The Apostate #2
- BOOM!!
The white temple exploded with a satisfying crack.
It already looked grotesque, but watching it vanish cleanly right in front of me was something else.
"Finally, I can breathe easy."
I let out a relieved sigh amid the swirling clouds of dust and debris.
For the record, even the falling rubble got shredded by a single Holy Sword Style 1st Form: Execution.
Just standing there was enough to tidy up the surroundings.
Talk about satisfying.
"...You fool!"
And right in front of me.
Unfortunately(?), the Apostate—the boss of this field—still intact in form, bellowed in rage.
"You're still alive?"
"Even if you destroy me here, do you think you can seize what you desire...!"
"Like you know what we want."
"Kuhuhu, hahahaha!!"
Then, as if it was the funniest thing ever, the Apostate burst into mad laughter.
"All you'll face is utter despair. The gods have abandoned us...!"
At those words, my gaze shifted to Lisha, who looked utterly bewildered.
You know something?
She shook her head vigorously at my pointed look.
"Cults have always been weak to facts."
Ever heard of mental contamination?
Hearing crazy talk over and over starts with 'Could that be true?' and ends with your brain turning to mush.
"Shut your trap and hand over the rewards."
So.
I gradually expanded the range of my domain, aiming to grind the bastard into paste.
"...Hmph!"
Sensing he couldn't dodge, he held his breath, focusing his mind.
- Clang!
He neatly blocked one incoming strike of Holy Sword Style 1st Form: Execution.
"What."
My enhanced vision captured the scene.
The same energy I'd felt collecting objects so far.
Black magic.
As the name of the object from the 3rd floor suggested—it repelled the Holy Sword Style with its inherent nature.
But.
"...Kuh!"
The rain of strikes that followed made him freak out and leap back.
"Hey, run too far and I won't hear you."
"...!"
Another taunt, and the boss reacted visibly.
"You cannot defeat me here."
He sounded cornered for someone talking big.
He's got something up his sleeve.
But what had been bugging me since earlier.
Was that inexplicable composure.
That last moment was clearly dangerous for him.
Every attack in my domain hits like the real deal.
"You climbers, tainted by greed—your fates are already sealed...!"
"...?"
Climbers.
I'd heard it so often my ears were numb.
But from his mouth? Total disconnect.
"You—how do you know that name?"
"...Ha! You think I'm some ignorant fool who knows nothing! I know why you're climbing this tower, and what you've come to this land to take...!"
"Damn, preaching this hard gets you hate."
I couldn't hold back anymore and reactivated my domain, charging at him.
"Woojin, I'll support you."
"Follow slow."
Leaving Lisha to take her battle stance beside me, I locked eyes on the Apostate closing in real-time.
"...!"
The sharp sword aura grazing his black priest robes made him widen his eyes again.
"Glare all you want."
"Gods, grant me power!!"
Just as he was about to enter the heart of my domain.
He cried out to the sky, viciously drawing up that sinister energy I'd felt before.
Trying to block?
Can he even block my attacks?
I sized it up in a split second, but if he could, he wouldn't have panicked and fled the domain earlier.
Which means—
"...!"
- Splat!
Suddenly, purple tentacles erupted from his hands, shooting toward me.
- Whoosh.
Using my forward momentum, I barely twisted away.
"Scared the shit outta me."
I spotted the purple tentacle grazing my chest.
- Slash!
In irritation, I swung my holy sword at it—cut clean like tofu.
"Kugh...!"
Linked to his nerves, maybe?
The severed end made him stagger.
"Kieee!!"
The headless tentacle flopped on the ground, soon shredded by the grazing sword aura of Holy Sword Style.
"Tear."
Pay the price for that bold attack.
- Hummm...!
I whipped my mana circuits, amplifying the volume and momentum of the grazing auras hitting him.
"Grrrr...!"
Why's he so slippery?
Hard to pin down the unease.
My tower experience wasn't vast, but I prided myself on surviving through grit.
By that measure, his attitude and reactions differed sharply from monsters I'd faced.
- Ting ting ting!
Like now.
Tanking damage inside my domain, enduring to a certain degree.
But.
"Kraa...!"
Unable to last even seconds, he retreated outside again.
"Tough bastard."
As I caught my breath—
"...!"
Lisha, lurking for an opening in my domain, zipped to his flank in an instant.
"...Oho."
Speed too fast to track with the eye.
My domain and skills were cheat-tier, sure.
But this was my first time seeing Lisha's real, honed combat prowess.
"Saint...!"
"Shut it."
Her fierce glare left trails of killing intent.
- Shwick!
First came a straight punch, full body weight behind it.
- Crack!
He hastily deployed a barrier, but lingering domain effects weakened it.
"Kugh...!"
Unable to fully block, he stumbled back several steps from the impact.
The beast's onslaught didn't end there.
"..."
I wanted to join in, but this was a good chance to watch and learn.
Lisha had more experience than me.
Not just in the tower—her whole life as a hunter.
"Such petty tricks...!"
Whatever the cornered Apostate spat—
She pressed with familiar forms, exploiting every gap.
Look at that flexibility.
Backed by beastkin agility.
Tempting—martial arts flowing from that fluidity.
"Gotta ask her to teach me later."
What's a friend for?
I could learn a new style and project it into my domain.
With that in mind, I redeployed my paused domain.
"...!"
Even amid the chaos, the Apostate's gaze snapped to me.
"Coward...!"
"Life or death ain't about fair play."
"Y-You're no saint...! You murdering demon!!"
"Who asked you to?"
I never wanted it.
A role and title the tower shoved on me.
I just wanted rewards and EXP, then done.
"Krup!"
Finally cornered, the Apostate's body convulsed violently.
"Lisha, fall back."
"...!"
At my signal, she halted her barrage and retreated obediently—the tiger saintess.
Breathing steady; still good.
"You all! You cannot escape here...! We're all puppets of the tower!!"
"...What?"
Before I could even respond—
- Splat!!
Purple tentacles burst from all over his body, swelling massively in seconds.
"..."
The Apostate now looked unrecognizable, far from human.
"Tentacle hentai for real?"
Looked more suited to an adult game than a tower.
"Gurgle...!"
Some guttural sound grazed my ear.
"Kyaa...!"
But Lisha suddenly clutched her head and staggered.
"You okay?"
"Suddenly, my head...!"
This guy's doing.
Those writhing tentacle bundles were seriously annoying.
Timing screamed it—he was the cause of her headache.
"Bastard won't go quietly."
As I thought that, a familiar memory flashed.
When I showed the Apocalypse tutorial scene.
Lisha and Carmia couldn't even face me vs. the Goblin Champion—passed out from stress.
Difficulty effect?
Didn't know the mechanics, but Normal climbers felt extreme stress against Apocalypse bosses or higher.
"Gotta end this quick."
I scanned the situation.
- Squelch!
Tentacles spawned by the Apostate got sliced repeatedly by Holy Sword Style.
Problem: New ones regenerated from stumps like a hydra.
Firepower short.
That was the gut feeling from the start.
If firepower's lacking, just add more.
"Back to all-out showdown."
I pulled Lisha back and stepped forward.
"Keeei...!"
The surging tentacles pushed to breach my domain.
"Ssss..."
Taking in the horror, I closed my eyes and focused.
- Thump.
A pulse rising from deep in my chest.
Sensing circuits extending to my core mana core, I borrowed a familiar method.
▶ Condemnation Blow
▶ Holy Sword Style 1st Form: Execution
▶ Domain of the Stigmata
"Lisha."
"Ah, ugh..."
"Time it right—one last skill from you."
No verbal reply, but she nodded through the pain.
Permission granted; plan set.
Simultaneous deployment.
Needed firepower.
So, just the two firepower-focused domains.
▶ Condemnation Blow
▶ Holy Sword Style 1st Form: Execution
- Whoosh...!
Holy power-infused attacks flooded the domain like an explosion.
"...!"
- Splat!
The massive tentacle mass advancing on us burst simultaneously.
Tips, cores, junctions between tentacles—all gone.
Saintess-exclusive skill activated.
And Lisha's saintess skill from behind.
The world-shaking holy power surge—
Shredding tentacles turned pitch black.
"Now, who's the real god?"
Facing his crumbling form in midair, my eyes turned to the new window.
- Ding!
Rewards received.
Predator's Domain (Lv.4) proficiency has increased.
Predator's Domain (Lv.4) level has risen.
"Oh."
Good news popping up one after another.
You may now enter the Waiting Room.
Finally, the window I'd been waiting for.
"Good work."
I thanked the panting Lisha.
"...Yeah."
She glanced away, replying softly.