episode_0177
by fnovelpiaThe people retreated.
Even amidst that, fragmented bones slowly flew towards the skull and merged together.
Soon, its true form was revealed.
What should it be called?
A head with horns and an elongated snout.
Only half of its body remained, floating in the air. It couldn’t be considered small. Even with only half its body remaining, it was about 3m in length.
Whoosh.
Green flames began to fiercely blaze in its empty eye sockets.
Its robe, like a shell, fluttered.
The tremors in the mountain of corpses grew increasingly violent.
“Prepare for battle!!! Leah!!! Millie!!! Mer!!!”
The lion beastkin shouted.
The three women each took their positions, centered around the lion beastkin.
The lion beastkin stood in the middle of the women holding daggers, bows, and spears, grabbing the greatsword he carried on his back.
Jeong Yushin desperately racked his brain.
Monster corpses were creaking and rising one by one.
He quickly assessed the situation.
It wasn’t just about facing that skull-headed thing.
He also had to grapple with those mountain-high piles of monster corpses.
‘Damn it. There seem to be over hundreds of them.’
The expert in defense didn’t think the location was good at all.
Even if they won, it was obvious that it would be a difficult fight.
Even fighting with their backs to the wall in the village would be insufficient, but fighting against a large number in an open field?
A situation where encirclement and annihilation were clearly visible.
In short, it was like begging to be killed.
The lion beastkin party was a mid-level explorer party. He didn’t know if they were low-tier or higher. But they’d been around long enough, so they must have at least considered that much.
“Break through in one go and head towards the transfer stone!!!”
As the lion beastkin shouted, the female beastkins immediately charged towards the skull thing.
Jeong Yushin couldn’t find his words.
‘They had a plan.’
But they could only barely reach the transfer stone by passing through the mountain of corpses and breaking through the path blocked by that skull-headed thing.
If they didn’t know how strong that skull mage thing was, they’d be finished if they were surrounded.
But the lion beastkin party bravely charged forward.
The skull thing fluttered its robe and quickly stepped back, extending its hand.
Immediately, a black barrier formed and blocked the greatsword swung by the lion beastkin.
Clang!!!
The greatsword collided with the barrier and bounced off.
“Ugh!!!”
The lion beastkin gritted his teeth.
The female beastkins also rushed at the skull thing and swung their weapons, but they were blocked by the black barrier and bounced off in vain, unable to inflict any damage.
Jeong Yushin turned around and met eyes with his party members.
Mic immediately understood Jeong Yushin’s signal.
“The back door…?”
“That’s right. We’re retreating. We need to go to the village. This place is too wide. It’s not suitable for fighting.”
Even in the midst of the urgency, Jeong Yushin spoke calmly.
Thanks to that, the party members immediately regained their senses and began to slowly back away.
“What about Raichel’s party?”
Rena asked.
“Is that the lion beastkin’s name? I don’t know. They’ll figure it out.”
They were the ones who tried to run away on their own.
There was no reason to step forward and save them.
He didn’t have the leeway either.
Besides, weren’t they the ones who glared at him when he entered the inn?
“Let’s go.”
Jeong Yushin’s party quickly retreated and ran towards the village.
However.
The quick-witted lion beastkin glared and shouted at Jeong Yushin’s party.
“Hey!!! Are you guys cowardly running away alone?!!!”
Regardless, Jeong Yushin’s party turned their backs and ran.
“Let’s retreat!!!”
The lion beastkin’s shout was heard from behind. As expected, he’s a quick-witted guy. You’d have to be that good to maintain a harem party.
They ran along the uneven road with no grass and arrived at the village tavern.
Bang!!!
The moment they flung open the tavern door.
The dwarf party came into view.
The dwarves were each holding a wooden box.
“…”
When they met Jeong Yushin’s eyes, the dwarves stiffened in embarrassment.
“What? Weren’t you guys leaving?”
The dwarf who seemed to be the leader stepped forward and said.
“Leaving my ass. The whole village is full of monsters, where are we supposed to go? Where were you guys hiding?”
“Monsters? Could it be new ones have appeared?”
“You saw the monster corpses at the transfer stone, right? Those guys… No, damn it. There’s no time to talk about this. Where were you?!”
Jeong Yushin’s voice grew louder.
The dwarf party’s expressions gradually soured.
Barg stepped forward and sniffed at the box the dwarf was holding.
“This smell. It was the tavern basement.”
“Do you know where it is?”
“Of course. Follow me.”
Barg quickly ran.
Following Barg, they passed the tavern counter and headed to the storage room.
A path leading downwards was visible on one side of the storage room.
Jeong Yushin looked down at the basement and shook his head.
That wasn’t it.
That was a place to hide like rats and preserve their lives, not a good spot to defend against enemies.
“Let’s go back to the entrance. It’s too narrow here. The hall is better.”
“I was thinking the same thing.”
The dwarf party still hadn’t grasped the situation and was floundering about.
These bastards haven’t come to their senses.
There wasn’t much time.
“Mic and I will gather the tables in the tavern and block the windows, so Sartre and Lena, prepare your magic.”
Rena was the party leader, but everyone followed Jeong Yushin’s flowing instructions without complaint.
“Okay.”
“Yes.”
“What should I do?”
Barg asked.
“Keep watch outside and let us know when the monster guys come.”
“Understood.”
Barg left the tavern, and Jeong Yushin and Mic gathered the wooden tables and chairs to block the tavern windows.
Fortunately, there were only two windows facing the entrance, so they didn’t need to put in too much effort.
While they were working hard.
Bang!!!
The lion beastkin party burst into the tavern.
“Barbaroi!!!”
The lion beastkin glared at Jeong Yushin with bloodshot eyes.
“What is it? I’m busy, so wait a bit···.”
The lion beastkin rushed in and grabbed Jeong Yushin by the collar.
“You cowardly ran away by yourselves?!!!”
Jeong Yushin’s face immediately crumpled.
“Let go, you bastard.”
Barg rushed in, panting.
“They’re coming!!!”
Jeong Yushin shook off the lion beastkin’s arm and loaded the cartridge with bolts to the fullest.
“Haa. Is your name Raichel? We’re going to block the tavern entrance and fight, and look for a chance to take down that skull mage. If you don’t like it, get lost.”
“Damn it!!! You should have said that sooner.”
The lion beastkin flushed and flared up in anger.
Jeong Yushin was dumbfounded and stared blankly at the lion beastkin before shaking his head.
He didn’t want to bother talking to a crazy guy who charged in before he could even say anything.
“Stop talking nonsense and take the right window.”
The lion beastkin glared at Jeong Yushin once before standing at the right window.
Jeong Yushin glared back at the lion beastkin without backing down.
‘Since when did he think he could act like that to me? What a crazy bastard.’
Anyway, there weren’t any normal people among the explorers.
They took out all the tables, chairs, and furniture in the tavern and blocked the windows.
The dwarf party divided.
Two dwarves with shields stood in the very center where Jeong Yushin was in charge.
Mic and Sartre, along with two dwarves with axes, took the left window.
The lion beastkin party stood on the right.
“Haa.”
Jeong Yushin took a deep breath and loaded the crossbow.
It was their job to clean up the mess because those Barbaroi guys didn’t do their job properly.
But there was hope.
They had succeeded and moved on to the next stage, so he believed he could do it too.
The dwarf party stood in front with their shields.
“I know what kind of monster that skull mage is!!!”
Lena shouted from behind.
“What’s its name?”
“Lich Prince, it spreads a curse that lowers strength and stamina just by existing. It can use powerful black magic and summoning magic at the same time!”
“Is it a monster that exists in the labyrinth?”
“No. I only know that it’s a monster that roamed this land long ago.”
Jeong Yushin thought for a moment.
Unknown?
No.
The Barbaroi guys had killed it once.
There was no reason to be afraid.
“The Lich Prince has a weakness.”
“What is it?”
“It has a place to store its life force called a Life Vessel. If you don’t destroy it, it will keep reviving.”
“How can we find it?”
“That’s···. I’m sorry.”
Jeong Yushin shook his head at Lena’s apology.
“No. Thank you for letting me know.”
In this situation, it was impossible to split up and search for the Life Vessel.
He’d skip that.
If it was a guy who spread debuffs that reduced strength and stamina, he had a countermeasure.
That skull water.
Jeong Yushin rummaged through his backpack and handed out water pouches to the dwarf party and the lion beastkin party.
“Take a sip each.”
“Barbaroi, what is this? Is it alcohol?”
Jeong Yushin shook his head at the dwarf’s question.
“It’s good for your body. It’s water that temporarily increases strength and stamina. You can temporarily escape from the skull mage’s curse.”
“Is that so? Thank you.”
“By the way, what was the luggage you guys were moving?”
“Later. Let’s talk about it after the fight is over.”
The dwarves postponed their answer and drank the water pouches.
The lion beastkin received Lena’s water pouch and drank it all.
Of course, Jeong Yushin’s party also took a sip each.
All the party members took their positions.
The sound of monsters rushing in was heard from the darkness.
“Kkueeeeek!!!”
“Kkigigigigik!!!”
They were from various areas, so their screams were all different.
“They’re coming.”
A pig monkey thrust its face into the entrance.
“Kkwiiiik!!!”
Click.
He raised the crossbow and aimed at its forehead.
Thwack!!!
When he pulled the trigger, the bolt flew and accurately pierced the pig monkey’s forehead.
Thud!!!
The pig monkey fell backwards. It didn’t even twitch. It was completely dead.
Over the falling pig monkey, other monsters rushed into the entrance.
Bang!!!!!!
The left window shattered, and monsters began to rush in from the other side.
Mic and the two axe-wielding dwarves stood there and blocked the incoming monster guys.
Jeong Yushin calmly stood at the entrance, holding the crossbow and firing bolts.
Thwack!!! Thwack!!! Thwack!!!
Five or six bolts tore through the air and pierced the monster guys’ arms and legs, torsos and shoulders.
Thud!!! Splatter!!! Thud!!!
There were various types of monsters: ones that fell from the bolts, ones that limped, ones that staggered, and so on.
There weren’t many that died, surprisingly.
But the number of monsters that couldn’t move properly increased.
While he was reloading the crossbow, a hunting dog jumped over the dwarf and lunged at Jeong Yushin.
He tightly gripped the bastard sword stuck in the ground.
“Hmph!!!”
Swoosh!!!
The blade flashed and cut off the hunting dog’s head.
Squish!!!
The hunting dog’s head brushed past Jeong Yushin and flew behind him.
The next one was a mushroom human.
It was slow but had tenacious vitality and strong strength.
It had about five or six bolts stuck in it, but it didn’t die and rushed straight at Jeong Yushin.
He swung the bastard sword again.
Stab!!!
The bastard sword plunged straight down and split the mushroom human’s head, half embedding itself.
The mushroom guy stood still.
Creak!!!
He twisted and pulled out the sword stuck in its head and kicked it away.
Bang!!!
The corpse flew and collided with the monsters rushing into the entrance, causing a mess.
About six pig monkey guys jumped over the dwarf’s shield wall and lunged.
He aimed the crossbow at the face of one of the charging pig monsters.
Thwack!!!
Paaak!!!
The bolt fired at point-blank range accurately pierced the pig guy’s forehead.
The pig monkey’s head snapped back and flew backwards.
He couldn’t rest.
That was because the other two were swinging their daggers.
He swung the sword horizontally and cut through the two pig monkeys’ torsos at once.
Blood and guts splattered on his face and body, but he didn’t even flinch.
Kwaaaaang!!!
The tavern entrance warped, and a giant pig monkey appeared.
It looked like it was holding a giant Chinese chef’s knife?
It had a considerably large physique.
“Swine Ogre!!! Be careful of Scars!!!”
Lena’s shout was heard from behind.
The Swine Ogre lunged at Jeong Yushin and swung its greatsword.
Jeong Yushin stuck the bastard sword into the ground and threw the crossbow into the air.
He was in a completely defenseless state.
“Scar?!!!”
Lena’s shout was heard, but he ignored it.
[Sacred Weapon]
He imagined Ingrid’s huge single-edged sword.
Magical power surged from within his body like a whirlwind, bursting out of both hands in a sacred light.
Jeong Yushin gripped the shining greatsword.
Force with force.
Whoooosh!!!
The Chinese chef’s knife came down, tearing through the air.
Crack.
He stabilized his stance and put strength into his lower body.
His walkers dug into the ground.
One.
Two.
Three.
He swung towards the Chinese chef’s knife.
Claaaaaang!!!!!!
The ogre’s greatsword broke in half, flying into the sky and embedding itself in the ceiling.
Click.
He caught the crossbow that fell in the air at the right time and aimed it at the ogre’s head.
The Swine Ogre, who had lost the strength contest, lost its balance and staggered.
Thwack!!!
Thud!!!
The bolt pierced the ogre’s eye and embedded itself.
The ogre knelt. The green flame disappeared from its remaining eye.
Jeong Yushin fired another bolt and swung the bastard sword.
Occasionally, he used Sacred Weapon to escape the crisis.
The desperate fight lasted for two hours.
Lena’s magic power had already bottomed out, and no more magic flew from behind him.
The other party members were also barely struggling with exhausted faces.
“Haa!!! Haa!!!”
Jeong Yushin swung his sword, panting.
The bastard sword, which was full of blood and fat, had lost its edge long ago.
The others were gradually pushed back, but only Jeong Yushin remained, dancing with the sword like crazy.
His whole body was covered in monster blood, looking like he had been soaked in a pool of blood.
If he had known this would happen, he should have worn heavy armor.
His head was throbbing because he used all his strength and focus to avoid attacks.
“Damn it.”
This is fucked.
Originally, the plan was to defeat the Lich Prince and then find the Life Vessel.
Was that the wrong idea?
The dwarf standing next to him staggered.
He seemed to have lost his mind because his stamina was depleted. To the point where he couldn’t see the approaching monster.
Jeong Yushin grabbed the dwarf by the scruff of the neck and threw him back.
At that moment.
Kwaaaaang!!!
The tavern entrance shattered.
Piles of stones and dust flew and covered the party.
Jeong Yushin gritted his teeth.
In the end, it had come.
He was wondering why he couldn’t see it.
Lich Prince.
Only half of its body remained, floating in the air.
The Lich raised its bone staff and pointed it at Jeong Yushin.
Black energy began to gather at the tip of the staff every moment.
It was clearly an unusual magic.
Jeong Yushin immediately rushed forward.
“Scar!!!”
Lena shouted.
If the magic that the Lich shot missed and hit another party member, it would be irreversible.
Monsters rushed in.
He broke through the gaps with his bare body.
It was a moment where even using all the strength he had wouldn’t be enough.
Jeong Yushin took out a scroll from his pocket.
‘Mion.’
A scroll that the kind priestess had personally made with magic for him.
He tore it.
At that moment.
Hwaaaaaang!!!!!!
A tremendous light flashed.
And.
[Holy Barrier]
[Holy Sanctuary]
[Cure]
[Slow Heal]
[Fast Heal]
[Strength]
[Blessing]
.
.
.
[Smite]
Dozens of buff magic spells were activated all at once.
A storm of divine power raged violently. To the point where the tavern roof was torn off.
When the Smite magic ended, hundreds of monsters collided with an invisible wall and bounced away, turning to ash.
The dark space of the 10th floor became as bright as daytime, centered around Jeong Yushin.
A tremendous amount of buff magic struck Jeong Yushin’s body.
Power was overflowing from his body.
Jeong Yushin’s black hair even turned golden.
Sartre, possessing Mic’s body, was screaming with joy.
“Hwaaaaang!!! I’m being purified!!!”
Jeong Yushin’s eyes widened like saucers, and he stuttered.
“No, crazy!!! Priestess Mion, what is this?!”
Didn’t she say she put in ‘a little’ magic?
“It’s a heaping bowl of rice!!!”
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