Ubermensch – Chapter 78

Chapter 78

The operation was simple.

As they had done before, they would hold out in a formation that drew in as many enemies as possible, then launch a counterattack simultaneously with Masika’s sniping.

“Who should I shoot? Winter Lord?”

“If you can hit him.”

Hitting Winter Lord would be the best, but shooting the guy positioned at the very back was no easy feat.

“What if I can’t hit him?”

“Needle or Blood Raven.”

Eliminating Blood Raven would allow them to attempt another air assault, and taking out Needle would enable them to push through the front line. It wouldn’t be a loss either way.

“Okay…”

The Revengers’ ranged dealers placed their hands on their Warlord cores. At the same time, energy began to charge.

Mason roared.

“Commence battle!”

Goblins were swarming in from afar. Scattered among them were other monsters with considerable height.

“Let’s go!”

As Mason tore through the enemy lines with a roar, Masika anxiously scanned the battlefield through her scope.

‘Where are you. Where…’

Beep… Beep…

The counter indicating the charge level was steadily rising.

The number indicating the safety threshold was 100. The development team’s comment was that it was recommended to shoot before it reached 100.

At worst, shoot before 120.

The counter was steadily increasing.

‘Winter Lord is…’

Winter Lord was too far away. She had the range, but there were too many obstacles like structures and monsters.

‘Then Needle or Blood Raven…’

However, neither Needle nor Blood Raven were visible.

‘Where are you.’

Beep… Beep…

As the counter filled up, Masika’s heart grew anxious.

’78… 79…’

Time was running out…

This prototype, focused solely on a single, powerful shot, couldn’t be stopped mid-charge.

If she couldn’t find a target before it reached the critical point, it would be destroyed before she could even fire.

But the more anxious she became, the sharper her focus grew.

A sniper couldn’t do their job without knowing how to transform tension and pressure into concentration. She was an excellent sniper.

‘Come out… Come out…’

At that moment, Blood Raven soared into the sky.

It seemed he was acting as a shield in the air, preparing to send the airborne monsters into a dive once more.

‘Should I shoot?’

No, it wasn’t the right time.

Blood Raven was a shield floating in the air. Winter Lord’s buff would be applied to him soon. This prototype was only powerful enough to kill a Boss Monster in one shot, not a Raid Boss.

Targeting Needle was more certain.

‘Needle… Where is Needle…?’

Anxiety gripped Masika once again.

‘Maybe it’s better to aim for this moment, right before Blood Raven receives the buff?’

Beebeebeebeep! Beebeebeebeep!

The counter was screaming. The number had already reached 102. Time was almost up.

She had to make a decision somehow.

Just as Masika was about to turn the muzzle towards Blood Raven.

Thud!

“Aaagh!”

Along with Needle’s distinctive firing sound, someone screamed.

At that moment, Masika reflexively turned the muzzle.

The rooftop of a building. The instant Needle came into the center of her scope, she instinctively pulled the trigger.

Whoosh!

As the beam energy was released, the prototype’s parts shattered and scattered.

Splat!

Masika’s hand also burst, blood flowing freely. But she didn’t look at her hand, nor the gun barrel.

The African Hawk’s eyes were fixed on only one thing.

The enemy’s heart!

“…Got it.”

Before her quiet exclamation of triumph could finish.

Crackle!

Needle’s barrier was torn apart like paper, and the hedgehog’s body, except for its legs, was completely obliterated.

“Masika!”

“Healer!”

While her comrades, who were charging energy into their Warlord cores, were in a state of confusion, she only wore a faint smile.

“What are you doing? Get back to your positions!”

Masika shouted.

“It’s our turn to counterattack!”

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Her words were true.

The heat wave from the beam that cut through the air was a beacon for the counterattack.

They began pushing forward from the front line that they had pulled back to its limit.

“Let’s go!”

Mason was at the forefront.

“Waaaaaargh!”

Woosh! Woosh! Woosh!

As he charged forward, swinging his hammer three times, a wide path, enough for an armored vehicle to pass through, was carved out.

Following behind him were renowned warriors, each with a name.

Liza, Andrei, Ronan, Sung Kijun, Jang Geun-uk.

The pre-selected elite melee agents were charging with Mason as their spearhead.

‘We have to get to Winter Lord somehow!’

From the beginning, they intended to finish this today. The plan was for Masika to eliminate one of the enemy commanders with ‘that gun’, then for them to break through the enemy lines and kill Winter Lord.

There was no turning back.

Only forward!

“Screeeech!”

At that moment, Blood Raven began to dive towards the ground. His goal was to restrain Mason.

“Don’t you dare!”

In that instant, Jang Geun-uk blocked Blood Raven’s path, swinging his morningstar.

“I’ll take care of this guy! Let the big shots handle the big shots!”

Speed was the most crucial element at this moment. They had to cross the enemy lines and kill Winter Lord as quickly as possible.

As Jang Geun-uk held back Blood Raven, fire support from the rear began to pour in.

Seeing this, Winter Lord looked at the Frozen Hound.

The Frozen Hound nodded and started running, and at the same time, Winter Lord’s buff energy enveloped the Frozen Hound’s body.

“Grooooowl…”

The enlarged Frozen Hound inhaled, and absolute zero cold energy began to surge within its throat.

At that moment, Sung Kijun stepped forward in front of Mason.

“Golden Bulwark!”

Simultaneously, a golden barrier appeared in front of Sung Kijun. The Golden Bulwark, cleaving through the absolute zero cold energy.

If Mason was the anomaly who smashed through with overwhelming specs, Sung Kijun was the orthodox tanker who blocked with skills and mastery.

In terms of pure defensive power, no one could surpass him.

“Go! Mason! Leave this to me!”

“Alright!”

Mason and his group charged through the goblins and into the enemy lines.

Three people followed behind Mason.

Liza, Andrei, and Ronan.

They exchanged glances.

‘While I hold back the Thunder Bear…’

‘We’ll take down Winter Lord!’

Winter Lord’s own specs weren’t that impressive. No matter how vast his core energy was, he couldn’t overcome the limitations of the goblin species.

The greatest resistance Winter Lord could offer was to buff the Thunder Bear and make it fight.

In that case, it was right for Mason, who could face a Raid Boss alone, to handle the Thunder Bear, while the rest took down Winter Lord.

“Let’s go!”

As Mason’s group approached, Winter Lord also finished his calculations. There was no escape!

“Kyaaaaaaaa!”

Winter Lord’s energy connected to the Thunder Bear.

Simultaneously, the Thunder Bear doubled in size, and horns sprouted all over its body. Thanks to the buff energy, it was being strengthened to the level of a Raid Boss.

“Kooowooooork!”

“Uaaaaaaah!”

Mason and the Thunder Bear exchanged blows.

Thud!

Unable to withstand each other’s striking power, they were both bounced back like balls. Mason’s arm was shattered, and the Thunder Bear’s front paw was limping.

But in the next moment.

The two giants clashed once again with even greater momentum and speed than when they were flung back.

Boom!

“Eeeeeek…!”

“Kooork! Kooowoooork!”

While Mason was grappling with the Thunder Bear, Liza, agile in her light armor, blocked Winter Lord’s path.

Swish!

Her attack was so fast and sharp that it was barely visible to the naked eye.

It was only due to luck, not his reflexes, that the spear blade grazed Winter Lord’s neck.

Glancing over, Mason was certain of victory.

Until Winter Lord’s shadow stretched out, overflowing to Liza’s feet.

“…?”

Mason exclaimed in realization.

“Jump! Liza!”

At the same time, shadow spikes shot up towards Liza.

“…!”

Liza, frowning, gripped her spear like a pole and jumped high. If she hadn’t jumped, the spikes would have pierced her vital points, like her heart and neck.

“Shadow Beast…?”

Winter Lord had also been hiding his trump card.

“Keeeeeek!”

As Winter Lord sent his buff energy, dozens, hundreds of spikes rose from the shadow covering the ground.

‘No.’

Mason gritted his teeth.

He could see the attack coming from below. He could see it, but…

If he dodged, the Thunder Bear would attack his allies.

“Damn it!”

As spikes pierced both of Mason’s legs, the Thunder Bear slammed him against the building wall.

“Kooork! Kooowoooork!”

The Thunder Bear began to unilaterally crush Mason’s body, which was embedded in the wall, punching, stabbing, biting, and clawing.

His regeneration couldn’t keep up with the speed of the attacks.

“Damn it!”

Ronan gritted his teeth and charged towards the Thunder Bear.

Even though he wore heavy armor, Ronan was ultimately a dealer. He wasn’t a class capable of tanking.

However…

Swish!

Ronan’s Dragon Bone Greatsword severed the tendon near the Thunder Bear’s armpit.

“Regenerate!”

Ronan, maintaining a razor-thin and precarious sword energy, began to exchange blows with the Thunder Bear.

“I’ll buy you some time!”

Simultaneously, Liza tried to bypass the shadow and capture Winter Lord.

Then, the shadow took the shape of a black panther and lunged at Liza.

It resembled a black panther when it leaped, but the buff energy followed closely behind. By the time it reached Liza, it had already grown to the size of a black tiger.

Thud!

It was Andrei who stood in front of Liza.

“Get out of the way!”

He swung his battle axe at the Shadow Beast’s head, but the axe didn’t even penetrate. The beast’s body had already been strengthened to the level of a Raid Boss.

‘Damn it…!’

Liza spun around, looking for a chance to attack Winter Lord, but every time an opening appeared, the Shadow Beast pushed Andrei back and blocked the path between Liza and Winter Lord.

“Can’t you restrain the Shadow Beast?”

“It’s beyond my capabilities!”

Boss monsters buffed to the level of Raid Bosses and an elite player team. The combat power of the two groups was balanced at this moment.

But it was only temporary. Except for Mason, the rest could only hold them back at best. As time passed, they would inevitably collapse, unable to withstand the depletion of their stamina and energy.

Mason clenched his jaw.

‘We need backup.’

They needed backup.

However, they were currently at the enemy headquarters, deep within the goblin territory. It was practically impossible for the front line to push this far. In that case, they had to organize another strike team and send them in.

They had to, but…

‘Seo Yeonhee.’

The image of one person flashed through his mind.

‘Is this your conclusion?’

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Seo Yeonhee was staring at the monitor with her fingers interlocked.

“…”

Her eyes were deeply sunken.