Practical Combat Class: Kirgas's Roar!

The younger Kirgas let out a thunderous roar. It was utterly different from the frail, elderly version that could barely move.

My head spun for a second. My balance collapsed and all strength drained from my body. It only lasted a moment, but I instantly recognized it as the status effect called Helplessness.

At the same time, a message I'd never seen before—but one that felt strangely familiar—floated into view.

Normally I would've wondered why it suddenly appeared, but right now I understood it on instinct.

It was because of the thing standing in front of me. Unlike everyone else I'd met so far, this Kirgas was radiating clear killing intent and actively trying to kill me.

I knew exactly when that message popped up.

When the character entered a 'combat' state.

Boss monsters like Kirgas usually carried at least one debuff like Helplessness, so those messages appeared pretty often in the game.

The fact that it had triggered for me now meant I'd officially entered combat.

This is dangerous…

I drew my machete at once and braced for Kirgas's attack.

The elderly Kirgas from the game had definitely used Helplessness too. But back then my Calmness level had been high enough to resist it easily…

"To think I'd make a mistake like this."

The dungeon itself hadn't changed much, so I hadn't factored in Kirgas's improved condition. It didn't make sense for it to be this much stronger when the time gap was only half a year.

Anyway, it was a miscalculation on multiple levels.

But this wasn't the time to dwell on it.

Grrrrrr.

Kirgas didn't rush in recklessly. It seemed to know I hadn't been affected by the debuff and was probably measuring my rank and strength.

Once it confirmed my rank was lower than expected and that it could hunt ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠me with that body, it would finally make its move.

And it wouldn't take long for that conviction to form.

I'll strike first.

The moment I made the call, I began chanting. Since Kirgas wasn't charging yet, I didn't need to move, which let me cast at full speed.

Crackle.

Lightning gathered in my grip. The wild bolts that looked ready to tear anything apart—I condensed every last one into the shape of a spear.

"Hup!"

Once the spear was complete, I reinforced my body with mana and hurled it with everything I had.

Mages usually launched it from a distance using formulas, but with my body developed to a certain level, that didn't matter. Throwing it myself was both faster and more powerful.

Boom—!

The Lightning Spear slammed straight into the face of the motionless Kirgas. A deafening explosion rang out as thick smoke blanketed the area.

I waited for the smoke to clear, figuring it must have left at least some wounds, but—

Kwoooaaar!

I saw its claws burst through the smoke and immediately rolled sideways. Then I checked its condition.

There was a gash on its face. It wasn't small, but the way its face flushed red and purple made it look far more furious than injured.

"No regeneration?"

If it had regeneration, the wound from the Lightning Spear should've already healed.

But Kirgas wasn't recovering the injury on its forehead. Blood kept dripping steadily from the gash.

So it was safe to assume it had no regenerative ability.

"Still, better safe than sorry."

I approached with lightning coiled around my hand. The thought had occurred to me while throwing the spear earlier—did I really need to chant and use magic from range?

Couldn't I modify it for close quarters and just rush in to slam it directly into the enemy?

I'd lose the mage's greatest advantage of distance, but mixing in the right timing should make it work.

Krrang!

As I closed in, Kirgas swung its razor-sharp claws at my face like it'd been waiting for the chance.

Those claws were as big as my torso, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠yet insanely fast.

Bang!

I dodged the claw and dropped low, driving a mana-reinforced fist into its abdomen. Its body was incredibly tough, but the combination of my strengthened muscles and lightning still dealt damage.

"Huu…"

When I gave it another taste of electricity, it roared wildly in response. I backed off while it rampaged and took a moment to catch my breath.

If I hadn't received and consumed that elixir from the dean, this would've been dangerous. Though if I hadn't gotten the elixir, I wouldn't have come to this dungeon in the first place.

After steadying myself, I closed in on Kirgas again.

I'd shown it nothing but lightning so far, so I mixed in some fire attacks and occasionally hurled lightning spears from a distance. Its wounds gradually tore wider. Boom. Boooom! Baaaaang!

"Haah… haah…"

Yeah, no regeneration after all.

That was my conclusion after landing a few more hits. Despite being younger, Kirgas's subjugation difficulty wasn't that high.

Its attack resistance and overall lifespan had increased dramatically compared to before, but dodging its strikes was surprisingly manageable.

The patterns it showed were ones I'd cleared dozens or hundreds of times. I knew them so well I could dodge with my eyes closed.

All that had changed was a slight increase in power and speed.

Even so, it wasn't easy to evade.

"Fucking fast!"

I cursed under my breath while my feet moved frantically.

The Eye of the Transcendent was already pushed to its absolute limit. My legs trembled violently, and the arm holding the machete wasn't much better.

Mana ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wasn't critically low thanks to the blessing, but I could feel the ambient mana in the air steadily dissipating.

It was all Kirgas's fault. The demonic energy it emitted was erasing the mana around it. No matter how blessed I was, if there was no mana left to draw from, I couldn't pull any more.

Clang!

"Ugh!"

My machete arm suddenly dropped. It didn't feel like simple exhaustion. The constant throbbing suggested it was either cracked or broken.

Either way, it was bad news. I slowly circled Kirgas.

It had taken considerable damage too. With no regeneration and me pouring every ounce of mana into my attacks, its tough hide had been breached long ago.

Blood poured from its wounds, one leg was ruined, and one of its eyes was completely gone. Its vision had to be compromised.

Even so, I was the one in real danger.

I hadn't taken a single direct hit from Kirgas yet and still ended up this damaged. If I ate one solid blow, it would be fatal.

That meant I had to keep pouring on the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠damage while dodging every single one of its attacks—just like before.

Can I pull this off?

I asked myself the question, then immediately shook my head.

It's not "can I," it's "I have to."

What I needed now wasn't doubt but certainty. Certainty that I could do this. Certainty that I could defeat Kirgas and obtain the holy water.

...And the certainty that I could save Tana.

With all those convictions burning inside me, I stepped forward.

Kirgas stood before me. It didn't charge recklessly either. With so many wounds, it was being cautious. We both hunted for an opening.

Tap!

I moved first. Using the Eye of the Transcendent to its extreme limit, I caught the gap Kirgas had exposed while enduring the pain of its injuries.

The joint connecting its abdomen to its front leg. I instantly chanted and launched a Lightning Spear straight at that spot.

Kwoooaaar!

Kirgas roared in agony. After confirming the heavy damage, I paused briefly and quickly began chanting the next spell.

Now's my chance…!

That was when its tail whipped around from behind, aiming for my abdomen.

Shweeeeeeek!

The sound of it slicing through the air was vicious. I started to raise my machete but stopped, choosing to leap upward instead.

The machete was in bad shape. If it broke before I could use it for the finishing blow, the fight would become far more difficult.

Grrrr.

But Kirgas had predicted I'd jump to avoid the tail. Its claws were already targeting me mid-air.

There was nothing to grab onto and no ground to stand on. In clear open air, I had only one option left—to counter the attack directly.

I have to sacrifice one of my limbs.

I had no confidence I'd survive that hit unscathed. So I chose which part to give up.

I rapidly channeled shield, body reinforcement, and concentrated mana into my left arm—the one that couldn't hold the machete—and raised it high.

Boom! Thud.

An explosion erupted.

The recoil slammed me hard into the ground.

"Keuk!"

Blood spilled from my mouth. It felt like my organs were being wrung out. But the real problem was my left arm that had taken the hit head-on.

It was unusable. Mangled and completely unresponsive.

The messages went wild as if they knew how bad my condition was. I frowned and swiped them away.

They were interfering with the fight.

"This fucking hurts."

I spat out the blood pooling in my mouth and stood up. Even with Calmness, composure, and patience, the pain didn't fade easily.

But the plan had worked.

Through the thick smoke, I saw Kirgas twitching violently, trapped inside a lightning net.

The lightning spell I'd driven directly into its body at the cost of my left arm.

Lightning Net.

I'd originally planned to land it before the tail swing. But Kirgas had used its claws too, pulling a pincer maneuver that delayed the timing.

Fortunately, that delay turned out to be a blessing. Like most spells, Lightning Net performed better with a clean, refined formula than a sloppy one.

I'd kept modifying the formula while dodging its attacks, which let me extend the duration a little.

Probably around four seconds now.

No time to catch my breath. I got into position as fast as I could. A stance that looked ready to explode forward at any moment.

A kind of ultimate technique that could only be used by combining magic, swordsmanship, and exceptional eyes.

Kwoooaaar—!

Kirgas thrashed wildly, trying to break free from the Lightning Net. Cracking sounds filled the air as the net began to tear apart.

"I'll kill you now, so shut the hell up."

I gathered every drop of mana inside the dungeon and every bit stored in my body. I accepted the mana flooding my system purely as reinforcement and cast a spell to add explosive propulsion.

Crackle. Whoosh.

Lightning sparked around me. Flames bloomed along the blade. Once the formula was complete and I saw Kirgas breaking free from the net, I took a light step forward.

A single line of light flashed.

The monster's head flew into the air.

The beast Kirgas died without even realizing it was dead.

"Haa…"

After confirming its death, I finally let out the breath I'd been holding the entire fight.

But my condition was rapidly deteriorating. The damage from the battle with Kirgas had already been severe, and now the side effects of One Flash were piling on top.

The noisy messages kept hammering at my ears. But even those sounds gradually grew distant as my vision blurred.

I knew I shouldn't close my eyes, yet they kept drifting shut…

And so I slowly closed them. The last thing I saw was a golden aura standing before me.

Clink.