"So, when facing a Berserker, as long as your speed is high enough, you're golden," Kael explained calmly, narrating the fight even as he danced through the chaos.

  A massive greatsword, as tall as a man, cleaved downward. The resulting shockwave sent plumes of yellow sand billowing into the sky. Kael leaned to the side with practiced ease, letting the blade whistle past him.

  Compared to a Lancer’s relentless, overlapping strikes, dodging a Berserker’s telegraphed attacks was child's play. However, while a Lancer’s attack allowed for a high margin of error—you could take a hit and keep moving—one mistake against a Berserker usually meant the end of the run.

  Swish! Swish!

  The sudden whistle of wind signaled danger. Kael spun his Naginata like a propeller, the heavy blade a blur of steel that batted the incoming arrows out of the air.

  "Tch, so he still managed to provide cover fire," Kael spat.

  He had expected this. An Archer was an Agility-based class; asking Tiger Hunt, who was a heavy-hitting Berserker, to completely shut one down was asking a bit too much.

  "Boss, you alright?!" Tiger Hunt’s voice echoed from across the dunes.

  To the mercenaries, if their "Golden Thigh" (their carry) went down, they might as well surrender and restart immediately to save themselves from a slow, painful death.

  "Stop focusing on the Archer! Help me burst down the Berserker!" Kael’s command cut through the shifting sands. "Blood Wolf, tank this next hit for me!"

  A flash of cold light erupted as Kael’s Naginata thrust out from the sand. Behind him, Blood Wolf acted instantly. He slammed his knight’s sword back into its scabbard and raised his shield with both hands.

  "I’ve been waiting for that order, Boss!" Tiger Hunt roared. He was tired of playing defense. A Berserker was born for the slaughter—to charge forward without regret!

  BOOM!

  The force of his leap cratered the sand. Rising from the dust, Tiger Hunt soared into the air, his giant axe raised high above his head.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  While Kael had been "scammed" by the System into the Store Manager class, his Weapon Mastery skill allowed him to use the technical arts of an Assassin. Furthermore, his second skill, Magic Mastery, gave him access to the spells of every single class.

  A short-range Blink was a piece of cake for him.

  "Pierce!"

  The enemy Archer’s reaction was lightning-fast. The moment Kael closed the distance, the Archer rolled forward to evade. If Kael had been using an Assassin’s dagger, the Archer might have actually escaped, giving the Guardian Knight time to move in and knock Kael back.

  But Kael had chosen the Naginata specifically for its reach. A single roll wasn't nearly enough to escape the weapon’s strike zone.

  The Archer was deleted instantly.

  From there, it was a cleanup. Blood Wolf stalled the Guardian Knight—a tedious stalemate of shield-bashes—while Kael and Tiger Hunt converged on the Berserker. No matter how high his regeneration was, he couldn't survive the combined DPS of two top-tier attackers.

  [Battle Ended. Congratulations on your victory.]

  "The 'Carry' was successful!" Blood Wolf nearly wept with joy. Finally, after so many brutal losses against these AI monsters, he had secured a win.

  "You’re far too easy to satisfy," Tiger Hunt remarked, clicking his tongue.

  "What do you know?" Blood Wolf looked at the lone-wolf mercenary with disdain. Tiger Hunt couldn't possibly understand the struggle of leading a squad of "noobs." Even in an eleven-against-three scenario, Blood Wolf’s team usually got wiped in seconds, and as a Guardian Knight, there was little he could do to stop the carnage.

  "Boss, want to go again?"

  "No, you guys go ahead," Kael declined. Carrying teammates through weighted training was exhausting.

  Fortunately, the RNG hadn't given the opponents a Grand Mage or a Battle Mage this time; otherwise, they would have likely lost. Kael had carried people before, and every time a Battle Mage appeared, it ended in a "wipe." Kael could hold his own, but his teammates would fold under the pressure, leaving him in a hopeless 1v3.

  "Alright then. Tiger Hunt, you in? I've already set up the room," Blood Wolf said.

  "Count me in. Ready up," Tiger Hunt replied.

  Watching them, Kael felt a sudden pang of nostalgia for his past life—the days of calling up friends to hit the net cafe, grinding mobs, raiding bosses, and farming gear together.

  Wait a minute...

  Kael realized that the Combat Simulation Room was rapidly evolving into a full-blown MMORPG. Would the next upgrade unlock a massive open-world map?

  "System! System!" Kael called out in his mind.

  [System: "Oh, foolish Host. What is it this time?"]

  Kael’s mind went blank for a second. "Since when did you become so... intelligent?"

  [System: "As the Host's level increases, more functions become available. Naturally, this includes the Communication Module."]

  "So, talking to me is a 'function'? Is it a hidden one?"

  [System: "Anyway, what did the Host want?"]

  Kael noted that it had even learned how to change the subject. Its intelligence had clearly jumped more than just a "little bit."