I'll Tear That Bastard to Shreds!
"I'll tear that bastard to shreds!"
The Archbishop of the Salavian Church glared at Tae-hyun with murderous intent. It was always the bystander pretending to mediate who was the most infuriating! Right now, the vampire army they had painstakingly built was being utterly annihilated, and the wide-area magic they had cast over the surrounding land was shattering.
He had no idea why the Avatar of the supposedly dead Sadiq Church had suddenly appeared here, but... first, he had to take it down!
"Fine... I will show you that the power of the great Salavian cannot be violated by a petty, insignificant god like Sadiq!"
The Archbishop gave up on summoning and turned to magic and curses.
Summoning the Soul of Salavian, Vile Blood Curse, Heart Imprint, Weakening Holy Power...
When facing the Sadiq's Avatar, summoning tens of thousands of minor minions was utterly pointless. The Avatar's very existence was a walking wide-area attack. Just brushing past its flames was enough to burn low-to-mid-tier vampires to ashes, preventing them from ever resurrecting, while high-tier vampires were scorched to the point of immobility.
"Beasts, forward!"
Graaaah!
The magical beasts summoned by the Salavian Church charged forward with wild roars. These powerful beasts relied on high HP, HP regeneration, life drain, and various status ailment attacks as their primary weapons.
However, their compatibility with Sadiq's Avatar was absolutely atrocious.
The symbol of the Sadiq Church was fire!
The symbol of the Salavian Church was vampires!
In short, fire targeted every single weakness the vampires possessed. Their ability to die and resurrect was useless before Sadiq's divine flames, and clinging to the Avatar to drain its life was impossible. Various status ailment attacks didn't even register on Sadiq's Avatar.
Poison Breath!
Swoooosh!
The intense heat radiating from Sadiq's Avatar vaporizes the poison in midair!
Sharp Tongue Bind!
Sadiq's Avatar burns the sharp tongue to ashes!
Most of the beasts' attacks were completely neutralized!
Sadiq's Avatar overwhelmed an army of tens of thousands all by itself. The forces of the Salavian Church, which had boasted such a terrifying momentum, began to gradually push back. They tried to widen the distance while dodging the onslaught poured down by Sadiq's Avatar.
The players atop the castle walls could only watch in utter bewilderment.
"Should we... be happy about this?"
"That thing isn't going to come over here after it's done with them, right?"
The sheer majesty of Sadiq's Avatar made it look as though it could breach the walls through raw physical force, regardless of any siege tactics! But for now, it was helping them.
"I didn't know Sadiq was such a powerful denomination."
"They always got beaten up, so I thought they were just scrubs..."
"Sadiq actually seems pretty decent, doesn't it?"
Listening to them from the side, Burford had to hide the tears welling up in his eyes.
"Sniff...!"
"Hey, man. I think that guy is crying."
"You must be seeing things."
Meanwhile, Tae-hyun was closely observing Sadiq's Avatar. It was an ally for now, but it could turn into an enemy at any moment!
He's too strong.
Dominic and the Salavian Church were a formidable force that had managed to throw the Atali Kingdom into chaos. Yet, right now, they were being beaten like dogs before Sadiq's Avatar. Such a massive disparity in strength...
It meant Sadiq's Avatar was incredibly powerful, but at the same time, it meant the power of an Avatar was simply too broken.
When he summoned that sun-like thing earlier, he rested for a moment, didn't he? And the summoning itself was incomplete... There's no way he doesn't have a weakness.
Boss monsters in Pandemonium Online always had a weakness. Sadiq's Avatar was no exception.
Is it a time limit?
Tae-hyun deduced in mere minutes what the Guild Alliance had spent countless hours running around and searching through libraries to find.
The Salavian Church seemed to have reached a similar conclusion, as they were trying to buy time by keeping their distance.
"Hmm..."
In that case, what was the right move now?
Kick them while they're down! Steal the bundle from the drowning man!
"Let's go, Yong-yong!"
- ??
Yong-yong stared at Tae-hyun as if he couldn't understand. Right now, those two forces were happily tearing into each other, but both of them could attack Tae-hyun at any moment. If Tae-hyun loitered around and drew their attention, they might snap out of it and launch a coordinated attack on him.
- Master. That's a bit...
"Don't worry. Those guys will absolutely never join forces!"
- Still, isn't it better to wait? Why go over there now...
Yong-yong's doubts were quickly resolved. Tae-hyun began to shout at the top of his lungs.
"Hear me, soldiers of the Royal Army!"
"!?"
"Do you see the Salavian Church fleeing right now? This is divine retribution! You are being punished for assassinating His Majesty the King and usurping the throne! Look at the Avatar I have brought here!"
Technically, Tae-hyun had brought him. Sadiq's Avatar had come all this way in search of Akisus's power! Of course, the Royal Army interpreted his words differently. To them, it sounded as if Tae-hyun was commanding the very Avatar of Sadiq that was currently crushing the Salavian Church!
"It is not too late! You do not need to become rebels by submitting to Dominic's threats! Cast off his command even now and flee! My fief is always open to you!"
Hearing Tae-hyun's words while dealing with Sadiq's Avatar, Dominic felt his blood boil.
"You... you dog...! Anyone who flees will be executed!"
However, Dominic failed to stop Tae-hyun.
• You have successfully persuaded the Royal Army!
• Your Speech skill has increased significantly!
• Your Reputation has increased significantly.
• The morale of the Royal Army led by Dominic has plummeted to the absolute minimum!
• The rebellion rate of the Royal Army led by Dominic has reached the maximum!
• The Royal Army has revolted!
• You have acquired the Title: Likely Successor to the Throne.
• Rumors are spreading among the nobility!
It worked!
The Royal Army soldiers stationed near the Salavian Church began to collapse like a house of cards. They scattered in small groups!
"Why the hell would we fight under a rebel!"
"Exactly! His Majesty the King would never associate with sinister vampires like those!"
"The true successor of the kingdom is Count Kim Tae-hyun, the hero of the kingdom!"
"I'm going to join Count Kim Tae-hyun!"
Some fled the battlefield entirely, while others ran toward Tae-hyun's territory waving white flags.
• Five elite soldiers of the Royal Army have been added to your territory!
• Seven elite soldiers of the Royal Army have been added to your territory...
Dominic wanted to attack the deserting Royal Army in his rage, but he couldn't.
- Where... do you think you are going! Are you ignoring me!
"You absolute son of a bitch!"
Sadiq's Avatar blocked his path at every turn! Dominic spat out curses as he watched the Avatar scatter the beasts trying to launch an attack, utterly shattering their formation.
"You shameless bastard! Your church was destroyed by that guy, yet you're helping him!"
Of course, Dominic was the one who had insulted Sadiq's Avatar and struck first, but that didn't matter to him right now. Dominic was just that desperate.
- The church... has not fallen... remnants of Salavian... I will kill you first...
"Your church is dead!"
- No... we are merely hiding, waiting for our time... That is why you cannot see us...
"Hiding my ass... they've all gone to the afterlife! Your church is ruined! Do you not even know that?!"
Tae-hyun muttered as he watched from afar.
Does that guy not know how to persuade anyone?
In a situation where he needed to soothe the Avatar, Dominic was doing nothing but provoking it.
However, Dominic also had a plan.
"Look at reality! The reason your church fell is because of that guy in that territory! Can you not feel it? The power of Akisus!"
He was trying to provoke the Avatar's rage to direct it toward destroying Tae-hyun's territory!
"Wow, Dominic. Aren't you being a bit too pathetic? You were mocking Sadiq earlier, and now you're trying to hold hands with him?"
Tae-hyun sneered, but Dominic ignored him and continued.
"Accept reality, Avatar of Sadiq! Direct that power over there!"
"No, it isn't!!!"
"??"
Just then, someone climbed up onto the castle wall. It was Burford.
"The Sadiq Church has not fallen! It is alive right here!"
"What kind of bullsh—"
Whoooosh!
Flames erupted atop the castle wall. It was Sadiq's Flame.
- Ohhh...!
Sadiq's Avatar brightened up upon seeing it.
- Behold... My church has not fallen!
"H-how can this..."
Dominic was dumbfounded. Why on earth was a member of the Sadiq Church in Tae-hyun's territory?
Burford shouted with all his heart.
"Lord Sadiq!! Show them the power of Sadiq! Show them how magnificent the Sadiq Church truly is!!"
Ever since they had ambitiously revealed themselves during the King's assassination incident, the Sadiq Church had suffered nothing but humiliation. A quick search on the community boards would yield nothing but mockery.
But Burford couldn't give up. Not after all the suffering he had gone through! Please, just show them something for once!
Your sincerity has deeply moved the Avatar of Sadiq.
Sadiq's Avatar unleashes an explosion of power!
- Ohhh... Ohhhhh! Ohhhhhhhhh!
"Uh..."
"W-wait a minute."
Both Dominic and Tae-hyun were taken aback. What was wrong with him?
- M-Master. I think we need to run...
"Run!"
- Understood!
Yong-yong flew up with all his might. The way Sadiq's Avatar was swelling and burning was incredibly ominous.
Sadiq's Avatar activates Sadiq's Wrath!
Flames and lava boil over!!
Fwooooosh!
Crackle!
An immense amount of fire and lava began to spew out, centered around Sadiq's Avatar. It was powerful enough to completely blanket the nearby plains!
In that devastating wake, the remaining forces of the Salavian Church, which had been trying to keep their distance, began to be swept away. Low-tier vampires and below were utterly wiped out, and even the giant beasts collapsed with mournful cries the moment they were struck directly.
It was several times more threatening than when Tae-hyun had detonated the breath of the Fire Magic Beast in the past.
"Your Highness! You must escape!"
"What are you talking about! Are you telling me to run away from these insects! Hold on just a little longer! No matter how powerful an Avatar is, it cannot keep using this much strength! Once this is over, he will collapse!"
"But we cannot remain here right now. Look over there!"
The members of the Salavian Church dragged Dominic away by force and began to retreat. The area around Sadiq's Avatar was so hot it felt as if everything would melt. Staying here was suicide!
• The Salavian Church has begun to flee.
• You have won the siege war!
• You have received Experience Points as a reward.
• Level Up...
• You have acquired Contribution Points.
• Item...
"Waaaaaaaah!"
The players who saw the message window erupted into cheers. The situation was a bit baffling, but they had won nonetheless!
Of course, Tae-hyun did not level up.
Tsk.
Meanwhile, Sadiq's Avatar swept away every last remaining vampire. Then, it glanced up at the castle wall.
"Uh... we don't have to fight that thing, do we?"
"N-no way. Surely not."
The players began to murmur anxiously. They had been confident in dealing with the Salavian Church earlier, but Sadiq's Avatar was honestly terrifying. The castle walls felt completely meaningless before it.
Thud, thud—
"!"
However, Sadiq's Avatar did not attack. Instead, it turned and began to run away, widening the distance.
"Are... are we going to catch it?" Cain asked fearfully.
"No. Let's leave it be for now."
Tae-hyun, who had been contemplating whether to hunt it, ultimately gave up. He already had too many enemies; picking a fight with Sadiq's Avatar right now was far too risky. One thing at a time. First, the Salavian Church!
There would be other opportunities for Sadiq's Avatar. Besides, it had used up a massive amount of power, so it probably wouldn't be able to show its face for a while...
"Ah."
"?"
"Ed-an. Go tail that guy. We need to keep track of his location."
"Aigoo, Lord Tae-hyun! I don't even have arms right now... sob. If I get caught, I might die like a bug!"
Ed-an pleaded, squeezing out fake tears.
True, he doesn't have arms right now, so maybe that's a bit much?
As Tae-hyun pondered, his eyes locked onto someone.
It was Burford.