Chapter 170
Chapter 170
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 170
Chapter Title: Racial Grand Alliance (2)
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With the gathering of signed contracts from the eight races, the first objective of the Racial Grand Conference had come to an end.
However, that didn't mean the meeting was over. If anything, the real work was just beginning.
They had agreed to join forces, so now they needed to hammer out the detailed strategy.
"The Ancient Emperor is mine to hunt."
"Heh, you think you can handle that alone? Stick to picking off the small fry, bowman. The real fighting's for warriors like me."
"You dare mock a hunter? Looks like you want to end up as the hunted."
Of course, the discussions weren't going smoothly. These were all High Masters overflowing with confidence in their combat prowess, so bending their pride to cooperate or coordinate attacks was no easy sell. Even allies from the same faction felt the same way.
They all insisted on taking the key roles themselves while telling others to provide support, so there was no progress even after a long while.
The gnome moderator was the one letting out sighs nonstop.
At least there was some silver lining: Rokan was casually brushing off the Arc Lich's constant jabs.
"Talk about a small fry who couldn't even reach High Master dragging us down. The levels just don't match, so nothing gets done. Hey, why don't you just handle the small fry without needing to decide anything?"
"Sounds good. Most of the Red Crusaders are ones I took down anyway. If no one else can do it, I guess I'll have to step up."
The Arc Lich trembled with rage.
Even for a High Master, reducing a legion of a thousand Masters down to just two hundred almost single-handedly—without dying—was no small feat.
Even at the pinnacle of necromancy, it was impossible to say for sure if they could pull it off. The Arc Lich shook because Rokan's taunt hit too close to home.
But bolstered by the belief that they weren't a High Master—and that in a proper fight, they'd never lose—the Arc Lich could only snap back sharply.
"Always going on about High Master this, High Master that. What are you, a parrot? If it's such a big deal, you try it. Only about two hundred left now, so it should be a breeze, right?"
Of course, Rokan wasn't one to just take it lying down.
"Enough, enough!"
Finally, the moderator intervened, unable to bear the endless bickering any longer. At this rate, they wouldn't wrap up today.
"This isn't getting us anywhere by the end of the day. Let's go through it point by point. First, the Red Crusaders. There are just under two hundred left. How do you plan to handle them?"
"There's this show-off who claims he can. He'll take care of it himself."
The Arc Lich again. Rokan shrugged with a cocky grin, but in truth, even he found facing two hundred Red Crusaders at once quite burdensome.
'But it's not impossible.'
That said, there was one condition.
If these others could keep Chrono and the Red Guard tied up long enough. If he could focus solely on the Red Crusaders without interference, he was confident he could manage.
One of the greatest advantages of Gale Incarnation was its infinite mana, after all. Spam combination skills relentlessly, and there was nothing at their level he couldn't handle or fear.
"That could work, but I don't think we need to make it that hard. If everyone here pitches in a little, couldn't we wipe out the Red Crusaders first, then deal with the Ancient Emperor and High Masters separately?"
But there was no need for that. If the High Masters unleashed their Master skills, they could thin out the Red Crusaders without needing a grueling 200-to-1 battle—leaving just Chrono and the High Masters.
After all, each of them could handle dozens of Masters solo, let alone 200-to-1.
The Arc Lich shut up, clearly displeased, but surprisingly, the troll representative backed the idea.
"I agree. Pushing against foes who can resist is foolish. Slowly strangling the life out of prey is hunting 101."
The disciple of a legendary troll hunter, was it? He stuck faithfully to the basics.
Seeming to have no intention of pushing Rokan now that they were teamed up, he agreed to clear the Red Crusaders first.
"Sounds good to me."
"Master-level foes? This'll be a proper brawl."
Led by the troll, the half-elf, orc, dwarf, and others chimed in with agreement. The rest reluctantly followed suit, and while the undead rep—the Arc Lich—sulked in silence, the decision passed by majority vote.
"Alright, Red Crusaders first. We'll split into those holding back the Ancient Emperor and High Masters, and those clearing the Red Crusaders."
"I'll pin them down."
"I'm fastest at mopping up large groups. I'll take the Red Crusaders."
With the plan set, things moved swiftly. The half-elves, gnomes, orcs, and goblins would tie down the Ancient Emperor and High Masters, while the other four handled the Red Crusaders quickly.
Truth be told, the undead Arc Lich—who wielded necromancy—would've been better at stalling and grabbing ankles than the orcs, but they refused to team up with the half-elves and joined the Red Crusader cleanup instead.
After that, it was simple. Wait together for Master skill cooldowns to reset, then clash head-on.
They were outnumbered 8-to-11, but they were confident. Unlike the ancient relics, their thinking was flexible, and as top-tier from each race, their self-assurance overflowed.
Plus, some of their abilities could handle two foes at once or mark one easily, so they figured it'd work out somehow.
'Too complacent.'
Only Rokan refrained from optimism.
Sure, his body's rift had lowered his tier, but Chrono had once reached Grand Master—the absolute realm. Even corrupted and mindless from the power of degeneration, would he really lose to a handful of High Masters?
If things went south, they'd be the ones wiped out.
'Not bad at all.'
And if that happened, humans would profit big time. Unlike them, Rokan could respawn infinitely.
He was even willing to die as many times as needed, so long as he didn't drop his gear.
"Good. Now let's set the timing and location."
Deciding the raid time and place didn't take long either. Each race's intel network tracked the Ancient Emperor's position in real-time, so they just needed a suitable ambush spot and method.
Pooling all their cards openly wasn't feasible, so some coordination was required, but showing off one trick each seemed enough to handle the Red Crusaders.
* * *
"Here they come."
Only eight High Masters faced the Ancient Emperor Chrono, his High Master Red Guard, and just under two hundred Master-level Red Crusaders.
They could have called in more Masters or Experts, but agreed it'd just mean more casualties.
That said, they had adopted one of Rokan's suggestions in preparation.
"Charge! Hold the line even if you die!"
Users. The idea to use them as initial bait to draw eyes had passed, and now every race's users had received a single quest.
[Battlefield Defense][Quest]
Prepare for battlefield defense on the Hamok Plains.
-Success Condition: Hold the zone for 30 minutes
-Success Reward: 1 Rare item (random), massive experience
Simple stuff. The global announcement had informed everyone that all areas were temporarily neutral zones, and regardless of race, uniting to defend a specific zone for 30 minutes earned a Rare item.
Unlike the Red Crusader bounty quests, no picking and choosing—but a Rare in 30 minutes? Pure profit.
No worries about backstabs from enemy camps either, so a massive crowd filled the zone.
Most were scrubs who'd shatter in one hit, sure.
"Ten minutes. We intervene in ten."
"Think those pests can last ten minutes? Not a single Master-level in sight."
"They'll hold."
Rokan, watching them, predicted ten minutes. Users would buy that much time, letting the High Masters and Ancient Emperor waste skills first.
Pushing all-out, they could've swept them in 2-3 minutes flat, but Rokan trusted the users'—especially Korean users'—tenacity.
Hadn't that tenacity already felled dozens of Red Crusaders? With infinite revives, they'd defend the zone no matter what.
Plus, the massive EXP reward would cover a death or two.
"Hmph, taking sides with fellow Visitors, eh? If they botch the plan, it's on you."
The other High Masters looked skeptical but stayed quiet, figuring even if users got steamrolled instantly, wasting a few skills made it worthwhile.
"They're clashing."
Moments later, the fight erupted.
"Don't pull aggro, DPS! If you get it, don't fight—just run!"
"Holding out is winning! Focus on defense and buffs only!"
"Push! Shove 'em back!"
Maybe due to the quest conditions, the battle was chaotic.
Skills to draw eyes, restrict movement, and stall flew everywhere, so despite overwhelming power, the Red Crusaders couldn't bulldoze the users easily.
"Red Knight's Sword."
But that didn't mean they were stopped.
Fending off attacks from non-Master scrubs was like swatting mosquitoes—just a wave of the arm.
No Master skills needed; combination skills alone carved paths and massacred users.
"Don't clump up! Scatter!"
"Dive in and disrupt! Don't spare the cannon fodder!"
User responses were flexible too. As Red Crusaders pushed with brute force, they dispersed—or burrowed into enemy lines to sow chaos.
"Hrah!"
"Hya!"
Mitty, Hamel, and Polten were among them too. Having clicked with Rokan, the trio now stuck together.
Their extreme evasion/survival builds sacrificed DPS, but they still packed potent general skills—and above all, Polten's special effects.
Undead rising in droves, each stabbing away, didn't just draw eyes—they actually downed Red Crusaders.
"Yeeeaah!"
"We can do this! Just a bit longer!"
That sparked huge hope among users. They figured surviving was enough, but turning the tables?
Not just the trio—top guilds from various races downed one or two Red Crusaders too, flipping the mood.
Those who'd died without a fight earlier now revived aggressively and charged, time ticking away.
"Kill them. Sweep them all away...!"
But that lasted only until Chrono and the Red Guard joined in. Infuriated by the wriggling worms resisting, Chrono moved personally.
"Just a bit longer. Hold on."
Unilateral slaughter began then, but Rokan soothed and restrained the High Masters itching to jump in.
Finally, ten minutes passed, several Master skills wasted—and Rokan rose first.
"Let's go."
Shweee!
Mounting Kai, he soared forth, launching the counterattack on the Ancient Emperor and his legions.