Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: Kim Joo-hyuk Raid (2)
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'They've gotten stronger, sure, but they're still only about half my stats at best. Generously speaking, maybe 80% if I stretch it.'
I remembered the first time I was summoned to the tower. Even when all my stats were at 1, I'd killed opponents whose total stats outclassed mine.
In other words, stat differences aren't absolute.
With enough experience and technique, a slight gap can be overcome or bridged through effort.
'But do you lot have that kind of experience?'
Kim Joo-hyuk Raid.
The entry condition for this absurd quest was having never killed another summoner before.
Which meant most of the summoners here had zero experience fighting humans.
Monsters and humans are different.
Monsters follow fixed patterns, but humans don't.
Especially my Warp ability—it excelled at creating unpredictable variables. Anyone encountering it for the first time couldn't respond at all.
I cleanly sliced through the fearless summoners charging at me with my sword. Spotting two archers preparing a cowardly attack from afar, I immediately activated Warp.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Using Warp on Kim Man-gyu. ⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Using Warp on Oh Song-min. The two humans vanished from the ground.
The summoners right next to them didn't even notice their comrades disappear. They were just strangers with no prior connection, after all.
But what if humans rained down from the sky? Right onto the heads of other summoners.
No matter how indifferent to others, no one could ignore that.
Especially from over 10 kilometers up—the speed right before a human body slammed into the ground easily surpassed hundreds of kilometers per hour.
Last time, luck had spared everyone except the five idiots who tried Leap of Faith.
This time was different.
A warped summoner dropped straight into a packed crowd of them.
And the result?
Krunch! Krunch!
The human hitting the ground burst like a bomb, spraying bone shards, organs, and blood everywhere—turning into a living explosive itself.
"Gaaahhhh!!!"
The unlucky bastard who took it to the head died instantly. The five or six around him were knocked out of commission in one hit, weapons flying.
'I get the ones pelted by organs flying at hundreds of kph, but what's with the whiny little bitches bawling over a splash of blood on their clothes or face?'
I couldn't understand it.
Didn't need to, either.
I was already drenched head to toe in blood.
Every sword swing lopped off arms, legs, torsos—coating me in all sorts of sticky gore.
'Fuck, I'm dying for a hot shower.'
No time to Warp off the blood-soaked edition. Any hint of sluggishness, and attacks came flying—like right now.
Sensing the enemy from the whoosh of wind through empty air, I rolled sideways. An axe cleaved the spot I'd just vacated.
"You fucking moron! You missed?!"
"This prick's got eyes in the back of his head or something—his reflexes are bullshit! What do you want me to do?!"
'Never coordinated before, huh... Overall, they feel like a ragtag mob—strong in raw power, nothing else.'
Warp's drawback was clear: it demanded focus and nibbled at my mental energy. Fine normally, but with the quest penalty blocking healing...
Dividing my attention was suicide.
'Thanks to that fucking bitch Fellios, look at the mess I'm in.'
This forced no-hit challenge was gnawing at my mental power in real time.
A few small scratches now might seem minor, but they'd pile up and strangle me eventually.
Still, Warp on ranged users was undeniably efficient. The visual punch of those pulped corpses was devastating.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Using Warp on Ma Gun-su. "S-s-spare meeee! I don't wanna diiiiie! Gack...!"
On top of that, the summoners hadn't even grasped the principle behind my ability.
I rose from the ground and sheared the legs off the summoners nearby with my sword.
"Hngh!"
"My legs! My leeeegs!!!"
These summoners weren't getting any presents from Santa this year, that was for sure.
"Fuck! We've got numbers! How the hell can't we kill one guy?!"
'Morons.'
Not worth responding to.
I mowed down enemies around me like a machine, relentlessly. Just with Warp-assisted attacks and evasions, they struggled to track my movements.
In contrast, I was methodically thinning their ranks one by one.
'Sounds insane, but... it's kinda fun now that I'm in the groove.'
It felt like the sword was me, and I was the sword. Even sopping wet with hot blood from every motion, the sensation didn't break.
'Was swordsmanship always this fun?'
Then, suddenly—
I realized no one was left around me.
"Hm?"
Looking around, dozens of mangled corpses littered the area. Beyond them, summoners gawked at me in horror.
"Hey, why aren't you coming at me?"
I'd been deep in the zone, syncing my body's senses with the sword, and this interruption soured my mood hard.
"...How many did that bastard just kill from one spot?"
"Fuck! This isn't even about killing anymore... He's on a whole other plane... Why the hell did I accept this quest..."
'Come to think of it, how many have I taken out?'
🏆 ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED 🏆 Achievement: Serial Killer
Condition: Defeat 100 summoners (485/100) Effect: Deal 48.5% additional damage to humanoid enemies (including summoners). Total Summoner Kills: 485
'Roughly 90, give or take.'
Even after that many, plenty still swarmed the field.
Moving around had me feeling a bit peckish. I wiped my lips with the back of my hand, then pulled a high-calorie chocolate bar from my inventory and chowed down.
"Guess all this intense exercise makes it slide down nice."
Replenishing stamina and energy mid-fight was critical. The sugar rush was perfect for shaking off fatigue, even if just temporarily.
'No clue why they're holding back, but rest when you can.'
I Warped off the gore edition, scarfed two more bars in a blink, and downed a bottle of water. That's when—
From the distance, a glowing projectile crept toward me, slow as molasses.
'Painfully slow.'
No need for Warp—even a casual sidestep would do.
"Huh?"
But it instantly corrected its path to match my footsteps.
'Finally, someone's pulling out a real skill.'
Most had just swung weapons despite their temp classes—I figured they were all idiots. Guess a few competent ones lingered.
My stats were high, but spotting skill use from range wasn't in my visual range.
'Guided type, huh. Two-way Warp bounce-back? High odds it'd loop right back and nail me.'
Impossible in reality, but this was the tower.
Skills came loaded with assists, obviously.
Didn't look overwhelmingly powerful, but I had zero interest in body-testing it.
I pondered counters for a moment, then a grin tugged at my lips.
Waiting till the projectile neared, I Warped right before impact—to a packed cluster of summoners I'd scoped earlier.
"Nice to meet you all!"
"?"
"?"
Dead center in the enemy horde, I gripped my sword two-handed and spun in a massive arc. My blade whipped up a whirlwind, carving through the torsos around me.
Shlik!
The distinct sound of a razor-sharp blade slicing meat echoed as upper and lower bodies parted, blood and guts tumbling across the ground.
"Gaaahhh!"
"What the...!"
The lucky ones just outside range recoiled in shock. Then the pursuing guided projectile slammed into their backs.
Boom!
A small explosion erupted, flames licking the bodies in its radius.
"S-someone! Extinguish this fire!"
"Water skill! Anyone got a water-based skill?!"
'Whoa, looks harmless but that power's no joke.'
If it'd hit me, it wouldn't have ended with an "ow."
Confirming the skill's punch on their own allies' bodies, the summoners desperately unleashed a barrage at me.
Dozens of spells and arrows rained down—not single shots, but continuous fire.
"Whoa, this is getting... Evade?"
I Warp-dodged frantically.
But there were limits. Their sheer numbers turned it into a bullet hell; I was too busy evading to counter.
Of course, in the chaos, their headcount was steadily dropping. Not by my hand—theirs.
"Agh! Agh!! I'm on your side! You fucking bastards!!"
"Don't stop the attacks! Kill him while we can!"
Ally or not, their sole focus was me. Pure kill intent.
Every attack was a skill—no holding back on power.
Fireballs turned the area into an inferno; arrows pierced multiple bodies without slowing.
'But seriously, why are these skills hitting so hard?'
Anyone'd think they'd gotten an authority buff from sheer panic.
Suddenly, it hit me: their stats and skills each boosted by 395%.
Additive or multiplicative—either way, getting tagged was a no-go.
'Tch. Exactly why I should've wiped the ranged users early...'