Servant of the Lake (1)
-Ahem. My apologies.
“......”
-Who could have predicted it would attack so suddenly? If only I had realized it was nothing more than a simple combat doll without a personality, I never would have…
“It’s fine. I was simply startled by the unexpected, that’s all.”
The beings I summon can speak, after all. It’s just that I was too weak and died before they had the chance to say a word.
-You died moments ago. No matter how many times you revive, you must have felt the terror of death. How could you possibly be okay?
I brushed my fingers lightly across my throat. It had definitely been severed right here. Still, perhaps because it had been a clean, instant decapitation, I hadn’t felt any real pain. All that lingered was a strange, bitter aftertaste from realizing I had died.
This might actually be a good opportunity to adapt while I’m here.
In this place, wounds healed instantly and death was nothing more than a brief inconvenience. There was no better training ground for building pain tolerance.
Though dying in a single blow like that is pointless… I’ll just work my way up from the weaker ones.
Since future battles would carry a high risk of injury, it was smart to raise my resistance beforehand. Especially in this reality, where I felt one hundred percent of every sensation unlike the game.
Gulp.
To think I would deliberately let myself get hurt just to train my pain tolerance.
Still, it doesn’t feel all that distant.
When I remembered the agony I had endured in the hospital, maybe I would adapt faster than expected.
I rose to my feet to restart the simulation mode. Oh, right—before that.
“Master.”
-?
“Please summon the one on the first page.”
It would be best to leave the booklet in the Heavenly Demon’s care. She had made a mistake earlier, but… that had only happened because she didn’t know how to use it properly. I held no intention of blaming her.
-Are you certain?
“I’m asking you.”
Simulation opponent designated.
Summoning the Servant of the Lake.
The Heavenly Demon looked worried but ultimately granted my request. At her gesture the world began to reenact its recorded history once more.
Clank.
Just like when the sword spirit had been summoned, the enemy appeared a set distance away. It was a monster easily over two meters tall, carrying a long spear that matched its size. Clad in sky-blue armor that resembled the surface of a lake, it was the knight—no, the monster—known as the Servant of the Lake.
-I have painted upon the single canvas that is myself until now, becoming the greatest painter whom all look up to. People speak the word “perfect,” yet as the one who actually painted it, I know the truth. My painting contains many gaps and mistakes.
[3]
“Then I shall become another canvas for you.”
-Then I must verify it. How much empty space you truly possess. How far you can withstand my painting.
[2]
“I will show you.”
That the canvas is large enough that no picture will ever feel insufficient.
[1]
Two different weapons gleamed, eager to slay their opponent. A duel between spear and sword. Ordinarily, for a sword to overcome a spear, one had to close the distance and slip into the space beyond the spear’s reach.
“You may paint whatever you desire, Master. Even if you ruin the picture midway, please witness that the canvas is wide enough to begin an entirely new one.”
-How impudent. Mentioning your master’s failure aloud. What a wretched disciple.
Yet for some reason, the Heavenly Demon’s voice as she spoke was slightly higher and lighter than usual.
FIGHT!
-Then give it your all.
With that single word of encouragement, I exploded forward with tremendous leg strength.
Whoosh.
A razor-sharp thrust aimed directly between my eyes. Normally I would have failed to control my speed and taken the hit head-on. But my experience and well-balanced stats supported my movements. I twisted my head, instantly altering my trajectory to forcibly create an opening, evading the attack while continuing my charge.
Knowing it would be at a disadvantage if I closed the distance, the creature attempted to retreat.
“Hey, it’d be pretty embarrassing if I lost right now, don’t you think? So be a good sport and let me win.”
“────!!”
In answer, it gifted me a thrust that left five afterimages. In that instant it had shortened its grip on the shaft, reducing the spear’s effective length so the tip could reach me.
Clang. Clang. Clang!
At least the spear was straight, making it easy to block. Later opponents who used different spears would suddenly bend their trajectories like snakes, aiming for my openings or my throat. Those had been truly terrifying.
“Now it’s my turn?”
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
Compared to those, this was definitely easier to handle.
Whoosh.
“──!”
“Is it really okay to discard your weapon so easily?”
My sword slid forward as though the spear shaft itself were a path. Realizing my target was its fingers, the creature released its weapon. The fact that it chose to drop its weapon rather than attempt a new counterattack made the title of “knight” feel somewhat hollow.
“You should take your weapon with you…!”
It wasn’t even a throwing specialist, yet it gave up its weapon so readily. I spun the spear naturally and hurled it back toward its original owner as a present.
The entire spear, shaft included, was made of metal and carried considerable weight. That weight would only increase the damage on impact, so I gladly poured my magic power into the throw with everything I had.
BOOM!
Watching it struggle to block its own weapon was incredibly satisfying.
But still.
“Shouldn’t you be paying attention to me as well?”
What would happen if you focused solely on the returning weapon? You mustn’t forget that your opponent isn’t the weapon—it’s me.
The distance had already been closed. I could see it moving quickly to defend, but my blade was already an instant away from piercing the gap in its helmet.
Crack.
The moment I drove the sword in, something shattered. It should have torn through flesh, but this creature was not human. It was a golem created to prevent intruders from entering its territory. What I had destroyed was the core that powered it.
Crack. Crackle-crackle.
Once its core was broken, the golem’s body would collapse and all movement would cease. However, the opponent before me was slightly special. The battle did not end with this single strike.
The Servant of the Lake possesses two cores.
Since I had destroyed one, its true form would now reveal itself.
“────!!!!”
Crack. Crunch. Thud.
As the first core shattered and the hidden second core revealed itself, the creature’s appearance began to change. The heavy knight armor that had encased its body broke apart, exposing its second form. Magic power flowed around it like a cloak, and with each fragment of shattered armor its speed increased dramatically.
BOOM.
“────.”
Of course it starts with a wide-area attack right from the beginning!
Its magic power spread outward, filling the air with moisture. At the same time, blue spears formed of water slowly rose from the ground. There were more than ten of them, and the magic contained within each spear was formidable.
The spears moved behind the Servant of the Lake as though they possessed their own will, adding an enormous aura to the creature.
This is exactly why it was so difficult to clear with a water-body character.
Its signature wide-area attack. Without sufficient health or defensive skills, it was the perfect technique to die screaming in an instant.
Melody of the Lake.
Here it comes!
Swish-swish-swish-swish!
As if performing a beautiful melody, the spears rained down toward me at the creature’s gesture. While dodging, I glanced upward. Its helmet had also cracked slightly, revealing a face formed of magic power that resembled a soul. It shook as though mocking me.
One. Two. Two. One. Three.
But the one laughing wasn’t the enemy—it was me. I had raided this creature countless times. The strategy for this technique was already burned into my memory.
Since this was a solo challenge rather than a party raid, every spear targeted only me. Yet not a single one was impossible to dodge.
“Ahem.”
Still, continuously dodging would consume too much stamina. It was time to cancel the attack midway.
Normally a tank would block the assault while mages or archers interrupted the creature with a powerful strike. But as one might expect, I was facing it alone, which made timing the counterattack rather tricky.
One. One. Now!
Fortunately I had been counting the timing from the very start, so I would not miss the opportunity.
The instant the perfect moment arrived, I activated another skill of the Spiritualist without hesitation.
Soul Resonance
With a single command, the world freezes in place.
“Stop.”
Hummm.
My words gained formless power and seized control of the surrounding space. Everything in the area halted as though obeying the absolute ancient magic of dragons—Dragon Speech.
-What…!
Even the Heavenly Demon watching from behind had stopped. Of course, she had probably only been frozen for 0.0001 seconds, but the way her eyes widened in astonishment proved the skill had affected even her, if only faintly.
If it could work on the Heavenly Demon, there was no way the creature before me could resist it.
Grrrrk.
“────!!!!”
The moment any movement was halted, the skill would be forcibly canceled. Furthermore, the creature would be left completely defenseless for a full ten seconds.
I smiled at the frozen monster and raised my sword.
Whew. Success.
The Spiritualist skill, Soul Resonance. Upon activation it had a set probability of stopping the movement of everything nearby while lowering their stats. Originally it was a high-risk gamble… but with the support of my traits, the story changed completely.
While it might be a probability skill for others, for me it was a guaranteed stun with one hundred percent accuracy.