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[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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Chapter 159
Before Seonghyun began to sweep through the underground labyrinth of Pentagrid, he finished his preparations and used the skill book he had obtained from the Viscount's treasury.
Fate Manipulation.
What kind of skill would it be?
He opened it with some anticipation.
『Fate Manipulation』
→《Legendary》
→[Lv Max][Complete]
[Instant Effect][Active]
[Cooldown: 10 minutes]
[Duration: 30 seconds]
→Exclusive skill for Black Mage-type classes.
→Manipulates the variable probability known as fate.
→Upon activation, you can choose to use one of the two effects below.
→Cause all probability-based skills that apply to you to fail.
→Cause all probability-based skills that you use to succeed.
“Hmm.”
The effect was a bit subtle.
To be sure, the effect itself was incredible—a skill truly worthy of the Legendary rank.
However…
‘I don’t have any probability-based skills.’
The ability to nullify all probability-based skills an enemy used on him was good, but he already had the much more versatile Sovereign's Edict for situations like that.
The more appealing effect was the latter, but the important thing was that Seonghyun had no probability-based skills.
It could have been an ironic skill for him to get, but it was actually a good thing.
‘Now I guess I have to use the things I’ve been saving.’
The Dark Spear skill book he got this time and the Unique rank skill book he got from defeating Kyou.
If he converted both with the Tome of Despair, he might get lucky and a probability--based skill could pop up.
Even if it didn't, he could just get one with the Tome of Overlord.
The Tome of Overlord was a guaranteed draw, after all.
In any case, since he didn't know what he would get, he first converted the Dark Spear into an exclusive skill.
Upon obtaining the Unique rank exclusive skill, Seonghyun immediately used the skill book to learn it.
『Blade of Darkness in the Shadow』
→《Unique》
→[Lv 1][Growth]
[Instant Effect][Active]
[Cooldown: 30 seconds]
→Exclusive skill for Black Mage-type classes.
→Slashes the target with a hidden blade of darkness from within the shadows for 500% damage.
‘Oh?’
A simple but powerful skill.
The cooldown was only 30 seconds, and the damage was respectable.
To get a single-target attack skill, which was something he lacked during the fight with Carmine, was a stroke of good luck.
‘I got a main damage skill.’
It was a skill that would solve his single-target damage problems from now on.
Stacking skills like Mark of Death were good, but he really needed a core attack skill like this, similar to Wraith of the Dead or a Black Magic Bullet.
He was excited to have obtained such a good skill, but since a probability-based skill hadn't appeared yet, he felt a little disappointed.
With that feeling, Seonghyun converted the next skill book he had obtained from Kyou, the Lion's Knights, with the Tome of Despair.
『Swamp of Dark Shadows』
→《Unique》
→[Lv Max][Complete]
[Continuous Effect][Active]
[Cooldown: 1 hour]
[Duration: 1 minute]
→Exclusive skill for Black Mage-type classes.
→Transforms the surrounding area into a Swamp of Dark Shadows.
→While standing in the Swamp of Dark Shadows, the power of all Darkness-type and Shadow-type skills increases by 30%, and the power of all other skills decreases by 30%.
‘Hmm.’
This one’s performance was also considerable.
For a Unique rank skill, it had both a buff and a debuff effect attached.
An effect that increased the power of Shadow and Darkness-type skills by 30% while simultaneously reducing the power of all other skills by 30%.
Because of the mandatory debuff mixed in, the effect seemed good despite being only Unique rank.
Two shadow-related skills.
If he used them well, this could also become a viable build.
He felt like creating a shadow skill build, but…
‘Then Fate Manipulation would go to waste.’
It was a shame, but the skill he would obtain with the Tome of Overlord was set to be a probability-based one.
Still, he was level 129.
He would be able to use the Tome of Overlord soon after leveling up, so he could just use it then.
With that thought, Seonghyun opened the Tome of Overlord.
“Show me a probability-based skill that has powerful damage.”
[You can now acquire a probability-based skill with powerful damage.]
[Searching for skills most compatible with the ones you currently possess.]
[Compatible skills have been found.]
[Displaying list.]
『Spear of the Playful God』
『Curse of the Dark Dice』
『Finger of the Laughing Doll』
『Black Orb of Fate』
…….
…….
(The rest is omitted)
[Would you like to make a selection?]
A great number of skills had appeared. There were some with strange names, but the one Seonghyun chose was…
[Through the effect of the Overlord Class-Exclusive Almighty Rank Item, 『Tome of Overlord』, you have acquired the Unique Rank Skill, 『Black Orb of Fate』.]
It was the Black Orb of Fate.
He partly chose it because the name seemed like a perfect match, but that wasn't the only reason.
It was because it had the highest damage percentage.
『Black Orb of Fate』
→《Unique》
→[Lv Max][Complete]
[Instant Effect][Active]
[Cooldown: 30 minutes]
→Exclusive skill for Black Mage-type classes.
→Upon use, activates with a 15% probability.
→Upon activation, summons a Black Orb of Fate near the target.
→The Black Orb of Fate appears above the target's head, unleashes a baptism of darkness, dealing 2,000% damage to the target, and then vanishes.
The damage percentage was almost on par with a Legendary rank skill.
The activation probability was just as low, but with Fate Manipulation, it was a guaranteed activation.
‘This is really good, isn’t it?’
He felt like he could even create a probability-based build.
While Fate Manipulation was active, it would be a guaranteed hit.
If that was the case, wouldn't it be better to postpone the shadow build for a little while?
‘As expected, probability-based skills have incredible effects to make up for their low activation chance.’
Thinking the obvious, Seonghyun decided that from now on, he would use the Tome of Overlord to draw probability-based skills.
In any case, now that he had obtained these skills, there was something he always did, wasn't there?
And since he needed to go to the labyrinth to wipe out monsters anyway…
‘Shall we test them out?’
4.
The labyrinth was less like a field and more like a single, giant dungeon.
An open-world dungeon, perhaps?
Since all users could participate.
However, that wasn't necessarily a good thing.
Although it was described as a single giant dungeon, it was strictly classified as a field, so there were numerous boss monsters.
What's more, since these bosses were also shared among all users, conflicts could easily arise.
There were even those who would hide and ambush, aiming to land the last hit on a boss.
Since they weren't targeting users, they didn't become villains due to the infamy system, but they were still beings who caused plenty of trouble for other users.
Marin's party was exactly that kind of malicious party.
‘If they had enough damage, they would have just killed it themselves first.’
If anyone complained, that's what they would say.
They were truly malicious.
Conversely, Marin's party also found it difficult to take down a boss by themselves, which is why they resorted to such tactics. But that didn't justify their actions.
In any case, as Marin's party lay hidden around the boss, they heard the sound of someone approaching.
"Oh, here comes another one."
"Kekek, let's get ready."
"But it doesn't sound like there are many of them."
"An elite party, maybe?"
If they listened closely, there was only the sound of a single set of footsteps.
For a moment, they tilted their heads in confusion, but since they were already in stealth, they couldn't back out and remained quiet.
Just then, a single user appeared in front of the boss they were lying in wait for.
A user wearing a black robe and some kind of mask.
There was nothing particularly strange about it.
There were often high-performance mask-type items, so many players wore them.
Plus, it covered their face and gave off a mysterious vibe, making it a fairly popular type of accessory.
The only strange thing was…
‘Why is he alone?’
‘No idea.’
‘Did his party get wiped out on the way here?’
‘But then he wouldn't have come all the way to the boss, would he?’
He was alone.
To come all this way so leisurely by himself.
One might have thought he was a skilled player, but Marin's party didn't think that far.
In the labyrinth, it was common sense to form a party no matter how skilled you were.
Otherwise, you would surely get overwhelmed by the traps or the sheer number of monsters.
They wondered what was going on but didn't pay it much mind.
Frankly, did they need to know all that just to steal a boss kill?
As Marin's party remained silent, the lone user leisurely began to cast a skill at the boss.
‘Wow, he's really fighting it alone.’
‘But the Blood Bat Gargoyle should be hard to solo, right?’
‘Is this a bust? Should we give up?’
‘Let's just watch for now.’
The Blood Bat Gargoyle.
Also known as the blood-sucking bat statue, it wasn't a particularly strong boss in the labyrinth, but with its massive health pool and sturdy defense, it wasn't an easy one either. Its attack power was weak, so it didn't give the impression of being strong, but it was known for being annoying to kill due to its high health.
And this guy was trying to take it on alone?
That wouldn't be easy.
Because of this, the expressions on the faces of Marin's party members darkened.
It seemed obvious that he wouldn't be able to kill it by himself.
Waiting with the thought that if it worked out, great, and if not, oh well, they watched as the user cast the first skill at the Blood Bat Gargoyle.
As an energy like a black bullet condensed in the user's hand, Marin's party let out sighs.
‘Oh, he’s fighting.’
‘A black bullet?’
‘Ah, looks like this idiot is fighting without knowing its traits.’
‘To think there are still clueless people like this around.’
Since the Blood Bat Gargoyle had sturdy defense, it possessed a resistance to projectiles.
A magic bullet was still a projectile, so the resistance applied, making it a particularly annoying boss to fight.
Still, the rewards were quite good, which was why a few users came by and why Marin's party was lying in wait.
But for a dud like this to show up…
It seemed today was a bust.
The moment they all had that thought, the black bullet was fired.
KWAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA——!!!
The black bullet flew into the Blood Bat Gargoyle's chest, exploding with a massive roar on its body.
The force was so strong that the Blood Bat Gargoyle was pushed back several meters, writhing in pain as it let out a shriek.
“PIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!”
At the sound that resonated through their skulls like a high-frequency sound wave, everyone in Marin's party covered their ears.
To make a sound like that, one would have to inflict enormous damage.
Just how powerful was that attack for the creature to scream like that from a single hit?
‘Wh-What just happened?’
‘H-How should I know.’
‘Th-That attack is that strong?’
‘That’s insane….’
Marin's party was stunned watching this.
Soon, the party leader, Marin, spoke.
‘He must have used his ultimate move right from the start.’
‘Ah, that makes sense.’
‘Using your strongest skill before the battle state starts is common sense.’
‘That must be it.’
Their pride a bit hurt from being so surprised, they had that conversation.
Soon, the Blood Bat Gargoyle charged at the user.
From the looks of it, the user was a mage.
A Black Mage, at that.
A Blood Bat Gargoyle charging at such a user.
He didn't even have any summons to block it.
The moment they all shook their heads, thinking he would die soon, the ground around the user began to turn black.
Jjeo-eok, cheok!
The ground, now stained with the surrounding darkness, transformed as if it were a swamp.
“PIIIIIIIII!”
Although its movements weren't slowed or restricted, the Blood Bat Gargoyle felt an inexplicable sense of dread and stopped in its tracks.
In that moment, a blade shot up from within the darkness-stained shadow.
SEEOO---GUK!!!
It deeply slashed the Blood Bat Gargoyle’s torso.
“PIIIIIIIII———!!!”
The Blood Bat Gargoyle writhed in agony.
But the user’s attack wasn't over.
A golden aura spread out from the user, and as he extended his hand, a black orb suddenly appeared above the Blood Bat Gargoyle’s head.
The ominous-looking black orb shot a beam of darkness straight at the Blood Bat Gargoyle.
The darkness, which almost looked like a dragon's breath,
KWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA———!!!
“Piiiii…….”
...instantly turned the Blood Bat Gargoyle from head to toe into ash, causing it to crumble away.
Before Marin's party could even make a move, he had defeated the boss in an instant.
And he didn't even use that many skills.
Watching the scene, the pupils of Marin's party trembled as they spoke to each other.
‘Sh-Should we run?’
‘Y-Yeah, leader!’
‘Let’s go, quick.’
‘If he notices us, we could die!’
As they were making their escape, the lone user—no, Seonghyun—muttered to himself with a satisfied expression.
“They're all quite useful.”
He was very satisfied with these new skills as well.
By the way…
“Why are those people running away?”
Seonghyun, who had known Marin's party was hiding from the start, just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.
There really were a lot of strange people in the world.
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[Translator - Prøks]
[Proofreader - Prøks]
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