It seemed that the terror instilled by the rank 5 monster was impressive. Dvalky muttered something and stepped back.

"Why is a rank 5 monster in the Sky Tower?"

It's not that I couldn't understand his feelings. It was common knowledge that only monsters up to the 6th rank appeared here.

But if I, as an experienced player, systematized the facts, then some rank 5 also appeared, although the chances were almost negligible.

Up to this point, I have come across this probably 7 times. If you add up all my playing time over the past 10 years, this was the frequency of their appearance.

I really didn't expect to see this on the 12th floor.

The difficulty of the Sky Tower was fixed, starting from its 100th floor. Every time I met a rank 5 monster, I worked on it. But on the 12th floor?

The cursed Hans effect.

As soon as I heard the sighs, I screamed with all my might.

"That's it, pull yourself together!"

Whether it was Hans or my damn luck, this was not the time to assess the probabilities and think about how unlucky we were. We could consider the reason later. If a situation arose, the first thing to do was to act.

'Behella

I cast the [Wild Splash] spell and rushed forward. If I had stayed where I was, they would have come to their senses only after someone had died.

*Woom!*

As I rushed at him, radiating my heightened level of threat, the Troll immediately struck a punch. It's amazing that such a speed could come from this massive body, but what really surprised me was the force.

*Bach!*

Damn, I almost dropped my shield.

It's been a long time since I've been surpassed in strength.

I was thrown back.

"I'll help!"

Hikurod soon joined in and took the Troll's next blow.

[Hikurod Murad applied [Weight Balance]].

Thanks to the Iron Troll skill, he adjusted the cushioning without being knocked back.

*Screeching metal!*

However, the dwarven's shield has been reduced to scrap metal.

[Hikurod Murad used [Emergency Recovery]].

He had only received one hit, but he had already had to use the Equipment Repair Skill.

I told you to buy a new shield.

"Gaaaa!"

Parrying another blow with my fist, I hit the Troll on the shoulder with my mace.

*Blow!*

I felt the weight of the blow in my hand, but that was all. The Troll Bastard didn't have a single broken bone, and he continued to raise his fist.

Damn, it looks like my punches won't work.

I bit my lip and dodged my fist. It was pointless to wound him, and it was stupid to measure one's strength with the Troll.

*Woom!*

At the same time as the Troll's fist cutting through the air, the others came to their senses and began to support us.

The first shot was from a Rothmiller crossbow.

*Whoosh! Tic!*

The arrow was fired with great force, but then it bounced back as if it had hit a stone wall. The arrow could not pierce the Troll. But with Mr. Bear, everything would be different.

*Colic!*

In any case, Misha's blade, on which I had pinned my hopes, was not particularly pleasing either. He cut through the Troll's thick skin, but not very deeply.

However, I'm glad it's a Frost Swordsman.

Looking at the hardened wound, I softened my regret. As a rank 5 monster, its resistance stats were too high, making the state of [Freeze] impossible, but it still blocked the regeneration ability at least a little.

"It's done!" Dvalki finished the spell and unleashed his special enhanced ice lance. It was aimed at the head, the weak point of the monster.

*Crackle!*

The Bastard Troll, who had monstrous Constitution stats and high Magic Resistance, simply broke the ice spear with his bare fist. The sight seemed to break Dvalka's will.

"Ahhh!" Dvalki stuttered with fear. "We must run. We can't defeat the Troll unprepared-...

Yes, it wasn't such a simple monster. Usually, they prepared for hunting it thoroughly.

But where are you going to run?

"Shut up and focus on the battle!"

"S-understood!"

Why did I have to yell at him to listen?

In any case, now that he has been dealt with...

*Bam!*

You need to focus on stopping the Troll and organizing the situation.

A rank 5 monster must have basic stats for the battle to make sense at all.

I was sure that the 6th rank also had such a tendency, but at the 5th rank, it was completely different.

That's a headache.

Just look at the Vampire in the Blood Citadel. At that time, Raven, a rank 6 Magus, was there. Since the mage's rating is calculated as +1.5, this meant that there was a rank 5 damage dealer on the team. We also had a super-powerful item called Tear of the Goddess, a holy relic powerful enough to kill a Death Knight in one hit. Not to mention the offensive spells of the sun attribute.

But what were the results?

It didn't work.

This was the beauty of a rank 5 monster. Even though I endured, wasted potions, and poured all my strength for a single blow, he still didn't die. Even a monster with high regeneration and low defense was like that.

But then, what about the Troll?

It was superior to it in both regeneration and protection. Simply put, he was similar to the Fiend of Death, the type of monster with which the possibility of a successful strike did not exist if you did not have the necessary characteristics.

Nevertheless...

We barely pass the minimum requirements.

I soberly analyzed our combat power. I was only thinking about those who were doing damage, not counting the tanks: the dwarf and me.

Was their damage really enough to finish off a rank 5 monster with just those two?

The answer was: one way or another, they can.

If all of Dvalka's mana had been spent on the curse, and as long as we two tanks continued to persist and Misha, who had advanced considerably, continued to deal damage, it might have been possible.

The problem is that it wouldn't be strange at all if someone died in the midst of it.

Due to the nature of the Trolls, if you couldn't finish them off with one powerful blow, there was no choice but to engage in a long battle. The longer the battle, the more accidents occurred.

"Misha!" Watch out!

I gritted my teeth and rushed to block the fist aimed at Mike with my body.

"Oh, thank you!

It will clearly be an uphill battle. Someone may die. If Misha or Dvalki had accidentally been hit, the game would have been over. However, we had no choice but to try.

'Behellaaa

5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes. The battle continued through dripping sweat. Every minute, every second was spent on each of us focusing on our role and directing all our efforts to achieve one goal.

*Bam!*

At first, Hikuroda and I took turns taking attacks and maintaining our stamina as much as possible.

[Ryol Varb Dvalki cast a Rank 8 curse [Wound Sharpening]].

[Riol Varb Dvalki casts a Rank 9 curse [Slow]].

[Riol Varb Dvalki casts a Rank 7 curse [Weaken]].

Dvalki dedicated himself to the role of support, using curses instead of offensive magic. The Troll's regeneration decreased, its movements slowed down, and its Physical Resistance decreased slightly.

*Colic!*

Misha continued to cut him in this state. As I ordered, she aimed only at one point.

*Colic!*

From repeated blows, the Troll's right arm began to weaken.

"Haaa!"

Rothmiller did not sit idly by either. Since the monster was so formidable, it couldn't shoot an arrow into its eye as I had requested, but the attempt itself was useful from the tank's point of view, as it distracted the monster's attention.

"Dvalki, hold on to me!"

In addition, Rothmiller's duties included running away with Dvalki when the Troll redirected aggression.

It was like walking on thin ice.

*Bam!*

I quickly wiped the sweat from my forehead, restoring the Troll's aggression with the [Wild Splash], which had just finished its cooldown. Everything seemed to be going well, but every moment was a crisis and drained resources.

I'm going to go bankrupt again for repairs.

The litinum shield and breastplate for which I had paid so dearly were already dented in places. It was a natural result, because I had punched the Troll countless times. In addition, it was not 3rd, but 2nd grade material. If I expected him to stay intact after being attacked by a rank 5 monster, then I would be a fool. The cost of repairs in this situation was not important.

[Hikurod Murad used [Emergency Recovery]].

The dwarf, who used his recovery skill after each attack, now has almost no MP left. It was the same with Misha. The constant use of [Cold Condensation] to prevent regeneration was quickly depleting her MP reserve.

However, the most serious was Dvalki.

- Huff... Haff!

The troll has high Magic Resistance, and in order to maintain the cursed state, Dvalki has to constantly create curses, exhausting himself so much that he begins to look like a corpse.

In this sense, the time has come for the final test.

"How much mana do you have left?"

"2 minutes... No, I can take another 3 minutes.

"And if you subtract [Slowdown]?"

— ... It should be 7 minutes.

- I see. From now on, skip [Slow].

Without [Slowdown], the Troll's movements would become more ferocious, but that had to be put up with.

I'm not sure about the others, but if the curse of [Wound Exacerbation] disappears, then at best, the slashed arm will heal within a few seconds.

7 minutes...

A time limit was set. If we can't kill the Troll in 7 minutes, we'll be defeated. So, it's time to get down to business.

"Misha, how much more is left?"

"Hah, even if you say so, he won't pass out faster!"

I admitted that there were problems with my plan. It was impossible to cut off the Troll's hand with Misha's sword. The curse of [Wound Exacerbation] and [Frostbite], as well as the acidic blood caked in the Snake Fang, were able to stop the regeneration and cut the muscles.

The problem was the bone, which had the same strength as the Class 3 material. I guess that's not entirely wrong, since the Troll bones were 3rd Class materials.

In any case, it wasn't a big problem. Still, it doesn't look like everything is going according to plan.

It's time to move on to Plan B.

Abandoning Plan A, I developed a new one.

I came up with it on the go, but it doesn't matter.

"Hikurod!" From now on, you are in charge!

"Good!" But what are you going to do?

Instead of answering, I raised my mace. For a round hole, there is always a round peg. First of all, the blade was not a good weapon for breaking bones compared to a reliable blunt weapon.

*Blow!*

When I struck with the mace, a good vibration was transmitted, a real damage that was not absorbed by any blows of skin and muscles.

[The troll cast [Insanity]. The pain temporarily disappears and the Constitution stats increase significantly].

The Troll Bastard, who was screaming in pain, began to rage in earnest, and even used his skills.

"How much longer?!" The dwarf who had somehow managed to stop him screamed even louder.

I didn't answer.

How could I know? I was just a barbarian who kept going to the end.

'Behellaaa

Engraved in my heart the spirit of the barbarian, I struck with my mace without rest.

*Blow!*

The Troll Bastard tried to push me away with his good hand, but the dwarf somehow prevented him.

*Clank*

I threw away the shield in one hand, as it was stronger to swing the mace with both hands.

"Ka-ka-ka!"

When I grabbed the mace with two fists and struck it, a slightly strange sensation appeared in my hands. I had such a feeling during the fight with the Vampire, as if a few more blows and everything would be over.

'Behella

Using the [Wild Splash], I increased my Constitution level a little more. Not even the dwarf could stop the Troll with a taunt, but I was confident in my resilience.

*Blow!*

I concentrated on the blow, taking the Troll's attack with my naked body.

One, two, three times.

*Crunch!*

On the third time, the bone was slightly crushed.

Four, five, six times.

*Crunch!*

For the 6th time, the bones broke, and the arm bent at an abnormal angle.

"Gaaaa!"

At this moment, one would think that he would retreat, but the proud Troll Bastard continued to attack.

*Blow!*

Despite the fact that I was beaten, I happily swung my mace.

*Crunch!*

Finally, on the 10th swing, the bone was completely shattered. The arm was now dangling, resting on a few sinews.

"Misha!"

Before I had time to shout, Mike flew up and swung her sword to cut the sinews.

*Boom!*

A muscular arm fell to the ground with a heavy sound. That was the first result I got after 20 minutes of all that shit.

This is just the beginning.

I was a barbarian who could not be satisfied with this. Not having a second to catch our breath, we waited for the next turn. From that moment on, it was a real race against time.

[The troll cast [Super Regeneration]].

Troll's Active Skill was used when a serious defect appeared in the body or there was a threat to life due to a traumatic brain injury.

Damn, of course he uses it.

When the skill was activated, bone grew out of the cut surface, and flesh and muscle began to fill up. Even with the curse of [Wound Aggravation] and the state of [Frostbite] on top of that, he hadn't reached the state of [Freeze].

What an impossible recovery skill.

It will take at least 2 minutes to fully recover.

For at least the next 2 minutes, he won't be able to use [Super Regeneration]. It wasn't just that the regeneration power had increased dramatically, the skill marked an area for healing. In other words, even if the brain exploded or the heart broke, it couldn't be fixed until the arm fully regenerated.

*Clank*

I threw off my armor and helmet. Hikurod looked at me like I was crazy.

"Y-Why are you suddenly taking off your armor?"

What do you think? This guy is definitely a brake.

[You have applied [Gigantization]].

My body grew rapidly. It was still small compared to the 4-meter troll, but it was enough for a duel.

*Clank!*

Throwing away my mace and shield, I grabbed the Troll by the neck and hung on him.

"Grittg!"

Probably, he could not even imagine that the researcher would dare to enter into hand-to-hand combat with him. The Bastard Troll was greatly discouraged and began to flounder with his hands. Of course, nothing had changed, no matter how much stronger that bastard was than me.

It seems that he has problems with his head.

What can a one-armed bastard do?

"Misha, pierce your eyes first!"

The table was laid. It's time for a duel.