Chapter 32 - The Blood Citadel (Part 3)

 

*Push*

As soon as Raven pushed the stone on the wall, the candles in the stone chamber lit up all at once, illuminating the interior of the hall.

"Oh, how did you know about something like that?"

— Books are a storehouse of knowledge.

Why can't you just say you've read it in a book?

— Let's see. And! Here is another one.

Raven drove in another brick, and a book fell from the ceiling with the sound of mechanical equipment.

Necronomicon.

A book of black magic and a commodity sold at a fairly high price.

Bloody hell...

"Since I found it on my own, I will keep it for myself, as agreed.

— That's right. This is something that we can leave without the magic of distortion in any case.

"Hahaha...

Raven laughed awkwardly.

Of course she knew.

The Necronomicon was considered an item, and as such, it could be brought out even without the magic of distortion.

"Do you mind putting this in my backpack?"

"Yes, Lady Raven.

There was a bitter taste in my mouth, but all I could do was watch the mage take the loot.

Hell, I thought I could take this item for myself later...

Why did she know about it, but not about what was hidden in the statue?

"Shall we continue our journey then?"

As we walked along the straight passage, which was probably 30 feet wide, a two-sided walkway and a huge sculpture of the devil appeared.

- Miss Reuven?

"It doesn't matter which path we choose. We're going to hunt all the monsters along the way anyway, right?

We walked around the rectangular demon worship room and hunted monsters one by one. The monsters that appeared were Gargoyle Statues, Death Fiends, Chimera Wolves, and Bone Knights.

"We are very lucky in many ways. The fact that we had obtained the essence of the Corpse Golem was already lucky, but they also turned out to be Longing.

Unlike me, luck continued to follow us.

Hatred, sadness, longing.

Bone Knight, a rank 7 monster, possesses one of three attributes in random order.

And we got the simplest and most useful type of all.

- The "Longing" type only has the ability "Absorb Vitality", which restores their health after being injured. And this can be easily negated with the help of my magic "Wound Exacerbation".

Raven proudly boasted, but in reality, with or without her, the Yearning Type was the easiest to deal with. The type of Sorrow that emits a mist that causes delirium was a very annoying ability even in the game. However, it couldn't be compared to the Hatred type.

The dwarf spoke.

"That would be good, but I've heard that a monster like Hatred is the weakest?"

Nonsense.

Hate Knights use the Soul Slash ability, an insane skill that deals no damage, but reduces the target's level by a terrifying amount.

[Comrade A has suffered serious soul injuries and their level has decreased].

After exploding, this was displayed in the combat log regardless of whether it was HP, defense, or magic resistance. And when that message came out, it was easier to just start a new character—much easier than restoring experience points by working hard to open a portal.

"A decrease in the greatness of the soul... What a horror.

At Raven's explanation on my behalf, the dwarf flinched and breathed a sigh of relief. However, the magician did not miss the opportunity to demonstrate her knowledge and continued to explain.

"And if you possess as many essences as your soul allows, one of them will be lost at random. Perhaps other researchers do not know about this.

As a magician, she only speaks the right information.

However, if I could add something about...

Soul Slice was more effective at lower levels...

And my current level was only 2.

Besides, with my bad luck line, I was extremely lucky that I didn't meet the Hate Knight...

"It's essence.

Damn, has my luck finally turned to me?

Even though we only caught a few of them, the essence dropped.

It belonged to none other than a rank 7 monster, the Bone Knight.

Какого черта?

First there was the Corpse Golem, and now it's...

Did I really get into a special round?

"It's as if God is watching the two of you. Hahaha!

— I agree. Perhaps this means that the Guardian Essence will also appear.

Each of them sent words resembling congratulations in our direction.

Me and Einar. Their words hid the question of which of us would consume the essence. After a moment's thought, I made a difficult decision.

"Ainar, you will take her.

"I... It is ok?

It would be a lie if I said I didn't want to. In fact, there was only a Guardian left, and no one could guarantee the appearance of another essence at the moment.

However...

"You said you wanted to get stronger, right?" Take it.

From the player's point of view, it was more logical for Einar to take it for me. "Absorption of Vitality" is good for someone who wields a sword, and I'll have to throw away my weapon someday.

First of all, Einar is reliable. Judging by her honest nature, she won't leave me anyway. Therefore, instead of being impatient, it would be more effective to use the empowered Einhar to acquire an essence that is more suitable for me.

"S-Thank you, Bjorn!" You're the best! I will definitely repay for this service!

With my permission, Einar excitedly devoured the essence.

The changes were dramatic and instantaneous.

"Wow!" You have suddenly become taller!

"It's you who have become smaller, Einar.

"What?!" It's true?

Ainar's height, which used to be about 195 centimeters, has decreased. In an instant, her height became about 180 centimeters.

"This is the main effect of the Bone Knight essence. With a significant increase in bone density, height decreases proportionally.

Raven, who loved to explain everything, was now even retelling information about the standards of this world. Instead of expressing them as (high), (medium), (low), etc., the exact numbers were something like this:

[Bone Knight]

Cutting Force +12

Bone Density +55

Agility +15

Stamina +15

Flexibility -7

Height -25

(P) Antiseptic – the effects of exacerbation of wounds (poison, bleeding, decomposition, etc.) are halved.

(A) Absorption of Vital Force – temporarily greatly increases regeneration when attacking a living being.

"Don't worry. You didn't lose muscle strength just because you became shorter...

"I... I'm finished! No one will see me as a warrior! Everyone looks down on me anyway because I'm a woman!

... Do they look down on you because you are a woman? Maybe it's her inferiority complex?

"By the way... You are very beautiful now.

Raven, watching Einhar's despair, muttered as if it was interesting.

— Is it because the bone structure of your face has decreased? Maybe it could be sold to the nobles for cosmetic purposes...

"That means I don't look like a warrior anymore!!

I didn't know that she would take it so sharply. I hurried to solve this problem.

— No, I don't. Ainar, everyone knows that you are a great warrior!

To be honest, except for the tattoos on her upper body, she now looked like a tall human woman.

"What's wrong with being a little shorter!"

"That's not a little!!

— ... But you're much stronger! Isn't that enough?

I had to be the one to comfort her. The rest of the people were sociopaths who were engaged in telling about themselves through the misfortunes of others.

"Hahaha!" What a strange essence. If a dwarf like me eats it, it will become invisible!

"Hmm, that's an interesting thought. The proportional or absolute effect of reduced height should be investigated in other examples as soon as I return.

"I'm finished!!

"Hahaha!" Is it because she is a barbarian? Even if you are short, your voice is very loud!

"Miss Ainhar, if you don't mind, can I do some exams with you when we get back to town?"

"I'm finished!"

How I wish everyone would just shut up...

My ears and head hurt.

"Fiend of Death!"

Thanks to the monster that came up to us because of the commotion, the noise subsided. However, curiously watching Einar's transformation after absorbing the essence, everyone took a step back and showed their intention to observe.

"Behella...

Ainhar swung her sword with a soulless scream.

And...

*Section!*

I heard right. For the first time, her sword made a cutting sound instead of a *bang*!

Is +12 Cutting Force really so different?

"Ainar!" Aim for the head!

"Ugh, uh... Ok!

Amazed at her own transformation, Einhar jumped high and slashed vertically with her sword.

Then...

*Blow!*

The Fiend of Death, who usually needed dozens of blows from the two of us, was killed with a single blow. She pierced his hard skull and reached his brain.

"Look!" You've become so much stronger!

"Then, I'm still a warrior...?"

— Of course not.

— ……?

"Ainar, Feneline's 2nd daughter!" You're not just a warrior! You're a strong warrior!!

'Behella!!a

Thank God. This cheered her up. Her new body would still be uncomfortable, but Einar would become much stronger once she got used to it.

"What a wonderful couple they are.

"I feel the same way.

I ignored the conversation between Raven and the dwarf and continued on my way. I realized again that the only way to silence these guys was to fight a few monsters.

"Come on!" Bjorn! If you eat this, you can become a stronger warrior like me!

Having regained her motivation, Einar fought the battle with all her heart and soul.

*Smack! Shmyak, Klang! Thread!*

Unfortunately, even after hunting all the monsters in the prayer room, no additional essence appeared.

But I did not lose hope...

The Rift Flower, the Guardian, was still there.

If I have been so lucky so far, then should we expect more?

Just as I was thinking about it...

"I've had a lot of fun with you guys, but now it's coming to an end.

The dwarf spoke sadly. Raven responded in kind.

"It's a pity. It's the first time I'm entering the maze, but I think I understand why my seniors are doing this work.

This sobered me up instantly.

Come to think of it, has my life been so easy before? Mm, well, I'm sure this isn't the first time.

But the problem was the big event that always followed it.

The relaxed cogs in my head tightened all at once, and an unknown ominous threat loomed over me.

"Then I'll come in."

What could be the problem? What was the worst that could have happened? Internal conflict?

No, I don't think that's the point.

The distribution of loot had already been agreed, and something like this could only happen after the Guardian's death.

... *Creak*

As the dwarf opened the door to the stone chamber, I watched the surroundings.

Convinced that something was going to happen, I paid close attention to every little thing I could catch. In addition, I looked at all the information about the Blood Citadel that I could remember from the game.

And so, I was able to find her...

"The door!" Close the door!

"What do you mean...

Damn it, is it too late?

*Dddddd!*

At the same time, when the door opened, the ground began to shake violently.

Then, a dark figure stood in the center of the spacious stone room and took off her robes, revealing a pale face. Only Magus Raven realized the seriousness of the situation.

"N-It can't be...

The Rift Keeper has changed.

It wasn't the Death Knight who was supposed to be waiting for us here...

[The Lord of the Blood Citadel woke up from a deep sleep].

A boss monster that works alone, but at the same time is a monster of the 5th rank of difficulty.

A true hybrid monster who wields both black magic and hand-to-hand combat.

A monster that could usually be encountered, even if it was only a vague probability, only after the 6th floor.

"A vampire...

A high-ranking mutant, not even an ordinary Vampire. Simply put, a named monster with intelligence, an individual name, and a story.

I even knew his name.

"You are the first living creatures I have seen in a long time.

Vampire Duke Cambormere.

"Where did you all come from?"

On behalf of the frozen audience, I opened my mouth.

"Let's run."

Damn, why are you doing this to me?

No matter how many times I called him in the game, he never appeared.