A Veteran in a Dead Game - Chapter 188



Only Noblemtl

188. Post-processing (4)

Since Kyle arrived in the Empire, things have become increasingly complicated.

Factional strife within the Legion, incomprehensible policies that represent religious suppression, and corruption that piles up.

The situation of the empire was already a mess even if left alone, but with the intervention of the Cardinal Priest of Destruction, Gruto, it was a headache.

Why else would Mirad Jirel resort to such extreme measures as rebellion?

Since there was no way to cure the disease that was eating away at the empire, Mirad Jirel was trying to just cut out the diseased part.

Of course, the Empire’s ills were eventually cured, although in a much more drastic way than Mirad Jirel had hoped.

‘The Rampage of Partshet.’

If I had to make a metaphor, I would say that it’s like going beyond curing an illness or cutting off a diseased part… and completely destroying the body.

As flames burned the sky and shells rained down from the sky, striking the earth, all previous conflicts and strife became irrelevant.

Because the only value preserved under the death poured out by Legion Commander Parth Shet was survival.

And now that we have overcome that crisis.

The first sign of a new era for the empire was adorned by someone no one would have imagined.

It was none other than Kyle.

‘I considered the possibility that Part Shet might go berserk. I even thought that I might end up fighting Part Shet. But…’

Kyle sneered.

‘I never thought I would take the position of commander of the legion.’

A proposal from Vanguard Commander Mirad Jirel.

It was an unexpected offer to Kyle to become the commander of this empire’s legions.

However, after much consideration, Kyle accepted the offer.

Although there were several conversations and negotiations along the way, the final decision could be summarized briefly.

The Legion borrows Kyle’s name and authority, but in return, Kyle gains some of the rights of the Legion Commander.

From a general perspective, the ‘rights’ Kyle received were pretty loose. He gave up most of the command authority over the legion, and was given little personnel control.

Some might say that he is nothing more than a scarecrow. He has given up the authority equivalent to the arms and legs of a legion commander, so what meaning does that empty hat have?

But Kyle, the party involved, was quite satisfied with such a deal. Such authority was nothing more than a shackle that restricted Kyle’s freedom of movement.

Kyle wanted to minimize responsibility and take only what he needed. And that’s what happened.

Stop.

The milky drop of water that had just fallen in front of Kyle was also one of the things Kyle had gained.

‘Public hearing oil.’

An item considered the highest quality elixir among those mentioned in martial arts novels. It was implemented here in Piltos as a type of elixir.

A handful of liquid trapped in a blue stone.

If it is shocked or shaken, the effectiveness of the Gongcheongseok oil is greatly reduced. Therefore, in order to extract the Gongcheongseok oil, you must make a needle-sized hole in the stone and wait for the water droplets to come out from there.

As Kyle did so, he continued to think quietly.

‘It’s better than I expected.’

The elixir I just obtained this time is five.

Peach, which improves the skill performance of the sorcerer and wizard series; Cheonbaeksul, which grants the 6th-grade skill, Snake Scale skill; Ambrosia, which increases the efficiency of all faith skills, etc.

It’s not just the elixir that I got.

Because most of the assets of former Legion Commander Parth Schet were transferred to Kyle.

The only things that did not reach Kyle were the materials needed to rebuild the empire, as well as the gold and items that were to be given as rewards to other generals or their families who participated in the suppression of the legion commander.

‘Now I can put together different item settings depending on the situation.’

The items I had received before accepting the position of Legion Commander were already considerable, but now they were so numerous that it was difficult to count them all with both hands.

Stop.

The moment my thoughts reached this point.

The rock containing the Gongcheong Petroleum has lost its blue color. This means that every last drop of the Gongcheong Petroleum stored inside has been discharged.

After one minute, the Gongcheong Oil will completely lose its effectiveness. That’s why Kyle immediately poured the Gongcheong Oil down his throat.

Sweet and sour.

At the same time, it was as cold as swallowing ice.

The cold sensation spread through my tongue and throat, along my nerves, and into every corner of my body. The cool feeling spread to my arms and legs, and even my fingers and toes.

This sensation was most evident in the eyes.

Kyle squeezed his eyes shut. And when he opened them again, the world seemed a little clearer.

‘Publicity oil greatly improves eye performance.’

In the game, it was applied simply to increase hit rate and evasion rate, but in reality, it was applied differently.

Kyle could tell that not only had his eyesight improved, but his dynamic vision had also improved. The movement of the dust falling before his eyes was clearer than before.

‘As expected, it’s a performance worthy of being called a high-end elixir. It’s an item that’s hard to obtain even with money in the game.’

Kyle was able to test out his newfound abilities right away, as ownership of the dungeons that the Empire had secured had also been transferred to Kyle.

First, Kyle attacked the Thorn Turtle Mountain dungeon, which was used as a place to fight against Part Shet.

What I got there was three orbs and one skill ticket.

[4th Grade: Lightning Chain]

This is a wide-area attack skill that shoots out a chain of lightning, clearing out a wide area.

‘It’s a skill that can effectively neutralize multiple enemies.’

As expected from a skill that shoots lightning, the speed is incredibly fast, and the lightning that hits an enemy bounces off other enemies in the area.

However, it does not lack destructive power. Since Lightning Chain is a 4th-grade skill, it also has destructive power that matches its level.

And, when conquering the next dungeon, the utility of the lightning chain was further improved.

[6th Grade Skill: Chain Acrobatics]

This is because none other than the Chain Acrobatics skill has been strengthened.

The enhanced chain acrobatics skill allows you to control not only physical chains, but also chains created through the skill.

Lightning Chain was no exception. The name of the skill itself is Lightning ‘Chain’.

Now, Kyle could use his lightning chains not just to shoot them out, but also to whip them around, or even place them somewhere.

‘The synergy between skills like this is what makes the game WOU so fun.’

Besides enhancing your Chain Acrobatics, there was more to be gained from this dungeon.

[5th ​​rank skill, counterattack.]

The counter-bomb skill was a skill that allowed you to deflect incoming projectiles in a different direction.

Although it is a 5th-grade skill, it can be said to be quite excellent in that it can also respond to higher-level skills.

‘If you don’t get the timing right, you will fail to activate the counterattack skill and will be attacked.’

Kyle was confident he wouldn’t make that mistake.

‘Now, there is only one dungeon left.’

The Legion possessed two more dungeons in addition to the Tortoise Mountain dungeon. Kyle moved to conquer the last one.

however.

Unfortunately, Kyle was unable to enter the dungeon without difficulty.

‘Five, maybe?’

Because someone was waiting in ambush on the way to the dungeon, outside the empire’s territory.

Kyle could sense people scattered here and there in the shadows between the ruined buildings. It would be fortunate if they were just hiding out of fear of Kyle.

‘I guess you’re thinking of doing something dumb.’

It didn’t seem like that was the case.

Movements that can be read with the intuition skill. The flow of wind that has become familiar through the use of the wind wall skill. And sufficiently accumulated experience and intuition.

They were foreshadowing an attack.

Immediately after.

Shushu shuk!

The attacks came in a chain: two from the roof, one from a bush on the right, and another from behind a fallen pillar on the left.

Iron rings shot from a catapult, ice arrow skills, and explosive spears.

Kyle wasn’t surprised, as he had already figured it out.

‘I can see it.’

Rather, he even showed the leisure to calmly observe the incoming projectile. This was thanks to his abilities that had already entered the realm of superhumans, as well as the new body vision that Gongcheongseok had given him.

Charuk-

Kyle’s chains quickly unfold, wrapping around him.

Titting-

All flying projectiles were caught in the chain and their trajectories were altered.

Immediately after.

“Ugh!”

“Ahhhh!”

Screams echoed around them. All the attacks aimed at Kyle were hitting their own allies instead.

5th rank skill, counterattack.

A skill that changes the direction of a projectile, called Counterblow.

This skill only applies for a split second after activation. In other words, Kyle estimates the speed and trajectory of all projectiles flying towards him, and makes sure they hit the chain at the exact same moment.

Even in the midst of all this, he quickly figured out the enemy’s location and calculated where to direct the projectile.

If someone who doesn’t know saw it, they would probably say that it was a display of devilish talent.

However, the face of the person who showed such an amazing technique was not very bright.

‘It wasn’t perfect.’

It was almost a feat of skill, but Kyle wasn’t satisfied. He missed the mark. As expected, you can’t get full on the first try.

“Damn it!”

“Pop out!”

Of the five who attacked Kyle, only two survived. Instead of avenging their dead comrades, they immediately turned their backs and fled.

‘He was a legionnaire.’

The raids and attacks were somehow smooth, but it seems to be the result of training. It’s a shame that they’re using that skill for plundering.

But given the circumstances, it was not incomprehensible. Someone could choose to make a living in this imperial chaos.

Phagejit-

An electric current ran through Kyle’s raised right hand.

Level 4 skill, Lightning Chain.

The current that should have been fired at the same time as the activation was gathered in Kyle’s hand. This was thanks to the enhanced effect of the Chain Acrobatics skill.

Kyle shook the lightning chain back and forth as if he was doing some warm-up exercises. The lightning chain spread out and gathered like a spider web, lengthening and shortening repeatedly.

And at the end of it.

Phage crackle!

As Kyle swung his arm wildly, lightning shot out like a snake.

The lightning passed through the half-tilted window of the building, bypassing the fallen debris.

“Kkaaaak!”

Penetrates the body of the fleeing looter from the back.

“Ugh!”

It bounced off and knocked out another one.

“hmm.”

Kyle remembered the feeling from a little while ago. The feeling of using the lightning chain that he had been practicing and putting into practice was quite good. This must have been because he was already quite familiar with the chain acrobatics skill.

Leaving the five corpses behind, Kyle headed towards the dungeon.

‘Okay, then.’

And after finishing conquering that dungeon.

Instead of returning to the Empire right away, Kyle turned elsewhere.

Kyle was on top of the mountain range surrounding the basin where the Empire had settled. The outposts that had once been positioned along the ridge of the mountain were completely destroyed.

There were cases where they were blown away without a trace after being caught in the bombing of the Parth Chet, and there were also cases where there were countless gun holes. This was the trace of a turret installed on an outpost going wild and spewing out bullets.

Kyle followed these traces and arrived at the Steel Serpent.

This steel serpent that lost its master will never move again. The fact that it was struck by an instant death rune and stopped moving is a secondary problem.

Without the skill of a clockwork craftsman, it would be impossible to raise this ridiculous behemoth.

The steel snake is currently abandoned, but it will soon be completely dismantled and melted down. There have been suggestions that it should be used as material to rebuild the empire, but that should not be done.

‘Because the silver spots that symbolize the mechanized factory still remain.’

Anyway, the reason Kyle came to find this steel snake now was to meet someone.

Kyle soon arrived at his destination. It was the exact spot where Part Shet had died. He hadn’t come specifically to see Part Shet’s remains. He had already disposed of them in the first place.

What Kyle had to do was something else, something deep within the Steel Serpent.

Ki-ki …

After repeatedly removing the half-melted outer shell of the steel snake and digging into its interior, Kyle was able to see a large coffin buried deep within the steel snake.

The pipe that Partshet used to summon the dragon. A loophole in the system that could be connected to the imaginary dimension created by using the dungeon entrance.

Through this, Kyle also wanted to summon a dragon.

Swish-

It seems that the dragon also read Kyle’s intentions. Before Kyle could open the coffin, the floor distorted strangely, and a woman rose up from it.

“Okay, Kyle.”

It was the dragon’s messenger, Lyria.

“You’ve done quite a big thing.”

Kyle looked at her with a askance look and said.