Chapter 608: Hyunsoo vs. Valhalla (6)

(For Our King!)

Grade: Mythic.

Durability: Infinite.

Defense: 1413

Restriction: King of the nation of Hyun.

Special Abilities:

· All stats +15%.

· All Attack Power +10%.

· Cutting Power +200%.

· Critical Hit Chance +300%.

· Damage from all attacks reduced by 50%.

· Under certain circumstances, all damage reduced by 90%.

· Passive Skill: For Our King!

· Active Skill: Return It.

· Can only be equipped when HP reaches 0.

· Can only be worn for 10 minutes.

Description: Can only be equipped at the point of death, when HP has fallen to 0. It carries the devotion of the countless blacksmiths of the nation of Hyun for their king.

For Our King!

It was resplendent golden armor.

Only when his HP reached 0 could Hyunsoo finally see the changes it underwent.

Countless blacksmiths’ names were densely engraved across its surface.

Hyunsoo had once joked that it was too flashy and cumbersome. But when he saw the names they had painstakingly carved into it, he understood.

The man before him was the strongest close-range fighter.

He wielded swordsmanship no one could reach and possessed strength that could not be overcome.

But Hyunsoo had gained a new realization.

A hundred close-range fighters gathering together would not produce a way to defeat Valhalla.

Their attacks would not affect him in the first place, and some would be too low-level to even deal damage.

But—

The realm of blacksmithing is different.

Hundreds of blacksmiths could put their heads together and create something through “inspiration.”

Even a Level 1 blacksmith could have inspiration.

The thoughts of countless blacksmiths from the nation of Hyun dwelled within this artifact.

That’s right.

Reaching Mythic grade with their humble hands could not have been easy.

Perhaps they could not have reached Mythic at all.

But they would have found a way.

They would have added restrictions.

First.

[This artifact is exclusive to the King of the nation of Hyun.]

A restriction that made it an artifact only Hyunsoo could equip in this world.

And then—

A restriction that allowed it to be equipped only once HP reached 0.

A restriction that let him wear it only in an absolute moment of crisis, when his body had been sliced apart and he stood on the verge of death.

By adding those restrictions, they had made it possible for him to wear this Mythic armor, if only for ten minutes.

And when his HP reached 0—

[Passive Skill: For Our King! has activated.]

[Your HP will gradually recover to 50%.]

[Your MP will gradually recover to 50%.]

Hyunsoo was able to rise again.

And then there was Valhalla’s Sever.

It was one of the greatest attacks ever unleashed by a user.

The strongest power Hyunsoo had ever witnessed in his life.

Yet—

-What is that?

-Hyunsoo is taking the exact same stance Valhalla took a moment ago!

Among those hundreds of blacksmiths, someone must have foreseen that a person walking the Path of the Sword God would unleash that greatest of single strikes.

And the power born from that foresight was—

[Return It.]

[The grade of the attack used by the target does not matter.]

[You return the attack they used at 100% of its power!]

[Your body is controlled by AI and moves on its own!]

Hyunsoo took the exact stance Valhalla had taken moments before.

The instant he swung the Twin Dragon Sword he had drawn back behind him—

He returned the force Valhalla had driven into him.

SHHHRRAAAK—!!

[Sever.]

[You cut a single target for 3,800% damage!!]

[It cannot be dodged or blocked!]

CRAAAAACK—!!!

Valhalla’s eyes widened.

His gaze shook as the diagonal slash carved deeply through him.

Sever.

Valhalla’s strongest ultimate skill against a single target.

And the strength amplified by Single-Target Sword had reached the realm of gods.

Yet the hundreds of names shining from Hyunsoo’s armor told Valhalla exactly what it was.

That armor is Mythic too...?

Again, Valhalla was cut by an unavoidable force.

Blood erupted from his body like a fountain.

PSSSHHHK—!

His HP, which had been close to 60%, plummeted.

[Your HP has fallen below 3%.]

[Sword God’s Protection has activated.]

[Sword God’s Benevolence has activated.]

[MP is converted into HP.]

[HP has recovered to 40%.]

[MP has fallen below 40%.]

His HP had crashed to the bottom, but several title effects barely pulled him back.

[You have been afflicted with the status ailment Shock.]

[You have been afflicted with the status ailment Bleeding.]

Unlike Hyunsoo’s HP, which was gradually recovering, Valhalla’s HP could no longer rise.

“Cough...!”

All over the world, Valhalla was shown coughing blood before Hyunsoo ever did.

Watching blood spill from the mouth of that mythic figure, people were stunned as they realized that Hyunsoo standing against him was itself a myth.

And—

The For Our King! Armor could only be equipped when he was practically already dead.

The instant he put it on, Hyunsoo grew dramatically stronger.

All stats increased by 15%.

Total Attack Power rose by 19%.

Total Defense rose by 21%.

But Valhalla drew on the power of the Old Sword once more.

The instant he drew the sword inscribed with the words Fierce Beast—

SHHHRRAAAK—

Valhalla’s blade glided with feline fluidity and cut Hyunsoo several times.

But—

What...?

Cold sweat ran down Valhalla’s back.

[The For Our King! Armor reduces damage by 50%.]

A power that reduced damage by 50%.

He had never heard of anything like it.

More precisely, the reduction was even greater than 50%.

All of Hyunsoo’s stats had risen by roughly 15%, increasing his health, strength, and agility—and therefore his physical defense as well.

And the armor’s Defense had reached more than 1,400.

Not to mention—

CLAAAANG—!!

[The 200% Cutting Power effect has been applied!]

[Critical Hit!!]

Valhalla had clearly avoided Hyunsoo’s vital points and the places most likely to trigger critical hits.

Of course, critical hits could sometimes occur by chance.

But Valhalla possessed the title King of Critical Hits, which prevented critical hits from activating through luck.

The fact that the armor had overridden even the King of Critical Hits meant its effects utterly outclassed a mere title.

Second strike.

Third.

Fourth.

CLANG, CLAAANG, CLAAAANG—!!

Whenever Valhalla’s attack lowered Hyunsoo’s HP by 3%, Valhalla’s own HP fell by 6%.

Having his own damage output turn against him was an unfamiliar sensation.

Endless tension crawled up Valhalla’s spine.

Of course, Hyunsoo felt the same way.

What a monster...

Sever was the most powerful attack Hyunsoo could unleash.

It inflicted status ailments, made the wounds ache, and should have slowed Valhalla’s movements.

But Valhalla compensated through outrageous control and movement.

Still, only after putting on the For Our King! Armor did Hyunsoo realize it.

He had dozens upon dozens of reasons why he could not lose.

And because of that, he would never fall.

Just as that thought crossed his mind, Valhalla drew another sword from behind his back.

The sword called Instant Death.

“Instant Death.”

THWOOOOM—!!!!

Valhalla, too, possessed a quasi-instant-kill skill.

The power held by the Sword God revealed itself.

[The Great Swordsman title shines.]

[Skill damage for the selected skill increases by 10%.]

[The One Who Has Never Been Defeated title shines.]

[The activated skill rises by 1 level.]

[The power of your Sword God Mastery, Level 9, manifests in a more complete form!]

[For Instant Death only, damage increases by an additional 20%!]

Instant Death.

It was a quasi-instant-kill skill, but its power depended on who used it.

Valhalla’s Total Attack Power was 55% higher than an ordinary ranker’s, and his Defense was 40% higher.

He possessed more than three times as many titles, and the Attack Power and Defense granted by his artifacts were also superior.

When someone like him activated Instant Death, it began as a quasi-instant-kill skill—

And became a true instant kill.

THWOOOOM—!!!

Instant Death pierced Hyunsoo’s body.

The moment it struck, it caused splash damage as well.

BOOOOOOM—!!!

Blood burst from Hyunsoo’s chest.

And Valhalla felt awe toward Hyunsoo for forcing him to activate Instant Death at the final moment.

Instant Death.

Even Valhalla suffered a momentary penalty whenever he used it.

What kind of penalty?

[For 2 seconds, all stats and skill abilities are reduced by 50%!]

It was a penalty that weakened him.

But with this, Valhalla had secured complete victory.

The entire world had clearly seen Hyunsoo’s chest get pierced.

And yet—

[The For Our King! Armor reveals its effect!]

[Under certain circumstances, 90% damage reduction has been applied!]

What...?

Valhalla was shaken.

Even if it possessed true instant-kill-level power—

Once the damage was reduced by 90%, it could not retain anything close to that magnitude.

Never in his life had Valhalla heard of damage being reduced by 90%.

And more importantly—

Hyunsoo’s HP was already low.

Only 10% of the damage went through.

[You have dealt 1,300,000 damage!]

Yet 2% of Hyunsoo’s HP still remained.

I thought I had him...

Valhalla realized that thought had been arrogance.

He drew on the last of his strength.

Hyunsoo had only 2% HP left.

And his chest had been pierced just moments ago.

Moving could not be easy after taking that blow.

[Your weapon has been seized.]

THUUUUNG—!!

One of Valhalla’s skills forcibly wrenched away an opponent’s weapon and hurled it aside.

The Twin Dragon Sword flew far into the distance.

Hyunsoo had only 2% HP left.

And after the shock from that attack, moving should have been difficult.

That was what Valhalla thought.

[Though It May Break.]

[You have found a way through a moment of absolute crisis.]

[The activation chance of passive skills on your equipped artifacts has increased greatly.]

Through the explosion of blood, a dagger shot forward and stabbed into Valhalla’s chest.

THUNK—!

“What is this...?”

Valhalla immediately recognized whose dagger it was.

It belonged to his friend Kabel.

Kabel’s dagger.

The Villain’s Dagger screamed.

[Passive Skill: Sixteen Stabs has been applied.]

KRA-KRA-KRA-KRA-KRA-KRA-KRA-KRAK—!!

Valhalla’s HP plummeted as his entire body was torn apart.

Sixteen hits of basic attack damage were applied.

And on top of that—

[Critical Hit!]

[Critical Hit!]

[Critical Hit!]

[Critical Hit!]

Because of the For Our King! Armor’s 300% Critical Hit Chance effect, the attacks landed for two or three times their normal damage.

The instant Valhalla saw Kabel’s dagger, he understood.

Kabel was fighting alongside Hyunsoo too.

Kabel.

His friend must have known that Kabel could not defeat Valhalla alone.

But Kabel must have known that Hyunsoo, holding the Villain’s Dagger, might be able to win.

Behind the parting words, “Thank you,” Kabel and Hyunsoo might have found the final method that could bring him down.

GRAB—

Hyunsoo caught the hand holding Valhalla’s sword.

But even if he held that hand, he should not have been able to restrain Valhalla.

I want to win.

I want to defeat you.

In the three years since he started Ares, this was the first time Valhalla had ever felt such desire and competitive fire toward someone.

And so, in the instant before the final method Kabel had given Hyunsoo could activate—

“Crush.”

A tremendous force flooded Hyunsoo’s right arm as he held Valhalla’s arm.

Valhalla’s bones shattered into dozens of pieces.

[Deals 500% damage and shatters every bone in the target’s body!]

KRAAAAAASH—!!!

Hyunsoo activated another skill at the same time.

“Blink.”

THWOOOOM—!!!!

Kabel’s version of an instant-kill attack pierced Valhalla.

Hyunsoo’s body was breaking apart as he collapsed, while Valhalla coughed blood from the instant-kill strike.

Their eyes met in midair.

As Hyunsoo fell, he reached out one last time and tightly clasped Valhalla’s hand.

Warmth and strength passed through that grip.

As Valhalla slowly lost consciousness, he wondered about the result.

But he did not need to look at the scoreboard to know who had won.

A notification sounded.

[You have fought the target designated by the Law of the Sword.]

[By losing to the target designated by the Law of the Sword, you have failed to rise to a higher realm.]

“...”

For the first time, Valhalla had lost.

But why?

FWOOSH—

As Valhalla faded away, his expression was more peaceful than ever.