Chapter 378: Floor War (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 378: Floor War (3)
The plan was perfect.
He had designed it to make his opponent believe they had the upper hand, letting them grow absolutely certain of their victory before turning the tables on them completely.
Just thinking of watching Jinhyuk slowly crumble as his rear guard was reduced to a wasteland had made his heart race with anticipation.
But.
That hope shattered into pieces at this very moment.
"To think... he possessed such a powerful force?"
It was unbelievable.
The forces defending the Citadel of Giants were not lagging behind the massive factions of the 20th floor in the slightest.
On top of that, there were mythical beasts, divine beasts, and even dragons.
High-ranking races equivalent to the boss monsters of various labyrinths and ruins were swarming the area.
"Kyaooo!"
As Goguma unleashed his Breath, a beam of white light pierced through the air.
It was firepower beyond imagination.
Just because he was a small hatchling didn't mean he could be underestimated.
"Aaargh!"
"D-dodge!"
The gathered angels hurriedly channeled their mana.
[Sanctuary Expansion: 'Solomon's Barrier' has been activated!]
A pure white fortress wall materialized around the angels.
It was an ultimate defensive skill layered with divine power.
With this, they should easily block a mere hatchling's Breath—
Craaaash!
The wall shattered, and the angels behind it were completely vaporized.
Over fifty angels turned to dust and vanished in an instant.
"T-that's no ordinary dragon."
There was no way a normal dragon possessed a Breath of this caliber.
Yet, it made no sense to assume that one of the 'First Dragons' from the 46th floor was here either.
Those beings moved strictly for their own self-interest.
Then...
Just who on earth was the dragon standing before them?
They had no time left to ponder the answer.
"Another one is coming from above!"
The Blue Dragon who controlled the weather, Squishy Black Crane, made his move.
Since angels could fly freely, their air-to-ground capabilities were a massive advantage, but Squishy Black Crane possessed the power to completely neutralize that strength.
"Right. Even if I have to face that stupid white tiger and that slowpoke turtle later, I need to be able to say I fought angels to save some face. At least they aren't small fry."
Squishy Black Crane tried to hypnotize himself.
As one of the noble Four Guardian Beasts, the fact that he was obeying Jinhyuk had been weighing heavily on his mind.
[Squishy Black Crane activates 'Weather Modification'!]
Whoosh!
The heavens opened, and a torrential downpour swept over them.
"I-I can't keep my balance...!"
"Give up on the air and get down to the ground! If we stay in the sky, we'll crash into each other!"
As dark clouds and thunderstorms blocked their vision, the angels fell into a panic.
And taking advantage of that chaos...
Clack!
T-Bone's phantom steed charged straight into the heart of the enemy lines.
An Aura Blade, raised with terrifying momentum, struck the front of an angel who had just landed on the ground.
Boom!
It was a blow packed with the full weight and speed of the horse.
A massive angel barely managed to stop the phantom steed using his shield.
"Ugh! I heard that cursed undead do not submit to mere humans. Why... why are you risking your life to defend this place?!"
At the angel's words, the flare in T-Bone's eye sockets burned even brighter.
"Our Master is no ordinary human."
And.
"I will not tolerate you judging Master so lightly."
If anyone was going to insult him, it could only be the shareholders of Veteran Corporation.
Only those who were constantly nagged, mistreated, forced into all kinds of slave labor, and who had shed blood, sweat, and tears had the right to speak!
[T-Bone activates 'Broken Blade'!]
Crackle... fizzle!
Rust seemed to form on the blade, which then rapidly turned pitch black.
Broken Blade.
It was a skill that corroded one's own weapon to obtain extreme offensive power.
Clash!
Once again, swords clashed.
Amidst the fiercely raging battle...
Finally...
Andrea, who had undergone her 'Gumiho Transformation', stood face-to-face with Kizakiel.
"You... I believe you are a boss monster from the lower floors?"
"Yep, that's right. I'm Andrea, in charge of the 'Psychiatric Ward'."
"Absurd. Now even boss monsters are taking the side of Players."
"Is there something wrong with that?"
"You call that a question...! An entity in charge of a floor of the Tower submitting to a mere climber. Do you truly believe that is proper? Do you have no pride or self-respect?!"
"Nope. I don't have anything like that. In the first place, I was supposed to be dead."
Used and discarded. A mere cog destined to be sacrificed as an offering in the end.
That was the fate ordained for Andrea.
"I don't care about being a boss or having pride. I can throw away trivial things like that anytime."
Her nine tails swayed gently.
Fox Fire Play.
An ability that combined magic-type power and illusion-type effects simultaneously, making it an incredibly tricky technique to deal with.
In particular, due to her vulpine nature, her movements were fluid and rapid, making it difficult to easily gain the upper hand.
However, being difficult to catch was merely a slight annoyance.
No matter how extraordinary a Gumiho she was, she was no match for Kizakiel.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
His sword tore through the air.
"Ah!"
Andrea's body was blown back nearly ten meters.
The sheer wind from his sword alone exerted an absurd amount of physical force.
This was the Combat Commander who led the battle angels: Kizakiel.
"To think you would oppose Eden, the ruler of the heavens, just because you gained a slightly special ability. I will make sure you pay dearly for your arrogance."
But right at that moment...
"You leave quite a few openings."
Something leaped out from Kizakiel's shadow.
It was Wolyeong, who had been hiding in the shadow, waiting for the moment his opponent's breathing faltered.
Stab!
The sword pierced through the armor, tearing into Kizakiel's flesh.
"...!"
Although he quickly twisted his body to minimize the damage, blood flowed from Kizakiel's body for the first time.
A red line was drawn across his white armor.
"You are the ones who will pay dearly for trespassing where my Lord resides."
Melting into the black shadows, only revealing oneself when necessary.
Rustle.
Dozens of figures surged from the shadows.
Every single one of them was an elite of the Shadow Brigade.
"Strike."
"As you command."
The masked figures drew their swords in unison.
* * *
"Now there's no need to worry about the rear."
Jinhyuk shrugged casually.
Thanks to his reliable companions defending the base, he could breathe a sigh of relief.
"..."
Sloth waved his hand.
The mirror that had connected dimensions to show the Citadel of Giants vanished.
"Why? Not going to watch anymore?"
"There is no need. It would be pointless anyway."
Kizakiel could not fight for long.
Now that he was exiled from Eden, dragging the battle into a prolonged war risked the intervention of the other angels.
In other words...
...The plan had completely failed.
"The rear battle is my complete defeat. To be honest, I did not expect you to be prepared to this extent."
"You give up surprisingly fast. I'd appreciate it if you gave up on your life just as quickly... so neither of us has to waste any unnecessary effort."
Now that Sloth's abilities were sealed through the control of Nihilism and his blood flow, there was no need to even ask which side the goddess of victory was smiling upon.
Slide.
Jinhyuk pointed Barnard forward.
Hummmmm!
A dark red sword qi completely enveloped the blade.
However...
"Unfortunately, I am not the type to let pride get in the way or risk my life over useless things."
It was too bothersome. Or rather, he didn't want to take the risk.
Sloth deliberately chose not to cross that dangerous bridge.
"You're going to run away even though you have so many subordinates left?"
"There are indeed quite a few believers left. However, if the detachment you prepared is deployed, a hole will be pierced in our lines in an instant, will it not?"
Sloth's gaze shifted to the right.
Beyond the vast forest, a faint scent of flesh drifted in on the wind.
"You have trolls lying in ambush. And you chose only the strong ones, unlike those typically found on the lower floors."
"...Wow. Turns out you have the nose of a dog. I purposely positioned them as far away as possible, yet you still saw through it."
Jinhyuk let out a soft exclamation of admiration.
The second hidden card he had prepared to ensure absolute perfection.
Caracal and the trolls of the Frostblade Tribe were waiting, accompanied by Dire Wolves.
He had planned to launch a surprise flank attack the moment a tense stalemate was reached to decide the battle in one fell swoop.
But that foxy bastard had noticed it.
'If he's openly decided to flee, he must have prepared a means of escape.'
If Sloth used his believers as shields and cast teleportation magic, there was no way to stop him.
At least, not for now.
"The time has finally come to use you. Block him while I leave this place."
"Grrr..."
A bizarre-looking Death Knight appeared before Sloth.
The undead, which still retained some human features as if it had just been created, drew the sword at its waist.
Shring!
"That guy is..."
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
There was no way he wouldn't recognize him.
Although his entire body was clad in black armor, his face was clearly visible.
Payden.
The traitor who had served as the raid leader for this allied raid.
After struggling so desperately to survive, his end was quite miserable.
He was now forced to live a life neither dead nor alive, eternally obeying Sloth's commands.
"This one had excellent raw materials, so I put special effort into crafting him."
Rare byproducts of the Demon World and high-grade equipment had been lavishly invested in him.
On top of that...
[Sloth activates Lv.35 'Mana Succession'!]
A special skill that shares the caster's mana with the target.
Rumble!
"Graaaah!"
Injected with Sloth's mana, Payden roared wildly.
A terrifying amount of mana erupted from his entire body.
It was only natural.
After all, Sloth's power now resided within Payden's body.
"Kill... them. All of... them."
Payden raised his sword high with both hands.
"Well then, I shall withdraw for today. Next time, though it is a hassle, I will come a bit more prepared."
Without a shred of lingering regret, Sloth turned his back and activated his teleportation magic.
Gray runes spun dizzily in the air.
Yes.
He probably thought he could escape safely with this.
[Unique Ability: 'Blood Explosion' has been activated!]
The distance between Sloth and Payden was only a few meters.
The droplets of blood inside Payden's body rapidly expanded.
"I already expected you to run away and leave Payden behind to cover your rear if you were cornered. And I knew you'd use Mana Succession to make sure he could hold me off."
"What do you mean by...?"
Sloth's pupils shook violently.
The activation of the teleportation magic and the explosion of Payden's body.
It was no exaggeration to say the two occurred almost simultaneously.
Kaboom!
That split second was more than enough.
"Aaargh!"
The teleportation magic was canceled, and Sloth's upper body was caught in the explosion.
Since he was at point-blank range and completely defenseless, the damage was devastating.
* * *
"Ugh... uuuugh..."
Having lost his right arm and a third of his face, Sloth crawled on the ground, trembling.
Killing him wouldn't be difficult.
A single, simple slash would be enough to end his life.
However, rather than finishing him off here...
"..."
Jinhyuk gripped Barnard, standing right over Sloth.