Kang Geonu was quite the proficient tanker. He focused relentlessly on tanking during training sessions, and it seemed like his efforts weren't in vain.
Whenever he provoked Midnight, those who were in hiding would reveal themselves. Then it was Yoo Seowoo's strategy to have Yoo Sihyun finish them off.
Simple but effective. Since Midnight became easy targets once their assassination trait disappeared, having a tanker take on Midnight seemed like a strategic move.
For that strategy to work as a cheat code, they needed a dealer strong enough to take down Midnight in one blow. And that was Seowoo.
Sihyun, with a dissatisfied look, turned away from Seowoo and Geonu. Even though they said they'd go easy, it was clearly a passionate display.
Looks like it's time for a five-minute break.
It took roughly a minute to defeat one. Sihyun classified Seowoo as someone who didn't know how to hold back. His gaze now turned towards Hamin and Haewoon, who had just entered the field. Usually, he'd charge in to take them down, but today, Hamin seemed unusually calm. Something was up.
Is he actually paying attention to what I said?
Is this a handicap, starting a minute late or something?
Watching from the sidelines felt like teasing, and Sihyun gazed at that direction, where Hamin seemed strangely complex. Suddenly, Hamin drew his sword as he faced Haewoon. While receiving various buffs from Haewoon, who was on the field, Hamin, who had been exuding a golden aura, staggered and fell as if Haewoon had played a prank.
Even though the sound was muted, Haewoon's laughter seemed audible. He was consistent to the point of being unnecessary.
Hamin, pressing down on Haewoon, once again grabbed his sword. The boy with the golden aura spread like wings dashed straight towards Irregulars. Not just a specific one but all of them.
Swinging his sword, Hamin swooped in, and several Irregulars fell. 18, 17, 16, 15. The time for Time Attack was rapidly decreasing. Hamin, who didn't retreat, seemed to have chosen to kill all the Irregulars.
Even after killing ten in addition to the specified target, the time only decreased by ten minutes. It seemed easy for Hamin to deal with the remaining five within the remaining ten minutes.
"He's really unstoppable…"
Witnessing Hamin's overwhelming battle style, admiration filled the air. It was a tactic made possible by skill.
3 minutes 22 seconds.
Even in the midst of battle, the time taken for Hamin to use provocation at the right moments to ensure Haewoon wasn't attacked.
Considering the slight delay after entering, the actual clear time was 3 minutes. He killed fifteen Irregulars in just 3 minutes. It seemed like Hamin's crude yet spectacular method, typical of his dislike for thinking ahead, was at play.
5 minutes 38 seconds, 3 minutes 22 seconds.
Sihyun narrowed his eyes at the absurd records from both fields.
Did I forget to tell them to go easy? Not to Seowoo or to Hamin?
Searching his memory, he distinctly remembered saying it. He also remembered receiving appropriate responses. Especially Seowoo, he hadn't heard an answer from her several times.
Damn them all.
Mumbling these words after a long time, Sihyun glanced at Hamin, who was approaching. Hamin, descending from the field, still seemed unlucky.
"...2 minutes."
"Huh?"
"We have 2 minutes, hyung. Can we do it?"
All support was supposed to come from me. Looking at him for an answer, Haru nodded. Despite his immature appearance, his usual skill instilled confidence.
"Kang Sihyun, Ban Haru."
Finally, as his name was called, Sihyun reached out to Haru. Haru, who was hesitating, took Sihyun's hand and stepped forward slowly. It felt like a streak of bad luck every time he was called last during class tests, and by now, Sihyun felt like he was jinxed.
As they walked forward, they met Hamin returning. Sihyun, meeting Hamin's intense gaze, pursed his lips.
"Rough, huh? If you're gonna take them all down, do it just 30 seconds later."
"This is chaos even if you watch it."
Haru was the one feeling awkward in this back-and-forth conversation, and Haewoon was the one feeling smug.
"Sihyun, fighting! We've got someone to protect!"
That crazy guy.
He spouted strange words. Sihyun, ignoring him as usual, habitually pondered how they ended up like this and soon reached the stairs. As they ascended the semi-transparent stairs, the teachers distributed something resembling vibrating bells to Sihyun and Haru.
"These distributed bells are emergency bells made by Choigang High School. In case of emergency, when pressed, an alarm will sound, and the evaluation will end. If you fail to clear and press the bell, you'll be disqualified, so choose carefully."
"Oh, okay."
He thought the teachers would stop if it seemed dangerous, but it turned out the students themselves would press the bell. Sihyun nodded as he received a small bell that fit in his hand and tucked it into his pocket. He didn't think he'd need to press it.
"The monster to defeat is a Snow Wolf. Be cautious as defeating other Irregulars will reduce the time limit. When you're ready, open the door and go in. Good luck."
The dry voice carried an eerie sense of seriousness. It was strange to hear such an evaluation sound, even more so than during his military service. Sihyun chuckled at the absurdity of hearing it here and turned his head towards Haru, who was fiddling with the emergency bell.
"The monster we have to defeat is a Snow Wolf. Are you okay?"
"Uh, yeah…"
"Shall we go?"
"Yeah."
Haru nodded, taking a deep breath. As Sihyun opened the door to the field—
"Roar—!!"
The sound of opening the door was terrifyingly loud. Confirming Haru had entered, Sihyun closed the field door.
Click. The door closed.
Tck. The Time Attack timer began ticking.
19:59
Sihyun gripped the staff tightly as he looked at the numbers displayed on the hologram screen. Swish! As he swung the pink staff, a solid barrier enveloped him. It was a barrier that required almost three minutes' worth of mana investment to ensure Sihyun's safety. Haru, verifying the barrier that would prove Sihyun's security, nodded approvingly.
Feeling the three energies he could use immediately at the promised signal, Sihyun adjusted his grip on the staff.
It was the beginning of the real deal.
"Crash!"
A werewolf, who finished his maintenance, charged towards Haru and Sihyun. As if that was the trigger, the other Irregulars simultaneously took action.
Tsst! Even Midnight concealed his appearance through stealth. At that moment, Sihyun swung the staff.
"Crash?"
"Gurgle?"
Five werewolves floated into the air simultaneously. Meanwhile, Sihyun granted Haru a flight buff. Haru, clad in a golden aura, took flight. The Irregulars, now suspended mid-air, expressed bewilderment with eerie sounds.
Werewolf, Siren, Midnight.
None of these Irregulars were capable of aerial combat. And Sihyun intended to exploit that fact thoroughly.
"Crash, kooer!!"
The floating werewolf flailed its limbs in anger. It stood at a staggering height of 3 meters. Even if one copied their telekinesis, replicating their skill to that extent was a challenge. With a determined expression, Sihyun proceeded with the next plan.
To avoid attacks from other Irregulars, Sihyun buffed himself for flight and swung the staff.
"Sleep."
Activating a skill that could put up to five to sleep, the Siren succumbed to slumber. Simultaneously, Haru vanished into stealth.
Then,
"Phew!"
Blood spurted from the struggling werewolf's neck. It happened in the blink of an eye.
Amid the gushing blood, Haru revealed himself. Swiftly, he concealed himself again.
"Phut!"
Another werewolf's neck spurted blood. Being airborne due to telekinesis, these werewolves were involuntarily bleeding, trapped in mid-air.
"Gurgle?"
Other werewolves were taken aback by the rapid and stealthy attacks. Their astonishment led to a momentary lapse, a shortcut to their demise.
Two werewolves fell prey to attacks aimed at their vulnerable necks. Keeping one werewolf suspended in the air, Sihyun propelled them to the field's edge with telekinesis, then redirected his telekinetic force toward another werewolf.
Thud!
Ignoring the massive noise, the slaughter continued. No, it was more of a one-sided massacre than a battle.
Whenever Haru revealed himself, one werewolf inevitably met death. It was a scene resembling an executioner.
"Crash!"
Again, as Haru reappeared, one werewolf screamed. It was the fifth scream. Sihyun glanced at the time.
19:02.
Considering Haru's usual speed, it was unnaturally fast.
Knowing the reason behind this, Sihyun smirked.
Acceleration.
Not just for himself, but also for a specific target, Sihyun had honed the ability to accelerate through practice. He moved his hand, proving that in a speed-based fight like Time Attack, nothing was better than this choice.
"Swish!"
The final floating werewolf shot upwards.
"Thud!"
And crashed straight down.
"Crash..."
The last werewolf, pinned to the ground, convulsed in agony. As Haru removed his blood-stained face from his hand, wiping it clean, five werewolves were embedded in the field. Observing the scene with a gaze fixed on Sihyun, Haru remembered their conversation from the end of the previous month's assessment.
"If only specific Irregulars need to be taken out, I'll copy their telekinesis to keep them suspended. Then you finish them off. You said assassins are stronger when attacking after stealth. If the situation suddenly catches them off guard, there might be time for stealth. If there's not enough damage, I'll make them crash."
"But, in that case, don't I need a flight buff from you?"
"Yes. Since it's a Time Attack, I'll use acceleration too."
"In that case, your mana..."
"Don't worry. When I use the copy skill, there's no mana loss for me."
Recalling up to that point, Haru gazed at Sihyun, who hadn't even broken a sweat. Rather than feeling worn out compared to when he supported during the last evaluation, Sihyun seemed remarkably composed. There was a sense of pride in the words, "Okay."
Silently grasping the repaired dagger, Haru shifted his gaze back to the werewolf embedded in the ground. The one convulsing moments ago now lay motionless.
Beep—
Accompanied by the mechanical sound signaling clearance, the flowing Time Attack time came to a halt.
18:55.
1 minute and 5 seconds.
Haru and Sihyun's record.
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