Chapter 6

The horses were prepared immediately.

The supplies were ready as well.

Fifteen mana crystals, food, water, and several healing potions were packed into a dimensional pouch. I tied the opening tightly, secured it beneath my coat, mounted my horse, and took a long, deep breath.

“You’re really going to ride that?”

The Saint looked far from pleased.

Even after I’d fully explained the plan, she still couldn’t accept it.

Honestly, I couldn’t blame her.

To anyone else, I probably looked completely insane.

Even so, I nodded calmly.

“Of course, Saint Joanna. What is there to be afraid of?”

I wasn’t confident I could convince her with logic, so I simply bluffed the way Allen normally would.

The truth?

I was terrified.

If I had even a little less courage, I probably would’ve wet myself on the spot.

I was about to charge straight through the middle of enemy territory.

How could anyone not be scared?

Even I wondered if I’d finally lost my mind.

Perhaps she noticed the slight hesitation in my eyes, because she looked like she wanted to drag me off the horse herself.

“Saint Joanna, trust the Young Master.”

Thankfully, Rickby firmly took my side.

Only then did Joanna step back.

The funny thing was…

Even Rickby didn’t seem particularly convinced.

Cold sweat poured down his forehead like a waterfall.

He clearly thought this was an utterly ridiculous plan.

Perhaps he was only agreeing because he couldn’t bear to let me go alone.

If so…

I felt a little sorry for him.

I’d like to reassure him…

Unfortunately, I couldn’t explain.

This strategy only worked because I understood Allen Kalstein as a game character.

Think about it.

What did it mean that Allen Kalstein’s greatest talent was running away?

Simply put…

No one was faster at escaping than he was.

And as the only son of a ducal family, his horsemanship was exceptional.

Allen could flee at incredible speed.

It was an incredibly pathetic, cowardly trait.

But looked at another way…

It also meant he could deliver supplies faster than anyone else.

Among veteran players, there had been plenty of attempts to recycle Allen’s otherwise useless character.

Unfortunately, because of his Coward trait, he always abandoned combat, causing every strategy to fail.

But now…

I’m Allen Kalstein.

At first, even I wasn’t sure.

The theory was perfect.

Whether it’d actually work was another matter.

But the instant I grabbed the reins…

I knew.

This could work.

As long as the condition of being in “danger” was fulfilled…

No one would outrun me.

Of course, every exit from the outpost had already been blocked by undead.

Even if Allen was fast, he had almost no combat ability.

I’d still need someone to carve a path forward.

“Young Master.”

I glanced sideways.

Rickby had mounted his own horse and ridden close beside me.

Lowering his voice, he whispered,

“Young Master… to be honest, even I don’t know if this will work… I trust you, but…”

Apparently…

Rickby Hegment became extremely talkative whenever he was scared.

Just like back on the watchtower.

He kept rambling nonstop, desperately trying to persuade me to think of another plan.

But we didn’t have time for that.

I smacked him across the back.

“Rickby, just shut up and trust me! If we don’t try this now, when will we ever get the chance?”

It wasn’t as though I wasn’t afraid.

But I was supposed to be the commander.

I had to look dependable.

Rickby stared at me for a long moment before finally closing his mouth.

After wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, he raised his gauntlets.

I immediately opened the system window.

Rickby Hegment’s skill, Straight Flush, has been activated.

It was a narrow, straight-line piercing attack.

Players constantly complained it was useless unless the terrain happened to be perfect.

Maybe it’d be useful in a side-scrolling platformer.

But in a game where monsters attacked from every direction?

What good was a skill that only hit what’s directly ahead?

I had ignored it completely.

I’d only unlocked it because I’d run out of better skills to upgrade.

I’d never intended to use it.

Only now, standing at death’s door, did I realize another possibility.

It gathered mana into the gauntlets…

Then released it in a straight line.

More importantly…

Friendly units couldn’t be damaged by allied skills in this game.

What better propulsion system could there possibly be?

The attack only damaged enemies while generating a violent gust along its path.

It was practically the perfect support skill for breaking through enemy lines.

Just because it’s an attack skill doesn’t mean it has to be used for attacking.

I fully admitted it sounded insane.

Who would’ve thought to combine an unpopular skill from a fan-favorite character…

With the signature trait of the game’s most hated character?

It was garbage mixed with garbage.

I’d never heard of anyone attempting something this stupid before.

No one knew what would happen.

And we were about to test it for the first time…

In the middle of an actual battlefield.

…It would’ve worked even better with the armored carriage.

Too bad it was already destroyed.

Gripping the reins tightly, I steadied my breathing.

I signaled Rickby.

He nodded.

Everything was ready.

Mana particles gathered around the center of his massive gauntlets, spinning rapidly into a miniature cyclone.

The surrounding air changed instantly.

The overwhelming energy distorted violently.

Rickby’s expression twisted.

Veins bulged across his arms like tree roots.

Tiny blood vessels burst beneath his skin.

Even so…

He endured.

The instant the condensed mana reached its limit—

The shockwave exploded.

My body shot forward like an arrow.

And the result…

It worked.

The acceleration was so explosive that the monsters surrounding the outpost disappeared from view like afterimages.

When I looked back…

The outpost had already shrunk into a tiny dot on the horizon.

The result far exceeded my expectations.

Excitement raced through my spine.

Adrenaline flooded my body.

Still…

It was too early to relax.

“Rickby! Cover me!”

Danger still lurked on every side.

No matter how fast we rode…

Our enemies were monsters.

There was no telling when disaster might strike.

I couldn’t let my guard down.

Right now…

What I needed most was information.

Winning through brute force wasn’t realistic.

I’d have to find another opening.

Leaving my back to Rickby, I checked the system.

Just as I thought.

Unique Trait: Coward has activated.

What surprised me wasn’t the activation.

It was the effects.

Unique Trait: Coward Activated!

• Agility +50%
• Strength +30%
• Special Ability Clairvoyance activated.
  (Allows the user to clearly perceive objects within a 1 km radius.)
• All cooldowns reduced by 80%.
• Acceleration applied.
• Evasion applied.
• …

I stared in disbelief.

I checked the list again.

And again.

No mistake.

Those buffs were real.

No wonder he’d always managed to escape so easily.

He’d been running away while stacked with absurd buffs like these.

The character who was useless every other time…

Apparently performed at one hundred percent efficiency the moment he decided to flee.

I couldn’t help laughing.

…Damn it.

What else should I expect from a bastard like Allen?

At least he was finally useful.

I continued checking the newly updated information.

Especially the enemy data.

Then—

Enemy rapidly approaching within 5 km.

Enemy rapidly approaching within 4.5 km.

…

Enemy rapidly approaching within 1.5 km.

Red warning messages flooded my vision.

The meaning was obvious.

Something was closing in on me.

Fortunately…

Clairvoyance was active.

I wasn’t too worried.

Enemy rapidly approaching within 1 km.

The instant it entered my detection range, I quickly searched my surroundings.

Then—

Enemy preparing a powerful attack!

“…What?”

The warning had changed.

A powerful attack?

The enemy was still one kilometer away.

How could it already—

Suddenly…

Every hair on the back of my neck stood up.

It wasn’t fear.

Or panic.

Or surprise.

It was something far more primal.

Survival instinct.

I instantly threw myself flat against the horse.

Something sliced through the air just above my head.

A razor-sharp object grazed my hair.

One second later…

My skull would’ve been split clean in half.

Frozen in horror, I slowly raised my eyes.

A gigantic monster had landed on the ground.

Its body was covered in a hard exoskeleton.

A massive horn jutted from its forehead, curved into a deadly spike.

Blood dripped from its tip.

The moment I saw that…

I realized what it had done.

The horse’s head…

Was gone.

“Ugh…!”

Blood erupted everywhere.

Hot crimson sprayed across my face.

The horse’s nerves hadn’t completely died yet.

Its headless body staggered forward several more steps before collapsing.

The world flipped upside down.

Behind me—

Rickby shouted.

“Young Master!!”

His voice was swallowed by the roaring wind.

I couldn’t hear the rest.

With great effort, I turned around.

There was only one thing I wanted to tell him.

Even if I died…

Don’t give up.

Keep riding.

Survive somehow.

But the instant our eyes met…

The words died in my throat.

“Rickby! Damn it, Rickby Hegment!!”

What the hell was he doing?

Why?

I couldn’t believe it.

It never should’ve happened.

Rickby, who had been riding right behind me…

Had jumped off his horse.

Now he was fighting the monsters himself.

“Get back on your horse, Rickby Hegment!! Do you have a death wish?!”

I screamed until the veins in my neck bulged.

I ordered him to mount up.

Immediately.

But Rickby Hegment…

That hopelessly overprotective adjutant…

Chose this exact moment—

To disobey his commander’s orders for the first time.

Swinging his blood-soaked gauntlets…

He desperately fought the monsters.

Again.

And again.

“…”

Everything before my eyes turned crimson.

Suppressing the grief threatening to overwhelm me, I forced myself to watch.

Rickby grew farther away.

Soon…

I couldn’t even hear his voice anymore.

All I could see…

Were endless waves of black monsters.

And then…

Rickby’s horse came charging toward me.

Only then did I understand.

Rickby Hegment had made his choice.

Not to save himself.

But to save me.

Even if it cost him his life.

Why?

Why would he do something like that?

What was so important about Allen Kalstein?

I clung desperately to the collapsing body of my dying horse.

Then…

I waited.

Enemy preparing a powerful attack!

The enemy hadn’t given up.

Another attack was coming.

And this time…

There was a very good chance…

I was going to die.