ocean-life Chapter 24: Someone Else's Opportunity is Best Taken First (4)
Chapter 24: Someone Else's Opportunity is Best Taken First (4)
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
Chapter 24: Someone Else's Opportunity is Best Taken First (4)
As the Unholy Blessing repelled the curse, the impact cracked the mask.
The Masked Beast's focus wavered, and the purple glow briefly flickered.
"Fafnir, charge straight ahead."
【Are you sure? The Masked Beast might target you, Master.】
"We have these guys."
Reinforced with bone armor, the Armored Zombies could withstand the destructive light to some extent.
Seven had been destroyed while caught in the reconstructing temple.
'If they can just hold out, I can minimize losses.'
The best option was to position them as close to the Masked Beast as possible and react to its movements!
【Master, don't die meaninglessly.】
"I'll block the Masked Beast's curse. You focus on attacking."
【Hahaha. Leave it to me.】
"Ugh. Small prey. Annoying."
The Masked Beast's eye sockets were once again dyed purple.
Crackle!
The purple light once again surged towards Fafnir with explosive momentum, as if to swallow him whole.
[Dark Aura]
The black air current wrapped around Fafnir's legs condensed and was released towards the ground.
A massive gust of wind created by the Dark Aura ruffled Yoojin's hair.
Fafnir charged in a straight line at a speed several times greater than usual, quickly closing the distance to the Masked Beast.
"Big prey. Not letting go."
The large pupil, resembling the Devil's Eye, followed Fafnir a step behind.
However, the beam didn't bend as quickly as expected.
Mana released in the direction of its gaze.
Although the magic beam reached its target in an instant, to alter its trajectory, all the mana concentrated in its eyes had to be moved.
Naturally, the speed would inevitably slow down.
【So you anticipated this far.】
Fafnir, charging as Yoojin instructed, threw a punch with an exclamation of admiration.
Dark Aura imbued with Fafnir's will.
Skin tougher than steel was torn, and muscle fibers twisted hundreds of times over were destroyed.
Thud—
The Masked Beast lost its balance and flailed its arms.
Immediately after withdrawing the death ray, its eyes focused on Fafnir.
[Ectoplasm]
[Contaminated Skin]
Otherworldly mana poisoned Fafnir's soul.
Blue bubbles bubbled up on the draconian's skin.
"I knew it would do that."
The moment various curses tried to corrode Fafnir, Yoojin, who had already gathered his divine power, deployed a holy spell.
Divine power and curses were diametrically opposed.
Although the Masked Beast had an overwhelmingly greater amount of mana, [Unholy Blessing] was more effective on Fafnir, who was undead.
The holy spell permeated before the curse could expand its domain.
Once again, with the backlash of the spell being canceled, a part of the mask covering the beast's face shattered with a crack!
【A skill befitting my Master.】
[Kenex Combat Arts]
[Seventh Stance]
[Ten-Strike Flurry]
The martial arts he displayed during sparring.
Fafnir's tightly clenched fists struck the Masked Beast's thigh in rapid succession.
Skin tough enough to withstand a steel sword was torn.
Blood droplets sprayed from the ruptured muscles.
Finally, the leg bone, as thick as a tree trunk, snapped with a clear, solid sound.
The bone protruded.
If it were a human, it would have screamed and fainted from such a wound, but...
The Masked Beast converted the pain into rage.
"It hurts! You. Die!"
An arm as thick as the pillars supporting the temple was pulled back and then thrust forward.
【I can clearly see where you're aiming. Do you think I'll just take it?】
Fafnir's stats were beyond 3 Star.
All stats were increased by 20% due to Unholy Blessing.
And since he was already in the middle of hunting, the Punishing Spike had also stacked to its maximum.
Although the Masked Beast was abnormally strong for a 2 Star Gate's boss monster, Fafnir wouldn't lose in a head-on confrontation.
【Well, there's no reason to deliberately avoid what I can see.】
The Masked Beast's fist cut through the air.
Bubbles rose from the spot where it had just struck, and the torn muscles began to reattach with an acrid smell.
【Its regenerative ability is comparable to a troll's.】
"It's Chaotic Frenzy, which restores injuries by consuming the target's life force."
Because it's a spell that consumes a large amount of life force, it's prone to side effects like aging.
The wrinkles that appeared on the Masked Beast's skin were proof of this.
"Nothing is free."
[Using Bone Control.]
The Cursed Fang dug into the healing wound and tore it open.
Splatter!
Some of the flesh caught on the sharp edges fell to the floor.
"Small prey. Die!!"
The Masked Beast released all the curse power accumulated in the white mask at once.
[Curse Technique]
[Wave of Darkness]
Power that accumulates each time a curse is used.
"Indeed it does."
Yoojin stepped onto the altar and slowly examined the armor.
'It's a bit different in shape from what I saw back then.'
The artifact worn by the Phoenix Guild Leader.
The appearance of the Dragon God Armor was a full plate mail that covered the entire body and had a brilliant golden hue.
On the other hand, the armor on the altar was a breastplate that protected the torso.
The size was also much smaller, making him worry whether it would even fit him.
'As expected, artifacts are different.'
Yoojin wasn't fazed by the different appearance of the Dragon Scale Armor from his memory.
Shape transformation was an option often attached to famous artifacts and masterfully crafted weapons.
[Dragon Scale Armor]
Rank: Transcendent
Category: Armor
Restriction: None
Durability: 5,000/5,000
Powerful armor made from dragon bones. It synchronizes with the user's mana and can change shape at will.
*Equipment options change depending on the form.
*Growing artifact.
*Capable of self-repair. Durability recovers naturally unless completely destroyed.
‘As expected. It's just that the appearance is different.’
It was indeed the same artifact that Yoojin remembered.
'A shape transformation option. There will be an abundance of ways to use this.'
The moment he touched the Dragon Scale Armor—
Bzzt—
Yoojin's mana flowed into the armor through the point of contact.
'Look at this guy.'
Yoojin didn't stop his mana from leaking out.
The armor gradually turned black.
"It's not just mana that you need to absorb."
[Using Midnight Sun.]
[Mana → Divine Power]
The synchronization process.
How would the Dragon Scale Armor react if he poured divine power into it as well?
White ripples appeared on the surface of the Dragon Scale Armor, which looked as if it were made of solid iron.
When the armor was completely drenched in darkness—
Clank! Clank!
The Dragon Scale Armor transformed into chains, spreading out in dozens of strands and wrapping around Yoojin's torso.
At first glance, it seemed to be hostile towards him, but...
Yoojin, sensing that the mana and divine power permeating the armor weren't out of control, calmly observed the transformation.
Clank! Clank!
The Dragon Scale Armor became a top with scale-like ripples engraved on it.
"Look at this. It's even better than I thought!"
Yoojin grinned.
He had completely misunderstood the function of the Dragon Scale Armor.
It was an amplifier that changed according to the user's will and increased its output in response to the owner's mana.
The reason it took the form of casual wear was that Yoojin was wearing casual clothes right before he infused the Dragon Scale Armor with mana.
[Impact Defense Lv 12]
[Magic Resistance Lv 7]
[Agility + 10%]
Poor defensive power befitting its appearance.
Instead, it provided additional bonuses to his movements.
'If I imagine something else...'
Clank!
The metallic sound of chains colliding echoed, and the Dragon Scale Armor, which had been as light as casual wear, transformed into heavy armor that covered all exposed areas except his eyes.
[Impact Defense Lv 12 → 47]
[Magic Resistance Lv 7 → 35]
[Agility + 10% → -5%]
'This is similar to the form the Phoenix Guild Leader took.'
Checking the options, he saw that the defense had greatly increased, but there was a penalty to agility.
〔I thought it was unusual. A transformation option.〕
'The potential applications are endless.'
〔The defense seems low for a Transcendent rank, though.〕
"It's a growing artifact."
Currently, even if transformed into full plate, it was only at the level of a Rare rank armor, but...
Since the artifact grew stronger in proportion to the user's strength, time would solve that problem.
【Oh ho. It will be even more useful to Master.】
"To me?"
【Spear techniques. I left them alone in actual battles because you weren't familiar with them, but now that you have this excellent armor, you can use them properly, can't you?】
He had a knack for saying terrifying things with a smile.
Still...
"There's no better experience than actual combat."
Yoojin didn't deny Fafnir's words.
Crackle!
A blue crack appeared on the altar.
With the boss monster, which served as the Gate's core, gone, an exit appeared.
【Let's go back now.】
"I need to take the boss monster's corpse."
The moment he shoved the Masked Beast into the Ring of Midnight—
Thud—
The mask that had been covering its face and a book fell to the floor.
[Translator - Hestia
[Proofreader - Kaya]