I Woke Up as the Villain

Chapter 173

On the Tower of Heaven’s sixth floor, the mission objective was to defeat the Great Goblin King, a giant green-skinned monster. The boy shouted confidently in front of the Great Goblin King, "I'm going to win again. Let's go, Kong! Body slam… No, that might infringe on copyright, so just slam!"

Despite his appearance as a young boy, Yoo Jin-Hyuk, who was actually a teenager, commanded Kong, the powerful demonic beast that resembled a gorilla, to charge forward and take on the Great Goblin King's attack head-on.

Roar-!

The Great Goblin King stumbled backward and instinctively swung its fist, hitting Kong's chin and causing it to stagger. Seizing the opportunity, the Great Goblin King quickly grabbed the longsword that it had placed by its side and attempted to slit Kong's throat in a single stroke.

If it weren't for the two water orbs that came flying through the air, striking the Great Goblin King at that moment, the situation could have become very dangerous.

"You idiot! I told you to do a joint attack. Why did you rush in alone and cause danger?" scolded Chae Ye-Ryeong, who had thrown the water droplets.

"Hmph, stupid. A real man doesn't rely on cheap tactics like that!" argued Jin-Hyuk.

"Are you always this macho… Wait, did you just call me stupid? You want this noona to hit you?"

"Go ahead, hit me if you can."

In that moment, Ye-Ryeong’s fist flew toward Jin-Hyuk's stomach without hesitation.

"Ugh...!"

"Did you actually think I wouldn't hit you? Call me stupid again, you little brat. Try it one more time," challenged Ye-Ryeong.

"You… You cheater! How could you actually hit me?"

As the two bickered loudly, the Great Goblin King, which had flown far away after being hit by the water droplets, let out a scream and rushed back towards Kong to resume their fierce battle.

Kong's skin and muscles were thick and tough, but it was fighting bare-handed. Meanwhile, the giant Great Goblin King had a longsword and a shield that it had probably picked up somewhere. Naturally, Kong was being pushed back in the fight.

"Oops... Ah-ah... Kong!" Jin-Hyuk panicked and quickly opened his grimoire. He then shouted a skill, "Kong, Berserk!"

Engulfed in black energy, Kong's eyes turned red, and his attacks became even more ferocious. It blocked the sharp longsword with one shoulder and charged toward the Great Goblin King, ignoring his wounds. He instantly pushed down his enemy..

The Great Goblin King tried to push Kong away with force, as it didn't want to be defeated easily, but it couldn't withstand two more huge water orbs that came flying toward it.

Thud-!

In the end, the Great Goblin King couldn't endure it anymore and fell down defeated. Kong climbed on top of it with red eyes and raised his fists.

—Ke... Kieeehk-?!

The Great Goblin King screamed in horror, but it was too late. The berserk Kong started pounding its face while it lay helpless on the ground. Even its helmet was of no help.

Although the Great Goblin King thrashed about, scratching and bruising Kong all over, Kong continued to wildly swing his fists as if he couldn’t feel the pain.

In the end, the Great Goblin King could no longer endure and succumbed to the onslaught.

<The 6th floor of Tower of Heaven>

1. Defeat the boss monster! Completed. Returning to the rest area.

After confirming the mission’s success message, Jin-Hyuk and Ye-Ryeong were forcibly returned to the cubic room that led to the seventh floor.

Jin-Hyuk ran to Kong, whose red eyes had returned to their original state, and began petting his fur while he opened the book of Faust. He said gently, "You did well, Kong. It must have been really painful, right?"

Then, the black energy flowing out of Jin-Hyuk slowly covered Kong to heal his injuries. Seeing Kong’s fairly quick recovery speed, Ye-Ryeong expressed disappointment. "Why can't you use that healing skill on people? It looks so nice."

"I don't know. But at least I can use it on demonic beasts," Jin-Hyuk roughly answered while focusing on the healing.

As Ye-Ryeong sat down against the wall of the cube and let out a small laugh.

"’Kong's injuries will take some time to heal due to his large size.’

Even so, Ye-Ryeong was impressed with Jin-Hyuk, who had been using his mana nonstop for a long time.

‘How much mana does that guy have?’

Despite being a genius herself, Ye-Ryeong couldn't help but feel that Jin-Hyuk was on another level. In fact, after the Tower of Heaven’s third floor, Jin-Hyuk had consistently ranked higher in contribution on all missions. However, Ye-Ryeong did not let this discourage her.

Announcement of contribution ranking:

1. Yoo Jin-Hyuk

2. Chae Ye-Ryeong

Even when the mission contribution rankings were announced and Jin-Hyuk was in first place, Ye-Ryeong remained unfazed.

‘Boss said I could do well too.’

It was still early. Yu-Seong had often told Ye-Ryeong that her potential was just as great as Jin-Hyuk's, and Ye-Ryeong never doubted his words.

‘You’ll see, kiddo.’

Ye-Ryeong believed that someday she would surpass Jin-Hyuk and showcase the true dignity of a noona.

***

Before they knew it, they had reached the Tower of Heaven’s ninth floor. After clearing this floor, they would reach the tenth floor, the first checkpoint where they could return to Earth.

‘We've climbed much faster than I thought.’

They were progressing a lot quicker than Yu-Seong had expected due to the somewhat intense competitiveness. Under normal circumstances, even passing through the fifth floor in this amount of time would have been difficult.

‘I assume that Jin-Hyuk's team might have reached the 6th floor by now.’

Actually, reaching the ninth floor while Jin-Hyuk cleared the sixth floor was an impressive achievement, especially considering that Jin-Hyuk had Kong, the almighty demonic beast, with him. With that thought, Yu-Seong remembered another fact and felt a sense of disappointment.

Perhaps thinking the same thing, Kim Do-Jin furrowed his brow as he said, "Eventually, we've come this far in a tie."

Thanks to each of them winning one victory on the seventh and eighth floors, their match was now tied 3:3. They were back at square one.

Meanwhile, Do-Jin was unaware that the tenth floor was the checkpoint where they could return to Earth, but Yu-Seong knew this fact.

‘In other words, the ninth floor is the final crossroads for our match.’

So, Yu-Seong did not want to lose anymore.

‘The problem is, what is the mission on the ninth floor?’

Due to their skill set and experience in combat, Do-Jin would have the advantage if the mission was related to combat. On the other hand, Yu-Seong was superior in tracking, exploration, and special missions. So far, the outcome of their matches had depended on the nature of the mission. However, that didn't mean they lacked the desire to win even in disadvantageous positions.

In fact, Yu-Seong was not lacking in combat ability. Similarly, Do-Jin was skilled in magic, and could not be considered weak in special missions. Even though both of them had a slight advantage over the other in different missions, he thought he could win sufficiently even in the opposite situation.

'We are both level 23, so either side could win.'?

These were the thoughts in Yu-Seong’s mind as he arrived at the ninth floor of the Tower of Heaven. As he looked at the scenery that lay before him, his eyes widened. He exclaimed, "What is this…!"

It was a vast plain, with two armies facing each other. One side held a blue flag while the other held a red flag. It was not difficult to recognize where they were right now.

"It's a battlefield," Do-Jin said in a subdued voice as he found the word ‘battle’ very familiar.

‘That blurry thing over there... Is it a castle?’

Even when he focused his vision far beyond the two opposing sides, Yu-Seong could not easily discern the hazy gray wall.

‘It seems like the mission is a siege.’

A siege required not only fighting skills, but also strategic and tactical expertise. In fact, they were on a battlefield where they could fully compare each other's capabilities.

"But which side should we join?"

As Yu-Seong wondered, one knight on horseback from each army came running out at a fast pace. They didn't seem to have any hostile intentions towards each other. The two knights raised their reins and positioned themselves so that Yu-Seong and Do-Jin were between them.

The knights shouted out loud, “Foreigners! Welcome to the battlefield.”

The NPCs in the Tower of Heaven were programmed to recognize individuals from Earth, like Yu-Seong and Do-Jin, as "foreigners". The term was, in fact, being used correctly.

‘After all, from their perspective, we are from a completely different world.’

However, the reason for the knights from opposing sides to run forward together remained unclear. Nonetheless, the answer to that question was easily dismissed when the knights announced their purpose.

"The merciful Count Chris offers you the authority to fight together against the evil Count Monte's crowd. Will you walk the path of justice and faith with us?" the first knight declared.

"The strong and brave Count Monte desires to fight against the hypocritical and wicked Count Chris' army. Will you join us to walk the path of courage and glory together?" the second knight proclaimed.

At the same time, a message appeared in front of the two.

<The ninth floor of the Tower of Heaven>

Mission Objective Setting:

1. Choose your side.

2. You will win the match by either killing the enemy lord or receiving their surrender. You have the opportunity to choose your side.

‘So, this is what it's all about.’

One glance was all it took to perceive the contrasting aura emanating from the two knights. The knight leading the blue banner for Count Chris exuded a noble demeanor commonly associated with medieval nobility, while the knight on Count Monte's side appeared more feral.

‘Also, the knights under the red banner, Count Monte’s men… Their physique is much bigger.’

Although, there was probably no significant difference in military strength between the two sides.

‘They should be kind of balanced, since this is a mission.’

Therefore, the chosen side was expected to have some advantage. Similar to the menacing dark wizard Kalstein, the two knights, despite their intimidating appearance, most likely had their skills adjusted according to the floor of the tower they were on.

‘I have a feeling that the battle for contribution points in this mission will be just as intense.’

"Where should we go? It doesn't matter to me which side we choose," Yu-Seong asked Do-Jin.

"Same here. Hmm..." Do-Jin groaned before turning to Yu-Seong. "I'll give you the opportunity to decide."

"Well, it's not that big of a deal. Okay then..." After glancing back and forth between the two sides, Yu-Seong said nonchalantly, "I'll choose Count Monte's side.”

As it was previously mentioned, both sides had clearly different vibes. In fact, they resembled the Appliance and Cord factions from a popular RPG game that Yu-Seong used to play. As for Yu-Seong, he had a history of choosing the Cord, even though they were not human. Thus, it was only natural for Yu-Seong to choose Count Monte’s faction, which felt similar to the Cord.

"Excellent choice, magnificent warrior!" said the knight of Count Monte, with a red flag. He showed a broad smile at Yu-Seong's choice and pounded his thick armor with pride.

‘As expected, they look just like the orcs of the Cord.’

Yu-Seong chuckled inwardly as he walked toward Count Monte's knight, but he suddenly turned back to see that Do-Jin was standing still.

"Why are you there? Oh, hey, wait a minute…"

Yu-Seong realized something and looked at Do-Jin with wide eyes.

"System, can the two of us choose different sides?" asked Do-Jin.

"Are you crazy? What’s up with you all of a sudden?!"

Before Yu-Seong could finish his sentence, the system gave them a message.

- The faction choice is up to the individual's freedom.

Yu-Seong quickly shook his head after reading the message. He said, "Hey, we don't even know what the penalty for mission failure is. Do we have any reason to fight each other at this point?"

In fact, Yu-Seong could clearly think of a reason why they would fight each other.

‘It's clear that we each have our own advantages, so it would be better for us to split and fight separately rather than ambiguously fighting on one side to determine the outcome of the match.’

Yu-Seong was aware of that fact, but the risk was too great.

"Hey, think carefully, Kim Do-Jin. You know we should consider the penalty for failing the mission, right?" said Yu-Seong anxiously.

Do-Jin nodded in response, looking at Yu-Seong with a strange smile on his face.

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