Chapter 116: Squish the bug

Chapter 116: Squish the bug

The Mimipede didn’t approve of Arwin’s dry humor. It bucked him into the air and its head shot out, mandibles parting with plans to swallow him whole. A shadow slipped away from the wall, grabbing Arwin by the waist and yanking him out of the way as a wave of blue energy washed over the monster’s body – stalling the creature for an instant and ensuring the attack failed to connect.

That minimum time on Imprison is really damn useful. Good choice, Reya.

“Thanks,” Arwin called to Lillia as her shadow released him. He dropped, falling toward the centipede below, and swung Verdant Blaze as he fell. There was no reason to waste all the extra momentum.

The monster churned like a vortex of stone below him. Its head tracked his movement and it tried to bite at him, but it wasn’t quite fast enough to catch him as he fell. Verdant Blaze struck its midsection with a resounding crash, empowered by [Scourge].

Flame rolled off the strike and the plate Arwin had hit cracked from the force of his strike. The monster thrashed in pain and launched him off, sending him hurtling into a wall. He struck it with a thud and dropped to the ground with a grunt of pain.

Rodrick and Olive both ran into the room, their weapons raised, and spread out in an attempt to keep the Mimipede from attacking all of them at once. The clatter of hundreds of legs grated against Arwin’s ears as the creature shifted. Its dark eyes flicked around them as its jaws worked, trying to choose a target.

“Do you need healing?” Anna called over the cacophony.

“No, I’m fine,” Arwin replied. He shook himself off. “I’ll keep its attention. Rodrick, Olive – I don’t know. Stab the damn thing. I don’t know what the best way to kill something like this is other than cut its head off – and I don’t think any of us have something large or sharp enough to do that.”T/his chapter is updated by nov(ê(l)biin.co/m

He ignited the head of his hammer with [Soul Flame]. The Mimipede’s eyes flicked down to him and it hissed in rage, lurching out for him. Arwin’s greaves already had a fair amount of energy coursing through them, but there wasn’t quite enough to activate them yet. He wasn’t keen on intentionally tanking a hit to draw on their benefits so he used [Scourge] to empower his legs and bound out of the way.

The Mimipede’s head crashed into the ground where Arwin had been standing and sent up a spray of stone and rock. It ripped itself free and thrashed around, spinning to search for Arwin.

Rodrick advanced while it was focused on Arwin. He jumped into the air and a platform made of shadow formed beneath his feet, giving him a boost to jump the rest of the way onto the creature’s back.

Olive only hesitated for a moment before following after him and using the same platform to join the fallen paladin on the Mimipede’s back. Arwin didn’t have time to watch how their efforts were going. He was forced to leap back as the monster crashed down where he’d been standing, using its own head like a wrecking ball to demolish the ground.

“I’d ask if you have a brain, but I suspect I know the answer to that. Can’t be much left if you swing it around like this,” Arwin complained to himself as his feet hit the ground and he took a few stumbling steps to steady himself.

A rumble in the earth told him that the Mimipede hadn’t given up on its attack. Instead of rearing up, it was just plowing straight through the ground toward him. Arwin reared back and poured all the power he could muster into [Scourge].

He could see Rodrick and Olive holding on for dear life, but there was no more time to focus on anyone other than himself. The Mimipede’s mandibles opened. A flicker of blue slammed into the monster and it ground to a halt for a flicker of a second, right before it could slam into Arwin.

His hammer flashed forward. [Soul Flame] erupted as it crashed into the Mimipede’s face with a resounding crack. The vibration from the blow raced down his arms and through his body, making his teeth rattle in his head.

Plates shattered and cracked on the monster’s face – and it slammed back into motion. Arwin’s eyes only had an instant to widen as he realized that his blow hadn’t been nearly enough to stop the creature.

Arwin dropped, bringing Verdant Blaze down on the Mimipede’s body to remind it who it was fighting. He needn’t have bothered. The monster screeched and turned before it could even hit the wall, racing toward him once more.

More maneuverable than that thing has any right to be.

Arwin reared back and gathered [Scourge]. Anna had healed a lot of the damage he’d taken, but he still couldn’t take another direct hit from this monster.

“Ramp!” Arwin yelled, hoping Lillia would understand his meaning. Fortunately, she picked up after just a second. Shadows materialized before him, forming into a sloping triangle that ran all the way up to him. It wasn’t much, but it would force the Mimipede to take a few extra steps before being able to bite at him.

The monster raced over the ramp – and Arwin jumped to meet it. He brought Verdant Blaze up into the bottom of its jaw and released the full might of [Scourge], leaving him with just a little more magical energy to work with.

A tendril of shadow shot up from the ground and grabbed Arwin’s legs, yanking him back down to the ground. Between it and the powerful blow he’d sent into the Mimipede’s head that directed it away from him, he just barely avoided getting plowed.

The monster passed overhead and slammed face-first into the wall with a resounding crash. A wave of blue gripped it, locking the creature in place for a split second. And, in that split second, Olive and Rodrick struck.

Rodrick’s blade ignited with burning light and he drove it into the left side of the Mimipede’s head. At the same time, Olive drew her own sword. Almost in spite of the speed she drew it, the blade moved through the air like a sluggard. Reya’s hold on the monster had already faded and it was in the process of pulling itself free of the stone when her cut landed.

The sword tore through its skin as if nothing was there. A pained scream erupted from the Mimipede’s mouth and it thrashed. Rodrick released his own sword, letting it plummet to the ground below, and grabbed onto Olive with one arm. He grabbed the rough body of the monster with his other.

It was precarious, but it was enough. Olive’s sword continued through the monster’s neck and she slid down its side, dragging the blade along its length until she’d nearly carved around its entire neck. Thick blood poured from the wound – her sword wasn’t anywhere near long enough to actually sever its head, even if she plunged it all the way through the monster – but the damage it had done was enormous.

Rodrick grabbed Olive and leapt to the side as the Mimipede slammed its body into the wall, trying to crush them. Lillia caught them both with a ramp of shadow and Arwin ran forward, drawing on his magical energy. The monster’s head was bleeding so profusely that he couldn’t help but take the opportunity.

He jumped.

The Mimipede spun, rabid panic in its black eyes.

Verdant Blaze slammed into the side of its head.

There was a wet rip as the hammer found purchase and tore the creature’s head right from the rest of its body, sending the huge chunk hurtling across the room. It rolled to a stop against the far wall and Arwin dropped to the ground, staggering and bracing himself against Verdant Blaze as he fought to catch his breath.

The Mimipede’s body collapsed all around them, finally falling still.

[Decapitated] – Awarded for assisting in literally knocking the head off a creature over 100 times your weight. That was quite the show. Effects: Upgrade one of your existing skills. This achievement will be consumed immediately.