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Chapter 63
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[Be careful. Distortions are forming around the Fairy Colony.]
Celestia’s voice echoed in my ears.
Daehyeop Kim immediately turned his gaze to the side.
The Twisted World Tree Raid’s first gate—the Fairy Colony.
Fairies, the very limbs of the World Tree.
The Fairy Colony was a boss monster formed when individual fairies merged due to distortion.
The unique mechanic of the Twisted World Tree Raid: Distortion.
Distortion, as the name suggests, causes something to twist throughout the raid.
If the space around players distorts,
the Twisted World Tree’s roots would emerge from the distortion and attack the players.
When the body of the Fairy Colony twists,
it triggers a small mob summoning pattern, spawning some fairies.
If distortion occurs around the Fairy Colony,
it can either teleport or pull the nearest player toward it.
Distortion randomly triggered one of many patterns,
seemingly visualizing the developer’s intention: “If you don’t know, you’ll just have to take the hit.”
Still, thanks to Celestia masking the occurrence of distortion and informing players
via communication magic about when and where distortion would appear,
it wasn’t an impossible difficulty.
[Be careful! All of Elderheim is distorting!]
With Celestia’s warning, the ground shook violently.
The large company party, who were already on guard, witnessed it.
Outside the battle zone.
The gigantic forest in the background, previously just scenery,
came alive as massive tree monsters marched forward.
“On that day, mankind remembered… being ruled by them…”
“Kyaaah! This is not the time for jokes!”
The battle zone couldn’t be exited.
This restriction only applied to players.
Massive tree monsters crossed into the battle zone,
their names appearing above their heads.
[Twisted Forest Keeper Lv. 90]
“Wow. At least it’s not a boss-level enemy.”
“You’re unnecessarily optimistic!”
While Sweet and Suzuka bickered like a comedy duo,
Daehyeop Kim, the party’s leader, didn’t stop thinking.
No matter how much he racked his brain, he couldn’t come up with a solution.
Would they have to restart without even figuring out how to counter the patterns?
Just as he was about to give in to the thought of failure for this attempt…
[Would you kindly return to your original position? Gravity.]
The resonant voice of a great mage echoed in the large company party’s minds.
[Memorize.]
Koo-goo-goo-goong—!
The Forest Keepers, who were about to enter the battle zone, all fell to their knees.
Gravity—a magic that strengthens gravitational force.
Memorize—a spell that re-casts previously used magic.
Celestia had cast both consecutively with quad incantation.
As a result, the Forest Keepers collapsed under their own weight.
The large company party stared dumbfounded at the scene.
They were about to cheer when they noticed a few Forest Keepers crawling out alive from the fallen trees.
[Ah… I ran out of mana.]
[Could you hold on for just a little longer?]
[I’ll recover quickly…]
Hearing Celestia’s voice snapped Daehyeop Kim back to reality.
He prepared for battle.
“So, these three were our true opponents from the start.”
Three Twisted Forest Keepers.
And the boss monster, the Fairy Colony.
Just the Fairy Colony alone had been a struggle.
Now, with three giant monsters added, how long could they last?
Yet Daehyeop Kim judged the situation to be better than before.
The reason the large company party struggled against the Fairy Colony?
It was because of the raid’s unique mechanic, Distortion.
Currently, Distortion was locked into the “Twisted Forest Keeper Summoning” pattern.
“If Distortion is active, other Distortions won’t occur.”
A rule about Distortion that they had discovered after dozens of attempts.
Its trigger conditions.
Its timing.
Its effects.
Though Distortion was filled with random elements,
this one rule was absolute.
Thud—thud—
The ground shook with each step of the Forest Keepers.
Daehyeop Kim shifted his gaze to Paegwi.
“Hyung, can you parry that thing’s kick?”
“Are you crazy?”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Paegwi cursed, making Daehyeop Kim chuckle wryly.
“You’ve blocked lightning before. A kick should be nothing, right?”
“Ugh… I’m not sure. I really don’t know if it’ll work.
What I’m certain of is that it probably won’t.”
“Probably won’t” meant there was at least a slim chance it would.
“Hyung, do you know what I heard most often in the army?”
“You punk.”
Paegwi smirked, predicting what Daehyeop Kim would say next.
“If it doesn’t work, make it work.”
Of course, Daehyeop Kim wasn’t a Special Forces veteran.
But even a regular soldier in the army often heard this mantra from their superiors.
“Fine, fine.”
Paegwi sighed, completely conceding.
In one hand, he held a sword. In the other, a shield.
“Hmm… No matter how I look at it, this isn’t something I can block with a sword.”
Paegwi opened his inventory and stored his sword.
“Sweet, can you immobilize two of them?”
“Daehyeop, don’t underestimate me.”
Behind Sweet, an aura of lightning flickered like a mirage.
Before him, a wave of icy energy surged forth.
One Forest Keeper would be bound with Chain Lightning.
The other would be frozen by a combination of Aqua Ray and Frostbite.
Even without needing to be told, Daehyeop Kim understood the plan Sweet had prepared.
“I can handle two just fine.”
“Good.”
The goal was to buy time for Celestia to recover her mana.
The three Forest Keepers invading the battle zone could be handled.
The only remaining question was how to deal with the now seemingly enraged Fairy Colony.
“Suzuka.”
“Yes.”
“You will support the two of them.”
“Understood.”
Without hesitation, Suzuka followed Daehyeop Kim’s orders.
Having spent more than half a day together daily for nearly three months,
Suzuka had genuinely come to recognize Daehyeop Kim as the leader.
She followed his instructions unconditionally.
As per Daehyeop Kim’s command, the three moved to confront the Forest Keepers.
Left alone, Daehyeop Kim faced forward.
“Now then…”
Krrk-
He gripped his gauntlet tightly and pulled with all his might.
Using Martial Soul, a gust of wind swirled around Daehyeop Kim.
“…Let’s have some fun.”
***
Paegwi thought to himself.
Could he really block that giant’s kick?
Even if it was a game world,
it was still a hyper-realistic virtual reality.
Agitation.
Various distracting thoughts clouded his mind.
“If it doesn’t work, make it work.”
Easier said than done.
In reality, achieving the impossible was extremely difficult.
This moment was no exception.
But would he give up now?
Unless they intended to abandon the raid entirely,
the enormous moving wall before them
was a trial they would have to overcome eventually.
His hesitation was brief, and his turmoil ended.
Let’s do it.
No, he must do it.
“Stand behind me.”
Suzuka and Sweet moved behind Paegwi.
Suzuka immediately buffed Sweet and Paegwi.
Sweet, upon receiving the buffs, focused his mind and began double casting.
Even in the absence of their leader, the party acted as they always had.
“…Chain Lightning.”
“…Aqua Ray. Freeze solid, Frostbite.”
Sweet’s spells immobilized the two Forest Keepers on either side.
The Frostbite seeped into the wet gaps between the trees created by Aqua Ray, freezing them entirely.
Meanwhile, the Chain Lightning branched out, binding the roots and branches of the Forest Keeper.
Now, only the Forest Keeper in front of them remained.
It approached, lifting one enormous foot, casting a shadow beneath it.
“…”
Paegwi’s gaze fixated on the Forest Keeper’s sole.
Staring up at its massive form, he fell deep into thought.
He wasn’t accustomed to holding a shield with both hands.
He couldn’t even gauge the exact moment he needed to strike for a successful parry.
‘I can’t see.’
The sudden shadow obscured his vision.
The overwhelming presence of nature itself bore down on him,
filling his heart with countless worries.
Would he fail the parry and die like this?
Him, Paegwi, the Parry God?
Fail?
Fwoosh-
At that moment, flames ignited in Paegwi’s heart.
Those flames burned away all the doubts that had clouded his mind.
“…No.”
Opening his eyes, which he had unconsciously shut,
Paegwi’s vision sharpened.
He saw it clearly—the one and only weak spot of the Forest Keeper.
Aiming for that weak spot, he swung his shield with all his strength.
“Take this—!!!”
Craack-
With a resounding shout, his entire body’s muscles expanded in an instant.
Exhibiting an extraordinary superhuman strength achievable only in virtual reality,
Paegwi swung his shield with full force.
‘I did it!’
He successfully deflected the Forest Keeper’s kick.
[Parry Successful!]
The system message announcing his success appeared,
but the shield’s durability instantly dropped to zero and shattered.
Ding-
[Achievement Unlocked: Little Giant]
Paegwi’s feat earned him a new achievement.
The Forest Keeper, overwhelmed by the counterattack, staggered backward,
losing its balance and collapsing with a thunderous crash.
The impact of its fall sent shockwaves and fierce winds rippling through the area.
“Hah… I really almost died.”
Exhausted, Paegwi collapsed to the ground.
He opened his status window to check his physical condition.
Both arms and shoulders were completely incapacitated, marked as “Body Part Destroyed.”
Though it was a severe injury, Paegwi simply laughed heartily.
―――
[Achievement – Little Giant]
- Successfully parry the attack of an enemy over 100 meters tall.
- Attack Power +1
- Durability +2
*You took down that giant? Are you interested in a career as a mercenary? - The Mercenary King of an Era
―――
***
The Twisted World Tree Raid consisted of two gates.
The first gate involved battling the Fairy Colony.
The second gate was an encounter with the Twisted World Tree itself.
“The World Tree is a significant existence in this otherworld.”
As I designed this Twisted World Tree Raid, a realization dawned on me.
There was no benefit to being bound by the specters of the past.
Back then, I lacked the skill.
I lacked the strength.
I couldn’t save those who had turned into Dark Elves.
At best, I could only seal the Twisted World Tree’s distortion and the Spirit King’s corruption.
I hope the next generation will redefine the relationship
between the World Tree and the Spirit King,
between elves and spirits—relationships that were flawed from the very beginning.
Understanding the role of the World Tree in this world,
and the importance of the Spirit King as the master of an entire dimension,
I couldn’t help but leave behind this cruel task.
Past me. Present me.
Perhaps this lingering regret was always at the back of my mind.
“After all, happy endings are the best.”
The past me couldn’t achieve a happy ending.
I had only found a loophole to prevent the destruction of this otherworld.
To suppress the distortion, I sealed the World Tree’s consciousness.
To suppress the corruption, I sealed the Spirit King’s consciousness.
If the distortion and corruption were completely removed
from the World Tree and the Spirit King,
then the safeguards left for the future generation would activate.
I chose to leave those safeguards untouched in this story.
From a narrative perspective, it felt like a fitting conclusion.
“Sigh… It’s all just work stress.”
Now that I had vented enough,
it was time to truly let go.
To finally release the guilt and regret
that kept me tethered to the past.
Waddle, waddle-
I kidnapped one of Aka-chan’s teddy bear golems passing by.
Pat, pat-
“Good boy.”
Even as it was kidnapped and held in my arms, the teddy bear golem remained still.
I patted it gently,
watching the large company party tackle the raid for a long while.
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