Memorize - Episode 32
32 Boss Monster
As the boss monster charged at me with its disgusting teeth wide open, ready to devour, my left arm was aimed at its upper body. I could fire a total of 3 arrows in quick succession. And now my arrows were infused with sharp magic power that could pierce even ordinary steel.
I aim and fire.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
With a much more powerful sound than before, the arrows cut through the air. Though there was a time difference, I could see them hitting exactly in the center of its forehead. However...
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The arrows I fired fell helplessly with a strong metallic sound. In other words, they couldn't penetrate the boss monster's outer skin. Of course, there was some impact. Feeling the magical shockwave projected inside, the boss monster momentarily shrank back.
Even though I had infused only a small amount of magic power, its outer skin alone could withstand power twice that of a normal arrow. I wondered what kind of brain the angels had to put such a thing in the Trial of Passage, but for now, it seemed I had achieved my immediate goal. I had clearly succeeded in binding the movements of the creature that had been chasing us with increasing acceleration.
The boss monster seemed to be staggering from the aftereffects of the impact, its body shrinking even more. Deciding to take this matter up with Seraph later, I turned my body and started following after my companions.
Looking ahead, I could see my companions running hard. Judging by the remaining distance, they would soon be able to enter within 100 meters. At this rate, while it might be close for me, I could be certain the kids would be safe.
As I was about to sprint, I felt something strange. The monster hadn't suffered a major wound, and it should have had enough time to recover from the shock, but I couldn't hear the sound of it running. The thumping sound was no longer audible. Suddenly, I recalled the image of the Manki jumping towards me in yesterday's battle and the monster's crouched posture. Just as I thought "surely not," I heard the sound of wind rising from behind.
Whoosh!
My worst fear had come true. The boss monster was cunning and meticulous. It too knew that at this rate, it wouldn't be able to catch even one person. Its crouching wasn't due to the shock from my arrows, but a posture preparing for a great leap.
A huge shadow fell over the clearing, including my body. The boss monster was looking past me at my companions running ahead. Ahn Hyun was running at the front, with Han-byeol and Yoo-jung chasing closely behind. Ahn Sol was also running hard, but probably due to her basic stamina, she had fallen somewhat behind. While the other three might be fine, Ahn Sol was at a dangerous distance.
Before I could give any warning, the boss monster, which had been cutting through the air in a long arc, landed with all its might behind Ahn Hyun's group. A tremendous sound that shook the earth and rattled the ground rang out. It was such a massive vibration that even Ahn Hyun, who had been running ahead, staggered. Seeing that scene, my mind went blank for a moment, and I couldn't think of anything.
And at that moment, a message appeared before my eyes.
『The latent ability Clairvoyance (Zen) (Rank A+) is activated. The mind's eye that sees not just the outward appearance as it is, but the inner nature of the subject. It refers to the ability to contemplate oneself and observe all things, or phenomena that have similar effects. A mind cultivated to the extreme can maintain composure even under S-rank or lower mental pollution magic.』
....
...
.....
"Hoo..."
My hot head instantly cooled down. The blank mind that had been devoid of thought was now filled with cold reason. My narrow vision expanded, and parts that hadn't been visible before started to come into view.
And I laughed. I couldn't help but laugh.
What on earth had I been worrying about until now? What was this mere situation? I had been through more arduous moments, more painful moments, more perilous moments many times before.
I'm not afraid, not scared. I don't overexert myself. I always draw a line of what I can do and do my best within that line. This was the motto I had held when playing my first run of the Hollow Plane.
In the Hollow Plane, half-baked strength doesn't work. People who revealed their outstanding talents and abilities and died before they could bloom. Seeing such people, I had vowed never to reveal myself. I lived thoroughly in the shadows to the extent that no one knew I was a Sword Master with only 48 magic power points. After 10 years of activity in the Hollow Plane, such an attitude had become a kind of obsession.
Of course, I still thought that if necessary, I should act that way. However, doing so would make me no different from my past self. The same methods would only yield the same results.
When I couldn't protect my older brother, when I lost the clan lord I trusted, followed, and loved right before my eyes, I regretted it immensely. I didn't want to tread that path again, and to change inevitability, hadn't I come back? Now I wanted to be different.
In an instant, I analyzed the entire battlefield situation and calculated the optimal action. I accurately calculated and drew up the necessary magic power, seeking the most efficient method. I no longer intended to hide myself to the point of frustration. If necessary, I would act. Of course, it could be troublesome if I was discovered, but the solution was simple. Just don't get caught. Now, I had both the ability and the confidence to do so.
I completed my analysis in less than a second. I had also grasped Ahn Sol's position and confirmed her survival status. The first thing to do was to draw the boss monster's aggro. Anyway, due to its massive body, my figure was hidden from my companions' eyes. I drew up a considerable amount of magic power and gathered enough magic in the arrows to penetrate the monster's outer skin. Now, I didn't even need to pretend to aim; I just pulled the bowstring.
Ping! Ping! Ping!
I could see the monster turning its head slightly, probably startled by the intense killing intent felt from behind. However, the flying arrows were targeting the monster at a speed incomparable to before. Before it could even respond, the three arrows pierced into the boss monster's chest. But there was still more to come.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The arrows, filled with magic power, easily broke through the monster's outer skin with a sound like exploding bombs. The effect was immediately visible.
Keurarararararararara!
Does it hurt? It should hurt. Watching the boss monster screaming in pain, I ran at a rapid speed. From what I saw with my Third Eye, Ahn Hyun, Han-byeol, and Yoo-jung were somehow managing to run despite staggering. They probably hadn't noticed that Ahn Sol had fallen behind. Anyway, that's good. This is better for me...
Wait. Ahn Hyun stopped.
"Sol! Sol! Sol, answer me!"
It seemed Ahn Hyun had just realized Ahn Sol was missing, as I heard him calling out anxiously. I inwardly thought he was an idiot and increased my running speed even more. The distance between me and the monster closed in an instant. The boss monster, which had been howling, saw me running towards it and raised its enormous right hand high into the air. Its entire arm was trembling, suggesting it was quite angry.
It was an ungrateful creature, considering I had deliberately kept the intensity low so it wouldn't die yet. Of course, the monster couldn't know my thoughts and swung its hand down towards me without hesitation. The gleaming blade-like fingers were slashing fiercely towards me like a well-honed reaper's scythe. An ordinary person might feel weak in the knees seeing this, but to my eyes, it was moving at a yawn-inducingly slow speed.
I maintained my acceleration, kicked off the ground with one foot, and quickly bent my lower body to become parallel with the ground. The fingers brushed past above my face, perhaps cutting a few strands of hair that fluttered into the air. However, I was able to clearly evade the boss monster's attack and get inside. It was a clean sliding. And in that direction, I could see Ahn Sol coughing with both hands on the ground.
"Cough! Cough!"
The surrounding area was hazy with dust, probably from the aftermath of the monster's landing. In the past, I might have acted to comfort and reassure Ahn Sol, but now I had neither the time nor the inclination. I quickly lifted her up and carried her in my arms like a princess. She seemed surprised, not expecting me to come, and then spoke in a trembling voice.
"Su... Su-hyun oppa...?"
"Be quiet. Let's get away from this thing first."
After saying this, I fired the three arrows I had loaded while running towards the back. Then, without checking the result, I immediately started running through the dust cloud. I heard the monster's sorrowful scream again, suggesting I had hit something painful.
Ahn Sol's face was a sight to behold. She was looking up at me with tears beading in her eyes, as if seeing a savior. Ahn Hyun, who had been about to turn back despite Han-byeol and Yoo-jung's attempts to stop him, gaped as he saw me emerging from the dust cloud.
The funny thing was that Ahn Hyun's expression changed quite dramatically as he saw me. First, a blank face, then a relieved face, and finally a tearful face - it was uncomfortable to see such changes from someone of the same gender.
Anyway, it looked like the siblings were about to have a crying party in stereo. Thinking inwardly that they were making a fuss, I continued running.
At that moment, I saw Kim Han-byeol shouting something urgently while looking at me. A chilling sensation on my back suggested that the monster wasn't going to let us go easily. The boss monster's tail was swinging like a whip, about to strike my back. If hit by the writhing, bending tail, I might be fine, but Ahn Sol wouldn't be able to withstand the shock penetrating through my body.
I suddenly felt the urge to catch this thing. Catching the Hollow Plane's boss monster that no one had ever caught might be evaluated as an achievement, and there might be some kind of reward. And apart from that, as a user, I also wanted to catch the boss monster. If so, I needed to separate from Ahn Hyun's group for a while. I decided to take this attack head-on.
Eventually, the monster's tail struck my back hard. With a thud, a huge impact entered through my back. It didn't hurt, but my body would reflexively bounce off. The force wasn't going anywhere, after all.
I raised my magic power to absorb the shock that had penetrated my body. The basic principle was based on "handling a thousand jin with four taels of strength," but it was a technique I had adjusted to my taste to control and distribute the force that had entered internally. Originally a technique to alleviate impact by spreading it throughout the body when receiving a shock too difficult to handle, I had used it in this way before.
After transferring enough shock for Ahn Sol to withstand, I threw her forward to bounce off. Then I directed the remaining force as much as possible to the side and rolled my body greatly. Before we both bounced off simultaneously, I whispered softly into Ahn Sol's ear.
"Run to the warp gate as soon as you get up."
Before Ahn Sol could respond, our bodies bounced off strongly. I went to the left, and she towards the direction of our companions. Whether it was due to her (useless?) luck points activating at this moment, Ahn Sol's body was falling exactly into Ahn Hyun's arms.
I also fell to the ground and rolled, but I had to get up immediately. The boss monster was clearly different from other monsters appearing in the Trial of Passage. Recognizing me as a dangerous target, it didn't leisurely gloat after landing one hit but immediately jumped towards my direction. It was emitting a thick killing intent from its entire body, clearly having eaten the aggro.
Kwaaang!
With a sound like a shell explosion, the ground shook greatly once again. Of course, I dodged, but my body was shaking mercilessly. Perhaps angrier that I hadn't been hit, the monster was continuously rolling its feet towards where I was standing.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Eek. Eck. Eek. Eck.
Heave-ho.
"Oppaaaa!"
"Hyuuuung!"
I wanted to answer "Whaaaaat," but for the sake of the silent oppa image I had maintained so far, I barely managed to keep my mouth shut. Normally, I would have waved my hand and smiled to say I was fine, but not now. I waved my hand to signal them to run away quickly, but my companions remained unmoved. Finally, I had to raise my voice again.
"Run away quicklyyyy! You fools! Run to the warp gateee!"
At my words, there seemed to be a brief commotion, and then I saw Ahn Hyun forcibly dragging the resisting Han-byeol and running. Look at that guy. When Ahn Sol was caught, he shook off restraints and ran towards her, but now he's not even pretending to run towards me. Just as I was about to click my tongue, I quickly jumped to the side again. It was because the monster's foot came down in a stomping attack once more.
It was frustrating to just be dodging a creature not even the size of a fist, but I was enduring it for now. Once I had decided to catch it, I was planning to properly deal with it as soon as the kids were gone. The surroundings were once again filled with dust clouds. It was because the monster was indiscriminately stomping its feet.
To secure a clear view, I erased my body's presence with magic and slipped behind the monster. In an instant, my presence disappeared. Due to its lack of eyes, the boss monster's head was frantically looking around, seemingly desperately searching for me. I watched its tic-like behavior with an indifferent face before turning my head.
Fortunately, it seemed Ahn Hyun had managed to drag Kim Han-byeol along well, as all four had just arrived at the warp gate. Ahn Hyun's hair was disheveled, suggesting she had put up quite a fight. Honestly, seeing that appearance was a bit funny.
As my companions arrived, the warp gate seemed to start operating, surrounding them with a translucent membrane before the central blue magic sphere began to vibrate. It looked like the transfer to the summoning room had begun. Soon after, seeing the pale blue energy enveloping their bodies, I let out a sigh of relief. What I had to do was more or less finished.
Now, what remained was...
As I saw the dust settling to some extent, I quickly threw my body onto the dirt ground. I had a feeling I would be nagged later about why I didn't come to the warp gate quickly. Since Han-byeol had quite the ability to question things, I was planning to make an excuse that the impact from being hit by the tail was so great that I couldn't get up at the time.
Before I knew it, the dust had completely settled, and I could see my companions' figures, now enveloped in a deeper blue light. They were gradually being erased from the feet up, just like when being transferred from the initial preparation room. I raised my upper body slightly from the dirt ground and waved my hand towards them. It wasn't meant to convey any particular meaning, just a kind of signal saying goodbye and see you later.
But... suddenly, Ahn Hyun wiped his eyes with one hand, and Lee Yoo-jung sat down (which looked a bit strange since her feet weren't visible) and burst into tears. Kim Han-byeol also shook her shoulders with both hands covering her face, and Ahn Sol was waving her hand in my direction, tears falling drop by drop.
What, what's going on? I absolutely didn't intend to make them cry...