Chapter 152: Wizard of Foul Weather
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 152: Wizard of Foul Weather
I considered a few points of regret.
1. If only my level had been about 10 higher.
How would the battle have played out then?
It would have ended the moment I burned it with a 6-AP Pulverizing Beam and summoned a triple-stacked Blizzard and a Typhoon.
The Glutton would have been inflicted with ‘Frozen’ status, not just ‘Slowed,’ and it would have rapidly lost body heat and vitality in the blizzard and storm, freezing to death in an instant.
2. What if the Glutton hadn't been able to eat the Aether Mushroom?
I would have killed it already in that case, too. My Aether Mushroom buff would still be active, and the Glutton, critically injured and surrounded, would have a penalty to its resistance.
Similarly, it would have been ‘Frozen,’ not just ‘Slowed,’ and the Glutton would be long gone by now.
Was there a way to stop it from eating the Aether Mushroom?
Yes, there was.
If Back Attack had dealt with Richard earlier and the four of us had raided it together.
When the monster, deprived of its Void Devouring, took the Aether Mushroom out of its ink sac, Back Attack could have used Leap Ambush and then snatched it away with Plunder.
The level difference is significant, but Back Attack's Plunder still would have worked.
He would use a similar method to when he stole the Administrator's Undead Restoration Staff. Flip a temporary 2-AP hourglass, then fire a single Lightning Shock at the spot with the Resistance Nullification mark, and it would have been electrocuted.
But…
“We'll rescue Richard later, after we get Dorothy out.”
If this were a game and I controlled all four members of my party, I wouldn't have hesitated to kill Richard.
He's not in our party, just a friendly NPC.
But as expected, the approach for developer difficulty is different.
My own psychological resistance to killing an innocent person is one issue, but taking care of Back Attack's mental state is also important.
“Now, stay sharp.”
“I'll do whatever you say like a combat doll, boss!”
Party-wide morale is also crucial.
The guilt everyone would feel after victory, or the sense of debt Clorence's party would have.
If you want to survive developer difficulty, you have to think harder.
“For now, just wait.”
Our elf is holding up much better than I expected.
The Glutton and I are both mages, and when we eat an Aether Mushroom, our main stat, Wisdom, gets a boost.
But stats like Constitution, Strength, or Agility remain unchanged.
That's why Yernil's buffed attack power, especially with her blowgun, can not only deal immense damage but also…
‘Marking Arrow!’
‘Magic Arrowhead—Baffling Trip!’
‘Triple Shot!’
‘Blowgun Breath!’
She's running through the blizzard, unleashing a crazy barrage of rapid-fire shots.
When a tentacle flies at her, she dodges with ease. If she can't find an angle to evade…
‘Sentinel’s Reposition!’
She escapes to a safe zone. And then, another Marking Arrow.
If it manages to knock that away, ‘Arrow Retrieval.’
Another Marking Arrow.
And in that same spot…
‘Venomous Fog Bullet!’
The Nymph's Blowgun has two skills: Breath and Venomous Fog Bullet.
Boom!
The highly toxic bullet, striking the spot with the Resistance Nullification mark, poisons the Glutton.
With her bow slung over her shoulder and the blowgun in her left hand.
She's kiting, running all over the snow-covered garden, switching weapons as she goes.
‘Why is she fighting so well?’
Honestly, I'm a bit flustered because she's doing far better than I ever expected.
Is that really the same Yernil who used to cry at the sight of a goblin? All that effort I put into training her is really paying off.
“Yernil…”
Back Attack looks a little surprised too.
“At this rate, Yernil's going to take it down by herself,” Aimus exclaimed.
That's not going to happen.
Yernil's window for free damage is about to close. Why? Because the spell's duration is ending.
Blizzard lasts for 45 seconds.
“The clouds will clear soon.”
“Th-then isn't that a huge problem?”
“Maybe, maybe not.”
[Turn-Based Hourglass Cooldown: 27 seconds]
13 seconds from now.
“Back Attack. Listen carefully. You need to move fast.”
“What do you need me to do?”
‘I’m so damn awesome!’
In the blizzard, Yernil felt as if she were possessed by a god.
The clumsy adventurer who once lagged behind even a zombie Back Attack was dead and gone.
Standing here now was a core member of Caleb's party.
The reliable support-type ranged dealer.
With the Magic Arrowhead Bow in her right hand and the Nymph's Blowgun in her left.
‘A true ranger.’
A freaking genius archer from the 5th floor, overwhelming a special boss from the 7th floor.
This is Yernil, the control tower of the party!
‘Triple Shot!’
Looking back, it felt as if all her skills were finally coming together, blossoming at last.
Take the Triple Shot she was using now.
The power of some ancient god devoured by the Labyrinth seeped into her shoulders, hands, and arms. That brief moment of ‘channeling’ made the motion of drawing an arrow from her quiver and nocking it play out in high speed. And within those rapid-fire arrows…
‘Marking Arrow.’
another linked skill was embedded.
If the mark was pierced, a Magic Arrowhead would follow.
Or a Venomous Fog Bullet from the Nymph's Blowgun.
Yernil was on fire today.
At this rate, she could really take it down all by her…
“Ugh!”
Back Attack suddenly appeared and grabbed both her arms.
He was using Invisibility, so she couldn't see him, but she could hear him.
“You crazy bastard, what are you doing?!”
“It's time.”
“What?”
Back Attack had used Adrenaline Rush to reset the cooldown on his Invisibility skill.
And he cast it on Yernil.
As she turned invisible, Yernil could finally see the blizzard starting to subside.
The clouds were clearing.
‘Falling Sky!’
Back Attack threw himself aside to dodge the falling tentacles.
‘Shadow Leap!’
‘Everyone, go into stealth.’
That was the order I gave Back Attack.
He can turn two people invisible using Adrenaline Rush, and I use the universal chameleon camouflage magic on my coat.
That leaves only one person visible to the Glutton in the garden.
“…”
Aimus stared intently at the Glutton, his iron staff resting on his shoulder.
Watching from a short distance, I felt a little tense.
What would happen?
The Glutton had two options.
1. Attack Aimus.
This wasn't the option I was aiming for, but it would be fine. Aimus's buffs were still going strong. He could easily hold out for more than a dozen seconds, and after that, the Glutton would be the one to die.
The Glutton must know that as well.
The Glutton is a smart monster. It knows it attacked Aimus several times to little effect.
And it would have predicted that the rest of us were lying in ambush, waiting for an opening.
Therefore, the Glutton's choice would be…
2. To flee.
The monster was a wreck. Not only did it have a gaping sunburn hole in the back of its neck, but it had also taken a severe beating from Yernil.
Blood was pouring from all over its body.
The Glutton needed time to recover. It was the same in the game—though that was when fighting it at the Void Waterfall, not in Bearhim's garden.
When the Glutton's health drops too low, it flees up the waterfall. It would try to hide in a safe zone where it could hold out and recover its health with its high regeneration.
So, is there a place in this garden where the Glutton can safely hide and hold out?
Yes.
“…!”
Aimus flinched and raised his iron staff. The Glutton was moving.
But the monster didn't charge at Aimus.
Instead…
“It's going for the iron door!”
There are two iron doors here.
One is the door to the sealed space, presumably built by the Gardener, where Verdure and Aimus's team fought.
And the other iron door wasn't built by the Gardener.
Dorothy is trapped inside that iron door. The idea that the Glutton could summon an iron door was news to me, but it was the only possible explanation.
CRASH!
The monster charged toward the iron door, plowing through the deep snow, moss, rainwater, and ice.
And…
‘It’s actually opening!’
To my surprise, as the Glutton approached, the iron door actually began to open.
Did the Glutton really create that thing?
How could a mere 7th-floor Labyrinth boss summon a Tier 8 entity belonging to the Ethereal Lake?
At least the Gardener could be explained as having used Bearhim's power, but the Glutton… how…
“Back Attack!”
In any case, the door was open. That was all that mattered.
“Now!”
Inside the iron door, a horrified Dorothy appeared.
The door opens, and a giant octopus monster, gushing blood from all over its body, lunges in. It was enough to make anyone's mind go blank.
But.
‘Shadow Leap!’
The invisible rogue waiting in front of the iron door leaped in a step faster and succeeded in getting Dorothy out.
“Aack!”
Dorothy fell with a thud, landing hard on her butt in the snow-covered field.
“Wh-what is all this?”
The scenery must have changed a lot compared to before she was trapped in the door.
Rumble—!
The iron door closed.
The Glutton was hiding inside.
“Caleb!”
Clorence, his feet about halfway free, limped over. Kudrum was with him. The combat doll, Ruhabairn, was scanning the area, its one remaining eye glowing.
“Threat detection failed.”
“What in the world did you do to turn a mushroom garden into a snowy mountain…?”
Clorence was speechless with shock.
“And how on earth… did you manage to get Dorothy out of the iron door?”
That part, in particular, couldn't be explained by any scenario he could imagine.
Originally, there was only one way to save Dorothy.
Clear this place somehow, escape, and bring back a cardinal-level priest or a tenured professor-level wizard as quickly as possible.
“The Glutton is hiding in there,” Caleb explained calmly.
“And when the door opened, Back Attack brought Dorothy out.”
“Hah…”
Kudrum felt dizzy and leaned his head against the combat doll with a thud.
“You mean… you guys attacked that monster and forced it to flee in there…?”
“Now that Dorothy is out, we can save Richard. Shall we do that first?” Caleb said.
Richard wasn't far. Clorence couldn't remove the subjugation curse on him, but he could render him incapacitated.
“Stupor. It's a Tier 3 Illusion Magic.”
Clorence pointed at Richard. The Orc warrior, unable to control his body like a man dead drunk, staggered along behind Clorence.
“Whew.”
Dorothy pressed her fingers to her brow.
“I've never been so embarrassed in front of my 5th-floor juniors.”
She walked up to Richard.
And with a powerful voice…
“I forgive your apostasy. Repent!”
she rebuked Richard forcefully.
“Ugh…”
The light slowly returned to Richard's eyes. He looked confused. And then…
“Kuh.”
The pain from his already severe injuries washed over him, and he collapsed.
“…”
Back Attack just stared at him with a complicated expression.
“What are you looking at, punk?”
“Fuck. You have no idea what kind of shit I went through!”
He ended up grabbing him by the collar but couldn't say anything and let go.
“Dammit.”
“But, while it's great that Dorothy is out,” Clorence said, sticking out his ankle. Dorothy yelped and cast a regeneration spell.
“if the Glutton fully recovers in there and comes out, aren't we finished?”
“…”
“It seems you all took the mushroom buff, but mine was taken, and perhaps Richard's too.”
“That's right.”
“If the Glutton comes out after our buffs wear off, we can't win.”
“Should we run now? Let's just clear the exit room and bolt.”
Kudrum voiced an opinion similar to the one he'd had before they came to Bearhim's garden.
But Dorothy had changed her mind.
“I now owe Caleb's party a debt. I can't leave until I repay it.”
“Followers of Nathaniel are such a pain.”
“Let's die with honor, Kudrum,” Richard said grimly.
“I also…” Clorence voiced his opposition to fleeing. “I'd like to see Caleb's Focusing Lens Pulverizing Beam again.”
He glanced at the two wands at my waist.
“That was a Pulverizing Beam, wasn't it? But the Focusing Lens is…”
“The Glutton took the wand with the lens attached and ate it.”
“Oh, dear.”
“It's fine.”
I slowly approached the iron door.
[Turn-Based Hourglass: Ready]
“This is what I wanted.”
There's no need to wait for the Glutton to come out of the iron door.
No need to wait for it to recover.
If there was one thing I had to wait for, it was for the Focusing Lens to charge.
The Aether Mushroom glows when it's in a monster's possession. For example, when caught in the Glutton's tentacles, inside its ink sac, or in its ‘stomach.’
The mushroom patch that bloomed all over Bearhim's corpse emitted a tremendous amount of light, charging the Focusing Lens instantly, but that wasn't the case this time.
Instead, it's been basking in the light of two mushrooms for over two minutes. It should be almost fully charged by now.
And though the wand isn't in my hand…
[Your Turn. Time Remaining: 60 seconds]
[Action Points: ■■■■■■]
The Turn-Based Wizard is a remote controller.
[Wand Control!]
[Action Points: ■■■■■□]
Inside the Glutton's stomach.
I can feel the Message Transmission Wand, its Focusing Lens now charged.