LS 12

World Rank 12, Dark Assassin Rank 5, Server Rank 4, the dazzling “AssaGo” swung his dual blades in a wide arc. A burst of dark energy rippled out, instantly melting the surrounding wolves. Thanks to the Support’s “Enk’s Protection” skill, which boosted attack and movement speed, AssaGo’s skill rotation was noticeably faster.

Yeah. This was what a Support should be. And this was what a Dark Assassin was.

Dohee couldn’t help but smile. The right skill with the right buff, when they clicked, the synergy was incredible. Sure, a weakling like a wolf could be one-shotted even without buffs, and sure, this knockoff Support still had a long way to go before being “right” about anything, but the attack-speed buff was one of the most noticeable for any damage dealer. Now amped up, AssaGo was gleefully tearing through wolves at several times his usual speed.

Just as he typed into chat, the buff duration on Enk’s Protection refreshed. Not a total noob, at least. Knockoff might know nothing, but they were using their skills pretty intuitively.

Leveling up grants more skill points and unlocks additional skills. But for most players, the skills they use are fairly standardized by class. Since you can’t master every skill, points are limited, players usually pick the most versatile ones to max out. The difference between a mastered skill and an under-leveled one was like heaven and earth. A single level 20 skill could outperform four level 5 ones. That’s why evenly spreading out skill points, like Knockoff had done, was the worst possible strategy.

Even at max level, where you get more freedom with points, you could only master up to 10 skills. So top players usually chose skills with the broadest application. While specific raids might call for tweaks, up to level 100 most players used pretty much the same core set.

After briefly explaining that structure, as well as the skills Supports commonly used and how to manage them, Dohee rearranged Knockoff’s skill slots. Knowing nothing was actually better than knowing just a little. Knockoff absorbed it all fast. No unnecessary pride, no arguments, no “but I read on a forum…” nonsense. Players who thought they “kind of knew stuff” were usually the worst, but Knockoff just sat there and gobbled up everything Dohee spoon-fed.

They completed the weekly quest to kill 500 wolves, and Knockoff gained a level, up to 21, all in less than 30 minutes. And the whole time, without a single complaint, they followed Dohee’s instructions perfectly, cycling buffs and debuffs to keep everything flowing smoothly. They weren’t completely clueless, after all. A total potato couldn’t pull this off no matter how much you held their hand.

[Party] AssaGo: Done with 500 kills?

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Yup yup! Whoa… that was so fast! Thank you ㅠㅡㅠ

[Party] AssaGo: Lol looks like you leveled up

[Party] GOingSupporter187: I did! I’m 21 now!

Seeing Knockoff’s avatar bounce with excitement somehow felt familiar now. Staring at the screen, Dohee didn’t even realize he was smiling.

[Party] AssaGo: Save your new skill points and use them all at level 25 to level up “Jiun’s Rage.”

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Okay! That means I’m stronger now, right!?

[Party] AssaGo: Level 21 hits harder than 20, yeah lol

[Party] AssaGo: What’s it like, riding the premium carry bus? lol

[Party] GOingSupporter187: A bus? 8ㅅ8 I didn’t take a bus today…

Dohee dragged a hand down his face.

[Party] AssaGo: When a high-level player helps a low-level one with hunting or raids

[Party] AssaGo: That’s what “carry” means

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Oh…! Then, uh… it was great! Super fast! ㅎㅅㅎ

There it is. I’d rather die than explain this again.

[Party] AssaGo: lol glad to hear it

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Since I leveled up, can I try killing wolves again?

When they’d first arrived at the hunting grounds, Knockoff had thrown so many skills at a single wolf. Dohee had long forgotten how slow low-level Supports were solo. Now, AssaGo or even GoingSupporter’s main could one-shot wolves, but at level 20, it wasn’t unusual for even damage dealers to need a few hits.

Still, spamming every single attack skill to kill one wolf? That was rough. No wonder the Support class wasn’t popular, it was partially the system’s fault.

Now at level 21, Knockoff proudly charged a wolf with their dagger.

In Sword of God, all characters used swords as their class weapon. For Supports, it was a dagger; for Dark Assassins, dual blades. Even healers used sword-themed weapons. It was part of the game’s core identity.

Supports used their dagger to summon spirits, and the casting animations were flashy. Damage aside, they were satisfying to watch. No class could match Supporters in effects and visuals. Unfortunately, that earned them the nickname “pretty trash.”

Dohee stood a step behind, watching Knockoff throw every skill they had at a single wolf. It really shouldn’t be funny, but it was. How long was this going to take?

After finally bringing one down, Knockoff proudly typed:

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Wow! I think that was way faster than before!

[Party] GOingSupporter187: …Or maybe not? 8ㅅ8

[Party] AssaGo: LOL no it was, shaved off a few seconds maybe?

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Right!? Wow…

[Party] AssaGo: “Wow” my ass lol. Any other class could’ve killed three in that time

[Party] AssaGo: Watching this really shows how garbage Supports are for combat

[Party] AssaGo: Knockoff lol Supports is honestly a trash class

[Party] AssaGo: Wanna switch to Dark Assassin now?

[Party] AssaGo: It’s not too late to reroll lolol

The response came flying in, a flurry of typos that Knockoff usually never made, proof they were seriously flustered.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Wait GoAssasin-nim are you even human???

[Party] GOingSupporter187: You said you were gonna help ㅠㅡㅠ!!!

Dohee finally burst out laughing out loud.

[Party] AssaGo: lol I’m kidding, I’m kidding

[Party] AssaGo: I’ll help lol

[Party] GOingSupporter187: ㅠㅡㅠ…………

Sure, I said I’d help. I never said I wouldn’t tease.

[Party] AssaGo: Okay, let’s go do another quest

Dragging the tearful Knockoff along, Dohee headed to the next weekly quest: life content. Just a few hours ago, he was debating quitting after seeing that depressing patch note, but those thoughts had long since vanished. Baek Dohee was actually having fun playing this game again, for the first time in a while.

[Party] AssaGo: For the life content quest, what did you usually pick?

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Gathering!

[Party] AssaGo: Why?? Mining 100 ores is faster and gives more mats than gathering 300 plants

[Party] AssaGo: From today on, we mine

[Party] AssaGo: At your level, Landenska Mine floors 1–6 are perfect

[Party] AssaGo: Level 1 ores drop a lot of iron, which is how you make beginner money

[Party] AssaGo: And it’s better in a party too

[Party] AssaGo: You can split rewards and gain life XP faster

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Oh! I didn’t know that ㅠㅡㅠ

[Party] AssaGo: What’s your gathering level now?

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Level 11!

[Party] AssaGo: lol then I guess doing gathering for weeklies wasn’t totally useless, you gained quite a bit

[Party] AssaGo: How about the other ones?

Life content includes mining, gathering, logging, and refining. As you level up, you get better materials. Refining is special, it lets you upgrade raw materials into higher-tier ones, which are used for crafting gear. For newbies, it was the best way to make money or be self-sufficient.

Early on, most players spent as much time on life content as combat. Once you got to higher levels, you’d usually pay “artisans”, players who mastered life and crafting skills, to make gear for you. Getting to Master level (100) was time-consuming, so most players leveled each life skill to around 30 just to get by.

But Dohee couldn’t help but facepalm at the reply.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Uh…

[Party] GOingSupporter187: I only learned gathering… 8ㅅ8?

Funny, isn’t it? You’re not supposed to get headaches from something that makes you happy.

[Party] AssaGo: That’s… right when you arrive at Landenska, the NPC in the city… teaches you all that… right?

[Party] AssaGo: Why just gathering…?

Dohee tilted his head, leaving a trail of ellipses he normally never used. Seriously, why? You could learn all four at once. The skill books were just 1 silver. The UI even had four slots ready. So why, why…?

Blissfully unaware of Dohee’s internal chaos, the reply came cheerfully:

[Party] GOingSupporter187: I just really like plants! ㅎㅅㅎ