Chapter 67
Chapter 67
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Rakiya Bells #3
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Our hearts connect.
Boss mob and Hunter.
The boundary line that should never touch had blurred away due to an absurd ability.
The twisted tree spirit reigning as the boss monster of the 8th floor, Niderroot, knew Do-yoon.
She was one of the lucky ones.
💬 Boss Mob Gallery — [Where's the newbie at right now?] [Seriously, who wins between a newbie and an upper-floor Hunter hit with a penalty?] [Real-time newbie meme.jpg] [Upvote if you think Wine Juice should be Tower Lord lololol] The Gallery.
A sanctuary for the lost souls trapped in the Tower, soaked with all sorts of curiosity and malice.
For Niderroot, who was forced into hibernation until Hunters arrived, the Gallery was no different from an oxygen tank.
'Ah.'
She was a Gallery user.
That's why she knew all about Do-yoon's existence.
'You're coming this way.'
For a moment, a warm emotion colored her heart.
Do-yoon was a human who stood out distinctly even among Hunters.
He had the authority to converse with boss mobs in their intact states and was practically the only one who could absolve their sins.
📰 So the 8th floor boss mob is here? — Looks like the 6th and 7th floor boss mobs weren't around — Not sure about the Gallery entry criteria, it's confusing ↳ Reply — That's entirely up to the Tower Lord's whim lol — OP) So the newbie got kidnapped by the Tower Lord? — Probably from the circumstances — Is that bastard Tower Lord plotting some weird scheme alone? Is this for real lololol — Paper Enthusiast*) I wanna ask too — The armbands have the most piled up lolololol — True, aren't they basically the eldest? — Tower Lord after all 📰 Found the boss we were looking for (Cute tree spirit emoticon) — Did everyone come looking for me? I'm the tree spirit currently staying on the 8th floor with the sprout class kids I'm so excited to meet Newbie! What kind of conversation can we have? What kind of world does Newbie see? — F*ck I'm jealous — How dare a lower-floor boss brat see the newbie before us mid-to-upper floor seniors? — OP) Boss life isn't about grades — Polite but rude af — What does that mean? — Sprout class kids = twisted evil tree spirits — Hey fact-check violence no no no The entire Gallery erupted in venom at the appearance of one boss mob.
The golden opportunity to escape this tedious, horrific cycle.
And the one who seized that dream-like chance was none other than an insignificant lower-floor boss mob.
📰 F*ck why does this feel weird? — It bothers me that the newbie's fighting another boss without me there Not sure when it started Something's off... — Is this that NTR thing trending among Hunters? ↳ Reply — Teacher, it's not just your taste? — Why is NTR trending f*ck — OP) (Screaming frog monster meme) — Also the 8th floor boss talks weird af lol — Fr lolololol writes like he's stealing someone's ex gf smh — Gonna post too hehe fire — ? 'You've arrived.'
And now.
She sensed the presence charging in with ferocious momentum, trampling her children.
She ignored the Hunter from the other dimension.
Her interest had been directed solely at one man from the start.
'Newbie.'
Even though they hadn't properly faced each other yet.
The twisted tree spirit 'Niderroot' welcomed his existence gladly.
#
A massive tree trunk surged up.
The colossal disaster wrought by the boss mob charged straight at Do-yoon.
-Crunch!
The enormous attack that tore through the surrounding forest.
Do-yoon, who had it in his sights up to that point, kicked off the ground.
-Boom!
An explosion erupted right in front of him.
Without time to react to the eardrum-shaking sensation, Do-yoon immediately sought a safe spot.
'Dodgable.'
Fortunately, it wasn't on an unavoidable scale.
Do-yoon climbed up a sturdy tree via Eira's chains and faced the boss mob head-on.
"Grraaah."
A massive face in the form of rotting wood.
Distorted in rage at the intruder's visit, it glared at Do-yoon atop the tree.
'Where to even start.'
Its enormous body size made it easy to hit, but conversely, its attack range was ridiculously vast.
The moment he pondered where to strike first.
In the end, the boss mob moved first again.
"Kraaaah!!"
"Not even giving time to think."
Feeling a bit miffed, Do-yoon moved his feet again.
-Crack!
The tree where he stood shattered.
Because the boss mob Niderroot had shot out a tree trunk.
He considered pulling back to a safe distance again, but—
"Eira."
Changing his mind, Do-yoon wrapped Eira's chains around the entirety of Niderroot's arm embedded in the tree.
"...!"
The tightly secured chains immediately pulled Do-yoon's body onto that massive trunk.
It was plenty wide enough to sprint freely, like a marathon track.
Thus.
Do-yoon decided to run atop it with the mindset of a track athlete.
"Kruk?!"
-Slash!
Drawing his curved sword and slamming it down, he kept running.
Deep sword scars began etching into the spots Do-yoon swiftly passed.
'Almost there.'
The end of the fixed chain.
The taut blood-red chains trembled, sending a signal.
"Oppa, now?!"
"Yeah. Launch me."
With Eira's eagerly expectant voice.
Do-yoon's body shot toward Niderroot once more.
Target: the ugly face.
'Just bash it and something'll come out.'
There must be a reason why only the face resembled a grotesque human while the rest mimicked a tree.
Thinking that, Do-yoon swung his curved sword at the boss mob's face, now mere inches away.
"Kraaaah!!"
Along with a scream of pain, purple sap splattered onto Do-yoon's cheek.
But to the monster, it was just a shallow cut.
Perhaps pissed at the blemish on its fine(?) face, the boss mob's visage twisted even more ferociously.
'Wow.'
Responding to the glaring massive face, Do-yoon quickly devised his next move.
After that, the game of tag-like battle continued.
Niderroot as the tagger, Do-yoon as the teaser.
However, in a situation where even one hit could jeopardize his life.
Then, the notification he'd been inwardly awaiting popped up in the corner of Do-yoon's vision.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Resonance with the target has succeeded. "Ah, ah. Can you hear me?"
A woman's soft, beautiful voice that didn't match the boss mob's appearance at all.
At that stark contrast, Do-yoon immediately looked up at Niderroot.
"What the hell's with that voice."
"A compliment right from the start. As expected, Newbie is a kind person."
Niderroot replied in that still-mismatched voice.
-Whoooosh!
Bonus: extending a deadly tree trunk.
"Talking and attacking at the same time? Where's that fair...!"
Do-yoon grumbled unfairly as he retreated to a safe distance.
"Sorry. The Tower's will stole control of my body. But I believe in you, Newbie. That you're the hero who'll free me from this prison."
"Hero too?!"
-Crunch!
So busy.
Talking and dodging attacks.
Do-yoon kept fighting as if he needed two bodies.
"Got a lot to ask, but I know my place. First, the weakness."
"Yes!"
At the awaited news, Do-yoon perked up and waited for the answer.
"There's a magic stone in the center of my forehead that regulates all mana circulation. Aiming there should make the fight easier."
"Helpful."
The boss mob's weakness he'd been waiting for.
And info straight from the boss mob itself—priceless in this situation.
Do-yoon, now briefed, targeted Niderroot's weakness.
Dodging the sluggish movements, he loaded up his curved sword and Eira's chains—
And aimed for the magic stone hidden in the forehead center.
"I want to talk more, but nothing's coming to mind yet."
"Too bad."
"My memories, where I was born and raised. Being trapped here, thoughts of what I used to be tormented me endlessly."
Twisted tree spirit, Niderroot.
How did she end up as a boss monster?
Even telling them the reason before locking them up would be merciful.
The absolute being called Tower Lord didn't grant boss mobs even a single piece of info.
Not even about themselves.
'Graduation.'
Do-yoon thought of that word.
Most boss mobs had lost not just memories, but their very identities.
Regaining that and leaving the Tower was their lifelong wish.
In other words, to get the Hidden Piece upon graduation, he needed to encourage this tree monster with the alluring voice.
"Nothing coming to mind?"
"Sadly, no."
Dodging the surging massive tree trunks, Do-yoon racked his brain.
How to make it a legendary graduation.
Having gotten nothing from 6th and 7th floors, Do-yoon was starting to crave a Hidden Piece.
"Think hard. You don't wanna start over here."
"Yes. Leaving the Tower is my lifelong wish."
"Then."
"Oh dear, the Hunter on the other side is desperately fighting me too. I can sense it through the Tower's mana."
"There's another you?"
"My existence spans multiple instances even in the same dimension. Probably due to spatial distortion."
'Dizzying.'
The other Hunter was most likely Rakiya Bells.
She was the only one left who could enter the boss room after him.
"Fighting desperately. It'll take time, but you'll definitely defeat me. I sense very strong energy."
Brushing off the other side's situation, Do-yoon dodged the boss mob's attack again.
Now it was really close.
A few strikes to Niderroot's forehead center had started revealing the deeply embedded massive magic stone.
'That.'
Niderroot's weakness.
'Just clear it?'
Regret welled up.
Finally resonating, hard to just let this chance slip.
As he pondered, Niderroot muttered a bit more.
"Strange. I sense odd mana from that Hunter."
"What."
"I can feel emotions in others' mana. Worry... worrying about whom? Affectionate, yet fearful, and hateful too. This... this..."
Muttering that, Niderroot suddenly flashed her eyes at Do-yoon.
"Ah, this familiar, nostalgic sensation. I remember. A fragment of memory."
"...?"
What the hell was happening in that other room.
At the sudden awakening news, Do-yoon was left dumbfounded.
"Anyway, memory surfaced?"
"Yes."
"Then we're good."
The important thing was the good news about meeting graduation conditions.