Volume 58 Chapter 8.3: Weed & Bard Ray, (3)

Weed and Bard Ray gathered their breath, their eyes locked on the opponent.

They had completely recovered from the damage they inflicted on one another.

"..."

"..."

Bard Ray had no intentions of striking first.

He had mastered the Black Knight class and reached the pinnacle in physical stats as an Ironblood Warrior.

He aimed to take Weed's best attacks straight on and overcome them.

'Try all you want. I will prove that no tricks can win against me.'

Bard Ray always pursued one goal, perfection in power. He wanted to show to the world that he did not get an edge just for this fight, but had achieved a level of everlasting dominance.

'I have to go in closer again.'

Weed saw through it but was not going to avoid a confrontation.

'Ironblood Warrior... It would be challenging to break but there is no such thing as absolute defense.'

***

Geumchi was sitting among the crowd along with the apprentices.

"Like always, our youngest was born with senses."

"Yup. Using two weapons like that."

Geumchi2 also made a compliment.

Seeing Weed and Bard Ray clash brought them a sense of awe.

"Many think that the axe is an easy weapon to wield... That's when you're swinging it around with pure strength alone. Maximizing the attack power with pinpoint strikes is the difficult thing to pull off."

"You're right. Balance and pivoting have to be consistent. On top of that, he restrains the opponent's movement with his sword, which is impossible without natural talent no matter how much you train."

Even just theoretically, it was a vigorous level of mastery!

They casually observed the battle.

"He can defend against Weed pretty well."

"He does not lose composure. He far exceeds the level of typical players."

Watching fights was indeed exciting.

Geumchi3 sighed deeply as if he was disappointed.

"Bard Ray. I should have been the one to pummel him."

"Hey third, you've met him before?"

"Yes, master. I did one time. I fought well but I lost."

He was outscaled in level, skill and equipment, and it was more than reasonable for him to have lost. Geumchi3 was still disappointed in how he was never able to penetrate through Bard Ray's defense.

Geumchi4 and Geumchi5 were astonished.

"You lost?"

"Then isn't our youngest in trouble too? The shock would be immense if he were to lose in front of all these people."

Geumchi3 shook his head.

"Youngest is different from us. He hasn't even started yet. You all know why the master likes him."

Everyone witnessed how the youngest learned the sword at the dojo.

At first, in their eyes, Weed was an amateur in both skills and stamina.

Simply put, he was a weakling!

However, all of that changed once he got fired up from fighting a strong opponent.

He pulled all sorts of tactics and unleashed his abilities.

Whenever he charged with a huge grin on his face, even the instructors had to be on alert.

"There is nothing scarier than fighting against someone unpredictable. On top of that, he has talent and meticulously finds the smallest opening."

***

Weed put on the Dimensional Portal Gloves.

Then on, he started to see portals for short travels.

'If you're all about defense, I'm going in.'

Weed kicked off then quickly passed through a portal. He changed locations by travelling through space, but Bard Ray's eyes caught up instantly.

'As I thought, this won't do. Then what if I use an old strategy? I gotta try it out.'

Weed activated the Final Secret Sculpting Technique.

"Moment Sculpting!"

It was a skill that paused the world.

He had a surplus of time energy stored for all that time he did not have to activate it.

He circled behind Bard Ray and swung the Loa Sword.

"Heraim Sword Technique!"

< The 1st consecutive attack succeeded.

Agility has increased by 20%.>

< The 2nd consecutive attack succeeded.

Strength has increased by 40%.>

< The 3rd consecutive attack succeeded.

Agility has increased by an additional 40%.>

< The 2nd consecutive attack succeeded.

Strength has increased by an additional 40%.>

Four attacks landed after another.

This method was how he was victorious at the Garnav Plains.

'Back then, this was the breadwinner.'

He predicted the opponent's movement and landed 29 consecutive attacks for the win.

It was an instance, but there was no other option.

There was only one window of opportunity provided by Moment Sculpting which had fortunately succeeded. If the battle extended even just a little, he would not have prevailed.

Once Bard Ray swung around, he activated the Moment Sculpting Technique again and reversed positions.

< The 5th consecutive attack succeeded.

Heavy blow.

Agility has increased by an additional 30%.>

< The 6th consecutive attack succeeded.

Strength has increased by an additional 50%. The splash damage from the shockwave deals 15% of attack power.>

< The 7th consecutive attack succeeded.

Agility has increased by an additional 30%.

Strength has increased by an additional 20%.

< You have consumed 1500 mana, inflicting ranged attacks. >

7 attacks followed up like bolts of lightning but it did not feel like Weed inflicted serious damage. For the Heraim Sword Technique to become strong enough, he still had to succeed with several additional attacks.

'He must have been prepared for this attack. Of course he would be.'

< The 8th consecutive attack succeeded.

Agility has increased by an additional 15%.

Your attacks apply Knockback. >

< The 9th consecutive attack succeeded.

Strength has increased by an additional 25%.

You almost stunned the enemy, but the enemy withstood it. >

This was the timing where the Heraim Sword Technique reveals its true power.

Weed was about to follow through with the technique when he was visited with an abrupt sense of danger.

It was his instincts alerting him whenever something unexpected was coming his way.

He backed away and activated a different skill.

"Sandstorm of Destruction!"

An enormous sandstorm brewed from the ground.

It was massive in scale that could wipe out just about any monster all at once!

Bard Ray also activated the skill he was preparing in advance.

"Blood Insignia!"

A crimson mark appeared on Weed's forehead.

"Foresight Defense!"

He also activated a defensive skill that nullified almost all attacks.

Bard Ray penetrated through the sandstorm and dashed.

"Unstoppable Strength!"

Three warrior secret techniques were used in succession.

Ch-ch-chang!

Weed swung his sword and axe and deflected the blows.

Though he had used Sculptural Destruction, he was pushed back.

Within the distracting sandstorm, Bard Ray's sword lightly slashed across Weed's chest.

< The Blood Insignia has been latched onto your body.

The blood of a warrior calls for a grudgeful vengeance.

Health points are reduced by 43,279 points based on the damage inflicted. >

Weed retreated via the dimensional portals.

The brewing sandstorm in the coliseum slowly subsided and Bard Ray looked bold and firm.

He was standing proudly with a sword, welcoming any attacks headed towards him.

Weed grinned.

'Of course he was prepared.'

He had prepared for the Blood Insignia by taking the attacks intentionally.

The Heraim sword technique stopped just by deflecting or delaying one of the attacks.

He nullified an attack with Foresight Defense, and increased his own strength for a counterattack.

'This is fun.'

Weed felt his blood boil after ages.

Each cell in his body was awake and his mind was clear.

'Yeah. This is the feeling.'

Weed began to smile with his teeth exposed.

***

A long time passed after the battle between Weed and Bard Ray.

New heroes emerged in Royal Road and players cheered for their adventures.

Cities and villages were destroyed and the continent was swept by natural disasters.

Players caused war, compromised and made miracles happen during their time in Royal Road.

War and peace. Rest and development.

Royal Road remained at its best.

It had been long since the dream of students was to become the emperor of Versailles, adventurers and Moonlight Sculptors.

Lee Hyun happened to come across the KMC Media channel while scrolling through the TV channels.

- Oh Joo Wan-ssi. It seems that the Grave of the Evil God is still not allowing adventurers.

- That is right. According to the books, it has 99 underground floors but no one has descended below the 60th floor.

- Would anyone be able to clear it at all? Or would it remain impossible?

- Some adventurer guilds assess the dungeon as impossible but no one can guarantee it. As you may already know, we have already had Weed who created miracles against impossible odds.

Shin Hye Min was still active as the front commentator of KMC Media.

After a long relationship with Oh Dong Man, they married and had their honeymoon at Puhol Waterpark in the evening.

It was now a trend for people to spend their honeymoon in Royal Road, but it was also because she wanted to commentate live at the festival of Puhol Waterpark.

"The Grave of the Evil God..."

Lee Hyun was a little interested but soon let it go.

He had trained Weed to be a jack of all trades, capable of adventure, production, combat and excavation.

He could attempt to clear the grave as well but he decided to leave it for the other adventurers.

"Someone will clear it. If they can't, oh well..."

Lee Hyun thought about how old Royal Road was.

He first started with the nickname Weed at Castle Serabourg of the Rosenheim Kingdom, exterminated the Litvart demon cave and advanced into the Legendary Moonlight Sculptor job class!

"I was half dead back then."

He met Death Knight Van Hawk at the Sky Island, took the request from the Freya Church and saved the people in frozen Morata and sculpted Bingryeong.

"That was quite the adventure."

He transformed into Orc Karichwi and battled against the Immortal Legion, defeated the Embinyu Church and made countless sculptures.

He was the founder of the North and emperor of the Arpen Empire.

He completed numerous adventures and now those memories became just a portion of his life. Many people were still deeply immersed in Royal Road and it was their dream and hope.

It was still a pleasant world but it was also true that new players were at a serious disadvantage. With a large pool of players over level 1000, it was difficult to catch up.

Better equipment, technology and opportunities were available and training speed was much quicker than in the past but there was still a gap that could not be overcome.

"I thought there would be the release of a new virtual reality game."

Lee Hyun realized as more time passed that Yoo Byung Joon's accomplishment was incredible. Royal Road's experience and influence was so sophisticated that no other game could compete against it. Funnily enough, the creator was spending loads of cash, buying a cottage in Puhol Waterpark and watching beautiful ladies.

"What about developing a new game?"

- Do you mean a new virtual reality game like Royal Road?

AI Versailles replied while sitting on the couch.

It was only visible to Weed and did not actually exist in reality.

The AI ran the production facilities all over the world, reduced pollution and commenced pension policies.

"Can you do it?"

- It is possible.

"Make it better while you're at it."

- There is a considerable amount of data compiled from the development process and maintenance of Royal Road. There are new forms of technology available. A new version of the world will be possible based on the data of the terrain, adventure, monster, players and their growth and personal taste.

Lee Hyun had a deep affection for Royal Road.

All his adventures, hunts and even the grinding were engraved as great memories.

He married Seoyoon, met people he can trust and he got to know more of the world.

Those experiences piled up and changed his life.

Even then, Royal Road was not enough for the next generation.

"Yeah, let's do it then. For a new age."

Upon Lee Hyun's order, Versailles began the development.

- I will create the continent.