I dodged the right arm trying to crush me by rolling just the right amount and dove inward before Lucia could approach.
Ironically, thanks to the boss’s grotesque form, it was much easier to engage closely rather than maintain distance.
The body parts had lower defense, taking more damage, and I could simply ignore some of the swinging patterns of the right arm.
I had experienced countless deaths from trying to awkwardly create distance out of fear of Lucia’s appearance, only to be hit by her unexpectedly wide swinging range.
Thud!
Of course, it’s not easy even at close range in Darkest Light Mod.
I parried Lucia’s swinging arms in succession, landing a hit once before backing away. A tentacle burst out from her split abdomen, poking the spot I had just vacated.
It was a newly added containment pattern in Darkest Light Mod. I had to keep that in mind without fail; if I couldn’t react, I knew what would happen next.
Lucia’s shoulders wiggled wildly. It indicated she would soon begin a continuous downward strike pattern. I could simply parry every attack without rolling away.
As I watched the two arms preparing to strike down, I swung my sword in time.
A loud thump thump echoed with each strike. My body was pushed slightly back as Lucia stepped forward, but that was all. There was nothing special to worry about.
As soon as the seven-hit combo ended, I swung my sword one more time, deflecting Lucia’s right arm attack. A massive heap of flesh swept across the nearby ground, and I barely managed to stop myself from being pushed back by the impact.
Lucia’s ragged attire fluttered wildly.
‘… I can’t concentrate worth a damn.’
The biggest issue wasn’t Lucia’s difficulty or patterns. It was the fact that I kept getting distracted by her exposed body.
The fact that her skin was covered in black liquid didn’t matter. She still had a human form. Naturally, the physical features of her human self were still intact.
Also, her mode played a significant role.
Lucia was a woman in vanilla, but dressed way more modestly. The battle priests, the original version of battle nuns, wore full robes that covered them up, so their attire was only moderately ripped.
However, because the mod layered over the game, all battle priests turned into women, and their outfits now boasted an outrageous level of exposure. With their clothes tattered, it was easy to guess how they looked.
With every movement, her exposed chest swayed violently, and her posture accentuated her chest and hips.
Talking about those curves would only be a waste of breath.
Plus, the fact that she wasn’t even wearing underwear made the sight even more precarious. I felt incredibly grateful that she was slathered in black liquid.
Lucia’s left arm slammed into my blood-stained sword and was knocked back hard. The consequent jolt made the chunk of flesh hanging from her chest sway again.
‘Positive thoughts. Positive thoughts.’
It was similar to my battle against Arachnae. Unlike Lucia, who looked vaguely human, Arachnae was perfectly human from the waist up.
Yet I found myself fixating on Lucia’s issues only now, likely due to the lingering effects of Stella and her battle nuns performing that strip show to identify heretics.
They had stripped off their clothes in front of me and, at the end, the Inquisitor had forced me to grope her chest. There was no way I could forget that.
Consequently, I kept overlaying that memory, especially since Lucia’s outfit was identical to the battle nuns’.
‘Was the shock too much?’
Whether the one trying to identify the heretic, the one being identified, or the observers—all had been stunned, collectively losing their sanity. Each for different reasons.
‘No, let’s not think about it.’
I finally managed to calm my mind, took a defensive stance, lowered my combat fatigue gauge, and took a quick breath.
I had done something unnecessary. Focusing on combat was my top priority. If I let my mind wander again, I could die just like that.
I deliberately honed in on the patterns Lucia was using, trying to shake off idle thoughts. I filled my mind with thoughts of concentrating on her patterns rather than suppressing any lewd ideas.
‘This attack is offbeat.’
Seeing the right arm drop awkwardly, I took a mental breath and rolled away. Just as I did, I heard her arm swing.
Lucia’s right arm smashed down on the ground, allowing her to float into the air. The arm behind her twitched, splitting into multiple tendrils. Each split tentacle sharpened into a pointed spike.
I confirmed the situation and positioned myself accordingly. If I managed to dodge properly, this pattern would give me a perfect deal time.
The pattern started with the rightmost ones relative to the boss. I took a step right, and a tentacle smashed down with a loud bang right next to me.
Next, I twisted my body to the left, and again, a tentacle smashed down with a bang right beside me. It was an incredibly narrow escape.
I continued to dodge the numerous smashing tentacles simply by taking a step or twisting my body.
This was something possible in the game as well. This so-called “hitbox porn” situation allows many bosses to have one or two patterns which you can exploit like this if you actively look for them.
Unless you’re trying to show off, there’s no reason not to just roll or parry instead of dodging perilously.
After dodging about twelve tentacles like that, the onslaught stopped. Lucia’s body slowly lowered to the ground.
Without waiting for her, I struck with my sword. Until her body fully landed, I could attack without fear of counterattack.
Lucia initiated her next attack just after getting hit nearly seven times. At that moment, the blessing enchantment that had been smeared on my blood-stained sword disappeared.
Instead of rolling toward Lucia, I created some distance. Maintaining a suitable distance to prevent a body press right after her leap, I pulled out the Sacred Catalyst.
Once again, the black sunlight coated my crimson blade.
“Ahhh… ugh…”
Lucia stumbled back, her arms behind her having taken too much damage and transforming into black liquid, melting away. A painful moan escaped her lips.
The battle was one-sided. Well, if it wasn’t, there would be no way I’d still be standing here unscathed.
Lucia attempted to gather her strength to regenerate her arms behind her, but the body that crumbled after taking damage wasn’t easily repaired. It looked like it was regenerating, only to fall apart again.
Suddenly, a small object rolled from her neck.
Seeing Lucia bow her head, I lowered my blade. It was a cutscene announcing the entry into the 2nd Phase, so I wouldn’t be attacked in the meantime.
Lucia’s once-black eyes stared intently at the object that had just rolled away. It was a necklace. Among her ragged clothing, it hung there oddly, still around her neck.
And it bore the symbol representing the Holy Kingdom’s god.
“Oooooo…”
Lucia let out a beast-like roar, slowly kneeling down and struggled to pick the necklace off the floor with her left hand that hadn’t mutated yet. Her fingers trembled as they grasped it.
It was stained and dirty, but the engraved symbol stood out clearly. As Lucia gently caressed the symbol, black liquid dripped from her eyes like tears.
Holding the necklace tightly to her chest, Lucia began to rise unsteadily. The mouth that had only howled like a beast now quivered, forming human words.
“O sun… compassionate light that watches over all things…”
Lucia, staring at her right arm that had grown several times larger than her original, clutched her shoulder tightly with the opposite hand while reciting the prayer inscription.
Thud!
Her left hand grabbed hold of her right shoulder and began to rip it away entirely.
Flesh tore apart, joints twisted, black liquid flowed freely, yet her left hand didn’t stop. The horrific sound of flesh separating from bone echoed throughout the boss room.
Finally, Lucia completely tore off her mutated right arm. A massive heap of rotting flesh disintegrated and absorbed into the ground.
“Accept the prayers of this poor lamb…”
Her left hand, drenched in the black liquid, grasped another Sacred Catalyst tied at her waist.
In an instant, a brilliant golden light erupted. It was far more dazzling and vibrant than the blessing enchantment previously smeared on my blood-stained sword.
Despite her body still tainted by the abyss, her skin began to blister and redden as if it was being burned, but she appeared entirely indifferent to her suffering.
Lucia placed the Sacred Catalyst against her right shoulder, where the black liquid began to pool again. From the point of contact with the Catalyst, white flames erupted.
Her ragged clothing remained the same, and although her right shoulder was being burned by the white flames, the atmosphere felt entirely different. Her body was no longer covered in black liquid.
Some vitality returned to her previously blackened eyes.
“… Once more, grant me the strength to rise.”
No longer the fallen priestess, but reverting back to the priestess of the sun, Lucia rose, unleashing radiant golden light from the Sacred Catalyst.
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