The Fire Beast Runs Wild
"Run!!!!!!!"
The moment all three of their hearts beat as one! The blacksmiths spun around and bolted.
"Why the hell did that guy ever learn an Engineering skill in the first place?!"
"Right?! Just bring along a mage like a normal person!"
The blacksmiths wailed as they sprinted for their lives. And behind them, the explosions began.
"Huh? What? What is it?"
Cain, who had been running with a bomb of his own, jolted at the explosion erupting in the distance. It was a blast big enough to startle even the high-ranking Sadiq Paladins chasing him from behind.
"Crap!"
Cain realized his mistake. The shock had stopped his feet dead. And in that brief moment, the Sadiq Paladins closed the gap at terrifying speed.
"Die, heretic!"
"Offer your body as tribute to the god Sadiq!"
The Sadiq Paladins charged at frightening speed. Cain knew these guys were no joke.
"Th-these bastards, seriously!"
A sudden surge of frustration boiled up inside him.
If I were in my normal state, I could've taken you guys solo, easy!
Stewing in his indignation, Cain hurled the bomb straight at the paladins. Tae-hyun had specified where to plant it, but right now that didn't matter.
"I'm too pissed off and too miserable to leave without killing you first!"
With that, Cain drew his greatsword.
Clang!
The Sadiq Paladins splendidly sliced the incoming bomb clean in half with their swords.
"...What did you just do?"
Cain stared, dumbfounded. The Sadiq Paladins didn't seem to grasp what they had just done either.
"What nonsense are you spouting, heretic?! Trying to stall for time won't save you!"
"You—you... you mindless idiots...!"
Cain stammered, jabbing a finger at them. He'd thrown the bomb to keep the Sadiq Paladins from getting closer.
—If I throw a bomb, they'll see it and dodge!
But these paladins had just sliced the damn thing in mid-air without a second thought.
Tssssssss—
"GAAAAAAAH!"
Cain wheeled around and ran. The explosion went off behind him.
You have been caught in a powerful explosion! You are afflicted with the Stun status. Your passive skill resists the Stun status.
You take explosion damage.
You suffer a critical hit!
"GAAAAAAAH! Boiling Blood! Frenzied Charge!"
Caught in the blast, Cain mobilized every skill he had to survive. A skill that temporarily restored HP at high speed, and a skill that temporarily boosted his movement speed.
But even so, the explosion kept slamming into him relentlessly.
"Kuh! Hugh! Krrhuk!"
In the end, of all the people who had planted bombs, Cain was the one who took the most damage.
"Huh? Nobody died, huh."
That was the first thing Tae-hyun said the moment they regrouped. Everyone glared at him.
"We almost died!"
"That's right!"
The blacksmiths protested, but Tae-hyun didn't even blink.
"I almost died too, you know? You guys had the easiest job."
"Ugh..."
Put like that, they had nothing to say. Tae-hyun really had taken on the hardest part.
"Pick up your gear. Let's get out of here, fast."
The blacksmiths grabbed the loads they'd dropped on the ground. Once they were carrying everything up to the weight limit, their pace slowed again.
"By the way, why do you look like you got dragged through hell?"
Tae-hyun asked, looking at Cain. Cain was an absolute mess. The brand-new armor was scorched black by flames, and his face was covered in soot from the blast.
"S-sniff... sniffle..."
"Wait, are you crying?"
"I'm not crying!"
"Sure looks like it."
"I said I'm not!"
Cain shouted, overwhelmed by the unfairness and sheer misery of it all. He had no idea where it had all gone so wrong.
At that moment, a tremendous roar thundered from behind them.
KRAAAAAAAAAA—
The pillar of flame at the very center of the temple had cracked open, and the Fire Beast sealed within had risen up.
—How dare these worthless wretches! You set fire to Lord Sadiq's holy ground?!
It was the voice of the Sadiq High Priest. He was so furious his voice was trembling. Hearing it, Tae-hyun grumbled.
"He's still alive? Tough bastard."
Honestly, Tae-hyun hadn't really expected the explosion to wipe them all out. The biggest trait of paladins was their survivability! Already packing rock-solid defense, plus the ability to wield holy magic on top of that—when it came to staying alive, they were on the level of cockroaches. And there were High Priests in the mix, too. With magic in the middle of that blast, they could have pulled through.
—We will never forgive you. You will never escape from this place! The Fire Beast led by the god Sadiq will be your punishment!
The Sadiq High Priest has declared Heat of the Earth. The skill remains in effect until the High Priest dies.
The vast, sprawling cavern began to glow red. The walls, ceiling, and floor turned a blistering crimson, like molten lava.
You are inside the area of effect. You are taking damage.
"Augh!"
Kim Ji-sahn jumped. Taking damage every time he set foot down in this huge space?
Evasion successful.
Evasion successful.
Resistance successful via Divine Authority.
Of course, there were people like Tae-hyun who weren't getting hit at all. But the others had no choice but to take the damage. A skill that dealt continuous damage across this enormous space—it was practically broken in how powerful it was. Truly the High Priest of the Sadiq Order. He had some seriously potent skills in his arsenal.
"What do we do?!"
"What do you think? We run! Move!"
Tae-hyun barked at his party to run. Trying to dispel that skill right now would be suicide. Tae-hyun himself could endure it, but the blacksmiths would die mid-fight. The remaining Sadiq Paladins and priests alone were already a handful, and on top of that there was a powerhouse boss monster like the Fire Beast.
No matter how I slice it, fighting now means way too many casualties!
There was no need to stand and fight—running was the best option!
But before the others could even start moving, another sound rolled through the air.
—KUOOOOOOOOOO!
A massive roar that reverberated not just inside the cavern, but throughout the entire valley. It was the cry of the Fire Beast.
The players fighting outside the valley heard it too, and faltered.
"What is that, what?"
"Looks like the Sadiq guys cooked up something."
Hearing that sound, the Sadiq Order's morale soared.
"At last, the Fire Beast has awakened!"
"Now we shall punish you in the name of Sadiq!"
At the Sadiq Paladins' shouts, the players massed in front of the valley were thrown into confusion. The Sadiq Order was already plenty tough as it was. And now there was something extra coming out?
"Guild Master! Apparently the Sadiq Order's bringing something out!"
"They're saying the Fire Beast has awakened!"
The news spread in an instant. The players gathered there started running calculations in their heads.
—Should we pull back? Or keep fighting?
And while they hesitated, the Sadiq Order's momentum kept building.
"Strike them down! Drive out the heathens!"
"Death to mortals!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Buffed by the Sadiq priests' protective spells, the Sadiq Paladins began to charge. The players gathered there paid the price for their hesitation.
"AAAARGH!"
"These bastards! Help! We're getting pushed back over here!"
Things weren't great outside, but the situation inside the cavern was even more dangerous. The Fire Beast had completely recovered its strength!
The Sadiq High Priest cackled like a madman as he shouted.
—Now you are all dead me— gurkh!
"...?"
Tae-hyun, running in the distance, tilted his head. Hadn't that guy just been mid-sentence when something hit him?
A powerful explosion has destroyed the Sadiq High Priest's Staff.
The Fire Beast goes berserk.
"Huh...?"
The others stopped in their tracks too, staring at the message window.
"What is this supposed to mean?"
"The Fire Beast is going berserk?"
The explosion Tae-hyun had set off was triggering things nobody had foreseen. The Sadiq High Priest had successfully saved his paladins and priests with quick protective magic, but in the process, the staff he'd been holding had been destroyed by the blast! And when he tried to control the Fire Beast with a broken artifact, the Fire Beast lost all restraint and went on a rampage.
—KRAAAAA! KRAAAAAAAA! KRAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
—C-calm down! O Fire Beast! We are true devotees of Sadiq— gurhhk! Hurkh!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Without bothering to listen, the Fire Beast began pummeling the Sadiq High Priest with its burning fists. Each blow split the earth and sent geysers of lava shooting up—a devastating attack! Having burned through massive amounts of MP just blocking Tae-hyun's explosion, the Sadiq High Priest couldn't even properly defend himself, and got pulped by the Fire Beast.
The Sadiq High Priest is dead. Heat of the Earth is dispelled.
You gain experience.
You gain Contribution Points.
You used cunning to bring down the Sadiq High Priest. Your skill level rises.
Your Reputation rises significantly.
Your Holy stat rises significantly.
"..."
Tae-hyun was speechless, but he kept running. What kind of jackpot was this?!
"Run! Don't stop!"
"Wh-what's happening behind us?"
"Save the questions for later! Just RUN, you idiots!"
Tae-hyun kicked at the blacksmiths to keep them moving. The Fire Beast had gone berserk and was attacking the high-ranking Sadiq Paladins. Now was the time to escape! Once it finished off the others, it was obvious who the Fire Beast would chase next.
—Krrraaa! O Fire Beast! How can you attack us?!
—Lord Sadiq! Save us!
From behind came the screams of the high-ranking Sadiq Paladins and priests. But the Fire Beast paid them no mind and kept rampaging. In that window, Tae-hyun and his party sprinted at full tilt toward the cavern's exit.
Crrrack! Rumbleeeee! KABOOOOOM!
"Hah, hah, hah! Wait for us!"
As the sounds of collapse rolled through the massive cavern, the blacksmiths ran in pure terror. They barely managed to make it out the exit. The crashing, shattering noises from inside were genuinely terrifying. The kind of fear that made you feel like the cave was about to bury you alive at any second.
"I really never thought I'd end up doing something like this..."
Kim Ji-sahn muttered, his soul half-departed. The other blacksmiths nodded. When they'd been told they were going to clear a quest, they'd imagined a small skirmish with some Sadiq Paladins. They had never, in their wildest dreams, imagined they'd be charging in, leveling the temple itself, and then sprinting for their lives.
But Tae-hyun just dusted off his clothes and spoke without any change in expression.
"Let's go. They said the Sadiq Paladins are still fighting outside the valley—we need to bag a few more."
The greed of someone determined to rack up Contribution Points to the absolute max! He didn't look anything like a man who had just sprinted out of a collapsing cave with his life on the line.
"You're not even going to rest?!"
"He's not human!"
"What's the point of resting? We get nothing out of it. Rest while you fight! While you're fighting!"
Tae-hyun calmly spouted lines straight out of an exploitative boss's playbook.
Tatatatak—
The sound of frantic footsteps came rushing toward them from up ahead. What appeared was a group of Sadiq Paladins! When they saw Tae-hyun's party emerging from inside the valley, they reeled in shock.
"H-heretics! Inside?!"
"How did they get in?!"
"Cut them down!"
Tae-hyun smiled and drew the longsword Meteor. Then he replied:
"Why, thank you. Coming to me on your own like this!"
To Tae-hyun's eyes, ordinary Sadiq Paladins looked like nothing more than walking lumps of Contribution Points.
"Let's go!"
"..."
The blacksmiths behind him nodded with weary expressions. They were people too, and after everything they'd just been through, they were exhausted. Only Tae-hyun was still bright and full of energy.
"What's going on? Why isn't there any word from inside?"
"W-we don't know either, sir. We've sent someone to check, so..."
"Use magic to ask them!"
"There's no answer!"
"Nothing's gone wrong, has it?"
"It can't have. The line must've just gone dead for a moment!"
"Right. After all the effort we put into preparing the Fire Beast... there's no way it could go wrong!"
Antonio muttered to himself. At that very moment, they were locked in a fierce battle with the players outside the valley.