Chapter: 275
I stepped forward, ignoring my older brother’s pleas, as he infused energy into the tip of his wooden staff.
“I’m going to subdue you if you don’t stop!”
It was a clear threat filled with hostility, but even seeing the aura flickering in front of me, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
Because what I saw was… wait, not the aura, but the imitation of it.
He just coated his own magic power on the outside; the inside was filled with the Evil God’s power.
It’s obvious when you think about it. This dungeon was created by the Evil God, so the boss wouldn’t be unaffected, right?
Especially this pathetic young lord, who was so weak he could get beaten by me when I first entered the Academy, must be heavily influenced by the Evil God.
“What?♡ Are you trying to give me a massage with that?♡ Wow~ how threatening~♡ I really hate massages because they hurt~♡”
From behind my giggles, I heard the sound of the staff slicing through the air.
Is he really falling for my provocation so easily?
With such a hot temper, he’ll never become a gentleman.
And his approach is way too predictable.
At this point, it’s like asking him to stop attacking.
As I smiled confidently and deflected his attack with my shield, a sharp pain shot through my arm.
Even after parrying, this much?
Sure, I have the scars from facing Duke Burrow, but just the raw power my elder brother possesses is considerable.
If this fight drags on into a long battle, my defense is going to get smashed.
“I’ll say it again. Step back.”
“Are you trying to look cool in front of your younger sibling?♡ You’re actually scared and want to run away, yet you’re putting on a show~♡ You’re such a coward~♡”
So, the action I need to take is simple.
To turn this fight into a short battle instead of a long one.
Wreck my opponent before I get exhausted and collapse.
Though it contradicts the lesson I learned while fighting skeletons a few days ago, for this occasion, I’m sure it’ll be fine.
I already know how my opponent is going to move.
“If you won’t back down, then I have no choice but to subdue you!”
“Go ahead♡ If you can♡”
I confidently observed the opponent’s movements.
Just to confirm if my earlier suspicion about the scenery of this boss room was right.
Then, the moment I blocked my brother’s staff, I became certain.
Just as I suspected, he was using the Burrow Family’s Spear Technique.
Now, this should be easy.
After all, the Burrow Family’s Spear Technique doesn’t match up well against me.
It seems like anyone could win if they don’t get hit by the Burrow Family’s Spear Technique! It’s like they turned that philosophy into a martial art.
Using the spear’s long reach, they accumulate damage against their opponent and slowly widen the gap to suffocate them.
This spear technique handed down in the Ducal Family is undoubtedly a great martial art.
Even Grandpa would say it has good foundations while watching this spear technique.
However, there’s one major flaw.
Suffocating your opponent can only happen when you can always maintain your calm.
If you can’t keep your cool, you’ll end up suffocating yourself instead of the enemy.
“Weren’t you supposed to give me a massage?♡ Why are you just swinging at thin air with that staff?♡ Is there an invisible person there or what?♡”
Just like my older brother, who can’t control his emotions and is swinging his staff wildly.
“Hey, invisible guy~♡ Is the massage good?♡ Are you sad because you’re weak?♡ But what can you do~♡ Swinging your staff around is shoddy for a weakling~♡”
You see, I’ve watched Jack swing the Burrow Spear Technique countless times during the Academy’s duel classes.
While observing him duel others, I figured out how to respond.
Though the cowardly Jack tends to run away, I guess my strategy was right.
Look at that.
In perfect shape, with full stamina, and better physical specs than me, my older brother hasn’t managed to land a single hit and is just flailing.
But, I can’t just blame it all on him.
He certainly tried to stay composed and did his best to adhere to the principles of the spear technique.
However, all of those efforts were rendered useless before the Mesugaki Skill.
What can you do? The Mesugaki Skill really is a game-breaking, balance-destroying skill.
Even Tariki, who created this dungeon, would probably start trembling and shout “That Mesugaki!” if provoked a few times!
“How does it feel to have a girl make fun of you in front of your brother?♡ Embarrassed?♡ Humiliated?♡ Angry?♡”
As the provocation continued, my older brother’s movements began to grow increasingly desperate.
Instead of keeping the basics of the spear technique, I could feel his desire to properly educate that Mesugaki in front of him.
Thanks to that, I easily identified various weaknesses he possessed.
He swung his weapon without considering his surroundings, leaving big gaps between his attacks.
He wasn’t paying attention to his footsteps, making his stance unstable.
Sometimes, he forgot to gauge the distance and stepped forward recklessly.
“By now, your stupid younger brother must be thinking this: My brother is really just a hopeless shoddy fool♡”
I caught sight of my older brother charging at me, having lost his rationality behind my shield.
I had been waiting for this moment, so I purposely lowered my shield to expose my head.
A blatant trap begging him to strike.
If he had any sense left, he would have been suspicious about my actions, but he was already consumed by his emotions.
Instead of doubting, it was quicker to stab me with his spear.
Just as I awaited a hit to my head, I dodged the spear.
Then, I pushed my shield to knock him down.
Finishing it off with a mace to his face.
I intended to do just that, but I failed.
Before my mace could hit the ground, my older brother’s body disintegrated.
Catching my breath and lifting my head, I noticed the surrounding scenery changing.
The vast Duke’s pasture filled with trees and soon transformed into a forest where the boss room was nowhere to be found.
“Monster!”
I turned my head following the huge shout that seemed like it would shake the leaves off the trees.
There lay a broken carriage.
And beside it were either dead or dying people.
Standing guard in front of that were my brother, now properly equipped for battle.
“Your opponent is me!”
Is this phase two?
He’s really pushing it.
After getting beaten just moments ago, he should be lying low.
The Burrow spear technique he’s using will end up with him getting beaten again, so why the eagerness to fight?
Or did he develop some weird affinity after getting provoked?
[Young lady. Don’t let your guard down. Anything can happen.]
‘I know, Grandpa.’
It’s Tariki’s tactic to exploit weaknesses slyly. I won’t let my guard down.
I didn’t save my magic power for nothing in the fight just now.
At that moment, as I lifted my shield, a sudden Iron Wall alarmed me of the incoming danger.
Even though my brother was a good distance away.
And despite the silence around me.
I didn’t doubt the Iron Wall’s voice.
It’s a skill that has saved my life several times, so I moved my shield just by instinct.
And as my shield reached the position mentioned by the Iron Wall.
It was suddenly pushed back, and pain rushed through my arm.
When I finally escaped that pain and regained my senses, I found my body floating in the void.
Ah.
This is bad.
As my vision, tinged with black, regained color, the first thing I felt was pain.
There was no part of my body that didn’t hurt, making it difficult to pinpoint where it ached.
Next came the familiar scent of blood that was nauseating from countless dungeon explorations.
Then, a sensation of someone gripping me emerged.
At this point, I could guess what was about to arrive, so I forced my heavy eyelids open.
In front of me lay a knight’s corpse, a maid’s corpse, a servant’s corpse, and then another’s.
“Ugh!”
…
My senses weren’t functioning normally, so I had no clue what just happened.
But judging by the ringing in my ears and the massive pain in my face, I could only assume I’d been kicked.
I tried to rise while staggering, but I couldn’t muster any strength in my arms.
To be more precise, it felt like I couldn’t generate any force.
I made an effort to get up, but my body just kept getting pushed down among the corpses.
Did my bones break?
Wow, this is really, really bad…
“Ugh!”
Something bumped into my side, lightly nudging me.
The impact wasn’t strong, intending to move me sideways, but even that was enough to inflict agony on my wrecked body.
Fear began to creep up my spine.
It wasn’t enough yet to push me past the dam of overcoming fear.
But I knew exactly how this would end.
“Raaaagh!”
As I desperately tried to gather my thoughts, someone stepped on my throat.
With the heel of a shoe, precisely designed to make it hurt.
“Did you think you won?”
I heard Nakrad’s voice through my screams.
“Did you believe this dungeon was simple?”
His voice was filled with an expression of victorious certainty.
“Then you should have suspected. Why is everything going so smoothly for me?”
The strategy had been intentionally simple?
What the hell does that mean?
Ah. Ahh.
Those foes laid out before me weren’t meant to attack my mind.
They were watching how I conquered the dungeon.
And they figured it out.
That I was relying on my hearing.
I thought I was conquering the dungeon, but they were rigging me up while I was focused on the dungeon.
Right. Of course.
These guys aren’t just game enemies.
They’re beings that think, reason, and make judgments.
Naturally, they’d be pondering how to take me down too.
Haha. What an idiot. Just an idiot.
“Well then, let’s put this conversation to an end. Now I should think about how to torment you.”
But still, it’s not like there’s no silver lining.
The rising fear hadn’t breached the dam yet.
“I’ll ask you first. What’s preferable: getting skinned alive and regenerating just before death, or being tossed naked into the heart of the monsters?”
“…You pathetic braggart… Don’t you want to play with me?♡”
“Hah. Begging for your life that way…”
“You… seem like an inexperienced virgin♡… I guess you could say you’ll keep your virginity even if you got raped…♡”
It hurts.
It hurts.
It hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts, hurts.
My consciousness was surfacing from the depths.
Save me.
I don’t want to die.
It hurts.
Someone, help me.
Ah. That little brat really kicked hard.
Papa.
Mama.
Someone.
Anyone.
Well, at least I achieved my initial goal.
Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry.
Because the shock from earlier stirred my magic power.
I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.
Please. Please. Please.
Lord Armadi.
I usually don’t ask for your help, but I’m genuinely in a life-threatening pinch this time!
Please, help me out here.
‘O great being that exists among countless gods. Please bestow your mercy upon this inadequate Apostle.’
The moment I prayed to use Armadi’s Mercy, I could feel the divine power piercing through my heart.
At that instant, I became certain.
I still had one chance left.
A chance to smash a mace into Nakrad’s face.
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