Repeated Skeleton Ambushes
The users of the Kaiyon Continent and Count Solburn were still locked in their bizarre standoff.
Count Solburn issued orders, but the users half-listened, letting them slide in one ear and out the other.
"Listen to me for once!"
In the end, Count Solburn lost his temper.
"Ah, we're moving, aren't we?"
"Why all these damn orders? It's annoying."
The users didn't stay quiet either.
"You bastards...!"
Seizing the chaos, the summons closed in significantly.
"Hey, over there. What the hell is that?"
"What?"
"That way. Aren't those summons?"
"Yeah, looks like it."
"Hey, that's dangerous."
"Pfft, whatever. It's just some summons."
"But there's a ton of them..."
"We outnumber them like ten to one."
Some users who caught on tried warning those around them, but in the already noisy space, their words got buried.
The summons drew even closer, and only then did the rest of the users and Count Solburn notice.
"What the hell are those?"
"They look like summons from the outsiders of the Forma Continent."
"Hah, seriously. Everyone, heads up!"
The mage cast an amplification spell.
"Wipe out these pathetic bastards swarming us first!"
But the users didn't hide their annoyed expressions.
"Ugh, what kind of top ranker has to hunt summons?"
Still, they couldn't just let the attacking ones be, so they clicked their tongues and moved slowly, as if it couldn't be helped.
"Move your asses faster!"
By now, the summons were dangerously close.
A semicircular encirclement formation.
Attacks poured in from all sides.
"Ah, just block 'em roughly. They're only summons, after all."
"Shields up, and healers, keep the heals coming."
"Yeah, yeah."
That was when the summons' assault began.
A barrage of skills flew in.
Arrows and spells filled the air densely.
"Nngh...!"
It was more threatening than they'd imagined. If they didn't respond properly to that volume of attacks, they could take heavy casualties.
Yet deep down, that lingering sense of "it's just summons" persisted.
"They're still..."
They were summons, after all.
How strong could they really be?
With priests and mages' shields, they didn't heighten their guard much. Only a few users snapped to attention and shouted around.
"Priests, heals please!"
"Ah, got it!"
"Tanks, protect any nearby priests!"
"Understood!"
But it was a bit late.
The countless skills the summons had unleashed were already right in their faces.
BOOM! KABOOM!
Those who'd made an effort to respond were mostly fine.
"Urgh...!"
But the ones who'd dismissed them weren't.
Crack. Craaack.
-1,921 HP
HP continuously draining...
The mages' shields shattered in an instant, and even area heals couldn't keep up with the damage. They panicked late and flailed about.
"Crazy!"
"What the— what is this?!"
"Heals! Give me heals!"
More people died than expected.
"Damn it! What the hell are you doing?!"
Even Count Solburn couldn't escape the aftermath.
"You idiots! You ignore orders even if it kills you!"
"Hah, pressure from everywhere."
"This is stressful as hell."
Amid the users' uproar, Solburn bellowed again.
"Shut up and wipe those things out before they attack again!"
They didn't want to listen, but there was no excuse or reason to refuse.
Having been embarrassed by the summons, the users couldn't just let it slide either.
For their pride's sake, they needed to demonstrate the overwhelming gap in power.
"Alright, I'll step up for a bit. That cool with everyone?"
Conveniently, the most renowned user stepped forward.
It was Yuram, leader of the Red Sky Guild.
"Oh, it's Guild Master Yuram."
"Hmm, if it's Yuram..."
"Thanks for the support. We can't keep getting punked by summons, so melee users, come forward. Tanks behind them, healers after that. Ranged users, hit from the rear."
Thanks to the amplification magic, his words spread.
The users bustled into position.
They smoothly blocked the next wave of summon attacks and reformed their lines in a flash.
"Tch, these outsiders."
On one side, Count Solburn clicked his tongue, displeased by their disciplined movements.
Even as he grumbled, Yuram led the users, rapidly closing the distance to the summons.
The moment the rear ranged users prepared their skills—
Thrum.
A vibration echoed from somewhere.
"Watch the left flank!"
Users on the left turned their heads.
They saw charging summons.
Skeletons mounted on warhorses.
"Tanks forward!"
"Ranged, attack!"
"Got it!"
A hefty volley of skills rained down.
BOOM! KABOOM!
But only a few lead skeletons vanished.
As Armor Cavalry influenced by Mu-hyuk's stats, their health pools were substantial.
Plus, nearby spirits provided heals, boosting survivability even more.
"What? Why aren't they dying?"
"Attack again!"
Still, many cavalry survived.
"Ah, for real..."
As they geared up for another strike—
Whoosh.
The Armor Cavalry accelerated.
They closed the gap with a charge skill and plunged straight into the users.
"Urgh!"
Stunned by the unexpectedly heavy damage, the users reeled.
"Heals!"
Weapons then streaked in like beams of light.
"Ah, let's do this properly!"
"This is pissing me off!"
The fight devolved into melee chaos.
Yerin's enhanced squirrel summon, attached beneath an Armor Knight, leaped up.
"What's this now?!"
Its small size made it harder to hit.
-1,921 HP
HP continuously draining...
The damage was hefty too.
But the status ailments were the real annoyance.
"Watch the right too!"
On the right, Sung Min-woo's spirits, Armor Knights, and a horde of Death Skeletons charged.
Other users' summons followed behind.
Kaiyon users downed some skeletons with ranged fire, and tanks stepped up to block the rest.
"Incoming!"
Braced for impact, they weren't fazed by the explosions.
KABOOM!
But the moment they saw the pop-up messages, they froze in shock.
-3,390 HP
-3,390 HP
-3,390 HP
Ridiculous damage.
"W-Wait a sec..."
As they tried to pull back urgently—
---------!
A ki wave stripped their bodily control.
Insane...!
Bone arrows and spells followed.
KABOOM!
In the end, some users couldn't hold out and died.
Only Yuram at the front was handling his share properly.
He was overwhelmingly pushing back the summons positioned ahead with the users.
Mu-hyuk hadn't placed any of his summons there, making it possible—but Yuram had no way of knowing that.
"Tch."
He just clicked his tongue at the frailty of the users on the left and right flanks.
"Let's clean up the front quick."
"Sounds good!"
"Wipe 'em out!"
By the time they'd finished off the frontal summons, the left and right flanks had been cleared too.
But the casualties were heavier than expected. Everyone acknowledged it inwardly but didn't voice it. After all, it wasn't their deaths.
"Back to positions."
They sluggishly returned to Count Solburn and followed his orders.
As they slowly regrouped—
Another massive wave of summons appeared.
Mu-hyuk's lips curved up.
Why are they so slow?
He didn't know the reason, but from his perspective, it was a godsend. Thanks to it, he'd summoned three waves already, inflicting serious damage on the Kaiyon users.
One wave alone was minor, but three added up to something undeniable.
"Alright, let's go again."
"Yes, Mu-hyuk!"
He quickly spotted the leader.
Front again, huh.
Mu-hyuk targeted the left and right flanks as before.
Armor Cavalry, charge.
All units, accelerate thrust.
Burtan, ki wave.
Same tactics.
Hmm?
But this time, barely any damage.
The Kaiyon users had adapted after the repeats.
They'd even started scouting. Some users fanned out, checking everywhere.
Finally shaping up.
Definitely different from before.
It'd be tougher now, but...
They hadn't found the first hidden spot yet, so he had leeway.
"Don't retreat the summons no matter what. Even if they drop fast, push into the center as hard as you can."
His calm voice spread steadily.
The summons' movements shifted right after.
A bit reckless, maybe.
They shoved forward en masse.
Well, this works better.
Mu-hyuk used the opening to direct Armor Knights and Death Skeletons.
To squeeze out every bit of damage he could.
The first spot was compromised.
"Ranged users, harass them."
"Yes!"
Not many scouts, so no real threat. But with the location exposed, time to move.
"Handled it, Mu-hyuk!"
"Then to spot two."
They shifted to the southern second spot, then he logged into the internet.
Searched foreign sites.
Found a South American homepage and entered.
Copied the post and translated it.
Mu-hyuk nodded.
As expected.
Already relocated, so the info was useless now.
Decent distance too.
He'd harass them from here.
Keep them pinned down.
Logged off, checked cooldown.
"One minute left."
Prepared to summon again.
"Time's up. No hostiles nearby from what we've seen. Summon now."
Including Mu-hyuk, all users called forth summons. They spread out, cleared scouting parties they encountered, and encircled the hostile users heading south in a ring.
Focused entirely on pinning them—no more movement.
Spot exposed again.
Moved to spot three, harassed anew.
Stuck to the mission, but unease crept in as time passed.
When are they coming?
No sign of allies yet.
Of course, he didn't show it. As the leader now, he couldn't appear weak.
Hurry up already...!
By the time they reached spot five—
They're here...!
Finally, they spotted the Kaiyon Continent users.