STGB Episode 421

Eye of the Storm (3)

Dragon Speech: Silence of the Soul

A ridiculously overpowered skill that burns the MP of all characters within range, driving them to “Soul Exhaustion.”.

However, it also has a weakness.

Firstly, it can only burn up to 40% of your maximum MP, a weakness I was told by an elder dragon.

In other words, as long as a character keeps their MP above this threshold,  they won’t suffer the “Soul Exhaustion” that occurs when MP reaches zero.

‘Perhaps that’s why he’s been saving it all this time’

After escaping from the Glacier Eye and receiving healing from the priests, my body recovered, but my MP was a different story.

My MP was already hovering around half, having spent a lot of it fighting these bastards, using [Gigantification] and spamming [Swing].

That’s why I provoked the Dragon Slayer.

[“I’m curious—when is it coming? That moment when not even death can save me?”]

[“…Grit.”]

At this rate, my MP will run out.

Of course, I have [Soul Dive], but it’s a skill with a cooldown. If I use it once, there’s no way to counter the Dragon Speech afterward.

So I forced the Dragon Slayer to use it early.

And the result…

“Gahhh! Kehhhk! Urghhh…!”

The Dragon Slayer collapsed, completely incapacitated.

Well, I remember he struggled every time he used Dragon Speech back in Larcas’s Maze.

But I didn’t expect he’d become as helpless as a bee like this.

An unexpected gain.

[“The character has cast [Soul Dive].”]

[“The character has cast [Gigantification].”]

Meanwhile, with my opponent’s ultimate move drained and my MP partially recovered, there was nothing holding me back.

“How… how is this possible…?”

That expression, which I wanted to capture and keep forever.

“Bethel—raaaaaaa!!”

I felt as if the energy of my ancestors was surging throughout my body.

[“Manua Rephless has cast [Iron Fist].”]

I blocked the bald guy’s straight punch with a smile.

Hmm, as expected, these guys weren’t affected by the Dragon Speech.

“Come to think of it, if he planned to use Dragon Speech, he would have bonded with the guys around him beforehand.”

The frontline of Noark, including the bald guy, weren’t exposed to the Silence of Souls.

The rear line seemed to be outside the range.

‘Fortunately, our team seems to have avoided it within the radius.’

One of the reasons I sent the expedition’s vanguard back was actually this.

It wasn’t just about creating a secondary defense line to block the assault troops but also about avoiding the devastating effects of Dragon Speech.

‘Even so, the fact that he didn’t recklessly go inside our formation to use Dragon Speech must be because he judged that dealing with me alone would end everything. Perhaps he also calculated that if he became incapacitated on our side, his life would be in danger.’

It’s a funny thing to think about.

[“Yes, you’ve always demanded sacrifice from me.”]

What kind of sacrifice is this?

If you’re going to cut off your arm, you should have been prepared to cut off your shoulder blade as well.

But to throw away his cards so carelessly?

Had he truly decided to sacrifice, he would have become a very threatening variable to us.

“Well, it’s a good thing. But…”

Along with a feeling of relief, I felt frustration.

No, to be precise, I felt empty.

“To think that Dwalki… to such a pathetic guy…”

An executive of Orcules?

A legendary figure who killed an ancient dragon and a notorious criminal?

Even so, It doesn’t change the essence.

That guy was a much greater person than this scum.

[The character has cast [Eye of the Storm].”]

[Due to the Transcendent’s authority, the inherent abilities within the skill are unlocked.]

I used the grappling skill to pull the Dragonslayer bastard.

He vomited blood and was powerlessly dragged by the fiercely blowing storm.

Crunch-!

As soon as I brought down my hammer, his left shoulder shattered.

“Aaaagh…!”

‘Tsk, I aimed for his head, but he twisted his body at the last moment.’

Well, there will be another chance.

Putting aside my regret, I intercepted the bald guy who rushed to save the Dragonslayer.

No, it wasn’t just him.

[Mike Roymus has cast [Earth Stomp]]

[Damage taken by allies within a certain radius is reduced by half, and the remaining half is taken instead]

A blunt weapon warrior close to a tank.

[Ria Endes has cast [Wave of Fire]]

[Temporarily increases all fire damage, and additional effects are gained the closer you are to the target]

A rare melee-focused pyromancer.

These three, clearly accustomed to working as a team, became even more coordinated after the dragon slayer was knocked out, working together to harass me relentlessly.

[Kale Elbad Zeneger has cast [Earth Spikes]]

From time to time, ranged attacks flew in from the rear.

Without any armor, their attacks pierced and slashed through my body.

But…

[“Loita Maemandor has cast [Advanced Healing].”]

[“Benjamin Orman has cast [Advanced Healing].”]

With the priests’ buffs plastered all over me and receiving extensive care, it wasn’t enough to push me back.

[“Kelbus Iron has cast level 4 Dark Magic [Mark of Malice].”]

[“All regeneration effects on the character are reduced.”]

[“Benjamin Orman has cast [Moonlight of Purification].”]

[“All negative effects on the character are removed.”]

The dark mage persistently cast curse magic, but it’s always easier to remove a curse than casting them.

“Don’t overdo it and just block them!”

We could have taken them down one by one if we went on the offensive, but we stuck to a solid defense.

That’s the nature of a defense game: as long as the defenses hold, the players win.

‘Anyway, these guys can’t escape.’

To be precise, it didn’t matter if they ran.

Their retreat was blocked.

Behind them were swarming monsters, and even the boss monster was climbing up glaring with its menacing eyes.

I don’t know about the others, but I’m pretty sure the three who came to our side and got beaten up badly will have their bodies rot within a few days once they enter the ‘Glacier Eye’.

Could they possibly escape to the 8th floor in such a situation?

Especially with no food?

“Damn it, where did this guy come from…!”

The blunt-weapon warrior who fearlessly tried to wrestle me was sent flying by a single kick,  his face full of despair.

“They said no one could stop us once we made it outside!”

Ah, so they were clinging to that hope while secretly growing stronger on the 8th floor.

Well, it’s not entirely false hope.

Because on the 8th floor, there are plenty of essences valuable enough to become a Core Essence.

But still…

If that’s the case, you should’ve at least gotten the combinations right.

Take my shield barbarian character, the core is [Gigantification].

It’s a Level 5 essence you can obtain by hunting an Orc Hero, and once it’s linked with [Unity], it produces incredible efficiency.

Just recklessly stacking high-grade essences doesn’t guarantee success.

“Rephless! W-We should retreat for now!”

Maybe he lost his will to fight after seeing me completely unscathed, the blunt weapon warrior begged for a retreat. The bald-headed warrior, however, refused.

“Where would we go?!”

“At least we should regroup for now…!”

“Stop spouting nonsense and fight!”

He knew it, too. Falling back to regroup would only lead to a tougher battle.

In the end, they have only one choice.

“If we just kill this one guy!”
“The rest will be easy!”

To break through us and climb upward.

“Bethel—raaaaaa!!!”

 

Of course, I have no intention of letting them go.

***

The battle continued.

And the tide that had turned did not reverse.

“……We can’t go on anymore!”

A kind of assault unit.

Two explorers who had tried to bypass me to target our main force now passed by me again to rejoin their allies.

“Where’s Cullen…?”

“Can’t you see? He’s dead!”

The three fought desperately, but when one died, they couldn’t hold out and ran away.

The enemy’s numbers are down.

On the other hand, we have no casualties.

Although some of our members have been injured, even they are mostly lightly wounded.

But still…

Instead of letting down my guard, I raise it even higher.

Because with this, they must have realized for sure.

That if things continue like this, they might all really die.

“……To think we’d have to risk our lives in a place like this.”

Humans are calculative creatures.

Therefore, when standing at the crossroads of survival, they eventually choose to give up.

Everything except survival.

This is the scariest state when meeting as enemies.

In terms of a boss monster, it’s the “Berserk” state.

A state where they fight, risking their lives to survive.

[The character’s soul power is insufficient.]

[Gigantification] has ended.

Just in time, as my MP drained, my body shrank back to its normal size.

“Jandel, step back and rest for a while.”

Immediately, Amelia moved to my right side.

“That’s right. We’ll take care of things here.”

To the left was Ravien.

“We will take your place.”

Then Jun and Kyslan also stepped forward from behind.

Well, even though I don’t know about Kyslan, Jun can at least take on the main tank role.

Rather than stubbornly staying in the front line with no MP,  I decided it would be more effective to trust my allies. I quickly withdrew from the front line to the second line. I planned to rush out immediately if any variables arose.

“That monster guy has retreated!”

“Now, now is our chance!”

As soon as I withdrew, the Noark bastards regained their fighting spirit and charged.

However, it didn’t take long for that fighting spirit to be broken.

[Jun Arshen has cast [Divine Liberation]

Jun, once he uses all his skills, becomes a monster tank not inferior to me…

As for Kaislan, Ravien, and Amelia…

Whooosh—!

Getting hit by them even once could truly be lethal.

“…Ugh!”

“Be careful!”

Just as they say, the best defense is a good offense.

Instead of just taking hits, sharp counterattacks flew in, targeting their gaps, so they couldn’t continue their offensive as aggressively as before.

And then…

“Rephless, Ricky Aymond is down!”

It wasn’t long before we scored another kill.

The bombardment line, led by Erwin and Akuraba, finally broke through, taking down one of the enemy’s long-range damage dealers.

It was a significant morale boost.

[Status ailment [Whisper of Immortality] has been activated]

Unlike the one who died on our side earlier, the Glacier Eye’s field effect activated, and resurrected their comrade as an undead.

“H-Hurry, push him back! Knock him down—”

“Aaaaah!”

The enemy’s support type who had turned into a lich indiscriminately unleashed skills before they managed to suppress him and send him plummeting into the abyss.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t capitalize further on this opportunity…

‘The remaining ranged enemies include two dark mages, one support-type, and one Karui priest…

After that, the intense battles continued.

Kaislan was severely injured and retreated, but a tank who was waiting in the second line was immediately deployed to block the path.

“Huff, huff, huff…”

Sven Parab.

His tense exhalations made him seem somewhat unreliable, but still, he’s a paladin.

He’s the only main tank besides me and Jun.

Oh, by the way, we also had a swap of melee attackers once.

“Emily, come back!”

……

Amelia, whose MP had run out, retreated to the second line, and Rick Juggersta, the warrior from the third team, was deployed.

In the narrow passage, we utilized every advantage we could gain through numerical superiority to confront the enemy.

But..

Sacrifices were inevitable.

A sharp stone spear pierced straight through Rick Juggersta’s torso.

The same attack that had instantly killed our tank, Might Million, during the Deadwood battle.

Crack…

It hadn’t been long since Rick had taken over the position, yet he was killed  on the spot.

Because he was not outside the field boundary, [Whisper of Immortality] did not activate…

“Ah, no! Rick…!”

Right, he was… James Carla’s friend.

“Puta Rickervan! What are you doing! Block them quickly!”

I hurriedly sent a member who was a scout and melee attacker from the second team to fill the empty spot, and at that moment, James Carla, who was in the rear, ran over and embraced the body of his fallen friend.

However, I spoke coldly.

“……Carla, return to your position.”

What he might need now are words of comfort, but what’s needed and what must be done are different.

Fortunately, James Carla understood this as well.

“Yes…”

Leaving just a brief word, James Carla hoisted his friend’s corpse onto his back and moved to the rear.

Seeing him grit his teeth and stretch out his trembling legs, I couldn’t say anything.

I just turned my gaze back to the battlefield.

Slash—!

There had been sacrifices, but just in time, we were scoring yet another point.

“M-Mike…!”

We had taken down the blunt-weapon warrior who held the tank position.

The one who brought him down was Ravien.

However, she was injured in the process.

She wouldn’t die thanks to the priest’s healing, but it would take time for her to recover.

「Status ailment [Whisper of Immortality] has been activated.」

Once again, the field effect activated, turning the enemy into an undead.

But this time, we didn’t gain much from it.

“What are you doing? Everyone, fall back”

The enemy transferred the aggro to us, pulling their forces back. This meant we had to put in extra effort to finish off their reanimated ally.

Still…

‘Now there are 10 left… No, since the Dragonslayer bastard is incapacitated, it’s 9…’

The number of enemies was steadily decreasing.

Victory was getting closer.

Just as members of our ranged dealer line were running out of MP one after another, their side was also exhausting all sorts of resources.

“C-Curse magic! Quickly cast the curse magic!”

As the dark mage’s curse magic—which had been reducing their regenerative abilities—was lifted, their bodies began to rot and decay.

It seemed the dark mage who had been hindering our priests had finally run out of mana…

‘Good, if we keep going like this.’

As soon as I confirmed that Jun’s doping had ended and his tanking ability had decreased, I pulled back to the frontline and stepped forward.

“Damn it! Has he recovered already?!”

My MP wasn’t yet fully recovered, but for maintaining [Gigatification] it was more than enough.

Soon, the cooldown for [Soul Dive] would also be over.

‘Above all, now that the curse magic has ended, there’s no need to deal any more damage.’

It was like a breached dam.

Now all I had to do was hold the front and let the Glacier Eye’s field effect gradually finish them off.

“Push him back! Push him back!”

Those who realized this tried all sorts of things to move the frontline outside the field, but I gritted my teeth and held on.

“It seems the priests have run out of divine power!”

It didn’t matter that the healing that had been a reliable support from behind—had ended.

These bastards had also exhausted all their strength.

They swung their weapons desperately with arms and legs that were rapidly rotting and decaying, but that was all.

It was when I was holding my shield with such determination.

Despair.

It always strikes without warning.

“Aaaaah!”

Suddenly a scream pierced the air.

The kind of scream that should never have come from behind us.

“Jandel!”

Unable to turn back, I heard Kaislan’s urgent cry.

“…An enemy! A new enemy has appeared!”

A new variable had occurred.