Elincia, Maylock, Goldrich, and Jovina remained in the same spot-the House of Slumdon meeting room-watching the battle between Broken and SpeedGang unfold on the
transparent screen floating in the center of the room.
Elincia spoke in a flat tone, “SpeedGang is well-known for being a Shielder with exceptional one-on-one combat skills. His defensive abilities are remarkable, and he has an impressive range of shield techniques. On top of that, he’s got some pretty strong offensive skills too.”
She then turned to Maylock. “What are the chances that Broken will beat him, Maylock? I mean, I know Broken is incredibly powerful, but he’s not going to use everything he’s got. At least, I doubt he’ll summon Gaia for this fight. Or that little demon cat.”
Maylock gave a slight smile and nodded. “One hundred percent. There’s no room for debate. I could give you countless reasons why Broken is going to win easily.”
Jovina then turned to Goldrich. “You… stupid old man, why don’t you give Broken some tips to beat that idiot SpeedShit? Surely you know something useful about him. You must’ve learned something.”
“Khi khi khi,” Goldrich chuckled. “If I gave Broken advice on how to defeat SpeedShit, then I wouldn’t get the pleasure of seeing how Broken actually does it, now would I?”
“Why are you so sure that Broken will win?” Jovina pressed on. “SpeedShit is the Champion of Gluttony. He can do anything inside that damn Domain of his. Who knows what kind of cheap tricks he’s hiding in there, huh?”
Goldrich shrugged. “If Maylock is one-hundred percent sure, then I’ve got no reason to doubt it. You just need to get Maylock to spill the deeper reasons why he’s so confident in Broken.”
Jovina turned to Maylock with a smirk. “Alright then, tell me, Maycock, why are you so certain that Broken will win? I get that he’s impressive, but I still find it hard to believe he can beat that idiot SpeedShit without going all out. At least he needs to go all-out, right?”
Elincia joined in, looking at Maylock. “It seems pretty clear to me that Maylock idolizes Broken so hard,” she said. “I bet he could go on for hours about why Broken is going to win against SpeedGang.”
Maylock took a deep breath. “I’m really not in the mood to get into all of it right now,” he said, sounding slightly annoyed.
“But what I can tell you is that Broken has plenty of tools at his disposal to deal with SpeedShit. Remember, he’s made a contract with a high-grade spirit—a spirit powerful enough to kill all of us, the entire Ass Guild. Yes, that little cat. I’m sure it’ll come out if Broken finds himself in a dire situation. Though, that cat is still pretty difficult to control… haha.”
“I want to know just how strong this cat is,” Jovina muttered.
The members of the Horde of Hell Guild watched the battle between Broken and SpeedGang with bated breath from inside their carriages.
“Ugh, this is so incredibly boring… I wish I could just get out and cause some chaos in this town!” one of them groaned.
“SpeedGang’s having a bit of fun with that rookie.”
“Can you believe the arrogance of that guy?” someone else added. “Accepting SpeedGang’s challenge like that—it’s almost like there’s something broken in his head! Hahaha.”
“I can already picture how embarrassed he’s gonna be when he loses in front of his own people!”
“I can’t believe people like him still exist-so cocky and yet so clueless,” someone scoffed. “It doesn’t take someone with SpeedGang’s skill to beat him, I could handle him easily.” “Legendary weapons, and he still fights like a total idiot. What a waste.”
“And when he loses to SpeedGang, I bet his weapon will drop,” another one sneered. “He’ll be so crushed, he might just end up crying and hanging himself. Hahaha.”
Back in the battle within the Domain.
SpeedGang unleashed multiple layers of shields, successfully evading Broken’s attack. He quickly darted away, creating some distance between them. In that moment, he healed the damage he’d sustained from Broken’s skills.
“Not a bad attempt,” SpeedGang remarked, a smirk on his face. “But I think that’s the best you’ve got? Was that really your strongest attack?”
Broken responded casually, “I don’t get why some people feel the need to talk so much during a fight. Are you deliberately trying to buy time for your skill cooldowns, huh? Have you already run out of tricks to fight me?”
“You’re pretty arrogant, aren’t you? You’ll regret saying such cocky things in front of me.”
“Yeah, I guess I am arrogant. I mean, I came to someone else’s town and threatened to destroy it for no reason. Oh wait, that was you.”
“Save your breath for mourning your defeat later,” SpeedGang retorted.
“Polly…” Broken muttered softly.
A small white fox with four tails appeared, surrounded by a faint shimmering light. It let out a soft hoot as its body began to swell and grow, expanding until it was the size of a horse. Its four tails swished back and forth with a regal grace.
“Master, I’ve been waiting for you to summon me,” she said, her voice calm and serene.
“Broken!!! Why didn’t you summon me too!” A shout rang out in Broken’s ear, a voice like that of a young boy yelling in frustration. “I want to fight too! I want to torture that stupid player-let me out, Broken!” It was Pawpaw.
“Little Pawpaw, this lowly player isn’t worthy of your attention,” Broken replied calmly. “We have something much bigger planned for you later. Let Polly handle this one.”
“Oh, hahaha, of course!” Pawpaw cackled. “You know I’m the greatest, hahaha. I’ll wait, then.”
SpeedGang burst into loud laughter when he noticed Polly’s presence.
“So, you can’t handle me on your own, and now you’re calling in your trusty steed for backup? You’re in the wrong game if you want to play with ponies. This isn’t a petting zoo,” he
sneered.
Broken ignored the taunt. “Dendros, I summon you.”
[Summon the Guardian (Active Skill)]
Broken threw his Knuckles into the air, and vines and roots quickly began to spread outward. The ground rippled and shimmered until, from within it, a figure emerged—a warrior made
entirely of plants.
Broken deliberately chose to use only the weapons he had previously displayed in public: the Moonvine Knuckles, the Wavebreaker Spear, and the Bow of Artemis. He intended to fight using only these weapons, along with summoning Polly and Dendros. For now, he felt confident that this would be enough to defeat SpeedGang.
He wore the Obsidian Shroud to conceal his armor, and swiftly switched to the Woodland Ranger set to best use two of his most powerful bow skills. He wanted to test these skills on an actual player-something that promised to be quite entertaining. “Polly, Dendros. Attack that fool and buy me some time-seven seconds, that’s all I need!” Polly immediately split into six identical foxes, each one lunging toward SpeedGang. Dendros, sprinted with impressive speed, the Moonvine Knuckles gleaming as it sliced through the air.
“What a foolish decision, Broken. Do you really think your pet and that stupid toy of yours can defeat me? You’re making a grave mistake!”
SpeedGang readied himself, clearly relishing the challenge.