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Chapter 97: 6th Week Mentoring and Strategy Battle (4)
The statue of the goddess of war was still there, bathed in the glow of the setting sun, and overlooking the ruins of the desecrated temple.
After gazing up at the statue for a moment, Song Cheon-hye sent me a glance asking if I was ready to which I responded with a light nod.
[3]
[2]
[1]
[Start!]
[Statue of the Goddess: 100%]
[Remaining Time: 9:59]
The advancing forces of goblins marched steadily forward.
Song Cheon-hye walked toward the main gate with her gaze fixed on the enemy line.
Fzzzzzt,
The dark-colored gloves on her hands sparked and sent currents along the ground.
A large circle formed around Song Cheon-hye.
The magic circle began to emit light and the geometric symbols started glowing within.
Regardless of the goblins approach, Song Cheon-hye remained focused solely on drawing the magic circle.
Soon, the completed magic circle burst into bright radiance.
[Lightning Field]
The area, already dyed red by sunset, seemed to brighten even more, though it was hard to tell what else had changed.
The true value of the magic was realized when the goblins reached the very front of the temple and began their charge.
Fzzzzzzzt! Fzzzzzzzt!
Keek?
Kiik!
The moment the goblins stepped within the range of the magic circle, sparks flew wildly around them.
Though not immensely powerful, the magic inflicted constant damage and paralysis while slowing their movements.
A zone-control magic.
Song Cheon-hye acknowledged that the reason she let one or two slip through on her first attempt was due to her own lack of control.
To compensate for her lack of control, she cast the zone-control magic, Lightning Field.
There was no need for precision in enveloping a set area with lightning.
The only requirement was the huge amount of mana needed to maintain the magic circle.
And Song Cheon-hye was a mana powerhouse even I acknowledged and she had no issues with mana consumption.
Keeek!
Kerruk!
The goblins, for their part, were tenacious creatures.
Normally, one would expect them to yelp at the sparks and flee, but the [Commander] rule forced them to push forward, despite the pain.
Their advance had undoubtedly slowed, and soon they were overwhelmed by even more potent lightning magic.
Fzzzt-Fzzzt-Fzzzt!
At the center of the magic circle, Song Cheon-hye sequentially unleashed several area-of-effect spells while continuing to defend the main gate.
!
!
As I leisurely observed the scene, the raucous sounds from the side and the thudding of bodies crashing against something caught my attention.
The wall would soon be breached so I walked towards it.
Booom,
The moment the wall crumbled and a hole appeared, I focused my Wind Force right through it.
Panic-stricken cries emerged from the other side.
Wha?
Gurk?
The goblins stopped in their tracks just as they were about to surge forward.
Under Dang Gyu-youngs command, they struggled to push ahead but there are things that force alone cannot accomplish.
The F-rank monsters bodies were simply too frail to withstand the wind imbued with physical force.
I kept the wind blowing to seal off the wall and turned my attention back to Song Cheon-hye.
Fizzzzzz!
Shes holding them off quite well.
Song Cheon-hye was frying the goblins with lightning magic as they approached.
Not a single one had made it through the main gate so far.
It was only the second attempt yet major improvements had already been made to address our weaknesses.
[Statue of the Goddess: 100%]
[Remaining Time: 4:46]
The first attempt had failed before even reaching the five-minute mark, but this time, it was easily surpassed.
So far, so good.
It was about time for the next challenge to emerge.
As soon as this thought had crossed my mind, I felt a clear presence somewhere.
?
Song Cheon-hye who was anticipating the arrival of the next opponent tensed up. Her expression was a mixture of vigilance and confusion.
She was certain she had encountered this familiar presence before, but couldnt quite place where.
!
But then, it was as if an exclamation mark popped above her head.
She saw it, striding confidently through the throngs of goblins.
It was a head or two taller than the average goblin with a muscular build and wielding a large cleaver in one hand.
Grrrr.
The Beheader Goblin.
The Strong Enemy from the timed strategy battle had emerged here.
The timing of its appearance is a bit early, though.
The reason the [Strong Enemy] rule wasnt applied to this temple defense was because the Beheader Goblin only made brief appearances towards the very end, typically in the last minute.
But the timing of its appearance was pushed forward due to Dang Gyu-youngs intervention.
Perhaps it could be considered a final act of mercy that it didnt spring into action the moment the strategy battle started.
Nonetheless, the fact remained that it had to be defeated.
Song Cheon-hye and the Beheader Goblin locked eyes for a few tense seconds.
Grrr.
The Beheader Goblin then charged with increased speed.
Blue mana surged from its body and started wrapping around the cleaver.
Song Cheon-hye, in turn, conjured a thick bolt of lightning in her hand and advanced to meet the charge.
The distance between them closed in an instant, and the mana-infused cleaver clashed with the lightning.
Clash!
The outcome was clear at a glance. Song Cheon-hye had the upper hand.
While she stood unfazed, the Beheader Goblin was sent stumbling back.
Electric current crackled in its hand holding the cleaver.
Refusing to accept that it had been overpowered, the creature let out a ferocious roar and charged again.
Graaaa!
.
Song Cheon-hye calmly drew another bolt of lightning and countered.
Again and again their forces collided with great intensity, sparking mana and energy, and time and again it was the Beheader Goblin who was forced to retreat.
This clearly indicated a significant gap in their abilities.
It was a reminder that Song Cheon-hye was a first-year member of the disciplinary committee.
However, the issue at hand was,
Winning or losing isnt whats important right now.
The objective of this strategy battle was defense.
What truly mattered was whether the enemies could be held back or not.
In the current context, the question was Can she handle the Beheader Goblin while also fending off the other goblins?
While Song Cheon-hye was indeed stronger, the Beheader Goblin was not an opponent to be easily taken down with a casual approach.
A considerable amount of her strength was focused on this duel, causing gaps to gradually appear in the previously solid defense of the main gate.
Krrrk!
Soon, a goblin managed to cross the Lightning Field, skillfully dodged the area of effect magic, and slipped past Song Cheon-hye.
It was a persistence and tenacity not typical of goblins.
Before sprinting towards the statue of the goddess, it even turned to throw a taunting sneer at Song Cheon-hye.
Kihihik!
You!
Song Cheon-hye was furious but she couldnt abandon her fight with the Beheader Goblin to chase after the other goblin.
The goblin kept smirking and attempted a bold leap forward.
Or at least, it tried to.
Kihi hi?
Its form abruptly halted mid-air as if blocked by an invisible force, then it was flung backward and then tumbled to the ground.
Song Cheon-hye who realized what had happened glanced at me,
Is this good enough?
Good enough.
Rumble! Crash!
Before the tumbling goblin could recover, a bolt of lightning was ruthlessly driven into it.
As Song Cheon-hye exchanged blows with the Beheader Goblin, two more managed to break through the defense line.
Kerk?
Kek?
The goblins intending to sprint past her found themselves running in place.
Despite moving their feet forward, they werent moving at all.
This was the effect of the Wind Force spell I had cast.
I was busy blocking the side wall, so I had to cast the spell from a distance. Despite being restricted by the [Close Range] rule, I could still momentarily halt their movements.
That brief moment was all Song Cheon-hye needed to cover any gaps.
The goblins were caught off guard and floundered as a lightning spell swept through them.
Fizz! Crack!
Just as Song Cheon-hye was about to link her next spell, she swiftly twisted her body to the side.
A cleaver charged with mana sliced through empty air.
Grrrrrrr
The Beheader Gobin grumbled lowly as if telling her where she was looking.
It then continued its attack and wildly swung the cleaver.
Ugh
At that moment, even Song Cheon-hye who had been dominating the fight had to focus solely on defense.
And that meant that the gap would soon widen even further.
Ker-ruck,
Kihiii!
Two goblins breached the main defense line, then four, and then five
Even as the Wind Force momentarily halted them, there were goblins Song Cheon-hye couldnt quite manage to deal with.
Similar to the first attempt, once a gap started to widen, it became uncontrollable.
As the situation worsened, Song Cheon-hyes composure rapidly eroded and her movements became erratic.
It was then that I called out to Song Cheon-hye.
Song Cheon-hye.
Huh?
Focus on the Beheader. Lets see how long it takes.
. Understood!
Song Cheon-hye quickly grasped my intention. The plan was to concentrate her firepower to swiftly eliminate the Beheader Goblin and use the experience and data gained for our next attempt.
Fizzzz.
The Lightning Field that had engulfed the gate began to fade and then vanished entirely.
Instead, Song Cheon-hyes entire body started crackling and igniting intense currents of lightning.
She had redirected the mana from the magic circle solely to herself.
In the next moment, Song Cheon-hyes form shot out like a bolt of lightning.
Crack!
The Beheader Goblin instinctively raised its cleaver but the lightning struck its face a fraction earlier.
Fizzzzzz! Bang!
I should probably start heading back to defend.
[Statue of the Goddess: 48%]
While I had been momentarily distracted, goblins clinging to the statue had slashed its health gauge by half.
If left unchecked, the remaining health would rapidly deplete.
And that would result in failure and the dungeon resetting.
At the very least, I needed to buy time until Song Cheon-hye could defeat the Beheader Goblin.
I walked a little faster but still without losing my composure toward the statue of the goddess.
[Amplification activated.]
[Windforce rank increased. (C+ -> A+)]
I continued to approach and cast Wind Force over a wide range.
A gust of wind filled with physical force swept through the area, toppling the goblins like leaves caught in a storm and sending them tumbling to the side.
When I summoned the winds broadly once more, this time they rolled in the opposite direction and tumbled over and over.
Agh!
One goblin desperately tried to keep its balance and hurled its wooden spear straight at me with surprising accuracy.
The spear aimed directly at me seemed likely to hit its mark.
I merely glanced at the creature and focused solely on wielding Wind Force to and fro.
Just as the wooden spear was about to embed itself in my chest, it inexplicably twisted and plunged into the ground instead.
[Distortion activated.]
[Cooldown: 23:59:54]
The goblin that had thrown the wooden spear stood there dumbfounded and unable to grasp what had just happened.
Soon after, it was swept up by the Wind Force and fell over,
Kek!
Like the others, it found itself rolling around helplessly.
With this situation resolved, I turned my focus back to Song Cheon-hye,
Fizz! Boom!
She was unleashing a barrage of powerful lightning magic and pressuring the Beheader Goblin.
Even when facing both the goblins and the Beheader Goblin, the fight was in Song Cheon-hyes favor, but now with only the Beheader Goblin to deal with, it could hardly be called a fight.
Grrrrrrr
The resistance of the Beheader Goblin was waning.
The mana on its cleaver dimmed and its movements became sluggish.
Its staggering demeanor signaled its dwindling stamina.
Just as Song Cheon-hye was about to deliver a decisive blow,
Arrgh!
The Beheader Goblin let out a final cry.
Gathering all its remaining mana, it concentrated it into the cleaver and hurled it with all its might.
The blue-colored cleaver spun around and flew across the temple,
Crack!
The cleaver continued on its path before cleaving the statue of the goddess at the waist into two.
The severed upper half crashed to the ground with a loud bang! It made a loud noise and shattered into pieces.
[Statue of the Goddess: 42%]
[Statue of the Goddess: 0%]
[Remaining Time: 1:21]
[The Statue of the Goddess has been destroyed.]
?
For a while, Song Cheon-hye stared in disbelief at the remains of the Statue of the Goddess that were now reduced to just the lower half.
Then little by little, as the reality of the situation dawned on her, her mouth began to fall open in shock.
?!?!?
She was so shocked that she was unable to speak and her mouth opened and closed repeatedly.
After the dungeon had reset completely and the Statue of the Goddess was restored,
Dang Gyu-yeong gently landed nearby and said,
This time you did better. If you improve a bit, youll succeed on your next try. Lets go out and see Hong Yeon-hwa and Kwak
However, when she saw Song Cheon-hyes face, she stopped what she was saying and pursed her lips.
.
She tried to keep a straight face but couldnt quite hide the twitching at the corners of her mouth.
Dang Gyu-yeong desperately tried to suppress her laughter.
She clenched her molars and took slow and deep breaths to calm her mind.
Soon, Dang Gyu-yeong seemed to have regained her composure completely.
But the moment she looked at Song Cheon-hyes face again,
Pfft!
She failed to hold back her laughter.
Dang Gyu-yeong quickly covered her mouth and turned away.
Occasional soft snickers escaped her mouth and her shoulders were shaking with each stifled laugh.
Huff, pff, guffaw!
.
Song Cheon-hye didnt know whether to cry, get angry, or laugh along with her.