the frozen boss’s crystal.

*Bang!!!*

Along with a violent shock.

“Kuaaaaah!!!”

The Guardian Bato let out a roar of fury.

Jo Seunghyun rolled across the ice from the impact and barely lifted his upper body.

“No… no way…”

Jo Seunghyun lay on the ground in despair, watching the boss approach.

*Thud!!!*

With each step Bato took, fear crept up his spine.

*Thud!!!*

*Grrrrr-*

Before he knew it, the Guardian Bato was right in front of him.

The massive figure looked down coldly at Jo Seunghyun, who was slumped on the ground.

And then, Jo Seunghyun sensed his death.

‘What is this…’

It was so hollow. What had he even tried so hard for?

—I wish you were even half as good as your brother.

For a moment, a past remark from his father flashed through his mind.

—Don’t do anything from now on.

At fifteen, he was abandoned by his father.

And then he realized.

‘It’s unfair.’

The world was unfair—there were walls that no amount of effort could ever reach.

That was when Jo Seunghyun tried to give up on everything. But a defiant streak flared up.

‘Then I just have to win, don’t I?’

Jo Seunghyun’s older brother was a genius.

A talent that surpassed even their father.

And that always made Seunghyun feel small.

But from that day on, a single goal took root in his heart.

‘I’ll win!’

He’d surpass his brother no matter what. And earn his father’s recognition.

That was his reason for living, his purpose.

But even that challenge ended today.

“Moving like a damn cripple.”

Whum—a colossal fist screamed toward Seunghyun’s skull.

Seunghyun fixed it in his pupils, the light in his eyes dying.

His heart had given up on life too.

-This round’s leader is Jo Seunghyun.

That was when it happened.

A man’s face flashed through Seunghyun’s mind.

Their first meeting.

A man was being treated unfairly, and Seunghyun couldn’t look away.

That injustice, that helplessness—he knew it too well. So he stepped in.

But the result was,

-Are you alright?

He ended up being the one helped by that man instead.

The man gave him a Potion and asked if he was okay.

‘Cool…’

Back then, he’d thought it was just pure coolness. As a Player, overwhelming strength was something to admire.

But then—shiiing—the moment that man defeated Antero.

The final match of the tournament, the instant he crushed that chilling demon. Seunghyun broke free.

“I want to be like that too!”

Freed from the obsession to beat his brother, he wanted to become that kind of cool Player himself.

In that instant, a spark reignited in Seunghyun’s eyes.

‘I want to live!’

There was still so much he wanted to do.

Whum—BOOM!!!!

Seunghyun twisted his head at the last second, barely dodging the Boss’s strike.

The Boss’s fist pounded into the floor.

“Ugh!!”

The shockwave sent Seunghyun tumbling across the ground.

Thump—thump—

‘I have to survive!’

He couldn’t give up. Not after coming this far.

Seunghyun tried to move his frozen body, but his muscles, shredded by the cold, wouldn’t obey.

—Kuuuaaaah!!!!

The Boss let out a pained roar.

Aggro fully locked. It wouldn’t stop until he was dead.

His body wouldn’t move. That left only one way to live!

Seunghyun filled his lungs with air, then bellowed it out.

“Blue Team is abandoning the Dungeon!!!!!”

The moment those words left his mouth.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The Boss charged at him, a horrifying sight.

Whum—it swung its massive fist with a sickening arc, and just as Seunghyun’s head was about to be crushed under it—

SLAM!!!!!

A man blocked the Boss’s fist.

With a deadpan expression, the man spoke to Seunghyun.

“I don’t save just anyone for no reason.”

At that, Seunghyun couldn’t help but smirk.

Jo Seunghyun barely had the strength left in his voice, but he scraped together the last of it and spoke.

“I’ll do anything.”

At that, the man’s lips curled into a grin.

“Okay, deal.”

The moment the confirmation landed.

Thud.

Jo Seunghyun collapsed to the floor, consciousness slipping away.