The Count’s Youngest Son is a Player

Chapter 109

The venue for the preliminaries was a large indoor gymnasium. With a seating capacity of 5,000, it had enough space even for basketball or volleyball matches. However, the players entering the gym couldn’t help but feel puzzled.

“Are we really having the preliminaries here? It feels too cramped.”

“Is there still some sort of pre-event going on?”

Objectively speaking, the gym was too small to accommodate 200 people for a survival match. Nevertheless, the players from different nations gathered in the middle of the gymnasium.

Watching from a special seat in the center, Raul chuckled to himself.

“How should I act to be exactly as expected?”

Observing the players carefully, reynald, who was also watching from the VIP seat, asked, “I heard that foreigners are from different nations too. Are they grouped by nations now?”

“Yes, they probably think it’s better to stick together rather than being alone.”

“Isn’t that unfair though? In that way, the larger group will have a significant advantage.”

He expressed a bit of discomfort.

Reynaldo, who had been running the city while considering the kingdom’s interests, might naturally not like the idea of the majority oppressing the minority.

“Of course, if they continue sticking together like that, it may turn out that way. But wouldn’t the meaning of the survival test lose its essence if it’s any different? Don’t worry, just watch. It will be an entertaining scene.”

“Haha, I worried for no reason. This test was directly designed by you, young master Raul. Shall we make a bet on who will win?”

Feeling better, reynald even involved the nearby merchants, setting up a betting board to predict the winner. Of course, the stakes were low, just for fun, and Raul played along with the atmosphere.

“Winning, huh. To be honest, I’m not sure what to expect… It’s just, of all places, you had to show up here.”

With a somewhat worried expression, Raul looked at one of the participants.

—

“Everyone, please get ready. The moment the magic screen’s timer reaches zero, the test will begin.”

The countdown of 60 seconds had begun. The tense trembling of the surrounding players could be felt on the skin.

Ilwoo loosened his tense muscles slowly, preparing for the battle. He couldn’t understand why he was taking the test in such a narrow space, but it seemed like it would inevitably turn into a team battle.

And finally, as the number on the screen changed to 0, *poof*. A light flickered under his feet, and in an instant, he found himself in a new location.

‘What’s this?’

Without a moment of surprise, Ilwoo reflexively sought cover and lowered himself. However, only silence lingered around him, and there was no trace of the players who were nearby just moments ago.

With his movements completely halted, Ilwoo scanned the surroundings with just his eyes, then breathed out quietly, releasing some tension. He was inside a small log cabin, with minimal furnishings; it was more like a temporary shelter, with log walls and a ceiling blocking the place off.

The lack of any signs of life around indicated that players were either absent or deliberately keeping quiet like himself.

‘Anyway, the important thing is that everyone seems to have scattered, right?’

While it wasn’t confirmed, the situation was clear. This meant Park Sunho’s plan had fallen apart, leaving Ilwoo free to act.

‘Hmm?’

At that moment, Ilwoo’s eyes caught something strange. A small object was wedged between the cracks of the log walls and the ceiling. He gently nudged it and pulled it out; it was the very item Chief Jibeom had mentioned, a small lucky charm.

“Lucky! Something tells me things will go well today.”

Then, he noticed something flashing from one side of his vision and upon touching it, a screen resembling a map appeared. The circular map was covered in a black fog, with a blue dot blinking in the lower right corner.

“A mini-map, huh. But why are there 11 zones?”

In the center of the map, there was a large tree picture engraved with the number 1. And at the center of that, there were lines drawn at regular intervals, with numbers assigned to them. The current location of Ilwoo was in the southeastern 4th zone.

“I can’t tell just by looking at this. I think we should do some reconnaissance for now.”

Although there was a small window, the latch looked so worn out that it seemed like it would make a loud noise. He thought it might be better to open and go out the door, but I hesitated because it wasn’t easy to reach out due to the eerie silence enveloping the surroundings.

He wasn’t sure if it was right to expose my presence here. Most players were also grappling with such concerns. While the exam had started, the battlefield was still locked in silence.

Meanwhile, the distinguished guests watching the preliminaries from the VIP seats couldn’t hide their amazement.

“Wow, did all of this come from Young master Raul’s mind?”

“Oh my goodness. I never thought such a thing was possible.”

“Indeed, young people think differently. This is truly amazing.”

“Young master Raul really has the talent to astonish people.”

The mayors, with an average age of 50, all stood up from their seats, praising Raul as they looked down at the gym.

“Haha, I just came up with the concept. It would never have been completed without Gray.”

Raul modestly shifted credit to Gray. In reality, it was also a device that could never have appeared without Gray. In the center of the gym, what appeared after the players disappeared was a massive set piece.

It was as if the terrain had been torn apart and depicted in miniature, creating a three-dimensional and realistic model of the battlefield in the middle of the gym. What was crucial was that it wasn’t just a simple model but was actually moving.

Leaves rustled as if the wind was blowing, and a river-like stream flowed vigorously. From fish jumping out of the river to birds flying in the sky, a perfectly implemented miniature world where everything moved realistically.

And within that, the players were moving. Above the heads of the players, simple profiles were displayed as if it were augmented reality, perfectly replicating their every move and gesture.

Not only the distinguished guests in the VIP seats, but also the players and guild members who filled the stands for watching or spectating, all stood in awe, mouths agape, witnessing the surreal spectacle.

At the top of the giant miniature set above the stage and under the ceiling of the arena, there were four large magic screens and dozens of small ones, magnifying important scenes of the battlefield and showcasing the players in detail.

Raul looked pleased as he observed the faces of the market vendors and the audience.

“Yeah, this kind of reaction is what we need to show.”

This way, the astronomical amount of money poured into completing this place wouldn’t be in vain.

Furthermore, this place would serve as an important venue for the collective training of the First Knight Order and Knights in the future, establishing itself as a special landmark showcasing the status of the First Knight Order.

Many aristocrats who value pride and appearances, as well as upcoming corporate guilds, would undoubtedly knock on the First Knight Order’s door to rent this place.

Reynaldo, who had been gazing down at the set with an ecstatic expression akin to a god looking down upon the earth, suddenly asked Raul.

“It was a great idea to scatter the participants. However, it seems like they have no intention of leaving their spots. How can the match proceed properly like this?”

The players who were separated from the crowd and left alone seemed reluctant to move.

Raul looked at Reynaldo with a slightly mischievous smile and replied, “Of course, it wouldn’t be fun like this. That’s why we’ve prepared a special device. Let’s see, it seems like the time has come.”

And as Raul finished speaking, red lights began to flicker from various places in the miniature set.

—

“Oh, X! Damn it.”

Containing the outburst that was about to erupt from his mouth, Ilwoo forcefully kicked open the door of the cabin and tumbled out.

Thud!

“Argh!”

Without hesitation, he fired the crossbow he was holding, piercing the shoulder of a player who clumsily hid behind a tree.

Then, throwing away the crossbow and drawing a sword and shield from his inventory, Ilwoo charged like a wild bull, hitting the man’s chin with his shield.

With a thud sound, the man staggers backward. He was a black-haired Asian man.

“Y-You…”

Trying to say something while spitting blood, the man was abruptly cut off as Ilwoo mercilessly swung his sword, cutting the man’s throat. Swift profit.

When the sound of an arrow flying from behind reached Ilwoo’s ears, he cursed inwardly, “Damn it,” and swiftly threw himself forward.

Performing a flashy somersault to the front, rolling twice, Ilwoo hid behind a tree and caught his breath for a moment before quickly turning his head to search for something.

“The archer is at twelve o’clock. There’s one hiding at three o’clock, and there’s some distance at six o’clock, right?”

Ilwoo looked down at his hands glowing red and quickly checked the system message.

– You have stayed in the same location for 5 minutes, so a penalty will be imposed. A ‘Location Exposure Beam’ will be attached to your body, exposing your location to all players for 30 seconds.

“They should have warned us about such an important penalty in advance!”

Although he grumbled inwardly feeling a bit cheated, he also felt a strange sense of relief as if he had escaped from a tight situation.

It wasn’t just Ilwoo whose location was exposed.

Looking at the red glowing figure beyond the forest and cabin, Ilwoo raised the corners of his mouth.

“Let’s deal with the archer first.”

With his shield raised, Ilwoo started running through the trees with quick steps.

A moment later.

Utilizing his shield and cover, Ilwoo quickly took care of the archer and tracked down another player he had noted before the exposure beam disappeared.

“Whew, phew.”

Dealing with three opponents in less than 5 minutes made his heart pound as if it would explode.

He had managed to knock them down, but it was his first time actually killing a real person.

Leaning against the cabin where the last opponent was hiding, Ilwoo looked at his blood-soaked hands.

“Am I strange?”

He didn’t feel any remorse for killing a person. Even though they could be resurrected, they were undoubtedly human beings…

Unbeknownst to Ilwoo, it was also one of the functions of the capsule: stabilizing the user’s mind to prevent them from falling into PTSD from killing.

If not, could modern people who had never wielded a knife in their lives easily kill monsters?

Interrupting Ilwoo’s wandering thoughts, a loud bell rang across the battlefield.

Ding-dong-dong-dong~

“What’s going on? What’s about to happen again?”

A notice popped up in front of Ilwoo, who was on high alert.

(To be continued)