Zikera's Demise
The pursuit team that burst through the wall closed the distance rapidly.
“Don’t let him get away, no matter what!”
“Yes, sir!”
They bellowed war cries as they pressed Zikera hard. Amid the clash, someone approached Mu-hyuk, still bound in place. It was a knight serving as the second squad leader in the pursuit team.
“You’re…?”
“Name’s Mu-hyuk.”
“You made it out alive.”
“You know me?”
“I saw you meeting with Duke Amur once before.”
“Ah….”
“Let’s get those iron chains off you first.”
The knight swung his sword.
Clank.
The sturdy chains snapped far more easily than expected.
“Thank you.”
Now free, Mu-hyuk turned his head.
“Don’t fall back!”
“How dare you filthy worms!”
“Shields up!”
Zikera was locked in a brutal melee, the scene filling Mu-hyuk’s vision.
By the looks of things, there was no way Zikera could escape this pursuit team.
This is my chance.
Before revenge, Mu-hyuk first checked his own status.
His stats had risen dramatically.
Even compared to before the experiments, they were overwhelmingly superior.
Should I be grateful for this?
He shook his head immediately.
Thinking back to the torment he’d endured during those experiments, fresh rage surged within him.
Stats were up, sure—but a debt was a debt, and it had to be paid.
Even if it meant dying in the process?
No such suicidal thoughts crossed his mind.
He’d landed one solid hit already, but he had no intention of dying to Zikera again. He wanted absolute certainty in his safety this time.
Detailed info.
He focused on the sections for HP and defense, which he expected to be extraordinarily high.
Just as expected.
Thanks to his titles, his HP had broken past 10,000.
Defense was monstrous too.
Shock absorption totaled 20 percent.
Sleeveless T-shirt: 8 percent.
Grokion’s Armor: 7 percent.
Title: 5 percent.
With a top-grade shield on top, shock absorption would hit a whopping 90 percent.
No average player’s damage could even scratch him.
He’d be worthy of the zombie label now.
Of course, if they targeted anywhere but the shield, or used slashing or piercing options, it’d be different.
Even accounting for that, his tanking power was undeniably immense.
No way I’m dying easily now.
Mu-hyuk’s eyes hardened with cold certainty.
“It’s collapsing!”
At that moment, the lab crumbled.
They dodged the debris, retreating, then climbed through the gaping hole above.
Grasslands?
An unexpected spot.
Perfect for me.
Mu-hyuk smirked coldly and called his skeletons.
“Summon.”
One hundred seventeen appeared, excluding the warhorses, filling the vast plains.
He first directed his summons to take positions.
Interrupting the fierce melee was tricky, but he could at least form a wide encirclement to prevent Zikera’s escape.
Dark Spirit Summon
He summoned the spirit next and checked its status.
Stimulates innate fear, stunning for 3 seconds.
Stunned targets take Mental Atk × 150% damage per second.
Additional 15% damage from external attacks.
Damage was low at level 1, but growth potential was sky-high.
He loved that it ignored defense and the Fear Stimulation skill.
The appearance too—a round puff of black smoke.
It had a strange charm.
“From now on, your name is Darkness.”
He changed the Dark Spirit’s name to Darkness.
The spirit ‘Dark Spirit’ has been renamed to ‘Darkness.’
He immediately ordered Darkness.
Fear Stimulation.
The shot streaked out, absorbing into Zikera like smoke.
“Guh… grrr…!”
He froze mid-motion.
Stunned.
Storm, Powerful Arrow Shot.
Mu-hyuk, already nocked and aimed, released the string.
Twang!
The arrow pierced the precise gap between knight and knight, shredding Zikera’s robe and embedding in his forehead.
-1,190 HP
-178 HP (Fear Stimulation)
-2,142 HP
-322 HP (Fear Stimulation)
Target’s HP continuously decreases.
The effect of Darkness’s Fear Stimulation was tremendous.
Incredible…!
Zikera’s visible eye beneath his robe trembled in shock.
“Hoo.”
Seeing it eased some stress.
One solid hit landed.
But the lingering rage wasn’t fully quenched.
To scour it clean, he moved again.
He coated an arrow tip with confusion potion, nocked it, and waited for the opening.
“Kraaaah!”
Zikera squeezed out his remaining strength for a powerful spell.
“Fall back!”
“Maintain formation!”
“Yes!”
Grinning viciously at the retreating knights, he prepared a dark magic blast.
If that Darkness shot hit, the pursuit team—not to mention summons and Mu-hyuk—wouldn’t survive.
He issued orders swiftly.
Burtan, Ki Wave.
A powerful blast engulfed Zikera.
———!
Zikera staggered.
Twang!
The arrow struck again.
Confusion Potion
Loses bodily control for 3 seconds.
Three seconds of lost control.
“Now!”
Mu-hyuk shouted, and the pursuit leader charged, swinging his sword down.
Zikera could do nothing as the blade descended.
You have defeated the Black Mage, Zikera.
You have gained a large amount of Fame.
You have gained a large amount of Experience.
Episode 1 completed.
Episode 2 begins.
Acquired title ‘Witness to Change’.
Episode 2 had begun. Of course, no massive event would unfold immediately. After some natural progression, the real incidents would kick off.
It had been intense back then.
The era when PK hooked players.
When that time came….
He pulled a dagger from his inventory.
◈ Phys. Atk +155
◈ Reaction Speed +2%
◈ All Stats +5
◈ Plundering Hand (Always Active): Final blow steals random enemy stat (Players only; ineffective on monsters)
◈ Durability 330/330
◈ Req: Strength 65, Agility 70
He’d be able to use this dagger soon.
*
The pursuit team stuffed Zikera’s corpse into a box and sorted his research items.
Meanwhile, the leader approached Mu-hyuk.
“Thanks for the help.”
“No problem.”
“Join us on the way back?”
“Sure.”
The team had finished preparations.
“Good work, everyone. Let’s head out!”
“Yes, sir!”
He walked the plains with them.
En route, he checked the new title.
Mu-hyuk nodded.
Perfect.
Extremely satisfying options.
Contribution and Fame—their weight in Illusion ahead made him grin.
He checked his status window and such, but the plains stretched endlessly.
The team moved swiftly; the plains were just that vast.
Growing bored, Mu-hyuk opened the auction house for the first time in ages.
He set low transparency, positioned to not hinder walking.
Search: skulls.
As expected, no skulls.
Hmm.
Still, he browsed.
Anything good?
Then one caught his eye.
“Whoa…!”
He checked the options hastily.
◈ Summon Strength +2
◈ Durability: Infinite
◈ Limit: Summons only
A summon-exclusive item: a rune.
Runes already? What?
Only rune crafters could make summon items, and they’d appeared a bit later than he remembered.
Story’s similar, but timeline’s faster.
Episode 1 end matched, but sooner.
No harm in that.
Rune crafter class wouldn’t go public for at least a year—or six months minimum, given divergences.
Even if pricier, buying now was profitable. A slight edge over others.
Search: runes.
Only a few rune items, disappointingly.
Bought them all.
Thirty runes acquired in one go.
At the same time.
Bandal, the first rune crafter user, was hunting after a long hiatus.
But he sighed deeply every break.
“Haa.”
“What now?”
His friend Baekho glanced over.
“Worried again, huh.”
“It’s not worry.”
“Sighing nonstop is worry sickness. Told you not to pick some unheard-of class.”
“Thought first-mover advantage would pay off.”
Rune crafter: summon-exclusive items.
He’d been thrilled at job change, dreaming of riches.
That hope shattered upon seeing crafting materials.
“Materials cost 20 gold alone.”
“Insane.”
“And options suck.”
“+2 stats?”
“Yeah.”
“Who buys that for 20 gold—250k won?”
“Listed at 25.”
“Crazy. Won’t sell at 20, let alone +5?”
“Fees and labor count.”
“Pfft, labor for unsold junk?”
Bandal scowled.
“Ugh, I’m out.”
“Level up at least.”
“Haa, damn it.”
Groaning, he rose—
‘Small Strength Rune’ sold.
22 Gold 50 Silver received.
‘Small Agility Rune’ sold.
22 Gold 50 Silver received.
‘Small Knowledge Rune…’ sold.
22 Gold… received.
“Wha—what…!”
“Huh?”
“S-sold!”
“What?”
“The runes sold! All but one!”
“Not just one?”
“No!”
“No way they sell. Total?”
“650 gold.”
Bandal beamed, a rare sight.