Chapter 170 …

Ten cards floated up through the dazzling light.

“Ah……”

After checking them, Dohyun let out a sigh.

The brilliant golden color he had hoped for wasn’t there.

Instead, there were three brown cards, four silver cards, and three yellow cards.

If it were before, he would have been happy seeing three yellow ones.
But people’s hearts are strange like that.

Once you pull a Legendary, yellow just doesn’t feel satisfying anymore.

‘They said the probability increases as your level goes up.’

Not all Random Skill Draw Tickets were the same.

The one given at level 10 and the one given at level 50 had clearly different probability rates.

The higher your level, the more likely higher-grade skills would appear.

That was why among low-level players, those with Legendary skills were almost nonexistent.

‘The real ones are the random draw tickets you get from hidden pieces or quests… but those never show up at low levels.’

That made it even more disappointing.

Compared to level 50, the probability had risen even more.

And since he had the Eye of Truth, he had reasonable grounds to hope.

‘Well, it can’t be helped.’

He was annoyed at the quiet, unresponsive legendary card, but what could he do?

Still, at least two Hero-grade cards appeared, which was fortunate enough. This time, there wasn’t much to 고민 over when choosing.

Two cards were placed side by side on the left.

When he chose the one slightly further left, yellow light burst out.

Ding—

[You have acquired the Hero Skill “Fierce Assault Slash ”.]

‘Huh? That’s a swordsman skill?’

Unexpectedly, despite being yellow and not expecting much, it turned out to be a swordsman skill.

Sword Aura was Dohyun’s bread-and-butter skill, but Fierce Assault Slash was also one he used frequently.

In fact, in terms of usage frequency, Fierce Assault Slash might even be higher.

Naturally so.

[Fierce Assault Slash ]

Grade: Hero
Requirement: Swordsman class
Description: A technique of a swordsman who once charged through thousands of enemies to save allies on a blood-soaked battlefield.
No one can stop the fierce assault of a swordsman burning with relentless fighting spirit.
Effect: Performs a slash while sliding forward.
The longer the chain of slashes continues, the stronger the power becomes and the farther the movement distance increases.
The chain continues unless the attack is interrupted or all mana is exhausted.
Cooldown: 40 seconds

Fierce Assault Slash.

Just as the name suggests, it was a skill that cut through enemies while advancing fiercely.

Like a destructive tank, this skill had many uses both as a movement ability and an attack.

It was especially useful when facing multiple enemies.
If a swordsman who had massively increased their specs through cash investment activated Fierce Assault Slash and charged forward, nothing was more terrifying.

‘No wonder they called it the Siege War’s Destruction Tank.’

There were even tank-style swordsmen who built their entire skill tree around it.

In Dohyun’s case, and the Sword Emperor’s as well, they focused more on versatility. Whenever that happened, Bora Ajussi would always smack his lips regretfully.

If I were a swordsman, I wouldn’t use it like that… Why did such a precious skill go to a swordsman?
If you had it, Ajussi, wouldn’t it break the balance? You wouldn’t even need control.
Exactly. Even cheesing the game has limits.
Cheesing, my ass! Your talent is the real cheese. A commoner like me has to push through with raw stats! Ah, that skill would be perfect…

It was a skill whose performance was undeniable—so much so that even Bora Ajussi coveted it.

So getting it was certainly welcome.

However, as always in life, good things tend to be followed by bad things.

[Not enough skill slots to equip this skill.]
[Please unequip a skill.]

‘Ah, they’re already full?’

Like most RPGs, there were skill slots, and in God of the New World (GOS) there were 13 slots.

Normally players barely filled them even after finishing Pratel.

Yet Dohyun was only level 60, and his skill slots were already screaming.

Then again, considering how many skill cards he had obtained, it wasn’t surprising.

He had monopolized hidden pieces, accumulating a huge number of skill cards.

‘Well, no choice. It’ll loosen up later anyway…’

Clicking his tongue, Dohyun removed one skill.

Luckily, there was a suitable one.

[Normal Skill “Charge Slash” has been removed.]
[Fierce Assault Slash has been equipped.]

After all, Charge Slash was the perfect inferior version of Fierce Assault Slash.

Even back in the Demrock era, Charge Slash was a skill people used briefly until they obtained Fierce Assault Slash.

In fact, most Normal-grade skills were like that.

Later on, players typically filled their slots with Rare, Hero, and Legendary skills.

Normal skills were basically designed as temporary abilities for beginners.

‘Alright then…’

He had accepted the quest and fixed his skill slots.

‘Shall I try the taste of Fierce Assault Slash after so long?’

If you obtain a skill, it’s only natural to try it out.

Dohyun glanced once at the Lantern Festival, which was nearing its end.

Before the crowds dispersed further, he quickly ran out to the field.

Meanwhile — Hero Guild Office

Bang!

As usual, Verge slammed his desk.

The people around hurriedly moved away.

Even the office manager who had been working quietly slipped away after gauging the atmosphere.

Soon Verge was left alone.

The mood around him had changed drastically from before.

Guild members glanced at him through the window and whispered.

“…Doesn’t the guild master seem angrier these days?”

“Yeah… he used to be really composed.”

“Ever since he lost Brion’s #1 spot, he’s been sensitive. He foams at the mouth whenever Kaiser’s name comes up.”

“Well, if you look at the community, they compare them constantly. That dating-sim meme and everything…”

“Hey, don’t laugh. Be careful. If he hears you, you’re fired.”

The guild members carefully left.

As they said, the Hero Guild’s prestige was no longer what it used to be.

The only guild that had reached Rank #1 among the Top 100 guilds.

A hero who saved people suffering under villains.

One of the five most handsome male players in GOS.

A guild with the potential to challenge the Top 10 guilds.

“…Damn it.”

All those glorious titles were shaking because of a single person: Kaiser.

Now he was more often called the “Dating Sim Guy”—a meme that had spread everywhere.

This couldn’t continue.

The master of the Hero Guild, who built his reputation on a heroic image, couldn’t keep being called a dating sim protagonist.

“Again… Kaiser. Is it you?”

Crunch.

He had been working day and night to restore his image.

But no matter what Verge did, the comments always followed:

“Kaiser already did that.”
“Isn’t Verge just below Kaiser anyway?”
“Verge? Oh, the dating sim guy?”

The memes spread faster than his efforts to fix his reputation.

It had taken over a year to build that solid castle of reputation.

Yet it collapsed in an instant.

“Ha… damn communities.”

From Verge’s perspective, it felt unfair.

He had done nothing.

Why should he suddenly become a target of ridicule?

It was all because of the damn development of SNS and online communities.

But in truth, that wasn’t the only reason.

Comments from the community flooded in:

Honestly, I hated how the Hero Guild acted arrogant all this time. Serves them right.
For real lol. They always controlled bosses and assassinated anyone interfering. Yet people kept praising them. Ridiculous.
- Only those who experienced it know how much of a bunch of thugs the Hero Guild is.
Still, watching them defeat villains was satisfying. Plus, they’re handsome.
Yeah yeah, but he’s still the dating sim gay guy~
LOL the dating sim meme never dies. There’s even a Verge dating sim comic in the forums.
- I saw it too lol. That thing was insane. Isn’t he going to sue?
- Honestly, even if he reported it, I wouldn’t blame him.

People who had disliked the Hero Guild for a long time jumped at the chance.

Previously they didn’t dare attack them individually due to the guild’s status.

But now that they were being publicly mocked, people had gone beyond courage—now it was simply entertainment.

In a way, it was the karma for the dirty deeds Verge had committed to reach his current position.

“Was he just lucky? How does he always find things first?”

And now Kaiser continued to block his path.

Verge couldn’t hide his anger.

Kaiser didn’t even have the Slayer trait, so how could he keep taking the Field Bosses?

This time’s boss control had been a huge risk for Verge.

He knew controlling bosses in the current situation would damage his image.

But he absolutely needed to defeat the Field Boss: Troll King 200 times.

‘This will delay it another day.’

He had originally needed about one more week of control.

Now that timeline was getting pushed further back.

The reason Verge was clinging to this so desperately was simple.

He picked up his phone.

“…It’s me. How is the Ruindra Raid Quest progressing?”

“Yes, Guild Master. As instructed, it’s being conducted secretly with elite members only—without help from subsidiary guilds or ordinary guild members. It should be finished in about a week, and we can begin recruiting raid members.”

“Good. Make sure there are no mistakes. A lot is riding on this raid.”

“Yes… but are you sure the recruitment target can really be ‘anyone’?”

“It doesn’t matter. Only the Hero Guild raid team will actually enter the Ruindra raid anyway. The others will simply fill the required raid member count.”

“…Ah.”

That wasn’t all.

They would also serve as messengers.

They would spread the news that the Hero Guild had conquered Ruindra.

‘Controversy is covered with bigger controversy.
Sensational news is buried with even more sensational news.’

That was the most basic principle of handling public opinion.

The reason the meme about him existed now was simply because there was no bigger distraction.

The Ruindra Raid would be perfect.

Not only that, but people would also feel grateful for being allowed to participate in such an important quest, improving his image.

After all, when someone commits a hundred bad deeds but then does one or two good things, people often think:

“Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy after all.”

‘If the Pratel Ruindra Raid, and then that thing happening in the Empire afterward…’