Chapter 207
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 207
Chapter Title: Checkmate - 1
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Zeus.
The chief deity of Greek mythology and the world’s most famous god of thunder.
The Gigant named after him, the Zeus Ex Machina.
It proved from the moment of its appearance that such a grandiose name was no exaggeration.
The instant it opened its hands, a truly destructive flash and shockwave erupted, as if a hydrogen bomb had detonated in midair.
Strangely, however, the powerful wave did not form a sphere but moved in one direction, solely toward the monster army.
Crackle—crackle—crackle—!
For a moment, the entire battlefield was blanketed in electricity, and the sky and ground were temporarily dyed the same ghastly blue.
A few seconds later, as the light subsided and visibility returned, a magnificent scene unfolded as thousands of monsters collapsed like marionettes with their strings cut.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—
Yet not a single one managed to scream.
Electrocution—their entire bodies had literally hardened like stone, making it impossible to even open their mouths or vibrate their vocal cords.
These were the same Titans who had stood firm against the storm-like winds of ‘Enlil's Frenzy,’ even managing to inch forward.
But the electric current, which paralyzed muscle and nerve, brought them to a complete halt, finally toppling them like rotten old trees.
Sizzle…
The smell of burning filled the air as electricity sparked across their bodies.
But that was all.
“Tch, to think mere electricity could do this to me…”
As the current that had ravaged their massive bodies seemed to lose interest and flowed off their skin into the air and ground…
“Ugh—”
“How bothersome.”
One by one, they began to rise.
“All of you, get up! If your bodies feel heavy, then move again with greater strength, Titan warriors!”
And they began to advance once more.
Thud—thud—
It seemed that virtually no Titans had died.
Naturally, electricity dissipates quickly, so its power inevitably weakens with distance from the source.
In other words, attacking a wide area rather than concentrating power on a single point would obviously result in a significant decrease in potency.
Still, the monsters relatively close to the Zeus Ex Deus were cooked through, radiating heat from their bodies… but that wasn't enough to turn the tide of battle.
It had only bought a brief moment of time, about five minutes.
“—Shit! What the hell was that? Scared the crap out of me!”
Meanwhile, Rachel Hardy, the Demon King’s vassal in command of the vanguard, glanced down at her forearm. The momentary surge of electricity had disrupted her magic shield, but she too had taken no direct damage, likely thanks to the significant boost in all her abilities since becoming a vassal.
She looked up at the blue-tinged metal giant floating in the sky. It was still scattering electric currents in all directions, a bundle of cables attached to its back.
“I really thought we were screwed, but—phew—it’s not overwhelmingly strong, is it?”
Of course, that didn't mean it could be ignored.
What kind of wide-area magic could possibly cover an entire battlefield? She clicked her tongue as she surveyed the disorganized battle lines.
“...Come to think of it, this is completely game-breaking.”
If the forces on both sides had been evenly matched, that one ‘wide-area status effect spell’ would have tipped the scales completely, resulting in a one-sided slaughter.
Forcing a 'blackout' on an entire army was an incredibly powerful weapon in war.
If Steel Rain had been here, hundreds of monsters would have been wiped out in a matter of seconds.
Rachel Hardy shuddered at the thought.
“Well, it’s a good thing they don’t have the power for that.”
There was no sign of a counterattack from the camp.
It seemed they hadn’t prepared such a strategy in the first place.
Separating them from Steel Rain had been a crucial move.
Just then, someone approached from behind her.
“Rachel, you alright?”
A hulking man carrying a battle hammer over two meters long approached with a chuckle.
“Hehehe—I haven't seen a wide-area attack like this since the Flower of Death sprayed the Abyss's Breath around here to take down the drakes. As expected, Steel Rain is no pushover.”
“Anton.”
Anton Blacovichi.
He was a devil worshipper from Poland, originally a mediocre C-rank tank Player who had gained power by selling his soul to a demon.
It was said he received an even greater reward, more power, by offering up his comrades—with whom he had shared life and death for over a decade—to the demon as well.
Now that he was a vassal of the Demon King, his power was incomparable to that of a typical A-rank warrior.
“They said they were defenseless without Steel Rain, but their resistance is stronger than I thought. Still, after all this, they can’t have much left, right? We have about 23 minutes left, so that’s plenty of time.”
They looked up at the pale-blue Gigant floating in the sky.
It still exuded an incredible sense of pressure, hanging in the air and scattering electricity as if reenacting a divine descent.
“...By the way, that electric attack was a one-shot deal, right?”
At his question, Rachel Hardy nodded.
“If they could use a crazy attack like that repeatedly, it’d be completely broken. Something like that should have a cooldown of at least 24 hours to be normal.”
But at that moment—
“—Huh?”
The sky once again began to turn a ghastly blue.
Lifting their heads, they saw the pale-blue Gigant raising both hands as if to discharge another massive amount of electricity.
“Shit! I knew I shouldn’t have said that!”
Rachel Hardy cursed and poured mana into her magic shield. Any delay, and she’d be fried to a crisp in the blink of an eye.
A flash of light soon engulfed the world, and she could feel her magic shield being ground away.
“Shit! Shit!”
Crackle—crackle—crackle—!
A pungent, burning smell assaulted her nostrils—the stench of scorched monster hide and fur.
The foul odor bothered Rachel more than being engulfed in the current.
She shouted in anger.
“Agh—! This is so damn annoying! I guess it wasn't a one-time thing! How many times can it do that?”
Anton Blacovichi also shook off the electricity coursing through his body and rose with a grunt.
He had withstood the current without any noticeable defensive spell.
He touched his tongue to the blue electricity flowing over his fingers, tasting it before offering his assessment.
“Blech! Still, it’s definitely weaker than the first one, so it doesn't seem like they can use it indefinitely. We should be able to advance soon.”
“Hey, Anton, isn’t that a bit too relaxed? We have to break through as fast as possible before Steel Rain gets here! What will the Demon King think of us if we screw up again?”
They had already been caught by Steel Rain’s schemes several times. They couldn't afford to be complacent any longer. And Rachel Hardy knew very well that the Demon King was not a merciful ruler.
Didn't he turn Players into liches or death knights at the drop of a hat? He preferred mindless minions over incompetent ones…
‘There’s no guarantee it won’t happen to me!’
But Anton Blacovichi just smirked, looking genuinely carefree.
“It’s fine. We’ll break through soon.”
“Huh? What makes you say that?”
“I’m not gonna do it. The old orc geezer has stepped up.”
“What?”
The old orc geezer. He was referring to Stonox, the former king of the now-vanished Shanghai Black Orc Kingdom.
And that terrifying named boss monster was also under the Demon King’s command.
“You said that guy’s whole character concept is being the pinnacle of his race who bows to no one, so he rarely takes to the battlefield himself. You said even when a battle breaks out, he’ll usually just command his troops, right?”
Anton Blacovichi had received command authority over the Black Orcs from the Demon King and had spoken with Stonox, the Black Orc King, on several occasions, leading to a power struggle between them.
“Well, what’s he gonna do now that things are like this? He swore loyalty to His Majesty the Demon King, so he’d better get out there and fight like a vanguard captain.”
Just then, a powerful killing intent emanated from behind them, and the two turned their heads simultaneously.
Whoosh—
A cloud of black smoke was descending the mountain.
- Warning! The <Demon’s Shadow> is scheduled to arrive in this area!
“And I heard that bastard also received His Majesty’s grace and his level rose to a whopping 235. Hehehe—let’s see just how amazing he is.”
The smoke swirled and shot like a harpoon toward the pale-blue Gigant.
***
Meanwhile, Lee Hyun-wook's party was receiving indirect updates about the situation at the camp across the mountain via mana communication.
- The enemies are electrocuted and have stopped advancing! It’s working!
In a moment filled with worry, the hoped-for good news arrived.
“……”
But among the stranded Player leaders, no one was celebrating just yet.
They were still powerless to do anything. Like listeners tuning into a sports broadcast, all they could do was listen to the news, their hands sweating, and pray for victory.
“...But can they really hold out for 30 minutes? There are still 21 minutes left, which feels like an eternity.”
With so much time left until the sky opened, it was only natural to feel pessimistic.
“I know. I’m quite worried myself. Even a Titan can’t be taken out with a typical lightning spell.”
“Hah… In the first place, how many Players can kill a Titan in one hit? The only one that comes to mind is Steel Rain… Even the lowest-ranking Titans are designed to be taken down in a raid.”
Flash—crackle—crackle—!
Once again, a flash of blue light could be seen over the mountain range.
That was the Zeus Ex Deus, the magitech weapon Lee Hyun-wook said would maximize Park Jun-mo’s abilities. It was indirect proof that it was in action… As long as that phenomenon continued, they could hold onto hope. It meant they were still resisting.
“Please…”
And so, everyone looked up toward that point, praying the light would not fade.
But…
Lee Hyun-wook’s eyes saw something different.
‘What is that?’
His gaze was fixed on the peak of the uplifted mountain.
The area was shrouded in hazy volcanic ash, making it difficult to see, but Lee Hyun-wook could pierce through the ash with the clairvoyance granted by ‘One-Eyed King’s Insight,’ the synergy effect of Hugin and Munin.
Thus, he clearly perceived the strange mountain—a barrier about 1.1 kilometers high, with lava still bubbling and flowing.
No, to be precise, it was the sky near the mountain’s peak. That spot was currently covered by a net woven from red chains. It was the mark left by the Necromancer who had sealed the sky with ‘Scythe’…
Sizzle—sizzle—sizzle—
One part of it was strangely distorting, with a section of the chains twisting as if about to snap.
That symptom…
‘The sealing spell is unraveling. Why?’
There were still about 20 minutes left until the scheduled time for the seal to be released.
So why was this happening?
In Lee Hyun-wook’s experience, such a prominent visual change was rarely just a sign of time passing.
It meant a significant change of state had occurred in the sealing magic.
‘…Don’t tell me there’s a way to break the seal?’
Lee Hyun-wook pondered the reason.
‘This gruesome battle is structured like a game.’
That meant no monster, no skill, was ‘invincible.’
‘Everything has its own method of conquest. Of course, it just takes several trials and errors to figure it out.’
But now, a hint had suddenly appeared, as if out of nowhere.
This meant the variable Lee Hyun-wook had been worried about had manifested in a positive way.
‘But I have to figure out what it is.’
Lee Hyun-wook focused all his senses on observation while rapidly running through all possibilities in his mind.
In that time, the ghastly blue energy that had colored the sky began to fade.
The Zeus Ex Machina’s electrical discharge had passed.
And…
Sizzle—sizzle—sizzle—
Lee Hyun-wook saw it.
He saw one of the red chains sealing the sky finally snap with a *twang*.
The reason…
‘It’s because of the Zeus Ex Machina.’
And then he realized.
‘I see. That’s the answer.’
***
Clang—!
A cloud of black smoke, flying from somewhere, collided with the Zeus Ex Machina floating in the sky. The Gigant was protected by multiple magic shields, but even those melted away in an instant.
“Ugh! What kind of damage is this?!”
The Gigant’s pilot, Park Jun-mo, screamed.
The behemoth, weighing over a thousand tons, spun in midair, and the cables connected to its back snapped.
The power supply was cut.
At this rate, its electrical discharges would be limited.
And the plan to buy time would fail.
“No!”
Boom—!
It was hit by another attack.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
Red lights flashed inside the cockpit as alarms blared.
Turning his head, he saw black smoke coiled around the Zeus Ex Machina’s left arm. The smoke morphed into something like a beast’s paw, twisted the left arm counter-clockwise, and ripped it off.
Crr-r-runch—
The arm was torn off as easily as if it belonged to a stuffed doll.
It was perhaps to be expected. The Zeus Ex Machina was a Gigant built for the sole purpose of generating and discharging powerful electrical currents.
For this, it was made of ‘Cheoncheol,’ a magic metal that released electricity upon absorbing mana.
And Cheoncheol was not particularly durable compared to Orichalcum or Adamant.
Wasn’t it a material item that was never used for armor in the first place?
Crackle—!
Still, he had believed that by discharging so much electricity and indiscriminately frying the surroundings, no one would be able to approach.
But that unidentified black smoke, being amorphous in form, could ignore a certain amount of electricity and fly right through.
‘Ah! It’s that Black Orc! The king!’
Park Jun-mo realized the identity of his attacker.
But he couldn’t think of a way to counter it.
Thud—!
A part of the black smoke transformed into a mace and flew at him, striking the Zeus Ex Machina squarely in the side. With a sickening crunch, a crack appeared on its torso.
‘A few more hits like this, and it’s over.’
Ultimately, the machine, having completely lost its former dignity, crashed unceremoniously to the ground.
Then, Stonox appeared faintly within the black smoke.
At a gesture from the old Black Orc, black spears materialized in the air—
Clank—! Clank—!
—and rained down on the Zeus Ex Machina's arms and legs, pinning it down like an insect specimen.
“Dammit! I-I can’t move!”
Park Jun-mo opened a communication channel and sent out a desperate SOS.
But even if he couldn't move, he could still control the electricity. He wove the currents into a net and sent it flying toward Stonox.
However, Stonox’s body once again turned to smoke, minimizing the damage from the electricity, and leisurely slipped away.
‘We’re complete opposites!’
No, with that kind of movement and attack style, it would be difficult for anyone to deal with, regardless of their attribute.
As a being who reigned as the final boss monster of an entire race, he possessed a truly broken ability.
Just then—
Whooosh—!
A gale-force wind swept in, blowing the black smoke away.
A whirlwind formed, tearing through the black smoke and scattering it.
“You are a nuisance, human girl.”
Eventually, Stonox, who had transformed into smoke, began to return to his original form.
At that moment, a flash of light shot toward the nape of his neck.
“Gotcha!”
Thwack—!
But the creature petrified its right arm and blocked the attack.
“The bastard’s fat, but he’s faster than he looks!”
Kim Se-hee, while swinging her dagger again, simultaneously created a dozen wind blades and aimed for his head, back, sides, and legs all at once.
Sh-sh-sh-sh!
All four strikes hit their mark.
But Stonox’s body blurred and then vanished into smoke.
“Huh? A fake?”
It seemed he had created a clone out of black smoke.
‘Then the real one is…’
The moment she turned her head.
Crack!
Something slammed into her side.
She felt the bones in her ribs shatter into dozens of pieces.
Her internal organs ruptured and twisted.
“Keuk!”
Blood burst from her mouth.
Her vision blurred for a moment, and she lost consciousness.
She was completely defenseless.
Wisps of black smoke transformed into blades and flew toward her, ready to tear her apart.
But her body rode the wind on its own, narrowly dodging the bladed attacks. Hani had created a gust of wind to move her.
The heavy wind slapping her cheek quickly brought Kim Se-hee back to her senses.
“Cough! This is insane…”
Ignoring the pain in her side, she twisted her body to regain her balance.
Behind her, the black smoke was morphing into a dragon and flying toward her.
Stonox.
The being once known as Asia's strongest monster…
The Black Orc army’s invasion of the Korean Peninsula had ended in Lee Hyun-wook’s complete victory.
But during Lee Hyun-wook’s preemptive strike on Shanghai, the moment Stonox himself had appeared, even Lee Hyun-wook had been forced to make a hasty retreat.
‘So how are we supposed to stop him?!’
Kim Se-hee immediately rode the wind path Hani opened for her and began to fall back.
The dragon-shaped black smoke opened its mouth toward her.
Black orbs flew like guided missiles.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each explosion released acidic liquid and gas.
“Ugh!”
She was doused in the acidic liquid, but she had wrapped herself in the Black Dragon’s Cloak just before, avoiding a fatal wound.
Still, the exposed parts of her skin bubbled and melted, forcing her to slice off some of her own flesh with wind blades.
At the same time, she created a gust of wind and fired it at the dragon-shaped black smoke, but…
Hmph.
This time, it seemed to have solidified properly, as the wind only made it waver for a moment.
“—Hey! Park Jun-mo! Do something!”
- Uh… uh…
“Don’t just stand there! Dammit, sir, are you listening? At this rate, we won’t last another five minutes, let alone twenty. Can I leave my last words?”
She spoke sarcastically, but she was desperately searching for a way to break through the situation.
Her gaze fell upon the giant airships floating in the sky, the ones responsible for ‘Enlil’s Frenzy.’ If she could activate them and generate a storm, she might be able to subdue Stonox.
‘At the very least, I could stop him from turning into that annoying black smoke.’
But…
Boom! Boom!
Black orbs flew and struck the airships.
“...Quick on the uptake, aren’t you.”
She suppressed her despair.
But she felt her mind going blank.
She really was starting to think about her last words.
Just then, Lee Hyun-wook’s voice came through their mana messenger.
- Park Jun-mo. Fire electricity toward the mountain.
“Sir?”
- To be precise, aim for the sky above the mountain.
Park Jun-mo didn’t think for long.
As always, Lee Hyun-wook’s calm voice held the answer.
Park Jun-mo raised the remaining arm, the Zeus Ex Machina’s right arm.
Crack—!
Just then, the right arm was also severed.
The tail of the smoke dragon had transformed into an axe and flown at him.
But…
“Sorry, but I don’t control electricity with my hands! Raaaargh—!”
With Park Jun-mo’s roar, electricity writhed and formed in midair.
Though the power supply was cut, the amount of electricity Park Jun-mo himself could store was considerable. Besides that, there was still residual electricity in the area. He gathered it all and wove it into a massive bundle of current.
Crackle—crackle—crackle—!
It took the form of a colossal, ghastly blue spear.
And it shot out at the speed of light,
Cra-a-a-ack—!
striking the sky above the mountain range.
Then, some of the red chains sealing the sky began to shake violently before finally snapping one by one.
“Huh… The seal is broken?”
A passage to the other side of the mountain had opened.
Everyone reflexively looked toward it.
The Players, like Park Jun-mo and Kim Se-hee.
And the Demon King’s vassals.
“Th-that’s not a good sign, is it?”
Rachel Hardy asked, and Anton Blacovichi nodded.
“He’s… coming.”
Soon, a figure appeared from that spot.
The being who always appeared with four greatswords encircling him in the air. Steel Rain had returned to the battlefield.
Lee Hyun-wook looked at the broken red chains.
“I was right.”
Scythe, that item, is based on Greek mythology.
Cronus, who castrated the sky god, Uranus.
Thus, the sky is sealed with Cronus's weapon.
So, what could possibly overpower the might of Cronus?
‘Lightning.’
Zeus. The chief god of Greek mythology and the god of thunder who defeated his father Cronus and ushered in the age of Olympus.
In other words, a powerful enough electric current could open the sealed sky.
‘Zeus Ex Machina… they named it quite appropriately.’
Of course, he hadn't anticipated this situation.
It was just a coincidence. A happy one.
Lee Hyun-wook immediately took out the ‘World Bridge’ item from his pocket and used it.
Soon, a huge portal, a white hole, formed in the breached sky.
And from it…
Wooo—wooo—wooo—wooo—
An immense amount of sacred energy began to flow out.
Amid a halo of light, the flying city ‘Laputa’ appeared, carrying the divine tree ‘Shindansu.’
It was flanked by a dozen airships and an even greater number of helicopters and magic drones.
Then, a mechanical dragon flew over the mountain range, circled Laputa once, and then looked down at the ground, hovering in place.
Humanity’s main force had arrived.
Lee Hyun-wook looked down upon the Demon King’s army and opened his mouth.
“You have been conquered.”