Emperor of Solo Play Chapter 102:
Chapter 102 – Guerrillas (2)
A temporary town was erected near the Cursed Domain with Sarabo at its center . Most of the Users that had gathered in the town was over level 140 .
Of course, most of the Users gathered here had played Warlord since it opened . They were the the inhabitants of Warlord, and they had spent five to six hours a day since the opening day… A good number of the Users experienced fingers being pointed at them in worry by their parents and friends . They would say things like ‘Tsk tsk! Does the game feed you? Will it feed you?’, yet these players continued to play for an inordinate amount of time .
This is why everyone here was well aware of how Warlord worked .
This was why everyone here was guarded rather than being awestruck by Hyrkan . He was someone that had to be kept in check .
‘In the end, the Hahoe Mask got the 1st place . ’
‘This makes no sense . To my knowledge, the Hahoe Mask is level 130 . There is a 10 level gap between me and him . Moreover, the Hahoe Mask is hunting by himself . How is he able to catch more monster than a 4 man party?’
‘Is the rumor of him being some incredible rich kid true? Did he really spend a million dollar on this game? At the very least, his Items are Unique Rank, and even his Skeletons are equipped with Unique Items… . . That **** rich **** . If he wants to flaunt his money, he should do it somewhere else!’
Hyrkan was well aware of how others looked at him .
‘I’ve arrived . ’
The attention he got from his surrounding was worrying, but at the same time, it was something long-awaited .
‘I’ve finally caught up to them . ’
He had received these kinds of gazes before he had returned to the past . At the time, he needed two years to receive it . Moreover, he wasn’t by himself at the time . He had to attack in droves to barely get the frontrunners to be wary of his party .
His current pace was the only evidence he needed . He had made the right choice .
Everything Hyrkan possessed was invested into this world called Warlord . There was an evidence he wanted to see above all else . He wanted proof that he hadn’t been wrong . This was the only thing that could console Hyrkan, when his heart wavered .
‘I was unexpectedly lucky . ’
Truthfully, provocation came alongside these gazes . Aside from the provocation, Hyrkan had experienced a widescale attack before . Hyrkan thought there was a good possibility something bad would happen in the near future . He had hardened his heart .
However, no groups decided to provoke him . They looked at him with dissatisfaction and wariness, but they did nothing .
Hyrkan didn’t know the exact reason, but he had his suspicions as to why no one was attacking him .
‘I never expected to benefit, because of the Red Bulls . ’
In recent days, Red Bull’s guild master Chev had referenced the Hahoe Mask in an official interview .
During the interview, Chev mentioned that the Hahoe Mask’s Waltz was the most memorable footage he had seen related to Warlord in recent days . The reporter immediately asked if Chev was acquainted with the Hahoe Mask . As if he had been waiting for the question, Chev gave an answer .
“I don’t know him officially . I’ll leave it at that . ”
When he gave his answer, the discussion online got a little bit more heated .
– The Hahoe Mask is acquainted with the Red Bulls?
– Maybe the Hahoe Mask is Red Bull’s hidden ace card?
– Wow . If the Hahoe Mask enters the Red Bulls, wouldn’t that trump everything? If the Hahoe Mask enters the frontline Raid team of the Red Bulls, they’ll become the strongest in Warlord!
– This is a rumor, but there is a rumor saying they are lovers .
– Aren’t they both men?
– This is why it’s such a big news .
– There are a lot of crazy people on the top .
Of course, there are cases where weird rumors heated up . Still, the interview was the reason why no one was messing with the Hahoe Mask . They didn’t want to offend the Red Bulls .
‘He must have really taken a liking to me . Or maybe his Quest progress is going really well, because of the hint I gave him . ’
Of course, Chev didn’t speak about him for no reason . Chev knew the influence his words possessed .
It had been a form of signal . It was a signal say he wanted a closer relationship with the Hahoe Mask .
From Hyrkan’s perspective, this was all very sudden, but he didn’t have any reasons reject it .
‘I was right in wearing the Mask . ’
Hahoe Mask .
In the end, the Hahoe Mask had given him an identity . It gave him a chance to build up his non-existent background .
As a result, there was nothing holding him back now . He was able to finish first in the Vodoo Chimera hunt, and he was able to proudly stand in front of Sarabo as the Point Ranking leader .
“Good job . ”
These were the Users, who had been operating out of the temporary town . These were the groups ranked 1st to 4th in the Point Ranking . Sarabo gathered the four groups, and he gave each of them a gem . The red gems were generating light on their own .
“With your help, I was finally able to come up with a method to block the Evil Eye’s Curse . The gems I gave you all will block the spread of the Curse . ”
At that moment, everyone realized what was going on .
‘So this is how the story will progress . ’
‘It’ll give a ticket up to the 4th place? This is turning out to be quite interesting . ’
‘Basically, the ones with the tickets can receive the quest . ’
There had been a lot of talk about the reward given depending on the Point Rankings . There were talks about Sarabo giving a Unique Item or a Skill Book . There were also talks about a reward of over 100,000 gold… .
However, those rumors were incorrect .
This gem could block the curse of the Evil Eye! This was the reward . It basically meant a select group of Users could Raid the Evil Eye .
‘Everything up until now was the preliminary rounds . ’
‘We are the only ones that can participate in the main round . ’
It was a pretty valuable reward . Currently, the Evil Eyes were roaming around the Cursed Domain, and they weren’t allowed to be targeted . When one saw an Evil Eye, the curse activated, and all of one’s Stats suffered a 50% reduction . Moreover, one’s movement speed was decreased by 80% . It was a frightening curse .
If it was a level 200 User, one might be able to overcome it . However, it was impossible for level 150 Users to catch the Evil Eye .
Of course, there was an additional reward for the 1st place User .
“You contribution was the largest . I’m giving this reward only to you . ”
It was the reward .
“What?”
“Use it well . ”
“What?”
It was a single coin .
The coin had 1,000 stamped on it .
“T…this is it?”
Hyrkan was genuinely taken aback as he asked the question . Sarabo patted Hyrkan on his shoulder .
“You did well . ”
Hyrkan shook when he heard those words .
‘No! Give me an Item instead! Item!’
He never expected the 1st place reward to be a mere 1,000 gold . Of course, 1,000 gold wasn’t a small figure . It was very rare to get more than 1,000 gold as a reward . This was a pretty large reward .
However, Hyrkan had used his Bone Explosives and other resources liberally to get the 1st place in this Quest . He was dumbfounded .
‘Really? Fuck!’
Unbidden cuss words were close to pouring out .
Sarabo lightly brushed off Hyrkan, and it spoke towards the rest of the group .
“The only thing let is to catch the Evil Eye then you have to enter the Cursed Castle . The first one to catch the Evil Eye and arrive at the Castle will be given this sword . ”
Took took!
As it was speaking, Sarabo patted the sheath of the sword he wore on his left hip .
“I’ll give this sword as a reward . ”
[Quest ‘Evil Eye Hunter’ has started . ]
[This is a Conditional Quest . ]
The real Quest had just started .
The rumor was spread immediately .
Those ranked 1st to 4th in the Point Ranking could catch the Evil Eyes . The rumor was they had to form a team to hunt down the Evil Eye .
Moreover, the Quest Reward was one of Sarabo’s sword!
The Users that had lost in the points competition hadn’t left . They planned on staying at the Cursed Domain to hunt . Of course, they would be interested in such a Raid, and at the same time, they finished calculating their moves .
‘It’s the Hahoe Mask . ’
‘It’ll be most advantageous to be able to team up with the Hahoe Mask . ’
Everyone gathered here were experts . They were all very skilled . However, they all had the same obvious weak point . They excelled at regular hunting, but no one here had many experience in fighting the Boss Monster Raids .
Evil Eye wasn’t a Boss Monster, but the difficulty was so high that it could be considered to be a Boss Monster .
They needed a User with a lot of Boss Monster Raid experiences . From that perspective, the Hahoe Mask was the best amongst the pieces here .
It was the same for Hyrkan .
‘I can’t do this by myself . ’
Evil Eye .
If he wanted to kill the monster, he could do it . Currently, there weren’t any monsters here that he couldn’t catch on his own .
However, he wouldn’t be able to catch it faster than his competitors .
‘Shit . I never expected it to be a qualifier . If I knew about it, I would have just aimed for the 4th place!’
It couldn’t be helped .
Hyrkan’s weakness was quite apparent right now .
It was impossible for him to cause massive damage in a short amount of time .
‘I have to get this reward . I’ve spent a lot of money, so I have to get Sarabo’s Sword . ’
Armor Breaking .
When one is trying to destroy the target’s defensive gear, the User’s skill was more important than one’s Class Skills . One had to stick to the monster’s body, while using a variety of Skills . It wasn’t easy . The existence of Skill Cool down was another hindrance . This basically meant there wasn’t much difference between Hyrkan and a Sword Class User when it came to Armor Breaking .
However, it was a different when he had to fulfill the role as a damage dealer . For example, let’s say there’s a level 140 Swordsman, who had advanced to the Fighter class . If this User received a full Buff from a Priest, Hyrkan couldn’t come close to the sudden damage the Swordsman could cause using a combination of his three Skills . It didn’t matter what methods Hyrkan used .
On the other hand, Hyrkan had the Skeleton Warriors, Skeleton Knight, Skeleton Magicians and the Golem . He was able to deal a constant amount of damage . If one considered the total damage, Hyrkan was almost on par with a normal Swordsman Class .
‘I have to catch the Evil Eye, and I have to be the first one to reach the castle . ’
Anyways, it was important to be able to deal critical damage in a speed run . In a speed run, it wasn’t about lessening the HP . It was basically more advantageous to just demolish the monster . For example, if one was fighting a User, it would be better to just cut their throat for an instant Game Over rather than apply constant damage to decrease the HP to 0 .
‘There are a total of 5 parties including me . ’
Moreover, if one wanted to catch the Evil Eye, one needed a party of around twenty people .
If the 5 parties combined, they would reach close to that number .
Of course, if they did that, it would become a problem as to who would receive the Sarabo’s Sword as a reward .
If Hyrkan wanted to keep the Sarabo’s Sword, he would have to give the rest of his party members something of equal value .
On the other hand, someone might insist on taking the Sarabo’s Sword by paying the requisite price .
‘It isn’t too late to think about this afterwards . ’
Of course, the most important thing to do right now was to catch the Evil Eye, and reach the Cursed Domain’s Castle .
‘Let’s catch it first!’
Hyrkan was fired up more so than any time he could remember .
“The armor is off!”
“He succeeded in Armor Break before it moved onto the next Phase! What a crazy son of a bitch!”
Evil Eye .
It was 5 meters tall with armor covering its body . It had the head of a snake, but it had only one enormous eye . Its true appearance was finally revealed to the world .
It had a lower body of an enormous goat, and the upper body of an ogre . Its skin were like rags, and there were signs of the skin being sewn together . On top of all of that, it had an enormous snake’s head, and the single eye was letting out a red light . Its name was well-matched .
Hyrkan quickly came down to the floor after he took off the monster’s armor by himself . The Evil Eye glanced at Hyrkan with its single eye . However, it didn’t chase after him . Three tankers had gotten into a triangular formation, and the Evil Eye’s movement had been restricted .
It looked funny seeing 2 meter tall Users blocking the progress of a 5 meter tall monster . However, they had enough power to be able to fend off the Evil Eye .
“The Magicians are ready!”
“Just ignore the phases . Let’s just focus on the damage dealing . !”
“Focus on the damage instead of the HP . Let’s go for destruction of its body!”
Hyrkan exited the stage, and he caught his breath . A Priest came up to him .
“Do you need a heal?”
Hyrkan shook his hand . The Priest looked over Hyrkan’s body . Hyrkan’s clothes were dirty, but there were no rips . It was evidence that Hyrkan hadn’t been hit, while Armor Breaking .
It is said the wounds are a badge of honor on a battlefield, but wounds weren’t a badge in Warlord .
It was the opposite . It was a badge of honor to be unhurt like Hyrkan .
“You are incredible . I’ve never seen anyone, who is better at taking off a monster’s armor . ”
Hyrkan flicked his finger instead of replying to the statement .
Ddul-goo-ruhk ddul-goo-ruhk!
When he did so, the Skeleton Magicians on standby started to raise their arms up high . There were 5 Skeleton Magicians wearing red colored robes with gold trims . They held staffs with a black gem mounted on them . Instead of looking cool, they looked expensive .
The Priest let out a bitter laugh as he observed Hyrkan . The Priest realized what was going on .
‘He is almost making me speechless right now . ’
The owner did the complicated task of Armor Breaking . The Golem and Skeletons were used to deal damage . Depending on the situation, they were also used as Tankers to divert the attention of the monster .
‘However, there is hard cap to his ability . ’
Hyrkan was incredible .
However, at the same time, the Priest could see an obvious weakness .
‘He is over-pacing himself . ’
Rest was very important in a Boss Raid .
Boss monster raids were a marathon . It wasn’t a short-distance sprint . One could also characterize it as a relay race . People ran with all their might, but when the baton was handed off, they got to rest . This would allow them to sprint with all their might when their turn came once again .
However, Hyrkan wasn’t like that .
If Hyrkan ran the whole course at this pace, we would be able to achieve an unimaginable record . However, Warlord wasn’t a marathon . There wasn’t a goal line . It was a world where numerous people fought for their Rankings .
‘This isn’t my problem . ’
Of course, the Priest didn’t need to worry about Hyrkan’s circumstances right now .
“Then get ready for the next attack . ”
The Priest decided to root for Hyrkan to fall over in exhaustion .
After hearing the Priest’s words, Hyrkan half-heartedly waved his hand instead of answering him . The Priest left, and Hyrkan regulated his breathing .
After the Hahoe Mask’s team caught the Evil Eye, they raced towards the Cursed Castle .
“Do you think we’ll get the first place?”
“There is no way someone could have caught it faster than us . Of course, I’m assuming the raid teams of the 30 great guild isn’t present . ”
“Wow! The Evil Eye Hunter title raised the class-specific stat by 20 points! It’s a jackpot . ”
“Really?”
The Users, who were running, felt their chests start to fill with happiness . When they reached the castle as the 1st place team, they would receive Sarabo’s Sword . Everyone would be able to gain a lot of money .
Everyone’s steps were light, because they were happy .
They arrived at near the very run down castle wall of the Cursed Castle . In a flash, they jumped over the moat, and they climbed over the wall . They used the plentiful cracks to climb up the castle wall . For Warlord Users, this was a easy as running across a flat ground assuming one had a certain amount of Strength .
It happened when they crossed the castle wall .
[You’ve acquired the Title ‘Visitor of the Cursed Castle . ’]
Everyone acquired the Title at once .
[You’ve completed the ‘Cursed Domain’ Quest . ]
‘Ok . ’
Hyrkan had just completed another Main Scenario Quest .
[You’ve failed in completing the ‘Evil Eye Hunter’ Quest . ]
In conclusion, everyone received an announcement saying they had all failed at completing the Evil Eye Hunter Quest .
“Huh?”
“What the hell?”
They were like actors in an opera . Everyone’s expression crumpled at the same time .
They frowned, because they discovered there were other guests inside the castle .
‘Someone did it faster than us?’
They would have understood it if they had made a mistake in the Evil Eye hunt . However, the Hahoe Mask’s team couldn’t picture a more perfect run . This was especially true since Hyrkan and the Strikers had cut off the Evil Eye’s head when it was about to enter into the 2nd phase . This had decisively reduced their raid time .
However, there had been a party that was faster than them?
Hyrkan also couldn’t help, but be taken aback . He was already **** off at the 1 thousand gold reward yet he had also lost out on Sarabo’s sword? His insides would hurt for at least a week .
‘Who the **** are those bastards?’
Hyrkan looked on with a poisonous expression . He looked over the group that had caught the Evil Eye before him .
‘The Noopy Family?’
It was the Noopy Family .
It was a group, who had received the Evil Eye’s curse blocking gem alongside Hyrkan .
‘These guys are skilled, but they shouldn’t have been able to do it faster than me . ’
Even Hyrkan admitted their skills were exceptional . However, this party didn’t have enough firepower to catch the Evil Eye faster than him .
Hyrkan continued to look at the other members of the group .
Hyrkan’s eyes eventually landed on a User wearing a silver armor, which was surrounded by a green light . He wore a cylindrical Great Helm, and he was talking to the Users around him . He didn’t seem to be a comrade of the other Users . The other Users treated him like a superior .
‘Huk! Is that the Greenstone Imoogi set? Is this for real?’
Greenstone Imoogi .
It was a level 150 Boss monster, and it was very strong . Currently, it was one of the three most difficult level 150 Boss monster Raids that had been successfully completed .
Moreover, the only Guild that had been able to successfully finish the Raid was the V&V Guid . They were a member of the 30 great guilds .
There was a great amount of worth to this Boss Monster . The ingredients from the Greenstone Imoogi could be used to make a 5 part Unique Item set . When the set option activates, it gave an incredible effect .
‘My **** . Why is that thing here?’
When one delivers a critical hit to an enemy, the ‘Imoogi’s Curse’ was cast . The ‘Imoogi’s Curse’ decreased the opponent’s defense by 25% . Moreover, the Imoogi’s Curse can be stacked with other curses .
As the monster’s level increased, the effect of the Imoogi’s Cursed decreased . However, it wasn’t an exaggeration to say this was the best defensive set one could get when going up against monsters below level 150 .
On top of all of that, V&V guild was currently monopolizing the Oksan’s Hourglass, where the Imoogi appeared . Any Items related to the Greenstone Imoogi was being monopolized by the V&V guild . The guild had a strict policy of never selling it to anyone outside of the 30 great guilds . The big donors of the V&V guild, and the close allies within the 30 great guilds were the only ones able to wear the set . It was something one couldn’t acquire even if one had the money .
In fact, the Greenstone Immogi’s Set options had never been released to the public . He knew it only because he was Hyrkan .
How could such a set be in front of his eyes?
Hyrkan was nervous, and at the same time, he had a hunch .
‘This isn’t someone, who should be here . Is he a member of the V&V guild?’
A whale lived in the ocean instead of a lake . That was the point . This **** should be playing in bigger waters than the Cursed Domain, yet he was here . In other words, there was a reason why he had come to the small lake . He didn’t come here by mistake .
‘What the hell?’
It happened at that moment .
‘Uh?’
The unknown User wearing the Greenstone Imoogi met face to face with Hyrkan . They didn’t see each other eye to eye . The User wearing the Greenstone Imoogi set had a Great Helm on his head, and it covered his entire face . Hyrkan had his Hahoe Mask and a hood had been thrown over his head . It wasn’t possible for them to see eye to eye .
‘He’s giving me a cold feeling . ’
At that moment, Hyrkan thought about the event before he returned to the past… .
‘It’s very cold . ’
He had glory right in front of his eyes, yet he had fallen due to a nonsensical reason . Those memories flitted through his mind .