NoveLight ™
"Ah." I should have ended this earlier.
A sinister aura spread around Camellia's body. In an instant, the difference in our strength widened, and the dagger I aimed at her heart was pushed back. Naturally, my body, which was on top of her, was also thrown back.
No, at this rate, I’ll be pinned down. If this turns into close-quarters combat, my assassin’s frail body won’t hold up. Just as I rolled my body to escape, Camellia shouted.
“Don’t win and run away!”
Shut up. Before I rip your mouth open. I didn’t run because I wanted to.
“You probably don’t have anything to say if I’m wrong, but I’ve watched a lot of your matches. A lot.” “So what?” “I thought you wanted to go pro.” “That’s a delusion. You should see a doctor. They’ve got great meds for stuff like that.” “You’re surprisingly bad at lying. You’re great at tricks, though. That’s interesting.” “...”
Now that I think about it, Elderen said the same thing. That I’m worse at lying than I think. I had nothing to say when she jabbed at me like that.
Should I say it was obvious? I had watched my own match footage too. While analyzing the opponent was important, reviewing my own gameplay was equally crucial.
Sometimes, I had a certain look on my face. A face that seemed envious and joyful at the same time.
Was it just the thrill of getting attention?
No, I don’t think so. I’m a person with a deep-seated need for affection, starved for victory and desperate for validation. A greedy person, dreaming of two things that I can’t achieve. That’s who I am.
So maybe it showed a little. Or maybe it showed a lot. After all, sparring with someone lets you see things.
“You’ve got everything. You were born with talent that can’t even be compared to someone like me. You have it all, and yet…” “Oh, you shouldn’t have said that.” “At first, I thought you were mocking my dreams. But then…” “I can’t do it.” “You could. You could’ve gone anywhere.” “I really wish you’d shut up now.”
My head was getting hot. I know in my head—I shouldn’t get worked up over words like this. If I keep running until her desperation move runs out, victory will be mine.
But I just couldn’t hold back. Before I realized it, I was stepping forward, blocking her thrust with my spear. My wrist throbbed, but the parry itself was perfect.
When I kicked the side of her ribs, which I’d already wounded earlier, I felt a slight sense of satisfaction.
“Urgh! Answer me…!” “I told you I can’t! Don’t go running your mouth when you don’t know anything! Do you have any idea how many hours—no, how many years I fought like a cripple in that cursed tank?” “A tank...?” “Until I was out of breath, until my head was pounding and I was dizzy from the heat! Everyone told me I should just give up, but I clung on like a maniac!”
I screamed in desperation. I had never known I could shout this loudly. It felt like the time in the rehabilitation center, when I gritted my teeth and forced myself to move, was suffocating me.
"Everything? What did I ever have?” I don’t need any of it. I never wanted this cursed woman’s body, and I’d be glad if someone would just take it from me. But give me back what I’ve lost.
Give me back my peaceful home. Give me back my healthy body. Let me hold the bamboo sword again. Let me walk on my legs, not with these damn crutches. Let me wield a sword in reality, not in this game. Let me look at others without this inferiority complex.
─Give me warmth, give me back my dreams.
I bit my lip wrong. I bit down so hard that I bled, and it hurt.
“Don’t you dare dig up someone else’s wounds!”
It stung. I was clearly the one in control. I was the one pressing down on Camellia’s knees, pushing her spear away, and driving my dagger into her neck. But it felt like a blade was lodged in my throat.
Still, my rage wasn’t fully spent. I stomped on Camellia’s head over and over again. Only after her body disappeared did I realize she’d been dead for quite some time—her health bar had hit zero a while ago.
The only place left to direct my anger was the battlefield. I turned the comms back on.
“Kang Yoohan. You there?”
[Title: Ancient Kingdom Territory Siege Battle Broadcast] [User ‘Yurang’ is live.]
Yurang thought he had named the stream wrong. It wasn’t much of a siege battle broadcast—it had basically turned into a Gawol broadcast.
There wasn’t much he could do about it.
The defending side, which was outmatched, had resorted to a desperate time-stalling strategy, so there wasn’t much to see on the main battlefield. It was a classic case of much ado about nothing. The only spectacle was Gawol, who was handling high-risk solo operations.
“Wow, Camellia is still getting pushed back. I guess rank 1 in the arena is rank 1 for a reason. And isn’t the Black Moon buff still on cooldown?”
“No way. If I broadcast all the in-game audio, my channel’s getting nuked. There’s a lot of bad blood between the guilds here.”
That’s what Yurang said, but cold sweat trickled down his forehead. The conversation between them was way too deep. He felt guilty, like he was eavesdropping.
If it weren’t for the stream, he would’ve turned the camera away. But broadcasting a fight like that was the only way to keep his channel alive. He adjusted the volume so that no voices could be heard and walked the tightrope of broadcasting.
"If players like Reaper or Cerberus saw this, they’d probably be shocked. Gawol’s absorbed their techniques so thoroughly."
Yurang’s strength was his keen observational skills. Through his eyes, it was clear who Gawol was mimicking. Although it seemed like Gawol had put a unique twist on Cerberus’s signature move, the foundation was unmistakable.
The fierce battle was nearing its end. Camellia’s desperation move, Gawol’s bold reengagement, and then… Gawol, consumed by rage, landed a final kick.
Yurang noticed the burst of emotion and turned the camera just in time. Thankfully, he wasn’t too late.
“The expected outcome… Is it really expected? Even though Camellia is one of the top players in the pro scene right now… Anyway, one-on-one combat once again proves itself. Let’s take a quick look at the east gate, shall we?”
There was no other choice. If he aired that last scene, the stream would be flooded with complaints. Yurang’s broadcast motto was ‘steady and long-lasting,’ even if people didn’t believe it.
Of the four castle gates, the most intense battle was undoubtedly at the east gate. That’s where the combined forces had concentrated their firepower. It was also where the defending side was suffering the greatest losses.
The gate had long since been destroyed. The defenders had piled up barricades and other makeshift obstacles just to hold on.
“Wow, they’re really getting pushed back. There’s still some time left… Probably around 20 minutes before the defenders get completely overrun. As things stand, the siege team has a higher chance of winning.”
As Yurang coldly assessed the situation, a shadow suddenly emerged from behind the east gate.
The shadow’s fluttering edge bore the unmistakable sign of the Black Moon buff. A deep, dark line cut through the battlefield.
There was no hesitation in the movements. And there didn’t need to be. With the enemy’s main forces having abandoned their artillery and siege engines, the siege team had already admitted defeat in the assassin match. At this point, Gawol had completed her mission.
So, even if Gawol were to die now, it wouldn’t be a major loss. In fact, taking down even one more mage before falling would be beneficial.
‘No, that’s not it.’ This wasn’t the calculated movement she usually displayed. Her actions were rougher and more aggressive than usual. It wasn’t about taking down one more opponent; it was like she was recklessly throwing herself into the flames of destruction.
The only thing that hid it was her peak-level skill. Using shadows to dart between enemy bodies, using their corpses as cover—these were movements based on instinct.
And the proof of her recklessness was in her damage output. Unlike her usual precise, calculated damage, she sometimes dealt excessive overkill, while other times she came up just short, leading to unnecessary extra moves.
In Yurang’s eyes, it seemed more like a venting of rage than anything else. Gawol’s fury didn’t subside until the siege battle was over.
When the defending side barely managed to scrape together a victory, Gawol logged out with a blank expression, as if she had no more attachments left.
[Posted by: AnonymousCross] [Title: Guild Disbanded]
[Posted by: User ㅇㅇ (810.11)] [Title: Why hasn't Gawol been around lately?]
Has anyone seen her since the siege battle? There used to be people who’d post screenshots of her whenever they saw her, but it’s been quiet lately.
[Comments]
[Posted by: Gawol] [Title: I’m going to take a break from the game for a while.]
I’ll probably appear as a guest on my sister’s stream for now. I’m not sure how long I’ll be taking a break. Thanks for all the fun.
[Comments]