Arte's Aspiration (6)
[The final story begins.]
The final story begins.
This was the notification Hyun-soo heard with Grout's appearance.
But Hyun-soo had no time to check the quest details.
Grout, having descended in his true body, was ridiculously strong.
Arte is dying.
Arte was a sage, not a swordsman or knight.
His body was even weaker than that of an ordinary mage.
Kicking off the ground, Hyun-soo recalled the notification he'd just heard.
Skill Karma.
He still didn't know what power it held.
'I thought we could escape.'
The turtle ship's speed had been uncanny.
This was a grueling fight. At the end of it, Hyun-soo gained inspiration through the skill Karma.
Arte had granted him three temporary skill creations.
'With these three skills, I can recreate the same skills.'
Arte's gift.
Skill creation begins.
Hyun-soo immediately clashed with Grout.
***
Status Ailment Loss activates.
Status Ailment Fear activates.
Loss and Fear.
Zzt-zzzt-
Hyun-soo's body trembled intermittently. But soon, he calmed down.
You have resisted.
"Oh?"
Grout was surprised.
The killing intent radiating from his mere appearance was strong enough to choke the breath out of most humans and kill them in an instant.
And the reason Hyun-soo resisted that status ailment—was it because of Break but Do Not Yield?
Of course, that played a part.
But added to that unbreakable will was the 50% status ailment resistance boost from the recently acquired God-Forged Crown.
Though Hyun-soo's level was only 320, status resistance was an incredibly hard stat to raise.
"I like that unbreakable will of yours."
Grout was relaxed. The difference in power, class, level, experience... all of it gave him the leisure of superiority.
Hyun-soo kicked off the ground.
As he advanced, Reversal activated behind him.
At the same time, the essence of the rampaging Four Signs Sword dwelled within.
Just like before.
The once-weak Hyun-soo borrowed the power of Supreme Sword to surpass himself, if only for a moment.
By 40% probability, Sword's base attack power increases by 221%.
Duration: 15 seconds.
Even with the 221% boost, this sword could deliver a clear shock to Grout, if only briefly.
"Ghost Step."
The ghost walks, stepping over fear.
Shuuuuaaaak-!
Hyun-soo vanished.
Once.
Kwaaaang-!
"...!?"
Twice.
Waajik-!
Three times.
Four times.
Five times.
Grout was startled by Hyun-soo swirling around him from all directions.
In 1.4 seconds, Grout defended and counterattacked every bit of Ghost Step's fragmented movements.
Shuuuak-!
-HP falls below 86%.
One strike caused 14% loss. Even though he'd attacked so casually.
Still, Hyun-soo kept stepping.
Shuuugaagak-!
Six, seven.
Nine.
Ten.
Eleven, twelve.
Piiit-
Splat.
Hyun-soo had landed only two successful hits.
At the same time, Grout's long finger pointed at Hyun-soo's chest.
Kwaaaang-!
A massive blood explosion erupted, dealing huge damage to Hyun-soo.
Blood Explosion Chain
Blood surged from Hyun-soo's body, turning into small droplets.
Those scattered around struck him again.
Ku-ku-ku-ku-ku-kwang-!
-HP falls below 74%.
-HP falls below 61%.
-HP falls below 54%.
-HP falls below 46%.
You are afflicted with Bleeding.
"Kuhak!"
He took massive damage from a proper attack.
One side of Hyun-soo's vision blurred.
This was an opponent who utterly transcended him.
Grout took an interest in the human named Hyun-soo.
An outstanding blacksmith with strong power.
And that unyielding mentality made the demon want to crush it.
Grout had already shown it once.
"A hundred times, and you'd still die. Arte will die soon too."
Arte's HP was steadily dropping.
"How about this—why bother with some Arte?"
Grout loved mockery. Especially against someone with a strong will like Hyun-soo.
Demons are cruel, but humans are greedy.
"Turn away, and come with me."
Grout was a low-rank demon not even in the 72 Demon ranking.
But if Hyun-soo made artifacts for him, that could change.
He might even enter the 72 Thrones, his lifelong aspiration.
"I'll give you money if you want. Live in my castle, fight for me sometimes, craft for me."
The true reason Grout descended was revealed.
There was resentment and anger from the attack, but he saw potential for higher status through him.
"Come on, bark for me. Wag your tail for me alone, like a dog guarding the house and crafting artifacts! I'll feed you for my dog's sake, give you generous treats! Bark! Woof woof, like a dog!"
Grout thought it an offer impossible to refuse.
Humans bow their heads in fear before transcendent beings superior to them.
Like bowing before a king.
In fact, Hyun-soo's lips were parting.
"Meow."
"...?"
Grout's face twisted grotesquely.
"You dare...!"
Hyun-soo wasn't just making a pun.
Click-
The world's switch flipped off, darkness descending.
This is a moment of crisis.
Break but Do Not Yield
Four Signs Sword effect is 7% more outstanding.
The notifications rang out as always, unshaken.
As he charged, the Reversal he'd unleashed secretly forged an artifact.
Chaaak-
He gripped a single sword.
Twenty-eight stars poured from that sword.
Four Signs Sword. And...
"Tiger Aura."
Kroooaaaarrrgh-!
The roar that slew the Fifth Calamity poured toward enemies recognized as evil.
Hyun-soo knew.
"The reason you demons don't descend to the mortal world."
Weakening? No, even weakened, they were ridiculously strong.
Then why not descend?
"You're too vulnerable to holy power."
Tiger Aura
A massive holy power weakens you.
You are weakened.
He knew. Even weakened, Grout was beyond him.
But he kicked off the ground.
Taat-!
The forged swords were two in total.
Srur, as Four Signs Sword faded, he snatched the falling second sword.
At that moment.
Reversal's special function activates by 1% probability.
You can wield two swords simultaneously.
Another notification rang.
You have overcome a moment of crisis.
The sentence begins.
The effect of the first title helped him overcome the current situation, granting immense power with each word.
Break but Do Not Yield
Skill attack power increases by 10%.
Do Not Retreat
Sword base attack power increases by 10%.
At All Costs
Critical damage is doubled.
Charging forward, tremendous power welled up from his body.
The sentence-type title recognized that maximizing his power was the way to overcome this crisis.
Hyun-soo couldn't win.
Not against a level 500 demon like Grout.
But against a weakened Grout vulnerable to Four Signs Sword's essence, he could inflict massive damage.
Grout sneered.
"You think a stun like that means anything to me?"
But...
Grout sensed something off.
The stun wasn't lifting.
I Will Win
Temporarily nullifies enemy's status resistance.
The power activated by his will empowered Hyun-soo.
Keeehiiiiiek-
A massive dragon struck Grout.
Grout endured the impact.
And immediately after.
The essence of Hyun-soo's Supreme Sword.
Eight Slashes
One attack became eight slashes, and with the first sentence title, critical damage was doubled.
One slash became eight cuts.
Shuuuaak-
-17,313 damage.
2x damage applied.
-10,135 damage.
-13,417 damage.
-Damage...
-Damage...
He slashed madly. No time to stop.
Gritting his teeth for 3 seconds.
Eight Slashes
Eight Slashes
Shu-gaga-gaga-gak-
Blood, splat splat, kua-kua-kua, kwak-!
"Uoooooh!"
He didn't want Arte to die. And he harbored one greed.
When he first encountered Grout, there had been this notification too.
One of the strongest NPCs.
The one who hunts Grout can trigger a world message.
The world still doubted Hyun-soo, dragging him down with all sorts of nonsense.
He wanted to show them.
With a message resounding across the entire world.
And rise through it.
As the master of the nation's top forge.
Shu-gaga-gak-!
Immersed as green blood sprayed from all directions.
And as the 3 seconds passed, he finally came to his senses, about to revel in ecstasy.
"..."
-Grout's HP falls below 70%.
Hyun-soo snapped awake.
Grout stared at him with emotionless eyes and snake-like slit pupils.
Even giving his all, Hyun-soo had only shaved off 30% of his HP.
"That's not how you wield a sword."
A sword of blood formed in Grout's hand.
The moment he swung it upward.
Ku-rarararak-
Blood Wind
Kwa-rarararak-!
You possess Asnium.
-HP falls below 10%.
HP recovers to 15%.
Hyun-soo's body was torn to shreds.
It's hard to stay upright.
Staggering, Hyun-soo thrashed to stand.
"...Shall I tear Arte limb from limb to shatter that sturdy will of yours?"
This was Grout's style of torture.
"That look in your eyes hasn't changed."
No matter how much he tried to break him, Hyun-soo didn't crumble.
Grout grabbed Arte by the collar and lifted him.
At that moment.
"The one who lost is you."
Temporary skill creation completes.
The one card Hyun-soo had prepared writhed.
***
Special User Management Team.
Lee Ji-hee and Tae-seok were talking.
"Isn't story progress twice as hard to gain as rewards from regular quests?"
"Yeah, getting 2% from a normal quest means only 1% from story progress."
Gaining story progress was far more difficult in itself.
But the rewards were maximized accordingly.
"Not easy."
"It can't be helped..."
Lee Se-jin watched from behind them.
On the monitor, Hyun-soo with the first sentence activated was visible.
The two resumed their conversation.
"If he kills Grout, how much story progress would he get?"
"Forget that—what do you think he'll get?"
"Can he even clear it...?"
"..."
Tae-seok didn't answer.
Se-jin behind him was the same.
'As expected...'
And when Hyun-soo's Asnium exerted its power, Se-jin checked his watch.
His secretary entered.
"Sir, you need to go."
Lee Se-jin had a business trip to America.
Turning as Grout approached Arte.
He hurried into the car.
The car glided toward the airport.
Eyes closed, Se-jin knew.
The reward Tae-seok and Ji-hee wondered about.
'Arte has nowhere to go.'
Where would someone who descended to the surface for the first time in 300 years go?
That was the core of the reward.
Se-jin smiled wryly. Assuming he killed Grout, of course.
'What was that temporary skill creation?'
He'd joined the team midway, so he hadn't seen the details.
'A mere unique skill can't change the tide. Even the new legend-grade skill Karma is outstanding but impossible.'
That was Se-jin's judgment.
But he held one sliver of expectation.
User Hyun-soo always defied expectations.
But today felt different.
'Isn't the enemy just too absurd?'
Then, looking out the window, Se-jin's eyes widened.
"Stop the car."
Se-jin got out, entranced by something.
He took in the massive electronic billboard.
The announcer read breaking news, with details scrolling below.
Se-jin was stunned.
Ding-ding-ding-
His phone rang soon after.
It was Tae-seok.
He asked first.
"How much story progress did he achieve?"
Se-jin couldn't hide his shock at the voice from the receiver.
It gave him chills down his spine.
And he asked another crucial thing.
"What skill did he create, exactly?"