One Man Army

Chapter 145 [Episode 74] Unexpected…. 2

‘Sky grade ship….. What is this?’

The appearance of the Sky-grade Ships meant that other users have appeared. At least so far  as Sang Hyuk knew it didn’t make sense for other users to show up here.

He always checked the situation of other users, and the latest news from the community was that the leaders have arrived at the 34th island.

However, with seven large Sky-grade Ships appearing here, it must have been embarrassing for him.

“What? Hey….. aren’t they Sky-grade Ships?”

Gye Baek also looked at the Sky-grade Ships, which to his eyes, were so faint they could barely be made out.

“Darn…. I think I was too complacent.”

Sang Hyuk acknowledged his mistake.He really had been negligent. It was too sloppy of him to  only check the major trends and top posts in the community without investigating in detail.

“But who are they? And why are they in a convoy?”

“It doesn’t matter why they’re in a formation…”

Even in his past life, there were many cases where the Sky-grade Ships like that had sailed in a coalition. Certainly if several Sky-grade Ship formed a convoy, they would be safer.

Of course, as the numbers increased, the distribution of karma or loot would be greatly reduced, but a formation could be formed anytime when safety was the priority.

‘I’m getting a bad feeling….’

Sang Hyuk looked at the seven large Sky-grade Ships and bit his lip.

Something didn’t feel right.

“Why do you look like that? Aren’t they just other users?”

Gye Baek didn’t feel good about other users catching up to their lead, but he didn’t think it would be a big deal. Honestly, if this had happened because they had been preoccupied with EL Revolution, he would have no objection if they started a speed run.  He also thought they could shake them off if they decided to run again.

“I hope it just another user…”

Sang Hyuk once again focused and looked at the seven Sky-grade Ships.

All seven ships were almost triple size and seemed to be of quadra-grade. He would say that there was no single force in EL capable of building seven large Sky-grade Ships.

Based on that premise, that meant the seven Sky-grade Ships in front of him were very likely to be an allied force.

‘Collusion…. Collusion…. Don’t tell me it is….. ‘

Following the ideas in his head reminded Sang Hyuk of one possibility.

And when that possibility came to his mind, Sang Hyuk took a closer look at the seven Sky-grade Ships, reinforcing his vision skills to the limits.

Thanks to this, Sang Hyuk was able to identify the black dragon carved on the Sky-grade Ship leading the pack.

‘Dark Dragon….’

As soon as he identified it, the possibilities became a reality.

“It’s an enemy.”

Sang Hyuk frowned and spoke to Gye Baek and Dark Knight.

“Huh? Enemy?”

“The Sky-grade Ship at the most front is the Sky-grade Ship of the Dark Dragon Guild. There’s only one reason they’re chasing me.”

The bad-blood between Sang Hyuk and Line Dark was something that everyone knew about. Naturally, Gye Baek and Dark Knight also knew that the Dark Dragon guild would never, ever let Sang Hyuk go.

‘It looks like they found us…but isn’t it better to just run away from them?’

Sang Hyuk seriously thought of ‘escaping’. Of course, he wasn’t afraid to fight. But there were a few things troubling him.

First was Gye Baek and Dark Knight.

Sang Hyuk had the confidence to fight as much as he wanted to if he was alone. But he didn’t have the confidence to fight while protecting both of them.

Especially, the opponent came with seven Sky-grade Ships that seemed to be quadra-grade. Since it was likely that at least 700 elite rankers were on board, then the chances of Gye Baek and Dark Knight holding them off was almost zero.

And the other thing to consider is the Ink-Black Dragon. Sang Hyuk has always fought using ‘guerilla tactics’ with large-scale guilds or coalitions. When the minority was facing the majority, they had no choice but to fight this way.

But guerilla tactics couldn’t be easily used on the Sky-Sea. Basically, as long as your Sky-grade Ship exists, if Sang Hyuk tries to use hit-and-run tactics, then the Sky-grade Ship will likely be destroyed.

Moreover, it was impossible to put the ship in the spirit virtual space and do battle. Basically, sky-grade ship could not be put into the spirit virtual space while floating on the sky-sea.

For Sang Hyuk, even if he destroyed his enemy, it would be a pyrrhic victory indeed if Ink-Black Dragon was destroyed.

When Sky-Grade Ships are fighting on the Sky-Sea, the side with greater numbers has an overwhelming advantage because of the presence of cannon.

‘Tch, Why of all things on the Sky-Sea….’

What seemed to be the best plan was the 36th rule of The Thirty-Six Stratagems. (TL note: The Thirty-Six Stratagems, a Chinese essay used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics, war, and in civil interaction. It said that fleeing is the best.)

But Sang Hyuk didn’t want to run away, even when he knew that was the smart move. And though he had explored leisurely, the fact that the enemy had followed him meant that they had a special trick of their own.

As a result, even if they managed to escape, it was more likely that they would catch up again.

“Guys. Get ready for battle. This is the enemy that we have to fight anyway…. let’s just fight now and see it through to the end.”

The reason Sang Hyuk made this bold choice was simple.

It was because he was confident.

There were many difficult things, but he was confident that he would overcome it all and smash the seven Sky-grade Ships.

Of course, the process was clearly not going to be easy.

‘Well, has there ever been an easy enemy?’

Sang Hyuk always enjoyed the most difficult games, so he didn’t worry too much.

Rather, it was Gye Baek and Dark Knight who were worried.

“Hahaha, hasn’t it been a long time since I felt a thrill?”

[What do I do?]

Fortunately, neither were very nervous.

“From now on, I’m going to break through among those large Sky-grade Ships. Gye Baek, I need continuous rapidfire. The target is their guns. Neutralize as many of their guns as you can.”

He didn’t know what grade the opponent’s Sky-grade ships were.

But, Sang Hyuk was confident that the Ink-Black Dragon was in top condition.

‘Obviously, the large size of their Sky-grade Ship has many advantages. But….. size is not only advantage.’

With Ink-Black Dragon’s keys firmly in place, Sang Hyuk stepped on the accelerator pedal.

Khwaaaaaaaaa!

Ink-Black Dragon rushed towards the seven Sky-grade Ship at flank speed.

Sang Hyuk intended to deal with the seven quadruple Sky-grade ship by using the maneuverability advantage of the Ink-Black Dragon, which could hardly be followed by his opponent’s Sky-grade Ships.

Of course, the Reverse One Fleet didn’t stand still when Ink-Black Dragon started rushing at them.

The seven quadruple Sky-grade ship captains shared a unified fleet channel and communicated with each other, so the response was coordinated and fast.

[OPEN FIRE!]

Bang bang bang bang bang bang Bang bang bang bang bang bang bang!

They had been ready for battle since they sighted the Ink-Black Dragon. The seven Sky-grade ships each had different armament but at least they were equipped with an average of two cannon for each ship.

In the first volley, the seven Sky-grade ships fired a total of 13 magic cannon rounds.

Their goal was, of course, the Ink-Black Dragon.

However, Ink-Black Dragon was the smallest size dual-grade Sky-grade ship. So, it wasn’t easy to hit.

Especially, Sang Hyuk, helmsman of the Ink-Black Dragon, was piloting Ink-Black Dragon with such unbelievable skill, the SECOND best Sky-Grade ship pilot would gnaw at his own liver in envy.

Hwiririk. hwiririrrik!

Sang Hyuk weaved the Ink-Black Dragon between the magic cannon rounds, as if he was dancing with supreme skill.

Phuooong, phuooooong!

Magic cannon rounds dropped over the Sky-sea and exploded, but none of them even came close to the Ink-Black Dragon.

Sang Hyuk dodged all the magic cannon rounds, which were fired non-stop from the Reverse One Fleet with his near-miraculous maneuverability.

To be honest, the Ink-Black Dragon was so fast that it was already nearly impossible to hit.

In contrast to the untouched Ink-Black Dragon, the magic cannon on the Ink-Black Dragon kept hitting the Sky-grade ships of the Reverse One Fleet with deadly accuracy.

Two cannons have already been smashed. Gye Baek fired four times, two of which blew away the enemy’s guns and although the other two didn’t hit the target, they hit the hull and dealt a blow to the enemy Sky-grade ship’s durability.

Gye Baek’s shooting prowess was truly admirable.

Frankly, the Ink-Black Dragon was moving fast and jinking radically, so Gye Baek’s shooting environment was very bad. Nevertheless, he was hitting his target half the time.

“Got you!”

Before they knew it, the Ink-Black Dragon was approaching the head of the Reverse One Fleet. At this point, the Reverse One fleet tried to capture the Ink-Black Dragon by firing harpoons.

But, Sang Hyuk used all his senses to predict the movement of his enemies.

“Aspice! If you think any harpoons are going to hit the Ink-Black Dragon, smash it aside with your shield!”

Dark Knight was their protection. Sang Hyuk didn’t even want to give Dark Knight a chance to use his shield.

Hwiririk, hwiririririk!

When Sang Hyuk spun the key wildly the Ink Black Dragon made a zigzag move as if it was a car driven by a drunk driver on a frozen lake.

The harpoons continued to fly towards the Ink-Black Dragon, but most of them missed wildly.

Some shots flew close to the hull, but missed the hull though Dark Knight remained vigilant with his shield.

Meanwhile, Gye Baek continued to shoot, and the magic cannon shot from Ink-Black Dragon struck all seven Sky-grade Ships, with varying damage.

Sang Hyuk was able to break through the ranks of the Reverse One Fleet, but he did some reckless driving between the seven Sky-grade Ships;  seen overhead, the path of the Ink-Black Dragon resembled a bow tie…very, very badly knotted.

There were two reasons why he didn’t fall back from the middle of the Reverse One Fleet.

The first was to give some time for Gye Baek, who’s shooting skills today was inspired, to do more damage. Eight of Thirteen magic cannons of the Reverse One Fleet had been smashed. It was only a matter of time before Gye Baek could break all thirteen.

And the second was to maximize the shambolic chaos inflicted on the Reverse One Fleet.

Currently, four of the seven Reverse One Sky-grade ships had managed to shoot harpoons into each other and got tangled up.

The harpoons that they shot towards the Ink-Black Dragon missed the Ink-Black Dragon and struck into another Sky-grade Ship belonging to their fleet.

Once the harpoon hit, it needed at least 30 minutes for the system to clear it, so in the end, the four Sky-grade Ships were hilariously intertwined and could not move properly, it was as if Sang Hyuk was a naughty kitten that jumped into a basket full of yarn.

Of course, once this comedy was perceived by the Reverse One Fleet, the harpoons flying towards Ink-Black Dragon were significantly reduced, and Sang Hyuk was able to dodge the rest very easily.

Kwagwakwang!

Gye Baek finally blew up the last magic cannon on the Reverse One Fleet. Although he spent quite a bit of magic cannon rounds in the process, now wasn’t the time to be thrifty on something like magic stones.

“Activating booster! Retreat at full speed! All of you hold on tight!”

As soon as the enemy’s guns have been destroyed, Sang Hyuk escaped from the Reverse One fleet at full speed using the booster he had saved.

Kwakwakwakwakwa!

As Ink-Black Dragon moved out of the Reverse One Fleet at a tremendous speed, all users of the Reverse One Fleet thought that the Ink Black Dragon was escaping.

Actually, at first glance, it seemed as if they were using hit-and-run tactics

However, Sang Hyuk’s choice was not ‘escape’ but ‘Showdown’.

Of course, they didn’t run to escape.

Sang Hyuk used the booster to instantly distance himself from the Reverse One fleet and he handed over the key to Dark Knight.

“Reduce the speed but keep the course as it is.”

Dark Knight might not be as good as Sang Hyuk in steering the Ink-Black Dragon, but of course, this much was fine.

Sang Hyuk, who handed over the key to Dark Knight, moved to the back of the boat and looked at the Reverse One Fleet, which was turning to follow him in a hurry.

He slowly stretched out his arms.

Chwarurururuk.

Two reddish lines of wire that flew out from his hands.

Not only that, Sang Hyuk also summoned his Magic Armor. He then rapidly used his buffing skills to bring himself up to the maximum.

Phaphaphaphat, clank, clank

“Let’s finish this.”

Sang Hyuk softly murmured and slowly raised his arms.

The opening movement he had prepared for his Symphony of Destruction…. was of course ‘ragna blade’.

Of course, he didn’t intend to obliterate the Reverse One fleet with only the Ragna Blade.

He never thought he could kill them easily like this nor would Sang Hyuk give up on inflicting the death penalty on his enemies. Ragna Blade was just the opening strike for the Festival of Slaughter to come and the invincible weapon created to let his enemies taste terror and awe by the amazing Sang Hyuk.

Chapter 145 [Episode 74] Unexpected…. 2  – End