Chapter 99

5 minutes ago.

When Seong Jihan faced off against Count Naseed, he thought,

‘This… is easier than I expected?’

Perhaps it was due to the enhancement bonus from the canyon map and the buff from Sophia’s Trinity.

From the moment he confronted Count Naseed, Seong Jihan realized one thing.

Ah, this.

I can win this easily.

‘I didn’t need to gather party members after all.’

Using the Nameless Divine Arts, he could subdue the opponent right now.

However, the reason Seong Jihan prolonged the battle for 5 minutes was due to the Shadow Sword stat.

[Master.]

[The power of Count Naseed’s darkness is tremendous. How about cutting a bit more?]

Ariel, in the sword Eclipse form, suggested to Seong Jihan with a brighter voice than usual.

And even before she finished speaking,

[Shadow Sword stat increases by 1.]

His stats went up immediately.

‘Nice, huh?’

It’s worth stalling like this.

[If you cut the snake’s scale, you can absorb even more shadow power.]

Following Ariel’s suggestion, Seong Jihan began to cut off all of Count Naseed’s scales.

In the past 5 minutes, over 70% of the giant snake’s scales were cut.

[In your words… it’s amazing.]

The Shadow Sword stat increased by a whopping 4.

Since entering this game, his stat had risen by 5 in total.

With the Shadow Sword’s power becoming stronger, Seong Jihan could control the size of the sword even more freely.

[It seems we’ve absorbed most of it now.]

“Really? Time to finish him then.”

Just when Seong Jihan, who had acquired 5 Shadow Sword points, was about to happily strike down Count Naseed,

A huge wall of flames suddenly appeared in the valley to the east and north.

‘Over there. It’s the area Barren is responsible for.’

There was no need to keep things in check like this.

Why ignite such a blaze?

Seong Jihan had a hunch about what he was up to.

‘In my previous life, he hated it when someone stole his spotlight.’

But back then, he held the firm position of the world’s No. 1, the guild master of the America First Guild.

He was more laid-back than he is now.

The Barren of that time would have at least waited 10 minutes.

But the current him was incredibly impatient.

Whooosh!

Watching the Fire Wave heading towards Count Naseed, Seong Jihan clicked his tongue.

Tsk!

Does he really think that will finish him off?

Even concentrating mana to pierce a single point would be insufficient, yet he’s deploying such wide-area magic.

Although it seemed unlikely that a Fire Wave would deliver the final blow,

‘I can’t let this slide.’

Starting petty fights like that.

That…

‘I need to set him straight.’

Thud! Thud!

As Seong Jihan quickly distanced himself from Count Naseed, he flew towards the western cliffside where his party members were.

“What…what’s this? Why are you here?”

Thud!

As Seong Jihan landed on the cliffside and approached, Barren seemed to flinch, a stark contrast to his previous confidence.

Sophia spoke with a tone of disbelief, “If you were going to do that, why did you use my magic…”

Regaining his composure, Barren puffed out his chest and replied, “Ahem! Seong Jihan! A warrior should be marking the monster at the frontline. Why did you come here?”

“You’re not following my instructions, are you?”

“I only came to help because it seemed like the damage wasn’t getting through!”

“Oh, really? Without a word?”

“I had to act quickly! If I had been there, we would’ve dealt proper damage!”

Swooosh!

With a faint smile, Seong Jihan spread out his palm. All the party members behind Barren began to levitate, moving backward.

“Then, show me.”

“What?”

“I’ll just watch from behind. You do it.”

Saying so, Seong Jihan took position behind Barren, as if guarding the other party members.

“I’ll control the symbols. Ariel.”

[Should I move to the cliffside?]

“Yes. That fool, balcon, can’t use magic simultaneously in a crisis. Head over and block the symbols from the east and north.”

[Ah, understood.]

The shadow sword Eclipse sank into the ground and, turning into a long shadow, moved towards the cliffside.

“Balcon? Who’re you calling a balcon…?!”

Barren flared up at that comment, but Seong Jihan continued, ignoring him.

“Masied will keep controlling the symbols from the south.”

“Got it, Boss.”

While Masied, who was stationed at the southern cliff, continued his task, Seong Jihan said, “Seah, join Sophia and attack the markings from the west.”

“Okay. Just do as usual?”

“Ah… Sorry, Jihan. For not stopping him.”

“What for? He can handle it, can’t he? I’ll guard both of you.”

“…”

Barren was rendered speechless.

“Alright. Positions are set.”

Having rearranged the party, Seong Jihan gave Barren a sly smile.

“Do it your way.”

* * * * *

* * * * *

– Wow, he’s merciless. Giving him a lesson?

– But what if Barren captures it?

– Don’t worry about that.

– Isn’t it a problem if he dies? How will he capture it then?

– Jihan will have a plan. Why worry so much?

– I’m worried the Count Naseed Raid might fail.

– We apologize for Barren’s behavior.

– LOL at the symbol next to the ID.

– Such an American move. LOL.

Between those praising the strict lesson and those worried about a raid failure, and even an apologetic American, the chat scroll was a chaotic whirlwind.

Meanwhile,

“Damn it…! Once the symbols are controlled, does he think nobody else can handle it?”

Barren, on the other hand, felt this might be an opportunity.

Seeing Seong Jihan taking on Count Naseed, it seemed not as formidable as expected!

If he could defeat it himself here, he could turn the current situation around by 180 degrees.

‘I have the Absolute Domain, after all. I can easily block such snake attacks!’

Flash! Flash!

The remaining three eyes of Count Naseed glinted.

“Uh…”

Whoosh!

The Fire Wave he used earlier was extinguished the moment it touched Count Naseed. Until he saw that, Barren was confident.

[Are you my opponent this time?]

The gaze of the enormous snake turned to Barren.

Compared to when facing Seong Jihan, the monster’s voice seemed somewhat more relaxed.

[Die.]

Count Naseed opened its mouth, and a massive blaze burst out.

“Ice Shield!”

Barren hastily conjured an ice barrier, but…

Thud! Thud!

The snake’s flames easily melted it.

“What are you doing? Not using the Force?”

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Seong Jihan, circling the Phoenix’s Arrow behind his back, cheekily gave advice.

“Your Absolute Domain is vast. Can’t even extinguish that little fire?”

“Shield! Ice Shield!”

“You’re so hasty. Not going to attack?”

“Shut up! I can’t concentrate!”

“Why not use the Force? Say, ‘Fire, go away!’ and it will go away, right?”

“Eeek!”

– Seong Jihan teasing from behind is hilariousㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– ㅋㅋㅋBeing nagged like that is super annoying

His double-layered protective magic melted away again.

The snake’s flames entered Barren’s Absolute Domain.

‘Right… I can push the flames away with the Force!’

He can do it.

Why can’t I?

Channeling his Force, Barren desperately hoped.

For the trajectory of the flames to shift!

With strong willpower, shouldn’t he be able to control the Force?

However, that was just wishful thinking.

‘Why… why isn’t it working…!’

The flames didn’t waver.

Instead, they gradually shattered the Absolute Territory, reaching right before Barren’s eyes. It felt like he would be devoured by the flames in moments.

His heart sank.

Tsk…!

So far, having the powerful defensive means of the Absolute Domain meant he rarely faced dire situations.

Now, facing this threat, his ability to react was severely lacking.

Seong Jihan’s description of him as a “greenhorn” fit Barren perfectly.

He tried to repel the flames with the Force, but…

Boom!

It wasn’t the flames that got pushed away, but himself.

“Ah! Oh…”

Barren, hurling himself into the flames.

Before melting away, he looked back with a dazed expression.

As if he had expected this, Seong Jihan calmly looked at Barren.

“Surely…No way…”

“Hmm? You should know whose mistake it was.”

Seong Jihan shrugged his shoulders.

“Don’t blame this on me.”

“Ah…”

Barren couldn’t refute his words.

Because indeed, it was his mistake.

“This… is… the end…”

His body was soon engulfed by the flames.

For someone who began confidently trying to deliver the final blow, it was an utterly pitiable end.

* * * * *

– What was that? ㅋㅋㅋㅋ He just got blasted off by himself ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

– This is totally embarrassing ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ. Did Seong Jihan push him with force?

– From what he said, it doesn’t seem so. Seems like he just lost control ㅋㅋㅋ.

– Oh my God… Why do I have to feel this secondhand embarrassment…

– I even bought Barren’s jersey as an AF fan… ????

– Dear God! I guess we don’t need to scout Barren anymore, wwww.

With Barren self-destructing, the chat was filled with mocking messages.

– So, how do we defeat it now? Are we going to fail in the Count Naseed Raid? ㅠㅠ

– What a pity… Just close your eyes and ignore it.

– Exactly. Seong Jihan couldn’t deal damage, and yet… His attitude is so nasty! Why is he like this only to Barren?!

– Are the Barren fans here? Why are there so many usernames with an angry tone ㅋㅋㅋ?

– Seong Jihan has his plans; that’s why he’s like that~!

– Oh come on~~ Just trust him and see~!

Even though Seong Jihan continuously attacked for 5 minutes, he couldn’t finish off Count Naseed.

People were worried if they could cover up the vacancy left by Barren.

However,

Seong Jihan confidently moved forward.

‘Thunderbolt Dash.’

His body shot towards Count Naseed like an arrow.

[You too- will… die-!]

Unlike when he was dealing with Barren, Count Naseed’s voice quivered a bit.

To block Seong Jihan’s approach, he fired massive spikes from his scales and spat out flames.

But Seong Jihan, just like before, used the spikes as a stepping stone and jumped over Count Naseed.

“Ariel. Come.”

[Yes, master.]

Retrieving the Shadow Sword from the opposite side, Seong Jihan unleashed his full power.

Nameless Divine Arts, Dark Shadow Technique – Ascension of Black Shadow

The blade of the Shadow Sword split in two.

Simultaneously, the lake that the massive snake inhabited turned black.

This wasn’t just a mere color change; the very nature of the substance transformed.

The lake, which held thousands of tons of water, suddenly disappeared, and a dark shadow took its place.

[Ugh- Ughhh-!]

Fear mixed in Count Naseed’s voice, which had previously shown no reaction even when he was continuously slashed.

He desperately tried to wriggle out of the shadow’s domain, but it was already too late.

Shwoooosh!

The shadow began to rise, absorbing the sunlight in the battlefield and ascending to the sky.

[Ah-]

The snake couldn’t finish its sentence and was completely consumed by the darkness.

The dark shadow extended even higher, soaring up like a pillar into the sky.

Ascension of Black Shadow.

Despite being a shadow, its power to absorb light defied the world’s logic and contradicted the laws of nature.

Left alone, it seemed as if it would climb beyond the clouds.

“…With my current strength, this must be the limit.”

Swishhh!

The pillar of shadow disappeared in the blink of an eye, as if it had never existed.

The ultimate technique of the Dark Shadow Technique, the Ascension of Black Shadow, which erases the opponent entirely from the world.

As this technique was even more potent than the Dark Soul Vortex, it was actually a bit too much for the current Seong Jihan to execute.

If it weren’t for the enhancements from the Demon Faction and Sophia’s blessings, he wouldn’t have considered using it.

However,

“The effect remains the same.”

In the place where the shadow had vanished,

Everything, including Count Naseed, was cleanly obliterated.

The water from the lake had evaporated completely, leaving a dry crater.

Not a single scale of Count Naseed remained.

And then,

[You have successfully subdued Count Naseed.]

Immediately, the reward for subduing him was given to Seong Jihan.