Chapter 75
Chapter 75
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 75
Chapter Title: Welcome Ceremony (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Drakans and Dragonians were few in number but possessed intelligence on par with humans, and their combat prowess was ranker-grade as well.
'The average level is around 800 to 900. Pretty high.'
Drakans and Dragonians excelled in both close-quarters and ranged combat.
Like Song Hana's magic swordsman type?
'If I had to differentiate, Drakans are closer to warriors, and Dragonians to mages.'
In particular, since Drakans and Dragonians served as commanders for the dragonkin monsters, they had to be eliminated first.
'The most annoying ones when taking down Demon Dragon Karas were the Drakans and Dragonians.'
Before his regression, the number of Drakans and Dragonians that emerged from the dimensional gate totaled just over a hundred.
Yet the Mulan Kingdom suffered incalculable damage from that mere slightly over a hundred monsters.
'What if we pick off the Drakans and Dragonians one by one?'
Taking down Demon Dragon Karas would be much easier.
'Then we won't suffer the severe losses like before the regression.'
One problem, though.
'It won't be easy.'
He couldn't be certain the plan would succeed.
Over a hundred ranker-grade monsters.
Even combining Blade King, Knight of Flames, Sword Ghost, One-Kill Fist, Magic Knight, Zhonghua 1 and 2, and Kabal 1 through 7 only gave fourteen in total.
Even with Kang Hyun-soo, Song Hana, and Earth Emperor lending their strength.
It was seventeen against a hundred.
There were other summons that weren't named player-grade or ranker-grade.
But expecting more than cannon fodder from them was unrealistic.
Plus, the Drakans and Dragonians would surely bring hordes of upper dragonkin and fight together.
'Can we handle it?'
Kang Hyun-soo briefly entertained the thought, then chuckled.
'We have to.'
He had to make it happen.
Only then could they reduce the damage to the Mulan Kingdom and save the players who would otherwise die pointless deaths.
'We've prepared thoroughly.'
If things went according to plan?
It was entirely doable.
The battle proceeded smoothly.
The number of summons under Kang Hyun-soo steadily increased.
Their quality improved too.
Low-level summons were vanishing, replaced by higher-level upper dragonkin.
In contrast, the upper dragonkin pouring from the dimensional gate met death one after another, only to be reborn as Kang Hyun-soo's summons.
When Kang Hyun-soo's summons reached 1,900 in number.
The Drakans and Dragonians finally appeared.
-What is this?
-Did the humans know we were coming?
The Drakans and Dragonians sensed the anomaly the moment they crossed the dimensional gate.
Normally, tens of thousands of upper, mid, and lower dragonkin should have been lined up calmly, awaiting their orders.
But now, there were no mid or lower dragonkin in sight at all, and only a few hundred upper dragonkin were putting up a desperate resistance.
That wasn't the end of it.
-What is that?
-Why have Kabble and Bake turned into that?
Kang Hyun-soo's summon unit, based on dragonkin, was attacking the dragonkin.
To humans, dragonkin monsters all looked the same.
Aside from scale color differences, they were indistinguishable.
But to fellow dragonkin like the Drakans and Dragonians, they didn't look alike at all.
They appeared as distinctly different species.
Especially the drake pack leader Kabble and basilisk pack leader Bake—they were impossible to miss.
They had met frequently, receiving orders from the Drakans and Dragonians.
And their sizes set them apart from regular drakes or basilisks.
Yet those very ones were attacking their own kin.
-Those aren't Kabble and Bake.
-Indeed.
-They're made of mana.
-No life force from the living.
-They feel like artificially created golems.
The Drakans and Dragonians quickly grasped the situation.
Truth be told, they wanted to turn back and report this to their lord, Demon Dragon Karas.
But the dimensional gate was set to one-way only, in preparation for counterattacks and scouting from the Atlantis dimension's players, so return was impossible.
That left only one option.
Gather their strength and eliminate whoever was responsible for turning their upper, mid, and lower dragonkin subordinates into this state.
But the Drakans and Dragonians didn't even need to step up.
Why?
Because the culprit who had done this to their subordinates came charging at them first.
Kang Hyun-soo led Song Hana, Earth Emperor, Blade King, Knight of Flames, Sword Ghost, One-Kill Fist, Magic Knight, Zhonghua 1 and 2, and Kabal 1 through 7 straight at the Drakans and Dragonians.
-How dare you!
-A mere human challenging our dragonkin?
-We're on a different level from upper dragonkin.
The Drakans and Dragonians flew into a rage.
As top-tier dragonkin, they were immensely prideful and deeply proud of their Drakan and Dragonian lineage.
'Fools.'
Kang Hyun-soo chuckled at the furious Drakans and Dragonians.
'When they should be running for their lives right now.'
What Kang Hyun-soo had feared most was all hundred-plus Drakans and Dragonians pouring out at once.
Fortunately, only twenty had appeared.
The rest?
Filled by upper dragonkin like drakes and basilisks.
This situation.
Was a perfectly laid-out feast for Kang Hyun-soo.
Kwaaaaang!
Kang Hyun-soo's group clashed head-on with the Drakans and Dragonians.
A fierce battle erupted.
-Kyaak!
The Drakans' bodies were tough.
But they couldn't block the sickly gray aura coating Blade King's blade.
-Die, human!
The Dragonians' ranged attack skills were fast and destructive.
However.
Kwaaang!
They lacked the firepower to shatter Knight of Flames' sturdy frame.
-Kwakwakwakwa!
The Drakans and Dragonians even spat breath from their mouths.
Swish!
Sword Ghost effortlessly dodged the breath and swung his sword.
Blade King, Knight of Flames, and Sword Ghost—made from named players as bases, appointed as brigade commanders by Kang Hyun-soo himself with boosted combat power—were opponents the Drakans and Dragonians couldn't handle.
Kang Hyun-soo's group overwhelmed them with sheer firepower.
But the Drakans and Dragonians didn't go down easily.
The Drakans formed a defensive line leveraging their sturdy bodies, while the Dragonians unleashed close and ranged attacks, cast heals and buffs to support the Drakans.
Not content with that, they mobilized the upper dragonkin that had crossed with them, resisting fiercely.
Truth be told, not all monsters were equal.
The intelligent Drakans and Dragonians were leagues above mindless ones.
Dragonkin monsters, even at the same level, boasted superior physical abilities and special skills compared to humanoid or beast-type monsters.
And the pinnacle of dragonkin, the top-tier Drakans and Dragonians?
They possessed combat power rivaling ranker players, as evident now.
-Hold the line! Hold, and our comrades will come!
-Conserve your strength as much as possible!
-Fight for our lord Karas!
The Drakans and Dragonians' resistance was truly valiant.
Even with horns and wings severed, or limbs blown off, they never lost their will to fight.
In fact, the gravely wounded ones rampaged even more ferociously, determined to take Kang Hyun-soo's group down with them.
'Impressive.'
As expected of Drakans and Dragonians.
Exceptional combat prowess, unyielding spirit, the intelligence to cooperate, and unwavering loyalty to their lord.
Everything was to Kang Hyun-soo's liking.
"Form legions."
At Kang Hyun-soo's command.
Shaaa!
The three Drakans and one Dragonian that had just fallen revived as Kang Hyun-soo's summons.
The revived three Drakans and one Dragonian knelt before Kang Hyun-soo and bowed their heads.
'Good.'
Kang Hyun-soo appointed the three Drakans and one Dragonian as battalion commanders.
"Turn those guys into your comrades."
-Yes, sir!
The three Drakans and one Dragonian rose with a curt reply to Kang Hyun-soo's order.
-Kyaaaaang!
And charged at their former comrades, who they had been fighting alongside moments ago.
-This can't be?
-How can you attack us?
-Aren't you afraid of our lord Karas's wrath?!
The Drakans and Dragonians, who hadn't lost their spirit until then, were dealt a massive shock at seeing their comrades revived as enemies.
The fear that they might suffer the same fate.
-Kyaak!
-Kraaak!
The number of desperately resisting Drakans and Dragonians dwindled.
Their morale had plummeted from fear.
But with Kang Hyun-soo's side growing in numbers while theirs shrank, they could no longer hold.
-Keurk!
With the death of the last resisting Dragonian.
All twenty Drakans and Dragonians were annihilated, then reborn as Kang Hyun-soo's summons.
'Good.'
A satisfied smile spread across Kang Hyun-soo's lips.
He had wiped out 20% of the enemy forces without a single casualty.
'They'll probably keep coming in groups of twenty.'
His biggest worry had been all hundred-plus Drakans and Dragonians emerging at once.
That worry was now gone.
So?
There was nothing left to fear.
Kang Hyun-soo's group smashed every new batch of upper dragonkin that appeared.
Then.
-What is this?
-Why are humans here?
Exactly twenty more Drakans and Dragonians appeared.
"Kill them."
At Kang Hyun-soo's command, his summons charged.
-Frasdu, Makiaro, why are you...?
-Kraaak!
The new twenty Drakans and Dragonians fell even faster than the first group.
'My stats are starting to lag.'
Kang Hyun-soo realized his stockpiled stats had bottomed out.
If not for the mass level grinding from dragonkin monsters, they would have run dry even sooner.
'Skill Reinforcement.'
Kang Hyun-soo used Skill Reinforcement to return to full strength.
'Good thing the cooldown's shorter.'
Over the past year, the ranks of Kang Hyun-soo's skills had grown.
As a result, Skill Reinforcement had reached B-Rank, reducing its cooldown to seven days.
'Time for some power leveling.'
His level had reset to 0 again.
But the monsters ahead were upper dragonkin at 600 to 900 levels and top-tier ones.
'I can hit 400 in no time.'
With luck, even 500 was feasible.
Kang Hyun-soo power-leveled by hunting the upper dragonkin pouring from the gate.
How much time passed?
-What in the world?
-Why are humans here?
New Drakans and Dragonians appeared.
Exactly twenty, once more.
'Jackpot. Thanks, Karas.'
Kang Hyun-soo sent a mental thank-you to Demon Dragon Karas.
Packing his subordinates in neat batches of twenty for easy consumption.
From Kang Hyun-soo's perspective, he was growing so fond of Demon Dragon Karas he could die.
And that wasn't all.
Sending upper dragonkin non-stop for level-ups and stat recovery?
Thanks to that.
Kang Hyun-soo, who had been at 0, soon hit level 200, securing 2,000 stats.
It was the ultimate jackpot for him.
'Thank you so much, Karas. I'll repay this favor for sure.'
Kang Hyun-soo couldn't contain his gratitude toward Demon Dragon Karas.
So he resolved.
To definitely turn him into a summon.
'And I'll pamper you the most.'
To repay this favor for life.