Overgeared

A disaster was encountered and there was no chance of survival—this was the common idea of everyone. The dragon that appeared suddenly fired a Breath, Grid coughed up blood after being hit by the Breath, and Baal attacked. People watched the series of events that took place in an instant and naturally predicted Grid's death. The Evil Dragon Bunhelier, who overwhelmed Hayate, Marie Rose, and Kraugel and left leisurely.

Baal, the ruler of hell and the source of evil. Expecting Grid to survive when he was surrounded by the strongest in the worldview was something that even an Overgeared God Church believer couldn't do. In other words, it was a wish with no conscience.

Of course, Grid deviated from people's expectations as usual. He was hit by the Breath and attacked by Baal, but was still alive five seconds later. It meant he hadn't consumed his immortality yet. Bunhelier even bowed his head as if to pay homage to him. Finally, a beam shot from Grid's mouth. This...

By this point, he was already the protagonist of a courageous work...

No, what was this?! As people were feeling astonished, an explosion occurred around Baal's head. There was a cloud of dust. The effect was intense as a Breath was fired right in front of him. It would be a convincing sight even if Baal's head had been blown away.

However, there was a strong energy contained in Baal's demonic sword that was still interlocked with the dragon weapon. It didn't waver at all as it endured all the power that Grid had built up over the years, as firm as a great mountain. It was natural. Baal was one of the first beings created by the Gods of the Beginning. He was the ruler of hell, the last world where all living things would reach after they died. No matter what attack was tried, he wasn't an opponent to prevail against.

Grid knew it as well. He just didn't want to admit it. It was because he wasn't an individual. He had the hopes and fates of many people behind him. There was a sense that he shouldn't be denied in such a vain manner.

"...Ohhhhh!" Grid shouted. It was a reflexive reaction. It was an effort to encourage himself and to shake off his vague fears. He used the full buffs right away. He screamed and squeezed out all his strength, but he couldn't shake off Baal's demonic sword. He crossed the two swords held with both hands and pushed. It was just that Baal's demonic sword didn't move like it was nailed to the air. Little by little, it slowly dug into Grid's chest.

[The durability of Valhalla of Infinite Affection has decreased by 470.]

[The durability of Valhalla of Infinite Affection has decreased by 399.]

[The durability of Valhalla of Infinite Affection has decreased by...]

Sparks flew up noisily from Grid's chest. They were the tears pouring out of the armor that finally started to be cut and torn apart by the demonic sword. The choking smoke caused by the aftermath of the Breath's explosion was dissipating.

Soon, Baal's intact face was revealed.

"......"

His eyes were still half open. The man, who covered three small pupils with his lowered eyelids and revealed only one pupil like a human, stared at Grid. He had only Grid in his dark eyes.

Grid trembled. The fact that the ruler of hell was fully conscious of him. He felt a certain sense of fulfillment even in this urgent situation.

'He is conscious of me.'

Grid recalled Baal's behavior. This guy wanted stimulation. The greater the stimulus that threatened him, the more joy and excitement he would receive. Such a person was blocking Grid's path several times as if to prevent Grid from riding that dragon. The meaning was great.

[You have suffered 49,580 damage.]

[You have received the 'poisoned' and 'bleeding' abnormal statuses. Your health will continuously decrease and your weak points are easily exposed.]

In the end, the demonic sword opened up the armor and started to cut Grid's chest apart. It was precisely where the heart was. Fortunately, Grid was able to buy some time thanks to Skin of Transcendence.

Grid tilted his head back as much as possible. He ignored the screams coming from his broken bones and bent his waist more than 90 degrees. Baal was persistent. His demonic sword was still crushing the two swords that Grid had crossed in front of his chest. It dug deeper into Grid's flesh.

Grid didn't use Revolve carelessly. He considered the level of the skills that Baal used, the background from which he acquired the skills, and the fact that Pagma's soul was now in Baal's hands.

'This guy might also be able to use Revolve.'

The reason it was hard to react to a counterattack skill was because it was a sharp counter. Then what about a counterattack against a counterattack? It would be really hard to react to. It was an unpredictable trajectory even for the party who counterattacked the counterattack. Not only did it make the attack out of control, but it also added tremendous acceleration.

It was a systemic decision. A counterattack was precious for a reason. Moreover, the current Grid was experiencing the confused status condition. If he tried to move his body to the left, he would end up moving to the right. Even his senses such as hearing and vision would be perceived as opposites. If the average person was confused, then it would be difficult for them to even walk.

If Revolve was counterattacked in this state... Grid was convinced that he would receive a fatal wound regardless of his level of transcendence or his artificial senses.

"You are refusing to yield." It had to be shaken off with pure force. He endured with such a judgment. Then in the end, his back bent at a strange angle and Baal ridiculed Grid, "I don't think it is the time to hide this and that. Try to be a little bit more certain."

Grid didn't mean to just fight ignorantly. He naturally used the God Hands and magic. However, the God Hands couldn't approach Baal after a certain distance. The demonic energy surrounding Baal's body became tangible like the demonic sword and shook off the God Hands.

It was the same with magic. It had no effect and disappeared. The demonic energy worn by Baal thoroughly neutralized the lower level concepts. It was impossible to harm Baal with the God Hands that only had 30% of Grid's stats and low to intermediate level magic.

[Che.]

A man with long, black hair broke in between the two of them. It was Bunhelier, polymorphed into human form. Grid could be swept up if he attacked with a dragon's body or a Breath, so Bunhelier reduced the size of his body. It was the flow that Baal had forced. This bastard's behavior that overlapped closely with Grid constrained Bunhelier in many ways.

"Are you really going to cooperate?" Baal was kicked away from Grid's abdomen and left his spot.

Bunhelier's hand, which swept through the afterimages of Baal's movement, quickly turned into a dragon's hand. In an instant, he narrowed the distance to the far away Baal. A loud roar burst out. It was an explosion that occurred the moment Baal's demonic sword blocked Bunhelier's hand, which tried to dig at his chest.

All the oxygen around the explosion point was burned. The air was crushed by the pressure of the explosion and pushed to the periphery in a series of shock waves. Even Grid had to build a barrier out of the God Hands in order to handle the aftermath. The fireball soared high and died down while the area entered a vacuum state. The surrounding air rushed to fill in this void, causing an airflow that created a mushroom cloud.

'This is crazy...' Grid's pupils shook as he exhaled the breath that had been blocked. It was a clash of pure strength against strength, magic power against magic power. This alone caused a phenomenon that was like a nuclear explosion? Maybe he should say goodbye to the souls of Pagma and Alex forever...

Grid was feeling seriously troubled when Bunhelier shouted toward him.

[Avoid it!]

It was Bunhelier who had a black magic power at the tip of each of its six claws. The moment these spheres collided with Baal's demonic sword, they caused an explosion that created the mushroom cloud. However, it was Bunhelier who suffered a lot of damage.

Baal, who appeared through the clouds, had only a line of blood flowing from his forehead while Bunhelier had one hand blown away. Baal's strength and magic power didn't only overwhelm Grid. It also clearly transcended Bunhelier. Of course, it had to be taken into account that Bunhelier wasn't in a perfect state. Not only was Bunhelier at a disadvantage against Baal, but he was also seriously injured by Nevartan. Nevertheless, it was true that he was better than Grid.

No one thought that Grid, whose armor hadn't been fully repaired, would be safe from Baal's next attack. Millions of people watching the scene from the surface groaned or screamed. There were many who couldn't open their tightly closed eyes.

'There will be a celebration.'

Beijing, China.

Hao frowned as he watched the situation through the news. Unlike most countries that gave Grid absolute favor, China still tended to be hostile to Grid. It was because there was a sense of damage due to China's reputation being tarnished because of Grid.

Was it because they were robbed of a medal every time they met Grid in the National Competition? This was a very minor issue. The shameful thing for China was that a significant number of Chinese people changed to an orc and became Grid's people. Additionally, diplomatic damage was suffered.

In fact, the expression 'damage' was funny. They just failed when trying to forcibly undermine South Korea's sovereignty. In any case, the Communist Party wasn't very fond of Grid. This had been the case since South Korea became known as Grid's nation and exerted a great influence in the international community.

The people were also bound to be affected. There were still many people who hated Grid. If it was just a few days ago, cheers would be heard all over Beijing's city center. They would've felt a lot of fun watching Grid who was about to die. However, not anymore.

"......?"

Surprisingly, groans erupted all over the streets. There were many people who felt pity for Grid's plight and supported him. It was the power of Tai Chi. Grid, who learned Chinese martial arts one day and preached its greatness, won even the hearts of the Chinese anti-fans.

"I see... Grid, you thought this far and actively used Tai Chi."

Was it for the unity of humanity?

How far ahead did you look, Grid?

"He is truly a great man. I have no choice but to respect you."

It was at a time when people all over the world, including China, were cheering for Grid with one heart and one mind.

"......!" Baal's eyes were half open again. The demonic sword, which collided with the two dragon weapons, couldn't suppress Grid like before. It bounced off in a normal manner.

"Bunhelier!" Grid broke through Baal and shouted fiercely. He was biting a lollipop in his mouth. It was the greatest item in the reputation store that could only be used five times per account. It was the Sweet Candy. It increased all stats by 30% for 5 minutes.

Bunhelier responded. He instantly regained his dragon appearance and flew toward Grid. Baal's baptism of magic struck Grid's back dozens of times. The ragged armor was completely removed. It wasn't destroyed. Grid took it off on his own along the way. He swapped to the Holy Light Armor to minimize the damage caused by the magic.

The price was harsh. He was cut by Baal's sword, who had been approaching since the time he shot the magic, and lost hundreds of thousands of health. Grid fired a Breath from the hands that stretched out backwards. The Small Breath didn't hurt Baal, but it gave Grid some momentum.

He quickly closed the distance to Bunhelier, who wasn't far away. Baal was persistent. He moved one step faster than Grid and blocked Grid's way. This was predicted. From the time he fired the Small Breath backwards, Grid was already performing the Serve sword dance.

A sword dance depicting the sacrifice of the Overgeared God. The dreams and wishes of countless people and the splendid determination of the wounded god who carried their fate caused even Baal to stiffen for a moment.

"......!"

It was only 0.2 seconds. Baal only flinched for this moment. However, even 0.1 seconds was an endlessly long time for Absolutes, who split it into dozens of units.

[You have boarded the Evil Dragon Bunhelier.]

[The effect of the only one title in the world, 'Dragon Knight,' is activated.]

[All your stats are increased by three times and your status is increased...]

[......!]

[......!!]

[......!!!]

[...The target you are riding is an old dragon!]

[Your status has greatly increased!]

[Resist all status abnormalities that you are currently experiencing!]

"...Crazy God and Crazy Dragon."

An evil dragon joining forces with a god, a god who joined forces with an evil dragon. There were two guys here who were as crazy as he was. Baal laughed like it was ridiculous as one of his arms flew away. He was cut by the sword of Grid, who was riding on Bunhelier.

The earth shook.