The tutorial in the Dark Zone was hard.

 

It was an opinion shared by the majority of the millions of users worldwide, with a concurrent player count reaching 15 million daily.

 

Apart from the goal of reaching a specific location, the only things given were a dozen magazines, a rifle, a pistol, and a few grenades.

 

Enemies fired bullets at everything they encountered as they walked through the winds wrapping around buildings and the silently accumulating snow.

 

Breaking through all of that with just one or two people was beyond difficult; it imparted a sense of solitude, as if walking through a dead world alone.

 

Therefore, many people shared their thoughts on it, sometimes claiming they had overcome tougher challenges than others and engaging in competitions.

 

Moreover, discussions on what conditions would make the journey most difficult and whether it was realistically possible were frequently held.

 

However, one thing was certain,

 

“Are we all going to get annihilated? The flare is too conspicuous.”

 

“Stop complaining and calculate the expected landing position of the grenade.”

 

“Ugh, this person is so scary…!”

 

No matter who it was, joining a party with a hardcore user made it much easier than Harmony, who had embraced a fantastic bundle of conditions.

 

*

 

There were various ways to obtain firearms in the Dark Zone.

 

Generally, one could buy new firearms with in-game currency, credits, complete missions to obtain gun blueprints, stockpile materials to craft them, or enter the Dark Zone, which was both a contaminated area and a location, open weapon cases, obtain firearms, and safely escape.

 

These were the methods allowed for regular users.

 

However, whether it was out of the game’s minimal conscience or not, hardcore users didn’t need to do that.

 

To be more precise, in addition to the many methods listed above, there was another method.

 

That method was looting, literally.

 

It was simple but powerful, making everyone, not just enemies but even users, exceptions to them.

 

For that very reason,

 

───Boom!

 

­[Flare confirmed. We will send a helicopter for material transport. ETA, 3 minutes.］

 

These two had picked up so many things that, instead of hiding until the Unauthorized Zone was lifted, they were openly wandering outside.

 

A small, bright red sun rose in the dark sky.

 

Floating leisurely in the air and slowly burning, it soon incinerated itself and disappeared completely, but the enemies drawn to it like moths proved that it was not the end but the beginning of a new incident through their presence.

 

In other words,

 

“S&S Precision Plate Frame, wrist monitor for MP7, drone bag….”

 

“…Who are they?”

 

“They’re drone operators from Artemis Technology’s PMC. Crazy bastards who spend over $3,000 on drones just to kill people.”

 

“The gun that person is holding… it looks small and decent. It seems convenient to carry around.”

 

“Really? If their equipment is intact after being hit by a grenade, we’ll transport all of it.”

 

If they could catch them, those guys were walking golden goblins.

 

And because of partying with a hardcore user, they were coming in a considerable variety, not just one.

 

The fortunate thing was,

 

───Thud thud thud!

 

“What the, why are they fighting each other?”

 

“They’re hostile to each other.”

 

Russian amphibious infantry and PMC hired by a drone manufacturing company.

 

One side was invaders from a foreign country, and the other was surviving through natural selection in a situation half-destroyed by a pandemic.

 

It was a situation and position where they couldn’t help but regard each other as enemies.

 

Watching this from a second-floor balcony of a nearby building, the two cautiously poked their heads out to observe the outside situation.

 

The steadily decreasing countdown and the sound of rotors approaching from afar.

 

There were no enemies heading toward them yet, but it wasn’t a situation to relax. Harmony glanced at Yoo Jin, her eyes rolling.

 

“I can hear your eyeballs rolling.”

 

“Oh, did you catch that? Ehehe.”

 

“Take a little rest. I’ll keep an eye on the outside.”

 

“Oh, thank you…”

 

Haa.

 

Though it wasn’t actually cold, the world inside the Dark Zone was cold.

 

Turning her back on the breath exhaled in a handful, Harmony finally snapped out of her immersion and realized she was a streamer.

 

The chat window and viewer count, which had been turned off for a while due to numerous combat situations, were turned on again.

 

As she popped them up, she started thinking about what excuse to give her viewers.

 

Of course, reality was far from her expectations.

 

<IShade donated 10,000 won!>

 

­Ignoring donations? The game seems fun, huh? Ignoring donations? The game seems fun, huh? Ignoring donations? The game seems fun, huh?

 

“Everyone, I’m sorry. I was so out of it that I didn’t even know who donated how much… Heek, why are there so many people now!?”

 

10,513.

 

The number next to the red button indicating the stream was ON was clearly five digits, not four, and not starting with a 5.

 

Double.

 

The number of viewers suddenly flooding the stream was double the usual fixed number of viewers when the stream started.

 

No matter how you look at it, this was an unexpected situation.

 

However, looking at the slowly flashing red dot and the five-digit number next to it, she gradually calmed down.

 

The number of viewers could increase or decrease for various reasons, and Harmony had already spent quite a long time in the broadcasting industry.

 

What mattered was not being swayed by the numbers but not losing her pace.

 

She cleared her throat and cautiously soothed the angry viewers.

 

“…As you all know, the situation right now is a bit tricky. We’re caught in some place called the Unauthorized Zone, so I’ll check everything at the end of the stream.”

 

<Tampopo donated 10,000 won!>

 

­In-game, even if you meet King Sejong, you can’t react! Got it?

 

“Thank you, Tampopo, for the 10,000 won… I’m sorry. But isn’t it worse to react and then get shot in the head and have to start over?”

 

­Shocking) A streamer who reacts to donations after 40 minutes!?!?!???!!?!?!?

 

­Absolute explanation needed

 

­Please, sis, ask the teammate if they’re hardcore, just once, please!!!!!

 

­Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore! Hardcore!

 

­Seriously, what does that party member do? Please ask, it’s driving me crazy, hahaha

 

­Carrying this? Human GOTY, right?

 

­Is Yoo Jin a god? Is Yoo Jin a god? Is Yoo Jin a god? Is Yoo Jin a god?

 

The chat was pouring in like a waterfall.

 

Reading them quietly, she began to understand why the viewer count had surged.

 

In short, it was because of the user named Yoo Jin, who had partied with her, that people were going crazy in all directions.

 

But upon closer inspection, there were comments and donations recommended and still visible at the top.

 

As she focused on them, they played automatically.

 

The first was a donation from an hour ago.

 

<AbsoluteDog LikeTaeBoHae supported 20,000 won.!>

 

­Sis, quickly ask the teammate if they’re hardcore. The enemies appearing now are no joke!!

 

Here, too.

 

<Dark Zone Gothi Jyo? has donated 4,000 won!>

 

­Today’s living tip) Hardcore users encounter enemies as strong as amphibious infantry even in the tutorial, and this applies in party play. What this means is you partied with a hardcore user, and you’re on the brink of complete destruction.

 

There, too.

 

Everyone was almost neurotic about the hardcore topic.

 

It was only a matter of time before Harmony’s heart plummeted.

 

Her mind turned towards Yoo Jin like a rusty machine.

 

“Excuse me, sir…?”

 

“Have you finished your task?”

 

“By any chance, what’s your calibration?”

 

The mint and blue eyes met.

 

However, the latter casually replied while setting up the machine gun.

 

“I don’t know what I touched, but it said calibration procedure and slider omitted, and hardcore mode auto-set. Does that answer your question?”

 

“…Ack.”

 

Feeling as if the world was darkening before her eyes, Harmony flopped down on the spot.

 

…Wait a minute.

 

‘Come to think of it, doesn’t it matter much…?’

 

Whether they were a hardcore user or not, without that user, wouldn’t they have embraced the cold Manhattan pavement several times by now?

 

Moreover, looking at the chat in more detail, it seemed they wouldn’t face such enemies forever.

 

Although forcibly awakened to an inconvenient truth by the viewers, her stance hadn’t changed much.

 

“Ugh…!”

 

“If you’re back to your senses, let’s get ready.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Thunk.

 

The sound of a metal railing and the forward Picatinny rail of the grenade launcher scraping mixed into the winter wind.

 

As the sound of the propeller grew louder without needing to strain to listen, bullets rained towards a helicopter flying overhead with flashing lights.

 

­[We’ve detected numerous bad guys in the hovering zone. The jamming is strong, so we can’t stay for long. It would be great if you could clear them all before then.］

 

Watching such a chaotic scene from a construction site tens of meters away were the two.

 

Just a slight twist of the wrist caused the trajectory to move slightly.

 

A hologram showing the trajectory and expected impact point of the grenade and the estimated blast radius kept flashing in front of Harmony’s eyes.

 

A 15-meter radius kill zone.

 

Confirming that two enemies were precisely within that range, she gently squeezed the trigger that was heavily set.

 

───Bang!

 

The explosion, a mixture of flames, dust, and screams, erupted in the middle of the city.

 

 

 

Then, over the percussive sound pounding her chest directly, Yoo Jin started pouring bullets like rain at a rate of 700 rounds per minute.

 

The enemies gathered at the extraction point were in utter confusion, falling in droves or getting caught in explosions.

 

After confirming there were no more grenades loaded, Harmony harshly pushed the handle to the right and raised the muzzle.

 

As the six shells fell to the ground with a metallic clink, she flipped it half a turn, opened the grenade pouch, and loaded six grenades into the cylinder with mechanical movements before winding the spring and repeating the mounting and targeting.

 

Next to her, the relentless suppressing fire continued, the barrel glowing red-hot.

 

Even the enemies hiding behind cover untouched by the 7.62mm NATO rounds fell one by one to precise grenade shots.

 

Among all this, Harmony felt a peculiar emotion.

 

‘This is, something….’

 

The explosions and flames flashing over the darkened city.

 

People flying around like cut-string dolls with each trigger pull.

 

The continuous tingling of gunfire in her ears.

 

The perfect synchronization without any verbal communication….

 

By the time the light shock, like being hit with a hammer, on her shoulder didn’t bother her, Harmony finally began to feel the grenade launcher was hers.

 

A small smile spread like ink over her lips.

 

In this moment, she had found her match.

 

* * *