The muddy ground of the Bamboo Forest bursts into vibrant color.
Take a step back at the moment it shoots up.
The dagger imbued with magic power absorbed the impact with a clear sound.
—
It couldn’t possibly end in one strike.
Skeletons hidden within the bamboo leaped forth, their spears leading the charge, while from the distance came the sound of hoofbeats.
Without even needing to see, the origin of the sound was a Death Knight. The direction: the right rear flank.
Retreating might be one option, but right now, let’s break through directly.
The undead around me will become my shield instead.
—
I bat away the bone spears that rain down.
Where possible, I dodge, but if it interferes with my movement, I first attempt a parry.
—
Having thrown one dagger beforehand, I slide along the ground and advance.
The corpses on the muddy ground rise as the Necromancer’s undead, becoming a wall of meat.
It was a wall of flesh reeking of putridity.
—
This is why I dislike Necromancer types.
While I tend to have high synergy, my sense of smell is especially sensitive.
Irrespective of the outcome, it spoils my mood.
In the midst of this foul stench, I managed to narrow the distance to the Plague Doctor.
—
“You manipulate these foul-smelling things quite well.”
“The mask I’m wearing isn’t exactly stylish, but you can insert herbs in the beak.”
“What?”
—
Is there such a secret?
What a cowardly bastard…
—
I thought we were equally enduring this smell.
Deep within my chest, a betrayal soon transforms into a desire for revenge.
—
The dagger, imbued with hatred and fury, slashes through the bone shield.
The next strike narrowly grazes the wrist, and the one after that succeeds in piercing the opposite shoulder.
Realizing it might not end this way, a rusted spear rises from Crow’s shadow.
—
The undead that bursts forth from the shadow quickly takes form.
It’s the second Death Knight. He must have hidden it near himself.
—
At the command, the Corpse Knight vigorously wields the spear.
Though there’s an undeniable difference between the Player and the summoned entity, it’s still impossible to kill such a high-tier undead in one strike.
Ultimately, I had to let the fleeing Crow go.
—
“It’s fine. Let’s think this through calmly. The opponent has chosen the most straightforward combination.”
—
From the semifinals onward, the competition proceeds as a best-of-five.
If I can only control my impatience, I could afford to give one round for reconnaissance without too much burden.
And Crow’s skill selection was overtly aimed at responding to me.
—
Given that we’ve met in the semifinals, we lack sufficient information on each other.
There aren’t many matches left in my recorded play—maybe around ten at most—and Crow has slightly more than that.
—
Having already come prepared, they likely mastered almost everything seen so far.
But a lingering question remains: “Is that really all there is?”
The answer is clear. I still have plenty more to show.
—
It’s lucky timing. There’s no break between the semifinal and the final, so introducing some variation would be advantageous.
If Luche and Cerberus are watching this match, it’ll surely leave a fresh impact.
—
Habits during battle? Following sword paths that my body has become accustomed to?
There’s no way I’d have such a thing, right?
If there were, I definitely wouldn’t be unaware of it.
—
The monsters I’ve faced were the type burdened with vulnerabilities, the kind I can’t possibly win against.
That’s why the person I’ve painstakingly analyzed the most in my life has always been my friend, and the second person is myself.
It’s not that I left them uncorrected. It’s simply that there’s been no need so far.
—
If I miss, I can always chase again.
Having beheaded the Death Knight, I locate the Necromancer once more.
—
[Effect of ‘Whisper of the Black Moon’ activated.]
[All attack power, movement speed, and counterattack judgment improved.]
[Some skills are enhanced…]
—
Necromancers have more means to protect themselves compared to regular Wizards.
Take the bone sphere from the first ambush, the walls of flesh created by Ghouls, and the Death Knights that serve as excellent bodyguards.
But in return, they cannot use Blink, a common survival skill for other mages.
—
A bit tougher, but you can win if you hang on until the end.
—
Using the dagger thrown earlier, I move along the shadow.
Stepping on the undead hand that tries to grab my ankle, I leap up, using the bamboo as a pole to change my direction in midair.
Just suppress their long casting spells by throwing weapons.
—
The corpse explosion of the pursuing Ghoul caught my guard gauge, but I managed to endure it.
The rotten meat fragments didn’t go past my collar and fell to the ground.
—
Corpse Explosion is a powerful skill.
But the undead consumed by this spell won’t return until the match ends.
Normally, you’d use the ones that have fulfilled their purpose first, slowly. But now, they’ve been used hurriedly compared to the original plan.
—
It’s fair to interpret that the opponent’s available cards are quickly being depleted.
Perhaps, with this approach, the skills they’ve been hiding will start to emerge.
Now that I’ve cleared a few undead blocking the way, I’ve drastically reduced the distance to Crow.
—
“…!”
“I’ve got you.”
—
Carving an X with my dagger destroys the bone fragments.
I mutilate the defenseless Wizard’s body in sequence, starting from the wrist, followed by the thigh and the ribs.
—
The staff wielder’s movements are surprisingly composed and clean.
Though a couple of attacks were blocked, that’s only to be expected from a Wizard’s derivative Class.
In this state, where the distance has been closed, they’re nothing but prey for an Assassin.
—
As the blade sinks into the abdomen, magical power gathers at my feet.
—
‘The gaze that checked above then moved downward. Something might be coming, but it seems preparations are not yet ready?’
—
I spin backwards to avoid the rising bones and throw my rope-tethered dagger.
The dagger spins around the bone pillar a few times.
After confirming the rope is tightly secured, I pull it forcefully and swiftly move.
—
With a refreshing rush of wind, the ascending speed is exhilarating.
Releasing the rope at the perfect moment, the black robe reenters my range.
The two daggers immediately pierce the shoulder blades, drawing blood.
—
“Are you going to show everything you’ve got, or will you die next time?”
“I know…!”
—
The staff strikes the ground again.
At the same time, the eyes of all undead turn red.
—
From Crow’s shadow, the final Death Knight and a Dullahan among other high-tier undead burst out randomly.
This is obvious. The Necromancer has initiated an all-out attack.
The wriggling mass of flesh on the Ghouls is likely the precursor to the Corpse Explosion.
—
The distance widened again as I dealt with the high-tier undead.
While blocking a few flying fragments, I resume the chase.
Passing through the bamboo forest, an enormous shadow loomed overhead.
—
A Bone Dragon.
The highest-tier undead the Necromancer can summon appears.
—
*
—
《Crow finally achieves the summoning conditions! After the near depletion of their stamina from Gawol’s relentless attacks, they narrowly manage to recover!》
《Still, we need to watch. The situation isn’t easy. They’ve sacrificed half of their undead just to buy time. They need to capture Gawol within the berserker timeframe.》
《It seems like Gawol will try to drag out the time… However, at this moment, Gawol begins to charge in quickly!》
《An unexpected decision. It seems they’re confident and want to end it swiftly?》
—
The silver-haired Assassin penetrates through the ranks of the undead.
Exiting the explosion range just before the corpses detonate, easily evading the Skeletons’ spear blades.
Speed, which the commentators’ cameras can’t even capture, charges undaunted forward.
—
A judgment Gawol wouldn’t have made until now.
Until now, the Assassin who chose steady victories, no matter how slow, has now made a risky choice.
—
Only a few can guess the reason.
Fortunately, Cerberus is among that small group.
A laugh of exasperation escapes, as if the absurdity amused them.
—
“Doing this in the semifinals. You must’ve had a lot of leeway.”
—
A thick stack of papers flies directly into the trash can.
It was the report the analysis team spent sleepless nights preparing these past few days.
Though the content’s details were memorized thoroughly, it became useless at this point.
—
The personality and playstyle have completely changed.
Habits have disappeared as if they’ve become a different person entirely.
Starting a fresh analysis from now will undoubtedly lead to entirely different conclusions, and the implication of this fact is clear.
—
Until now, all the inept analysis was meaningless.
Even if a new one is done immediately, the authenticity would still be questionable.
To understand the audacious Assassin, the only method is direct confrontation on the battlefield.
—
The spectacular combustion of low-tier undead. The massive breath attack of the Bone Dragon.
In the blink of an eye, the Bamboo Forest battlefield has become a hell of sorts. The lush bamboo collapses under the green flames, and shattered corpse fragments litter the craters.
The Assassin’s body isn’t unscathed, but none of the wounds are fatal.
—
From the sky, from the ground, and from the empty air.
Not a single bone fragment summoned has managed to pierce through.
By a mere margin of the length of a fingernail, not a single one has managed to scratch the Assassin’s skin.
—
《It’s incredible! Who knew Gawol could perform this well?》
《Even though Gawol excelled physically, this is amazing! The player who we previously thought as a cunning fox is now acting like a fierce tiger!》
—
The inevitable end for the Wizard, who has used all their prepared cards.
The trial-surviving Assassin mercilessly plunges the blade into the neck.
The injured female body briefly appears on screen as the game concludes.
—
