Chapter 206
Chapter 206
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 206
Chapter Title: The Last-Hit Tribe (1)
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Last hit!
In many games, landing the final blow granted advantages like experience points or item drops, making it a clear breach of etiquette. But in The Lord, preemptive strikes were valued more than last hits, so it wasn't considered a big deal.
There was just one exception: base sieges. When the Hall of Dominion shattered, the 'Lord's Seal' that appeared went to whoever dealt the last hit as priority.
If you timed your skills perfectly to snag the last hit, you could claim lordship without contributing anything to the war. Or, like during the Corruption Wave, someone else could destroy it and leave the seal unclaimed for a latecomer to snatch.
'Sure, they'll curse me out, but that's not my problem.'
That said, if it got out that you were only gunning for last hits, even allies would rain abuse on you. Hell, you might even get a formal protest from another race.
But so what?
Were they going to break the alliance and turn hostile over it?
Fat chance.
If last hits kept stealing base rights, they'd start paying more attention next time, blocking entry to the lord's chamber or keeping a tighter watch. But it wouldn't escalate to anything serious, Rokan knew.
It was a proven fact from his past life, so this time wouldn't be any different.
That's why he egged them on to that sneaky tactic.
"Uh... is that really okay?"
"That sounds like it could cause problems..."
"Heh heh, that does sound fun."
The users showed varied reactions after hearing the plan. Some were worried, but others' eyes gleamed with interest.
"I'll take full responsibility for any fallout. Once you've claimed the base, hand the rights to me, and you'll get titles and fiefs."
But they all shut up at Rokan's follow-up reward. No more worries—just greedy glints in their eyes.
"Titles?"
"You're giving us fiefs too?"
It wasn't just titles; he was handing out actual land to those who contributed.
Managing even a small fief was a massive boon for any user—that much was common knowledge.
They knew from reviews by the few users who'd become nobles. It was an irresistible temptation.
'At this point, even a crazy scheme is worth a shot.'
Rokan, being a user himself, knew exactly how tempting it was. He was confident they'd all go for it, and a few would succeed.
Sure, giving away titles and fiefs was a loss for him, but after becoming a marquis and swallowing up Linaei Fief and other small ones, he had plenty to spare.
Some lacked special dungeons or unique products, so it wasn't much of a hit when you crunched the numbers.
He even had the loophole and authority to split existing fiefs into chunks as needed.
"Here, take these. They'll support you."
Once everyone was on board, Rokan handed out accessory items with built-in stealth functions.
No extra options, but that alone would make infiltrating the lord's chamber a breeze for them.
Timing the infiltration and combo skills was up to their game smarts, but Rokan trusted them. They all had the potential to pull it off.
"We'll make it happen."
"Leave it to us."
"Can we pick our preferred fief, by any chance?"
They brimmed with confidence too, some already buzzing about which fief they'd get.
And so, the event that would earn the human race the moniker—not quite a compliment—of 'Last-Hit Tribe' began right here.
* * *
"Preparations?"
"All set, sir. Give the order, and we can advance anytime."
"Good. Let's move."
After assigning missions to his newly appointed honor guard and sending them off, Rokan finalized the formations for the users gathered at Hushkan Fortress.
Naturally, the main role went to arrow fodder. They might think they'd rack up merits up front, but their job was to burn in place of the hard-to-replace NPC soldiers and knights.
Rokan confirmed their formations, checked the dwarf and gnome mobilization reports, then began the march.
-Rokan: Battalion leaders, confirm positions and start advancing.
The true great war had begun.
"Don't slack on vigilance, whole army."
"Expand alert range! Intel says the enemy is prepping guerrilla tactics!"
Seventy thousand human users alone.
No need for Rokan to micromanage. Sacrificing fewer allies and boosting their battalion's merits meant bigger rewards for the battalion leader Thousand-Man Commanders.
Most were guild masters of top guilds anyway, so their command skills were sharp. All Rokan had to do was cautiously escort the NPCs and scout enemy movements.
"We'll arrive soon."
One thing, though—his clever twist was in play.
The route.
From Hushkan, five bases were in range: two undead, three troll.
Rokan headed in an ambiguous direction that could threaten both, denying the enemies—who surely knew of the human advance—as much prep time as possible.
Sure, both sides could brace, but the one not attacked would just waste effort. Not a bad call.
"Full turn-around! Picking up speed now!"
At a key point, the army accelerated. Target: troll base. Undead were near-enemies to humans and half-elves, but the trolls targeting humans first nagged at him.
Better crush them first.
"Kai!"
Screech!
As the troll base neared, Rokan broke off. Mounting Kai, he soared high to peer inside.
Distant, but his All-Seeing Eyes pierced it easily.
"Guessing they're on guard."
Had the prior infiltration spooked them? The trolls had switched defenses.
Before, they'd used hunters' traits, spreading to outlying camps to slow advances. Now, they were hunkered down for a siege, doors barred.
Swoosh!
They weren't slacking on air defense either.
Some troll hunters who'd spotted Rokan early fired warning shots to harass him.
But Rokan wasn't fazed. Once he grasped their formation and defenses, he dove back down and fired off a battalion message.
-Rokan: Switching to Formation C.
He'd already briefed the Thousand-Man Commanders on tactics.
Each battalion shifted to position, spreading wings wide around the troll base like a show of force.
"Digdog summon. Legendary Rider."
While drawing eyes, Rokan summoned Digdog.
Evolving it fully with Legendary Rider, he had it burrow, carving a massive tunnel under their base.
"Halt."
The tunnel stopped right beneath the troll base.
Troll hunters' sharp senses should've caught the vibrations and noises, but with catapults, ballistae, and magic pounding the walls, it slipped by.
"This should do it."
Instead of breaking surface, he stopped just short.
Canceled Digdog's summon, returned to the army, and waited out the cooldown.
Lightning war was great—once battle started.
Until then, they rested fully, using siege weapons to keep the trolls on edge.
"Tunnel unit, deploy."
He sent others down his pre-made tunnel instead.
To avoid focused fire inside, he'd pre-sent support units to link up, relaying via battalion chat.
-Warlock: We're here.
-MasterQuokka: Other units ready too.
Five battalions under Thousand-Man Commanders, five thousand troops on standby. Only then did Rokan stand.
A commander sitting back didn't suit him.
"Alright, let's go! Hiyah!"
This time, he summoned Cheongolma. Used cooldown-reset Legendary Rider to evolve it into Red Hare.
"Storm Incarnation, Rampage Chariot!"
Storm Incarnation passed some charge skill power to Red Hare. Tough enough to weather troll fire.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud.
"Fire!"
"Keep him back!"
Siege engines halted to avoid friendly fire. All eyes locked on the gale-like Rokan—naturally.
But with massive attack/defense buffs plus immortality, he shrugged it off. Combo skills? Master skills? Whatever.
"Time of Madness! Super Acceleration!"
Just don't hit.
Insane charge speed, plus perfectly timed burst accel—nothing threatened him.
He slammed the gate like a living battering ram.
BOOM!
Walls shook. Cracks spiderwebbed with a crunch.
Not fully breached, but the damage outstripped any prior hit—obvious to all.
This gate, reinforced multiple times after losing Hushkan to Rokan—yet it screamed on.
"Light Slaughter!"
Rokan didn't stop. Pausing even a second meant pin-cushion. No reason to.
Unleashing skills in chain, the gate shattered in a final wail.
"Wooooaaah!"
Cheers erupted inside and out. Main force surged behind the path he'd cleared. Tunnel units broke surface amid his chaos, swarming in.
No focused barrage came.
Trolls, souls sucked out by Rokan, couldn't react. Early surface users scattered, splitting attention.
Thus, the troll base began crumbling pathetically once more.