Chapter 376: Floor War (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 376: Floor War (1)
The Holy Grail of the Antichrist.
It was the medium that allowed the avatar of 'Guntaper' to manifest on the 20th floor, as well as a sacred relic that symbolically supported the spiritual foundation of the cult.
'As expected, they kept it in this room.'
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
No matter if he had signed a contract of subjugation with Guntaper, Sloth was still Sloth.
The characteristic laziness seeped deep into his bones wasn't going anywhere.
'Even if he's putting on a fake act, things like where he stores items and his basic behavioral patterns are easy to predict.'
Therefore, he already knew that the Holy Grail would be in this room.
There was just one problem...
As a sacred relic cherished by the cult, it protected itself with a vicious poison.
"Ouch."
Teresa, who had been reaching for the sacred relic, recoiled in surprise and stepped back.
She had enveloped her entire body in the 'Blessing of the Stars', but it was useless.
The deadly poison was merciless to those who did not have Guntaper's protection.
"It's like sour grapes on the other side of the wall. If even Teresa can't get it, it's impossible for me too."
Cheon Yu-seong clicked his tongue.
He didn't forget to add one more thing.
"Unless, of course, someone has a clever trick up their sleeve."
"Ahem! I guess it's my turn to step up."
Jinhyuk cracked his knuckles and stepped forward.
[The sacred relic 'Holy Grail of the Antichrist' is currently under the curse 'Demon World's Winter Rain'.]
In terms of barriers, it was a curse equivalent to an 11-star rank.
Naturally, neither Teresa nor Cheon Yu-seong could even dream of touching it.
But.
'It's simple once you know the solution.'
Normally, due to the nature of curses, people would try to counter them with divine power or healing-type abilities.
It was only natural.
Opposing attributes always guaranteed maximum effectiveness.
'The problem is, that's usually the biggest mistake people make.'
Jinhyuk gathered his mana once again.
There were three specific points where the deadly poison was most densely concentrated.
And the fact that the Holy Grail was originally made of wood by a carpenter.
With these two clues, he could deduce the correct answer.
Hummmmm!
'Primordial Flame' and 'Heaven-Destroying Myriad Poisons' were activated simultaneously.
He heated the wood that formed the frame of the Holy Grail to create cracks, then injected a new kind of poison to make the existing toxins run even wilder.
Crackle! Crack-crack...le!
"Kieeeee!"
A scream, sounding like a beast howling, echoed from the Holy Grail of the Antichrist.
And at that exact moment.
Boom, boom, boom!
The deadly poison surrounding the Holy Grail dispersed in an instant.
[All poison has been purified!]
Nice.
With this, one of his goals for coming here was accomplished.
Outside, Tarachen and the Black Hill Tribe should be buying time.
Now, he just had to finish one last task.
* * *
Crash!
Boom!
"Kill them all! God desires the death of these inferior races!"
"Drive out those foolish humans once and for all! This land belongs to us Orcs!"
With deafening roars, countless fanatics and Orcs tangled together in one place.
A bloody battle where not a single step forward could be predicted.
The battle, which had already been raging for hours, was reaching its climax.
Although the fanatics, who rushed in like a tidal wave without distinguishing friend from foe, were overwhelming in numbers, the Orcs countered them with their superior individual combat prowess.
In particular, Tarachen displayed such immense martial prowess that he could push back even five Death Knights at once.
Swoosh!
The bodies of the Death Knights were shredded to pieces and vanished under the sword wind that swept across the earth.
"To suffer such humiliation from a mere Orc..."
Pelamon, the commander in charge of the cult's forces, grit his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.
The front line was constantly being pushed back.
He was furious, but at his current level, he stood no chance.
At least, not unless the Cult Leader came in person...
It was just as he was thinking this.
"Foolish creatures!"
From the center of the temple, an unimaginably dense gray fog surged.
Whoosh!
It wasn't fire.
The skin of those it touched didn't burn.
Instead, its power to slow down the time of anyone it contacted was utterly despair-inducing.
"Ugh... wha... t?"
"Chwee...eeek!?"
Slowed movements.
The hand swinging the glaive. The senses reacting to the enemy's attacks.
Everything was different from before.
Time had stretched to nearly three times its normal length.
Thud! Stab! Thwack!
The sluggish movements were fatal.
"Argh... hhh!"
"Groooar!"
The Orcs began to collapse in an instant.
The Orcs who entered within a 10-meter radius of Sloth had their time completely dominated, helplessly losing their lives to the fanatics.
"To think such an absurd ability exists..."
"Ch-chweek. He's a monster."
The elite guard Orcs gasped in shock.
Since they had never engaged in an all-out war with the Cult of Specters before, they didn't know just how much power their Cult Leader, Sloth, possessed.
No, to be precise...
They believed that even if the opponent was strong, Tarachen could easily defeat him.
But looking at the scene unfolding before their eyes, who could possibly predict Tarachen's victory?
The bizarre ability that defied common sense was more than enough to crush the morale of the proud Orcs.
"Insignificant worms... you dare step forward without knowing your place. I will make you regret setting foot on our land."
Sloth gripped his staff.
[The Seven Deadly Sins 'Sloth' activates the unique ability 'Slothful Steps'!]
Within the distorted space.
Simply walking forward served as both the ultimate defense and attack.
"Die... eeee!"
The spear swung by an elite guard Orc warrior slowed down to a crawl.
"Foolish bastard."
Sloth injected mana into his staff as if it were a chore.
Crumble...!
The incoming spear turned directly into dust and vanished.
Furthermore, due to 'Contagion', the second effect of 'Slothful Steps', the body of the attacking Orc began to turn to stone.
Crack... crack.
It took less than three seconds for the elite guard Orc to become a stone statue.
At this rate, no matter how many of them swarmed him, it would be meaningless.
In the end.
"Everyone, step back. I will handle this."
Tarachen moved.
"Chweek! Chief! You mustn't! Fighting a monster like that is too dangerous!"
"If something happens to the Chief, our entire tribe will be in danger. We will hold them off here, so escape while you can!"
The Orcs tried to hold Tarachen back.
Losing Tarachen, the core of the tribe, would be far more painful than losing thousands of Orcs here.
"I cannot retreat here. If we give up like this, we will never be able to defeat them!"
He felt a fear that penetrated deep into his bones.
If they couldn't overcome this trauma, it would forever remain a moth eating away at the minds of the Black Hill Tribe.
Hummmmm!
A green energy surged along his glaive.
...Piercing through that cursed energy.
He would plunge his blade into the enemy's heart.
Boom!
With that single-minded determination, Tarachen threw himself forward.
[Tarachen activates Lv.22 'The Liberated One'!]
A skill that granted immunity to all status ailments.
Resisting Sloth's authority, Tarachen leaped high into the air.
"Groooar!"
From above...
...to below!
The glaive plunged down vertically.
Both power and speed were sufficient.
However.
That was all.
"Ho. You're the leader, after all. Quite decent. A bit better than the others."
The glaive, stopped in midair, trembled violently.
"Ugh... ugh... Arghhhhh!"
"No matter how hard you try, you won't be able to move. And by the way... slicing an enemy's throat... is done like this."
Sloth's finger sliced through the air.
Or rather, it was about to.
"If you're thinking of taking our friend's head, you'd better stop right there."
A new voice cut into the chaotic battlefield.
* * *
At the entrance of the temple, Jinhyuk smiled brightly.
"You are..."
Sloth's eyes narrowed.
"The name's Kang Jinhyuk. I wanted to greet you a bit earlier, but I had quite a few things to take care of."
"Kang Jinhyuk... Yes. You are that bastard."
Sloth's attention shifted from Tarachen to Jinhyuk.
"You know me?"
"Of course. How could I not know the human that He is gnashing his teeth over? Besides, you even snatched away the Saintess we had practically secured, so every believer in our cult knows of you."
In short, he was a celebrity.
"I'm honored. To think I've become an idol to fanatics. Right? He says I'm famous."
"I think he meant psycho, not idol."
"Yu-seong... even so, saying what you're thinking right to his face is a bit..."
Cheon Yu-seong and Teresa each chimed in.
"Hmph. I see. You brought along a few weak companions. So, what do you plan to do with just the three of you? Surely you don't think you can defeat me in a fight?"
"I have no intention of fighting you one-on-one. Your ability is quite troublesome."
'Slothful Steps' was a flawless unique ability in and of itself.
While there were ways to counter it, it boasted absolute invincibility, at least within the temple of the Cult of Specters.
Yes, it was the ultimate ability.
Except for one thing.
Unless there was a way to seal that ability from the very beginning.
Jinhyuk pulled a familiar object from his breast pocket.
"I wonder if you recognize this? I took quite a liking to it, so I picked it up."
The Holy Grail of the Antichrist.
The most important sacred relic supporting the Cult of Specters revealed itself.
"............!!!"
Sloth was so shocked he almost bit his tongue.
The scene unfolding before him was shocking enough to completely banish the deep-seated lethargy and annoyance that usually plagued him.
When they had emerged from the temple, he had harbored a faint suspicion, but...
...to think it was all to obtain the Holy Grail.
"Answer me! How, just how... did you know our cult's sacred relic was kept here?!"
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't comprehend it.
How could a mere Player obtain information known only to the cult's believers?
Furthermore, it was hard to believe that he was holding the Holy Grail, which was protected by Guntaper's poison, completely unscathed.
'Even the Saintess wouldn't dare attempt this.'
Unless an Archangel-class entity from 'Eden' had moved personally, it was a realm impossible to reach with simple divine power.
"I know you have a lot of questions, but isn't that the least of your worries right now?"
Jinhyuk casually raised the Holy Grail to head height.
And then.
Drop.
The Holy Grail began to free-fall through the air.
"N-No!"
Fortunately, Sloth's scream didn't last long.
Just before it hit the ground, Jinhyuk used Glacial Shaping to catch the Holy Grail safely.
"Oops. This is a bit heavier than it looks."
"Pant... gasp... pant..."
"C-Cult Leader! Our sacred relic...!"
"How dare that wicked heretic! What on earth is he doing?!"
"Stop! Stop it!"
"Aaaargh! Oh, Demon God!"
The fanatics, who had been passionately fighting the Orcs, wailed.
Seeing them shed tears and snot while trembling from head to toe somehow made his peripheral nerves tingle with excitement.
'How thrilling.'
As expected, there was nothing more exciting than trampling on what others cherished most.
Jinhyuk hummed a tune, slipping his finger through the ring of the Holy Grail and spinning it around.
"You... you absolute saint of a bastard! That sacred relic is old and fragile! If you spin it like that...!"
Crack.
One of the red ornaments embedded in the Holy Grail shattered, unable to withstand the impact.
"Ah... Sorry."
He hadn't intended to go this far, but it ended up getting a little broken.