The Support Ate it All - Chapter 168: Weapon Master (2)

As we continued moving forward after killing the Twin Warriors, a bright light appeared in the distance.

It was the exit leading out of the ruins.

The only players inside the ruins were the two of us and the two teams we had just encountered.

To properly rack up 20 kills, we had to go outside.

I warned Seo Ye-in who was leading the way.

“Be careful when we go out.”

“Mhmm.”

The exit of the ruins was the perfect place for enemies to lie in wait.

And as always, my ominous premonition was right.

The moment Seo Ye-in stepped outside,

Swish!

A gray beam of light shot toward us with a fierce whistling sound.

Seo Ye-in quickly raised her arm to block it.

Thud.

But the beam of light pierced through Seo Ye-in’s arm and embedded itself in her chest.

The opponent then revealed themselves.

In his hand was a large crossbow.

It was only then that she realized what was stuck in her chest was a steel arrow.

A small message appeared on Seo Ye-in’s screen.

[Continue?]

[10, 9, 8……]

[Continue?]

“You died. Let’s continue.”

“Mhmm…”

Since it was a survival battle, even close-combat characters didn’t have much endurance.

I had a reasonable suspicion that the frequent use of continues was to make point collection easier.

Seo Ye-in purchased a token with 300 points and inserted it into the arcade machine.

[Barbarian-Seo 4K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/4A]

The Barbarian reappeared inside the ruins at the starting point.

Meanwhile, I was near the exit.

“Let’s regroup first. I’ll head your way.”

“Okay.”

The interior of the ruins was tangled like a maze, but as an experienced player, I had memorized the paths.

So I retraced my steps,

“They’re still there.”

I ran into the knight and priest duo we had just defeated.

Having lost badly in their first fight, they hesitated and wondered if they would have to fight us again, but when they realized I was alone, they immediately initiated the fight.

However, contrary to their expectations, I was not just any easy target; I was a tricky target with poison darts.

Swoosh!

The knight who was hit by the poison dart started moving sluggishly and I swiftly passed by him.

“Excuse me~”

The two became infuriated and they chased after me with killing intent.

While I ran, I occasionally turned around to shoot another poison dart and then resumed running.

The chase didn’t last long.

Seo Ye-in was rapidly running toward me from the opposite direction.

“Axe!”

“Axe.”

Whirr!

The hand axe spun fiercely over my shoulder and embedded itself in the priest’s chest.

Her accuracy was improving.

[Barbarian-Seo 5K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/5A]

The situation was reversed and the 2v1 became a 1v2.

However, the knight decided that he had nothing to lose, so he didn’t flee but fought back.

Seo Ye-in dodged the slashing sword by leaning her body.

When she swung her sword in response, the knight raised his shield to deflect it.

Seo Ye-in struck down with the hand axe in her other hand, while the knight parried with his sword.

Clang! Clang!

They’re slowly getting used to it.

Unlike the clumsy puppet-like first battle, the movements of the two melee characters became much more refined.

Everyone was gradually becoming closer to weapon masters.

The only unfortunate aspect was,

This is a team game, after all.

Whoosh!

“…!”

The knight who was hit by the poison dart was once again afflicted with a status ailment.

Seo Ye-in’s longsword came crashing down on his crown.

Crack!

[Barbarian-Seo 6K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/6A]

After easily securing two kills, Seo Ye-in and I followed the same path we had taken earlier.

Before long, the exit of the ruins appeared.

“Alright, let’s get out. Watch out for arrows.”

“Okay.”

Swoosh!

Sure enough, arrows came flying at us as soon as we stepped out of the ruins.

However, contrary to my expectation that she would dodge, Seo Ye-in stood still and just stared straight at the arrows.

In the next instant, she swung her sword directly at them.

Clang—!

She split the flying arrow in half.

“Impossible!”

A cry of astonishment rang out.

It was probably from the player who had just shot the arrow.

However, there was no time to be surprised.

Now that he revealed his position by shooting the crossbow, he jumped up from his hiding place and began to flee.

But Seo Ye-in chased him down at a terrifying speed and severed his upper body from his lower body.

[Barbarian-Seo 7K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/6A]

There was no assist for me this time.

It couldn’t be helped since she did it all by herself.

was basically a two-person team game, so the crossbowman’s partner must be somewhere around.

Even though the battle had ended, we didn’t lower our guard but there was no sign of anything emerging.

They were either hiding elsewhere or waiting for us to pass by.

Either way, it meant there was nothing to deal with at the moment.

“But how did you deflect that?”

The situation just now was unexpected even to me.

I acknowledge Seo Ye-in’s genius talent, but the Barbarian class should be an unfamiliar class for her.

So while she was just starting to get the hang of it, precisely splitting a flying arrow seemed excessively difficult.

Seo Ye-in looked at me for a moment and then answered.

“It slowed down.”

“Bullet time?”

“…? Mhmm.”

Her response came a beat late. This was likely because she had been checking a notification message.

The moment the arrow was shot, she instinctively cast [Bullet Time], and only after the battle ended and she saw the cooldown time did she realize what had happened.

She’s a genius.

She had instinctively used a newly learned skill at the perfect timing.

I thought for a moment and then suggested.

“Then why don’t you try using it a few more times?”

“Mhmm.”

When Seo Ye-in nodded her head slowly, I cast Amplification.

[Activated ‘Amplification.’]

[The rank of ‘Bullet Time’ has increased. (F->D)]

[Duration: 00:04:58]

[Cooldown: 00:29:58]

Amplification was raised to C-rank.

Currently, it raised the target’s rank by two levels for five minutes, and the cooldown period was 30 minutes.

And the temporary D-rank Bullet Time’s stats were,

Duration: 2 seconds, Cooldown: 3 minutes.

It could be used more frequently with the reduced cooldown.

We could probably use it two or three more times during the remaining match.

The area outside the ruins was an appropriate mix of a rocky terrain and a forest.

There were places scattered around that were suitable for hiding.

The crossbowman had not been discovered easily because of this.

“Let’s go slowly. Somehow, I think those guys will come back.”

“Come back again?”

“That’s what I think.”

Since each had killed the other once, the match between them was not yet over.

Wouldn’t the crossbowman make sure to bring his partner for the final confrontation?

Swoosh!

“See? They came.”

Seo Ye-in jumped to the side to avoid the incoming arrow.

She then tried to chase the crossbowman, but a black shadow suddenly appeared nearby and attacked her.

It was an assassin dressed entirely in black.

He held a black dagger in his hand that matched his outfit.

That guy must be paired with the crossbowman.

I muttered a low exclamation.

“Wow, that guy is really persistent.”

The fact that he appeared from where we had passed meant he had been hiding there all along.

It seemed he missed his timing when the crossbowman was caught by Seo Ye-in, and he only appeared now that the crossbowman returned here.

While Seo Ye-in reacted to the ambush, the crossbowman widened the distance again before reloading and firing another arrow.

Swoosh!

And while Seo Ye-in dodged the arrow, the assassin stepped back briefly, then attacked again to buy time for the crossbowman.

The two opponents took turns harassing the Barbarian.

However, I was secretly hopeful.

Is she going to show it now?

The cooldown for Bullet Time should be almost over.

Swoosh!

Just as the arrow flew and the assassin thrust his dagger, I felt as if Seo Ye-in’s eyes flashed.

The Barbarian’s body slipped through the narrow gap between the two attacks.

The attacks narrowly missed her and the assassin’s arm was severed in the following counterattack.

“Too good.”

I felt like giving a standing ovation.

But since the battle was still ongoing, I joined in.

Thwack!

The assassin who lost one of his arms tried to retreat in a hurry.

However, he could no longer retreat because a poison dart was stuck in the back of his head.

After slicing through the assassin’s neck, Seo Ye-in immediately pursued the crossbowman.

I called out to her.

“Try not to kill him. I want to get an assist.”

“Mhmm.”

Because assists counted only when I helped defeat the enemy, I had to at least prick him with my poison dart.

Seo Ye-in nodded her head, then closed in on the enemy and mercilessly punched him in the face.

In reality, that punch would have broken all his teeth, but it didn’t show since it was just a mini-game.

I followed and fired a poison dart at the captured crossbowman.

Thwack!

Seo Ye-in finished him off.

That must have felt pretty humiliating.

[Barbarian-Seo 9K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/8A]

Once the match was decided, the crossbowman-assassin duo no longer targeted us.

Although they might have wanted to keep bothering us from a distance, they couldn’t afford to lose 600 points for dying.

Therefore, we continued to advance through the forest and rocky terrain and defeated the enemies one after another.

[Barbarian-Seo 13K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/12A]

It was at this time that a beautiful female mage peeked over the rocky terrain.

“Oh, Miss Seo—”

It was the character controlled by Go Hyeon-woo.

It seemed like he was surprised to encounter us in a survival game, so he waved his staff in greeting.

“……”

Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in’s empty hand slowly moved to her waist.

And in the next moment,

Whirl—Crack!

The hand axe flew while spinning fiercely and split Go Hyeon-woo’s skull.

[Barbarian-Seo 14K/1D/0A]

[PoisonDartShooter-Kim 0K/0D/13A]

“…”

Go Hyeon-woo looked at Seo Ye-in and then at me.

I could feel the unspoken pressure to say something to him.

But since I was always on Seo Ye-in’s side, I adjusted my tone and lightly scolded him.

“Weakling. This is what happens when you let personal feelings interfere in battle.”

“Ugh…!”

Go Hyeon-woo realized the cruelty of the martial world.