Ch.5854 – Preliminary Investigation

A narrow alleyway winding like a spider’s web through the complex city.

Just wide enough for one person to barely squeeze through.

A muscular man in full plate armor presses against the wall, raising his hands and crab-walking his way out.

He checks the rooftops, road ends, and all directions, preparing for ambushes that could come from anywhere.

Just as he’s about to breathe a sigh of relief, a human shadow emerges from the gap between buildings on the opposite side.

The warrior swallows a bitter laugh as he faces the shield knight blocking the path to Yggdrasil.

Of all things, a shield knight—

Shield knights belonged to the sword-shield knight class, but in story mode, they were the natural counter to warriors, having invested everything in defense, health, and shield skills.

The man had devised a sharp strategy to target the enemy’s rear base while everyone was focused on the battle at Apia Boulevard, but even this had been anticipated by his opponent.

In open terrain, the warrior might have had a favorable matchup, but in a space with limited horizontal movement, things were different.

A knight who only needs to hold their shield to break even versus a warrior who must break through at all costs.

The warrior had no options left.

Time wasn’t on his side.

Above all, he wanted to wipe that smug look off his enemy’s face.

He would break through.

Having made his decision, he quickly put it into action.

He pulled his greatsword far back and charged full force at the shield with its cross pattern.

Aura charging, then a strong attack.

He takes the motion of a vertical head cut (Scheitelhauw).

While charging, he observes the shield knight’s reaction.

Immovable.

The knight doesn’t give up his geographical advantage. A textbook response.

But this was something both the greatsword warrior and shield knight already knew.

The warrior was the first to change his approach.

He cancels his skill cast, even if it means wasting the energy he’s already spent.

The shield knight still doesn’t change his response. His calmness seems visible even from behind the shield. He’s saying he’ll watch and block until the end.

It’s an unfair game of chicken.

The warrior makes his gambit.

Rising cut (Unterhauw).

The knight flinches with his shield.

It’s a technique normally used to deflect large attacks from a distance, but now being used against a shield.

Perhaps because it was an unexpected technique, the shield knight’s response was slow.

A clean strike starting from Nebenhut, through Hängen, and ending with Einhorn. The action assist applied perfectly.

Clang—

As expected, the attack was blocked by the sturdy shield.

However, the shield knight didn’t know that Unterhauw could also be used to pressure an opponent.

The curse of expertise.

A trick developed because it’s impossible for a human to master every profession.

As the shield bounces upward from the impact, the knight instinctively pulls it back with his body.

The corner of the warrior’s mouth rises slightly.

When Unterhauw is completed, the sword tip points diagonally upward.

The warrior activates his skill.

Before executing Rage Cut (Zornhauw), he casts the skill “Lightening.”

The warrior’s body, weighed down by heavy armor, floats about 1 meter into the air.

As the sword’s position rises higher than the alley wall, it finally regains horizontal freedom.

With the sword pulled far back toward his back, he bends his rear leg.

Diagonal downward cut.

It was a beginner’s move that even someone who doesn’t know the word “swordsmanship” would instinctively make when swinging a sword, but it boasted enough power to destroy other cuts with its blade tip.

The shield knight was caught in a reverse motion.

The result was a foregone conclusion.

Boom—

The shield was knocked away by the powerful strike.

A shield knight without a shield is like a turtle without its shell.

He couldn’t stop now.

When the enemy was most vulnerable, he launched another attack with the fastest move a warrior could execute.

A skill with frames he wouldn’t have even considered if the opponent still had his shield.

Time to correct the bad habit of shield knights who only prepare to block strong attacks.

Ching—

Boom—

Is it even possible to parry a massive greatsword with a one-handed sword?

The warrior was already certain of victory from this moment.

The enemy had already fallen into mental weakness.

The knight’s body staggered greatly from the repeated attacks. But the warrior was still going strong.

‘Should I risk my life to attempt a parry? Or should I get greedy and try a technique with a long cast time?’

Neither was the right answer.

The shield knight’s hand suddenly moved to his waist.

He belatedly realized he didn’t need to win.

Having received news that the main force had won the 5v5 battle, the shield knight chose to distance himself from his shield entirely.

He takes one step back.

Without his shield, he just needed to dodge all attacks or, if unwilling, take hits that wouldn’t be critical.

The shield knight unfurled a scroll with a flourish, but what he wanted didn’t happen.

The warrior’s fierce gaze flashed as he sneered at him.

When people are cornered, whether bronze or master rank, they always reach for a “Blink” scroll first.

“You’re too scared to parry.”

The warrior had already anticipated this and countered with a magic nullification field.

Then the warrior shouted:

“PLEASE! If I just break through you, I’ll be Challenger! Challenger!”

The warrior raised his weapon high into the sky.

The gleaming greatsword absorbed the sun’s heat and transformed into a guillotine that would take a life.

The warrior’s wrist went limp.

The handle rotated slowly, but the blade at its end howled with the sound of fierce wind.

The look of resignation was clear in the eyes of the opponent whose posture had completely collapsed.

Blood spurted across the screen.

* * *

[CHALLENGER!!! I DID IT!]

Having watched this moving narrative to its conclusion, I turned off the screen and took a break.

‘They play pretty well.’

I couldn’t easily read all the interfaces and the player’s actions and intentions from just one viewing.

However, the man’s intense desire for Challenger tier was fully conveyed to me.

It was a bit different from the game I had imagined.

Magic couldn’t be implemented in multiplayer.

It seemed that magic using the synchronized “Laurel” was limited to single-player only.

Apparently, not all types of magic could be used even with scrolls.

The game specifies that you can choose one from 128 types of magic, but despite this large number, all 12 players, friend and foe alike, brought “Blink” magic, making it difficult to judge the effectiveness of magic.

“Yum.”

I put the strawberry that Professor Cheon personally handed me with a fork into my mouth.

“Is that a game? It looks rather brutal.”

Indeed, scenes of limbs being severed and blood spurting weren’t completely censored, which might be uncomfortable for sensitive viewers.

When I play, I can just change the settings.

“I think it looks different for those under 15. Like this, all bubbly.”

I waved my hands around and wiggled my fingers to recreate the bubble shape.

“Bubble bubble bubble bubble.”

You can even pop them like this, you know?

Cute soap bubbles appear instead of blood.

And limbs don’t get cut off; they just become transparent like they’re etherealized.

But Professor Cheon still looked quite uncomfortable.

“If you’re against it, I won’t play multiplayer.”

I responded with a drooping voice, but Professor Cheon remained firm.

“But story mode is for all ages, isn’t it? There were no problems when I played with Lora.”

Even seven-year-old Lora had no issues with the game.

And back then, the background was cute and the difficulty was easy, so it never once crossed my mind that it was a brutal game.

Professor Cheon pointed at the screen and asked:

“What’s the name of this game?”

“WoA. World of Arsheria.”

“Ah, I think I’ve heard of it a lot. They say all middle and high school students play this these days?”

As a last resort, I decided to show him an all-ages trailer.

“It’s actually a game about exploration. You enroll in an academy, make friends, hunt together, watch stars at the observatory…”

The video showed an elf protagonist enjoying the starry night sky with academy friends.

It’s ironic that stars aren’t visible in the city, but the game has such a clear night sky.

“Ohhh… the background is certainly beautiful.”

“Right, right?”

“But what’s the fun in playing alone? It seems like it would be more fun with friends.”

“I’m fine playing by myself. So, can I go try it out briefly before bed tonight?”

“Then no later than exactly midnight.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Anyway, staying up later would affect school tomorrow.

As I got up to go to my room, Professor Cheon handed me another fruit fork.

“Here, have one more strawberry before you play.”

“Aaaam-“