Season 4: Chapter 149. Knights vs. Paprika (2)

In

Survival Craft

, almost anything solid could be mined into square blocks and carried. Strike the ground a few times with a pickaxe, and the dirt could be put into one’s inventory. Unless it was liquid or gas, nothing was exempt.

That was the principle behind the Knights’ trap. They had dug out the ground beneath their enemies’ feet and planted explosives below.

“Die.”

Click.

Radish Servant pressed the detonator, and the earth collapsed into a yawning pit.

BOOOOOOM!!

No one could predict this. The Paprika’s fighters plunged helplessly down.

“What the?”

“Eh?”

“W-Wait!”

Even Shrimp, their leader, hadn’t realized he was falling until it was too late. “You maniacs!!”

Whooooosh...!

The pit was so deep that the fall felt endless. Seconds stretched into minutes. Even in a game, the sudden plunge felt terrifying enough to blanch the mind.

“

Uwaaaaaaaah!!

”

“

Aaaarghhh!!

”

Their screams mixed with chaos. Defeat seemed certain, but Shrimp gritted his teeth.

‘No.’

“Stay calm!”

He was a

Survival Craft

veteran. This wasn’t necessarily the end.

“You won’t die from this!”

He gauged the depth. One drop wouldn’t be enough to wipe out their full health. That would take a skyscraper-level fall, and the Knights didn’t have time to dig that deep.

“We just need to regroup and...”

THUD.

[HP: 49%]

His HUD flashed as half his health bar vanished.

“

Urgh!

”

“

Gah!

”

“Dammit...”

Just as he’d predicted, they survived. However, the monsters also fell with them.

“

Grrrrrr...

”

The Fire Wolves rose with glowing eyes. The monsters hadn’t died either. Now there was no escape in the cramped pit.

“Shit!”

“What the hell is this!?”

“Don’t panic!!”

WHOOOM!

Shrimp thrust out his palm.

[Magma Beam]

A searing lance of lava shot forth, punching straight through wolves as they screamed.

“

Grrrraaaahhh!!

”

“

SKREEEEE!!

”

The Magma Beam cleared them in an instant.

“Yes! Lava Shaman!”

Then, something strange happened.

“Huh?”

Fwoooosh!

The walls around them caught fire, and the flames spread unnaturally fast.

Shrimp looked down at the floor smeared with a slick substance. Candle wax, mixed with dry leaves and cloth scraps, made for the perfect kindling.

‘Those bastards... they planned this.’

FWOOM!

The entire pit became a blazing inferno, a prison of fire. It hadn’t just been a drop trap. It was a crematorium.

“

Aaaaaahhh!!

”

“F-Fire! Fire!!”

“S-Status effect! Status effect!!”

The flames didn’t hurt too badly thanks to their obsidian armor, but another problem arose.

[Smoke Inhalation]

[Oxygen Shortage]

Status effects piled up in the corner of their vision. In a closed space like this, the choking smoke was deadlier than the fire. Their only chance was to climb.

“Stack blocks! Stack them!”

“Build up!!” Parsley echoed Shrimp’s command.

Soon, every Paprika fighter was leaping and placing blocks beneath their feet. A core technique of

Survival Craft

was pillar-jumping.

“Remember your training!”

Paprika had drilled these maneuvers into even their greenest recruits. Every streamer had to become a warrior to face the outsider.

Thunk, thunk, thunk.

Block by block, they climbed.

“It’s working! We’re getting out!”

“Keep going!”

Their gamer reflexes shone through as they jumped and placed blocks faster and faster.

Shrimp, a veteran, flew up like a man possessed.

Chrrrrrrk!

In moments, they nearly reached the top.

“They’re, they’re already climbing out?!”

“What!?”

Potato Servant and Radish Servant stared down in shock.

Shrimp only laughed. “

Hahahahaha!

You thought you could kill us with this cheap trick!?”

It was time for revenge.

Thunk!

He placed down the final block and reached ground level again.

“Now burn.”

Rrrrumble...!

A molten orb swelled in his hand and shook with lethal heat.

“Dammit...”

“Cursed invaders...”

Paprika refused to die even after being buried underground and getting roasted alive. Their gleaming obsidian armor shone brighter than ever.

— So tough

— They’re still nearly full HP!?

— Unreal gear.

[Volcano]

The Lava Shaman’s ultimate skill would unleash a barrage of volcanic eruptions to drown the land in molten fire.

‘Falling into that pit actually worked out for us.’

With the ground collapsed beneath them, the lava wouldn’t flow toward their own allies. Any molten lava surge would simply drain into the abyss.

Since Paprika’s fighters had already built towers of blocks, they stood safely above the rising magma. Shrimp could freely rain down lava without risk of splash damage.

‘My channeling won’t get interrupted either.’

Volcano was a channeling spell. It required five uninterrupted seconds to unleash its full devastation. In combat, five seconds was an eternity for any opponent to charge and break the cast.

‘But they can’t touch me now.’

The Knights had sabotaged the ground themselves. No one could reach him now. They didn’t possess any ranged weapons either from what he’d seen. Without any bows or spells, they had no way to strike him down. They’d have to build bridges block by block, which would be too slow. They had trapped themselves.

Shrimp grinned and bared his teeth.

[Select a target area.]

He set his sights on the Radish House.

“You’re all dead.”

BOOOOM!

The earth rumbled with volcanic fury, and Shrimp smirked wider.

‘I’ll let this cast finish, then start the stream. Perfect timing.’

Across from him, Radish Servant wore the same smile.

***

Two hours earlier, the Knights had convened for a strategy meeting.

“We dig out the pit here, plant the Union’s leftover explosives, and boom! Drop them all into the hole.”

“

Hmmm.

”

Radish Servant laid out the plan while Almond nodded along. Maid Black Tea, Servant Lemon, and even Potato Servant agreed.

“Once they’re in there, the monsters and the fire will finish them off together.”

It was an elegant plan with minimal risk and maximum damage.

“Wait a second!”

Among the recruits,

the

Survival Craft

veterans spotted a fatal flaw.

“That won’t work!”

The first to speak was Cherry, a specialist streamer.

“Eh?”

“They’ll climb right back out!”

Almond raised a brow. “And you are?”

“C-Cherry... No, call me Cherry Lackey!”

She was a lackey-ranked Knight, chosen among the best.

— Cherry Lackey lol

— Thought she was mute

— Lackey squad has a nice ring to it

“Show us,” Almond said.

Thunk.

Cherry stacked blocks beneath her feet and zipped skyward in seconds.

“

Oooh.

” Almond clapped lightly.

“Experts can do it almost like flying,” Cherry explained.

“That’s fine.” Almond waved it off. “They’re not experts.”

“Maybe not all, but at least one or two of them.”

— LMFAO he thinks they’re scrubs

— Bro they’ve been grinding just like you

— Classic Almond

“So, the trap might fail,” Almond admitted.

Cherry nodded. “Yes. At best, you’ll make them panic and deal fall damage. That’s valuable, but you need a follow-up. While they climb, hit them with ranged attacks. They’ll be exposed on a one-block pillar.”

It was a solid idea.

“But we don’t have ranged weapons.”

Indeed, no one did.

Survival Craft

’s systems made bows and guns absurdly rare. Cheese Village had none at all.

“

Um...

Excuse me, I’m a blacksmith.” One Knight shyly raised their hand.

“Name.”

“Lack, but since I’m with the lackey-batch... LackLackey, sir!”

— LMAOOOO LackLackey

— He’s serious LOL

— Lackey squad growing stronger

Almond blinked. “You’re a blacksmith?”

“Y-Yes. That was the only reason you recruited me, Great Lord...”

Almond didn’t remember, but he nodded sagely anyway. “As expected of the lackey squad.”

The peasant recruits bristled at once.

“

Tch...

”

“Dammit.”

“Why not us?”

While they sulked, LackLackey pressed on. “With the right materials, I can craft weapons, armor, or anything else. Even ranged arms.”

Almond’s eyes widened. “Oh?”

Finally, a solution appeared.

***

[Volcano]

BOOOOOOM!

The ground around the Radish House convulsed.

A surge of crimson mana enveloped Shrimp, whose eyes blazed red with fury. “I’ll kill you all!”

The overwhelming power of his ultimate tore apart the earth.

The helpless Knights braced themselves.

‘Great Lord... now.’

Radish Servant remained calm. This had all been accounted for.

From the distant bushes came the faint creak of a bow.

Krrrk.

Hidden in a blind spot, a new weapon prepared to strike.