Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Lion King Quest (2)
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‘Should I call this a relief…….’
This was exactly what Rokan had been wary of.
Spirit Descent.
The moment it activated, combat power surged by over 20 levels.
But it had triggered. The silver lining was that it wasn’t on the Polluted Murloc Captain.
If Spirit Descent had applied to the captain……
‘That would’ve been a nightmare.’
In that case, he would’ve chosen reset nine times out of ten. Give up or make a desperate escape from the boss room.
For bosses, if you distanced yourself a certain amount from the boss room, all status effects recovered, but it stopped chasing you. He’d have to bank on that.
Of course, he’d have to deal with the respawned other monsters in exchange.
“Dash.”
Either way, the situation was already dire. If he’d decided to fight, he had no choice but to do what he could.
Rokan immediately threw himself at the last remaining shaman and smashed it.
And almost simultaneously, the captain’s sword came flying in from behind.
A bastard sword gripped with both hands.
He watched the force-infused blade until the last moment, then raised his arm to block.
“Guard!”
Creeeang!
His defense had skyrocketed, but the attack was no joke. And the Polluted Murloc Thieves were closing in to surround him!
So Rokan leaped back with the block, deliberately letting himself get pushed away. He aimed to avoid encirclement at all costs.
‘No helping it.’
He had to dodge the Curse of the Deep Sea, which stacked with every hit taken, draining his stats.
His stance crumbled as a result, but there was no choice. Some of them had already begun using Stealth.
Now he had to make a decision.
“Berserk!”
Madness flooded Rokan’s entire body. All his stats massively amplified, power boiling over through him. Even with some stat drops, this should hold.
Berserk was a skill that doubled his stats.
He was using it a bit early, but activating it after the Curse of the Deep Sea would double the stat penalties too. No choice.
“Whirlwind!”
Rokan spun toward the charging Polluted Murloc Thieves.
He became a powerful vortex himself, crashing into them to shred.
[Afflicted with Curse of the Deep Sea.]
[All stats decreased by 2.]
[Afflicted with Curse of the Deep Sea.]
[All stats decreased by 2.]
[Afflicted with Curse of the Deep Sea.]
[All stats decreased by 2.]
Squeak!
He’d taken the curse, but he gained something too. The Polluted Murloc Thieves who’d stabbed him died mid-thrust.
Including those sliced before they could even land a hit, five were shredded in an instant.
“Wave Sword!”
At that moment, the blue, rippling bastard sword crashed down on Rokan’s crown.
A combo skill from the Polluted Murloc Captain!
Its wave-like successive forces made it impossible to fully block even with Guard, and letting your guard down after one block could hit you hard.
So Rokan gripped his battle axe tighter. He knew loosening up to deflect could backfire, making him drop the weapon.
‘Where are they?’
But he couldn’t focus solely on it. Two more were lurking in Stealth, waiting for an opening.
“Charge of Destruction!”
Thanks to Berserk, Rokan drew only force to counter the combo skill’s power, then stomped the ground with a boom. He slammed into the Polluted Murloc Captain’s chest and shoved.
“Gah!”
Its massive build meant strength only up to Berserk.
With his already superior power doubled, even it couldn’t handle it.
It didn’t get crushed like the minions or take a fatal wound, but it bounced like a bowling pin, rolling across the floor.
“Leap Attack, Critical Strike!”
Rokan whirled and leaped at it.
To end it in one blow.
But it still had a combo skill left.
“Barrier of the Wave!”
Barrier of the Wave.
Whether from a secondary class like mage or shaman, some power activated that didn’t seem sword-based. A blue wall surged up to shield it.
“Hmph!”
Kwaang!
But Rokan didn’t stop.
Combo skill clashed against combo skill.
No reason to dodge a contest of power. Even without Berserk, his own combo was top-tier.
Proving it, the wave burst. A hole punched through. Beyond it, the shocked Polluted Murloc Captain came into view.
The battle axe, carrying unblocked force past the Barrier of the Wave, bore down on it.
“C-Crewman Summon!”
Pukeok!
The skill effect vanished, but the battle axe still smashed its skull, soaking in brains.
Yet Rokan’s expression wasn’t good.
The so-called friend shield.
True to its “captain” name, it summoned a crewman Polluted Murloc Thief to take the hit instead.
And used the time to recover its stance.
‘Once now.’
The summoned crewman didn’t spawn from nowhere. It was one of the minions in this room.
Meaning only one Polluted Murloc Thief remained in Stealth now.
Remembering the count, Rokan yanked his battle axe free.
“A captain who throws away his crew. You bastard.”
With just one or two minions, it was fine. Even a few stacks of Curse of the Deep Sea wouldn’t show much.
If there’d been more, Berserk’s duration might’ve been an issue, but he’d butchered them early. Rokan moved with leisure.
“Filthy humans! If I hadn’t been injured back then……!”
Sensing the power gap, the Polluted Murloc Captain bellowed but couldn’t charge like before.
“Yeah, yeah. Love you too.”
Ignoring the captain’s aggrieved shout, Rokan charged decisively. He knew why the murlocs settled here and why the field was a “Wrecked Ship.”
Murlocs were a tough race, classified as a faction, but they’d been raided by the Pirate King’s underlings and drifted here.
Injured in the process, lost treasures, and got “polluted” somehow while resettling.
So what?
Setting was setting. What happened, happened.
Right now, it was just Rokan’s prey. Nothing more, nothing less.
“Throwing!”
Rokan hurled hand axes one after another while closing in.
The force-loaded throws were all it could do to deflect.
And that narrowed its movement range, letting Rokan close easily.
“Strike!”
“Crewman Summon!”
Staring down the mountain-splitting battle axe charge, it sacrificed its last crewman.
But it wasn’t just defense.
Pook!
Piercing the crewman’s body, it thrust to skewer Rokan too. A desperate counter with Wave Strike added.
“Got you, you bastard.”
Sneer.
Rokan knew the plan but took it willingly.
His abdomen was pierced, HP plummeting, but there was gain.
As long as it wouldn’t drop its weapon, he could restrict its actions.
So he easily sliced away the obstructing Polluted Murloc Thief corpse with a flex of his battle axe, facing the panicked captain.
“Critical Strike.”
Pshwak!
Blue blood sprayed from the Polluted Murloc Captain’s unprepared shoulder.
Its face paled as HP drained in an instant. But no stopping here.
Maintaining connection via its bastard sword, a flurry—no, one-sided beating—began.
“Whew, barely safe. If Berserk’s duration hadn’t increased with the level up, it would’ve been rough.”
Squeek.
Pulling the final abdomen stab free, HP drained again.
Bleeding too severe for the necklace to staunch easily, even a bit dizzy.
This was why you didn’t pull arrows or weapons from your body mid-fight.
“Cancel.”
Once barely stanched, Rokan canceled the dwindling Berserk.
[HP insufficient. If you don’t recover to 9% of max HP within 10 seconds, you may die.]
Berserk’s penalty bottomed his HP. Tougher to recover now with higher max HP, but Rokan wasn’t worried.
He swiped his ring, activating the skill.
“Life Charge.”
The expedition member’s ring skill triggered, filling HP. Not 9%, but 100%.
But Berserk’s aftereffects lingered, so he sat and rested.
Bosses took at least 2 hours to respawn after a kill, so no need for a safe zone.
“Oh, that.”
Checking his status, Rokan first inspected the acquired item.
Did he get the Old Coin?
If not, how many repeats? Heart pounding, he opened inventory. There it was, familiar.
“Got it.”
[Old Coin][Unique]
A coin of unknown origin and use. Cool design makes it good for collecting.
Unique-grade item no less.
No utility was the issue, but he got it.
“Hm, a dud?”
But checking the info, still nothing. Thought it’d hint something, but no?
Maybe another mechanism? He scanned the boss room, but nothing.
“Guess I climb back up.”
Not here then? Couldn’t conclude yet. Lion King gear reacted for sure.
Reluctantly, Rokan climbed back to the entrance, searching for hidden switches.
If none, oh well. But try till he couldn’t.
Luckily, mid-bosses weren’t as tough as the captain. Using Berserk midway, he broke through the Wrecked Ship and exited easily.
“Hm?”
Outside, he finally spotted it.
The figurehead. The prow ornament was gleaming.
“Bingo.”
With force at mastery, climbing was easy.
His jump alone was different. He reached it quick, shoved his head into the mouth of the carved unknown creature figurehead, and found a box inside.
“Unique.”
The box was odd. Locked, sure, but no keyhole. The tall vertical slot didn’t look right for a key.
And that’s how he realized.
“This it is.”
The Old Coin.
Inserting it clicked, unlocking the box.
Clack!
Tense moment.
Rokan glanced around like real treasure awaited, carefully flipping the lid.
……What’s this?”
But no hoped-for gear. Just a larger circular plate.
[Unknown Circular Plate][Unique]
Circular plate of unknown origin and use. Seems infused with some energy.
Woooong!
And then, his head rang.
Precisely, the Lion King’s Sealed Helmet resonated, glowing bright and changing.