The Returnee's Hidden Strategy Stream - Chapter 83
Chapter 83
Thud!
Hanbit, who had just dodged the golem’s attack, quickly moved far away.
Even if he was buying time, he couldn’t keep it up for long. He had to achieve his goal as quickly as possible.
Thud-!
The compass in his hand still glowed.
He had at most 10 minutes before the effect wore off.
He had to move as fast as possible.
Pop-!
The light emanating from the compass pointed to one of the ruined buildings.
Running out of the golem’s sight, Hanbit quickly reached his destination.
Thud-!
The remains of the building slowly fell to the ground.
He burrowed inside and approached a half-destroyed wardrobe.
Crack-!
He tore off the door, revealing a small box on the bottom shelf.
Inside was a small, orange pebble.
“Good.”
The guardian golem, being so powerful, required careful management.
That’s why safety devices were always hidden nearby.
You could call them three power buttons corresponding to the golem’s three cores.
Bang-!
A loud noise continued to come from the golem.
The two who had been repeating their deaths seemed to have gotten the hang of it.
“First, this one.”
Hanbit reached out and grabbed the orange pebble.
Swish-
The color slowly faded as soon as he touched it.
When he turned his head, the golem had stopped moving.
However, the pause didn’t last long.
Crack-!
A spark flew from the golem’s chest.
Having confirmed that one of the cores had been extinguished, Hanbit left a message for the two.
[2 left. Don’t give up, we’ll be done soon.]
Bang-!
Soon after, their battle began again.
“Next is… over there.”
Hanbit quickly headed to the next location indicated by the light.
It wasn’t far, and he quickly found the second stone.
Swish-
As the color faded from the pebble, the golem stopped again.
The light in the core of its chest went out, just like the last time.
Pop-!
The final light burst out from the compass.
The direction was the leaning clock tower in the center of the ruins.
It was quite a distance, and he had at most 1 minute left.
Thud-!
Hanbit pushed off with his feet and ran quickly through the ruins.
Thanks to the effector, his movements were definitely better.
However, reaching the clock tower safely was a different story.
Swish-
A huge shadow loomed over his head as he ran between the buildings.
It landed on the ground before Hanbit could arrive.
Bang-!
The golem’s gaze landed directly on Hanbit.
It felt like he was the only one that mattered.
“Black Dragon!”
“Black Dragon!”
Avantgarde and Kim Jaeha, startled, ran after him.
Hanbit was just as surprised.
‘Did they add some kind of AI?’
The golem seemed to be trying to protect the last stone.
It was a situation he had never encountered before, no matter how many times he had replayed the past.
Thump-!
The golem took a step forward and swung its arm at Hanbit.
It was definitely very fast, but Hanbit could still read its movements.
The problem was that the aggro was still fixed on him. Even if he ran away as fast as he could, the golem would catch up to him.
Swish-!
Avantgarde jumped up and attacked again.
Whoosh!
“Ugh!”
The golem swatted it away with just a swing of its arm.
Its gaze never left Hanbit.
Swish-
The light emanating from the compass had already disappeared.
“Phew.”
He had memorized the exact location of the last stone.
The problem was finding a way to reach the not-so-distant target.
If the golem destroyed the clock tower, the situation would become even more complicated.
Thud-!
Having made up his mind, Hanbit pushed off in the opposite direction of the clock tower.
Bang-!
The golem followed, smashing the ground at the same time.
Avantgarde and Kim Jaeha also changed direction and ran.
Whoosh-!
The golem, which had instantly caught up, swung its fist.
Hanbit dodged it a beat earlier and led the golem away.
Bang-!
Boom-!
The golem destroyed everything around it as if it had gone berserk.
It was the right choice to move away from the clock tower.
“Black Dragon!”
Avantgarde, who had caught up, called out.
Kim Jaeha was running hard behind him.
“I think there’s a spot where it gets aggro, so I’m going to check it out!”
Avantgarde turned sharply and ran in the opposite direction.
He reached an abandoned building that was a distance away from the clock tower.
At that moment.
Bang-!
The golem, which had planted its feet with tremendous force, jumped forward.
It reached Avantgarde in an instant.
Whoosh-!
Its fist swung much faster than before.
Unable to dodge, Avantgarde was hit directly and died.
“It seems to be just up to that building.”
Avantgarde, who had respawned, quickly returned to his position.
His excited expression showed no signs of fading.
Thud-!
With its target gone, the golem started running towards them again.
It was definitely slower than when it was heading towards the clock tower.
“You two, keep drawing its attention here.”
Hanbit made a decision and told the others.
“Got it!”
“I’ll do the same as before.”
Avantgarde, who was always eager, and Kim Jaeha, who calmly held his hammer, had no hesitation.
Bang-!
Bang-!
The golem, which was digging into the ground as it ran, swung its fist.
Thud-!
Avantgarde’s dual swords, which he had jumped up with, were in his hands.
Dozens of yellow threads were rippling around them.
‘He’s using that skill.’
The Thread Swordsmanship was a difficult skill.
It was one of the most difficult skills among those that weren’t hidden.
It was also a skill with a very high potential for the future.
“Hah!”
Kim Jaeha, who had burrowed towards the legs, dug into the ground, cutting away at the terrain.
He knew exactly how he had dealt with this golem before.
It was a very effective method for him, who lacked strength.
‘I’ll try it too.’
Hanbit slowly approached the clock tower, keeping his distance.
The golem, which swung its fists blindly and swiftly, didn’t seem to notice him yet.
“This far is okay.”
Hanbit reached the low wall of the abandoned building.
The golem’s gaze hadn’t reached him yet.
But as soon as he took one step inside, it would chase after him immediately.
Bang-!
The yellow threads scattered in the battle and a loud noise echoed.
The battle to draw the golem’s attention continued.
Whoosh-!
Flare-!
The wind that had been constantly gathering in his sword and the flames that raged within it swayed harmoniously.
One time.
He needed just one powerful strike, more than any other.
Thud-
Hanbit climbed onto a pile of rubble.
It was a perfect height, with a clear view of the center of the ruined building.
“It’s far, too far.”
He turned his gaze to the top of the clock tower.
It was an unreachable distance if he just ran away from the golem.
There was only one way.
“Fire Burst.”
Boom!
Hanbit cast a magic spell towards the center of the ruins.
The intensified explosion was powerful enough to collapse the ruined buildings and piles of rubble.
“Fire Burst.”
The next spell flew a little further. It demolished the structures that obscured the clock tower from a closer distance.
Boom-!
After the last fireball exploded, Hanbit looked at the now clear view.
The area near the clock tower was already clean, thanks to the golem.
Having finished the preliminary work, Hanbit opened his character information window.
[Black Dragon-Lv.49]
[Title: None]
Strength: 52
Agility: 55
Intelligence: 52
Vitality: 35
Remaining stat points: 36
‘I’m glad I saved them.’
The reason he didn’t use the stat points as soon as he got them was to prepare for such a situation.
Just like now.
Swipe-
Hanbit moved his finger and quickly distributed the points to the necessary stats.
[Black Dragon-Lv.49]
[Title: None]
Strength: 57
Agility: 60
Intelligence: 58
Vitality: 55
Remaining stat points: 0
Unlike before, he invested 20 points in Vitality at once.
It was that difficult to get through this situation.
Whoosh-!
The flames surrounding the sword were so intense that they affected the surroundings.
Taking a stance, Hanbit looked at the golem fighting far away.
And from the ruins, he walked towards the center.
Whirl-!
At the same time, the golem’s gaze turned around.
It moved instantly.
Bang-!
The golem, kicking off the ground, followed him.
It jumped up and appeared right above him in the blink of an eye.
Boom-!
The golem slammed the ground, destroying everything around it.
Only Hanbit, who had prepared in advance, stood alone in the dust.
“Fire Burst.”
Boom!
Hanbit stretched out his hand and cast a spell towards the golem’s face.
Then the golem’s attacks became even more violent.
Bang-!
Bang-!
Attacks flew wildly using its hands and feet.
Soon after, a fist it had swung out hard was planted in the ground.
Bang-!
Dodging through the dust, Hanbit jumped high.
He climbed onto its wrist and quickly reached its shoulder.
Thud-
As the golem stood up, his field of vision increased.
Hanbit stretched out his hand and used magic again.
“Fire Burst!”
Boom-!
The explosion that hit the golem’s face created a thick black smoke.
Grasping his sword again, Hanbit kicked off and jumped high into the air.
‘It’s coming.’
The golem, whose vision had quickly returned, twisted its body.
Then, it swung its fist forward with tremendous force.
Whoosh-!
The giant fist was about to reach him in an instant.
But Hanbit was a little faster.
Whoosh-!
He swung his sword widely, and a blade of wind mixed with flames shot out like a storm.
It collided head-on with the golem’s oncoming fist.
Bang-!
The explosion created a huge shockwave.
Hanbit, who had taken the full brunt of the impact, was blown away with tremendous force.
“Black Dragon!”
“Black Dragon!”
Whoosh-!
The two shouted as he was sent flying far away.
Hanbit’s body was cutting through the air like a bullet.
“Fire Burst!”
Boom-!
Just before reaching the clock tower, he shot a spell at the wall to slow himself down as much as possible. Thanks to his increased stats, the recoil from the spell was reduced, but it still required a significant amount of concentration.
Bang-!
His body crashed into the tower, piercing through the middle and rolling on the floor. It was an injury that would have killed him if he hadn’t invested in Vitality.
“It’s over there.”
Thanks to the twisted interior, the top of the clock tower was clearly visible.
Bang-!
A huge shadow loomed over them as the ground shook. The golem, with its red eyes glowing, was falling.
Thud-!
It was a speed that was difficult to react to, but Hanbit remained calm.
By calculating the falling direction, angle, and force, he could find a small opening.
Bang-!
The golem crashed into the ground with a tremendous impact. Hanbit, who was on the outer edge, managed to survive by a few feet.
“Wow, that was close.”
Having somehow survived, he cautiously emerged from the dust. The top of the clock tower, which was barely holding its shape amid the ruined buildings, was in view. A box with its lid half-open was dangling from the remaining wall. The orange pebble was clearly visible inside.
Thud-
The golem, which had quickly gotten up, turned its red eyes back to Hanbit.
But this space was actually advantageous to him.
Thud-!
Hanbit began to run through the broken ruins.
The golem began to attack using its huge arms.
Bang-!
Boom-!
The thick pile of rubble was an obstacle to its attacks.
Hanbit scurried through the gaps and quickly jumped up onto the golem’s shoulder.
Creak-
The box slid open completely as he slipped. Hanbit jumped high as he saw the rolling pebble.
Thud-!
He was propelled high into the air with a strong force, and he reached out his hand.
And just as his fingertips were about to touch the falling pebble…
Whoosh-!
A giant hand from below shot up.
Creak-!
Hanbit, anticipating the attack, twisted his sword to reduce its power. He couldn’t avoid being flung back, but he had already factored that in.
“Hah!”
Hanbit let his body be carried away by the recoil.
Due to the previous attack, the pebble was also bouncing upwards.
Bang-!
The golem swung its fist up from below again.
The overwhelming attack reached his feet in an instant.
However…
Tap-!
Hanbit was faster.
“Got it!”
In a split second, he snatched the stone.
And when he looked down…
Whoosh-!
A giant fist filled his vision along with a strong wind.
The fist stopped as if it had solidified.
“Whew, that was close.”
Thud-
Hanbit landed safely on the fist and let out a sigh of relief.
Swish-
When he looked down, the last core’s light had disappeared from the golem’s chest.
Ding-!
An alarm sounded.
[The private area has been unlocked due to the completion of the conditions.]
———-