Chapter 109
I narrowed my eyes to check the enemy forces.
It wasn’t enough to fill the horizon, but still, a considerable number of monsters were swarming towards us.
From the tentacle monsters we saw in the dungeon to giant creatures that resembled elephants!
Truly a diverse array of monsters were rapidly advancing in our direction.
“Those things…… They’re coming to wipe us out, right?”
“Probably, wouldn’t you say?”
“That’s what I think too.”
Eugene nodded at my words, and I agreed with him.
[Oh my god, we encounter monsters as soon as we fall into another world.]
[Where is the saintess who greets the hero? LOL.]
[This broadcast is so unpredictable LOL. Wow LOL.]
[Other streamers who keep rehashing the same content should reflect on themselves LOLOLOL.]
[Why should they reflect? Honestly, this combination is just unfair LOL. Who knew Eugene and Drakan’s chemistry would be this amazing? LOLOLOL.]
[Honestly, as a member of the Infinite Eugene Church, I admit their chemistry is insane.]
[I’m a sucker too, but I admit their combination is awesome LOL.]
[For real, they absolutely have to collab again next time LOL.]
Donations were exploding in real-time along with the chat, but what I needed wasn’t donations, but a plan.
“What about the gate we came through?”
“It disappeared as soon as we moved through it.”
Eugene immediately answered my question.
As he said, no matter how hard I looked around, the gate was nowhere to be found.
D*mn it, it seemed the unstable dimensional gate we came through was a one-way ticket to this other world.
[Oh LOLOLOL. We’re trapped LOLOLOLOL.]
[You can enter as you please, but you can’t leave as you please LOLOLOL.]
[Dear customer, this route is a one-way trip with no return.]
[The genre of the broadcast suddenly shifted to a wild, real-life variety show, and it’s awesome.]
The chat window was flooded with ‘LOLOLOLOL’ as soon as the news of the gate’s disappearance spread.
I looked at the army of monsters that had now approached close enough to be visible with the naked eye.
Given our combat power, dealing with that many monsters wouldn’t be difficult, but the problem was that this place was practically enemy territory.
“It wouldn’t be difficult to defeat them, but fighting here is the worst possible option.”
I said, looking back and forth between Eugene and the monsters.
“Is there any way to escape from here or call for backup? Did you try something like the Friend Summoning Crystal?”
The Friend Summoning Crystal!
An item from the Point Shop that allows you to summon a friend regardless of distance. I was reluctant to waste my points experimenting with it, so I asked Eugene.
Being the naive pushover that he is, Eugene would surely sacrifice his own points without hesitation to experiment on my behalf.
Upon hearing my words, Eugene manipulated something in the air and then shook his head.
“It doesn’t work. Neither the Friend Summoning Crystal nor the Base Return Crystal works. The only message that pops up is ‘This item cannot be used in the current area. This item can only be used in Ard World.'”
In conclusion, both of my predictions were correct.
One was that Eugene, like the pushover he is, would use his own points to buy the item and experiment with it if I said this, and the other was that the convenient items from the Point Shop wouldn’t work in this world.
The reason I predicted the items wouldn’t work was simple.
This was another world.
I had witnessed the messages from the Transcendent Beings becoming distorted in real-time and turning into meaningless signals while we were inside the passage.
And now, the messages from the Transcendent Beings, which had been intermittently ringing, had fallen silent.
As the Dark God’s contractor, I was a being of interest to all the Demon Kings, including the Dark God himself, and that was why the Demon Kings’ messages never ceased.
However, after coming to the Broken World, the messages from the Demon Kings had been cut off.
The reason for this was likely the same reason why the items didn’t work.
Therefore, I predicted that the items from the Point Shop, like the Base Return Crystal, wouldn’t work for the same reason, and that prediction was spot on.
“As expected, it doesn’t work. Not that I had high hopes anyway.”
“Indeed. In this situation, we have no choice but to consider other escape routes. As Drakan-nim said, fighting is the worst of the worst options.”
I raised an eyebrow at Eugene’s words.
He also understood that continuing to fight in this other world, which was practically enemy territory, with no supplies or support, would only lead to our exhaustion first.
‘So this is what it means to be a top-ranked player, not just someone who won at flipping cards.’
I thought, looking at Eugene.
In any case, I needed his cooperation to escape this situation.
Although he was my sworn enemy, for now, I had no choice but to conquer this damned other world with Eugene, that bastard, whether I liked it or not.
Of course, what I desired was revenge against him.
But now, the fruit of revenge was not yet ripe.
Simply put, it wasn’t the time for revenge.
Well, killing his character might be easier than expected.
He foolishly believed in the good of humanity and still trusted me. If I used a method like betraying him and leaving him stranded in the middle of enemy territory, I might be able to take his life more easily than expected.
‘It’s not that I haven’t thought about it, but that would be foolish.’
However, choosing to kill him in that way was the worst possible option for me.
First of all, he was a top-ranked player, and his monstrous skills, the sole EX rank in the Combat Information Archive, were something I had already experienced more than enough in Monster Land and the Abandoned Temple.
Eugene, that guy, had more than enough ability to take care of himself in this hellish other world.
Unless I meticulously set a trap, he would likely break through any such trap and survive, putting my own life at risk.
And secondly, if I backstabbed Eugene and killed him like that, it might be satisfying for a moment, but I wouldn’t be able to handle the immense backlash of public opinion that would follow.
Eugene!
He was still a noble hero, everyone’s champion, a guardian of justice, and the common people of Ard World and countless users still supported him.
The fact that his hegemony still held was proof of that, and the Infinite Eugene Church scandal, where public opinion flipped like a switch as soon as he apologized to me, was a prime example.
And I, although my image had been diluted considerably, was still a villain from the past.
I had spent money like water to get to this point – although it was Shin Ha-yeon’s money, not mine – and had used all sorts of schemes to dilute my image and gather public support, building a golden tower. Would I now throw it all away because I couldn’t suppress my momentary desire for revenge and backstab Eugene?
The moment I did that, all the public opinion I had gathered would turn against me, and I would surely lose everything I had.
That would be a crazy act that would instantly destroy everything I had built up until now, and killing Eugene in that way would be meaningless to me.
‘I could backstab him if I wanted to, but I can’t handle the backlash of public opinion that would follow.’
You can conquer the world on horseback, but you can’t rule it from horseback!
I had engraved that lesson from the previous game deep within my heart.
In the previous game, I didn’t have the support of public opinion, and that was why I ultimately lost to that bastard Eugene.
One foolish act was enough, and I wasn’t stupid enough to repeat the same mistake twice.
The revenge I desired didn’t end with simply killing Eugene.
The hegemony of Ard World that Eugene held!
Taking back that hegemony, turning public opinion to my side, and then going even further to return to my rightful place as a top-ranked player – that was the ultimate goal of the grand scheme I had been envisioning ever since I returned to Ard Saga Second.
And I could control emotions like the desire for revenge as long as it served to complete my grand scheme.
I wanted revenge, but I wasn’t a madman blinded by it.
Moreover, in this current situation, Eugene was a valuable asset.
For the sake of smoothly clearing the quest in this isolated other world, I needed his power as a top-ranked player.
Anyway, backstabbing and killing Eugene now would result in far greater losses than gains for me, so I decided not to do it.
And then, Eugene’s words reached me.
“The problem is how to escape this situation. This is a wide-open wasteland with no cover. If they attack from another direction, there’s a high risk of being surrounded.”
Eugene’s concern was valid.
If we were in a place with plenty of cover and usable terrain features, like a mountain, valley, or forest, it wouldn’t be a problem, but the fact that it was a wide-open plain was the issue.
According to the Broken World information window, this world was the home ground of the Conquest Lord Hive Mind.
It was a world ruled by that guy, so there was no way his army was only this small.
Moreover, it was said that he was currently invading other worlds, so how much military power did he actually possess?
My thoughts trailed off as I shook my head.
“I have a way to deal with that.”
Anyway, the important thing now was that I had a way to overcome this situation.
[Oh, Drakan was a little cool this time LOL.]
[Is he making up for getting carried in the dungeon earlier? LOL.]
[Honestly, it was pathetic when he was leeching;]
[No, that’s already over. It was a 5:5 split according to the system’s stern judgment; Why keep bringing it up? It’s ridiculous LOL.]
[It’s ridiculous LOL. It’s ridiculous because you’re a sucker LOL. Anyone can see he was carried LOL.]
[It’s a good world where a Eugene fan can talk in Drakan-nim’s live stream LOL.]
As soon as I finished speaking, countless chat messages popped up in response to my words.
I ignored the flashing chat and called out to Dice.
“Dice.”
[Speak, oh Apostle.]
“Summon the Bone Wyvern.”
The Bone Wyvern!
An undead created by resurrecting a dead Wyvern!
Unlike a regular Wyvern, it was an undead, so its flight duration was extended as long as the Necromancer’s magic power allowed. Lich Dice could summon that Bone Wyvern.
[Your command will be obeyed.]
Upon hearing my order, Lich Dice chanted a spell, and soon the air distorted, revealing a Wyvern with only white bones remaining.
It was the Bone Wyvern.
“Is this…… the method Drakan-nim mentioned?”
Eugene asked, and I nodded in response.
“Yes. From now on, we will ride the Bone Wyvern and escape into the sky.”