The Devouring Tornado
Mu-hyuk shouted.
"Fall back!"
The situation was too dire for polite speech.
Fortunately, no one was foolish enough to attempt suicide even without his warning.
Soldiers, knights, and players alike scrambled to put distance between themselves and the threat. But the suction was so ferocious that escaping wasn't easy.
"Urgh...!"
"Hup!"
"Someone grab me!"
In the end, some players and NPCs couldn't hold out and were dragged into the vortex.
Players dissolved into smoke, but NPCs...
The players vanished into smoke, but the NPCs were different. Their bodies shattered and crumpled into dust for real.
Silver light erupted in place of crimson blood, only for even that to be swept away by the wind, losing all form.
It wasn't just the NPCs. The tornado sucked in and devoured most of the chimeras nearby.
The twister, streaked with silver, gray, and debris from the terrain, was revolting to behold.
A brutally cruel sight.
"......"
Everyone fell silent.
I don't want to die.
That single thought filled their entire beings.
They clamped their mouths shut and mustered their strength.
To flee that mighty wind, that predator.
Viewers on Illusion TV interpreted the situation positively instead.
The chimera numbers had indeed plummeted dramatically.
But as if mocking their optimism, another change occurred.
The entrance shatters again!
The entrance where the chimeras had emerged shook violently and crumbled once more.
It widened even further, and an even more massive chimera squeezed through the expanded gap.
Given that the fierce wind had barely managed to shatter the entrance, it made sense why this one hadn't emerged until now.
The beast that just appeared wasn't swept up by the tornado either. That alone proved its immense power.
Kieeeaaah!
Ignoring the suction entirely, it charged straight at the players.
"That thing's coming our way, right?"
"Block it!"
"Damn it, if we let up even a bit, we're gone!"
As the big one pulled free, smaller chimeras behind it poured out in droves.
Most got sucked into the tornado and vanished, but the few that withstood even that ferocious gale scattered in all directions.
Toward the retreating players and NPCs.
Some players wiped out instantly!
"Evac, evade!"
Nearby players got caught in the chaos too.
These chimeras that survived the tornado were brutally strong and fast—players under level 120 couldn't even react.
You needed at least level 130 to have a shot at dodging.
Another chimera burst through the wind and pounced on the NPCs.
"Snap out of it! Shields forward!"
"Ah, forward!"
"Knights, skewer the bastard!"
"Hraaah!"
They barely blocked the first strike, but it threw off their balance, dragging several shieldbearers into the tornado's pull.
Those swept into the wind were shredded to pieces. Two more shieldbearers, unbalanced but not caught by the gale, took heavy hits from the chimera.
The knights hurriedly surrounded it, but subduing it would take time.
This was serious.
Mu-hyuk's expression hardened. If it were just players, he'd observe longer—but with NPCs for whom this Illusion was their real world and they had only one life, he had to act now.
The others?
The low-level ones were fleeing on their own, while those who could manage were contributing as best they could.
Some small mercy.
The skeletons?
Armor Knights and Armor Cavalry were holding up decently, so he'd use them.
The Armor Mages, Armor Archers, and basic skeletons were struggling just to withstand the wind.
Revive? But the weak ones sucked into the tornado wouldn't help even if revived.
Catch the strong ones and turn them.
Decision made.
Armor Knight, advance.
Armor Cavalry, advance.
He directed the two to surround a few chimeras.
Defense mode.
Mu-hyuk moved too.
Wind Step
He kicked off the ground fiercely and surged forward.
Whoosh.
Mu-hyuk closed in on a tiger-patterned chimera crushing soldiers and swung his sword.
Storm, Cross Slash.
With an explosive roar, a cross-shaped gash erupted on its back.
Enraged by the impact, it twisted around and glared at Mu-hyuk.
Its reaction speed was faster than expected, furrowing Mu-hyuk's brow.
He tried to back off urgently, but it was quicker. In an instant, it closed the gap, its hand glowing red as it slammed into Mu-hyuk's chest.
-2,117 damage!
He couldn't even block with his shield in time.
His HP plummeted by over 2,000.
The silver lining? He was launched toward the clustered players.
They caught him, preventing secondary damage.
Mu-hyuk sprang up, swiftly morphing his sword into a bow, and loosed an arrow at the charging chimera.
Storm, Powerful Arrow Shot.
One arrow embedded in its shoulder.
Its charge slowed.
Storm, Multi Shot.
Arrows struck its abdomen, thigh, and chest.
As its speed dropped further, Mu-hyuk arced wide in a semicircle.
Fixated solely on him, it ignored the players left behind—no danger there.
He tuned them out, focusing only on the chimera ahead.
Whenever it closed in even slightly, he poured everything into evasion. When he gained breathing room, he'd unleash skills and fire arrows. Rinse and repeat.
How many arrows later?
963 damage.
1,565 additional damage.
Afflicted with Excessive Bleeding.
A long-overdue critical.
The devastating blow froze the beast in place.
Now!
Mu-hyuk closed the distance in a flash, transforming his bow back to sword.
He coated the blade with confusion potion and slashed wildly at the tiger-patterned chimera.
Three seconds of opening.
In that window, he'd swing relentlessly, carving countless wounds.
Meanwhile.
"Hey, over there!"
"Whoa...!"
Players watching Mu-hyuk's desperate fight lit up.
"Dude's insane."
"Should we help?"
"You think you can?"
"If we go all out?"
High-level players over 130, somewhat spared from the tornado's grip.
Lacking confidence against chimeras, they'd been stimulated by Mu-hyuk's exploits.
"We gotta clear 'em anyway, right?"
"For the rewards."
"Let's do it."
"Yeah, fuck it. Let's go!"
They approached Mu-hyuk.
Hmm.
Sensing them, Mu-hyuk's face soured unpleasantly.
Just a nuisance.
Still, no need to refuse help. Even one solid hit from them would shave off seconds.
Perfect timing—a arriving player slashed, coated in hallucinogenic poison. The chimera froze again.
Not bad instincts.
Mu-hyuk joined the others in piling on the damage.
Boom, kaboom!
But it wouldn't fall. Only after hallucinogen wore off, followed by slow poison, bleed poison, and smoke potion, did they finally drop it.
Revive
He immediately Revived it and took stock of the surroundings in the brief lull.
Armor Knights and Armor Cavalry surrounding a few chimeras, focused on defense.
Several already shattered and despawned, so he sent the fresh revive there.
Elsewhere?
In the distance, knights battling chimeras.
Some already downed, though not without heavy losses on their side.
Still, not as bleak as feared.
We can do this.
Then one chimera caught his eye.
Wind Step
The moment he spotted it, he charged.
Whoosh.
To take down the one targeting priests and mages.
*
As Mu-hyuk's feats continued, the chat's mood shifted.
Not just Mu-hyuk shining.
Some knights higher-leveled than him darted about busily too.
But reviving strong chimeras as allies made him stand out more.
The tornado began to die down too.
Seizing the waning tornado's weakness, players and NPCs surged forward.
The remaining chimeras were mopped up in seconds.
Almost simultaneously, the form of the chimera that birthed the tornado revealed itself.
Players and NPCs furrowed their brows at the sight.
"Insane."
"Hah, what the hell is that now."
Players with incredulous expressions.
"H-how could this..."
"Mm."
Soldiers in despair at the denser crisis ahead despite surviving the last; tense knights; crestfallen priests; exhausted mages.
Different faces, same emotion.
The tornado that devoured the chimeras.
The beast generating that wind had ballooned at least five times in size. Proportionally, the pressure it exuded had swelled too. Just looking at it sent chills down spines, bodies trembling involuntarily.