Chapter 144 …
Is that all?
Hmm! Not bad, but still ten years too early!
Well done, well done, Charlie!
Whoooosh—
Charlie’s graceful swordsmanship, which allowed no approach even by an inch, and the undead’s physical blocking drew everyone’s attention.
“Charlie’s insanely good at fighting… Is he really just the aggro bait?”
“No wonder he cursed at me so much in the tutorial. Totally deserved it.”
“But… where exactly is Charlie?”
“…What’s that cotton ball thing?”
And between them, a small something could be seen.
Whoosh, whoosh—
A tiny, cotton-ball-like creature hopped around the heads of the two, shooting out webs tirelessly.
Liza!
Hmm! Excellent!
Liza, Liza!
Thanks to this, despite being outnumbered in the mud-soaked battlefield, they could firmly hold the aggro.
“Spider… is it?”
“Kinda cute… Do guardians like this exist?”
“So Charlie is a guardian too?”
“Maybe? Then what about that necromancer?”
Nothing about this scene was normal, but the most astonishing sight was Kaiser facing the king of the outlaws alone.
To be precise, both Kaiser and the boss were extraordinary.
“But… even the outlaws fight really well. How is that a dark mage?”
“Even if it’s a Battle Mage concept, it makes no sense that a mage is stronger than top-tier melee users.”
“The boss isn’t even supposed to be in this stage. They didn’t design it to be killed.”
“…Then what is Kaiser, fighting alone?”
“Then… huh?”
The question posed by one user left everyone silent.
Soon, chatter about a new topic filled the air.
“Arthur fought with four people… How’s he doing this alone? Is his spec that insane?”
“That’s partly true, but the control is impossible. No way the outlaw is weaker, yet he’s holding his own alone.”
“So the video wasn’t just edited… This proves it again.”
“Single-player raid class… Is this a god?”
How on earth could Kaiser face such an absurd boss alone?
As the discussion turned to concluding that Kaiser was a god, the outlaw leader, holding some distance, drew something and raised his hand.
Everyone recognized the pattern immediately.
[Hidden Field Boss, Outlaw Leader ‘???’ emits the aura of the afterlife.]
[Severe cold covers the surrounding area. Avoid.]
[You have touched the aura of the afterlife. Skin is corroded, and you take damage per second proportional to distance.]
[Extreme cold causes feet to start freezing.]
“Ugh!”
“Ah, crap!”
The ground froze and the air turned icy, startling the users, who hastily stepped back.
Some in the front even fell on their butts from surprise.
Their shock wasn’t just from the sudden pattern activation.
“Whoa, that scared me.”
“Why is it activating already?”
“What… did he already take 20% damage? Alone, in less than ten minutes?”
The pattern had activated far earlier than it should have.
Then…
“Huh? What’s that?”
“Whoa?”
Before they could even react, an even more astonishing sight unfolded.
[Hidden Field Boss, Outlaw Leader ‘???’ emits the aura of the afterlife.]
[Extreme cold begins freezing the feet.]
[Hero trait prevents status ailments.]
[Status ailment ‘Frozen’ is ignored.]
Ignoring the message that appeared, Dohyun swung his sword.
Swoosh—
The blade cut fiercely through the air.
The outlaw leader, who expected his attack to freeze Dohyun, had to retreat quickly.
He had assumed he was dealing with a formidable opponent, but he never expected a mortal to withstand the cold of the afterlife.
Seeing Dohyun perfectly unaffected by the status ailment, he understood.
[…He… uses… the same… skill… as that one…]
A similar experience had occurred against a human paladin in the past.
Someone who had pushed him quite hard.
A unique skill rare even among humans.
That same skill was in Dohyun’s possession. But,
[It… changes… nothing…]
That was all.
Having a unique skill didn’t change anything.
[Summoning a portion of the afterlife’s aura.]
[Turns the surrounding land into the afterlife.]
The cold was merely a part of the afterlife.
In that realm, cold was as natural as air or wind.
The truly terrifying aspect was that the land had lost vitality and was corrupted over ages, causing excruciating pain to anyone who stepped on it.
A land of death that did not tolerate living beings.
[…Curious… how… long… can… you… endure…]
It was inevitable that Dohyun would eventually self-destruct.
The only difference was how long he could struggle.
The outlaw leader could watch the process at ease.
Thwack! Scratch—
Plop!
Humans facing death try to use their wits.
Like the previous opponent, Dohyun’s attacks became fiercer, leaving marks, but this was just his final flail.
No real danger existed.
Whoosh— Swish— Crack!
Plop!
Yes, that was natural.
Crack—! Crunch.
That was natural…
Whoosh, plop, scratch—
[…?]
Each exchange of blows caused increasing damage to the outlaw leader, who tilted his head in confusion.
Something was wrong.
[…Why… is… he… perfectly… fine…]
Over ten minutes had passed.
Weak humans should have perished long ago, and capable ones should be writhing in pain.
Yet, that man remained entirely unharmed.
Skin unchanged, feeling no pain, showing no sign of self-destruction.
In fact, his movements became cleaner and sharper, as if ignited.
“…What? Why isn’t Kaiser freezing?”
“He doesn’t even seem slowed… Does a hero trait grant immunity at this stage?”
“That’s not it… He doesn’t seem to take sustained damage at all…”
“Wait, isn’t Kaiser supposed to have the Weapon Master trait?”
“…What the hell is happening?”
It wasn’t his imagination.
All users could see Kaiser fighting perfectly fine.
The afterlife’s aura appeared as if a mere prop, having no effect at all.
“Status immunity is one thing, but what’s this? Over ten minutes and he’s fine?”
“No way… this is insane.”
“The outlaw king looks panicked, right?”
“Seriously, you can feel the urgency in his movements.”
An incomprehensible situation.
They blinked at each other, then turned their gaze back to Kaiser.
Shaa—
On the frozen ground, where just touching it would slow movement and deal continuous damage…
Kaiser fought the outlaws as if nothing were wrong.
Ding—
A message appeared before him:
[Poison King (毒王) trait activated.]
[Continuous damage from the same attack over time.]
[Saturation effect treats damage as poison.]
[Impenetrability effect grants immunity to poisons below hero grade.]
The Poison King trait received from the Dark King.
The reason Dohyun could move freely amidst the horrific aura of the afterlife.
‘I knew it would help… but this is beyond what I imagined.’
From the moment he learned of the trait from the lord, he knew it alone made him capable of the fight.
It was a battle only he could fight.
Now, he was almost impervious to most poisons or sustained damage.
A thrilling sensation surged, yet the afterlife’s aura was far more potent than mere poison.
[The rank of the afterlife aura is too high to block completely.]
[Receive 70% reduced damage from poison.]
The incomplete Poison King trait could not fully block its power.
[Health is below 40%.]
Half of his HP had already been depleted.
In just over ten minutes, his health dropped from over 60% to 40%.
He could last longer, but a prolonged battle still put him at a disadvantage.
Grrrrr!
Ugh… Master.
Liza… Liza…
Hmm…! Don’t worry, Master. This humble sword can still hold on!
On top of that, the allies weren’t in good shape either.
Unlike himself, they couldn’t withstand the afterlife aura.
Ten more minutes would be the limit.
Then he would have to fight all the outlaws alone.
I’ll… reduce their numbers as much as possible, Master.
Knowing this, Charlie activated the sword of light.
To kill as many outlaws as possible before the limit.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Eliza also intensified her web-shooting.
[Guardian Jihad Black summons undead.]
[Summons 1 additional Lycanthrope Undead.]
[Uses Legion Control to assign Lycanthrope Undead to existing legion.]
Grrrr—
Jihad summoned the undead he had been saving, perhaps now willing to risk it.
He could summon more as he leveled up, but had been conserving them for mana management.
‘Ten minutes.’
The boss had to be defeated within this window.
Otherwise, the chances of success would drop.
Despite raising the tempo, Dohyun still faced no easy task.
“…Doesn’t Kaiser look in danger?”
“They’re evenly matched, but the outlaw’s attacks seem more lethal.”
“He hasn’t let anything big through. One wrong move and it’s over.”
“My whole body is tense. Feels like watching a death-defying act.”
His physical abilities surpassed theirs, and combined with occasional magic, he nearly suffered lethal blows multiple times.
One serious hit, and he’d be close to defeat.
“Is that all it takes? The afterlife aura or whatever, not a big deal.”
[…]
Dohyun’s unchanged complexion made him feign confidence, trying to prevent the boss from stalling time.
The tempo increase and relentless assault had paid off.
[…Don’t know what skill he used… but… this ends… here…]
The boss stopped abruptly, extending his hand.
A dark aura spread violently.
[Hidden Field Boss, Outlaw Leader ‘???’ HP has reached 50%.]
[Phase 2 activated.]
This was the sign before the stage seen in the video.
[…Feel… the… melody… of death…]
A chilling voice, like chalk on a board, echoed.
A message appeared for everyone:
[Requiem of the Afterlife activated.]
[Touching the Requiem results in instant death.]
“…?”
“What?”
As they questioned the sudden message…
KABOOM! BOOM!
“Move! Move!”
“Ahh!”
Pillars of darkness erupted from the ground in explosions, startling everyone.
The outlaws didn’t attack if untouched, but AoE attacks were an exception.
Touching it meant instant death, just like the afterlife aura caused continuous damage.
Grrrr—
Aaaah!
Get over here, quickly!
All undead shrouded in darkness perished.
Charlie scrambled, carrying the spider(?) and the robe-wearing allies to safety.
Terrified users retreated desperately.
“…What happened?”
“Kaiser? Is he dead?”
“Look over there!”
Once they secured a safe distance, they saw Kaiser emerge behind the boss, continuing the fight despite the AoE.
They stared dumbfounded, realizing:
“Wait… so the boss is now below 50%?”
“Oh my god…”
“Arthur’s record is broken…!”
In just over twenty minutes, the record set by Arthur had been shattered.
“…So this is the first clear attempt?”
“Insane…”
“Good thing I didn’t rush the quest and observed directly!”
“Kaiser… he’s a god! Kaiser… he’s a god! Kaiser is a—”
“Everyone, quiet! Focus!”
They had entered uncharted territory.
They were witnessing the first ever occurrence.
Swallow.
Hearts pumping, palms sweating, they focused on the battle before them.
Eyes unwavering, as if not to miss a single moment.
