Chapter 12

Though I had a hunch, of all times, those guys had to show up now, and not just one but two of them.

Furthermore, these guys belong to the Fallen faction, a randomly generated element within the dungeon that is notoriously annoying.

Representatively, they are immune to any underestimation gimmicks.

Because of the gimmick that suggests they might or might not exist within the stronghold, these enemies have been classified in a Schrödinger’s cat-like category, not counted as actual members within the stronghold. Thus, they are completely immune to all underestimation gimmicks.

That’s why they are always fully armed. When users try to get a quick kill, these enemies counter with devastating results using their formidable heavy machine guns.

To the extent that users who fail at ‘daylight eating’ and fall victim to these enemies then go on AOE community forums to vent their frustrations, making it a kind of meme. Their notoriety is immense, hence earning the nickname, ‘Fcking Armor’, a slight twist on the term ‘Ironclad.’

Just looking at them draws automatic respect—an alias born from the experiences and hatred of countless people.

“Besides, there are two of them…”

Normally, in AOE, one would exclaim, “What the hell is this luck-based bullsh*t game?” and reload a save file, but now, that isn’t an option.

After all, you can’t use save-load skills in reality, so lamenting won’t change anything. I need to think of a way to defeat them.

“What should we do?”

At that moment, a hand rested on my shoulder—it was Liana.

“Edu, are you worried about those big guys?”

Liana asked while watching the live transmission through the mini-cart.

“???, Yes.”

“Hmm-”

After listening to my reply, Liana, as if coming to a decision, nodded slightly.

“Then would you let me take care of those guys?”

“You? Liana?”

“Yeah, I said I’d help, but I haven’t shown you my adventuring skills yet, have I? So, trust in your reliable senior and leave this to me.”

“Uh…”

Come on, breaking down the guards and snipers at the entrance without a second thought was more than enough proof of senior-level skills.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”

Liana’s level is 40, and if she’s fully prepared, she could definitely deal with Ironclads. But as it stands, she’s in light armor without her usual powered suit.

If this were just a game, overpowering them with stats might have been an option, but here’s the thing: the world I’m in merely resembles AOE; it’s not actually a game. Which means people die if they get shot, and that rule applies to Liana too.

“Don’t worry, so stop making that face, Edu.”

With a confident smile, she gently stroked my head.

“Then, since it could be dangerous for everyone, how about you step back?”

“Roger that! Ladies, this way please! I’ll protect you all! Hahaha!”

“Keh keh! It’s time to show off our brotherly skills!”

“Uoooong! Leave it to us!”

Saying this, the three brothers rushed to the rear like they had been waiting for this moment. …Wait, there’s no one behind them, though.

Did Liana think the same thing? Her eyes slightly narrowed as she observed the three retreating brothers, who remained blissfully unaware.

“…I’ll need to train them separately later.”

A tone as strict as a training officer’s.

“Hahaha…”

I laugh awkwardly, silently mourning the hardships that await the three brothers.

“Jo, please be careful…”

“Are you really alright?”

“Yeah, thanks for worrying, both of you.”

Liana gently strokes Mili and Sita’s heads with a bright smile, then slowly turns and takes in a breath. Meanwhile, Mili and Sita move slightly behind, following the three brothers.

…Is she really going to be okay? Unable to shake off my doubts, I peeked at her through the mini-cart view.

Liana’s stiff expression confirmed my worry. Turning slightly, she checks our position before slowly stepping forward.

The Ironclads, who hadn’t noticed her yet.

Just as the distance between them had narrowed significantly, Liana disappeared from the camera’s sight.

“Huh?”

“Bwaaah?! I-I-Intruder-”

From the other side came the shouts of the Ironclads, and upon urgently adjusting the mini-cart, I could see Liana already nestled in the arms of one of them.

The heavy machine gun aimed at her.

But before it fires, Liana’s handgun spits flames from her left hand.

Bangbangbangbang!

Pingpingping!

The bullets ricochet off the armor, but the final round finds its way through a gap in the helmet.

“Hrk-”

Thud.

The human tank helplessly drops to its knees.

“Damn it! Where did you-”

Cursing, another Ironclad aims his machine gun at Liana. Despite having his comrade in the line of fire, he pulls the trigger without hesitation.

Boomboomboomboom!

The deafening sound of the heavy machine gun fires consecutive 12.7mm rounds. The volley of bullets pulverizes the already critically wounded Ironclad kneeling on the ground.

The remains of his body fly in all directions, sparks of metal blazing, and an merciless storm of destruction sweeps through.

But in the next moment, Liana appears from behind the other Ironclad, shoving the muzzle of a submachine gun into the gap of his armor and pulling the trigger.

Ping!

The blood splatters from the Ironclad’s forehead, falling with a final blow to the deck.

Thud.

An alert sounds.

– 364 experience points acquired.

– 401 experience points acquired.

– Your level has increased: LV 6 ▷ LV 7

But such matters are irrelevant now. The ease with which Liana dismantles the Ironclads is awe-inspiring.

Her strength in AOE was simply presented through stats and level, but now I realize the depth of her power goes far beyond numbers and levels.

“Alright kids, it’s done.”

“Wha… What? Already?”

Liana’s casual announcement contrasts with Daesik’s incredulous question.

“Yeah, don’t you trust me?”

“No, no. Of course I do, sister.”

Seemingly irritated by her response, Liana questions the three brothers who then rush towards her, stumbling.

“Keh keh? What is it, Samsik?”

“Confirmed.”

But in the middle of this, Chunseok suddenly notices something and swiftly covers Sita and Mili’s eyes. Samseok quickly moves to shield my sight as well.

“Eh? What are you doing?”

“Keh keh, it’s not something kids should see.”

“Right.”

This way, the duo humorously but carefully considers our well-being while escorting us to Liana.

It’s probably the remains of the Ironclad riddled with heavy machine gun rounds that would be too graphic—so, their care is appreciated, and we quietly accept their help.

“Ah, now that I look, it is pretty unpleasant. Daesik, could you clean that up?”

And hearing this from Liana after noticing our expressions.

“Me? I have to?”

“You’re the only one with free hands at the moment.”

“Eh…”

“Hurry.”

“Ugh… Understood, sis…”

Daesik’s slow footstep fades away, and the hands covering our eyes are withdrawn.

The earlier skilled adventurer who defeated the Ironclads with incredible prowess has vanished, replaced now by an amiable smile on Liana’s face.

“So, that’s settled here. What about the rest?”

Saying this, Liana points at the door behind her. Even at a glance, it’s clear this door isn’t regular—it’s the boss room.

Though the unwritten rule in stealth cart runs was to leave the boss room untouched, seeing Liana’s prowess earlier has instilled an unshakeable confidence in our team.

“Since we’ve come this far…”

“Isn’t that what you’re thinking, Edu?”

While reloading the magazine of her submachine gun with a mischievous grin, a red mound suddenly rises next to her.

“Gwaaah!?”

“…All cleaned, sis.”

Turns out it’s Daesik. His body, splattered with blood, looks both pitiable and comical.

“You gave me a scare, and more importantly, get ready.”

“Prepare? For what?”

“For clearing out the stragglers.”

Saying this, Liana knocks on the door with a hop-skip. But Daesik, who had been carefully examining the door, offers a piece of advice.

“Um… excuse me, but I think this might be a room where the boss, not mere stragglers, resides.”

“Could be?”

“Typically, we wouldn’t call that ‘stragglers,’ right?”

An unexpectedly reasonable question. Unfortunately, Daesik failed to notice the greed evident in the faces of Liana and Edu.

Boss room, bounty, goods the Fallen faction had amassed! With their explorer’s intuition tingling and seasoned player’s greed sensors on fire, trivial concepts like common sense held no sway.

“Ha, the last remaining enemy inside the fortress are the stragglers.”

“Right, Daesik’s missing the point.”

“Ah…”

Daesik tilts his head, wondering if that’s the case, but ultimately nods as he sees the firm expressions of the two.

“If that’s what you guys say then…”

“Right?”

“Right.”

“Then let’s prepare. Ready? Let’s go—One, Two—”

The party hides on either side of the door. While Mili and Sita take a step farther back, I move the carts I kept in standby to brace for any battle that might transpire.

“Three!”

Creak.

The party rushes into the room as the door flies open to reveal—

“Drulung… Phewwww…”

An enormous quantity of scattered liquor bottles and the boss along with his subordinates snoring loudly, dead asleep.

“““““…””””

Indeed, if you’re human, you have to sleep—technically correct—but…

Our group, frozen solid by the underwhelming results, slowly watches as Liana strides forward and shoots the boss in the head.

Bang.

“Arrgh!”

The immediate death of the boss as even the adjacent subordinates continue snoring loudly, drunk out of their wits.

“…You saw it, right? Time to clear them all out.”

“…Yes, sis.”

The matter-of-fact gunfire sounds as enemies fall without even a chance to retaliate.

…Though slightly anticlimactic, that’s how we cleared the Valley of Blood Storms.

– 1523 experience points acquired.

– 205 experience points acquired.

– 197 experience points…

– Your level has increased: LV 7 ▷ LV 8.

– Your level has increased: LV 8 ▷ LV 9.

– Your level has increased: LV 9 ▷ LV 10…

– You have cleared the high-difficulty area ‘Valley of Blood Storms,’ unlocking the ‘Collection.’

– You have cleared the high-difficulty area ‘Valley of Blood Storms,’ earning a +10 bonus to all growable stats.