Four people were running through the dark forest. Despite running on uneven ground, they were moving very fast. 

‘...He’s truly amazing.’ 

Cha Min-Woo thought as he watched Seo Jun-Ho’s back. The latter was at the lead. 

‘It’s a dark forest, and the ground isn’t even flat. Yet his form is stable.’ 

That wasn’t all. Seo Jun-Ho also chose easier paths that the other three could follow. Assessing the environment was an important skill for a Player, and he proved to be exceptional at it. 

Cha Min-Woo thought that he was like an onion. 

‘Every time I think I understand him, he shows me a new side…’ 

Suddenly, his Vita lit up with a notification. Seo Jun-Ho stopped. 

“Is it an SOS?”

“Let me check.” Cha Min-Woo’s eyes flickered as he checked the message. He looked up at Seo Jun-Ho and nodded firmly. “It’s an SOS. It came from 2km in the east.”

“2km isn’t far. Let’s go there first.” 

Seo Jun-Ho thought to himself as he looked for a path. 

‘We have to save as many Players as possible.’ 

Of course, this wasn’t because he saw himself as some hero. Saving as many Players as possible meant that clearing the Gate would be easier. It was the conclusion he had arrived at after objectively weighing the factors.

‘Currently, there are 1,000 dark elves in the Black Moss tribe.’ 

Their numbers were too large for him to handle on his own. 

‘I’m still human after all.’ 

He needed to sleep, rest, and eat like any other person. He would need at least ten days to kill 1000 dark elves on his own. 

‘And that’s only if I can use my full power.’ 

It only applied if he could use Watchguard of Darkness and Frost. Of course, he couldn’t use those skills when he was with Cha Min-Woo’s party, like right now. 

‘So the best way to clear the gate with that handicap…’ 

Was to use the other Players that had entered the Gate with him. This was why Seo Jun-Ho was running so fast through the forest at dawn. 

‘Tonight will be the turning point.’ 

He thought that the dark elves’ night attack was a double-edged sword. At least 10 elves were sent to attack each of the 52 parties. 

‘So if we kill them all…’

They would be able to cut the enemy’s manpower in half overnight. If they could do that, the dark elves would no longer be able to use guerilla tactics like they did tonight. They would be worried about the safety of their village, so they would be unable to use the same tactic as before.

Clang, clang!

The sound of weapons clashing came from in front of them. Perhaps it was because it was the early morning, but it was especially loud. 

“Jun-Ho-nim!”

“I heard it. I’ll go ahead!” When Seo Jun-Ho accelerated, he seemed to stretch like taffy. Leaving the three people behind him, he took out a javelin from his inventory.

“Ah! S-save me!”

The first thing he saw as he entered the clearing was a Player pinned beneath a Woldog. The dark elf on top of it raised its sword high. 

‘Good timing.’ 

He used his running speed to propel his javelin and threw it. 

Woosh!

It whistled through the air with a sound that made it seem like a cannonball.

Stab! 

It pierced through the dark elf’s head, and it fell. 

- Woof! Woof!

Having lost its owner, the Woldog turned around in confusion towards the direction the javelin came from.

- Woof?

There was a flash of moonlight. It was the last thing it saw. 

Squelch…

Seo Jun-Ho pulled the javelin out of the Woldog’s neck and took in his surroundings.

“There are 5 dark elves and 3 Woldogs left.”

“Uh…..uhh?” The Player was covered in the blood of both the dark elf and the Woldog, unable to process the situation. Seo Jun-Ho glanced down at them and wordlessly ran toward where the other Players were fighting. 

“Huh? A-a Player!”

“Backup! They must’ve come after seeing the SOS signal from another party!”

The Players were on the defensive, but their faces brightened. 

“Kyaaaak!” On the other hand, the dark elves’ expressions grew more sinister as their hunt was interrupted. They all turned to Seo Jun-Ho and ignored the other Players. They wanted to take care of the most bothersome one first. 

“Kreek!” Gripping its weapon, the leader threw the spear at Seo Jun-Ho’s heart with all its strength. It was much faster than most Players could throw. 

“The spear’s speed, aim, and power; they are all good…the only problem is the target.” 

Seo Jun-Ho didn’t move. He slowly raised one hand. Right before the spear hit him, he brought his hand down like lightning, breaking the weapon into two. 

Crack! 

The dark elf’s eyes widened as it watched its weapon break. At the same time, Seo Jun-Ho snatched half of the broken spear from the air and stabbed it through his opponent’s neck. 

“Your spear is nice.”

“Kak…kaak…!” Seo Jun-Ho kicked the elf who couldn’t even breathe in the abdomen and slowly walked forward while drawing his sword.

Hesitant, the dark elves instinctively took a step back. They were intimidated by Seo Jun-Ho’s strength and confidence. 

“Don’t forget about us!”

“This is revenge for our comrades, fuckers!” The surviving Players attacked their open backs. The battle ended anti-climactically, and Seo Jun-Ho sheathed his sword. 

“Party Leader Son?”

“Oh, that’s me.” The man standing in front of the others raised his hand politely. 

“What are your casualties?”

“...Two of our members that were on watch died. We woke up because of their screams…guh, we just ran away because we were still half-asleep. We lost three more teammates while we were running.” A tear spilled over and he bit his lower lip hard enough to draw blood. He looked angry and resentful. 

“.....”

Seo Jun-Ho understood those feelings all too well. The guilt of being unable to save his teammates would now become his shackles. 

Seo Jun-Ho wordlessly patted him on the shoulder. After crying for a while, the man wiped away his tears with his sleeve. “I didn’t say this earlier, but thank you for helping us.”

“No need.” 

At that moment, Cha Min-Woo and the others arrived in the clearing. They saw that it was over, and their faces became grim. 

“We were too late.”

“Huff, huff…I ran as hard as I could…” Seo Mi-Rae muttered, disappointed.

“We’re going east,” Seo Jun-Ho spoke up.

“East…?” The party leader of the survivors asked. 

“Yes. We’re gonna head east and save other Players and hunt the dark elves.” The reasoning was simple for this decision. The Black Moss tribe’s stronghold was there. “If you’re willing, we can take down the enemy together. What will you do?”

“.....” 

They couldn’t even dream of avenging their teammates with only half the party left. But Seo Jun-Ho was offering to avenge them together. The party leader made his choice. 

Words were unnecessary. He thumped his fist against his chest twice, his eyes full of venom.

“Good.” That was enough for Seo Jun-Ho. “Then you guys should go north.”

“North? We’re splitting up?”

“Yes.” No matter how fast Seo Jun-Ho moved, it would be impossible for him to cover the whole forest. That was how big the Wild Forest was. 

‘I need parties that will become my hands and feet.’ 

He needed people to cover the north and west while he went east. Seo Jun-Ho planned to give that role to his newly acquired Players. 

The player leader finally spoke. “...We’ve received great assistance from the rising star of Korea.” He picked up his fallen helm from the dirt and put it back on and nodded. “So we will follow you. The Blue Whale party will head north.” 

They became Seo Jun-Ho’s first hand. 

***

“Huff…huff…” 

A man had collapsed onto the forest floor. The hot sun was boring down on him through the trees. He could taste rust in his mouth. 

‘I can’t…I have to keep going, even if I die…’

He had been running for two days now. Hunger and thirst were getting to him, and his trembling legs refused to move. But most importantly, he was poisoned. 

‘Those fucking dark elves. They put poison on their arrowheads.’ 

He lifted his shirt, checking the flesh at his side that was already black. Death was right before him. In his poisoned state, it was impossible to outrun the Woldogs, which were quick and had sharp noses. 

“Dammit…” Tears started to spill over. He was scared and sorrowful. 

His team had been composed of Players that averaged around level 28. If the dark elves had made a frontal attack in daylight, he wouldn’t have been injured like this. 

“Those dirty, cursed monsters!” 

But the enemy was crafty. They used the cover of darkness to attack their camp at night. If it weren’t for his sunbae’s quick reaction, their entire party would have been annihilated. 

– Woof! Woof woof!

At that moment, he heard the cries of Woldogs. 

‘I don’t want to die! I’m too young to die…

 But he didn’t have the strength to run away. Tears streamed down his face as death approached. With shaky hands, he loaded a bullet into a handgun. 

“If I have to die now…” As the maknae of the honorable Bravo party, he had to take a few mutts down with him. 

As he finished loading the bullet…

– Woooof!

A Woldog came bounding out of the thicket and bit into his left arm. 

“Guh…”

Even as he was getting bitten, he raised the gun in his right hand and pulled the trigger. 

Bang! 

The sound of a gunshot rang through the forest. 

“Yes! Guh…..” The Woldog fell. But just as he was about to celebrate…

– Woof! Woof!

– Woof!

– Wooof!

The cries of at least a dozen Woldogs made him go pale. On top of that, the bite he had suffered just now was also deep.

‘So this is how I die.’ 

The last bit of hope in him disappeared like smoke. 

But suddenly, the Woldogs started to sound more frantic. 

– Woof! Woooof!

– Woooooof!

“W-what?” He craned his neck, trying to see what was going on. He could hear people nearby. 

“The gunshot came from here…”

“The Woldogs were chasing someone…maybe they are the one we were looking for…”

“Should be around here…”

‘People…!’ 

His eyes were wide, but he was too tired to make a sound. He opted to shoot another bullet into the air. 

Bang! 

A moment later, the dense bushes were cut down, and a familiar face appeared.

“I found him! It’s him! He’s our party’s maknae!”

“S-sunbae…” When the man saw the face of his supposedly dead sunbae, he started to sob. “Sniff…how did you…I thought you were dead…kuh…” 

“Why the hell would I die? And…” The sunbae turned, looking at the people that were approaching. It was the sound of dozens of Players approaching. His eyes were fixed on the leader. “The person you should thank is him, not me.”

“That person…who…?” It was the first time the hubae had seen one person lead so many people inside a Gate. 

“Player Seo Jun-Ho. But people have started calling him by a sobriquet.”

“Sobriquet…? Players on the 1st floor can have one?”

“Most don’t, but outstanding Players like him should have superb titles.”

“What do they call him?”

In only two days, 152 Players had been saved and 436 dark elves had been killed under Seo Jun-Ho’s command. The Players that directly witnessed his achievements had started calling him by another name. 

“He saves allies and beheads his enemies in his black armor.”

The Black Knight.