Chapter 90
“Not coming out? Get out here, you bastards!”
The furious cry of the fifty-first participant echoed across the clearing.
“Do you know how far I flew to get here, huh? You think your time’s the only one that matters? What about mine?”
The man shouted at Delilah, who hadn’t even appeared yet.
Others joined in, stirred by his outrage.
“Yeah, seriously! Is there no sense of decency here? We’d understand if we were late, but we weren’t!”
“They could’ve at least explained the rules properly. Drag us out here just to pull this crap?”
“So being a Ranker gives them the right to act like gods?”
The protests of those who missed the cut-off.
Honestly, I couldn’t blame them.
If I’d been in their place, I probably would’ve been furious too.
‘Of course.’
Now that I was already among the fifty, I had no intention of sticking my neck out for them.
They were my future competition, after all.
‘Tsk. Should’ve just come earlier.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly and thanked White Boar for securing my transport an hour ahead of time.
“That’s right!”
“Come out! Let’s talk face to face!”
“We can’t just walk away like this!”
Their voices grew louder and more aggressive—
Until—
Ssshhk!
Someone appeared out of thin air.
A tall man in black slacks and a crisp white shirt.
A sword hung from his waist, and his blood-red eyes gleamed under furrowed brows.
The crowd stirred the moment he appeared.
“Th-that guy!”
“Red Eyes? It’s him—Red-Eyed Swordmaster Luka!”
“The Magic Swordsman himself?”
“Oh, my god, Luka’s here?”
Ah.
Even I widened my eyes.
The Red-Eyed Swordmaster?
Of course I knew him.
A world-famous figure.
A French Hunter, ranked twenty-fifth in the world.
A textbook Western beauty with a massive global fanbase.
“Silence.”
Luka’s cold gaze swept over the crowd of rejected participants.
“Accept the result and leave.”
Wow.
Did high-ranking Rankers come with a built-in skill for dramatic delivery or something?
His voice was heavy—commanding.
Naturally, the rejected Hunters shrank back.
A few spat on the ground and turned away.
‘Right.’
What choice did they have?
When a Ranker like Luka told you to leave, you left.
No one wanted to argue their way into an early grave.
However—
The fifty-first participant refused to back down.
“Ha! Luka the Magic Swordsman, huh? So what if you’re a Ranker?”
“…Stop making noise and leave.”
“Not even going to explain? Just telling me to get lost? Do you even know whose recommendation I came here on, huh?”
Ah.
There it was—the classic line.
‘‘Do you know who I am?’’
The phrase used by those who wanted to wield their status as a weapon.
But that sort of thing didn’t work on someone like Luka.
“I don’t care who you are.”
He didn’t even blink.
“This is your last warning. If you value your life, turn around and go back to your country.”
His tone didn’t rise or fall.
It was cold enough to freeze the air.
Luka’s hand brushed the hilt of his sword.
The fifty-first man flinched.
“Heh.”
Then he let out a hollow laugh.
“Unbelievable. What a bunch of thugs. Delilah, huh? From America, right? Figures. Think being a superpower gives you the right to do whatever you want? A bunch of schemers, all of you. Locking information behind system barriers, dragging people out to this curry-smelling dump—”
“……”
Srrng!
The sword left its sheath.
No hesitation. No questions.
He was ready to cut him down without a word.
“Fine, I’m leaving! I’m leaving! Screw this!”
The fifty-first participant finally backed down.
Right.
No matter how bold he was, strength still ruled all.
That’s how the world worked.
The strong survive.
Power defines law.
It was exactly why I wanted to become a Ranker myself.
‘At least he’s not stupid.’
To even qualify for this place, he had to be an exceptional Hunter.
So at least he knew when to quit.
As the defeated man trudged away, Luka turned his gaze toward us.
Then he spoke.
“You may hold grievances about the nature of the trial.”
“……”
All fifty of us turned our eyes toward him.
“But every part of this trial was created by Lady Delilah herself. Don’t mistake the privilege of her recommendation for an entitlement to her trials.”
Not wrong.
When kindness is constant, people start mistaking it for obligation.
I did think it was a bit unfair—but still.
‘More than that…’
I was captivated by Luka’s presence.
That aura. That cool intensity.
Honestly, I was more interested in that than in the whining of the rejected.
Clack!
Luka sheathed his sword.
“Let me give you a warning as well.”
He continued.
“This field is a lawless zone. Killing and dying here carry no legal consequences.”
“……”
The silence was suffocating.
Even the sound of breathing seemed to vanish.
Olena, James, and Capu—who’d been chatty earlier—were dead quiet.
All eyes focused forward, tension hanging thick in the air, like new recruits before their first drill.
“So if you fear death—or lack the resolve to face it—leave now. Such people have no right to become Rankers.”
“……”
His tone left no room for doubt.
We could walk away now—
or stay, knowing death was a possibility.
‘But of course.’
No one moved.
Every Hunter risked their life the moment they entered a dungeon.
That was normal.
‘If it’s just that much, I’ll gladly risk it.’
Because becoming a Ranker was worth more than life.
Rankers—
the ones the world revered.
The ones treated as living legends wherever they went.
‘That’s why—’
Not a single person stepped forward.
All fifty of us silently agreed.
“Good.”
A faint smirk appeared on Luka’s face.
“Let me introduce myself properly. I am Luka, senior adjudicator for this trial. My title is Magic Swordsman—Rank 25 worldwide.”
We all already knew that just by looking at him.
But one thing caught my attention.
‘Adjudicator?’
So Delilah’s trial was run this systematically?
“Lady Delilah’s trial consists of six themes. Complete them according to their purpose, and you’ll automatically earn Ranker status.”
“……”
Just like Lee Seonah had said—Luka confirmed it.
Someone raised a hand.
“Speak.”
“What are those themes?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“…Excuse me?”
“If you want to know, then pass.”
Luka’s answer was flat.
“If you complete the trial and become Rankers, you’ll understand why Lady Delilah opens them twice a year.”
“Another question!”
Perhaps encouraged by his initial response, someone else spoke up.
“Speak.”
“I joined because I wanted to meet Lady Delilah herself. Where is she?”
“You wish to see her?”
“Yes, sir!”
The man answered energetically.
Luka chuckled.
“Then pass.”
So that was the answer, huh.
If you weren’t strong, you didn’t even have the right to know.
“……”
The questioner slumped back, defeated.
Luka continued.
“Within this space, you may use any method or any skill you wish. You may kill others—or form alliances if you choose.”
“……”
We could kill each other?
Ah. So that’s why he’d mentioned the lawless field earlier.
A strange dryness crept into my throat.
“We are not here to judge morality. Only to measure whether you can clear the trials—by any means necessary. Understood?”
“Uh, question—!”
Someone tried again.
Luka shook his head.
“No more explanations. From this point on, you will discover everything yourselves.”
Then—
A message flashed across the air.
It looked almost identical to a dungeon entry notice.
[Ding!]
[Stage: Delilah’s Trial]
[Delilah creates a dungeon.]
[The dungeon is being drastically compressed.]
[Time inside the dungeon flows more slowly.]
[Complete Delilah’s themed challenges to earn “Trial Points.”]
[Trial Points will directly affect your final clear and rewards.]
[Current Trial Points: 0]
‘Trial Points?’
And the dungeon’s being… compressed?
Time moves slower?
As I scrambled to make sense of the messages—
“Well then.”
Luka’s voice rang out.
“Good luck.”
Flash!
My vision was swallowed by light.
—
[Entering the dungeon.]
“……”
Incredible.
Could a single Hunter really do something like this?
Creating a dungeon—triggering a system interface?
Maybe Delilah was the one creating all the world’s dungeons.
Whatever the case, this new space was unfamiliar.
A tropical rainforest.
Trees, vines, boulders—lush vegetation in every direction.
I looked around.
All fifty participants were here with me.
“What is this place? The adjudicator said there’d be a trial, but we’re just thrown into a dungeon?”
“There’s no mission listed—just says to collect Trial Points.”
“What even are those?”
Hunters murmured anxiously.
Some gathered in small groups, whispering theories.
Others stood alone, trying to assess the situation calmly.
“Hey, Hoon?”
A familiar voice called to me.
It was Olena, from Ukraine.
“We talked earlier while waiting, right? How about forming a team?”
“Hey, Hoon, there you are.”
“Yeah, we should probably stick together.”
James and Capu joined in too.
Everyone seemed relieved to have potential allies.
‘Can’t blame them.’
Luka had said killing was allowed.
If someone stayed alone, they could easily become a target.
‘Yeah, better to have a team than be solo.’
I nodded.
“Sure, let’s team up.”
That didn’t mean I trusted them.
It just meant we’d cooperate for mutual benefit—
use each other as needed.
‘Of course.’
If things went well, maybe they could even become comrades.
The Seoul Five Stars had met here the same way, after all.
“But…”
Olena frowned slightly.
“What do we do now? It’s just a forest.”
“Yeah. No threats nearby, no monsters. Guess we need to figure out how to earn these Trial Points.”
As James replied—
[Ding!]
[Rules have been set.]
[Kill your opponents.]
[Each kill grants 100 Trial Points.]
[You will also claim half the Trial Points your victim possessed.]
“……?”
A message appeared before us.
The sound that marked—the beginning of the dungeon.
(TN: Dang. A battle royale all of a sudden. )