The Final Boss Has Returned 51

Chapter 51

“Riding well!”

In the middle of the battlefield, I laughed while looking at the burning sea, sitting atop the shell of a sea turtle.

The sight of the Pirate Alliance’s fleet burning was truly exhilarating, enough to relieve a decade’s worth of pent-up frustration.

Merfolk!

Their power was beyond my expectations.

The pirates couldn’t stop their attacks as they moved freely underwater, and the sight of enemy ships sinking one by one every time the guardian beast Kraken surfaced was truly spectacular.

It reminded me of the pirate movies I used to watch!

The tide of the battle had already turned in our favor, and the pirates were being defeated in disarray.

And I laughed as I watched the scene.

Victory!

I had tasted it countless times in the previous game, but the taste of victory was always sweet and never got old.

At that moment, as I was savoring the sweetness of victory.

[You have completed the quest ‘Fate’s Crossroads’.]

The quest completion notification appeared.

[Level up!]

……

[You have reached level 200.]

[Stats have increased by 40.]

‘Finally, level 200!’

I smiled as I saw the level notification.

Level 200.

I had finally reached the benchmark in Ard Saga Second where one could say they had just shed the beginner’s tag.

Of course, my stats accumulated through various quests and achievements were incomparably higher than those of other users of the same level.

But I couldn’t be satisfied with those high stats.

Because I knew how ridiculously high the stats of the twenty Over-Rankers who currently reigned at the top of the game were, even if it wasn’t Eugene…… no, even if it wasn’t necessarily Eugene.

Ard Saga Second was a game where level wasn’t everything, unlike the previous one!

Achievements, quests, items and skills, various other factors including Unique Traits, and the stats you possessed were more important than levels.

And these so-called Rankers usually possessed at least twice the stats of ordinary users of the same level.

In the case of Over-Rankers, it was even more than that.

So, I couldn’t be satisfied with just this.

As I was determined to strive further, more messages popped up in front of me.

[Legacy Skill ‘Steel Storm’ is unlocked.]

[Steel Storm]

[Rank: Legendary]

[Legacy Level: Beginner Level 1]

[Steel Monarch Drakan, a master of swordsmanship, reached a level where he could not only fire aura like sword energy, but also create aura in the form of a storm. He named this technique Steel Storm.]

[In countless battles, Drakan’s Steel Storm swallowed and tore apart countless enemies of the tyrant, instilling hope in his allies and fear in his enemies.]

[Steel Storm is one of Drakan’s secret techniques, a powerful skill that creates a storm of aura, sweeping the surroundings with wide-area damage. However, its power comes with the drawback of consuming a tremendous amount of aura.]

Steel Storm!

The wide-area skill I frequently used in the previous game was unlocked.

I smiled as I looked at the unlock message, and another notification window appeared in my view.

[Quest has occurred.]

[Naval Showdown]

[Rank: Legendary]

[At Fate’s Crossroads, you chose not to yield to the Pirate Alliance. Having sunk the Pirate Alliance’s fleet off the coast of Lawless Port Granado, you have now crossed the point of no return.]

[Pirate King Drake, who has become your sworn enemy, will no longer show mercy and will not stop his fleet until he kills you and burns Lawless Port Granado to the ground.]

[Your only option is to fight him and win. Defeat and subdue the Pirate King and the Pirate Alliance to seize control of the Eastern Sea.]

The notification window that appeared this time was the next quest!

As I predicted, it was a quest encouraging an all-out war with the Pirate King and the Pirate Alliance.

[Quest cannot be refused.]

[Quest accepted.]

I smiled as I looked at the acceptance message.

Pirate King.

Finally, the final chapter of the long journey to catch him was beginning to appear before my eyes.

▄ ▄ ▄

“Let’s create the biggest event ever.”

Unusually, it was Shin Ha-yeon who first spoke at the strategy meeting held in the conference room ahead of the large-scale quest, as usual.

Shin Ha-yeon!

It was the first time she had ever spoken up, as she usually just sat and observed the meetings, so I looked at her sitting next to me and asked.

“The biggest event ever? What do you mean?”

“We have more than just Ignis and JDG in Jeil E&M.”

As soon as I heard Shin Ha-yeon’s words, I understood her intention.

“Are you saying we should gather all the users affiliated with JDG?”

“Yes. Of course, we’ll also include Eastern users, no, ordinary users as well.”

I smiled after hearing Shin Ha-yeon’s words.

As she said, Jeil E&M didn’t just have Ignis, JDG, and me.

Many high-ranking players and so-called ‘big-name’ streamers with over a million or two million subscribers had management contracts with Jeil Group.

Their participation meant more than just a few famous users joining the fight.

Although not as large as the Infinite Eugene Church, the streamers affiliated with Jeil E&M each had their own fandoms, and if they participated, their fandoms would surely follow.

Knowing that the effect of this kind of collaborative event wasn’t 1+1=2, but 3 or more, I could guess the scale of what Shin Ha-yeon was planning.

I recalled the Battle for Lawless Port Granado.

Even though only JDG and Ignis participated, many users gathered, and if that wasn’t enough, if all the streamers affiliated with Jeil E&M participated?

The scale would definitely be massive, beyond my imagination.

Thinking up to that point, I smiled.

Truly, it was the best condition.

“So, you’ll win this time too, right?”

Screech.

Shin Ha-yeon rolled her wheeled office chair closer to me and spoke.

I burst into laughter at her words and said.

“Do I have to give you the obvious answer again? You lack faith.”

Shin Ha-yeon chuckled at my words, as if she found it amusing.

▄ ▄ ▄

From the Infinite Eugene Church scandal to the meeting between Drakan and Eugene!

Due to a series of events, the attention and buzz surrounding Drakan had risen to a level incomparable to the time of the Battle for Lawless Port Granado.

While the Battle for Lawless Port Granado was a temporary event, the series of events that began with the Infinite Eugene Church scandal was as exciting as watching a drama, attracting the attention of countless people.

The icing on the cake was, of course, the meeting with Eugene, and what kept Drakan in the spotlight until the end was the opening of the new race, ‘Merfolk’.

Opening of a new race!

Users were thrilled by the unprecedented feat that even ‘Eugene’ couldn’t achieve, something that had no precedent in the previous game.

This was because the Merfolk provided a fresh alternative to users who were growing tired of playing the existing three races: Elves, Dwarves, and Humans.

Therefore, it was only natural that Pearl Plaza in Great Atoll, the starting point for the Merfolk race and the capital of the Merfolk Kingdom, was filled with new users.

“Is this Great Atoll?”

“Wow, it’s really an underwater city?”

“Wow, the field scenery is breathtaking!”

The users who chose Merfolk were amazed by the scenery of the massive underwater city, Great Atoll, surprised by the Merfolk’s ability to freely swim in the emerald-colored sea, and exclaimed at the scenery of the Eastern seabed, which was completely different from the land, perfectly matching the image of ‘fantasy’.

“This is fantasy!”

“Agreed!”

“This is all thanks to Drakan-nim’s grace!”

Fun!

The reason users played games was for fun, and choosing Merfolk provided them with plenty of unique fun.

It was only natural that the users’ opinion would shift towards Drakan, who opened the playable race of Merfolk.

But it didn’t end there.

A video of Drakan using Kraken and the Merfolk to wipe out the grand fleet brought by the Pirate Alliance was uploaded to Drakan’s official channel, and users went wild again.

Invincible at Sea!

It was an epithet that always accompanied the name of the Pirate Alliance, a word that well represented their unmatched power on the sea, but that name came to an end the moment Drakan uploaded the video.

This was because the Kraken and the Merfolk army, which climbed up from the sea under Drakan’s command, smashed and burned the Pirate Alliance’s ships and mercilessly slaughtered the pirates.

[Awesome!]

[As expected, the East only has Drakan-nim~]

[Was the Merfolk quest for this? Truly an unexpected twist lol]

The Pirate Alliance, an opponent that had been untouchable until now.

Those who saw them being defeated helplessly, especially the Eastern users who had suffered countless damages directly or indirectly from the pirates, showed absolute support for Drakan.

The end of the video was a new quest.

Naval Showdown!

People were completely blown away by the content of the quest, which signified a full-fledged confrontation with the Pirate King, with a Legendary difficulty level.

The achievements Drakan had accumulated so far were impressive enough to attract people’s attention, but the war with the Pirate King was a completely different story.

Pirate King!

If Drakan could lead the war against them, who possessed power comparable to a nation’s navy and practically ruled the Eastern Sea, to victory!

Not only would the public opinion of the Eastern users, who had been desperately hoping to eliminate the Pirate Alliance and the Pirate King, be in Drakan’s hands, but also the hegemony of the Eastern Sea, which would become a stepping stone for him to reach a position beyond that of a mere promising prospect.

Therefore, the Ard Forum was once again ablaze with discussions about the Naval Showdown quest, and after countless debates, only one question remained.

Drakan. How would he, who always showed surprising performances, deal with the Pirate King this time?

And the answer came unexpectedly not from Drakan, but from another streamer who had never even met him.

“Brothers! Completed the mission of clearing three dungeons wearing only panties today as well.”

A muscular man in only his underwear laughed while looking up at the sky with his greatsword stuck in the ground.

Of course, like most users who talked to the air, he was also a streamer broadcasting live through Ard Live.

[Concept-obsessed crazy lol]

[This is why I watch PantyWarrior]

[Today’s broadcast is also super fun lol]

[A real man who clears three dungeons wearing only panties…… a man obsessed with his concept…… PantyWarrior……]

The muscular warrior user in only his underwear, commonly known as ‘PantyWarrior’, had a chat window constantly being updated in his view.

Since the launch of Ard Saga Second and the start of the Ard Live service, countless users aspired to gain wealth and fame through Ard Live.

Even now, new users were creating channels and starting broadcasts, but becoming a so-called ‘big-name’ streamer with over a million subscribers was like reaching for the stars.

And PantyWarrior was a super-sized streamer in the top 0.1% of Ard Live, boasting a whopping 10 million subscribers.

His concept of revealing his muscular, bare body, wearing only a pair of underwear as armor and wielding a greatsword, was enough to attract attention.

And yet, his ability to successfully solo clear dungeons that were meant to be cleared by parties in such attire made his content highly entertaining.

Therefore, PantyWarrior’s 10 million subscribers weren’t simply due to luck or coincidence.

And now, PantyWarrior was continuing to talk to his subscribers.

“Normally, I would end the broadcast now, but today I have an announcement. It’s a collaborative event proposed by the company. Homework, yes, that’s right. It’s homework, but honestly, I’m so excited about this homework that I’m going to try my best.”

Homework. A kind of slang used in Ard Live, it meant that a streamer received and performed content commissioned from outside sources, such as advertisements or sponsors, instead of their own content.

PantyWarrior smiled and looked at the constantly updating chat window as he spoke naturally.

“You ask what kind of homework it is? You all know that Drakan received the Naval Showdown quest, right? I’m going to participate in it this time. Oh, it’s not just me……”

PantyWarrior smiled and looked at the chat window.

“All streamers affiliated with Jeil E&M, every single one of them, will be going to Lawless Port Granado.”

With the words that all streamers habitually uttered, “If you enjoyed the broadcast, please leave a subscription and like,” PantyWarrior’s broadcast ended.

However, the impact of the broadcast was like a nuclear bomb.