Chapter 253 |
I was the only one who hadn't taken action on the fourth turn.
I immediately moved towards Amonga and swung my sword downwards.
Zero's first original technique: Sincere Downward Strike.
Crack!
"Aargh!"
Amonga screamed.
I could have used a technique with [Divine Imitation] for greater damage, but as I mentioned earlier, I couldn't show my true abilities to Teron and Daike.
This was the best attack I could manage under the circumstances.
"These damn bugs!"
Teron slightly moved his upper body back to dodge the attack.
Dodge. Officially a 'miss!'
'Teron and Daike’s specs are quite high after all.'
Their stats are decent, but it's the stack of cheat-like skills that makes them formidable.
It was no trouble for them to dodge an attack from Amonga, who was only a seventh-grade.
'After a demon appears in each area, the quest text says it disappears after 10 turns. That doesn't mean the demon flees.'
It means the kids in each area have successfully killed the demon.
Of course, it's slightly different when Mabelga shows up last, but the chance to capture Mabelga also disappears after 10 turns.
"Teron, sir, are you alright?"
"Hmm, seems like a weaker one than he looks. Of course, we must not be careless. Daike, proceed as usual. Formation B."
"Roger!"
Teron gave the orders and Daike instantly complied.
Was it their composed demeanor that impressed Luna? She quickly turned her head towards me.
"Zero! Let's proceed as we planned! Formation Z!"
"Keke, what’s that?"
"You know, the one I taught you! The strongest, Formation Z!"
So what is that, you otaku.
Is it because Z is the last letter in the alphabet, implying it's the most powerful formation? Or is it just a pretentious display, boasting about how many formations she's developed?
Well, it was a typically cute tsundere act by Luna.
'Competing over such things. They aren't kids anymore...'
Well, they actually are. Just watching her trying to mimic Teron and Daike shows that.
But if she keeps this up, Luna’s already short legs might end up split like a sparrow’s.
'They’ve been together since childhood.'
I'm not completely familiar with Teron's story, but I know they've had a relationship lasting over ten years.
Moreover, they have a clear superior-subordinate military relationship.
Their coordination was inevitable.
'Well, I must admit, they do look like a well-matched couple.'
Teron is the archetypal handsome man from the novels, and Daike has a rugged charm.
With such universally appealing looks, it’s no wonder.
'The lord and his loyal hound.'
A sight to incite jealousy indeed.
Contrast that with us right now.
Hiding somewhere, a trembling pufferfish rabbit, and...
"What are you looking at? Why aren’t you executing Formation Z?"
...a cat blinded by envy, spouting nonsense. I couldn’t help but envy Teron.
Even my cat, which dishes out nyang-nyang punches daily... I mean, nips at its owner's ears.
How nice would it be if my household's cat and pufferfish rabbit could show such traits?
While cats might be excused, pufferfish rabbits were truly hopeless.
"Keke, hoping she won't to run away is what I most desire? That’s pretty bleak."
"What are you saying? Rezé is fighting hard and has gotten stronger!"
"Isn’t it true that Luna does not even know where Rezé is right now?"
"Well, maybe over there? Since we decided on Formation Z!"
So what is that, really!
There’s no way to even relay that to Rezé.
Perhaps because Luna was looking rather petty imitating them. Teron smirked.
"Ha... The level difference is so vast, it's boring me to death."
"Is that so? Good timing then. I was just about to kill you."
Luna gnashed her teeth in frustration, while a smile filled Teron's face.
"Think you can?"
"Aaah! Zero! Don't stop me! I'm really going to kill him!"
Luna, I wasn’t stopping you in the first place. We're not even close enough to reach each other right now.
Luna prepared to charge, but the fight between them did not happen.
Instead, Amonga, who had been ignored until now, burst out in anger.
"Impudent fools! Ignoring me like this!"
With Amonga’s outcry, two new earthworms appeared.
It was the end of Amonga’s turn.
[Turn 5]
Our turn began.
‘This is the crucial point.’
Whether we can reduce Amonga’s health below 50% or not will shape our strategy moving forward.
‘In the worst case... I might have to skip the third demon. I’ll receive stat penalties and fail the quest, but taking down Mabelga is more important.’
And to reduce Amonga's health to less than half this turn.
"Daike, please attack the demon. Ignore the earthworms."
"..."
But Daike’s gaze was fixed on the earthworms.
‘Told him to ignore the earthworms and he ignores me instead.’
It seemed Daike’s affection towards me was quite low compared to Teron.
‘I knew it before... but maybe it's worse than I thought?’
The reason can wait. Right now, bringing Amonga's health below 50% is the priority.
I whispered quietly to Teron beside me.
"Keke, that’s disappointing."
"What do you mean?"
"I was happy we could form an alliance, even temporarily... but it seems Daike is not on board. Or perhaps, he ignores me because I look like an earthworm."
"...?"
"From cockroaches to earthworms... maybe it's a sign that I should live a bug’s life underground? I was slightly considering working under Teron after graduation... but perhaps I'm not cut out for it."
Even in the game world, the tyranny of beauty!
Tears naturally began to flow.
Sniffle sniffle.
Was it realizing he had hurt my pure heart, or was it the idea of wanting to work together after graduation that resonated with Teron?
Teron's eyes widened.
"Daike! Do as Zero says! Going after the bigger prey will be more beneficial for our grades!"
"...Understood."
Daike turned towards Amonga. I gave him a slight tongue-out gesture.
It seemed like veins were popping on Daike's forehead. Must be my imagination.
"I'll take the lead! Follow me!"
Vyuern's first original technique.
Explosive Force.
Daike's third original technique.
Schlüssel.
Zero's first original technique.
Sincere Downward Strike.
A spectacular display of techniques.
Boom-!
Following that, a barrage from Rezé shook Amonga to his core. And then.
"Take this!"
Luna's ordinary attack added to the fray.
"Aaaaargh-!!"
Black fluid flowed from every part of Amonga.
Instinctively, I knew we had succeeded.
I couldn’t 'act' anymore, but I could still 'move.'
On a patch of land with a tree about half my height, I stealthily moved my body.
"Aaaaah! Presumptuous humans! I will show you my true power!"
Amonga raised his hands to the sky. Enormous rocks began to fall from above.
Amonga’s second gimmick, 'Stone Labyrinth', had begun.
"Teron sir!"
"Daike! Dodge it! I won't allow injuries!"
Boom-!
A massive rock, about 4 meters high, fell, and Teron and Daike disappeared from view.
And the same went for us.
"Zero!"
"Keke, Miss Luna. I’ll see you shortly."
Luna reached out her hand towards me, but couldn’t make it.
It was inevitable. Scattering the allies was one of the gimmicks of the 'Stone Labyrinth'.
Boom! Booooooom!
The rocks continued to fall relentlessly.
As the falling rocks began to subside and the dust settled,
[Turn 6]
The sixth turn started.
Originally, Amonga's gimmick should have begun in the first turn, but it only started now.
‘It's delayed more than expected. I need to hurry.’
The starting places for the Stone Labyrinth are ten in total, and you begin at one closest to you.
And.
‘The spot I'm in now is the closest to Amonga.’
This position allowed me to confront Amonga directly this turn.
Just so you know, this is all there is to Amonga's gimmick.
What? Too simple, you think?
‘Of course, it’s only the second chapter...’
Rather, the fights up to now have been the unbelievable part.
Demons like the Demon's Shard and Bineus are normally only defeatable after the third or fourth chapter, respectively.
And to think of all the life-threatening encounters with Teron, Daike, Lucia, and Adonis.
It truly has been an eventful academy life.
‘What kind of battles have I been fighting up until now...’
Tears began to well up as I remembered all the hardships.
Anyway, don’t think Amonga’s gimmick is too simple.
It’s exactly fitting for just the second chapter. And the other three demons are of a similar level.
"..."
Walking towards where Amonga was, I was lost in thought.
The most important thing right now.
‘Can I kill Amonga in one hit?’
Currently, the most powerful skill I can use is undoubtedly [Sky Splitter].
Though it has the drawback of a narrow range, it boasts a high attack multiplier compared to other skills.
Moreover, being enhanced to an A-grade through [Divine Imitation].
With Amonga’s HP below half, it should be possible to finish him in one hit.
‘If I had built my character normally.’
Skills mimicked with [Divine Imitation] are influenced by my stats.
My stats are a mess due to gambling on potential. But can I really kill Amonga in one hit?
Given the maze, I can’t rely on anyone else’s help.
If I can’t kill Amonga in this hit, it will have to go to the next turn.
If Amonga is killed in the 7th turn, that means I’ll start the second zone on turn 8.
‘Well, I have no choice but to try.’
I took a deep breath and walked forward. As soon as I turned the corner, there he was.
"Hmm? How did you get here so fast?"
Amonga’s eyes widened in surprise.
"Keke, I guess I was just lucky."
"Not really, it's bad luck for you. What a pity."
"Is that so?"
"I was planning to negotiate with you after the fight, given the good vibes you give off, but it's a shame..."
Amonga clicked his tongue regretfully.
Normally, I would have drawn out information through conversation, but now wasn’t the time for that.
I was in the middle of preparing my attack.
Whooosh-!
"Huh?"
"Eh?"
I heard something flying towards us. Then...
Boom-!
"Aaaaargh!"
There was a massive explosion at Amonga’s back, sending flesh and fluids splattering around.
I knew immediately what had hit him.
‘A mana bullet!?’
Yes. It was definitely a mana bullet fired by Rezé.
Not only finding us quickly in the Stone Labyrinth but also managing to strike accurately through a 4m high stone wall.
‘Such an audacious pufferfish rabbit... almost as impudent as Daike right now!’
I swiftly manipulated the information window. I toggled one skill from OFF to ON in the skill window.
Fwoosh-!
Dark flames coursed along my blade.
An S-grade skill gained from potential gambling. [Darkness]’s debut.
"How, how can a human like you have such power...!"
"Keke, because I’m a veteran."
"What does that mean!"
Yes, there is such a thing.
Before Amonga could continue, I used the skill I had saved in [Divine Imitation].
I positioned my feet properly, one forward, one back.
Both hands gripped the sword as it lifted towards the sky.
Lucid Family's fourth technique.
Sky Splitter.
A black line etched vertically through Amonga's body.
And then.
Crack-!
Amonga’s body split in half.
Along with the sky.
--TL Notes--
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