They kept clashing again and again, the sounds of boots scraping against stone and fists striking flesh echoing through the tower chamber.
Seo-yeon was grinning like she had forgotten where she was.
"This is fun as hell!" she shouted as she spun past Kim's staff and swung her dagger in a sharp arc.
Kim stumbled back, barely blocking with the shaft of his weapon. "Fun?! Are you crazy?! I'm losing points every second!"
"I don't care!" Seo-yeon shot back, laughing as she ducked under a burst of flame. "This is way better than sitting around waiting to die!"
She dashed forward, forcing Kim to retreat. He tried to chant another spell, but she closed the distance too quickly, smacking his arm with the flat of her blade.
–1 point.
Kim groaned. "Why am I always the target?!"
Across the arena, Seung-hoo and Hyun-wu were locked in their own chaotic exchange.
Hyun-wu's breathing had grown heavy. His massive shield dragged along the floor, leaving a rough line in the dust. He clenched his teeth, annoyed at how slow he felt.
"Tch… this thing's useless right now."
With a frustrated grunt, he dropped the shield completely. It hit the stone floor with a dull thud.
Seung-hoo blinked. "You sure about that?"
Hyun-wu rolled his shoulders, suddenly lighter, faster. "I'll take speed over defense!"
Without warning, he slammed his fist into the wall beside him and tore out a chunk of stone the size of his head. Dust exploded into the air as he ripped it free.
Seo-yeon glanced over. "Uh… is that allowed?"
Kim shouted, "Everything is allowed except skills, remember?!"
Hyun-wu roared and hurled the chunk of wall straight at Seung-hoo.
The stone flew like a cannonball.
Seung-hoo bent his knees and leapt.
The rock passed beneath him, but instead of dodging completely, he reached out with his boot and lightly tapped it midair—just enough to change its direction.
Almost like he was playing with it.
Hyun-wu froze for half a second. "…Did you just kick my attack!?"
Seung-hoo landed smoothly and smirked. "Too slow."
That was enough.
Hyun-wu's face flushed red. "Oh, now I'm mad!"
He charged forward, fists clenched, boots pounding against the stone floor. Seung-hoo didn't retreat.
Instead, he leaned forward and ran straight toward him, mirroring his movement.
For a moment, it looked like two trains about to collide.
They jumped at the same time.
Hyun-wu raised his arm, ready to swing—
And suddenly, Seung-hoo vanished.
"Wha—?!"
Hyun-wu's eyes widened. Before he could turn, a light impact hit the center of his back.
Tap.
Seung-hoo's foot nudged him forward just enough to throw him off balance.
Hyun-wu stumbled and caught himself on one knee.
–1 point.
The glowing numbers above their team flickered again.
Hyun-wu looked back over his shoulder, already tired of Seung-hoo's actions "Come on, why you keep on teleporting"
Seung-hoo was already a few steps away, jogging backward, calm and focused. "You jumped straight. I just… didn't."
Seo-yeon whooped from across the arena. "That was clean!"
Kim groaned as he blocked another attack from her. "Why is everyone enjoying this but me?!"
Seo-yeon lunged again, forcing Kim to twist sideways. "Because you're thinking too much!"
Hyun-wu pushed himself up from the floor, shaking dust from his clothes. His chest rose and fell as he stared at Seung-hoo, eyes burning with both frustration and excitement.
"…Okay. Again."
He grabbed another broken piece of stone from the wall, smaller this time, gripping it tightly.
Seung-hoo adjusted his stance, holding Seo-yeon's dagger loosely at his side, watching every movement.
Around them, the tower felt alive with motion—shadows jumping across the walls, numbers glowing and dropping, voices echoing in challenge and laughter.
Hyun-wu hurled the stone again, charging right after it.
Seung-hoo bent his knees, ready to move, his eyes sharp and his body coiled like a spring, while Seo-yeon and Kim continued their chaotic exchange just a few steps away, neither side willing to slow down even for a second.
The chunk of stone Hyun-wu had thrown spun wildly through the air, rushing straight toward Seung-hoo's chest—
And then it froze.
Not slowed.
Not deflected.
It simply stopped, hanging in the air as if an invisible hand had grabbed it.
Dust drifted off its surface and fell to the floor in slow motion.
Hyun-wu skidded to a halt, staring at it with his mouth half open. "Huh…?"
Seung-hoo blinked. "Did… you do that?"
"No! I already threw it!" Hyun-wu snapped back, just as confused. "I can't control it after that!"
Before either of them could react, the stone flickered like a glitching image and vanished into thin air.
The entire arena went silent.
Then the familiar cold, mechanical voice echoed through the chamber.
"Halt, players. The Battle Royal comes to an end."
The glowing barriers around the arena dissolved with a soft hum. The tension in the air seemed to drop instantly, like a stretched wire finally snapping loose.
Kim bent forward, hands on his knees, gasping for breath. "Finally… it's over…" he panted. "I thought my lungs were going to explode."
Seo-yeon twirled her dagger once and slid it back into her belt. "You're just out of shape."
Kim shot her a tired glare. "Easy for you to say. You were having the time of your life."
Hyun-wu wiped sweat from his forehead and looked at Seung-hoo. "You know you were cheating with that speed, right?"
Seung-hoo shrugged, trying to sound casual, though his heart was still pounding. "You dropped your shield. That's on you."
"I dropped it because you kept appearing behind me like a ghost!" Hyun-wu protested.
Above them, glowing numbers began to assemble in the air, forming rows of text.
"Showing points lost," the mechanical voice announced, its tone emotionless.
A bright panel appeared.
Group 1:
Player 1 – Seung-hoo
Player 4 – Seo-yeon
Points: 434
Lost: 66
A second panel appeared beneath it.
Group 2:
Player 3 – Hyun-wu
Player 2 – Kim Bak-un
Points: 396
Lost: 104
"What the hell! We lost a hundred points?!" Kim and Hyun-wu shouted at the same time, their voices echoing through the tower.
Kim waved his arms wildly at the floating numbers. "This is rigged! Absolutely rigged! There's no way we lost that badly!"
Hyun-wu stared at the scoreboard in horror, his face slowly draining of color. "One hundred and four points… that's like getting beaten up a hundred times in a row…"
The mechanical woman's voice cut through their complaints with perfect calm.
"The skill the losers will lose will be decided by the winners."
The words landed heavier than any punch.
Seo-yeon blinked. "Wait… decided by us?"
Kim stiffened. "You mean… you can just take one of our skills?"
"Yes," the voice replied instantly. "One skill will be sealed from each losing player."
Hyun-wu's breathing became shallow. He turned slowly toward Seung-hoo, panic written all over his face. "Seung-hoo…" he said, stepping closer. "Please. Don't do this. I only have one skill. If you take it… I'll be useless in the next fights."
Kim looked at him in shock. "Hyun-wu, calm down—"
"No, you don't get it!" Hyun-wu snapped, grabbing Seung-hoo's sleeve. "My shield is all I have. I can't cast like you. I can't dodge like Seo-yeon. If that disappears, I'm just… dead weight."
Seo-yeon frowned and crossed her arms. "Relax. We're not monsters."
Seung-hoo looked down at Hyun-wu's hand gripping his sleeve. For a moment, he said nothing. The arena was strangely quiet, as if even the system was waiting for his answer.
Hyun-wu's voice shook. "Please… I don't wanna lose it.
Seung-hoo finally sighed and gently pushed Hyun-wu's hand away. "You're overreacting."
Hyun-wu blinked. "Huh…?"
"I'm not taking your skill," Seung-hoo said firmly. "I'll take some of your stamina instead."
Kim's eyes widened. "You can do that?"
Seo-yeon tilted her head. "That's… actually smarter."
Hyun-wu froze. "My… stamina?"
"Yeah," Seung-hoo replied. "You get tired too fast anyway. Maybe this will force you to fight smarter instead of charging in with a wall for arms."
Hyun-wu stared at him for a few seconds, then let out a long breath. "You scared me to death, man…"
Kim crossed his arms. "So what about me? You're not thinking of sealing my magic, are you?"
Seo-yeon smirked. "Oh, don't worry. If we did that, you'd cry."
Kim pointed at her. "I would not cry."
"You cried when you lost rock-paper-scissors yesterday," she shot back.
"That was different!"
Above them, faint glowing symbols began forming again, reacting to Seung-hoo's choice. A soft hum spread through the floor, and the air felt tighter, like something invisible was locking into place.
Hyun-wu suddenly grabbed his chest. "Woah… I feel… lighter? Or heavier? I can't tell."
Seung-hoo studied him closely. "Can you still stand?"
"Yeah… but it feels like I just ran ten laps."
Kim swallowed. "So this system really means it when it says punishment…"