Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Great Mountain Centipede.

It was a 5-Star hidden boss monster that appeared on South Spirit Mountain on the Second Floor, and as one could tell from its Star Rank alone, it was on an entirely different level from everything we had fought until now.

That thing was not a boss meant for an expedition team on the scale of a single party…… it was a boss meant for a ‘raid’.

“Retreat.”

The sword, having sensed an unprecedented threat, was trembling violently.

The eyes of the Great Mountain Centipede, which were fixed on us, began to turn red.

It meant the creature had begun to show hostility toward us.

“Retreat! Hurry!”

─Graaaaaah!!!

The roar shook the entirety of South Spirit Mountain.

I swung up Parrying toward the Great Mountain Centipede as it charged at us.

KWAANG!

A flash burst out, and its head was flung far to the side.

Everyone’s jaws dropped at the sight of a head the size of a house being knocked away by a single sword strike.

“You sent something that huge flying in one blow…….”

“Did you not hear me say retreat?”

Persica was the first to snap back to her senses at those words.

She gathered the dazed people together.

“You mean we cannot kill that thing, right?”

“Why are you asking the obvious? That is a 5-Star boss. It is the kind of monster that can make something like Vormir look like ‘nothing’.”

“What about fighting it with Parrying……?”

“This is not an offensive skill.”

Parrying was strictly a defensive skill. No matter how much it deflected, it did not inflict damage.

Of course, it would be the same even if I attacked.

Its defense was overwhelmingly high as well, so even if I slashed at it with all my strength, I would not be able to leave so much as a scratch on that hard carapace.

‘If I used a 10-stack Counterattack, I might barely be able to make my blade bite into it…….’As soon as I thought that, I shook my head.

I would die trying.

To begin with, saying that I would kill a 5-Star raid boss when I was only at the level of a measly 2-Star was absurd.

This was midgame content one challenged only after reaching at least 4-Star or higher.

“If I am alone, I can at least hold out. I do not have enough leeway to protect everyone else too, so hurry up and go.”

“…….”

Persica bit her lip hard.

Jin Sohwi, his face similarly stricken, took care of the people of his clan.

That guy had a duty to take responsibility for his household.

“Do not die.”

“I will not.”

Do not say it like that. You are making it sound like a death flag.

Once I confirmed that everyone had left, I was going to run immediately too.

The Great Mountain Centipede’s Boss Zone was the entirety of South Spirit Mountain. In other words, as long as I got out of the mountain, this thing would not chase me.

“Once you get down, contact White Cloud Castle immediately. I think the Downfall Order is here.”

“The Downfall Order……?”

I nodded.

‘They are the only ones who would do something like this.’

Even Jin Baek had not known the summoning gimmick for the Great Mountain Centipede.

He might simply not have told me, but in any case, anyone who knew such confidential information could not be ordinary.

The only people I could think of who would do this despite knowing that they would provoke the centipedes were the Downfall Order.

‘No, it has to be them.’

If there were two groups of lunatics, things would get even more troublesome.

Jin Sohwi seemed to understand me and nodded.

“I will contact them as quickly as possible.”

“Got it.”

Everyone left.

Facing the Great Mountain Centipede, I let out a faint laugh.

“To be honest, we might have had a chance to kill it…….”

There were a total of twenty-three people in this investigation team.

That was barely enough to attempt a raid.

‘And that thing does not seem to be in normal condition either.’

I had only just noticed it, but that creature’s entire body was covered in wounds.

Blood flowed from the broken parts of its carapace here and there, and its movements somehow lacked strength.

They were undoubtedly traces of a fight with someone.

‘It must have been the person who summoned it.’

They had probably spent a long time preparing the summoning. That much was obvious from the sheer number of Gigantress corpses.

The problem was that it was not easy to kill this thing with a small force.

It was not simply that it was strong. Once its health fell below 30%, it had a trait that made it flee.

One had to skip its escape pattern with concentrated fire, but unless one brought a 6-Star, that was impossible with a small group.

‘I doubt they supported it with that much manpower.’

If they had, it would have already been killed, so there probably were no high-ranking forces.

This thing did not recover its health even if it fled, but since its Boss Zone was so wide, finding it must have been rather difficult.

Would it not have taken several months to drive it all the way here?

If I calculated the period when the centipedes had gone mad, it roughly matched.

‘The one who summoned the Great Mountain Centipede is still here.’

Right about now, they were probably searching for the creature that had fled, and if we fought like this, we would be perfect for getting sandwiched between them.

“……If I hit it a few times, it will probably run away again.”

I could not fight while another variable was involved.

I had to draw out that creature’s escape pattern as quickly as possible.

I swung my sword toward the Great Mountain Centipede as it charged at me again.

***

The entrance of South Spirit Mountain.

The members of the expedition team, having safely set foot on level ground, gasped for breath.

They had run while ignoring the side effects, so their insides were churning, but every one of them was trembling with anguish.

“What in the world is happening here!”

“To think we survived through the sacrifice of our junior…… We have brought shame upon the name of the White Cloud Zen Master…….”

“Khk! I have no face with which to raise my head beneath the heavens……!!”

The disciples of White Cloud Castle choked down their grief at the fact that they had done nothing before the boss and had left behind a junior far younger than themselves.

To adventurers, juniors were precious beings who had to be protected.

They did not know what to do with themselves, ashamed that they had failed to fulfill their duty as seniors.

“Do not call it a sacrifice. That kid will not die.”

Persica roughly wiped her mouth, where saliva was dripping.

Her complexion was pale from having vomited several times on the way down, but her eyes were burning vividly.

‘There is no way that guy would do something like sacrifice himself.’

Persica believed in Isran.

That slippery little bastard was absolutely not the type to risk their life in a noble sacrifice.

The reason they had told everyone else to run first was undoubtedly because they truly had confidence they could survive.

“Young Master…… no, Jin Sohwi. Have you contacted them?”

“I have.”

He had already finished contacting them on the way here.

By now, people should have departed from White Cloud Castle.

“If Isran does not come out before they arrive, we are going straight back in.”

He had told them to contact White Cloud Castle and leave, but that was not Persica’s way.

She had no intention of abandoning a comrade. She had no intention of running away either.

Because Hildegard, her mother, would certainly have done the same.

***

A massive earthquake swept across the summit of South Spirit Mountain.

I ran with all my might to avoid the Great Mountain Centipede as it rampaged like a mad thing.

“Damn it, this thing is disgustingly tough.”

I had to deal damage first if I wanted to chase it off or do anything else, but my blade would not bite into it at all.

But if I tried to stack Counterattack, I was the one who would be driven to death.

“Khk……!”

A single sweep mowed down the forest.

Perhaps because its body was so large, its power was tremendous even though it was on the verge of death.

KWAGAGANG!

I used Parrying to knock its charging body to the side.

The sight of a monster too large to fit fully into one’s field of vision being flung away was extremely unreal.

“What should I do about this?”

It was almost impossible to win by fighting it.

That was not just an ordinary 5-Star. It was a raid boss that required a special summoning gimmick.

No matter how capable I was, killing the Great Mountain Centipede at my current level was absurd.

Because……Kiiiiiing─!

That thing could even use magic.

“……!”

With the creature at the center, the mountain split and exploded as though an earthquake had struck.

「Earth Shatter」 magic.

It dealt damage through ground tremors and lowered movement speed, and the shattered areas also dealt damage if stepped on.

The ground had risen into sharp spikes like spearheads.

─Kaaaaaah!!

The moment I barely managed to land while minimizing the cuts, the creature spewed dark red mist from its entire body.

‘Poison fog!’

I hurriedly held my breath.

I had not inhaled it, but the skin it touched turned red-hot, and its surface peeled away in an instant.

The moment I hurriedly escaped the haze, my eyes met those of the Great Mountain Centipede, which was looking straight at me.

“Damn it.”

─Kyaaaaaah!!

I saw black energy condensing in its gaping mouth.

It was both magic and an Aura pattern called 「Black Breath」.

Commonly called a ‘breath attack’, it was an Unblockable type and a sustained attack, so I could not deflect it with Parrying either.

There was no choice. I threw myself aside with all my strength, accepting that I would be injured.

A moment later, an ink-black flash erupted, and a single black beam swept across the spot where I had been.

KWAGWAGWAGWAGWANG────!!

The entire area the Black Breath had carved through was utterly devastated.

“……How am I supposed to fight something like that without preparation?”

The Great Mountain Centipede was a bad matchup for Parrying in many ways.

Each of its legs had its own hitbox, it used magic, and most of that magic was sustained.

‘That breath attack is the problem in particular.’

With ground effects or poison, I could escape quickly even if I was hit, but the moment the breath attack hit me, I would die instantly.

As one could tell from the fact that it contained Aura, that was one of its Instant-Death Patterns.

Parrying was extremely weak against sustained activation attacks like lasers or beams.

I could deflect them, but I could only block them for an instant, and there was no answer if the enemy simply kept firing.

To block one completely, I would have to keep using Parrying…… and I would have to do it in increments of 0.1 seconds. I would also have to time each one perfectly.

Even if someone told me to do that with a keyboard, I could not.

─Kirrrr…… kirrk…….

“……Hm?”

But after letting loose that breath attack, the creature’s condition was strange.

Drool poured from its mouth, and it twisted its body this way and that as though in pain.

It even slammed its head against the ground over and over.

“I have not even done anything yet……?”

At that moment, when it headbutted the ground, I saw something.

Behind its head.

Something had lodged itself between the plates of its carapace.

‘A flag?’

It was faint, but I thought that was right.

An ink-black flag with a red pattern drawn on it.

‘Is that…… the Banner of Enfeeblement?’

It was an item that lowered a monster’s defense, various tolerances, and resistances while dealing continuous mental-type damage.

It came with the drawback of making aggro unstable, but if one was trying to kill the target with a small group, that was not really a penalty.

However, it was a consumable, and since it even worked on bosses, it was very difficult to obtain.

“Now I understand why it is suffering.”

Since it was continuously taking mental damage, it was only natural for it to act like that.

The fact that it had come here without hiding itself even in that state meant……

“You came to protect your own kind?”

To protect its kind from the intruders who had entered the nest.

That was not strange, since the summoning gimmick itself was set up so the boss would emerge in fury if too many bosses died in succession.

‘I somehow feel like I have found a way…….’

I had a feeling that I only needed to pull out that flag.

I had no basis for it, but judging from the creature’s condition and behavior, I thought its hostility would disappear and it would stop chasing me the moment the flag vanished.

‘It is do or die anyway.’

I did not particularly like gambling, but since attacks would not work, this was the only thing I could do.

I quickly kicked off the ground.

Paaat!

Without hesitation, I activated my Unique Ability.

I had no leisure to struggle with incomplete swordsmanship.

Ishara’s realm overlaid itself onto me, and my explosively surging skill spread throughout my entire body.

─Kwaaaaak!!

The Great Mountain Centipede charged at me with its countless legs at the forefront.

Each sawtooth-like leg had its own hitbox, and if I was hit, I would be shredded on the spot.

Without hesitation, I drew up Mysticism and unleashed Parrying there.

KWAGAGAGAGANG!!

The violet flashes of Parrying burst out one after another.

When the massive body was shoved back by the backlash of being deflected, the creature let out a monstrous cry and shattered the ground with 「Earth Shatter」.

KWAAANG!

This time, I did not simply jump away to avoid it.

Now that I possessed the transcendent skill granted by my Unique Ability, I could even make use of that ground tremor.

‘Now!’

I lightly jumped into the air, predicted the moment the shockwave would reach me, and struck the ground with Parrying.

Parrying was a skill that nullified and deflected attacks.

However, although the ground could be broken or destroyed, it could not be deflected, so instead, my body shot upward into the air.

‘As expected, it works!’

I had wondered if this might happen when reality was reflected, and my prediction had been right.

Toward the head of the Great Mountain Centipede, which was rapidly approaching, I slammed the full-stack 「Counterattack」 I had saved up until now.

KWAAANG!

─Kiaaaaaak!!

The centipede, whose left eye had been gouged out, screamed in pain.

At the same time, agony struck me as well, and I grimaced.

‘So this is what forcibly moving mana means.’

Perhaps because I now knew the cause of this pain, the mechanism became something I could sense.

My body, which had forcefully circulated mana, was screaming.

Pain like the blood vessels throughout my entire body were being hacked apart made a suppressed groan slip through my clenched teeth.

“Not yet……!”

I steadied my body as it floated through the air.

The Great Mountain Centipede, having lost one eye, lifted its house-sized head and charged at me.

I calmly drew up Mysticism and used Parrying.

KWAAANG!

The deflected giant body crashed into the ground with a thunderous roar.

Then countless streaks of light began to shoot out from within the rising cloud of dust.

─Kiriririk!!

Projectile magic such as 「Poison Needles」 and 「Earth Spears」 came flying at me.

Keeping my falling posture, I raised my sword and deflected all the incoming magic at once.

KWAGANG! KAANG! KWAGAGANG! KAGANG!

The light of Mysticism swallowed the magic and twisted its trajectory.

Because I had twisted my wrist to guide the direction, the deflected spells collided all at once behind my back, causing a massive explosion.

KWAAAAANG!!

The aftermath pushed against my back along with a fierce shockwave.

Accelerated by that force, I struck down at the Great Mountain Centipede’s head as it was lifting it.

KWAAAAAANG!!!

The blow of the stacked 「Counterattack」 drove the creature’s head into the ground once again.

─Tsrrr…… kerrrk…….

Perhaps it had landed properly, because the creature’s movements stopped for a very brief moment in Stiffness.

I whipped my pain-wracked body onward and, before it could move, pulled out the ‘Banner of Enfeeblement’ lodged in one side of its head carapace.

“Done……!”

At the same time, I threw myself toward the ground and put as much distance between myself and the creature as possible.

Now was the time to wait for its reaction.

─…….

Fortunately, had the gamble succeeded?

The Great Mountain Centipede stopped thrashing. Its eyes somehow seemed a little clearer too.

WHOOSH!

The Banner of Enfeeblement I had pulled out caught fire and vanished.

How long had I continued the standoff while gasping for exhausted breaths? The Great Mountain Centipede lowered its posture, and I felt it retreat from me.

It had withdrawn its hostility.

“……Yes. I do not feel like fighting anymore either.”

I did not want to settle life and death here.

There was no value in it, and even if I killed that thing, the chance of Black Jade dropping was abysmal.

More than anything, the person who had summoned this creature had to exist somewhere. I had to run before that person arrived.

“Go. I will not chase you.”

As though it had understood me, the creature backed away.

However, perhaps because it was exhausted from the consecutive battles, it was busy gasping for breath in place.

It seemed it had truly come all the way here by using the last of its strength.

‘If I leave it alone, it will recover on its own and flee.’

Once a day passed after its escape, the raid would automatically end.

Quite a bit of time had passed since it encountered me, and even if I left, it should be able to keep running for the remaining time.

Then its summoner would have to go back empty-handed too.

“I need to…… deactivate my Unique Ability quickly…….”

There was still time before I reached the Limit.

If I hurriedly deactivated it, I should be able to endure without losing consciousness—

“……!”

At that moment, something caught on my energy sense.

The sound of something flying toward me.

It was extremely faint, but my senses, strengthened by my Unique Ability, did not miss it and caught it.

‘It is aiming for the Great Mountain Centipede!’

The moment I realized it, my body moved half on its own.

My sword, imbued with Mysticism, deflected the ink-black arrow that had flown from somewhere.

“Ho?”

Soon, a figure walked out from the forest.

A strange light flashed in his eyes as he looked at my sword, where Mysticism had gathered.

“You blocked that?”

Was I too late after all……?

I could tell at once from his aura.

The culprit who had summoned the Great Mountain Centipede had appeared.