NOVEL NEXT Chapter 359
Kayak is a celebrity. Among streamers on Twitch, there’s hardly anyone who doesn’t know her.
Approaching someone like Kayak first and starting a fuss takes a significant amount of courage.
Moreover, Kayak’s fandom is rumored to be fiercely loyal, with stories suggesting that her fans are just as crazy as she is.
Thus, the man stepping forward, Han-yul, could only nervously swallow his saliva.
Of course, rather than a real confrontation, it was more like playful banter since she had merely found a dragon’s nest and casually stepped in, but there’s no way the viewers would know that.
Already posts like “Who do those guys think they are, coming to bother Kayak?” were popping up in the community as evidence.
“Completely treated as the villain.”
In fact, Han-yul felt utterly wronged.
It was the same for the Hana Guild, who were also gradually extracting clues through conversations with Grandfather Hemet.
The one who used underhanded tactics first was Kayak. Instead of talking to NPCs, she was going around robbing houses.
Such an approach was something the well-meaning Hana Guild members wouldn’t even think of, let alone that it worked.
However, viewers would never understand such backstory. Han-yul didn’t necessarily wish for them to.
What he was more concerned about was something else.
“Someone we can fight against…?”
“Are you saying we should take on Kayak?”
“Exactly.”
“Ugh…”
Hearing the response, Han-yul let out a hollow laugh.
Certainly, he understood that the confidence to say such a thing wasn’t unfounded. Given Kayak’s fame, her impressive physical abilities were well-known, so he couldn’t completely blame them.
Still, it first struck him as sheer audacity.
Kayak’s combat level was only 37. Meanwhile, they were a combat guild known for their top-tier raids.
All the raid members were already above level 90 and looking to hit 100.
As a streamer specializing in popular RPG games, Han-yul knew well how unreasonable the gap in in-game levels could lead to disastrous outcomes.
There was no need to say how ridiculous Kayak’s challenge seemed to him.
“Shouldn’t we be the ones receiving the challenge instead?”
But, well, if that’s what he wanted, it wouldn’t be impossible to oblige. From a broadcasting perspective, this kind of scenario wasn’t too shabby either.
“That’s not an abyss.”
There’s no way to overturn an overwhelming level difference.
As the guild leader, Han-yul stepped forward first, brandishing his spear.
“I’ll take on the challenge first. If I win, you have to tell me the code written on the map.”
This was a fair enough condition to put forth. Kayak nodded in agreement like a supportive sidekick.
“Alright, here I go.”
“Yes.”
On the opposite side, Kayak gazed at him with an arrogant expression, almost like she was welcoming him.
*
I can’t stress enough that the Taker server is exceptionally well-designed.
Despite being created from a block-stacking game, it has an impressive level of quality.
The reason why a dragon appears and I can run a casino is all thanks to that high level of quality.
And that quality includes Taker’s own combat system.
In the past, while running the casino, I occasionally ventured into dungeons to check how attacks worked and the range of skills.
After all, I was a nut for combat.
Even while earning money at the casino, the boiling blood inside me urged me to start hunting right away.
Whether it was a person or a monster, something whispered for me to spill their blood.
Hmm, saying it like this makes me sound a bit mad. Like a bloodthirsty berserker.
If I were to put it more gently, I could say I’m a warrior thirsty for battle.
Anyway, while I ran the casino, I observed how the Taker server’s combat functioned several times, and I was assured of one thing.
With this system, there would be no unfair deaths due to control issues.
Remarkably, the Taker server could fully handle my controls.
Even if I pressed the button too quickly and faced issues like key sticking, it wouldn’t be strange at all. It seemed Taker had some excellent developers.
[What does that have to do with the current situation?]
[You asked if I’m confident, and you’re just dodging the question.]
[Taker server is designed for easy control; what have you been hearing?]
[So you think we can beat a raid boss with a level over 90?]
[Aah… levels are meaningless to Camilla.]
[It’s all about the romance of dueling, haha. Cheers!]
[What even are levels, you guys? Camilla doesn’t care about that, haha!]
“I don’t know about that, haha!”
“Talking about leveling up is a bit of a loser move, haha. Real men don’t worry about that stuff.”
“There’s gonna be a few thousand difference in stamina, hmm.”
“The broadcast host is confident, haha.”
That’s why we can win. I’ve never fought against such a high-level user, but I’ve already gained some PVP experience through Kapu and An-sae, etc.
“I’m going.”
Was it Han-yul? The one who looks like the leader of that side stepped up first, just by glancing.
Nod—
As soon as I signal, a burly guy wielding a spear rushes over here.
With an overwhelming ferocity. Seeing the rainbow-like aura swirling around his body, he must have buffed himself beforehand.
“Wow, he even used a buff, whoa!”
“How serious can he be?”
“The broadcast host did provoke him a bit, to be fair.”
The viewers were shocked, but I was actually happy about it.
If we don’t clash with all our might, it means nothing. We won’t hold back just because our levels are low.
Swoosh—
The sharp spear tip grazes right past me.
I’d seen the motion earlier, but with the stat difference being so large, I had no choice but to barely dodge it.
It’s definitely tricky. It feels like I’m fighting with sandbags strapped all over me.
‘Still…’
I can do this, if it’s me.
I concentrate. My brain cells start to ignite at my command. A strange sensation tingles in a corner of my head.
Vroom—
I dodge again.
But the level difference isn’t impossible to narrow down. In the Taker server, not only are skills but also all basic attacks inherently non-targeted.
If I suddenly pull my body back right as he’s about to strike, it’s bound to be tricky for him to land a hit.
“Are you dodging normal attacks right now?”
“This is insane….”
“That physical ability is really impressive—.”
“Come on, Kayak!”
“But it doesn’t change the fact! Keep pressing on like this!”
Even while continuing the battle, I can hear the voices of the crowd. Hearing Kapu’s voice cheering me on, I raised my arm once again.
As a person, there are bound to be openings. Especially when it’s not even a formal game yet, just a freshly launched Taker server.
That means control mistakes can happen.
‘Now.’
As I dodge, I trigger two skills in succession. The ‘Charge’ that knocks the opponent back with my body and the ‘Strike of Justice’ that boosts my next three attacks.
Evading while simultaneously unleashing two skills. The ‘Charge’ that pushes the opponent back with my body. And the ‘Strike of Justice’ that strengthens the next three attacks.
My blazing sword tip momentarily targets the defenseless Han-yul, who had just been knocked back.
“Ugh!”
Realizing he made a mistake, he quickly regained his stance with a regretful voice.
But it was too late. At least these three hits would count as valid damage.
If I keep exploiting openings and gradually whittle down their health like this—
“Huh?”
However, at that moment, an unexpected event occurred.
Did my sword just hit Han-yul’s armor a couple of times? Suddenly, my screen turned gray. In other words, my character died out of nowhere.
“Kayak has died?!”
“It’s a victory for the Hana Guild!”
“Whoa! Han-yul! Han-yul! Han-yul! Han-yul!”
“Wait, but there’s almost a 60-level difference. Shouldn’t we be cautious instead of celebrating…?”
[???? What?]
[Did I die?]
[Was I stabbed from behind?]
[What the heck just happened?]
Amidst Kapu’s scream and the cheers of Han-yul’s guild members, I and the viewers were utterly confused.
At that moment, Han-yul approached me and resurrected me with an artifact, saying:
“You died from reflection damage.”
“Reflection damage?”
“It’s an enchantment effect on my armor that absorbs a portion of damage and sends it back to the attacker. The amount isn’t that high, but…”
Han-yul took off his armor and handed it to me, indicating I should take a look. Upon checking, it actually had a reflection option that reflected damage.
“Ah…”
“Your health and defense are so low that it looks like that’s what did you in. I didn’t think you’d die from that, though. How ridiculous…”
That was Han-yul’s interpretation.
He seemed to find it quite absurd as well.
Honestly, dying from reflection damage? That’s such a lame and unromantic ending. Just utterly disappointing.
[Died to thorn armor, lol]
[This is ridiculous, haha. How many basic hits did I even land?]
[The level gap is indeed massive, haha…]
[Guess I really need to level up?]
[It’s not even a control issue; I just can’t attack!]
[If the dragon has reflection damage, wouldn’t I be unable to defeat it?]
[I can’t even suggest raiding together after this embarrassing moment.]
“Ahem…”
I cleared my throat slightly and lowered the camera.