Ch. 199

Chapter 199: For Whose Sake? (1)

「I do not know… if this battle is a place where I belong.」

While the Ranking Ceremony was being prepared, Satin used the soul-link conversation Hyun had recently taught her to ask a question. Her voice remained as robotic as ever.

「What are you talking about?」

「I, who have lost my strength… do not believe I can be of much help.」

「What? That again?」

Hyun let out a short, scoffing laugh.

「You don’t need to worry. I’ll handle everything.」

「Is… that so?」

During their brief exchange, the massive magic circle covering the canyon was completed.

Vroom—!

At that moment, the forms of Bahimir, Lublen, Marlen, and Satin glowed crimson. It was the magic registering the five of them as players. From this point on, new rules would apply to the players within the giant magic circle.

「As long as things go according to plan, we can’t lose.」

Hyun had already shared the plan with the Duke, Marlen, and Lublen. He didn’t expect these prideful NPCs to follow a user’s detailed instructions to the letter. They might pretend to follow, but when a critical moment arrived, they would likely move according to their past experiences or their own judgment.

Therefore, Hyun had requested only one thing from them: “Defense.”

“I still cannot believe it. How can you expect victory without attacking…!”

“Silence.”

Lublen’s dissatisfaction erupted, but the heavy atmosphere around Bahimir suppressed her voice. However, the Duke’s trust was a one-time offer. If they lost, it would vanish instantly, so Hyun couldn’t afford to be complacent.

In that instant, Satin spoke to him.

「Where am I supposed to defend…?」

「No. You’re on offense.」

「Offense… by myself?」

「Yeah. Everything depends on you. So, are you starting to feel a bit useful now?」

「I… still do not know.」

「Just watch. You’ll find out soon enough.」

Flash!

The translucent veil that had divided the two fortresses vanished. It was the signal for the start of the Ranking Ceremony.

Kyarrrr—! As the undead vanguards from both fortresses began their march, the canyon was filled with a deafening roar. The Ranking Ceremonies between the Dukes had continued for centuries, evolving slightly with the times, but the fact that victory brought glory and defeat brought only shame remained unchanged. Dukes were beings who pursued absolute power—men driven mad for that glory.

Before moving, Hyun quickly scanned the status window again.

Satin (Lv.391)

Durability: 203 / 8,930

(※Caution: Core durability is extremely low! If fully consumed, it will be permanently destroyed!)

HP: 891,480 / 891,480

MP: 9,420 / 9,420

Demonic Energy: 324,300 (+306,800) / 324,300 (+306,800)

[Most performance metrics have decreased due to magic circle damage!]

[Str: 958 (+106)] [Agi: 731 (-204)] [Sta: 25,100 (-22,820)] [Mag: 1,044 (-102)]

[Pitch Black Blade Lv.5 (-2)]

[Damage Reduction Lv.4 (-2)]

[Demonic Energy Circulation Lv.9 (-2)]

[Mist Leap Lv.2 (Unusable)]

Satin, who should have been standing firmly by Darkness’s side, had lost her past glory because she had sacrificed her own flesh five years ago. Excluding passives and buffs, her only practical active skill was ‘Pitch Black Blade.’ Compared to the countless Named subordinates led by the Duke, she was pathetically weak.

Nevertheless, Hyun had chosen Satin as a player. Because he was confident of victory even with her. And because he wanted to help her realize her value!

‘The enemy was someone who knew how to manage.’

He had already analyzed the rival Duke’s strategy multiple times. Borrowing Jini’s terminology, it was Split Management . It involved maintaining a steady defense while occasionally sending a detachment to the flanks when momentum favored them. While players respawned after death, the damage a detachment dealt to a fortress was permanent, meaning the damage accumulated over time. If the fortress’s defense towers or summoning circles were destroyed, the area would become impossible to defend even with “troops,” let alone players.

Bahimir’s style was to obsess solely over the frontal battle, so Jini’s analysis that he could lose the Ranking Ceremony wasn’t wrong.

‘Though even so, their level wasn’t that high.’

Against the opponent’s split, Hyun prepared Terror Management . It was a strategy that prioritized destroying key facilities, including the enemy’s defense towers and summoning circles, regardless of death.

‘Excluding individual specs and comparing management alone, I’m much more favored!’

Split management usually involves relatively thin defenses, making it easier for the opponent to exploit gaps. Furthermore, the Golem race possessed a trait that dealt multiple times the damage to buildings and structures. Hyun judged that there was no possibility of losing the Ranking Ceremony if he and Satin simply engaged in suicide-terror tactics.

‘The only problem is the durability…’

<Durability: 203 / 8,930>

For a Golem, durability is another form of life. The more frequently she used intense techniques, the more Satin’s durability would chip away. Since the magic circle on the battlefield only preserved HP, Hyun had to be careful not to exhaust Satin’s durability.

‘Even without using skills, there’s no problem destroying buildings. It’s better to use only normal attacks if possible.’

One more thing—he asked Satin about a potential issue beforehand.

「It might hurt a bit; are you okay with that?」

「Why is that…?」

「Because you might end up dying multiple times.」

「I… do not know what ‘pain’ is.」

‘I guess that means she’s fine.’

If she lacked a sense of pain because she was a Golem, there was no need to feel burdened by the suicide-terror tactics. If anything, it was a good thing.

Having finished his preparations, Hyun brought out the management strategy he had inherited from Jini.

Once, twice, three times…

In exchange for Satin’s lives, the enemy fortress’s defense towers and summoning magic circles began to be destroyed. At first glance, it looked like an incomprehensible act of handing over “Kill Points” for free, but since he had informed the Duke of this, no major misunderstandings would arise.

‘Good, it’s working as intended!’

Every time Satin died, damage began to accumulate in the enemy fortress. In the early stages of the battle, the damage might have been a mere scratch, but toward the end, it would become a fatal wound that wouldn’t easily heal. The victory or defeat of the Ranking Ceremony rested solely on Satin’s movements.

Watching the tide of battle slowly shift, Hyun called out to Satin. He wanted to ask how she felt about her own performance, but…

「When am I going to fight…?」

「What are you saying? You’ve been fighting this whole time.」

「Ah… so that was fighting.」

For some reason, Satin’s reaction was lukewarm. Hyun pressed her for an answer once more.

「You don’t feel anything? You’re shaking the entire battlefield on your own right now.」

「…I do not know.」

Satin still shook her head. As a Golem, did she lack the intelligence to understand management? If so, it was natural that she couldn’t read the current state of the battle. Just as Hyun was about to let it go, Satin spoke again.

「However, there is one thing I think I know…」

「What?」

「Why you… chose me.」

Satin’s next words pierced through Hyun’s inner thoughts.

「Are you trying to find a use for me?」

She was right. The twin golems had been horribly broken after sacrificing themselves to protect Darkness. They believed Darkness had left because they had lost their strength and become useless. Furthermore, they believed Darkness wouldn’t return because they were soulless tools.

Hyun had intended to help Satin regain her confidence by having her play an active role in the ceremony. But he just realized he had overlooked something very important.

「There is no need… to forcibly prove my soul.」

Satin was much smarter than he had thought—smart enough to read a human’s heart through Assimilation.

「You too… do you not know that I have no soul?」

Ah…? For a moment, Hyun’s movements stopped. It was because he fully understood the meaning of those words.

「You think I thought you didn’t have a soul…?」

「Were you not thinking that just now…? If not… perhaps I misunderstood.」

His heart had been read. Satin recognized the fact that she was being treated as an NPC. In reality, Hyun had unconsciously regarded Satin as a Golem with slightly superior AI. He had treated her differently than he treated Louise or Ain. He hadn’t expected those thoughts to be transmitted.

Furthermore, even now, Hyun’s thoughts were leaking through Assimilation.

「You do not need to feel so sorry… I cannot feel emotions… so there is no need to tell me white lies.」

「No, I…」

「Even now. Is it not because my body is so broken… that I can do nothing but die over and over again?」

「It’s not like that…」

「But I want to know this one thing without any falsehoods.」

Satin repeated the question she had asked when they first met.

「Is it… the truth that Darkness is alive?」

Hyun felt his face flush for some reason. Even though he was the one who took Satin in, had he himself been doubting her? Or perhaps his heart, which only wanted to help Satin because of the quest, had been caught.

「It’s the truth.」

「I see… as long as that is certain… it is fine if the rest is a lie.」

「No. It’s not a lie.」

Hyun cut her off.

「That you are useful, that you have a soul—it’s all true.」

「Pardon…? But there is no need for you to tell such a lie…」

Satin hesitated for a moment and murmured again.

「It is… not a lie…?」

「…….」

「How… can I know… that it is not… a lie…?」

Hyun gave a bitter smile. She must have just read his heart through Assimilation. Even so, Satin still doubted his words. No matter how much he told her, she would doubt him endlessly until she realized it for herself.

「Whew… this makes everything I learned for two days useless.」

Hyun grumbled to himself. But it was a complaint mixed with a refreshing laugh.

「Yeah, I see what went wrong.」

Being chosen as a player, winning the fight through that… those things couldn’t dispel Satin’s doubt. It was obvious when he thought about it. The feeling of watching oneself being used as a tool… it would be a relief if it didn’t lower her self-worth even further.

Becoming a useful being , not a useful tool . That was likely the reason Satin sought a soul.

「Let’s change the method a bit.」

Hyun scanned the battlefield. Although they had taken the lead, they hadn’t yet reached a perfect victory. If he let go of management now, a reversal might occur. Even so, Hyun decided to trust Satin. Just as he had trusted Ain, and just as he had comforted Louise.

「 You fight.」

「I… do not know how to fight….」

Satin had a vague understanding that Hyun was performing “Management.” She was afraid because she wasn’t confident in following that same method.

「How did you fight when you protected Darkness? Do it like you did then.」

「Like that day….」

「If it gets really strange, I’ll help you occasionally.」

Hyun decided to clear the calculations from his head for a moment. Even if the result of the Ranking Ceremony became a narrow victory by decision rather than a perfect win, and even if the Duke’s trust weakened a bit because of it…

Regardless of the quest, he intended to make Satin realize her own value.

「Judge whether you are useless or not after you’ve fought for yourself.」

「For… myself?」

「Yeah. I’m not going to move anymore.」

「But if we lose because of me….」

「Then we lose. So, do you finally feel like everything depends on you?」

Of course, he would provide invisible help, but he didn’t bother mentioning that fact. In that instant, Hyun realized that Satin’s faint emotions were beginning to burn.

Yes, he had been deceived by this. A Golem’s emotions are much weaker than a human’s. However, they simply moved calmly and slowly, but the direction was clear. This was likely a characteristic of the Golem race.

[Durability: 183]

Hyun had hardly used Satin’s skills until now. Skills consume durability rapidly. Since there was no immediate way to restore durability, it was to avoid exerting excessive force.

But now, Satin’s first skill was activated.

«Demonic Energy Circulation»

Whoosh! Satin’s body began to burn with demonic energy. A hot energy filled the creaking magic circle of the Golem. Of course, because Satin was terribly broken, she couldn’t show the same performance as in the past.

‘Wave of Neutralization, Wave of Amplification.’

But now, she had the best Supporter attached to her, so there was no problem.

End of 199