Chapter 71: The Trial of the Divine Throne - (4)
『Back Step』
『Back Step』
Sanghyun twisted his body and activated Back Step twice in succession, moving 10 meters backward immediately.
Since Back Step momentarily accelerated the retreat, the pressure exerted on his body was immense.
If he hadn't flexibly bent his spine and cervical vertebrae, the bones and muscles could have suffered severe strain.
『Back Step』
Sanghyun activated Back Step once more, still facing the sheer cliff below.
Only then did he finally see the edge of the floating landmass suspended in the air.
Tup!
He turned his body and grabbed the edge, appearing as if he were hanging off a cliff.
For an ordinary person, even holding on would have been difficult with just one hand.
But with Sanghyun’s sufficient strength, it was no problem.
“Hup!”
Using his gripping arm as support, Sanghyun swung his body up.
His body floated briefly before landing stably on the ground.
Ssshhh!
Meanwhile, arrows fired by the Angel Archers drew elegant arcs through the air as they approached.
『Brave Charge』
Sanghyun wisely evaded the attacks using Brave Charge.
Moments later, arrows landed precisely where he had just been.
Paaang!
Another fierce wind arrow shot toward him, but he dodged it with successive uses of Back Step.
His firm resolve not to be hit twice by the same attack was evident.
Looking at how the proficiency of Back Step and Brave Charge had improved, he felt satisfied.
At that moment.
One of the Angel Archers vanished in a flash of light, and a new presence emerged in its place.
Archer Master.
A formidable opponent, as the name suggested.
Though only a single entity, the sheer killing intent emanating from him was enough to make
Sanghyun feel the presence of a true master.
His appearance was that of a classic elven male archer straight out of a fantasy movie.
Creak! Ping!
Thud!
“……?”
Sanghyun’s eyes widened in shock.
Just moments ago, he had seen the Archer Master drawing his bowstring.
His plan was to react accordingly as he watched.
But in the blink of an eye, as if time had been fast-forwarded, the arrow had already struck him.
//s_win
//win_h ◎ Blindness
◎ Unable to see anything for 3 seconds.
//e_win
‘A status-inflicting arrow?’
He was instantly blinded.
His eyes were open, yet nothing was visible, as if he had been swallowed by a black hole.
An average player would have panicked and flailed upon realizing they were blinded.
But Sanghyun calmly assessed the situation.
『Defensive Sword』
He created a shield first.
What would an enemy who inflicted blindness want to do next?
Most likely, they would immediately attack the incapacitated opponent, exploiting their
vulnerability.
Especially if they were an archer.
Thud!
Just as Sanghyun had anticipated, as soon as he deployed his Defensive Sword, an arrow struck the shield.
‘Far right. He adjusted his position. If he moves again and fires, I'll definitely get hit.’
Using his honed judgment, he calculated the Archer Master's location.
Even though the shield was struck, the impact point allowed him to predict the enemy's trajectory.
Unless the arrow traveled in an absurdly unpredictable curve, his deduction was usually correct.
“…….”
He began charging Full Charge immediately.
Since the shield was still holding, a short dash using Brave Charge wouldn’t be enough to avoid the attack completely.
Whoosh!
The sound of an arrow brushing past his ear signaled that the Archer Master had fired once more.
Sanghyun instantly propelled himself with his charged energy.
Swish! Thud!
It happened almost simultaneously.
Sanghyun moved at the last second, and the arrow pierced where he had just stood.
It had been so fast that the reverberating impact still buzzed in his ears.
‘Recovery is not yet.’
It was tempting to use an easy solution to remove all obstacles.
However, relying too much on such means made one vulnerable to surprise attacks.
For example, if he used Recovery to counter blindness, only to be blinded again immediately after.
In real battles against named enemies, they often staggered their status-inflicting skills for that exact reason.
They would test the waters by applying minor status effects first.
If the opponent used a cure, they would then follow up with a more severe one.
This was one reason why other players both feared and envied Sanghyun.
He had too many unpredictable variables.
Whooosh!
“Damn.”
However, the moment he felt his body lifting off the ground, Sanghyun immediately used Recovery.
Airborne.
With blindness making it impossible to discern direction, being left helplessly suspended in the air could only mean death.
As his vision returned, he saw the Archer Master aiming at him from behind, intent on taking his life.
His calm expression, coupled with a gentle smile, made him seem even more menacing.
It was as if he were a seasoned hunter leisurely playing with his prey.
Something about it felt off.
Clap, clap, clap.
The Archer Master casually slung his bow over his shoulder and even applauded him.
Then, he raised his hand and spread out five fingers toward Sanghyun.
He said nothing, but Sanghyun understood.
It was likely a silent warning that five attacks were coming next.
‘First Shin Taeri, and now him. What’s with everyone and the number five? What happened to the rule of three?’
Sanghyun assumed a defensive stance.
Part of him wanted to launch a Rising Airflow at the Archer Master, who was floating in the air.
But doing so would end the stage.
He wasn’t about to give up the opportunity to rapidly increase his skill proficiency just because of impatience.
Whoosh!
The first arrow flew toward him.
A shot imbued with mana!
『Defensive Sword』
Sanghyun blocked it cleanly.
Since it followed a predictable trajectory, a simple response sufficed.
Of course, he knew things wouldn’t stay this easy.
Creak!
The second arrow was drawn.
“Ah.”
Sanghyun let out a short sigh as he noticed a change in the Archer Master's bow.
Since it was the second attack, there were two mana arrows nocked onto the bowstring.
It didn’t seem like those two arrows would simply fall in a straight diagonal line.
Piiing!
The arrows left the Archer Master's hand.
At that moment, Sanghyun could see the trajectory of the arrows forming an oval, one aiming for the upper side and the other for the lower side.
The refraction angle was too wide to block both with Defensive, so another strategy was needed.
He held his breath as much as possible.
And for a very brief moment, he calculated the trajectory with calm and precision, even surprising himself.
The conclusion came faster than expected.
『Back Step』
『Defensive Sword』
Using Back Step to move backward, he positioned himself so that the two curving arrows would be blocked within a single barrier.
Tiiing! Tiiing!
The plan worked.
Though not perfectly clean, as the two arrows struck the edge of the Defensive barrier.
But in the end, a happy ending.
Even though Sanghyun thought he had remained calm in his judgment, he realized there had been a brief hesitation.
If his decision had been slightly slower, one of the two arrows would have struck some part of his body.
Kkiririk!
The third arrow was being prepared.
"Here it comes!"
Before the third attack even began, Sanghyun sprinted forward at full speed.
This time, there would be three arrows.
Before a difficult attack trajectory could form, he aimed to limit the angles from the defender’s position.
Since he was only charging forward and not attacking, it didn’t contradict the purpose of the stage.
Kkiririk…….
The movements of the Archer Master pulling the bowstring appeared in slow motion to his eyes.
As his eyes and senses adjusted to the faster opponent, he began to follow the flow, even if just a little.
Piiing!
Three arrows were released.
『Brave Charge』
『Defensive Sword』
This time, he changed the combination.
Using Brave Charge to close the distance with the Archer Master as much as possible.
Then, creating a limited attack angle before deploying the Defensive barrier.
Tiiing! Tiiing! Kaching!
"Hooah."
He barely blocked them.
Thanks to his aggressive response, he successfully blocked the third attack, but he also identified a risk factor.
That was the Defensive barrier breaking apart right after blocking the three arrows.
It wasn’t an invincible barrier, so its durability had now been clearly demonstrated.
【An unknown Divine Throne is impressed by how perfectly you understand your own abilities.】
‘If I don’t want to die here, I have to understand them whether I like it or not, don’t I?’
Sanghyun pouted his lips.
There were still two more rounds to go.
Now, it would be four arrows.
If he blocked them the same way as before, the barrier would break, and the remaining arrow would inevitably pierce somewhere in his body.
Moreover, ironically, being too close to the Archer Master was now becoming a burden.
Kkiririk! Ping!
Before he even had time to think further, arrows left the Archer Master’s hands once again. This time, four of them.
『Defensive Sword』
He changed the order.
The two arrows that flew in closest were blocked with Defensive.
This time, the Archer Master seemed to have used more mana, as the barrier broke in just two hits.
『Back Step』
Using the slight time gap, he performed Back Step, barely dodging the third arrow.
However, the last arrow, which had accurately followed him, was unavoidable.
『Sacrifice』
So he relied on his trump card.
He deliberately exposed his abdomen and took the arrow head-on. As a result, his stamina was fully restored.
But the situation was escalating rapidly. At that very moment, the Archer Master had already begun the next attack.
This time, five arrows.
‘This is…….’
There was no other calculation that worked.
『Acceleration』
『Back Step』
With Acceleration activated, Sanghyun continuously used Back Step, retreating backward.
This time, the arrows seemed to have a homing function, precisely following Sanghyun’s movement path.
‘My body can’t keep up with the skills.’
Sanghyun let out a bitter laugh.
Every time he used Back Step in succession, he felt an overwhelming pressure on his entire body, as if his bones were about to break.
It was a clear realization that skills couldn’t be used infinitely like in a game.
Still, he managed to endure.
Whoosh!
The incoming arrows felt overwhelmingly dangerous. Blocking was impossible, and dodging in another direction was difficult.
Fwoosh!
Sanghyun launched himself into the air.
As he had planned from the beginning, he evaded by leaping outside the stage, into the air.
Thud!
Barely clinging onto the edge of the platform, he pressed his body against the floating ground's side as much as possible.
Whoosh! Shing! Swish!
The arrows, which had been homing in on Sanghyun, barely missed his head, skimming past.
Since he had completely adhered to the side, the arrows did not dramatically change direction.
Confirming that the arrows had passed, Sanghyun pulled himself up and reappeared on the stage.
At that moment.
[S-Rank Title, 【Endurance's Defensive Techniques】 has been granted.]
"An S-Rank title?"
An unexpected, substantial reward greeted him.
Clap, clap.
At the same time, in mid-air, the Archer Master wore a satisfied expression while applauding Sanghyun.