◈ Episode 15. Another Whale Fight (3)

In the world of Arcana, there are many gods.

And there are religions that worship them.

Where there are gods, there are also demons that oppose them.

Those religions also had priests who fought against the demons.

I said “demon priests.

Of course, to the extent that I delved into religion and other classes.

It wasn’t that I was interested in the Arcana worldview.

I just remembered something I’d forgotten. Like everything else, it was something I’d heard over and over again during the Demon Hunter quest.

-The Kuma priests’ Kuma rituals merely exorcise demons. It’s not a fundamental solution. We’re not like them. We tear demons apart.

……No, I mean, it felt really cool at the time.

-When I look into the abyss, the abyss looks back at me, even if I fall into evil and become a demon. We only hunt demons. That’s the way of the demon hunter.

But when you grow up, there’s no such thing as a bastard.

Not labour laws.

It was a workplace that gave a shit about human rights, wasn’t it?

“To a secondary school kid who doesn’t know anything.

Way to go, Akshay!

Let’s not blame others for my black history.

-Nowhere is this difference more evident than in the Kuma Sikh ritual.

[demonic rituals].

A unique skill that only two Demon Hunters have, in addition to their natural enemies.

I opened the skill window to see the difference.

───────

Demon Ritual: Invite a demon to a ritual.

───────

I’d only used it once since becoming a player.

Why, in a battle against an imp possessed by Nam Chul-min.

It was only half effective.

No, it was worse than that.

It only did the most basic of things.

Instead of damaging the possessed.

An effect that dealt direct damage to the possessed demon.

It was unavoidable.

I didn’t have the necessary sacrifices for the ritual.

-Demon hunters’ exorcism rituals differ in their offerings. While other religions require pure, unspoilt offerings to borrow the power of their gods…….

Demon hunters didn’t serve any gods in the first place.

If there really was a God.

There would be no demons in the world.

That was the idea of the Demon Hunters.

-Remember. Our sacrifice is all that is evil.

Yes, all that is evil.

I’d seen those offerings before, when I’d invoked the Rite of Exorcism in a past quest.

It was a demonic item.

It was what players would consider a simple draw item.

I looked at the necklace.

There it was again, the human mind.

“I want to pull this …… again.

Well, you know that feeling?

I feel like I’m going to win.

First of all, it was a necklace, a jewellery.

First of all, it’s a sure thing that it’s a rare tier item. If it has at least one option for hp regeneration……. I was greedy, thinking that it would make me less worried about horsepower efficiency.

But I’m bummed, winning or not.

I know it’s an unrealistic expectation.

“To Romeo, riches were fleeting.”

I know I’m not capable of such a thing.

I know too well.

I know from experience.

Furthermore, I realised that the demonic item was a ritual sacrifice.

“No demonic temptation, deception, or trial can make a dent in Grandfell’s lofty pride.”

“This, too, is an insignificant temptation.”

With that, I dismissed my desire for him.

But I felt no regret.

Grand Pell’s noble character aside,

Come to think of it……. It wasn’t a regret.

‘……Wait, if it’s a sacrificial ritual.

Wouldn’t that make the ritual less effective?

I remembered the effects of the demonic rituals I’d seen in past quests.

‘……If those effects were carried over.

‘……That might work, wouldn’t it?

Of course, I’m not saying that I can hunt Count Ascura.

He’s only level 91.

It was arrogance to think I could take down a level 430 monster. What I thought was possible was a quest.

Hunt a Vampire. (Ongoing)

Announce that the hunt has begun (Success)

Make them feel the fear of being hunted. (Ongoing)

A class quest, not a normal quest.

Not a hunt.

I wonder if it’s possible to make them feel the fear of being hunted?

Anyway, only time would tell.

Also─

For some reason, I had overcome the demonic temptation.

I walked with a more confident stride.

However, my strides soon came to a halt.

……What are so many of them?

 

I got a bad feeling when I entered the main street.

It must have been a busy street before it fell into ruins.

But there was not a shadow to be seen on the wide streets.

“Something’s wrong.

Nam’s intuition warned him.

‘The current situation is strange.

Yes, it was alien, to put it mildly.

‘There are too few of them.

[The Count’s Estate].

The number of monsters that entered the rift and were killed was less than ten.

I’m afraid the situation over there isn’t much different.

“I scouted it out.”

Stealth breaks.

The guild member who emerged reported to Nam Tae-min.

“According to the terrain, all roads lead to the central plaza. If we keep going, we’ll meet up with Inazuma’s group in the plaza, so I’ll join them.”

Sure enough, she was right.

As they entered the main square, they saw the Inazuma.

Hisagi looked over and spoke.

“This is rather peaceful, don’t you think?”

Kazuma Hisagi.

If there were snake people in the world, they would look like that. He resembled a snake so much that I thought to myself.

The way he smiled was like a snake flicking its tongue.

Nam Tae-min rolled his eyes.

“It’s not like we’re going to exchange greetings, is it?”

“Not that kind of pathetic.”

“Enough of that. It’s getting annoying. You too, Inazuma.”

Nam didn’t like Hisagi.

Even when he lost to him, even when he beat him.

Hisagi was always smiling. Creepily, like now.

But that, too, was in the past.

Now, neither he nor Gaondo.

Because Hisagi and Inazuma had nothing to lose.

“What a bother. Koreans are too direct. It hurts, and you want to give it back.”

Nam smirked.

“Yeah. If you have the ability to give it back, please do.”

At that taunt, Inazuma’s guildmates erupted.

“What about that bastard……!”

Just then, a voice called out in Nam Tae-min’s ear.

Konoya and Pagaya.

The voices were far too loud for a mere child.

I turned up the volume on my earphones and heard Nam Chul-min’s voice.

-Ah, can you hear me now?

“I can hear you. I turned it up a bit.”

-I’m glad you can hear me. But did you really have to say that just now?

“Dude, there’s something called momentum in a crack. You can’t lose it.”

-Yeah? That’s what you’d say, but…….

Nam Chul-min adds.

-I think it’s better to stay friendly for now.

“What do you mean?”

-I got information about the Shining and the Unification of Heaven and Earth.

“……What? They’re progressing faster than us?”

-Well, it can’t be helped, they’re not like us, they’re not like us. They’re playing a game of emotional chicken. Anyway, thanks to you, I saw a pattern.

I saw the pattern.

The sound of that put me at ease.

“Really, my brother, it’s worth it to have you as an analyst.”

-This is a little tricky to put into words. I’ll talk to you over the feed. Where are we, anyway? I don’t see anything around us. No trees from earlier?

“Here? It looks like a plaza, and all the different paths lead through here.”

-……What?

Hearing that, Nam Chul-min said urgently.

-Get out of the square now. Quickly!

“……!”

I don’t know why right now.

If Nam Chul-min said so, it was best to obey.

Then again, maybe it was the nerves with Hisagi.

One damn beat too late.

Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!

The sound of hooves echoed through the square.

Everyone was stunned by the sound.

“……What is this?”

“Now, wait! The ground is shaking!”

“The enemy is coming! Locate them!”

Thud!

Nam Tae-min quickly took a fighting stance.

His class was Barbarian, Barbarian Warrior.

He raised his greatsword, which was larger than most adult men.

-Damn it, what can I do, I have to take the first hit.

“These are knights, right?”

-Yes. Level 350. Count Ascura’s knights.

Doo-doo-doo-doo!

So, they’re knights.

They’re riding horses.

Level was one thing, but being a cavalryman was a bigger problem.

Nam Chul-min knew that too.

-Even if we put a tanker in front of him, he’d be mortally wounded. Even that invincible tanker line couldn’t completely stop the charge, so we’d have to fight him in the narrowest of places…….

He was right.

The destructive power of cavalry is multiplied in such a wide space.

There was another problem.

“……Master!”

“Speak, I’m listening.”

“This is a three-way assault! There are cavalry charging from three directions, except from the south, where we came from!”

Three directions.

This was why it was difficult to put forward a front line worthy of sacrifice.

But the situation was the same for Inazuma.

Hisagi said to Nam Tae-min.

“I don’t want to, but I have no choice. I’ll take your back.”

……What, your back?

You shameless bastard.

Nam Tae-min wanted to hit back, but Nam Chul-min stopped him.

-I understand how you feel, but it can’t be helped. For now, we’ll just have to watch each other’s backs. If we take the east and Inazuma takes the west, what’s left is the north? Damn. We should have avoided that battle. …….

Yes, we should avoid tangles as much as possible.

Player ranked 11th.

Nam Tae-min’s level was 368, which was higher than Count Ascura’s knight, but there were many other guild members who weren’t as strong. In a pitched battle, the gap would be devastating.

“……My mistake.”

This is bad.

My instincts warned me.

I shouldn’t have entered the square so naively.

No, even if I hadn’t gotten into a useless nervous breakdown with Hisagi…….

But the water had already been spilled.

“I’ll take care of the north.”

The southerner’s eyes began to burn.

More intensely, more savagely.

A unique Barbarian skill had been triggered.

───────

Berserk: Greatly increases attack damage and makes you insensitive to damage.

───────

-……Are you crazy? You’re going to take on the North alone?

I know it’s crazy.

But you have to take responsibility for your mistakes.

As Nam Tae-min gathers his strength.

The Count’s knights finally appeared.

Doo-doo-doo-doo!

The horsemen came from three directions.

Their majesty was indeed sinister.

Eyes as red as blood.

As if expressing their thirst for blood.

Harsh breath.

If it weren’t for the rampage, I would have been intimidated.

But he was determined.

His grip on the greatsword tightened.

“?!”

Kugugukung─!

A boom!

It was different from the sound of horses’ hooves.

If horses’ hooves made the ground tremble.

This was more like turning the ground upside down.

“Is that ……?”

I had heard this sound before.

Nam Tae-min and Hisagi.

Both men froze at the same time.

It only took a moment for the hesitation to turn to panic.

“!!”

The shaking ground began to rise.

Like a great rampart.

A stone wall that rose up out of nowhere.

It had perfectly deflected the knights’ charge.

“Gah, what is this?”

“…… There’s a player in Gion who can use magic like this?”

“No way, Inazuma, did they do this?”

Amidst the uproar.

Another angle─

Suddenly, the sound of clean shoes echoed through the square.

Nam Tae-min involuntarily turned his head to the direction of the sound.

There was a man in an ink-coloured long coat.

And there he was.

Nam Chul-min’s voice sounded more panicked than ever.

-……Wait, wait, wait! That face is……? That’s right. What is this? Seo, did you summon the stone wall?! No, wait. That’s possible? No, that doesn’t make sense!

*sigh

I erected the wall.

It would be a shame to dismiss it as mere magic.

Not to mention the efficiency of the magic.

“It’s called the law of action and reaction.

Even the basic physical knowledge I learnt in school.

It’s a wall that’s been built with a lot of hard work.

So, as you can see, I was giving it my all every moment.

To keep from sinking.

I was struggling as best I could.

[Count Ascura’s knight has a ‘faint’].

[Count Ascura’s knight suffers a ‘faint’].

[Count Ascura’s knight ‘faints’] [Count Ascura’s knight ‘faints’] …….