Chapter 455 (Side Story): End of the Labyrinth (2)

Chapter 455: End of the Labyrinth (2)

Did he think it was a coincidence?

Gillian glanced at Jane, who scattered into shining fragments.

“Of course not.”

That was, without question, skill. It was a level of control that only someone who perfectly understood their own skills could execute.

He turned his head toward the dark priests who had come with him. “What kinds of blessings were cast on Jane?”

“Soul Shedding, Tenacious Mind, and Decaying Blade.”

Soul Shedding reduced maximum health but temporarily boosted all speed drastically. Tenacious Mind enhanced focus, allowing that increased speed to be controlled. Lastly, Decaying Blade, a curse that inflicted a Decay status effect on a weapon.

Contrary to the expectations that came with a bulky build, Gillian calmly analyzed the situation.

Even though her health was reduced by Soul Shedding, she died just from taking a single critical hit.

Although he had never seen him before, it was right to assume he was a ranker-level player like themselves.

And the faces of rankers are bound to become well-known.

As levels rose, so did their fame, and countless high-ranking NPCs offered them quests. Their reputation spread in that process, and rumors naturally followed.

But there’s nothing.

He had never once seen a Cleric’s face like the one before him. That was the very reason he initially concluded he wasn’t a ranker, as they had already completed a thorough analysis of every strong player capable of interfering with their plans.

If that’s the case, could it really be someone from headquarters?

He had heard before that there was said to be an independent team dedicated to eradicating in-game crimes at Pegasus Corporation.

And they’re all said to be high-ranker level.

Of course, Pegasus never officially acknowledged the existence of those GMs[1]. Players occasionally claimed to have been helped by them, but the official explanation was always that it was just a passing stranger lending a hand.

“Are you a GM?”

Kai was surprised at Gillian’s blunt question.

𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

How did he figure that out?

His current appearance was completely transformed into someone else’s face, but he wasn’t foolish enough to let his emotions show.

If he had seen through my disguise, he would’ve asked if I was Kai, not if I was a GM.

The fact that he asked about being a GM meant it was just suspicion, nothing more.

Kai responded with a hollow laugh, as if finding it absurd, “Creative thinking. Why do you think that?”

“Because among all the rankers I know, none of them have a face like yours.”

“Well, of course not.”

“I see...” Gillian nodded.

It was only then that another possibility crossed his mind.

“You changed your appearance.”

In that case, further conversation was pointless. If someone had gone so far as to change their looks, it meant they had no intention of revealing their identity.

“I don’t know why you want to interfere with our business, but I’ll just tell you this. You’ve made a mistake.”

The moment those words left his mouth, the members of the Carmelo Family scattered in all directions.

An encirclement, huh.

Without a word, Kai pulled out a handful of herbs and stuffed them into his mouth. His face immediately twisted.

Bitter...

Of course, the reward for enduring that bitterness was rather sweet.

[Special title Herb Addict effect has activated.]

[Your mind clears while chewing herbs.]

[All stats increase by 5 while chewing herbs.]

The moment those messages flashed before his eyes, several weapons came striking toward him.

Maybe it’s because of the herbs.

The trajectories of the weapons aiming for his life appeared slow and vivid, as if frozen in photographs. What came next was simple. He only needed to apply formulas as easy as solving a basic math problem.

First, there are six attacks that must absolutely be avoided.

He quickly swung his sword, forcibly twisting the paths of several incoming strikes. The airtight encirclement instantly loosened.

This one and that one, and the axe overhead. Those are just meant to restrict my movements, so I don’t need to worry about them.

Several of the weapons that filled his vision vanished, and an escape route began to appear. However, Kai did not throw himself toward it.

I’ll be the one taking the loss if I only dodge.

They had more people, so they could spread out their stamina, but he would have to keep moving restlessly. Unless he reduced their numbers, the trade-off wouldn’t be worth it.

Then I’ll start with the axe and the spear.

The instant he finished calculating, Kai moved, and time, which had seemed frozen, began to rush.

The gazes of the players charging from all directions toward Kai changed.

“He dodged that?”

“Damn it, he’s quicker than I thought!”

“Hughes and Nego are down!”

And it wasn’t that he simply dodged. His sword had cut down two lives in the process.

“How could he be this fast...? Just how high is his Agility stat?”

“Forget about the cleric robe he’s wearing. It’s a flimsy trick. He seems like a Rouge.”

He was a speed-type Rouge who poured most of his stats and gear into Agility. Of course, it only took a few seconds for them to change that thought.

“Swamp’s Grasp!”

The Carmelo Family members were also all rankers. A Wizard sharply cast a slow-type curse that coiled around Kai. All of his speed immediately slowed, and the backlash shook his body.

“

Argh...

”

While Kai hastily cast a purification skill with his left hand to dispel the curse, the axe of a Warrior who had already caught up with him fell from above. He barely swung his sword in time to deflect the axe. The sword didn’t stop at repelling the strike but pressed forward toward the opponent’s neck.

“Gillian, did you see that? My eyes aren’t playing tricks on me, right?” The Wizard rubbed both eyes with his fists in disbelief.

“No. He isn’t an agility-based Rouge.” Gillian nodded

The axe Warrior who just turned into particles and disappeared had the second-highest Strength stat in the guild.

And yet he deflected an axe swung with both hands and the weight of the body behind it, all with one hand.

That was terrifying force. Unbelievable when considering his build, but possible in a game.

Gillian’s eyes narrowed.

That means his Strength stat is at least 1,350.

Then a question flashed through his mind.

If that’s true, then what about those speeds just now?

The equipment that man wore was a cleric’s robe, which wouldn’t have Strength stat boosts. That meant he invested every stat point into Strength across at least 268 level-ups.

Even assuming he’s level 360...

His Agility stat would barely reach 500, but the two movements he had shown earlier were in a realm impossible for someone with only 500 Agility. The proof of that was shown through the guild’s most agile thief, Jane.

Something’s off.

He realized something was out of place, but there was no time to dig more into it.

“Gillian! He’s coming your way!”

The guild members closely chased after Kai and shouted like lionesses driving their prey.

Gillian glared at Kai, who was darting toward him, just as his subordinates had said.

Perhaps because Master nags so much, but I was overthinking useless things.

Stats this, equipment that, nothing but the meaningless rambling of the weak. No matter if it was a game, the strong were the ones who won in the end.

“Crimson Claw!”

A faint, shadowy aura covered Gillian’s fist. He was a Spirit Projectionist, one who summoned the souls of powerful enemies he had slain to strengthen his body. The steel claws that tore through walls and air the same charged straight toward Kai.

Got him.

Was it arrogance or overconfidence? Seeing his opponent charge at him without any real defense, Gillian became certain of his victory. At this range, speed wouldn’t play a factor. The only variable left was Strength.

But my Crimson Claw is divine and invincible.

Even Dantel, the master of the Carmelo Family, avoided facing these claws head-on. After all, the spirit currently inhabiting his body belonged to a field boss monster of level 394, the ruler of Boma Mountain.

Blame your worthless pride and be torn to shreds!

Just before the claws dug into his opponent’s face, a golden holy magic circle appeared before him.

Shield of Light?

Ridiculous. He had already seen how skillfully the opponent controlled Shield of Light, but these claws weren’t something a mere single shield could withstand. Yet as if to protest his thoughts, three additional holy magic circles appeared one by one.

Gillian’s eyes widened at the same time. Double casting was a technique that could be used by players with talent. Triple casting was so rare that even among those few, only a handful could perform it. And beyond that was ultimate talent usable only by the most brilliant gem among gems.

“Quadruple Casting...!”

With a scream-like shout, four swirling Shield of Lights stacked together to block the claws. The sound of shattering glass rang exactly four times, followed by a sound of a blade piercing flesh.

“

Kugh

.”

Gillian let out a rough breath. His claws had fiercely and violently destroyed all of the opponent’s rotating shields. However, by the time they broke through the four shields, the claws’ power was nothing like at the start.

“I’ll admit it. That was dangerous,” Kai muttered as he looked at the blood dripping from his left forearm.

If he had been short by even one Shield of Light, Gillian’s claws would have torn his arm apart and pierced his skull.

It’s been a while since I’ve used this, but it still works.

Quadruple Casting. He couldn’t remember how many years it had been since he last used it. There weren’t many people capable of doing it to begin with, so he tried to save it as much as possible, but this wasn’t a situation where he could hold back.

My head feels like it’s burning.

It demanded such immense processing power and focus that using it once left his body feeling like it was melting.

I was able to do it multiple times in a row back then.

Perhaps it was because he had become a man in his thirties now.

Pierced in the heart by a sword, Gillian slowly began scattering into fragments. He raised his head and met Kai’s eyes.

“I see now. You are...”

He sounded as though he recognized Kai’s true identity. Dying even once brought enormous penalties at a higher level, but his expression remained strangely calm.

Well, there’s no way they wouldn’t know at this point.

A Cleric capable of Quadruple Casting. That alone was enough to establish his identity beyond doubt. Unsurprisingly, the gazes of the other Carmelo Family members changed as well.

“This guy... He’s a much bigger deal than we thought.”

“So GMs actually exist?”

“

Hah

... I didn’t know a living legend from the past was still active on the front lines.”

The atmosphere changed. Before, their goal had simply been to eliminate a thorn in their side interfering with their business, but now, it felt like they were preparing to raid a boss monster.

1. Game Masters ☜