Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented – Chapter 169

[Sword Curtain]

[Invincible during casting]

Sword Curtain protects the user’s body with starlight and can also be used as an area-of-effect skill by releasing it. If not released, you can also move while temporarily gaining resistance judgment.

The time starlight protection remains on the body is about 3 seconds. Similar specifications to other classes’ standing invincibility skills.

3 seconds is more than enough.

Boom boom boom boom-!!

Whoosh!

Breaking through the fierce magic storm pouring down as if to erase everything in front of me, I charged forward like an arrow with starlight enveloping my body.

Roar!

The magic breath covering the entire front indeed didn’t end as a single burst. If I had carelessly used backward evasion, I would have been swept away by the continuing storm even after the invincibility time ended.

Approaching the golem and slashing its body within the Sword Curtain protection, I counted time inwardly.

1 second, 2 seconds, 2.5 seconds, 2.8 seconds.

The breath’s duration hadn’t ended yet. 0.2 seconds of Sword Curtain protection remained. I can’t maintain the frontal position any longer in this storm of unknown duration. For now, I’ll escape to the golem’s rear using Flash Slash.

Swish.

Lowering my posture as is.

Flash!

A flash of light cutting through the magic rose, and I moved behind the golem’s back, completely escaping the breath’s area of effect.

At the same time, the breath’s duration also stopped.

Whoosh!

Avoiding the golem’s terrifying left arm as it immediately turned its body, I started formulating countermeasures for normal patterns one by one.

First, arm swinging left and right 2 times. Then raising both arms and smashing down as is. The range is enormous. I could block the swings, but the smash down is clearly an unguardable judgment. If faced head-on, I could become Rain jerky. Then, get a Just Guard judgment on the second hit and.

Clang!

After blocking the golem’s arm at the exact timing, I used Counter against the huge arms coming down to crush above my head.

Swish.

Slash slash slash!

Moving through space, I simultaneously swung my starlight-imbued sword as if to strip off the dense magic surrounding the golem’s body.

Just Guard on the 2nd hit, Counter on the smash down, followed by a spinning attack that includes me who went behind in the attack range.

The golem’s arms wrapped around its body and.

Whoosh!

Clang!

At first sight I couldn’t match the timing and got knocked back, but this time I blocked at the exact timing. Because I got the Just Guard judgment, I completely negated the damage too.

And then, breath.

Woong!

Purple magic flashed in the golem’s head area.

This time I don’t need to use Sword Curtain. There are many ways to respond if I just don’t get knocked back by the spin. I used Left Counter on the smash down, so I can use Right Counter here.

Swish.

Boom boom boom boom-!!

And free damage while taking the rear during the breath duration.

Slash slash slash!

It feels like I’ve fully adapted to the normal patterns now.

It doesn’t seem necessary to use blocking often. I just need to focus on the timing of the spinning attack. There, I can block knockback through Just Guard judgment and get damage support through the ‘Vitality’ buff.

A boss with an instant kill pattern of wide-area attacks with terrifying force and frontal breath after knockback. Despite being a lump of stone, its movements are fast too.

But as it’s a boss with formalized patterns, just establish corresponding responses and attack cycles to the patterns and that’s it. This one’s normal patterns aren’t too difficult either. It’s rather gentle compared to Jakam I faced in the ‘Tree of the Abyss’ raid dungeon.

I guess the normal patterns are at elite dungeon level after all.

The problem is the special pattern.

[Named]

[Level 55 Fusion of Nightmares]

[HP 80,014,912 / 100,000,000 (80%)]

The golem’s HP 80%.

If a special pattern comes out, it’s around here. If not here, then 70% or 60%. Anyway, I need to be careful from now on.

Clang!

Confirming sparks flying from the golem’s body with my next sword strike, I slowed my offensive a little.

The golem momentarily stopped moving and.

Thud!

After lightly stomping its foot, it jumped to the center.

Boom!

A vibration and roar as if shaking the entire basin reverberated through my body and ears.

It moves amazingly well despite being a heavy stone body. It even has a jump pattern. I wonder if it will try to crush me like that?

However, the special pattern that started afterwards shattered my expectations.

Gurgle.

Not the sound of the body resonating, but the sound of something sticky flowing out. Such a strange sound was heard.

From where?

There’s only one.

Of course, it’s a sound the golem is making.

Soon.

‘It’ started flowing out from the golem’s entire body.

Gurgle. Gurgle gurgle.

Black thing.

A liquid with viscosity. No, gas? An unknown substance between liquid and gas.

Gurgle gurgle.

That which burst out as if overflowing from the black golem started filling the open space.

Black and sticky.

The magic itself condensed for a thousand years flows out as if to fill Celestial Basin beyond the central open space.

“Wah.”

I unknowingly took a sharp breath.

Since encountering Astria Online, I’ve never heard or seen anything like this.

No, not Astria Online, but I’ve actually seen it before. It was some slimy thing in the Demon King’s castle.

This is concentrated magic.

A fusion where all kinds of human sins gathered together, as if it became an object with some will.

The sticky magic it pours from its whole body flows out as if to replace the air in this basin.

If consumed by magic condensed to that degree, a human body would be unable to maintain its form.

I gritted my teeth.

Such a tremendous being was crouching in a mere elite dungeon? A being that wouldn’t be out of place in the Demon King’s castle?

Holy power is needed.

Without holy power, I can’t oppose that fusion.

But the current me has neither a holy sword nor Saintess Elena.

I stepped back little by little.

Gurgle gurgle.

The magic flowing out of the fusion’s body quickly gathered around me, spreading like air or sticky mucus.

I was surrounded by the black, sticky energy that covered the open space and soon started overflowing to the entire basin.

I glanced behind me.

No, the retreat path isn’t blocked yet.

Escape is possible.

Should I run away for now? If I stay here, it’s a dog’s death.

No, calm down Rain. This world isn’t reality now. It’s not like I’m actually dying, right? Did I just go back to the old days for a moment? Will I come up with a good solution if I try again?

It’s a game. It’s a special pattern. There must be a way to deal with it. They wouldn’t have put in a gimmick that I can only helplessly succumb to.

This world that seems to have been meticulously pieced together by someone.

That guy is just a named boss in the game now too.

Then, they wouldn’t have carelessly placed an uncatchable boss.

Let’s try to endure with Sword Curtain for now.

And think of a breakthrough in that state.

Swish.

I straightened my sword and prepared to cast Sword Curtain.

Gurgle gurgle.

Just before my body was completely surrounded by the surging river of magic.

Whoosh-!!

A pillar of holy light struck down where I was standing.

I released the Sword Curtain stance and let out a sigh of relief.

“Phew.”

I’m glad I didn’t run away.

I thought in my heart there would be a protection gimmick.

The sacred object ‘Divine Mark’ that still emits holy power in this world.

I had completed the Divine Mark activation mission before facing this boss.

It was indeed a necessary process.

The dome-shaped holy magic circle created by the resonance of Divine Marks at three points.

It was currently surrounding the entire Celestial Basin and purification was in progress.

The holy magic circle detected where the concentrated magic flowed out and started full-scale purification.

However, this is simply holy power borrowed from the power of an old sacred relic. Such sticky magic won’t be easily purified.

In fact, the only place not covered by magic now is the narrow space around where I’m standing at the edge of the open space.

The battle area currently allowed to me is…

A circular space 8 meters in diameter.

Inside the pillar of holy light.

Woong!

Gurgle gurgle.

The battle between the magic trying to fill this place and the holy power trying to purify it began. The holy power is slightly ahead, though weak. Due to the power of the purification magic circle, the magic filling the surroundings was gradually fading.

It seems it will take some time. For the time being, it looked like activity would only be possible within this 8-meter diameter circular space.

Celestial Basin, final named battle.

In a way, it’s a process of purifying the source of magic simultaneously with the boss battle. If I shatter that golem, it will be easily purified.

An anxious assumption popped into my mind.

But why 8 meters around me specifically?

If this battle between magic and holy power is also part of the named battle, if it’s a kind of gimmick.

This is.

“A gimmick limiting the battle area narrowly…!”

The magic can’t invade this space.

However, the ‘Fusion of Nightmares’ main body doesn’t seem to care about the pillar of holy light.

Thud!

The body of the black golem standing in the middle of the surging magic.

Leapt into the air.

“Huh.”

Slash slash!

I hastily cast Sword Curtain.

The golem’s huge body immediately covered the entire area where I was standing and crashed down roughly.

Boom!

Clang clang clang!

Harsh sparks flew between the golem’s body and my starlight. The golem’s body that came crashing down on my Sword Curtain only covered the top of the curtain, unable to crush me.

I was a bit worried about how much Sword Curtain could block as it was an unknown territory, but fortunately I didn’t become Rain jerky. Is it natural since it’s an invincibility judgment in the system? Anyway, the jump pattern can also be protected by Sword Curtain.

Thud!

The golem, raising its body that had covered me, stomped its foot once again.

Whoosh!

The black huge body leapt into the air again.

The jump didn’t end with just once.

Death if crushed, game over if knocked back. There I’ll be consumed by the wave of magic.

I sensed that enduring in this narrow space wouldn’t be so easy.