Chapter 41
The Nation of Archers (2)
3.
Come to think of it, my archery master, the old man Lebon, was incredibly skilled with daggers too.
His dagger techniques, utilizing the characteristic flexibility and agility of elves, were so tricky that cursing would be the only reaction when facing them.
Yet, Lebon also enjoyed smashing enemies’ heads with a bow. The bow he used was made from the World Tree, giving it incredible strength, making it a formidable weapon in its own right.
“Elves are bows. Elves are bows! Isn’t it a beautiful weapon? Just sprinkle some adamantium dust and swing, and it tears through anything! Remember, the bow is supreme. The bow? Su-preme!”
As a staunch elf supremacist—or perhaps, racially obsessed—he took enormous pride in bows. And this ideology was fully passed down to me, his disciple.
Krazzzt!
[<돌잔치때활잡음> has donated 10,000 won!]
“This… is a bow? This is what you call archery??? No, no, no…”
“ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
“Wow, so this is how our ancestors fought;;”
“So that’s why we’re a nation of archers?”
“ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ No way”
“Doesn’t that bow just break if used like that? But it’s still intact…”
“Is it an expensive bow?”
“No, that’s literally the ‘Beginner Bow Mk.1’ from the Abyss Auction House, lol. The mark is right there.”
The heads of zombies rushing at me were shattered without mercy. It was my first time using a weapon inside the Abyss, but wielding this bow was surprisingly fun.
“My bow works in close combat too.”
Normally, a bow used this way would break quickly. But thanks to Lebon’s skill, I could compensate.
[Passive effect <Skill Archive – Death Slayer Lebon> activated.]
[Passive skill <Archery Technique> is active.]
[Your bow is imbued with magical energy.]
This insane elf supremacist even had the ability to imbue magic into a bow. He claimed that a true elf should be able to wield a bow effectively in close combat—sheer madness. He invented the horrendous technique called Archery Combat, which combines two attack methods:
Strengthen the bow itself to use as a blunt weapon (e.g., smashing heads)
Strengthen the string to use as a spear-like weapon (e.g., slicing necks)
Shing!
The magic-infused string neatly severed the necks of zombies—four at once. A biological blender. This Archery Combat skill combines the strengths of blunt and piercing techniques, a true “fusion dish” of martial arts.
“This is archery.”
I smashed the head of a zombie rushing from the right with the bow, spun my body, and smashed another in one fluid motion. The sensation was cold and exhilarating—it had been a while.
“Do archers really fight like this? (Not kidding, I don’t know)”
“No, they’d just use melee weapons for close combat lol”
“Or kite them while using mobility skills”
“But wow, looks OP when used like that ㄷㄷ”
“Do NOT try this. Bow will break and you die”
“Meteo does it though”
“Yeah, but that’s Meteo”
“If you can imbue magic and enhance bows like that, maybe you can replicate it?”
“But why not just use swords or spears then?”
“ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
The viewers were having fun. The number of viewers had surpassed 10,000. Anytime the broadcast went live, 10,000 was the minimum—satisfying. Moreover,
“This Korean is insane (auto-translated)”
“Why is he using a bow like that?”
“Archery originated in China”
“Ninjas in Japan used similar techniques”
“This guy is crazy tough. Does he accept dollar donations?”
Foreign viewers had become a significant portion. Satisfying. The K-YouTube channel’s influence was spreading globally.
‘For an S-rank quest, this is way too easy. Is it because it’s the first quest?’
The thrill of smashing zombies was fine, but the difficulty seemed low. Even ordinary third-floor players could clear it. More zombies might be a problem, but they lacked intelligence and were clumsy. Usually, running zombies are the main threat, but not here.
Ssshhk.
『Too boring.』
Dungkong yawned and nodded. If I had yawned, viewers would complain, but Dungkong’s yawn received a completely different reaction.
“Did you see his teeth?”
“ㅠㅠㅠSo cute”
“Let him run the channel for a bit, he’s more entertaining”
“Just give Dungkong the channel”
“I don’t have a hamster”
“Why is his yawn so cute???”
The world is filthy. Judging everything by appearance. Ah, this explains why pet streamers survive.
“Dungkong.”
Beep?
“If my broadcast fails, you go live while I sell you off.”
Beeeep?
『Yes! Feed me lots of delicious stuff!』
Such a good-hearted little creature.
I destroyed the zombie right in front of us again.
Krazzzt!
While this massacre continued, a sinister purple glow started emanating from the mausoleum at the center of the graveyard.
[Undead feel a serious threat!]
[The <Necromancer’s Vessel> grants special abilities to undead in the area.]
[<Zombies> gain the <Fusion> attribute!]
“What?”
Suddenly, fusion zombies? That sounds terrible for a movie. Yet the fallen zombies began merging.
Crack… crack…
Twisting flesh made an unsettling sound, gradually forming a giant zombie. But then Dungkong leapt lightly from my shoulder, ran toward it, and started attacking fiercely.
“David and Goliath?”
Biblical imagery? Not really—more like David vs 100 Goliaths.
“Why is Dungkong doing that?”
“Do hamsters normally move that fast?”
“Channel owner, protect yourself!”
I hadn’t expected Dungkong to go on the offensive. A normal hamster would have been smashed by the giant zombie’s first move, but Dungkong wasn’t normal.
Crack… crack…
Dungkong struck the giant zombie’s legs with his tiny limbs.
Beeeep!
『A fool waits for transformations! The master is a fool!』
“I was just trying to play with it… isn’t it polite to wait for a transformation?”
Dungkong’s impatient personality shone. I didn’t stop him for a simple reason: when Dungkong’s white paw hit the zombie’s feet,
Kraaaang! Kraaang!
The ground shook. The chat went silent, then erupted:
“?????????”
“You said no magic!”
“Did a hamster just do that?”
“Dae-Jjang-Kong”
“Dae-Jjang-Kong”
The ultimate earth elemental—Dae-Jjang-Kong.
Beeeep!
Kraaaaang! Kraaang!
Our little beast was furious, smashing constantly. A tiny hamster annihilating a massive zombie—a spectacle. I nodded in satisfaction.
“Maybe we should make merchandise?”
<설치류조아> donated 10,000 won!
“That cute creature just appeared! Starting crowdfunding for Dae-Jjang-Kong plush, day 1!”
<검술에미친놈> donated 10,000 won!
“Dae-Jjang-Kong! Dae-Jjang-Kong!”
Dungkong’s debut was a huge success.
“Change the channel owner”
“Look at that destructive power!”
Dungkong became Dae-Jjang-Kong just 5 seconds after the battle started. Cute wins, as expected.
4.
Thanks to Dungkong, the giant zombie was dealt with before fully transforming. Simultaneously, system messages appeared:
[Hidden event completed successfully!]
[Achievement points and experience awarded.]
[Transcendence level increased.]
[Quest updated.]
[Immortal Army <1>]
Updated objective: Find the clues → Eliminate all undead in the graveyard.
Reward doubled.
“Lucky Matryoshka?”
Now I understood the mechanism of <Lucky Matryoshka>. For others, changing difficulty would be a disaster, but for those capable, it was a blessing. Rewards are multiplied.
『Master! I think I awakened more undead!』
Dungkong returned to my shoulder. I patted his soft fur.
“No, good job.”
I stepped back to survey the graveyard. That <Necromancer’s Vessel> from earlier seemed to be the <clue> I needed.
[<Necromancer’s Vessel> destroyed.]
[The powers trapped inside are released; undead in the area strengthen and elite undead rise.]
[Quest difficulty temporarily spikes!]
[You are a <Protagonist Candidate>. Quest title updated.]
[Immortal Army <1> → True: Immortal Army <1>]
It seemed like a special trigger.
“Thanks to Dae-Jjang-Kong, I guess.”
『Hrm?』
“It means well done. Look, the quest title has changed. What’s this?”
“True?”
“Like a ramen name?”
“It’s <True: OOO> now”
“Wow;;;;;”
“It means the quest evolved into a unique quest”
“Was there a unique grade for chain quests?”
[<Abyss Encyclopedia> donated 10,000 won!]
“Rare case, but chain quests can become unique quests! A Chinese player attempted it but didn’t finish, dying at the fourth chain quest. To be reported in the academy.”
Reported to the academy? Before I could react, viewers panicked:
“Back-sourced information ㄷㄷ”
“Kya”
“World first again if cleared?”
“Meteo the record breaker”
“Usually unique quests are much harder”
“Immortal Army was already S-rank, but now it gets harder?”
Indeed. S-rank was the known maximum, so how much harder could it get?
[Quest difficulty: S+]
Ah, S+—like premium beef. Fine though; just extra reward.
The only concern:
“Look at the numbers.”
Unlike the weak zombies before, rusty but reasonably equipped undead began to appear.
Dungkong held an almond in his paws and asked:
『I’ve weakened, master! But I can handle them! Shall I go?』
“I’ll handle this.”
Dungkong’s debut stage was a success; now it was my turn. I gripped my bloodied bow properly.
“Now, everyone should understand what archery truly is. Everything done with a bow—that’s true archery.”
“Mesori ON”
“Stop with the nonsense or die”
“JOAT…”
Whatever is done with a bow—that is archery. Lebon’s teaching, the archery path, or Gungdo.
“The bow is a great weapon. Take note. Dance with it, it’s still archery. Basically, the world runs on bows… what? Don’t talk nonsense? Wanna get hit?”
Finally, a perfect test target appeared:
[Immortal Army White Captain <Warrior of Reversal, Kaimak> has appeared!]
[Warrior of Reversal uses <Aura of Blasphemy> to strengthen undead!]
Screeeeaaam!
A giant skeleton, twice the size of the others, with glowing blue eyes and a named bastard sword. It charged at me.
“Question: If I fire a projectile with a bow, is that archery too?”
“????????”
“How is that archery?”
“ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
“Mesogod evolves, look”
“Philosopher?”
“Is it the attacker or the projectile that matters? Deep question…”
Answer:
[Passive <Skill Archive – Death Slayer Lebon> activates]
[Skill: Lebon-style Archery, Form 1 – Infernal Arrow]
Phaaaaar!
From the bloodied string, a missile suddenly shot out.
“How is that archeryㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
“Mesogod fires missiles with a bow”
“Not a joke, that’s a real anti-personnel missile”
“ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ”
Kraaaang!
Anything fired with a bow—that is archery.
