The inside of the Burning Dunes Gate was a desolate desert. The only sights were the color of the sky and the sand. The Players who didn't expect a desert environment erupted in complaints.
"Dammit, I wore metal armor and it's a desert?"
"Oh no...I didn't bring a lot of drinking water."
"What's with this sand? My feet keep on sinking. And we're supposed to fight here…?"
"It's crazy hot."
There weren't many people who had been to a desert before. On top of that, they had to fight on the sand.
Some of the Players started to panic at the reality and started to curse loudly.
"Please lend me your ears!" At the voice, all the Players turned.
"For now, please gather here."
"Who is that bastard?"
"I dunno. Oh, is he a Player from a Guild?"
"Huh, a Guild?"
With uncertain looks on their faces, they gathered around the man who called to them. Three of his teammates were gathered behind him. "Let me introduce myself. I am Cha Min-Woo, a member of Korea's rank 13 Guild, Cheong-Hae."
"C-Cheong-Hae?"
"What the heck. Cheong-Hae is the Guild that will participate in the attack today?"
"They're really good."
"Isn't that the place that only takes elites?" In an instant, their suspicious attitudes changed. Cheong-Hae wasn't good enough to be part of the Big 6, but it was still a famous and prestigious Guild.
"As you all know, there's not much an individual Player can do in such a big Gate."
"Well...That's true."
The Players nodded in agreement.
"Because these Gates aren't meant to be conquered alone. I would like to make a proposal."
"A proposal?"
"100 million won. We will give 100 million won to every Player that follows our orders. Of course, we will also guarantee your safety." [1]
"Geez...100 million won, that's more than I thought."
"What do you think?"
"Well, it's a small sum compared to the price of the core…"
The Players glanced around at each other. They all entered the Gate with the hopes of making it big with the Cinder Fox's core. There were even those among them who hadn't even mastered the fundamentals and couldn't be called actual Players. Usually, when those types of people entered through a Gate, they would always be met with a harsh reality.
'Good move.'
The Cheong-Hae Guild really was an elite Guild. They already made a proposal before the Players did anything.
'If these Players had successfully completed their hunt, then they would refuse the offer, but even if they had succeeded, 100 million won would still be too much to give up.'
In other words, they had baited the beginner Players very well. In such a dangerous and desolate place, the guarantee of safety made it a tempting offer.
Seo Jun-Ho slowly raised his hand. "Then, how will we divide the reward? The Cinder Fox's core, I mean."
"...Of course, our Guild will take it."
With his response, everybody immediately protested."Wait a minute. You can sell the Cinder Fox's core for however much you want, so how can you keep that for yourself?!"
"That's not right! Even if you give 100 million to everyone here, it would just be 3 billion. Don't you think you're being too much?"
"I don't think that's right. Don't you think that you're going too far?"
Cha Min-Woo frowned when public opinion began turning against him. "Then do you have the confidence to hunt the Cinder Fox without our help?"
"..."
They closed their mouths. They had never hunted one before so how could they know?
Cha Min-Woo took advantage of the silence and drove the nail in. "Huu, alright then. Those who will join us right now will receive 200 million won. But those that will join us later will only receive 50 million."
It was time to choose.
Would they follow the Guild Players and receive 200 million won with their safety guaranteed? Or would they go down the dangerous route and attempt to hunt the Cinder Fox on their own with a potential reward of billions?
The practical people raised their hands first.
"I accept."
"So will I. It'll be hard to fight alone in this heavy armor…"
"Will you give us drinking water too? If so, I'll join."
Those who were unprepared joined next. When others began joining or began showing their intent to join, the remaining people had no choice but to nod.
"What, they're all going over?"
"Tsk. I wanted to make it big this time, but there's nothing I can do compared to such a big group."
"I guess I'll have to settle for 200 million won. That's also a lot."
"Then, I'll join too."
22 of the 23 Players joined the Cheong-Hae Guild's group. Cha Min-Woo turned to the last one, Seo Jun-Ho, with a satisfied look. "What will you do?"
"I...oh." Seo Jun-Ho bent over and tied his shoes tightly before standing back up. He looked to the others. "I'll go alone."
As they watched him disappear in the sand, the other Players started to whisper.
"That's Seo Jun-Ho? I heard he cleared two Uncleared Gates…"
"I guess he's still greedy for the core."
"I wanted to see him fight. It's a waste."
As he listened to the others talk, Cha Min-Woo looked surprised.
'That was Seo Jun-Ho? The one who cleared the Curse of Dawn and the Leuf's Garden?'
Cha Min-Woo had never seen a picture of him, but he heard more than enough rumors so he had been looking forward to meeting Seo Jun-Ho. However, Seo Jun-Ho looked disappointingly shabby and didn't exude any particular pressure.[2]
As if they were thinking the same thing, his teammates spoke up.
"As I thought, the rumors exaggerated things."
"He's divine, he's a genius, blah blah blah...He doesn't even seem that strong."
"He's not worth your concern, Team Leader."
"...What are you saying? I was never concerned about him in the first place." Cha Min-Woo erased Seo Jun-Ho from his mind and joined the others.
***
After escaping from the crowd, Seo Jun-Ho started to climb the dunes without a particular destination in mind.
'The Cinder Fox...It's something between a monster and a mythical creature.'
The Cinder Fox he had defeated in the past had six tails. It could grow up to nine over the course of a thousand years. Once it grew all its tails, it would ascend to the heavens and become the Millenium Fox that would watch over its kind.
"The Cinder Fox is stronger the more tails it has…" And they could command Fire Fox soldiers.
There was no way to tell how many tails the Cinder Fox had at the moment. Thus, Seo Jun-Ho thought that it would be a good idea to find a scouting spot first.
'I have to find a good vantage point.'
Seo Jun-Ho climbed a number of dunes before he found a suitable hill. From the top, he could see Players in the distance walking in a line.
"I can relax now."
The Fire Foxes would find them soon, and then the Cinder Fox would appear. Seo Jun-Ho planned to wait until then.
'I'll make my move after I see how many tails it has. That's the first thing I need to do.'
Seo Jun-Ho conjured some chunks of ice and cooled himself down. He wouldn't have to wait long since Fire Foxes had good noses.
***
A scream reverberated from the front of the formation.
"I-it's a Fire Fox!"
"How many are there? 30...40...What the hell, there's at least 50!"
They were surrounded in an instant, and the Players gulped nervously.
Cha Min-Woo calmed them down first. "Don't panic! Follow the strategy! We have the advantage!"
The Players came back to their senses and started to move. They pulled out their weapons and readied their skills as they waited for the Fire Foxes to attack.
Grr…
Khak!
The Fire Foxes were at least four times bigger than a normal fox. Dozens of them circled the group. They were smart and soon realized that there were only 26 Players. As such, the 50 clever Foxes rushed at the Players without hesitation.
Khaaa!
Graaaagh!
Cha Min-Woo's eyes flashed. He forcibly stopped the Players who tried to attack and had them wait for the right moment. And the moment the distance between them and the Fire Foxes reached 20 meters…
"Now!" As soon as he gave the command, some of the Players used their magic. The trap hidden under the sand started to activate.
Bzzt!
Powerful lines of electricity shot out between each machine. The unsuspecting Foxes fell, a burning scent wafted from their flesh.
"It worked!"
"They fell for it!"
"Phew, of course, they did." Cha Min-Woo felt satisfied as he saw the way the others looked at him in surprise. He was the one who had set up the formation to be like a martial arts ring.
'Methods of hunting have changed from the past.'
Now, it was the age of technology. Things were different from the times when they made weapons by hand and made shabby pitfalls. The researchers at the National Guild of Scientists made weapons that were easy to use. They were the ones that had set the new standards for hunting.
'And if I'm this good at using weapons and tactics…'
It was only a matter of time before he achieved the title of a Ranker. Cha Min-Woo had no doubt of this.
"We've already reduced their numbers by half! The time is now!"
As the Fire Foxes numbers dwindled to 20, Cha Min-Woo stepped out of the ring and pulled out his weapon. He continued to give orders as he started to hunt the Fire Foxes. It was important to raise his individual level as well as the level of his contribution.
Rip! Slice!
Like the Cheong-Hae elites that they were, Cha Min-Woo and his teammates hunted faster than the other Players.
"And here I thought that the Gate would be hard because of the Cinder Fox...This is nothing."
"We made a good choice. It was right to join the Cheong-Hae Guild members."
As their fear of death started to fade, their abilities started to shine. Not a single Player was injured, and they easily won the battle. They gathered around Cha Min-Woo.
"That was an amazing strategy. You're like the reincarnation of Zhuge Liang."
"After we clear the Gate, your reputation will spread."
"They say that even brushing collars is a connection. Would you like to trade numbers?"[3]
They were looking at Cha Min-Woo like he was a hero. Cha Min-Woo laughed as he stopped them. "Now, now, we haven't won just yet. The most important battle is still ahead of us."
"Ah...that's right. We still have to fight the Cinder Fox."
"But you've already created a strategy for that, correct?"
"If it's Team Leader Cha, I bet he has already guaranteed our victory."
"I'm thankful that you have so much faith in me." Even if he was talking like this Cha Min-Woo was actually very nervous.
'After we clear this Gate, I'll have taken the first step in becoming a hero.'
He would have achieved the same thing as the legendary Player Specter.
Actually, he would stand out even more if he defeated the Cinder Fox without a single casualty among them. He calmed himself down and realigned the traps.
'I was right. It's best to use the latest technology for weapons and traps.' Shortly after the group took a water break, a soft sound came from the distance.
Sizzle! Sizzle! Growlll!
The sound of stepping on sand? No, the sound of burning sand? Even though there wasn't a monster in sight, the flustered Players stood up and grabbed their weapons.
The primal instinct in their DNA was warning them.
"T-Team Leader Cha. What is this?"
"...It's here." Cha Min-Woo was nervous for a different reason. But he soon calmed himself.
A second later, a great shadow came over them, blocking the sun.
"Huh? A shadow…?" As if on cue, the Players turned and their faces fell.
"N-no way."
"That's...That's not the Cinder Fox, is it?"
It was 20 meters long, and 6 meters tall, with each tail extending 5 meters each. An enormous monster loomed over them like a building.
The great Cinder Fox stared down at the corpses of the Fire Foxes beneath it. Its eyes flashed like the eyes of a parent who had just lost their children.
Its eyes clouded with sorrow. It raised its head toward the sun and howled.
Awoooooo…!
There were no mountains, but the sound of its cry rode the dunes until it echoed in the sky.
The Players were lost in their panic and stared up in astonishment.
[The Boss Monster of the Burning Dunes, The Cinder Fox, has appeared.]
From behind its enormous body, nine tails flickered like thundering clouds.[4]