Chapter 58: Boy King (4)

Chapter 58: Boy King (4)

༺ Boy King (4) ༻

“Are you planning to face me by yourself?”

Right before preparing to drown me in Forbidden Sorcery, Valkasus asked such a question.

He probably believed that the current power difference between us was like that between an elephant and an ant.

“Did you even hear yourself? Of course not.”

Obviously, even I couldn’t pull off such a stunt without the right tools and preparations.

So, I called over some people to come around this time.

They should be arriving soon...

“Aaaaaahhh—!”

“Kyaaaaaahh—!”

[Wooooaaahh—!]

“...”

What a colorful chorus of screams.

With a mixture of two people’s voices and one person’s letters, a cluster of bodies flew from below towards the balcony of the Clock Tower’s top floor.

System Notification

[ ‘Skill: Stigmata’ activated. ]

I used the Ultima’s built-in skill to cast a protective barrier that cushioned their fall.

Compared to the previous version, Guardian Shield, Stigmata had a much thicker divine power layered onto the barrier. It surrounded the trio, bouncing them off the walls and floor, but still keeping them safe.

“I will never, ever, do this again! I’m an expert so I have to lead? What kind of bullshit reason is that?! Who in the world is an expert at something like this?!”

As soon as Stigmata was released, Iliya rushed out first while barking in annoyance.

She certainly seemed to have outstanding stamina, thanks to her extremely physical-oriented class.

On the other hand, Lucia and Yuria looked pale and were practically crawling around.

“Why are you complaining so much when it wasn’t even that bad for you...?”

[That’s right, this much isn’t too—]

Next to me, Yuria, who was about to agree with my words, couldn’t even finish displaying her words in the air as she covered her mouth.

It seemed like she was holding back her nausea.

“...”

Well, yeah. It was certainly true that this method basically shredded the entire safety regulation book, if there even was one.

The device that launched them here was the ‘catapult’ that Iliya and I used to enter the Astral Realm together.

Hm, maybe I should give it a name later. I was kinda getting attached to it at this point.

“...Your exact instructions were to just set up a trajectory without any safety measures or equipment and launch us up to a place a few hundred meters from the ground within five minutes! And you have the audacity to call me on my complaints?! Huuuh?!”

“...”

Seeing her grit her teeth in anger, I honestly didn’t have much to say.

It was true that all I told her was for the three of them to hug each other tightly and ‘fly’ up here as a group.

I should probably just be grateful that she followed that crazy command without questioning me.

“I had no other choice.”

I chuckled and turned around.

“After all, if I didn’t at least use such a method to quickly bring the three of you here, this would have been an opponent that I couldn’t deal with.”

If they had come even a few minutes late, it would’ve been Game Over.

We only had a mere ten minutes after all.

“...”

I briefly turned my head and checked the ‘Starsteel Circlet’ that Yuria was wearing.

It seemed that the Crafting School’s Professor Vulcan had made quite the effort. Even when they flew while huddled up, there were no signs of danger.

While she ‘wore’ it and while it was ‘activated’, Yuria’s Curse of Severance would be incredibly weakened. It was to the extent that the curse was temporarily lifted.

The effect was quite simple.

When she wore it, Yuria could only use the Curse of Severance on ‘what she wanted to sever’.

It was similar to using the Curse of Severance as an attack buff.

“Lucia.”

“...Valkasus.”

While I was thinking about such thoughts, the Boy King chuckled as he recognized Lucia, who was standing up.

“Didn’t you say you would cooperate with me back then? How saddening.”

“...”

“Ah well, that was a joke. Still, it’s a relief to see your younger sister healthy.”

For a moment, Lucia closed her eyes and bowed her head.

It seemed like she was feeling guilty.

Perhaps, she, too, understood why Valkasus sought death.

It was a heavy burden for one to engrave Forbidden Sorcery made from the souls of people who willingly sacrificed their lives.

For Valkasus, he sought his own death to free the souls of his subjects from his body.

“...Your kingdom will be saved.”

Suddenly, the Saintess made a bold statement.

“Because this man will make it so.”

“...”

Valkasus slowly nodded his head.

“I see.”

From his voice, though, he didn’t sound convinced at all.

As the sun completely set beyond the horizon and darkness enveloped the scenery...

Valkasus’ true body was revealed.

His appearance was eerie, as if his very essence was melting into a form without a distinct shape. Almost as if he was fully integrated into the darkness that covered the entire world.

From another perspective, it was almost as if he controlled it all as well.

“...”

Seeing this transformation, Iliya let out a faint groan while tightly gripping the hilt of her sword.

Her hand was slightly trembling. There was no way she didn’t realize the fact that she was facing a monster of such a caliber.

“Can we even defeat...that?”

Iliya asked with concern, but...

“As long as you all listen to me without any questions.”

I just gave a simple answer.

To be more precise...

“No one else can defeat that except me.”

In the first place...

Out of the many Sera sweats. I was the first one to successfully break through the ‘combat’ route of Valkasus.

People called me crazy back then, but I succeeded.

‘If you ask me why...’

‘Well, I found him quite likable, even though he was a boss.’

I thought about how to efficiently ‘use’ him and this was the only way I found.

That was why I made a promise with him prior to this.

To use him as a ‘subordinate’.

“...Even if this guy were to drown, I bet he would still blabber on.”

Right as Iliya let out a chuckle while dissing me again...

“Well, I think we’ve talked enough.”

A venomous aura emanated from Valkasus’s breath.

Basically, it was a sign of attack.

System Message

[ A moment of danger has been detected.]

[ Determined the situation as life-threatening. ]

[ Skill: Desperation raised to EX Grade. ]

“Shall we begin?”

“Here I come!”

Accompanying Lucia’s voice...

Forbidden Sorcery surged from all directions.

Over the eons that spanned millenia, Valkasus had traversed countless battlefields.

Perhaps, that was his desperate attempt to search for the most likely environment to fulfill his only wish, death.

No, rather...

He was the one starting to fall behind.

If it continued like this, then undoubtedly...

It could end in his defeat.

“Ha... HAHAHAHAHA!”

Valkasus bursted into laughter.

“Surely it won’t end just with this. Surely you can show me more!”

Yes. Now, he knew with certainty.

The certainty that this man was not all talk! The certainty that he could back up his words!

“Come forth! Try to end my life!”

Though it did not quite fit the content of his words...

His voice was filled with such endless joy.

My lower eyelids were burning because my brain was working to its limits.

‘...Are you fucking with me? This is insane...!’

It had been a while since I used my head this much.

‘...I swear, at this rate, I’m going to die.’

I was maximizing my reflexes at every moment through intense concentration, squeezing out various countermeasures even when there were no gaps to exploit.

Calculating the movements of four people simultaneously, according to the boss battle’s pattern, was laborious beyond expectation.

If I did not give the Starsteel Circlet to eliminate Yuria’s ‘restrictions’ in advance, even a sweat like me would have failed from the very beginning.

“...”

While breathing heavily, I looked ahead. It was the same pattern. Several Formations threaded with Forbidden Sorcery emitted light once again.

I instantly calculated and deduced what kind of attack it was based on the shape and casting time.

An onslaught of darkness that sweeps the entire horizontal distance. At least three of them.

“Lucia. Rank 37 Prayer 112. Pull out four of them and scatter them in each direction. Yuria, follow the Prayer’s trajectory and stand by. Iliya, duck for three seconds, then stand up and move forward three steps.”

It was the formation that we continued to use.

Lucia weakened the attack, Yuria defended against it, and Iliya seized the opportunity to gradually accumulate damage.

The pattern would end at the fourth second.

As such, I prepared the next counterattack.

“...I get that it’s good we’re holding up!”

Iliya shouted with incredulity.

“But could we even kill that thing? I’ve slashed it so many times already!”

“He can’t be killed.”

“...”

I smirked at Iliya who was glaring at me.

“I’m saying we can’t kill him by continuing what we’re doing right now.”

What I was doing right now was, in a way, akin to chipping away at a mountain with a pickaxe.

He definitely received some damage, but to actually kill would take an endlessly long time. Obviously, it was neither practical nor efficient.

Well, the current strategy was more like a build-up to the finale.

“What are you even saying?”

“People are easier to deceive than you think.”

Especially if something continued repeatedly.

Even when it hadn’t even been promised, people often ended up perceiving it as ‘natural’’.

So...

Even this ‘simple’ play of attack and defense was purposefully being continued according to my plans.

“...”

I glanced at the clock.

Without a chance to explain to a puzzled Iliya, I continued with the next command.

“It’s coming!”

Two minutes left. At this rate, the moment I had been waiting for should be coming at any moment.

After all, the reason I had set the time limit to ‘ten minutes’ was because within that time frame, I could definitely see this pattern at least once.

Thorn of darkness generated tumultuously from all directions.

‘Just as expected.’

It was the pattern I had been continuously waiting for.

This was the most crucial phase when raiding the boss battle.

Because unlike other patterns, this one also blocked the opponent’s ‘vision’.

“...”

So. I also prepared my countermeasure here.

After Lucia saw this sight, she immediately created another Prayer. Up to this point, it was the same.

However...

System Notification

[ ‘Skill: Proof of Faith’ activated. ]

[ All stat bonuses are converted to ‘Endurance’ and ‘Divine Power’. ]

System Notification

[ ‘Skill: Stigmata’ activated. ]

This time, I was going to add a bit of a ‘different element’.

After simultaneously activating two of Ultima’ built-in skills, I injected much more power into defending the Forbidden Sorcery.

“Get up, you yangban1A Korean way to say aristocrat or gentleman. Does not have a specific translation so kept as yangban!”

[...Not even calling me by name now, huh?]

I woke up the sleeping Caliban and activated another skill.

System Notification

[ ‘Skill: Image World’ activated! ]

[ Sharing ‘Skill: Proof of Faith’ with targets within range. ]

Shortly after, the Forbidden Sorcery was blocked. And a counterattack immediately followed.

Valkasus was no fool, he already expected a counterattack and had prepared various defensive Sorceries.

This defense was just like the ones before, originally prepared to counter ‘Iliya’s attacks’.

However...

-!

-!!!

Unlike before, the attacker didn’t retreat from such Forbidden Sorcery. On the contrary, she approached while ‘cutting through’ it all.

“...!”

The surprised Valkasus instinctively looked towards the side that was blocking the Forbidden Sorcery.

After all, it was a completely different situation from the combat formation that had been continuing until now.

However, on that side...

“...Wow...Teach. You. Better. Be prepared. To face. Me. Later...”

Iliya, who had been flooded with all the buffs casted, barely defended against the Forbidden Sorcery with a drained expression.

And, of course, the remaining members...

“Surprise.”

Broke through the darkness.

Yuria, whom I had grabbed by the leash and thrown, appeared.

It was all for this one blow.

I had simplified the pattern to this extent to make this person ‘get used to it.’

The landing point was just one step away from Valkasus.

And as I had mentioned before, within that distance...

There was a firepower that could one-shot ‘every character’ in the scenario.

The Starteel Circlet flashed. Unlike before, it meant that Yuria now recognized the target in front of her as ‘something that needs to be cut’.

“Oh no...!”

At the same time Valkasus spat out those words of bewilderment...

Severer rushed out like lightning and pierced through Valkasus’s heart.

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A Korean way to say aristocrat or gentleman. Does not have a specific translation so kept as yangban