Chapter 31
“...!”
At the sudden blinding flash, I had no choice but to close my eyes.
Guwooooo...
A moment later, when I opened my eyes, the surrounding Undead were flailing and melting away.
*At the same time, my Stealth was released.*
A few of the Undead lunged at me, only then being able to perceive me, but...
Since they were already dying, they weren't much of a threat. I smashed their heads in with my mace.
“Haa.”
Soon, all the Undead surrounding me melted away.
The intense light that had been spewing from the Sun Emblem also faded quickly.
...Is it over just like this?
However, the Clear Success Message did not appear.
Well, I figured as much.
On both the 1st Floor and 2nd Floor, a Boss Monster appeared at the very end.
There was a high probability that the 3rd Floor wouldn't be any different.
I stood still and thought.
“Do I need to go up?”
Aside from the Central Cavern and the three branching paths, there was no space left in the Underground.
Isn't going back up to The Surface the only option?
But aren't the Undead still fine up there...?
Since there was no other way, I walked out to the Passage leading to The Surface.
I had first fallen into the entrance pit.
“Huh?”
When I arrived, I saw bright sunlight shining down from above.
What, did the sun actually rise?
It seemed that activating the emblem caused the sun to rise outside as well.
With my mace in my mouth, I crawled up the wall.
And when I peeked my head out of the pit...
Under the sky with a bright sun, a spectacular sight unfolded as countless Undead on The Surface flailed and melted away.
“Wow...”
I watched quietly for a moment before snapping back to my senses.
Even though it felt like everything was over, the clearing not being finished yet meant... What was left?
It must definitely be the boss.
I climbed the rest of the way onto the ground and scanned my surroundings like a meerkat.
But there wasn't anything particularly notable... That was when it happened.
Guwooooo—
The Undead that were melting in the sun suddenly started swarming to one side.
There were already plenty of dead ones, but since there had been a ridiculous number to begin with, the remaining ones alone were still a massive number.
“Ugh...!”
I jumped back into the pit to avoid getting swept up.
The ground rumbled. A few of them fell into the pit, so I smashed their heads.
A moment later, the vibrations subsided.
I crawled back up and checked outside.
And...
“...Uh.”
At the sight unfolding before my eyes, I was simply lost for words.
The countless Undead gathered on one side.
They were squirming, crumpling, and clumping together, transforming into the shape of a giant ball.
In other words, it was a massive Flesh Mass.
Hands jutting out from the Flesh Mass wriggled like antennae.
More than feeling it was grotesque, I felt overwhelmed by its mindless size.
Aaaaa—
A low sound, like a low-frequency wave, flowed out from it.
A sound that bizarrely vibrated the eardrums.
I frowned and reflexively covered my ears.
That thing... is the boss? That?
Fuck, it looks way too strong, doesn't it?
“...!”
Suddenly, the mass wobbled.
For a moment, I thought it looked like it was starting its engine.
Suddenly, the mass accelerated at an incredible speed and rolled toward where I was.
It was fucking fast, to the point where it gave me goosebumps for a second.
I threw my body to the side urgently, even using my Leap Skill.
Kugwagwagwagwa!
“Keuk...!”
My center of balance was shaken by the Shockwave that followed.
Rolling on the ground to land, I used Time Stop and began Mental Concentration.
Flame Strike, Fairy Light Bullet.
I conjured and fired the magic in succession.
Three Fireballs and five Mana Bullets flew toward the mass.
Kwagwagwagwagwang!
A direct hit.
However, compared to the size of the mass, even the explosive power of Flame Strike looked small, and the Mana Bullets were no different from pop-its.
Geueooeoeo—!
Still, it must have taken damage, as it screamed as if in pain.
“Did it swallow a train horn or something...!”
Another unpleasant low-frequency sound.
I grimaced, then my eyes widened as I looked at the mass.
Because the area gouged out by the magic squirmed and was soon filled in, it regenerated in an instant.
No, hey... that's cheating.
Without even a moment to feel wronged, another change occurred in the mass.
This time, holes opened up all over its body, and it spewed something out all at once.
Puhwaaaak!
A torrent of purple liquid poured down from mid-air.
I dodged urgently.
The ground where the venom fell melted away.
“Fuck...!”
What the hell is this now...!
Barely escaping the range of the biochemical bombardment, I hurriedly looked back at the mass.
Without giving me a moment to rest, it was rolling toward me again.
I used my Leap Skill again to throw my body and dodge!
Kwagwagwagwagwa!
The path it passed through was simply devastated.
I rolled on the ground and hurriedly got up, but...
It's... gone? Huh?
“Where did it go?”
Suddenly, a shadow fell on the ground, so I raised my head.
From the sky, it was falling right above my head like a meteor.
“...!”
This is cra... zy.
It was too late to dodge, so I used Time Stop.
Kuuuung!
Having used Teleportation to its maximum range, I rolled my body over and over to get away.
“Haa, haa...”
Even with that massive size, the thing bounced like a basketball and leaped into the sky again. It was falling toward where I was again.
I barely managed to use my Leap Skill as soon as the cooldown finished, throwing my body.
Flame Strike's cooldown had also just finished, so I fired it at the mass once more.
Kwaaaang!
But this time too, the mass only let out a scream and quickly regenerated.
Wait a minute...
Isn't this a bit much?
I felt that something was wrong.
Because it didn't seem like an enemy I could possibly defeat.
It didn't seem to be affected by the sun, so just holding out wouldn't work either...
“Ha.”
It was rolling toward me again right away.
I used my Leap Skill to dodge.
The pit.
I have to go back into the pit.
Faced with the overwhelming difference in power, I lost my will to fight and thought only of escaping.
But there was no time for that either.
The rolling mass suddenly slammed on the brakes this time, then immediately changed direction and performed the stunt of rolling right back.
Fuck.
With both Leap and Teleportation on cooldown, I had to dodge with my bare body.
But it was so massive that without the Leap Skill, I couldn't completely escape its range.
Kwaang!
For a moment, I saw death.
Even though I was only grazed by the edge of the mass, my body flew as if hit by a 100-ton truck.
I flew through the sky and was slammed into the ground.
I rolled for a long time until my body stopped after crashing into a rock.
“Heugh...”
Feeling a ridiculous amount of agonizing pain, I looked down at my body.
My right arm was twisted, and my right ribs were caved in.
It hurt so much that I used Time Stop.
The dizzying pain vanished as if washed away.
‘...I'm fucked.’
That was the first thought that came to mind.
Why did such a monstrous creature appear as the boss?
I finally felt like I understood that too.
That mass was a creature born from the remaining Undead clumping together on the Field.
Meaning, there shouldn't have been that many Undead on the Field in the first place.
At first, I kept holding out until it became completely night, and a ridiculous number of Undead popped out.
It was already wrong from that point.
Before so many Undead swarmed The Surface, I should have gone down to the Underground early and activated the Sun Emblem.
Then, a much smaller number of Undead would have clumped together, and an opponent suitable for my level would have probably appeared. not a monster like this one.
It was absurd.
How was it possible to immediately find the Underground and go down in a situation with absolutely no information?
But then again, there was never a time when this crazy difficulty didn't force such unreasonable conditions.
I had messed up from the very first step.
That was the sole reason for the situation I am in now.
“Is this the end?”
If I release time, the mass will roll over again.
In this physical condition, I can't even dodge.
Teleportation is still on cooldown, and dodging one more time would be meaningless anyway.
...I was already as good as dead.
Facing my second death following the one in the Underground, I felt a bit calmer than before.
But is there really no way to live? Is it over like this?
‘There isn't.’
Attacks don't work; I can't dodge, so what can I do?
...Ah.
There was one thing left.
\[Item: Pligas's Blood Necklace\]
This is a necklace mixed with the blood of the Predator of the Demon Realm, Fligas. If you summon Fligas to the Mortal World and defeat it, you can form a Master-Servant Contract. If you fail, the necklace will be destroyed. (Recommended Level 50 or higher)
A necklace that summons a familiar.
But this was no different from self-destruction.
Because it still needed taming, this guy wasn't on my side.
Whatever. I'm about to die anyway.
It wasn't the time to be picky.
I braced myself and used Time Release.
“...Ggeueuk!”
Once again, dizzying pain washed over my entire body.
Along with a surging feeling of regurgitation, blood burst from my mouth.
It hurts... It hurts so much that I feel miserable.
Why am I in this state here?
\[Would you like to use “Item: Pligas”s Blood Necklace'?\]
A message popped up before my eyes.
Fuuuck, come out.
I threw my final gamble.
Seueueueu.
Dark red smoke rose from the necklace around my neck.
Then, it clumped together right in front of me and began to take shape.
It was a massive four-legged beast.
A deep red aura surged around its black body, and its jaggedly raised fur looked like blades.
“Diul...”
I desperately called out to Diul before the beast fully manifested.
Diul, seemingly sighing, squeezed out its remaining strength to cast Stealth on me.
Kaooooo—!
There was a Roar that felt like it would burst my eardrums. My whole body tingled.
The fully manifested Fligas looked around as if searching for the bastard who summoned it.
But I was already in Stealth.
Fortunately, the trick worked, as it seemed unable to find me even with me right in front of it.
Kugugugu—
Just then, the mass rolled in this direction.
At that, Fligas also turned to look at the mass and let out another roar.
As Fligas kicked off the ground, a Shockwave erupted.
Shooting forward like a cannonball at a terrifying speed, Fligas leaped over the mass right before collision and took a huge bite out of it.
The mass screamed and staggered, rolling past me.
“...!”
Fligas immediately lunged at the mass again.
I used Teleportation to get even a little further away from the two monsters.
“This actually works...”
I had used it aiming for this exact situation.
For now, it seemed I had succeeded in getting the two to fight.
The fight between Fligas and the mass was truly a monster showdown.
Fligas was also massive, but its size was only about one-third of the mass.
Clinging to it without giving the mass a chance to roll and biting it like crazy, Fligas was like a tiger hunting an elephant.
As expected from something with a Recommended Level of 50 or higher, Fligas was indeed powerful.
Uuuuuu!
Chewed and torn, the mass howled in pain and spewed venom again.
Drenched in venom, Fligas's body melted and staggered.
*At that moment, the mass attempted to roll with Fligas still hanging onto it.*
Fligas was crushed against the ground several times before finally falling off.
Keueoeoeo—!
Even so, Fligas's momentum remained fierce.
It lunged again, bit the mass, and fell off—bit it and fell off; this repeated several times.
The two monsters fought for a long time like that until a conclusion finally seemed to be reached.
Both the mass and Fligas were battered, but the one whose strength ran out first was Fligas.
I saw the staggering Fligas scatter like dust.
\[Kill Contribution is insufficient, so the Master-Servant Contract is rendered invalid.\]
A message popped up before my eyes.
Invalid... Does it turn out like this if I don't defeat it myself?
But it didn't seem to be judged as a failure either, as the necklace wasn't destroyed.
More importantly, that kind of thing doesn't matter right now.
Uuuuuu...!
The mass was in a terrible state, like a mostly eaten apple.
Right in the middle of the mass's exposed inner body, there was a part where the Undead were tightly clumped together like a wick.
It looked as if it were the creature's core. That's how it looked to my eyes.
The mass squirmed from the inside again, trying to regenerate.
“Kkeuaaaaak...!”
I screamed and shakily pushed my body up.
This is my last chance and my only chance.
After fully recovering my willpower, I fired Flame Strike and Mana Bullets all at once toward the mass's core.
Kwaaaaang!
My upper body was completely fucked up, but my legs were still fine.
I dashed toward the mass.
Of course, it was so painful to move that I felt like I would collapse at any moment, but...
Since stopping meant only death remained, I barely held onto my consciousness.
The flames cleared, and I saw that about half of the howling mass's core had been blown away, but its form still remained.
It was the final, ultimate strike.
I leaped toward the mass with my Leap Skill and used Teleportation to get inside its body.
With the tattered core right in front of me, I used Blade Storm.
Kwaaaaa!
The core is being torn to shreds.
Along with the falling chunks of corpse flesh, my body also plummeted downward.
\[Cleared the Nightmare Difficulty 3rd Floor Successfully.\]
\[Absorbing the Floor's Power.\]
\[Level Increased.\]
\[Level Increased.\]
\[Level Increased.\]
.
.
.
As the messages popped up one after another before my eyes, I smiled and closed my eyes.
That was hard, seriously.