Chapter 202

Chapter 202

The Dark Event for this stage was as follows:

[Activated Dark Event: Boss Enhancement I]

> One random enhancement trait is given to the boss monster.

So, we wouldnt know what enhancement trait was given until we encountered it.

Furthermore, we still hadnt confirmed which monster among the Slime Legion would be the boss.

These slime guys are pretty diverse, arent they?

Which one was selected as the boss monster? Slime King? Slime General? Or, god forbid, Slime Abomination?

Still, given the current situation, I think we could handle just about anything.

*Thud.*

"?"

*Thud.*

"Hm?"

...I think I heard something ominous.

*Thud-!*

From the end of the right castle wall, a series of unidentified heavy sounds echoed. Heroes, soldiers, and I all simultaneously looked in that direction.

Nothing was visible.

*Crash!*

However, something invisible was climbing up the castle wall.

The steel plates of the right castle wall seemed to sag under a tremendous weight. What in the world...?UppTodated from nô/v/e/lb(i)n.c(o)/m

Slimes dont have the ability to become invisible, do they?

Could it bethe boss monster was granted Stealth due to the Dark Event Enhancement?

"Damien! Do you see that?"

I urgently called Damien, but even he frowned and remained silent.

"Ah, no, I cant detect anything. I know somethings there, but..."

Even with his [Far-Sight] skill, he couldnt detect it? Just how high-level was this Stealth?

We couldnt just stand around. I quickly gave the order.

"Fire in that direction, now!"

Damien immediately drew his Black Queen and aimed at the invisible entity.

"The tip of my gun glows...and the trigger passes judgment."

Forget your angsty lines and just shoot already!

*Boom-!*

A magical bullet burst from the muzzle of the Black Queen, tearing through space and rushing forward. The bullet hit the something that was climbing up the right castle wall.

*Splat!*

With that, the invisible somethings Stealth was undone, and its identity was revealed.

*Roooaar!*

It was a massive... truly massive slime.

Within its gelatinous, massive body, hundreds, thousands of colors swirled around. It was nearly the size of a small hill.

On top of its gigantic body, a golden crown made of magical power was slowly spinning.

A golden crown on a massive slime?

My mouth hung open.

"What the hell is this monster...?!"

[Enemy Info - STAGE 8]

- Lv.35 Slime Emperor <Stealth Enhanced>: 1

- Lv.30 Acidic Slime: 26

- Lv.25 Tricolor Slime: 33

"Its a Slime Emperor?!"

A top-tier monster that Ive rarely encountered even while playing Protect the Empire, the absolute highest rank among all slime-type monsters!

They gave Stealth to this monster through the Dark Event? Are they insane?!

Moreover, even with Stealth, normal slime monsters should approach with their allies.

So, this one maintained Stealth while its minions were killed, circled the battlefield, and climbed the wall?

Is that even possible for a slime-type monster?

"Enough of this crap, dammit!"

Whooooosh!

With a sound akin to an elephants trumpeting, the Slime Emperor leapt onto the ramparts.

I yelled at the top of my lungs.

"Cannoneers! Everyone, fall back!"

Crash-boom!

The Slime Emperor shattered all the cannons placed on the right side of the walls as it ascended.

"Damien!"

I called out to our sniper.

"Can you see its soul core?"

Aiming his gun at the Slime Emperor, Damien muttered nervously.

"No, Your Highness. I cant locate its soul core. Or rather, it has too many. Almost its entire body is filled with them. I dont know where to aim..."

The Slime Emperor was a monstrous fusion of thousands of slimes.

For Damien, who specialized in targeting a single entitys soul core, there were too many potential targets.

But he could still be useful.

"Damien, your role today is not to kill that monster. Its to save our allies."

"Huh?"

"Monitor the battlefield. If our troops are in imminent danger from that monster, snipe it to keep it at bay. Can you do that, Damien?"

Damien, who had looked nervous, finally cracked a smile and nodded.

"Heh heh... I like that. Ill give it a try."

I still couldnt quite get used to that smug laugh of his, but when tasked with protecting allies instead of killing enemies, Damien seemed genuinely more comfortable. This natural-born healer...

After issuing various commands to the rear members like Lilly and Saintess Margarita, I urgently rushed to join the front lines.

Boom! Crash! Bang!

Atop the fortress wall, the human-formed defense was barely holding on.

"Sir! Cover the lower right!"

"I know! You take the upper left!"

Evangeline and Lucas, each holding a shield, were at the forefront, fending off the Slime Emperors attacks.

Right behind them, ordinary soldiers also held their shields professionally, forming a wall. Together, they blocked several tentacle attacks from the Slime Emperor.

"Aaagh!"

"Ugh!"

Each time, they were pushed back but managed to maintain the defense by taking turns.

"Hold on just a bit longer! The mages are preparing a spell to kill that bastard!"

I encouraged our allies while directing the defense line.

For a while, it seemed like we were holding on. But then,

"Ouch! That hurts!"

"Guh...!"

Both Evangeline and Lucas began to accumulate minor injuries.

The Slime Emperor had numerous tentacles, and it was impossible to block them all. Evangeline and Lucas swung their maces and war hammers, but each time, acidic fluid splattered.

"Hurgh!"

"Aaaah!"

The ordinary soldiers were also showing their limits in sustaining the defense.

They could only block and get pushed back so many times before everyone started to struggle.

Boom! Bang!

As the battle raged on, the only soldiers holding their ground were the 50 reinforcements sent from the Imperial Capital.

True to their elite status, they efficiently held their shields against the Slime Emperors attacks.

However, even their faces began to show signs of fatigue.

How much longer can we hold on like this?

While assessing the situation, I gritted my teeth when I noticed something unsettling.

Twitch. Twitch.

Some were continually trying to retreat among the defense units.

The newly arrived Penal Squad.

The ragtag band of outlaws was continually retreating, putting a greater burden on the other defense squads.

"Those sons of...!"

I dashed to the back of the Penal Squad and yelled furiously.

"What the hell are you doing?! Dont retreat! Maintain the defense line!"

"But, but..."

The outlaws looked at me with pale faces.

"We, we, were scared."

"What?"

"We dont want to die fighting such a monster in someone elses country!"

Someone elses country...?

At a loss for words, I stood there dumbfounded.

Whooooosh!

Meanwhile, the Slime Emperors tentacles continued to rain down upon us.