Dusk (BL Light Novel)

[Battle] You have slain Retaking a Class using the skill Fatal Strike.
[System] You have defeated the Jeojajok Commander, Retaking a Class.
[System] You have gained 3,600 reputation points.

[Faction] The Viajok Commander, Honeybread, has defeated the Jeojajok Commander, Retaking a Class.
[General] Honeybread: “When are you going to compliment me?”
[Battle] You have slain Retaking a Class using the skill Blade of Prayer.

[System] You have defeated the Jeojajok Commander, Retaking a Class.
[System] You have gained 3,550 reputation points.
[Faction] The Viajok Commander, Honeybread, has defeated the Jeojajok Commander, Retaking a Class.

[General] Honeybread: “I’m still waiting… ㅇㅅㅇ”
While he was bantering in general chat, a private message came in from Moon Seonhwa.
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”

[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “He’s lying flat and crying.”
[Whisper] Honeybread >> Sillonti: “??”
[Whisper] Honeybread >> Sillonti: “For real?”

There was no way he’d actually be crying.
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “Nah, just acting like it, lol.”
Of course. His heart, which had momentarily leaped in surprise, quickly calmed down.

While leisurely receiving heals and restoring his health, he continued clearing out the approaching Jeojajok players. It wouldn’t be long before Gang Jaegyung arrived, so he didn’t have much time to rest. Fortunately, with Park Gibolle helping to deal damage, they managed to handle the Jeojajok quickly.
Standing by the campfire burning inside the base, he waited for Gang Jaegyung. This time, he seemed to be running a bit late. If he was riding Base No. 45, he should’ve arrived by now. Was he preparing something again? Another bizarre costume like last time, maybe?
While he was recalling Gang Jaegyung’s previous antics, Park Gibolle moved aside, clearing the path to the dungeon entrance. Wondering why, Honeybread glanced over and spotted Gang Jaegyung running toward them. Fortunately, he was still wearing his usual, neat uniform.
Maybe he’d run into some Viajok players on the way. Without overthinking it, they began their fifth battle.

Since Honeybread’s attack power was high, the combat tempo was fast. Gang Jaegyung, too, had adapted to his rhythm and was now attacking with much more precision. Their health bars were depleting rapidly, almost in [N O V E L I G H T] sync.
Ducking and weaving through Gang Jaegyung’s increasingly precise defensive strikes, Honeybread managed to land a debuff skill, causing a status effect. Gang Jaegyung evaded with nimble footwork. Was he awakening to some hidden potential? The thought crossed his mind.
But it wasn’t just Gang Jaegyung who was improving. Honeybread was also fighting harder than ever.

[Battle] You inflicted 6,762 damage to Retaking a Class using the skill Named Sin.
[Battle] Retaking a Class is stunned by the Named Sin skill effect.
[Battle] Retaking a Class’s Mutation Virus Extraction has been interrupted.

Honeybread read the animation, accurately timed his debuff skill, and successfully interrupted the Mutation Virus Extraction skill.
Now, his health was down to about 20%, while Gang Jaegyung had just healed and was sitting at 15%. It looked like Honeybread would win again this time. Gang Jaegyung was probably going to sulk.
Feeling relieved, he was just about to press his skill button when Gang Jaegyung suddenly pulled out a black orb and threw it.
[Battle] You received 30,000 damage from the Precise Gunpowder Orb used by Retaking a Class.

…What the hell? My health is only 24,000 right now…
[Battle] You have been killed by Retaking a Class’s attack.
[System] You have died in the conflict zone.

[System] You have lost 7,140 reputation points.
[Faction] The Jeojajok Commander, Retaking a Class, has defeated the Viajok Commander, Honeybread.
That was one of the combat items you could buy with reputation points — the Gunpowder Orb.

Back in the day, rankers used to buy it en masse during massive battles, pooling their reputation points to take down tanky targets. But now, it was considered an inefficient item for its cost.
Since it dealt a fixed 30,000 damage regardless of defense or stats, and since Honeybread had just over 20,000 HP remaining, he was instantly taken down.
What was shocking wasn’t the fact that he died but that Gang Jaegyung even thought of using that item. He hadn’t touched it since returning to the game, probably because it was so expensive.

He might’ve died faster than expected, but it didn’t matter. There was more than one way to mess with Gang Jaegyung. Killing him over and over wasn’t the only option.
[You have died in the conflict zone. Resurrection waiting time: 0 seconds.]
[Would you like to revive at the Ateliena Wisha Base?]

Revive at Base | Resurrection Waiting
Time for the second method of annoying Gang Jaegyung.
[System] You will be transported to the Ateliena Wisha Base.

Before Gang Jaegyung could even type out a message, Honeybread was already gone.
Unlike him, Gang Jaegyung didn’t break up his messages into quick bursts of text. He typed long, full sentences and wasn’t particularly fast at it. And the initial respawn timer was only five seconds.
No way Gang Jaegyung could finish typing in time. And Honeybread’s prediction was spot-on. Watching the space above his character’s head, he saw Gang Jaegyung’s cursor flicker, but no words appeared before he hit the respawn button.

The moment he revived at the base, a whisper came in.
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “?? Retaking a Class just froze.”
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “He was typing, and then you disappeared, and he just stopped, hands frozen, not saying a word, lmao.”

[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “Did you plan that?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
After losing four consecutive times and burning through an expensive reputation item just to barely clinch a win, Gang Jaegyung tried to type out a taunt — only for Honeybread to vanish by hitting the respawn button in the middle of his message.
Of course, he must feel utterly defeated. That was the whole point.

[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “Ah, fffsssskkkkk”
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “.............Why?”
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”

“Pffft.”
Honeybread was grinning from ear to ear, barely holding back his laughter, but that utterly crestfallen “.............Why?” finally did him in. Imagining Gang Jaegyung staring blankly at the screen like a dog whose treat just got snatched away, muttering a bewildered “...Why?” made his day.
[Whisper] Honeybread >> Sillonti: “Ah, fuck.”

[Whisper] Honeybread >> Sillonti: “ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
[Whisper] Sillonti >> Honeybread: “You gotta hear it for yourself. Check the replay. ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
He was laughing so hard, tears pricked at his eyes. But since he was alone in the room, laughing out loud felt a bit too pathetic. Instead, he stomped his feet on the floor, trying to calm himself down.

Damn, now he was crying.
He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, sniffled, and then teleported to Base No. 43 to head toward Base No. 42. Judging by the fact that Park Gibolle, his registered party member, was still alive and at full health, it seemed like he’d managed to escape unscathed.
Reaching Base No. 42 without running into any Jeojajok players, he spotted Park Gibolle hiding near the dungeon entrance and Gang Jaegyung standing motionless right where he’d left him.

When he got closer without attacking, Gang Jaegyung set him as his target, staring right at him.
[General] Retaking a Class: “8-8,,,?”
Standing still and sending that emote felt like he was silently asking, “Why…?”

Honeybread’s lips twitched.
Wait. Didn’t he say today’s chat rules were limited to complimenting him and self-deprecation? What’s with the emote?
He unequipped his sword and threw a basic punch.

[Battle] You inflicted 148 damage to Retaking a Class using the skill Punch.
His character’s fist swung, landing a light hit on Gang Jaegyung. Immediately, Gang Jaegyung whimpered even more pathetically.
[General] Retaking a Class: “8=8.........?”

Can’t communicate. (Obviously.)
Honeybread gave up on the pointless exchange and re-equipped his sword. Maybe it would be faster to just kill him and then talk.
The moment Gang Jaegyung saw the sword equipped, he struck first, landing a status effect skill. Honeybread’s health dropped before he could even react, but it wasn’t enough to make much of a difference.

They fought continuously, but Honeybread was cautious this time, holding onto one of his evasion skills just in case another Gunpowder Orb showed up. As a result, Gang Jaegyung had the upper hand, his attacks chipping away at Honeybread’s health faster than he could retaliate.
In the end, Honeybread lost twice in a row.
Did he just die too quickly? If you died twice within five minutes, the respawn time increased to ten seconds. And ten seconds was plenty of time for Gang Jaegyung to type out an entire sentence, ruining everything.

Feeling a bit anxious, he quickly checked the respawn timer.
[You have died in the conflict zone. Resurrection waiting time: 5 seconds.]
[Would you like to revive at the Ateliena Wisha Base?]

Revive at Base | Resurrection Waiting
Oh, thank god. It was still only five seconds.
Wiping a bead of sweat off his forehead, Honeybread furiously spammed the respawn button, praying Gang Jaegyung wouldn’t manage to type out a single line.

[System] You will be transported to the Ateliena Wisha Base.
Once again, the general chat remained blissfully silent. Poor Gang Jaegyung. Working a full-time job, barely finding time to play the game, and unable to practice his typing speed. He should just quit already.