NOVEL NEXT Chapter 89
[Level 50 Ice Ogre King]
[HP 2,114,017 / 15,000,000 (14%)]
Grurrrr…!!
The ‘Ice Ogre King’ gathered cold energy once again, initiating the second cold burst special pattern.
I cleared the first 8 resistances using the ‘Astaroth’s’ cooldown reset feature. I expected there would be a second cold burst pattern. Of course, if I had come through the normal route, the level penalty would be minimized, allowing me to reduce the number of cold bursts with the torch gimmick. But at this low level, I didn’t have time to perform any gimmicks. I needed to keep dealing damage.
Paat! I dodged the initial cold burst with backward evasion. The white hexagonal crystals filled my vision one by one. Pretty snowflakes brushed past me, shasha-shak. Immediately, I closed the distance with an approach and unleashed my sword onto the ‘Ice Ogre King’.
Sparkling silver and starlight flowed on either side, one, two. Diagonally below, three.
The second cold burst. Was the interval 2.7 seconds? About 2.8 seconds? Anyway, if I used ‘One Flash’ to reset the cooldown, the next backward evasion cooldown would be just in time.
Swish, my body moved behind the ogre king via counterattack, weaving through the snowflake crystals.
The third cold burst. My sword, using ‘One Flash’, sliced neatly through each snowflake as I passed between the ogre king and the crystals.
The invincibility frame was brief, but for me, it was as easy as breathing. A physical acceleration technique that exploded from the ground beneath my feet. It was the technique I had loved most in the past. The sensation of cutting through the air like a beam of light felt great.
Fourth and fifth cold bursts. I resisted them in order with backward evasion and counterattack.
Immediately, the gift from the dwarf ‘Ain’ attached to my arm, the ‘Bracelet of Hammer and Anvil,’ glowed. With this, I could use backward evasion, counterattack, and ‘One Flash’ again.
Right now, only Uncle Ain was with me, but someday, other companions would join.
The sixth and seventh cold bursts. I didn’t forget to sprinkle my sword in between backward evasion and counterattack.
Kwaaang!
The ogre king stomped and leaped into the air, clapping both hands together.
Finally, the eighth. A downward attack pattern after jumping.
If I failed to resist the cold burst just once, my body would have shattered under that downward attack while frozen.
With fervor in my eyes, I lowered my stance and prepared for the final ‘One Flash.’
The damage I packed between the cold bursts was sufficient. There was still time before the final berserk pattern.
Flash!
My ‘One Flash’ sliced past the descending body of the ogre king.
Grrrr…!
Boom.
Without looking back at the fallen ‘Ice Ogre King,’ I headed upstairs.
—
[10th Floor of the Ice Tower]
Wuuuuung.
The familiar scan operation commenced, and a beam of light gathered in the center of the Ice Tower’s hall.
From within that light appeared a being.
[Level ??]
[Ancient Hero ■■]
[HP ???/???]
I grinned.
“Long time no see.”
A being packed with explosive power inside a small frame, the golden silhouette of ‘Hero Rain’.
Although her expression wasn’t clearly visible due to being enveloped in light, I couldn’t help but think she might be smiling at me too.
“I’m trying to save this world again.”
The continent of Astria had manifested in the form of a game. However, a clear threat was present.
Though that threat only showed a vague outline, all users were told that it was a world we would save together.
Still, isn’t that what I’m best at?
“I’ll carve the names of my companions and my own into the Continent of Astria once more.”
For that, I needed stronger power.
A strong power that could set me apart from others.
Was this a preparation to make me stronger? Or a barrier to impede my progress?
Step by step.
I moved toward her and raised the Astaroth.
“So, give me back my power.”
To retrieve what I had lost to my past self.
I turned without hesitation at the very edge of the named hero’s perception.
Tap!
I used backward evasion.
Papapapa-t!
A powerful sword attack burst out from the hero’s holy sword, grazing my body.
In a fleeting moment, I crossed the boundary between illusion and reality, reaching the hero.
And as I turned my body, I fiercely unleashed the Astaroth.
Kakaaang!
I felt a connection between the hero’s eyes and mine.
An unfinished hero.
You stand still while I move forward.
—
Ka-ka-ka-ka-kang!
She was more threatening than I remembered. Her movements were anything but ordinary. The hero’s sword carved through various points in my body, stabbing and slashing me. It almost felt like the attacks were curling in like a snake.
Paat, Ka-kang!
The hero showcased the brilliant swordplay she hadn’t demonstrated during our last encounter.
However, my body in this realm, affected by the ‘stats’ system, had also become faster than before. Unlike the past, where I could only glimpse openings behind defensive skills, I was now barely keeping up with the hero’s movements.
Ka-ka-kang!
The hero’s sword path came into view. There was indeed a set pattern.
Now, I could share swords with her.
Clang! Instead of sparks, golden powder burst forth. I struck hard and aimed silver at the hero’s side. Ka-kang! The hero blocked my sword with a diagonal stance.
Unlike in the past, where she would let some attacks through for the sake of blocking, the current hero was definitely guarding against my strikes.
The golden protective energy shimmering around her body. This too, would likely be dealt with in the same way as before, by wearing it down through multiple hits. Even though I could see her sword strikes, hitting them had become trickier than before.
Should I change my approach a bit?
Kakang!
This time, I struck her sword hard, creating an opening. But the hero used that recoil to slightly lift herself. Wuuung, the hero’s sword gained a golden aura. A shockwave attack infused with her sword’s energy. I couldn’t block that.
Now, it was time to use counterattack.
Swish.
Kwaaaang!
The ice floor jolted as I was struck by the hero’s holy sword, sending a powerful shockwave rippling outwards.
A fierce attack. There would surely be an opening now. I swung the Astaroth, targeting the hero’s back.
Khakakak, spin.
“!?”
It wasn’t the sensation of striking her protective aura; rather, I heard the sound of blades scraping against each other. The hero’s sword moved in a semicircle, smoothly deflecting mine downward. Immediately after, it lunged toward my body.
Instinctually, I activated ‘Guard.’
Ka-kang!
Whoa, that was scary. If I had been just 0.1 seconds late to react, I would’ve been skewered like a ‘Kofopo Skewered Fish’.
A little shaken, I took a moment to watch the hero from behind my guard. After maintaining a thrusting posture for about two seconds, the hero resumed her sword swings. Ka-ka-ka-kang! The familiar sword path returned to the first pattern.
I couldn’t hide my disappointment.
I could have hit her a few times!
After the hero unleashed her sword’s shockwave pattern, she utilized a type of counterattack move. If I cut the damage, I wouldn’t have to deal with the thrusting pattern that came after.
But if the counter pattern is initiated, there would be a two-second gap. A so-called “hit to trigger” counterattack.
This paradoxical situation meant that the only time I could hit the hero was during her counter.
Having to be struck to create an opportunity to attack.
But even without knowing the situation, I managed to respond just barely.
After intentionally getting hit to trigger the thrusting pattern, I’d block it and then feast on the hero’s protective energy for those two seconds.
A path appeared. I could strategize.
Papapapap!
Two seconds is longer than it sounds. I struck the hero’s protective energy multiple times after her counterattack.
With this, I inflicted nine hits, ten hits. Tap! Simultaneously, I distanced myself with backward evasion.
The reason I used backward evasion was to prepare for the special pattern that activates with the 10th strike. During the activation of the special pattern, rapid sword strikes wouldn’t come flying at me. Well, there could be a special pattern that releases sword energy.
The last time I faced the hero, activating the 10th strike on her protective energy had triggered a ‘Counterblade’ pattern that had shredded my body.
This time, it wasn’t a Counterblade. What would the special pattern be?
Wuuuuung!
At that moment, light began to gather around the hero’s body.
A precursor to an area-wide attack? It would take a while for backward evasion’s cooldown to reset. It was too late to approach and use a counter. The light was already beginning to burst forth.
I quickly lowered my stance and used ‘One Flash’ as a resistance.
Kwaaaaa!
My body advanced through the golden light, allowing me to stick close to the hero.
Just as I raised the Astaroth, intending to slash at her body, she positioned her holy sword horizontally.
Wuuuuung!
At the simultaneous sound of resonance, cold sweat broke out.
Kwa-kwakaw!
A golden energy erupted explosively from the hero’s body.
And the lifted holy sword had golden sword energy concentrated to its limits.
That was the gathering of energy for a ‘Sword Dance.’
I couldn’t respond. I’d be cut to pieces.
Paat!
In a flash, I activated the cooldown reset feature of my bracelet.
Swaaaa!
At the same time, the hero’s accelerated holy sword came crashing down on me.
I couldn’t dodge. I couldn’t block.
I had thought I could see the hero’s sword, but that was a miscalculation. The Sword Dance, infused with the hero’s mana, didn’t have a proper sword path. It was simply an assault filled with intent to annihilate me.
Facing the absolute power contained within the hero’s Sword Dance, my only weapon was the game system of “invincibility frames.”
How long would that sword dance last? If I used all of my invincible techniques, could I resist it? The cooldown reset feature of ‘Astaroth’ was still available. I had to be ready to use it if necessary. There was no time to save energy for the upcoming patterns. The energy-laden sword dance was that much of a threat.
Swish, Papat!
As I executed a counter, helping me slip through the gaps of space, the hero’s golden sword grazed my body multiple times.
A deadly combination of lightning-fast sword attacks. The sword energy was even concentrated to its ultimate limit. It was a pattern I couldn’t possibly respond to. If I hadn’t used my invincible techniques, my body would have been sliced into several pieces.
The counter’s invincibility frame ended. Without giving her a moment’s gap, I instantly activated backward evasion.
Tap!
The hero pursued my body as I moved back eight meters, ceaselessly striking with her sword.
Swaaaa, Papapapap!
During the brief invincibility period of backward evasion, I saw the holy sword slicing through the space on either side of my body. The unresponsive sword dance pattern was still ongoing.
How many strikes was she throwing at me?
As my body landed after the eight-meter backward evasion, I lowered my stance.
My last invincible technique remained, ‘One Flash.’
I had to keep enveloping my body with invincibility frames. The moment the invincibility frame faded, I would die.
Paat!
The instant the invincibility frame of my backward evasion ended, I unleashed ‘One Flash.’
Chill.
As my body brushed against the hero, a chilling sensation crept down my spine.
The sword dance was still not over.
There was no time to twist my body. No way to withdraw from ‘One Flash.’
The invincibility frame after ‘One Flash’ was extremely brief. The hero’s sword dance was frenziedly fast.
In the fleeting moment after the invincibility frame of ‘One Flash’ disappeared, that tiny fragment of time, which had never been an issue before, seized my ankle.
No, I can’t.
I need to quickly use the cooldown reset feature of Astaroth.
However, even my speed, illuminated by ‘One Flash’, was overtaken by the hero’s sword as it pierced through my body right after my invincibility frame faded.
Thwook.
“Keurgh.”
I heard the sound of flesh piercing, my body jolted, and my mouth opened wide.
Ah, this sensation… I’ve felt it before.
Amidst my fading vision, I could see the golden sword protruding from my chest.
Indeed, she was an extraordinary being.
It was impossible to surpass her all at once.
Understood, just you wait.
Thud.
As the sword before my eyes vanished, my body fell forward, losing its support.
There wasn’t even a single ant on the ground.