Overgeared

by Park Saenal

  “…You don’t have much time left. Accept the honor of being a lich. The moment Pagma completes the Vessel of the Soul, I will reclaim my immortality and you will be by my side. You will be praised by all, even if you’re dead.”

  “Don’t…!”

  “You don’t have veto rights. The day you die, I will remove your body from its grave and resurrect you as an immortal.”

  It was the end of the video. There was no need to speak about what happened afterwards. The current Mumud was a lich. This was proof that Braham made his decision. There was a problem.

  ‘Agnus stole Lich Mumud.’

  It was also in front of the watching Overgeared members. It was shortly after Grid fought with Elfin Stone in the vampire city.

  ‘How rotten.’

  Grid only knew about what happened between Agnus and Braham after Euphemina got the quest to liberate Mumud’s soul. He felt a sense of discomfort and asked the sleeping Braham.

  ‘Braham, what do you want to say to Mumud now?’

  Well, Grid didn’t need an answer. Grid already knew Braham’s heart.

  ‘It is obvious… You want to apologize to Mumud after belatedly realizing how wrong you were. Right?’

  Of course, it didn’t make sense to apologize now. Mumud already tasted a great deal of pain that was irreversible. Mumud didn’t have to feel forgiveness after Braham’s apology. Even if he did forgive, the pain that Mumud experienced wouldn’t be erased.

  ‘Braham knows this as well.’

  Grid looked back at the dictionary meaning of Assimilation. Different things becoming similar to each other. Yes, Grid and Braham were different. But they read each other’s thoughts and feelings during the assimilation process and changed little by little. Thanks to Grid, Braham now understood humans.

  Whether Mumud accepted his apology or not…

  Braham still thought he should apologize to Mumud. It was clearly the responsibility of the one who committed the sin.

  “Yes… That is a man.”

  Grid recalled Lee Junho, who used to torment him in his school days. What if Lee Junho came to him and apologized for the mistakes of the past? The pain of the past wouldn’t disappear, but it might resolve a little bit. The darkness in his heart could be lifted.

  “…I will try it.”

  It wasn’t for Braham. It was for his quest and for the sake of the victim, Mumud.

  ‘I have to win.’

  He firmly made up his mind. Then he checked the list of spells he could use now.

  On the other hand, Agnus.

  “Kukukuk… Yes, Mumud, you were also a stupid fool.”

  Agnus laughed as he verified the contents of the quest from Mumund’s position. The laugh had a different feeling from usual. Agnus’s laugh was filled with a terrible anger.

  “Stupid blockhead.”

  He was a fool. The victim was a fool. Agnus hated the weak and victims. He was reminded of himself in the past. Agnus grabbed Mumud’s skull with a thin hand and whispered.

  “Victims only have two choices. Go away or get revenge.”

  Forget everything and just live? It wasn’t living. If they ignored the past, they couldn’t move forward. It was being deprived of their body and soul.

  “Kill Mumud. Clear away the past and break away from it. This time, you… We will trample on them.”

  Shaaaaaaah-

  Lich Mumud’s magic power exploded. It was the new concept of magic that contained seven attributes. Agnus was determined to win from the start, using the highest-rated magic available to the level 400 Mumud. Then what about Grid?

  “Fireball. Wind Cutter.”

  “…?”

  Using only the lowest level magic? Agnus was puzzled by Grid’s unusual response.

  Puaaaaaaaah!

  Before the magic was completed, Mumud was hit by flames and a dark blade. Fireball and Dark Cutter penetrated the lich’s Mana Shield!

  “What?”

  Agnus felt panicked. He didn’t understand the situation as Grid looked at Belial’s Staff.

  “This is a myth rated item, bastard.”

  Intelligence rose by 30%. Magic casting speed rose by 30%. He could cast three types of magic at the same time. However, proficiency was required. When fire and dark magic are cast simultaneously, the magic power of each one was increased by 200%. Magic critical chance was increased by 20%. Magic critical damage was increased by 150%, etc.

  This was Belial’s Staff.

  Agnus had only hunted the weakened great demons and didn’t know about the power and extent of myth rated items.

  Chapter 663

  Chapter 663

  [Mana Shield Lv. 6]

  When attacked, mana is consumed instead of health. However, only 68% of your defense and magic resistance is available.

  When casting a spell, the function of Mana Shield is incomplete. During magic casting, the Mana Shield will be penetrated if more than 30,000 damage is dealt.

  * Can be turned ON/OFF without a cooldown time.

  These were the specifications of the level 400 Mumud’s Mana Shield. In addition, Mumud was a lich who had close to infinite magic power, so his mana was close to 500,000. There was something else.

  [Mumud’s Knowledge]

  Increases magic casting speed by 15% and mana regeneration rate by 30%.

  Mumud also had basic skills like this. It was enough to convince Agnus to have Mumud cast high level magic from the beginning of the battle. Yes, Agnus interpreted the present Mumud as an invincible being. Mumud would take 5~7 seconds to cast the high level spell and Agnus thought Mumud would be able to withstand any attacks during that time.

  But the result? Grid’s casting speed of the lowest level magic was three times faster than Mumud and the power was enough to penetrate the Mana Shield.

  [Lich Mumud has suffered 37,300 damage!]

  [Lich Mumud has lost 30,000 mana!]

  [Lich Mumud has suffered 7,300 damage!]

  ‘Mumud really received this type of damage from Fireball and Dark Cutter?’

  Mumud’s current intelligence was as high as 10,000. Mumud’s magic resistance was high enough to absorb most damage from the 1st ranking magician. But in front of Grid’s magic, Mumud’s magic resistance was useless. Agnus’ eyes twisted before he laughed.

  ‘This is Braham’s strength… I have to acknowledge it!’

  Agnus finally raised his rating of Grid. This was the first player to acquire the legendary class of Pagma’s Descendant and then Braham’s power. Agnus decided that Grid’s ‘quest progression’ would be unique.

  ‘If Kraugel is a genius at combat, Grid has the talent to understand and use the game’s worldview and story.’

  The truth was very different, but Agnus was forced to overestimate Grid. It was because he could only interpret the existence of a person who could use the power of two legends as a bugged player. Agnus shook with thrill. His smile curved from ear to ear as Grid spoke.

  “This is a myth rated item, bastard.”

  “I…tem!”

  Kwaaaang!

  Grid once again cast Fireball. Before Lich Mumud finished casting the S grade unique magic, Grid was already using his third spell. Of course, from a common sense perspective, the lowest rated Fireball would be no threat to Mumud. It was impossible to get through a lich’s Mana Shield with the lowest rated magic. But the destructive power of Grid’s Fireball was so beyond common sense that Agnus was nervous.

  ‘Is a Fireball that deals at least 20,000 damage coming again?’

  The damage suffered when Fireball and Dark Cutter hit at the same time exceeded 37,000. Agnus thought that he would suffer 20,000 damage from Fireball alone.

  Peeeeeong!

  [Lich Mumud has suffered 8,800 damage!]

  [Lich Mumud has lost 8,800 mana.]

  ‘Huh?’

  The power of Fireball was much weaker than before?

  ‘Was the first spell a critical hit?’

  Agnus regained his reason a
nd stood in front of Mumud. It was in order to shield Mumud while the spell casting finished. On the other hand, Grid was suffering.

  [The double casting of Fireball and Dark Cutter has failed.]

  ‘How rotten!’

  Belial’s Staff had a fraudulent option that made Triple Casting possible. But it was an option that could only be used when supported by proficiency. For Grid, it was absolutely impossible to do Triple Casting.

  ‘Double casting…’

  He had to call out Fireball with his mouth and Dark Cutter in his mind, which was difficult for him. The first time he succeeded was purely… A coincidence.

  ‘I should grab 100 people passing by and have them try it.’

  Maybe all 100 out of 100 would fail. The difficulty of double casting was high.

  ‘Should I use high level magic?’

  The current Grid was wearing almost all his overgeared items. There was Neberius’s Bracelet which increased the wearer’s intelligence by 30 and shorted magic casting time by 20%. The Black Quartz Earrings increased the wearer’s intelligence by 15%. The Ring of Absurdity increased the wearer’s mana regeneration rate by two times and reduced the resources consumed by magic and skills by half. Malacus’ Cloak increased the wearer’s intelligence by 200 and gave off a bloody smell. The Holy Light Crown raised his intelligence by 300 and his dignity by 200. There was also Belial’s Staff.

  In order to take full advantage of the power of a magician, Grid pulled out all the products that were effective. In addition, there were the dozens of magic spells that could be used at level 400. That’s right. The current abilities of the magician Grid weren’t lacking compared to Lich Mumud. He might even be ahead. The reason why Grid only used the lowest level spells was for efficiency. Basic spells liked Magic Missile, Fireball, and Dark Cutter only took one or two seconds to cast, while the casting time increased as the rating went up.

  ‘It’s too risky to cast long spells when I’m unfamiliar with the magic.’

  Every spell had an antagonistic attribute. There weren’t just simple attack spells, but those that showed all types of functions. The probability of being countered was extremely high, as utilization was unlimited. It meant that a battle involving magic was a psychological war. The only magic that Grid had used was Magic Missile, Fly, and Alarm.

  Could the not intelligent Grid fight efficiently using various spells in real time? It was impossible. His opponent was Agnus. He had a lich skilled in using magic. It was highly likely that Grid would be defeated in a psychological war with him.

  ‘So.’

  Grid planned to take advantage of the option of Belial’s Staff where additional damage would be dealt if he used both fire magic and dark magic at the same time. He wanted to avoid a psychological warfare by using only the lowest level magic, which was close to immediate magic, in order to push Lich Mumud. However, reality wasn’t that easy.

  “Fireball!”

  ‘ Dark Cut…Ball!’

  “Fire…! Dark!”

  ‘Damn!’

  It was really difficult to cast Fireball and Dark Cutter at the same time. He was convinced that double casting wasn’t an area for players.

  ‘This is why… The title of a great magician will be the exclusive property of NPCs.

  Pepeng!

  Peng!

  Fireball and Dark Cutter were deployed separately to attack Mumud. The power was so weak that it couldn’t be compared to when cast at the same time. This meant it couldn’t penetrate the Mana Shield. Grid’s nervousness reached the peak.

  Kiyaaaaaaah!

  Under the protection of Agnus and the Mana Shield, Lich Mumud finished casting his magic. Magic power exploded and headed towards Grid.

  “God Hands!”

  Grid called out but he had become a great magician thanks to Assimilation. The God Hands were the dedicated item of Pagma’s Descendant and didn’t respond to Grid’s call. In the end, Grid had to endure Mumud’s attack with his own strength.

  ‘What should I stop?’

  Mumud cast magic that Grid had never seen before. The power and effects couldn’t be predicted. But it was clearly top rated magic if it took eight seconds to cast.

  ‘I have to unconditionally stop it.’

  Grid quickly pulled something out from the magic list he had checked before. The defense magic list. Among them, there was a spell that exerted extreme magic resistance.

  “Anti-magic Shield!”

  [Increases magic resistance by 50% for 10 seconds.]

  [Defends against one magic attack.]

  Chwaaaaak!

  A pink transparent curtain wrapped around Grid’s body.

  Jjeejeeeong!

  Like a comet, a flash of glowing light hit the pink curtain. Then…

  The pink curtain shattered. The prismatic flash that boasted seven colours now had only six colours. A chill went down Grid’s spine.

  ‘Multi-hit magic…!’

  The flashing prism. It seemed like one spell but it was actually seven types of spells separated by seven attributes.

  Kwa kwa kwa kwang!

  Mumud’s magic flew through the anti-magic shield and exploded as it collided against Grid’s chest. The explosion was so huge that the ground where Grid was standing disappeared like it was hit by a meteorite.

  “…”

  “G-Grid…”

  Through the dust generated by the explosion, they could see the silhouette of the struggling Grid. He was being burned, frozen, covered with dirt, blown by the wind, pierced by a flash. Grid received different types of damage at once. It was a scene that caused goose bumps.

  Lich Mumud. Those who knew about him and those who first came to know about him today…everyone was thrilled. This was Mumud’s magic. It was enough to invoke silence on the chaotic battlefield.

  “Kukuk…!”

  How much time passed? Both the viewers and those on the battlefield foresaw Grid’s death as the stillness lasted for a moment or maybe an eternity. Someone’s unpleasant laughter broke the silence. It was Agnus’ laughter.

  “Kuhahahahahat!” Okay! Very good! Hahahahahat!”

  Agnus sought the pleasures of the moment. He wanted to forget the terrible reality by receiving new stimuli. For example, today’s encounter with Grid was the best.

  “You having Braham’s soul… It will be the stepping stone for Mumud’s growth!! Kuk! Kukuk! Gridddd! More! Jump further! Give me more!!!”

  Peeng!

  Pepepepeng!

  Lich Mumud aimed a spell at the silhouette of Grid in the dust. Most of the viewers saw this action as the killing shot. It was because the power that Mumud used before was too strong for Grid to recover so quickly. At that moment.

  “…Why didn’t I think of this sooner?”

  The storm caused by the aftermath of Mumud’s magic. The appearance of the wounded Grid was revealed. Over his left shoulder, 10 fireballs were lined up while there were 10 black blades over his right shoulder. It was like wings of fire and darkness.

  “…?”

  The viewers, Ares members, Overgeared members and Agnus didn’t understand the meaning of Grid’s appearance. But Lich Mumud…

  Flinch.

  He was learning. Among the enhanced magic that Braham redefined, it was the second coming of the Alarm magic that showed the most efficiency.

  Chapter 664

  Chapter 664

  Satisfy boasted graphics more colorful than any game or movie. The effects that occurred every time skills or magic was used were beautiful and glamorous. The players who used brilliant skills and magic became the objects of envy.

  “Wings…?”

  The left side was blazing red flames and the right side was dark wings. The viewers and everyone on the battlefield looked at the white-haired Grid with wings The sight of a player with opposing wings captured everyone’s admiration.

  “Kik…”

  Agnus still maintained his concentration during a time when everyone else were fascinated. He quic
kly grasped the situation and took measures to cope with it.

  “Flying magic that contains a bombardment capability…is it?”

  Agnus though that Grid would fly. It wasn’t a hasty conclusion. It was a rational conclusion since wings were a tool for flying in the sky.

  “Raincoat.”

  Chwarururuk!

  Agnus used a skill attached to the Rune of Death and dozens of magic shields were created above him. It was the strongest anti-air defense magic. Agnus was prepared for Grid to attack from the sky. This was a mistake.

  Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!

  “…!!”

  Grid didn’t fly.

  He waved his wings firmly while standing on the ground. At the same time, he released a line of fire magic and dark magic at Lich Mumud.

  ‘Fireball and Dark Cutter?’

  He never imagined that the magic that looked like wings was actually a multi-deployment Fireball and Dark Cutter. Agnus belatedly realized his misjudgment, hurried to turn off the anti-air defense and raised bodies around him. It was an attempt to use a body shield.

  But.

  Pepepepeng!

  “Kuk…!”

  It was too late. Due to the time gap between the release of the anti-air defense magic, the deployment of the body shield was delayed!

  ‘Shit!’

  Agnus cursed as 10 pairs of Fireball and Dark Cutter narrowly made it past the bodies. He lost his composure for a moment as there was a strong explosion.

  Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!

  [Lich Mumud has suffered 38,100 damage!]

  [Lich Mumud has suffered 36,860 damage!]

  [Lich Mumud has suffered 37,500 damage!]

  [Lich Mumud…]

  …

  …

  “…”

  The lich was the culmination of the undead. But this was a story for when it existed as an independent object. The moment it belonged to a player, the power of a lich became extremely limited. The problem wasn’t the weakening of stats, but the limits of the command system. During real-time combat, it was very difficult for a player to instruct the worker in detail about certain actions, resulting in extremely low potential for the worker.

  Of course, players with outstanding concentration and wits were able to deliver high quality commands to the worker, but this was in a situation where they were able to do that. It was virtually impossible to deliver high-quality commands during combat with an unpredictable opponent. It was difficult to respond to constantly changing variables and a gap was eventually revealed.