Chapter 249 - Third Mission
The undead, staggering like zombies, were mercilessly struck down by the blades and perished.
Every time this happened, the followers of the Church of the Four Gods were astonished to receive the message that they had passed.
Ryu Min, who had already anticipated this, showed no surprise whatsoever.
"As expected, killing the undead who were actually humans is perceived as murder."
Even though he had killed a summoned being, the system considered it murder.
The same had happened when he had killed angels turned into undead before.
"At that time, I received an additional reward and was surprised."
The followers of the Church of the Four Gods, just like Ryu Min back then, were also surprised.
They would have never expected that killing the undead would allow them to advance.
"I didn't know either. I really didn't think it would work."
They had simply trusted that it would work, as they had done with the angels in the past.
Therefore, it was also part of the plan they had conceived.
"Originally, the idea was just to let them kill each other...".
He had considered this approach because he had the Summoning Master card.
After all, wouldn't it be better to kill the undead than people?
Thud! Thud!
"Crunch."
"Kkeak!"
Hundreds of summons created by John Delgado disappeared under the assault of the Church of the Four Gods.
Although Ryu Min watched the scene with satisfaction, he didn't know that Christine was watching him strangely from behind.
"Why are John Delgado's summons dying like this?".
When Christine saw the hordes of summons approaching for the first time, she felt unsure about the battle.
She thought John Delgado was there to kill her too.
But the undead seemed to have no intention of attacking at all.
Even she, lacking combat skills, could have stabbed them with her sword.
Therefore, she was even more surprised.
"Why? Why are they approaching and dying? Surely John Delgado ordered them to attack the Church of the Four Gods."
Christine wasn't the only one with questions.
"What is that idiot doing?".
It was Berber.
"He's wasting valuable summons!".
He couldn't understand John Delgado's actions.
He was already furious over the annihilation of the followers of the Church of Despair, and now the sect leader was reviving corpses and wasting them senselessly.
"Damn it, I can't stand by while this happens."
Berber moved stealthily.
"I'll seize this opportunity to kill the leader and become the leader of the Church of Despair."
Even though he would have to start over without all the followers, that was fine.
After all, wouldn't it be better to accumulate followers slowly?
Sneaking up behind John, Berber raised an axe.
"Die".
But before he could strike, something fell with a dull sound.
"Eh?".
It was his own arms holding the axe.
In his surprise, he even forgot to scream, and then he saw an undead winged being holding a curved sword.
It was Sariel, the summon that John Delgado considered the strongest.
"Aaaah!".
It wasn't clear whether he was surprised to see an archangel or if he was screaming from pain, but either way, it was fine.
The most important thing for John Delgado was, after all, to eliminate traitors.
"Did you think I wouldn't notice you aiming for the leadership position?".
"Yes, you...!".
John Delgado, openly mocking, gave a cold order.
"Kill him. Sariel".
Before he could finish speaking, a curved sword pierced through Berber's neck.
Thud.
John Delgado's impassive face now showed renewed gratitude towards his master.
If it wasn't for Black Scythe's intervention, the one who would have lost his head wouldn't be Berber, but himself.
Ryu Min, who had been watching from a distance, smiled subtly seeing John was unharmed.
"With this, the Church of Despair has been annihilated. We have also blocked the variables," he remarked.
The only remaining variable is the attack of the archangels, so we still can't relax, as we don't know when they will arrive.
Thud!
With the sound of the sword strike, the last of the summons fell.
After the annihilation of the undead, Ryu Min addressed the followers of the Church of the Four Gods.
"Is there anyone here who hasn't passed?"
The followers shook their heads without exception.
All 400 members of the Church of the Four Gods survived.
"We were lucky. I never thought that killing the undead would count too."
With his feigned ignorance, people wouldn't know anything.
All of this was part of Ryu Min's plan.
As the situation gradually calmed down, someone's cry was heard.
"Stop fighting! We've reached the maximum number of participants!"
Everyone's gaze turned to the progress window.
[Current number of survivors: 1,152]
[Current number of passersby: 1,152/1,152]
The number of survivors and passersby matched.
More killings would be futile.
Those people who had no intention of killing more than two people sheathed their weapons and stepped back.
"Now there's only one left."
They just needed to hold out until the time limit was up.
Although they couldn't relax, as they never knew if someone might suddenly attack.
While a tense silence filled the air, Christine still couldn't shake off the doubt from her mind.
"What happened? John Delgado's summons had no intention of attacking. It was as if they were saying to kill each other to survive."
Black Scythe had been observing the situation, and just then, fortunately, the summons arrived.
Those summons also showed no intentions of attacking.
Was it all a coincidence?
Christine ran her hand through her hair as she tried to dismiss those thoughts.
"No, it can't be. It doesn't make sense for Black Scythe to have orchestrated this. It would be more plausible if he had predicted the future."
Before she could erase those unnecessary thoughts from her mind, the time limit came to an end.
[Time limit has ended.]
[You have succeeded in the second mission.]
[There are 1,152 survivors and 1,151 dead.]
[Congratulations. The third mission will begin shortly.]
Ryu Min first saw Christine after reading the message.
"You know, right? Your role will be crucial in the third mission."
"Yes... I know."
Although Christine nodded, Ryu Min noticed the fleeting concern that crossed her face.
"Don't worry. I'll protect you. Just make sure your skills don't fail. A thousand lives depend on your abilities."
"Oh, I understand. Black Scythe. I won't let you down."
Christine finally showed a determined look.
The followers of the Church of the Four Gods, who had also heard about the mission beforehand, adjusted their attitudes with determination.
After all, they had heard how dangerous and difficult the third mission would be.
Of course, those who were not followers of the Church of the Four Gods awaited the message without worries.
It was then that something unusual happened on the common ground.
"Huh? What's that?"
Suddenly, countless green lines appeared on the common ground.
Shoulder-width apart, they extended horizontally in short dotted lines.
At that moment of confusion, the message they were waiting for appeared.
[Before revealing the third mission, please proceed to the green lines on the ground.]
[We have prepared 1,152 lines, one for each survivor.]
"Lines?"
"Are they telling us to go there?"
People moved without a word, following the instructions.
"Should we stand one by one here?"
"Eh? The line turns red when you step on it."
"It feels like a parking sign."
As people stood on the lines, they turned red.
The green lines on the ground, which were scattered, gradually changed to red.
Some hurriedly ran trying to find a spot.
In doing so, people realized something.
That they were standing in a horizontal line.
When the last one stepped on the line, the message appeared as if it was waiting.
[We will begin the third mission.]
<Third Mission>
Endure the pain.
If you don't die in 30 minutes, you will pass.
[A projectile will be launched every 2 seconds dealing constant damage.]
[Each player will receive one projectile shot.]
[Projectile damage will gradually increase over time.]
[A reward may be received upon completing the round.]
[Current number of survivors: 1,152]
[Time remaining until the end of the round: 00:29:59]
"What is this? Endure the pain?"
"Endure the pain for 30 minutes?"
The surprise was momentary.
Without giving time for questions, projectiles were launched from the front.
Bang bang bang!
What was shot like bullets hit people in the chest.
Everyone was hit accurately.
"Ugh, what was that just now?"
"Black bullets?"
Bang bang bang!
It was seen coming from the other end regularly.
As if they were shooting bullets every 2 seconds.
Bang bang bang!
"Ugh, do we have to endure this for 30 minutes?"
"It's not that painful, but it feels unpleasant."
The projectiles hit the chest every 2 seconds.
It felt like being shot in a row.
It felt bad, but it wasn't unbearable.
Something like being hit by rubber bullets?
For tanks with high resistance, they didn't even feel anything.
"It's nothing."
"We can handle this."
"Don't worry. It'll disappear soon."
"Yeah, you didn't hear the explanation. Damage increases over time."
"Bah, if the damage is like this from the beginning, there's nothing to worry about!"
"Anyway, I'm a tank, so I'm not worried."
Some worried, others reassured, others boasted, etc.
They showed various reactions, but they all shared one thing in common.
That enduring the pain is harder than it seems.
"To say it's enduring the pain, but it's more like enduring torture."
Right now, many feel safe because the damage is low, but their expressions will change in 10 minutes.
"There will probably even be people who retreat due to the pain. Before that, surely there will be people who withdraw because of the pain."
Now it's quiet, but wait just 10 minutes.
Surely someone will appear hiding behind others.
Then, whoever is in front will end up receiving more hits than expected.
You end up being an unintentional human shield.
"In that case, it's natural that there will be problems among them and they will start trying to kill each other while the bullets fly. In the midst of all that, there will be people trying to hide to save themselves."
It really becomes a cauldron of chaos.
In just 10 minutes.
"It's not in vain called the 'Extreme Round 15'. There are reasons why fewer than 50 people survive."
Neither Heo Taeseok, nor Russell, nor Jo Yong-ho. None made it past Round 15.
The same for Christine.
"Once, in Round 11, I was rescued by chance by John Delgado, but unfortunately, here, while trying to help others, I ended up dying. If you cast a wide-area healing, you become vulnerable because you use a lot of mana."
When Christine, who was healing, died, hundreds of people died unable to endure.
It was like a dam breaking.
After that, more people sacrificed themselves using their companions as shields.
Only Ma Gyeong-rok, An Sang-cheol, other tanks, and Grand Wizards could endure.
"Without healing, it's impossible to endure."
That's why Christine is crucial in this mission.
"This time, the results will be different. We are determined to save Christine somehow."
Has it been about 5 minutes?
When the damage became unbearable enough to cause discomfort, people began to use their first aid kits.
"I feel a little better after using the first aid kit!"
"Let's endure together!"
"But, is it possible to avoid this?"
"I tried, but it's too fast, I can't dodge it."
It's impossible to dodge it because it's faster than a bullet.
You can use another person as a shield, but you can only block.
Bang bang bang!
When more than 8 minutes had passed, the damage intensified again.
People's faces twisted noticeably.
It hadn't even been 10 minutes and they were already beginning to feel the difficulty of enduring.
Then, Christine's mass healing began.
Swooooosh!
A green light, like plant sprouts, enveloped everyone.
It was a widespread area mass healing ability called [Healing] that healed all players within a 500-meter radius.
"This, this is..."
"The pain is gone!"
"It's a priest's ability!"
Given its wide range, the 1,152 players were within the healing area.
The fact that Christine was deliberately in the center also helped.
"Don't move from your places and stay still! I will heal you!"
As it was an area healing, they recovered every second.
The pain disappeared as if it had been washed away.
The amount of healing was obviously much higher than that of the first aid kits.
Although people were reassured, Christine's face, the one casting the ability, didn't look good.
She wasn't included in the healing area.
"Ugh, it hurts..."
"Don't worry."
The warm light enveloped Christine's wounds.
"I'll protect you."
Ryu Min's hand touched Christine's back.
The temporary healing received through an ability quickly healed the wounds.
Although the pain disappeared, Christine didn't have time to worry about such things.
"Oh, what can I do...?"
Her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to burst.
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