The Status Window Disappeared

Black Flag Pursuit (4)

By the time Chris arrives at the hunters’ house, things are almost over.

Hiding among the grass, he opened his eyes and checked the exact situation.

The hut, which had been fine until a moment ago, was shattered as if one side of the wall had been torn off.

Numerous men can be seen in front of the scattered pieces of wood.

Judging from the fact that he is wearing a decent military uniform, he doesn’t seem to be a simple deserter or a bandit.

A large pit has been dug in the place where they must have passed.

Several wounded soldiers can be seen in the shade of the trees.

All over their bodies were scorched and burned, as if they had been hit by an bomb.

The player-turned-hunter lay down with his bow clutched, bleeding profusely from a deep sword wound on his side.

Even if you do first aid, you won’t be able to survive.

Chris, a veteran mercenary, was able to diagnose his wounds quite confidently.

On the other hand, the wife’s side seemed fortunately unharmed.

She is glaring at those who hurt her husband and screaming at them, but there are no visible wounds.

Chris let out a sigh, calmed down, and tried to understand the situation.

It’s a bit cold-hearted, but the husband’s side was hurt so badly that it could be said that it was already broken.

A man on a horse appears among the soldiers busy cleaning up the surroundings, covering the hunter’s wounds and taking care of the wounded.

He, who seemed to be in charge of this group, reprimanded his subordinates after seeing the condition of the hunters.

“Stupid bastards. Didn’t I tell you to capture him alive? What the hell are you going to do if this guy dies?”

“Sorry, sorry… … .”

At his reprimand, a soldier who looked like an adjutant stepped forward and bowed his head.

His sword is drenched in hunter’s blood. Chris had his doubts around that time.

‘Why are they trying to save her husband?’

It may be to repay the grudge step by step through torture, but the atmosphere is very businesslike.

Besides, how the hell was that pit made?

The hunter’s mana, which he had detected earlier, was not so great.

There were no outstanding wizards among the soldiers.

On the other hand, the pit in front of the hut is like a place where powerful high-ranking magic explodes.

In fact, there are many soldiers who appear to have suffered such an attack.

Far from being hit by arrows, the wounded looked like their arms were blown off and their legs were torn off.

Chris knew the secret only after looking closely at the hunter who was slowly dying.

The bow he was holding was not the old shortbow he had shown Chris.

A splendid metal longbow with a red glow.

It’s the first time I’ve seen Chris, who was a player of Arios Online, in real life… … .

That was definitely an epic item called the Demon Palace of the Phoenix.

‘Is that how it happened?

Chris, who finally understood everything, nodded quietly.

The reason why the hunter, the player, lives in the backcountry of the mountains and why the regular army of the kingdom came to him must be because of that epic item.

Epic items are usually less valuable than the player himself.

Because of this, it is rare to feel a threat to your life even if you are holding such a thing.

Having epic items means that you are a strong player.

However, the story is a bit different when it comes to the Demon Palace of the Phoenix.

It’s a treasure that makes you want to take possession of it even if you kill a normal player.

It is an epic item that can perform more than a simple tactical weapon.

The hunter must have been afraid of such an event and hid early in the forest.

People who were aiming for epic items would have wanted to chase after the hunter.

However, a hunter well positioned in the mountains… It was extremely difficult to harm the hunter holding the phoenix’s magic bow.

Hunters who are fully prepared on the home ground become five times stronger than usual.

So, while I was putting off tracking down the hunter and stealing the epic item, the status window suddenly disappeared.

You can easily guess what those who have suppressed their greed will do.

The intruders frantically tried to heal the hunter and save his life.

If he dies like this, ownership of the epic item passes to the killer.

However, the accompanying military doctor just shook his head with a helpless expression.

“You are bleeding too much. Unless even the highest-ranking priest comes to this place… … .”

“Damn it! It’s your mistake, so take responsibility.”

Their leader glared at the subordinate who had inflicted sword wounds on the hunter and recited.

The Demon Bow of the Phoenix is an epic item whose performance changes rapidly depending on the user’s magic power.

So it’s not something that a mere trifle should have.

The kingdom army will try to transfer ownership even if it kills the mistaken lieutenant.

The adjutant, who roughly grasped the situation, contemplated and sought an escape route, but the boss was already concerned about it and put the soldiers on standby.

Chris decided to intervene in the immediate situation.

“let’s go.”

hee hee hee

As he drew his sword and shouted, the ghost horse kicked the ground vigorously and jumped at them.

It was a bit of a shame to turn a blind eye to the couple who had done him a favor, and most of all, he couldn’t hand over the Demon Palace of the Phoenix to those like them.

Embarrassed by the sudden arrival of guests, the commanding officer regained his senses only after his soldiers were cut off one after another.

The hunter, who was wide-eyed at Chris’ participation in the battle, reached out to him while vomiting blood.

“nice… Heck! request. Oh, my wife… … .”

“Do not worry. I will take your wife to a safe place.”

Receiving Chris’ promise, he nodded and closed his eyes.

He’s still breathing, but he doesn’t seem to care about himself.

Chris pulled his wife’s side up onto the horse and jumped down himself.

Although they are greatly outnumbered, her presence now only hinders them.

Recognizing his will, the ghost horse instantly moves to the sound dimension and evacuates her.

The commander, who was taken aback by Chris’ appearance, quickly regained his composure and reorganized the battle lines.

Since they came after an epic item, a hunter’s wife would be fine.

In fact, it would have been easily solved if Chris had stabbed the hunter himself and escaped with the ghost horse… … .

If you do that, you really become a black-haired beast.

But the real beasts laughed at him without shame.

“Idiot, are you trying to imitate a knight here?”

“… … .”

Instead of voicing, Chris answered with a sword full of magical power.

Then, one of the soldiers advancing with their shield in front of them was cut apart along with the shield.

Those who thought it was because of the surprise attack that he cut down the soldiers earlier were quite taken aback.

On the other hand, Chris was in a difficult mood.

I haven’t been able to reduce the number yet, but I’ve already shown my base.

From now on, if you diligently slice them up, you don’t know what variables will arise.

Rarely has magic been as desperate as it is now.

“Drop the shield and pick up the spear! If it gets hit anyway, it will be cut entirely.”

“It’s easier to get sliced if you throw away your shield, you idiot.”

When Chris responds calmly, anxiety spreads among the soldiers.

Apparently, their commander doesn’t have a lot of trust.

While Chris took out a couple more, he barely managed his men.

“If we don’t fight properly, we’ll all die! If you won’t listen to me, I’ll kill you right now.”

“Damn it! Everyone line up properly.”

The number of spears itself wasn’t many because they came into the mountains, but spears are quite threatening even if they are originally equipped with a few.

Chris’s mouth went dry at the increasingly sophisticated joint work.

Although the difference in skill between each other is overwhelming… … .

As long as they are equally equipped with limbs, their numerical superiority cannot be ignored.

I don’t know if you’re just running away.

It would be difficult for him to kill all the enemies here by himself.

The moment he tried to use the mirror ring at the risk of consuming a large amount of mana.

A ghost horse that appeared like a ghost between trees and bushes crashed into their side.

The guy had just moved the hunter’s wife to a safe place and returned to help the owner.

In a situation where it would be dangerous even if a normal horse rushed in, the battle line collapsed out of control when the fast and strong ghost horse collided like an undead.

Chris raised his magical power as much as he could and willingly dug into the forest of spears and swords that had become noticeably weaker.

While he was diligently cutting and stabbing the fallen enemies, the ghost horse stepped on them and kicked them.

It is difficult even for the greatest general in the world to rectify the battle lines once collapsed.

Around that time, the commander felt defeated and attempted to escape.

But Chris stopped it with a crossbow attached to the ghost horse’s saddle.

After that, a fight like washing blood with blood continued.

Most of the soldiers escaped, but the remnants who couldn’t get out of the body rush at Chris like demons to survive.

However, Chris, who had accumulated a lot of experience as a mercenary, did not panic and cut them down one by one.

Soldiers who lose their heads and fight are worse than mere wild beasts.

By the time the clearing in front of the cabin is tainted with blood and corpses.

He finally finished tidying up and confronted his adjutant.

The hunter in the back had already passed away from excessive blood loss.

When the adjutant felt that the ownership of the epic item had passed to him, he spread both hands and shouted convulsively.

“The Demon Palace of the Phoenix!”

The longbow that was in the hunter’s hand crossed the space and came into the aide-de-camp’s hand.

Chris gritted his teeth at the sight and picked up the shield that had fallen to the floor.

Then, as if not giving the opponent a chance to pull the protest, he starts charging without hesitation.

Unfortunately, there was a considerable distance between Chris and his lieutenant.

Nevertheless, the adjutant, who was intimidated by his rush, fired an arrow without even pulling the string all the way.

Then, a lump of red magic power rushes at Chris without hesitation.

“Suck!”

Chris, who was covering his upper body with his shield, let go of it and rolled to the side.

He said he couldn’t shoot properly, but a normal shield against the phoenix’s magic bow was meaningless.

Chris had intended to use it as a gimmick from the start.

The phoenix’s magic bow was a weapon with an induction function, but the adjutant was aiming at Chris’s shield.

Since he was shooting in a hurry, it was only natural to aim for what was right in front of his eyes.

As Chris gave up the charge and threw himself to the side, the scorching heat rushed past him with such force that it burned his skin.

The arrow, which hit the discarded shield, easily pierced it, causing a massive explosion and burning down the cabin behind Chris.

Only then did the adjutant realize the power of the epic item and stood up with a confident expression.

No matter how good Chris was as a mercenary, he couldn’t possibly lose if he had the Demonic Palace of the Phoenix.

“I-I won’t miss this time.”

He soon pulled the protest again and carefully and accurately aimed at Chris.

The first step missed was because he was embarrassed.

If you designate the target correctly, the phoenix’s magic bow will not miss the opponent.

However, Chris also had a confident look on his face.

Instead of picking up a new shield or pulling back, he approached the lieutenant with his longsword raised.

The adjutant spat out in a fit of rage at his arrogant attitude.

“Do you want to die?”

“no.”

Chris responded very calmly and moved slowly.

Feeling uneasy about his attitude, the adjutant gathered his mind again and put on a demonstration.

However, the second arrow was never fired from the magic palace.

He unconsciously dropped the magic bow and knelt at the feeling of exhaustion that hit his entire body.

“What? Why all of a sudden… … .”

It was as if stones were hanging all over her body.

His limbs were heavy and he couldn’t move.

Chris smiled and kindly explained to him.

“It is a symptom of exhaustion of mana. That guy doesn’t usually suck a lot of mana. Ordinary people can’t fire a single shot properly and burn out.”

“Now, wait… Ugh!”

When Chris, who had arrived close to him, stabbed the adjutant’s neck without hesitation, pure white light and heat filled his hands.

He called out the newly acquired epic item in a nervous voice.

“The Demon Palace of the Phoenix.”

The bow appeared silently in Chris’ hand and seduced him with a graceful curve.

I want to test this out right away, but unlike the mirror ring, the phoenix’s magic palace is perfect for combat.

It’s too dangerous a weapon to shoot at will just for the sake of experimentation.

The consumption of mana was also enormous, so even if Chris was in perfect condition, 7 shots would be enough.

It is an item that feels too much to use right after a fierce battle.

Chris calmly wrapped the bowstring in a bandage to hide the redness and hung it on his back.

The ghost horse carrying him slowly moved toward the hiding place of the wife who had lost her husband.