Since I could adjust the stage configuration to my liking, I could have chosen much easier monster legions.
Nevertheless, the reason I deliberately chose the named monster, the Phantom King’s legion, was simple.
‘To maximize the benefits.’
Accumulating benefits now would serve as insurance later. So, while I can exploit this cheat of the royal scepter, I need to squeeze out as much as possible.
‘If I can impose significant penalties to drastically reduce their combat power… facing a well-known, powerful foe would obviously yield greater benefits.’
The stronger the enemy, the more their abilities are reduced by penalties.
Choosing a powerful legion with an established strategy and clear weaknesses to defeat was the way to go.
Hence, I chose the Phantom King. They met all the conditions.
‘But it’s not without its risks. Our side isn’t fully prepared either.’
Especially the walls and equipment.
In the remaining week, repairing the walls was out of the question, and fixing damaged equipment wasn’t easy either. Replacing completely lost equipment within a week was impossible.
So…
“Let’s open the chest~”
I decided to finish opening the stage reward chest I had left unfinished last time.
If fully crafted items dropped from here, it would be a huge help for the upcoming stage.
‘This time, the rewards include one EX-grade chest and eight SSR-grade chests.’
I decided to start with the SSR-grade chests.
‘Should I open them one by one or all at once?’
After a brief moment of contemplating superstitious practices, I decided to boldly open them all at once.
With the chests in front of me, I couldn’t help but gulp. Eight golden chests opened simultaneously… a luxury I might never experience again…
‘My dear SSR god! You know my heart, right? You’re my best friend, right? Please, give me something awesome!’
Praying fervently, I opened all eight golden chests at once. Did I hit the jackpot?!
Flash! Flash! Flash-!
Golden beams shot up from the chests in a row. Such a beautiful color exists in the world!
Rubbing my hands together, I licked my lips in anticipation. What did I get?
And the results were as follows.
[Rewards]
— Oath of Protection (SSR): 2
— Oath of Healing (SSR): 2
— Mountain Spirit’s Axe (SSR)
— Shell of the Old God (SSR)
— Heavenly Voice (SSR)
— Wait and See (SSR)
There were a few familiar items I had seen in the game before, and some completely new ones. I blinked.
“No way, a set of Oath of Protection and Oath of Healing?”
And two of each? Wow…
Both [Oath of Protection] and [Oath of Healing] are bracelets, and their effects can be summarized as follows:
[Oath of Protection]
— Heals a designated ally by the amount of damage you deal to the enemy.
[Oath of Healing]
— Deals damage to the enemy by the amount you heal a designated ally.
In other words, they are auxiliary equipment designed to support fighting alongside a designated ally.
They are essentially set equipment, but you can have two different heroes wear each and support each other.
However, the true potential of this equipment is revealed when one person wears both.
‘The equipment effects trigger a chain reaction.’
So, if you heal an ally by the amount of damage dealt using [Oath of Protection], [Oath of Healing] deals damage to the enemy by the amount healed, and then [Oath of Protection] heals again by that damage, and [Oath of Healing] deals damage again…
This creates a miraculous infinite loop.
‘In practice, there’s a healing cap, so it doesn’t create an infinite loop.’
Once the designated ally reaches full health, there’s no more room for healing, and the chain stops.
And the damage dealt to the enemy also gradually decreases due to factors like enemy defense or health cap.
Still, if used well, it’s a very fun piece of equipment. In the game, getting one set meant seeing heroes wreak havoc on the front lines, dealing and healing simultaneously.
‘If there were no range limitations, I would give it to Damien without a second thought.’
Damien is our front line’s strongest dealer and a unique healer who can heal from a distance. Based on the options, this equipment should go straight to Damien.
But unfortunately, the equipment’s effective range is quite short. According to the description, the effective range is about 10 meters. The ally or enemy must be within 10 meters for healing or damage to occur.
This isn’t suitable for Damien, who needs to perform long-range sniping duties from a safe distance.
‘Then it should go to Zenis, our frontline healer.’
Though this equipment can be utilized by non-healers, it would be most effective if a healer initiates with [Oath of Healing]. Starting with a heal, [Oath of Protection] deals damage accordingly, then [Oath of Healing] heals again, creating a beautiful infinite loop.
Since Zenis wears holy armor and fights on the front lines, he can initiate the combo effectively. It would suit him well.
‘…Wait a minute.’
I got two sets. So, two [Oath of Protection] and two [Oath of Healing].
That means… hold on…
‘If two people wear a set each and designate each other as targets?’
Once one side starts healing or dealing damage to the enemy, both can trigger infinite healing and damage loops…!
‘Wait, this is theoretically broken… No, it’s beyond broken. Theoretically, it’s an insane synergy of infinite loop x infinite loop, right?’
If everything falls into place beautifully… Theoretically, an incredible combo chain is possible.
I shuddered at the thrilling sensation, like discovering an infinite combo in a fighting game. No way, this could break the game! No patch? No rollback? Really?
Then I’ll gladly take advantage of it!
‘Zenis, and… Rosetta. I’ll pull these two priests to the front line.’
Both had sufficient stats to fight on the front line but were often positioned slightly back due to being precious healers.
But if they each wore a set, being on the front line wouldn’t be an issue. No, they need to be on the front line to fully utilize this insane infinite combo set!
“…”
Giggling at the thought of this ridiculously overpowered equipment, I slowly wiped the smile off my face.
‘…To give out set items like this all at once.’
What’s the reason?
Staring at the sky, trying to guess the intention behind giving out such equipment…
“Eh, forget it!”
I decided to stop thinking about it.
At least the SSR god has never betrayed me. Let’s gratefully use the items given.
‘The other four items are all new… What are they?’
I examined the [Mountain Spirit’s Axe] first. It looked like a small hand axe. The effect was…
[Mountain Spirit’s Axe]
— If lost anywhere, three random spirits will appear to retrieve it. You can instantly summon one of the three spirits. (Once per day)
“This one is quite amusing.”
A rather humorous piece of equipment.
The attack power as a weapon was mediocre, but the special ability was everything.
In short, it allowed a daily random spirit summon. Like a mobile game’s daily draw reward.
It seemed fun to give it to anyone, but the equipment description stated, ‘The summoned spirit’s grade is influenced by the user’s affinity with spirits.’ That determines the user.
‘Hannibal, this is for you.’
Hit the jackpot and summon spirit kings. The probability seems incredibly low, though…
After assigning the [Mountain Spirit’s Axe], I examined the remaining items. What are their effects?
[Shell of the Old God]
— A crown made from the shell of a dead ancient god. When activated, it transforms the wearer into their prime state for three turns. (Once per stage)
[Heavenly Voice]
— A mask worn by the celestial choir. Changes the user’s voice into a beautiful song, granting various buffs to allies.
[Buff List]
[Wait and See]
— A boomerang used by a legendary hunter. Wherever thrown, it will always return to the user’s hand at the desired moment. Equipment below a certain weight can be attached to the boomerang.
“What the heck are these quirky items…”
Items with effects that I couldn’t quite grasp how to use effectively.
I pondered who to give these items to and then had a sudden thought. Wait a minute.
‘Could these items be used by captured monsters?’
During the last battle, most of the captured monsters I had collected and those handed over by Jackal were wiped out. But not all were lost.
The Kraken, which can be summoned once every three stages, is still there.
And the newly captured mini version of Jörmungandr…
Moreover, somehow surviving the chaos, the Banshee Legion Commander and the Dullahan Legion Commander were still in my captured monster space.
“…”
No, wait. Think carefully. These are precious SSR-grade items. Even if captured monsters can wear equipment, is it really the right decision to give these to them?
‘But… these options are just…’
The options fit perfectly… as if these items were allocated specifically for them…
“…”
My eyebrows twitched as I gathered the items and put them in my inventory. I decided to test them later.
“Alright, this is a great haul! Thank you, SSR god!”
Of course, the gacha show wasn’t over yet. The highlight of the day, the final chest, remained. It’s important to express gratitude mid-way so the SSR god remains pleased.
After fetching a bowl of clear water and offering a thank you, I carefully picked up the last chest— the glowing white EX-grade chest.
‘EX-grade chest… I think I received one once after clearing the tutorial stage.’
The item I got back then was the [Traitor’s Necklace] I’m wearing now. It has functions like an achievement shop. It seems to have other hidden features too.
Anyway, the EX grade itself signifies something ‘different’ outside the existing grade system. The item that comes out of this will likely be out of the ordinary.
‘There’s a high chance it might not directly aid in combat…’
But just in case, let’s open it with some anticipation?!
After taking a deep breath, I opened the chest vigorously. SSR god… no, EX god! Please grant me a game-breaking overpowered item-!
Flash-!
And then.
Amidst the dazzling white light, a small… ring emerged from the chest.
“What?”
I squinted my eyes and examined it closely.
[Imperial Seal Ring (EX)]
“Imperial Seal Ring…?”
An imperial seal refers to the royal stamp, and this is a ring…
Upon closer inspection, a transparent magical pattern on the ring’s top shifted shapes constantly. Ah, if I stamp this ring somewhere, the pattern will be imprinted.
This is called a signet ring, and it’s an imperial seal version.
‘So, what’s its function…’
Reading the item description carefully,
[Imperial Seal Ring (EX)]
— It allows the wearer to channel the collective will of the organization they represent into power.
“Ooh…?”
The description sounds impressive! It’s a bit abstract, so I’ll need to use it to understand fully.
‘But I represent several organizations…’
Thinking this, I slipped the ring onto my right ring finger,
“What?”
The magical pattern on the ring instantly changed.
It shifted from the imperial symbol of a sword and rose to the flaming dragon head of the Bringar Duchy, then to the X mark symbol of Crossroad, and several other changes before finally settling into a plain, flat black pattern.
The symbol of the World Guardian Front.
“…”
I focused my consciousness on the ring. Then.
“…!”
I instinctively grasped the ring’s usage.
My mouth gaped. Wait, it can do this?
Although I had been called the guardian deity of humanity and gained divinity, it didn’t provide a tangible sense of power, so I hadn’t felt it strongly… This ring concretely manifested those aspects.
‘I… hadn’t realized it until now.’
Covering my mouth with my ringed right hand, I shed a tear of emotion.
‘Now I might really be a cheat character?!’
After a long time of humiliation and persecution, this was my comeback. How much had I been scorned and self-derided for lacking combat talent…
I clenched my right hand wearing the ring tightly. And I thought to myself.
Alright! I’ll carry this next defense battle!
***
And then, time flew by, and the morning of the 41st stage dawned.
–TL Notes–
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