Level Up Machine

Chapter 51 Traitors (3)

“Are you planning to use that forced release you mentioned before?”

Bae Han-seong asked him, his expression hardening.

Previously, Yeong-sik had wiped out the elite forces of the Light Shield Guild all at once.

However, as Yeong-sik had mentioned, it was a power he couldn’t control by himself, and the risks were absurd.

Thinking this, Han-seong let out a short sigh and continued.

“If you are considering using the forced release, there is no need for that. With our current strength, we can sufficiently fight against the Judas Guild.”

If the forces of the other guilds supporting his ‘plan’ joined them, it wouldn’t be difficult to wage a war against the Judas Guild.

‘…Most of them died during the previous civil war.’

It wasn’t just the Salvator Guild that was destroyed due to the internal war that had occurred within the guild. The opposing faction that had rebelled against the guild also walked the path of ruin.

The numbers were on the anti-Tiria faction’s side, but in terms of the quality of summoners, the pro-Tiria faction was superior, so it was hard to come to a decisive conclusion.

Therefore, if the support forces made the numbers roughly equal, the advantageous side would be the Salvator Guild.

‘The problem is that if we consume our strength in such a matter, it will be difficult to carry out the plan…’

Han-seong’s expression darkened. What he was planning was not dungeon exploration or monster hunting.

He was preparing to attack the royal castle of a kingdom. He was carefully gathering the forces needed for that, but if they consumed their strength fighting the Judas Guild, it would all be for nothing.

‘Like back then…’

Han-seong clenched his fist tightly.

He recalled the time when the guild master’s family was threatened, and everyone fell into the kingdom’s scheme, repeating fights among themselves without carrying out the crucial revenge, all walking the path of ruin together.

The intense despair he felt back then crawled up his spine once again.

“No. As I said before, the forced release is not a power I can use at will. Therefore, I plan to use another method.”

Yeong-sik cut through his despair with a calm expression.

Hearing his confident words, Han-seong looked dumbfounded.

“We are in a situation where we have to fight the traitors without consuming our strength. We cannot take extreme measures.”

“To what extent must we maintain our strength and still win?”

“…We need to keep at least 80% of our strength to avoid disrupting the plan.”

Han-seong sighed deeply as he said this.

To maintain over 80% of their strength in a battle where the forces were evenly matched.

He knew very well how absurd this was.

Simply by numbers, it meant annihilating 100 enemies with the loss of only about 20 of their own, an unreasonable figure.

“If that’s the case, it seems doable.”

Contrary to Han-seong’s expectation that Yeong-sik would be shocked by the need to keep 80% of their strength, Yeong-sik nodded calmly.

“Doable? They are not easy opponents, Yeong-sik. Especially Yoo Jin and Cheol-tae, they would have made some preparations for our main forces.”

The Judas Guild, being no fools, must have known how difficult it would be to defeat the Salvator Guild supported by other guilds.

Even so, the fact that they didn’t hesitate to advance must mean they believed they had a good chance of winning.

“Yes. But they won’t have any information about me. That’s enough.”

Yeong-sik spoke in a calm voice. It wasn’t arrogance or disdain for the enemy. He spoke with an endlessly calm and cold expression, as if he had reached this conclusion after careful consideration.

Han-seong frowned as he looked at him.

‘Where does that confidence come from?’

Han-seong knew best how strong Yeong-sik was without using the forced release. Admittedly, his combat sense was exceptional, making him stronger than typical summoners.

However, even so, there were limits to fighting without any combat-related skills.

No, beyond skills or combat sense, Yeong-sik’s level was just too low.

‘There’s no way his level could have increased so much in just a month…’

It had only been a month since they parted ways in the city of Talion. No matter how hard he hunted during that time, Han-seong thought it would be difficult for Yeong-sik to surpass level 50. In fact, reaching level 50 in that period would have been an incredible pace.

“Yeong-sik, what is your current level?”

Han-seong asked, unable to understand the source of his confidence.

“Level 68.”

“Sixty… sixty-eight?”

Han-seong asked again, his expression one of disbelief. He wasn’t the only one shocked by his words. Yu-na, Cheol-tae, and even Yoo Jin, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, looked at Yeong-sik with expressions of surprise.

“How did you level up so much without any support in just one month…”

Han-seong looked at Yeong-sik in disbelief.

“I’ll explain that later. It’s not important right now, is it?”

Yeong-sik replied in a calm tone. Everyone in the tent nodded in agreement.

As he said, the important thing now wasn’t how he leveled up at an unbelievable speed. The immediate concern was the impending battle with the Judas Guild.

“Do we have a map of this area?”

“Oh, yes. Here it is.”

Han-seong, still looking dazed, handed the map to Yeong-sik. Yeong-sik’s eyes sharpened as he looked at the map.

‘A steep mountainous area with rocky terrain…’

Yeong-sik’s mind began to work rapidly as he examined the map. Park Cheol-tae spoke to him.

“If you’re thinking of causing a landslide, I wouldn’t recommend it. That method would seriously interfere with our plan to attack the royal castle and could draw the attention of the kingdom’s security forces.”

They were currently in a place not far from the capital.

Causing a landslide to wipe out the enemy would surely attract the attention of the kingdom’s security forces.

Yoo Jin, who had been quietly listening with her arms crossed, spoke in her characteristic cold voice.

“And causing a landslide wouldn’t be very effective. This isn’t a war on Earth.”

She spoke in a calm, rational tone.

In the history of battles between armies, overwhelming victories often shared several commonalities.

One such strategy was utilizing the terrain. Trapping the enemy in an immovable spot and setting it ablaze or causing a landslide to bury them were often mentioned in historical records of great victories.

However, as Yoo Jin pointed out, war on the continent of Elnor was fundamentally different from that on Earth. Each summoner was powerful enough to be called a superhuman compared to Earth’s humans of the past.

While strategies relying on terrain, such as setting fires or causing landslides, were not entirely meaningless, they were less likely to yield overwhelming results as they did in Earth’s wars.

“You don’t need to worry about that. I have no intention of causing a landslide or anything like that.”

Yeong-sik said calmly. The guild members looked at him with expressions of incomprehension.

“Then what method do you intend to use?”

Han-seong looked at Yeong-sik as if he couldn’t even imagine what he was thinking.

Kim Chan-hyung, who had been quietly watching their interaction, swallowed hard.

He frowned as he observed the Salvator Guild members focusing on Yeong-sik.

‘What on earth is going on?’

He looked at the Salvator Guild members with a puzzled expression. From what he knew, that young man named Yeong-sik was a new recruit who had joined the guild only a few months ago.

A rookie summoner who hadn’t even experienced the bitter despair of the Salvator Guild’s fall, in his 61st summon cycle.

It was only natural for Kim Chan-hyung to be curious about why this young man, who hadn’t been with the guild for long, was leading the conversation as if he were a high-ranking officer or even the guild master.

‘Why…?’

Kim Chan-hyung narrowed his eyes and looked at Yeong-sik. He didn’t appear particularly strong or seem to possess any special powers.

Although he had a peculiar charisma that commanded attention, it was hard to understand why a mere recruit had such a significant voice within the guild.

“Is he really a rookie?”

Yu Tae-sik and Park Eun-young seemed to share the same thought, looking at Yeong-sik with doubtful eyes. His level of influence and presence was beyond what would be expected for a newcomer.

However, regardless of their skeptical gazes, the members of the Salvator Guild, especially Han-seong and Yu-na, looked at Yeong-sik with eyes full of trust.

Their trust was based on a single fact.

Yeong-sik had the ‘potential’ to single-handedly wipe out one of the six strongest guilds.

Those who had witnessed that extraordinary scene with their own eyes couldn’t regard Yeong-sik as just an ordinary recruit. He was too ‘different’ for that.

The other guild members felt the same. Through Han-seong and Yu-na, they had heard about what kind of person Yeong-sik was and what he had accomplished.

Although the stories seemed unbelievable, they couldn’t help but believe when Yeong-sik provided tangible proof by detaching and reattaching his arm.

Due to Yeong-sik’s unique nature, his influence within the guild had grown to the point where he couldn’t be considered a mere recruit.

Moreover, his calm demeanor and sharp gaze exuded an unusual charisma that stimulated the summoners in the tent.

It was as if ruling over others, exerting dominance, was utterly natural to him. This strange charisma left Kim Chan-hyung, Yu Tae-sik, and Park Eun-young full of questions, yet they couldn’t directly voice their doubts to Yeong-sik.

“First.”

Yeong-sik spoke.

All eyes in the tent focused on his mouth. A heavy silence descended inside.

Yeong-sik extended his hand and pointed to a section of the map.

“We’ll plant mines along this route. Initially, it will throw them into great confusion. Then, using drones, we’ll track their movements and continue laying mines along their path.”

He lifted his head and smiled slyly.

“Then, you’ll get to see something interesting.”

His tone made it sound so natural that an even thicker silence fell over the tent.

“At the right moment, we’ll use the Gatling gun to further disrupt them. Then, we launch a surprise attack.”

Kim Chan-hyung, Yu Tae-sik, and Park Eun-young looked at Yeong-sik with astonished expressions.

It wasn’t hard to guess what was going through their minds.

Mines?

Drones?

Gatling gun?

‘What the hell is this guy talking about?’