Chapter 6

Chapter 6: [Knight Soul] No Way... A Hidden Route...? (2)

Trinex.

While the first boss monster of [Knight Soul] was letting out a scream filled with pain, Ju Seo-jin exhaled and steadied his breathing.

And at the same time, the chat window exploded. 

Reactions poured in, filled with the viewers’ shock and admiration as they went utterly wild.

-No.. what the fuck just happened? Wasn’t that Trinex’s instant-death pattern just now?????????

-I.. didn’t see that wrong, did I? That was.. the instant-death pattern that shows up when you enter the Trinex fight, right?; Fuck?

-Wasn’t that originally an instant-death pattern.. What the hell is this... Am I hallucinating right now???

-??? Isn’t Trinex’s instant-death pattern just a one-turn kill no matter who gets hit? How did this happen..??

Of course... the attack Trinex had just displayed was an instant-death pattern no one had ever broken through before. 

Blocking it was impossible.

Even veterans who had played [Knight Soul] for thousands of hours had no choice but to die helplessly before Trinex’s special move.

2%. 

The chance that Trinex would display the instant-death pattern at the very start of the tutorial. 

And... if that 2% chance was triggered, the chance that the gamer would survive was─── 0%. 

It was impossible to respond to.

An exceptional case?

There had been none.

More precisely......

‘Until now.’

-Fuck, wasn’t this an instant-death pattern?? If Trinex hit you with the instant-death pattern, you were just supposed to die;

-Trinex instant-death pattern <<< breaking through this was possible???????? What the hell is this?

-Wow hahahahahaha . He just parried an instant-death pattern?? What kind of person is he? For real??

-I saw that wrong, right? Fuck; how the hell do you parry an instant-death pattern, fuck!!!!

-This is bullshit, right??? A bug happened, right?? Something went wrong, right?? Right??

-Fuuuuuuck.. an all-time legendary incident just happeneeeeeeeeeeeeeed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ju Seo-jin.

Only he, as that one “exceptional case,” had succeeded in displaying an unprecedented play.

The Power of Foresight. 

Future Sight down to the second. 

Before the power that saw what lay ahead... Trinex’s special move could only end in futility.

CLANK───.

With his Longsword hanging loosely downward, Ju Seo-jin lowered his gaze and loaded the hologram window.

[Sword of Inheritance : Old Longsword]

Sword of Inheritance. 

A Longsword passed down from an unknown knight in the distant past. 

It is a weapon handed down from generation to generation among the knight’s descendants, but whether it was truly inherited from a “knight” is unclear. 

Though it is somewhat old, its value as a weapon still remains intact.

━Durability: 3617/4500

━When Equipped: Additional Attack Power +10 / Total Attack Power +0.8%

‘...A Skeleton. Does this mean they’re on a different level from small fry? The equipment durability is dropping faster than I expected.’

Though Ju Seo-jin was not particularly fond of games, it was not as if he had no experience with them at all.

He, too, was in the process of getting a feel for the virtual reality game called [Knight Soul].

Because of that, Ju Seo-jin was able to pay attention to the durability of his starting equipment.

He had a sense for it.

‘...Four times. I only blocked Trinex’s attacks four times at most, but the equipment durability has already dropped by several hundred. This is dangerous.’

Judging by instinct, the Longsword’s equipment durability seemed to be consumed by roughly two to three hundred every time he exchanged a single bout with it.

He did not know how many exchanges he would have to go through in the decisive battle against Trinex, but there was no way it would be a small number.

In other words- it meant he had to fight the boss while not getting hit by Trinex even once, and while also paying attention to the Longsword’s equipment durability.

It was an utterly unreasonable condition.

‘Well... a Mission worth close to two million won is on the line...... I suppose I have to accept at least this much.’

However, that was only by the standards of an ordinary viewer. 

To Ju Seo-jin, it was not so. 

It was the opposite.

‘Earning money is not easy. If there is a high return where I can get nearly two million won at once... then naturally, a high risk like this comes with it.’

He had worked at a small to mid-sized company that would commonly be called a black company, earning 38 million won a year.

Excessive work. 

Days when he had to receive work orders without any personal leisure time, not only on weekdays but even on weekends. 

He had lived buried under work.

After working himself to the bone like that, he earned a little over 3.16 million won a month.

And yet. 

After paying taxes from that? 

In reality, the money that came into his hands was even less. 

It was dreadful.

That was why... he could hardly believe that he could earn close to two million won from a single Mission.

A total of 1,887,500 won. 

If he calculated his own share, would it be around 940,000 won? 

This was a chance to obtain that all at once.

He could not help but covet it.

A faint vitality, unlike him, lingered in Ju Seo-jin’s two eyes, and a feeling of desire flowed out from him.

‘I will do it.’

The Eyes That Saw Fate. 

A power said to be something no living person could possess, and must never possess.

It was a moment when he might even be able to free himself from that unwanted shackle.

Being afraid or hesitating. 

There was none of that calculating this and that. 

Rather, he was swift.

While activating the Eyes That Saw Fate to the maximum... he drew his state of mental awakening up by one more stage. 

The perception of his super-senses tore open even his sixth sense.

He focused to the very limit.

‘No matter what.’

And then......

WIIIIING.

His field of vision changed.

“Krggoooooooooooo───!”

At the same time.

BA-BAAANG─!

Trinex. 

The first boss monster was released from its staggered state and launched another barrage with a tearing sound through the air... 

Then the tentacles, which had increased to six, surged in from every direction.

CLANK-!

The next instant.

TAP───!!

Ju Seo-jin rushed forward.

***

Myangbangwool.

That is to say- Ju Seo-yoon had been standing there blankly ever since the tutorial began. 

How? 

Question after question trailed through her mind.

She, too, noticed it while watching the viewers’ chat. 

She noticed that all of this was strange. 

That this was a situation beyond all assumptions.

The current situation was one where Trinex’s instant-death pattern, which should normally have caused an immediate game over, had activated. 

It should have been impossible to survive.

And yet, that was not the case.

‘How... can this be happening...? Even if Oppa has talent for games... does this make any sense?’

“Nightmare” Mode. 

The highest difficulty Play Mode in [Knight Soul]. 

It was a mode that demanded top-class play.

Since even gamers who counted as veterans of [Knight Soul] had to grit their teeth to clear it, “Nightmare” Mode was full of elements that instantly killed gamers.

There were many impossible-to-overcome elements designed so that gamers of [Knight Soul] could never overcome them.

Trinex attacking in a way that was impossible to respond to at the very start of the tutorial was one of those gimmicks.

‘The instant-death pattern gimmick of Trinex, which only activates in [Knight Soul]’s “Nightmare” Mode... should be an instant-death move that no one has ever cleared...!’

Trinex. 

The first boss monster of [Knight Soul] was made so that it could never be conquered. 

It had been designed that way from the planning stage.

A boss monster meant to thoroughly toy with gamers and train them in [Knight Soul]’s combat system in an extremely unfriendly way. 

That was Trinex.

Except for “Daydream” Mode, the easiest difficulty in [Knight Soul], it was a Wailing Wall that had never been conquered in the tutorial. 

It was a symbol of despair.

He could not win.

SWISH─! BA-BAAANG─! SCREEEECH───!

And yet......

‘What... is that?’

Ju Seo-jin was showing a battle that seemed divinely inspired, as though he was easily overcoming all of it. 

He cut, parried, stabbed. 

And dodged.

If expressed superficially, it seemed like a simple sequence of movements, but in reality, that was not the case.

It was the opposite.

Ju Seo-jin was far too perfect.

BA-BAA...ANG! SLAAAAASH! CLANG- SCREEEEEECH─! SPLURT───!

Every time the crimson tentacles sprouting from Trinex, the corpse knight’s back, surged in from every direction, Ju Seo-jin avoided all of those attacks by a paper-thin margin, or else cut them down and parried them away.

One movement, then another. 

If each movement was separated and viewed on its own, one might say, “There’s nothing particularly special about it.” 

However, if that entire sequence of movements was linked together and unfolded in units of milliseconds, the story changed.

Movements that could not even be understood without watching them in slow motion unfolded continuously.

Astonishing techniques one might only see from a mixed martial artist or a top-class boxer. 

As those divinely inspired feats continued, the chat window exploded.

The viewers, swept up in excitement, typed all sorts of chats and cried out in admiration.

-Fuck... why does it sound like he’s tearing the air when he swings his sword.. The “Knight’s Descendant” character could move like that in the early game...?????

-Did he learn kendo or Western swordsmanship or something..? No.. even people like that just flail around in virtual reality games????

-Wow.. this is seriously art..? It looks like he’s dancing.. Is it for real that he still hasn’t been hit once..? This is actually insane..

-Like if you’re a dizzy Myang-viewer who thinks this is fucking insane but also can’t see what the hell is going on hahaha I’ll start hahaha

-Legendlegendlegend hahahahahaha

Most of the viewers were in a situation where they could neither see nor understand what Ju Seo-jin was doing to face Trinex.

Even so, among them, a small number of viewers were belatedly coming to a realization. 

Some of the viewers reflected on Ju Seo-jin’s technique and revealed their shock and excitement.

The more they understood what had happened, the more thrilling those supreme skills became.

-Wow.. fuck, did I see that properly just now?? He pretended to swing the sword, then suddenly twisted his body and cut off three tentacles in a row?? What the hell??

-Guys haha you know what? That person is controlling Trinex’s tentacle division pattern right now hahaha

-That’s true... Every time the tentacles divide, he throws in a feint and pretends to make a mistake to bait an attack, then cuts off all the tentacles that divide.. Trinex’s pattern is being controlled right now hahahaha

-Fuck... On a first encounter, he noticed Trinex’s tentacle division pattern and is controlling it? A total newbie? Does that make sense???????

-This is insane hahahahahaha

Trinex. 

Every attack from the corpse knight with crimson tentacles sprouting from it... was being completely broken through by Ju Seo-jin. 

Utterly perfectly. 

It sent shivers down the spine.

‘Genius... even that word is not enough. A monster? Isn’t it closer to something like that? I have never seen anything like that before.’

Ju Seo-yoon. 

Even she, who had grown up together with him since childhood, could not help but show astonishment at Ju Seo-jin’s movements. 

He did not seem human.

Since they were young, she had known that Ju Seo-jin had excellent motor nerves and also belonged among the intelligent, but this was a separate matter from that.

It felt bizarre.

‘Could he be... using that ability? No. That cannot be, can it...? I heard that, in the first place, it is not something he can use as he pleases...? What is going on?’

For a moment, such a thought did occur to her. 

She had wondered if Ju Seo-jin was displaying the Power of Foresight that he had tried so hard to stop from leaking out.

However, that, too, lasted only for a moment. 

It did not go on for long. 

That was because she knew that not long after Ju Seo-jin’s Eyes That Saw Fate activated, he had to pay a backlash, or a price.

Even inside a virtual reality game, if he had to pay the price of his ability, there was no way he would be able to fight so normally like that.

Even if that was possible, she could not be certain that the Eyes That Saw Fate was that extraordinary.

‘Still... if, really, even in a one-in-a-million case, using that ability makes something like that possible... then at least inside a virtual reality game, should I not call him a being beyond all standards...?’

However- despite that, if she assumed that Ju Seo-jin was using the Power of Foresight, and that he was not paying any aftereffects, price, or backlash whatsoever for it... there was only one conclusion.

‘Like a god.’

A superhuman.

He was a monster.

***

‘I see. So this ability... becomes like this when I use it with all my strength. I know how to operate it now. I am getting a feel for it.’

Amid the decisive battle against Trinex, Ju Seo-jin narrowed his eyes while raising all his senses to the maximum. 

Then he faintly smiled.

━Krggoooooooooooo───!

━Kihaoaaoaaaaaak─...!!

━Krgheeeeeeeeek-!

‘I can feel it.’

The Power of Foresight. 

Future Sight down to the second showed “what would happen next” based on “possibility of realization.” 

After reading each of those futures, it was not difficult to change it into the fate he wanted.

‘Changing fate begins with controlling the possibility of the future becoming reality... so I just have to eliminate the possible cases one by one and force the outcome.’

Delicately. 

One movement at a time, he adjusted every movement in every moment. 

In doing so, he controlled what would happen next.

With the Power of Foresight, he observed Trinex’s movements and selected and forced one of the branches of fate with a high possibility of realization.

Attack and defense alike. 

He did not allow anything to happen as it pleased. 

He intentionally induced its movements and drew them in the direction he wanted.

It was not particularly easy, but it was not difficult either.

‘When I activate the ability to the maximum, I can look ahead and move while seeing around three minutes into the future. From the moment I try to see fate any farther than that, it goes beyond the range of prediction.’

He had also gained a new realization.

Three minutes.

The limit of the range in which he could perfectly control and handle the Power of Foresight was around three minutes. 

The moment he went beyond that, he felt dizziness as though he was going to lose consciousness.

In other words, with the Power of Foresight, he could perceive everything that would happen over “three minutes” and control it perfectly, as though placing it on the palm of his hand.

───.

Before Trinex, the boss monster, movements like pale afterimages were unfolding. 

They were the fate and future with a high possibility of realization, as seen through the Power of Foresight.

Afterimages of fate. 

The somewhat pale movements gave off brighter clusters of light the higher their possibility of realization was.

Thanks to that, he did not mistake what was going to happen. 

If he simply kept watching, he could see and feel what would occur.

‘Mm. If I take one more step forward here, I might die. Rather than approaching carelessly, should I continue dragging this into a battle of attrition?’

‘As expected... if I want to avoid clashing the Longsword as much as possible, it seems better to deliberately show an opening. I can lure in the timing of its attacks and even the trajectory as I want.’

‘Aha... if I do not keep cutting off Trinex’s tentacles, their number increases as time passes. I need to eliminate that.’

Since he was moving while seeing the future with the Power of Foresight, perfection could only be added to his actions.

Mistakes? 

There could be no such thing. 

He chose only futures where he succeeded, and blocked futures where he failed in advance.

It was the strongest form of offbeat rock-paper-scissors. 

Because he saw the opponent’s move in advance and changed his own move accordingly, he could never be pushed back in a battle of wits.

The direction of the match was quickly decided.

SPLURT─! CRUUUNCH-! SHLII...ICE─!

“──────!!”

With each and every movement Ju Seo-jin made, at some point, Trinex’s crimson tentacles began to be cut away helplessly. 

It was exhausted.

Hoooo-

Ju Seo-jin, too, roughly steadied his breathing, then wore a fierce smile on his lips.

“Ah- as expected... it seems physical regeneration does not continue forever. What a relief.”

“───!! …! ……!!!”

“Shall I finish this?”

“━━━━━━!”

In that instant, as if screaming, Trinex twisted its entire body and trembled before extending its crimson tentacles all at once.

It was a sight of more than seven whips of flesh being swung as though they were its final blow. 

Before that, Ju Seo-jin leaned his body forward and charged straight at it.

Boldly.

BAAAANG───!

And then......

SPLURT-!

Trinex. 

The blade of the Longsword sank into the corpse knight’s neck... and a fountain of blood burst out. 

The battle had reached its conclusion.

“Kkeu... geu... keueu......?”

“End.”

“Kkeo... keo... heoeok......!!”

“Die.”

SLAAAAASH───!

The next instant.

THUD-.

Trinex. 

The corpse knight’s head separated from its body and fell backward. 

That meant only one thing.

〈 BOSS 〉

【 Sin of Wrath : Trinex 】

━[LEGENDARY VICTORY]

Golden letters. “LEGENDARY VICTORY.” 

It was a notification proving that Ju Seo-jin had won perfectly.

[ Ahh... to... you...... my gratitude... Please tell... my foolish king... that I am sorry... ]

CRUMBLE.

-???

-Uh...?

-Fuck, Trinex had death dialogue? I didn’t know this;;; Does it come out because this is a first-try clear?;

-Wow.. fuck.. he really.. really cleared this without getting hit once...? Um.. what exactly do you do for a living?;

-Not human Not human Not human Not human Not human Not human Not human

-??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

At the same time as the boss monster Trinex’s death was confirmed, a clear voice rang out from all directions. ...It was dialogue that came out after the boss battle ended.

《 Achievement Unlocked 》

*‘May the First Meeting Lead to Your Rest’

━Achievement Rate: ‘One and Only’

━Description: In “Nightmare” Mode, you succeeded in defeating “Trinex” when encountering them for the first time.

And...

DING-

[Mission]

━Objective: Defeat “Trinex,” the Tutorial Boss of [Knight Soul], without dying

└(※CLEAR!)

━Additional Objective: Defeat “Trinex,” the Tutorial Boss of [Knight Soul], without getting hit even once

└(※CLEAR!)

*Mission Funds: ‘1,125,000 won · {Settlement Complete}’

*Additional Mission Funds: ‘762,500 won · {Settlement Complete}’

“Mm... Since I won without getting hit even once, that means I cleared the Mission, right? Then I will be taking this. As promised.”

The chat window exploded.

-?

-Wow;

-No..

-Legendary money demon;

-Um.. excuse me... but are you insane..?

-Defeating Trinex on first encounter in Nightmare Mode in [Knight Soul] << Isn’t this a world first? Why the hell are you talking about the Mission;;;;;;;;;

-Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy.. Insane guy..

The next instant.

DING-

[ has donated ‘10,000 won.’]

━No.. That is not what matters, you insane money-obsessed bastard!!!!!!! You made it, you bastard!!!!!!!!!! This is a world-first clear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-Kya

-He is so right

-That was satisfying hahahaha

“?”

The viewers, united in heart and mind, warmly(?) spammed the chat with messages agreeing with the donation.