Chapter 172: The Hero Emerges (4)

The ones most taken aback as the darkness swirled around were the close combat players of the Titan guild. As they charged forward, they suddenly found themselves enveloped in the darkness and couldn't see anything.

Argh... What is this?

Is this something like the Dark Fog spell from a Necromancer?

Doesn't matter, he can't escape anyway. The Black Dragon guild has all exits tightly sealed.

As they stood there, waiting for the fog to clear, an eerie sound echoed from within.

Thump... thump-thump...

"What is that sound?"

"Not sure... Sounds like someone banging on a drum or something."

"Wait, I feel like I've heard this sound before..."

"Same. But I can't remember where it's from."

The elite members of the Titan guild were all rankers, with levels over 240. They had faced countless hunting grounds and an even greater number of monsters.

"Hold on. I know what that sound is."

One of the players among them with the best memory spoke up and drew everyone’s attention.

"What? What is it?"

"It's strange though, because that sound is..."

Before they could explain that it was the sound of a dullahan tapping its helmet against its side, a thick finger shot out from the fog, grabbed them by the collar, and dragged them into the fog.

"W-what the!"

"Damn it, the fog is clearing too slowly!"

"How long are we supposed to wait here?"

"Wizards! Dispel the fog with wind magic!"

Frustrated, Goliath ordered the wizards to cast their spells, which dispelled the fog. As the fog cleared, what appeared were fifty dullahans, clad in ash-gray armor and exuding a menacing aura.

“D-dullahans?!”

“It’s dullahans!”

“Wait, these are level 298 dullahans...?”

Dullahans weren’t unheard of in

MID Online

, nor were monsters of level 298. However, no one had ever encountered a dullahan of that level before.

“Th-this bastard! Why the hell is a Radiant Paladin using necromancy?!”

“We should report this to the church...!”

“Go ahead. Try,” Kai nodded, almost encouraging them to do so.

He knew well that even if word reached high priest Albert, he would only laugh it off. After all, Kai was a cleric favored by the Solarian God Helik and held a position equal to the high priest's as the Solaris Cleric.

"It might be a little tough to sweep away my guys... Do you happen to have a good broom?" Kai taunted Goliath, whose face had turned red with frustration.

Then, Kai wiped the smile from his face, and delivered a serious warning, “Just to be clear, you started this war.”

Turning to Kun Feng of the Black Dragon guild, Kai’s voice was sharp as he confirmed, “Hey, Black Dragon is only setting the stage this time, right?”

Gulp... What kind of Paladin does...?

Although a subtle divine energy radiated from Kai, dark energy crept up and faded from Kai's body repeatedly. In appearance, he resembled a Paladin of death, exuding a threatening aura.

Intimidated by the overwhelming presence, Kun Feng nodded with difficulty, "Y-Yes, that’s right. The Black Dragon guild’s role is just to ensure the fight between Titan and Kai happens... and to make sure the target can’t escape. That’s all."

"The target’s me, right?"

“Th-that’s correct.”

In other words, from the Black Dragon guild's perspective, they had no reason to stop the Titan guild members if they decided to retreat.

Well, even if the others escape...

As long as Kai captured Goliath, the battle would be his victory.

Kai tightly gripped the hilt of his sword while forcefully closing Minerva's message window, which had been constantly popping up.

“You’ve picked the wrong person to mess with.” Kai waved his left hand smoothly, pointing toward the enemies. “Wipe them out.”

***

Cruuunch!

The level 298 dullahans were powerful. Both the members of the Titan guild, the Black Dragon guild, and even Kai himself realized that for the first time.

They have high stamina, fast speed, and even strong power.

They didn’t have any glaring weaknesses, making them formidable. But their biggest advantage was something else entirely.

“No. 24! Charge into the enemy lines!”

It was that, despite being monsters, they fought under human command. That was the greatest strength of Kai’s dullahan army.

Relying on the awareness he had developed during his early days, Kai actively participated in the frontlines while constantly monitoring the health of the dullahans. Whenever he noticed one reaching the brink of death, he didn’t hesitate to give the order to charge.

Thump, thump, thump!

Dullahan number 24 gripped its helmet and longsword, and bravely plunged straight into the heart of the enemy lines.

“Kill it before it gets here!”

“Shit, I don’t have enough damage!”

“What’s with its dodging skills?!”

“Damages aren’t being dealt! Fall back!”

Like trying to jam an oversized object into an ill-fitting slot, the dullahan forced its way into the middle of the enemy formation with its health on the verge of depletion. Knowing this, the Titan guild members tried to flee rather than attack it.

“Don’t attack it now!”

“We need to create more distance before finishing it off...!”

“Chasing Light Arrow.”

Pew!

A light arrow floated through the air and pierced No. 24's back. At the same time, the dullahan’s entire body, along with its helmet and longsword, began to glow and crack.

“It’s going to explode!”

“Damn it, everyone get down!”

Boooom!

The thunderous explosion drowned out the screams of the Titan guild members.

Kai looked down at the scorched ground, which seemed as if it had been hit by an airstrike, and a satisfied smile spread across his face.

Who was it again that said explosions are art?

This moment fit that saying perfectly. One of the key features of the dullahans was that when their HP reached zero, they would explode, scattering their armor and weapons to damage everything around them.

I learned this pattern well during that time in Lynel’s Dungeon with Min-Soo’s guild, Rush.

The pattern that had been a nightmare to deal with turned out to be incredibly useful when he wielded it. On top of that, he could control exactly when and where those bombs would detonate. It felt as if he was fighting a war with fifty bombs at his disposal.

“

Argh

... Close combat unit! Ignore the dullahans as much as possible and focus on Kai!”

“Necromancy ends when the caster dies!”

“Kill that bastard!”

“You plan on killing

me?

” The enemies' confidence made Kai laugh, but it quickly transformed into a cold, sly smile.

They must not have noticed my abilities with all the dullahans in the way...

He had already taken down fifteen Titan guild members himself.

The key to his overwhelming power lay in his boundless supply of holy power.

Slash, slash!

With his advanced level of Swordsmanship of the Dawn, every strike he made replenished his Holy Power. When combined with Supernova, it became a devastating force. However, Kai wasn’t satisfied with that alone.

The frequency of Minerva's messages kept getting shorter... and now, they’ve suddenly become infrequent again.

Though he didn’t know the exact situation, he could tell that Castle Baden was in serious trouble.

Kai instinctively knew he had to end this battle quickly, and said, “Skill activation, Solar Field.”

As he stomped his foot while activating the skill, holy power surged across the ground from his position, spreading out into a sizable area measuring twenty meters by twenty meters.

"We don’t have much time, let’s speed this up."

Even though Kai’s combat power was already formidable, it increased dramatically within that space.

[You are under the blessing of the Solar Field.]

[While on the Solar Field, all stats increase by 30.]

[While on the Solar Field, all recovery speeds doubled.]

His Holy Power, which was already rapidly regenerating, now began to refill at an explosive rate.

At this rate...

Kai judged that there wouldn't be any problems, and subtly twisted his body. At the same time, dozens of enemies surrounded him from all sides.

"

Hmph!

"

"Kill him!"

Clang, clang!

Kai's body was repeatedly pushed back. The elite forces of the Titan guild were indeed on a different level than all the people he had faced so far.

During the Black Bee fight, I was the perfect counter for Wizards, and the power of the Blue Plague was incredible, but...

This time, the Black Dragon guild was nearby. If he used the Blue Plague carelessly and it affected them, the situation would turn against him.

Even for me, fighting two top ten guilds at once would be too much.

Moreover, unlike the Black Bees, which was composed only of Wizards, the Titan guild members had a well-balanced distribution of different classes.

"

Tsk

, they're troublesome to deal with."

Clicking his tongue, Kai noticed a greatsword swinging toward him and tried to retreat quickly.

"It’s too late."

"Binding Roots!"

"Ice Field!"

When did they...

They were support spells cast by the Wizards out of his line of sight!

His legs were stuck to the ground, making evasion impossible.

"Ethereal Body!"

Just as Kai used Ethereal Body to escape the immediate danger with no other choice, dozens of magic spells rained down on him.

They're fast to react.

Before two seconds had even passed after using Ethereal Body, Kai canceled it. As he did so, swords and spears came rushing at him like a tidal wave again.

"Holy Chains!"

Shh-clink!

In an instant, Kai wrapped Holy Chains around his left arm and raised it to block the incoming attacks.

Bang!

[You have reduced Smash damage with Holy Chains.]

[You’ve received 7,105 damage.]

[You have reduced Piercing damage with Holy Chains.]

[You’ve received 8,751 damage.]

Their attack power really is insane.

These were the best of the best, and the equipment they wore was not cheap.

Each of them is like a walking luxury car...

Kai was impressed by their strength, but the enemies felt the same way about him.

"Damn! That fucking chain!"

"That rat’s reaction speed is insane!"

From their perspective, it was equally frustrating that none of their direct hits seemed to land well.

As there was a brief pause in the battle, Kai quickly darted his eyes around.

This isn't working. I need to take out the Clerics first...

The battlefield had been locked in a meaningless war of attrition for a while now. The dullahans, who had initially pushed back the enemies, were now down to just twenty-two. As the balance of power had greatly shifted, the Clerics of the Titan guild began to shine.

It feels a bit odd to say this as a Cleric myself, but Clerics are really annoying.

No matter how much damage was inflicted, as long as they weren’t wiped out all at once, the Clerics would focus their healing and fully restore the wounded. In short, there was no way to end this battle if the Cleric line wasn’t wiped out!

Eventually, Kai decided to pull out another card.

“Enhanced Summoning, Mimic, Blizzard!”

He commanded Blizzard and Mimic, “Blizzard, draw their attention for a bit! Mimic, transform into King Sand Worm!”

In an instant, Mimic transformed into a massive King Sand Worm! However, there wasn’t a single person who couldn’t take down a King Sand Worm alone.

“There’s something suspicious going on!”

“Take down the King Sand Worm first!”

“Focus fire on it, focus fire!”

The enemies' attacks hammered against Mimic's massive body.

“

Hoeeeek!

”

As Mimic let out a pained scream, Kai gave it a sorrowful glance and ordered, “Mimic, swallow me and spit me out. As far as possible that way!”

“

Kyoong

.”

Mimic, exhausted, opened its mouth wide to carry out its master's final command. The next moment, as it spat Kai out, Kai was left floating in the air, feeling uncomfortable by the saliva soaking his robe.

But I achieved my goal.

Both Mimic and Blizzard, being lower in level, were unsummoned in less than a minute, but they had already fulfilled their roles perfectly!

I’ll raise you two properly when things get better later.

Kai made a mental promise to his pets and looked down at the scene below.

Titan’s elite Clerics. There’s twenty-three of them.

Looking at their dumbfounded faces staring up at him, Kai said, “Upgrade.”

[Upgrade skill has been used.]

[The next three skills used will have their effects greatly enhanced.]

After confirming the satisfying message, Kai shouted loudly, “Wrath of the Sun!”

[Wrath of the Sun has been activated.]

[The skill has been enhanced by the Upgrade skill.]

[Both the attack power and range of Wrath of the Sun are increased by 1.5 times.]

In one go, more than a quarter of his total Holy Power was drained, but the reward was certain.

In the next moment, the clear blue sky suddenly lost its clouds, and the solar energy that pierced through the atmosphere began to mercilessly bombard the ground.

Zzzzing! Zzzzziiiing!

Like a laser beam being fired from a satellite, the sunlight lightly skimmed across the earth! However, the aftermath was far from light.

Fwoosh!

Wherever the sunlight touched, flames erupted, and the HP of those who took a direct hit plummeted in chunks.

“Wh-what kind of attack power is this...!”

“Clerics, be especially careful! If you're in it for more than two seconds, you'll die instantly!”

The Titan guild members were collectively thrown into panic!

Kai didn’t miss this chance.

Now's the time.

With the attention divided and everyone too preoccupied dodging the Wrath of the Sun, Kai’s eyes caught sight of a giant in the distance, watching the battle with arms crossed.

Goliath.

Perhaps overconfident in his own strength, Goliath was calmly observing the battle with a nonchalant expression, without a single guard by his side.

This is my chance.

As soon as both of Kai's feet touched the ground, he kicked off and sprinted toward Goliath.

"Final Attack."

His next attack would ignore the target’s defense and deliver triple the attack power as a direct hit.

Kai gripped his longsword firmly without hesitation.

Flood of Blades.

Flood of Blades was his most powerful physical attack skill.

Kai closed the distance to Goliath in the blink of an eye, moving with such speed that even a top-ranked player wouldn’t be able to react easily!

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

“Flood of Blades!”

Kai viciously swung the spinning longsword straight toward Goliath’s heart.

With my stats, gear, and the Final Attack-enhanced Flood of Blades landing a critical hit...

Even Goliath wouldn’t stand a chance. At the very least, it could leave him in critical condition.

In this tense situation, Goliath's voice came, slow and almost lazy. “You still think you’re the best until the end,

huh?

”

He’s not panicking... even in this situation?

Sensing something was wrong, Kai accelerated his strike.

Just as the blade was about to pierce Goliath's heart, he slowly said, “Ethereal Body.”