Chapter 64 : Heading Towards the Truth (4)

Chinese users all shared one common trait, which was their lack of preference for magic and sorcery-based job classes.

Of course, it wasn’t that they outright hated magic, or ostracized mages, sorcerers, faith-based… basically, ranged skill users.

In the first place, the ratio of mages, sorcerers, and cleric users wasn’t small, so if they, already boasting a low population due to the

government’s ‘Fantasia Online Suppression Policy’, had tried to exclude them, they would have likely faced a backlash, making it a wise

choice not to.

Above all, it was the mages, sorcerers, and cleric users who provided buffs and heals, securing significant advantages for front-line users

during combat.

Of course, the back-line users also needed the front-line, so they couldn’t properly enjoy the game if they just pushed each other away.

Both the Chinese users and non-Chinese users knew this, so no particular disputes arose.

However, the Chinese users implicitly looked down on and disregarded the ranged class users.

The reason was simple.

They viewed ranged classes like mages as cowards who were afraid of close combat and just spammed magic, sorcery, or miracles from the

back.

Meanwhile, the archer class wasn’t considered cowardly, supposedly because they could engage in close combat with daggers.

Naturally, users of the classes viewed unfavorably by the Chinese were similarly not inclined to prefer them when forming parties or acting in

groups.

After all, there were hardly any perverts in Fantasia Online who enjoyed being looked down upon.

However, people realized that the skills of Chinese users weren’t bad, so they maintained a certain distance, including them only if there was

absolutely no one else to party with.

When cooperation was necessary, they would join hands, but after the task was done, they wouldn’t exchange particularly favorable glances—

such a lukewarm relationship was maintained by mutual tacit agreement.

Just when it seemed the Chinese users and general users were drifting apart, it was the guild <Red Cliff> that changed this perception of the

Chinese.

<Red Cliff>, true to being a Chinese guild, was mostly filled with melee-type job classes.

More than half belonged to the Martial Artist  type job class, using martial arts with bare hands, while the rest were filled with classes

using cold weapons like swordsmen or archers.

After all, they were people who grew up reading novels and comics like Wuxia set in China, so they couldn’t give up their preferred job

classes.

However, word spread implicitly from those who cooperated or partied with members of the <Red Cliff> guild that their actions were

different from other Chinese users.

<Red Cliff> did not scorn or ignore ranged class users.

Rather, they acknowledged them as people who enjoyed the game differently and respected them as fellow users and combatants.

Because the fact that Chinese users’ skills as front-liners or melee dealers were generally quite competent was widely known within the

Fantasia community, <Red Cliff>‘s foreign-friendly approach attracted the attention of many back-line users, and as a result, by establishing

cooperative relationships with many guilds, <Red Cliff> was able to grow into the strongest guild within China.

‘And I’m in a situation where I have to drop into the middle of that giant guild and wreak havoc.’

The <Red Cliff> guild, located in Shanghai, was the organization boasting the strongest influence among Chinese guilds.

Although China hadn’t officially granted a license for ‘Fantasia Online’, making the number of Chinese users relatively small for its

population, they had a fairly systematic structure built on a sense of national unity, and their skills were quite outstanding.

Of course, as they operated under the banner of being a ‘Chinese guild friendly to everyone’, their manners were also unusually good

compared to typical Chinese users of the past.

Though, now they had reached the stage of conducting heinous human experiments.

‘The regular combatants… they won’t be much of a problem thanks to my increased mana and the Dragon Heart trait. If worst comes to

worst, I can just engage in aerial combat…’

Since <Red Cliff> is full of Martial Artist type users, they’ll be almost incapable of dealing with an enemy flying in the air.

Of course, I heard from Eunrang that there were archer users and that some mage users had joined back when the game was operating

normally, but their numbers must be minimal.

I wasn’t particularly worried.

As long as I didn’t deliberately fold my wings and land on the ground, the <Red Cliff> guild members, excluding the archers, were practically

at a complete disadvantage against me.

‘Of course, it would have been different if Eunrang were here.’

Eunrang’s individual skill was fundamentally outstanding, but he stood out more than any other ranker when commanding his guild

members or party.

The only rankers who displayed comparable leadership were the number 1 ranked man, who showed near perfection in all aspects, or the

British Iron Duke, ranked 11th.

As such, if he were leading the guild members against me, my chances of winning would likely have plummeted drastically.

But he died by my hand not long ago, and without Eunrang, <Red Cliff> was practically defenseless.

However, there was one thing bothering me: the possibility that the Eunrang I faced might not have been the ‘real Eunrang’.

‘…But those skills definitely belonged to Eunrang. If they could replicate the skills of the 34th ranked player so accurately… the world would

have fallen into the hands of the <Red Cliff> guild long ago.’

Firming my resolve with the thought that it couldn’t be possible, I accelerated while appreciating the distant lights of Shanghai.

A different kind of resolve was needed compared to when I half-wrecked <Hellbando>.

<Red Cliff> was a guild on a completely different level from Hellbando, starting with its scale.

Of course, in terms of difficulty or danger, the one-on-one fight with Yejin was much higher than <Red Cliff> – but that should be considered

separately.

For a situation more dangerous than a one-on-one battle with the 3rd ranker to occur, the only possibilities would be directly confronting the

super-giant guilds existing in Europe, America, or Japan, or perhaps a battle with the 1st ranker.

‘Of course, I have no intention of doing something that stupid.’

‘Status Window’

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• Status Window

[GrabTheHornsMakeABaby]

Title: Rational – Dragon’s Companion

LV. 170

Race: Dragonian (White)

Status: Normal

-Basic Stats

Strength: 32

Agility: 32

Mana: 370

Intelligence: 50

Racial Special Stats

Ice Element Affinity: 10/10

Job Class: Elementalist (Ice/Lightning)

Job Class Special Stats

Fire Element Affinity: 2/10

Water Element Affinity: 3/10

Wind Element Affinity: 10/10

Earth Element Affinity: 1/10

Lightning Element Affinity: 10/10

[Dragon’s Pact] – Allows you to subjugate opponents you have subdued and make them your servants.

[Dragon’s Blood] – Body becomes more attuned to mana, reducing casting time.

[Hatchling’s Dragon Heart] – Greatly increases mana capacity. Damage multiplier from increased mana capacity is doubled. The curse of the

Half-Dragon is weakened, improving physical abilities.

[Wings] – Has the same effect as <Flight> magic. Can also be used for defense.

[Transcendent’s Body] – All stats increased by +10.

[Archmage’s Mark] – Mana stat increased by +5.

[Friend of Spirits] – Elemental Affinity stats are adjusted.

[Half-Dragon Body] – Mana stat efficiency increases. Efficiency of stats other than Mana decreases. Physical abilities become frail.

Looking at the list of free buffs generated by the increased assimilation rate below the Elemental Affinities, confidence surged within me.

Of course, the word ‘servant’ in the description of <Dragon’s Pact> was a bit bothersome… but seeing the boosted specs and buff list made

such reservations instantly forgotten.

Increased mana capacity, inflated magic skill damage, and reduced casting time.

Each one was an option that would make existing mage or sorcerer users drool and rush for it, and even the amount of increase was

unbelievable.

My previous mana capacity was only around the 170s, but after hitting an assimilation rate in the 20% range, my mana reached a whopping

370.

It was indeed worth enduring the penalties of a rare race and raising it.

This is the descendant of dragons, a great race.

‘…Come to think of it, these specs could even beat the 1st ranker, should I really be intimidated by something like <Red Cliff>?’

Once confidence took hold, the flow of thought turned endlessly positive.

The matchup between me and <Red Cliff> is extremely disadvantageous for them, and as you can see, there’s a huge difference in specs.

I even have wings, so I won’t fall behind in mobility either.

To think I planned to fight cautiously, no, cowardly, even with such an advantage.

My ancestors in the sky must have been laughing at me.

According to legends, the ancestral dragons brought down nations single-handedly; their descendant shouldn’t falter before a mere guild.

“Let’s smash them head-on.”

The mana circuit connected to the Dragon Heart surged, forming a magic circle twice as large as before.

This magic circle, appearing on a massive building in Shanghai—folded the 200-meter-tall building in half.

Gently, like stepping on and crushing an empty can.