The Support Ate it All

“You got me. That was an excellent move.”

The Oobleck Knight spoke in a mechanical tone.

It was as if being struck by the Mysterious Yin Jade Demon Finger was not something that had happened to it at all.

Honestly, I wanted to throw in some trash talk, but I couldn’t reveal my identity at this point, so I decided to hold back.

When it comes to concept play, consistency is key, after all.

Crackle, crackle.

Meanwhile, the cold energy of the Mysterious Yin Jade Demon Finger was rapidly expanding its range.

It seemed like the Oobleck knight was trying to suppress it in its own way, but if even the Blood Cult Elder couldn’t manage it, there was no way a mere monster could.

Before long, it withdrew all its outstretched arms and returned to a normal form. Only then did it seem to regain better control of its body.

Thanks to that, most of the cold appeared to be subdued, but the sound of freezing could still be faintly heard.

Crunch, crackle.

While the creature’s movements slowed, Dang Gyu-young moved Jeong Chong-myeong and the support staff member to the opposite side of the room before rejoining us.

She cast Shadow Leap and emerged right beneath my feet.

Meanwhile, Jegal So-so and Kim Gap-doo were closing the distance at a ferocious pace from behind.

Judging that he had to deal with them first, the Oobleck spun around and charged toward them.

He collided with Kim Gap-doo, who launched a powerful fist strike.

Boom!

With the impact, Kim Gap-doo staggered back two steps, while the Oobleck Knight retreated one step.

Despite being at a disadvantage, Kim Gap-doo didn’t shrink back; instead, he charged forward with even greater ferocity.

Jegal So-so also assisted from the side. She was stabbing and slashing with her sword.

The Oobleck’s two hands softened and morphed; one turned into a longsword, and the other into a shield.

With the sword, it parried Jegal So-so’s attacks, and with the shield, it blocked Kim Gap-doo’s strikes as it spoke.

“So it’s come down to a direct confrontation after all.”

“Being more cowardly than humans isn’t as easy as it sounds.”

“You have a point.”

The Oobleck knight glanced over at us slyly as it said this.

For a creature to engage in subtle mockery…it was almost human now.

Of course, I could understand why it might feel that way.

Crunch, crackle.

The sound of freezing was still echoing faintly from within its body.

Each time it happened, its movements became awkward and full of gaps that allowed Kim Gap-doo and Jegal So-so to land attacks.

The Mysterious Yin Jade Demon Finger technique was truly a terrifying martial art.

On top of that, the others joined the battle and started steadily putting more pressure on the Oobleck knight.

Shadow butterflies flew in one by one, and fist-sized orbs of magical energy struck the creature and exploded.

Boom!

The one launching the orbs, of course, was Jeong Chong-myeong.

The most effective way to deal with the Dark Oobleck was to unleash a concentrated burst of firepower all at once, but the situation didn’t allow for that right now.

You never know when it might break through again.

If the defensive formation was broken through again, lives would immediately be in danger, and even retreating would mean having to cancel the spells.

So, Jeong Chong-myeong chose to maintain some degree of mobility while taking an all-rounder approach to the battle.

Boom!

Once again, the magical energy orbs struck the Oobleck and exploded.

Explosive magic. A wise decision.

Since it was a slime-type monster, piercing or slashing attacks weren’t nearly as effective as this kind of damage.

As expected of someone at the rank of a third-year club president, he handled it well on his own.

But I have nothing to do.

As for me, I couldn’t obstruct their vision or use prohibited skills, and using wind magic would instantly give me away.

And so, I started erecting ice walls around the room.

It might have seemed pointless at first glance, but…

It never hurts to have insurance.

Meanwhile, the tide of battle was steadily turning in our favor.

Crackle, crackle.

The cold continued to wreak havoc inside the Oobleck knight. At the front, Jegal So-so and Kim Gap-doo attacked in unison.

On top of that, Dang Gyu-young and Jeong Chong-myeong occasionally launched shadow butterflies and magical energy orbs, steadily chipping away at the enemy.

As expected of an A-rank opponent.

Even after taking so many hits, the creature showed no signs of weakening.

In fact, it occasionally launched fierce counterattacks that sent Jegal So-so or Kim Gap-doo flying.

Of course, though it didn’t show, the accumulated damage was evidently taking its toll.

As the intense battle continued, the Oobleck knight suddenly stopped and spoke.

“It seems I have lost.”

“…It was a good fight.”

Kim Gap-doo frowned as he responded to the creature’s words.

The Oobleck Knight twisted its body grotesquely, like a twisted coil, and continued speaking.

Screeeech,

“Though it is a dirty move, I must fulfill my duty. I ask for your understa—”

“Take cover!”

I interrupted, shouting loud enough to snap everyone back to their senses. Without hesitation, they each dove toward the nearest ice wall.

Fortunately, Dang Gyu-young was close to me, so I grabbed her arm and pulled her along as we ducked behind an ice wall together.

In the next moment—

Splat!

The Oobleck Knight’s contorted body suddenly straightened, and black liquid sprayed in all directions.

Even behind the wall where we took cover, we could hear the wet splattering as something slammed repeatedly against the barrier.

As I thought, it’s self-destructing.

The creature’s goal was clearly to inflict as much damage as possible on the subjugation team.

I had anticipated it would resort to self-destruction when defeated and had preemptively built ice walls for cover.

After a moment, the torrent of black liquid subsided.

When I prepared to step out from behind the ice wall, Dang Gyu-young tentatively extended an arm toward me.

Her face was slightly flushed.

“..……”

“What’s with the arm?”

“Pull me again. Hard.”

“You’re really getting hooked on weird things.”

“Just once~”

This was hardly the time for such nonsense, so I ignored her and stepped forward.

Dang Gyu-young pursed her lips in mild dissatisfaction but followed me.

As we emerged, the others began revealing themselves one by one.

Jegal So-so looked around and asked,

“Is everyone okay?”

“We’re fine.”

Jeong Chong-myeong and the support staff member replied.

They nodded at me in gratitude.

Without the ice wall, the lack of time to cast any defensive magic might have resulted in serious injuries.

“Ugh…”

Meanwhile, Kim Gap-doo, who had been closest to the Oobleck Knight, appeared to have taken some damage.

It was minor: only a few droplets of the slime-like substance had touched his skin. But even so, the affected areas were already turning black with necrosis.

“This is a really bad poison…”

The support staff member quickly cast healing spells and poured an antidote, while Kim Gap-doo retrieved a pill from his inventory and popped it into his mouth.

A moment later, he looked visibly better and muttered,

“I forgot they self-destruct. That was careless of me.”

Up until now, the Oobleck Knights had always been eliminated with powerful magic before they could self-destruct.

However, this time, Jeong Chong-myeong wasn’t in a position to be the battery, so weaker spells had to be used to chip away at its health, which ultimately gave it the chance to self-destruct.

Jegal So-so responded in a calm tone.

“I only noticed at the very end, too. Let’s just be more careful from now on.”

“We’ll also need to keep preparing for poison countermeasures.”

“Of course.”

Once the group was ready, Jeong Chong-myeong activated the magic circle.

A brilliant light burst forth, engulfing the party.

Fwooosh!

“Welcome.”

“Welcome.”

Flat, monotonous voices greeted us.

When we checked ahead, there stood two Oobleck Knights, nearly identical to the one we had just faced.

Two of them, no less.

Kim Gap-doo muttered a low curse.

“Damn it …”

The rest of the group was equally tense as the Oobleck Knights began to speak, one at a time.

“You’ve experienced this in the previous room, so we’ll skip the explanation.”

“But our master has one proposal for you.”

“…What kind of proposal?”

Jegal So-so asked, and one of the knights spread its mana widely.

As hidden magic circles revealed themselves, one in particular glowed with a distinct red hue in a corner.

Even at a glance, it was clear where it led.

The boss room.

However, the circle was incredibly small, barely large enough for one person to enter. Once someone went in, it was unlikely to activate again.

The Oobleck Knight continued speaking.

“Our master says you may send someone ahead if you wish. No one will stop you.”

“What about the rest of us?”

“Of course, you’ll have to defeat us and proceed to the next room to enter.”

It was clear that a larger magic circle capable of accommodating the entire group wouldn’t appear until after several more rooms.

Even just getting there would take considerable time, and the odds of someone surviving alone in the boss room until then were slim.

And so, the proposal had no real value.

It was obvious to everyone that the best approach was to progress carefully as a group and reach the boss room together.

That’s what everyone must have been thinking.

Not bad at all.

But from my perspective, it was an incredibly tempting offer.

My top priority was to shorten the time required to complete this raid.

To achieve that, I needed to enter the boss room as quickly as possible, and now they were saying no one would stop me if I went alone.

Several potential risks came to mind, but I was confident I could handle them.

So I made my decision and stepped forward.

“I’ll go.”

“…..…!”

“…..…!”

All eyes turned to me.

“Why is the quiet guy suddenly acting like this?” That was the look in their eyes.

Moreover, it wasn’t just any decision; it was practically a suicidal move. Why on earth was I volunteering for this?

As I brushed off their stares and kept walking, Dang Gyu-Young hurriedly ran forward and blocked my path.

“You can’t go…yo!”

It was only after she opened her mouth that she seemed to remember she was supposed to hide my identity. Hastily, she added a polite “yo” at the end.

(TN: 요 “yo” is added at the end of a sentence as a polite speech level marker.)

Even so, she worked hard to persuade me.

“We just need to stick together for a little longer, okay…yo?”

I stepped closer to Dang Gyu-Young.

And then I looked straight into her eyes and said.

“It’s fine.”

“…….”

Maybe she caught the firm resolve in my eyes, or perhaps she just decided there was no stopping me anymore.

Slowly, Dang Gyu-Young stepped aside.

When I passed her, she muttered under her breath, just loud enough for me to hear,

“…Just wait until this is over. I’m going to rip your cheeks off.”

But despite her words, her eyes were still filled with worry.

The Oobleck knights also stepped aside to let me through.

As I stepped onto the magic circle, they gave me a polite bow.

The red magic circle soon grew brighter and brighter, painting my vision red.

Fwoosh!

In the next moment, I found myself standing in a room dozens of times larger than anything I had seen before.

However, the boss room didn’t quite match my memory.

It was completely empty, and everything from the floor to the walls to the ceiling was pitch black.

Occasionally, there were faint writhing movements in the room, which meant that…

She’s really gone all out decorating, huh?

It meant that all that blackness was Oobleck.

I shrugged it off and calmly scanned the area. Suddenly, a soft, melodic voice tickled my ears.

“Welcome.”

I turned toward the sound, and there she was. A woman cloaked in robes as black as the room itself.

The mastermind behind all of this chaos and the second main quest boss.

The Witch of Corruption.