“We got lucky this time,”
“Mhm.” Zyrus was more than happy with the last batch of subordinates he got. He didn’t know that the ogre king was in this sector as well.
He was like Zyrus in the sense that neither had many members in their species. He had acquired a silver crown by subduing other orcs and naturally, the orcs weren’t very pleased when they saw the ogres using their kind as cannon fodders.
It was hypocritical as they themselves were doing the same. Then again, both humans and orcs shared the same double standards. Thanks to their scuffle though, Zyrus was able to get 50 ogres as his final troops.
There was one more thing that made him very pleased.
[You have fulfilled the minimum requirements to obtain a Variant Crown!]
[Obtain a golden crown first to get your reward.]
‘One last thing to do,’
Zyrus looked at the orange portal ahead of him with determination. What he was going to do would change the future events. Be that as it may, he didn’t want to be a coward who’d hold back against someone who tried to hurt his people.
He wouldn’t be worthy of the name “Zyrus Wymar” if he let his enemy live. Before he went in for the kill though, he wanted to use his remaining SP. This was the final battle in the first ring, and he didn’t want to hold anything back.
Zyrus had 17 SP remaining thanks to the achievements he had acquired at the beginning. His SP acquisition was pretty much non existent after the crown hunt had started. He was too busy getting new skills and dealing with matters on earth to focus on getting more achievements.
His class, crown, and companion's details had yet to be integrated into his status as well. Players were concerned about the ridiculous amount of Exp required to level up. Even with a 10x boost, it was no easy feat to get millions of Exp.
It was no wonder that even a genius battle maniac like Zyrus needed 1000 years to reach lv 300. Stats screens were reworked on every new ring, and with each enhancement, new stats like magic attribute, affiliation, subclasses, and so on would be added.
Zyrus didn’t waste too much time thinking about it and used the remaining SP. He didn’t even touch the strength and agility. He was a human in his previous life, and therefore, he knew how important it was to have balanced stats.
After raising his intelligence by 9 and mana by 8, he was left with 0 SP.
A downpour of energy flooded his body and he once again felt the refreshing sensation. His HP hadn't changed despite getting 10 vitality from blood fusion due to his low level. It was a rare case since even in the second ring its impossible to have a 50+ stat unless you use your SP on that.
There wasn't any definite limit on stats in the sanctuary. That being said, if the imbalance in stats becomes too big then it can affect in a negative way. It was the same for Zyrus.
His physique was strong enough to handle 50 stats in any category, but beyond that was a level that he couldn't breach.
'But I'm a Sylvarix, so there's no such thing as a limit for me,'
It could be both a blessing and a curse. But for someone like Zyrus who could perfectly control their power, this trait would be more inclined towards the former.
His six senses were also enhanced on a whole another level. The sudden increase of mana and spatial awareness would cripple some new players for a week or two.
For Zyrus though, this wasn’t even a tenth of his original power. He was able to leisurely read his status screen while basking in the warm sensation.
Status:
[Name: Zyrus Wymar]
[Race: Sylvarix]
[Class: Balaur Summoner (Locked)]
[Level: 17]
Exp: 634K/1M
[Title: The last Apostle (Temporary)(Locked)]
[Achievement: First Blood in tutorial, Goblin Slayer, First step of the Spearman, Killer of Keliodus, Boss Buster(I), Forged in combat, Shattered in Victory, Gaze of the Predator, Humanity’s Pathfinder, Child of mana, The first Traitor, Spearweaver, Slayer of Tauranox, The Architect of Abyss]
[Talent: Blood fusion (S rank)]
[Trait: Earth Movement]
[Strength: 34]
[Agility: 35 (+5)]
[Vitality: 60]
[Intelligence: 30]
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
[Mana: 35 (+2)]
[SP: 0]
HP: 3000
Crit rate: 10%
Crit damage: 100%
Poison resistance: 150%
[Basics of Sojutsu], [Eye of Annihilation], [Poison breadth], [Arcane Lance], [Master of Sojutsu], [Spear aura]
[Bloodspine spear (Unique)]
[Lorica Squamata (Unique) (Evolvable)]
[Zubry Solleret (Rare)]
[Bone necklace Totem (Common)]
[Ring of command (Sealed)]
Currency: 37S
Items:
[Ore of Kothar (Fragment)]
[Fang of Nidraxis (Unique)]
[Scroll fragment (Rare), Durability: 2/3]
[Vitality recovery potion x 21]
[Mana recovery potion x 13]
“Easy there chief, doesn’t this break a rule or something?”
“Don’t forget my dear companion, We’re going near the elevator. They can’t interfere even if they wanted to.”
“Kihihi.. this’ll be fun,”
“Not for them,” A Sylvarix and a reindeer jumped into the portal with malicious grins.
A lanky man wearing a tuxedo wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had come here to observe the new players he’ll be in charge of, but after seeing the duo that just jumped into the portal, he was sure of one thing.
‘The next decade will be a very long one…’
…
Compared to the four sectors, the central district was less damaged and more lavish. The infrastructure style did not focus on efficiency in space allotment. Large villas were standing on both sides of the 10-meter-wide roads.
The central district was illuminated with vibrant lights like a mega city. Statues of kings and warriors that stood proudly at the squares, fountains that hung in the air and beautiful crystals that shined in this dark night, many such marvels were present all over the city.
How did such an advanced civilization fall? The players neither knew nor cared about it.
The city treated them like pests. Forget about entering a house, even touching a fountain or a street lamp would zap them unconscious.
Dozens of crown holders who now had over 3000 subordinates were busy killing one another to get the first golden crown. Some camped around the spawn points whereas others snuck around the portals that connected the four sectors.
Of course, not all of them were using such cowardly tactics.
People like Aiden Martinez and Hajin Choi were fighting tooth and nail against the orcs. They were just a bit away from reaching the 10,000 mark, but every time they made a move, the others would team up and deal a heavy blow.
Some smart players tried to go after silver crown holders instead of subduing more players. It was a plausible strategy but it only worked if they were significantly more powerful than their opponents.
With the new crown skills and players' experience in the sanctuary so far, there was no easy way to avoid the troops and go for the crown holder.
*Crackle*
“Get ready! Someone’s coming,”
“I hope they are strong, the kobolds that came before were way too weak.” A muscular man snickered as he wiped his bloody sword.
“Why don’t you go to the center then, O mighty warrior~”
“Stop boasting and hide properly.” A scholarly youth reprimanded his subordinate who was taunting the other crown holder.
He had made an alliance with another and they had 10000 troops altogether. It was more than enough to snuff out the new groups that were coming through.
Unfortunately, they were about to kick an iron wall this time.
*Shhhh*
A whirlpool of energy formed at the base of the fifty-meter-tall walls. All eyes were fixed on an identical orange portal.
Apart from the scouts, the rest of the humans were hidden in the streets nearby.
No one who reached this far was stupid.
“We’ve got quite a welcome party,”
Zyrus snickered at the ‘hidden’ scouts with amusement and strolled over with Franken. The portal behind them was still humming with the same intensity, and one by one the trolls walked out from within.
500 trolls were ready to battle by the time Zyrus walked 10 meters. Naturally, this wasn’t the end.
He was very picky in selecting his troops this time. He had thousands of seedlings to choose from, and he made sure to pick ones with a lot of potential.
Kyle and Shi kun were good at leading swordsmen and shield warriors respectively. Lauren was a hybrid of long and short range combat whereas Ria was getting better and better at commanding the troops from behind.
Their army lacked magicians more than anything else. He chose a group of goblin shamans and humans which totaled 450. Combined with the 50 ogres, the haul from the south sector was plentiful.
‘Lucky me, They have a lot of spearman and dagger users,’
“Why don’t you come out now?”
“You’re being cocky for someone with a tenth of our numbers,”
“Don’t tell him everything you musclehead!”
Both leaders spoke from the shadow of a nearby building. They knew that no one without 3000 followers or 3 silver crowns could enter this area. Either Zyrus had more troops standing by or he had 3 silver crown holders with him.
They would prefer if it was the latter, but even if it wasn’t, they didn’t have anything to fear with their numbers.
At least that’s what they believed.
*Shhhh*
The dimming portal flashed once again, this time with much more intensity.
“Tch.. looks like it’ll be a tough fight,”
Both leaders were frowning as they observed the approaching troops. It was impossible to attack the players near the portal. Thanks to that, both sides had enough time to scan one another.
Compared to Zyrus troops that had nearly 10 species blended together, the opposing side was mainly comprised of humans with 20% orcs.
No one liked to recruit weak species like kobolds and goblins. Trolls were hard to find and harder to kill, and this left only orcs as their potential target.
Ironically, the orcs also thought the same.
“Who would’ve thought we’d see the rats here,” the muscular man taunted as he looked at Zyrus in disdain. He believed that Zyrus was only able to advance by recruiting the revived players.
He had nothing to fear against a riffraff group like this. Their organized troops would be able to steamroll them with ease.
“Looks like they’re looking down on you,” Franken snickered as he looked at the rat kings. There were 800 of them now with three kings who led their respective species.
No one in their right mind would choose this many rats. They were useful in niche scenarios, but it wasn’t worth it to allocate 20% of your troop capacity for that.
“Squeak!”
“Hey hey, mind your language young one,”
"Squeak, squeak"
"Hmm, that's more creative at least,"
Zyrus thought that Franken was a bad influence on the rat’s development, but he left that aside for the time being. He shared a glance with Ria who was communicating with others via her tiara, and they both knew that it was the time.
Shi kun stood in the front along with the trolls while the archers and mages stood at the rear. Kyle and the three rat kings formed the middle lines, flanked by goblin riders and dagger users who were following Lauren.
Pouka and the ogres were in charge of protecting Ria as she was the brain of the whole army. With a golden tiara that adorned her head, she looked like a valiant queen as her black hair swayed behind her tanned shoulders.
Specter scorpions were hiding in the shadows, ready to deliver a deadly blow to the enemy leaders.
Both sides were ready to give their all in this fight. Zyrus walked to the front while riding Franken, his yellow eyes staring at the opposing side.
He didn't have a skill like radiance that could boost his allies. Nor did he need one.
His presence was enough to lead his army to victory.