Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: ACT.11 The Fraud (4)
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“To think my ability doesn't work on him...”
“What? Hey! My ability didn't work on this Kim Se-hyeon guy! Don't tell me yours doesn't either!”
“...In that case, there's only one way. A joint attack.”
I knew they'd do that.
Even if their abilities didn't work, they must have thought they could rely on their Ruler stats and overwhelm me with pure force in a 2-on-1 fight.
Despite being pushed back by my stats earlier, Yoo Seong-hoon must have thought they had a chance with two of them, as a smirk slowly returned to his face.
“I'll join as well.”
That wasn't the end of it.
Park Seong-woo, who should have been in the middle of a fight with Jeon Do-jin, walked out from the entrance of the city hall building, looking quite exhausted.
“What? Where's Jeon Do-jin?”
“I used a holographic image of myself to lure him elsewhere. It'll take him a while to realize it's a fake and come back. Phew, it's best not to engage with a difficult opponent.”
Park Seong-woo placed a hand on his forehead and shook his head.
Then, he casually walked over and joined Yoo Seong-hoon and Kim Tae-woo.
1 versus 3.
One non-Ruler against three Rulers.
Normally, if it were the other way around, one might think there was a chance, but the situation was completely reversed.
At that, even the people who had been moving about held their breath and fixed their gazes on us.
The outcome of the entire conflict depended on this fight.
“I'll admit you're strong enough to be confident. But can you take on three Rulers?”
Yoo Seong-hoon wore a vile smile.
It wasn't simply a matter of going from one to three.
They could employ strategies possible only with three people and create synergy with their powers to produce a force greater than the sum of its parts.
Park Seong-woo, who could press from all directions with both offense and defense using the power of science; Kim Tae-woo, who could harass from a distance with curses; and Yoo Seong-hoon, who could disrupt one's vision and mind, preventing them from using their full strength.
In reality, their combination was quite good.
However, I nonchalantly raised the corners of my mouth.
“I think I can.”
The three of them had stats of 60, including the Ruler bonus.
On the other hand, even without the Ruler bonus, my stats were over 60, some even over 70.
They think they can push me back with numbers and stats?
That method might have worked on others, but not on me.
[Activating 'Army of Darkness'.]
*Swoosh.*
Darkness rose from the shadowed floor, forming the shape of soldiers.
The onlookers gasped, a stir running through them.
It was the same for my companions who had just joined and were seeing the Army of Darkness for the first time.
“W-what is that? Soldiers?”
“Did Se-hyeon-ssi have a power like this...?”
Jo Min-woo was simply staring with his mouth agape, speechless.
He was at an age where he'd love this kind of stuff.
Unfortunately, the power Jo Min-woo would eventually obtain couldn't do anything like this.
“He summoned soldiers...?”
Yoo Seong-hoon's reaction was one of confusion.
Park Seong-woo was the same.
Perhaps because his abilities were of a similar type, Kim Tae-woo recognized it and wore a grim expression.
He probably noticed it immediately.
That they had a certain degree of immunity to physical attacks.
It wasn't complete immunity. Even if they were cut in half, they'd reattach as long as I didn't stop supplying them with mana, but if they accumulated too much damage, I'd have to summon them again.
“Damn it, don't give him time! Attack first!”
“Don't order me around!”
Deeming the situation serious, the three of them began to attack first.
I parried Kim Tae-woo's arrows, dodged Park Seong-woo's laser cannon, and countered Yoo Seong-hoon's attacks.
Thanks to the power of the Sa-in-cham-sa-geom, I didn't have to worry about curses, and Yoo Seong-hoon's attacks were completely nullified by 'Watcher Beyond the Screen' and 'Extreme Eye'.
Park Seong-woo's barrage of laser fire, which could be considered the trickiest, was extinguished using darkness.
*Shwaaak!*
As I swung my sword imbued with darkness, the volley of arrows fired by Kim Tae-woo vanished as if erased.
In fact, there was still power left in the sword qi, and Park Seong-woo had to rush to support and put up a barrier to barely offset it.
*Crack.*
In return, the machine that created the barrier had to expend all its energy at once, becoming inoperable.
“I made this to withstand the impact of a 10-ton truck, and all its energy was depleted in one shot!?”
*Kwang!*
Park Seong-woo, who had just raised his voice, was struck by a dark soldier that appeared behind him and went tumbling.
Perhaps because of the various machines strapped to his back, he didn't take any direct damage, but a significant portion of the machinery seemed to be destroyed, as the devices visible outside his clothes sparked and discharged.
“Dammit. Land a proper curse on him!?”
“The curses aren't working at all. The sword he's holding is preventing them from even getting close. And those soldiers are annoying too.”
Yoo Seong-hoon and Kim Tae-woo also gritted their teeth and switched to a defensive stance.
Despite it being 3-on-1, I was winning one-sidedly.
I could see the morale of the rebels, who were watching the fight with bated breath, slowly rising.
“He's... he's gaining the upper hand against them!?”
“Win! Please!!”
I was confident I could win. The problem was what came after.
This was an intermediate step. If I exhausted all my strength here, I wouldn't have the stamina when it really mattered and would mess things up.
So, I planned not to hold back from the start.
'Is it time to move to phase two of the plan?'
I gave a nod to Choi Yeon-soo, who had been watching me intently.
Choi Yeon-soo smirked slightly, nodded, and snapped his fingers.
At the same time, I quickly took an item from my inventory and stabbed it into the ground.
[The effect of the item 'Head-on Match' spreads throughout the northern area.]
[The 'Ruler' trait is nullified for all Rulers within the northern territory.]
[The use of all coins collected as taxes in the last 3 days is blocked.]
[The Ruler of the 'North' is now vacant.]
[Furthermore, all players are unable to acquire the Ruler trait for 5 minutes.]
*Paaaat!*
A transparent green light spread out, and the crowns floating above the heads of the three Rulers vanished.
Faces, without exception, were painted with shock.
The reason those three were overwhelmingly stronger than other players was due to the Ruler trait.
If that disappeared, it was effectively the same as losing more than half of their combat power.
“That's the signal!”
“He's not a Ruler either, so it's doable! Push them back!”
In addition, those who had been holding their breath revealed their true strength and stepped forward.
They were people like Wang Jun-ho, former small and medium-scale Rulers of the area who had been won over by me.
Having grown rapidly through taxes, even a Ruler who 'used to have' a golden crown couldn't easily win if several of them attacked at once.
“This...!?”
Kim Tae-woo, who had initially underestimated them as mere players, gasped.
A joint attack from those who, while slightly lacking in traits, were not inferior in terms of stats.
It wasn't something he could easily face.
However, Kim Tae-woo's trait was also good for multi-person battles, so he couldn't be easily defeated either.
Park Seong-woo wasn't struggling much thanks to his excellent trait, but the moment the dark soldiers joined in, the tide of battle turned against him instantly.
“Why are you coming after me personally...!?”
“Because if I leave you alone, people will be caught in illusions and start fighting each other, which would be a problem.”
“You sneaky bastard!”
Yoo Seong-hoon, bloodshot with rage, gritted his teeth.
He probably intended to provoke me and turn the situation around, but it was too shallow a trick.
*Thwack!*
Unable to dodge the kick that slammed into his side, Yoo Seong-hoon's mouth flew open as he was sent flying.
A satisfying impact.
I chuckled and then dashed toward Park Seong-woo.
My plan was to rapidly drain their stamina by attacking them in turns.
“Even so, approaching me is...!”
Something transparent formed in front of Park Seong-woo.
What I saw with Extreme Eye was an anti-gravity field.
His plan was to push me back as soon as I got close.
I smirked and stretched my hand forward.
Darkness gathered, creating a hole in the anti-gravity field, and I closed in on Park Seong-woo without any interference and swung my sword.
“He passed right through the anti-gravity field!? Kugh!”
*Shlaaack!*
The wounds on the 'former Rulers', now unable to properly defend themselves, began to multiply.
It was because I was intentionally avoiding landing fatal blows that would leave their lives hanging by a thread.
I couldn't kill them.
If I killed them all to avoid being backstabbed and took everything for myself, all the other areas except mine would be annihilated in the very next chapter.
What I was waiting for was the moment the item's effect ended.
[Time has elapsed.]
[The 'Ruler of the North' situation has been reset.]
[A new Ruler will be elected.]
As the system message appeared, the look in Yoo Seong-hoon's eyes changed.
“If I just get my Ruler trait back, turning this fight around will be a piece of cake...!”
He was the one who had taken the North. So, naturally, he would become the Ruler this time as well.
Yoo Seong-hoon was already convinced of it.
A chuckle escaped my lips.
Where did he get the confidence to think he would become the Ruler?
“Kim Se-hyeon-nim...!”
“Please let Kim Se-hyeon-nim become the Ruler!”
You don't become a Ruler just by being strong.
The support of many people.
In other words, it had to be backed by their wishes.
[A new Ruler has been elected.]
[Ruler of the North – Kim Se-hyeon]
Having laid so much groundwork, it was inevitable that I would become the Ruler.
*Paat!*
A crown materialized.
A crown of brilliantly shining golden light.
It was positioned right above my head.
Yoo Seong-hoon, his face contorted with rage, screamed at the empty air.
“W-why!? Why did Kim Se-hyeon become the Ruler and not me!? I'm the original Ruler! I should be the one to return to that position!?”
“Would you want yourself as a Ruler, you idiot?”
[You are now under the effect of the trait, Ruler.]
[Within your territory, all stats increase by 15.]
The overwhelming difference in stats due to the Ruler trait.
Yoo Seong-hoon, who was already losing to me, lost consciousness after the next blow, and soon after, I subdued Kim Tae-woo, who was struggling against a dark soldier.
Even Park Seong-woo, who had been holding on somehow, gave up the fight with a look of despair the moment he saw the crown above my head.
[The Ruler of the West has surrendered.]
[The Ruler of the Center has surrendered.]
[The Ruler of the South has surrendered.]
[Currently occupied major strongholds (4/5)]
[The Ruler trait is strengthened.]
[Confiscation is being applied to the targets.]
[Calculating coins...]
A flood of messages popped up in an instant, cluttering my vision.
I felt my tension about to ease, but I forced myself to stay focused.
It wasn't over yet.
I took a breath, *hoo*, and quickly scrolled past the messages.
[Achievement, 'Revolution', has been accomplished.]
[5000 coins have been awarded as a reward.]
I had smoothly achieved the accomplishment as well.
An achievement that can only be obtained by defeating a Ruler and gaining their crown while not being a Ruler yourself.
Since it's more difficult to fight without the Ruler trait, a fitting reward is given.
As for the coins from the confiscation, perhaps because the amount was large, it was taking time to calculate; the message just kept saying 'calculating' with no change.
I figured I just had to wait a bit.
As I thought that and closed the system window, my eyes met Choi Yeon-soo's.
*You're a truly terrifying bastard.*
Choi Yeon-soo seemed to be saying.
“Looks like everything went according to your plan. So, what now?”
“I didn't take away the other Rulers' stats or traits. Put these on them.”
“If we leave them, they could rebel again at any time... no, you wouldn't do something without thinking. So, what's this?”
“Special handcuffs I bought from the shop. If you put these on, their stats, traits, and skills will all be sealed, so they won't be able to escape.”
Choi Yeon-soo nodded and began to put the handcuffs on the other Rulers.
The job wasn't over yet.
There was still one person left, the most important one.
I shifted my gaze to the rooftop of the city hall building.
A figure who had suddenly appeared right after I started fighting the Rulers and had been watching silently.
Someone I didn't know was there, wearing a strange smile.
“There's someone on the roof. What's their objective?”
“I know. Their target is probably me.”
“Are you going to fight?”
“Well. We'll have to see about that.”
After asking Cha Eun-ha to clean up the area, I leaped to the rooftop in a single bound.
There was nothing special about their attire.
They were covering their face with a Hahoe mask, but the mask itself held no power.
At a glance, I didn't sense any hostility.
But my response would change depending on what they were scheming.
As I stared intently, the figure removed the mask covering their face and spoke first.
“Hello. This is our first time meeting, isn't it?”
When the face hidden behind the mask was revealed, even I couldn't help but be a little surprised.
I tried to hide my surprise and pretended to be calm as I replied.
A 2nd generation player who would appear at this timing, possessing this level of power, aside from Hwang Chan-jin... there was only one possibility.
“The Ruler of the East.”
“Wow. You guessed right away.”
Whether she knew how I felt or not, she smiled with her eyes.
“That's right. I'm the Ruler of the East, Jun Bo-ra.”