He Is That Guy

Sudal’s message popped up, and Muljom checked it immediately, speaking in a startled voice.

“Oh? Wait, did you say West Gate?”
I was just as thrown off. It was an unexpected call.
The West Gate was the furthest entrance from the center. On top of that, the route to the center was narrower than the others, flanked by Western-style buildings that created a bunch of tight alleyways. In other words, it wasn’t exactly an ideal spot for a fight.

‘Sure, the West Gate can be attacked, but still…’
I had no idea why they’d choose it. Was there some hidden reason?
“Ugh, this feels off.”

“Seriously.”
Even Muljom and Haereun, who were usually sharp, looked uneasy like me.
[MuljomMasyeora] Is it really the West Gate?

[MuljomMasyeora] Why the hell?
[Gugusudal] I don’t know eitherㅠ
[Gugusudal] Not exactly a great time to jump in and ask;;

[MuljomMasyeora] Where are you?
[Gugusudal] I’m at the East Gate
Of course. The total opposite side. This whole situation was starting to smell weird.

“Let’s just go. We’ll think about it once we get there.”
Yu Chae took the lead and headed for the West Gate. He wasn’t wrong. Our objective right now was to get my stolen staff back. We didn’t have time to overthink this.
I used my evasion skill as a mobility tool and arrived at the West Gate as fast as I could. First thing I did was assess the situation.

Inside the respawn zone, members of the Fever Guild were already waiting for the Selection Match to begin.
“What the hell? Why are there so many of them?”
“No kidding. Looks like more than 40.”
Haereun and SseSseSsehajago were right. For a team supposedly just targeting the West Gate, the number was way overkill.

‘What’s their game?’
Why put this much manpower into the West Gate, the one furthest from the center, instead of the North Gate? I couldn’t make sense of it. Yu Chae didn’t say a word either after noticing the numbers.
[Guild] JaboninaheunGwaemul: Huh??

[Guild] JaboninaheunGwaemul: Wait, guild leader and Muljom are here?
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: I was about to call you guys over;
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: You see how f***ing many of them there are?

[Guild] YangnyeomGejangJjeop: Looks like cockroaches
[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Came to support
[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: But we might need more

[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Everyone give me your briefings
[Guild] TheHunter: East Gate has 15
[Guild] Staeric: North, around 15?

[Guild] ManaOllingnam: South, 10
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: Huh
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: This is weird;; why does the North Gate only have 15?

[Guild] YangnyeomGejangJjeop: West Gate has over 40 right now...
[Guild] Staeric: Huh? West Gate?
[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Move now

[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Head to the West Gate, go go
[Guild] TheHunter: Who should go?
Yu Chae answered for him.

[Guild] Yu Chae: Hwa So-un, RereRekgollyeoyo, Mokappang, Staeric
[Guild] TheHunter: That’s it?
[Guild] Yu Chae: You too, come

[Guild] YangnyeomGejangJjeop: That’s it?
[Guild] Yu Chae: Muljom’s handling the rest
[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Agh—ㅡㅡ

Muljom grumbled, but still pulled together the rest without protest. Honestly, Yu Chae’s picks were solid.
He’d called in a Lancer, a Sharpshooter, a Summoner, a Reaper, and a Warlord. All classes with short cooldowns or splash damage—perfect for crowd control. Basically, he’d picked the best people for the job.
Once reinforcements were gathered, JaboninaheunGwaemul, ParkSeungjin99, and YangnyeomGejangJjeop pushed forward. Off in the distance, the bright white aura of the respawn zone glowed, and at the front stood Fever’s guildmaster.

[All] Danbok: Wow
[All] Danbok: Look at that loser over there LOL
[All] Chaerorop: Huh?

[All] Chaerorop: Who dat?
[All] Danbok: That dumbass JeoJolryeoyo LOL
[All] Danbok: He talked big and got wrecked by our guildmaster, LMAO

[All] Chaerorop: Oh fr? hahahaha
Oh, really. I was half-expecting it, but not to this level of childishness. From where I stood, their pathetic attempt to mock me was just laughable.
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: These punks…

[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: What the hell are they even saying?
[Guild] Staeric: You fought them before?
[Guild] JeoJolryeoyo: Ran into them during a quest

[Guild] JeoJolryeoyo: They picked a fight first
[Guild] Staeric: Ahh gotcha
[Guild] Mokappang: LOL but like—

[Guild] Mokappang: There’s no way Jolrye would lose?
[Guild] Yu Chae: He didn’t
[Guild] Yu Chae: Took out two of them before their guildmaster sucker-punched him

I didn’t even say anything, but Yu Chae jumped in to explain. I couldn’t help but think of a small dog yapping in front of its owner.
[Guild] TheHunter: LOL yep, that checks out
[Guild] Hwa So-un: So basically

[Guild] Hwa So-un: They got wrecked and now they’re whining?
[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Yep
[Guild] YangnyeomGejangJjeop: Same old, same old~

[Guild] Mokappang: F***ers LOL
[Guild] JeoJolryeoyo: It’s fine
[Guild] JeoJolryeoyo: I’m about to beat their faces in anyway

[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: LOLOLOLOLOL
[Guild] TheHunter: FACTSSS LOL
[Guild] Hwa So-un: #Let’sF***ingGo

While his own guildmates were trash-talking me in [All] chat, the Fever guildmaster, Danghani, stayed silent—until he suddenly equipped his flashy twin gold swords and messaged me directly.
[All] Danghani: Yo, Jolrye-nim~ lol
“…Wow.”

Even last time, this guy was unbelievable. His shamelessness wasn’t just annoying—it was impressive.
But if this smug bastard wanted to start a fight playing the smug bastard, I wouldn’t be backing down either. I’ve been doing PvP online since elementary school, after all.
[All] JeoJolryeoyo: LOL hey there

[All] Danghani: So you did log in tonight?~ lol
[All] JeoJolryeoyo: Didn’t have a guild
[All] JeoJolryeoyo: And some dumbasses wouldn’t stop barking lol

[All] Danghani: LOLLLLL
[All] Danghani: Told you to come to our guild~
[All] JeoJolryeoyo: Sorry, I screen for people with a functioning moral compass lol;

[All] Danghani: LMAO you screening for morals? hahaha
[All] Danghani: Then isn’t Chojeon a bit much?
[All] JeoJolryeoyo: Yeah I’m not saying this guild’s perfect

[All] JeoJolryeoyo: But yours has both shitty personalities and loser behavior, so it’s even worse LOL
I didn’t let up, and the air around us went noticeably colder. Guildmates watching the exchange started chiming in on [Guild] chat.
[Guild] Hwa So-un: Damn he scary

[Guild] TheHunter: Still 5 minutes to go
[Guild] Mokappang: LOL but seriously, Jolrye-nim
[Guild] Mokappang: “Not saying this guild’s perfect” had me DYING

[Guild] Haereun: Not wrong tho, can’t argue
[Guild] RereRekgollyeoyo: FR LOL
[Guild] MuljomMasyeora: Good griefㅡㅡ

[Guild] Yu Chae: Should I just kill this f***er?
I ignored Yu Chae’s bloodlust and calmly scanned for the Fever Guild newbie. But with nearly 40 people packed together, even after rotating the camera nonstop, I couldn’t spot her.
“Hyung, I think she won’t spawn till the match starts.”

Yu Chae must’ve been looking too, because he spoke into the mic. I nodded and reset my view.
“She’s hidden. Once the Selection Match starts, if you see her, tell me. I’ll head over right away.”
“Got it.”

“Yessir~”
“Roger that.”
With those replies, I equipped my staff. Just 3 minutes left till the match began.

[All] Danghani: “Loser behavior,” damn
[All] Danghani: Bit harsh, don’t you think? lol
[All] ParkSeungjin99: Jolrye-nim’s just good at reading the room

[All] ParkSeungjin99: Took one look and clocked it as a nest of weirdosㅠㅠ
[All] Danbok: This ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) f***ing loser won’t shut up
[All] Danbok: Stop flapping your gums and shut it LOL

[All] Haereun: “Shut it”?
[All] Haereun: Shuuuut iiiit~ it’s me~
[All] Haereun: How have you been~~?

[All] TheHunter: BROOOO LOLLLLLLLLLL
[All] SseSseSsehajago: I’M LOSING IT LOLLLLL
[All] Hwa So-un: Yo what was that?! Are you a genius?! LOL

[All] YangnyeomGejangJjeop: Spit my water out you bastard; f***
[All] JaboninaheunGwaemul: These jokes are making me dizzy…
[All] Haereun: It’s been so long, my love!

[All] MuljomMasyeora: LOLLLLLLLLLLL
[All] RereRekgollyeoyo: That vibrato—perfect
[All] ParkSeungjin99: This loser’s singing “Pour Me a Shot…”

[All] Danbok: LOL y’all are really playing around like morons
[All] Mokappang: And now, Danbok the loser says… “Does soju taste bitter to you…?”
[All] Mokappang: “To me… it’s like a sweet soda…”

[All] Staeric: Kyaaaaaa~
[All] YangnyeomGejangJjeop: DEAD. GONE. WRECKED~~~LOLLLL
[All] Hwa So-un: DRENCH ME

[All] MuljomMasyeora: Stop, I’m gonna cry LOL
‘…Is this what a breathless DPS burst looks like?’
Watching my guild just obliterate Fever in chat made me shake my head in disbelief. Sure, I had to put up with them because of the staff, but I was seriously wondering if I’d joined a guild full of lunatics too quickly.

Still, thanks to them, the tense atmosphere had eased up a lot. And in moments like this, too much tension could be just as dangerous. I set my fingers on the keyboard with a clearer head.
The Guardian Guild Selection Match has begun!