In the Chaos Tower's 1st floor, suspended high in the azure sky, there existed a floating house. Within this enchanting abode, a beautiful angel could be seen attentively observing players through a holographic screen.
‘Heh, those players from Earth seem to be holding pretty well... However, I’m afraid they are still too weak in comparison to players from other worlds…’
The angel's discussion revolved around the players' survival rates. It appears that players from Earth maintain a survival rate ranging from 20 to 35 percent, while those from other worlds boast an average survival rate of 70 to 85 percent.
Based on the numbers, it seemed Earth players struggled the most.
***
A giant portal spawned in the center of Maze Mansion, allowing the players to exit the dungeon and return to the lobby room.
Not long after, in Shroom Village, an announcement appeared:
[Congratulations on completing the 7th Tutorial!]
[Tutorials Completion: 7/10]
A short while later, health potions, mana potions, and delicious food materialized in the center of Shroom Village.
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…
One week later…
[The 8th Tutorial will now begin.]
At the heart of Shroom Village, the portal to the 8th Tutorial Dungeon materialized.
Just like that, the players entered the dungeon and began the tutorial.
A few seconds later…
Inside the 8th Tutorial Dungeon, channel number #18,331.
[Welcome to the battlefield!]
[Quest: Defeat the Demon Army or stay alive for three days.]
On the expansive grassland battlefield, 1,000 players face off against a Demon army of 10,000 Demon Soldiers and 10 Demon Leaders.
The demons' appearance closely resembles that of humans, except for the distinct additions of horns, sharp teeth, and menacing reptilian demonic eyes that exude a frightening aura.
"Holy shit! Those demons are giving me the creeps, they look scary as hell!" exclaimed a player.
"Damn! They look incredibly powerful too! I think we're doomed!"
"W-What kind of a joke is this?! There are only about a thousand of us, and we have to fight all of that?!!"
"Yea, that's not fair at all!"
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
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[Quest Tips!]
[Demon Soldiers: Medium difficulty]
[Demon Leaders: Hard to Hell difficulty]
At this moment, information regarding the Demons materialized in front of every player's hologram screen.
“Whoa! What’s this? Quest Tips?”
“Oh, look! Demon Soldiers are only Medium difficulty. Well, that isn’t too shabby.”
"You, idiot! Do you not understand the math? Demon soldiers might not be individually strong, but we have to fight against 10,000 of them, you know!"
"Haha, my bad. Well, I guess it's only the Demon Leaders we have to watch out for." the player remarked with a light-hearted tone.
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…
[The war will start in 10 minutes. You may choose to run or fight, it’s up to you.]
Many players found themselves in a dilemma, unsure whether to engage in combat or make a run for it. Opting for a fight promised substantial EXP gains from demon kills, but fleeing meant missing out on valuable experience points. With these considerations in mind, players grappled with a tough decision. Clearly, opting for a strategic retreat seemed like the wisest choice for ensuring survival rather than engaging in battle.
As for Dragonire, he was undoubtedly making a run for it, as killing Demons doesn’t give him any EXP or whatsoever. Thus, he saw no point in engaging with them. In fact, just about 5,000 meters away from his current location, lay a dense forest where he had planned to seek refuge for three days or until the quest ends.
Ten minutes later…
[The war will now begin!]
As soon as the war started, almost all players chose to flee immediately. They were unwilling to risk their lives fighting an army of 10,000 Demon soldiers and 10 Demon Leaders—the risk was simply too great to take.
“We can’t win!! Let’s fucking run!!!”
“Run now, everyone!!! Save yourselves!!!”
“Run!!! Run!!! Run!!! Woohoo!!!”
“You bunch of pussies!! I was looking forward to fight, not run!!!"
"Then you can stay behind and fight! We’re out! Bye! Bye! Hahaha!"
Approximately 10% of the players initially wanted to stay behind and fight. However, upon witnessing 90% of the players choosing to flee, they found themselves with no alternative but to abandon the idea of fighting and join the retreat.
“Fuck you, guys!!! Y’all bunch of cowards!!!”
“Tch! Whatever! Let’s just run!”
“Man! I was so looking forward to the fight! Oh well, fuck it! Let’s just go!”
The 10% of players who wanted to fight were extremely upset by the fact that everyone else was running away. They realized that with only 100 players left to fight—given that 90% had chosen to flee—it was impossible to achieve victory.
In a situation like this, those with the ability to run the fastest would undoubtedly have the greatest advantage in staying alive compared to the slower players. Unfortunately, in this case, Dragonire was the slowest player due to his exceptionally low stats resulting from not having a class. Without a class, he lacked the additional stats bonus typically provided by equipping armor or weapons, leaving him extremely undergeared and vulnerable in the face of danger.
‘Those fuckers! How dare they run faster than me!’ Dragonire thought. He turned his head and looked behind, only to see the Demons rapidly closing the distance.
The distance between Dragonire and the Demon army was roughly 250 meters apart, while the distance between him and other players was about 150 meters apart. This goes to show how slow Dragonire was compared to other players.
"Hahaha!! Look at that slowpoke!!" a player jeered.
“Looks like he’s going to be the first player to die first. Hahaha!!!”
“Bahahaha!!! Poor guy!!”
Some players could be seen laughing and making fun of Dragonire, teasing him for being a slowpoke.
‘Bastards! How dare they laugh at me for being slow!’ Dragonire seethed inwardly, his annoyance growing at the toxic behavior of these players.
Initially, Dragonire thought the teasing was over, only to find them resuming their mockery by pulling silly faces once more.
‘Son of a bitch! Alright, I'm pissed now! You guys are going to regret for mocking me!’
During this moment, Dragonire smirked and unleashed his trump card.
TIME FREEZE!