Blue shackles bound by black chains erupted from the ground. And as they say, misfortune never comes alone.

Yellowish red fireballs descended from the gymnasium’s ceiling. Forget the half-dead orcs, even the humans felt as if their lives were about to end.

There were no screams or loud explosions. Zyrus’s mana acted as a catalyst for the fireball spell. The black chains remained as sturdy as ever, but the same couldn’t be said for their target.

‘It’s more horrifying than I thought it’d be,’ Zyrus stared with wide eyes as he panted for breath.

He was more specific in using this skill compared to before. By focusing the power of nothingness in their brains, the damage he dealt was much more fatal.

Both Jacob and Zyrus had their Exp filled by half. There were still hundreds of wounded orcs left, but the fight was as good as over.

The pressure on the goblin riders was lifted as well. They could easily take on five players each, but this time, it was a bad matchup.

The terrain was not favorable for them who relied on high mobility and long-range sharpshooting. The wolves were also mismatched against the spear users. If not for the specter scorpions who continuously harassed the players, there was no way they could hold off the thousand players.

Although Zyrus wasn’t participating in the battle, he had managed to dampen their spirits by his ruthless way of fighting. The arrogant orcs were running away without even thinking about avenging their leader.

“W-we surrender.”

‘What the fuck!’

Zyrus almost spat the potion he was drinking. He was thinking about how to waste some time so he and Jacob could recover, but this…

On the other hand, the young man was trembling in fear as he looked at Zyrus’s face. This was the first time he was facing death since the start of the tutorial. Unlike others in his camp, he was from a prestigious background.

He had practiced fencing since childhood, and luckily for him, the sanctuary had recognized it as a skill when he killed the goblins.

The rest of the month was a walk in the park for him. How to read others' expressions, how to strike a deal that was beneficial for you, how to convince others of your idea, it was all too easy for him.

Only now did he realize that it was useless when he was against a bloodthirsty monster. The monsters were stupid before, and it was easy to win against them with a numerical advantage. Now, however, the tables were turned.

Both humans and monsters were on the same level in the eyes of the system. This wasn’t an RPG game where you kill mobs and level up.

It was a game for survival.

“Why the sudden change?”

“He’s just a kid.” Jacob stated as he gulped a mana potion.

“…I agree.” Zyrus nodded as he looked at the brown-haired man. He took him for a cunning and opportunistic leader, but all of that was just a façade. Once his confidence was gone, only a twenty-year-old kid was left.

The weight of the crown was too heavy on those trembling shoulders.

“How did you survive so far?”

“I-I always won. Before this that is,” The young man replied in a dejected tone. He wasn’t as stupid as he looked right now. He knew that they had more power than their enemies right now, and they could win if he played his cards right.

However, so what? This was just the first battle, and half of his troops were already dead. He could get more players from spawn points, but could he control them like he used to?

It was too late before he realized that this was a city where an iron fist ruled above all.

“Tch.. lucky bastard. What’s your name?” Zyrus spoke after thinking for a while.

“Stephen,”

“Alright Stephen, I’ll take the surviving players. Keep in mind though; you’ll never be a leader after this.”

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“I understand.” Stephen replied with a sigh of relief. Others may call him a coward, but he had no intention of dying even if it was temporary.

“What’s your crown’s ability?”

“Contract,” Stephen replied with a proud expression, which faded away in the next second.

“Yup, another moron.”

Zyrus didn’t need to ask any more questions to understand the other’s plan. Contract was a very powerful ability, but one had to survive long enough to make use of it.

“Hey Jacob, lead the goblin riders and group up with the others.”

“Weren’t you going to look for the rat king?”

“The burrow rats have already found him when we were busy. I’ll send specter scorpions and sawtooth rats to deal with that king.”

Jacob gave a quizzical look to Zyrus but didn’t ask anything else. He liked to fight with Zyrus because he was good at using mana. What he did outside of the battle was none of his interest.

Once Jacob and the remaining orcs left the area, Zyrus was left alone in the gymnasium.

The one on the other side was, of course, Franken. Zyrus had left him aboveground as a scout. He was looking for a troll leader who would play a huge role in his army.

The bandit like reindeer had the ability to communicate with him as long as they were in the same region. It was a waste to use him as a scout, but he didn’t have an alternative for the moment.

<6 orcs, 1 kobold, 4 humans, 1 rat, and an ogre>

Zyrus was disappointed after hearing the mental transmission. He had no plans to take in any orcs, and the remaining crown holders were of subpar quality.

‘Looks like I’ll have to use earth movement to find better troops,’

He had already told Jacob to remind others about his plan. They could take in 3000 more players in the outer sectors. 500 humans and about the same number of rats were already decided. He left the task of getting 1000 players to his crown holders and he himself will choose the remaining 1000.

Zyrus knew that building a foundation for your army was the focal point of this hunt. This was a golden opportunity to get strong subordinates, and he wasn’t one to miss out when he had the means to che- Ahem, Take advantage of the rules.

…

Midnight, at the south sector.

The city was illuminated by white crystals that were placed all over the roads. Even the walls and trees had these ‘lamps’ installed on them.

Nightlife in this sector must’ve been amazing, but alas, the city was destroyed. It was no longer filled with the hustle of the market and the hearth of home.

Fate was a very cruel thing. The once lively city was turned into a hunting ground.

This place was the past of a ruined civilization, and on this day, it would usher a new future for another.

Unlike Zyrus, the crown holders in this city didn’t have the means to decimate a 1000-strong army with ease. The past 10 hours were more brutal than the first day of the tutorial.

Everyone was fighting against one another. It was pure chaos as over half of the players had changed their affiliations after dying.

And it wasn’t an easy feat to fight against your friends and family.

*Chiiiek*

On a lush garden filled with wildflowers and overgrown trees, hundreds of knives were flying in the air.

“You… bunch of… cowards…” grumbled a green monster that didn’t look much different from the trees around him.

“Stuff it ya coward!”

“Don’t waste time by talking with them, use it to shoot more arrows and knives,”

Two human leaders spoke one after another. They had created a temporary alliance after finding the trolls hiding in this garden.

“[Fire Arrows]”

Nearly a hundred players activated their skills at the same time. The dark night was lit up by the barrage of flames.

The troll's eyes gleamed in an emerald hue under the descending flames. There were less than a thousand of them while their opponents outnumbered them by 5 to 1.

They were a peace-loving species whose only goal in life was to eat and sleep. However, it didn’t mean that they couldn’t fight.

The troll leader chanted in an unknown language, followed by each and every one of his kind. The ground beneath the garden trembled and before the fiery arrows could land, they were trapped by branches and wines that jutted out from the trees.

“The fuck?”

“Indeed, none of these monsters are simple.”

“But it’s still better than fighting against those damned orcs” The players chatted amidst the onslaught of magic. They were the polar opposite of Hajin choi's organized troops.

“FOCUS everyone,” A woman wearing a violet dress shouted as she hurled a lance made of ice. She was one of the leaders and the first one who had discovered this group of trolls. There were originally twice the current numbers when she arrived near the garden.

She observed their fight against thousands of orcs, and therefore, she had a pretty good idea about their strength and weaknesses. She knew that to take them down she’d need more ‘fodder’.

Thus, she decided to ‘leak’ this information to another crown holder.

“Hey young miss, you’re leading quite a rowdy bunch eh,”

“Mind your fucking business.”

“Now now, such words don’t suit yer pretty face,”

Glaring at the muscular man who was talking like a drunkard, she felt a little less guilty about her choice. She convinced herself that the man didn’t have any good intentions towards her troop, and thus, it was better to use them as sacrificial pawns.

“Leave…us…alone….”

“Pah, learn to talk first ya dimwit,”

“Hahaha.. they only know how to defend,”

The humans jeered and laughed at the trolls who were huddled up within the trees. They had a lot of mana as they were able to create new trees and vines one after another.

Even then, they wouldn't be able to maintain the status quo for long. The humans kept attacking with all sorts of spells and weapons while the trolls kept summoning more and more vegetation. Neither side had a single causality even after an hour had passed by.

Both sides were getting tired of this tedious fight, but their expressions were in stark contrast against one another.

The humans were filled with excitement while the trolls' faces were getting more and more solemn.

Neither side had noticed a pair of eyes observing them with greed.