He Is That Guy

“You okay?”

“Huh?”
Still in a daze, I stared °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° blankly at the screen until Yu Chae’s voice snapped me out of it.
“O-oh. Yeah. I’m fine. I took out the last mage.”

“Oh, nice!”
“Damn, that timing though.”
“That was close. Good job.”

Drink Some Water, Haereun, and SseSseSsehajago each chimed in after hearing my update. As their voices echoed in my ears, I turned my gaze toward the enemy mage still lying on the ground in a corpse state, not yet respawned.
‘He was waiting to watch me die to the Lancer, that little shit.’
When you die during a selection match, a system window pops up asking if you want to respawn. The fact that he hadn’t clicked it and just stayed there in corpse mode… The reason was obvious.

Unbelievable. Scoffing, I tilted my head as I glanced at the mage’s nickname.
‘aoko?’
Sounded familiar. I rifled through my memory and realized—it was one of the alt-account mages I’d killed the day my staff got stolen.

Back then, his nickname had been “aoko1.” He just slapped a “1” on his main ID for his alt, didn’t even try.
[All] I’m So Sleepy: LOL hey
[All] I’m So Sleepy: you’re that absolutely garbage mage I killed last time, right?

[All] aoko: ?
[All] I’m So Sleepy: if you’re gonna play dirty, at least make your alt nickname less lazy LOL
[All] I’m So Sleepy: you just tack on a 1 or 2 and call it a day, no wonder you keep getting embarrassed like this~

[All] I’m So Sleepy: how does it feel getting wrecked twice by the same guy—main and alt?
[All] aoko: LOL you really love this shit huh, dumbass
[All] I’m So Sleepy: and yet you got wrecked by this dumbass, so what’s that make you?
After reading my messages, the mage went silent for a moment, then vanished. He’d finally clicked respawn. Lame.

With both the Fever mage and the Lancer gone, I sent Yu Chae a whisper.
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: how’d you get here so fast?
It felt a bit awkward asking over voice chat with the others listening, especially since I hadn’t expected to need his help at all. But he replied without missing a beat.

[Whisper] Yu Chae: how could I not know where you are, hyung?
[Whisper] Yu Chae: I know everything, duh lol
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: ?;;

There he goes again, dodging it like that.
[Whisper] Yu Chae: hyung, by the way—
[Whisper] Yu Chae: that staff… that’s the one I gave you, right?

[Whisper] Yu Chae: you got it back?
“Oh.”
I glanced down at the staff my character was holding. Right. I should’ve told him.

“I got the staff back.”
“Huh? Seriously?”
“I thought you didn’t have time to get it yet, what with stopping the mage ult and all.”

“There’s a lot to explain, but… let’s just say I had a productive talk with the newbie on Fever’s side who was holding it. It’s complicated—I’ll explain later.”
After saying that, I followed up with Yu Chae privately.
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: some stuff went down

[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: but yeah, I got it back
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: this is the one you gave me
[Whisper] Yu Chae: hehehehehe

[Whisper] Yu Chae: I’m really glad hehehehe
“…?”
What the hell is he so happy about? Ignoring Yu Chae’s weirdly giddy laughter, I checked the selection match gauge.

Our guild had filled 70%, Fever was at 63%. If I had failed—if that Elemental Mage’s Meteor had landed on the 40 people gathered at the West Gate—Fever’s gauge would’ve easily jumped past 90%.
‘Hmm? Wait a sec.’
As I stared at the gauge speeds, a brilliant idea hit me. This… this could lead to something really entertaining. Even if it failed, we wouldn’t lose anything.

I quickly ran through the possibilities, and with a grin, I called out:
“Hey, Drink Some Water.”
“Huh?”

“I’ve got a good idea. Wanna hear it?”
“A good idea? What kind?”
“First, tell the guild to slow down our gauge gain a little.”

I leaned back in my chair, relaxed, and continued.
“Let’s call ManaOing over to the West Gate.”
[Guild] aoko: this is fucking bullshit

[Guild] aoko: you seriously couldn’t protect it, LOL?
[Guild] aoko: at least gimme someone who’s not completely brain-dead
[Guild] RareHunter: lol;;

[Guild] RareHunter: why the fuck you talking like that, bro
[Guild] aoko: ?
[Guild] aoko: says the guy who played like absolute dogshit

[Guild] RareHunter: I did tell you to set up early and ult
[Guild] RareHunter: you’re the one who sat there dicking around
[Guild] Sangdanghan: okay quit the bitching

[Guild] Sangdanghan: you’re both trash so shut up
MelodyCode, watching the guild chat unfold with visible disdain, turned her gaze toward the West Gate where the fight was still raging.
According to Fever’s plan, the three Elemental Mages hidden inside the West Gate were supposed to drop Meteor and blow the place up—but contrary to expectations, Chojeonyeok’s fast response kept the match going.

‘Can’t believe they actually stopped it.’
When she first leaked the plan to Chojeonyeok, she hadn’t expected them to succeed at all. Honestly, she didn’t even care about the match outcome.
Just getting rid of that goddamn staff and scoring a decent excuse was more than enough.

[Guild] aoko: fucking hell and now that bastard has the staff back too
[Guild] aoko: this guild is full of brain-dead losers
[Guild] aoko: I told you I’d take care of it

[Guild] Danbok: lol
[Guild] Danbok: yeah give a newbie a top-tier weapon and of course they lose it right away haha
[Guild] Sangdanghan: honestly

[Guild] Sangdanghan: dropping the staff like that was kinda cringe
[Guild] aoko: if you can’t protect it
[Guild] aoko: then don’t fucking bring it into the fight in the first place jesus

‘Fucking idiots…’
Seeing them twist the story like they hadn’t forced the staff on her in the first place just made her blood boil. Still, acting out now would only backfire.
Birds of a feather flock together. Most of the guild was made up of psychos. Swallowing curses, MelodyCode typed something completely devoid of sincerity:

[Guild] MelodyCode: sorryㅠ
[Guild] MelodyCode: I didn’t think it would drop that fast
[Guild] MelodyCode: sorry sorry

[Guild] aoko: oh~ LOL
[Guild] aoko: what the hell do you know anyway
[Guild] MelodyCode: haha..

[Guild] Sangdanghan: she said sorry, damn
[Guild] Sangdanghan: it’s fine~
[Guild] Sangdanghan: don’t worry about it

[Guild] Sangdanghan: I’ll get the staff back for us hehe
[Guild] Sangdanghan: just wait
‘Go to hell.’

The guy she’d handed the staff to in the enemy guild was leagues better than Sangdanghan. MelodyCode prided herself on having a decent eye for skill—and she was dead certain Sangdanghan wouldn’t stand a chance even if he resurrected a hundred times.
She’d be leaving this dumpster fire of a guild after the match. Giving away the staff had been the first step to ensure a clean exit—because if she left while still holding it, they’d call her “Queen Bee” or spread rumors, or worse, keep pestering her.
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: hey

Just then, the Chojeonyeok player who’d added her earlier messaged her.
[Whisper] MelodyCode: ?
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: stay away from the gate starting now

[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: fall back as far as you can
[Whisper] MelodyCode: why tho
[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: you’ve been warned

[Whisper] I’m So Sleepy: just make up some excuse like not having a weapon and get the hell back
[Whisper] MelodyCode: ??
That was it. No further messages from “I’m So Sleepy.”

She hadn’t strayed far from the respawn zone anyway, so there wasn’t much need to back up. But the sudden warning still gnawed at her curiosity.
[Guild] LittleJumper: man these guys are weak as shit lol
[Guild] LittleJumper: we almost caught up on gauge

[Guild] aoko: told you they were garbage LOL
[Guild] JaeChangLife: gauge gain is so slow lmao
[Guild] JaeChangLife: they’re crumbling~

[Guild] dodory: skill issue exposed~
[Guild] Danbok: we should just push now
[Guild] Sangdanghan: yeah

[Guild] Sangdanghan: let’s go, follow me
[Guild] aoko: if I knew it’d be this easy
[Guild] aoko: I wouldn’t have wasted time on dumbass plans—should’ve gone North Gate

[Guild] Danbok: fr lol
[Guild] Danbok: we could’ve maxed the gauge by now haha
[Guild] aoko: ugh fuckkkkk lmaooo

Sure enough, Chojeonyeok’s gauge was rising much slower now. Thirty minutes ago, they were at 77% with Fever at 65%. Now it was 81% to 76%. The gap had shrunk from 12 to just 5.
Following Sangdanghan’s orders, the Fever guild members loitering near respawn started flooding toward the West Gate. MelodyCode stayed put, following I’m So Sleepy’s warning as a chill crept up her spine.
RUMMBLE…

As Sangdanghan led the charge with most of the nearby Fever players behind him, dark clouds gathered overhead and the earth trembled beneath them.
‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’
Only now did MelodyCode realize why she’d been told to stay away from the gate. Thunder cracked across the sky, and a flaming meteor roared down through the black clouds.

Those lunatics were executing the exact plan Fever had tried to pull—only this time, they were using it.
The Fever players realized it a moment too late. Chaos erupted as they panicked and tried to flee.
BOOOOOOM—!

The meteor slammed down dead center in front of the West Gate. The ground quaked violently, and a shockwave of flame blasted outward.
Chojeonyeok Guild has scored 10 points!
Chojeonyeok Guild has scored 10 points!

Chojeonyeok Guild has scored 10 points!
Chojeonyeok Guild has scored 10 points!
Chojeonyeok Guild has scored 10 points!

Chojeonyeok Guild has scored 10 points!
The kill feed exploded. Chojeonyeok’s gauge instantly surged to 99%.