A knight burst forth from the fortress gates through the thick gunsmoke and dust.
His grotesque black armor looked as if human muscles had been cast in steel, his black helt adorned with deer antlers, not a speck of skin visible - only red eyes glowing in the darkness. He wielded an ashen greatsword as tall as a person and wore a tattered, billowing cape.
He looked exactly like what you'd find searching for "dark knight" or "death knight" online - the stereotypical appearance. Though he may have looked like generic ga art, the dark aura enveloping his entire body proved he was indeed the floor 60 boss.
"Well now, I thought you'd hold back."
"For whose benefit?"
"What is the an-"
The terrifying figure's greatsword targeted neither Irene's legion soldiers in holy armor nor the adventurers and rcenaries circling nearby.
Without hesitation, his greatsword plunged into the dark mage's back while my hamr, having rushed out like lightning, smashed into the dark mage's chest. Like being caught between hamr and anvil - or hamr and chisel - his heart was torn apart front and back. He crumbled without even leaving final words.
Even with my strength, I was still a tank - for the dark mage to die in one hit, that final technique he was preparing must have been so kind of self-destruct that consud his health. Even considering the boss monster's strike, the mid-boss died too easily.
"You have sharp instincts. You didn't know, but your intuition served you well."
"...?"
A strange standoff began over the dark mage's corpse. The boss monster spouted nonsense about noticing and instincts during the brief mont the corpse crumbled into loot.
His words about noticing despite charging out openly made little sense. But watching the dark mage's body crumble into mana and transform into mana stones, staff, and various crystals clattering to the ground, sothing occurred to .
What if instead of self-destruction, the dark mage was preparing for an execution event by an ally?
What if, like the Harpy Empress and underground monster event, this was the boss monster devouring the mid-boss to power up?
Dark purple crystals made from human lives, crystals with flas and frost swirling inside presumably containing alchemy, clear crystals likely used as catalysts. And among them, a large round crystal... no, a crystal heart.
Carved to look like a human heart in crystal form - anyone could tell this was the most important drop.
"Who wouldn't notice such an obvious charge?"
"Heh, I too lack confidence in sches that are so transparent."
The red eyes glowing ominously inside his helt fixed on the crystal heart, as did my gaze instinctively.
A test of strength began, using eye contact over the crystal heart as the signal.
With the dark mage's corpse between us gone, my warhamr and his greatsword clashed directly with an ominous screech. Though similar in size to , his strength rivaled an ogre's.
Well, it would be strange if a floor 60 boss monster had weak strength just because they were humanoid. Thinking this, I gritted my teeth and planted my legs firmly to prevent him from reaching for the crystal heart.
Having rushed out hastily wielding my warhamr two-handed, I would have been pushed back pathetically if I'd tried using it one-handed to grab my shield.
"Good, excellent! Let's cast aside these worthless sches and clash properly!"
Even my innate 6★ raw stats couldn't completely overwhelm a boss monster. Well, it would be too unfair to solo everything in an RPG ant for party play. As I considered this, dark energy began rising like mist from his body.
Unlike the mid-boss who continuously summoned and strengthened troops when given ti, this one seed to face enemies alone like a demon lord inside the fortress.
An opponent who relied purely on specs without any strange special patterns. Having to fight head-on without tricks made him a at grinder to newbies, but at higher combat levels these straightforward types were easier to handle.
"It's been so long since anyone could withstand head-on!"
"You're acting mighty proud for sothing born in the tower."
"Of course - I am the Demon Lord's sword, one of the Four Heavenly Kings leading the vanguard! I rember every battlefield I've experienced!"
-And with that unexpected revelation-
The cara rushed in to capture every detail at the ntion of "Four Heavenly Kings."
"Oh, Four Heavenly Kings? ...Well, it's kind of cliche for a demon army, but I guess it fits. With one showing up on floor 60, that probably ans one on each floor - 60, 70, 80, 90, then the Demon Lord on 100."
-Kugh, the one on floor 60 was the weakest of the Four Kings
-Since we got a knight-looking guy, probably get a sexy succubus, muscle head, and sketchy strategist next
-lol BB Gas isn't a real ga company if there's no sexy evil female leader in the Four Kings
-Four Kings lololol I an it makes sense with a Demon Lord but coming out of nowhere like this lololol
Still, "Four Heavenly Kings" was an identity I never expected.
※
This guy who proclaid himself the Demon Lord's sword and vanguard commander was surprisingly talkative for soone whose dark armor suggested he'd just grunt "hmm" and "hm" while trying to be intimidating.
But we couldn't maintain this standoff forever. The chatty one twisted his wrist to deflect my warhamr with his greatsword.
However, it was just a downward strike from our locked weapons rather than a proper power attack. Thinking his strength and weight alone couldn't pierce my armor without proper form, I stepped forward and ramd him with my shoulder.
"Oh? You don't retreat? How brave."
"You sure talk a lot for how you look."
"Everything shared with a worthy warrior becos my nourishnt. Be it swordplay or conversation, all is welco."
His greatsword, failing to break my pauldron, was driven into the ground and trampled under my feet.
His greatsword deflected but aid for my chest, my deflected warhamr in turn.
Our weapons remained planted as we maintained this strange standoff. But Katie, not or the Heavenly King, broke it by sneaking in.
He didn't seem to particularly want a 1-on-1 duel, showing no displeasure at Katie's approach. He kicked my abdon to create distance and raised his greatsword... but Katie, who had nimbly reached the fortress, didn't draw her sword.
"What are you doing, wench?"
"Hanna said this was important, so I'll put it in our inventory!"
"Nice, Katie!"
While we pulled our planted weapons free at a distance, Katie slid in on a path of ice and snatched the dark mage's crystal heart. Han Se-ah must have put her up to it - with the cara on her back, she gracefully grabbed the heart and spun around to flee.
Maybe her northern background gave her skating talent. Even the harshest judges would give a perfect 10 to how she smoothly collected the loot and executed a 180-degree turn.
The Heavenly King raged incomprehensibly at the sight. His tattered cape billowed as if caught in a storm, dark energy streaming from it.
Being a battle junkie, he seed furiously enraged at Katie turning tail to flee. When he gathered dark energy in his hands clearly preparing a ranged attack, I imdiately charged forward.
'If I just slash straight-'
I summoned the holy sword as its cooldown finished, stepping forward.
They say historically, drawing techniques were the ultimate... no, were used for dishonorable ambushes, right? Though I had no scabbard and never learned iaijutsu, swinging from the hip like drawing a blade should count as sothing similar.
One step - my warhamr dissolving into holy energy, shield sensed in the distance.
Two steps - holy sword's hilt gripped firmly, divine energy surging.
Three steps - holy sword slicing smoothly through the air with divine rather than physical force.
"Kugh, you! You'd even protect a coward who turns tail in battle?!"
"Protect my ass, she's our party mber, fucker!"
Even a boss monster couldn't ignore a mass of defense-piercing divine energy - the dark energy forming into a spear hastily moved to block the holy sword.
But a skill activated to check ranged attacks couldn't stop a holy sword that ignored all defense and resistance. The holy sword easily passed through the shattered spear and carved deeply into him, smoothly penetrating his armor.
A diagonal gash from below the shoulder through the solar plexus to exit the flank. But since the holy sword dealt defense-ignoring damage rather than instant death, there was no reason to stop. I swung the holy sword brutally without any sword technique finesse. Using muscles enhanced by mana and healed by holy power, I forcibly changed its direction.
The blade that entered his forearm and exited his flank suddenly stopped, then diagonally rose to pierce his armpit. Since his size was similar to a human's, I didn't need to forcibly extend its reach - I just wildly swung it like a madman's club to maximize damage output.
Forearm to flank, armpit to shoulder, collarbone to calf, shin to ankle - I slashed wildly without even breathing, caring nothing for vital points.
"I thought you were a warrior, but you're just a common thug!"
But he seed to grasp the holy sword's properties in that brief exchange and leapt far back. As expected of a boss monster and Heavenly King - I couldn't cheese him down in 5 minutes with the holy sword.
...Sha, I was hoping to cheese my way to floor 80.
Reviews
All reviews (0)