The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 34

34.

Fault!

Kieek! Kee-ik!

Charging boldly through the soldiers, Do-hyun cut down a goblin soldier without hesitation.

The Bastard Sword [a type of sword] was also familiar with Charge Cut.

‘……No, is it really Charge Cut?’

The speed was so fast that it was doubtful whether he was holding a greatsword, so he was confused, but the movement itself was Charge Cut.

While watching Do-hyun wielding his sword among the soldiers.

“……That’s him, right?”

A low voice was heard from behind.

It was a paladin who was also watching Do-hyun.

The face that had been giving a naive smile in front of Do-hyun was gone, replaced by a cold expression and a low voice.

The Bastard Sword answered as if he was used to it.

“Kaiser with a Warrior Set [a specific armor set]…… and a greatsword. It’s definitely him. There can’t be many guys like that in this area, right?”

“Well…… Warrior Sets aren’t that common either.”

“So, what do you think?”

At the Bastard Sword’s question, the paladin thought for a moment and then answered.

“Not bad. He dodges the vitals well, and he’s fast even with a greatsword, I guess?”

“Is it because his gear is good? It seems like his damage is strong, and he looks fast too. That guy over there seems to have been knocked out without getting hit much.”

The Bastard Sword nodded, agreeing with That Itself’s words.

He was definitely fast and powerful.

It was hard to believe that he was only level 20. At that level, he wouldn’t be pushed around by gear in this area.

But.

“It’s strange.”

“What is?”

He couldn’t understand.

“Assassino got beaten by just a gear-head like that?”

Strong damage and fast?

He admitted it.

But the Assassino he knew was by no means weak.

Also, Assassino’s job was an assassin.

With stealth and paralysis poison, he shouldn’t be easily defeated in PVP [Player versus Player combat].

He was nervous because he lost 3 to 1 under those conditions……

“He’s just a typical guy who pushes with gear.”

“Hmm…… Now that I hear it, it is a bit strange. I can’t believe it even if the new guys we got are below standard.”

The paladin stroked his chin as if he also found it strange.

Their identities were Assassino’s close friends and old colleagues.

They were the ones who used to be in Assassino’s smurfing party [a group focused on defeating lower-level players] in the past, and they were the original party.

That’s why they knew Assassino’s tendencies and skills better than anyone else.

“He’s not the type to be careless.”

“Rather, he’s a relentlessly thorough bastard.”

Assassino never fought anyone head-on, no matter who they were.

Even his own teammates thought he was ruthless.

On the other hand, what about that guy?

He was strong, but that was it.

“His combat sense is ambiguous, and his judgment is ambiguous too.”

“It makes sense if he dug in because damage was possible…… but even considering that, he’s at an amateur level.”

He dodges the vitals well, but he’s not good at landing direct hits either.

It was also a pity that he went into the soldiers and started surrounded.

In many ways, he didn’t feel like he was used to combat, but rather like an old man pushing with gear.

Well, a swordsman had no choice but to face three spear-wielding soldiers.

Either way, he had to dig in to attack.

“It’s just that his method is a bit stupid.”

“Still, be careful. His damage is more than you think.”

“I know. Assassino probably didn’t expect that damage and got hit.”

“They don’t have a tanker, so……”

However, they didn’t intend to be careless.

They’ve done this more than once or twice. They’ve done countless parties when they were flying high with Assassino.

Now they’ve been scouted by the guild and quit, but they could be proud of being experts in this field.

And that’s why they were looking for Kaiser.

“Why did the kill order have to be issued…… It makes me uncomfortable.”

“Honestly, I didn’t believe you until the kill order was issued.”

“Still, I’ve been getting handouts from him, so I have to take revenge at least once to avoid being exposed.”

What if Assassino, who had gone crazy, exposed their past to the guild if they just ignored it?

Then they would all die together.

That’s why they couldn’t refuse Assassino’s request.

Instead, they set a deadline of until graduation, but…… they didn’t expect to find him so quickly.

“Well, it’s a good thing. We can shut him up with this.”

“Let’s quit after this.”

“If he keeps bringing it up after this, then we’ll just crash into him.”

“We’re taking a risk too, so if that bastard has any conscience, he won’t do that.”

The Bastard Sword clicked his tongue and looked ahead, then straightened his expression.

“Let’s go in now. Keep your expression in check.”

“Don’t worry.”

“Let’s go as usual.”

After finishing their discussion, they returned to their innocent young man’s appearance.

The paladin hurriedly ran to block the goblin’s spear, and the party members joined in late and dealt damage.

The tide turned in an instant when they joined.

A message appeared as soon as the remaining goblin soldiers were dealt with.

[You have defeated a Red Goblin Soldier.]

[Due to contribution distribution, ‘Kaiser’ has acquired the Red Goblin Soldier’s Leather.]

“Wow.”

At the same time, they opened their mouths as if they were genuinely impressed.

“You’re really good at catching them! Is that the Warrior Set? Your damage is amazing!”

“I joined just in case, but it looks like you would have caught them all even if I left you alone.”

“See, I told you there’s no one who can’t play a swordsman! That’s a swordsman~.”

Do-hyun waved his hand with a smile at their appearance.

“No. Everyone’s skills are extraordinary.”

“We’ve matched our skills often. At this rate, Kaiser will be able to match us quickly, right?”

“Who would have thought we’d scout such a master.”

“It’s all my insight.”

Do-hyun was inwardly dumbfounded as he watched them shamelessly showering him with compliments.

Originally, it was bad manners to throw a party member alone onto the battlefield to check their skills.

In a situation where they had to attract all the aggro [enemy attention], the party members could abandon them and run away, and if they were unlucky enough to drop equipment, it would be a disaster.

Basically, it was an unpleasant thing to do……

‘They’ve done this more than once or twice.’

But he was dumbfounded because they were doing such a thing and praising him with such an innocent appearance.

Most low-level users would feel a bit uncomfortable, but they would be easily fooled by that appearance and feel better.

They joined a bit late, and no one hates compliments.

That’s why Do-hyun also pretended to be ordinary.

He moved as leisurely as possible, deliberately took attacks that were all visible, and dealt damage as clumsily as possible.

If he did this, there would definitely be a moment when they would take the bait.

“Then, shall we go with the feeling of matching our skills this time?”

“I’d like that.”

The Bastard Sword held out his hand with a kind smile. And Do-hyun shook his hand.

‘I’ll quietly screw them over when I get a chance.’

‘Pretend to be bad…… Pretend to be as bad as possible……’

With different intentions, they were shaking hands, wearing the mask of a kinder party than anyone else.

Thus, their uncomfortable raid continued.

* * *

[You have defeated a Red Goblin Soldier.]

…….

[The Goblin Chieftain is terrified.]

About an hour into the raid?

The Bastard Sword wiped his sweat and said as the goblin soldiers fell.

“Hoo. Shall we rest for a bit?”

“Let’s do that.”

“Yeah, let’s rest for a bit. I’m going to die.”

The party members, who had collapsed as if they were lying down, all looked exhausted.

Well, it was understandable.

The difficulty was gradually increasing, and now more than ten soldiers were rushing in.

The soldiers were definitely stronger and tougher than the goblins in the forest. In the first place, they were wearing armor and wielding spears, so it was natural.

How could it not be difficult when ten or so of those guys appeared?

‘That’s why swordsmen are treated that way.’

Wielding a sword against ten spear-wielding soldiers?

It would be difficult to even touch them.

If they recklessly dug in to deal damage, they would be surrounded in an instant, and if they kept their distance, they wouldn’t have a good chance to deal damage.

On the other hand, ranged dealers could deal comfortable damage without shaking like Simon X if the tanker blocked them in front, so it was natural to prefer ranged dealers.

In that situation, this party had two swordsmen, so it was the worst condition in some ways, but……

“Wow, Kaiser’s damage is really strong.”

“Isn’t this speed amazing with two swordsmen?”

“It’s definitely different because he’s become a damage-dealer. You should try harder too.”

Do-hyun was no ordinary swordsman.

A gear-head who boasted firepower comparable to a mage if he only caught one chance even in bad conditions!

That power was shining here as well.

That was the reason.

‘……Why is that guy so strong?’

‘It’s not that his control is bad, but that he doesn’t need to control, right?’

‘Sigh……’

The reason why they didn’t recklessly attack Do-hyun.

Do-hyun’s overwhelming damage became a warning. Moreover, they had the precedent of Assassino’s party being defeated, so they had no choice but to be more careful.

No, to be exact, it wasn’t that they hadn’t tried at all.

‘Hit him properly. Why can’t you hit him?’

‘No…… I’m sure I shot it right, but it strangely doesn’t hit.’

‘What are you talking about? He’s standing still, but you’re shooting strangely.’

‘Ah, it’s unfair.’

From time to time, That Itself pretended to make mistakes during the hunt and cast magic, but it didn’t hit at all.

The attacking goblin would get hit, or Do-hyun would be pushed back by the attack at the right time and luckily avoid it.

The highlight of them all was when he was moving forward and That Itself shot, but suddenly Do-hyun stopped.

It was as if he was a robot with an automatic detection sensor……

‘He couldn’t have stopped knowing…… How can his luck be so good?’

His control definitely didn’t look good, but he strangely dodged every attack he shot.

And when he smiled and shouted ‘Nice!’, it didn’t seem like he was dodging to avoid it, but that made That Itself even crazier.

He wanted to just screw him over, but he was worried about that tremendous damage.

There was no reason to gamble when there was a safe path.

‘Okay, next time……’

‘Please hit him next time.’

‘No. It’ll be obvious if you do it too many times in a row. Let’s do it slowly.’

They were smiling on the outside, but they were sweating bullets on the inside.

Do-hyun was no different.

‘I feel like I’ve done my best to be bad at this point, so why are they doing this?’

He had instinctively dodged the magic skills a few times, but after that, he came to his senses and deliberately brought his body over.

Then, this time, the magic went out of its way to miss.

How would he feel if they couldn’t hit him even when he brought his body over?

‘No, aren’t you going to crash into me? Should I just crash into you first?’

After that, he made openings several times, but they were just quietly hunting without any news, so he was just as frustrated.

No, he could be confident that it was even worse in some ways.

Because of that, Do-hyun had to worry several times.

Whether to just pick a fight first or wait.

That’s how they reached the present while fighting each other’s nerves.

[The boss stage has opened.]

[You can now enter the Goblin Chieftain’s room.]

“It’s already the boss room.”

“Such speed with two swordsmen…… I think it’s amazing again.”

They, who had been somewhat impatient, were able to regain their composure as they were only left with the boss room.

‘Okay, we can’t fail here.’

The Goblin Chieftain.

You need a mage to catch him.

He was a boss who was difficult for swordsmen in many ways, so if they used him well here……

‘It’s easy to trample on a tied-up guy.’

That’s why they boasted a 100% PK [Player Kill] success rate in this dungeon.

It was a combination that was hard to lose even if they wanted to lose 5 to 1.

Even if that guy’s damage was strong, he wouldn’t be able to handle the three of them while dealing with two elite soldiers.

That’s why they were sure that they would succeed this time.

“Kaiser……?”

“……?”

“What, where did he go?”

But……

The Kaiser had disappeared and was nowhere to be seen.