Ownership Contest

Jang Yu-ha greeted me.

“Over here!”

She waved her hand largely, as if expecting me.

When I went to where Jang Yu-ha was, people were setting up a large tent.

Around it, individual tents were lined up in neat rows.

I wondered why they were setting up when the night was already over, then I remembered that the Death Knight had attacked.

‘(Death Knight!)’

Win shouted.

I want to meet it.

I want to fight it.

I want to win.

Win squealed.

The Death Knight must not have been easy to catch, because now that I looked, the entire area was a dirt floor. There were deep pits here and there, showing the intensity of the battle.

Besides the First Home Clan, there were other Clans nearby with their flags raised,

Each setting up tents and preparing to camp from broad daylight.

“Was the damage from the Death Knight pretty bad?”

“The damage was less than expected. Everyone has learned to use their Awakened Ability, so it’s easier to win than before.”

“Come to think of it, I heard you cleared it a few times with party climbs.”

A sudden curiosity.

“Then how many people were in the party that caught the Death Knight on which floor?”

“Um…”

Jang Yu-ha counted.

“We caught it on the 70th floor with 50 people.”

“50 people?”

“The higher you go, the stronger the Monster becomes exponentially. You can think of it as the number of people also increasing accordingly.”

“….”

“I think I know what you’re thinking. You can estimate the level by looking at the color of the Status Window, and you think it’s strange that 50 people are being put in to catch the same level, right?”

“Yes.”

“You might not know if you’ve only done solo climbs. It’s not like other games where the opponent’s level is displayed nicely. Then shall I correct one misunderstanding?”

What misunderstanding?

“Americano.”

“Yes.”

“What level do you think I am?”

Jang Yu-ha was still an Avatar.

A woman with silver hair and blue eyes.

She seemed to have made it as natural as possible, but she couldn’t completely erase the unnaturalness. It’s difficult to judge an Avatar by its appearance.

Judging from her gait, she had received quite a bit of training.

Before the Awakened Ability was implemented in the game, she would have used swordsmanship like other people. It was a movement that seemed to have been learned at that time.

I could see traces of a footwork that I had seen somewhere.

I don’t remember where I saw it, but I know it was among the miscellaneous enemies.

I tried to estimate the level of her actual skill, not the Hero level, but failed. I just answered smoothly.

“Isn’t it 81?”

“Wrong answer.”

I expected it.

That was the nuance.

“The correct answer is level 31.”

“With solo climbs?”

“Yes.”

Jang Yu-ha showed Amel her Status Window to show her.

“Look.”

<Stats>

[Level] [81(31)]

The bottom was covered by her hand.

What are the parentheses?

“Still, isn’t it level 81?”

“For now, yes. Full Dive is a bit strange in this part. If you surpass the solo climb with a party climb, the solo level is marked in parentheses, and if the solo climb surpasses the party climb, it’s not put in parentheses.”

Jang Yu-ha wiggled her index finger from side to side.

Wiggling from side to side as if there was a solo level on the left and a party level on the right.

“Maybe the operator designed it this way so that the solo level is seen as the Player’s actual skill.”

“Actual, skill?”

“Ah, but that’s not a word that has anything to do with Americano. Is the difficulty Grand Master?”

“Challenger.”

“There was such a difficulty?”

“There was.”

“Hee. I should call you Americano after all. Clearing up to the 33rd floor with that difficulty. I wouldn’t be able to do it.”

Anyway, that was it.

Solo level.

Party level.

Amel, who had never surpassed a solo climb with a party climb, didn’t know it would be distinguished.

“From the beginning, it was ridiculous to clear the 80th floor with dozens or hundreds of people and insist that it’s level 81. Ah, it’s over there.”

[First Home]

The Clan flag was hung.

As I entered the First Home Clan’s campsite, people’s attention was drawn.

It was already drawn from the beginning, but if Jang Yu-ha had been keeping it in check, that check didn’t work now.

“Yuha, who is it?”

“She’s pretty.”

“It must be an Avatar, right?”

“What else would it be if it’s not an Avatar?”

“She’s got golden hands.”

“Look at her skin.”

There was someone who showed interest and approached.

It’s just embarrassing.

Still, looking at them, they all seemed tired.

It’s only natural since they couldn’t sleep last night because of the Death Knight.

The interest was only at first. Everyone seemed tired and went back to their tents one by one.

Finally freed, Jang Yu-ha started guiding again.

“Do you not know who I am?”

“That you’re Anonymous?”

“Yes.”

“Is it okay to reveal it?”

“It’s okay as long as it doesn’t cause a commotion. I wasn’t planning on hiding it anyway.”

“But you set it as Anonymous, right?”

“It just happened that way. I didn’t even think about uploading the video in the first place. I agreed when they told me to agree, and when I noticed, the video was already uploaded.”

“Ahahaha, everyone gets tricked like that. I know because I’ve been tricked too. But no one has become as popular as Americano. Come on in.”

I went into the big tent.

The inside of the tent was wider than it looked. Curtains became walls and divided the room, and I entered a large space inside.

A large space like a living room.

There was a table.

I sat in a chair.

“By the way, what about Chris and Jua? Did you come alone? Did they die?”

“They’re fine. Maybe it’s because the Dungeon is related to Dreams, but they’re still in Dreamland.”

“Ah, so that’s why I couldn’t reach them? But that’s not all you came here to say, right? You could have sent a messenger.”

There was something to do.

“I was originally going to ask Chris, but she wouldn’t wake up even when I shook her. I came here myself to tell you about their condition.”

Cappuccino said that Amel hadn’t woken up for a long time after she woke up.

Perhaps it was because of the difference in [Mind] stats that she woke up earlier than Chris.

“First of all, I want to invite all the Clan members to the Raid. It’s a Raid to catch a level 100 Monster, are you interested?”

“Level 100? 100?”

“Yes.”

“Did you find the final boss at the top of the Tower in the Field?”

“That’s not… um… I don’t know. There’s no guarantee that there’s only one boss on the 100th floor. No one has ever gone up there.”

The Great Devil was an existence that destroyed the world like the final boss.

Information about the final boss has not been officially released.

In fact, even if the Great Devil was the boss of the 100th floor, there was not enough evidence to refute it.

“Anyway, it’s a guy called the Great Devil, and I’m sure he’ll come out in the late 90s at least.”

“Great Devil.”

Jang Yu-ha muttered meaningfully.

“Have you heard of it?”

“No. But it’s a name that doesn’t seem easy.”

“When I looked at the Status Window, it only said Dream.”

“The name is just Dream?”

“Yes.”

“If the name is just Dream, then it must be Dream itself.”

“….”

Maybe?

According to the description on the [Key to the Great Demon’s Seal], [Dream] seemed to be Dream itself.

“Can you show me the video?”

I showed it to her.

I fought the Giant Tentacle.

[Dream] appeared.

I fought the Ultra Giant Tentacle.

She watched the scene where [Dream] wrapped around both hands at the end.

“….”

Jang Yu-ha said.

“How do you win?”

I knew she would say that.

Just watching the video makes it impossible to even think about winning.

But that was because it was in a Dream.

“You can drag it out into reality.”

“If something like this comes out, it’s going to be very dangerous. We can be resurrected even if we die, but you know that it’s difficult to resurrect NPCs if they die, right?”

“You don’t have to worry that much.”

It was an expected worry.

“Anyway, the reason why it’s so strong is because this is a Dream. It’s a pretty common setting that a boss who deals with Dreams has god-like power in Dreams, right?”

“….”

Jang Yu-ha thinks hard.

What kind of calculation is she doing?

“What happens if you drag it out?”

“Won’t Dreams and reality mix? The Dungeon I went to last night was exactly like that. Judging from the fact that there were no traces of fighting, you don’t have to worry about collateral damage.”

Jang Yu-ha still had a troubled look on her face.

“It’s hard to decide right away, but…”

She sighed deeply.

She answered soon.

“I think everyone will probably do it. I don’t think we can’t clear it with the famous Anonymous, Chris, and Jua. More than that, you’ve become incredibly strong in the short time I haven’t seen you.”

Jang Yu-ha looked at the Giant Amel in the video she received and said with a tired expression.

She not only cut the giant tentacle with a single Blade, but also pierced through the wall of tens of thousands of tentacles.

If you think of [Dream] as a person, it was like a very small ant cutting off and cutting off a strand of hair. It’s easier to understand when you compare it.

Even with a simple comparison, she’s stronger than Chris, who can only cut off the Ultra Giant Tentacle.

Of course, there were some questionable points when watching the video.

Jua’s firepower,

Chris’s output,

Jang Yu-ha even considered the influence of [Geass], but still, Jua seemed to have become stronger and Chris seemed to have become weaker.

That was the feeling.

But anyway, just looking at the video, I can see that Amel has become terrifying again in a short period of time.

They say that the gap widens as the level increases, but looking at Amel’s growth, it all seems like a lie.

Amel muttered bitterly.

“This in the video is not my power alone.”

Without Hong Joo-ah’s firepower and Cappuccino’s support, I can’t grow to that size.

I changed the subject.

“By the way, how’s the Geass side?”

“Are you talking about the Nine Yin Severed Meridians?”

“Yes.”

“Everyone was about to freeze to death? They took turns going to the Temple and engraved it, but it seems like you can’t use it without Frost immunity.”

“Everyone’s exaggerating.”

“No, they really died.”

I know.

But they don’t die.

No, they resurrect.

‘(Kuhuhu. I know.)’

Win couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

‘What?’

‘(I know because I’ve been through it too. Amel. You’re weird.)’

‘What did I do.’

‘(What did you do.)’

The Witch laughed.

‘(The human body, you know. No matter how strong it gets, it’s weak to temperature. Even if the function of maintaining body temperature becomes stronger, it will be affected if the body temperature changes.)’

When I had the [Nine Yin Severed Meridians].

I suffered the most from the Cold Energy.

I know because I’ve suffered.

This side and that side are the same human body. If I had to pick a difference between me and them, it would be the situation.

The difference between combat and training.

If it’s during combat, you’ll focus on the combat rather than enduring the Cold Energy, so your consciousness will be focused on the other side and you’ll feel less cold.

‘(Ding.)’

Win read Amel’s thoughts.

‘(It’s not a completely wrong answer, but you, when you put fire on your body, weren’t you cold at all?)’

‘….’

‘(You were cold, right? Cold Energy is formed in the Magical Power itself, so would the heat from the outside properly cool your body?)’

‘….’

‘(Don’t underestimate heat conduction. Even if 100 million degrees of heat is raging, it won’t melt a Blade if it’s just for a moment.)’

Amel actually had to endure the cold every time she used [Boost].

Before she became immune to the cold with [Yin Energy] or [Frost], she went to the brink of death from the limit of not freezing to death.

The pain, heat, and cold that I had tried to ignore.

But,

‘It was bearable.’

‘(That’s crazy. If anyone could endure the pain just because they don’t die, they wouldn’t have summoned the Summoned Hero?)’

Resurrection has been with humanity since the Temple existed.

‘(Just because you can do it doesn’t mean everyone can do it.)’

‘I know.’

‘(Huhu, you’re secretly thinking that you can do it.)’

‘….’

“Haa…”

Win poked at a pretty sore spot.

‘That’s why geniuses are lonely.’

‘(Ahaha, I understand.)’

Win was also a genius.

Amel finished thinking.

“Still, try to endure it by putting fire on your body or something. Infinite Magical Power is very compatible with Awakened Ability.”

It was night.

Amel checked the text message.

<I>

[Are you awake?]

[Contact me when you wake up] (1)

I still haven’t read it.

Amel was still with the First Home Clan.

To teach them how to handle [Geass] and to solve the [Death Knight].

The [Death Knight] was a problem that she had caused, so she couldn’t stand to see it disrupt the First Home Clan’s schedule.

Besides,

‘There’s something I want to check.’

In front of the big tent, I leaned back in my chair and looked up at the moon.

Clang.

Clang.

The sound of metal boots and armor approached and sat in the chair opposite.

Win, who saw the armor, laughed with tension, saying ‘(Hawaawa.)’.

I straightened the chair that I had leaned back in.

The guest sitting opposite me was pitch black.

[Death Knight]

Ominous black letters.

It was absurd, but I rested my chin on my hand and stared at the [Death Knight].

I wondered why he wasn’t fighting right away, but I had a hunch as to why.

“You want to fight without any interference, right?”

Nod.

The helmet moved up and down.

“….”

‘Death Knight.’

Suddenly, Lilietta came to mind.

“It’s good to fight without interference, but there’s a condition.”

“…?”

“The loser becomes the other’s property. How about it?”

“….”

I held out my Bronze Arm left hand and made a suggestion, but the [Death Knight] remained silent.

That look was funny.

“Hee, you know too, right?”

“…?”

“I can win this game 100 percent. Well, how can you accept it when you know you’re going to be my property?”

“….”

“Huh? You’ll do it?”

The [Death Knight] grabbed Amel’s left hand.

Power of Ownership.

The power reacted.

Unlike Lilietta, who was suppressed when she first used this power, the [Death Knight] was not yet suppressed.

Perhaps that’s why the Power of Ownership in her left hand stimulated the power in a different form. As if teaching her how to use the power, she shook hands with the [Death Knight] and bound him with the ‘Power of Ownership’.

The bronze-colored power that seeped out of the Bronze Arm stretched out to the [Death Knight]’s left arm and was bound by the power of the Devil.

A real power was imbued in the bet.

“….”

“….”

Amel smiled beautifully.

“If I win, no matter who your owner is, you’re mine.”

“….”

The [Death Knight] is silent.

He seems flustered,

But there was no change in what he had to do.

At that time, Jang Yu-ha came out of the big tent and ran into the [Death Knight].

“….”

“….”

‘(Pwahaha!)’

Win burst into laughter.

First, I explained the situation.

“He wants to fight me. I don’t want to be disturbed either, so I’m asking for your help.”

I added a little more explanation.

Jang Yu-ha, who understood the situation, called the Clan members as if running away.

“….”

“….”

I took out the [Black Sword] from the Inventory,

The [Death Knight] also drew the [Dark Sword].

Holding the Blades and confronting each other.

From the beginning,

‘I’m going all out.’

[Boost]

[Magical Power] 100 percent.

“Hoo…”

I exhaled a thick breath.

Crackle.

Crackle.

Electricity flowed through my coldly cooled body and flowed into the [Black Sword], releasing [Frost].

Magical Power gradually filled the vessel called flesh.

I was wary of the [Death Knight] and wondered why he wasn’t attacking, but he was also imbuing Magical Power into the [Dark Sword], releasing a dark and sticky Magical Power.

He moved.

In an instant.

“….”

Jang Yu-ha, who didn’t go that far, felt an ominous premonition.

The Blades of Amel and the [Death Knight] switched positions as if they were short-range warping.

They only showed their faces when the Blades collided and paused. The arms that moved the Blades also appeared from time to time, leaving only afterimages.

The arms whose afterimages didn’t overlap well were blurry as if they were noisy,

The body side occasionally split into two or three afterimages and overlapped, becoming thicker.

The illusion of a fan or tire wheel rotating in the opposite direction in the middle when it speeds up to a certain extent. With the same impression of speed, Amel swung her Blade and pushed the [Death Knight] back.

The Blade once.

Twice.

Three times.

Each time they collided, they left deep scars on the ground.

It was hard to tell what kind of attacks they were exchanging, but sometimes the ground under their feet was pressed down by high-pressure power, creating craters and shaking the ground.

Occasionally, black Blades flowing out during the battle covered the Heroes,

The lightning that connected the afterimages electrocuted the Heroes who were loitering nearby.

I was going to listen to Amel’s request, but

‘I want to help, but I can’t.’

Level 34 is competing with the [Death Knight] above level 70.

It would be different if she used Awakened Ability as her main skill like Chris, but Amel’s Awakened Ability was a support and she used swordsmanship as her main skill.

That’s the realm that’s possible.

The Clan representatives poured out text messages in the group chat.

What is that.

What happened.

Who’s fighting.

All Jang Yu-ha can do is this.

<I>

[Evacuate!]

At that time.

Thud.

Something black was ejected from the center of the fight.

The identity of the object that flew almost in a straight line was the [Death Knight].

He was kicked away by Amel’s foot.

Amel…

“Hoo…”

She gently lowered her neck, which she was holding with both hands, and blew on it.