The Plague Incarnation
The players who had been watching to see what would happen gasped in shock and drew their weapons. Wait, so suddenly?!
"Wipe out those Archisus Cult bastards!"
"..."
"..."
At Tae-hyun's shout, Silved and the Black Rock Guild members wore extremely complicated expressions. Keep a straight face!
Hallus shouted excitedly, "You all heard him, right? We're the Idergo Cult! And those guys over there are the Archisus Cult!"
"I get it... but why are you so excited?"
"Are you really okay with Kim Tae-hyun hijacking your quest like that?"
Tae-hyun was currently stepping up to progress the quest that Hallus was supposed to do. From Hallus's perspective as an explorer, he had every right to be furious!
"O-of course I'm okay with it. I don't get angry over things like this."
"Didn't you throw a massive fit and curse at me last time just because I spoke to an NPC first?"
"...W-when did I ever do that?"
Hallus quietly self-reflected at his guildmates' words. ...Was I really that bad?!
"Look, I'll show you how it's done, so just follow my lead! I'll show you how to act like a proper Idergo Cultist!"
As Hallus ran forward in high spirits, the guild members tilted their heads in confusion.
"Isn't he acting a bit weird?"
"Is he actually happy that Kim Tae-hyun is running the quest for him?"
"Why would he like that? Is he a masochist? If so, does that mean Gu Sung-wook is still unable to find his Sword of Crying because he secretly loves being ordered around by Kim Tae-hyun?"
"...Why are you dragging me into this when I was just minding my own business?"
Gu Sung-wook, who had been listening from behind, was furious. Why was he, who was fighting hard and silently, suddenly being summoned just to get roasted?!
"What kind of nonsense is...?!"
The elite paladins of the Idergo Cult were utterly dumbfounded. Fine, let's say some crazy adventurers had taken their priest hostage and were attacking them. But calling them the Archisus Cult?! They couldn't make heads or tails of the situation.
"Stop! We are not the Archisus Cult! You seem to hold a grudge against them, but so do we!"
The influence of the Idergo Cult is currently weak on this island.
The Idergo Cult NPCs wish to negotiate.
The Idergo Cult's resolve had weakened because they had suddenly been transported to this Mysterious Island. Under normal circumstances, they would never have attempted to negotiate! However, Tae-hyun had absolutely no intention of accepting any negotiations. There were already plenty of dangerous entities on this island; he needed to sweep the Idergo Cult out of the way. The moment they realized his true identity, they would cling to him like vengeful ghosts!
Whoosh—
[An explosion is triggered!]
[An explosion is triggered!]
[Your Engineering skill is currently...]
[The title is...]
[Sadiq's Authority is...]
[The flames grow even stronger!]
The Engineering skill also influenced the effectiveness of bombs. With Tae-hyun's skill level already at Master and racing toward Legendary, combined with Sadiq's Authority, explosions on par with wide-area magic spells erupted with deafening booms.
Fwooooosh!
"!!!!!!"
The players running up from behind gasped in shock. It was one thing for Tae-hyun to detonate bombs, but seeing him turn the entire area into a sea of fire in an instant gave them goosebumps.
What a absolute madman!
The power of those bombs is insane!
They knew Kim Tae-hyun went around fighting dozens or hundreds of enemies alone, but... seeing it with their own eyes sent shivers down their spines. For other classes to use wide-area skills like this, it would require an astronomical amount of MP and come with a hefty cooldown. Yet Tae-hyun turned the surroundings into a sea of fire without any of those limitations. The power of a crafting skill! Seeing this, who could possibly claim that crafting classes were weak?
"I've set fires so they can't escape! Charge in!"
"Fire resistance buff is up! Tanks, get ready to draw aggro!"
The Black Rock Guild members naturally formed up and pushed forward. As a small, tight-knit social guild, they had done party play to the point of exhaustion. The only ones acting independently here were Tae-hyun and Silved.
Tae-hyun was already so accustomed to solo play without a healer that it was second nature to him...
"Why aren't you healing me?!"
"Ah. Sorry, Silved. I forgot."
"Your presence is a bit faint. Sorry. It wasn't on purpose."
"..."
Silved was genuinely pissed off. He could tell that the Black Rock Guild's healer wasn't doing it on purpose, but was being completely sincere. Normally, since warriors fought on the front lines, they naturally caught the healers' eyes and received plenty of attention. However, with Tae-hyun charging ahead and swinging his sword like a madman, Silved—a fellow warrior right beside him—had his presence completely overshadowed!
"Aaaaargh!! Raaaaargh!"
Silved let out a battle cry and charged. Seeing this, the Black Rock Guild members whispered among themselves.
"Isn't hunting while screaming like that a bit much?"
"Let's be understanding. I guess his stream viewers like that kind of stuff."
"Ah, I see..."
"Sadiq?! Are you bastards from the Sadique Order?!"
[The Idergo Cult Paladin Centurion activates a skill!]
[Idergo's Blessing descends upon all Cult NPCs!]
The Idergo Cult NPCs prepared for battle in a rage. Some lunatic had set fire to the temporary temple they had painstakingly built, so it was impossible for them not to be furious. How dare those Sadique Order bastards!
[Plague is emitted due to the power of Idergo!]
[Please exercise caution!]
Once the blessing was cast, the Idergo Cult NPCs began spewing a noxious plague mist from their bodies. Trusting in his Adamantium Armor and high evasion, Tae-hyun pushed deep into the fray.
"Madness Explosion Sword Style!"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted, striking the paladins. While certain skills were good for focusing on a single target, others were fundamentally suited for sweeping away multiple enemies. Of course, because the difficulty of the sword style was incredibly high, even Tae-hyun occasionally missed his timing and made mistakes...
[An explosion sweeps over you!]
[Evasion successful!]
To Tae-hyun, a failure of this caliber meant absolutely nothing! The amnesiac priest behind Tae-hyun asked in a flustered voice:
"They are using Lord Idergo's power... Are they truly members of the Archisus Cult?"
"Fool! Do you not know that those Archisus Cult bastards can even steal and use the power of others?! Look!"
Tae-hyun angrily activated a skill he had stolen from the Idergo Cult.
"Idergo's Plague Mist!"
When Tae-hyun unleashed the authority of the Idergo Cult, the Idergo Cult NPCs were so dumbfounded they nearly choked. Th-that crazy bastard...?!
"That guy! That guy is from the Archisus Cult!!!"
"If he isn't an Archisus bastard, who else would dare steal Lord Idergo's authority?!"
A belated realization! The Idergo Cult NPCs ground their teeth in sheer fury at having been played by the Archisus Cult. Tae-hyun spoke shamelessly:
"Look at those guys. Look at the sheer audacity to keep up the act even after being exposed! We must not waver when dealing with those Archisus Cult scoundrels."
"Even if we all perish here today, we will not let you leave alive!!!"
[Carbanog urgently warns that you have provoked them too much!]
The momentum of the Idergo Cult NPCs was so alarming that even Carbanog cried out in panic. Because Tae-hyun had raised their hostility to the absolute limit, the Idergo Cultists were now ready to throw themselves into fire and water just to kill him.
"Take all of my flesh and soul, Lord Idergo!"
"Such wicked bastards! Their deeds are truly filthy!"
Tae-hyun shouted urgently and rushed forward. He didn't know what it was, but he had to interrupt it!
Usually, skills that require self-sacrifice like that are incredibly broken...!
Whatever it was, letting it happen would bring nothing good. He had to stop it at all costs.
"I will stop them!"
[Due to the battle and skills, more of the Idergo Cult Priest's memories are returning!]
[The number of usable skills has increased!]
"How dare bastards like you recklessly wield the power of Idergo!"
The amnesiac priest shouted in a clear, resonant voice and swung his staff. At this, the Idergo Cult paladins felt so wronged they wanted to die.
"Successor! Please snap out of it!"
"Successor!!! What are you doing?! That guy is an Archisus bastard!!"
"Those Archisus bastards are trying to deceive us! Crush them!"
A crazy battle where both sides were screaming "Archisus!" at each other!
[Carbanog says they are so dumbfounded they are speechless!]
"Idergo's Cry of Faith, Idergo's True Prayer!"
Flaaaash!
The powerful plague energy gathering in the surroundings began to converge on the amnesiac priest. The paladins, who had been sacrificing themselves to summon Idergo's power, were horrified.
"No!!"
"Stop him!"
Regardless of their reactions, the amnesiac priest looked at Tae-hyun and said:
"Receive this! You must defeat those Archisus bastards!"
Flaaaaaash!
Tae-hyun's form transformed into a massive shadow spewing plague. It resembled a Lich, but differed in that it radiated the power of plague instead of dark energy.
[The skills you can use are restricted!]
[The equipment you can wear is...]
This forced transformation was something even Tae-hyun hadn't anticipated. Of course, stealing and absorbing the energy meant for someone else wasn't a bad thing. At the very least, it had weakened his opponents!
"Noooooooo!"
"Successor!!!!"
The Idergo Cult NPCs wailed in grief! Tae-hyun decided to deal with them first.
"Let's finish wiping out those Archisus bastards!"
"...Waaaaah! Let's exterminate the Archisus bastards!"
The players also enthusiastically played along. Let's subjugate Archisus!
My sword...
[You cannot equip a sword in your current state.]
Ah, dammit.
Tae-hyun grumbled in annoyance. He couldn't even use his sword; what kind of garbage Incarnation was this?
Is it mostly magic? What skills do I have available?
"Idergo's Plague Vision!"
Tae-hyun moved swiftly, casting his skills one by one. With the enemies still alive, he couldn't afford to waste time reading skill descriptions.
[Idergo's Plague Vision is cast.]
[Magic is amplified by the power of Idergo!]
[...]
Rumble!
A dark green plague swept out in front of Tae-hyun, melting trees and boulders on contact. It was an insane, highly toxic spell!
"..."
"..."
...Oh. Wait. Isn't this a perfect opportunity to level up my magic skills?
Tae-hyun realized as he witnessed the terrifying destructive power of the magic. He had been in a bind because he needed to level up his magic skills, but most of them had been sealed away... Fortunately, thanks to the Idergo Cult, an opportunity had presented itself!
"...Receive the power of Idergo! Plague Burst!"
"Aaargh!"
"You Archisus bastard!! I curse you!"
"Plague Burst! Plague Burst!"
Tae-hyun began summoning plague and poison indiscriminately, hurling them in all directions. Idergo's magic consisted of plague and poison. While it lacked the raw destructive power of fire or lightning, it possessed a relentless strength that inflicted terrible debuffs and persistently dragged down anyone it touched.
Although the Idergo Cult NPCs had a fairly high resistance to such plagues...
"The power of Idergo surges within me! Plague Burst!"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
...it was completely useless against Tae-hyun, who was currently borrowing the power of Idergo's Incarnation!
"Wipe them all out! Bury those Archisus bastards!"
"...Kim Tae-hyun. Just asking to be sure, but you haven't forgotten your actual class, have you?"
The Black Rock Guild members whispered to each other as they watched Tae-hyun shouting like a villain. ...He hasn't really forgotten his own class, has he?!