NOVEL NEXT Chapter 46
The stairs leading to the top floor of Area 3. As I climbed, I placed my hand on my chest.
Thump thump.
I could feel my heart beating rhythmically.
It was just a virtual body, but my tiny frame was expressing enough exhilaration.
Feeling good.
I’m happy.
It’s not about fighting for the fate of the world.
It’s about clearing a tough boss and enjoying that soaring sense of achievement. That’s all there was.
Right now, I was enjoying the ‘game’.
Doo bang doo bang.
I passed the stairs and reached the top floor of Area 3.
And then, the final Named Enemy of this dungeon revealed itself before my eyes.
A large, thick horn symbolizing a high-ranking Demon Race.
A giant physique, standing at three meters tall.
Half of its exposed face was a grotesque mass of flesh writhing around.
Its arms and legs were the same, half of them belonging to a chimera.
In the Demon Race’s arm maintaining its form, there was a massive battle axe.
“Kuh…”
A low rumble flowed from its slightly ajar mouth.
Aspero’s Fortress.
It was a fortress ruled by a high-ranking Demon Race, filled with chimeras for a reason.
To create stronger chimeras, every demon under its command was turned into a chimera, ultimately making its own body a test subject for chimera fusion.
The demon race had always done this in the past.
They wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice their allies for the sake of gaining stronger power.
Words of one who pursued strength while distorting the natural order.
That was the Demon Race I was looking at now.
As I approached Aspero, he soon noticed me.
Chuk.
The heavy battle axe he held in one arm demonstrated its presence. If it were anyone else, it would surely be hard to handle even with both hands.
Anyway, this guy was the last Named Enemy.
The siege of Aspero’s Fortress was coming to an end.
I drew my sword and faced Aspero’s ominous gaze.
Kugugugu.
Even though his body had become a chimera and lost its sanity, he seemed to have not lost his ability to wield magic.
The entire tower trembled as a powerful force began to concentrate on his body.
Woong.
A purple magic aura glimmered on the axe held in his hand.
It resembled a sword’s energy, but it was nothing compared to that of an ‘Ancient Hero’. I wonder if I could block it now?
“Krrr!”
With Aspero’s shout that now sounded like a beast’s roar, his heavy body and axe charged toward me.
[Level 3 Named Enemy]
[Level 40 Demon Commander Aspero]
[HP 6,000,000/6,000,000]
Whoom!
The ominous battle axe in Aspero’s hand swung ferociously toward me. I didn’t step back; I charged right in.
The blade of the axe brushed past, cutting a few strands of my hair, sending chills down my spine before I unleashed my sword strike.
Aspero’s attacks were fast and threatening, but they weren’t hard to respond to. His wide movements left enough openings. I had ample time to strike.
Huh, huh! Whoom!
Aspero swung the axe twice left and right, then spun around. At that moment, I raised my sword at just the right time to achieve a perfect guard.
Clang!
Papapapat!
The starlight gathered at the tip of my sword shredded Aspero’s flesh. Aspero’s HP began to decrease rapidly.
This Named Enemy had generous moments for dealing damage. I kept my offensive while responding to his patterns.
Woong.
As I sliced through his body, perhaps Aspero was annoyed by my rapid movements, as he hoisted the axe high with one hand. At the same time, I could see magic gathering in an overwhelming manner.
A pattern that couldn’t be guarded.
The purplish axe was enveloped with tremendous power and swung down to cleave me in two. I hurriedly shifted to the left. Kwang!
As I aimed for a chance to counterattack after his massive blow, the axe buried in the ground swept horizontally through my path.
Whoom!
Swish.
Instinctively, I activated a counterattack. Aspero’s axe passed right through my afterimage.
“Huff.”
I unintentionally let out a sigh of relief.
What raw power! There was no wind-up before pulling out that axe.
Judging by how it split the ground like cutting tofu, that axe must carry an immense weight. Yet, he swung it effortlessly like a twig.
Strong and fast. But…
“Slower than that.”
Slower than the ‘Ancient Hero.’
I could see it and react.
I wouldn’t allow an attack on a boss with a winning formula.
But that guy wasn’t exactly a pushover either.
Whoom!
As I caught up to Aspero, a chimera arm without the axe came flying at me.
Just having used my counterattack, I responded with a guard.
Clang!
Shrrrr!
“Hot!?”
The chimera’s arm that collided with my sword elongated and started pushing me back at an alarming speed.
Right behind me was the tower’s wall. If I crashed into it at this speed, my body would shatter into pieces.
Whir!
I strained with all my might to rotate my body.
Then, I twisted my sword and executed One Flash.
Puhh!
The sound of the chimera’s arm splitting in half echoed chillingly. Flesh and blood splattered. As I pushed aside the gore filling my view, I crossed paths with Aspero, who was rushing toward me. Clang!
Aspero’s arm burst apart, revealing a gaping void.
He seemed unperturbed, strengthening the remaining part of his shoulder.
With a squish, the chimera’s arm regenerated.
I grimaced at the grotesque sight.
“Ugh.”
Not like he’s some green tentacled alien.
Huh huh huh!
Regenerated arm in tow, Aspero soon swung his axe at me again.
It didn’t particularly seem like a special pattern, and judging by his HP state, I was hitting him effectively. No matter how much of a chimera he was, he couldn’t infinitely regenerate while ignoring his HP value.
If this was all there was to his usual patterns, it wasn’t difficult at all.
Calmly, I lowered my body and closed the distance toward Aspero while attacking.
[Level 3 Named Enemy]
[Level 40 Demon Commander Aspero]
[HP 4,053,296/6,000,000]
Aspero’s previously overwhelming HP was now down to about two-thirds.
Considering my earlier encounter with Balgard, a value of 6 million certainly seemed low. However, since the boss couldn’t lose HP through special gimmicks, I had to take down that entire number with my own damage output.
There was no time to pause my onslaught.
I had to assume there was a time attack pattern and keep pouring my attacks without a break.
Avoiding his axe as close as I could and thinking of squeezing in at least one more Starlight Slash.
Papapapati!
Finally, once Aspero’s HP dropped below two-thirds, as expected, he made a peculiar movement.
“Kyaaaa!”
Ku gugugu.
Explosive magic erupted from Aspero’s entire body.
From here, a special pattern.
I raised my sword and watched for Aspero’s movements.
After an apparent gathering of magic, Aspero immediately returned to his regular pattern. He lifted his axe and charged at me once more.
Something was about to change in the combat area.
I responded calmly to his offensive but didn’t forget to scan the surroundings.
And soon.
Woong.
The combat area began to fill with purple light.
The light surrounding me and Aspero formed into five spheres, increasing in size.
And in an instant, those enlarged spheres exploded.
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwang!
Immediately executing a backstep, my body suffered no damage.
I desperately surveyed the area around me.
The positions of the spheres? The explosion radius?
There wasn’t time to think. I had to face Aspero’s axe rushing toward me.
Clang!
Woong.
Even amidst Aspero’s recurring regular patterns, I felt no leeway as the premonition of a secondary explosion began.
This time, the arrangement of the spheres was different.
One sphere appeared right beside me, growing in size.
It was too late to evade. I had to use an invulnerable skill again.
Swish.
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwang!
I managed to utilize the counterattack to pass through the second explosion.
Fortunately, this explosion didn’t sweep across the entire combat area. However, the five spheres that could pop up from anywhere greatly restricted my movements.
Woong.
I was sweating cold. The premonition of the third explosion was already beginning to appear.
Should I use One Flash’s invulnerable state?
If I used One Flash, the cooldown for my backstep would reset. But the second One Flash wouldn’t be available for another minute.
I had no time to think. I promptly used One Flash to evade the third explosion.
Swish!
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwang!
Woong.
For the fourth explosion, the backstep’s cooldown had reset.
The fifth explosion would be a counterattack.
Woong.
And the premonition of the sixth explosion.
“What!?”
I was dumbfounded.
I had no invulnerable skills left.
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwang!
Thankfully, this time no spheres appeared in the center of the combat area. I secretly breathed a sigh of relief, watching the powerful magic explosion fill the surroundings.
But the magic sphere explosions didn’t stop.
I was chipping away at the boss’s HP between my attacks but there was no end in sight for the special pattern.
A type of pattern that continued until the battle was over? The difficulty was too high. Even for me, with a high synchronization rate, it was tough to react.
The explosion range of the five spheres was quite large. In fact, the time between their generation and explosion was extremely short.
I frantically squeezed my brain.
They wouldn’t have designed a pattern that requires using all invulnerable skills mindlessly.
Then, there was only one answer.
The five sphere explosions had a specific pattern.
Concluding this, I calmly began to watch the range of the explosions.
As expected, the five explosions all followed the same arrangement repeatedly.
The first explosion landed at five points in a star shape. The center was safe. I would stay in place and attack Aspero.
The second explosion spread out in a long line. It overlapped with the combat area. I would use the backstep to dodge.
The third explosion formed a cross shape. It too significantly overlapped with the combat area. I would counterattack here.
For the fourth explosion, the center would be empty. Again, I wouldn’t move to evade.
The fifth explosion. The central area of the combat area slightly overlapped with two spheres’ ranges. I would pull back a little.
With the five explosion pattern and corresponding methods completely ingrained in my mind.
From here on, it was all about extreme damage.
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwang!
Amidst the continuous magical explosions shaking the entire tower, I did not rest, relentlessly shredding Aspero’s body.