Ark - Volume 6 Chapter 8

4ACT 8 Grinding    

Jijik, jijijik!    

He took one step forward into the vicinity of the fire, which flashed to reveal red eyes. There was a scraping sound on the ground as well as the sound of flapping wings……..he felt a sense of something gathering above his head. The peculiar smell of the beast drifted to his nose.    

‘They are really flocking endlessly.’    

“Eyes of the Cat!”    

Ark’s pupils changed to that of a cat. When he used the skill, the darkness cleared up and showed a surprising scene. It was a huge gaping cave. Inside the damp cave, there were an extraordinary amount of black forms with red pupils that were all focuses on Ark. They looked similar to humans at first glance. However, they were clearly not human. A sharp canine was revealed every time they opened their mouths. Their sharp nails scratched at the ground. Long arms were bent in strange angles from the shoulders. But more than anything, there was strange parts attached from their wrist to ankle. When they spread their arms, a thin film appeared and they flew into the sky. A bat! That’s right.  The identity of those guys was a bat, a hook bat.    

‘The first time I saw that form, I thought I would have a heart attack.’    

While looking for the hook bat, Ark had entered the eastern region of the Argus Mountains several days ago. In the evening, he had been defeating random monsters and wandering the woods. He found a person sitting on a hill. He had a form which appeared to be around 10 years old. The boy sat in the chilly weather with his head buried in his cloak and didn’t move for a while.    

‘Are there people in the mountains?’    

Ark approached the hill quickly. The Argus Mountains were infested with all sorts of monsters. The NPC was a boy sitting in this place alone. He assumed that something was wrong. And the chances of the NPC leading to a quest were very high. Of course, Ark spoke in a friendly voice.    

“What are you doing in a dangerous place like this?”    

But the boy still did not turn his head away from the cloak.  At that time, Dedric’s nose twitched and he cried out.    

“Master, I’ve sensed something. It smells like blood.”    

“You shouldn’t sleep in a place like this…….did you get hurt perhaps?”    

Ark approached cautiously and touched the boy’s shoulder. No, the instant he touched him!    

“Kiaaaaaaaaak!”    

Suddenly the boy turned his body and shrieked.It was a horrifying scream that sounded like a sharp knife was scraping glass! Even though Ark had experienced many things in New World, he almost had a heart attack. The features of the boy were clearly shown. However, it wasn’t a person. With pupils that were only a few centimetres, sharp fangs and wings on the arm, there was no way it was a human. The monster threw the stiff rabbit carcass it was holding in its hand and glared at Ark. It seemed to be having dinner. It was angry about being disturbed but after seeing Ark, it laughed and revealed its fangs. His form fit its dinner specifications.    

‘Hook bat? This is a bat? Level…………’    

His heart pounded but Ark regained his composure. When he checked with Eyes of the Cat, it was only level 90. In New World there were scary looking monsters, but no matter what they looked like their level was low. Ark was level 127. With his darkness attribute bonus, he was level 177 and the only weapon the level 90 monster had was its teeth. In other words, it was similar to a mosquito trying to eat its favourite food.    

‘Impertinent guy, you’re only a level 90 monster yet you’re trying to eat me for dinner?’    

Ark’s pupils became glossy. The following situation didn’t even need to be described. The hook bat was thrown into the pot along with a mixture of spices and the resulting dish surprised Ark.    

‘If the hook bat is level 90 then it won’t be so hard to obtain the ingredients.’    

After he had dinner, the real hook bat hunting began. However, hunting for hook bats wasn’t as easy as it sounded.    

“There is one flying!”    

Dedric exclaimed as he pointed towards a black object in the night sky. That was the biggest problem with hunting bats. It was difficult to chase them while they were flying in the sky. If he found a hook bat, he had no long distance attacks so he had no choice but to chase them aimlessly. If they were closer to the ground, then he could pull out his whip and initiate a fight.    

“If this continues then I will never finish.”    

When thinking about it, Ark became gloomy. In order to make ‘Slime’s Immortality Pill,’ he needed 1000 fangs from the hook bat. But it took a long time just to find one. Not only was it difficult to find one, but he had to chase them around until they descended low enough for him to catch it.  In addition, hook bats didn’t drop their fangs every time. If he killed four then only one would drop.    

“What is with this inefficient hunting?”    

Eventually Ark changed his hunting methods. Ark returned to Lancel Village and bought a bow with tears in his eyes. Because he wasn’t an archer, he couldn’t use all of the offensive power of the bow. While he bought the cheapest bow and arrows, he still wasted 10 gold.    

‘I can’t believe I had to waste my money on a bow! I hope it becomes useful.’    

Ark regretted it as soon as the store sold it to him. However, as long as it’s not inefficient then it should be fine.    

‘Yes, I just have to think of it as investing 10 gold!’    

Ark picked up the bow and returned to the hunting ground.  As soon as Dedric spotted a hook bat, he would shoot arrows straight away.    

-Your attack missed!    

Because he had no archery skills, the arrows wouldn’t hit directly. It was fortunate that in once the arrow flew, the hook bats would immediately come down and attack Ark. At least he didn’t need to blindly chase them anymore. Even so………    

‘Huck huck huck, is the hook bat a monster that doesn’t have a lot of numbers?’    

Even though he had been hunting for 3~4 hours, he only managed to catch twenty hook bats. He had only found 6 fangs. Furthermore, it was a bat so there would be no activities during the daytime. Was this a prank? Then how would anyone ever manage to collect 1,000 teeth from the hook bat? Of course, he gained experience from hunting monsters while looking for the hook bat but he was annoyed because he couldn’t collect the ingredients. It was surprisingly Dedric who gave him a clue to solving the problem.    

“Master, there should be a place where they gather.”    

“What?”    

“Although I’m alone because I’ve been independent from a young age, other bats love to stick together. Except when hunting, there should be one place where they gather.”    

He was alone because his independence was strong…….since there was no reason to bring up the past, he praised Dedric and asked.    

“So where’s the gathering place?”    

“Well, I don’t know. But if it is bats then wouldn’t it be a cave?”    

Why didn’t Dedric tell him this before? He conveyed through a look in his eyes. This guy who still needed to be hit for pocketing money from the Evil Silrion…….Ark watched him vigilantly, waiting for a chance to discipline him. Anyway, it would become a habit for Dedric if it isn’t corrected now.    

‘There is a place where bats are gathered. If so, there is only one way to find out.’    

Ark remembered the previous battles against the hook bats. The behaviour patterns of the hook bats were generally similar. After they attacked because of the arrows, once they fell into a critical condition then they would try to fly away. Of course, he knocked them down with the saw blade……Anyway, a monster that falls into a critical condition and ran away, the intention was obvious. A safe place with colleagues available.    

‘Why did I never think of that until now?’    

Ark immediately went to find a hook bat. Finally one was picked up by Dedric’s radar. After Ark half killed it, he disarmed himself. There was a risk of it dying thanks to the high sword damage.    

‘Huhuhu, should I relieve some of my stress?’    

Crunch, crunch, Ark cracked his knuckles and smiled creepily. After he disarmed himself, Ark approached the bat that shrieked and ran towards him. It was a huge mistake. He did a series of straight jabs that seemed like rapid gun fire. The hook bat received three or four punches to the face and staggered, bleeding from the nose. But that was just the beginning. Flying kick! Ark narrowed the distance and struck it in the jaw with his knee. When the hook bat was stunned thanks to the effect of his Sword-Hand Combat, Ark agilely jumped behind it like a cat. He grabbed the waist with both hands and dropped the bat. Since he trained at the NPA gym in boxing, wrestling and taekwondo, the techniques were connecting together. Although he learned systematically, he couldn’t learn a wide variety of skills but Ark accepted that some skills were perfected enough to allow him to live. Every time he used a different technique, he crushed the hook bat’s face. However, Ark didn’t have any sympathy. He had built up a considerable amount of stress chasing after the bats. Nose ridge, eyes, he choose and only hit the sore spots……..He controlled his power and reduced the damage while inflicting pain. The attack was relentless enough that even Dedric and Deimos flinched watching the brutal attack. In fact, it wasn’t simply to relieve stress. Didn’t he need to do as much as possible to make it run away to its mum? Eventually, the hook bat fell to a critical condition in 20 seconds.    

Jijik, jijijijik! The hook bat spat out curses (?) before flying into the sky.    

“Heh, Dedric. Chase it!”    

“Yes, sir!”    

Dedric remembered the past after seeing Ark’s violence. He quickly turned himself into a bat and chased after the hook bat. After 5 minutes. Dedric guided Ark to a hidden dungeon.    

A damp bat cave in the Argus Mountains.     

You have discovered a wide cave that connects the Argus Mountains. In the dark space, there are flying creatures that flash its red pupils seeking new prey. The intense breathing for blood should tell you what a dangerous place this is. They moment you step one foot in there, you will become their prey.    

It was a threatening message that he ignored. As expected, when he entered the cave there was a huge number of hook bats. It was a scene that could be used for the climax of a horror movie, but there would be no grotesque ending. Instead, Ark cheered and drew his sword.    

“Hurray, a big profit!”    

Ark invaded the dungeon for three days.    

“Okay, let’s start. Plan B-2!”    

Ark commanded Dedric and Deimos who quickly obeyed. Deimos lifted his shield and stood in front of Ark, blocking him. Using the wall made by Deimos, Ark quickly fired off arrows. He only used it for damage to raise the skill. Ark felt it was necessary to have a long distance attack in case he had to fight any flying monsters. Therefore, he used this time to reduce the rate of the attack missing. Even though he didn’t learn the skill easily, it was necessary to have some ability with it. There were other reasons that he used the bow.    

‘I can’t throw away an arrow!’    

Ark had thought it would be a lengthy hunt so he bought five hundred arrows. Although it was a low quality, it still cost 10 silver for 100 arrows. 500 arrows was 50 silver. It was a small amount but for Ark who was afraid of spending even 1 copper, it was a huge amount. However, the price of wooden arrows was too cheap to sell back to the store. If he just threw it away then he wouldn’t be able to sleep. He would rather shoot until he developed blisters and learnt one skill. When he shot around 400 arrows, a skill was created.    

You have gained a new skill.     

Archery (Beginner, Passive): the sound when the arrow feather grazes the rim of your ear has started to become audible.  If you continue steadily using the bow and arrow, you will have a benevolent friend during battle. Unfortunately, you don’t have what it takes to gain a deep understanding with the bow.    

    

* You are able to use the stronger steel arrow.    

It was a trivial skill compared to others. That was the substantial penalty as a melee user! Still, there would be situations when having the skill would make a difference. When he used the skill, there was a 90% chance of 1~2 arrows hitting. When he shot blindly at the level 90 monster using beginner’s archery, he only did 10 damage at most……….    

“Master, they are nearly gathered!”    

Dedric stepped on a hook bat and yelled. There was another reason he was using the bows and arrows. The size of the interior of the cave was enormous, so unless a hook book came closely enough to be seen it wasn’t easy to attack. Therefore, Ark pulled the hook bats with the arrows and Dedric.    

“Alright! Deimos, use a defensive stance to protect the back!”    

Clack clack clack!    

Ark packed the bow and drew out his sword.    

Putt putt peng!    

The hook bats came three or four at a time. The hook bats came flocking as a group. Soon, there were at least twenty to fifty gathered. When the difference between them was 70 levels, the situation was different. He could just enter the cave and deal with a few hook bats, but then he would have to repeat it a lot of times so he found a cheat to fulfil his goal. His strategy to deal with a lot of numbers was to use Deimos as a defensive shield at the rear while Dedric dealt with the sky.    

Seusak, jjeojeong, tutung!    

He accurately predicted that the hook bats would gather and attack from different directions. However, the effect of his level appeared immediately.  When he was dealing with monsters of the same level, he had to concentrate while attacking to deal a critical hit. However with a 70 level difference, when he closed his eyes and swung his sword there was still a high probability of a critical hit. There was also a high probability of his kicks causing abnormal conditions. On the other hand, he didn’t have to pay that much attention to the bat’s offensive. Even if it was 50 attacks, approximately only ten of them would hit and with his high defense it only dealt 30 damage. So even if ten attacks hit, he would only lose 300 health. In this situation, his health was more than 2000 points and his defensive strength was also considerable. It was because of this that level was the absolute factor in games. Even if someone had a level 10 rare armour, the defense of a level 100 general item would be much higher. Therefore, no matter how good the item, it was difficult to win against a higher level user. Of course, Ark didn’t quietly accept being attacked.    

‘Those three are attacking on the right! These two from below!’    

When the hook bat attacked with claws and toenails, a red line of attack was drawn around Ark. It would flash very briefly, but he used it to grasp the timing of the attack and use evasive measures. It was the ability to know the enemy’s attacks in advance. Last time, he gained additional effects for ‘Eyes of the Cat’ when it reached the advanced level.    

Eyes of the Cat (Advanced, Active): Eyes of the Cat has reached advanced level and you are now able to determine even more information and weaknesses of the enemy. The advanced level also has an additional bonus where if you face the same enemy multiple times, you will be able to understand their style completely and see their attacks in advance.     

    

* Line designation: You’re ability to identify the weaknesses of the opponent has become sharper after training, and after a period of time you will be able to read their movements.  If you are dealing with the same enemy multiple times, there is a 5% increase every 100 opponents of predicting the trajectory of the attack.  However, the maximum value cannot exceed 70%.    

When this technique was used for the first time, it wasn’t that significant. But 5% increase every 100 opponents. This meant that for every 100 opponents that he attacked, there would be a 5% increase in the probability of the trajectory showing. His movements were already better than expected. However when he found more than one thousand bats, the situation changed.  There was a 50% chance to show the trajectory of the attack beforehand. With his general evasion before, no matter how good he was he still received slight damage. But with Line Designation, he could avoid attacks 100% while also causing damage. When the probability went up to 50%, he could ignore the attacks completely. It was also much easier to counterattack if he knew the attack trajectory beforehand.    

‘Counter attack!’    

Ark avoided the attack of the hook bat and quickly swung his sword. With a heavy echo, the hook bat was split in half.    

‘It definitely has a different feeling from before!’    

Ark knocked down the leading hook bats and shouted.    

“Deimos, Dedric! Plan A-4!”    

Deimos and Dedric split to the left and right and gathered the hook bats to one place.    

“Hehehe, those dull guys. They think they could catch me with those skills? I’ll show them. The body in graceful flight!”    

Dedric didn’t have high health compared to his other stats. However, his evasion techniques were outstanding because of his tricky character! He avoided the offensive of the bats using skill and dexterity and lured them. On the other hand, Deimos didn’t have Dedric’s speed or cunning but his strength and stamina were high.    

Clack clack clack!    

Deimos pushed the hook bat using the force of his shield. His two pets were like heaven and earth, but when they united together it was wonderful. When they pushed the bats to a dead end, Ark’s eyes started glittering.    

“Now Snake, sword!”    

Ssak ssak ssak!    

As soon as Ark grasped the sword, he stepped forward and shouted.    

“Blade storm!”    

The sword was crushed to pieces and wound around the hook bats like a storm. The power was concentrated on the forty hook bats and they started to fall at a tremendous rate. The black debris spun like a whirlwind while dealing damage. Since the damage wasn’t focused on one bat, Blade Storm dealt around 40% damage to the health. The hook bats that had already lost a lot of health were shredded to pieces.    

“Okay, let’s go while it is still hot! Deimos, transform! Snake, create your deadly poison.    

Deimos quickly turned into a sword that was stuck in the ground. When he drew it, Ark timed it to coincide with Snake applying poison. All the preparations were ready. The blade moved like a whip and all the hook bats were struck and bound together. This was the system that Ark used to hunt hook bats. Honestly, even if his health was double what it was, he wouldn’t have been able to deal with fifty level 90 monsters. His defense was high, but he wasn’t a warrior that could deal with a lot of opponents. It also wasn’t possible to avoid all 50 attacks. If he didn’t concentrate when fighting, there would be a lot of times when his health became really low. Therefore, Ark created a strategy to deal with a lot of enemies. Block the first offensive while driving them to a dead end. The ensuring Blade Storm would do a lot of damage then he would attack multiple enemies at the same time with his whip blade. He dealt damage to around a dozen of them every time he swung his whip. Combined with Blade Storm, they weren’t able to escape injury.    

“Where are you trying to crawl to? Just die gently!”    

If one or two managed to escape, Dedric would use Dark Dash to attack them. Therefore, the hook bats were split in two every time he swung the saw blade.    

“The finishing touch. Blade Storm!”    

Ark used Blade Storm again the moment it was convenient. The whirling sword debris again! Thirty hook bats died in an instant.    

Your level has risen.    

After he dealt with fifty hook bats, his level rose. Experience was the essence of hunting!    

‘Huhuhu, it is better to sweep experience from a group.’    

He gathered dozens of monsters together to hunt them at the same time. Normally, it was a method that was monopolized by magicians that could use large area of effect magic.  While they had a disadvantage in PVP, the reason that users would select magicians despite their low defense was because of this. Once they’ve experience the pleasure, it was impossible for them to return to hunting as warriors. However, Ark managed to hunt this way using the combination of Blade Storm and his whip blade. The result was unimaginable!    

‘My level is rising at a speed comparable to when I led the raccoon troops in the Underground World!’    

He couldn’t understand why users would hunt the other way.    

“Good work. The outcome of this battle is announced.”    

“Aigoo, my joints and sinews. Every time I fight, my whole body starts throbbing. But I have to put up with it. Because it is Master’s will. I’ll work hard.”    

Dedric studied his face and flattered him with many compliments. After the cave was found, Ark began to slowly discipline his summons again. He brought back the system where the worst performer would be feed his cooking, depending on the battle results. But in fact, it was just a pretext to feed food to Dedric.    

‘Deimos can occasionally raise his stats through bone collecting. But Dedric has no other way except through food. Now that he has become impertinent, I’ll make sure to keep on testing new food on him.’    

Therefore, Ark kept feeding his cooking to Dedric. Thanks to that he learnt new dishes, Dedric stopped his bad habit and raised his stats…….there was a triple effect. But as it wasn’t too urgent, he framed it as punishing the unskilful one. If he showed that he was punishing him too blatantly, Dedric’s insubordination would only get worse.    

‘When Dedric’s ability reaches Deimos again, I’ll make sure to feed them appropriately depending on the situation.’    

In the meantime, Ark who had raised his summons to level 90 was a little comfortable.    

“The both of you have done well this time. You may rest comfortably.”    

Clack clack clack! Clack clack clack clack!    

“Hehehe, as expected from the Master who I look up to.”    

“Don’t play around and make sure to recover your health. Snake, pick up the items.”    

Ssak ssak ssak!    

Snake crawled to the ground and began to eagerly pick up the loot.    

-Snake has acquired ‘Teeth of the Hook Bat.’    

There was a pile of japtem where the fifty bat hooks were killed. There was the flesh of the hook bat that could be used as meat as well as leather that could be used as material………A number of magic items had also dropped. Since they were level 90 monsters, the items dropped were around level 70~80 but those items were actually more popular at the auction site. This was because the average level of users in New World was currently around level 60~80.    

-Snake has acquired ‘Heavy Iron Sword.’    

Heavy Iron Sword (Magic)     

    

Weapon type: Two-Handed Sword    

Durability: 30/45    

Attack: 17~23    

Weight: 40    

User restriction: Level 80 or higher with Warrior profession A sword made by smelting precious metal and iron. This is one the mass-produced goods produced at the smithy that is most popular among warriors. However, sometimes the mass-produced goods can produce a masterpiece. These swords perform better than the mass-produced goods and can sometimes have special options.    

    

The hook bats gave more than expected.    

‘It is quite useable? 800,000………no, I can get 1 million won for it!”    

Ark absent-mindedly packed the Heavy Iron Sword into his bag. However, at the moment Ark need the teeth from the hook bat to create his ‘Slime’s Immortality Pill.’ But even when Snake searched every corner, only 13 had dropped.    

“Sheesh, the drop rate for it is really low.”    

Many days passed where he only slept for 3 hours and minimized the break time in the game while only concentrating on hunting. He hunted as many as 5,000 hook bats! He had to return to Lancel Village countless times to sell the japtem. Meanwhile, Ark had risen 15 levels and he was now level 142. And 13 of those levels were from the hook bats in the cave. It was the result of using Blade Storm in succession while group hunting. Yet he had still only collected 950 teeth from the hook bats.    

“50 more…….That means I have to hunt approximately seven hundred more? I’m sick of hunting bats so if I hurry, I might be able to finish it today.”    

Ark continued hunting without any breaks.    

“It has completely become rags.”    

When he looked carefully at his armour, there was only 20 durability left. Every time he met a large number of enemies, his armour became tattered. Ark used Magic Restoration to repair his equipment neatly. Magic Restoration was not an advanced magic that made it possible for him to repair items without losing durability. When he needed to repair the Guardian Armour of the Merpeople, he no longer required the repair box.    

‘The side effect of the skill rise is terrific.’    

When his armour was beautifully repaired, the importance of the skill was once again seen. Ark repaired his equipment and recovered his health before entering the cave again.  When visiting the cave, he discovered a cave that was much larger than it seemed from the outside. The mountains seemed to be split as there was a gap with cliffs on both sides. It meant that when he looked up, the sky would occasionally appear. The place was incredibly crowded with hook bats along the rock wall, so Ark had to come up with a new plan.    

‘I’ve come this far into the dungeon.’    

He might as well go to the end of the dungeon.    

‘Who knows? There might also be a treasure chest?’    

Ark fought with the hook bats before heading deeper. How far did he go? All of a sudden, the cave became really narrow before widening into something spacious. There was a stone pillar with fangs hanging from it!    

‘Is this the end of the cave?’    

Ark looked around and walked along the wall.    

Kkiiiing…………….    

Then a strange sound rang abruptly from in front of him. It echoed around like a tuning fork. Ark reflexively looked in the direction the sound was coming from. There was a huge object hanging down from the ceiling. It was a huge black lump hanging, which made Ark feel anxious as he kept on watching it. The object suddenly twitched and revealed red eyes. As his gaze met those eyes, he felt out of breath.    

‘Huck! That, that is…..a hook bat?’    

“Kkieeeek!”    

At the same time, the object shrieked and opened both wings. It was a huge hook bat that was at least 20 metres.    

-The boss monster ‘Terrifying Cave Grimwing’ has appeared!    

It wasn’t a treasure chest waiting at the end but a boss monster.    

‘Sheesh, I never thought there would be a boss monster in a place like this!’    

The figure flew down and shot like an arrow towards Ark. Ark rolled on the ground to avoid the attack before wielding his sword. However, Grimwing immediately opened its wings and hit the brakes before turning around. His back received damage.    

-You have received a critical hit from Grimwing. 400 damage!    

‘Is this a joke?’    

“Deimos, use your defense posture to protect the rear. Dedric, disturb that guy so he can’t fly around selfishly!”    

Deimos held his shield and stayed behind Ark. Dedric used Dark Dash to move around Grimwing. Thanks to his pets, Ark had room to recover. He was already tired of dealing with the disgusting hook bats. Even though it was huge, it was still a hook bat. Since it was an opponent that he had fought to some degree before, Ark calmly moved his summons around.    

Counter attack!    

Ark dealt damage while Dedric drove the Grimwing around. Grimwing was a monster with a peculiar ability to counterattack agilely, however Deimos received half of the attacks thanks to his defense stance. After 5 minutes of fighting, Grimwing had lost 30% of its health. Ark had lost 40% of his health but as he became used to Grimwing’s movements, that gradually decreased.    

‘Okay, it was a little bit embarrassing at first but I can beat this monster!’    

But it was still too early to be convinced of his victory. Grimwing suddenly flew upwards and shrieked. Something similar to a shock wave that wasn’t visible swept Ark and his summons away. Ark flinched but received no damage. However……..    

“Eh? Deimos? Dedric? What are you doing?”    

Ark looked dumbly at his pets. Clack clack, clack clack clack! All of a sudden, Deimos ran to a dark space. In front of him, an absurd golden bone was floating. Since the golden bone showed up, Deimos couldn’t hear or even seen Ark. He just stared with spellbound eyes as he chased after the golden bone. Dedric was also not in a normal state.    

“These children, I’ll kill you all! Come back!”    

Dedric chased after the bats in front of him cursing while using Dark Dash. However, the bats avoided Dedric while teasing him. They were probably the bats that had rejected Dedric in the Netherworld. Golden bones and bats……. With a flash, Ark realized what was happening.    

‘These things can’t just suddenly show up in the cave. If so, this is…….Hallucinations!’    

The shockwave that Grimwing blew!    

The shock wave caused hallucinations instead of damage. However, Ark was a Dark Walker and had a 50% resistance to darkness, fear, confusion and seduction spells. Thanks to that he managed to avoid the hallucinations, but Dedric and Deimos were caught by it. After the two acted separately, Ark became naked.    

“Kikikiki!”    

Grimwing burst into laughter while threatening him by revealing its fangs. Then he was battered with attacks from every direction! In an instant, his health quickly decreased. Ark tried to counterattack but even though Grimwing was 20 metres big, it was as quick as a squirrel. Once he gave a critical hit, he quickly soared into the sky. Rapid acceleration and braking. Although only those two moves were repeated, Ark couldn’t get the timing right for a counterattack.    

‘Damn, rapid acceleration and braking is one of the basics of boxing…….’    

Since he practiced boxing at the gym, he shouldn’t be this helpless. Ark tried to shoot an arrow, but it didn’t show any effect since it was only beginner’s archery.    

‘If this happens then I must rely on a plan of desperation!’    

Ark ground his teeth together and tried to rush towards Grimwing. He tried to guess the timing and swung his sword, but Grimwing easily avoided it by braking. And the moment it brandished its claw, Ark ran up to it. His chest tingled from the damage, but Ark just hugged the ankle tightly.    

‘Try to attack me when I’m holding on to you like this!’    

The wrestling he learned was not in vain. Even though Grimwing flew all over the place, Ark held on firmly and did not fall. Even though he couldn’t use his sword in that position, he could still inflict damage.    

‘That’s it, now you’re screwed! Cough!’    

Bang bang double bang!    

It was at that time. Grimwing actually rushed into the wall.    

‘This ignorant child!’    

The wall shook and rocks began to fall. After Grimwing slammed into the wall, it lost 20% of its health while Ark fell into a critical condition. It was a crisis! Ark immediately got up and prepared for Grimwing’s offensive. However, there was no expected attack.    

“Ara? What’s with that guy?’    

“Kieeek! Kiek!”    

However, this time Grimwing swept its arm in the wrong place.    

‘I don’t understand but this is a chance. I’ll withdraw!’    

Ark grabbed Deimos’ collar and hid in a narrow entrance. Dedric also came back to him after he cancelled the summoning. Ark was saved from the crisis by drinking a potion that restored 50% of his health. At that time, Deimos even woke up from the hallucination. Deimos looked around restlessly and became sulky when he saw that there was no golden bone. Well, he knew that Deimos was crazy about bones………    

‘Grimwing is stronger than I thought. Somehow I think it is possible to win if I have my summons…….if only there was no way to have the hallucinations affect them. What will I do? Should I just give up and find a way to escape? But it won’t be easy to run away…….’    

Ark was worried until he suddenly tilted his head to one side.    

‘Wait a moment. Why did that guy miss a while ago?  The rocks falling caused a lot of dust to rise, but was it to the extent that it couldn’t see me?’    

There was suddenly a flash in Ark’s mind.    

‘Dirt? No! It wasn’t because of the dirt that it couldn’t find me! It was because of the rocks falling! That’s right, why didn’t I think of that? There was an echo when I first came in.  That was how Grimwing could see. It used its hearing to see just like a real bat. Just like the sonar of a submarine, it used supersonic waves to read my location.’    

Ark’s firm belief in victory showed in his eyes.    

‘That is its weakness! If I use it then I can beat it!’    

Ark thought frantically. After he visualized a manoeuvre, Ark immediately summoned Dedric.    

“This child, I won’t leave it at that!”    

Dedric caught Ark’s collar as soon as he was summoned. He was still wandering in the hallucination.    

“……….Do you want to die?”    

“Huck! M-Master?”    

When Ark stared at him, Dedric was surprised and immediately removed his hand.    

“Ah, no. This is just……..I was mad at those fellows before…….”    

“That’s enough. Shut up and listen well.”    

“Grrrr!”    

Grimwing’s red eyes wandered around the cave. After it lost Ark’s trace, it used the supersonic waves many times but couldn’t find where Ark was hiding. However, he hadn’t fully escaped. Ark was clearly somewhere. That was what its wild animal instincts was telling it. Therefore, it held its breath and explored the cave. Suddenly, Ark ran out of a small cave. He came from behind, but the ultrasound monitored in a square around the wings. Grimwing kicked upwards and rushed towards Ark. However, Ark was different from before just ran around without fighting. Grimwing chased him for a while before letting out a roar of fury.    

“Kkieeeek!”    

An intense shock wave went through Ark. Then Ark fell to the ground. Grimwing smiled in satisfaction before it jumped. At the moment that Ark fell, his body divided into two.    

“……?”    

Was its shockwave that strong? Deception was a phenomenon that it couldn’t understand. However, Grimwing soon realized that it was deceived. The body suddenly jumped up and ran around shouting.    

“Is this a wild goose chase? If I’m caught this time then I’m dead!”    

It wasn’t Ark’s voice. It sounded like the voice of a clamouring bat.  When Grimwing used its supersonic continuously, it detected two objects moving on the ceiling.    

“It’s too late, Dark Blade!”    

There was a roaring sound about its head and all the images started distorting. That’s right, the person above Grimwing’s head was Ark! This was the details of Ark’s plan. Grimwing couldn’t see the opponent with its eyes. The most that it could figure out with the supersonic was the size and silhouette of the opponent. That was when Ark came up with an idea to use it to his advantage. When Dedric wore a big armour, he was similar in size and shape to Ark. The foundation of his plan was to make Grimwing confuse Dedric for Ark! While Grimwing was focused on Dedric, Ark and Deimos would climb up the wall to the ceiling. Then Dedric would lure the target……and he would use Dark Blade while hanging from the ceiling. He calculated the spots where the sharp stalactite would fall.    

Kukukung, chwaak!    

The stalactite tore through Grimwing’s wings like it was paper.    

“Now, isn’t this more fair? Try to figure out where I am!”    

Ark swung his sword vertically while jumping down towards Grimwing. Grimwing let out a roar of anger. Then, Deimos swung his sword with strength towards the ceiling. The power wasn’t enough to drop the stalactite like Ark’s was. However, the small stone fragments that fell like hail was excellent. The countless noises were fatal for Grimwing’s ability to hear and grasp the location of the opponent. When Grimwing tried to swing its wings, the accuracy fell and it kept on hitting the wall. At the same time, Ark landed on Grimwing’s neck and dealt multiple critical hits. The ensuing battle followed Ark’s pace. Grimwing couldn’t fly thanks to its torn wings and it couldn’t see because Deimos kept on making the small rocks fall. Grimwing tried to aim the hallucination shockwave towards Deimos a few times but could not see Ark.    

“Riposte!”    

Ark used Riposte every time Grimwing opened its wings. Of course the shockwave flew to the wrong place.    

‘Heh, wings and ultrasound, when those two are sealed then it is easy.’    

But he still had to be careful even if it was like a lion trying to catch a rabbit. A blind man with his eyes opened by oriental medicine was a powerful opponent. Ark attacked carefully and steadily reduced its health.  At that time there was an unexpected development.    

“These children, I’m going to kill you!”    

Dedric had been hit by the hallucinations and frantically rushed towards Grimwing. Then Grimwing’s eyes flashed and it grabbed Dedric and bit into his neck. Was Grimwing trying to restore its health by sucking it from Dedric?    

‘Vampire! That’s right, wouldn’t a hook bat be a vampire bat? Sheesh, I have to release the summon……..’    

Ark regretted it belatedly and tried to release the summon.    

“Ugh! This child, did it ask? It asked right? Doesn’t it know that I also have fangs?”    

Dedric cursed and bit Grimwing in the neck. As soon as they both bit each other, Grimwing’s health recovery stopped. He didn’t know what was happening but it was a chance!    

“Okay, Dedric. Keep on biting! Dark Blade!”    

The light from the sword split through the darkness! When Dark Blade hit Grimwing, its health quickly decreased. After the 3rd shot hit its neck, its body trembled and it collapsed to the ground.    

“I won!”    

 -Your level has risen!     

-Your level has risen……    

Grimwing gave quite a lot of experience compared to its level. The message quickly popped up and he gained 4 levels. However unlike his expectations, the only items that dropped were a ring and a wing.    

[Grimwing’s Wing (Special)     

The wings of a bat made huge through mutation.    

The purpose is unclear, but it is obviously a rare item.    

If might become useful later on……..]    

Mind’s Eye (Rare)     

Item type: Ring    

User restriction: Level 120    

Grimwing’s 3rd eye. When connected to a suitable form, it seems possible to wear it on a finger.  Grimwing lived only in the darkness and its vision deteriorated over time. The reason that it was able to find its opponent was through supersonic, using its third eye. Although the body has disappeared, this ring might be able to show the same ability if supplied with a suitable magic.    

    

*Mind’s Eye: When using Mind’s Eye, you will gain the ability to see in the darkness for 1 minute. This has nothing to do with eyesight, so the ability isn’t affected by sight restriction magic such as ‘Stealth’ or ‘Darkness.’ In addition, you will be able to easily discover the location of traps on all terrains.    

Mana consumption: 50    

‘A rare ring! Although it doesn’t raise the stats, an additional skill is added as an option!’    

The ability to see in the darkness was not necessary. However, it is a different story if it is not influenced by darkness magic. While Ark could use Eyes of the Cat to maximize his sight, it was vulnerable to darkness magic.  So in the Evil Silrion, there were a lot of times where he was forced into a corner because the opponent used a skill that had an effect on his vision. It also allowed him to see the location of traps. Of course if he had time then he would be able to find the location of the traps, but there was no time to search in the confusing fight against Duke. The only disagreeable thing was that it looked too evil. He had to insert the disgusting eye onto his finger to observe the surroundings.    

‘Well, that’s it. Even though it looks like that, it is a rare ring. Because warriors would like it, it is possible to receive a high price for it. I found it accidentally but it is a good profit for a dungeon. After recovering, I’ll go and collect the remainder of the ingredients.’    

Ark sat down to restore his health and took out his pot. Then Dedric appeared with a bemused expression. The hallucination didn’t seem to have broken yet as Dedric tilted his head from side to side while approaching Gurimwing’s corpse. He bit it again before raising his voice like Columbus discovering a new continent.    

“Yes, I am a vampire!”    

What did he suddenly announce? This goofball?    

“What are you talking about? Didn’t you know that already?”    

“That’s not right! Look, look, I can bite!”    

“Well of course you’re a vampire…….”    

Ark murmured as he moved forward. Yes, why didn’t he think it was strange until now? Dedric was a vampire. At first, he was only a vampire bat but then he evolved to the vampire Dedric. Naturally, he should gain the special ability of a vampire! Even if he was a vampire, it made sense that he would have a bloodsucking ability. Then why was Dedric making such a fuss with his words…….? At that time, a new message window popped up in front of Ark.    

 Your pet ‘Dedric’ has manifested the power of the vampire.     

Dedric who had suddenly evolved from a bat was unaware that he was a vampire. Therefore, most of the special capabilities of a vampire were sealed. However once he was bitten by Grimwing, he obtained a vampire’s instincts. Usually vampires are known to absorb their opponent’s strength and power. As he was a bat that was promoted to a vampire and just acquired the ability, it isn’t possible to show 100% of the vampire’s special characteristics.  The ability to use it only shows up at specific times.    

* Dedric has formed 1 skill slot.    

* Vampirism: Suck the blood of a specific person to absorb skills.    

    

*Current absorbed skill: For 20 seconds, all opponents within a 20 metre radius will become confused. If the power to resist confusion is below 50%, there is an 80% chance of being confused.    

‘Dedric has such a skill?’    

Although it was random, he could absorb one skill from the opponent and use it.    

Therefore, it was possible to exert a tremendous effect. On the other hand, Dedric wouldn’t stop cheering over Grimwing’s body.    

“Hahaha, that’s right. I’m a noble vampire from the Netherworld! I have discovered the importance of my existence!”    

    

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