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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Right from the start, my own stamina was being depleted at a rapid pace.
In the current situation, I couldn’t receive energy from the Specter, so I had no choice but to endure with my physical strength.
Annelise and Tildi beside me were not in a normal state either.
If the rear line was in this condition, what could be said about the front line?
Their movements began to slow down gradually, and following the first Minotaur that had fallen, the second and third Minotaurs began to be lost as well.
In the end, the precarious balance achieved by substituting offense for defense lasted only for a moment.
As the situation worsened, my hands became busier.
As the number of Minotaurs decreased, there was more demonic energy to spare, and consequently, more room for magical support.
Of course, it was only a surplus of demonic energy, but I, who had reached 6th class in the previous round, managed to provide magical support even in this chaotic situation.
This was also possible because I had minimized the influence of the surrounding divine power using the Aura of Death.
Bang!
Occasionally, aggro was drawn to me, but there were still three Minotaurs protecting me, and thanks to the Specter’s consistent checks, the situation was still manageable.
However, the burden on me was undeniably increasing.
And finally…
“Rabid!”
The first casualty occurred.
The guardian trampled on the body of Rabid, the shield warrior whose limbs had been completely crushed and who had collapsed.
Given that its size was three times that of a Living Armor, Rabid’s body burst open the moment it was trampled, resulting in his instant death.
Cereo’s group was shocked and outraged at the first death of their comrade.
However, that was their limit.
Neither Annelise nor Tildi could ask me for any more help.
I was the one bearing the greatest burden among us.
There was nothing more I could do here.
I had already invested most of my cards in the front line.
Originally, I should have been pleased with Cereo’s group’s deaths as it was going according to plan, but the situation was different now.
The power of the berserk guardian seemed to be beyond imagination, as explosions could still be heard.
“What… what should we do…”
Annelise was trembling and shooting arrows as if she didn’t know what to do, while Tildi was desperately squeezing out divine power to save as many comrades as possible.
However, his meager divine power couldn’t do anything, and eventually, even Tildi’s divine power ran out.
When Arahard, another shield warrior, was crushed by the guardian’s shield, and even Flana, the spear wielder, was cut in half, Annelise ran out of arrows.
Cereo howled and swung his sword, but it was meaningless.
Yet there was nothing that could be done.
I was busy just barely blocking the guardian’s attacks using only the Minotaur chieftain.
By now, all four Living Armor were on the ground recovering, and only Skeleton No. 1, No. 2, and the Specter were still functioning.
“Wake up! Cereo! Cereo! Do something!”
At some point, even Cereo’s movements slowed down.
He looked like he had given up on everything, and Annelise called out to him anxiously, but…
That didn’t seem to be the case.
‘…An epiphany? At this moment?’
Just as he was about to give up after losing his comrades, Cereo suddenly started to draw out his aura, as if he had grasped some clue.
Even though it was only at a low level, the fact that he had such an awakening in this critical moment was remarkable in itself.
“I’ll… kill you.”
“Cereo!”
For a moment, joy tinged Annelise’s voice, but…
Tildi’s face was still clouded with despair.
Cereo seized the momentary gap I had created.
He succeeded in inflicting a wound on the guardian’s torso and managed to avoid its counterattack with the help of my Skeletons.
Then, circling around the enemy, he left another wound near its ankle, and when the guardian tried to turn, the Minotaur under my control intervened to divert its attention.
Following this was a supporting spell.
However, the guardian effortlessly blocked the Dark Ball with its shield and then shot a light beam towards Cereo.
If it weren’t for the Specter’s intervention the moment the guardian’s head turned, Cereo would have died on the spot.
But as if he knew the Specter would help, Cereo rushed at the guardian again and swung his sword repeatedly.
Kagagagak!
Although it was a reckless attack, the number of wounds clearly increased.
Drrrr.
At this point, changes began to occur in the guardian’s movements.
‘…It’s going berserk.’
We couldn’t inflict any more damage.
“…Fall back!”
I shouted, though I knew they wouldn’t listen.
But Cereo indeed didn’t retreat, and finally, the guardian entered a berserk state.
A golden aura rose from its entire body, and its movements changed dramatically in an instant.
As if I had been waiting for this, I immediately withdrew the recovered Living Armor, Specter, and Skeletons, which proved to be a wise decision.
Cereo’s body was instantly cut in half.
Then the chieftain Minotaur tried to resist, but…
Crack.
It met its end by being split in two after just three exchanges.
With the virtual annihilation of the front line, Annelise showed a blank expression before seemingly making a decision and turning to flee.
I had neither the mind to catch her nor the intention to do so, so I let her escape.
Tildi didn’t run away.
Or perhaps he had given up, but I hadn’t given up yet.
There was still a card left to play.
‘I didn’t think I’d have to use something I prepared for the most extreme situations…’
The conditions were met.
I sent the remaining three Minotaurs charging towards the guardian.
The strengthened light beam erased one Minotaur completely, and the two that had managed to approach threw themselves at the guardian’s body and at the same time, my final measure was activated.
In an instant, all of my demonic energy was depleted.
I quickly hid behind the Bone Wall, and then the two Skeletons came out to protect Tildi and me.
Kaboom!
A series of tremendous explosions echoed.
A powerful shockwave tore through the central hall.
After some time had passed, when I raised my body, I saw the half-destroyed guardian struggling to get up in front of me.
‘…It’s still alive?’
I couldn’t help but think it was insane.
However, its movements were not normal.
One arm had been blown off, and its legs below the knees were gone as well.
I could confirm that its combat power had drastically decreased.
I quickly ordered an attack through the Living Armor and Skeletons No. 1 and 2, then spoke to the Specter.
“Chase after Annelise.”
It could kill her or capture her after draining all her energy.
I couldn’t forgive deserters.
It had essentially become possible to deal with her legally.
“…Impressive. To have such a measure even at the very end…”
“I didn’t want to use it. Using it meant all of the front line would die. I also needed enough corpses.”
I restricted the guardian’s movements with the two Minotaur bodies I had thrown, and exploded all of the Minotaur corpses lying dead around the guardian.
With nearly 20 Minotaur corpses exploding, even a berserk guardian couldn’t remain unscathed.
This was a measure that shouldn’t have been used if Cereo’s party hadn’t been completely annihilated.
It was literally a method of surviving by sacrificing comrades.
It was essentially no different from Annelise’s choice to flee.
Of course, there were ways to use it if needed, but Tildi didn’t try to find fault.
After giving Tildi a moderate answer, I checked on Kayla’s side.
That side was also nearing the end of their conquest.
Fortunately, they didn’t seem to have been greatly affected by the explosion.
‘Corpse Explosion only affects the immediate surroundings… I guess that’s natural.’
To increase the power over a wider area, one would need to make extensive preparations in advance or be at a higher level.
However, this was a space filled with divine power, and even with my Aura of Death, there were limitations as I was only at the 4th class level.
‘I need to reach 5th class quickly…’
As I was thinking this and checking my body…
Demonic energy rapidly poured into my body’s vessel, and then naturally extended upwards, beginning to form the fifth ring.
Breakthrough
‘At a time like this?’
I couldn’t understand what was happening.
I didn’t think I had any particular epiphany…
Belatedly, I started to focus on checking my body’s condition.
‘…Can it happen like this?’
The divine power in the central hall hadn’t only affected the zombies.
I too had been affected, and it seemed I had also absorbed some of the surrounding divine power while hurriedly recovering.
My body, which had good compatibility with demonic energy to the point of receiving its blessing, perceived the divine power as a threat and seemed to have reacted to reject it.
On top of that, I had used magic and controlled undead to the point of overexertion…
‘It certainly was something that shouldn’t have been possible at the 4th class level.’
It seemed my body had grown another step as a result of struggling to survive under adverse conditions.
I hadn’t properly recognized this physical reaction because I was focused on the battle.
‘I was certainly very tired and strained, but…’
I thought that was a natural reaction since I was doing something impossible for a 4th class level.
Little did I know, it was evidence that I was advancing to the next level.
‘Normally, one should experience an epiphany when rising to 5th class, with an expansion of consciousness…’
My mind was already expanded as much as it could be, so I hadn’t noticed.
It was a situation where only my body needed to catch up.
During the fierce battle, I was already displaying abilities beyond what my physical body could handle.
Moreover, the situation was so urgent that I didn’t have time to pay attention to every detail.
‘An unexpected harvest.’
A smile emerged on my face.
Before long, the fifth circle was formed, and my body and mind began to stabilize.
I was in a considerably fatigued state, but it wasn’t unbearable.
‘How amusing.’
High risk, high return.
It was something I had tried to avoid if possible.
After all, I had always chosen the safer path, even if it was slower.
It made sense.
Why take a big risk when assured success was guaranteed?
I had only taken manageable risks, and that alone was enough to give me confidence in rising to the top.
But amusingly, I had experienced something unexpected in an unforeseen place, and as a result, I was able to shorten nearly a year’s worth of time.
‘I thought it would take about a year to reach 5th class.’
Who could have predicted that this environment, which was incompatible with me, would ironically be of help?
As I stood up, I could see my undead slowly but steadily dealing with the berserk guardian.
I immediately raised my hand and said,
Instantly, hand-like shapes sprang up from the guardian’s shadow and began to grab it.
Hands, waist, back.
Black shadows restrained it from various points.
The holy aura burning from its entire body scorched the black grasps, but they continued to interfere with the guardian’s movements without regard.
Thanks to this, the Skeletons and Living Armor could freely pound on the guardian, and finally, its movements began to gradually subside.
“That just now… Could it be…”
Tildi seemed to have realized that the magic I had just used was 5th class magic, and asked me with an astonished expression.
“Did you… break through the wall?”
Tildi made a dejected expression.
“…Come to think of it, Cereo also broke through the wall.”
That was true.
However, he just didn’t survive.
Tildi offered a small congratulation, but it wasn’t a fitting remark for the current situation.
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