Player of a Ruined World - Chapter 154

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Player of the Ruined World – Episode 154
A barrier?
This was originally an effect that modified vehicles possessed in No Way Home.
A skill that became reality-based, causing the barrier effect to disappear and be replaced with an impact absorption effect instead.
They’ve placed that effect into Healing Factor’s legendary skill book.
[Barrier: Grants a permanent barrier to a target of your choice.]
[Barrier possesses a self-repair function and maintains a total durability of 100%.]
[Each use consumes 1,000,000 Points.]
To be able to permanently shield a target of my choosing.
In exchange, it was a skill that consumed an insane amount of Points.
“So Hee, how many Points do you have?”
“Points… let me check.”
Do Sohee fumbled about while checking her current Points balance.
[Current Points: 10,506,788,126.]
Everyone’s jaws dropped at the sight of Do Sohee’s Points.
“You… you have more than me?”
Feeling a bit embarrassed, I smiled and looked at my companions, prompting them all to check their own Points.
Elder Chulmin and Hong Yeonhui, who had been continuously consuming Points through combat, possessed approximately 7 billion Points each.
Park Sangha was in the 9 billion range, similar to me.
Healing Factor, which had relatively lower Point consumption, possessed the most Points.
Why do I have 9 billion?
I don’t consume Points when using skills, so why…?
‘Ah, I’m the only one who learned a skill.’
Since I had long ago used the legendary skill book to enhance my skill, I seemed to fall slightly short of 10 billion.
Well, that’s not what matters.
“So Hee, can you cast the barrier on everyone here?”
“I’ll try.”
Do Sohee placed both hands on my forearms and chanted.
“Barrier.”
Zzzt—
Then a soft, silvery aura emanating from Do Sohee’s fingertips began to envelop my entire body.
Followed by a small indicator appearing in the upper right corner of my vision.
[Barrier: 100%]
Do Sohee cast the barrier on all of my companions.
She was even able to cast it on Kim Suhan, who had lost No Way Home’s abilities.
“This doesn’t cause a program conflict?”
Park Sangha found this remarkable.
It appears that for skills already acquired, they apply even to Giant Punisher.
Since this is good news for us, there’s no need to invite trouble.
“Elder Chulmin, you have a rifle, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Shoot me once.”
“What?”
Elder Chulmin stared at me with a bewildered expression.
I spread both arms wide and spoke calmly.
“I want to test the barrier’s effectiveness. It would be good if you used your skills too.”
“No, but even so….”
“It’s fine. I’d be unharmed even without the barrier.”
“It’s a 4-times enhanced rifle with 4-times enhanced ammunition. There’s no way you’d come out unscathed.”
“With my current physical abilities, I could even take down stage 1 monsters from Giant Punisher with my bare hands.”
“….”
“It’s fine, just shoot.”
With no other choice, Elder Chulmin pulled out a rifle and magazine from his inventory.
He soon aimed the muzzle at my abdomen and murmured softly.
“Precision shot, multi-hit, headshot. Explosive fire, snipe.”
“Elder!”
Park Sangha jumped in alarm and grabbed Elder Chulmin’s arm.
I shouted first.
“It’s fine.”
“Are you out of your mind?! You said it was just an experiment, so why use skills too…!”
“It’s fine.”
Speaking matter-of-factly, Park Sangha looked back and forth between Elder Chulmin’s face and mine.
The enhanced Giant Zombie, and the skills that worked on stage 5 Mutants.
And it was none other than me who relentlessly crushed those stage 5 Mutants.
So I needed to experience skills at that level to truly feel the barrier’s effectiveness.
“Be ready.”
Just in case, Elder Chulmin spoke while looking at Do Sohee.
And then.
Bang!! Boom!!!
Flames engulfed my entire body the moment the trigger was pulled.
The acrid smell of gunpowder tickled my nostrils, and as the traces of the explosion dissipated, I stood unharmed and looked at my companions.
[Barrier: 42%]
A single hit had reduced it by 58%.
One might think the barrier was too weak for its cost, but that wasn’t the case.
This was the result of taking a direct hit from a fully enhanced Shooter using all their skills.
The fact that the barrier didn’t break was proof enough of its effectiveness.
[The barrier’s durability has decreased.]
[Recovery is beginning.]
[1% of durability recovers per minute.]
The recovery speed wasn’t fast, but it was acceptable.
The barrier wrapped around my body was merely a precaution against surprise attacks.
Park Sangha exhaled a sigh of relief and continued speaking.
“I hate these kinds of experiments. It makes the observer even more anxious.”
“Still, it’s good to know in advance.”
“We can’t determine how powerful the colossal beasts in Giant Punisher are. Is this experiment really meaningful? It seems more effective to figure it out during actual combat later.”
Park Sangha’s point made sense.
But I was different.
I had played every game.
“I know.”
“….”
“I roughly understand the character combat power in Giant Punisher and the beasts’ defense. With this level, I should be able to handle even Grade 4 monsters.”
“Grade 4?”
“Yes, the colossal beasts in Giant Punisher have grades. The weakest ones are Grade 1, and they get stronger as the numbers increase.”
“What grade is the strongest monster in Stage 1?”
“Grade 4.”
Upon hearing that the strongest one was Grade 4, Park Sangha’s expression relaxed.
He had been tense the whole time, but learning that we could handle the strongest beast seemed to ease his worries.
Following that, Hong Yeonhui murmured while gazing at the surrounding area.
“Contour Lines.”
Hong Yeonhui’s eyes turned green as she activated the Skill Contour Lines.
“Wow… this is insane.”
“What is it?”
“It’s incredibly dizzying. There are so many lines. And it seems to have a 3D effect too.”
Hundreds, thousands of dotted lines would be visible.
And with a 3D effect on top of that, just thinking about it made me dizzy.
Hong Yeonhui slowly surveyed the surroundings with her head slightly tilted.
Like a lighthouse beam rotating, it was.
“You said to find the lowest elevation in the vicinity, right?”
“Right. If we find a place that’s unusually sunken like a gorge or sinkhole….”
“Shh, let me concentrate.”
Hong Yeonhui stared at the area without blinking, then soon pointed her finger at a specific location.
“Over there. There’s a terrain that’s oddly sunken.”
“The distance?”
“It seems to be the maximum range I can detect. 500 meters.”
Hong Yeonhui then deactivated the Skill and blinked her eyes.
Hong Yeonhui rubbed her eyes with both hands and shook her head.
“You alright?”
When Park Sangha approached and asked Hong Yeonhui, she nodded with a pleased smile.
“Save the romance for later. So we just need to head over there, right?”
As Park Sanghun asked while smacking his lips, Kim Suhan, who had regained his energy, turned to ask me.
“Doyun’s Brother! If we go over there, can we ride that robot?!”
“We’ll find out when we get there. Let’s move first.”
“Should I pull out the modified vehicle?”
I hastily stopped Park Sanghun as he reached for his inventory.
“No way. Do you want to broadcast that we came from a different channel?”
“Then we’re walking?”
“Besides, the ground is too soft anyway. Driving wouldn’t be ideal. Let’s walk.”
The moment I took my first step forward.
Ding—!
[Client compatibility work has been completed.]
A System Message materialized before my eyes.
[Characters for Players Baek Doyun, Park Sangha, Park Sanghun, Gwak Cheolmin, Hong Yeonhui, and Do Sohee have been assigned.]
[The above players will play as ‘Builder’.]
The system had chosen our characters without giving us any say in the matter.
We would be able to use No Way Home’s abilities, but in exchange, we’d play as Builders who couldn’t use Giant Punisher’s mana.
“Are you kidding me! Why Builder of all things?!”
Park Sanghun, displeased with the system’s decision, pointed at the message and shouted.
Park Sanghun had said he would absolutely never play a character like Builder.
That’s how it always goes—the more you refuse, the more you get forced into it.
Park Sangha also seemed disappointed, scratching his sideburns and clicking his tongue.
Park Sangha had shown excitement about entering a fantasy world with mana.
Being excluded from a world with mana seemed to leave a bitter taste in his mouth.
Hong Yeonhui, Elder Chulmin, and Do Sohee didn’t seem particularly moved.
As if the character choice didn’t matter to them.
I felt the same way.
In Giant Punisher, there were no inherently good or bad characters.
In any game, with any character, there are those that excel early and those that excel late.
Ultimately, what matters is how you use the character.
“Still, at least the client is compatible. What’s the problem with Suhan?”
Park Sangha teased Kim Suhan, who puffed out his chest and responded.
“It’s fine! I’m going to fight while riding a giant robot!”
“Ha! That’s the spirit.”
“If it seems dangerous, I’ll protect you from the robot, Uncle, so don’t worry….”
Flap flap flap—!
In that instant, hundreds of birds suddenly took flight, as if to blanket the sky itself.
Startled by the sound of their wings, our group looked up without hesitation.
“Why are there so many birds….”
“Everyone, get down!”
They didn’t know.
That the flock of birds taking flight was a harbinger of what was to come.
Crunch-crunch-crunch-crunch-crunch-
The ground trembled violently in response, and the vegetation began to shake.
“What, what is it—an earthquake?!”
Park Sanghun pressed himself flat against the ground, shielding his head with both hands.
“What do we do?! Where do we go?!”
As Park Sanghun asked again, I swallowed hard and spoke.
“It’s not an earthquake.”
“If it’s not an earthquake, then what is it…?”
“Stay here.”
People who have experienced earthquakes describe it this way.
Like standing on a sailboat in the middle of a turbulent sea.
But this tremor was different.
This was…
‘Where is it coming from?’
I raised my upper body and searched for the source of the vibration.
My senses, honed as sharply and keenly as my enhanced physical abilities, were acute.
I could tell that the tremor was originating from beyond the cliff visible in the distance.
Boom-!
I pushed off toward the cliff without hesitation.
“Baek Doyun, where are you going!”
“Stay there!”
I rushed toward the cliff, leaving Park Sanghun’s voice behind.
And what came into view was…
Crash!!!
A massive object hurtling toward the cliff and colliding with it.
Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom-!
The ground crumbles.
I quickly retreated to a safe zone using my awareness.
“Roooaaarrrrr!!!”
Something roared simultaneously, expressing its fury.
A bloated pterosaur-like creature.
Only its face resembled a pterosaur; its body was completely different.
Instead of wings, it possessed long front limbs, and instead of short, slender legs, it had four thick, sturdy legs like baobab trees.
The problem was its size…
‘Damn, it’s huge.’
Was this what being overwhelmed felt like?
I thought I’d developed some resistance to massive beings after facing enhanced Giant Zombies, but this was on an entirely different level.
The feeling of being overwhelmed.
If a monster had that size and that appearance…
‘Grade 3.’
Information about the Giant Punisher buried deep in my memory surfaced.
A monster standing 120 meters tall with the face of a pterosaur.
What does 120 meters feel like, you ask?
Imagine something like the Kyobo Tower at Sinnonhyeon Station Intersection coming to life and moving.
Kuuuuuuuu—
Following that sound, the massive iron colossus embedded in the cliff began to raise its upper body.
An 80-meter-tall humanoid construct.
Why would this game be called Giant Punisher?
Literally translated: the Punisher of Giants.
It’s a game where you pilot a robot to eliminate colossal monsters.
Shiiiiii—! Screeeech—!!
Scalding steam erupted from the crudely-built massive machine, and the deafening screech of grinding steel and interlocking gears assaulted my eardrums.
Boom—! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The weapon lunged toward the Class 3 monster.
Crash!!!
The two titans collided with a thunderous roar that split the mountain.
Clang—clang—! Clang!
The 80-meter war machine grappled with the Class 3 monster, hard as stone, before its right hand began to shift its form.
A weapon materialized with a dull metallic sound.
The machine’s right hand transformed into a saw blade, and it began carving through the monster’s chest.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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