𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟕𝟖
‘Well, I guess this is just the beginning, right?’
Even though the first battle with the demons was safely concluded, the Demon King and the highest-ranking demons were still alive and well. In contrast, the Allied Guilds had suffered a certain amount of damage. It was an uphill battle from the start, but no one backed down.
“If you get stabbed by a tentacle, ignore it and save that person!”
“What? Why is there a highest-ranking demon?!”
“It’s hard enough to deal with the Demon King, but a highest-ranking one too……”
It seems like I’ll have to take on Garikas.
I wanted to attack the Demon King myself, but if Garikas jumped into our formation and started rampaging, the damage could become uncontrollable.
Moreover, the fact that only Aizen and I could handle Garikas here also weighed on my mind.
In the end, it seemed like the most reasonable option was for me to face Garikas.
“You lowly humans dare to challenge me without knowing your place.”
“Elsyke’s Phantom Shift.”
Pat!-
At that moment, Garikas made a move, and seeing that, I quickly used Phantom Shift to move near Garikas and immediately swung my shield.
“Thunder Strike!”
Kwaaaang!!-
[Skill Damage! 11,048.]
“Kuhk, you dare!”
Thanks to the successful surprise attack, the first attack landed, but the second and third attacks were blocked by Garikas’s arms, which quickly counterattacked, rendering them ineffective.
However, as if the attack itself had some meaning, Garikas started glaring at me with an enraged face.
“The human who only ran away has lost his fear!”
“Really? Let’s have a proper fight now.”
The Allied Guilds were already attacking the Demon King. I couldn’t let Garikas interfere and ruin their flow, so I decided to fight him this time instead of running away.
“Insolent!”
Eventually, Garikas attacked with rage, and I calmly blocked his attacks and swung my shield, but I couldn’t land an attack easily.
Kwaang!- Kwang!-
‘As expected, those arms are ridiculously overpowered.’
Garikas’s arms were treated as weapons, so there was no damage when they clashed. Moreover, his stats were so high that I was busy dodging his attacks.
“Vice Guild Master! I’ll help you!”
‘Help?’
In the midst of a brief exchange of attacks, a voice, presumably from a guild member, came from behind. While I appreciated the offer of help, there was no way a guild member could handle a foe that even I was struggling against.
“Wait……”
“Power Amplification! Gale Combo Attack!”
Before I could even finish the word “wait,” the guild member used a skill with no discernible origin. I’d bet my life that the skill’s name was just a fancy alteration of an existing one.
Boom!-
Anyway, a pale wind in the form of fists flew consecutively from the guild member’s hand, striking Garikas. The attack itself wasn’t bad, but unfortunately, the opponent was not ideal.
“Pathetic.”
As expected, Garikas nonchalantly threw a punch towards the guild member. Even though the distance wasn’t closed, the guild member tumbled backward with a considerable impact sound, and in that opening, I managed to land a successful attack, allowing me to recover my depleted health and stamina.
[Skill Damage! 11,107.]
[Health is……]
‘Well, I guess I did get some unintentional help.’
I tried to capitalize on this momentum and continue my attack, but I realized the Demon King’s skill, which I had been worried about, was being cast.
[Demon King Agreenes uses Despair-Inducing Song.]
‘Of all times, it had to be now.’
“It’s the song!”
“Retreat!”
Ah~ Ah~
It was a thin and delicate voice, yet the singing felt eerie.
Moreover, the fact that the song could be heard meant……
[100 health is depleted per second.]
[All stats are decreased by 10%.]
‘What should I do?’
Normally, running away would be the right choice. It was difficult to recover health using the shield skill against Garikas. However, I was uneasy about simply fleeing, unsure of what Garikas might do.
“Don’t mind the song! Everyone, take out what you prepared!”
‘Huh?’
Suddenly, I noticed that the dozens of players who hadn’t fled despite the song attack were taking out and drinking some kind of potion before attacking the Demon King again. I didn’t know what kind of potion it was, but judging by how they continued to attack without concern, it seemed to be a type that blocked the song’s effect.
‘What kind of potion is that?’
The thought was fleeting. I cursed under my breath and blocked Garikas, who was trying to reach the players who had taken the potion.
“Get out of the way!”
Get out of the way, my foot.
Fortunately, Garikas couldn’t ignore me blocking his path and attempted an attack. I calmly blocked his attack while increasing the number of phantoms one by one.
Pop!-
Considering his vision and defense, summoning phantoms wouldn’t be very effective. Nevertheless, I increased the number of phantoms to create an opportunity to attack.
Boom!-
[Skill Damage! 10,663.]
[Damage received! -3,507.]
‘Damn it!’
As planned, I landed a successful attack, but I was immediately hit by Garikas’ counterattack, taking damage. My slightly reduced stats due to the song had slowed my evasion.
‘This makes it hard to recover health.’
Despite the situation, I was able to hold on thanks to the effect of Jayer’s Guardian Shield. The shield, which recovered 85 health per second, allowed me to withstand the song’s damage, but dealing with the reduced stats and Garikas was a different matter.
‘Let’s just hold on as long as possible.’
Bang!-
I swung my shield, enhanced with Roar of the Thunder Dragon and Thunder Strike, non-stop, deflecting his incoming fists. Using Thunder Strike gave the shield an attack property, so I didn’t take damage, but this method consumed durability, making it difficult to use continuously.
However, the durability of Roar of the Thunder Dragon and Iron Wall Fortress was 310 and 460, respectively.
It wasn’t going to break just from deflecting a few punches.
Besides, after a long exchange of attacks, it seemed like the time was finally up.
“It’s done! The song has stopped!”
“Attack again!”
‘By the way, those guys are still attacking.’
The players who had endured the Demon King’s song with some kind of potion continued their assault. This was only possible because he didn’t summon tentacles while singing, but even considering that, they must have inflicted a significant amount of damage.
They had been hitting him non-stop for almost 3 minutes, hadn’t they?
The problem was that they were starting to retreat, likely due to depleted stamina.
“Damn it, time to rest! Fall back and recover your stamina!”
Conversely, the players who had rushed in as soon as the song ended were aggressively attacking the Demon King.
“He won’t be able to sing for a while, so we need to attack as much as possible!”
‘The flow is good.’
There was no frustration when fighting against the people of the Karzen Kingdom. The way they seamlessly continued their attacks, like flowing water, filled me with admiration.
In addition, there was a change in my battle with Garikas.
Kwaaang!!-
‘A pillar of fire?’
Suddenly, flames erupted. Judging by the fact that I didn’t take damage, it was likely a skill used by a nearby player. Although the flames slightly obscured my vision, which was a bit annoying, as soon as they subsided, someone rushed in and slashed at Garikas.
Swoosh!-
A giant golden sword aura.
The sword aura precisely cut Garikas twice, and he let out a painful groan. I looked at Aizen, who had executed the attack, then quickly regained my composure and used Thunder Strike to send Garikas flying.
Boom!- Boom!-
“Ugh, Ugh!”
‘He’s still not dead?’
Even after being hit by Aizen’s Extinction Sword and my Thunder Strike, Garikas didn’t die. Was the damage of Extinction Sword weaker than I thought? Anyway, I used Thunder Strike once more on the fallen Garikas, and finally, I saw him die.
[For the achievement of defeating a Highest-ranking Demon, you have acquired a total of 5,870 Contribution Points.]
‘Wow, look at those Contribution Points.’
While defeating an Intermediate Demon awarded 200 Contribution Points, the reward for a Highest-ranking Demon was on a completely different scale. If Aizen hadn’t intervened at the last moment, I might have earned even more Contribution Points, but I wasn’t particularly bothered by it.
Honestly, if he hadn’t intervened, I would have been stuck with Garikas for a few more minutes.
“But why did you help me?”
Aizen was the one who had initially attacked the Demon King. So, I found it strange that he helped me as soon as the song attack ended and asked him about it. Aizen replied as if it were nothing.
“It seemed like you were reaching your limit.”
“Limit?”
“Yes, not just your stamina, but the durability of your weapon as well, isn’t it?”
“Well, as for the weapon’s durability……”
Thinking I still had plenty left, I checked Roar of the Thunder Dragon and was shocked.
[Durability: 35/310]
‘What? When did it decrease so much?’
It seemed like the durability decreased by 2-3 points with every impact. Could it be that the durability reduction varied depending on the damage received? If so, I could understand, but as Aizen had said, it wasn’t at its limit yet.
‘Just in case, I should fight with the shield.’
Fortunately, the shield still had over 100 durability left. It was a pointless thought anyway, since I had been focusing on shield attacks ever since acquiring Thunder Strike.
[Demon King Agreenes uses Black-Stained Storm of Destruction.]
“Huh?”
The demons that had initially rushed in were all dead, and since the tentacle and song attacks were ineffective, the Demon King was attempting a new attack pattern. However, it was a skill everyone already knew, so the response was swift.
“It’s a whirlwind! Keep your distance!”
“You’ll be swept away and killed if you get too close!”
Thanks to the information uploaded online every time Demon King Agreenes used a new skill, everyone knew what it was.
“Rudin-nim.”
“I know!”
As a result, we retreated with all our might without a moment to breathe, and a massive whirlwind formed in front of the Demon King.
The problem was that even though we knew what the skill was, there was no way to stop it.
Unlike the tentacle or song attacks, this whirlwind would suck anyone in who got too close, so there was nothing we could do. The other players seemed to know this as well, as they only kept their distance without taking any other action. However, a few players moved in the opposite direction of the whirlwind’s movement and attacked the Demon King.
Upon closer inspection, they were the players who had drank the potion and attacked the Demon King earlier.
‘They came fully prepared.’
“Wow!~ Who are those people?”
“They’re fighting quite fiercely.”
“……?”
Suddenly, hearing unfamiliar voices, I turned around and saw a considerable number of players approaching. Those people were…… After a brief observation, I noticed someone familiar among them. Coincidentally, that person seemed to have spotted me as well and reacted with excitement.
“Oh?! It’s Rudin!”
“Rudiiin!”
It was none other than the Yonggammusang Guild, wasn’t it?
I easily recognized Heuksin, the player who was running towards me while shouting my ID. He seemed like he was going to kill me judging by his momentum, but as I raised Roar of the Thunder Dragon in my hand, Heuksin suddenly stopped in his tracks.
‘At least he’s still sane.’
I thought he would charge at me recklessly.
“How dare you!”
“How dare I what?”
Furthermore, I couldn’t understand why he was acting this way. It seemed a bit excessive just because of the staff. However, after hearing his next outburst, I could roughly understand.
“You kicked out the guild members I sent twice?!”
“I told you to come yourself.”
I answered, but judging by his attitude, it didn’t seem like he had heard me. Honestly, I didn’t mind fighting him. However, unfortunately, I could see some of the guild members around him trying to stop him.
Unlike his personality, he seemed to have good fortune with people.
“Guild Master, please calm down!”
“What are you doing trying to fight here!”
Fortunately, Heuksin regained his composure after being dissuaded by his guild members and glared at me with a still-frustrated face.
“I won’t beat around the bush. Hand over the staff.”
“Are you crazy? You’re practically a robber without a knife.”
“I’m not just asking for it. I’ll give you 1,000 gold. That should be a fair price.”
‘Let’s see, that’s about 20 million won, right?’
Actually, considering it was a rare item enhanced to +7, 20 million won wasn’t a bad price. However, it was an item that could only be used by those who had acquired death-related skills, and since its durability had decreased, 20 million won might be a reasonable amount.
But I didn’t want to just hand it over.
“Why don’t you offer a bit more?”
“What? 1,000 gold isn’t enough?!”
“Oh, Guild Master!”
Heuksin reacted explosively again to my answer, trying to attack me. Why did he keep trying to fight when he couldn’t even win? Of course, Heuksin had brought a large number of guild members, but that wouldn’t necessarily translate into victory.
“Fine, fine. What will it take for you to return it?”
“Just find a new one.”
Even though death-related items were rare, they weren’t impossible to find. He could easily find one if he put his mind to it, so I couldn’t understand his reaction. However, if someone had taken my Roar of the Thunder Dragon, I could understand his feelings a little.
Anyway, I left Heuksin fuming and looked at the Demon King. Everyone was desperately dodging the whirlwind while attacking. The magic-using players were attacking relatively easily, but those who focused on melee combat had to constantly move, making it quite a struggle.
[Demon King Agreenes uses Life-Stealing Thorns of Death.]
‘Thorns of Death?’
Huh? I’ve never seen that skill before……
Boom, boom, boom!!-
Before I could even think about it, thousands of thorns erupted around the Demon King, seemingly activating instantaneously. The thin, sharp thorns, which reached almost chest-high, pierced through all the nearby players. As if that wasn’t enough, following the Demon King’s upward hand gesture, the thorns slowly pulled out from the ground and rose high into the air.
“Damn it! Dodge!”
“Run with all your might!”
“Hurry and run!”
Judging that the attack wasn’t over yet due to the rising thorns, the players quickly started to flee. However, the thorns immediately rained down in all directions.
Crack, crack, crack!!-
“Aaagh!”
The sound of thousands of thorns piercing the ground was accompanied by the screams of players. The scene that unfolded before me was beyond words.
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