Episode 8. Ted's Siege Warfare (4)
"Damn it! Those Count's house bastards… To think they'd already break something that expensive…."
The 4th Sector of the Sauron Plains.
Between the bushes at the edge of that place, a pair of eyes watched those in battle and the undead.
"This is bad. I have to inform them quickly."
He disappeared after performing a logout motion.
* * *
S, A, B, C.
If there was one thing D-rank skills were better at than the higher ranks above?
Well, if he had to nitpick, there was exactly one.
That their proficiency rose quickly!
"Phew, so 70% proficiency is the limit for that."
The ball of lightning that swept away the monsters and even struck the black crystal.
It was Ted's skill,
Active (Mana Cost: 400 / Cooldown: 10 min)
Accumulates mana to fire a thunderbolt projectile.
Cast Time: 3 sec / Gun unusable for 5 seconds after skill use due to overheating.
Attack power increases by 0.5% for every 1% increase in proficiency.
After purchasing the skill orb, Ted had used Charged Lightning on scarecrows every day for several days while farming items.
And he did so for 17 hours a day.
He had spent dozens of gold on potion costs thanks to that, but he didn't regret it one bit.
Because he had been able to raise the proficiency to 70% in just a few days.
"Great. A level up."
At 70% proficiency, Charged Lightning could only deal about 65% of a normal attack's damage.
Still, the reason Ted used Charged Lightning was for the experience.
Because he saw an opportunity to kill over a hundred undead with a single strike.
Moreover, he had dealt a weak but effective blow to the crystal as well.
At the time of the attack, Ted's level was 209.
The Six Desires Constellation connection rate was 20.9%.
Meaning he could fully exert up to 20.9% of the +19 Black and White's damage.
When he had done so, Ted's attack power was 9,873.7.
But Ted had raised the proficiency of the skill
< Musket Mastery > Passive
Ted had gained an additional attack power bonus of 214%.
Therefore, Ted's damage was a whopping 21,129.7.
In his previous playthrough, Ted had been level 637 with an attack power of 7,425, so this was roughly three times that, and in pure numbers, it was at a level similar to world numbered rankers.
So even if Charged Lightning dealt only 65% damage, that figure amounted to 13,734.
That alone was damage that level-500 NPCs couldn't match even if they tried their hardest.
"Everyone, protect Raiden's assistant!"
The situation changed in an instant.
Following Ryunghen's judgment and orders, every NPC in the hunting party surrounded Ted to protect him from the swarming undead.
"Assistant of Raiden. Please focus your attacks only on the black crystal."
By then, Ryunghen's attitude had changed as well.
It was a cautious, honorific way of addressing a true powerhouse.
"Damn. There's no way out of this."
At that moment, Ted smacked his lips in regret.
Breaking the crystal was fine, but he also wanted to hunt the undead that gave experience right away.
"I need to catch two rabbits."
"Goblin Musketeers."
Squeak!
The Goblin Musketeers, who had been diligently firing at the undead until now.
"You guys keep hunting only the undead from a distance."
Squeak squeak!
For now, that was the only way Ted could secure experience.
"I will fire upon Archlich's black crystal."
Bang bang bang—!
But as Ted began attacking the black crystal, one benefit occurred.
"Damn it, they're blocking with their bodies!"
"We must stop them from blocking this man's attacks!"
The undead began throwing their bodies to block Ted's bullets!
It was a natural choice for those under Archlich's control.
The NPCs tried to push away the undead gathering in the line of Ted's fire.
"Ah, it's fine. My bullets pierce through. Instead, I would appreciate it if you watched the conditions so that I can keep firing."
However, Ted asked them not to stop the undead from forming shields with their bodies.
"Because they're my experience points!"
…For a very noble(?) reason.
Bang—!
Bang—!
Every time Ted focused and fired one shot at a time at the crystal, so many crystal fragments scattered and broke away that it was visible to the eye.
The black crystal was truly hard.
So hard that even Ted, who was breaking it, grew doubtful.
"How was something so hard created? What kind of monster is inside there… And how did Partek prepare such a thing?"
He couldn't know the detailed principles.
But there was one thing he understood.
"Those Partek bastards pulled a trick."
Ted, who had faced all sorts of boss monsters, could roughly gauge Archlich Paragon's level.
If it had received the
But there was a minor problem here.
Monsters that received the
"They probably schemed to exceed level 500 by having a late-400s monster absorb an NPC."
But the problem was that, as with all laws, there were bound to be loopholes in the Face Continental Law.
In Ted's eyes,
Perhaps
"They went through all sorts of trouble. But it's no use."
Bang bang bang bang!!!
Ted continuously fired bullets at the black crystal.
The black crystal began to crack and burst in places, as if a sculptor was chiseling away at stone.
A few minutes later. Just as Ted had shattered most of the crystal.
Bang—!
Ted checked the status window, hesitated for a moment, and spoke.
"…From now on, damage will also be dealt to the physical body of the one who became the host."
None of the hunters answered Ted's words.
Because everyone knew what that meant.
Even given the situation, it was not something that could be said easily.
Eventually, Ryunghen spoke on their behalf.
"Heketan had his body stolen by filthy undead… You, grant Heketan a clean death of salvation."
"Understood."
Ted clenched his teeth and fired his last bullet at the creature.
Bang—!
Crash!
But at that moment, as the crystal shattered, a human figure burst out.
"What is that thing!"
The NPCs, including Raiden, clenched their teeth.
There stood a monster that was half a mixture of Heketan and an undead.
—Two hundred years ago, I clearly rotted and died….
A status window popped up, and simultaneously, a hideously splitting voice resonated in his ears.
—…If I can neither die nor live… I shall rot and die together with all of you.
"Finally, Mode 2. But it's receiving an NPC classification rather than a monster one? Well, anyway. I have to be careful."
Ted accepted the situation as if he had been waiting for it.
All monsters above level 400 have something called
Usually based on HP, when their HP falls below a certain level, their fighting style, appearance, and so on change. They become more ferocious and powerful.
Accordingly, the difficulty rises even higher.
The black crystal had clearly contained a boss. Therefore, the moment it reached 1% HP, it transitioned to Mode 2.
—Rot and die with me… humans….
Upon entering Mode 2, the creature's body began to grow.
Heketan's body, which had been about 185 cm, gradually swelled up, eventually becoming a massive body exceeding 5 meters.
—Go forth and show my will….
The moment the words ended, undead began crawling out of the creature's body.
It was as if they were born from within, piercing through Paragon's skin and bursting out.
But these undead were different from the previous ones. A faint green pus flowed on their arms and legs.
Soon, as the undead and NPCs entered combat, the effect of that pus was felt.
"Ugh! My arm!"
"My leg! Pus is forming on my leg!"
The bodies of NPCs struck by the rotting undead began to rot along with them.
That was the power of the Decayed Lord,
A power that corrodes the human body while still alive.
Unlike poison, it was a powerful ability with no tolerance or resistance.
"Avoid close combat with them as much as possible! Don't let their attacks touch your bodies directly!"
Watching the suffering NPCs, Ryunghen hurriedly gave orders.
"What is this?"
Bang bang—!
Even then, Ted was diligently firing bullets at the creature.
But somehow, despite allowing several attacks, the creature appeared completely unharmed.
The body parts hit on its massive frame were smashed to pieces, yet the creature stood perfectly fine, merely producing undead.
That situation meant only one thing.
"A separate core situation?"
It was a
For Core-type boss monsters, destroying the core kills the monster.
Conversely, if you cannot destroy the core, you cannot deal significant damage to the body.
"I have to find the core."
Bang bang bang bang—!
Ted fired bullets all over Paragon's body as if searching for the core.
Soon, the creature's body became riddled with holes like a tattered rag.
But at that moment,
Swish—
something black passed between the holes in its body and disappeared.
It was a suspicious-looking black, shining jewel.
"Found it. That's the core. However…."
Another problem arose.
The core Ted had found was moving inside the creature's massive body.
Moreover, upon further observation, its movement had no pattern. It was moving by cleverly avoiding only the parts Ted had attacked.
"What the hell is this?"
Normally, a core stays in one place.
That's why boss monsters typically hide their cores thoroughly.
But this one was different. It was moving its core quickly in real time.
"Hey, outsider! Be careful!"
"Ah!"
At that moment, Ted, who had been holding his position and firing, was struck in the shoulder by a blind undead's ranged attack.
"Damn, this is troublesome…."
Ted assessed the situation.
The hunting party was being pushed back by the swarm of undead wielding the
The healer NPC who had accompanied them as Ryunghen's assistant was desperately using
But the problem was that there were far too many spreading
Even when the status ailment was lifted, another would immediately follow.
If this continued, they were bound to be pushed back.
"I need to find a new method again…."
At that moment, Ryunghen called out to Ted.
"You! Is that monster called Paragon impossible to destroy?"
"No. It is possible if you destroy the core moving inside its body."
"Then I shall try! From the earth below to the sky above, oh touch that returns all creation to its extreme…."
Ryunghen began chanting the activation words for a large-scale skill.
Soon, intense mana erupted from his entire body and surged into the sky.
"
Soon, hundreds of powerful ice missiles were created in the air.
The A-rank ice elemental skill, Blizzard Storm!
"Go!"
The ice missiles accompanied by a frigid storm were fired at Archlich Paragon's body.
"Did it work!"
Hundreds of sharp ice missiles embedded themselves all over the massive Archlich Paragon's body. The creature didn't dodge or block them as it had done before.
—Grrrrr….
That was when.
The creature groaned for the first time, as if it had taken damage.
And in that instant, all the undead's movements faltered—
But that was all.
The undead moved again, and Archlich Paragon began producing undead again even with its body pierced by ice missiles.
"Hah… It won't die even after taking such a blow. So a few fragments of Blizzard Storm cannot kill it."
Dizzy from using such powerful magic, Ryunghen sat down and muttered.
"Wait? He said there was damage?"
A light bulb turned on in Ted's head.
"Why didn't it defend against an attack that could actually damage it?"
Come to think of it, something was strange.
From the moment it began pulling monsters out of its body, the creature hadn't moved even once.
Previously, it had defended by moving monsters, but now it didn't.
All it did was mutter something occasionally.
From that, Ted raised a doubt.
Could it be in a state where it cannot move?
"Besides, the status window mentioned it as a Named NPC… This might…."
Then, one solution came to mind.
"Viscount Ryunghen, Raiden."
"Why do you ask?" "Yes, Senior Brother!"
"I need to step away for a moment and check something. Please draw their attention for just a moment."
"Hmm, you must have an idea." "Understood, Senior Brother!"
"Thank you."
Having finished speaking, Ted used
And he began secretly leaving the battlefield.
Walking far to where there were no undead, Ted stood behind Paragon. Eventually, he used Air Walk to climb onto the creature's body. He climbed by stepping on the ice missiles embedded in its body.
Because what he suspected was here.
"
Ted used the Steal skill.
Soon, a faint light burst from the neck area of the giant creature's body.
Calmly, Ted grabbed an ice missile embedded higher up and climbed.
Eventually, when he placed his hand on the neck area.
"It works!"
His doubt turned to conviction.