Gate (2): Waste vs. Flex
What's the difference between waste and flex? If you regret it with zero gains, it's waste. But if there's no gain yet you're satisfied, that's flex—at least, that's how I see it. So, with that mindset, I figured why not go all out in battle and use some magic I rarely touch, since I'm burning mana anyway?
I can handle pretty much any elemental magic, but some are my specialties and others I'm still clumsy with. If I had to rank them: [Light > Earth > Water (Freeze) > Lightning > Wind > Fire > Darkness]. Comparing to my strongest, light magic, which is about ten times more powerful than darkness magic, earth magic—the runner-up—is only about half as strong.
Honestly, none of them are total trash, but with power gaps this wide, of course I'd lean on my specialties more, and the proficiency gap just keeps widening. So, does that mean my weak elements stay weak forever? That's why we mix two or more attributes into 'multi-attribute magic' to counter it.
Wind plus fire makes fiercer flames, lightning plus water spreads damage over a huge area—stuff like that. Combining spells creates synergy and levels up those weaker elements too. That's why I went with a combo of my strong suit, earth, and my weak one, fire: the compound spell Chasing Lava.
The skeletons that took a direct hit from Chasing Lava shattered into burning bone fragments on the floor. Even armored ones turn to ash in front of molten lava blobs. Hey, call it a free cremation service for the dearly departed.
I'd reduced the skeleton mob around me to irreparable wrecks and was pushing forward when—
Boom— Boom— Boom—
The ground shook as a massive monster lumbered toward me, radiating mana that dwarfed the skeletons'.
"Whoa! A variant? I can't pass this up!!"
I decided to greet it personally. As I charged, the beast's shape came into view: a giant skeleton in heavy plate armor, wielding a massive sword raised to the ceiling. Super imposing.
"Another skeleton? Fine by me—time to blast some magic!"
Without hesitation, I swung my right arm, and the Chasing Lava orbs orbiting above my head shot forward like missiles.
Whoosh————!!
Kaboom————!!!
With a deafening roar of incineration, the lava blobs punched right through the skeleton, riddling its armor with holes. Missing key bones for balance, it toppled over.
"Yes! That's the stuff!"
The thrill of knocking down every last bowling pin—pure ecstasy, like a rush clearing out all the junk in my chest. Any more? I wanna lure a bunch together and torch 'em with light magic all at once. Hehe.
I prefer squeezing a bunch of bubble wrap at once over popping them one by one. Scanning for another giant skeleton, I spotted a guy collapsed in front of the one I'd just dropped.
Missing person? Heart sinking a bit, I approached—then instantly regretted it.
It was that fake Gold Sun who'd been hitting on me before we entered the gate.
"Ugh! Fake Gold Sun?!"
The words slipped out before I could stop them. He looked up at me, head drooping as if fainting. If he passed out now, I'd be stuck dealing with him later, so I nudged his shoulder with my foot—gently enough not to hurt.
"Hey! Get a grip. Pass out and I'll leave you behind when we exit."
That got a reaction; he started coming to. His arms trembled as he pushed his upper body up.
"Urgh...! Why the hell are you here...?"
"You?"
"Gah!"
Still no proper address from Fake Gold Sun. I lightly pressed my foot on his head, granting him another intimate moment with the floor.
"Heh heh."
Then, with my foot still on his head, he started laughing. What the—? Why's he cracking up? Head injury? Nah... wait... no freaking way?!
Chills hit me. I yanked my foot back and scrubbed the sole on the ground like I'd stepped in dog crap.
"You masochistic pervert freak!! Getting off on this?!"
Gotta hit a shoe store the second we get out. As I ground my foot furiously, Fake Gold Sun rolled onto his back, mumbling to himself.
"I'm dead... That's why I'm seeing ghosts..."
Deadpan tone, like he'd given up on everything. I'm the one feeling filthy after accidentally servicing your twisted kink, and you're seeing ghosts? Too grossed out to touch him now, I flicked my finger to spark a tiny ember.
"Ow, hot!!"
He yelped, rolling away and jumping up. Still muttering "I'm alive?" like he wasn't fully with it.
I had zero desire to chat, but for gate intel, no choice.
"Hey, Fake."
"...Fake? You talking to... me?"
"Yeah, you, you masochistic pervert Fake Gold Sun."
His titles kept stacking in real time.
"How do we get out of here?"
"...What? Get out? Pfft... Bwahahahaha!"
He burst into manic laughter the second I finished.
Laughing? "Quit cracking up and—talk!"
I punted a small rock his way; it nailed his forehead mid-laugh.
"Ow!!... You crazy bitch...?"
"Bitch?"
He spotted the floating lava orbs by my side and shut his trap.
# "Gotta be here. Way too obvious, right?"
Deep inside the cathedral, I faced a massive door. Getting out of the gate wasn't as tricky as Fake Gold Sun made it sound.
Take down the 'boss'—the pillar holding the gate open—and it enters shutdown, spawning a rift back to our world. He also mentioned 'the law of gates' for clearing them.
Simple: One life. One shot. One day.
One life? Obvious. One shot? Satisfied the moment you enter. The key: one day.
Gates have different time flow from outside. Must clear within 24 hours of the last entrant, or it goes berserk, fusing with reality and turning into a dungeon. Avoid at all costs.
Sure, some deliberately let gates become dungeons for resources, but only in uninhabited areas. Big cities like Seoul ban it over civilian risk.
Only 40 minutes since I entered—plenty of time. But if other hunters showed, headache city. So I ditched Fake and soloed to the boss.
Unpleasant mana seeped from the door crack—same as the skeletons'. No hesitation; I shoved it open.
Rumble————Clang—!
It ground to a halt eventually. I slipped inside, ignoring the fixed door. It began closing slowly behind me.
"Can't leave till the boss is down, huh?"
As I eyed the indifferent door, candles around the room ignited one by one. Their light stretched to the far wall, illuminating a huge stained-glass window opposite the door.
Classic cathedral feature—vibrant colors. Daylight would've made it stunning, but no light leaked from outside.
Beneath it sat a robed figure in a fancy chair: a mummy with grayish skin-flesh, purple flames flickering where eyes should be.
"A priest lich... Now that's a fresh combo."
Lich: immortality-obsessed mage, king of undead, epitome of evil. A lich in a holy place? Juicy backstory, but it ain't spilling.
Monsters don't chat anyway. The lich rose, gripped a golden staff, and chanted incomprehensibly. The chapel shook.
Skeletons burst from the stone floor—properly armored unlike the trash mobs, with prominent crosses on their breastplates.
"Heh, now that's more like it."
Holy knight skeletons. Perfect sparring partners.