A Clash of Demigods

The paladins waiting in front of the fortress's main gate answered reflexively, only to freeze in panic. The command had been so natural that a loud "Yes, sir!" had slipped out of their mouths before they ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠could think.

But these men were the elite, handpicked from their respective orders. No matter if Tae-hyun was the master of this fortress and the commander-in-chief of the expedition, a bishop from their own order had to personally deliver the command for them to charge.

"Our Bishop must come and deliver the order himself, sir."

"Hey! I'm practically best buddies with your god, you punk! Huh? I've been chosen by him! I've done his quests! I've received his Authority! I've done it all! Are you seriously disrespecting someone handpicked by your own deity right now?"

Tae-hyun ruthlessly shut down the protesting high-ranking paladins of the Phytos Church by throwing his sheer list of achievements in their faces.

He had been chosen by Phytos, he had completed quests related to Phytos, and he had stolen—cough, received—Phytos's Authority... Technically, he wasn't lying!

In the end, the paladins had no choice but to yield. To be frank, Tae-hyun's authority was absurdly high, and they had received far too much from him through various quests.

At this rate, I'll probably be able to order around just about any NPC below the Advanced tier I run into on the street.

He felt a surging confidence that he could squeeze every single religious order scattered across the kingdoms of the Central Continent dry!

Tae-hyun made his rounds, systematically absorbing every single paladin unit stationed outside the fortress under his direct command.

The preparations are complete.

The basic three-buff package. On top of that, he planned to unleash an Authority. An Authority that massively boosted HP, HP recovery, physical defense, and magic defense for a set duration!

Cast first, explain later.

If he asked for permission first, the paladins would undoubtedly object, so his plan was to force the buff on them first. Even if their affinity dropped a bit, it couldn't be helped!

Once I slap this four-buff package on the paladins and charge, I'll hurl the flame vortex right into the enemy lines.

The flame vortex, imbued with the powers of Sadiq and Archisus, was incredibly difficult to control, but its sheer destructive power was guaranteed. After that, it would devolve into a chaotic, all-out brawl. Though powerful support would eventually pour out from the fortress behind them, they ultimately had to pave their own way!

I have to be prepared to throw everything I have at them, starting with the Archisus Swordsmanship.

Tae-hyun finished all his preparations and glared ahead. Uipoatl and Nevuchadnezzar were locked in a frenzied clash. It looked like a battle straight out of the age of myths.

"You insignificant Lich! Kneel before me!"

Uipoatl swung his spear wildly, sweeping away the summoned undead. He was right in front of Nevuchadnezzar. This was where Nevuchadnezzar's domain was at its absolute strongest, and the undead poured forth and resurrected in a mad frenzy.

The sheer volume of the undead was terrifying; dozens, even hundreds, spawned from all directions every single second. And these weren't mere trash mobs—every single one of them was an elite!

Yet, as if boasting of his supreme power, Uipoatl continued to press forward without taking a single scratch. His imperial guard let out roaring battle cries as they pulverized the undead alongside him.

"Show yourself, arrogant fool!" ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠*CRASH!* Another strike connected. The black sphere enveloping Nevuchadnezzar shuddered violently once more. *Rumble!*

"!" "He's exposed!" "Are we going now? Do we charge??" Cain asked, but Tae-hyun shook his head.

"Let's watch a bit longer."

Seeing Nevuchadnezzar reveal himself, Uipoatl's momentum surged. But that was a grave mistake born of underestimating the ancient Lich.

"Submit before the God of Death!"

"You walking corpse! You are the one who should kneel!"

Nevuchadnezzar pointed a bony finger at Uipoatl. Instantly, a pitch-black curse writhed to life, and the aura of death began to overflow wildly in all directions.

Whoa. That's chilling. Tae-hyun felt goosebumps break out across his skin. For a player like him, that kind of attack was incredibly dangerous. An area-of-effect attack combined with an unavoidable curse!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Uipoatl managed to block the curse using a Legendary-grade accessory and attempted to charge, but his nearby subordinates shrieked as they melted into puddles of black sludge.

*SHWIIIP!* The spear thrown by Uipoatl flew straight toward Nevuchadnezzar. *CLUTCH!* Nevuchadnezzar caught the spear out of midair and hurled it right back at Uipoatl.

"!!" Horrified, Uipoatl twisted his body. The chariot he was riding shattered into splinters, sending debris flying. Uipoatl leaped off and landed on the ground. The attack must have grazed him, as his skeletal left flank was completely shattered.

He's not regenerating. Tae-hyun closely observed Uipoatl's condition. An incomplete resurrection! He had wondered what kind of penalty that state carried, and now he had his answer. Uipoatl was unable to heal his wounds.

I see...! While everyone watched ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠with bated breath, Tae-hyun was busy formulating a plan in his head. When and how should they strike?

"By the way, why is Nevuchadnezzar fighting in close combat too?"

"Because Lord Nevuchadnezzar is so magnificent, surely he excels at close combat as well."

"Chesia... you're on our side, right?" Tae-hyun glared at Chesia in disbelief. Is this bastard serious right now...?

But Chesia wasn't wrong. As if proving he wasn't called a demigod for nothing, Nevuchadnezzar was demonstrating exactly why he was so feared. He didn't care in the slightest about his restricted movement penalty!

Nevuchadnezzar resumed his bombardment. Once he dropped the defensive barrier surrounding him, his attacks grew exponentially more ferocious. A sticky, black aura of death blanketed the area, and bolts of black lightning rained down, thrashing Uipoatl.

Uipoatl managed to endure the onslaught through the power of his accessories and armor as he charged, but he was clearly being pushed back. His imperial guards were falling one by one.

"Alright! We go now!"

"What?!" The paladins gasped in shock. They had expected him to wait a bit longer.

"If we let this go on, Uipoatl is going to die." Without waiting for a reply, Tae-hyun activated his skills.

"Anyone who wants to follow me, fall in! I'm not guaranteeing your survival, so look out for your own lives!"

"...Waaaaah!" What Tae-hyun said was far from a typical persuasive speech. Usually, before a massive quest like this, a leader would say something like, 'Everyone! Please follow me! This isn't dangerous at all! This is basically a free quest!' But Tae-hyun took the exact opposite approach. I'm not taking responsibility! If you want to follow, that's on you!

"I-I'm going too!" "If I don't join now, I'll regret it for the rest of my life!" Yet, to the players gathered at the fortress, this reverse psychology worked wonders.

They had witnessed spectacular battles while defending the fortress, and now Tae-hyun stood ready, leading an entire army of paladins. Who in their right mind would miss out on being part of a legendary spectacle they might never see again in their lifetimes?

Death penalty? Who cared! Thinking rationally, it might have been wiser to play it safe, but humans weren't inherently rational creatures. Sometimes, raw emotion took over! And this was exactly one of those moments.

Even the rankers in the fortress fell in behind Tae-hyun as if possessed. It was time to charge! Every single stream broadcast exploded with excitement.

Thud-thud-thud-thud—

Summoning the flame vortex was a gamble even for Tae-hyun. The fact that it completely drained his MP and prevented it from recovering for a while was a critical drawback.

Demer's Time Reversal! Tae-hyun unleashed the Authorities he had been hoarding without hesitation. The boss monster before him was well worth the cost!

My cooldowns have reset, so I can do it one more time. As soon as his Archisus-related buffs expired, he would cast them again. And he would stack the Salabian buffs once more!

The paladins were high-level NPCs, averaging level 500 to 600. With Tae-hyun's buffs, they were formidable powerhouses capable of holding their ground even against Nevuchadnezzar.

*ROOOOOAR!* "W-What on earth is that?!" The players gasped in sheer astonishment as a massive flame vortex erupted right in the middle of Nevuchadnezzar's army, incinerating and sweeping away everything in its path. It was a spell of catastrophic proportions, far surpassing even the combined magic of top-tier mage rankers! Had Kim Tae-hyun really summoned that?

Every player watching the stream was utterly dumbfounded. To think he would initiate the charge not with a physical assault, but with a grand-scale spell!

Well, that joy was short-lived. What a sobering construction cost! To build that, Tae-hyun would have to secretly steal and sell one of Kim Tae-san's actual real-life buildings. While there were tricks to reduce construction costs, it didn't look like a slight discount would make much of a difference here...

I'm looking. Don't worry.

"Master! Watch out!" Yong-yong spat out bolts of lightning as he flew with Tae-hyun on his back. To both Carbanog and Yong-yong, Tae-hyun was a man with a death wish. How could he be daydreaming when Death Knights were thrusting their spears straight at him!

Archisus's First Strike! With his buffs fully stacked, all he had to do was let his attacks explode. Tae-hyun shifted his weight atop Yong-yong and swung his sword. A Death Knight's spear grazed past him by a hair's breadth, and in the same breath, Tae-hyun's blade pierced straight through the knight's helmet.

"Waaaaah!" "Kim Tae-hyun! Kim Tae-hyun! Kim Tae-hyun!" Seeing Tae-hyun part the enemy lines like a wave at the very front, the players went wild. We might be witnessing the strongest player in PanOn right now!

Even Lee Se-yeon watched, completely spellbound.

"Sis! Sis! Snap out of it! He's going to be our enemy eventually!" "B-But not right now." "After how much of a pushover you were to him in PanOn 1?!" Kim Hyeon-ah practically had to slap Lee Se-yeon's cheeks to bring her back to reality!

The combined might of Tae-hyun and the paladins was terrifying. The undead army, despite being buffed by Nevuchadnezzar, melted away. And far ahead of them, the flame vortex was still tearing through the battlefield.