Zenith Online: Rebirth of the Strongest Player
chapter-41

Keiran's claim was overbearing. And seeing as these were two entities who originated from the underworld, they didn't take kindly to threats. Horizon Break, specifically, chuckled as if he had heard the most amusing joke on Earth.

He clapped his hands while laughing merrily despite the situation at hand. "Nice one, kid! Did you really think you scared me at all? You may have gotten away with thrashing Despot's underlings, but surviving the combined attack of the two of us? Impossible!"

After saying so, Horizon Break lifted his bow toward Kieran and drew back on its bowstring. Judging by the quality of its exterior and the attention to vivid detail, Kieran estimated that this was at least a Lv.10 Rare Weapon, putting it on par with Altair's daggers.

Others clearly experienced their fair share of fortune after Kieran released his guide, which experienced a dense stream of current purchases. Be that as it may, in Kieran's eyes, a strong weapon meant nothing if the wielder couldn't land a single hit.

"That's the difference between you and me. What I claim inevitably becomes a reality. Besides, what do you think a washed-up old person is capable of? This isn't the realm of skeletons. Your brain must already be deteriorating as you become a senile bastard," Kieran mocked with a derisive sneer.

Kieran wasn't one to mince words, nor was he one to lose at verbal warfare. He could unleash some truly venomous remarks with the repressed hatred he bore. For example, after hearing his retort, Horizon Break's expression darkened significantly.

"Snot-nosed little brat! I'll for damn sure put you in your place," Horizon Break shouted. The bowstring between his fingers then vibrated as a collection of Mana coated the arrows nocked against the bowstring. This wasn't a skill accessible to Hunters currently; it was attached to the weapon in his grasp.

Through the mystical properties of Mana, the arrow shot from this bow would gain two additional copies that deal 30% of the central arrow's damage.

"This is exactly why you should've minded your business. I had no animosity with you, but you just had to poke your unsightly nose about like the nosy old geezer you are. Shame on you. Either way, try your damnedest," Kieran sighed while shaking his head.

Truthfully speaking, he only goaded Horizon Break to create enough delay for his Force Slash to come off cooldown. Even if the arrows shot by Horizon Break were unusually fast, his Lv.8 Force Slash was not to be estimated when it came to deflect attacks.

"Shut it," Horizon Break roared, finally letting go of the bowstring.

The arrow emitted a whining noise as it quickly pierced through the air on a crash course heading directly towards Kieran. The speed it traveled was no different from a bullet as it instantly appeared before Kieran's eyes.

Because of this, Kieran's eyes narrowed. 'This isn't a normal attack. He must've empowered it with Accel Shot. Truly a nasty guy this one is.'

Instinctively, Kieran raised his Novice Greatsword and defended against the incoming arrow.

Tang!

-128! [Critical]

[Aatrox's Health: 300/535]

Kieran took a step back after losing a considerable amount of Health. Since the copies of the arrow weren't "physical" attacks, they couldn't be dodged if the leading arrow made contact with its target.

The fact an arrow unleashed by a Rare Weapon and augmented by an auxiliary skill only dealt 80 base damage was a testament to Kieran's Defense. Even Horizon Break repeatedly blinked to ensure his eyes weren't fooling him.

When he unleashed this combo on a monster, it was enough to claim 1,900+ Health upon landing a critical. Although Horizon Break was aware that attacks aimed at another player only dealt ten percent of its actual damage, there was more than 70 damage missing.

It had to be known Accel Shot made the following arrow ignore 40% of the target's defense by increasing its armor-piercing capabilities.

'What the hell is this monstrous defense?!' Horizon Break wondered. He estimated Kieran's Defense to be 120 at the very least.

Meanwhile, Kieran returned a ruthless expression as he revealed his near-perfect smile. Except, in this setting, it was more fitting to call it the smile of a demon.

Whoosh! Bang!

Kieran launched a devastating Force Slash after using Charge to close the distance between him and the rest of the Healers. He sent a message with his actions—even with you all present, I will do as I please.

Many of the remaining healers fell while Kieran also broke through the defenses of many who approached him with Heavy Slash and Savage Break. While the sensation wasn't on the level of breaking bones since that wasn't a thing yet, all of the players felt indescribable pain as they suffered through Kieran's incomparably heavy attacks.

The closer his Strength approached 100 points, the more fierce his attacks would become. Meanwhile, Altair took advantage of this opening to cleanly deal with all remaining Healers linked to the Shadow Cartel.

Unfortunately, the Shadow Cartel was no longer the only entity on their list of enemies. Like Kieran, Altair also marked the Sunset Triad as an irreconcilable enemy. He activated Silver Blitz, which made his speed surpass 100 points of Agility for the moment.

His phantom-like movements reaped the players' lives on one side. At the same time, the Colossal Scarlet Wolf decimated their split team on another front. Witnessing this scene drove Despot and Horizon Break to the brink of madness.

This wouldn't be a disadvantaged fight if it weren't for the boss. Sadly, reality frequently differed from one's hopes. Therefore, after a few minutes of unsuccessfully killing Kieran and Altair, Horizon Break and Despot decided to launch a suicide attack.

Since they would undoubtedly perish regardless without the help of Healers, they vowed to take these two with them.

However, at that very moment, a deep voice entered Kieran's. "Yo, famous madlad. Do you need some help? It seems you've gotten yourself embroiled in quite the conflict."

"Eh?" Despot furrowed his brows. Had Kieran already grown to the point that newcomers would instead render aid to him rather than their organizations?

Then again, it was understandable because their notorious reputation didn't paint them in the best light.

Conversely, Kieran's racked his brain for a moment, trying to figure out why this voice sounded so familiar. It only took a few seconds for him to realize why—it was one heard recently. It belonged to none other than Bastion. The Knight Kieran met on his journey back to complete his quest.

Their armor was quite different. They looked no different from the paladins in legends, except their armor lacked the holy poise and flawless inscriptions found on their pristine armor.

However, Bastion's plate armor appeared abnormally heavy compared to all the Knights present. This led Kieran to question the origin and grade of his current armor.

'Has he befriended his instructor? If I'm not mistaken, the Knight Instructor of Gena Village should have a connection to the Holy Church. But… is that a route he wishes to take? A Paladin inevitably loses some of their pure Defense to gain another advantage,' Kieran thought.

Either way, this wasn't a matter that involved him. Since he was offering assistance, Kieran wasn't one to stand on ceremony and decline it.

"By all means," Kieran nodded.

"Great. Let's rid the area of these vermin. Cyr, Alice, exterminate them," Bastion ordered.

"With pleasure," Cyr grinned maniacally before suddenly disappearing with a speed that rivaled Altair. Only could only wonder what allocation ratio this individual used. At the very least, they completely ignored their Health and Defense since their party's tank was simply monstrous!

Meanwhile, Alice held up a stunning white oak staff with the tiniest gem embedded at the top. Despite its lacking size, the gem released vibrant Mana fluctuations. The Mana surrounding Alice underwent a fervent change as her hair floated like a magical goddess in the midst of formulating a spell.

Kieran's eyes sparkled briefly because the scene before him was like laying eyes upon a wonderland, 'She extraordinarily manipulates Mana better than some 1-circle Mages. These people... I don't recall hearing their names in the past. Speaking of which, what are they?

Kieran didn't stick around for any introductions previously, so he wasn't still unaware of their names even now. Nevertheless, it wasn't exactly the time to stop and familiarize themselves with each other.

"This one is on you," Horizon Break shouted while pointing at Despot's mouth.

"You agreed to it. So one can say you're to blame as well. Either way, we just come at them in full force. Retaliating now would be pointless. We need to find a way to gather all our members and launch a full-scale assault," Despot said, ignoring Horizon Break's criticism.

"That's a given. Do they think we'll take this loss sitting down? Don't even dream about it!" Horizon Break scoffed. To their dismay, they tried to log out, but they realized they couldn't log out in the middle of combat.

Except for physically fleeing the area, running away was not an option within Zenith Online. They would need to die before logging out since death reset combat status.

Suddenly, the shadows of two abnormally-sized Mana Missiles arrived before each of them, claiming their lives in a matter of seconds. Multiple coins and armor dropped, including Horizon Break's bow.

Once he realized this had happened, Horizon Break would undoubtedly be livid about this matter.

Together, Kieran, Altair, and Aspaira, supported by Bastion's party, purified the battlefield of the cancers known as the Sunset Triad and Shadow Cartel. Their Infamy levels were high, nearing the 3rd Degree, but it was worth it.

Consequently, the number of people present inside the boss battlefield now numbered less than 100.

Upon noticing the situation at hand, a thought came to Keiran's mind. If it was just the five of them, it'd be impossible. However, with these newcomers, the chances were much higher!