Chapter 71
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Old Woman (6)
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Like a pupa emerging from its chrysalis, cracks spiderwebbed across the white aura enveloping Bishop Elias.
Crack...
A sound like splitting energy echoed, and something revealed itself from within.
"......"
Servant of the Foreign God...
A slender body stretching three meters tall.
A pure white robe, like that of a priest, draped over its elongated form.
Yet, making a mockery of that pristine white, a dark purple aura oozed around it.
The thing that had once been Bishop Elias floated lowly in the air, gazing down at Jun.
Among players of the game <Blackout>, it was called an "Otherworldly Spawn"—a monster that should only appear in high-level content.
And yet, this thing had descended on just the third floor.
"What a insane game."
An absurd imbalance with nowhere to complain.
But as Jun stared at it, his eyebrow twitched.
"Wait a sec, you."
However, the charm of <Blackout> lay precisely in how even such absurdity was balanced somehow.
"An unfinished product?"
Jun instinctively realized this being wasn't fully formed.
There had to be a reason for that.
And he quickly figured it out.
"Ah."
The sacrificial offering, Bishop Elias.
He had been half-melted by Jun's <Flare>.
In other words, since the ritual's offering wasn't in perfect condition, the Otherworldly Spawn was incomplete as well.
At that moment, the spawn shifted its gaze to Jun.
[Embrace the Great Cataclysm.]
It seemed to speak, but no sound reached his ears.
As if an uninvited being had dared to open its mouth.
Yet Jun instinctively understood what it said.
His mind decoded it not as sound, but as words.
"Bullshit cataclysm."
Jun immediately surged his mana.
[Fireball]
Mana surges forth, forming a blazing orb in midair.
Whoosh!
No sooner had the fireball taken shape than it rocketed toward the Otherworldly Spawn.
The creature, wielding a sword as tall as itself, swung its arm.
Bang!
The fireball shattered and fizzled in an instant, leaving the spawn unscathed, as expected.
But Jun let out a sigh of relief instead.
"Yeah, definitely unfinished."
It hadn't used the technique it should have by rights—instead blocking with its sword.
That alone satisfied him.
"Golem. Time for you to step up."
Humm!
The golem guarding Jun's side slammed its fists together, steeling itself.
The golem and the Otherworldly Spawn moved at once.
Kicking off the blackened, polluted water with rough force, the golem hurled its massive fist at the spawn.
The spawn, floating through the air, dodged the punch with fluid, water-like grace.
What the golem had overlooked was that, low as it floated, the spawn was still airborne.
Humm—?!
Brushing past the golem entirely, the Otherworldly Spawn shot straight toward Jun.
[Foolish fool!]
Watching from above, the ominous old hag mocked Jun from the sky.
Sending the golem first had been a blunder from the start. She'd removed her only shield without even knowing the enemy's capabilities.
Jun knew that full well.
'Dodging by running won't work.'
Even setting aside the ominous old hag's spells [Physical Exhaustion] and <Drought>, there was no escaping an enemy that fast.
Of course, the old Jun might have tried.
Whoosh—!
The three-meter blade swept from below upward. Just as it was about to cleave Jun in two.
[Burning Step]
Jun's form flickers away, leaving a trail of flames in his wake.
Jun's figure faded, flames lingering as an afterimage where he'd stood.
The fiery path shimmered unstably over the black water. Following it led behind the Otherworldly Spawn.
[Flare]
Solar energy blasts from his fingertip at point-blank range.
From right behind, he aimed with his finger and unleashed a mass of solar power.
Fired in haste, it lacked proper imagery.
But it brimmed with mana from fully unleashed incantation binding.
[......!]
The spawn whirled around to block, but it was too slow.
The <Flare> pierced straight through its body.
The blast flew far off before vanishing without a trace, and Jun faced the spawn as it turned toward him.
He'd aimed for the heart, but it twisted at the last moment, taking the hit on its shoulder instead.
'That should be enough in most cases.'
But the Otherworldly Spawn was no ordinary foe.
It glanced once at its melting shoulder, then raised its free hand—the one not holding the sword.
In it dangled a bell the size of a human head.
Ding—
No sooner had the bell tolled than the dark purple aura erupting from its body blasted out, purging the lingering mana from the <Flare>.
"......Yeah, not easy after all."
Aim for the heart. It had to be a one-shot kill.
'Thanks to [Burning Step], I finally got the mobility I've always wanted.'
But the spawn wouldn't just let that slide.
As it rang the bell again, calamity struck.
The previously erupting purple aura now spread like ripples across water, blanketing the area.
Jun felt his breath catch.
The [Burning Step] effect under his feet fizzled out.
It was the aftermath of the ambient mana destabilizing chaotically.
[Did you think parlor tricks would work before an Other God's aura?!]
No time to panic—the ominous old hag watching from the sky cackled again.
The Otherworldly Spawn was a high-level content boss.
It had tricky patterns to match, and this was one: mana destabilization.
As the name implied, it spread its aura to disrupt mana flow at will.
A mage's worst nightmare—forcing a spell now would cause mana backlash and self-destruction.
[Embrace the Great Cataclysm.]
Frozen in place, the spawn charged at Jun—like a mounted knight in a lance charge, sword thrust forward.
With [Physical Exhaustion] and <Drought> sapping him, even lifting his legs was a struggle.
Just as the blade aimed for his gut.
Vrrrooom—!
The golem barreled in from the side, smashing its fist into the flat of the blade.
Twisting its body, it followed with the opposite fist to the spawn's head.
Thwack—!
A solid hit.
If it'd been human, every bone in its body would've shattered.
Yet.
[Embrace the Great Cataclysm.]
The spawn righted itself and swung its sword at the golem's head.
The golem swiftly retracted its fists and crossed its arms in guard.
Scraaaape—!
The blade bit deep into its fists.
But it didn't fully shatter them.
Had the spawn been complete, it would've sliced through the golem and bisected Jun behind it.
Humm—!
Arms pinned by the sword, the golem still moved.
It yanked its arms back and kicked out with its massive leg, sending the spawn flying backward.
The spawn tumbled, slowing in midair before righting itself.
"Damn physical immunity."
He'd hoped its incomplete state meant no physical resistance.
But that ability was fully formed.
To counter it required at least aura or holy power.
'If I had Spirit Extinguishing Dew...'
It would've been far more effective, but it couldn't be used in this spiritual realm, the Realm of Dying Woods.
A true dead end.
[Kirrrrk!]
The ominous old hag's grating laughter filled the space as she watched from above.
At that moment.
"Hoo."
Jun dropped his arms.
[Giving up already? Kirrrk!]
The hag cackled again at the sight.
Finally, she'd eliminated the worrisome variable.
But that was merely her wishful thinking.
[Kiruk?]
When Jun lifted his lowered head.
Faint irritation and steely resolve gleamed in his eyes.
"Golem. Protect me, no matter what it takes."
Humm—!
The golem slammed its fists together—bang bang!—in response to his resolute voice.
Jun's mana had long since repaired its arms.
"Haa."
Focus.
Truth be told, he'd been neglecting [Demon God Body] lately.
He had to admit it.
If he made excuses, it was because he'd been too busy.
Who had learned new spells and mastered them? Surely not some ancestor handing them over.
No way.
Jun had done it himself.
Without even a mentor to guide him—he'd researched alone.
Fail, and die.
In that kind of world, he'd thrown himself into magic research.
And that was just the start.
In his spare time—if you could call it that—he'd trained his body, and squeezed out moments to plan with Cloi.
Every day was packed. Twenty-four hours felt half as long as it should.
Reaching five circles and cutting sleep eased the strain, but it only bought a few extra hours.
'No room to tend to [Demon God Body] amid all that.'
Or, to be brutally honest.
Releasing incantation binding's influence had been his sole focus; he'd assumed the rest would handle itself.
And indeed, dialing back the binding massively boosted his mana pool and made control smoother.
But [Demon God Body] wasn't some skill you used for measly gains like that.
'Looking back now.'
In the Black Forest, with just 13% released, he'd threatened the Fairy Queen.
And now, with far more unlocked, could he land a threatening blow on this thing?
Of course. With full focus.
But wasn't that ridiculous?
'Threatening it is the best I can do?'
No.
[Demon God Body]'s limits didn't end there.
Jun simply hadn't honed the skill.
Skills don't grow on their own just because you acquire them. No such convenience exists.
If it did, why had Aiden hammered away at <Charge> against walls to raise its proficiency?
'Unbelievable. I explained it to Aiden myself, and here I am stumped by proficiency issues.'
Until now, he'd excused it as being too busy.
That regret hit late.
No matter how packed his schedule, [Demon God Body] was his foundation.
"Hoo......"
Regret's always too late, no matter how soon it comes.
Jun shook off the bitterness.
Instead of dwelling, he sought what he could do now.
He shifted his gaze.
Staring into empty air, but his eyes locked on a clear target.
Mana.
Behold it.
Shaking unstably despite their master standing right there.
If [Demon God Body] had emotions.
"Heh."
It would've scoffed just like Jun did now.
"Who the hell gave you permission to disrupt my mana?"
The mana belonged to its master.
Demon God Body.
The master was mana, and mana was him.
Thus, if the Other God's aura shook his mana.
Then he should be shaken too.
But Jun was fine.
Weren't the five rings in his heart still spinning fiercely?
Then.
"You can't shake like that either."
He needed to discipline his mana.
Just as armies need commanders.
His mana needed reminding of its master.
But at his current level, impossible.
Lack of skill proficiency blocked it.
Yet Jun sensed instinctively.
It wasn't [Demon God Body] at its limit.
He was.
Then shatter that limit.
[Word Binding: Lowering the influence of 'Odyssey of the Lazy Pilgrim' by 30%.]