LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 34
Grrrrrrr…
Grrrr…
The creature’s clone, or rather, it should be called a summoner.
Anyway, those summoned creatures didn’t seem to have much intelligence, as they were shaking their bodies and making grrrr sounds.
Soon enough, they charged quickly towards the adventurers, brandishing daggers.
‘Faster than I thought!’
Just because the summoned entity resembled its original, it didn’t mean their stats would be the same.
However, looking at their running speed, their agility seemed to be at least over E-rank.
Clang. Kaaaang…
The strength was no different.
Swish!
After clashing swords a couple of times to gauge their power, I judged that I wouldn’t have trouble dealing with them. I deflected the dagger and split the creature in half.
Guhhh…
At this rate, I could handle them without much issue.
“Pierce my enemies with sharp rocks! Pierce Stone!”
Heins, leading the rear support, launched chunks of stone.
“Don’t block my way!”
[Leisya casts ‘Transformation’.]
Boom!
“Gehk.”
Grrrrr…
[Viktor casts ‘Roar of the Savage’.]
Wuaaah—!
Cracks!
The solid adventurers like Leisya and Viktor were more than capable, not to mention…
[Benny casts ‘Double Shot’.]
[Kantar casts ‘Rapid Stab’.]
“Take this!”
Swoosh. Thunk.
“Ugh.”
Thud.
It seemed the adventurers who could safely escape the first floor didn’t have much problem either.
… But.
“Ugh, too fast!”
“Grrr.”
Some of the E-ranks were barely managing and looked like they were on the brink of death due to the overwhelming quantity of summoned creatures.
“P-Please save me—.”
Damn. I couldn’t just watch the adventurer dying in front of me.
In a way, it was my fault that innocent people got dragged into this mess because of me killing Isaac.
Lightning!
Boom!
Enduring the headache, I unleashed a lightning strike to save the adventurer who was about to get stabbed by the dagger.
Grrrrr!
Trembling.
“W-What. … Ugh, die!”
Thwack!
‘Thank goodness. Now, let’s not lose focus and stick close to the front line!’
“Get out of the way!”
[Viktor casts ‘Sweep’.]
Swish!
With his relentless strike sweeping the field, a path opened up.
“… Face the violence you can’t resist! Giant’s Footstep!”
Thud! Boom!
[Leisya casts ‘Iron Wall’].
Boom—
The adventurers flipped the ground, sending the approaching creatures flying.
‘I can’t let them outdo me.’
Swipe. Slice. Slash!
I slashed, cut, and cut again.
Pure slaughter.
The deadly strikes, bolstered by my accumulated bloodlust and blade technique, were too much for the summoned creatures, which I estimated to be around E-rank.
When occasionally a few of them charged at me together, I met their trajectories with my sword, redirecting their attacks and slipping in strikes between them to slice them down.
[Starter’s Epusio casts ‘Primordial Seraph’.]
Even when lasers zoomed by, I didn’t flinch. Why? Because I was confident I’d see them coming.
With my body accelerated further by buffs and new traits, every motion became significantly easier.
“Alright, don’t stop! Fight with the thought of taking one more step forward even if it costs your life!”
While every adventurer struggled, facing Epusio head-on…
“Stubborn little things. Alright, I need to change my approach.”
‘Change what?’
[Starter’s Epusio casts ‘Summon Hestmana’.]
Whoosh!
While we were smoothly eliminating the summoned creatures, just after it spoke, their patterns changed completely.
“Ugh, let go of this!”
Yank!
“Damn it! Somebody help!”
The ones that appeared in the air, determined to die, threw themselves at the weaker adventurers to bind them.
[Starter’s Epusio casts ‘Primordial Seraph’.]
Zziinngg—
[Starter’s Epusio absorbs Daniel’s traits.]
Even piling their bodies like some kind of burger, the targeted adventurers had no way to hold on.
Epusio began to unleash lasers on the immobilized adventurers, starting to absorb their traits.
I could only use lightning sparingly due to the headache, and even trying would be futile since the monsters and adventurers were tangled together.
‘There’s no way I can zap him first before he absorbs their traits.’
The mages in the rear might be having a tough time for the same reason.
[Starter’s Epusio absorbs Hamilton’s traits.]
“Ughhh… Argh!”
[Starter’s Epusio absorbs Katie’s traits.]
“Gyaaaaagh!”
────
[Traits Held] (Locked)
Prison of Gathering
Primordial Seraph
Summon Hestmana
Oblivion
Beginner’s Dagger Skill
Sensitive Sense of Smell
Beginner’s Blade Defense
Endure
Sprint
────
“Don’t look away from the lowly creatures! An adventurer risks their life every moment. Focus on capturing that thing as quickly as possible!”
Since the summoned creatures had clustered around, focusing their attacks on the relatively weaker adventurers,
It meant fewer obstacles in the path to reach Epusio.
Boom! Crack. Crack.
Whoosh— Swish!
Due to Epusio absorbing more traits, the summoned creatures became stronger, but it was still insufficient to stop the fierce adventurers.
As they cleared the path using all sorts of techniques, we quickly found ourselves nearby Epusio.
“Eat this—!”
[Viktor casts ‘Rock Crusher’.]
Whooooosh—
The muscular giant Viktor swung his absurdly large great sword with full power.
Like he would crush everything blocking his path, the great sword with brown magical power descended.
Epusio raised its shield in response.
[Starter’s Epusio casts ‘Endure’.]
Boom—
“Cough!”
Hah!
Epusio was pushed back with a resounding crash.
Its previously casual demeanor cracked.
But… Viktor’s expression was also far from normal after pouring everything into his attack.
Viktor, who had charged in without a second thought, took a big step back to regain his stance and muttered.
“Damn, this feels off. Is it really just pushed back after taking a full-power rock crusher infused with magic?”
Seizing the moment when Epusio was pushed back, Leisya, who fell slightly behind to clear the path, rushed in.
“Haahh!”
[Leisya casts ‘Continuous Strike’.]
She didn’t stop for a moment, firing up her eyes as she began to swing her fists.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Her combo attacks were so fast and heavy that they barely became visible.
“Fall gently!”
[Leisya casts ‘Tiger Strike’.]
Thwomp—!
Epusio was knocked back from the punch.
Did it sustain some damage?
“Kuhhh. Even if the damage is minor, it still feels disgusting to keep taking hits.”
“… No, why is this?”
Seeing Epusio looking unfazed despite the barrage of attacks confused Leisya.
“Is this all you have?”
“Flame, engulf the beast before me! Flame Wave!”
“Pierce my enemies with sharp rocks! Pierce Stone!”
Whooom! Boom!
The mages who followed up unleashed spells.
“Gah, gahhh! How dare you—!”
As the smoke cleared, the creature was left standing, head bowed.
Looking at its state, it seemed the effects were more pronounced than when Viktor and Leisya were going wild.
[Chaos speculates that since it’s not a complete corporeal entity, the damage from physical attacks is reduced.]
“Haha… how pitiful. To be pushed this far by mere sacrifices.”
Epusio lifted its head, extending its arms forward and spreading its hands wide.
“I’ve decided. I must endure permanent loss of power. I’ll make you regret the fleeting dream you dared to entertain.”
… Woooooow.
A light field began to form around Epusio’s body.
Could it be a precursor to its last trait, Oblivion?
If it’s about oblivion, will it seal the traits? Or will it be some kind of mental manipulation?
I wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, I had to stop it.
Before I could even finish my thoughts, Viktar and Leisya, having sensed something suspicious, were already rushing in.
Lightning—!
Boom—!
“Damn it. I shot as hard as I could without fainting, but this still can’t breach the field?”
Zzing—
“Gueh…”
Teeth-grinding pain from the intense headache caused me to kneel and hold my head with one knee down.
Like me, those two who had rushed ahead couldn’t break through the field either.
“Behold, despair!”
[Starter’s Epusio casts ‘Oblivion’.]
Doom. Doom.
Boom—
A vast intangible wave pulsed from Epusio’s body, sweeping across the central area.
“Guh!”
“Gyaaaa!”
I raised my arms to block the incoming force to prevent being thrown off balance.
[Chaos negates oblivion.]
…
Is it over?
“Grr…”
“Haah, haah.”
I could hear the strained groans of Viktor and Leisya who had dashed ahead.
I quickly looked around.
“Tehe—.”
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“W-Where, where am I? I-I… who am I?”
Oh, damn it.
‘So he’s even messing with intelligence and memories? If I take that guy down, will I ever return? I can’t be trapped in this state forever, can I?’
Oblivion, I thought it would just disable a few traits, but this is how it’s applied?
The surroundings were full of idiots and amnesiacs.
‘Crap.’
This is hopeless.
‘If he just summons more creatures, it’s obvious everyone will be helpless and get beaten to death in this state.’
[Starter’s Epusio randomly absorbs traits from those subjected to oblivion.]
… What?
[Absorbed trait ‘Berserk Charge’].]
[Absorbed trait ‘Piercing Stab’.]
[Absorbed trait ‘Beginner’s Bludgeoning’.]
[Trait…]
T…
…
Hahaha.
I unconsciously loosened my grip on the sword.
This is what it means to be a Layered Ruler.
[Chaos argues that it’s too early to give up, urgently shouting.]
‘You’re saying I shouldn’t give up even after seeing that? Seriously?’
In an instant, all sorts of thoughts swirled in my head.
… Damn.
Snap out of it, you idiot! Are you going to just sit there and die because the opponent suddenly got stronger?
Some might snicker, saying someone just barely made it through a labyrinth would be mentally prepared.
But.
I’ve struggled fiercely on the line between life and death until now.
Snap—
I gripped my sword tightly and clenched my teeth.
[Chaos urgently points out to look closely at Epusio.]
Look at its body, Epusio’s body?
“…?!”
The once glowing white body lost most of its light and was cracked all over.
‘That’s not all.’
Epusio’s body wobbled here and there.
New arms holding various weapons were growing and twitching, and its legs were swelling and shrinking repeatedly.
────
[Starter’s Epusio]
A consciousness that had been sleeping within the Great Labyrinth for a long time.
Currently in an unstable state, temporarily weakened due to the price of the ‘Oblivion’ trait and having absorbed too many traits at once.
[Traits Held] (Locked)
Prison of Gathering
■■■ ■■■ (Inactive)
■■■ ■■■■ (Inactive)
■■■■■ (Inactive)
Beginner’s Dagger Skill
Sensitive Sense of Smell
Endure
Sprint
⋯
⋯
⋯
────
Insane, how many traits does it even have?
But… the most troublesome traits are inactive, and its body has weakened?
“Oops, it looks like I’ve lost more strength than I expected due to the price. It’ll take some time to internalize the traits I’ve absorbed.”
Steps.
“Well, compared to the time I’ve been asleep, this is nothing, so I can endure it. Now, nobody can stop me.”
Steps. Steps.
“First off, the fighter. I’ll finish you off quickly since you wouldn’t understand my words anyway.”
“Hah, haahhh.”
It approached Leisya, who was merely huddled, gasping for breath, with a flickering light in her eyes.
“Recognizing your resistance, I’ll grant you a swift death. Farewell.”
Hoooooosh—
Alright, there’s no helping it. I just have to take a shot.
Clang!
“Hm?”
I gathered my focus and dashed out, blocking one of its arms swinging a sword.
“Do you want to kill her?”
Ka-boom!
“Grrrgh.”
Epusio was pushed back by the blow from my sword.
Its body was indeed weaker than what’s listed in the status.
“If you want to kill someone, you’ll have to get through me first.”
With the majority of its traits inactive and a weakened body,
‘If summoning and absorption are blocked, then…’
This is the only chance I have.