Ranker Who Lives Twice

‘Let’s finish as soon as possible.’ Although Ananta completely overwhelmed her enemies, she didn’t grow overconfident. Because Walpurgisnacht had hunted her down for such a long time, she’d learned to dissect her situation soberly and rationally. As she saw it, in her current condition, it would be impossible for her to engage in a long, drawn-out fight. No matter how much Cha Jeong-woo’s spirit spread his Sky Wings, which amplified her magic power, there were limits to this method. Moreover, Cha Jeong-woo’s spirit body was not complete, and as time passed, the risk that his existence—which hadn’t even been fully restored—might scatter. Ananta made it clear that she wanted to take swift action, and Cha Jeong-woo replied in the affirmative, raising and spreading his Sky Wings.

The Dragon Fear exuded by the two Dragon Humans intensified, backed by a powerful force. They quickly bounded towards their enemies, who were frozen in place. White Dragon was an offshoot of Red Dragon, which the Summer Queen had ruled, and they were vulnerable against the aura of a dragon.

Whoosh! Whenever Ananta swung her sword, Wave of Light exploded out from her blade. At one time, Heaven Wing had reigned over various rankers and the Eight Clans with his numbered skill. The skill erased the clan members of White Dragon one by one.

“D-damn it…!”

“How can that bitch use Heaven Wing’s skill?”

“We need to retreat…!”

Many of the clan members backed away. They had only wanted to take advantage of a chance to counterattack and not be pointlessly swept away like the ashes of a roaring fire.

“You idiots, what are you all doing? We need to stop her no matter what!”

“If you retreat, we’re all done for! Fight! Do whatever you can!”

Unlike the clan members, White Dragon’s leaders wanted to stop Ananta at all costs. They instinctively knew that if they missed this chance to attack, there would be no second chance. It was only a matter of time before the situation in the One-horned Tribe’s village reached Arthia’s ears. White Dragon’s leaders knew it would be over once reinforcements arrived, so they had to somehow get rid of or capture Ananta.

Fortunately, some of the rankers with scanning abilities noticed that Ananta’s internal state didn’t match her outer appearance. Her reserve of magic power was very low, so they clenched their teeth and redoubled their efforts to catch her.

The war with White Dragon began.

***

“Damn it…!” Suspending her clash with Phante, Waltz frowned when she realized that things were not going her way. Despite her personal grudge against the One-horned tribe, she was not a fool who would misjudge the flow of combat. If she were that foolhardy, Arthia and the Fantasy Regiment’s constant attacks would have already destroyed her and the clan a hundred times over. She had learned from her mother, the Summer Queen, to be cold-blooded and analytical enough to quickly draw the right conclusions. She had long ago determined that the attack on the One-horned tribe would end in failure, but she’d joined in order to secure Ananta and Sesha.

Although she was engaged in battle with Phante and his Blood Lightning, she had decided not to retreat so that she could buy time for her side to conclude their operation. However, Waltz never thought that Ananta would wake up! Waltz did not know how Ananta did it; she was even freely using Sky Wing and Wave of Light.

Ananta’s overall physical condition did not seem very good since her complexion was pale and her breath was ragged. However, Ananta firmly held her ground, and it seemed more and more unlikely that the situation would change. However, even if Waltz wanted to use her full force…

Rumble. Bang! Phante rained down Blood Lightning after Blood Lightning as if mocking her silly thoughts.

The Wall of Blood Thunder, which was the constant barrage of Blood Lightning, was known to split and crush everything it touched, and it was about to reach Waltz. In an instant, flower petals made of high-level energy bloomed around Waltz’s body. A multitude of pale pink afterimages appeared.

Waltz utilized Nine-Step Transformation, creating afterimages and clones with every nine steps, to avoid Phante’s Blood Lightning of Justice.

However, the power of the Blood Lightning exploded on the ground and spread in all directions, causing a chain of explosions. Nine of Waltz’s clones disappeared in an instant. Phante rushed through the stinging dust and black ashes in the air like an angry bull and grabbed Waltz’s slender body.

“Ugh!” Realizing that she had made a mistake and left herself open, Waltz quickly tried to escape Phante’s grasp. She knew better than anyone that she had no chance of winning if she fought Phante using brute strength. Waltz collected energy in the palms of her hands and beat Phante’s back. Bam!

“Argh!” Phante ignored the attacks raining on his back which were strong enough to break his spine. He hung onto Waltz and rammed her into a nearby tree, a sacred one that had stood tall in the village for hundreds of years.

The sacred tree snapped from the force and fell to the ground. Waltz lost her breath, and the energy that she had gathered instantly released. Phante did not miss this opportunity. He put strength into his arms to completely crush Waltz’s waist and ribs. He did not even have time to utilize Blood Lightning.

Crack. Crack. Waltz felt the strange and excruciating feeling of bones and organs being crushed inside her body. She could not even scream, and she did not know if it was because her vocal cords had been snapped or if her lungs could not expand. This sudden muteness gave her tremendous psychological pain. She could feel herself passing out.

‘No…!’ Waltz clenched her jaw. When that didn’t work, she violently bit her tongue. The smell of blood spread in her mouth, and she was in so much pain that she thought she had bitten through her tongue. However, this drastic action helped her regain her consciousness. ‘How much I’ve…sacrificed…to get to where I am…!’ She was biting down so hard that her jaw started to crack.

‘Mom! Dad!’ Waltz could not forget. One by one, the images of her parents, who raised her in a slum, started popping into her mind. She recalled how no one would approach her because they considered her too dirty. She remembered how she could not even give her dead parents a proper burial. She had been too consumed with escaping the One-horned tribe members chasing her. And now, she couldn’t even take the slightest bit of revenge on them. She couldn’t allow herself to fall so easily.

Apart from her personal grievances, Waltz also wanted to maintain the Summer Queen’s dying wish. Although Waltz wasn’t certain that her mother had left her an inheritance, Waltz was still thankful to the Summer Queen for giving her a new lease on life. She couldn’t throw her life away like this.

Waltz gave up struggling against Phante’s crushing force and focused solely on squeezing out her last drops of energy to create a mana circle. She didn’t care if she ruined her physical body. Waltz just needed a handful…just a handful of magic power…!

Flash! A blinding blue light rose like a spear toward Waltz’s eyes. It was Exploding Light, and Waltz poured all her life force into a handful of her remaining magic power to amplify it, like the last flickering moments of a candle’s flame before it disappeared. For a brief moment, her internal strength increased explosively.

Waltz did not care if her previously uninjured areas were damaged. She was dead set on escaping Phante, who was still holding onto her tightly.

Whoosh! A powerful magic field formed and rose from the two’s struggle. The magic field crackled as it started growing larger. Soon, Waltz began to gain the upper hand. From the start, Waltz had a slight martial arts advantage over Phante. Moreover, once she decided to consume her life force, Phante couldn’t keep up.

“You fucking bitch!” Phante screamed in annoyance.

With an expressionless face, Waltz threw Phante off. She would only be able to take Ananta and Sesha with her if she could get rid of the nuisance in front of her. She would recoup and mend her body later. However, since she used Exploding Light, she only had a year or two of life left, but it was enough time to fulfill her revenge.

The One-horned tribe had a Forbidden Ten Dan martial arts skill which had overwhelming destructive power, even as it put the user’s life in danger. There was a chance that Phante would use this skill, but Waltz had already used Exploding Light, so there was no turning back. ‘Mother’s dying wish…!’ Right now, only the thought of avenging the Summer Queen remained in Waltz’s mind.

Bam! Phante vomited blood as he tumbled to the ground. In a flash, Waltz flew towards Sesha. Ananta noticed her movements and quickly blocked Waltz’s path using Sky Wings.

“I’ll have to kill you first.”

“Get away from me you bitch!”

Just when the two women were about to attack each other…

Rumble! Suddenly, darkness fell from the sky like torrential rain. Waltz immediately realized that it was an attack aimed at her, and she pulled back. At first, she’d planned to parry the attack, but the incoming force was stronger than she had anticipated.

Boom! As Waltz expected, as soon as the black darkness exploded on the ground, it melted everything it touched. Waltz couldn’t see the bottom of the holes that the darkness created. It was as if they were abysses. It was a terrifying sight, and Waltz looked up to see where the darkness had come from. Ananta also hurriedly raised her head. They soon saw the source of the attack: Yeon-woo, who was riding his Bone Dragon.

『Hyung!』

For a moment, Ananta stood stunned and wide-eyed when she saw the figure who looked like Jeong-woo but with a completely different aura. Then, once she heard Cha Jeong-woo’s words, she clenched her fist. Ananta had been listening to Sesha from time to time in her sleep. Yeon-woo had saved her and her daughter. He was also the person who brought Cha Jeong-woo back. She felt a sudden sense of relief.

On the other hand, Waltz’s expression stiffened. Waltz recognized the Bone Dragon that Yeon-woo was standing on. It was the Summer Queen, the remains of her deceased mother. Wasn’t it too pitiful that her mother couldn’t even sleep comfortably after closing her eyes? Waltz grew angry at Yeon-woo’s vicious act.

Unconcerned about Waltz’s thoughts, Yeon-woo descended from the dragon with his arms crossed. “Domain Declaration.”

As the shadows spread across the ground, Yeon-woo’s legion of undead souls rose one by one.

[The Domain ‘Binah’ has been declared!]

Dis Pluto had gone to Olympus along with Athena, and the Ghost Giants had been mobilized to restore Tartarus, so Yeon-woo’s forces were mainly made up of Boo-Faust’s undead. However, this legion alone already boasted a considerable amount of power, and White Dragon quickly fell into chaos. They had already suffered a lot of damage from Ananta’s Wave of Light attacks, and they couldn’t avoid further injuries from this.

Moreover, the White Dragon members found it difficult to shake off the vines that had risen from the shadows and wrapped around their ankles and limbs. The shadow was so swampy that it even seemed to suck their legs in.

“D-damn it!”

“Argh! Magic…! My magic doesn’t work!”

High above, Boo-Faust’s Inferno Sight looked down at everyone, forming a large barrier over a huge area. As long as they were inside, it was impossible for the members of White Dragon to escape. Any attempts to use magic would instantly be canceled, and there was nothing else to do but panic.

Boo-Faust had not only absorbed the knowledge of the Tower but also the Emerald Tablet, and by now, his magic ability level was so high that no player could fathom it. They were already like rats trapped in a pool of poison.

Waltz clenched her jaw. As soon as Yeon-woo had revealed himself, she knew that everything was over. However, she tried to stubbornly refuse this reality and tried one last counterattack.

Sss. All of a sudden, the Bone Dragon suddenly swung its wings and flew towards Waltz at a high speed. Waltz’s expression stiffened, unsure what the Bone Dragon would do. As Waltz gathered magic power in her fist, the Bone Dragon suddenly became engulfed in light as it polymorphed.

Once she saw the face of the polymorphed Bone Dragon, Waltz’s expression stiffened even more. She never thought she would see it again. “Mother?” Waltz was dumbstruck. She couldn’t understand what was going on.

Extending her hand, the Summer Queen sent out a flurry of attacks towards Waltz without hesitation. The strongest flame-based magic, Hell Fire, rushed towards Waltz.