The Grand Duelist

Chapter 9: Borrowing a Knife to Kill

A post appeared within the Forums of Victory.

[Content Title: Shameless High-Leveled Players Bullying Newbies!

I just bought this game and when I thought that I'd have a good time playing it, a bunch of players from the guild Crimson is preventing us all from getting out of the Beginner Village and completing our quests.

Is this how the players from the Guild Crimson works? Do they have no shame? Did their parents die when they were young since they didn't receive any lectures from them in manners? If not for the fact that I am just a low-leveled newbie I would've crushed them under my feet!

But even though I am low-leveled and don't have any capability of sending them away. There's no way that I can just watch them doing all of these atrocities towards us low-leveled newbies that just want to enjoy the game!

But how about you? Are you just going to watch and see the world burn? Come to the xx Beginner Village and let's push these bastards away so that justice will prevail!]

Within the comments...

OmaeWaShindeiru answered: Holy shit? Is this true? Those bastards from Crimson are really going too far!

Innocent Bunny Reinesse answered: I think that they are doing a paid taxi service? But to push every beginner away from completing their quest just so they could efficiently complete their taxi service is too much and unethical!

MotivatedSloth answered: As a member of the guild "Knights of Justice". This is something that I cannot just stand by and watch, even though my guild's relationship with Crimson isn't so bad that we won't kill each other at first sight. But man, this is really going too far...

Shifty Daoist Mage answered: Oh yeah~ The Knights of Justice is here~ Will there be a fight? Wait for me~ I need to capture that fight, gather some viewers and earn dem moon balloons~

Rianolinon answered: Ughhh, Shifty Daoist Mage is here... But anyways. That is definitely going too far. As someone that also has the alter ego that the OP has. I can't just stand back and watch those bastards shamelessly bully newbies from the Beginner Village. Although I don't have any conflict with Crimson, as a law-abiding citizen. I can't let this stand!

Overlord_Venus answered: My Large Omitted is again, again, again, again, again, again, again, again unable to go down!

xNurie answered: But OP, I didn't expect that you would even mention their parents. Now that's savagery right there on a whole new level!

Joseph chuckled upon seeing their comments: "Yeah, everything is all coming together..."

He checked and found that the number of comments had already reached a thousand comments. He slyly smiled and after depositing the money that he acquired from selling that information recently towards his high-yield savings account...

He finally returned to the game.

Ray, the bow-wielding player who attacked Joseph earlier was a player of the Guild Crimson. He was at Level 103, this level meant that he had undergone specialization for his main class and he also had a second-class that he probably chose when he was between Level 15 and Level 100.

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But although Ray sounded quite strong at first impression...

His level was actually low if compared to other players that started playing at the same time as him. But this never bothered Ray. He had the Intermediate Bow Mastery Level 1, that he acquired after earnestly training himself with the bow under the supervision of a ruthless instructor.

Ray's efforts paid and he acquired the attention of Guild Crimson, a guild consisting of top-rankers within the world of Victory. At that time, Ray thought that his life had changed. Entering such a famous guild guaranteed riches and infamy, but then the opposite happened.

Since he was a new player within Crimson...

His senior guild members would make him run errands for them. Some errands that Ray ran for them were too dangerous that Ray hesitated on accepting them. However, since he was just a new player in the guild. He had no choice but to accept, afraid that he would be kicked and replaced.

Ray knew in his heart that his position was something that could be easily replaced by anyone.

So, he endured everything. Including all the dangerous errands that his senior brothers gave to him. He endured them all, all for the sake of acquiring a more solid position within the guild.

In short, Ray wanted to be in the spotlight. He wanted to be a core member of the guild.

The only solace that Ray had in his suffering was seeing other players lower than him. Ray was the type of person that could thrive amidst his suffering so long as other people were suffering like him or even suffering more than him.

"At least I am not like them..." Ray thought whenever he saw a bunch of new players suffering under his hands. He thought that all of them were pathetic.

Not only they were low-leveled, but they were also cowards.

Ray didn't even understand why they wouldn't fight against him. Low-leveled players were under the protection of the game.

They would lose Experience Points, but their levels wouldn't be demoted and they wouldn't drop an equipped item whenever they died. In that case, why were they so afraid of him?

"A bunch of scaredy-cats..." Ray judged them all as trash that could never achieve greatness within this game.

But the truth was that not every player wanted to be great. Some of them just desired to play casually and enjoy the realism that the game had. But Ray didn't understand this thinking. No- he didn't try to understand them. What he knew was that for him, all of them were trash.

Except for that player that he killed earlier who now stood before him once again.

"Why are you doing this to us? We just want to play the game, but why are you preventing us from stepping outside and completing our quests?" Joseph cried out in a righteous manner. Ray was taken aback by the tone of Joseph's voice. But in the end, he sneered and said...

"So what? What if I am doing that? What can you do? You're nothing in front of my bow."

"I see, so that's how the Crimson Guild works. I see. I see..." Joseph nodded his head in understanding, while Ray frowned. He couldn't help but feel that something was wrong underneath all of these.

"What are you saying?"

"What I am saying? I am the one that needs to ask about what you are saying!"

A scream rang out and Ray coughed a mouthful of blood as an arrow penetrated his back and went through his chest.

"Wha... A sneak attack? You bastards!" He hurriedly turned around and what he saw caused him a great deal of shock.

"We, the Knights of Justice are here to liberate the Beginner Village from the hands of the shameless Crimson Guild!"

At least a dozen players from the Knights of Justice rushed at him.

"The Knights of Justice? Holy shit! Everyone, retreat!" Ray shouted his commands, but the player who enlisted his help as a taxi merely frowned and said.

"Ray, I paid two grand for your services. But you cannot even handle a bunch of players from that so-called Knights of Justice? And here I thought that the Crimson Guild is the best."

Anger surged within Ray. But he suppressed it for he really required the money. His Senior brothers not only made him run errands but also made him buy materials for the guild using his own money. For Ray who was only a student relying on his allowance, those purchases were too extravagant.

"Sir, with all due respect. Those players are members of the Knights of Justice Guild. I could fight with them, but I cannot ensure your safety." Ray still managed to act respectfully towards his client...

But his client snorted and replied: "You really are useless, I paid you so much money but you are wasting my time. Let's just forget about all of these..."

Ray was astounded by the sudden change of events.

But he still mustered his courage as he stared at his client and said: "But sir... what about the two grand?"

"The two grand? Just keep it, it's mere cheap change..." His client then disappeared from his party.

"That arrogant nouveau riche!" Ray clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. Meanwhile, all players from the Knights of Justice finally arrived in front of him and stared at him menacingly.

Ray consumed a potion for recovery whilst retreating.

"Leader, shouldn't we retreat?" Ray's party members responsible for keeping the new players away from their spot finally gathered around him. One of them couldn't help but ask when they saw the number of players from Knights of Justice gathered around them.

"No shit, sherlock!" Ray angrily answered and the party member who asked could only keep his silence.

"Sir, this is quite strange... The Knights of Justice usually do not care about the Beginner Villages..."

"Not only that, there are at least thousands of these Beginner Villages in Victory. Yet, they specifically came to this Beginner Village at the right time and at the same location. Judging from what they are saying, they came for us too."

Ray nodded his head, what his comrade said made sense and he swept his gaze at Joseph who still nearby, casually watching the show with his arms crossed in front of his chest

"So, you're the bastard that caused all of these? Borrowing a knife to kill, is it really fun?" He turned to look at Joseph in anger.

He engraved Joseph's face in his heart. For he knew that they could never escape today. He and the characters of his comrades were classes that suited fighting, not escaping nor running.

And so, in this case, what's the move that they should do?

Ray glanced at his comrades. He wanted to escape at first, but seeing that they were already surrounded. Why would they bother doing something that had a high chance of failure?

A man could be defeated, but never humiliated. Even though they would die today, at least they knew that they died in battle.

Of course, they will fight!

"KILL!" Ray cried out, he faced the arrows and magic spells of his enemies. But unfortunately for them, it was a one-sided slaughter.

The players of the Knights of Justice who always hated Crimson Guild found that this was a sensible reason for slaughtering the guild members of Crimson without garnering the hate of the latter.

Because of that, why would they stop themselves from killing?

Each and every one of them unleashed might that shook every new player that observed the fight inside the Beginner Village. The players from Knights of Justice noticed that this was a good opportunity on showing these beginners about how strong their guild was. Due to this, they didn't hold back.

A main-class specialized Magician even summoned a meteor that landed directly at Ray and his comrades...

The strength of the famous Knights of Justice was too strong for Ray and his comrades to handle and they quickly became corpses. Leaving a few items behind as compensation to the winners.

Joseph who saw all of these happening quietly retreated to the side. A small smile lingered on his face as he went towards the line-up of carriages within the Beginner Village and enlisted their help so that he could enter a new Beginner Village.

He decisively abandoned his remaining quest within this Beginner Village.

Why?

Because he knew that those bastards from Crimson would definitely get their revenge against him.

In that case, wasn't it better to move?

There were thousands of Beginner Villages within the world of Victory to cater to its massive population of newbies back when it was first established two years ago.

Joseph understood that it was highly unlikely that a guild such as Crimson would dedicate their manpower to hunting him instead of leveling-up and strengthening their forces.

And so, Joseph hopped into a carriage and once again begun his new adventure in the world of Victory...

In a new Beginner Village, of course.

1. [Author's Note: Players can undergo specialization for their main class only at Level 100. While, players can choose a second-class after Level 15. Although it is recommended to choose a second-class only when you are at Level 100 or sufficiently high-leveled for more opportunities for better classes.]