Everyone Except Me is a Newbie - Chapter 17

An Unnecessarily Large Greatsword

**Great Achievement.**

This phrase appeared when a legendary-ranked achievement was unlocked.

‘Huh…’

The achievement he received from the Queen Raid was of a lower rank. Moreover, it was an achievement Kim Ise didn’t know about.

‘The Best Play? What is this…?’

Kim Ise looked up and watched the video that the fairy was showing again.

**-KABOOM!**

**-…Yeon-ah! Full count…!**

The video showed the intense battle against the Queen in Phase 2. Fortunately, the names and faces were obscured.

“To protect player privacy, personal information has been hidden,” explained the fairy, Pam.

The video ended with the Queen’s defeat, and the screen switched back to the dragon Kargarth, who was still frozen in an awkward position.

“How do you feel? Seeing this must motivate you, right? That person is currently ranked number one among the constellations. Over 5,000 constellations are interested in them.”

Kim Ise looked around, trying to gauge if anyone had recognized him. It didn’t seem like anyone had.

“Wow… 5,000?”

“But what’s the point of having a lot of constellations?”

The others were busy discussing Pam’s words.

“If you receive a lot of support and love from the constellations, the amount settled daily will change. And from now on, you’ll have to live off that settlement.”

Pam laughed heartily, clutching her belly.

“Oh my. What are you guys?”

She suddenly looked down at something and asked.

“Are you the one responsible for this mess?!”

A loud voice rang out. A group of soldiers was lined up behind him, all aiming at Pam.

While WePlug had been at the temple, soldiers had organized the city.

“Ah, they’re called soldiers? I thought I destroyed them all… there are still some left?”

Ratatatatat!

The soldiers opened fire without warning. Their guns roared, but Pam was unscathed.

Pam laughed gleefully, snapping her fingers. With a pop, the soldiers’ heads were yanked up like a giant invisible hand dissecting insects.

“Screeeaam!”

“What do we do!!”

The citizens screamed, seemingly about to lose their minds, but Pam didn’t harm the other players.

“By the way, normal weapons don’t work in this world. Look at me, I’m fine, right? And hey, you. Come here.”

Pam pulled a player who was watching her into the air.

“Is this how you use this?”

A K2 rifle suddenly appeared in Pam’s hands.

Click.

The barrel lit up with a burst of fire.

Ratatatata!

The woman held in the air screamed in terror but wasn’t hurt. Not a scratch.

“See? It’s no fun using these things. The fun of this game is fighting with mana swords!”

Pam laughed, doing a backflip. She released the player back to the ground in a rather ungentlemanly manner.

Thud.

The woman screamed as she fell but was more surprised by her unscathed state.

“In this world, you don’t die from falling from high places. Isn’t it great?”

Pam continued with various ramblings, saying things like they were inferior beings. It was typical villain talk in a fantasy world.

Perhaps Pam was saying what Kargarth, the dragon, should have said.

‘The problem is, she’s real, right?’

Pam was a real entity, not a created one. Her words carried far more weight than Kargarth’s. She genuinely believed humans were inferior and claimed they had bought this dimension.

‘Storyboard? Wasn’t that what she called it?’

Kim Ise reflected on Pam’s words, trying to remember everything.

“Now, enjoy yourselves. I’ll be back in a week. Bye-bye!”

Pam disappeared as abruptly as she had appeared.

[Episode 1: Lord of the Burning City]

[Starting!]

—

Despite the start of Episode 1, nothing drastic changed. Civilization had regressed for about 400 years.

People now fought with knives for food and essentials. Corpses were strewn around convenience stores, and large supermarkets were even worse.

Most people had been expecting to be rescued by the military or police. That was the nature of civilized people.

But after seeing Pam destroy the entire military with a snap of her fingers, no one expected rescue anymore.

Everyone desperately wielded their swords to survive. At this time, more people died fighting each other than from monsters.

Amongst this chaos, some people were uniquely peaceful.

That was WePlug.

“Wow…”

“This is serious.”

They expressed their concerns but didn’t participate in the food fights. They knew how to play Mana Sword.

They knew how to get food in Mana Sword.

***

There was food in Mana Sword, serving to increase stamina. Without stamina, one couldn’t continue playing. It was a form of pay-to-win system.

However, it was possible to obtain enough through hunting or buying food with gold.

The cheapest method was hunting.

“We’re here. Let’s hunt here, okay? They drop grilled pork.”

“Mm, delicious… meat…”

“Besides, we have to do the quest anyway, right?”

They arrived at a square.

“Screech! Screech! Squawk!”

A troop of monkeys, out of place in the Seoul city square, awaited them. These monkeys were a bit special; they were engulfed in flames.

[Fire Monkey ★★]

2-star Fire Monkey.

The quest boss in Episode 1 was nothing like goblins in terms of combat power.

“I’ll go first. I need to test out my new weapon anyway.”

Kim I-seo stepped forward. Simultaneously, he took out an evolution stone. As he brought the stone closer, his mana sword emitted a bright light.

[The mana sword reacts to the evolution stone.]

[Please select the desired achievement.]

Kim I-seo’s choice of achievement was obvious.

[You have selected the achievement ‘Best Play’ (Legendary Grade).]

Wooooooong!

The mana sword transformed into an intangible mass of light.

[Select]

▻ Uselessly Large Greatsword

▻ Speedy Rapier

A sudden set of options appeared.

Was it thanks to the legendary achievement? Despite being a two-star weapon, the names were quite elaborate.

“Hey, Ho-tae. The options are ‘Uselessly Large Greatsword’ and ‘Speedy Rapier’.”

Ji Ho-tae, who handled the weapon balance, knew all about them.

“They’re both great… But for you, the greatsword is better. You’re going to be a high-damage tank, after all.”

“Okay!”

Ji Ho-tae might be a bit clueless socially, but he was excellent at his job. Without hesitation, Kim I-seo chose the greatsword.

[Uselessly Large Greatsword ★★ Acquired!]

[The sword evolves, upgrading the player’s rank.]

[★ → ★★]

[Black 2-star achieved!]

[All stat limits have been increased.]

[Red and blue mana limits have been increased.]

Kim I-seo became a 2-star player. In his hands was a gigantic greatsword.

The sword was nearly 2 meters long, with a side width of about 20 centimeters, a monstrous weapon.

‘So this is the Uselessly Large Greatsword…’

Kim I-seo smiled with satisfaction at the detailed description that followed.

==========================

<<Uselessly Large Greatsword>>

▻ Rank

★★★

▻ Grade

Congratulations! It’s legendary.

▻ Description

A ridiculously large sword. Normally, it’s compact and can be carried in your pocket.

*Though it’s useless, it becomes powerful when used! : Each hit increases your attack power by 20%, up to a maximum of 120%.

▻ Effect

Sword-related skills increase by 2 levels.

Base attack power +10%

==========================

Just as Ji Ho-tae said, the greatsword had an additional attack power option with each hit. This synergized perfectly with the acceleration gauge.

‘Perfect.’

Kim I-seo was satisfied.

“Here I goooo!”

Though the sword seemed impossible for someone of Kim I-seo’s stature to wield, he swung it lightly as if it were a plastic fly swatter, charging at the fire monkeys.

‘It’s best to start with side swings.’

The fire monkeys were quick. Trying to hit them directly with the blade would be challenging.

Mana Sword was a game that only allowed sword-type weapons, so various techniques for handling swords were implemented. This was no different now that it had become a reality.

Kim I-seo gripped the sword in a unique way, as if holding a baseball bat.

[Attempting a side attack.]

[Damage reduction 40%]

[Accuracy increase 300%]

A fire monkey lunged at him.

Thunk!

The sword struck mercilessly.

Kyaak!

Both the monkey and Kim I-seo were 2-stars, but Kim I-seo was a player who had reached level 10 in intermediate swordsmanship. As a master of intermediate swordsmanship, it was absurd for him to be evenly matched in a frontal assault.

“Die!”

Whack! Whack!

The monkey, unfamiliar with being hit on the side, couldn’t dodge properly and started getting beaten up.

Whack! Whack! Whack!

The blows against the fire monkeys accelerated, thanks to the acceleration gauntlet’s effect of increasing attack speed with each hit.

[Attack speed increased by 5%!]

[Attack speed increased by 10%!]

Kim I-seo’s view was filled with pleasant notifications.

That wasn’t all.

[Attack damage increased by 20%!]

[Attack damage increased by 40%!]

The Uselessly Large Greatsword’s effect increased attack power by 20% with each hit, up to 120%.

The 40% damage reduction penalty for side attacks was now insignificant.

‘Already an 80% increase!’

Boom! Boom!

His greatsword no longer seemed like a sword but it had become a thunderous blunt weapon.

Kyaak…

Thud.

The fire monkey collapsed with a miserable groan.

Kiiik! Kiiik!

The next fire monkeys faced the same fate.

Fwoosh!

Though they breathed fire from their mouths, they couldn’t even scratch the 20% defense option of the legendary armor ‘Nephilim’s Armor’.

‘My actual health is still at 100%…’

What followed was a frenzy of attacks with a 50% increase in attack speed from ten consecutive hits and 120% increased damage. Combined with the 10% additional damage effect of the ‘Divine Sword’ against monsters, the damage output was phenomenal.

This meant rapid, high damage was possible.

The fire monkeys couldn’t withstand the storm of Kim I-seo’s greatsword and were quickly knocked out.

Boom! Boom!

-Kyaaaa…

-Kyaak…

‘All in one hit…?!’

Even side strikes were enough to knock out all the fire monkeys in one blow, turning them into experience points.

[Skill acquired: Novice Unorthodox Swordsmanship Lv. 1!]

Additionally, a new skill was acquired.

* * *

[Beginner Tip: In addition to the black constellation, there is a white constellation in the complex types. If you obtain the Priestess’s Certificate and contract with both the yellow and green constellations, so you can become the part of the white constellation. If you dream of becoming a paladin-type tank with immense recovery power, give it a try.]