Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Finishing Blow (2)
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BOOM! THUD! RUMBLE!
The 13th fang of the corrupted Earth Dragon...
It's too damn big to call anything but a field boss.
A massive serpent composed entirely of crimson rock.
The field boss overwhelmed the Empire's Swordmaster with its sheer presence.
Its rock tail, dozens of meters thick, whipped through the air like a lash, bearing down on the knight.
The knight leaped high to evade it, landing on the serpent's body before charging toward its head.
A thick Aura Blade rippled along his sword, held low and parallel to the ground.
Guess he's done hiding his power.
Screeech! Hiss!
The field boss shook its enormous head, emitting a metallic screech.
Then, a thick green mist erupted from its gaping maw.
"A breath attack with a corrosion effect. A fitting assault for an earth-attribute monster that embodies all dead life."
"That thing is the legendary dragon?"
"No, it's just a fang left behind by the Earth Dragon."
And beneath my royal castle lies the complete skeleton of an ascended Blue Dragon...
"When a dragon's soul is lost and its body corrupts, it turns into something like that."
"Incredible."
Even amid all this, the elf Object was diligently scribbling notes in midair with her magical feather quill.
BOOM! RUMBLE!
Mountains crumbled, and the earth shook.
The sky filled with flocks of startled birds.
Mountain beasts hidden away fled desperately from the battlefield, putting everything they had into escaping as far as possible.
"Ho, you endured that? Impressive."
"He spread his Aura Blade wide to use as a shield."
"Aura Blades can block anything. An incomplete corrosion breath like that is no match."
I could see the monster's mana depleting rapidly.
Of course—spreading an Aura Blade that large, even for a moment, would consume a ton.
The beast looked up at us and let out a roar like a wail.
"You bastards! After I deal with this monster, you're next!"
"Professor, ready?"
"Yes. I've prepared a shield spell and three attack spells. They can activate immediately."
"Even if things go south, we can Blink out long-range, no problem, right?"
"Yes. It's safe."
I nodded, arms crossed, watching the Swordmaster and field boss fight to the death.
This arrogant vantage point ought to heat the knight's head even more.
RUMBLE! BOOM!
The rock tail slammed the ground repeatedly, and whenever he barely dodged, a corrosion breath poured out.
Still, the Swordmaster lived up to his name.
He overcame the overwhelming gap and finally succeeded in severing the field boss's head.
"That won't do a thing."
"What? Didn't he kill it?"
"Look."
"Ah...!"
Object covered her mouth.
Her other hand kept scribbling furiously with the feather quill in midair.
The severed head writhed like clay dough, reshaping into a smaller form.
The stump on the main body did the same, wriggling before forming a new head.
I could even see the beast's dazed expression from here.
Outside the battlefield, the serpent's massive true body coiled to block any escape.
Beyond the coils loomed the high walls of the basin cliffs.
No flying, no fleeing.
"Do you know how to take down that monster too?"
"Of course."
RUMBLE!
As the battle dragged on, the basin sank deeper and deeper.
The surrounding cliffs grew taller, like a coliseum arena.
The more it thrashed, the deeper it sank—an antlion pit.
"Hah!"
The knight severed the small detached head and the massive main head once more, but it only split the smaller one in two.
"No learning curve. How spoiled by peace can you get? Tsk tsk..."
It had been at least thousands of years since a colossal boss like this last appeared in this peaceful era.
'The tutorial ends, continental chaos unfolds, and the story begins. Even a Swordmaster hasn't faced real life-or-death monster combat.'
Sizzle! Hiss!
Green breath sprayed out, blocked once more by the widespread Aura Blade.
His mana visibly dropped.
"Professor, cast weather magic. But keep it incomplete."
"Understood."
Impressively, she didn't ask why and began preparing the spell right away.
Object swept her hand through the air, drawing the activation magic circle.
Linked circles formed in sequence, culminating in a massive drive circle on the ground.
"T-This scale of magic circle...!"
The knight glared at us in shock.
Finally noticing that my Object came with magic to match her looks.
RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
Storm clouds filled the sky in an instant.
Thunder and booms alternated from sky and earth, shaking the world.
Incomplete spell—no rain.
Thunderclouds trapped at the critical point howled, craving explosion.
"I don't know what trick this is!"
As the knight sliced the tip of the rock tail aiming for him with his Aura Blade...
I saw it.
Vast static trapped in the thunder striking the knight's sword as lightning.
"Gaaahhh!"
Now's the time.
Can't miss bragging to Object, who's been building favor.
"That field boss is earth-attribute. What happens when you attack it with a sword?"
"Like stabbing the ground... Ah! It turns you into a lightning rod instantly."
"And the Aura Blade makes the thunderclouds' mana react even stronger. Nearly 99% chance of lightning on every attack."
"Lightning works on the monster!"
The knight's eyes snapped open amid groans of lightning pain.
He'd seen the blackened discoloration where it struck through his sword.
I shouted down at him with a mocking laugh.
"Lightning hurts that thing plenty—keep attacking!"
"Urgh... I won't let you off."
The knight gritted his teeth and attacked the field boss with Aura Blade again.
RUMBLE! FLASH!
Lightning flowed through the Aura Blade and blade into the field boss once more.
Electrocuted, it shuddered violently.
Confident it couldn't counter, the knight stabbed relentlessly.
RUMBLE! FLASH! RUMBLE! FLASH!
Of course, the knight took lightning damage on every attack too.
Most energy flowed into the boss, and earth clashing with lightning made it deadlier.
But damage accumulated on the knight steadily.
"That armor's a fine artifact. It's offsetting all attribute damage."
"You don't mean...?"
"Don't worry. He'll scrape by victorious, covered in wounds. Or maybe the field boss barely wins."
RUMBLE! FLASH! RUMBLE!
Dozens of lightning strikes later...
The knight finally stopped moving.
The field boss shuddered its massive rock body, then toppled.
"Finished..."
"Not yet. The knight's holding back his last strength for us, and the boss isn't dead."
No matter how well you play dead, Discernment Eye sees your remaining mana clear as day.
I drew a dagger from my inventory.
My trump card.
Fancy name, but it's just a top-tier assassin's dagger for rogue classes.
Prepped for assassins, but now I hurled it unsparingly at the field boss.
The dagger flew like it was alive, embedding in the field boss.
BOOM! FLASH!
Lightning from the sky struck the dagger.
GRRROOOOAR!
The field boss let out its death cry, thrashing before its body melted into soft mud.
'No exp due to level gap, but I can snag the [Corrupted Earth Dragon's Fang].'
NPCs don't drop items, so I struck the finishing blow myself for thoroughness.
The incomplete weather magic gathered the thunderclouds,
so the knight wore himself to scraps, letting level-2 me land the valid finisher.
A radiant item appeared before me in midair.
A fang the size of an adult's forearm.
'Heh, scoring something this rare so easily.'
"What is that? It doesn't look ordinary."
"Something amazing. Collect all 13, and you get a myth-grade item."
That was when it hit.
System alerts poured in nonstop.
+ All Stats +Massive
+ Skill Points +Plenty
'Holy shit!'
Level gap over 10 means 0% exp gain.
Just snagged the fang with a finisher, and now straight to 30?
'No exp penalty ever. In the original world, that achievement was mine—at max level. No exp left to gain.'
That's why no message.
Putting a useless reward for max level on a server-first unique achievement?
'Fucking devs...'
Excitement aside.
I chose without hesitation.
Decided on Mage Lord path, planned second job and tech tree ahead.
'Select Lightning Mage for second job.'
Flame and frost limited to basics pre-30 anyway. No issue.
'Lightning Mage is the path for a Mage King.'
"Heh heh heh..."
Too pleased, I chuckled. Object looked worried.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, just in too good a mood. Nabbed the field boss, myth item, and best—the Empire's Swordmaster on death's door."
We descended before the knight, collapsed like he was dead.
At a safe distance.
"I know you're alive. Want to talk. Oh, ditch the ambush.
Shield's up. Even squeezing your last strength in your state is futile."
"Urgh..."
The knight groaned bitterly, forcing himself up to sit on the ground.
His gaze mixed hostility, rage, and doubt.
"Looks like the Empire's Emperor abandoned you. Stir chaos in Arcana and eliminate you."
Quest rule 1: NPCs love backstabs.
Quest rule 2: Empire NPCs especially.
"Unfortunate Swordmaster forsaken by your homeland—pledge to Arcana?"
Empire Swordmaster NPC?
Anyone but the Emperor himself—never trust or team up.
"I'll inform the royals to welcome you properly."
Extract info, then dispose.
Strip all those artifacts after.