Chapter 96
Chapter 96
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: The Ordinary Demon
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Due to the grandiose summoning method and the comparison to the puny demons seen so far, the summoned demon might have seemed incredibly powerful.
But the demon's true nature was far more underwhelming than expected.
[It's an ordinary demon.]
Ordinary. The word literally meant plain as plain could be. And here it was, attached to a monster's name.
In other words, the ones before had just been subpar compared to the baseline, and the one in front of him was the standard by which demons were measured.
[That's a basic demon?]
[After making that kind of entrance?]
Viewers unfamiliar with demons were shocked. But no matter their surprise, the facts didn't change.
[Demons as a species have stats higher than their level suggests, so even ordinary ones are tough.]
That explanation from one viewer was the only thing softening their disappointment.
And it wasn't wrong—the ordinary demon was indeed strong.
On top of that, Yuseong's level was lower than the average recommended for challenging this dungeon. If it had been another player around Yuseong's level, they would've struggled immensely or met their end.
But the one here was Yuseong.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The gun fired in rapid succession. Anyone could see it was the boss, so Yuseong had already drawn a second gun in his left hand.
The firepower pouring from both guns rained down on the demon.
-Keeek!-
Its panicked voice rang out. Bullets had already pelted its face repeatedly, stunning it. Until all twelve shots were spent, it could only take the beating helplessly.
"The others at least tried to protect their faces, but this one didn't."
[Doesn't it have any means of defense?]
[Even if not, wouldn't it at least raise an arm?]
But watching its actions as it recovered from the stun while Yuseong reloaded showed that wasn't the case either.
[It was too busy flying.]
At its initial appearance, as if insisting the wings on its back weren't mere decoration, the ordinary demon had charged at Yuseong through the air.
Then it took a headshot, got stunned, tumbled to the ground, and ate the attack.
But now, the demon kept its legs plastered to the ground, wrapping its face with its wings.
The thin membrane looked fragile on the surface, but it had decent durability—no tears visible.
Tadak!
Slower than when flying in for an attack, but still confident in its ground movement, the demon's charge was quick. It could vaguely make out Yuseong's shape through the thin membrane, so its direction was accurate enough.
It closed in on Yuseong.
Whoosh!
The attack pattern was the same as the degraded demons. Its long claws reached for Yuseong. Of course, its speed was incomparable to those lesser ones.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A storm of attacks.
They were annoying. The sharp claws on both hands were the main issue. Even dodging one barely meant the other swung right after, forcing constant vigilance.
Plus, due to the claws' nature, their trajectory changed entirely based on how it shaped its fingers.
It felt like facing ten people wielding swords.
But Yuseong wasn't just someone who felt that way—he was someone who'd actually been surrounded by dozens of real enemies before.
His eyes spun wildly.
Bang!
As if needing a clear line of sight to attack, it peeked its face slightly between its wings, and Yuseong promptly embedded a bullet in it.
Whoosh!
The claw heading for his face was dodged with just a neck twist.
Clang!
The other claw glanced off his armor at an angle.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
He mercilessly poured bullets into the openings it created.
-Kiiiiik!-
In the end, the demon trying desperately to defend its face took countless bullets there and got stunned, eating Yuseong's assault. Once the guns were empty, Yuseong backed off to reload.
-Kraaaak!-
The demon roared in fury.
Flap!
It flapped its wings and took to the air. This was an underground dungeon, but the boss room's ceiling was high enough for flight—designed to accommodate the demon's aerial abilities.
With claws extended, it dove at Yuseong like a plummeting strike. The speed was plenty threatening.
But Yuseong calmly aimed his gun.
Bang!
Two gunshots.
-Kraaak!-
Followed by the demon's scream. Its body wobbled, losing balance. With momentum already built, it was moving too fast.
Kwaaang!
It shot past Yuseong and crashed into the ground. Yuseong unloaded more rounds into the fallen foe.
As it staggered to its feet, Yuseong quickly reloaded and said,
"That last pattern was pretty comfortable. Think it'll do it again?"
[Lol That Pattern's Comfortable?]
[Isn't that one of the most annoying in the ordinary demon's kit?]
[It's the one that makes you ragequit.]
Flying into a position where the opponent couldn't crawl after it on the ground, then charging in.
If it at least came in a straight line, it might be easier to prepare for, but in that state, the demon could curve its trajectory mid-dive.
Even a straight plunge from the air was hard to defend against due to the speed. And the acceleration boosted its attack power massively.
Sure, there were probably other hated patterns, but no one called that one easy.
Yet here was Yuseong, dismantling it effortlessly and calling it comfortable.
[If demons weren't AI, that wouldn't even be tilting.]
[It looks pretty tilted already tho?]
The viewers' comments were jokes, but the demon was indeed glaring murderously at Yuseong.
-Kraaaak!-
It tried charging again.
Bang!
But once more, it rolled on the ground. It had attempted another aerial dive. Of course, Yuseong wouldn't miss the pattern where its head was fully exposed—from his perspective, perfectly so—for an easy stun.
Next time, the demon seemed to learn, trying to cover its face with its arms during the charge. But no matter how thick its arms were from muscle, it couldn't cover every gap perfectly.
-Kiaaaak!-
The demon rolled on the ground again.
After that, it used its wings strictly for face defense.
[Lol Guy's Done For This Fight]
[Wings are for defense now. Can't fly lol]
But there was no way it could beat Yuseong like that. Flight was its overwhelming advantage, and most of its patterns relied on it.
Without flight, over half its moveset was sealed, making its attacks relatively simplistic.
There was no winning against Yuseong in that state.
Bang!
-Kieeeek!-
Who knew how many screams that made. The demon, under constant gunfire, looked utterly wretched.
[Now who's the demon?]
[Satan: Teacher, you're going too fast.]
Even the viewers were chuckling while pitying the demon.
But at that moment, the demon's movements changed.
Taat!
It suddenly leaped backward.
[It running?]
The viewers panicked. Yuseong immediately pulled the trigger. He couldn't let experience, money, and item storage get away.
But nothing came from the gun barrel.
"Looks like an event phase."
As Yuseong said that and reloaded,
"Huh? Huh?"
Istin—who'd been positioned against the wall, literally turning into the background (not a metaphor; Yuseong had confirmed it by shooting the wall)—panicked. The demon instantly closed in on Istin and clamped its hand on his face.
"Aaaaack!"
Istin screamed.
Crack!
Istin's body withered like a mummy. His agonized shrieks echoed through the boss room.
[Whoa, what was that scream?]
[Gives me chills.]
Fortunately, Istin's screams stopped soon enough. More precisely, he could no longer scream.
The demon casually tossed aside the fully desiccated, dead Istin. Then it picked up the book he'd dropped.
-Kiaaaak!-
The book screamed once more.
-Kuooo!-
As if in response, the demon bellowed too.
The demon pressed the book to its chest.
Puk!
It stabbed it right in. Blood sprayed, but it didn't last. Like tree roots gripping the earth, thin tendrils burst from the book and latched onto the demon's chest.
As if complex nerves and veins had erupted through the skin, the skin around the book bulged grotesquely.
At the same time, its entire body began to change.
Crack!
Twisting sounds like bones realigning came from all over its body, sending chills down the spine.
Its horns grew longer and thicker, another pair of wings sprouted, its body swelled 1.5 times larger, and its muscles bulked up.
Anyone could see the demon was evolving.
The transformed demon glared at Yuseong. It was no longer ordinary.
Lesser Demon (Half-Awakened)
[What the hell is that?]
[What kind of demon?]
The viewers reacted with stunned confusion.
[Anyone know?]
[It looks demonic.]
Even those well-versed in Arc info had no clue about this sudden appearance.
The ordinary demon had forcibly gained lesser demon-level power using some special force, but since it wasn't its innate strength, it hadn't fully awakened.
'Is this not in other demon quests?'
Yuseong knew instantly from the strategy guide's explanation, but it seemed unknown to the public.
"Whatever it is, dead is dead."
Yuseong said that and aimed at it.
Heh!
As if newfound power bred confidence, it sneered at Yuseong.
[Whoa, it's grinning?]
[After getting wrecked this whole time?]
The viewers naturally found it repulsive.
-Kraaaaa!-
The demon roared massively at Yuseong.
-Kiiiiii!-
At the same time, the face on the book's cover embedded in its chest screamed too.
Woooong!
Yuseong felt his body grow heavy. A red aura cloaked him.
[Status effect.]
[That color and sound—howl debuff?]
[Things just got risky?]
Yuseong flicked his arms to gauge how sluggish he was.
-Kyaaaak!-
The demon spread all four wings wide and charged. Faster and fiercer than before. With its boosted defense and health obvious, two bullets might not stun it now.
Bang!
A gunshot rang out.
And the demon rolled on the ground again.
Looking at it, Yuseong addressed the viewer who'd just worried about him.
"It's fine. I can just use special ammo too."