Chapter 148

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 148

Chapter Title: Frozen Ruins (2)

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Using the inventory's storage function for a surprise attack. Sure enough, my aim landed true—my sword dug into the bastard's chin and pierced clean through his helmet...

"Kuh!?"

Even with his helmet pierced by my sword, the knight didn't falter for a second. He bashed me away with his greatsword while maintaining his guard, then stepped forward half a pace and swung it in a massive horizontal arc.

In the end, I had no choice but to pull back my assault and kick off the ground to leap away again.

"Undead, huh? Never thought it'd keep moving fine even after I pierced its skull..."

".......La...w... break....."

Cold sweat trickled down my back inside, but I feigned composure and taunted the thing. At the same time, I ended the effect of [Limit Break].

'Fuck, that hurt like hell—been a while since it stung that bad.'

I'd landed one hit using [Limit Break] and inventory storage, but for revealing so many of my cards, the payoff was shit. The inventory trick? Already shown it once, so it probably won't work twice. And with my regeneration slowed by the cold, I gotta use [Limit Break] sparingly now.

I don't bother blocking pain with [Sensory Block]. No point wasting mana on that against an opponent this tough.

'Ideally, I'd avoid fighting altogether...'

With the brief breather I'd bought, I scanned the room interior that I'd missed amid the fight's chaos.

A massive hall that felt like five of the rooms we'd crossed combined. Shattered statues littered here and there... Whatever, not important—hurry up!

'Found it!'

Tucked in one corner of the room: stairs leading up. No other doors or stairs in sight, so those must be the way out.

The instant I spotted the stairs, I bolted sideways. You think I'm gonna brawl with that ominous freak? I'm getting the hell out right—

Another chill shot through me, and I instinctively twisted direction, kicking off the ground to leap sideways. A sinister slash radiating eerie energy grazed my ear and slammed straight into the stairs.

"What the fu—!"

"..You... can't..."

Looked smart, but it cut off my retreat? And before I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠could even think of a Plan B, the moment the stairs crumbled, the knight raised his greatsword and charged like a madman.

'Shit. [Sensory Block], [Hallucination Magic]!'

I activated my usual skills the second I saw it charging. And then...

"Ugh!"

I barely twisted my head aside to dodge the greatsword. Then I raised my longsword vertically and smashed it into his blade.

Sparks flew, the knight's greatsword wavered, creating a split-second opening. Did the skills work?

Nice. Then, just like this...

".....!!!"

The moment I tried to shove his greatsword aside and thrust my longsword in, the knight's helmet turned sideways, its glowing blue eyes locking straight onto me.

My instincts screamed instantly. Ignoring the agony in my arm as I swung my longsword, I forcibly twisted it back, recovered the blade, and leaped away.

And right then, arctic chill erupted from the knight's helmet.

"Grahhh!"

Cold. No—hot. The salamander scales embedded in my armor blazed as if resisting the assault, but they were snuffed out instantly. Like cryogenic gas, its breath spread ice from wherever it touched. In the blink of an eye, frost crept from my sword up my right arm, freezing it solid.

'If I'd retreated just a fraction slower, my whole body would've been encased!'

As I fell back, I yanked cold resistance potions, recovery potions—whatever—from my inventory. No time to uncork them, so I chomped the bottles whole.

'What kinda greatsword wielder just up and breaths frost like that.'

Ridiculous, but expecting common sense from a monster is pointless anyway. Confirming the potions kicking in, I glanced down at my frozen right arm.

'Lucky I jumped straight back—damage is light. Just surface frost.'

But if it hit dead-on... Yeah, that'd be bad news.

I ignited flames along my sword and pressed them to my arm, melting the ice the brute-force way. Thanks to the random potions I'd scarfed—cold resistance and holy water doing their job? Regeneration was picking up a bit compared to before.

'Does [Sensory Block] not work on this fucker either?'

When I'd triggered [Sensory Block] and [Hallucination Magic] together earlier, its greatsword had slowed for a moment, making me think the skills landed. But it immediately locked eyes and unleashed that frost breath, so I gotta assume they don't work.

"Think, damn it!"

I racked my brain for ways to deal with it, but the knight didn't wait, pressing the assault again.

'Nngh!'

Its greatsword exchanges were high-level, but maybe because my [Swordsmanship] had hit lv.6? I managed to parry and dodge somehow.

The problem was that frost breath from before. Every time its eyes fixed on me, I braced for another one, turning my movements passive. Gradually, I started getting pushed back.

'Think! How to drop it—or at least buy time!'

I desperately churned my brain. Options flashed and vanished in my mind. Then, amid the fight, a corner of the room caught my eye: debris from the door I'd smashed earlier, the entrance all tattered from the knight's slashes.

'There!'

Eyes gleaming, I triggered [Limit Break] and shoved its greatsword aside. We'd repeated this dance several times now; the knight smoothly flowed with my force. But this time, something extra.

"Ptooey!"

The mouthful of blood pooled from crunching potion bottles—my mouth a wreck—I spat it out. Crimson sprayed onto its gauntlet, which greedily sucked it up with an ominous hiss.

"....U...g.."

With even more power than before, I smashed its greatsword. Unable to withstand, the knight staggered back. Instead of pressing, I retreated toward the entrance I'd come from.

"...Sto...p!"

The knight quickly regained its footing and pursued with terrifying momentum. To evade its relentless slashes, I boosted [Intuition] with [Sensory Amplification].

Mana surged, wrecking the corridor. Thanks to enhanced [Intuition], I barely dodged. Eyes darting frantically, I hunted for the spot I'd eyed earlier.

'Where is it! Where!'

'There!'

The skill triggered; eyes flashing, I dove that way. Glancing back, I gauged the distance between us.

'Now!'

As the knight closed in, I channeled mana into my legs for max speed and surged forward—the same moment it swung its greatsword down at me, its foot hit the protruding stone on the floor.

"Grahhh!"

Instantly, horrific chill flooded in as ice spears erupted, pummeling the knight's body. It hastily raised its greatsword to block, but I'd tested this trap with my own flesh earlier.

A trap that dealt lethal damage even to me with all my resistances. No way it walks away unscathed.

"Raaahhh!"

I poured every ounce of strength and will into my blade's tip. No turning back now. Ice chunks on my arm shattered with the vibration; overworked muscles beyond their limit screamed, exhaling white vapor.

I thrust the longsword, infused with violent might, straight at the knight.

The blade shattered every ice spear in its path and closed in on the knight. It desperately tried to defend with its greatsword, but parts of its armor were frozen, arm stuck.

So it chose another way.

"...!!!"

Chill more horrifying than the trap's erupted, spreading with intent to freeze everything. Ignoring defense, pure will to encase me in ice—frigid energy lashed toward me.

That instant, [High-Speed Thought] activated. My thoughts accelerated; the incoming frost breath, erupting ice spears from the trap, my advancing sword—all unfolded in slow motion.

'Too slow!'

In my hyper-accelerated mind, I instinctively knew: its radial breath would hit me before my sword reached it.

'Trust resistances and charge? Nah, that power earlier? No chance. Mana shield? Limited. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Dodge with footwork? Omnidirectional—impossible.'

Dozens of countermeasures flashed and faded. All blocks or dodges. None perfect. So the path I chose...

"Raaahhh!"

"...Grk?!"

Instead of retreating, I ramped up my sword's momentum. While [High-Speed Thought] held, countless options blanked out, leaving one pure will infused in my blade.

'Slash.'

I don't know why I judged it so. Just survival instinct stripping distractions, honing to pure 'slash' intent in my thrust.

A ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠slash honed razor-sharp by mortal peril. And that slash...

"......Kha?!"

...tore through the oncoming frost storm and struck the knight.

The icy torrent halted. Even slashed apart, unignorable chill settled on my body.

"Sh-sh-shiver!!"

Teeth chattering, I kept eyes locked on the scene my slash wrought.

The armor, shredded by frost breath and trap aftershocks alike, lay in tatters.

".....Thi...s... ba...stard...!"

"!!!!!"

Still not enough. The front of the armor was rags, exposing hollow inside—but even so, the knight shattered its body's ice and lurched toward me.

"Ku....gh!"

I tried steadying for counter, but post-slash exhaustion hit hard—not just physical or mana, but like my very spirit was drained.

'Fucked...!'

As the rag-doll knight surged, through a gap in its shattered armor, I glimpsed something.

'....Paper?'

My slash should've reached inside the armor, yet untouched amid the frenzy: a crumpled sheaf like torn from a book, nestled within.

And the thick chill and deathly aura permeating the knight? Emanating straight from that paper wad.

"Fuck it. All or nothing!"

[Ring of Nine Lives]

"....!@!@#$!"

Squeezing out my last scraps of mana, I poured it into the [Ring of Nine Lives], erecting a barrier. An [Magic lv.8]-grade shield bloomed, halting the knight's hefty greatsword.

Not that it'd last—maybe a few seconds. Not enough to turn the tide.

"Huuuup!"

So, fuck it—come what may,

I ripped the paper wad from the knight's armor.