Chapter 78: How a Veteran Plays Defense (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 78: How a Veteran Plays Defense (3)
"Eat up, my cute little Aengdu."
Jinhyuk stroked the crimson-stained carnivorous plant.
Having devoured every last scrap of food in the warehouse, its size and power were now beyond imagination.
Then,
"Kieeeeeeek!"
The massive plant, towering ten meters high, let out a savage roar.
The air vibrated with the sound.
Despite its cute nickname, could there be a more terrifying nightmare for the players facing it?
"I-It's coming!"
"Damn it, scatter! If we stay bunched up, we'll all be wiped out!"
Rumble!
Massive vines swept through the interior of the mart in an instant.
"What on earth do you think you're doing?!" Hwangbo Gun-ak roared, frantically throwing himself out of the way.
"Hmm?"
"If you destroy this base right next to yours, the number of zombies heading your way will increase exponentially! Why would you commit such a foolish act?!"
The fourth floor was a competitive environment, but it also demanded a bare minimum of cooperation.
If someone openly trolled and woke that thing, everyone could die.
Even if they were members of the Murim from the 20th floor.
'There's no way that foolish player knows that.'
If he knew what consequences his actions would bring, he wouldn't have dared to do such a thing.
Hwangbo Gun-ak clicked his tongue in frustration.
But.
"You must be afraid of the Queen."
The words that came out of Jinhyuk's mouth completely defied his expectations.
"Y-You... know about the Queen?"
"Of course I do."
There were two ways to obtain special rewards on the fourth floor.
The first was achieving the highest kill count.
The second was being voted the most popular base through subscriber voting.
But in truth, there was another way to obtain a reward.
A third method that could never be obtained through normal means.
The hidden quest: 'Mother of the Dead'.
Defeating the Queen of the Zombies was the key to obtaining the greatest reward possible on this floor.
"...Unbelievable. How could a mere human who only recently entered the Tower..."
"If one of the large bases guarded by over two hundred players is destroyed before the third wave, a special event is triggered. And that's exactly what's happening right now."
'Though in my case, I only discovered this method through a loophole by breathing life into cheap clay dolls.'
Normally, a large base defended by more than two hundred people would never fall before the third wave.
Therefore, if the humans' forces were revealed to be overwhelmingly weak, the Queen who controlled the zombies would awaken.
It meant she would personally move to the human bases to sweep away enemies she deemed unworthy of her time all at once.
As Jinhyuk answered without a single stutter, Hwangbo Gun-ak lost any reason to doubt him.
It was true.
This guy knew everything.
"You know of the Queen's existence, yet you still plan to summon her?"
"I don't want to block fifty waves of zombies one by one. It's boring. Not to mention mentally and physically exhausting."
If they proceeded normally, they would have to stay in these gloomy ruins for at least several weeks.
There was no reason to take the hard way when there was a shortcut to avoid all that trouble.
Of course, he had originally planned to clear it the standard way.
To bring down a large base within three waves, he would have had to massacre a large number of ordinary players.
But from the moment he ran into these guys...
And from the moment they chose the mart as one of the large bases...
His plan had changed.
There was no reason to feel any pangs of conscience against those who had drawn their blades first.
"With this, your base is completely ruined."
No matter how skilled the players from the middle floors were, dealing with zombies without a base was impossible.
The sheer scale of the enemy forces and the limits of human stamina were walls that individuals could never overcome.
"So, for the remaining time... do your best to survive."
Having achieved his goal here, it was time to head back.
Jinhyuk turned around without hesitation.
"You bastard! You think you can just say whatever you want and run away? Do you really think you'll walk out of here alive?!"
Clang!
Sparks flew from Jegal Cheon's sword.
However, Jinhyuk didn't even spare Jegal Cheon a glance as he walked out of the mart.
There was no longer any reason to deal with them.
After all...
"Kieeeeeeek!"
The plant that would reduce their base to complete ruins was already holding down the fort behind him.
* * *
At the same time.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Boom!
At the Sangam Stadium, a frantic black wave of zombies slammed against the rock plants.
[The rock plant activates Lv1 'Deep Roots'!]
Because the rock plants possessed incredibly sturdy and steep bodies, the zombies could not easily scale the wall.
So, this time, the zombies began to climb by using each other's bodies as stepping stones.
"Grrr!"
"Kraaa!"
The bodies of the zombies trapped underneath were crushed by the weight, but they were creatures that felt no pain to begin with.
But the moment the first zombie scaled the shield plant and stepped into the stadium...
"Kie?"
A shadow loomed over the zombie's head.
[The Melee Plant uses Lv1 'Full-Body Leap'!]
Thud!
The massive Melee Plant, which easily weighed several tons, crushed the zombie flat.
On top of that, the Freezing Plants emitted a chilling cold, slowing down the zombies' movement speed.
It was a flawless defense.
The remaining four people only needed to clean up the stragglers.
"...This is truly amazing. To think autonomous defense is already possible without any player intervention. Did Jinhyuk calculate all of this beforehand?"
Teresa muttered, her face a mix of admiration and awe.
It was a sight hard to believe even while watching it happen.
"If it's Hyung, he probably did."
"We've been hanging out with Oppa quite a bit, so we thought we knew a lot about him, but seeing this makes me realize we still have a long way to go."
Lee Tae-min and Yu Yeon-hwa added their thoughts.
"..."
On the other hand, Cheon Yu-seong frowned, looking thoroughly displeased.
It was only natural for him to be annoyed, as the rival he had to surpass was proving to be more of a monster the more he saw of him.
An opponent who didn't just possess individual combat skills but could also orchestrate entire situations was extremely difficult to deal with.
But right then.
[The large base 'Mart' has fallen.]
A status window suddenly appeared before everyone.
"W-What is this?" Teresa cried out in surprise.
"The mart... isn't that where those Chinese players were earlier? That place was breached?"
"No way..."
"Could it... have something to do with Oppa?"
The timing of the base's fall aligned too perfectly with when Jinhyuk had left with a bright smile.
Above all, if that wasn't the case, it made no sense for a large base with such powerful forces to collapse without even blocking a mere second zombie wave.
There was no doubt about it.
Something unusual was happening.
And as if to prove those words...
[A special event has occurred.]
[To punish the weak players, the master of the 4th floor, 'Pendariel', is on the move.]
A red status window appeared next.
"The master of the fourth floor...? What on earth is that?"
"This is crazy. Weren't we just supposed to block the zombie waves here?"
The existence of a boss monster on the fourth floor was news even to Lee Tae-min and Yu Yeon-hwa, who had frequented this place as if it were their own home.
Naturally, the others had no clue who or what Pendariel was either.
"He must be plotting something outrageous again," Cheon Yu-seong muttered, staring out of the stadium.
* * *
After leaving the mart, Jinhyuk leaped from rooftop to rooftop.
He was looking for a suitable place to use his item.
How long had he been running?
'This is it.'
Jinhyuk stopped in his tracks.
With multiple bases nearby, the flow of mana was intricately tangled, and it wasn't far from the Sangam Stadium either.
Perfect.
Jinhyuk pulled a small stone out of his subspace inventory.
It was a special item he had obtained after defeating Muhon, the boss monster of the third floor.
The 'Sun-Blocking Stone'.
[Sun-Blocking Stone]
Acquisition Difficulty: Unknown
Description: A ceremonial relic used in the ancient Mayan Empire, capable of blocking the sun and summoning darkness. Upon use, it reduces the power of the Five Elements (Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Light) by 50%, while increasing dark-attribute abilities by 100%.
[The Berserk option is forcibly activated.]
This was an item that should absolutely never be used on the fourth floor.
Most of the abilities used by players fell under one of the Five Elements.
On the other hand, if the dark-attribute zombies received the Berserk buff, their movement and attack speeds would double.
But.
Crack!
As if mocking all of those concerns, Jinhyuk crushed the stone.
The shattered fragments fell onto the rooftop.
At that exact moment.
Whirrrr!
Darkness swallowed the sun.
A thick blanket of shadow began to drape over the buildings.
With this, the difficulty of clearing the fourth floor would skyrocket.
Of course, he hadn't used this item just to enjoy a cheap thrill.
If one intentionally invited danger, another event would trigger.
Namely...
[Human. What are you thinking?]
Just as expected.
In response to an action that defied common sense, a message that only a boss monster could send appeared.
It was the same type of message Alice had used in the Corridor.
"It looks like you're planning to lay waste to the bases. Am I right?"
[No need. To save strength. Against those. Who can't even block. Mere scouts.]
"Sorry we looked so pathetic, but don't touch the other bases and come to me instead. That Sangam Stadium you see back there is my base."
[Human. Sacrificing. Yourself. Alone?]
"It's not really a sacrifice. It's just that even if a million zombies swarm me, it's too boring."
[Boring? Me. And my children?]
Pendariel's tone shifted.
Because of her low intelligence, her translated phrasing didn't improve, but anger clearly seeped through her words.
Of course she would be angry.
A mere human had just looked down on the boss monster of a floor.
"Pour in every single troop you have and try me. I'll sweep them all away."
Jinhyuk sneered mockingly.
[Fine. Human. Your base. Will be destroyed first. I will warn. All humans. To regret. Daring to challenge us.]
The Queen's message ended there.
In just a short while, forces filled with her wrath would swarm this place.
'I hope that recorded well.'
Jinhyuk checked the Broadcasting System.
[The edited video clip from the large base 'Mart' up to just now is currently being uploaded.]
Confirming that the video was uploading, Jinhyuk clenched his fist.
'Perfect.'
Everything had gone according to plan.
The foolish Chinese players couldn't even defend a single base, triggering the hidden quest.
Because of that, everyone had to prepare for the worst.
But at that very moment, Player Kang Jinhyuk willingly put himself in danger to save everyone.
By using the 'Sun-Blocking Stone' to draw all the zombies to his own base.
To everyone else, he would look like a hero.
But.
'I'm taking the highest kill reward, the popularity vote, and the reward for defeating the boss monster.'
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
Saving people was just a bonus.
His main goal was to sweep up every single reward.
With this, he had created the perfect opportunity to monopolize both public popularity and all the sweet benefits.
And he did it not through anyone else, but...
'By my own hands.'