Chapter 198

Chapter 198. A Day on the Battlefield (2)

“Aaah!”

The general-rank, upon sensing the attack, let out a monstrous howl to command his subordinates into battle.

Simultaneously, jagged rock masses surged from the ground.

Fortunately, most of the subordinates accompanying him had evaded the surprise attack, having leapt into the air.

While the general-rank briefly checked his subordinates’ damage, the foreign mana continued to swirl chaotically.

It didn’t take long for a massive barrier to rise around them.

They were trapped in a flash while their movements were hindered.

As soon as the evolved species on the periphery grasped the situation, they rushed towards the barrier.

Bang, crash!

Every time they swung their tails and fists, massive stones shattered miserably.

Yet, beyond the broken barrier lay another barrier.

Again, layer after layer.

The general-rank, realizing the multiple layers of barriers, opened his massive maw and roared.

“Aaaaah!”

In response, the evolved species ceased trying to break the barriers, instead opting to leap over them by climbing atop one another.

They chose to cross rather than destroy.

But, unfortunately for them, just as the evolved species reached the barrier’s edge.

Whoosh.

Flames that sprouted like flowers from the air began cascading down the barrier.

“Screeee!”

“Raargh!”

A burnt smell wafted as acrid smoke emanated all around.

Creatures with low mana resistance began to burn alive.

“Fire, boom, crackle…”

The general-rank recognized the magic.

He had encountered it in past battles against demi-humans.

The raging flame continued to fill the interior of the barrier.

If this went on, subordinates with low mana resistance would suffer severe damage.

The order to conserve the troops would be impossible to fulfill.

“Crackle, crackle. Danger…”

Mana began seeping from the general-rank clinging to the pointed rock with his tail.

There was so much mana that the air shimmered as if a mirage were rising from the ground.

The ground close to the general-rank gradually turned muddy.

Soon, a pool of water started forming on the once dirt- and gravel-covered land.

The evolved species, attempting to leap over the barrier, changed direction and dove downward instead.

They submerged themselves in the water to escape the flames.

The general-rank, having altered the terrain to his advantage, intended to enter the water like his subordinates and lure in the attacker.

But the moment he leapt from the rock he was standing on.

A dazzling light exploded above him.

“Aaaah!”

Sensing the ominous approach, the general-rank twisted his body hastily in mid-air.

And instinctively swung his arm.

It was an excellent decision. Had he been even slightly slower, the lance enveloped in blue sparks would have pierced through his torso.

However, he had only narrowly escaped a fatal danger.

Overwhelmed by the unexpected force, the general-rank fell, and before he hit the ground, blue light spread around him.

He jumped up and tried to escape, but his response was a moment too late.

Zap, zap-!

He was already enshrouded by the blue sparks.

An unbearable heat poured from the sparks, intricately woven like a spider’s web.

He attempted to escape by charging forward with mana wrapped around his body.

“Screee!”

But he was mercilessly repelled each time.

Even his incredibly sturdy scales were burned off.

In a panic, the general-rank poured mana into the lightning net.

He tried to interfere with and destroy the arrangement of the magic.

But it yielded no results.

For some reason, the mana was not moving according to his will.

The general-rank realized he was trapped inside a tightly knit web of lightning.

Almost simultaneously, a glass bottle, the size of a fist, dropped into a nearby pool of water with a plop.

“Can’t get out.”

Immediately after, an unfamiliar voice echoed from above.

Tilting his head upward, the general-rank locked eyes with a human crouched atop the lightning net.

Furious at the sight of the enemy, the general-rank opened his maw wide and roared.

The human, however, barely glanced at the general-rank, nonchalantly jumping off the lightning net.

Then, unexpectedly, began conversing with another unseen human.

“Breaking through magic isn’t that simple.”

“The last general-rank I encountered could break through the barrier and even set up a secondary one.”

“That creature must have undergone significant training. Besides, ordinary barriers aren’t affected by interference, right? Successfully breaking through when interference sets in requires genuine skill. This guy doesn’t seem to have that level of skill. His mana level is lower than K’s… Breaking out on his own will be tough.”

“So you’re saying some highly skilled ones could break out?”

“It’s entirely possible. It’s quite astounding, but they have the intelligence to learn, you know. Among the Outsiders, there are those proficient in magic and those who aren’t. It’s the same thing.”

“Then how long do you think you can contain the traitor, besides the general-rank?”

“That depends on their skills.”

“What about you?”

“Despite the interference, I could break through in 1 to 2 minutes. While it’s clear that they’ve put some effort into the arrangement, it’s still a predictable structure…”

“Aaaaargh!”

Watching the humans chat leisurely, as if forgetting his existence, fury surged within him.

“Kill the humans! Aaaah!”

The general-rank threatened to tear the lightning net and escape.

“Whoa, it really talks.”

However, the human standing outside the lightning net seemed utterly unconcerned, speaking in an incredibly indifferent tone.

“Don’t get all worked up. Once we’ve dealt with your lackeys, we’ll play with you too.”

As he finished speaking, his hair fluttered in the wind.

And splash!

The subordinates hiding underwater struggled and flailed.

Slick, slish-!

Although invisible, a transparent blade began stirring the water.

Eventually, the subordinates hiding underwater crawled onto land in a panic.

The human standing face-to-face with the general-rank brandished a spear emitting a chilling spark.

* * *

Kim Yul’s wind step proved useful in many ways.

Especially when he took Yang Taeho and secured the air first, its usefulness doubled.

With a bird’s-eye view of the battlefield, Yang Taeho could employ the barrier magic more extensively, forming a single prison.

“My barriers lose solidity once they get too distant, so they have limited utility.”

With Kim Yul acquiring flight-type magic, a variety of tactics became possible.

The result allowed them to immobilize hundreds of evolved species.

But that didn’t mean the ensuing battle was easy.

Many evolved species were still alive.

“Firestorm and hellfire are 3rd rank, and Kim Yul’s sword dance is 4th rank magic.”

The area-effect magics killed the evolved species with low resistance.

Among them were a few 6-star evolved species.

I personally witnessed the sight of creatures with six stars above their heads burning to death.

“Resistance varies by creature.”

Thanks to the low mana resistance, certain evolved species were easy to handle.

Yet, despite two consecutive area-effect magics, there were more living creatures than dead ones.

“This is why dealing with strike teams presents a high level of difficulty.”

From now on, magic would serve only as a backup.

Dealing with each remaining living evolved species required direct confrontation.

“Sssiiigh!”

That’s when a 5-star evolved species, reminiscent of a water snake, lunged at me with its mouth gaping.

I thrust the lance, covered in mana, straight into its maw.

As a result, the tip of my spear protruded through the creature’s head.

“Gurgh!”

Even with what should have been a fatal injury, the lengthy body, easily over ten meters long, attempted to coil around me.

At that exact moment, a colossal hammer struck the creature’s extended body right in the center.

Boom-!

With its leather and bones crushed, the evolved species’ body split in two.

In that brief interval, I retrieved my spear and swiftly moved towards Yang Taeho, who was raising his hammer.

“Guhar!”

I wasn’t too late. I skewered the neck of the 6-star evolved species that was about to pounce on him from behind.

It’s as if we exchanged targets, helping each other out.

Yang Taeho met my eyes and grinned, resting his hammer on his shoulder.

His smile reminded me of the very first day in Bihar when he suddenly hugged me tight, with tears brimming in his eyes.

Since then, he’s been insistent, as if trying to repay his debt, which made me slightly uncomfortable.

I shook my head and offered him some advice.

“In a chaotic fight, make sure to prioritize your safety, hyung.”

“Aye, just had some spare time to watch out for our party leader.”

Yang Taeho responded in a bright voice, thrusting his shield towards an advancing evolved species.

With a bang, an evolved species smashed its head against the shield and shook its head.

Meanwhile, Yang Taeho’s hammer crushed the creature.

In that brief span, I stomped on the head of the 5-star species trying to burrow at my feet, squishing it flat.

Then, I cleanly sliced the belly of another 5-star species lunging upwards.

“You gentlemen can save the bromance for later. Focus on killing them first!”

Kim Yul, momentarily left standing alone, yelled at us.

In response, I simply hurled a short spear into the head of an evolved species pursuing him closely.

We weren’t carelessly leaving Kim Yul unguarded.

I wasn’t sure if it was a trait of those with wind attributes.

But Kim Yul skillfully hunted, dodging the evolved species’ attacks effortlessly, almost to an annoying degree.

While his combat ability didn’t surpass mine, his evasion skill was unmatched.

Thanks to this, among us, his injury rate was the lowest.

‘If I and Taeho hyung hold the center as a pair, Kim Yul rotates on the side for surprise attacks.’

That’s our party’s basic position when chaos breaks out.

Eventually, diligently pressing on with the battle, the species came close to extinction.

The fallen creatures covered the damp ground instead.

Finally, after severing the neck of the last evolved species.

Kim Yul promptly retrieved a pocket watch from his inventory and reported.

“4 hours… 13 minutes!”

I nodded, satisfied.

We had dealt with hundreds of evolved species, even including 5 and 6-star ones, with just three combat personnel.

It took roughly 4 hours, using a total of 12 high-rank potions.

“The injuries were all minor.”

The use of potions was more about speeding up the recovery rate of attribute mana.

None of the three sustained injuries severe enough to hinder combat.

“We really rocked this!”

Kim Yul seemed quite surprised by the result achieved against the evolved species.

Indeed, it was a remarkable hunt.

Although many special conditions needed to be considered.

“Even considering all that, our combat power is much stronger than Bihar’s High-Rank Knights.”

Not only abundant general mana compared to most knights but also attribute mana once exclusive to mages.

Thanks to possessing two typically unobtainable conditions for a person.

“A knight and a mage, you’re producing the power of two people on your own.”

“Isn’t this like being a one-man army?”

While initially meant to describe valor more than numbers.

“The concept is similar.”

Instead of pointing it out, I agreed.

There had been a few days of lull before a new main scenario, and during that time, Kim Yul, along with Yang Taeho, began studying basic knowledge and history.

After that, he noticeably tried to show that he had learned something new, so I played along, supporting his learning process.

The more he practiced using it, the more he’d want to learn.

“We might just crush this upcoming scenario!”

“No problem at all. If it’s our party leader, he’ll get it done.”

With his spirits lifted, Kim Yul hummed a tune, and Yang Taeho echoed his excitement.

Meanwhile, I turned my eyes away from the two, scanning the now-empty surroundings.

The power a player with a gold rank could showcase was quite impressive.

But watching all that power didn’t put me entirely at ease.

Because this impressive power would be the limit most players could reach.

‘If your body transforms to a gold rank, you’ve essentially reached the ordinary peak of what a Biharin can achieve.’

Few among the players would advance to this higher stage.

Having barely surpassed the magic level of 500 million now, I was the proof.

Without employing irregular methods, possessing more mana than me at this stage seemed impossible.

Unlike the mana from monster hunting, which gets divided and absorbed among party members, player-killed mana absorption is exclusive to the individual.

“Even after clearing out the human trafficking organization, I absorbed quite a bit yet just reached 500 million.”

I am an irregular, having deviated from the normal growth route, yet even so, just barely 500 million mana.

It’s a number that shouldn’t be termed “barely,” yet can only be seen as barely enough.

Seeing this, it made it clear that the 10 billion mana required for the platinum rank wasn’t an achievable number for everyone.

Damned System