Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 102
Chapter Title: Game Master Authority
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"Hmm."
As soon as the maintenance ended, I logged in and checked the 'Patch Notes' to see which skills had changed.
After this patch, each class's invincibility skills were enhanced and new ones were added.
For the Yin-Yang Master, the personal 'Guardian Talisman' was changed to last for five seconds and ignore five instances of damage. For Mages, the number of invincible instances for the party skill 'Ice Prison' and the personal skill 'Flame Barrier' was increased.
Rangers also got an invincibility skill that included a stack-based movement ability, and Warriors received a new party protection skill. No invincibility skill was added for Warriors, but they tended to rely more on damage reduction skills to endure attacks anyway.
The Fighter's 'Cloud Stepping' was split into 'Left Step' and 'Right Step.' Additionally, its invincibility duration was extended.
Overall, you could say there was a massive overhaul of each class's invincibility skills.
These invincibility skills, generously buffed by the developers, would play a huge role in reducing the difficulty of dungeons up to the 'Frozen Palace of the Tundra.'
I smiled faintly.
Which means.
"The upcoming dungeons are going to be even more difficult."
With more skills available to dodge patterns, the special patterns themselves will likely be harder.
There will probably be more frequent berserk patterns that can't be bypassed with invincibility skills.
"As for the Swordsman...."
[Counterattack (A)]
[Move behind the opponent (8-second cooldown)]
[(D-Rank) Invincible during casting]
[(C-Rank) Switches to 'Sword-Drawing Stance' upon use]
[(A-Rank) Splits into Counterattack (Left) and Counterattack (Right)]
Similar to the Fighter's Left and Right Step, a new counterattack that moved to the right was added. And the invincibility duration of 'Backward Evasion' was increased.
It didn't seem like my playstyle would change much.
Maybe I'd just be able to use the 'Cooldown Reset' function on my items more aggressively?
They didn't touch the coefficients of other skills. Did they think there was nothing major to change in terms of damage balance between the classes?
After checking the changes to the invincibility skills, I closed the patch notes I had open in front of me.
"So, what now?"
I was sitting behind the 'Frozen Palace of the Tundra,' staring blankly at the 'Unfrozen Lake.'
My personal farming was done.
I dismantled all the accessories that didn't have the stats I wanted and turned them into 'Essence of the Frozen Palace.'
Since I'd monopolized the accessories through solo runs, I had more than enough essence to enhance them.
Chris was still farming.
Four-person farming actually takes longer than soloing because you have to keep running it until everyone gets the accessory they want. Of course, that's setting aside the question of whether any player other than me could even solo it at this point.
And since enhancing this dungeon's gear requires the 'Essence of the Frozen Palace,' the farming time would be even longer.
"I want to start running carries with Chris soon."
I reached out and drew Chris's face in the snow with my finger.
Her face. One circle.
Her hair. A few straight lines on the left and right.
*Swish!*
I hurriedly erased the drawing.
Chris is much prettier than this.
It's an insult to draw her beautiful face with my pathetic drawing skills.
Should I join and funnel all the accessories to her? No. If I joined Chris's party, one of the four wouldn't be able to farm.
What about pulling just Chris out and letting her monopolize the items on a solo carry? Who would the other three run with?
Is my best option to just keep soloing and selling the 'Soul of the Frozen Palace's Master'?
The price for the soul was still decent, but it felt like a waste to run the dungeon just for that.
Should I try running a solo carry service?
But in the early days of a dungeon, solo carries aren't very marketable. Once people have farmed a bit, I could take on several passengers who need different items and funnel the specific accessories they want. But right now, every player needs accessories for every slot. They even need the essence.
No one would pay a high carrying fee for a run where they can't even monopolize the items.
It might be inefficient, but maybe I should just take one customer at a time for a 1-on-1 carry.
I opened the chat interface and started writing a zone message.
Oh, and I should turn off whisper blocking.
*Crack. Shatter!*
"Whoa...! I've only seen it in videos, but you really cleared it solo!"
"Aah! Do you know you're the only one running carries right now, Rain!?"
"Ahem. I only paid a small fee for the first-clear quest, but is there anything in it for this old man?"
"Thank you."
After completing my first carry in the Frozen Palace, I bowed deeply to my customers.
The young man who whispered me first paid the full fee and received all the items.
The woman in her early twenties and the middle-aged man only paid a small amount, as they were just looking to complete the first-clear quest.
Using the 'Party Leader Function' that Chris taught me, I turned off screenshot and video recording.
My dungeon gameplay is a product in itself. I can't have it shown through videos recorded by others.
If they want to watch, they can at least give my YouTube videos some views.
However, on my second carry, I discovered that my solo service had another selling point.
"Can I hold your hand? I paid a lot of gold."
"I want to pat your head!"
"Uh, umm."
I know I'm pretty.
But I never imagined so many people would want a carry just to see my face.
And I'm a girl, but for some reason, more women were approaching me than men.
Is my face the type that women find particularly attractive?
"I'm sorry."
This game has a high degree of freedom when it comes to player-to-player contact. I don't know if it's because it's an M-rated game or what.
If someone attacks you with a definite skill, you can retaliate without penalty. But when it came to general touching, things were a bit ambiguous.
I'm not naive.
Among the women who wanted to touch me, there were some who seemed to have impure intentions.
What about Chris?
I can trust her. She would never do anything to harm me. When she touches me, I feel good too.
But with anyone else, I feel repulsed.
Of course, I doubt regular users with their 20% synchronization rate could get much satisfaction in-game, but I, the one being touched, am at 100%. It doesn't feel good.
I managed to complete the second carry while trying my best to avoid the gazes of the female players licking their lips.
On the third carry, something finally happened.
"Aaaah~! A monster~!"
*Thump.*
I dodged the woman who very intentionally threw her entire body at me.
I showed my displeasure.
"Please don't do that."
"Tch."
The green-haired female elf Ranger clicked her tongue as she lay sprawled on the floor.
This passenger was being very blatant.
She was pretty, but compared to Chris, she was a firefly before the sun.
Being petted by someone with such impure intentions would definitely not feel good.
She pestered me all the way to the third named monster, trying to sneakily hold my hand or touch my head.
*Swoosh.*
Then, she finally crossed the line.
She actually tried to touch my butt.
"Eek...!"
This time, I was truly angry.
I can tolerate kill stealing in the field or even being attacked.
But my body belongs to Chris. I have no intention of letting just anyone touch it.
Even if she's a paying customer, what's wrong is wrong.
*Click.*
I placed my hand on the hilt of 'Astaroth,' but then I remembered the 'Call GM' function.
Chris, who had been worried that I wasn't firm enough in these situations, had taught me several ways to protect myself.
She told me to use this function when I encountered someone with ill intentions.
*Beep.*
I brought up the interface window and left a message for customer support.
*Flash!*
Not long after, with a golden flash of light, a fifth person appeared inside the four-person dungeon.
"Gasp...!"
"Who's that?"
The other female passenger and the young man following behind were startled. The female elf player, who had been fidgeting with her hands right next to me, froze.
The fifth person who appeared in the dungeon. She was...
"Hello~! I'm GM Summer~! ...Oh? Rain?"
Was that a mage's robe she was wearing? She appeared in a flutter of colorful, ornate robes and blonde hair, greeting us with a bright smile and a V-sign next to her eye.
As she held her entrance pose, she looked at me with a surprised expression.
Hey, why are *you* surprised?
I'm the one who's more surprised.
Doesn't the ID of the person who submitted the ticket show up?
She was definitely 'Team Leader Han Yeo-reum,' the head of Hana Games' marketing department.
Wasn't she in the marketing department?
Why is she acting as a GM here?
I was about to ask her my questions, but then I realized there was something more important to say first.
I glared at the elf woman next to me and tattled on what she did.
"That woman tried to touch my body without my consent! M-My butt, too!"
"Wh-What!"
She checked the video recording device floating behind me. This personal equipment, which could take screenshots and videos, also had a replay function for a certain period of past gameplay.
After reviewing the video, she wore a very angry expression.
"Just because I'm a GM doesn't mean I'm super strong or anything in-game compared to a player. Still, I do have a few absolute powers. One of them is..."
She raised her staff, pointed it at the pale-faced, green-haired female elf player, and smiled sweetly.
"The authority to sever the connection between the Astria Continent and the outside world. Ranger 'Archer Baekto,' in accordance with Article 4, Section 2 of the Terms of Service, 'Causing discomfort to other customers in a manner contrary to social norms,' this is your first offense, a 7-day ban~ Please submit any appeals through the customer service center on the official 'A.O' website~"
"W-Wait! Aaaah!"
*Fwoosh.*
Leaving behind a single scream, the female elf disappeared from the game.
"Wow."
I stared blankly at the spot where she had vanished.
GMs have the power of an absolute tyrant.