Chapter 198
I was glad I had brought my Ascalon (chopsticks).
‘There’s nothing quite like this against black magic.’
Objects that worked miracles in the world and became myths. Among them, things that have been blessed by the gods and have a holy aura are called ‘holy objects’.
This makes them even more powerful against objects with the powers of evil and magic.
“I’ve never seen that holy object before.”
In a situation like this, it could be seen as a kind of guard against black magic.
“You’re mocking me, calling that crappy thing a holy relic?”
Dark Spirit made a face as he realized that the chopsticks in my hand didn’t look like a ‘holy object’.
To me, it was a true holy spear that had slain a dragon, but to him, it was just an ordinary stick.
This is the problem with people who don’t have faith, not that believing makes any difference.
“You have no idea how much trouble I went through to get you for real.”
It’s been that way in the game too.
Ten new characters. Granted, only about two of them had been properly raised, and the rest were expendable, but the number of characters I’d spent just to get to his hut was in the double digits.
Poisonous needles lurking in the bushes, fishing lines on the floor, imprints that infected you with venom on contact, and mind-crushing traps.
How long it had taken me to calculate all the routes and the number of cases.
All so I could stand before him now.
‘Seniors. Please help me take that elixir.’
‘What? ‘You’re eating this here now?’
‘I have urgent business.’
‘You crazy bastard!’
Suddenly, a dark-colored dagger flies towards my face.
I twist my head to dodge the dagger, but I couldn’t completely avoid it as it comes at me at breakneck speed.
It grazes my cheek.
“I see you still have the habit of pretending to talk and then throwing daggers.”
“……Why are you talking to me like you know me?”
“Because I know you?”
He raises his eyebrows in disbelief at my answer.
“You don’t even know what was on that dagger──”
“I don’t~”
The 【Venomous Sting】 is meant to be used at times like this so I pull out a shotgun from my cube, point it at him and fire.
Kwang───!
With a loud crash, the wall he was standing on collapses but in that brief moment he blends into the darkness.
At the same time, I start counting down in his mind.
3.
2.
1.
Simultaneously turning and firing once more.
“How!!!”
The guy who allowed the shotgun blast to his abdomen goes flying backwards, slamming into the wall.
“Crunch!”
He spits out black blood, his body flailing about.
‘Dark Stomp’.
It was his primary move, allowing him to walk freely in the darkness for three seconds.
It was a simple yet powerful move that made players cringe.
“The pattern is still the same.”
Out of habit, the first Shadow Stomp he used was a stationary pattern that moved behind the target.
And the second-──
“Kaaaahhhh!!!”
Was a lunge toward the player while the third was a randomized pattern of continuous attacks.
“Your shotgun is double-barreled, it’ll take a while to reload!”
Apparently, he didn’t charge without thinking.
But…….
“You know what they say, it’s faster to draw a sidearm than it is to reload.”
I pulled out my pistol from its holster and fired a series of shots at him.
In response, he gradually slows down but as long as he’s charging, he’s not going to stop, and his black, blood-soaked body is reminiscent of a raging bull.
‘Normally, he should stop here.’
The way to cancel Dark Stomp is to inflict enough damage during the charge but for some reason, he was running all the way to the end with a glint in his eye.
This wasn’t a game after all, and there was an unexpected twist.
“Ugh!”
Still.
-Boom-boom-boom!
I raise my arm to block the first blow as a tremendous amount of impact is felt through my clothes.
Despite the fact that I’m wearing DisPater, which protects me from external impacts, I’m forced to grit my teeth at the bone-crunching impact.
Worst of all……the attacks come in waves.
It was the infamous instant death pattern.
[Title: What the hell is this noise? It’s really bad]
[Author: Twenty-Third Night]
[Subject: Dark Spirit]
[Author: Twenty-Third Night]
[Subject: Dark Spirit]
[Author: Twenty-Third Night]
[Subject: Dark Spirit. Even if I somehow managed to get to the hut, I kept getting stuck on the same instant death pattern…]
[ㅇㅇ: lol there must be a bunch of kids here who broke their keyboards because of that].
[I Love You, Detective: Increase your stamina to avoid being killed instantly. Then, even if you get hit, you won’t fall behind haha]
[└ㅇㅇ: This is true, but people treat me like an ogre]
[└ㅇㅇ: (I thought it was an ogre.jpg)]
[Darkness of Darkness: If you are not afraid and use explosive damage, it will be canceled.]
[└23rd roasted chestnut: ㄹㅇ?]
[└Darkness of Darkness: ㅇㅇ But the problem is that sometimes there is a bug where even if damage is added, he still charges……At that time, I’ll just pray. haha]
‘No way, I didn’t think it would be me!’
But I couldn’t take it anymore.
Up, down, left, right, and a dagger that changes its trajectory.
It was fast enough for my eyes to follow, but not so fast that I couldn’t chase it.
‘I’ll give you something.’
Solid lines cutting through my body.
Every single one of them meant death, but I minimized the range of the blows by using DisPater shielding power to the fullest.
-Quang! -Quang! -Thud!
The blow echoes dully.
The aftermath remains, but a dozen blows have already been neutralized.
He’s no match for me.
Perhaps realizing that I’m not wearing ordinary clothes, he begins to shift his attack position.
His sword strikes shift to target areas of my body that aren’t covered: the back of my hand, my neck, my face.
It’s easy to dodge or deflect the attacks in these small areas, but the problem is that there are so many of them.
My cheek and the back of my hand are bleeding.
His sword strike narrowly misses my carotid artery.
It was only a matter of moments before my skin was covered in blood…….
All I had to do was hold.
────Kaaaah!
“Ew……!”
Somehow I managed to hold on.
He, too, must have used up quite a bit of stamina from the unnecessary barrage, and he glared at me with his legs hobbling as if he had trouble even standing.
“You had a hard time with those damned clothes.”
“Oh, this one? It’s a little stiff for a luxury item…….”
“Are you kidding me, even under these circumstances……You’ll be bleeding to death in no time, aren’t you afraid of death?”
He exhaled harshly, but still held on.
His sword must have some kind of power, because the wounds on my skin showed no sign of healing even with natural healing.
“Dying is scary, of course, but do you, a spirit, know the true fear of death?”
“……!”
He reacted loudly at the mention of the word ‘spirit’.
“You even know that much…….?”
“It doesn’t make sense for a human to move like you in the first place, does it? You roam freely in the dark, leave no trace, use black magic, and move like that. It’s even weirder to think of you as human.”
That’s one of the secrets about him.
Spirits were an immortal species that could be killed but did not die.
“Well, that’s right, unlike you, we humans are in danger when we bleed, and with this much blood, I’ll be dead in no time.”
[The ancient Berserker’s Ring absorbs the user’s blood!]
Have I ever seen a Berserker’s Ring shine so brightly?
Even though my body was dying because of his predatory behavior, my strength was overflowing.
“But what should I do with this?”
[Rose of Jinzo activates.]
“──I’m not a normal human either.”
The red blood covering my skin began to evaporate at a rapid pace.
As if I had just stepped out of a hot spring, my body is enveloped in red steam. At the same time, the wound began to heal rapidly, and the pale skin began to show signs of life.
“What──Are you a real human?”
“Why……have you never seen anything like this before?”
He looks at me in astonishment as he sees my perfectly healed body.
“……what the hell did you do?”
“Well, I used a trick that everyone has.”
I move my neck and check my body.
My body is in tip-top shape, devoid of any pain, all thanks to the Rodman family’s arcane elixir, which he had somehow managed to obtain this time.
[Name: Rose of Jinzo]
[Rank: Legendary]
[Type: Elixir]
[Description: A legendary elixir that only Jinzo is said to be able to create. Created by refining and purifying blood under the full moon, this elixir was only made a few times in Jinzo’s life.
Consuming it will grant you the 【Skill: Rose of Jinzo】
[Rose of Jinzo]
-The Rose of Jinzo only blooms after being drenched in blood.
When the user is completely covered in blood all wounds are completely healed.
This elixir can be compared to a skill when it comes to healing.
Moreover, it was a useful S-class elixir because it left behind a permanent skill.
I had taken the elixir beforehand because I was afraid something might happen but I’m glad I prepared in advance.
“Okay, time for the second round, are you ready?”
He’s already exhausted from all of the unreasonable attacks.
I, on the other hand.
[The Ancient Berserker’s Ring reacts to blood]
[Ancient Berserker’s Ring’s ability is at its maximum]
[User’s stats explode]
[Your Bloodline Ability: Corleone is at full power].
Due to the constant wounds, attacks, and combat, most of my passive abilities were activated.
“Fucking asshole…….”
Saying that, he disappears into the ground.
He’d decided it was a lost cause, and had chosen to flee.
But
“……You’re not getting away.”
[Inscription – Wolf (hunter of the night): He is a wolf who hunts his enemies under the light of the moon. He is a hunter who leads a large pack, undaunted by enemies larger than himself.]
The pain of imprinting that I haven’t felt in a long time. At the same time.
[Imprint Skill: HOWLING] is created.
“HOWLING.”
─────!!
The red aura that spread from my body morphed into the shape of a wolf, and dozens of wolves surrounded me.
“Go after him.”
Dozens of wolves begin to run out of the hut and through the forest in search of their prey.
From now on, all I have to do is sit tight and wait for the wolves to bring in their prey.
I decide to make myself a cup of hot coffee from the mix in front of me and sit back in a chair and relax.
Hanging out with a pack of wolves in the woods in a night with a clear moon like this and with his stamina completely depleted?
“He can’t run away from this, even if his grandfather came.”
Through the gaping hole in the cabin, I hear the sounds of the forest.
The sound of nameless grasshoppers.
The sound of the night breeze rustling the weeds.
The sound of moonlight falling softly on leaves.
And then.
Thump, thump, thump!
The sound of a hunter who has captured his prey.
“How romantic.”
It was indeed a wonderful night for a near-death experience.
