Three years ago in Satisfy time, the confrontation between Euphemina and Agnus was decided when Euphemina received the hidden quest ‘Mumud’s Soul Liberation.’ Euphemina had acknowledged Agnus’ strength and committed herself to increasing her specs. Then four months ago, she set up a full Agnus hunting plan and mobilized her contacts and money to gather Agnus’ information and neutralize his strength. She went on to duplicate multiple skills all over the continent.
“Link.”
“Blood Rain!”
Euphemina created a magic s.h.i.+eld as dozens of dark energy blades flew through the air toward her. After playing its part, she exchanged glances with the clone over the shattered fragments of the s.h.i.+eld which scattered and disappeared. The clone was still expressionless. He showed no signs of agitation or irritation despite the fact that his attack skills had been neutralized a few times. Was he relaxed?
‘No, he just doesn’t have any emotions.’
During the unexpected battle, Euphemina was receiving Grid’s whispers in real time. He explained the background and characteristics of the clone, and Euphemina measured the clone’s level based on Grid’s explanation and the clone’s actions. Then she came to a conclusion, ‘The clone is several times weaker than Grid.’
She couldn’t rule out the possibility that the clone had grown over the years, just like how Grid had grown. Yes, as Grid had expected, his power was similar to the clone’s. The problem was the equipment that the clone was wearing. The rusty sword and defensive items were equipment which Grid used previously years ago. The equipment was extremely inferior to Grid’s current items and didn’t pose a big threat to Euphemina.
“The items before Triple Layers... You can’t beat me with old items.”
There was a saying about a has-been. Wasn’t this the Holy Light Set? Euphemina could easily break the clone who was wearing armor that lost most of its power. This time, Euphemina started the offensive first. She had duplicated a large number of skills to fight Agnus who could summon undead, so her attacks were brilliant and effective.
Dozens of rocks were formed, and they fell from the sky toward the clone. The diameter of one rock was over one meter. So whenever a rock fell, the earth shook and thousands of spectators stumbled.
“H-Hik! Avoid it!”
“Uwaaaaack!”
‘Use this gap.’
In the confusion caused by the ma.s.sive spell aftermath, Euphemina attempted to strike the clone trapped in the rocks. She used Absolute Zero which she had duplicated from Bondre—the first ranked ice mystic currently in Valhalla. The clone’s body froze as he crawled out from the gap in the rocks. He looked like a statue built in the Arctic.
‘Now the finis.h.i.+ng blow!’
Lightning struck this time. The ultimate technique hit the frozen clone. Euphemina judged that the clone would lose all his health since he had similar stats to Grid. She thought that she would win without any problems. However, she was mistaken.
[You have dealt 29,000 damage to the target!]
‘Eh?’
It did less damage than expected...? Shouldn’t it be two or three times the damage? This was the same for the damage from the rockfall and Absolute Zero. As a result of being thrown back by the lightning and escaping from the ice, the clone’s health gauge which had been hidden by the rocks was now exposed. Euphemina saw that 9/10th of the clone’s health gauge still remained.
It was then that Euphemina realized two facts. The Holy Light Armor, which she had thought to be obsolete now, was still a fraudulent item. Additionally, the clone was a named boss. The Holy Light Armor reduced magic damage, and the clone had at least 10 million health.
‘A Grid with millions of health?’
Wasn’t it a scam?
‘I can’t beat him.’
Euphemina was shaken. The clone rushed toward her and swung his sword. It was a basic attack, a basic attack, a basic attack...
“...?” Euphemina’s eyes widened as she summoned a magic s.h.i.+eld and defended. It was because she caught the subtle changes in the clone’s movements. His feet were moving.
‘A sword dance...!’
“Pinnacle Kill.”
It was a skill that ignored defense. This was one of the strongest fusion skills that Grid possessed. Being hit by it was deadly.
“Ugh!” Euphemina was unable to escape because her physical abilities were lower than her magic. Therefore, she had to take out the trump card that she had been saving—Teleport. She used magic to avoid death, and Pinnacle Kill cut through the air. Euphemina’s small body was swallowed up by light, then she appeared behind the clone.
“Black Winds!”
“...!”
The ultimate technique of Zednos, the first ranked wind magician, emerged from Euphemina’s fingertips and cut at the clone’s back. Blood splattered out, and the clone’s eyes s.h.i.+fted to Euphemina. He ignored the Murray magicians, who were using magic to calm the turmoil, and only stared at Euphemina. Euphemina gulped.She was aware that she was one of the strongest players, so it was rare for her to feel so nervous.
“Wicked monster! Pull off your mask right now!” Finally, a savior appeared. Asmophel had escaped from the containment of the four G.o.d Hands. As soon as he succeeded in causing the four G.o.d Hands to freeze simultaneously, he leaped across the roofs of several broken houses and swung his fire sword.
“Sir Asmophel!”Euphemina’s cute face turned rosy. She felt relieved that the greatest power of the Overgeared Kingdom, after Piaro and Mercedes, was with her. However, this only lasted for a second. Asmophel wasn’t in perfect condition after struggling with the former Red Knight Singuled, and he wasn’t a match for the clone. He was still faster than the clone, but his movements were restricted due to the obstruction of the G.o.d Hands.
“Kuoh...!”
“No...!” Euphemina cried out as the clone grabbed Asmophel’s neck. Asmophel was an NPC. Unlike players, he only had one life. His death would be a big blow to the entire Overgeared Kingdom, and Grid and the Overgeared members would feel deep sorrow. Euphemina remembered what Khan’s death had caused and felt fearful. She tried to s.h.i.+ft the aggro of the clone back to herself.
Then a magic bombardment began. Euphemina went on the offensive to prevent the enemy from harming Asmophel. The clone’s gaze s.h.i.+fted from Asmophel to Euphemina again.“Question. Do you think you can avoid death?”
“...!!”
The clone used the Holy Light Armor and penetrated through the magic bombardment, aiming his sword at Euphemina’s neck.
“Ah...!” Asmophel was devastated by the sight.
“Of course!” Euphemina answered the clone’s questions and stopped using her duplicated skills.She used her unique strength that she hadn’t wanted the world to know yet. “Flowing River.”
Splas.h.!.+ The clone’s sword was surrounded by water. Euphemina’s Flowing River was a spell that showed the strength of Mumud’s water magic, which had the characteristic of ‘magic power can be converted to water and ice and used for the desired purpose.’ The clone’s rusty sword couldn’t penetrate the water that surrounded Euphemina. The physical abnormalities of ‘weakening the power’ and ‘slowing down’ which occurred every time the sword was submerged caused it to become a truly rusty sword.
“Is that an elemental?”The players watching the battle were unable to close their mouths. The blond woman who had suddenly appeared to save them seemed like a hero. Every time Grid hit the girl, the water flowed smoothly in all directions to prevent Grid from attacking. This led them to misunderstand that she was a water elemental.
“Heok! T-That woman...!”
The clone’s attack from above was blocked by the water while he kicked the girl’s ankle. Euphemina was. .h.i.t, and she fell from the roof. As she descended to the ground, she became close enough for the players to see the ID above her head.
“Euphemina!”The players who were impressed by the battle became shocked. It was because they knew Euphemina.Wasn’t she an ally who had been supporting Grid since the Reinhardt golem invasion a few years ago? It was difficult for them to understand why she was fighting against Grid.
Euphemina was well aware that people were recording this scene and shouted, “That person isn’t Grid! It is a fake!”
Grid was her benefactor and the person she envied. Euphemina didn’t want people to misunderstand and criticize her colleague and friend. Euphemina’s shout reminded the public of something.
“...NPC?”
Yes, the public was now aware of it.
Grid landed on the ground after Euphemina, and his name was s.h.i.+ning gold, symbolizing that he was a named NPC. The breaking news headlines of ‘Overgeared King Grid invaded the Murray Kingdom’ started to be modified. It had a huge impact on the Internet. The current Murray Kingdom battle was being recorded and relayed by thousands of players in real time while reporters wrote stories about it. It was a situation where the live video of Euphemina and Grid dominated the video rankings. The live video was being watched by millions of people.
“I feel naked.”Euphemina showed Mumud’s no attribute magic that boasted the effect of ‘ignores 30% of magic resistance’ and followed up with Mumud’s water magic. This was the moment when Euphemina, who hadn’t partic.i.p.ated in the National Compet.i.tion because she hadn’t wanted to reveal her power, was exposed to the world. She knew that she would now have a disadvantage against potential enemies including Agnus, but it couldn’t be helped. She wanted to protect Grid’s reputation.
Her magic power exploded and obstructed the clone’s advance. Euphemina stood with the Murray knights and soldiers behind her and warned the clone, “You can’t hurt anyone as long as you look like Grid. I won’t allow it.”
“...Judgment. Maintenance required.” In the midst of the magic explosion, a small anvil and blacksmithing hammer appeared, and the clone started hammering to repair his rusty sword. It didn’t take long for the rusty sword to regain its original appearance of the blue greatsword, which initially had the name of Failure. This was an unfortunate situation for Euphemina, who had lost approximately 3/10ths of her health. The giant sword resembling a shark pierced through the water and cut at Euphemina’s body.
“Ugh!”
It was a deep wound that hurt her. Like the Holy Light Armor, the sword called Failure still contained a powerful force. Euphemina coughed up blood and stopped casting magic.
“Result. Victory.”
Failure descended, and Euphemina sensed her death.
“...?”
However, Failure was blocked, and Euphemina didn’t die. The clone’s gaze s.h.i.+fted away from Euphemina. He turned his head and looked at the other side of the sky.
“Kill. Grid.”
A bird’s cry rang out. Then a huge red phoenix appeared in the sky, and fire arrows fell down. The fire arrows damaged the clone while simultaneously healing Euphemina and Asmophel.
“I am late every time.”
The people who appeared using Sticks’ Ma.s.s Teleport were Grid and the 10 meritorious retainers.