Chapter 19
—
In the past, gates were a source of terror for humanity.
Gates where one could not predict even a step ahead, and the destructive monsters they housed.
If survival issues like gate overflow or items and mana stones, which were valuable enough to risk lives, did not exist, the profession of “Hunter” would never have been created in this world.
The fear of gates that continued until the mid-20th century was completely overturned by the appearance of one person.
The Archmage, Jamal Popper.
― “Just as magic can be dismantled if you know the spell formula.”
― “If you know the coordinates, you can dismantle a gate.”
The introduction of the “Popper Observer,” which tracked coordinates to observe the labyrinth of gates.
From this day forward, humanity began to conquer gates.
The “Guild War League” became the symbol of that conquest.
― From the GM Settings Manual
* * *
Sparkle, sparkle.
Lee Shin’s eyes gleamed.
“C-Crazy……!!”
Circumference of 75cm. This flawless and resplendent glass orb was the starting point of the GM story and the foundation of the Guild War League……!!
“The Popper Observer!!”
To think he would see in real life what he had only seen in illustrations!
Overwhelmed with emotion, his whole body trembled violently, his heart pounding wildly, and he shook uncontrollably.
Perhaps finding this sight novel, the female PD let out a chuckle.
“Yes, that’s right. This is the latest model of the Popper Observer that we brought in.”
“Damn, the latest model! What a heart-pounding resonance this is!”
“Fufu. The resolution has been upgraded, and the number of cameras increased to 12. Since there are more screens to observe the inside of the gate, we’ll be able to capture better scenes, won’t we?”
“Oh, dear God…….”
On the much-anticipated raid day, Lee Shin unexpectedly arrived early in the morning during the adaptation training of the raid party, offering warm coffee and wishing them good luck.
His kind demeanour was so different from his previous reputation as a cold and calculating individual that the raid party found it hard to believe he was the same person as before.
However.
Chae Dong-ha, looking at Lee Shin’s softened expression with cold eyes, knew better.
‘There’s no way that person harbours such lukewarm emotions.’
Concern for the raid party? There was no way such a thing existed.
The reason Lee Shin had come here at the crack of dawn was that.
It was because of that Popper Observer he was gazing at with eyes full of love.
‘What did he say again? Something about being disqualified as a veteran if he couldn’t see it in person.’
Like a child throwing a tantrum for a toy, he had flailed around and shouted angrily, and Chae Dong-ha had genuinely considered finding a nearby psychiatrist.
Whether Lee Shin knew of Chae Dong-ha’s thoughts or not, he continued to circle excitedly around the Observer.
“What is this line for? And that mana stone over there? Where does the screen come out from? Can you edit things here too?”
“Fufu, one question at a time. Let’s start with this line. This connects the Observer to the equipment. Each piece of equipment is linked like this.”
“Oh……!”
“The mana stones you mentioned are necessary for the magic circle. Ah! Please don’t touch them. They’ve been placed and set up already. They need to stay as they are. The mana is drawn from here and used to connect the Observer to the gate.”
“Ohhh……!!”
“Once the connection is complete, you can observe the interior of the gate on this monitor here. Adjust the screen? Of course, that’s possible. You see this stick here? You can use it to control the view.”
“Ohhhh!!”
Each of the PD’s words elicited an intense reaction from Lee Shin.
What is this, it’s adorable…….
“Would you like to take a look?”
“Have I told you that I love you……?”
“Fufu. Follow me.”
Despite the early-morning filming and the naturally sensitive nature of gate broadcasting, the PD felt compelled to grant his wish because Lee Shin, raising his hand and shouting “Me! Me!” like an elementary school student about to burst, was just too adorable. Besides, they had the time.
Clap, clap.
The PD clapped her hands to gather everyone.
“Alright, everyone, let’s get started.”
Seamlessly and without error? Everyone, to your positions!
At her command, the broadcast team moved in perfect harmony.
“Check the mana stone capacity.”
“Confirmed!”
“What about the spare mana stones?”
“Checked and ready!”
“How about the video transmitter and sound system?”
“All set, senior.”
“Let’s do a final check on the line connections.”
“All checked and confirmed!”
“Good.”
With her hand on the lever, the PD glanced briefly to the side at the intense gaze she could feel.
Thump-thump,
with sparkling eyes, Lee Shin stomped his feet impatiently.
Smiling at him, she pulled.
The lever!
Beep───!!
At the same time, the mana stones began to emit light all at once.
Milk-white halos dispelled the darkness of the early morning forest.
The halos from the center grew in intensity as they spread outward and were drawn into the transmuter. Two beams, four beams, the light branched out in all directions, forming an increasingly dense formation.
Circles, stars, characters—before anyone could blink, a single intricate pattern had formed.
“The magic circle from the loading screen!!”
Lee Shin cried out, covering his mouth.
Indeed, as Lee Shin said, it was the same magic circle that appeared on the loading screen during GM raids, officially called the “Popper Observation Circle.”
It was the core system for gate observation.
Thus, the final destination of the completed magic circle was there.
A blue, oval-shaped magical barrier floating above the ground. The gate itself!
Wooong―!!
As the magic extended to the gate, the previously silent gate began to ripple.
Like raindrops on a calm lake, concentric circles formed, and the gate quivered. As if it were all a lie, the once tumultuous gate stabilized.
Observation complete.
The screens of over a dozen monitors lit up simultaneously.
“PD, the video is up.”
“One, two, three…… twelve screens. All angles captured without any errors~!”
“Team 1, secure full shots. Team 2, capture combat shots. Team 3, focus on the main characters’ faces. You all know the drill, right?”
“Uh, but PD…….”
“What? What’s wrong?”
It was then.
An assistant director from Team 2, responsible for combat shots, tilted their head and said.
“They seem…… to be fighting already. Right now.”
“??!!”
Already?! How long has it been since they entered?
The shocked broadcasting team rushed to Team 2’s monitor, and soon, the screen displayed the scene.
A village shrouded in smoke and a swarm of grotesque green-skinned dwarves—goblins.
Clad in ragged cloth, the goblins wielded crude weapons and charged toward the raid party.
And the Mir Raid Party charged right back at the goblin swarm.
“Our senior looks good on camera.”
“……?!”
“……?!”
“Popcorn, anyone?”
Seated casually, Lee Shin focused on the screen, tearing open a bag of popcorn he’d gotten from who-knows-where.
Since this was a live hunt, not an edited broadcast, there was no way he’d miss it.
Lee Shin chewed popcorn as he watched the scattered raid party on the screen.
* * *
Goblins are small.
Goblins are simple.
Goblins are weak.
These were the preconceived notions of goblins as the weakest monsters, and thus many underestimated them.
How cunning and cruel those little creatures could be.
Boom―! Boom―!!
“……Those bastards, using their own kind as bombs……!”
“Idiot! It’s poison smoke, shut up!”
Suddenly, goblins flying through the air exploded.
Their shocking cruelty, using their own kind as bombs, made the raid party hesitate for a moment. Then, realizing the explosions contained poisonous fumes, they hesitated again.
Their steps faltered. Their shields wavered.
A momentary crack appeared in the once-solid tank line. Although their comrades rushed to seal the gap, it was already too late.
The goblins relentlessly exploited the opening they had created by sacrificing their own.
“Damn it!! Are you kidding me?!”
“S-Sorry!”
“Shut up and block them!!”
Swinging a mace at the goblin forcing its way in, a head was smashed. A sword flashed, severing a neck. A torso was split in two.
But even so.
The goblins didn’t stop.
Individually, their combat power was incomparable.
In a head-on clash against a well-defended raid party, they would lose a hundred out of a hundred times. For them, this tiny breach was their only path to victory.
The goblins hurled themselves with everything they had.
This revealed their greatest advantage.
Sheer numbers.
Even when their heads were crushed or their torsos severed, they kept coming, building a wall of corpses with their own bodies.
And before anyone realized it.
Thud!
A rusty dagger stabbed into someone’s side.
Looking down in searing pain, a goblin with eyes gleaming with madness was snickering, “Kekeke.”
The formation had already broken.
Goblins are small. People overlook their speed.
Goblins are simple. People dismiss their persistence.
Goblins are weak. People fail to notice their cruelty.
This was the result.
The collapse of the defensive line. The isolation of the frontline tanks.
While the second-line damage dealers rushed to intervene, their eagerness only led to a messier entanglement with the goblins, further complicating the formation.
Eventually, even the safest third line in the rear was breached, turning the battlefield into chaos, like a shipwreck swept away by a goblin tide.
At this point, even if they won, it wouldn’t feel like a victory.
They had underestimated the goblins, assuming they’d secure an elegant victory.
But look at this mess—it had become a dirty brawl.
It was ugly.
Embarrassing to watch, and standing a step back, Kim Jong-pil could only shake his head.
“Tsk, tsk. It’s worse than I thought.”
Feeling smug, he had taken a hands-off approach.
They’d performed well in training, so he’d given them a chance, curious about how they’d fare in real combat…… but the results were abysmal.
Still, even amid this disgrace, there was one silver lining.
“At least I verified this manual.”
Kim Jong-pil held a bundle of papers in his hand.
The manual given by Lee Shin was spot on.
No, it was astonishing.
It was entirely accurate.
Barely three minutes into the fight, all their bad habits and weaknesses were exposed, and not a single line in the manual was off. Every detail was precise.
Whatever methods Lee Shin used to extract such accurate data, Kim Jong-pil felt like he could spend days debating it with him.
But as Kim Jong-pil leisurely reflected, the battle had devolved into an unbearable spectacle of blunders.
If he wanted to salvage even a shred of their pride, now was the time to step in.
Dusting off his pants, Kim Jong-pil stood up.
In that brief moment, his brilliant mind conceived dozens of ways to turn the tide of the battle.
Whether it was unleashing a bombardment from his spirit army or calling on the aid of his top-tier wood spirit, Vita, he could wrap this up in an instant.
However, having declared he wouldn’t step to the frontlines, Kim Jong-pil decided to warm up his voice instead.
“Ah, ah, can everyone hear me? Your skills have been assessed. If it was entertaining, it was entertaining; if it was shocking, it was shocking.”
To put it bluntly, the raid party and the goblins weren’t even comparable in terms of specs, combat power, or any other measure.
In extreme terms, even if three times the number of goblins were added, they should still be able to hunt them without issue.
But in reality, they were floundering helplessly in a muddy battle.
When Plan A failed, they should have moved to Plan B, then Plan C. But the moment they strayed from their preset track, they lost their way and wandered aimlessly.
Why?
There was no need to ask. Lee Shin had already given them the answer.
Tools.
These people lacked the ability for proactive thinking.
His tone was calm, but his words were not.
The raid members flinched in embarrassment. Having proven themselves mere tools through their disgraceful performance, they couldn’t muster a single retort.
“At this point, you must have realized it yourselves, so I won’t mention this part any further.”
However.
“From now on, you will follow my instructions without question.”
First, the chaotic battlefield needed to be brought under control.
The wind stirred as it transformed into a hawk, and Kim Jong-pil’s pale eyes shared its vision.
The entire battlefield came into view, and the isolated tank line stood out.
I’ll need to pull them back first.
Thus, the strategy he chose was:
“From now on, the third-line supporters will advance while assisting the second-line damage dealers.”
“……?!”
When retreating, the usual thought is to pull back the isolated tanks, but Kim Jong-pil instead decided to push the second and third lines forward, resetting the formation.
Retreat may seem simple but is an incredibly delicate maneuver.
It’s no coincidence that the highest number of casualties in warfare occur during retreats.
Proper retreats require careful coordination with teammates, awareness of enemy positions and momentum, and precise execution.
But this team lacked such judgment.
The proof was in their repeated missteps—failing both to retreat and to hold their line.
Thus, though somewhat brute-force, it was easier to push everyone forward, overwhelm the goblins, and reset the formation.
“Cease area magic. Activate shields. Melee damage dealers, advance slowly.”
Eyes down at your feet, not forward. Start with the right foot. Engage your core and match your steps with the comrades beside you, one step at a time.
“Long-range damage dealers, spread your wings to the flanks.”
The long-range damage dealers all sprinted toward the flanks.
Hit and pull back. There was no need to overextend.
Rather than inflicting damage, the focus was on dispersing the goblins’ attention and lessening the pressure on the main group.
“Third line, merge with the melee damage dealers. Equip auxiliary shields and provide support.”
Like a mother teaching a child to use chopsticks for the first time, he gave instructions from start to finish.
How much time had passed like this?
The once-chaotic battlefield was miraculously brought under control. Before they knew it, the isolated tanks had rejoined the main group.
“Now, let’s start over from the beginning.”
—
Kindly Rate this Series at <NOVELUPDATES>
Read More at – GENZNOVEL.COM!!
PLEASE JOIN OUR DISCORD AND SUBSCRIBE THE ROLE TO RECEIVE LATEST NOTIFICATIONS!!
Click here -> https://discord.gg/S8c2kGVr2g
Comment