The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 245

245.

Pung! Puh-woong! Kwaang!

Pshoo-shook- Pyoo-shook-! Poo-pook!

Countless spells exploded, and arrows rained down.

Each time explosive firepower lit up the dark sky, a hail of arrows poured down.

“Shield!”

“Uwoooo!”

And the clerics standing in the rear created a barrier of combined strength over the tankers.

[Sacred Barrier is activated.]

[Unaffected by attacks from those deemed allies.]

Thanks to this, the tankers bravely charged forward, grabbing aggro [short for ‘aggression,’ referring to drawing the enemy’s attention], with some even activating one-on-one duels to force aggro.

A spectacle closer to war than a raid.

-This is insane…….

-Wow… This is a real spectacle.

-Holy sh*t! I get to see this live! I’m so lucky!

-God Leon!! Lionheart King, we trust in you! Pride of England!!

With the relentless all-out attack, the live broadcast chat was flooded with messages.

[Viewers: 91.41 million]

[Viewers: 84.31 million]

[Viewers: 101.34 million]

Multiple broadcasts were being run by the top 10 guilds.

The number of viewers for all these broadcasts exploded, with some even surpassing 100 million.

‘Good, this was the right strategy after all.’

‘We’ll deplete its health first, then deploy the melee forces.’

‘Maybe we should thank Harrington. Our reputation will increase a lot because of this.’

As the raid progressed smoothly, drawing everyone’s attention, smiles naturally appeared on their faces.

At this rate, it seemed like they could achieve a great success.

However, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, and then 20 minutes passed since the raid began.

[A Great Calamity opens its eyes.]

[As the Calamity’s eyes open, some hidden information is revealed.]

[The previously locked Life Force stat is revealed.]

[Life Force: 56,735,308 / 60,000,000]

“……Huh?”

“60 million……?”

They couldn’t help but realize they had been mistaken.

[The Calamity’s eyes devour those touched by light.]

[Warning! Be careful not to be touched by the light.]

Kieeeing-

The moment hundreds of eyes opened, flashing a strange red light.

Faaaat-!

Kwaaaang! Aaaagh! Kkeuaaa!

The field of vision turned red, and blood spurted like a fountain, blending in like camouflage.

Watching the waves of blood surging from all directions, they gaped blankly.

“……What is this.”

“Oh my God…….”

Something was going wrong.

That thought instinctively popped into their heads, but it was already too late.

Because the truly terrible thing happened after that.

Kuaaaaaah-!!!

As the users frowned and covered their ears at the deafening screech.

The Calamity moved.

Just moving its massive body shook the ground, and then it leaped into the air, crashing back down.

Kwaaaang-!!

“Kkeuaaaack!”

“Kuh-heok!”

The tankers were all knocked away by the shockwave, as if a missile had exploded.

Those who were nearby were only thrown back, but those within the blast radius were instantly wiped out.

The faces of the tankers, who had hastily retreated and raised their heads, went blank.

“……Hey, I think that thing’s about to jump again?”

“Crazy…….”

“R, Run away!”

The Calamity was regaining its posture.

Furthermore, after repeatedly jumping and falling like a carp, the Calamity now began to swim in the air as if the sky were the sea.

[Geo has died.]

[Leonela has died.]

[Basterd has died.]

…….

[Rasag has died.]

Opening its massive maw and swimming around.

That alone was enough for countless high-rankers to be helplessly swallowed and meet their end inside its jaws.

Kwagaaa-!

“What are the tankers doing! You need to grab aggro!”

“Aggro? Are you out of your mind? You try grabbing it, you son of a b*tch!”

“Who cares about one-on-one duels when you die if you get swallowed!?”

Aggro? Tanking?

Such things were already gone.

There was no way a tanker could stop that rampaging Calamity.

There was one place that had a possibility, though…….

“When is the Aegis Guild coming!?”

“Damn it, that’s why I said we should start the raid after the Aegis Guild arrives…….”

“No, even if Aegis comes, no one can tank that.”

Looking at the formation collapsing with corpses falling like dominoes, even that didn’t seem certain.

This was no longer a battlefield.

It was merely a scene of rampaging giant sea creatures and microorganisms fleeing from them.

[Lucera has died.]

[Bezirad has died.]

…….

[Diesore has died.]

“Oh my God…….”

“We’re supposed to catch that?”

An endless stream of death messages flashing by.

The sight of the mountain of corpses beneath them was nothing short of a massacre.

In a single moment.

In a short span of about ten seconds, half of the raid party had died.

-Crazy…….

-What is this?

-Instant death pattern……? What’s with the range of that instant kill skill?

It was only natural that the live broadcast chatroom exploded.

The chat, filled with shock, proved how desperate the situation was.

However, the raid members here were high-rankers.

Even in this urgent situation, they managed to find a loophole.

“The eyes! It’s safe where the eyes are closed!”

“What!?”

“The light coming from the eyes is where that thing is moving!”

“Okay, everyone start tailing it!”

Tailing.

It meant chasing only the back of the boss, whether it moved or rampaged.

It was a familiar term to gamers who had done a few raids.

Needless to say, it was the same for those who were high-rankers.

Chuck, chuk.

Tada-dat.

“This way! This way! Get out of there, it’s dangerous!”

“If it doesn’t work, just stop and die! Don’t move trying to follow and get hit by the light.”

“Okay, got a spot. Everyone quickly grab aggro again!”

Despite facing a boss they had never encountered before, they skillfully began to tail it.

Of course, many rankers died or were critically injured in the process, but as a result, they succeeded in establishing a stable formation.

“Hoo…….”

“This is driving me crazy.”

“Ugh. I think my hands are all sweaty, seriously.”

Only then did the masters wipe their dry lips and breathe a sigh of relief.

But now they had only barely earned the right to fight.

The daunting feeling was the same.

They had no idea how to 攻略 [gong lüe – Chinese term meaning ‘strategize’ or ‘figure out’] this thing.

‘The fact that you die if you touch the light from the eyes is just insane difficulty.’

‘I barely managed to grab aggro, but even that is overwhelming. It’s not really grabbing aggro, but just chasing its butt so it doesn’t see us…….’

‘It’s unlucky, but it would be much easier if that guy from Aegis came…….’

‘It’s fortunate that all the eyes on the back are closed. A major disaster almost happened.’

At this moment, what came to their minds was the message that popped up when Kaiser entered.

‘Wait a minute. Didn’t it say that only half of the eyes were open?’

‘If this is half…… what happens when they’re all open?’

‘Then if Kaiser dies…….’

……The remaining half of the eyes, which were the only loophole, would open.

Watching the tankers moving while tailing, they gulped.

If even those eyes opened…….

‘The raid will fail…….’

‘Definitely.’

With the emergency bell ringing, they urgently looked at the entrance of the temple.

It remained intact, as if it hadn’t been affected by the disaster.

‘How long has Kaiser been inside?’

‘He went in right before the raid started…… about 20 minutes?’

‘……Wait a minute, he’s lasted 20 minutes?’

It was then that they realized something was wrong as they racked their brains.

According to the information they had heard from Arthur and the other challengers, the Forgotten King does not recover or reset.

In other words, they would be fighting a relay battle in the same state as the previous person.

‘Arthur opened Phase 2, so Kaiser must be doing Phase 2 now, right?’

Even Arthur only lasted a few minutes after Phase 2 started.

But what about Kaiser?

It had already been 20 minutes since he went in. He was still holding on even at this moment.

And the viewers realized it a beat later than them.

-Huh? Hey guys. Come to think of it, Kaiser’s death message hasn’t popped up, has it?

-Half of the eyes are still closed.

-……Then is Kaiser still fighting the King?

-Huh? It’s been 20 minutes?

-헐 [Heol – Korean slang expressing disbelief or shock]……?

A strange silence flowed through the chatroom and the scene, uncharacteristic of a battlefield.

At this moment, the broadcast instinctively showed the entrance of the temple.

-……Could Kaiser be catching [defeating] the King?

It was a chat that broke the silence.

-Eh, he’s only lasted 20 minutes?

-Is that just? Arthur endured from Phase 1 and lasted an hour. He got instantly deleted as soon as he went to Phase 2.

-Ah……. Wait a minute, then if he’s endured Phase 2 for 20 minutes, doesn’t that mean he’s fighting evenly?

-Crazy……. Kaiser, is he really a god?

The chatroom, which was rising like a dam that had burst, no longer cared about the raid.

It was only filled with talk about Kaiser.

Astro, who had been saving his strength from a distance as Kaiser had advised, could only let out a hollow laugh.

‘Tsk, he’s really something.’

Without showing himself, he had become the only hope as soon as he appeared.

‘Whenever that guy shows up, something always happens.’

He said it as if he was fed up, but the light in his eyes as he looked at the temple was clearly anticipation.

‘It seems like those guys have arrived at the tomb…… then should I focus on my work too?’

Astro slightly raised the corners of his mouth and turned around.

Then he took out a chair that increased the recovery rate of mana and life force and plopped down.

It seemed like the other side was doing well, so he was going to diligently recover his strength as that guy had said.

* * *

‘Have I ever seen such a crazy King…….’

That guy was truly insane.

It wasn’t a derogatory term. It was just that there was no better expression to use.

Kwang! Kwaaaang!

[Failed to perfectly parry.]

[Some damage is taken.]

‘Damn…….’

Do-hyun’s brow furrowed as he blocked the countless sword strikes.

He was barely managing to deflect them.

He had rarely failed to parry, but lately, there seemed to be too many overwhelming enemies.

It was all because of that King’s insane power balance.

Geueo- Geueo-!

Tadak! Ttak!

As Do-hyun retreated, unable to withstand it, the undead legion, led by Gotong, tore at him like wild dogs.

Movements like well-trained hunting dogs.

But the King easily broke through them as if they were insignificant and rushed forward.

-Charlie! I bought you time, now’s your chance!

-Okay! Thanks!

-Liza!

Charlie and Eliza, who received the baton like a relay race, stepped forward to grab aggro.

-Kuh-heuk……!

-L, Liza!

However, the time they could properly engage in combat was only a few seconds.

In the meantime, Do-hyun, who had finished preparing, leaped forward again.

Following behind him, the White Lion charged, and the White Lion, who also jumped on the Forgotten King’s sword, bared its fangs.

Kwang! Kwaang!

Keuheoeong-

The two lions mingled together, and fierce blizzards deflected each other’s sword strikes.

The lion’s fangs and claws were sharp swords, and the blizzard was a sturdy shield.

In the midst of it, Do-hyun exchanged swords with the Forgotten King as if dancing.

No, it wasn’t just Do-hyun alone.

“Charlie!”

-Yes, Master!

-Gotong, you too, quickly!

Tadak!

Do-hyun had Charlie and the undead legion.

A continuous battle of biting and being bitten.

[The Forgotten King is activating the Executioner trait.]

[Damage is amplified by 2x when inflicting a critical hit.]

[When inflicting a critical wound on the Executioner, the target will never be knocked back for 10 seconds.]

[The Forgotten King is activating the Northern Lion’s Swordsmanship trait.]

[The White Lion and blizzard of the North rage.]

‘Each of the traits is tricky…….’

Not just that.

The Battle Instinct effect helped him fight in any posture and situation, and the Keen Senses detected even attacks coming from blind spots.

A boss decked out in combat-related traits, as if he was born to fight.

That was why Do-hyun was being pushed back despite having a numerical advantage.

‘It would have been dangerous if I hadn’t completed the Song of the White Lion.’

The same swordsmanship.

Then, of course, the King’s swordsmanship, which could be said to be the original, was stronger.

In fact, Do-hyun was being pushed back in terms of strength, but Do-hyun had never allowed a critical wound.

By actively utilizing the numerical advantage?

[The True Song of the White Lion responds to the caster’s will.]

Keuheoeong!

‘So this is what it means to have a soul in swordsmanship.’

No, it was the difference between those who had a soul and those who didn’t.

Even if Do-hyun didn’t bother to wield the sword, the White Lion and the blizzard moved as he wished, just by having the will.

This was truly a fraudulent performance.

It made it possible to defend even in trajectories that Do-hyun couldn’t defend, and conversely, to attack even in situations where he couldn’t attack.

[The Forgotten King is activating the Lost Self trait.]

On the other hand, the King did not have a soul in his swordsmanship because of the Lost Self trait.

This difference allowed him to narrow the gap.

Heh.

‘I think this is possible.’

At the same time, it gave him confidence.

It was then that Do-hyun, who had been engaged in close combat, leaped back greatly.

As he retreated, the King kicked off the ground to chase after him, but the White Lion and the blizzard, reacting to his will, blocked the King’s view.

Seueu-

In the meantime, Do-hyun, who had regained his breath, took a stance.

A stance that was quite different from before.

There was no shaking in him as he looked ahead with determined eyes.

In that state, one step.

[Reversing the Heavens Stage]

[Using the 1st Form: Beginning.]

As he stepped forward, steadfastness like Mount Tai [a mountain in China, symbolizing stability] was contained in the sword.

Uduk.

Did he realize something was wrong?

The King, who had been roughly stirring his sword and cutting through the blizzard, stopped.

As their eyes met in that state, Do-hyun smiled and said.

“Charlie, Jihad. Get ready.”

-Ready? What…… Ah!

-Understood, Master.

While Jihad belatedly understood, Charlie took a stance.

He was ready to activate their newly acquired skills.

Do-hyun also glanced to the side.

[You can use the 2nd Form: Destruction of Reversing the Heavens Stage.]

The 2nd Form of Reversing the Heavens Stage, which he had newly acquired this time.

And the skill slot below it, with a brilliant golden light that had newly taken the place of ‘Bleeding’.

[You can use ‘Execution God’s Cross’.]

Legendary skill, Execution God’s Cross.

Do-hyun, who had gained the confidence that it would be effective enough even if he used it, raised the corners of his mouth.

‘Shall we see how it performs?’

Do-hyun’s eyes were shining brightly.