◈Episode 31 In front of the fruits of choice (6)
I pulled out a long sword with my freed right arm. I wanted to break the other chains, but the demons were too close.
I first pierced the neck of the cedar tree that jumped in to bite my neck and quickly threw it to one side. A skeleton was hit by a flying cedar ball and fell backwards.
However, I missed one other cedar. I gritted my teeth against the pain I felt in my calf—of course it was an act. I lowered the pain level again, so it didn’t hurt that much – I stabbed the puppy dog that bit me between the eyes.
Suddenly!
Ta-dak!
At that time, I felt a foreign body in my back. The skeleton, whose teeth were chattering, cut me from behind. Sigh! Then an ax stuck in my shoulder. This had a strong tingling sensation.
Bleep.
Tinnitus, something I only heard when I was stressed out, filled my ears.
But if you’re going to give up like this, well… I was a die-hard gamer.
Cheaeng!
I perfectly deflected the rusty sword approaching from in front and gathered the magic power used for the skill. Since there was nothing I could do about being hit already, it was a tactic to leave it alone and avoid getting hit by the next attack.
Energy gathered in my legs and I was able to break the chains that were tangled there.
“kill…!”
My neck and waist are still tied, but it’s not urgent right now as long as I can turn around. The reason I allowed the attack from my back just now was because I couldn’t turn in that direction.
I twisted my back, checking that my HP window was down to less than half. The sword that came with him swiveled further than his waist and delivered a horizontal slash.
Kwasik!
The vertebrae of the two skeletons behind were broken, separating the upper and lower bodies.
Phew!
In the meantime, I was stabbed in the stomach by the smallest skeleton. I wondered if it was okay for the rusty swords to pierce my skin like this, but then I wondered what it mattered.
No matter how realistic the game is, I have yet to see a case where infection is implemented.
Sigh!
Anyway, I didn’t want to get stabbed more than once, so I smashed the skeleton’s skull. Additionally, he smoothly continued the attack that smashed the small skeleton’s head and deflected the last skeleton’s attack.
“…Do it!”
But one of these damn demon contract bastards with black veins on his face used magic on me. A dark red energy seeped into the existing wound, and a strange sensation began to arise.
It didn’t hurt… but the feeling of my flesh being gnawed by something was clear. Especially the abdomen. I felt something kicking inside the place where I was stabbed by the dagger and eating my internal organs.
“Ugh…”
Even though I didn’t want to, blood flowed down my throat. It was a really strange feeling.
A game that recreates the feeling of fatigue and drowsiness, as well as tinnitus and vomiting blood. It really seems so realistic.
It would have been nice if these useless things had been removed.
“Please die, you monster…!”
Also… is it because I keep moving with my fatigue level up to 100? Or because your HP is about to bottom out?
In any case, the edges of my vision became blurred. I couldn’t clearly see what was in front of me. My head, which was already dull from fatigue, became even heavier as the amount of blood was being lost.
“Demon Knight!!”
However, when I think that I might have to do this again, I regain the strength I didn’t have back then.
I swung my sword while hearing a loud cry. The last skeleton’s head fell off and my knees were forced to fold.
「Activate the indomitable spirit!」
“Damn it!”
“Oh, that’s actually good! “Our sacrifice—!”
“Be judged, you vile traitors!!”
I stared at the window that indicated that the skill I had previously recorded would be activated. What skill was that?
「Indomitable spirit│A strong warrior does not give in even to a fatal crisis. Escape from the danger of death once.
Effect: When you die, recover 5% of your health once.
Cooldown time: 1 hour (00: 59: 56)”
Ah, I remembered it when I looked at the window. It was the final tree of passive skills that increased defense and stamina. Because of that death invalidation, I filmed everything in advance.
I didn’t know this would see the light of day here.
I glanced at my restored HP bar and lowered my eyelids for a moment. My vision went black for a moment.
“──!”
Soon, something buzzed in my ears.
“─Knight!”
It was a familiar voice. As we walked together, it became completely familiar to my ears…
“Devil Knight!”
Is it an auditory hallucination?
“Come to your senses!”
Uh uh. Is it real and not an auditory hallucination?
“Demon knight!”
A loud call finally woke me up. Only then did my head seem to clear up a bit.
The relief felt as if my face had been forced into a puddle of water and I was pulled out when I couldn’t breathe. However, I couldn’t breathe and the tight stimulation scratched my throat.
“Demon knight!”
A familiar voice came through my deaf ears. I realized the owner of the voice again three beats later.
“you.”
“I’m holding back the bleeding! Even though it’s hard, you have to come to your senses.”
I thought it was only a second, but it seems like even a minute passed in between. Suddenly, the Inquisitor is in front of you.
“Hold on tight.”
Uh uh. okay. I have to… I have to…
I lay on the floor, panting.
Cluck cluck. Blood kept coming out of my mouth. Thanks to the pain sensitivity setting, there was no pain, but it was a hindrance when speaking separately. I coughed and spit out blood.
“Hold on a little more. “You just need to be a little more patient.”
Was the Archmage also present? Because the two of them are almost a set.
With such idle thoughts in mind, I briefly checked my HP bar. This is because clear numbers are easier to understand the situation than the Archmage’s words.
And I noticed that the HP was moving back and forth on the floor. It seems like death was narrowly avoided.
If you do this, the moment the bleeding stops, the amount of recovery will be greater, so you don’t have to worry about your life.
“Not here.”
“yes?”
If you lived a good life, that’s fine. I decided to do what I had to do.
「❖ What’s Hidden Behind the Scenes
∎ Search the Sewers
∎ Stop the Devil Cultists’ Plans
∎ Bonus: Eliminate Demons 221 / ?? 」
“It’s outside.”
Even the quest has been updated, so this is a must.
“Not here, but out there.”
Oh my. It’s so hard to talk because the blood is pooling in my mouth. My head is still blank so it’s hard to picture what I need to say.
Still, I feel like if I don’t say this, I’ll have to start over again.
I just moved my tongue without even knowing if I was speaking properly.
“Their goal is to draw us in.”
“yes?”
“What…”
“The real thing is outside.”
Write it. This can’t go on.
I wonder why this game can’t kill someone who is out of combat in a matter of seconds, but it’s a similar complaint I’ve had every time, so I’ll leave it at that.
I opened the skill window with blurred vision.
「Treatment│The basics of combat begin with treating injuries.
Effect: You can use healing items.」
「Formal treatment│If you can respond to deeper injuries, survival becomes easier. The skill at taking care of wounds becomes better.
Effect: The effect of healing items increases by 10%.
Treatment is a skill acquired a long time ago, and formal treatment is acquired immediately with the points earned by leveling up in the previous battle.
Since it was urgent to stop the bleeding, this was the best way to increase the effectiveness of bandaging.
“The real thing is out there…?”
“…Inquisitor, get out of the underpass immediately!”
“yes?”
“Not enough bodies! “The number of victims must be at least three figures, but there are not that many bodies here!”
“…!”
But what happens if you take a skill? My arm doesn’t feel like moving.
I gritted my teeth and put my hand into my inventory. The few remaining bandages were pulled out.
“I will go after killing the demon knight, so go first!”
“yes!”
Oh well, I’m glad these two guys are smart. Considering what they said, I think it’s probably too late.
But since it was something I couldn’t control, I just tried bandaging it.
“I will do it.”
No, if you do it, it’s worth it to get the skill.
Sigh.
I wasted the bandage in vain. It was impossible to get it back because my body couldn’t move at all. It was a frustrating thing.
“I. Cough.”
“Say no more.”
Even if I want to talk, I can’t because of the blood coming up. You look like you’re suffocating from vomiting blood like this. Why did this game even implement things like this?
My eyelids fluttered as I watched the herbs and ointment being applied—or poured—into the wound. To be honest, I just wanted to stop sleeping.
‘Then I guess I’ll die.’
okay. So even though it’s hard, I can’t sleep. If you log out when you die, you’ll die a hundred times over… but if the world happens as you wish, then what kind of world is that?
“Life, please fill our wounds and connect our lives.”
Meanwhile, the Archmage chanted the spell once again. The light flowing from her hand became even stronger. The wound area became slightly itchy.
“I won’t ask you why you went in without consulting me.”
At the same time, HP began to replenish slowly. Now it’s a real stable area.
“Just know. “If we had arrived a little later, Haeju, if we had arrived a little later, you would most likely have died.”
Well, that’s true. If the Inquisitor and Archmage had been a little later, I would have died.
But was this because the difficulty level was too high? I just went through a crisis because I didn’t know about the pattern or the existence of a trap. Objectively, the level of difficulty itself was not impossible.
If I did it again in the first place, it wouldn’t have hurt like this. Because you can catch them on the outskirts without stepping on the magic circle.
And it’s funny, but if this were real, I would have had no choice but to make the same choice.
No, if it were reality, it would have been even more so. Just because I struggle doesn’t mean they’ll stop.
“…Or was your goal to die?”
No way. I’m doing this because I also want to live my life.
But I can’t tell you that. Maintaining the concept was now an essential factor for my survival. This is a very, very sad part.
Crumble.
Has some time passed? When my HP reached less than half, I heard the sound of teeth grinding.
It was a sound that made people feel good.
“Did you come here because you smelled blood?”
My body is aching, but does that mean I have to neglect the long-distance dealer to use it?
It is true that close range dealers also need to be protected by tanks, but it is still better than being a long range dealer.
“You can’t wake up already!”
“…I don’t need it anymore.”
I forced my heavy body up. The wound felt a little tight, but I was able to stand up somehow.
It’s a little absurd. Even if it’s fatigue, shouldn’t the wounds get better as HP recovers?
Do you think it will get better only after full blood? Or is it a setting that injuries require recovery time separate from HP?
Shaeak shaek.
Again, this sound of heavy breathing. I thought about it, but I guess it was mine.
I was startled by the sound of my own breathing. If there was no pain but a breathing sound like that of a critically ill patient came out of the mouth, this would happen to anyone.
Still, I can’t focus on just changing the sound of my breathing.
I picked up my sword.
The sword, which had been extremely light until now, was now extremely heavy. This was the case even though I put the two-hender on the floor and only picked up the long sword.
Wow, HP is recovering, so it’s probably not HP’s fault. Could this be due to fatigue? You can’t keep moving with your fatigue level at 100.
“Then die!”
“I don’t die.”
It’s true that you feel dizzy, but you won’t die unless your HP drops to 0.
I went one step further, leaving out the meta rationale. Suddenly, a cedar tree came running out of the darkness.
“never.”
Did he lose his balance and collapse with just one step?
“Demon knight!”
thud!
I somehow regained my balance before the Archmage’s hand grabbed my arm. I managed to prevent myself from falling by forcing my strength into the leg that was about to collapse.
Suddenly!
At the same time, the sword swung down from above and cut the running devil dog into two exactly.
“If you knew… just follow me.”
ha. If the real devil dog hadn’t come, I would have rested a bit more.
What do you do if your physical condition is poor? I don’t think it’s a concept to stay still once you see it’s moving.
Well, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you move because of a concept. Even if it’s not a concept, it needs to go up.
Anyway, they sent an inquisitor, but I still feel bad about it.
I went through all this trouble to come this far, but what if the city collapses without me knowing and the game is over and I’m forced to retweet?
I cry, I cry. Even if you stay here, you won’t be able to figure out the cause. At that time, I would feel even more angry because it was so unfair!
“If you fall behind, I will abandon you…!”
So, even if you rest, never rest on top! If you retweet, you can immediately understand the situation and move!
* * *
There is no power in the world without a price. The divine power lent by God was no exception.
“Oh God.”
Don’t the charlatans say that power can be gained by just catching God’s eye without any effort?
It’s not wrong. If you are in the eyes of God, you can get it just by saying morning prayers, and you can use more power than this, proving your sincerity.
It was the power to reach the peak of unfairness according to God’s standards.
“Make me your tool.”
However, anyone who has ever wielded divine power knew this.
“Make me your weapon.”
There is no power in the world as fair as divine power, and there is a reason why God distributes power to only a limited number of people.
“therefore.”
They had no choice but to know.
“Establish your will here.”
If you use the power of God as if it were a reward for using it as a human, you will never be unaware of the pain that eats away at your body and burns the inside of your body.
Quang!
The Inquisitor swallowed the familiar pain between his teeth and raised his mace. The demons, who had decreased significantly compared to when they entered, screamed and ran away in the dark light.
I feel like I want to find them all and slaughter them, but now is not the time.
She ran after the bodies they had piled up. Even though I was running without any trace, the exit was not easy to find. It was such a large place.
“Whoa.”
However, no matter how wide it is, it is only a matter of running. There was someone who had sorted out this place, but it was impossible to discuss the hardships over such things.
There is someone who has fought until her whole body is a mess, and she cannot give instructions.
Quang!
The Inquisitor, unaware of the subject, played with his feet by slamming the head of the demon blocking him into the wall. The real target of evil people. outside. Fragmentary clues floated through her mind, urging her to move.
“Please don’t be late.”
But can it really happen if you pray like this? She has already fallen for their trick and wasted time. Is there any chance for her to turn around?
“Priest!”
Even if she could, could she alone figure out the purpose of the evil demon followers?
“My fellow provincials…”
The Inquisitor took a deep breath as he looked at the people stationed outside the sewer.
That’s impossible. There was little she could do on her own. Even if you have the hero’s emblem, you can handle a lot of divine power. She was still just an ignorant and foolish servant of God.
Just like I couldn’t help the demon knight in the slightest.
“They’re still inside. “It just comes out a little late.”
“Oh, is that so?”
“Is there anyone who can help me more than that?”
So she decided not to be conceited. Moreover, didn’t God say that too? It’s not enough alone.
If she couldn’t figure it out on her own, she could borrow the help of others.
“How can I help you?”
“All those staying in the underpass have been disposed of. But do we have to find out what their true purpose is going on up here…?”
The Inquisitor stopped climbing the riverbank and turned his head.
“Is that…?”
Very thick smoke was rising from one side of the city. It was also a red and green fog.