NOVEL NEXT Chapter 39
[Level ??]
[Ancient Hero ■■]
[HP ???/???]
I bumped into it.
The silhouette that could be recognized even within the light.
“Ancient Hero.”
There’s no indication of name, level, or HP.
I unconsciously took a step back.
Fear of the unknown? No. It’s fear of what I know too well.
That being should not appear in a place like this. No, it should not exist in this world.
Why is ‘I’…
No, why is the being that ‘used to be me’ here?
Training Tower.
What I faced at the end was…
The hero, Rain.
I caught my breath and organized my thoughts for a moment.
Training Tower, top floor, scan the magical circle.
Most likely, it’s a battle in the form of a mirror match against a named enemy suited to each one’s specs and class.
But the ‘Rain’ that existed in this world isn’t just me.
User ‘Rain’ of Astria Online, and the hero ‘Rain’ from a thousand years ago.
This named enemy is the latter.
Essentially the same being, but with a difference in perspective.
“Hah.”
I sighed and touched my throbbing head.
I know ‘that’ very well.
A body enhanced by the power of the holy sword and a golden protective charm flowing over my body. Ordinary attacks can’t even scratch it.
The sword energy emitted from the holy sword, charged with mana accumulated in the body. That was what had split my waist in two earlier.
It isn’t visible yet, but at some point during combat, that holy sword’s sword energy would sweep across the entire combat area, over several meters. Attacks using sword energy are impossible to see and evade, let alone guard against.
“I’m the only one on hard mode.”
I lightly complained.
This world was forcing me down a difficult path that only I had to walk.
But knowing it also means I can come up with countermeasures.
Of course, if ‘that’ is real, there would be no way for me to win.
“It’s just a game.”
As long as this world is a game called ‘Astria Online,’ surely ‘that’ is just a ‘named’ entity within the game system.
Then all I have to do is respond to its patterns and inflict damage to take it down.
However, with the current user character’s stats, there’s no way to keep up with ‘that’ attack power and speed. My sure-win formula of reacting to what I see has been completely shut down.
Is it just a matter of dying a few times to learn?
I gripped my sword tightly and swallowed hard.
Even death in a game feels more painful to me than to others. But…
“It doesn’t hurt.”
I die cleanly. If that’s the case, it’s fine.
I won’t be burned painfully. I won’t be split in half, or have my head cut off, or have my heart pierced.
“Eek.”
Imagining death, I almost screamed without realizing it.
Knowing I will definitely die while entering a fight. If I said it wasn’t scary, that would be a lie.
But I steeled my heart.
I had been extremely timid for a whole year.
At first, I was scared of dying in the game, but now I have somewhat regained my former mindset.
In my days as a hero, I had fought with the resolve to die many times.
And yet, I’m still alive.
Death in the game isn’t true death. My life is cheaper than back then. It’s just that the sensation of dying feels a bit too real and scary.
“As long as it doesn’t hurt too much, I’m okay.”
As I die several times, I can learn the patterns one by one and strategize.
Other users do the same. There are those who conquer named enemies after dozens or hundreds of tries.
Rain, you’re no different.
It’s not true death.
I just have to do it the same way as everyone else.
I gripped my sword tightly and approached it.
*
“Umm.”
I’ve faced it again, but how should I start this first move?
The ‘Ancient Hero,’ still wrapped in light, seemed to be looking straight ahead.
That hero is definitely a being within the game’s system. There must be a recognition range.
Carefully.
I cautiously approached the hero.
The identity of the flash that had split my waist earlier was probably sword energy.
It must be a pattern where it unleashes ranged sword energy on an opponent out of melee reach.
The hero’s powerful sword energy sweeping across the front. Even if I used my block skill, I would be split in two with its sword.
11 meters.
It hasn’t recognized me.
Then. 10 meters is the recognition range.
I turned around.
Taking a deep breath.
[Backward Evasion (C)]
[Quickly dodges 8m backward to evade an attack from the front (invulnerable during casting)]
[Cooldown 8 seconds]
[(E-Rank) Increased movement speed for 5 seconds after skill activation]
Thud.
I activated Backward Evasion.
Papat!
At the same time, a crescent-shaped sword energy emitted from the hero grazed my body three times.
The first button was properly fastened.
As expected.
No matter how strong the being is with abnormal power, as this world is a game, it cannot ignore the ‘invulnerability during casting’ status.
If I had carelessly started the battle with an approach move, my body would have been split in two before I even reached the hero like before.
Having reached near the hero in an instant with a backward move, I faced forward before the invulnerability status ended.
Paah!
The holy sword swung down in the blink of an eye. I raised my sword to block it.
Kakakakakang!
A rapid barrage of sword strikes. Was it six? Seven times in one second? Given that the attacks of the named enemies I had faced before were at least a second apart, the hero’s attack speed was beyond imagination.
However, my sword, activated by the ‘Block’ skill, moved ahead of the reaction and successfully blocked the hero’s strikes. Fortunately, the hero hadn’t summoned sword energy yet.
Right now, I am under the protection of the ‘game system.’ No matter how strong the opponent’s attack is, it can’t attack me while ignoring the absolute system of ‘skills.’
But just blocking won’t win the fight. I need to land a hit on the opponent.
When? When will an opening appear?
Kakakakakang! Kaang!
Just as I was barely processing my thoughts, the movement of the holy sword suddenly changed.
A swift upward strike from below. At the same time, my sword was knocked upwards.
“Ah…!”
A guard-breaking technique.
My arm lifted with the sword, exposing my upper body. The hero’s flash-like thrust penetrated through that gap.
Thud.
“Cough.”
A cold blade embedded into my heart made my body shudder, and soon the world faded to darkness.
[Training Tower Floor 9]
“I… Eek!”
After a moment of catching my breath post-respawn, I clutched my pierced chest and wept.
Rain, you fool. You should have anticipated a technique with such a judgment.
If only I had thought a little more, I could have avoided that hole in my chest.
Anyway, I haven’t landed an attack yet, but I was able to see the pattern to some extent. I’ve made considerable progress with the cost of one life.
Thud.
I slapped my face with both hands.
With that resolve, I approached the hero.
“Alright, shall we see the next pattern?”
Kakakakakang!
39th attack, and then the guard-breaking technique.
Kaang!
With the hero’s strike, I used the recoil from my arm lifting to rotate my body to the left.
Thud!
The thrust passed between my armpits. Before I could feel the chill run down my spine, I swung my sword strongly using the rotation. It was a crude swing, not even using a skill.
Thund!
As my sword struck the hero’s protective charm, I felt a strong rebound. But I had definitely landed an attack. The flickering of the charm indicated the hero felt something.
Seeing that confirmed, I smiled slyly.
Game. System. Named enemy.
It’s not an existence that cannot be hit. It can definitely be strategized.
I could use a counterattack against the guard-breaking attack, but I can’t overuse the ‘invulnerability during casting’ status. I don’t know when a guard-unable pattern might appear.
Whoosh.
The joy of landing my first hit was brief; the hero’s holy sword rose above its head, and soon it shimmered with light.
An attack imbued with sword energy. I can’t block it.
Evading it by sight is impossible. But thankfully, I could read the signs due to my preparations. I barely managed to twist my body. The holy sword struck the tower floor.
Quang! The shockwave momentarily lifted the ground. It was merely a vertical downward strike containing sword energy, yet the impact was tremendous. Did the demon race feel this kind of sensation when facing me in the past?
Undoubtedly an area damage judgment. Backward evasion? No, I can’t do that. If I move too far away, sword energy will come flying. Here, I’ll use a counterattack.
Shrrrk!
Quakurakurak!
Immediately, the floor shattered and devastated the surroundings. My body, having triggered the counterattack, didn’t take damage due to the ‘invulnerability during casting’ status.
The hero paused for a moment. The delay after the downward strike imbued with sword energy.
1 second? 2 seconds? There was no time to think. I immediately unleashed a flurry of sword strikes containing starlight against the back of the hero’s protective charm.
Papapapak!
4 hits registered. One more? No, the delay wasn’t that long. I maintained my guard and surveyed the situation. Soon, the hero returned to his initial pattern.
Kakakakakang!
Ah, I feel like I could have landed one or two more hits.
Momentarily feeling regret, I calmly responded to the hero’s attacks while looking for an opening.
The hero’s strikes were too fast to respond to, but they couldn’t breach my guard. The downward strike shockwave pattern has a delay after it.
If the hero’s overwhelming speed and powerful sword strike were his weapons, my weapon is the ‘game system’ itself. I can surely win.
After the 40th attack, a guard-breaking technique appeared, and I noticed a reaction even from a strike that didn’t use a skill. If it’s the number of hits rather than damage that removes the charm, there’s no need to use a skill to land damage.
I’ll strip off the charm without using a skill.
Using only response speed and agility as my weapons.
Kaang!
After the 40th attack, the hero’s upward swing broke my guard, and using that recoil, I quickly sent three strikes toward the hero’s body.
Papapap!
The hero’s charm flickered three times. Soon, I evaded the downward sword energy strike that came with it using a counterattack.
Quakurakurak!
The strikes from my sword, aimed at the hero, met the protective charm just as…
Papapapapah!
“Cough!?”
Sword energy erupted from the hero’s body, swirling outwards.
A rebound sword energy?
My body was instantly mutilated by the ferocious sword energy storm.
[Training Tower Floor 9]
“Haah.”
I took a moment to catch my breath.
The rebound sword energy that returns the absorbed power of the opponent. It wasn’t necessarily a technique triggered by the number of attacks landed on me. Was it merely a patternized version of my combat style from my hero days?
Anyway, after 10 hits, there’s a pattern of a rebound sword energy storm.
Let’s remember that for sure.
“Okay, let’s go again.”