Rapid Intervention - (1)

[Chapter 26]

When a sudden rift occurred, every player had the right to engage in battle, regardless of the situation.

For example, even if a rift broke out and a player killed multiple monsters and collected by-products, it wouldn't be an issue.

There was no troublesome aftermath of the Player Union claiming ownership or dragging the matter into a dispute.

It was a natural rule.

If they punished players for unauthorized intervention or tried to claim ownership afterward, no one would step forward.

Protecting ordinary people without combat abilities was something players would be praised for.

'Monopolizing the rewards is important, but since I know about the incident in advance, I should prevent any casualties.'

Sanghyun thought so.

He had no interest in becoming a superhero struggling to save everyone in the world, but he had no intention of standing by and watching a disaster unfold before his eyes.

Suddenly, Sanghyun thought of his parents, who had passed away when he was three.

They had left him with his maternal grandmother and, while returning from a business trip to Japan, were caught in a plane crash.

That was how he became an orphan, and by the time he turned ten, his grandmother also passed away.

It was the final farewell to his last blood relative.

Regardless, having returned to the past and gained knowledge of the future, he deeply understood the value of that knowledge.

'I know words like these are meaningless. But I'll live even harder, doing my best for my parents' share as well.'

Sanghyun made a firm vow.

He had made the same vow in his previous life, but despite his efforts, he never got to bask in much of the world's light.

But this time would be different.

He was growing faster than anyone else, advancing quicker than the rest.

Some time later.

Sanghyun arrived near Bupyeong Station and parked his car in a public parking lot.

It was far from the predicted disaster zone.

After getting out of the car, he immediately took out the Greatsword of Fighting Spirit from the back seat and began resetting its effect.

First, he removed the Lightweight effect from the crude greatsword and then applied it to the Greatsword of Fighting Spirit, a unique-grade Artifact.

There was a penalty for doing this.

The standard for Lightweight would be downgraded—for instance, 1g of Lightweight might be reduced to 10g.

'Still, it's better to use the Greatsword of Fighting Spirit.'

[Would you like to remove the Lightweight effect from the greatsword? Upon reapplication, the effect may differ from the original.]

He immediately removed it.

The old greatsword that had served him well so far would now be set aside to rest peacefully at home.

[Would you like to apply the Lightweight effect to a new target? The effect can be applied up to 10g.]

'10g is fine. Even 100g or 1kg would be okay. As long as I don't change it too often.'

Sanghyun proceeded with the Lightweight application.

The Greatsword of Fighting Spirit, which had required both hands to wield with force, suddenly became incredibly light.

It felt as if he were swinging a plastic toy sword made for children.

That was the charm of Lightweight.

It defied the laws of physics through the system.

The system's structure was truly mysterious.

Of course, only the perceived weight changed; the weapon's destructive power and might remained unaffected.

It was the strength of the system's correction.

Step by step, Sanghyun walked toward Exit 1 of Bupyeong Station, surveying his surroundings.

It was a day when both yellow dust and fine dust had swept across the Korean Peninsula, so the streets were nearly empty.

In addition, the forecast had warned of sudden gusts of wind and hail, which played a part in keeping people indoors.

In a way, it was a fortunate day.

'Silence. Airborne. Temporary blindness. Immobilization. Isolation. Suppression...'

Sanghyun muttered various status effects that came to mind.

His desire kept growing.

Currently, the status effects he possessed through skills or special effects were Stiffness, Freezing, and now Knockback.

There wasn't any effect he didn't want, but the one he craved the most was Silence.

'If you get hit with Silence, your skills are sealed during that time. It turns into a rock-paper-scissors game that's just too fun.'

An opponent affected by Silence would have their skill activation mechanisms temporarily disabled by the system.

For magic-type players, who were highly dependent on skills, Silence was practically lethal.

Since their physical combat abilities were significantly weaker, being silenced left them no better than ordinary people.

For this reason, Silence was highly favored.

Artifacts with that effect skyrocketed in value.

'Silent Ground dungeon. If I could just get there, that would be the most cost-effective method.'

Silent Ground.

The Land of Silence.

A notorious place where all the monsters cast Silence as easily as breathing.

If you lacked confidence in evasion and defense, it was practically like having your skills sealed for 24 hours straight.

'For now, let's finish this Bupyeong Station situation first.'

He brought his focus back to the present.

Constantly planning ahead seemed to be an occupational hazard of being a regressor.

His greed kept growing, and once something caught his interest, he couldn't let it go.

It was a pleasant kind of obsession.

Standing in front of Exit 1 at Bupyeong Station, Sanghyun pulled up the Player Union's number on his smartphone screen.

The emergency report number was 181.

Calling this would connect him to the nearest branch of the union.

It was a number reserved for reporting urgent or special situations, ensuring the closest team would be dispatched.

"...."

He looked up at the sky.

The sun was setting over the western horizon, burning in a fiery red glow.

Maybe it was because of the yellow dust and fine dust, but today, the sunset looked like the blood-red eyes of a demon, ready to devour the world.

"Now should be the right time."

According to the records Sanghyun remembered from before, the first rift had begun when the sun was halfway over the western sky.

That moment was now.

Ring... Ring...

"There's a gold-grade Artifact near Exit 1 that looks like someone lost it."

"Yes. I need to take care of something soon, so you should send someone over quickly."

He finished the report.

By the time the dispatched union staff arrived, the rift would likely have just appeared.

Cleanup shouldn't be an issue.

The reason for the report was fabricated, but in the end, it was a way to prepare for the disaster in advance, so it wouldn't be a problem.

"Hoo."

Taking a deep breath, Sanghyun positioned himself near the predicted rift location.

There were hardly any people around.

That was fortunate.

There didn't seem to be any chance of innocent victims being caught up in this.

『Full Charge』

He swiftly began his attack preparations.

Full Charge was a skill that gathered more power the longer it was charged.

Of course, there was a limit to its maximum firepower, but in terms of time, he could keep gathering strength without restriction.

'My equipment is far better than before. Honestly, I have high expectations for this first strike.'

Sanghyun smirked.

It was partly due to the satisfaction of knowing the unsuspecting kobold horde would soon emerge through the rift.

At that moment.

Wooouuuuuung!

A deafening noise, like the roar of a vacuum cleaner motor, echoed as space suddenly distorted.

The space shattered, resembling a broken glass window—a phenomenon players referred to as a rift.

Soon after, a portal of blazing, pale green light formed, creating a passageway.

Now, from within that dimension, a horde of kobolds would appear.

Wakuu! Ukwaa!

A group of kobolds wielding axes emerged.

The vanguard.

They were sacrificial pawns sent to scout an unfamiliar environment.

From the perspective of the Kobold King, they were mere sacrificial offerings, but for the humans facing the rift, it was a deadly crisis.

Sanghyun held his breath.

There weren't enough enemies yet to unleash the full force of Full Charge.

Only seven had poked their heads out so far—it was too early and wasteful.

Waku! Waku!

As he silently waited for the right timing, more kobolds began to appear.

Soon, there were about twenty of them.

Each one seemed curious about the unfamiliar world outside the rift, sniffing the air as they searched for prey.

"Ahhh! Monsters!"

Just then, a passerby who happened to be nearby screamed in panic.

The kobold vanguard's attention immediately focused on the man, their eyes flashing with murderous intent.

'Now!'

Sanghyun released the tremendous power he had been holding back, like a rubber band stretched to its limit.

Kuwaaaang!

Sanghyun, the kobolds, and even the nearby pedestrians heard it simultaneously—a deafening boom that felt like it could burst eardrums.

Wakuu?

The kobold horde, noticing something gleaming from Sanghyun's direction, turned to look.

Swaaash!

A sharp, clean line was drawn along the waistline of the kobolds, who were lined up in two neat rows.

Hek? Huik?

It happened so fast that the kobolds didn't even realize what had just occurred.

But the moment they saw their fellow comrades' bodies collapsing in different directions, they all understood.

They were doomed to die.

Thud. Thud.

"Uwooooh!"

"W-What the hell was that?!"

The expressions of the bystanders, who had been pale with fear from the appearance of the rift, shifted completely upon witnessing Sanghyun's feat.

All that remained in the wake of Sanghyun's ruthless greatsword swing were the bisected corpses of twenty kobolds.

In terms of body parts, there were now exactly forty pieces of what had once been kobolds.

[The Owner of Torn Lips is deeply impressed by your audacity and strength, which seem unfazed by overwhelming odds.]

[The Corrupted Custodian of a Fallen Dimension says that it was not in vain to return to witness you again, as you truly understand the taste of blood.]

'That psycho constellation showed up again. Every time I take down a bunch of monsters at once, they just have to react.'

Sanghyun pouted slightly.

Of course, the attention from the Owner of Torn Lips was always satisfying, so he couldn't help but feel a bit proud.

He positioned himself in front of the portal.

The width of the portal was just enough for two kobolds to come out side by side.

It was the perfect spot for a small group to face off against a larger number of enemies.

Normally, rifts became problematic when the monsters surged out before this position could be secured.

But if the entrance was blocked in advance, it was the monsters who would find themselves in trouble as they tried to push through.

'For now, I'll sit back and enjoy some easy rewards until reinforcements arrive.'

If he rushed into the rift immediately, he wouldn't be able to stop kobolds that might appear with a time delay.

So Sanghyun decided to wait until union staff or other nearby players showed up before making his move.

For now, there were no signs of anyone coming, so he planned to hold his ground and swiftly decapitate any kobolds that dared to charge out.

Waku! Waku!

Two kobolds, unaware of the situation outside, poked their heads through the portal with sinister grins.

Slice!

Sanghyun, waiting for them, swiftly decapitated both kobolds with a clean swing of his greatsword.

"Can you survive without a head?"

Of course, no such kobold existed.

From that moment on, a one-sided massacre began, led by Sanghyun.

It was an unfortunate fate for the kobold horde, who had carelessly lost control of the most critical position—the front of the portal.