Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Rain vs. Jo Hyeon-su (2)
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*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*
I unleashed a relentless flurry of slashes. Convinced I couldn't give him a moment to attack, I aimed my strikes between the parries of Jo Hyeon-su's sword as he used his Guard skill.
But landing a clean hit wasn't easy. Jo Hyeon-su's blade moved left and right, casually deflecting my own.
A Swordsman's Guard.
A skill that blocked all incoming attacks within a 180-degree arc in front of the user.
No matter how fast my slashes were, I couldn't break through that skill.
The 'system.'
The very thing that had been my weapon against named monsters was now my enemy, baring its fangs at me.
But I had my own share of experience in the 1v1 arena.
If sheer speed couldn't break through his Guard, then I just had to borrow the system's power myself.
*Thwip.*
I lowered my stance, twisting my sword upward in a diagonal slash from bottom-right to top-left.
*Clang!*
Jo Hyeon-su's sword was knocked upward, leaving his torso wide open. A flicker of panic crossed his previously relaxed face.
A 'Guard Break' skill.
In truth, a duel between two Swordsmen, or a Swordsman and a Fighter, was a mind game of when to weave this skill in between regular attacks.
You distract your opponent with a barrage of slashes, slip in a Guard Break, follow up with a status effect skill to knock them down, stun them, or launch them into the air, and then unleash a combo using Moonlight Slash, Starlight Slash, and Flash.
I had never lost this battle of wits in the arena. And just as I'd expected, Jo Hyeon-su failed to predict the timing of my Guard Break.
Next was an upward slash, to start an air combo.
*Thwack!*
As I slashed powerfully upward at Jo Hyeon-su, I felt a jolt of resistance. His body merely shuddered once.
An Echostone, granting resistance to crowd control effects from other players.
Jo Hyeon-su grinned, baring his teeth. At the same time, a moonlight glint flashed from his hip.
Moonlight Slash. From left to right.
*Swish!*
I ducked my head, dodging the blade. The moment he withdrew his sword, it flashed again.
Starlight Slash, a diagonal cut from his right hip.
I twisted my body to the left to evade it. Seizing the opening created by his offensive switch, I used the momentum from my turn to unleash several starlight-infused slashes of my own.
*Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!*
The sensation transmitted through my sword hilt was like hitting leather with a club. My slashes weren't cutting deep. Jo Hyeon-su's HP had only decreased by a small amount.
The weapon and accessories he wore were PVP-oriented gear, enhancing his stats against other players. They were reinforced with enhancement stones that could only be obtained through Faction Contribution Points. Of course, since this enhancement stacked with Magic Crystal Enhancement, such gear was ineffective against named monsters and was used purely for PVP.
Bonus player attack power, penetration, and defense, plus additional damage to players and damage reduction from players.
My slashes, coming from my PVE-focused gear, couldn't inflict any significant damage on him.
This was trickier than fighting the dragon. Even when I did my daily faction quests, I'd at least equip a sub-weapon with bonus player attack power and penetration, but my current setup was purely for PVE.
*Swish! Fwip-fwip-fwip!*
Realizing my attacks couldn't hurt him, Jo Hyeon-su's assault grew fiercer.
If I blocked his attacks, which swirled with chilling energy, my body would freeze and slow down like Death of Death's, leaving me open. A single hit from his sword, with its maximized player attack power, would take me out in an instant.
He could use Guard against my attacks, but I couldn't block his.
This was a terrible disadvantage.
I couldn't defeat him.
I couldn't let him land a single hit.
The vicious fangs of the 'system'—the difference between PVP and PVE gear—were sharp.
But I could at least hold on by dodging.
A sword empowered by a skill was fast but linear. Its path was easy to predict. I didn't even need to use Guard.
As time dragged on, who would arrive first? Reinforcements from the Alpharion Empire? Or additional troops from the Betarion Empire, breaking through the defensive line?
A hint of anxiety began to surface on Jo Hyeon-su's face. He was getting impatient, unable to take me down quickly.
*Swoosh.*
Jo Hyeon-su made his move. His body flickered, leaving an afterimage.
Counterattack.
Before his afterimage vanished, I immediately used Counterattack in response. I reversed his attempt to circle 180 degrees and strike my back, getting behind him instead.
*Swish!*
My Starlight Slash hit empty air.
As expected of the 2nd-ranked player in the arena. He must have predicted I'd use a counter against his Counterattack. It wasn't a play based on reaction speed, but one born from experience.
Jo Hyeon-su must have used a backward dodge to get behind me again. I felt a cold sensation at my back.
But in a sword-on-sword fight, the one who uses Counterattack first, as if being chased, is at a disadvantage. That's why if you want to seize the initiative with a skill, you have to use it when your opponent least expects it.
The moment I countered his Counterattack and then read his subsequent backward dodge, Jo Hyeon-su had already lost the mind game.
I immediately used a backward dodge as well. The scenery shifted, and my vision was filled with Jo Hyeon-su's back.
This was my chance.
*Fwaah!*
My sword, which had just carved through the dragon's back, struck Jo Hyeon-su, making his body shudder once.
The 'airborne' status effect from my Upward Slash had been nullified by his resistance Echostone.
His gear was such a pain. But it was 'resistance,' not 'immunity.' I could break through it with a combo.
Landing the Upward Slash fulfilled the first condition. If I could hit the off-balance Jo Hyeon-su with a second airborne-inducing skill, I could launch him into the air.
A Swordsman doesn't have a second launch skill.
But 'Rain' does.
*Thwack!*
I planted both hands on the dragon's scales for support and, as Jo Hyeon-su barely managed to turn and lock onto me, I kicked up powerfully with both feet, striking him squarely in the chin.
"Keuk!?"
Jo Hyeon-su's body was launched into the air.
*Tap.*
I leaped up at the same time, unleashing a ceaseless barrage of slashes on his airborne form.
*Sh-sh-sh-sh-shwing!*
Suspended in mid-air, Jo Hyeon-su was hit by my full combo. His HP, taking additional damage due to the airborne status, dropped visibly.
*Chk.*
Finally, I assumed the stance for Flash and brought my sword down hard.
*Flash!*
"Kuaargh!"
*Thud!*
Struck by my Flash, Jo Hyeon-su's body was slammed into the dragon's scales.
I had landed a perfect air combo, but I couldn't help but bite my lip.
Jo Hyeon-su wasn't dead yet.
If this were the arena, where gear is equalized, this would have decided the match. But this was a faction warzone.
As I thought, the difference in stats against players was the problem.
"Kiki. That was a little dangerous."
Pushing himself up, Jo Hyeon-su grinned eerily and pulled out a potion. His HP began to recover at a rapid pace.
Jo Hyeon-su was chugging instant-heal potions, which cost over 5 gold each, as if they were water.
Must be nice to be rich. I have to save my money to upgrade my Echostones.
*Swish!*
Before I could even complain, Jo Hyeon-su's sword swung in a wide arc toward me. I backed away, moving out of his slash's range.
If I couldn't defeat him, then my only option was to endure. I could only pray that support from the GG Clan would arrive before Plan B's guild members. I was anxious, but Jo Hyeon-su had to be, too.
It was then that I saw it.
Jo Hyeon-su's eyes flickered downward, toward the base of the dragon.
His gaze was fixed on the spot where someone was struggling to seal the dragon's movements.
Where Chris was.
*Thump.*
My heart pounded with anxiety.
*He plans to ignore me, since I'm hard to hit, and kill Chris first.*
My mind raced faster than ever before.
*There's a way to stop him.*
*Maybe even a way to defeat him.*
*If he wants to go after the easy prey first, then I just have to become that prey.*
*Clang!*
Instead of dodging his sword, I blocked it.
*Crack.*
A frigid chill transferred from his blade, flowing through my own and slowing my movements.
Jo Hyeon-su's smile widened.
He turned his attention from Chris back to me, launching an even fiercer offensive.
*Fwip-fwip! Clang!*
Jo Hyeon-su swung his sword with glee.
He'd gotten a taste of it.
He probably planned to keep hitting my guard until my body froze, just like when he defeated Death of Death, and then finish me off.
The chill seeping from his sword gradually slowed my movements.
I staggered backward, putting on a panicked expression.
*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*
Our battlefield had moved up the dragon's neck until we reached the very top of its head.
Jo Hyeon-su had no intention of saving his skill cooldowns. He was recklessly throwing out Flashes, whether they hit or not.
*Flash!*
"Kyaa!"
After barely deflecting his Flash, my half-frozen foot slipped. I screamed as I fell from the dragon's head to the ground below.
*Thump.*
Ow, that actually hurt a bit.
*Tap.*
Jo Hyeon-su leaped down from the dragon's head, following me to the ground.
He was here to deliver the final blow to me as I lay sprawled on the ground, unable to regain my senses.
"Kikiki!"
He looked down at me, raised his sword with his signature laugh.
*That guy's laugh is really weird.*
*But he's landed in the perfect spot.*
I get that he's excited to finish off a pesky rat, but if he'd just looked behind him first, he might have been able to escape.
The place we had landed was right below the dragon's head.
Right in front of the dragon's maw, which was heaving as it held in its unspent breath.
*Wuuuung.*
The dragon's enormous mouth opened, and a green radiance filled my vision.
Startled by the strange resonant hum, Jo Hyeon-su turned his head to look behind him.
But it was too late.
*Fwip.*
I was already on my feet, having activated my bracelet's cooldown reset function.
Fully prepared to escape the breath's range, I smiled sweetly and offered my final words to 'Gyuam Jo Hyeon-su.'
"Mr. Jo Hyeon-su, we won this time. Try taking down a dragon in the Betarion Empire next time."
"Wait, you guys!"
Leaving the panicked man behind me, I used a combination of Backward Dodge and Flash to quickly escape.
An instant later, the dragon's breath erupted, sweeping over Jo Hyeon-su's body and the entire area in front of it.
*KWWAAAAAA!*