Emperor of Solo Play - Chapter 185

Chapter 185

Chapter 185 – Barbarian King (2)

4 .

“I’m sorry .  We can’t abandon the forest .  We can’t run away . ”

The voice was light, and it was filled with sorrow .  Still, the voice was very beautiful, and it tickled one’s ears .  A man, who looked like a fighting dog, silently looked at the character, who spoke .   He gritted his teeth .

“Whistling hyung-nim!  It is almost right in front of our noses!”

“Whistling oppa!  It would be best if we leave right now!”

A man and a woman yelled to the rough looking man from afar .

Yojori and Joba were comrades of Whistling, but they had also become his dongsaengs .  However, he didn’t answer them .

He looked at a pointy eared elf with pink short hair .  She had on a hairpin made out of cherry blossoms clipped to her hair .

“Please go . ”

The Elf let out a bright smile towards Whistling, and she lightly put her hands on his chest .

“We won’t forget the effort you exerted for us .  We’ll even imprint your story in the Record Fruit . When the Record Seed sprouts and grows, it will remember you .  It’ll will be seen by our descendents . ”

The Elf, who had put her hand on Whistling’s chest, turned, and she started to run towards an unknown destination .  It wasn’t just a single Elf .   Numerous Elves, who looked similar to a pink colored buds of a cherry blossom, was running through the forest .

[You have acquired the title ‘The Great Benefactor of the Elves’ . ]

[You have acquired the title ‘One who received the Blessing of the Elves’ . ]

[The effect of the title, ‘One who received the Blessing of the Elves’, will allow your movement speed to increase by 10% at locations where trees are present . ]

Even during such a ruckus, Whistling heard the System Announcement regarding the acquisition of his Titles .

The Announcement would have given goosebumps to most Users .  This might be one of handful of Titles coveted the most in terms of worth .  The eyes of most Users would have flipped around from jealousy .  It was a valuable Title .  

However, the value of the Title didn’t register in Whistling’s ears or eyes .

‘Shit . ’

They were at a half-moon shaped lake located in the southeast region of the Black Continent .  It was called the Ohokal .

The lake was a stage with a forest filled with cherry blossom trees next to it .  The region was always fragrant, and it always gave off a fresh feeling .

The Simia tribe was an Elven tribe, who decided to reside in this region .  They wore outfits that went very well with their surrounding .  The Elves of the Simia tribe always had on accessories that reminded one of a cherry blossom .

On the surface, this region looked very beautiful, but it was crawling with monsters over Level 220 .

However, even amongst such difficulties, the Simia tribe protected and maintained their way of life .

However, a being that the Elves wouldn’t be able to win against was coming towards their lands .

Barbarian King!

The Stormhunters guild had awakened this monster about a month ago, and it was roaming around the Black Continent .  Every region it passed through turned into hell .

At that moment, the Barbarian King had brought several thousand monsters, and they were getting ready to cross the Ohokal Lake .

However, the Simia tribe decided to fight back against the Barbarian King .  They decided to mount a defense for their land by the lake .

They would meet their end here .

“Hyung-nim!”

“Oppa!”

They’ll fall .

At that moment, Whistling didn’t want to make such guarantees, but the Simia tribe wouldn’t be able to defend their land from the Barbarian King .  The System called Warlord wouldn’t allow it .

The Warlord’s System would only allow Users to defeat the Barbarian King .

This truth was revealed by the Steel Lion Knights, who crossed the Urugal mountain range .  They cut through the wall of Level 240 monsters like butter to reach the Barbarian King, but they were crushed in a horrible manner .  The Barbarian King hadn’t received even a scratch in the fight, and it gave credence to this truth .

This was a game .

“Shit!”

However, Whistling couldn’t accept the excuse that this was merely a game .  He wouldn’t take this situation lying down .

“Yojori!  Joba!  You guys get out of here!”

“What?”

“I’ll fight here .  I’ll stop the Barbarian King here . ”

After hearing his words, Yojori and Joba had the same expression on their faces .  They were dumbfounded .

Whistling wanted to stop the Barbarian King?

There had already been many attempts to pull off such a feat .  

Numerous Raid teams were formed for the purpose of killing the Barbarian King .  These were raid attempts with a good deal of preparation and forethought behind it .

All of them failed miserably .

The reason why the Barbarian King was coming to this place was the fact that all previous Raid Teams had failed .

Yet he wanted to stop the Barbarian King?

This was an absolutely absurd statement .

“Ok .  Let’s do this . ”

“The worst that can happen is a Game Over .  Let us fight together .  Anyways, our Quest is gone, because of the Barbarian King . ”

“The act of walking back to the Heard Fortress ruin town will be arduous .  Let’s just die and get sent there at once . ”

“We can’t turn back now .  We have to try something .  Absolutely!”

However, Yojori and Joba had already evaluated the situation that’ll unfold soon .  Their faces relaxed, and they put on bright expressions .

Whistling gritted his teeth at their words .  The two of them were choosing to suffer through a Game Over for him .  He was thankful, and he was sorry .  

However, at that moment, Whistling didn’t express those two feelings .

“All right .  Let us become heroes for once . ”

They would show their will .  Their will was inelegant and worthless, but they would express their will .

However, there was no way they would become heroes .

5 .

[You Level has increased . ]

[Bone Dragon Skill Rank has increased to Rank C . ]

[Iron Golem Skill Rank has increased to Rank C . ]

[Death Knight Skill Rank has increased to Rank B . ]

[Skeleton Exhibition Skill Rank has increased to Rank D . ]

[You’ve acquired the Title ‘Slaughterer of the Tattoo Scorpions’ . ]

There were so many consecutive System Announcement that it was almost tiring to hear it .

Each accumulation of these Announcements was good news, but Hyrkan’s ears didn’t pay attention to the sound .

He raised his head, and he looked at the monster he was stepping on .

His foot was on the Tattoo Scorpion’s tail .  It was a 7 meters long monster with tattoos all over its body .

Doohk ddoohk!

Big drops of poison was falling from the tip of the Tattoo Scorpion’s tail .  It was the size of a man’s head .

Hyrkan’s HP slowly fell as the poison dripped .  Hrykan bit down on the red candy inside his mouth .  

Accompanying a taste akin to a spicy garlic, his HP started to rise .

Since he had a time for a breather, Hyrkan looked at his defensive set .  

It wasn’t invincible, but the spotted armor had more defense than any other defensive set in Warlord .  However, the Dark Spot set had holes in various locations right now, and the holes were the size of the stinger on the Tattoo Scorpion’s tail .

‘It is time for me to change it . ’

Dark Spot set .

He had used it for a very long time, and it was finally time to say goodbye to this Item .

It was a late goodbye .  Even if it was a very good Item, it was only a level 180 set, yet it was being used in a level 260 hunting ground .  If one expected one to be fine using such an Item here, one would be expecting too much .

This was also the reason why he was killing the Tattoo Scorpions .

‘Well, I’ll have to use this opportunity to switch out everything . ’

Tattoo Scorpion .

It was a mid-sized Level 260 Monster .  When one went deeper into the Red Desert, one would arrive at the Red Wasteland .  One could encounter this monster there, and it was the highest Level monster encountered by Users in Warlord as of now .  Moreover, it had the best Option amongst Rare Rank Items that could be crafted from normal monsters over Level 240 .

The best feature activated when one wore all 5 parts .  The effect of the Tattoo Scorpion’s Tattoo Pattern was quite good .

When one attacked, it could impose a Poison Status on one’s opponent .  Moreover, the poison was quite powerful .

Hyrkan decided to use this opportunity to equip all his Skeletons with the Tattoo Scorpion Set .

It had been about a month, since the Barbarian King had appeared, and this was why Hyrkan had stuck to hunting only the Tattoo Scorpions .

Now he was reaping the benefit of staying in this location for a month .

He had reached Level 253 .

One could find Hyrkan’s name in the Level Rankings now .  There was only a 12 level gap between him and the First One .

Moreover, he had gathered a lot of Items .  He had obtained enough Items to equip 30 Skeletons with a full set .  Thirty sounded small, but each set had five parts .  Basically, he had acquired 150 Rare Items .   Normal Users wouldn’t even be able to imagine the process involved in killing so many Tattoo Scorpions .

This was why Hyrkan was able to earn a profit through the footage .  Hyrkan poured his money into this hunt .

He wasn’t as rich as the old Rich Lich, but it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that Hyrkan was spending as much as him .

Despite this fact, Hyrkan’s account was in the surplus .  Even as he went nuts in spending his money, there was always money left in Hyrkan’s Wallet .

This was the best .

His incredible Level Up pace had him in spitting distance to First One, who was 1st in the rankings .  His free-handed investments allowed him to quickly raise the Skill Ranks, and he had  acquired Level 250 Rare Items by killing powerful monsters .  All of this process was being consumed by voracious viewers .  His viewers didn’t hesitate to pay for his content .  They wanted to see everything he did .

While he was doing all of this, the Black Continent was slowly descending into hell thanks to the efforts of the Barbarian King .  All of Hahoe Mask’s competitors were being killed under the tyrannical rule of the Barbarian King .  

Hahoe Mask was leaving everyone in the dust .

This situation was unbelievably great for him .

When he realized he had returned to the past, he had been really glad that he would be able to play this game again .  At the time, he could have never imagined that he would reach such an optimal situation, yet Hyrkan had climbed to the top .

So why was he feeling this way?

‘······this is boring . ’

A yawn came out of his mouth .

He had achieved the goal he had always pined for .  Riches and fame was within his grasp, and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was the best in this game .  

However, the recent Tattoo Scorpion Hunt was the most boring period of time he had experienced since he started Warlord .

‘I was never bored when I fought against the Stormhunters guild… . ’

This was a first .

While Hyrkan played Warlord, the game sometimes made him annoyed and angry .  There were many instances where he swore at the game .  However, he never thought that the game of Warlord was boring .

Even when he was warring with the Stormhunters guild,  he cussed them out in anger .  He was sick and tired of them .  However, he never thought the game was boring .

When he killed five to six guild members of the Stormhunters guild, he felt joy .  He felt happy when he broke through the tribulation in the style of the Hero Slaughterer .   He had enjoyed Warlord in those moments .

Hyrkan turned his head .  His surrounding was filled Skeleton Warriors, who had been brilliant in their fight against the Tattoo Scorpions .  The Skeleton Warriors were staring back at him .  They were waiting for their master to give a new order .

‘Now that I think about it, they fight intelligently even without my training . ’

He thought about a fond memory of his . In the beginning, he had ruthlessly pushed the Skeleton Warriors to train them .  However, they no longer needed his training .  The Skeleton’s Combat AI was a finished product .  It was splendid .  The repeated training and battles allowed them to become extraordinary warriors .  At the very least, they would be able to hold their own weight in any fight .

The Skeletons were better than most Users, and he had 100 Skeletons under his command .  In the near future, he’ll also use the Transcendent Ancient Power on the Death Knight when it became Rank A .  

Who’ll be able to rival him at that point?

Royal Road!

The road of an emperor could be seen in front of him right now .  If he followed this road, he’ll surely become the best .

However, Hyrkan wasn’t interested in what was waiting at the end of the road .

Hyrkan lowered his head .

It was as if he was trying to avoid the gazes of his Skeleton Warriors .

“······fuck . ”

In the end, a swear word came out of his mouth .

The one to break his dull and boring day was a call from his friend .

6 .

– I want to borrow your name, Hahoe Mask .

Whistling had contacted Hyrkan out of nowhere, and the request was quite sudden .

Before Hyrkan could reply to his request, Whistling quickly explained his situation .  He sounded desperate as if he was being chased by something .

– You don’t have to do anything .  I know this is asking a lot from you .  I just… .   I need your name .  Please let me borrow your name .

Hyrkan calmed him down before asking for an explanation .  Afterwards, Whistling calmly explained the plan he came up with .

– I’m planning on killing the Barbarian King .  However, as you probably know, the 30 great guilds won’t participate in the Barbarian King Raid .  In the end, the regular Users have to be gathered to form a Raid Team… .  I plan on using the Hahoe Mask name to gather the normal Users .  If it becomes known that you’ll step forward forward for the Barbarian King raid, many Users will participate .

At the end, he gave his apologies .

– I know this request is a bit much .  This is why if the Raid fails… .  I’ll tell them I made it all up .  I’ll tell them I sold you out .  Still, there might be some backlash towards you… .   I’m asking for a favor .  I can’t leave the Barbarian King alone .  Even if this is only a game, I can’t just stand by and watch this unfold .  I don’t want to wait as I pray for the 30 great guilds to move .

Finally, the meat of the conversation started .

“So you want to kill the Barbarian King?”

– The Users are pretty much fed up .  They are very unsatisfied with the Barbarian King .  If it becomes known that you want to catch the Barbarian King, there are a lot of Users, who would want to help you .  No, you don’t have to do anything .  I’ll say this again .  All I need is… .

“What clear method will you use to take down the Barbarian King?  You have to destroy the Protection Gem at Phase 1 .  That wouldn’t be too difficult .  However, you don’t have any method at your disposal that will allow you to damage it once it enters the 2nd phase called Storm Judgement Mode . ”

– I researched the Main Scenario Quest, and I found a clue .  Moreover…  The next attempt at the Barbarian King Raid would be the 31st attempt .  I plan on using the clue as the basis for the next clear method .

“What is that method?”

– The method is……

Whistling first told him about the clue he was able to find in the Main Scenario quest .  Then he started explaining his clear method .

“Ooh-hahaha . ”

As he listened to Whistling’s words, laughter suddenly erupted from Hyrkan’s mouth .  The excessive amount of laughter indicated that Hyrkan was delighted .   He was having a hard time stopping his laughter .

“Sorry .  Ah .  I’m really sorry . ”

Hyrkan was barely able to suppress his laughter, and he gave his apology .

– Were you in the middle of something?  If so, I’ll call a bit later… .

Whistling couldn’t understand why Hyrkan gave an apology .  He also couldn’t comprehend Hyrkan’s laughter .

All he could do was apologize .

Did he perhaps interrupt Hyrkan, when he was doing something very important?

When he had this thought, Whistling wanted to immediately end the call .  He was too embarrassed about his own actions .  He was trying to use his friend in such a manner .

‘As expected, this suits my constitution . ’

Hyrkan unburdened Whistling’s heart .

“Yes .  The Hahoe Mask should do this .  This isn’t something a knock-off Hahoe Mask can do .  This is something the real Hahoe Mask should take on . ”

The game had been boring .  For over a month, he plowed through the game as he yawned .  This incident had suddenly made Hyrkan’s heart beat faster .

Hyrkan didn’t want to avoid feeling such a thrill .  No, palpitation of his heart was like the sound of an engine that was a must for Hyrkan when he played Warlord .

“You set it up .  I’ll go catch that bastard .  I’ll kill the Barbarian King . ”

As he spoke, Hyrkan stood up .  When he started to move, the Skeletons followed Hyrkan with their gazes .

“Ah .  I’ll catch the Barbarian King by myself .  From what you have told me, it’ll be more troublesome if there are too many Users there . ”

– You want to do it alone, Hyrkan? Even if it is you, you won’t be able to solo the Barbarian King…

Hyrkan gave a command to his Skeletons .

“I have t solo it .  If not, I won’t be able to eat all the benefits by myself .  Of course, I’m not by myself . ”

He gave his instructions!  His next target was the Barbarian King!

7 .

Kooohng!

It was a giant .

It had massive legs that made one think about pillars .  Its legs were massive, but its large body made its legs look puny .  It was a giant with long and thick arms .

Koohng!

The giant was wearing a golden armor .  The armor was very flashy, and the armor was decorated with numerous adornments .  The ornaments that stood out the most were the gems of various colors .  

There were 31 gems and each of them were bigger than a person’s head .  They were so bright that they were radiant .

Koohng!

The most striking feature was the head of the giant .  It had large fan-like ears like an elephant .  It had a long nose and it also possessed ivory tusks .  However, the gleam in its eyes wasn’t like that of an elephant .

The sclera of the eye was black, and the pupil was yellow .  It looked like the eyes of a dragon .  No, it was probably Dragon Eyes .

Koohng!

The 7 meters tall giant wore golden armor .  Moreover, it possessed Dragon Eyes and the head of an elephant .  

Every step it took caused the ground to shake .

It possessed enormous strength, and it possessed an incredible presence!

Its name was Nesha .

Barbarian King Nesha!

This being had carried out the Dragon’s Judgement .  It had made ruins of strong and prosperous Kingdoms, who had fought against the Dragon early on .  

It possessed the authority of the Dragon, and it was able to command any uncivilized beings, who were barbaric .  It was able to command all beings, who lived by following their instincts .

The monsters stepped forward for the sake of building up the king’s dignity .

The forest looked endless, but each step taken by the king eliminated the trees .

Shweek, shweek!

The monsters, who possessed sharp tools, were cutting down the trees .

Poo-hwaht!

Those with no weapons pulled the trees and boulders by its roots .  A large road formed, and it was wide enough for the Barbarian King to walk on it .

Koohng!

The Barbarian King took the next step only when the path was clear .

This was the regality of a king .

The king was overflowing with majesty, and several hundred Users looked on from afar .  

As if they had all agreed to do this, the Users started to sneer as they disparaged the Barbarian King .  They started making invidious remarks .

“Bitch .  We’ll kill you this time . ”

“We now know the clear method for the 2nd Phase .  We know it works .  We’ll catch you this time around . ”

When the invidious remarks ended, the leader in charge of the group spoke .

“Ready the Fire Storm!”

– We’re ready!

“Fire!”

The answer was immediate .

Accompanying the replies, clouds started to form atop the monsters, who were making the road for the king .  The clouds were tinted red, and the clouds started to let out the contents they held within .

Hwah-roo-roohk, hwah-roo-roohk!

Fire started to rain down .

Fire Storm!

Amongst the AOE magic, it boasted the biggest range .  This wasn’t just a single spell being used .  Several dozen Fire Storms were activated at once .  In a flash, a region as large as 5 or 6 soccer fields were being impacted by showers made out of fire .

Hwah-rooo-roo!

The rain was making the trees into torches, and the vegetations were turned into a wild fire . In a flash, a sea made of fire came into being .

This was only the beginning .

“Fireball Toss!”

– Toss!

– Toss!

The monsters were making a big commotion as they felt the heat from the sea of fire .  They started to run towards the source of the fire .

Several hundred monsters were running towards the Users, and enormous balls of fire started to roll towards them .

Deh-gool, deh-gool!

The balls of fire were rolling across field ablaze from fire .  It was like akin to a snowball rolling down the snowbank .  The balls became larger as they rolled .

When the balls of fire came close to the monsters, they were big enough to swallow the monsters .

Puh-uhng, puh-uhng!

The monsters were sent flying as if they were bowling pins .  They were crushed and broken .

Kwah-kwah-kwah!

The balls of fire showed no signs of stopping, yet they were blocked by monsters, who boasted big bodies .  The medium and large sized monsters stood near the Barbarian King .  The Ogres, Trolls, Minotaurs and other large monsters blocked the balls of fire with their bodies .

Ooh-uh-uh!

These monsters had no choice, but to block the fireballs with their bodies, and cries erupted from their mouths .

Still, the monsters did all they could to stop the balls of fire .

They didn’t dare to let it reach the vicinity of the king!

This was the will being expressed by the monsters, who were blocking the balls of fire .

They were most definitely showing intent of blocking any danger directed towards the king .

Koo-uh-uh-uh!

When the fireballs were blocked, the monsters with loud voices started to bellow as they faced towards their enemies .

They were giving orders .

Koong, koong, koong, koong!

It was an order for all monsters to charge towards the enemies in the front!  

At the command, the monsters started running as if they were competing against each other .  They ran forward with the intent of killing every living being in front of them .

“The Barbarian King team is on the move . ”

There was another group, who was running with a similar intent .  

Two hundred Users ran along the road made by cutting the tree and uprooting the stones .  The monsters had moved away, and the Users ran down this wide open road .

The battle started .

Then several dozen minutes passed .

Goo-roong, goo-roong!

Dark clouds started to gather in the sky as thunder rumbled .