-The American trio is trolling. ㅡㅡ; 

This was the overall reaction. Kraugel was watching the situation from the sidelines. Zibal had spread wrong information, which caused the situation to deteriorate. Haster had flown toward the Demon King head-on and gotten killed, contributing to the lowered morale.

...Their actions just seemed pathetic. Their enthusiastic fans couldn’t even defend them, and the Americans felt ashamed.

“Are we going to lose?”

“Of course. How can anyone beat that?”

Haster’s useless death was the breaking point for the hopes of the viewers. Now, the people had reached a stage where they thought it was impossible to beat the Demon King. Hundreds of millions of viewers watched and sympathized with the players who were like clowns against the ‘undefeatable’ enemy.

Just as the Demon King was driving in the wedge, the huge giant fell to one knee. Perhaps there was a problem in the process of using magic. The Demon King stood on top of its head in a steady manner and declared in a dismal voice, “All of you will die.” 

A skill that dealt 60% of his attack power 30 times in total to all targets within 10 meters (not targeted) and had a cooldown time of 10 minutes—it was 100,000 Army Massacre Sword. Originally, it should be a purple-red, but now a silver energy exploded toward the remaining magicians.

At present, there were 300 players left. People expected the players to give up, but they were mistaken. The players’ willpower wasn’t broken yet. Was it easy for rankers to become frustrated?

“The cannon bombardment interval is exactly five minutes.”

“The bombardment heads in the direction of the Demon King’s gaze. If we read the Demon King’s gaze, we will be prepared for the bombardment.”

“The moment he abandoned the bow and raised the sword, his health recovery rate slowed considerably. He lost the effect of the Red Phoenix Bow that Jishuka mentioned. The Demon King’s natural recovery rate is slow for a boss monster.” 

“The Demon King spins like a spinning top every time he uses a skill. It is a threat that only cuts you when he gets close. This is simply a skill activation motion. If we use physical constraints to stop his spinning, it is likely the skill will be canceled.”

“The poison from the armor is difficult to get rid of, but the deployment speed is slow. Pay attention to keeping a safe distance and we can avoid it.”

During the 10 minute battle, the Demon King had a one-sided advantage. 100 players had already died. However, the players didn’t feel sad. They analyzed the Demon King throughout the battle and devised a strategy. Information gathering and analyzing were the basis for raids.

“He adds a spinning motion to the footwork... Damian, please be prepared to act. I will start the counterattack the moment the Demon King’s magic machine recovers,” Jishuka gave out instructions. Her gaze focused on the increasing amount of smoke that was pouring from the Demon King’s body. It wouldn’t be strange if it exploded immediately. She didn’t know why, but the user of the magic seemed angry. 

Damian expressed some doubts, “The Demon King’s health is still almost at the maximum. Isn’t it too soon to make yourself a target?” 

“There are 300 of us, 300. If we all accumulate thousands of damage per person, we can consume the two million health.” 

“He is floating in the air, and not many people can get close to him at the same time.”

“He will eventually come down to the ground. There will be no mass slaughter for the time being.”

Grid’s weaknesses were his cooldown time and resources. His skills were powerful, but they consumed a lot of resources and had long cooldowns. He had been using skills for 10 minutes continuously and was clearly weakened. Fly wouldn’t be available for him to use forever. It was Jishuka’s judgment that they shouldn’t give Grid any more time.

‘Now, the only wide-area skill left is Transcended Link. We need to block that footwork.’

Jishuka had been Grid’s colleague since the days when he was unknown. The skill effect might’ve changed, but she was able to grasp the status of Grid’s skills through the final result.

‘100 people in 10 minutes. The damage is greater than expected, but it was worth it.’

They should spread out through the battlefield as much as possible. This was the order that Jishuka and Chris gave to the players. It was to minimize the damage from Grid’s wide-area skills. However, some players didn’t trust the order and crowded together. This meant that Grid’s skills were showed to have a great effect. In particular, the loss of the magicians was painful. Even so, it was within the acceptable range. It was still a 300-against-1 battle, and the players still had an overwhelming advantage.

Pon whispered to Jishuka who was pulling out an arrow, “Is that really Grid? How can he summon a magic machine?” 

“Grid’s clone copied Grid’s items. He might’ve gained a hidden piece to copy items after killing the clone.”

“Combination, transformation, and now copying?”

Wasn’t it a fraudulent skill? Pon found it hard to believe. Still, Jishuka was adamant. “Have you forgotten? Our leader isn’t someone common sense applies to.”

In the old days, Jishuka had seen an inexplicable area after encountering the sky above the sky Kraugel. Now she felt it from Grid. It was difficult to understand him as a friend or an enemy. The difference was that Grid caused infinite fear now that he was an enemy. It felt like they had crossed a river they shouldn’t have crossed.

‘It has been a long time since my blood boiled like this.’

Jishuka was a predator. She ate instead of being eaten. Licking her red lips, Jishuka suppressed her anxiety and pulled back her bowstring. She aimed precisely for the moment when the Demon King jumped from the magic machine. The Demon King’s chest was hit by the charged arrow, and he was thrown away from the magic machine. Simultaneously, the magic machine exploded like a signal.

Damian used a wide-area buff and shouted, “We will start the offensive!”

[You have put the Sweet Candy in your mouth.]

[The Hermes Shoes have been equipped.]

[Skill Enhancement has been used.]

[The Baby Dragon’s Fire has been swallowed.]

[The Valbun Sword has been equipped.]

...

...

The rankers brought out items purchased from the Reputation Store. They were items which they had bought with the four heavenly kings and the Demon King in mind. The rankers’ reputation points weren’t as high as Grid’s. They were limited in comparison, so the rankers had to be more cautious about using them.

Chris’ greatsword struck the Demon King, who barely raised his body from the explosion. The damage was considerable. The Demon King tried to counterattack, but Regas’ strike forced him back to the ground.

“Kuek...!” Pon’s spear pierced the Demon King’s chest, and Damian’s sword linked to the attack, dealing the Demon King with a serious injury. Poison emerged from the Demon King’s armor, but they ignored it and kept attacking. They weren’t fragile enough to shrink back from this damage.

“Annihilate!” Iyarugt charged up inside Iyarugt’s Sheath and entered the ‘intoxicated’ state. His attack power increased by 500%, and he borrowed the power of Peak Sword’s strongest skill. It was the deadly sword that defeated Hero Kraugel in only two blows last year.

[You have suffered 230,900 damage!]

[The gap between the shoulder blades and armor is weakened, exposing a weakness!]

The Sweet Candy and Damian’s buff caused Peak Sword’s attack power to destroy the Demon King’s armor. This was just the beginning. Hundreds of players ran up to the Demon King who was still caught by Pon’s spear.

“Blood Rain.”

The Demon King’s blood surged into the sky and then poured down like rain. It was a wide-area attack that showed a great effect against the heavenly king called Kobold. The magic dealt a severe blow to the Demon King and strengthened Katz, completely changing the flow of the battlefield.

The fallen Demon King couldn’t stand up easily, and the players’ momentum skyrocketed. As they fought hard, the dungeon produced by Eat Spicy Jokbal was nearing completion. In the middle of the battlefield, Eat Spicy Jokbal was setting up a small fortress which would increase his teammates’ recovery while blocking the artillery shelling.

“Huhu, the flow has changed completely.”

In the Daejin Group’s executive boardroom, the presidents of the various affiliated companies who received Lee Jinmyung’s call were impressed. The Demon King, who had killed the players one-sidedly for 10 minutes, could no longer fight back and was being beaten up.

“The three Korean players are playing a big role. Maybe South Korea will get several gold medals.”

“Can’t we enter the top three with just two medals? I am looking forward to it. The effects of the event will be amplified if South Korea shows a better performance.”

The executives who didn’t know the identity of the Demon King were excited. In particular, the heads of the affiliated companies conducting events related to the National Competition were excited. 

On the other hand, Chairman Lee Jinmyung, the president of Daejin Motors, and three public relations directors were stiff. They had to know the identity of the Demon King. In fact, they were waiting for Grid to unveil his identity after winning. So, from their standpoint, this development was truly the worst.

‘There is no meaning if he loses.’

Would the public be enthusiastic about the loser? No, absolutely not. The Demon King would be met with ridicule and criticism instead of cheers if he were defeated. Despite abandoning the country to become the Demon King, Grid only managed to get this result. 

“Tsk.”

A loser couldn’t be raised as the group’s signboard. There was a half-gray mask covering the Demon King’s face, and Lee Jinmyung clicked his tongue as the cracks in it started to run red with blood. It was regrettable that he had missed the big fish called Grid, but Grid was too terrible.

‘He made a promise he couldn’t keep.’

Lee Jinmyung didn’t like a guy who couldn’t keep his calm. Grid wasn’t good enough for his granddaughter. Feeling ashamed for having coveted such a person for a while, Lee Jinmyung shook his head and lit a cigarette. His gaze was still on the monitor, but the situation didn’t enter his head. His head was only filled with the plan to make Yura his successor. It was at this moment that...

『 ....!! 』

『 No...!! What...!! 』

“....?” He was lost in his thoughts when he was interrupted by the commentators’ shouting. Chairman Lee Jinmyung couldn’t fully understand what they were talking about or what was happening on the screen. He rubbed his cigarette onto the ashtray as the surprised cheer of Daejin Motors’ president entered his ears.

“Yes!!”

“....?”

What was this? Why was the head of Daejin Motors showing such a frivolous attitude in front of the executives? Chairman Lee Jinmyung frowned as he belatedly recognized the situation.

On the screen, Demon King Grid was injured by several people, then he caused an explosion. It was a nuclear explosion. More than 200 out of the 300 players remaining turned to gray. Among the 200 players, there were famous members of Overgeared that Lee Jinmyung knew, including the 1st ranked Chris.

The commentators made a fuss while the players who barely survived had dumbfounded expressions.

Chairman Lee Jinmyung was absentminded for a moment before jumping up and shouting, “Yes!!”

“...!?” The executives were astonished. The owner of the Daejin Group, known as the ‘dictator’ and ‘charismatic chairman’ in the industry, was embarrassing himself in front of the executives...? Were they seeing wrongly? The executives made baffled expressions. 

“Stingray!” The chairman even used a chuimsae. (TL: an exclamation made during Korean traditional music that is used to connect the musician and the audience, creating a cheerful atmosphere. Stingray isn’t a common exclamation and the only note I found while googling is related to the excited cries fisherman used to make when they caught something they desired.)

Chairman Lee Jinmyung was just as happy as the president of Daejin Motors. He was proud that his eye for people was great.

‘Yes, I can borrow the power of my outstanding grandson.’

There was uncontrollable greed in Chairman Lee Jinmyung’s eyes as he watched Grid.

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