Chapter 101

Level Up IlDanSimPanGwan – Episode 101 (101/227)

Episode 101: The Best Defense (5)

KWAANG!

The swung hammer smashed through the wall in succession, creating a deafening roar.

Though aimed at Ail, it didn’t hit him.

“You rat bastard!”

Sledge’s rising anger caused him to wildly swing his hammer.

But Ail skillfully dodged and deflected the attacks, even landing counterattacks when opportunities arose.

While Sledge’s attacks repeatedly missed, Ail’s counters, though fewer, landed with precision.

Despite initially being caught off guard, only Sledge’s health steadily decreased.

TSUUU!

With surging mana, dark energy enveloped his arm, explosively boosting Sledge’s strength once more.

Just as Ail had guessed, he was a mage specializing in physical enhancement spells.

However, unlike regular body-enhancement magic, this forbidden magic was far more potent.

But that was all there was to it.

“Khhheugh…!”

Sledge, stabbed in the side by a spear, stumbled back.

For Ail, this was one of his first one-on-one battles against a humanoid opponent since starting, but compared to Roden, it was nothing.

Already designated as a heretic, Sledge’s level was 35.

Without using any skills or items, Ail was overpowering him purely through raw skill.

‘Still not enough.’

CHIIING!

At the moment Sledge lost balance from an overly large motion, Ail struck his hammer away.

As Sledge’s arm momentarily bent backward, Ail saw his opening and swung his longsword.

He could have cut deeper but chose not to.

Just enough to subdue was sufficient.

KUDANGTANG!

Sledge face-planted onto the floor after being slashed across the body.

“T-this can’t be…”

In near-death condition, Sledge muttered in disbelief.

Though looking quite desperate, Ail, completely unconcerned, bound him tightly with ropes.

“So you said you’d talk under interrogation? You can look forward to it.”

“You son of a-”

“Let’s gag him too.”

“UUUUH!”

Ail silenced the increasingly noisy Sledge by forcing a gag into his mouth.

Though inconvenient due to his large size, dragging him along the ground wouldn’t be much of an issue.

But then, something unexpected happened.

SHIIIICK!

KWAD!

A javelin flew from behind and pierced straight through Sledge’s head.

With his already depleted health, Sledge had no way to resist and died instantly.

“No, this can’t be happening!”

Ail shook Sledge by the collar.

But someone with their health completely drained wasn’t about to come back to life, and Sledge collapsed, spilling blood.

From the direction the spear had flown, mysterious figures emerged en masse.

Guild members who had rushed over from the dungeon entrance quickly surrounded Ail.

Not monsters or NPCs, but users.

Looking over their equipment, Ail noticed the emblem of White Peng etched across various parts of their armor.

“White Peng…?”

“Don’t move.”

The guild members approached threateningly.

Their levels and equipment weren’t comparable to Ail’s, and their numbers were overwhelming.

‘Damn, what are these guys doing here…?’

Thanks to the sudden intrusion of the guild members, the decisive sect member he was supposed to capture alive had died.

Not only did they ruin a crucial clue related to the world quest, but how they managed to track him down so unexpectedly left Ail utterly baffled.

Most importantly, understanding why they appeared before him proved difficult.

There was no way high-level guild members in the triple digits would come together to hunt at a level 40 hunting ground.

Moreover, White Peng was the very guild Beken kept mentioning while bothering him.

Could Beken, despite everything going on with the Frostflame dispute, really hold enough influence and standing to mobilize White Peng’s guild members out of revenge?

White Peng was a fairly solid-sized guild, and considering all the crazy antics Beken pulled that Ail had witnessed, it was hard to believe.

‘Now that I think about it…’

After posting his second video, White Peng had contacted him via WarTube account with a recruitment offer.

But given his obvious bad history with Beken, and having already turned down an offer from one of the top 12 guilds, he naturally ignored theirs as well.

‘Could that have anything to do with this…?’

Feeling both exasperated and overwhelmed, Ail gritted his teeth.

Though extremely pissed off about the death of the sect member he intended to capture, he had to somehow deal with the current situation first.

“What’s going on? Surely you didn’t gather like this just to catch a level 30 beginner…”

“Your neck will be gone if you try anything funny.”

A stern-faced guild member raised his sword as a warning.

Judging from the menacing atmosphere of the dozen or so guild members surrounding him, attempting to flee carelessly would likely result in his throat being pierced.

That’s when Godin slowly walked forward through the ranks of guild members.

‘The guild master himself came…?’

Ail, who already knew plenty about Godin, the leader of White Peng, couldn’t hide his surprised expression.

It was surprising enough that the guild members had come, but for the guild master himself to personally show up here…

At this point, it had escalated far beyond something trivial like Beken’s revenge.

“Ail, I know you’re the heresy judge who defeated Roden. We tried contacting you, but you didn’t respond.”

Godin began speaking directly.

As if he knew everything, he revealed not only names never mentioned before but also Ail’s identity.

“How…?”

“You had issues with my younger brother, right? It’s simple.”

When Ail’s new video went viral, it marked the start of this incident.

Even the oblivious Beken eventually checked out his videos amidst the Warode news.

And he realized that the mad heresy judge from the Ingol Forest video who killed him in the past was none other than Ail.

No matter how dense Beken might be, with identical equipment, timing, and location, it was impossible not to connect the dots.

Taking this chance, Beken immediately ran to his older brother.

Initially dismissing it as nonsense, Godin half-believed and half-doubted upon hearing Beken’s story.

But as Beken’s companions started testifying and chiming in, the situation changed.

“I thought it was nonsense… but it turns out the guy who clashed with my younger brother really is you.”

“How can you be sure?”

“With just a few solid clues, uncovering someone’s identity in Warode isn’t difficult. The heresy judge profession itself isn’t common either.”

‘Damn, now I get why things have been going so smoothly lately.’

Realizing there was no way out, Ail inwardly fumed.

Though Beken was a potential threat, he figured the stalemate between the two guilds and the withdrawal of the mercenary guild would keep things locked down for a while.

Never did he imagine events would unfold this way.

“This conflict was partly his fault, so we won’t hold you accountable for the clash. We’ll keep your face and name strictly confidential, allowing you to continue operating undercover.”

“Is that so? Then why go through the trouble of coming all this way just to say that?”

Responding sarcastically to Godin’s words, Ail retorted.

There was no way they chased him down here just to say something as trivial as that.

Anyone with half a brain could tell they had some other scheme up their sleeves.

Godin glanced to the side and nodded slightly, prompting a waiting guild member to approach and hand Ail a piece of paper.

Frowning, Ail took the document and looked it over.

What initially seemed like random paper turned out to be a contract filled with guild cooperation terms.

“You haven’t joined any guild yet, have you? We understand how being part of a sect makes normal guild activities difficult. Therefore, we propose forming a cooperative relationship. We’ll fully guarantee personal activities, and the salary and conditions are all set up without any shortages. If you sign this smoothly, there won’t be any unnecessary friction between us.”

“…”

Subtle pressure laced the words.

The purpose of these guys showing up here was revealed.

An unforeseen request from Ail’s perspective — to reel him in.

Although Ail might not be immediately useful as a full-fledged asset, they planned to leverage his rising fame as a named player to boost their guild’s reputation.

Of course, a contract forced through threats has no legal standing whether in reality or in-game.

Godin obviously knew that.

However, he intended to use Ail’s low level and lack of affiliation to threaten him — making it clear that if Ail tried to leave the guild, they’d immediately eliminate him.

Signing the contract was merely a formality; fundamentally, it was an offer built solely on coercion.

Despite the situation, Ail couldn’t help but let out a derisive laugh.

“Do you really think you can tie me down to a guild with such methods?”

“What?”

“Your instincts must’ve dulled playing guild master in Warode. You used to be someone who reached ranker status in ClanWar.”

“Do you know me…?”

Unexpected words caused Godin to furrow his brow.

Before switching to Warode, he was a ranker from the minor game ‘ClanWar’.

Though smaller in scale compared to the three major games including Easthorn, its rankers were still formidable.

Regardless of scale, being a top player in any game isn’t something to take lightly.

“Looks like you’ve been away from the action for quite a while, huh? Probably spent your time comfortably raiding dungeons with your guildies.”

“I get that you’re skilled, but don’t get too cocky. No matter how you beat Roden, you’re still a low-level novice under 40.”

[Judge of Light Lu wishes to punch you in the face!]

Fed up, Lu sent a message.

Ail, whose tension was easing, receiving such interference made her equally annoyed.

But she’d already expended much influence, and the sect was currently focusing all efforts on the Twilight Assembly, leaving her unable to intervene properly.

In short, Ail had to resolve this situation himself.

“You guys picked the wrong person to mess with.”

“Oh? What exactly do you think you can do in this situation?”

“You’ll see soon enough.”

CHIIIIK!

Right before their eyes, Ail dramatically tore up the contract.

Enraged guild members raised their weapons, but before they could charge, Ail closed his eyes tightly.

PAHAAAAAT!

“AGHHHH!”

“W-what the…!”

Intense flashes of light radiated outward, causing the guild members who saw them directly to stagger, clutching their eyes.

This was the effect of the magic scroll that suddenly materialized in Ail’s hand.

Though partially due to their complacency, the event unfolded too abruptly for them to react.

Normally, retrieving something from inventory requires preparatory motions, but Ail displayed none of that just now.

‘Damn! I need to escape completely.’

Starting his escape toward the outside of the dungeon, Ail bit his lip.

All the contribution points spent purchasing the scroll were wasted, and his original goal of gathering information during this chase became futile.

Worst of all, instead of persistent recruitment attempts, they dared to intimidate him with such schemes.

‘I’m not letting this slide easily.’

Ail gritted his teeth.