Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 86
Chapter Title: Back to the Frontlines
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* * *
“Grandmaaa!”
“Oh my, our little puppy’s here?”
A child around ten years old came toddling up and threw herself into the old woman’s arms. The old woman stroked her granddaughter’s back and head before looking up.
There stood her son-in-law and daughter, laden with all sorts of gifts.
“Hello! Mother-in-law!! It’s an honor to see you again!”
“Yes. You always look so full of energy. It’s nice.”
She nodded slightly. Her daughter, standing beside her son-in-law, smiled.
“Were you working in the fields again? I keep telling you, sun exposure ruins your skin.”
“What ruin? My skin won’t be ruined by UV rays—it’d take a particle beam.”
Waving her hand dismissively, the old woman tossed her hoe aside and came out of the house with a kettle. Her daughter and son-in-law, already used to the routine, climbed onto the porch platform and waited.
That was when it happened.
“Kraaa!!”
Out of nowhere, a black-skinned monster materialized in midair. The old woman stared at it with a sullen expression.
‘What was its name again... Feels like I saw it in some roguelike game.’
With that thought, she raised her fist.
Heaven and Earth Hwarang Adept.
Annihilation Blossom.
Petals scattered. The bellowing black giant stiffened up like a mannequin.
Thud!
It collapsed.
And then...
Fsssh...
It vanished.
“Oh my. What was that, Mom? Training dummy?”
“No.”
“...Then did someone else prank us? It’s dangerous for the kids!”
The old woman shook her head at her daughter’s words.
“Don’t worry. They’re monsters that track life force, so lone kids playing won’t get attacked. They mostly show up smack in the middle of big cities, so they’ll be dealt with quickly.”
That was why incidents of fully realized-level monsters appearing on the 34th Earth resulted in virtually zero casualties.
The ones tossed in from [Very Far Away] couldn’t choose their spawn points strategically. They always went to the places with the most people—or to foes equally teeming with life force.
‘But... other civilizations must be different.’
Fully realized-level. More precisely, level 9 monsters on par with the fully realized. On the 34th Earth, they were mere hiccups. Even a lone cop responding to a report could handle it.
But what about other planets, other civilizations?
Even a highly advanced one would struggle with an ogre popping up in a metropolis. The city would be trashed, hundreds dead at least.
Monsters impervious to anything short of heavy weapons weren’t to be taken lightly.
[It doesn’t belong to me. It’s clearly a game character... but not of this world.]
The proclamation from the Game Master, possessor of the very concept of games. The old woman frowned.
‘Chaos is coming to the universe. Can’t ignore it when Earth’s economy is tied to the greater cosmos... Sigh, and my lifespan’s almost up.’
“Grandma?”
The old woman—former Joint Chiefs Chairman, World Star, and Hwarang Group Leader Choi Baedal—softened her worried expression into a gentle smile.
“Aww~! Our little puppy. Yes, shall we go eat something yummy?”
She took her granddaughter’s hand and headed inside with her daughter and son-in-law.
The time to shatter her daily life and return to the front lines was approaching.
* * *
“Hold! Push back!”
“Spears! Thrust!”
“Medics!!”
They advanced, shoving back the monster waves crashing like tsunamis with a wall of massive shields. Spears jabbed out between shields, and thousands of arrows darkened the sky.
Elite troops with classes bellowed, activated skills, and clashed with foes, while recruits without hauled wounded to the rear or scurried about with supplies.
It was hard to believe most had been ordinary farmers just a year ago—their movements were so systematic. But the enemy was no pushover.
“Kraaaargh!!”
Boom!
An ice golem’s punch shattered the shield wall. The shieldbearer was reduced to mincemeat, naturally.
Spears staked into the ground to block monster charges were a joke against behemoths like ice golems with their bulk and toughness.
And as monsters surged through the breach—
Wham!!
The charging horde exploded against a bone greatsword that cleaved the air, crumbling in ruin.
The bone greatsword didn’t emerge unscathed, but I wasn’t the type to fret over common-grade gear.
“Whew...”
From the center of the formation, I surveyed the entire battlefield. With such a long front line, it was more efficient to plug holes like this than rampage upfront.
We had plenty of firepower to smash monsters pinned by the shield wall, even without me.
Whoooosh—!!
Kaboom!!
A massive fireball followed by hundreds of flaming arrows slammed into the cold monsters’ midst, shockwaves and searing heat warming the field.
Soldiers shivering from the foes’ chill showed relieved faces.
‘Smile finally hit third class.’
The Fast Three Sect mages, with their insane growth rates, pressed on fiercely behind him. Real combat experience meant they’d soon scrape into third class too.
And once they all did?
They’d master at least Fireball—the bare minimum AOE spell—and turn the field into a sea of fire.
“Silver Cross Knights! Charge!”
“Steel Shields! Grind them down!”
Two knight orders tore through the reeling frozen horde like a storm. Aura-charged spear charges were brutal—even mid-tier monsters couldn’t withstand.
Kaboom!!
Ridden mounts—beasts with some mental link to their riders, emotions distinct from normal creatures—kicked monsters aside fearlessly and charged. Leading were a hulking ironclad rhino and a frost wolf spewing cold.
But the monsters didn’t go down easy.
“Keeek!”
A yeti leaped with a roar, tackling a mounted knight. The rider tumbled off and resisted with all he had, but the yeti’s brute strength ripped his head clean off.
“Die!!”
A snow woman’s shriek heralded an ice spear piercing the gap between the knight’s helm and breastplate. The Cold Guard Ring (Rare)+6 let him endure the chill, but a gaping hole in his neck gushed blood.
“......”
From the unit’s center, I watched. War meant death—countless lives snuffed out.
Ordinary soldiers by the masses.
Elites bolstered by class cards.
Even the rare talents trained in 34th Earth arts as knights.
All died. Equally.
“Whew.”
One deep breath shook off the deaths. I gripped my bone greatsword.
Wham!
A path cleared. Our losses were massive, but hardly meaningless.
“Reinforcements halted!”
“Good! Into the city!”
“Charge!!”
The teeming monster numbers had thinned dramatically. Their respawn couldn’t keep up with the kill rate.
Monsters from other castles fared worse—they’d have to trek 100km back, so no worries there for a while.
“Keeek!”
“How dare you invade our domain!!”
As combat shifted to urban fighting, casualties spiked. Rare-grade monsters lurking between buildings ambushed soldiers unable to maintain shield formations amid obstacles.
But we had the guerrilla warfare king, trench warfare despair, urban reaper herself.
Swordmaster Hayes.
Instant Slash Style, Second Form.
Swift Sword Momentum.
Hayes dashed like lightning over walls and roofs, flashes of sword light flickering around her. Rare-grade monsters that showed themselves got sliced without resistance.
“Lady Hayes! Lady Hayes!”
“Sis! I love you!”
“What!? She’s your sis?”
“Don’t you know Duelist Knight? She’s over forty! That’s why she’s the best!”
“Ah! So beautiful, big sis!!”
Cheers erupted from soldiers in every alley. Hayes, once scorned as a Chrome Kingdom envoy, had skyrocketed in popularity through her closeness to me and battlefield feats.
Who wouldn’t cheer a swordmaster on their side? Even blood enemies would. And she was gorgeous to boot.
Watching the enemy defenses crumble and soldiers seize the city, I told my adjutant.
“Surround it and prep a simple wall.”
“Yes, sir!”
Orders went out to rear troops sidelined in the priority chat.
“Seize the walls and move materials! Fortify every alley!”
“Grab shortages from nearby buildings!”
Chrome Kingdom capital Jimail’s invaders bustled. Frontline elites scattered to rest or get treated, while support regulars cleared debris and started construction.
Clang! Thud! Clank clank!
“Ugh! Cold! Freezing!”
“Jimail’s this cold...?”
“Ow! Hand! My hand!”
“Argh, slipping!”
Watching, it was chaos. Hammers smashing fingers. Carriers tripping and cracking skulls. Cowerers trembling in corners.
Our medics, with surgical skills plus healing and stocked potions from sundries shops, handled minor injuries fine. But severed fingers from gear hauls and crushings under debris? A spectacle.
‘Still, numbers are better. We can use them somehow... All experience.’
Unthinkable in normal armies. Consumables weren’t for cannon fodder like this—too wasteful.
But our Wild Boar Castle dungeon supplied endless boar haunches and hides. We could handle any numbers.
‘People are the issue. Need more.’
Talent pools demand vast manpower. Honestly, I wanted to spam class cards.
But no.
Free cards? Sure, gratitude. But it dilutes meaning. Earned through merit and experience, they become badges of honor.
‘Yes. Just the start.’
The hotspot was special, vital—but no high-level zone.
Near the board’s center.
With legendary monsters roaming fields and demonic realms, my soldiers had far to go. More numbers, more tempering needed.
“Fire!! Blow their heads off before they even think it!”
“Free XP! Aim true!”
“Rising fast! Keep it up! Might hit 35!”
“Hey, our tank’s leveling in bed! Better buy me a drink later!”
Kaboom!
Pew pew pew!
Archers and mages at the pillar-side outpost showered spawning monsters with barrages, driving them back.
Occasional ranged attacks flew from the light pillar instead.
Bang!
Splat!
High-level archers intercepted, bursting cold orbs that merely frosted empty ground.
‘Agility-focused archers’ reactions dwarf the past.’
With eyes peeled, pillar sniping was impossible. Our outposts kept 100m safe distance anyway.
“Camp down! Squads, follow century leads!”
Restructured squads: Ditched decurions for five-man parties—max party size.
Centurions as platoon leaders oversaw twenty squads. Fit for dungeon-habituated troops syncing in fives.
“Ugh! Cold! More blankets!”
“Damn monsters! Chilling us in death!”
“Charles! Fire here!”
“Call me mage.”
“Learned Flame and strutting? I got Power Strike too?”
“Light a fire with that, then.”
The camp was loose. Strict in battle, relaxed otherwise. I wanted combat power, not show.
‘Common and advanced skills overperform.’
Proof: Crushing high/rare-grade foes with minimal losses.
Just common/advanced skills made worlds of difference.
‘It’s possible.’
Watching soldiers prep camps in intact buildings, I thought.
Tomorrow, we conquer the hotspot.
* * *