Valtor Exploration (5): The Stone Tablet Boss
The boss of Zone 2 was a giant stone tablet. But there was no time to stand there stunned by that revelation. The weapon of the nearest statue was already hurtling down toward our heads.
“Ian!”
—BOOM—
I snapped out of my daze a split second too late and barely dodged, but the sheer force that cratered the ground left my legs shaking. And it wasn’t just that one statue—every other one was closing in on us too.
Human bastards…! I’ll kill every last one of you!
Even though it was only a stone tablet, the voice overflowed with raw resentment and hatred. The corrupted god’s roar reverberated through the entire cavern.
“Run for the cave!”
At Emily’s sharp command we all spun and sprinted. Right now that tunnel was the only path to survival.
Because we chose to flee immediately, we managed to break away from the altar and slip safely into the cave.
“Never thought I’d actually be glad to see a cave in my lifetime.”
“Hoo… same here. Looks like they’re not following us, at least.”
I couldn’t help agreeing with both of them. The cave was pitch-black, yet in this moment the darkness felt as comforting as the quiet before sleep.
At the same time, a wave of hopelessness washed over me.
The real problem is how the hell we’re supposed to beat that thing…
Emily caught her breath, one hand pressed to her forehead.
Seven moving statues plus a stone tablet whose powers we couldn’t even guess at. The giant white tiger we’d fought in Zone 1 suddenly seemed almost gentle by comparison. I couldn’t begin to predict how many of us would die.
And if we simply waited until the players’ levels surpassed the boss?
No. We can’t afford to drag this out that long.
We had already burned more than a month clearing Zone 1. If we spent the same amount of time here, I couldn’t even imagine how many years it would take to finish the game. There was no guarantee everyone would still be alive by then anyway.
But no matter how long we stood there worrying, no answer appeared.
I turned to Emily, who was still lost in thought.
“Let’s head back to the village and figure it out there.”
“It’s getting pretty late. That sounds best.”
“…All right.”
But our safe return never happened.
-Kiiiiii!
“Why the hell are there bats in here again!”
Another swarm had already claimed the cave while we were gone. In the end we had to fight the bats all the way to the exit before we could finally leave.
Still, there was one bright side.
“At least I got a level.”
“Wait, you leveled too, Shaura?”
“I did as well. All that suffering was worth it after all.”
Because we had slaughtered such an enormous number, everyone’s level rose by one.
Our clothes were filthy and our bodies exhausted, but soft smiles still crept across every face.
Then why am I the only one who didn’t level up!
It was a bitter night.
Back in the village, we immediately put our heads together. The first to speak was Shaura. He scratched his smooth bald head and said,
“I believe we should keep the discovery of the boss secret for the time being.”
“Why?”
“If we announce it, people will inevitably push to start the raid right away. But you saw it yourself, Emily. Challenging that boss with our current strength is suicide. Even if we somehow win, the casualties will be catastrophic. So I suggest we wait a little longer before making any announcement.”
It was a logical argument that was difficult to refute.
Yet Emily still glared at him.
“We already spent an entire month in Zone 1. If we waste that much time again, we’ll never clear this game even if we live forever.”
“I understand that. But if we rush in and suffer heavy losses, it will only slow down every future raid even more.”
Shaura was right. Although countless players existed in this world, only a small fraction had chosen to fight. By rough estimate, roughly a thousand people were currently on the front lines. Most of them hadn’t even left Zone 1, and only about a hundred were fighting in Zone 2—despite two hundred thousand players in total.
That was how hard it was to overcome the terror of death. Especially for anyone who had watched someone die right in front of them.
Of course I didn’t think the people still hiding in Startia would remain paralyzed by fear until the day the death game ended. But until they finally stepped forward, we had to preserve our current fighting force. We needed to show them that there was hope—that it was possible to escape this nightmare.
That was why Shaura had to rein Emily in.
“I’m only asking for time until the players’ levels are at least on par with the boss.”
We needed enough breathing room to reach the same level, or at the very least close the gap to one level below.
Their gazes clashed in the air between them. This time, however, Emily’s eyes held visible conflict. In her head, she knew Shaura was right.
Finally she let out a long sigh.
“One week. Not a day more.”
“That should be sufficient.”
“Still, we should at least give the other party leaders a quiet heads-up.”
“Agreed. In the meantime we need to figure out a strategy for the boss…”
We all recalled the altar inside the cave—the seven statues arranged around the central tablet. The moment they had swung their weapons at us was still painfully vivid.
Adrian spoke first.
“I suppose the goal is to destroy all seven statues, right?”
“I think so too.”
“But the boss itself was the tablet.”
“It could simply be the medium controlling the statues. Of course we should stay alert for other possible patterns.”
Everyone agreed that the statues had to be destroyed. The problem was that all seven looked different and wielded different weapons. We had no idea what kind of coordinated attack patterns they might use.
“It would be nice to know more about those statues, but I guess we’ll have to learn by fighting them?”
Thinking back on the regrets from the Zone 1 boss fight, the biggest mistake had been charging in without understanding the patterns. That blind rush had cost us ten lives forever.
This time, perhaps we should prepare reserve parties, rotate shifts, and carefully study the boss’s behavior?
While Emily was deep in thought, I spoke up cautiously.
“I was planning to mention this later, but something bothered me while I was still in Zone 1.”
I told them what I had heard from the innkeeper Kate and the villagers about the Zone 1 boss—the guardian deity.
The moment they heard my story, the entire party’s eyes turned icy.
“W-why are you all looking at me like that?”
Emily, who was standing right beside me, moved first. She grabbed my head with both hands and squeezed with all her strength.
“Why are you only telling us this now, you crazy idiot!”
“Ow, that hurts!”
“It’s supposed to hurt!”
“Kyaaaa!”
I thrashed in pain, but no one tried to stop her.
“You had it coming.”
“If you were hiding something that important, you deserve a few hits… huh?”
At that exact moment, because I was twisting wildly to escape the pain, the cloak I had wrapped so tightly around myself slipped off my shoulders.
Starting from my bare shoulders, the deep line of my collarbone came into view, then the eye-catching curve of my cleavage, the narrow waist, the clearly defined navel, and finally my pale, smooth thighs.
The very appearance I had tried so desperately to hide was now completely exposed. For a moment the whole world went silent.
“Eh?”
Only then did I realize my cloak had fallen to the floor—and that everyone had seen the humiliating outfit underneath.
My face, which had been deathly pale, flushed crimson in an instant. I snatched the cloak back up and tried to cover myself, but no one—not least of all Emily—looked away.
I hung my head, voice barely a whisper.
“P-please just forget what you saw today…”
It was the tiniest, most pathetic voice imaginable. Somehow that only made the others’ protective instincts and sadistic urges flare even stronger.
The corners of Emily’s mouth stretched into a grin so wide it looked like her face might split.
“Then how about calling me ‘Unni’ from now on?”
My eyes trembled violently.
After that rather unfortunate incident, we continued the discussion and finally settled on a clear plan for the raid.
Our first priority was to identify the seven statues guarding the altar.
Confirming their identities turned out to be easier than expected.
“Ian was right.”
There were exactly seven abandoned altars scattered throughout the Valtor Mountains. The strange coincidence in numbers had bothered me, so I had suggested we investigate the other altars again.
The next morning, when Emily reached the altar closest to Lundel and read the tablet, she immediately understood.
When the unholy horde opposing the benevolent Earth God’s order covered the land, He was the first to raise His sword and stand at the Earth God’s side. Tyr the Condemner. His blade knew no hesitation, and every strike was the Earth God’s solemn judgment. The rebels who violated the law and rejected the Earth’s mercy all knelt before his fierce sword energy. Descendants, bow your heads before this altar. The peace of this land you stand upon was built upon the sacrifice of Tyr, who cut down injustice in the name of ‘Condemnation.’
“Tyr the Condemner…”
Emily pictured the male statue holding a sword. She was certain the man named Tyr on the tablet was that very statue.
The others who had gone to the remaining altars reached the same conclusion.
When the unholy horde opposing the benevolent Earth God’s order covered the land, He was the first to raise His shield and stand at the Earth God’s side. Sigurd the Indomitable. The enemy’s cowardly blades shattered against his shield, and even the fiercest gales could not push him back a single inch. He personally endured every calamity that threatened the Earth God’s peace, standing firm like an unshakable mountain. Descendants, bow your heads before this altar. The peace of this land you stand upon was built upon the sacrifice of Sigurd, who blocked every threat in the name of ‘Indomitability.’
Shaura had found the tablet belonging to the statue with the massive shield—Sigurd.
When the unholy horde opposing the benevolent Earth God’s order covered the land, She was the first to raise Her fists and stand at the Earth God’s side. Brunhild the Iron-Blooded. Every time her gauntlets cut through the air, the vain ambitions of those who defied the Earth God turned to dust. No mercy or hesitation could ever shake her heart of steel. Her cold fighting spirit became the Earth’s most unbreakable law. Descendants, bow your heads before this altar. The peace of this land you stand upon was built upon the sacrifice of Brunhild, who purified the land in the name of ‘Iron Blood.’
Adrian had located the tablet of the female warrior statue wearing gauntlets—Brunhild.
The other raid members we had asked for help reported similar findings.
When the unholy horde opposing the benevolent Earth God’s order covered the land, She was the first to raise Her staff and stand at the Earth God’s side. Eira the Merciful. Wherever her staff touched, new life sprouted across the earth. The souls that had defied the Earth God’s will finally found repentance and rest beneath her gentle touch. She was the light that embodied the Earth God’s infinite love, the sole guide leading the lost people back into the fertile embrace of the land. Descendants, bow your heads before this altar. The peace of this land you stand upon was built upon the sacrifice of Eira, who healed the land’s tragedy in the name of ‘Mercy.’
One group had found the tablet belonging to the mage statue holding a staff—Eira.
When the unholy horde opposing the benevolent Earth God’s order covered the land, He was the first to raise His axe and stand at the Earth God’s side. Beo the Savage. Every swing of his axe ground the bones of the rebels who mocked the Earth God’s order to dust. His wild roar shook the land and froze the hearts of the unholy. His power was the raw fury of the earth itself, the most loyal sentinel hunting those who would desecrate the Earth God’s glory. Descendants, bow your heads before this altar. The peace of this land you stand upon was built upon the sacrifice of Beo, who trampled the enemy mercilessly in the name of ‘Savagery.’
Another had discovered the tablet of the bear-headed statue wielding an axe—Beo.
When the unholy horde opposing the benevolent Earth God’s order covered the land, He was the first to raise His bow and stand at the Earth God’s side. Vidor the Silent. His silence was an unchanging vow of loyalty to the Earth God. His gaze never missed the hearts of those who would harm the land’s peace. Every time his soundless bowstring was drawn, the unclean lips that had slandered the Earth God fell into eternal slumber. Descendants, bow your heads before this altar. The peace of this land you stand upon was built upon the sacrifice of Vidor, who eliminated every threat from the shadows in the name of ‘Silence.’
Yet another had found the tablet of the eagle-headed statue holding a bow—Vidor.
And finally, the farthest altar—the one Hakon and I had reached.
“Um… Hakon?”
“Yes, Savior.”
I stared at the tablet in front of us.
“Why is there nothing written on this one?”
Unlike all the others, this stone tablet was completely blank.