'What is this?' he struggled to free himself from the net, even attempting to cut through it.
But the net was strong, unbreakable, and kept him trapped.
The ones who had thrown the net at Ash drew their weapons and moved to stab him.
Suddenly, they fell, arrows piercing their heads and vital areas, killing them instantly.
The arrows also targeted a tall, burly figure walking toward Ash, wielding a large, curved saber.
But he simply raised one hand and caught the arrow headed straight for his eye.
Glancing toward the direction the arrow had come from, he growled but continued walking toward Ash.
"Badang is here!"
"Badang! Badang!"
The crowd cheered to welcome the large, muscular man.
Badang then lifted his saber high above his head and swung it down toward his head.
Without panicking, Ash raised his left hand, which wore a wristband, and activated his Shield.
A transparent shield, resembling blue crystal and standing about one and a half meters tall, appeared to cover his head. The man's saber struck it with a loud clang.
Taaaannnnngg!
The saber was deflected backward, leaving the man momentarily stunned.
Badang glanced at him and noticed that the net covering him had torn where the saber had hit the shield, and the young man smirked back at him.
He deactivated his shield again, continuing to smirk mockingly at Badang, which caused the man's face to flush red with anger.
Quickly, Ash freed himself from the torn net and leaped to attack the man with the saber.
Badang retaliated, swinging his saber once again to strike him.
Ash ducked as the saber swung toward his head, positioning one of his feet forward toward Badang.
He then thrust his sword toward Badang's chin, forcing the large man to throw himself to the right to evade the attack.
Ash stood tall, observing the man as he regained his balance, thinking, 'This guy must be an Advanced Warrior. But his weapon level is still low.'
He attacked Badang again, swinging his sword upward from below.
Badang blocked the attack by swinging his saber downward, then moved his leg to kick Ash.
Ash dodged by spinning his body halfway around, now standing behind Badang.
"Stay where you are, b*tch!" Badang's voice roared with anger.
He quickly turned, aiming to swing his saber toward Ash's neck, but the young man's movements were faster.
Ash leaped, pulling his sword-wielding arm back, then thrust his sword toward Badang's head.
The sword pierced straight through the large man's head, exiting from the back, causing blood to splatter everywhere.
Badang fell backward, and Ash withdrew his sword, placing his left foot on the man's body.
He turned his head to look at the people who had been cheering for Badang earlier, now staring at Ash in fear.
The young man, who had just killed their leader, then walked toward them slowly, carrying his sword still dripping with Badang's blood.
The people scattered in fear, but Ash chased after them, intending to deal with them.
Suddenly, his body was lifted into the air, floating upward against his will.
Confused, he glanced around as much as he could and spotted someone holding a book, muttering while staring at him.
"S*it!" he cursed.
Milo was right; they must have something to counter external attacks.
His body remained immobilized as he floated in the air, unable to descend.
Ash thought quickly. He couldn't move, which meant he couldn't signal his team members.
Still, he didn't want to rely on his summons.
His body slowly began to descend, but he remained unable to move.
The people who had fled earlier when Ash chased them began advancing toward him again, armed with their weapons.
'F*ck!' he thought, his mind racing for a solution.
Moreover, the person holding the book was hiding in a spot where Mia and Hank couldn't shoot their arrows at him.
Feeling a bit frustrated, Ash focused on summoning one of his allies.
A blue circle appeared on his forehead, releasing blue smoke that transformed into a Centaurion. The creature immediately charged toward the person holding the book.
That person screamed in fear, dropped the book, and ran to escape the Centaurion's chase.
However, the Centaurion relentlessly pursued him and thrust its spear into his body without mercy, leaving him unable to move.
Ash, now able to move again, shouted angrily and began deflecting all the attacks from those swarming him.
The attackers attempted to flee once more, but this time, Ash did not remain calm.
Furiously, he swung his sword left and right, up and down, until no one at the scene was left breathing.
When it was all over, he stood alone in the open area, slightly out of breath, with the Centaurion standing by his side.
The brown clay soil, still wet from the rain, had now turned red, mixed with the blood of those who had fallen.
***
All team members quickly gathered all the items in the area before the game's system could reset the objects to their original locations.
They did this without disturbing Ash, who stood silently in front of the book that had been thrown by the person who had previously lifted him into the air.
He bent down and picked up the book.
Wiping the wet clay off its cover, he read the title, 'The Magic of The Forbidden.'
His eyebrows furrowed, and with a slight scowl, he muttered to himself, "Was lifting me into the air just now really considered forbidden?"
With growing curiosity, he opened the book, and his eyes widened.
On the pages he skimmed, he saw various titles. One of them was "The Necromancy."
He read briefly and realized that it contained instructions on how to perform Necromancy.
He closed the book with a slight thud and shouted toward Milo.
"Milo! May I take this book? It's a Special Item."
Milo turned to him and replied indifferently, "Go ahead. It can be deducted from your payment later."
"Thank you!"
Ash smiled widely with a look of excitement and satisfaction on his face.