Chapter 35

Chapter 35

A sharp metallic screech scraped harshly through the empty cave.

Because they had created plenty of distance, the Red Iron Carapace King's front legs kept striking nothing but air. Unable to contain its rage, the monster repeatedly slammed the ground where it stood and let out a threatening roar.

Watching its violent rampage from afar, Chaeho narrowed his eyes.

Behind him, his party members were catching their breath while placing their complete trust in him.

But Chaeho's gaze remained fixed solely on the monster in front of him.

It was a habit carved into his body from the countless dungeons he had been thrown around in as a porter in the past.

The more dangerous the enemy was, the more important it was not to be intimidated by its size or noise.

Instead, he had to find the smallest change.

There.

Every time the monster violently swung its front legs or whipped its tail, some of the red crystals covering its thick outer shell flickered ever so slightly.

Hidden behind dust and smoke, they looked like simple reflections at first glance.

But the light was definitely coming from inside.

To turn his suspicion into certainty, Chaeho took a short breath.

[Time Slow].

The deafening echoes inside the cave instantly disappeared.

Stone fragments that had been flying through the air slowed until they seemed to float weightlessly in place.

Only Chaeho's eyes moved quickly within the drastically slowed world.

The moment physical force was applied, blood-red mana could be seen pulsing like a heartbeat through the small crystals embedded in the monster's legs and body.

And all those red lines had only one destination.

The largest crystal, grotesquely protruding from the monster's back.

It wasn't armor.

That thing was its power source.

All of the mana gathered into that massive crystal before spreading back through the monster's entire body, maintaining its absurd durability and monstrous strength.

That crystal was both the shell protecting the creature—

and its weakness.

Having confirmed everything, Chaeho deactivated the skill.

The world's flow of time returned with an explosive roar that slammed against his ears.

Without hesitation, Chaeho turned around and approached his party members.

"Seo Taekyung-nim. Do you see the largest red crystal sticking out of its back?"

Seo Taekyung, breathing heavily, nodded from behind his dented shield.

"Yes. It's so huge that it'd be harder not to see it."

"That's the core maintaining its defense. If we cut that off, its shell will turn into nothing more than ordinary stone."

The party members' eyes widened at Chaeho's calm yet confident voice.

Yoon Jia wet her dry lips and asked,

"How are we supposed to break something that hard? Even my magic couldn't damage it."

"We're not going to break it with brute force. We'll attack the joint."

Chaeho lightly adjusted his grip on the sword as he continued explaining.

"The moment mana gathers into the core, the base where the crystal connects to its body becomes the thinnest. That's what I'm aiming for. Seo Taekyung-nim, draw its attention from the front again. But this time, don't block anything. Just make noise with your shield and focus entirely on dodging."

"So you only want me to hold its aggro. Understood."

Seo Taekyung wiped the sweat from his face with his sleeve and clenched his teeth.

"Yoon Jia-ssi, don't use any attack magic. Save your mana and repeatedly use smoke and flashes right in front of its eyes. We need to completely block its vision."

"Got it. Obstructing its vision is something I'm confident in."

There was no unnecessary exaggeration or hesitation in Chaeho's voice as he gave his orders.

Kim Dohyun answered even before Chaeho's gaze reached him.

"I'll follow Captain Seo's movement and stay behind him, ready with healing."

"Good. When I give the signal, pour in every last bit of mana you have."

The preparations were complete.

Even in this desperate situation, there was no hesitation in the party members' eyes.

They firmly believed that as long as they carried out their roles on the battlefield Chaeho had created for them, they could win.

Seo Taekyung charged forward while violently dragging his heavy alloy shield across the ground.

"Hey! You disgusting bug bastard! Over here!"

His deep battle cry echoed throughout the cave.

The moment its irritating prey appeared before it again, the Red Iron Carapace King screamed and raised one of its enormous front legs.

BOOM!

The ground shattered and fragments scattered everywhere.

But Seo Taekyung was already gone.

Once he abandoned the idea of defending and focused entirely on evasion, the movements of a C-rank shield warrior became noticeably lighter.

Just as the monster furiously prepared to swing its tail again—

"Flash! Followed by Smoke!"

A blinding burst of light exploded from the tip of Yoon Jia's staff as she waited in the rear.

The boss flinched and shook its head at the brilliant light.

At that exact moment, thick gray smoke spread densely around its massive head.

Kieeeek!

Its vision completely stolen, the monster panicked and began throwing blind attacks wildly into the air.

Stone pillars collapsed in every direction.

The cave walls were gouged apart, sending more clouds of dirt and dust into the smoke.

The entire battlefield turned into such complete chaos that it became difficult to see even a single step ahead.

Chaeho kicked off the ground and rushed straight into the center of that confusion.

His steps were smooth enough that they barely made a sound.

Avoiding the front where the monster was rampaging madly, he slipped like a shadow into its blind spot on the side, where dust and smoke had mixed together.

Massive chunks of rock fell toward him from above.

Chaeho did not even look at them.

He merely turned his shoulder slightly, letting the falling debris pass by him as he continued closing the distance toward the enormous crystal protruding from the monster's back.

Wait.

It hasn't become thin enough yet.

Chaeho suppressed his breathing and carefully observed the monster's violent rampage.

As its attacks continued to strike nothing but empty air, the Red Iron Carapace King's rage finally reached its peak.

Then it suddenly began sucking in the surrounding air.

Wooooong—!

The air inside the cave vibrated.

It was a sign that the creature was drawing in mana to its absolute limit in preparation for a wide-range attack.

The red light in all the smaller crystals attached to its legs and body went out at once.

At the same time, the massive crystal on its back began shining blood-red, looking as though it might explode at any moment.

Now.

[Time Slow].

The violently swirling air inside the cave suddenly stopped.

The smoke that had been scattering everywhere became thick and motionless like sticky liquid.

Even the monster's screech stretched unnaturally and remained trapped in the air.

Within the slowed world, Chaeho lightly leaped behind the monster.

The enormous red crystal filled his vision.

Because it was forcibly absorbing such an immense amount of mana, the base connecting the crystal to the monster's outer shell had swollen outward.

And beneath it, thin exposed flesh could clearly be seen.

Chaeho's right hand smoothly wrapped around his sword hilt.

The muscles running from his shoulder to his elbow and wrist moved in perfect harmony.

There was no unnecessary force.

It was a clean and honest motion designed for one purpose alone.

To cut.

The cold blade sliced through the air and smoothly slipped into the gap at the now-thinned base.

Chaeho released the skill.

The instant time returned to its normal speed, his sword strike released all of its compressed energy and sliced straight through the base.

CRACK!

A horrifying shattering sound, like a massive glass window breaking apart, tore through the cave.

The largest red crystal protruding from the monster's back was cleanly severed from the base.

It crashed onto the ground with a heavy thud.

KIIIIIIIEEEEK—!

A sharp, agonized scream unlike anything they had heard before burst from the monster.

The light of the giant crystal lying on the ground instantly faded.

At the same time, the disgusting crimson glow surrounding the monster's armor vanished as well.

The shell that had once seemed completely impossible to penetrate lost all vitality and became brittle gray stone.

Having lost its defenses, the monster writhed in terrible pain.

Chaeho shouted,

"Now! Throw everything you have at it!"

The moment his voice rang out, the party members waiting in the rear charged forward all at once.

"You fucking bastard!"

Seo Taekyung, who had been grinding his teeth from doing nothing but dodging, rushed forward with all his strength and violently smashed his dented shield into one of the monster's joints.

With its core destroyed, the already weakened leg bent under the impact.

The monster's enormous body collapsed heavily to one side.

Above it, Yoon Jia's staff erupted with fire.

"Fire Burst!"

A blazing red sphere of flame containing every last bit of her remaining mana slammed mercilessly into the monster's exposed flesh and gray, weakened shell.

BOOOOM!

A violent explosion erupted as crimson flames greedily swallowed the boss's entire body.

This time, the magic wasn't reflected.

The smell of burning flesh filled the cave as the creature's meat cooked and pieces of its shattered shell fell helplessly to the ground.

The monster writhed in agony and somehow tried to raise its head for one final struggle.

But Chaeho was already one step ahead.

Emerging from its blind spot, he drove his sword deep into the soft gap at the back of its neck.

Stab.

The blade, carrying all of his strength, precisely severed the monster's airway.

The enormous body of the Red Iron Carapace King twisted grotesquely before crashing face-first onto the ground.

THUD—!

The ground shook violently once, as though an earthquake had struck.

Then only thick clouds of dust slowly rose into the air.

As the flames died down, there were no more metallic screeches.

No more monstrous cries echoed through the cave.

"Haa... Haa...."

Seo Taekyung leaned against his shield and breathed heavily.

Yoon Jia and Kim Dohyun also seemed to lose all strength in their legs and dropped to the ground.

They had personally witnessed the boss of the high-difficulty C-rank Red Iron Mine breathe its final breath.

Through the thick smoke, Chaeho walked forward while lightly flicking the monster's bodily fluids from his sword.

There was no exaggerated expression of pride on his face.

He simply looked like someone who had finished another ordinary day's work.

Calmly, Chaeho slid his sword back into its sheath.