2) Advance Notice of an Outstanding Performance

“Wake up. Cry out according to your original wild nature.”

More than half of the sacred river at Dulmore Fortress had been filled with stones and soil. The priests of the Embinyu Church walked forward with their wands while chanting spells. It was then hurtled towards the troops defending the fortress.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“I don’t know. My head itches and my body aches. It feels like my flesh is tearing.”

Suddenly, long hairs sprouted out between the armour that the soldiers were wearing.

“What is this?”

“I don’t know. This can’t be. My body is changing.”

Their limbs became thicker and their skin was peeled off. They couldn’t endure it any longer and took off their armour.

“K-kill me!”

“Call the priests.”

“No. Before that…ah, it is too late….”

Hair grew from their stomachs and faces and their fell to the ground on all fours.

Grrrr!

They became medium sized wolves with murderous eyes. The priests of the Embinyu Church used spells to change a human into a beast. The wolves jumped around and bit the necks of any humans in the vicinity.

They had been fighting alongside their colleagues but their instinct and reason had been influenced towards the Embinyu Church.

“Your eyes and ears are sensing the wrong things. You must only serve Embinyu!”

And they were also enveloped in brainwas.h.i.+ng magic. The enchanted soldiers instantly defected and joined the Embinyu Church. The archers on the walls turned their arrows towards the soldiers inside the castle.

“Wake up!”

“Captain, trust in the Embinyu. He will lead us to a comfortable and happy world free of pain.”

“Jyado! We shouldn’t forget the favour His Majesty has done for us.”

“Huh, the king? What has he given to us? Heavy taxes, causing a war because of greed for territory or capturing and killing any refugees?”

“It was unavoidable. Joining that side isn’t the answer!”

“The king is deceiving us. He wants to maintain his authority in front of the n.o.bility. You have felt more pain as time pa.s.sed. You can rest if you join Embinyu.”

The captain tried to stop the soldiers but he soon feel victim to the brainwas.h.i.+ng spell.

“Kukukut, you are right. Then I will follow Embinyu.”

The revolt of the soldiers took place everywhere. The knights weren’t caught but the soldier with low loyalty were brainwashed.

While Weed was playing in the air, the defenders in Dulmore Fortress were crumbling. The defense forces fell victim to the brainwas.h.i.+ng and the number of Embinyu troops increased.

“These ugly b.a.s.t.a.r.ds.”

Weed who was running around on a turtle could guess the situation simply by looking down at the ground.

“I can’t leave it to these people. They won’t last for long.”

He grumbled as the soldiers suddenly changed positions to the Embinyu Church. However, the fortress didn’t fall to the Embinyu Church straight away.

The magic devices and siege weapons of the fortress was still working. The elites arranged in the archer towers fired steel arrows. The magicians of the Mapon and Beiner Kingdoms gathered on the walls also counterattacked by the enemies. The attacks were effective in delaying the advance of the fanatics and the demons.

Weed wanted at least that degree. He could play around to his heart’s content.

“You are already the last one!”

He ignored the resistance of the archers and caused the remaining large turtle to fall down. He rode the flaming turtle as it fell to the ground.

The viewers watching the broadcast sometimes felt like they were watching a scene from an action movie.

‘A positive appearance will come out!’

His cloak waved as he stood on the back of the turtle that crashed into the central square of the fortress!

An explosion took place and Weed slowly emerged after the dust subsided. The decline in health wasn’t so bad but the shoulder injury was a little worrisome. But he wasn’t in a dangerous fight at the moment so he could endure it.

‘It was really cool. I am the best.’

The stations and viewers were being sent this scene in real time.

There was a fuss on the bulletin boards.

-Fighting in the sky is really fantastic but he seems a little ignorant. Why did he fall? Surely he had enough skill to be able to escape?

-His eyes seem like it hurt quite a bit.

-The sight of Weed escaping from the turtle just before it exploded caused my heart to pound.

-Did you see his form? I am invigorated by the sight of it.

The viewers focused on his appearance and actions. They were hoping that Weed would show them an electrifying and exciting battle! An excitement similar to when the orc Karichwi led an army against the Immortal Legion.

The viewers didn’t like the scene of Weed falling from the sky on a large monster without any resistance. It was like taking money from a pre-schooler.

The Barates had poured acid and arrows towards the fortress. But Weed took care of them surprisingly quickly. Of course, the damage of the large turtles cras.h.i.+ng into the fortress was calculated separately!

Weed’s eyes flashed around the vicinity as the smoke cleared.

“Cough! S-somebody help me!”

The knights and n.o.bles were injured. Not long ago, they were wearing garish jewellery or swords encrusted with gem.

‘Quietly abandoning the items…ah, there are quite a few soldiers. Now is a bad time to attract attention. Throwing it away is good.’

The magic s.h.i.+eld protected the fortress but the demons could still enter thanks to the river being blocked. Monsters and demons entering through the gates were being taken care of.

There was also 12 magic towers defending Dulmore Fortress. The magic flowing into the ground was important to activate the protection so the defenses would weaken when a tower was destroyed. The bronze giants and monsters focused their attacks in the direction of the magic towers. When he looked up, 3 large rocks thrown by the bronze giants were flying through the sky.

Anyway, there was a new wave of attacks from the Embinyu Army. The bronze giants wouldn’t stop throwing rocks until the fortress was completely broken.

“The enemy troops will soon capture the fortress.”

The most urgent problem was the Gates of h.e.l.l. The size of the Embinyu Army was fixed but the Gates of h.e.l.l meant that more demons could appear.

He needed to destroy the witch Pechet to get rid of the Gates of h.e.l.l but that was a really difficult goal to achieve. Pechet was in the heart of the enemies.

Even if Weed fought her alone, she had a special ability.

The knights of the Keltun Kingdom had written many stories about her.

[A group of brave knights attacked her with their swords.

Magicians risked their lives to complete their magic attacks.

The priests used their holy magic.

Apparently, all the attacks just pa.s.sed through her….

A cursed witch that could wipe the world clean.

The Keltun Kingdom fought her nine times and were defeated.

The witch even managed to reach the royal palace of the Keltun Kingdom.

The remaining magicians a.n.a.lysed the ability of the witch.

The ancient magic ‘Dimension Release.’

A magic that hid her true flesh across 2~3 dimensions.

It was impossible to kill her until her body completely entered this world.

The witch Pechet could also absorb the life force of others that were dying.

Many knights lost their health and mana to her.

The only way to force her body to show up was to aim for the moment when she was absorbing.

Until then, any attacks were obsolete.

In addition, a premature attack would cause her body to flee again.

A person called Jerkel learned the forbidden necromancy magic.

‘Corpse Explosion!’

He was a citizen loyal to his lord and exploded his body while she was absorbing his health. He left the rest to the other knights.

The blood and corpses of the knights that defended the kingdom.

Ohh, this is the glory of the Keltun Kingdom.]

This was data he had asked Mapan to find in Morata’s library.

Pechet was known for her invulnerability in combat. A witch that couldn’t be caught without a n.o.ble sacrifice.

Weed’s thoughts went up to there.

“I should move quickly. There are empty rooms in the fortress. Can’t I even take a little nap?”

He was in a hurry.

Weed’s thoughts didn’t reflect that at all.

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“This will be the last day for Weed. Although he might have a heavenly talent, even he can’t escape death today.”

Yoo Byung-jin meticulously looked at every detail of the Embinyu Army’s power. He couldn’t stop smiling as he looked at the list of their main power.

There was the big turtles, the Baretas that could break down the enemy’s fortress. They would overcome the height of the walls. Arrows shooting down from the sky would slaughter the enemies. The turtles would also fly out of the range of magic attacks from the ground and the turtle’s sh.e.l.l was a natural defense. The only drawback was that their flying speed was a little slow.

Taking care of them wouldn’t be easy.

“But that is just the beginning. The Embinyu Army’s main power hasn’t even emerged yet. Kukuku.”

Yoo Byung-jin could see on the monitor that the high priests and Knights of Atrocities hadn’t even moved yet.

The core power of the Embinyu Army consisted of boss level monsters.

More than 300 species of rare monsters, fanatics with blind loyalty and bronze giants! That power alone was enough to make Dulmore Fortress fall.

He was filled with tension as he watched the monitor.

The real power was with the high priests, Igrig and Motuls.

The power of the Embinyu Church was beyond imagination and it was enough to conquer the continent. According to the a.n.a.lysis of the AI, the army that Weed mobilized was only 23% of the Embinyu Army. Even if the Mapon and Beiner Kingdoms joined in, that only increased to 26%.

Military troops trained in the kingdom revealed their vulnerability to black magic and brainwas.h.i.+ng spells. A witch’s spells could also invoke a collective illusion, making it difficult to defeat the army. An overwhelming amount of allies were destroyed by friendly fire.

Due to the nature of the Embinyu Church, it was close to impossible to beat them. An ability to reveal and take advantage of weaknesses in the opponent was a reason why the Embinyu Army was close to invincible.

It would be interesting to see if Weed’s army that swept over the south and central continent would fare.

Weed had a variety of combat experience so he could guess the various capabilities of the Embinyu Army. If he clumsily attacked then the desert army that had been overwhelming so far would be completely wiped out!

The power of the Embinyu Army would be enough to march over the weakened kingdoms. Being clever and wicked wouldn’t be enough for defeat them.

“It doesn’t matter how strong he is or if he doesn’t make any mistakes. The Embinyu Church’s real strength will be revealed with this.”

Yoo Byung-jin knew everything about Royal Road and was repeatedly dissatisfied that the Embinyu Church was underestimated.

The users on the Versailles Continent hadn’t suffered a real crisis yet. They only fought by themselves without paying attention to the forces of evil. They foolishly allowed the Embinyu Church to spread in the shadows of the continent. The Versailles Continent wasn’t a stable place where peace was guaranteed.

Weed was able to have considerable success in quests relating to the Embinyu Church so far. After changing into Nodulle, if he failed then history would change completely and the Embinyu Church would rampage.

“The Hermes Guild trying to control the continent…this is the best conclusion.”

Yoo Byung-jin knew that users were unfortunately p.r.o.ne to greediness. As the creator of Royal Road, he had observed hundreds of things a day that he didn’t like. The last moments of a couple swarmed by strong monsters.

“Uhh, this death…but I am happy that I can die together with you.”

“Deok-bae ssi, I love you.”

A melodramatic scene commonly seen in movies or dramas. Many couples lived in the wonderful world of the Versailles Continent.

It wasn’t common for those with strength to help others. Laughter filled cities and pa.s.sion lit up the faces of people who wanted to go adventuring.

Yoo Byung-jin thought it was quite annoying.

“Weed will die if he is defeated in this battle.”

-Should I calculate the probability of Weed’s death?

“What is it?”

Yoo Byung-jin was interested in the words of the AI.

Every time he managed to overcome the difficulties, but this time common sense dictated that Weed would fail.

Even if the desert army consisted of elite warriors, the rest were conscripted soldiers. They would be pushed by the monsters and fanatics of the Embinyu Church. There was also the confusion and brainwas.h.i.+ng magic.

These troops were worthy of taking first place in the history books. Even with the 20,000 desert warriors, Dulmore Fortress would only be able to withstand it for a few hours. The overall power different was so large that the desert warriors would die one by one. Including the sculptural lifeforms, everyone who followed Weed would lose their lives. And finally Weed’s death would be a perfect and neat finish.

The final secret sculpting technique would disappear. Even Weed’s incredible resourcefulness and leaders.h.i.+p skills wouldn’t enable him to win. If the battle lasted a long time then Motuls and Igrig’s power would come into place, making it the Embinyu Church’s absolute victory.

“Hrmm.”

Nevertheless, Yoo Byung-jin was worried enough to calculate the probability.

“Do it.”

-The probability of survival has been calculated. You should rejoice heartily. Looking at the odds, the probability of victory is unlikely. There is only a 3% chance of victory.

“It is hardly likely that he will be successful.”

It was common sense that Weed would be defeated by the Embinyu Church but something unexpected might happen.

Yoo Byung-jin’s mind could accept it but his heart believed one thing.

‘Maybe Weed can pull it off.’

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Dulmore Fortress was under siege but Weed was strictly calm and impersonal.

The bronze giant were throwing stones everywhere and the battlefield was a scene of confusion.

“The wave of attacks is starting.”

The outer walls were instantly taken by the Embinyu Church. The fortress’s defenders, the soldiers of the Mapon and Beiner Kingdoms tried to recapture it but it wasn’t easy.

“Receive the righteous judgement of G.o.d!”

“Kuooh, no. My head hurts.”

“Embinyu will ease the pain.”

The priests and inquisitors continued their brainwas.h.i.+ng. The soldiers taken by the Embinyu Church killed their allied troops.

Embinyu’s divine judgement!

Join the church or resist, those were the only two options. Accept a painful death or follow the Embinyu Church.

But the knights of the kingdoms thoroughly resisted it. The kings, n.o.bles and knights all had high resistance.

The wide s.h.i.+elds and iron swords were used by the knights to block the monsters. The interior of the fortress was like a complex maze so losing the external walls wasn’t as significant.

“The Embinyu Army will have to shed quite a lot of blood in order to occupy the fortress.”

It was useful just watching the battle in order to experience the tactics of the monsters. And Weed aimed to weaken the power of the Embinyu Church.

He needed to take care of the witches and priests actively brainwas.h.i.+ng people. Getting rid of the magic would weaken the Embinyu Army. Although it would give the Mapon and Beiner Kingdoms an opportunity to exit the battlefield.

“It can’t be helped. Sculptural Destruction! Everything into strength.”

For phase 2 of the battle, Weed used a sculpting technique. The target was a Masterpiece Sculpture!

He couldn’t make a lot of sculptures on this quest. This one was based on Bactrian Camel, the sculpture called ‘Diamond Encrusted Male Camel.’

The artistic merit was rather low but because it was made by the Great Conqueror Weed, it was a piece with a lot of prestige.

He created 2 Masterpieces and 3 Fine pieces so there were several opportunities to use Sculptural Destruction.

It was time to make an important contribution. At that moment, an intense light surrounded Weed’s body. The light was a bright contrast against the darkened sky.

Weed felt like he was boiling with power.

“This delicious taste!”

The feeling that he could crush or break any enemy! This was the feeling of joy that could only be felt in Royal Road. Moreover, his strength was already strong enough to cause a pile of enemies. All of the Embinyu Church members in the area were like rice that Weed could eat.

“My strength is good enough so shall I play in earnest?”

A thorough preparation would ensure a stable retirement. Instead of rus.h.i.+ng immediately into battle, he pulled out another sculpture.

A barbarian warrior Tor!

They were divided into clans but this barbarian was a.s.sociated with giants in the myths. They were 6 metres tall and the whole body had a muscular strength.

A species created for combat.

Young women would stare at the body with disgust but his eyes shone like lanterns when looking at the shape.

It was rare to see barbarians on the Versailles Continent because they lived in lands filled with the strongest monsters. Therefore, the users hadn’t explored those areas yet. However, their appearance and combat skills were known from murals painted in caves and history books. The aggressive fighting spirit meant they were always depicted hunting or struggling against a monster.

After changing into the large race, it would consume more vitality and physical strength. However, he was confident that he would be able to maintain the barbarian Tor’s fighting power.

“Sculpture Transformation!”

Weed’s growth was incomparable to children who had a growth spurt after drinking milk. His skin changed to a healthy, tanned appearance and his whole body changed. He had s.p.a.cious and solid shoulders and abs like a washboard. The st.u.r.dy muscles of his thighs was the best.

Compared to the dwarf Art Hand or the orc Karichwi, this was a terribly handsome appearance.

In fact, Weed initially thought that an ugly face would give off an intimidating feeling. But the statue needed to have a balanced harmony of face and body. When using Sculptural Transformation, he normally used at least 1~2 knife scars, a thin nose and a gaping jaw.

However, that face alone would look awkward with Weed’s body. There was a disharmony between the face and the body so Weed settled on Hestiger’s face as a compromise.

But his pride as an artist didn’t allow him to simple copy the face so he thickened the nose, eyes and eyebrows. And he also widened the forehead.

Thus a handsome warrior was born! A face and body that would remove the souls of women.

“Ohhh, this is good.”

Weed marvelled at the power of a barbarian. It was like eating soup with a variety of perfect seafood like crab, abalone and shrimp.

However, users couldn’t select the barbarian species yet. Just like the necromancer occupation, users might be given this opportunity in the future.

Of course, it was still unsure what penalty would be applied when selecting that species. In any case, Weed had the ability to sufficiently digest the abilities of a barbarian.

This was the biggest advantage of a secret sculpting technique like Sculpture Transformation.

“This is now my world.”

He looked around with remarkably large eyes. The soldiers inside Dulmore Fortress were frightened as they saw him.

“Monster! It is a monster!”

“G.o.d, why did you send us a demon like this?”

The soldiers couldn’t remove their fear. In fact, not one scratch would appear if they attacked Weed. A rare attack might hit on a rainy day.

Weed didn’t want to fight humans. They didn’t even reach his waist. He somehow felt like a superior being standing over tiny children.

“My strength is bursting out quickly.”

He felt the ground shake as the bronze giants threw rocks. He wanted to quickly go out and smash the bronze giants but he had to urgently find a weapon. Usually he got j.a.ptem related to the species but it was extremely rare to find a barbarian weapon.

Items wouldn’t drop without a relevant reason. Scimitars were easily obtained in desert areas while fis.h.i.+ng bait and rare sh.e.l.ls could be found on the coast. The equipment of barbarians would probably drop near the stone forest where they lived.

“I prepared for this in advance.”

Weed squatted and pulled out all 3 pieces of the Extermination Sword from his backpack.

Chalkak!

It was a special order he requested from the blacksmiths. The Extermination Sword pieces connected together like a long spear.

It was an oversized sword but he could wield it comfortably as a barbarian. The third piece especially was thick enough to be held comfortable in the hands of a barbarian.

“That’s it.”

Normally a sword would look like a thin skewer in a barbarian’s hand. Swords were tailored to humans but barbarians would rather use an axe or mace. However, the Extermination Sword contained the power of fire.

Hwaruruk!

Thick flames licked the sword! It was a weapon completely befitting a barbarian. And he felt the heat through his hands.

The best body and weapon!

The conditions for using the Extermination Sword was a resistance to fire. Although the characteristics of his species had changed, the basic resistance as a sword master still remained.

He also had the fighting spirit of a barbarian. Weed’s thoughts were only focused on quickly going to fight.

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