Chapter 252

Chapter 252

[Main Quest #7]

- Defeat four lesser demons!

Join the students of Annwood Academy and vanquish the demons.

These demons are the treasured quadruplets of Lizbeth, one of the Four Heavenly Kings. Eliminating them will significantly weaken Lizbeth.

From Area 1 to Area 4. Demons will appear every 6 turns.

You may move freely between zones at any time—before, during, or after battle (moving consumes 1 turn).

Each demon will disappear automatically 10 turns after it appears.

Earth Demon, Amonga (0/1)Gét latest novel chapters on nov(e)lbj/n(.)c/om

Wind Demon, Kroga (0/1)

Fire Demon, Balmonga (0/1)

Water Demon, Mabelga (0/1)

Rewards: 200 EXP, 15 gold

Additional Rewards: ???

Failure Penalty: Lose 3 points from all stats for each demon that escapes

※ This quest cannot be declined.

As soon as the battle commenced, the quest window popped up, but I was unfazed.

'It's a quest I've seen many times before.'

It was also a quest that I, along with gamers worldwide, had never managed to clear.

The strict turn limit was daunting enough...

'It's because there's no way to capture Mabelga.'

At the brink of death, Mabelga activates a shield with a tremendous value of '10,000.'

This demon is notorious for inflicting the painful first quest failure and its severe penalties on players.

Given my current abilities, it's uncertain whether I can guarantee a victory against it. You can guess how challenging it must be.

'But right now, Mabelga isn't the priority. It's best to focus on the task at hand.'

Amonga. The first demon appearing in Area 1.

There was one unusual aspect this time.

'I expected as much... but it seems there’s no support from Dargon.'

The moment Amonga revealed itself, typically, Dargon, a 6th circle wizard, would cast a spell reducing Amonga's HP by 50% at the start of the fight.

However, there was no sign of that happening.

'This must be the consequence of having Principal Dwener assigned to the freshmen as the commander.'

I had hoped Dwener might show up and chip away at the demon's HP in a different manner, but there was no sign of him whatsoever.

Thus, it was clear we had to defeat Amonga solely with the strength of our party.

'Amonga's gimmick isn’t particularly threatening. The real problem is...'

It consumes the precious 'turns.' But that wasn’t the only issue.

'The second gimmick that should have activated on the first turn didn’t trigger either.'

It was to be expected.

The quadruplet demons have a structure where a new gimmick activates whenever their HP drops below 50%.

'Amonga's basic gimmick is to summon two earthworms every turn. And when it drops below 50%, it creates a stone labyrinth.'

By making access difficult and continuously summoning earthworms, it wastes the player's turns. In the harsh environment of Carpathia, few gimmicks are as frustrating.

Facing Amonga at 100% health, and without the additional gimmick activating, was the worst-case scenario.

However, it wasn't like there were no strategies available.

I'm a veteran player. Developing new strategies in such scenarios isn't a big deal for me.

'To implement that strategy... first, I need to eliminate the earthworms and get close to Amonga.'

[Turn 1]

I shifted the turn alarm to the corner and quickly surveyed the battlefield.

Six earthworms had appeared alongside Amonga.

One was already meeting a gruesome end at the hands of Luna and Teron, part of our temporary alliance.

It was an end so violent that it was beyond description except through mosaic censorship.

'Temporary alliances truly are a terrifying cliché!'

I nodded as I thought this.

Then, Daike executed his first original technique.

Scheitelhau.

Wham!

The ground shook slightly under the force of Daike's powerful downward strike.

One earthworm was cleanly bisected, a cut so precise it could have been featured as a dish in a restaurant.

Of course, I had no intention of eating it.

With that, four earthworms remained.

Thunk!

Crunch!

From somewhere, a blue mana bullet flew, crushing the head of one of the earthworms, which then ceased moving.

This was the handiwork of our makeshift ally, Rezé.

'So, she hadn't run away after all.'

Well, it was to be expected.

It was the worst situation.

Vyuern Family's first secret technique.

Explosion of Force.

Zzzwang!

Teron's fist burrowed into the abdomen of the earthworm.

"Hmph."

Teron brushed off the green fluid from his hand with a scoff, clearly mocking Luna.

'Can't you even kill such a bug in one strike?' he seemed to say.

Luna scratched her head in frustration.

"Ah! If only I could use my special techniques..."

Currently, Luna's One Flash was sealed by me.

If I allowed her to use it, she too could kill an earthworm in one turn...

'Teron seems aware of One Flash. If he finds out Luna can actually use the real One Flash... that might lead to complications.'

Once a feeble version, Luna's One Flash had now become quite formidable.

The Student Council President, Aywin, who belongs to the Herizeus family.

And Teron from the Vyuern family, one of the vassals following the Herizeus family.

The Herizeus family grew by defeating the Lester family, so Luna's survival would hardly be welcome.

In the worst case, 'he' might find out about Luna's existence.

'Dealing with him is still too much. No, I don't even intend to. My target is the final boss after all.'

It's what one might call the complications of adult matters.

From Luna's perspective, dying would obviously be undesirable, so it's best to proceed as I plan.

"Damn..."

Luna trembled, visibly upset.

'She can't use One Flash, I can't show my skills to Teron, it's already the third turn, but I still want to complete the quest.'

There's no helping it. With things as they are...

As if struck by a brilliant idea, I raised my index finger and spoke.

"Keke, such a contest should ultimately be about... catching the biggest one, right?"

"The biggest one?"

"The one that’s the largest."

Luna and Teron’s gaze shifted to the first demon, Amonga.

"What, what? Why are you looking at me like that!"

Amonga instinctively covered his body with his arms, clearly discomforted by their stares.

"It's a challenge!"

"Tch, no choice then. I'll play along."

Teron and Luna began sprinting straight toward Amonga.

In classic SRPGs, typical of this tile-based format, each turn usually grants one move and one action.

It's the third turn now. Teron had made an 'action' with his attack, but he hadn't 'moved' yet. So, moving now wasn't incorrect.

Crack!

Thunk! Whack!

The remaining two earthworms were finished off by Daike and Rezé.

With nothing else to do, I also moved straight towards Amonga.

"Kraaaa!"

Amonga summoned two more earthworms again.

[Turn 4]

Crack!

Thunk! Whack!

Daike and Rezé dispatched the newly summoned earthworms.

Now, only Amonga was left.

"The big one is mine!"

"Impudent! Try if you can!"

Teron and Luna, distracted by the big target Amonga, began to pummel him.

The demon Amonga looked almost pitiable.

"Kraaaaaak!"

There was no order. No rules. Certainly, no tactics. But.

'Everything is going according to plan.'

Yes. Amonga at 100% HP, something we had never faced before in the game.

The new strategy I devised for Amonga was simply...

'Just freaking beat him up.'

That’s right. Just beating the crap out of him was a simple solution after all.

--TL Notes--

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at /MattReading

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