Hayato's eyes narrowed as he trailed the mage across the vast desert, his focus unyielding. She wandered deeper into the wasteland, her long blonde hair fluttering in the wind. They had ventured far from the safety of the city now, and the ruins ahead—broken and forgotten structures from another age—would offer the perfect spot for an ambush.

The mage paused, her gaze lingering on a patch of desert flowers growing amid the decaying stones. The ruins were expansive, with crumbled walls and remnants of old houses creating narrow, labyrinthine passages. In the distance, a long corridor led to a dead end. It was isolated, surrounded by broken buildings that towered like silent sentinels—a perfect place for someone to disappear without a trace.

This is it, Hayato told himself as he gripped the hilt of his short sword. He could feel his fingers twitching in anticipation. He took a step forward, his heart quickening as he prepared to strike. But for some reason, his feet wouldn’t move.

Why am I hesitating? The image of Nagareboshi flashed before his eyes, the haunting memory of her dying face twisting his gut with guilt and anger. He swallowed hard, clenching his fists. No. I have to do this. I’ll use anyone and anything to get my revenge.

As he began to approach the unsuspecting mage, Hayato noticed two figures in the distance. Damn it, are they her friends? A 3v1 is impossible at my level. The newcomers turned out to be a level 19 mage and a level 18 warrior. As they advanced on the mage, she fell backward, clearly terrified.

Wait... They’re not her friends. They’re here to PK her too. Hayato’s mind raced. This could actually work to my advantage. I could jump in, help her, and once those two are dead, I’ll finish her off and walk away with three sets of loot.

With his plan set, Hayato advanced on the group. The mage—Chisa, her nickname hovering above her head—froze in fear, her staff trembling in her hands. Her long blonde hair framed a face that radiated innocence, her wide green eyes darting between the two newcomers. Her mouth opened, but no words came out. She was completely frozen.

“Hand over everything, and maybe we’ll let you walk away,” the PK mage sneered. He glanced at Hayato, noticing him for the first time. “Huh? Who the hell are you? Here to donate your gear too? Ah, a level 1? Get lost before I change my mind.”

“I get it,” Hayato replied, his voice calm. “You prefer to prey on low-level players and steal from the weak instead of leveling up and earning your own gear.” Just like I was planning to do...

The PK mage chuckled darkly. “So you’re volunteering to get eliminated too? Fine by me.”

Pathetic, Hayato thought, glancing down at Chisa, who was still on the ground, trembling in silence. She’s too scared to move. Her long blonde hair covered part of her face, but her wide, innocent eyes were full of terror. She was frozen in place, unable to even raise her staff in defense. Useless. But I’ve come too far to back down now.

Without warning, Hayato charged at the PK mage, his movements swift and precise. The PK mage, startled by the sudden attack, fumbled his spell. A fireball shot past Hayato, missing by a wide margin. As Hayato closed the gap, he landed a flurry of strikes with his short sword. The PK mage screamed in shock, his eyes squeezing shut as the damage numbers popped up around him—1, 1, 1.

The mage reopened his eyes, staring in disbelief at the string of minimal damage that barely dented his health bar. "What the hell?!" he shouted, still reeling from the surprise attack. With a snarl, he slammed his staff into the ground, releasing a knockback wave that sent Hayato flying backward.

I hate that skill. Hayato gritted his teeth as the PK mage regained his composure.

“You’ll pay for that,” the PK mage hissed.

The PK warrior stepped forward, positioning himself between Hayato and the mage, and then lunged with his two-handed sword. Are you serious? These guys are awful, Hayato thought, dodging the clumsy strike with ease.

The PK mage and warrior started coordinating their attacks, but Hayato managed to evade them, leading the warrior into the path of the mage’s fireball. The spell struck the warrior, but he shrugged it off with no damage.

“Haha, you idiot,” the PK mage laughed. “We’re in the same party and guild. There’s no friendly fire after level 15.”

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

This is going to be tougher than I thought. Hayato decided to focus on the mage, thinking he would be easier to take down. Dodging past the warrior, Hayato landed several blows on the mage, who was now down to 50% health.

“You useless idiot!” the mage snarled at his warrior companion. “How many times are you going to let him get past you? Can’t you do anything right?”

I can win this, Hayato thought, his confidence growing.

He continued his assault, but just as the mage’s health dropped to 35%, the mage cast several healing spells, restoring his HP to full. Seeing Hayato’s frustrated expression, the PK mage burst out laughing.

“You really thought you had a chance? If this warrior weren’t so useless, you’d have been dead by now.”

So I never had a chance to beat them from the start. But Hayato wasn’t ready to give up. He kept dodging their attacks, though he knew it was a losing battle. This is getting me nowhere.

Distracted for a moment, Hayato took a glancing blow from the warrior’s sword, leaving him with just 1 HP and cornered in a narrow alley within the ruins. The crumbling walls on either side gave him little room to maneuver.

Is this it? I tried… there’s nothing more I can do, Hayato thought, his back against the wall.

“Finish him off!” the PK mage ordered. With no room to dodge left or right, Hayato leaped into the air, using the narrow walls of the corridor to his advantage. He pushed off one wall, then the other, gaining height as the warrior’s sword whooshed beneath him. He flipped mid-air, barely clearing the blade, and landed with a roll near Chisa, who was still on the ground, trembling.

Just then, a voice broke through the tension. “Impressive.”

All eyes turned to see a figure sitting casually on one of the crumbling walls, a lance resting across his shoulders. He exuded an air of confidence, his posture relaxed as if the fight below him was a mere distraction. Chisa’s fear subsided slightly as she recognized him.

The PK mage sneered at the newcomer. "Who the hell are you?"

“Neither your enemy nor your ally, but I’d appreciate it if you put an end to this," the lancer said, his tone calm yet firm. "As the leader, it's my responsibility to protect every member of my guild.”

The PK mage scoffed. “After everything he’s done, we’re not leaving without taking something from him.”

Hayato glanced at the lancer’s name and level: Kiba, level 100. Idiots, Hayato thought. You’d think they’d know which fights to pick.

Kiba sighed, shaking his head. "Well, that’s unfortunate."

He jumped from the wall, using a skill to propel himself off the surface. Before the PKers could react, Kiba unleashed a spinning attack that cut them down in one swift motion, sending them back to the city.

That skill combination, and the perfect execution... This guy’s good. I wouldn’t stand a chance against him… not even to escape, Hayato realized.

Kiba turned away from Hayato, ignoring him entirely, and went straight to the mage to check if she was alright. Is this my chance to escape? Hayato wondered, eyeing the items the PKers had dropped. The mage had dropped a chest piece, and the warrior had dropped his two-handed sword—both items they had been equipped with.

What luck. They dropped their equipped items, Hayato thought, but as he looked at Kiba talking to the mage, he reconsidered. Better not get too close to those items. They seem calm now, so I should take this chance to slip away.

Hayato turned to leave, but before he could take a step, Kiba called out, “That last move of yours was pretty impressive. I’ve never seen a low-level player defending others in this part of the desert.”

Damn it, Hayato cursed inwardly, his heart racing. “I just started playing today,” he lied. “I got lost and stumbled upon this. I thought I should help.”

Please believe me, he thought, trying to sound convincing.

Kiba raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. “So you’re saying you enjoy helping others?”

“Just doing my duty,” Hayato replied, though sweat was beginning to bead on his forehead.

“Hmm, how noble of you. A real good Samaritan.”

Before Kiba could continue his suspicious line of questioning, Chisa, her voice shaky but loud, interrupted. “Thank you!!” She was still rattled from the encounter, her nerves far from settled. She quickly added, “I’m sorry I wasn’t useful at all while you bravely fought to defend me. The only thing I could do was call for help in the guild chat.”

Hayato glanced at her, surprised by her sudden praise. She’s actually buying it.

Hayato took the opportunity to reinforce his story, “It’s fine. I’m just glad everything worked out and I could help.” He said this while keeping an eye on Kiba.

“Alright, let’s head back to the city. I don’t think there’s anything else for us here,” Kiba said, still looking suspiciously at Hayato. He then turned to Chisa and asked, “And where did you learn to talk like that?”

Chisa gave an embarrassed smile. “Sorry for being such a sack of trash.”

Kiba rolled his eyes. “Hey!”

Once they reached the city, Hayato quietly slipped away, taking advantage of the moment when Chisa was distracted. She didn’t notice his departure, but Kiba’s eyes tracked him for a moment before letting him go without a word. Hayato moved quickly, blending into the crowd until he found an empty bench. He sat down, his heart still racing, as the weight of disappointment settled over him.

Back to square one, he thought, frustration gnawing at him. But despite the setback, he wasn’t ready to give up. He spent some time rethinking his strategy, reconsidering his methods. Going solo to level up is slower, but at least it’s steady progress. Better that than trying risky methods with high stakes.

Having made up his mind, Hayato stood up from the bench, his resolve firm. He headed toward the lower-level map, ready to start the grind once again.