81. Emerald Wyvern
No one knows the exact specs of an Emerald Wyvern. Not surprising, since it's not a monster meant to be hunted.
It's a gimmick placed to form the dungeon itself—a stage prop you have to avoid at all costs. But considering the specs of wyvern-type monsters that appear on the upper floors, I could make a rough guess.
For starters, it's confirmed to have enough mana to fire off compound-attribute beams of that power indefinitely. Just the mana I felt in one of those beams was about equal to my total mana pool. I'm a warrior class, so my mana isn't particularly high, but this is still an insane amount. My base stats are already way beyond Floor 8 level, so matching that is straight-up unfair.
And wyverns are a lesser version of dragons, with bodies tough as hell. But like the other monsters I've encountered getting here, if their flesh is made of green crystal, that's a different story. Their defense would be limited by the green crystal's durability. In other words, they're probably glass cannons.
Of course, basing your judgment on hopeful assumptions like that is fucking stupid.
Anyway, victory was within reach. I was confident I could tank any attacks besides the beams.
"Looks about right."
Confirming my exhausted body was nearly back to full strength, I started moving right away. Toward the source of the Emerald Wyvern's mana.
The spring filled with the jade elixir sat in the center of a vast cavern. Tunnels were dug into every corner of the cavern, each occupied by an Emerald Wyvern. Run straight for the elixir without thinking, and you'd get sniped from all directions. Normally, you'd take a bypass route that avoids detection, slip past the wyverns, and trigger the dungeon gimmick to divert their attention.
But I couldn't use the gimmick, so I'd stick to the bypass route. These wyverns sleep periodically and only wake when they detect an intruder. Use the dungeon's bypass to enter a tunnel, and you can move without waking them. They wake if you touch them or leave the bypass or tunnel into their detection range.
Flip side: they won't wake if you stay on the bypass and don't touch them. Perfect for a preemptive strike.
Instead of sneaking past like you're supposed to, I strode right up to the wyvern and raised my sword.
"Come at me, you flying lizard bird fuck."
-Krunch! I jammed my sword into one wyvern's eyeball with all my strength. It sank in deeper than expected.
-Grooooaaarrr!!
The wyvern bellowed and woke up. In that instant, the air around us changed completely. Mana overflowed from its body, resonating with the randomly scattered mana in the surroundings. The sheer volume hit me like a truck—enough to make anyone falter.
Holy shit, this is a wyvern, not a fucking dragon? The mana stored in its body was massive, and now it was dominating the ambient mana too. Who the hell puts six of these insane creatures in one place? The designer of this tower must be out of their goddamn mind. No sane person would design something this broken.
-Kieeeek!
While I froze for a split second, mana gathered in the wyvern's gaping maw.
I'd anticipated a few moves from the wyvern after my opener. But this was a bit off-script. Not completely unexpected, but... what the fuck.
I figured it'd come at me with claws or teeth since I was up close. Instead, it tries to blast me point-blank with a beam? That's like launching a missile to kill a flea.
-Kaboooom!!
Of course, this quick flea dodged the missile with ease. Wide-area attacks like that are actually easier to evade up close. The launcher always has blind spots.
I slipped past its jaw and swung my sword again, slicing into the soft underside of its neck.
-Splatter!
Yeah, it cut easier than expected. Their defense isn't that impressive, just like I thought. If I keep this close range, I could probably hack it to death just by slashing away.
The problem was whether it'd let me.
-Graaaaa!!
The wyvern shrieked and swiped with the claws at the tip of its wing. Fast, but compared to Mercedes' mana-reinforced attacks, it was manageable. Its unique body structure—arms fused with wings—made the motion too wide.
-Scraaaape!
The wall caught the claws and wingtip, shredding chunks off. Right after dodging, its jaw snapped at me. Figures. Up close, it's teeth now.
Yeah, their strength relies on infinite ranged bombardment. Without that, they're not weak, but a normal Floor 8 challenger's specs wouldn't react to the claw swipes and would get shredded. But if your specs let you react and dodge just that much, their patterns are limited.
Flight's impossible due to the terrain, and up close, they can't fire freely. That leaves melee, and their awkward body isn't built for it. They probably win just by flapping up and beaming from afar—which is why they have that structure.
It's like a T-Rex versus a human. Normally, no contest. But if the human picks the matchup? A boxing match with those puny arms, and the T-Rex loses.
I chose one-on-one close-quarters brawl, and the wyvern's body sucks for it. That's all it took—my win rate skyrocketed.
The wyvern wasn't dumb; its body just sucked for melee. So as the close fight dragged on and it realized it was the only one taking damage, it made a smart call.
-Groooar!
It started thrashing to escape the tunnel. Trying to change the battlefield.
But this flying lizard wasn't a genius either. If it wanted out, it should've left earlier. Now that I'd slashed it up everywhere, you think it'd just waltz out? Coming in was easy; going out? Not so much.
-Thud! Crunch!
I pulled a heavy polearm from my inventory and hurled it, pinning its wing to the floor. Already battered, it couldn't burst out fast, and I had plenty of time. Even if it ripped the wing free, I'd chuck another spear and pin it again faster.
-Gaaaaah!
Its roar sounded like a scream now. Oh yeah, doesn't this roar have a debuff effect? Paralysis resistance must be blocking it—nothing. Stats like that are always worth it.
-Thump!
Its green-crystal-studded body turned to rags in no time. Exhausted, it collapsed. Just had to finish it off now.
Not a huntable monster or a boss, so what rewards would it drop? Kinda curious.
I raised my sword over its limp neck. That's when massive mana gathered in its maw.
"Stubborn to the end, huh."
Thinking it was a desperate final beam, I quickly shifted to its blind spot. But it didn't fire.
The gathered mana formed a glowing orb and shot out of the tunnel.
What the...? Ran out of juice? But why outward?
"Ah."
I realized too late. My mana sense caught a torrent of power surging in.
-Grooooaaarrr!!
-Rooooaaarrr!!
-Graaaaaah!!
Earth-shaking roars and waves of mana that raised goosebumps. The wyvern's last move: a distress signal. The light orb called the others.
I don't know if they give a shit about kin, but all the sleeping wyverns woke up.
Dunno why it tried crawling out first if it had this option. Maybe not a call for help—maybe forcing the others awake in a last-ditch frenzy. Who knows.
-Thud thud thud thud thud!
Five sets of footsteps echoed, and their massive mana converged on one point. Like always, instant beam straight at the intruder upon waking.
All five at once.
Fuck.
Can't dodge this.
Then, a blinding light that hurt to even look at swallowed my vision whole.