If you asked most people what dark elven knights were, they would just say that they were a little taller than normal dark elves. It was true that that was their only physical difference when compared to normal dark elves, but Seo Jun-Ho knew all too well that there was more than that.
‘Before they became corrupted, they were the protectors of the kingdom. Elven knights.’
In elven tradition, a strong tribal sword technique meant more spiritual power. But when the elves became corrupted, their spiritual contracts were canceled.
“It’s a good thing for me.” He wasn’t sure if he could handle spiritual attacks in his current state. But these ‘knights’ were only good at swordplay.
“After all, I’ve never seen someone who is better at swordsmanship than me.”
Shing!
On top of that, he had the outstanding Black Dragon Fang and Black Armor. Perhaps that was why he didn’t have an ounce of doubt he would win. ．𝚌ｏｍ
“Seems like the stage is set,” Seo Jun-Ho muttered. The area around him had emptied out at some point. An arena had been created for him and the five dark elven knights.
‘Well, even if dark elves lack intellect, they still have their instincts.’
In fact, their primal instincts were sharper than before they became corrupted. Thanks to that, they realized that they would die like planktons in front of a whale if they interfered with the fight. As such, they backed away and left an empty space.
Seo Jun-Ho crooked his finger at the dark elven knights. It was a childish gesture, like an unemployed neighborhood hyung calling over the kids that were heading towards a taekwondo school.
“Hey, come at me.”
“…”
Even though they had thrown their honors away, they were once knights of a kingdom. They growled as they unsheathed their swords from their waists.
***
‘It’s been a while since I’ve been up against elven swordplay.’
Seo Jun-Ho thought as he watched the elven knights’ approach. Whether they were orcs, elves, or dwarves, each race had different beliefs, values, and desires. They also had their own principles when it came to combat.
‘And elves valued…’
Moderation and elegance. But that only pertained to normal elves. The dark elves’ swordplay was quite different.
‘Naturally, if you gain power, you’ll want to use it.’
After betraying the World Tree, they received tremendous power. But perhaps that was why they began thinking that elegant movements were restricting. In the end, their sword style deteriorated and became much more primitive.
Clang!
When Seo Jun-Ho narrowly dodged the swords that came at him, the swords hit the ground, the ceiling, and the walls instead, destroying them immediately.
‘While their sword movements are those of the elves, the way they swung their swords with such immense force was the swordsmanship that belonged to the dark elves.’
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that one hit could break all his bones. If Seo Jun-Ho allowed one to land, it would be impossible for him to continue the fight.
.
“…Mm.” His body shook, but not from fear or anxiety.
‘When was the last time I’ve felt this much adrenaline?’
Some might call him crazy, but he enjoyed the thrill of danger.
“I’m excited! Five times more than usual!” He licked his lips as he watched the five knights encircle him.
‘They’ll be a good first meal for this fellow.’
Seo Jun-Ho glanced down at Black Dragon Fang and prepared to attack. He wasn’t the type to run away or get unilaterally thrashed.
Woooosh!
Even though what was coming at him was most definitely a sword, the sound it made was more similar to that of a club. Seo Jun-Ho stepped forward and ducked his head. A sword narrowly missed the back of his head.
Slice!
A knight’s arm flew into the air. The dark elf let out a sharp cry and started to back away.
“No, no. You can’t do that~”
Stomp!
Seo Jun-Ho stepped hard on its foot.
“We were playing by your rules earlier. Now it’s my turn.”
Wooosh.
Black Dragon Fang’s burning sword ki stabbed through its stomach, and he swung his arm upward.
Riiiip.
There was a ripping sound as blood flooded from the knight’s body.
“Hm, it’s a little disappointing if this level can already be considered a knight.” Black Dragon Fang vibrated in his hand as if agreeing with its owner.
‘But other than that, I really like this sword.’
He looked down at it with eyes full of affection. Not only did it cut through the dark elven knights’ flesh like tofu but it also ripped through them like paper.
“Yes, this is what a sword should be.” He hadn’t been dissatisfied with his sword from the Association, but once he wielded Black Dragon Fang, he realized what he was missing out. The Black Dragon Fang was such a great sword that it made his old sword from the Association seem like a shabby club in comparison.
“Grrrr…” The knights started to growl.
“Huh?” At that moment, Seo Jun-Ho’s face fell. He had realized that the Players’ situation didn’t look too great.
‘Well, they’re all around level 30…even if they’ve gone on raids before, it’s probably their first time in an all-out war.’
It was impressive that they even lasted this long. They were fending off the dark elves so he could fight the knights. Seo Jun-Ho understood the situation, and he knew all too well what he had to do.
***
“Gah!”
“Are there any healers available?! We need support!”
“Available? Bullshit! Even if we had ten, we still wouldn’t have enough!”
While Seo Jun-Ho was fighting the dark elven knights, there was a momentary lull in the fighting of the players who continuously fought against their enemies.
“Dammit, they’re not even that strong…..”
“There’s just too many of them.”
“Fucking roaches.”
There was a big difference between one person killing four monsters, ten people killing forty monsters, and a hundred people killing four hundred monsters. The Players who had gone all-out in the beginning realized this too late.
“Those bastards are fighting in rotations and taking their sweet time to recover.”
“Dammit! If we could just take them in a more open area, we could take them all out in an instant!”
The dark elves were moving around like soldiers of the past. They would change positions to fight the Players. They had already taken out over a hundred dark elves up until now and hadn’t been in much danger, but they were starting to feel the pressure.
‘If this goes on, we’ll run out of energy first.’
‘One shot. We have to push through in one shot so they won’t have time to switch.’
The Players exchanged glances.
Claaaang! Clang!
There was a loud roar from dozens of meters in front of them, and the dark elves’ movements became strange.
“Huh? What? What are they doing? Why are they acting like that all of a sudden?”
“Why are they pushing each other like that? Do they have something up their sleeves?”
The dark elves had suddenly started pushing at each other as they struggled and tried to make their way forward.
Even as they tilted their heads in confusion, the Players cheered.
‘If there’s an opening, we’ll take it.’
‘But I’m a little nervous because we don’t know the reason they’re acting like this.’
‘What’s going on? They were fighting frustratingly well…’
It didn’t take long for their questions to be answered.
Clang! Bang!
The loud noises started to get closer.
“W-what’s that sound?”
“It was coming from far away before…”
But now, it was getting closer. A few minutes later, the Players were able to see what on earth was making such a loud noise.
Crash!
“Hup!”
Four tall dark elves were carrying large swords and chasing after Seo Jun-Ho like they were trying to kill him. He nimbly wove his way through, narrowly avoiding them. It was obvious, but every time they missed, they would hit the walls, ceiling, and the ground instead.
Boom!
Every hit sounded like a bomb had exploded.
But that wasn’t all…
“Kyaak!” The dark elves were starting to act irrationally, not caring if their own allies died or not. Seo Jun-Ho would briefly clash swords with them before slipping into the ranks of the dark elves as if he were mocking them.
Slice! Slice!
As he dodged the dark elven knights’ brutal attacks, the dark elves’ formations fell apart. In front of them were Players, and behind them were the monster Seo Jun-Ho and the knights that didn’t care about their lives. The dark elves had decided that the Players were the best option to save their lives and had started to blindly rush forward.
“That…”
A middle-aged veteran watched with sparkling eyes. He realized why Seo Jun-Ho was fighting so recklessly. “He’s doing that because of us.”
He had realized that they were struggling and was helping them with the dark elves before there could be casualties. The other Players looked at him in disbelief when they heard his muttering.
“No way!”
“No matter how amazing the Black Knight is, do you think he’d be able to think that through with those monsters behind him?”
The veteran Player responded with a question of his own. “Then why do you think he’s fighting so inefficiently? Is it because he’s not skilled enough?”
“…”
The Players became completely silent. They had seen with their own eyes just how outstanding Seo Jun-Ho was.
‘He was born differently from an average Player like me.’
‘He might be one of those Players that only come every hundred years, like Kim Woo-Jong or Shin Sung-hyun.’
‘If his skill had been B-grade instead of D-grade…things would be vastly different.’
There was no one here who doubted his skill. They started to see his movements in a new light.
‘He’s intentionally going to places where the dark elves are concentrated.’
‘He’s messing up their formation…wait, he’s killing dark elves too?’
‘…If I were him, I would’ve died in an instant.’
It didn’t take long for them to realize that the veteran was right. Their faces became red.
‘The monsters following him are probably dark elven knights. I’ve never seen them in the publications before.’
‘They’re much stronger than normal dark elves.’
‘He’s been paying attention to the backlines while fighting them…’
‘Just how pathetic did we look for him to come and help us?’
‘Damn, this is embarrassing.’
Embarrassment came rushing to the forefront of their thoughts. They were all certified as ‘pro Players’ by their respective Associations. As such, they had pride and confidence in their skills.
“I never thought we were this pathetic that we needed to be watched over by someone else.”
“He’s not just setting the table, he’s spoonfeeding us.”
“We weren’t strong enough, but we still have our pride.”
A fierce fighting spirit was ignited in the Players once more. On top of that, the dark elves were in disarray.
‘Wow, we really do need a lot of help…but this much should be enough.’
Seeing the Players’ determined expressions, Seo Jun-Ho fell back, luring the knights away. There were roughly 400 dark elves left, and he had destroyed their battle lines completely so it would be easy for the Players to hunt them.
“If you guys can’t win even after I did all that, you’ll all have to kneel in the hall and do some self-reflection.” As he was muttering, a weapon came aiming for his temple with a woosh. The sword came down with a lot of strength.
Clang!
Having blocked it without even looking, Seo Jun-Ho slowly turned around.
“Stop fretting. I know you worked hard to chase me around.”
He was planning on giving them a small reward for their efforts.
“I’ll kill you painlessly.”