Clang clang clang clang!
I swung my sword incessantly. With the thought that I shouldn’t give him a chance to attack, I launched sword strikes in between Cho Hyunsoo’s sword using Block.
But it’s not easy to land a hit. Cho Hyunsoo’s sword moved here and there, lightly blocking my sword.
Swordsman’s Block.
A technique that blocks all attacks within 180 degrees in front.
No matter how fast slashes I throw, I can’t break through that skill.
‘System’.
What had been my weapon in facing Named bosses so far was now baring its fangs at me as an enemy.
But I too have 1:1 arena experience.
Even if fast movements alone can’t break through the Block skill, I can also borrow the power of the system.
Swish.
I lowered my posture and swung my sword up from the bottom right diagonal to the top left, as if twisting it.
Clang!
Cho Hyunsoo’s sword was raised and his upper body was fully exposed. A look of surprise appeared on his face that had been relaxed.
‘Guard Break technique’.
In fact, battles between Swordsmen and Swordsmen, or with Fighters, are a game of when to insert this skill between normal attacks.
You confuse the opponent’s eyes with sword strikes, insert a Guard Break technique, link status effect skills that cause Down or Groggy or launch into the air, and then insert combos using Moonlight Slash, Starlight Slash, and Flash Strike.
I’ve never lost this game even in the arena. Cho Hyunsoo also failed to predict the timing of my Guard Break technique.
And through the following upward slash, an aerial combo…
Thud!
When I strongly slashed Cho Hyunsoo upwards vertically, there was a feeling of getting caught and Cho Hyunsoo’s body just jerked once.
Echostone, anti-personnel status resistance effect.
Cho Hyunsoo grinned. At the same time, moonlight flashed at his waist.
Moonlight Slash. From left to right.
Swish!
I ducked my head to avoid the sword. At the same time, his withdrawn sword flashed again.
Starlight Slash, diagonally from the right waist.
I twisted my body to the left to avoid it. Taking advantage of the gap when Cho Hyunsoo switched to offense, I used the rebound from twisting my body to launch several sword strikes imbued with starlight.
Slash slash slash!
A sensation like hitting leather with a club was transmitted through the sword handle. It didn’t cut properly. Cho Hyunsoo’s HP only decreased slightly.
The weapons and accessories he’s wearing are PVP equipment that enhance anti-personnel stats. Equipment enhanced with enhancement stones that can only be obtained through faction contribution points. Of course, since it overlaps with magic stone enhancement, equipment enhanced like this is hard to deal damage to Named bosses and is only used for pure PVP purposes.
Additional enhancement of anti-personnel attack power and penetration, defense, additional damage to players and damage reduction from players.
With my slashes wearing PVE equipment, it was hard to deal effective damage to his body.
It’s rather trickier than facing the dragon. I also wear sub-weapons with anti-personnel attack power and penetration when doing daily quests in faction battlefields, but the equipment I’m wearing now is a setting purely for PVE.
Swish! Slash slash slash!
Cho Hyunsoo’s offensive became fierce after confirming that my sword couldn’t harm him.
If I block his attacks spewing cold energy, my body will freeze and slow down like Deathly Death, allowing attacks. If I get hit by his sword with maximized anti-personnel attack power, it’s an instant retirement.
He can use ‘Block’ against my attacks, but I mustn’t block his attacks.
It’s terribly disadvantageous.
I can’t take him down.
I must not allow even a single attack.
The fangs of the ‘system’, the difference between PVP equipment and PVE equipment, were fierce.
But I can at least endure while avoiding.
Swords using skills are fast but linear. The path is easy to predict too. There’s no need to even use Block.
If time drags on, will it be reinforcements from Alpharion Empire that arrive? Or additional forces from Betarion Empire that broke through the defense line?
Impatience started appearing on Cho Hyunsoo’s face. He’s becoming anxious because he can’t take me down quickly.
Swish.
Cho Hyunsoo made his gambit. His body shook, leaving afterimages.
Counterattack.
I immediately used Counterattack before his afterimage disappeared. I caught Cho Hyunsoo’s rear who was trying to aim for my back by turning 180 degrees.
Swish!
My sword activating Starlight Slash hit the air.
As expected of the arena rank 2. He probably anticipated that I would use Counterattack against his Counterattack. It’s not reaction speed, but a predictive play based on experience.
Cho Hyunsoo would have used Backward Evasion to catch my back again. I felt a chilling sensation behind my back.
But in sword-to-sword battles, the side that uses Counterattack first as if chased is at a disadvantage. So when you want to grasp the initiative through skills, you need to aim for a gap the opponent can’t predict.
From the moment I responded to his Counterattack and even grasped his use of Backward Evasion, Cho Hyunsoo had already lost in this game of skill.
I immediately used Backward Evasion too. As the scenery before my eyes changed, Cho Hyunsoo’s back came into my view.
This is my chance.
Flash!
Cho Hyunsoo’s body jerked once from my sword that slashed upwards while cutting the dragon’s back.
The ‘airborne’ status effect caused by the upward slash was nullified by the effect of Cho Hyunsoo’s resistance Echostone.
Item power is annoying. But it’s ‘resistance’, not ‘immunity’ to status effects. It can be broken through if chained.
The first condition was fulfilled by landing the upward slash. If I can land a second skill that causes airborne status on Cho Hyunsoo who lost balance, I can launch his body into the air.
Swordsmen don’t have a second launching technique.
But ‘Rain’ has one.
Thud!
I planted both hands on the dragon’s scales, barely twisted my body and strongly kicked up Cho Hyunsoo’s chin who had caught sight of me.
“Ugh!?”
Cho Hyunsoo’s body floated into the air.
Tap.
I also lifted my body simultaneously and launched incessant slashes towards his body floating in the air.
Slash slash slash slash!
Cho Hyunsoo’s body floating in the air was hit by my full combo. His HP decreased noticeably due to the additional damage from the airborne status effect.
Swish.
Finally, I took the stance for Flash Strike and strongly slashed downwards.
Flash!
“Kuugh!”
Thud!
Cho Hyunsoo’s body hit by my Flash Strike was slammed between the dragon’s scales.
Although I excellently landed a full aerial combo, I couldn’t help but bite my lip.
Cho Hyunsoo still wasn’t dead.
If this was the arena where items are standardized, this would have decided the victory, but this is a faction battlefield.
The difference in anti-personnel stats was indeed the problem.
“Kiki. This was a bit dangerous.”
Cho Hyunsoo got up and drank a potion with a chilling smile. His HP started recovering rapidly.
Cho Hyunsoo was chugging instant recovery potions worth over 5 gold each like water.
Must be nice to be rich. I need to save money to upgrade Echostones.
Swish!
Before I could even complain, Cho Hyunsoo’s sword came shooting towards me in a semicircle. I pulled my body back and got out of his slash range.
If I can’t take him down, in the end, enduring is the only way. I can only pray that GG Group’s support arrives faster than Plan B’s guild members. I’m anxious, but Cho Hyunsoo must be anxious too.
At that moment, I saw it.
Cho Hyunsoo’s eyes glanced towards below the dragon’s body.
The place his eyes were directed was where Chris was struggling to seal the dragon’s movement.
Thump.
My heart pounded with anxiety.
He’s thinking of leaving me alone for now since I don’t take hits easily, and killing Chris unnie first.
My head turned unprecedentedly fast.
There’s a way to stop him.
Maybe even a way to take him down.
If he’s thinking of aiming for easy prey first, I just need to become that prey.
Clang!
Instead of avoiding his sword, I blocked it.
Crackle.
The chilling cold energy transmitted from his sword flowed through the clashing swords and slowed my body’s movements.
Cho Hyunsoo’s smile deepened.
He turned his attention away from Chris again and started launching fiercer offensives at me.
Slash! Clang!
Cho Hyunsoo swung his sword excitedly.
He’s gotten a taste for it.
Like when he took down Deathly Death, he’s probably thinking of finishing me off when my body freezes after continuously landing attacks over my guard.
My movements gradually slowed from the cold energy transmitted from Cho Hyunsoo’s sword.
I staggered backwards and made a flustered expression.
Clang clang clang clang!
Before we knew it, our battlefield had moved along the dragon’s neck to the top of the dragon’s head.
Cho Hyunsoo had no intention of saving his skill cooldowns. He recklessly used even Flash Strike, whether it hit or not.
Flash!
“Kyah!”
I barely avoided Cho Hyunsoo’s Flash Strike and misstepped with my half-frozen feet, screaming as I fell from the top of the dragon’s head to the ground.
Thud.
Ah, this hurts a bit.
Tap.
Cho Hyunsoo jumped down from the dragon’s head following me who had fallen to the ground.
To deliver the final blow to me who was sprawled on the ground unable to come to my senses.
“Kikikiki!”
He looked down at me and raised his sword with his characteristic laugh.
That uncle, his laugh is really unique.
But he came to just the right place.
I know you’re excited because you’re about to finish off an annoying little mouse, but if you had turned around first, you might have been able to avoid it.
The place we came down to is right below the dragon’s head.
Painfully gasping for breath while holding in its breath that has nowhere to go.
In front of the dragon’s mouth.
Woong.
As the dragon’s huge mouth opened, green radiance filled my vision.
Cho Hyunsoo turned his head in surprise at the strange resonant sound.
But it was too late.
Jerk.
I had already gotten up and activated the bracelet’s cooldown reset function.
Fully prepared to escape out of the breath range, I smiled brightly and left a final greeting to ‘Rock Cho Hyunsoo’.
“Uncle Cho Hyunsoo, we won this time. Try catching the dragon in Betarion Empire next time.”
“No, you bastard!”
Leaving him with a flustered expression, I quickly left that place using Backward Evasion and Flash Strike in succession.
Immediately after, the dragon’s breath that burst out swept Cho Hyunsoo’s body and the entire area in front.
Boom boom boom boom boom!