Chapter 96
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: You're Lucky?
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A massive, translucent dome in the shape of a sphere formed as the mana of the heroes intertwined with that of the monster of darkness. Outside it, Shirahui Mai—who was on standby—clutched her trembling arms while watching the scene inside the dome.
The horrifying breath of the Rank 5 monster of darkness, the Void Dragon, continued scorching the ground relentlessly, while bolts of void mana lightning whipped toward her fellow heroes. Even those hailed as heroes stood their ground, drawing out their own mana to confront the Void Dragon.
But the battle metrics recorded in real-time on the Hero Pad were far from optimistic.
"Please, please, please."
After an intense battle, the heroes—who ultimately couldn't withstand the Void Dragon—finally saw it summon its minions. At that moment, the backup tank and dealers presumed to be such charged toward the Void Wyvern like arrows loosed from a bow.
A shield flew in handsomely, smashing into the Void Wyvern, and the moment aggro was secured, the dealers unleashed their assault. The Void Wyvern's health bar began plummeting rapidly as it took damage.
Watching this, Shirahui Mai stomped her feet in frustration. They needed to take down that thing quickly and regroup to brace for the void mana explosion. But...
- Die consumed by the void!
The Void Dragon's voice rang out like a death sentence, and black lightning struck the battlefield from all directions. Soon after, screams from her comrades echoed here and there.
The healers with the lowest health bars fell first, followed by the dealers. Then, the main tank—who had endured the mana explosion—gasped for breath wearily, only to be flattened under the Void Dragon's stomp, ending the raid. Total party kill.
The heroes revived as their Revival Stones shattered, shaking their heads to shake off the shock of death quickly. They then gathered toward where Shirahui Mai waited.
"Don't we need more farming first?"
The temporary second-string dealer attributed the repeated wipes to the heroes' Gear Scores. Their specs were still insufficient to tackle a Rank 5 monster.
In truth, they had fallen just short on DPS to finish the Void Wyvern and regroup. If they could just get past that pattern, they might see what came next—but they never had.
"......"
Shirahui shared similar thoughts to the hero who had spoken up. But what if she had stepped in? She might have taken down the Void Wyvern before the Void Dragon unleashed its mana explosion.
She took pride in her damage dealing, the core duty of a dealer—no one could match her there. Her hands itched to swing her sword right away. That was when it happened.
"Shirahui."
At the sound of Han Minguk calling her name, Shirahui reflexively turned to him. The male hero, a good ten centimeters taller than her, looked down at her. A strange sense of anticipation welled up in Shirahui's heart.
"Switching out with Baek Jeonghong."
"Raid Leader?"
The second-string dealer blinked in surprise at the sudden benching order.
"I've heard you're Japan's best in single-target DPS."
Minguk pointed at Shirahui Mai as he said it. Then, with a tap on his Hero Pad, the second-string dealer had no choice but to bow his head. The tone made it clear the decision was final.
Besides, even with her weakness as a melee dealer, she had the lowest damage output among the five dealers. Even lower than Choi Yuna. And she, too, was only a temporary member of GGW. Her status in the team wasn't much different from Shirahui Mai, the bench dealer.
"I'm planning to put you in the raid for now... but does it feel like your mana might go berserk? Be honest."
"No! I'm fine!"
Mai shouted with a voice full of vigor at the sudden opportunity. She drew her sword and spun it around nimbly.
It had only been a short time, but having formed a relationship with the male hero before her eyes just yesterday, her corrupted lust didn't seem like an issue right now. Plus, after watching from the sidelines while clearing dungeons so far, she was brimming with energy.
"Your job is DPS on the Void Dragon and dedicated DPS on the Wyvern. First goal: See the void explosion before the first void breath. Second: Take down the Void Wyvern before the void mana explosion after it spawns. Got it?"
"Yes!"
Shirahui nodded vigorously, answering loudly to Minguk's instructions.
While on standby outside, she had watched GGW's Void Dragon strategy repeat several times. She had paid close attention during the briefing too. So she knew exactly what was lacking and causing problems in the raid.
The raid leader, Minguk, was including her—excluding the second-string dealer—to fill that gap.
'I'll give it my all and show them the cosmic swordsmanship!'
At the chance to showcase her skills against a Rank 5 monster, Shirahui Mai burned with fighting spirit.
The briefing restarted.
Everyone had a decent grasp of the tactical movements needed to tackle the Void Dragon. The issue was enduring the enemy's attacks while executing them.
"Healing pattern stays the same. Giselle, focus on maintaining the AoE shield. Kendall, pour power into our allies' health bars with me. And Hyun-ah, you know, right?"
"Use Hope Shield on anyone looking risky."
"Ding dong dang. The problem is when the Void Wyvern spawns."
They had wiped four times already failing to pass that pattern.
"When the Void Wyvern appears, Hyun-ah, grab aggro right away. All dealers, stop attacking the Void Dragon and focus on killing the Wyvern. Oh, exception for Dealer Kim Sojeong—keep hitting the Void Dragon."
Sojeong, who wielded a massive greatsword, was slower-moving than the other dealers. They had tried putting her on Wyvern duty twice, but she always failed to return in time and died to the mana explosion.
"Should I swap one skill for a mobility one?"
Seeming to have thought it over herself, Sojeong asked Minguk. But he shook his head at the suggestion.
Unlike ranged dealers, melee dealers often got their DPS from combos. Changing now would kill her strengths. The pattern didn't require darting around anyway—just handle the Void Wyvern.
'On the other hand...'
Shirahui Mai wielded a light longsword. Plus, one of her unique abilities involved movement speed.
It was a skill called Gale Step: Sheathe your weapon to dash quickly, and the mana power infused in it increases by a percentage based on steps taken. A class-unique skill of Mai's.
"Alright, heading into the raid."
With that, Minguk ended the briefing and looked at his team. Soon, with the signal, the raid began anew.
Battle commences!
Kwaaaang!
As combat began, the Void Dragon's massive foot slammed down on Tanya. The huge shield shuddered, drawing the dragon's gaze, while dealers on either side began unleashing their mana explosively.
"Haaaaaaa!!!"
Shin Nayeon's mana orb spun wildly, firing mana arrows like a machine gun. An intense opener, burning her mana from the start.
Kim Sojeong, Jeong Yerin, and Choi Yuna did the same. Whether they saw the mana explosion before the first breath decided if the healers could hold out for what followed.
And Shirahui Mai infused her sword with mana and sprang into motion.
"My sword can hold the cosmos."
Recalling the essence of cosmic swordsmanship and steadying her breath, Mai widened her eyes and fixed them on her foe.
The colossal dragon steeped in void. A Rank 5 monster among the true specimens of darkness rampaged. And from the tip of her sword, closing in on the Void Dragon, dazzling beams of light began splitting off.
Sslash! Ssslaaash!!!
The mana-reddened longsword pierced the Void Dragon's hide repeatedly. So fast it evoked "swift blade"—barely visible to the eye. But despite the flashy display, Shirahui Mai's opening DPS was remarkably low.
Fourth among the five dealers on the Hero Pad. One might think Minguk had failed by subbing in Shirahui over second-stringer Baek Jeonghong—at least she ranked mid-pack in openers.
But...
Skill Stone (A) - Dance of Cosmic Swordsmanship
If you strike the same spot on a single target repeatedly within 2 seconds, mana damage increases by up to 250% based on hit count. However, all equipped item defense drops by 30%.
A passive skill that explained Shirahui Mai's devastating DPS potential.
Still, no one expected her to stack the passive so quickly for max damage. Her sword swings were no joke—pure swiftness incarnate. And as the Void Dragon's health dwindled, it activated its special ability.
- Die consumed by the void!!!
"Yes!!!"
Minguk clenched his fist.
He had hoped for high DPS from Shirahui Mai, but this was the first time the mana explosion came before the breath. They had pushed the Void Dragon to the brink in record time.
At this rate, they could handle the Void Wyvern too.
"Mana explosion incoming?! Huddle up quick!"
Giselle bellowed at the dealers celebrating their first time forcing the explosion before the breath. She began casting her AoE shield. Now it was their time.
Pajik! Pajik! Pajijijik!!!
Black lightning ravaged the battlefield. Giselle's shield took the first wave, then Minguk and Kendall exploded their mana to heal the heroes. Even with double protection, some heroes dropped to critical.
"Oh Hyun-ah! Hope Shield on Shirahui!"
"Got it!"
Checking ally health bars, Minguk barked orders while forming hand seals. He unleashed recovery on the wounded heroes—mostly toward Shirahui.
Like a berserker trading defense for offense, Shirahui's passive lowered her defense compared to peers with equivalent Gear Scores.
The gap wasn't huge, but in this barrage, even a little hurt. Still, right now, her DPS on the Void Dragon mattered most. The path to victory was emerging.
"Breath next! T.T., get ready!"
"Yessir! Ready to block anytime!"
No sooner had the mana explosion ended than Tanya dashed out. To prevent the Void Dragon from breathing on their main group.
During the brief moment it inhaled, the three healers—including Minguk—relentlessly healed the wounded. They didn't forget to shield the main tank soloing the breath.
Kwaaaaaaaa!!!
"Heal focus on main tank!!! Just hold a bit longer!"
If they survived the early explosion and breath combo, they could control DPS and rotate aggro on the Void Dragon's attacks afterward.
Having endured the breath successfully, the raid progressed in a whole new phase unlike before. Victory was starting to take shape.