Chapter 210: The Struggle on the 9.5th Floor (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 210: The Struggle on the 9.5th Floor (2)
The Hourglass was definitely a brokenly powerful item.
And if I were the White Lion, I would have targeted me first, not Bipa.
Whoooosh!
A fierce gale raged from the recast spell of severe cold.
“Tch.”
The White Lion changed his strategy.
[Lifeform Marker]
He used a Tier 2 scroll.
It was fine if he couldn't get rid of the Blizzard itself. All he needed was to secure vision lost in the whiteout. A penalty like ‘Slow’ was nothing to worry about—though getting drenched and then frozen would be a problem.
Rip!
As he tore the scroll, a small lantern-like light flickered once on the chests of all our party members.
We were marked.
Now, the enemy could pinpoint our locations within the blizzard. And so could we…
“With sight, sound, perception, and knowledge, hiding is futile.”
Bipa cast a vision spell over everyone’s eyes. The enemies’ forms became clearly visible within the snowstorm, as if we were watching a night scene through an infrared camera.
“But the Slow effect should be more advantageous for us…”
Aimus’s words cut off abruptly.
The Lancer’s spear had swelled to the size of a telephone pole.
“Blasting it away with magic is the cleanest way, but.”
The spear of black ore fell like a carpenter’s hammer.
*
Cooking is complete.
I stirred the center of the hissing steam rising from the rice cooker with a paddle.
Scattering the vapor in all directions.
If I had to use an analogy, that’s exactly what it felt like.
Boom!
The massive spear of black ore split the heart of the Blizzard’s storm.
CRASH!
The tip of the spear then struck the snow-covered floor. Snow and ice flew up as if a landmine had detonated.
‘…’
Honestly, it was rather shocking.
Even in the game, when a Blizzard was summoned indoors, the spell would sometimes break if it caused the entire building to collapse.
‘To do that with a simple physical attack…’
But there was a reason the Lancer hadn't resorted to such measures until now.
Rumble!
The immense blow had shattered the fortress floor. I heard the sound of rebar snapping in the ceiling. The walls began to crumble.
“You stupid bastard!”
The White Lion erupted in anger.
“It’s collapsing!”
The Beetle’s wings unfolded.
“Stop!”
The White Lion shouted, but the Beetle ignored him, breaking through a window and soaring outside first.
Vwoooom!
The Catcher Shark raised its main cannon, aiming at the collapsing ceiling.
“Wait!”
The White Lion tried to stop him again, but it was no use.
‘Focused Barrage!’
Magical cannonballs, like siege artillery, shot up one after another.
“Caleb!”
Aimus took a position near the fortress entrance, gathering the party members toward him while preparing to open his parasol.
But then…
“The Lancer is coming!”
Just as Bipa yelled, the Lancer was indeed charging straight for us.
‘What a mess.’
If the fortress collapsed and it turned into a field battle, it would actually be to our advantage.
I could cast Blizzard again and freeze the Forest of Death. Even if I couldn't kill the trees, freezing them would be enough.
The White Lion had probably planned to use the fortress walls as cover to preserve the trees’ vitality while poking at us from the outside.
But now, his plan was completely ruined. Even if the Lancer had only damaged the fortress, he could have used the trunks of the Forest of Death to prop it up. But with the Catcher Shark blasting the ceiling to bits, even that was impossible.
Crash! Boom! Boom!
Rebar and bricks the size of human heads rained down like a meteor shower.
Thanks to this, the White Lion and the Catcher Shark were cut off from providing backup. Despite this, the Lancer was charging in alone.
Why?
Because with his incredible vitality and defense, even if he were buried under the rubble, the Lancer would just dust himself off and walk out. He intended to pin us down and finish us right here.
It didn't matter if the White Lion and the Catcher Shark couldn't back him up. He was enough on his own.
‘…Or so he thinks.’
These guys couldn't fight as a party.
It was just like when you gather a group of top-tier chefs; they can’t coordinate with each other.
I felt like our chances of winning this battle had just multiplied.
However…
“Caleb!”
We first had to stop that charge from the Lancer.
‘Black Ore Lance Charging.’
Black ore was the hardest substance in the world, even harder than Aimus’s steel.
He had anticipated from the start that he would be fine even if the building collapsed.
He must have been confident that his overwhelming vitality and defense would allow him to brush off the debris and walk away.
And if someone like the Catcher Shark got crushed and died in the process, all the better for him.
“Mugol!”
Bipa shoved Mugol forward, but he didn’t move. The sharp instincts of a fierce tiger had sensed another danger.
Yernil was the same.
We were standing at the main gate of the fortress. The Lancer was charging from the front, while behind us…
Buzzzzz!
I could hear the hovering sound of the Beetle.
That bastard had broken a window, flown out, circled around the building's exterior, and come up behind us.
Yernil must have known early on.
But she didn't turn her bow from the Lancer.
‘We’re being pincered from the front and back!’
Mugol seemed to have thought the same thing as me, but his conclusion was different.
He chose to prioritize Bipa’s safety.
Since Bipa was at the very rear of our party's formation, she would be the first one exposed to the Beetle.
Tatatak!
Suddenly, Mugol wove between Yernil and me and dashed backward, toward the outside of the entrance, to protect Bipa.
That naturally left the Lancer in the front to…
CRASH!
He collided with Aimus.
“…!”
But it was completely different from the 8th floor. Aimus wasn't pierced through.
The Steel Absorber had drawn all the iron circulating in his blood vessels to drastically increase his body's defense.
And.
“Ice Armor.”
I had clad him in magical armor.
The body of hard ice and steel blocked the spear of black ore. Aimus even managed to clamp the spear under his arm, pinning it and immobilizing it.
Still, in a contest of pure strength, he was no match for the Lancer.
We had to end this now…
Thwang!
Yernil, who had waited for the last possible moment, landed a magic arrow.
I turned the Hourglass.
*
[Your turn. Time remaining: 60 seconds]
[Action Points: ■■]
Honestly, I was a little moved.
Damn, Yernil!
When did you get so good?
The Lancer was huge and charging in a straight line from the front, so Yernil could have shot and hit him at any time.
So why did she wait until the very last moment?
For a reason similar to mine.
‘Until Aimus gets hit.’
Aimus the Steel Absorber was different from when he only had his Steel Veins.
He could now withstand the Lancer’s attack to some extent.
But if he still took damage, the Mantra of Karma would activate at that moment.
The moment the Monk’s mantra chipped away at the Lancer’s immense defense.
That was the time to unleash a burst of damage.
I had been waiting with the Hourglass, thinking just that, and surprisingly, Yernil had thought the exact same thing.
She had experienced something similar on the 8th floor. Back then, she had been proud when her arrow struck the Lancer’s shoulder, but I had told her the truth—that it was because of the Mantra of Karma.
“Well done, Yernil.”
But it was about 2% shy of perfect.
You should have added Resistance Nullification to your Three-Round Burst. Then I could have poured burst damage onto the marked spot.
Anyway.
‘Let’s kill the Lancer now.’
This guy was overconfident. No matter how sure he was of his strength and stamina, it was insane for a frontline tank to enter the enemy lines alone and get isolated.
His calculation was probably that if he held us here, we would all be buried together in the rubble, and while we would all die, he alone would survive.
Lancer.
Our party isn't that easy.
You should have moved while carefully gauging the angle for backup from the White Lion and the Catcher Shark.
‘Memory Book Censor.’
First, I removed a few spells to fill my Action Points.
I started by getting rid of the Tier 2 utility spell ‘Light’ and ‘Owl’s Hunt.’
They were versatile spells, but not needed right now.
Next.
I also removed the Tier 3 combat spell ‘Ice Armor’ and the Tier 4 combat spell ‘Ethereal Blink.’
Both were directly tied to a wizard’s survival, so removing them was honestly quite risky. But I was confident I wouldn't get hit by the Lancer’s attacks.
[Your turn. Time remaining: 48 seconds]
[Action Points: ■■■■]
By clearing four spells, I secured 4 AP. With 3 of them…
“Blizzard.”
This time, I cast it not indoors, but outdoors.
I conjured a snowstorm outside the collapsing fortress.
This spell would freeze the Forest of Death. It wouldn't kill the trees, but the frozen trees wouldn't be able to absorb water.
And…
‘I don’t need Blizzard anymore.’
From the beginning, Blizzard’s role was to create a cold front to hold back the Forest of Death. Once that was achieved, next was…
‘Remove Frost Ray and Whirlwind.’
From my Tier 1 slots, I removed the two spells that were ingredients for Blizzard, leaving only Humidify, Heat Wave, and Dust Devil, so that Cumulonimbus would remain effective.
I also removed the Tier 3 spell Enchanting and the Tier 4 spell Exploitative Bleeding. There was no need to use the Vampiric Magic Circle right now.
[Your turn. Time remaining: 35 seconds]
[Action Points: ■■■□]
“Cumulonimbus.”
The Forest of Death within the one-kilometer radius of the Blizzard wouldn't be able to absorb the rain clouds. Because it would be frozen.
And that frozen zone would block the trees from outside the one-kilometer radius from approaching. The rain clouds would no longer be absorbed.
The White Lion might pull out another scroll, but that would be even better. If I could make him exhaust his scrolls.
For the White Lion, this was probably the worst-case scenario.
He had been most wary of a flood caused by the rain clouds.
See, White Lion?
You should have managed your party better.
“Cumulonimbus.”
Could I kill the Lancer with just these spells?
Well, it wouldn't be simple. The Lancer’s vitality was likely the highest of any enemy I had ever faced.
“Cumulonimbus.”
But there's always a way to beat anything. If I could block his backup, freeze him to buy time, and use slightly rougher methods, I could definitely kill him.
Even a formidable enemy like this, in an instant.
*
The crumbling outer walls of the building.
The collapsing ceiling.
A chill seeped in through every crack.
He could feel the trees of the forest freezing.
‘…’
The White Lion sensed that things had gone horribly wrong.
Rain clouds were being summoned over the collapsing ceiling. Three, no.
—Cumulonimbus.
Caleb had just summoned another one, making it four rain clouds.
A flood was coming.
The large amount of building debris piled on the floor blocked the path like cover. Rainwater poured into every gap.
“Dammit. Follow me!”
The White Lion tried to get over the debris with the Catcher Shark, but…
“…!”
A storm of severe cold was raging.
The Blizzard had been summoned just outside the fortress’s main gate. Before, the wind had leaked through the window Caleb had broken, freezing one of the trees outside. This time, it was the opposite.
Caleb’s party had their backs to the Blizzard at the main gate, and the gale blasting inward from there…
‘It’s a rainstorm.’
The downpour from the Cumulonimbus clouds and the snow, carried by winds of 60 meters per second, blasted them head-on. The puddles forming on the floor were inevitably pushed to one side. It was like a small tsunami. The drenched building debris was slippery.
Their position and direction were terrible.
“We can’t get in from the front!”
The White Lion pulled the Catcher Shark by the shoulder.
“Escape through the back gate!”
The fortress had already mostly collapsed, with sections of the walls standing here and there like abandoned demolition structures.
‘Shadow Leap!’
‘Sentry Relocation.’
The White Lion and the Catcher Shark fell back.
CRASH!
BOOM!
Now, lightning was striking near the fortress entrance.
‘Judging Lightning!’
The White Lion recognized it at once.
“Move faster!”
The White Lion shouted. They had to circle back and rejoin the Beetle.
‘There’s still time.’
That moronic Lancer’s solo act had complicated things, but they could still recover.
The Lancer wouldn't die easily. His overwhelming defense and vitality meant he could take a beating in the middle of the enemy lines and be fine. Even if he got drenched, exposed to the Blizzard, frozen, and struck by Judging Lightning.
“Follow me!”
The Lancer would hold out for a while. During that time, they could regroup the party.
‘Whiteout!’
As they circled around the outside of the fortress and returned to the main gate, they were fully exposed to the Blizzard, and their vision vanished again.
But with the Lifeform Marker, they should be able to identify their locations…
‘What?’
The White Lion witnessed an unbelievable scene through the snowstorm.
The Lancer’s life signature had vanished.