Chapter 168

Chapter 168

From the beginning, something seemed off about Oliverne, and Cha Jin-Hyeok was on the verge of grasping what it was.

‘He doesn’t usually wear anything when he fights, right?’

Oliverne was the type who took pride in his size and muscles, and he always fought shirtless. Jin-Hyeok remembered that Oliverne used to claim that the truly formidable did not rely on armor.

‘But right now, he’s wearing armor.’

Before Jin-Hyeok’s regression, Oliverne had claimed in an interview that he never wore armor from the very beginning. He had said it was something only cowards and the faint-hearted used, which had his hardcore fans praising him as the epitome of manliness.

‘I guess his younger self wears armor..’

This meant that Oliverne did not always shun armor. As for why he did that later on, Jin-Hyeok could guess the reason without much difficulty.

‘He must have later acquired a Mystery or special ability that makes wearing armor decrease his defensive capabilities.’

Surprisingly, quite a few such Mysteries and abilities existed.

‘This bastard! So he was lying back then.’

Despite his strong dislike for Oliverne, Jin-Hyeok begrudgingly respected parts of him. Oliverne’s audacity in discarding his armor and fighting like a wild dog was something Jin-Hyeok could not help but admire.

‘All that was a sham?’

Jin-Hyeok scowled and asked, “Were you fake all along?”

“Is that your way of introducing yourself?”

[LV138/Dao King/Skills/Blessing of the Fighting Dog]

‘His Job is just an average 9-Star Job.’

Oliverne was the top-ranking Daoist on the American Server. It would be strange if he did not have a 9-Star Job.

“I feel insulted. I thought at least your Level would be high,” Jin-Hyeok said.

“Do you not know that Level is just a number?”

“Even so, isn’t 138 too low?”

“You fail to realize that you could level up quickly only because you are a Streamer.”

Oliverne was not entirely wrong. Jin-Hyeok was a Streamer, and Streamers did level up quite faster than Players with other Jobs.

Oliverne laughed heartily. “Like a coward, you sneak a look at my information. Go ahead, look all you want. I will give you all the time in the world.”

This was when Jin-Hyeok sensed something else amiss.

‘From what I remember before my regression, Oliverne would have already drawn his axe and attacked without bothering about having a conversation.’

This Oliverne was quite different from the Oliverne the world knew before Jin-Hyeok’s regression.

[...#I will show the world. #The limits of a fake. #I can wait as long as you want.]

This guy knew how to calculate his moves. As things progressed, Oliverne only disappointed Jin-Hyeok.

‘So his madness was just a show. Then what about when he provoked me before my regression, wanting to fight? So he had calculated that thoroughly as well? That I wouldn’t be able to fight?’’

When Jin-Hyeok thought about it, he realized that Oliverne the Berserker engaged only in battles he was sure to win. Oliverne had never provoked Lee Hyeon-Seong, who was significantly weaker than Jin-Hyeok, although Hyeon-Seong thought otherwise.

‘My head is spinning from the betrayal.’

At that time, Jin-Hyeok used to think Oliverne was quite decent. Now, it turned out that the Berserker had been picking on the weaker ones to obtain fame.

‘That’s why he could survive even after pulling off such insane stunts.’

Even Jin-Hyeok could see that Oliverne had done too many crazy things. Even after winning his fights, Oliverne would still brutally wreck his opponents. The source of this content nov(el)bi((n))

‘So that wasn’t an insane frenzy born from battle. It was cold and calculated brutality?’

“You should be ashamed of yourself.”

? ? ?

Jin-Hyeok faced Oliverne, meticulously examining him with Broadcaster’s Clairvoyance.

‘This bastard is wearing the Phaelon’s Necklace!’

In this world, there was no such thing as an all-purpose item. If an item excelled in one aspect, it was often lacking in another. Some items could be stronger than others, but weaker than different ones. Oliverne’s Necklace of Phaelon was a counter to Jin-Hyeok’s Berklev Necklace.

‘I have to make sure this does not appear on the livestream.’

Jin-Hyeok felt a sense of pride as he edited out this detail. Editing a livestream in real-time was a sign of growth in his skills as a Streamer.

‘I might need to use this information later, so I better take a screenshot.’

[Phaelon’s Necklace.]

[A necklace imbued with the magic of the Curse Mage Phaelon.

It adds a curse buff to all damage reflection abilities.

However, the wearer’s defense is reduced by 20%.]

Typically, such items always carried a curse that ate away at the wearer’s abilities.

As Jin-Hyeok pulled out Rule Breaker, Oliverne’s expression soured and he said, “Aren’t you going to draw your sword?”

“To deal with a fake like you, a hammer is more fitting.”

“Then, I too shall not resort to using a weapon.”

Oliverne immediately retreated two steps, and Rule Breaker sliced through the air.

“And now dodge to the left.”

Oliverne moved as if he were enchanted, following Jin-Hyeok’s instructions.

“Now, you will have an opening.” Suddenly, Jin-Hyeok shifted Rule Breaker to his left hand and tapped Oliverne’s temple with his right palm. “Now, you will jump back counterclockwise in surprise.”

Jin-Hyeok moved first, and Oliverne followed suit in the same manner. Jin-Hyeok tapped Oliverne’s forehead with his right hand. “Your movements are so predictable.”

And with that, he kicked Oliverne. He had fortified his foot with Broadcaster’s Barrier, concentrating the energy on his foot. It didn't seem like a very strong kick at first glance, but Oliverne staggered back several steps and repeatedly coughed.

“Do you now understand why scoring zero is harder than scoring one hundred?” Jin-Hyeok could see Oliverne’s weak points all too clearly. “I was trying to get a decent amount of content.”

He immediately brought up the previous video on the screen again. It was the scene where Oliverne had hit Broadcaster’s Barrier and fractured his fingers.

“If you expose such a big gap here, I can’t really get a good battle scene for my livestream.”

The gap was too obvious.

-What gap? What is he talking about?

-I can’t see anything.

-It seems Chul-Soo can see something that we can’t.

Only a veteran Swordsman who had gone through numerous battles and had crossed the boundary between life and death countless times could discern such a gap, so it was not easily noticeable to the average user’s eyes.

“It’s no fun if it becomes too obvious that I am going easy on you. Why aren’t you cooperating?”

“...”

“How dare you provoke me with such lowly skills?” Jin-Hyeok said.

Beyond his physical prowess, Oliverne lacked a lot as a fighter. He had far too little experience, especially since it appeared he had never fought against an opponent who was better at fighting than himself.

“Why does someone weaker than the Anal Destroyer act so cocky?”

Oliverne trembled. Thick veins stood out on his forehead and nape, showing his fury.

-Oliverne is pissed!

-The Berserker has appeared, LOL!

-Now it’s gonna get real.

-Chul-Soo talks big only to get beaten up, LMAO!

Oliverne spat on the ground and drew his twin axes, his prized golden and silver axes. He held the golden axe in his right hand and the silver one in his left.

“The joke ends here,” Oliverne said.

“Oh, it was a joke till now?”

“I will kill you!” A mirage flickered around Oliverne the Berserker. It was a Skill known as Frenzy, which greatly amplified all his physical abilities.

‘Hm... This is somewhat decent to look at.’

Oliverne was fast now.

‘But still slow compared to Black Butterball and the Seo sisters.’

Having grown accustomed to his party members’ speed, Jin-Hyeok was not surprised by Oliverne’s speed.

‘I’ll separate your head from your body!”

The golden axe drew a golden trajectory as it flew toward Jin-Hyeok’s neck. At the moment when Jin-Hyeok tried to use Broadcaster’s Barrier, the silver axe followed with a slight delay, aiming at Jin-Hyeok’s head.

Egan, who was livestreaming this, applied a slow-motion effect to enhance the viewers’ experience.

-That is Oliverne’s signature move! The Synchronized Attack!

-Chul-Soo can’t dodge this!

-He was the one insisting on a fierce fight, and now he can’t keep up. LOL

-Farewell, Mr. IntenseMan.

Oliverne’s silver axe touched the top of Jin-Hyeok’s head. However, Jin-Hyeok, as shown on Egan’s screen, was smiling.

-Huh? He’s smiling?

-What?!

Many speculated the reason behind that.

-The Berklev Necklace!

-Doesn’t that item reflect damage?

-Wait, Chul-Soo had an item that powerful? That’s crazy!

Egan cleverly switched the screen to display his pre-recorded interview with Oliverne.

?In the end, Chul-Soo will try to use the Berklev Necklace, but I also have my plans. I will burst his bubble!?

And when Egan switched back the screen, it showed Oliverne grinning slyly. It seemed he already knew that Jin-Hyeok would use the Berklev Necklace.

“I knew it all along!” Oliverne shouted.

However, an unexpected situation unfolded.