Artifact-Devouring Player

Chapter 186: Unmeasurable - (4)

The reason Ma Dongho targeted Sanghyun wasn’t simply because he seemed like an easy target.

First of all, it was for strategic reasons.

By keeping Sanghyun, who had a close relationship with the Eden Guild, in check, they aimed to restrain both Sanghyun and the Eden Guild at once.

It was also meant as a warning that associating with the Eden Guild could earn someone a harsh lesson like this.

On another level, it was in hopes that the Eden Guild would become enraged and lash out at the Sun Guild.

In other words, it was a deliberate provocation. The Sun Guild now had enough confidence to act that way.

Secondly, this aligned with the Sun Guild’s current policy toward promising talents of rival guilds.

Pulling up a sprout by the roots before it grows properly.

This was a form of reflection on how they had failed to check Jo Jinho and Shin Taeri in the early days, which had resulted in nurturing tigers.

Even if one hadn’t joined the Eden Guild, if they were close and talented, they would be targeted regardless.

That was the Sun Guild’s current belief. To prevent another Jo Jinho or Shin Taeri from emerging.

In fact, Joo Eunhye and Ma Dongho, who had conceived this plan from the start, expected that Sanghyun wouldn’t accept the invitation.

It was an open secret that external influence was involved in the mysterious invitations.

Moreover, the match-up had been set up in a way that left Sanghyun with zero chances of winning.

It was like smashing an egg against a rock—who would bet on the egg winning? No one, of course.

‘What the f**k is this?’

But from the moment the match began, Ma Dongho was greatly flustered by Sanghyun’s aggressive assault.

Iron Wall.

That was the nickname players had given to Ma Dongho’s defensive capabilities.

It meant a barrier that wouldn’t show a single scratch no matter how much it was pounded on.

However, the wall cracked right from the start. Sanghyun’s Thunderblade attack succeeded.

The unexpected Thunderblade attack left Ma Dongho in a state of electrocution. A momentary opening.

When all his resistance mechanisms were nullified, Sanghyun followed up with his Abyssal Eye skill.

Instantly inflicted with blindness!

Blinded without warning, Ma Dongho hurriedly used an artifact to break the abnormal status.

It was a reliable fallback, but had his reaction been even slightly slower, it could have turned dangerous.

‘Can this guy even be called a swordsman? At this rate, it’s more accurate to call him a magic swordsman.’

Ma Dongho was a swordsman specialized in tanking, just like Jo Jinho.

That’s why he could quickly discern whether incoming damage was magical or physical in nature.

Naturally, when preparing to face Sanghyun, Ma Dongho set up to defend against physical damage.

All the self-buff skills he unleashed at the start of the battle were focused on defending against physical damage.

But Sanghyun’s Thunderblade and Abyssal Eye were thoroughly based on magic damage.

Even Thunderblade had only its initial damage as physical—the aftermath was all magical.

It didn’t matter.

There were rare cases of swordsmen specialized in magical damage.

Even today’s surprise commentator, Sword God So Hyeongjun, was a swordsman whose damage was magic-based—a mutant case.

The problem, however, was the sheer destructive power behind Sanghyun’s attacks.

‘It hurts way more than I thought...’

There was a clear reason.

Sanghyun had used Werther’s Wrath skill the moment the match started.

It was a high-risk skill that consumed 50% of health in the first phase and 50% of mana in the second.

Using a skill that cuts half your health without hesitation meant he had reason to do so.

‘The fatal flaw of defense-oriented swordsmen, who specialize in pre-defense and counterattacks, is that they avoid risk.’

This was exactly it.

If the opponent had an aggressive disposition, they could detect the change and immediately counterattack.

But defense-oriented types were different.

They avoided risk.

Switching to offense meant abandoning their core identity of defense.

It was a kind of dilemma—a self-imposed frame that many players fell into.

Just like how people hyping up an attack-oriented swordsman would make that player overly conscious of it.

Sanghyun saw Ma Dongho as one such case.

A named player who could pressure even Jo Jinho when it came to defense alone!

That image, built up over time, likely made it difficult for Ma Dongho to take risks himself.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

“Guh! Argh! Cough!”

Each time Sanghyun’s Nameless Sword clashed with Ma Dongho’s greatsword, his hands stung and his whole body trembled.

Werther’s Wrath, which amplified skill damage by 300%, was only the beginning of Sanghyun’s destructive sword dance.

– Since the start of the battle, Ma Dongho hasn’t been able to respond at all for over 20 seconds! What do you think, So Hyeongjun?

The commentator, who had left the early flow of battle to the crowd’s excitement and the feeling-out phase, now stepped in.

A seasoned analyst, he had already recognized that the feeling-out phase was over and the first exchange had begun.

It was something even more obvious to experts like So Hyeongjun and Dokgo Yoon.

– Player Shin Sanghyun appears to have at least two damage amplification skills. He’s quite destructive.

– Oh! And you, So Hyeongjun, are known for your conservative assessments! Yet you’re calling him destructive?

– Ma Dongho is someone who has a solid defensive line. The fact that he’s had to adjust it three times already says it all.

– Excellent! Then, Dokgo Yoon, what’s your take?

With the timely intervention of the commentator, all attention shifted to Dokgo Yoon.

If So Hyeongjun was famous for being conservative, then Dokgo Yoon was known for never saying anything nice.

“……”

Dokgo Yoon didn’t respond immediately.

Of course, his judgment was already made.

A 20-second battle.

Some might ask what could be judged in such a short time, but Dokgo Yoon thought differently.

A top athlete can tell someone’s potential and future just from their preparatory movements.

It’s the same with players.

Seeing how they start makes it easy to predict what’s to come—especially if they’re in the same class.

– The game is over.

– Pardon?

The normally unfazed commentator responded in surprise.

Of course, Dokgo Yoon hadn’t said whose game was over.

Perhaps, as many expected, he meant Sanghyun’s game was finished—it was the obvious assumption.

– Five minutes. If Ma Dongho can last five minutes, he’ll win.

– And if he can’t?

– Then he’ll die, of course. What other outcome is there? That means Ma Dongho has about four minutes left.

Dokgo Yoon’s words were firm and without the slightest hesitation.

The crowd stirred.

This reaction was even more intense because So Hyeongjun had nodded in agreement after hearing Dokgo Yoon’s words.

Why were they seeing this battle—one that was clearly like a tiger against a pup—so differently?

– The defensive line has been pushed back! It seems commentator Dokgo Yoon believes Player Ma Dongho is being overwhelmed! So Hyeongjun, do you have anything to add?

– Everyone knows, don’t they? How Player Shin Sanghyun has captivated us until now.

So Hyeongjun narrowed his eyes.

He was pointing out a reminder about Sanghyun’s abnormal status infliction.

His specialty—inducing status effects—hadn’t even started yet.

And yet, Ma Dongho was already showing signs of being pushed back. That was proof that a variable had entered the equation.

Could it be that Sanghyun was pretending to be weak to lure Ma Dongho into a false sense of security?

“Huuh! Haah! Haaagh!”

But that seemed unlikely, considering how raggedly Ma Dongho was gasping for air.

Fast. Strong. Unexpected.

These three keywords had overtaken Ma Dongho’s mind as he faced Sanghyun.

Ma Dongho wasn’t a fool.

He had tried to respond strategically, judging the intensity of Sanghyun’s assault.

Extreme Thrust!

A finishing move that unleashes damage equivalent to 1,500% of strength in an instant.

A skill typically used to finish a battle was now drawn early as a desperate measure.

However—

Thunk!

The mighty thrust aimed at Sanghyun’s abdomen didn’t pierce through—it was blocked. Ma Dongho was devastated.

It had been stopped by Sacrifice.

‘A skill that converts all damage delivered to a designated part of the body into healing power. All. Damage.’

Sanghyun smiled as he recalled the tooltip for Sacrifice. Honestly, it was a cheat-level skill.

A carefully planned decisive move by the opponent had been countered by a skill that barely even cost mana.

Even the cooldown was only 30 seconds.

If timed and directed correctly, it could nullify an enemy’s attack once every 30 seconds.

‘An unbelievable being. That’s me. Me—Shin Sanghyun.’

He reaffirmed his worth.

Unbelievable. Unreal.

Weren’t those the words always used to describe him? That hadn’t changed now either.

At that moment—

“Graaaagh!”

With his heat flaring, Ma Dongho’s entire body turned red as he charged at Sanghyun like a runaway train.

It was so fast that even Sanghyun didn’t have time to react—an unexpected development.

Boom!

“Urgh!”

It was Ma Dongho, after all.

Tremendous force was transmitted through the impact, and it was stronger than Sanghyun had anticipated.

Struck in the abdomen with an elbow, the shock rippled through his body, making his internal organs feel like they were being shaken.

It was strong enough that Sanghyun felt grateful he hadn’t suffered organ rupture.

Whoosh!

A powerful gust blew as Sanghyun was pushed back.

A natural knockback effect caused by the collision! It was right before Ma Dongho could unleash a terrifying combo.

But then—

『Recovery』

Sanghyun shifted the momentum.

He accepted that the damage from Ma Dongho’s attack was unavoidable—time couldn’t be reversed.

But he had no intention of allowing the knockback.

He had expected to be pushed back by pure force, but contrary to his assumption, it was actually a skill.

Just like Sanghyun’s Knockback Burst, Ma Dongho’s skill had a knockback effect—it was also a status effect skill.

Ironically, this worked against Ma Dongho, since there was a way to negate it.

Recovery—a skill that instantly clears all status effects on the user or a target.

Thanks to this, Sanghyun, who would’ve been flung far back, suddenly stopped in place—as if a wall were behind him!

This threw off Ma Dongho’s calculations.

Just when his greatsword was midway through a powerful swing, expecting Sanghyun to be far away—

“F**k.”

Ma Dongho found Sanghyun’s Nameless Sword already under his chin.

It was a fatal miscalculation—born from a complete breakdown in Ma Dongho’s analysis of Sanghyun.