Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Tideside Assault
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"Anyway, from now on, we're heading out to take down Tideside."
Yuseong recalled the explanation from the strategy guide.
"It's a moving tree. The bark is red, and true to its name as a bloodsucking tree, it has a variety of skills that drain HP."
[That's why it's said to be extra tenacious.]
[Extra bosses already have massive health pools too.]
Pushing aside the branches blocking his view, the scenery suddenly changed. The water that had been proudly blue turned crimson in an instant.
Yuseong frowned. It reminded him of his own world—a deeply unpleasant sight.
[The atmosphere is killer.]
[Just looking at it gives me chills.]
The viewers seemed unsettled by the landscape too, as negative comments flooded the chat.
Yuseong stepped into the red forest. This was the independent field where the extra boss resided.
"Level limit is 30, and you only get one attempt."
Suppressing his discomfort, Yuseong continued his explanation.
[Speaking of which, didn't you say Yuseong hit level 30?]
It was from a viewer who had watched his old hunt with Naltorri and BomBom.
"That's right."
[Hmm?]
[Then you can't challenge it?]
"I did go over, but I haven't distributed my stats yet. Apparently, that means you don't trigger the level restriction."
[Ah.]
[There's a trick like that?]
Most viewers let it slide. After all, without distributing stats, there was no real benefit to leveling up anyway, so it wasn't an unreasonable claim.
But one viewer's chat couldn't be ignored.
[The legend is that you leveled up during the war with Hers Guild and didn't distribute.]
[Yeah.]
Yuseong spoke indifferently as the chat filled with confusion.
"I didn't see the need to boost my stats. I was saving them up to take down this extra boss."
<lololol>
[Haha, guess 30 unallocated levels were enough to crush Hers Guild lol]
[Hers Guild really can't catch a break.]
The chat overflowed with people chuckling at the absurdity for a while.
Thanks to that, Yuseong was able to communicate fairly smoothly with the viewers on his way to the extra boss.
Of course, there were no flashes of wit or humorous quips. If a situation required quick thinking, he'd probably fumble.
But for now, even if it felt a bit awkward, the conversation was flowing.
The surrounding scenery shifted. Up until now, the trees around him—though they carried an eerie blood-red hue—had clearly been alive.
But now, the trees weren't even that. They were blackened and withered, their bare branches drooping to the ground.
"The trees are dead. We're not far from the extra boss now."
After walking a bit further, even the dead trees vanished. A vast open space had formed within the swamp. Not a single weed grew on the blackened earth.
In the center of that space stood a single tree.
[That's Tideside.]
[Is that the extra boss here?]
[It looks creepy, but it's just a tree, right?]
Yuseong stepped into the space.
Rustle!
At the boundary between the dead forest and the clearing, tree trunks began sprouting up. They twisted and intertwined, quickly forming a massive wall.
The path of retreat was sealed.
Boom!
The tree shook violently. The leaves on its branches rustled all at once. Thick roots buried in the ground burst through the surface.
Groooar!
The trunk split horizontally in the center, and a massive roar poured out from the gap.
In that moment, what had looked like a large, ominous but ordinary tree transformed into a perfect monster.
[The Utopia production values are always insane.]
[That's why it's so popular.]
Yuseong pulled out his revolver's magazine, confirmed it was fully loaded, and slid it back in. His eyes locked onto Tideside.
"Alright, let's get started."
[Ooh.]
[Think you can take it down this time too?]
Amid the viewers' anticipation, Yuseong fired the opening shot.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Tideside charged, wildly extending its long roots and branches. Yuseong ran along the wall of tree trunks, aiming his gun.
"Hmm, as you can see, it has no head."
He kept pulling the trigger while speaking. His tone was remarkably calm, contrasting his intense movements. There was no tension in a fight where his life wasn't on the line.
But the viewers were different.
[Why's he so chill?]
[Usually other streamers are flipping out.]
[Is this the composure of someone who's cleared extra bosses in a row?]
Ignoring the viewers' bewildered reactions, Yuseong continued.
"That said, it does have weak points. See those small lumps between the trunk and roots? Those are the weak spots."
But those weak points were constantly obscured or jerked around by the moving roots, making them incredibly hard to target properly.
Rat-tat-tat!
Yet Yuseong's bullets struck the lumps as if drawn in by a vacuum. It almost looked like Tideside was serving them up on a platter.
Tideside's body froze.
"Hit them like this, and it gets stunned."
[What just happened?]
The chat filled with question marks and confusion about what had occurred.
Yuseong tilted his head.
"Is there something you don't understand?"
[Lmao Look At That Innocent Expression]
[Here it comes! "It's easy, right?"]
[The situation itself doesn't make sense!]
[Tip of the day: Hitting a boss's weak point stuns it.]
"Hmm..."
Of course, he'd gotten similar reactions when hunting with other streamers before. But back then, no one knew they were real people. And now, this was his first solo stream.
Yuseong pondered. How was he supposed to explain this?
His dilemma showed plainly on his face, making the viewers laugh even harder.
"Alright, let me show you again."
Yuseong pulled out the magazine and started reloading the spent bullets.
In the meantime, Tideside recovered from the stun. As if venting its frustration, it lashed out with its stems.
His vision filled with brown tendrils. Attacks poured in from every direction, literally.
Yet Yuseong subtly shifted his body, dodging everything with minimal movement.
[Wait, why isn't he getting hit?]
[Normally you'd get grabbed by a stem, HP drained, and tossed around, right?]
[Is this a different extra boss from the one I know?]
[And he's still dealing damage in the middle of that?]
[How do you even dodge like that?]
"Dodge method? Just twist your body when the attacks come."
[Lmao Yeah Right]
[Lmao Just Watch The Attacks And Move Accordingly]
[Wait, more importantly, you're reloading, dodging attacks, AND reading chat?]
Most viewers had come in knowing Yuseong's skill, so they admired his movements but weren't shocked.
But dodging a barrage of attacks while checking chat? That crossed the line, even for those who thought they knew his capabilities.
"Yes, I am."
[How? You gotta watch the enemy attacks.]
"I am. Chat's just a glance here and there, no big deal."
Of course, in reality, he'd minimize even blinking against beasts, but in a game, there was no need for that level of hyper-focus.
That was just from Yuseong's perspective, though—to the viewers, it was nonsense.
[Oh, glancing at chat is no big deal, got it.]
[My common sense is shattered.]
Resigned chats popped up.
"Anyway, to explain the weak point attack from before..."
[Nah, it's fine, Yuseong.]
[No matter how well you explain, we won't get it.]
[Just show us you taking down the extra boss.]
"You think so?"
He'd been struggling with how to explain anyway. When the viewers said no explanation needed, Yuseong brightened up.
He immediately aimed the reloaded revolver.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
The six-shot cylinder emptied in a flash. Tideside's movements halted once more.
[Still amazing even on rewatch.]
[You can even see it?]
[Yeah, it's visible. Just for a stupidly short moment.]
The moment the weak point lump peeked out from the thrashing roots was incredibly brief. Even seasoned shooters would struggle to hit it.
But to Yuseong, it looked effortless.
Thud!
Tideside flinched as another bullet slammed into the weak point. Seizing the opening, Yuseong reloaded again.
[Why does this look so relaxed?]
[The attacks are brutal, though.]
Stun it by hitting the weak point, then stuff bullets into it during the opening. Yuseong's mechanical movements might make Tideside seem easy at first glance.
But not a single viewer thought that.
Boom! Boom!
The thick descending branches gouged deep furrows in the earth.
Thrust!
Roots suddenly erupted from the ground, trying to wrap around Yuseong's ankles and constantly threatening his footing.
-Groooar!
Occasionally, it even lifted its entire body to smash down on his position.
A relentless assault with no room to blink.
Yuseong's mechanical movements were happening amid that onslaught. Naturally, it didn't look easy.
-Kraaaaa!
Tideside let out a roar. But it was different from before.
[Phase 2.]
[Already?]
The viewers were shocked.
[No, isn't that way too fast?]
[Even if you're only hitting weak points and your gun does big damage, that's still too quick?]
"Tideside seems to have lower health than other extra bosses at this level range."
Even though the viewers said no explanations needed, Yuseong—who'd been steadily monitoring chat—spoke up.
[What? From what I've seen, others couldn't kill it forever.]
"Probably because of its HP absorption traits. It compensates for the low health with that."
[Yeah, others got their HP drained like crazy.]
[I knew it was tenacious because of that, but low HP is news to me.]
The viewers agreed it made sense.
In fact, Tideside had lower max HP than other extra bosses at the same level. But Yuseong didn't know that. He'd accurately guessed its status purely from observation.
Of course, asking the strategy guide would have revealed it easily. But when querying about Tideside, Yuseong had only requested info that was public knowledge in that world.
'Getting caught with the strategy guide wouldn't be good.'
The guide had no info, but reflecting on other streamers' behavior, it seemed unlikely everyone had one. The chances that this supernatural entity was common knowledge there were slim.
So he'd limited himself to known extra boss strategies. If he knew unknown info, people might suspect after a couple slips.
Sure, he could play dumb, but Yuseong preferred the peace of mind of staying ignorant.
Of course, he had no intention of ignoring the strategy guide entirely.
To him, this game was a matter of survival.