Overgeared

"The world… it has changed a lot."

On the way toward the No Offspring Tomb, Muller witnessed all sorts of unbelievable things. First of all, the people were very brave. Until hundreds of years ago, monsters were a living disaster. Apart from a few hardened warriors, the majority of people held their breaths and feared monsters. In order to cross a big mountain, they had to hire mercenaries or risk their own lives.

However, for the people of this time, monsters were treated as prey on the same level as wild boar. Various humans slaughtered monsters with their own abilities and used the corpses as trophies. Even a weakling with only one wooden sword considered the slime in front of the village as something to be hunted, not something to be avoided. It was as if his life was infinite. He approached the slime with clumsy movements and attacked it.

At this point, Muller wondered if the people who had been killed by monsters in the past were reincarnated and were getting revenge on their enemies. Of course, it was a crazy idea. The souls of the dead were bound to a distorted hell.

"Has the human species itself evolved aggressively…? After being trampled on for thousands of years, they finally want to rebel against fate?"

From beginner villages to high level hunting grounds—the sight of the enthusiastic players was incomprehensible to Muller, an old man. It made him think hard.

"Or is it the influence of the 'god' you spoke of?"

Kraugel followed after Muller and was experiencing a rapid change of scenery. It was as if he was on a high-speed train. It was only after maintaining the buff effect with skills and potions, and enduring the sharp drop in stamina, that he managed to keep up with Muller's speed.

Therefore, while Kraugel couldn't look around properly, Muller had already seen it hundreds of times—there were statues and stone images depicting a god he had never seen before. The statues of Goddess Rebecca, who had been mainstream during Muller's time, had become very rare, while the unidentified statues were common in every kingdom or region. It must be the image of the god that the Sword Saint of this era spoke like he served.

"Both are correct."

Kraugel confirmed all of Muller's speculations.

The evolution of humanity—if players were classified as human beings in this world, then Muller's theory of evolution was exactly correct.

Divine influence—it was also true that the existence of the Only One God Grid promoted the growth of players. Looking at the people sweeping through the hunting grounds right now, they were armed with items made by the Overgeared Empire. They were items that were created directly or indirectly by Grid.

[Your stamina has reached its limit.]

He had run thousands of kilometers without stopping. Just because he 'ran,' his persistence and willpower stats increased. The aftermath was great. Finally, Kraugel's breathing was disturbed and his legs weakened.

"……"

Sword Saint Muller was accelerating even further. He used Control Sword as if showing off, caused the sword to fly and boarded it. He stood on top of a sword that shot forward like a beam of light and resembled a daoist immortal. He quickly moved away from Kraugel's field of view.

Kraugel became nervous at the thought of missing out on this. Muller was a variable who had come down to the surface. He had to be kept under surveillance and controlled. Additionally, as the Sword Saint of the present day, he had a desire not to be defeated by the previous generation.

"……!"

Kraugel was trying to restore stamina by using the methods he had learned and realized something. It was the fact that Muller was floating two swords. He immediately drew Twilight and deployed Control Sword, targeting Muller's sword that had become a dot. Then he barely managed to get on board. There was no sense of stability, unlike Muller. He was almost hanging on. However, he used his excellent sense of balance to gradually raise himself above the sword.

Control Sword had a habit of chasing targets through high-speed movement. This allowed Kraugel to pursue Muller without losing sight of him, even if he couldn't close the distance.

'He is quick-witted and has excellent senses.' Muller smiled happily as he shifted his gaze and confirmed Kraugel's appearance. He could vaguely understand why many swordsmen were eager to have students.

***

"Spread out."

The moment Jishuka gave the order, the Overgeared members scattered in all directions. It was to widen the distance from the old hero who had been resurrected. At the same time, the rain of arrows dropped down and weakened the hero. The nature of the Breaking Evil Arrows was different from ordinary divinity. Rather than resisting the evil energy with divine energy, it violently and persistently destroyed the evil. It gave off a chilling sensation.

"Don't attack, stand by."

Based on the previous pattern, the corpse of the old hero went on the defensive if it took more than a certain amount of damage at once. This was the reason why the Overgeared members tried to rush at the corpse that was staggering after being hit by the rain of arrows. They intended to attack as much as possible and widen the gap while trying to defend. They had a lot of fun with the same method in the previous nine raids.

However, for the first time, Jishuka gave the order to wait rather than charge. It was because her eyes met the corpse's.

"He is trying not to show it, but he is definitely conscious of me."'

It was a completely different response from before. It suggested the possibility of a new pattern emerging. As expected, Jishuka's prediction was correct. The corpse, who was in the same crouched position as before and seemed like it would use the same defensive skill, instead aimed at Jishuka and attacked her.

Not a single person was flustered. The waiting personnel moved in unison and became a barrier to protect Jishuka. Originally, the more troops the archers had with them, the stronger the archers were. They could take advantage of the opportunities their allies gave them to unleash overwhelming firepower.

The larger the number of troops that were led by Jishuka, the stronger she became exponentially. She not only strengthened and restored allies with the aura of the Red Phoenix, but she had excellent leadership. She was the former guild master of the Tzedakah Guild and her leadership skills were among the best in the Overgeared Guild.

Was it due to her confident expression and powerful voice? Jishuka's charisma had the power to control the group. The Overgeared members under her command fought several times better than usual.

"Fire the explosive magic!"

Jishuka's arrow pierced the corpse's ankle and spread a chill. The corpse's feet and the ground cooled in an instant. Jishuka's arrow was represented by the attributes of fire and Breaking Evil, and it had now digested more attributes. They were attributes obtained in the course of the Bow Saint quest. Among them, the cooling and lightning attributes gave her wings.

The arrows of the Bow Saint that contained a chill had to be avoided. The freezing couldn't be avoided by blocking it. The arrows of the Bow Saint that contained lightning couldn't be responded to.

All sorts of explosions occurred around the lower half of the cooled corpse. It was a large-scale linkage. It was so powerful that the corpse of the old hero died again.

'But it will be resurrected soon.'

It seemed that they had to kill the gatekeeper in order to move forward, but it would just resurrect again after being killed. Unless it was possible with a skill, they had to find a solution, but the explorers couldn't find any hints. At this moment, the wall that the old corpse had its back to—

In other words, the wall that stood in the way of Jishuka's group collapsed. It was a mosaic wall that resurrected the corpse of the old hero. Was it the emergence of a new enemy?

Jishuka was calmly examining the situation when she frowned. "Katz?"

The one who broke through the wall and appeared—it was Katz, the Blood Knight clad in red blood like it was armor. The exact class name was Beriache's Knight, but it was usually called Blood Knight due to the problem of tone.

"Uh? How did everyone get here?"

Jishuka's group was agitated. The Overgeared members swarmed out from the collapsed wall. Katz, the other members of the 10 meritorious retainers, and the groups they led all joined the scene.

"There is a point where the labyrinth connects," Katz answered briefly before aiming his sword at the staggering corpse, which had been badly injured by the previous bombardment. Then something strange happened. All the blood from the corpse started to be sucked into Katz' sword. Katz' sword was encased in the condensed blood and became enlarged like a greatsword. Then it made a strange noise.

"As expected of Jishuka. You subdued this monster without any casualties…"

Katz gave a short exclamation before swinging the huge sword. The corpse, who was resurrected repeatedly even after being killed nine times, was beheaded. The corpse was deprived of its blood by Katz and turned into a mummy. Now it could no longer be resurrected and turned to ashes.

"What…? How did you do that?"

Jishuka's group was in turmoil. Katz took the lead and started explaining, "A class quest has occurred."

"A class quest?"

"Beriache was resurrected."

"…Uh?"

"She told me that the 'blood' that activates the immortal corpses is a fake that can be destroyed."

It was just after the direct descendant vampires suddenly disappeared as they were fighting together with the groups. Katz heard Beriache's voice. It was a voice that told him how to overcome the current situation. It was a phenomenon similar to the 'divine messages' experienced by priests.

"We have to hurry. Grid seems to be in danger."

Beriache had told him.

Help Grid kill me.

At the same time, at the deepest part of the No Offspring Tomb…

"Beriache… did she release a deadly poison in that short period of time…?" the Specter muttered as it felt the body of the sinner, or the old hero who guarded the entrance of the labyrinth, disappearing.

Should it call it a 'daughter receiving her mother's character, behavior, and habits'? It was the same as Marie Roes, who suddenly appeared and threw the Divine Wood Coffin. It was somewhat intimidating. However, the composure of the Specter, who had existed for thousands of years, didn't shake in the slightest. It just felt a bit interested.

"You hoped for revenge and entrusted your body to me… now you suddenly changed your attitude…"

What hope did she see in Grid?

The Specter couldn't wait to check it.

Step, step.

The Specter hastened its pace. It rushed down the endless flight of stairs and finally arrived at the most important place. It was the place where the great being, with no intention of waking up, slept. It was the heart of the world called the No Offspring Tomb. It was also the source of hell.

"Great God, there is only one step left to restore the world you have made…"

For eternity, there was a being who lived solely to serve God. It knew that its service was the only way to save the future of humanity. Its faith had never been shaken.

"I will never fail."

The apostles of the Gods of the Beginning—the first and greatest being among them left to greet the god of this time.