魔法の弱み

 

As to be expected, I am now in an undead area in the 36^th floor. I am currently level grinding my Holy Wrapping Skills in preparation for the stronger LICH on the boss room. I am quite thankful that this dungeon is systematic ---at least so far the pattern had help me ready for the boss fight.

 

The first 4 floors will have assorted monsters, but the attributes are not too random you will get to know that the later floors will have almost the same attributes. The Mid boss at the mid-floor will tell you what monsters you will be expecting in the next floors and what boss most likely will appear.

 

When I fought the LICH, on the mid-boss room, I am 89% sure that a stronger LICH type monster will be my next opponent. For that reason I am here making sure that I am able to fend off such strong opponent. The only skills that could be of use here in these floors are my holy combat skills and so I am making sure to grind them as much as possible to increase my proficiency with them.

 

*****

 

The UNDEAD that roam here in the 36^th floor are assorted SKELETONS, ZOMBIES, DEADMAN and NECRO all bipedal monsters and attack equipped with weapons and armors.

 

Starting from this floor the tier somehow had changed. Back in the few floors, after mid-boss battle should be all low tiered monsters, but in here I could gauge at least three tiers:

• SKELETON human sized, wearing rags and attack barehanded.
• SKELETON SWORDSMAN & SKELETON ARCHERS still human sized, wearing light armors and attack with weapons
• SKELETON KNIGHT & SKELETON MAGES wearing full body armors and vestments that seem to enhance their combat skills and magical powers

The same could be said for the other UNDEADs

• ZOMBIE
• ZOMBIE SWORDSMAN & ZOMBIE ARCHERS
• ZOMBIE KNIGHT & ZOMBIE MAGES
• DEADMAN
• DEADMAN SWORDSMAN & DEADMAN ARCHERS
• DEADMAN KNIGHT & DEADMAN MAGES
• NECRO
• NECRO SWORDSMAN & NECRO ARCHERS
• NECRO KNIGHT & NECRO MAGES

 

While they are all the same undead, their aptitudes in the battlefield differ. For example all of them have undead archers, but so far the SKELETON ARCHERS seem more proficient compared to the others. For the magic casters the NECRO seem more skilled in casting magic compared to their other UNDEAD mages. While the SKELETON KNIGHT was skilled with the sword the UNDEAD KNIGHT was very proficient with the halberd.

 

With this I am able to do some minor strategy when dealing with them.

 

While we are still on the subject, since the UNDEAD type monsters don weapons and armors, I have decided to take a few of them as spoils. There were especially a few equipment that were good for defense like the Knight’s Chainmail which is according to the monocle of appraisal ranked D item which I equipped to replace my already tattered Wooden Plate Armor. Donning it, I could somehow feel that my defense had somehow been reinforced.

 

There were also some UNDEAD who had donned metal gauntlets and metal greaves but I did not equip them because they seem heavy which should hamper my mobility. I did reinforce my Wooden Tekkous and Wooden Leg Guards with metal sheets for added defense. As I check on the spoils I also did not fail to touch these armors and weapons so that they will be transported to Grim-chan. While they can be used to bring me some small fortune, I could also use the metals as materials to forge some new equipment should get back into blacksmithing.

 

There were also magical items worn by the mage type UNDEADS like rings, staffs and others, but since they were going to be fatal for my LIFE FORCE I only took them to augment my finances once I get back to civilization.

 

*****

 

When I arrived at the 37^th floor however a new type of monsters roamed together with the UNDEADs, they are known as SPECTREs and as of the moment there are two types that are hunting me.

 

According to Grim-chan’s telepathic messages these monsters are called CREEPERS and GHOSTS.

 

CREEPERS are shadow like creature that transform into images of who they are fighting, like I said shadow like. Their sizes range from 170-200 cm and can mostly imitate anything only to that size. However they are just mirroring and could not completely copy skills. They can cast non-fatal illusion magic though.

 

GHOST as they are named seem to be creatures born from the dead souls. But they are not that much of a threat as they can’t harm you physically, they can however suck MANA from you though, and once your MANA reserve is spent, it takes LIFE FORCE as compensation.

 

The most troublesome factor when dealing with SPECTRE type monsters is that they do not have physical bodies, killing them is a pain since magic is the only way they can be banished, magic that I am unable to wield.

 

*****

 

So I had to further develop my SENKIDOURYUU Skill that can make up for the lack of magical aptitude, experimenting and modifying my HAMA no YA I was able to develop another skill:

‘SENKIDOURYUU HIKARI NO MAE: BANISHING LIGHT’

 

This skill is a semi long range skill, depending on my swing I could send a horizontal, vertical or diagonal shockwave-like light towards my enemies. However, just like any of my other Pseudo-Magic Related Sword Skills, this also chips some of my LIFE FORCE, but thankfully not fatal.

 

This skill creates a 3 meter wide wave and goes for a 5 Meters range. I am making the most of it by luring as many of the SPECTRE (GHOST and CREEPS) and hit them with the BANISHING LIGHT Skill. This way I don’t have to worry about getting killed by my own Skill while I repeated the process.

 

The SPECTREs in the 37^th floor had a long respawn time at 1 hour and 30 minutes, which is why I have been training with them slowly. Fortunately, I had no trouble fighting them, at first they were opponents that cannot be defeated by normal attacks. Once I created the BANISHING LIGHT and the lure-out strategy, they were quite easy to deal with, much easier than the UNDEAD monsters which had solid bodies.

 

When I use the BANISHING LIGHT against the ZOMBIES, they do die but the five meter distance was diminished as it drags the body of the ZOMBIES with it and only defeats the ones in front of the row. This is especially true to the SKELETON type undead, when hit their bodies get smashed, but sometimes the shockwave of light gets stuck with their armors so it was the same problem.

 

So sum it up, the HAMA Skills are for the UNDEAD and the BANISHING LIGHT for the SPECTRE. I intend to increase my repertoire soon but for now this setup should be easy to remember and apply.

 

*****

 

Anyway the SPECTRE in this level have low offensive skills, unlike the SKELETON and ZOMBIES who use weapons or the likes of DEADMAN or NECRO who hurl magic at you, so as long as the SPECTREs here do not touch you and get your LIFE FORCE drained, you are as good to go.

 

And so decided to fend these UNDEAD and SPECTREs using the strategies that I currently have and headed for the next floor. But it was not going to be this laid back starting here.

 

Do you know what your weakness is?

 

*****

 

They say the biggest part in whatever battle strategy, is to know your weaknesses as much –no more so in knowing your strengths. This has already been established and currently I am on the verge of getting killed because of it.

 

At the 38^th floor, I have encountered a strong opponent which somehow had equal power to the LICH which I had fought off as a mid-boss, now I am squaring off with these troublesome opponents –WRAITHS.

 

WRAITHS are SPECTRE type monsters with a lot of magical affinities. They mostly have human appearances and heights, but their human faces have long been gone and replaced with that of something so agonizing to watch. Their magical affinity is nothing to be trifle with as they can cast all elemental magic, even light magic which is practically their weakness.

 

There are currently three WRAITHs hunting me, all with powerful aptitude for magic and is hurling an assortment of elemental magic at me. Just when I thought this place was abundant in darkness attribute, all three WRAITHs had casted different magic every time.

 

Since there were three of them I could not keep up with their speed in wrapping my weapons with the right element to somehow negate their spells. If there was only one WRAITH I could have just coated my weapons with one element and evade the other elements, wait for that element I have coated my weapons with to be hurled at me, block it and do an offensive. But far from it, I was being hurled with multiple elemental magic that almost does not leave any place for me to evade.

 

It was time for a tactical retreat.

 

The greater part of valor is to know when to retreat and this time the deepest part of me is screaming this is the right time to run. And so I did, and went back to the 37^th floor.

 

Thankfully, monsters in each floor do not run after you on another floor. I was thankful for this setup, should those things jump on me here, I think it will be over and have to go back from the first floor.

 

While it would be easier just to go back to the beginning and start over. But, I felt that if I completely run from here I might not have the resolve to do so in other battles in the near future.

 

Back in the other side, I always end up going back to zero without trying other options first and regretted it soon afterwards, that is why here I wanted to change and try to find a solution to this problem first. After exhausting all options and still get no desirable results only then will I go back and start over from the beginning.

 

*****

 

Although I was gung-ho for a good training, I decided to get some rest and recuperate from the constant battles I have been putting myself into.

 

First I have to make sure that no UNDEAD Monster would be unable to attack me while I am having that rest. Thankfully for some reason before I was even summoned here I had some kind of Danger Perception that would wake me up whenever anything out of the ordinary occurs.

 

Although I will be relying on it most of the time, I definitely do not want to wake up every now and then making rest almost unrelaxing, so I needed a place that would safe guard me, a place that would make me feel safe for my Innate Danger Perception to not kick in as long as it is just the bare minimum danger -non-fatal stuff.

 

While searching for a good place I discovered that there are indeed rest areas in this floor, it was in a form of a big tree strapped with platted rice straw. I first noticed this when monsters tend to stray away from an area, when I arrived to the place nothing could be seen in the area, no patrol SKELETON, no wandering ZOMBIE, not even a NECRO who loves to surprise you by jumping form trees.

 

I decided to make this place my safe haven for a while. I would like to set up a simple tent but decided to make a sturdy one since I saw some SKELETON archers just a few meters from me. Even if they could not get near, as long as their arrows can reach, I will be dead.

 

So instead of my usual tent, I decided to make use of my carpentry skill to make a small hut for a superb protection and added comfort. Thanks to my developed carpentry skill and an abundance of trees the hut was built within the day. It was a simple hut but should offer both protection and comfort.

 

Thankfully, the SACRED TREE (aptly named due to its power to fend off UNDEAD monsters) also seems to place a solid magic barrier in its surrounding vicinity.

 

I had tried it beforehand and lured a NECRO MAGE in the area. Just like the SKELETON ARCHERS who shoot their arrow when they spot me, the NECRO MAGES hurled their dark magic at me however none of their magic was able penetrate a 5 Meters radius around the tree. The natural barrier protecting this tree was also going to be my own protection.

 

So the only threat that would make me feel anxious would be the archers. Thankfully, as long as the archers do not perceive me, they will not shoot. The hut completely erases my visibility so none will be shooting me.

 

And so I can feel at ease while I give my body the rest it deserve.