Chapter 113
Chapter 113
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 113
Chapter Title: Gorgeous Staging (2)
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'Still the same.'
Kang Hyun-soo knew exactly what kind of personality Sword King Jang Seok-won had.
That was why.
'I deliberately provoked him just enough.'
The Balhae Guild was one of the three great guilds of the Terra Kingdom.
Naturally, they had strong pride in themselves.
'And they have the skills to back it up.'
However, from Kang Hyun-soo's perspective, who needed to root out the doppelgangers within the Balhae Guild and eliminate Hwang So-uk and Shin So-hee, that strong pride was nothing but.
'An obstacle.'
So, he needed to temper that pride just a bit.
"You're a bit hot-tempered, aren't you?"
As Kang Hyun-soo calmly tightened his grip.
Crackle! Crackle!
The sword-blue aura warped.
Crack!
And vanished completely.
"I prefer talking things out over physical conversations."
A thick killing intent emanated from Kang Hyun-soo's entire body.
"But it seems the Balhae Guild prefers otherwise?"
Explosive mana poured out.
"So, shall we have the physical conversation the Balhae Guild wants from now on?"
At Kang Hyun-soo's words, Sword King Jang Seok-won and the Balhae Guild executives turned pale.
"Ah, no."
"We like talking things out too."
"Please calm down a bit."
Just moments ago, the Balhae Guild executives had looked at Kang Hyun-soo like he was a chicken or a duck, half-ignoring him.
They had some curiosity about the name Dark Knight.
But showing such arrogance in the guild house of the great Balhae Guild, oblivious to the world's dangers.
And daring to talk back to Sword King Jang Seok-won, the guild master of the great Balhae Guild, as if on equal footing.
That was why they had judged Kang Hyun-soo to be nothing more than an ignorant pup who didn't know fear.
However.
The moment they realized that they, not Kang Hyun-soo, were the ignorant pups who didn't know fear.
The Balhae Guild executives fidgeted like mice before a cat and prostrated themselves flat before Kang Hyun-soo.
And that went for.
"I have committed a grave discourtesy. Please grant us your vast magnanimity and forgive us generously."
Sword King Jang Seok-won, the guild master of the Balhae Guild, as well.
'I knew it would turn out like this.'
A satisfied smile crept across Kang Hyun-soo's lips.
The Atlantis Dimension was a world where the law of the jungle and rule of the strong took precedence over laws and rules.
Absolute power.
'Was prioritized above all else.'
The appropriate show had been worth it.
'Sword King Jang Seok-won is strong, no doubt. Forcing him to use three EX-Rank defense skills in that short time.'
If Kang Hyun-soo coldly assessed his own strength, it was definitely above Sword King Jang Seok-won's.
But it wasn't to the level where he could dispel the Sword King's full-power aura with bare hands.
However.
'Using the Guardian Ring makes this kind of staging possible.'
The now EX-Rank Guardian Ring stored a total of ten EX-Rank defense skills.
'The cooldowns are pretty long, though.'
What if he chained those EX-Rank defense skills?
'It’s practically the same as being invincible.'
Of course, the efficiency was much lower.
If he hadn't gone for the bare-handed aura grab staging.
He wouldn't have needed to use three EX-Rank defense skills.
'But sometimes, you need a show like this.'
The explosive mana increase was.
A form of staging as well.
He had dumped all his undistributed stats from his recent level-up into mana instead of strength.
'It's a huge loss considering the efficiency of the Herculean Strength skill.'
Still, thanks to that.
"Please forgive us with your broad heart!"
He had created the spectacle of Sword King Jang Seok-won, the Balhae Guild master, and all the executives bowing their heads before him.
'It’s not really a loss anyway.'
The EX-Rank skills stored in the Guardian Ring would just recharge after their cooldowns.
The undistributed stats poured into mana?
For Kang Hyun-soo, who could achieve infinite level-ups through skill enhancements.
They were just resources he could recover anytime.
'Well, lately I've been dumping everything into strength because of Herculean Strength, so my remaining stats were too skewed toward it. Needed some balancing anyway.'
Balance across stats was more important than maxing out just strength.
So even without this staging, he would have needed to invest in mana and other stats eventually.
He had just done it a little early.
"I forgive you."
"Thank you."
The Balhae Guild master Sword King Jang Seok-won and the executives moved with the crisp discipline of fresh recruits.
The reason was simple.
'How can he be this strong!'
'Dispelling the guild master's aura with his bare hands? Is this even possible in reality?'
'Even a divine-titled player couldn't show that kind of might.'
'He’s at a level where calling him the strongest in the entire Atlantis Dimension wouldn’t be an overstatement.'
They were massively overestimating Kang Hyun-soo's strength.
It had been worth it to毫不 hesitate in burning through the Guardian Ring's EX-Rank defense skills.
And using vampiric aura adapted to absorb mana to dispel Sword King Jang Seok-won's aura.
Of course, if anyone else had tried this.
'It would have been exposed immediately.'
Flawless chained skill activations.
Precise mana control.
The experience of having stood at the pinnacle before his regression.
If anyone other than Kang Hyun-soo had pulled this stunt?
Even with higher stats and more EX-Rank defense skills.
His finger would have been sliced off by Sword King Jang Seok-won's sword.
Or a massive explosion from the clash of defense skill and aura.
"Our Dark Knight moves with the goals of protecting the Atlantis Dimension, ensuring humanity's prosperity, and the return of players from other dimensions."
"What a noble cause."
"You’re practically humanity’s guardian deity."
"Our Balhae Guild wishes to join Dark Knight in your lofty endeavors."
At Kang Hyun-soo's single word.
Flattery poured in from all sides.
"We recently foresaw the invasion of the demon race doppelgangers and came to the Terra Kingdom to stop it. So, I want the Balhae Guild's full cooperation. What is the Balhae Guild's official stance?"
"We will fully cooperate with Dark Knight."
Sword King Jang Seok-won, the Balhae Guild master, replied with a polite demeanor.
In truth, Sword King Jang Seok-won had no choice.
It was the word of an immeasurably powerful being who had dispelled his aura like snapping a child's wrist.
'Clashing with Dark Knight would mean massive losses.'
No, the Balhae Guild might even be annihilated.
'For the guild's survival, we must bow now.'
That was the decision Sword King Jang Seok-won, as Balhae Guild master, had reached.
"Now, step forward as I call your names. Jin Cheol-ho, Jeong Eun-ho...."
Names of executives poured from Kang Hyun-soo's mouth.
The called executives exchanged panicked glances.
Thud!
They shoved aside the other nearby executives.
Crash!
And shattered the conference room windows to attempt escape.
"Catch them!"
Only then did Balhae Guild master Sword King Jang Seok-won grasp the situation, leaping forward himself and ordering the other guild members.
However.
Boom!
With a massive explosion, the executives who had broken through the windows to flee.
"Ugh!"
"Argh!"
Returned through the broken windows in battered states, tumbling onto the conference room floor.
Step step.
Through the shattered window, ten fully armed players appeared.
And the aura and mana emanating from those ten players were anything but ordinary.
'What the hell?'
'All named players for sure.'
'Ten named players—why are they at our Balhae Guild?'
'Allies or enemies?'
The Balhae Guild executives looked confused, not knowing what to do.
'They’re on my level.'
Sword King Jang Seok-won gripped his sword, tensing his muscles throughout his body.
At that moment.
Snap!
The ten players knelt in unison before Kang Hyun-soo.
"We’ve subdued all the fleeing doppelgangers, my lord."
"No need to capture them alive from now on. Execute any doppelganger that resists or flees on the spot."
"Yes, sir!"
The ten players rose politely and took positions by the broken windows and doors.
'They’re all Dark Knight?'
'I heard most of their main force was wiped out in the Demon Dragon Karas raid.'
'That was just the tip of the iceberg?'
'How vast an organization is this, to have so many ranker and named-level powerhouses?'
'These can’t be all of them.'
The Balhae Guild executives were thoroughly intimidated by Dark Knight's immense power.
Sword King Jang Seok-won, the guild master, was just as shaken.
From the start, the existence of a powerhouse like Kang Hyun-soo was hard to believe.
But to have ten more on his level as well?
'If their patience had been even a little thinner, the Balhae Guild might have been destroyed today. I was arrogant.'
Sword King Jang Seok-won had thought himself and the Balhae Guild were the strong ones.
That was why, when they didn't follow his orders, he had issued an expulsion order to Kang Hyun-soo, his benefactor, and drawn his sword.
But no.
The strong ones were Kang Hyun-soo and Dark Knight.
He was the weak one.
A weakling giving orders to and ignoring the strong?
In the power-dominated Atlantis Dimension, it was a capital crime deserving decapitation with no room for argument.
And those who fled.
'Doppelgangers for sure.'
Yet he had boasted that the Balhae Guild would handle its own affairs.
'And failed to respond properly to the doppelgangers' escape.'
From Dark Knight's perspective, they might misunderstand the Balhae Guild as shielding or siding with the doppelgangers.
'I should be grateful they walk the righteous path.'
Otherwise?
The Balhae Guild house would have been dyed red with blood today.
Sword King Jang Seok-won now felt not just fear, but awe, toward the organization called Dark Knight.
"Well, still need to test them. Will you help?"
At Kang Hyun-soo's question.
"Yes, I’ll assist!"
Sword King Jang Seok-won answered vigorously, then.
Following Kang Hyun-soo's instructions, he verified the identities of the Balhae Guild executives who had failed to escape via silver coins.
'Now they’re finally behaving.'
Before his regression.
Until just before his death, Sword King Jang Seok-won had held an absolute position as Balhae Guild master.
As an ordinary guild member and mid-level player, even hearing a word of thanks from him had been a great honor for Kang Hyun-soo.
Yet now, that Sword King Jang Seok-won.
Moved like an obedient dog at Kang Hyun-soo's every word.
'It’s satisfying, but.'
It felt oddly strange.
'Well, this is how it should be.'
Sword King Jang Seok-won wasn’t just a brute with raw power.
He was a cunning fox who had maxed out intelligence and political skills.
If he hadn’t gotten caught in the doppelganger conflicts and died, but continued leading the Balhae Guild?
'He would have been a huge help in the all-out war against the Demon King's army later.'
Given that he currently held the Sword King title.
If he had survived and kept growing?
'He’d at least maintain the Sword King title.'
He might even have claimed a divine title.
'Worth mobilizing the battalion commanders.'
Including the provisional ones, that made twelve in total.
Excluding Shadow Queen Cecilia and Demon Dragon Karas, he had mobilized all ten for this show of force.
As a result, Kang Hyun-soo could now command the Balhae Guild master with a single word.
He had completely taken control of the Balhae Guild.