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Chapter 108: Watch It and Block It (2)
Chapter 108: Watch It and Block It (2)
Chapter 108: Watch It and Block It (2)
When Kim Ho and Song Cheon-hye entered the dungeon,
Dang Gyu-young who had been sitting next to the statue of a goddess greeted them.
Practice? Or real?
Well try the real one.
Good.
Dang Gyu-young was quite pleased with their decision.
Her role in this weeks defense strategy battle was as commander, and all she did was sit in a corner and barely lift a finger.
Compared to the sticker duel battle, nothing could be more relaxing but that was only enjoyable for a day or two.
After spending the whole week like this, she was beginning to feel the onset of boredom.
Send a signal when youre ready. Well start right away.
Yes, Senior-nim.
As soon as Dang Gyu-young lightly kicked off the ground, she disappeared in an instant.
Watching the spot where Dang Gyu-young had vanished, Song Cheon-hye glanced up at the goddess statue and then said to Kim Ho,
Lets take our positions.
Lets do that.
The two moved to their usual positions as they had always done.
Standing in front of the main gate, Song Cheon-hye pulled out a pair of gloves and put them on both hands while gazing at the sunset that dyed the outside scenery red.
She clenched and unclenched her fists, causing the tiny topazes embedded in the gloves to crackle with a faint current.
[3]
[2]
[1]
[Start!]
[Statue of the Goddess: 100%]
[Remaining Time: 9:58]
Kerruk.
Keruk!
Goblins aligned in rows advanced in unison.
Song Cheon-hye watched them calmly as she infused mana into the ground.
A large magic circle was swiftly taking shape.
[Lightning Field]
Fizzzzzz!
As soon as the goblins stepped onto the magical floor, sparks wildly erupted from their bodies.
However, the goblins paid it no heed and continued to push forward. They were faithfully executing Dang Gyu-youngs commands.
Meanwhile, Song Cheon-hye did nothing more than set up the field. She simply crossed her arms and watched indifferently as the goblins passed by her.
Only when rocks or wooden spears flew toward her did she erect a magical barrier to block them.
Kerruk,
Keeek!
Just as the goblins were about to exit the range of the field,
Song Cheon-hye unleashed a spell she had prepared in advance.
[Lightning Nova]
Fzzzzzzzzzzzzt!
Waves of current radiated out from Song Cheon-hye at the center.
Goblins swept away by the waves instantly turned into charred ashes and scattered away.
The next moment, the area within a few meters of her became an empty space.
Keeek!
Kerruk.
As the goblins continued to advance and continued filling the space,
Fzzzzzzzzt!
Once again, a Lightning Nova radiated out from Song Cheon-hye and swept them away.
One thing she had learned through repeating these defense battles,
Defense must be efficient.
There was no need to complicate things by linking this magic with that.
Just choose the most efficient pair and unleash them repeatedly.
Having nearly a hundred spells at her disposal, it took some trial and error, but she eventually narrowed it down to combining [Field] and [Nova].
She waited until as many monsters as possible were within the range of the Lightning Nova, then wiped them out all at once.
The two spells had nearly identical ranges so they worked well together.
While Song Cheon-hye was perfectly defending the main gate, a familiar sound reached her from over her shoulder.
Rumbleee,
It was undoubtedly the sound of the side wall collapsing so Song Cheon-hye felt no need to look back.
After all, Kim Ho would handle it well on his own.
As she continued to cast Lightning Nova while focusing only on what was in front of her, about half of the remaining time had passed.
[Statue of the Goddess: 100%]
[Remaining Time: 4:51]
Grrrr
Now that the Beheader Goblin had appeared, the real challenge began.
A clear mana shimmered on the cleaver it clenched.
The Beheader Goblin began to pick up its speed and the hordes of goblins rushed forward behind it.
Meanwhile, Song Cheon-hye stood at the main gate and stared at the approaching goblins.
In one hand, intense currents crackled and gathered to form a thick bolt of lightning.
And in her other hand, she was assembling the next spell.
Soon, the cleaver and the lightning clashed together.
Zzzzzt!
Grrrr.
The Beheader Goblin took a few steps back.
It was a natural outcome given Song Cheon-hyes superior skills.
Soon, the goblin charged in even more fiercely with increased hostility.
Song Cheon-hye maintained her position calmly while responding to each attack with poise.
Before the goblins could breach the main gate, she unleashed the Lightning Nova she had prepared in advance.
Fizzzzzzzzzzzz!
I need to buy more time.
She realized this for the second time.
The resilience of the Beheader Goblin was not ordinary; defeating it quickly was not an option.
It was better to focus on defense and prolong the battle rather than try to take it down swiftly.
Clang!
Song Cheon-hye and the Beheader clashed and separated repeatedly.
And from time to time she swept away the goblins trying to pass by using the Lightning Nova.
[Statue of the Goddess: 100%]
[Remaining Time: 2:41]
Everything was still perfect.
Kim Ho must be effectively blocking the side entrance.
Just a little longer!
She resolved to hold out and extend the fight.
The longer she could maintain the defense, the less time the goblins would have to attack the statue when it was breached.
Grrr?
At that moment, the Beheader Goblin paused and its eyes shifted slightly as if it had received new orders from Dang Gyu-young.
It then charged more aggressively than before.
The cleaver and the lightning clashed again,
Clang!
Guaaah!
The Beheader Golin was pushed back just like before but its next move was different.
Instead of retreating, it threw its entire disheveled form forward.
This is!
Fizzzzz!
Despite Song Cheon-hye pouring on her lightning magic, the large goblin remained unmoved.
Its determination to cling on and not let go was evident.
Kerrruk.
Keeek!
Taking advantage of that opening, some goblins attempted to pass through the main gate.
Song Cheon-hye cast Lightning Nova again,
Fzzzzzzzt,
but the wave of current that should have spread out in a circle was partly obstructed by the Beheader Goblins body and only dispersed halfway.
Its potency was significantly reduced.
Dang Gyu-youngs order seemed to be to physically interfere and block the magic.
Choosing to expose more weaknesses and sustain more damage but effectively counter the Lightning Nova.
And this strategy proved to be quite effective.
Kerrruk.
Keruk!
Goblins began to break through the defense line and enter the temple one or two at a time.
From here on, she had no choice but to rely on Kim Ho to stop the other goblins.
She needed to focus on defeating the Beheader Goblin after all.
Boom!!
There was the sound of something bursting from over her shoulder.
It was louder than usual but it was a sound she had often heard.
It seemed that Kim Ho had compressed the wind and caused it to explode.
She was too busy exchanging blows with the Beheader Goblin to turn around, but she could roughly guess what he had done.
He had detonated the wind to disrupt the goblins beyond the side wall, and while they were regaining their footing, he moved near the statue of the goddess.
He was supposed to protect the statue from the goblins that Song Cheon-hye had missed.
That was the plan, anyway.
Bang! Bang!
Keeek!
Kak!
The sound of the wind bursting was very close, right behind her back, and the goblins that had just passed her flew through the air and landed in front of her.
Just as Song Cheon-hye looked back in bewilderment,
.?
Surprise~
Kim Ho who had approached her quickly gave his greetings.
What are you doing here? What about the breach, and the statue
Song Cheon-hye asked incredulously.
Originally, Kim Hos role was to block the side hole and then move near the statue to continue the defense once the main gate was breached.
If he had ruined that plan with a so-called surprise she would have been very angry.
Instead of responding to Song Cheon-hyes half-question and half-reproach, Kim Ho just grinned and spread his hands.
What was he trying to do now?
And then another question arose.
Why are his hands empty?
Where had he left his weapon?
It was then that she noticed. Towards the side wall,
Whoooosh!
Kim Hos spear was stuck in the ground.
And a fierce wind was blowing around it.
Because of this, the goblins tried to crawl out of the breach on the side wall, but they were repeatedly pushed back by the relentless wind.
It seemed as if the spear was casting Kim Hos wind magic on his behalf.
What about the close combat rule?
If they were this far apart, the rules of [Close Combat] should have significantly reduced his wind magics power, but the wind magic appeared to be exerting its full force.
The reason for this was not difficult to guess.
It was because the spear itself was the caster of the magic.
But is that even possible?
She understood it logically but it still felt somewhat perplexing.
It was definitely a surprise.
Bang!
Grrr
Just then, the compressed air exploded right in front of her and the Beheader Goblin who was about to swing its cleaver was pushed back.
Song Cheon-hye snapped back to reality and she heard Kim Ho say.
Stop getting distracted.
Ah, yes!
Try something big, something big.
Something big?
Yes. Ill cover for you.
Song Cheon-hye quickly grasped Kim Hos intention.
From their previous attempts, it was clear he meant for her to cast a powerful spell that they hadnt had the chance to use before, one that would significantly deplete the Beheader Goblins health.
She immediately began to gather mana and focused her mind intently.
All kinds of geometric characters were quickly assembled to take the shape of a spell.
Due to the large and complex nature of the spell, it required a significant amount of mana, but soon a blue crown floating above Song Cheon-hyes head began to infuse additional mana into the spell.
Boom! Bang!
Meanwhile, Kim Ho had been perfectly buying time by pushing everything approaching them away with his wind magic.
The Beheader Goblin who had been trying to force its way through as before was helplessly pushed back by the wind force.
And just as Song Cheon-hyes magic was nearly complete,
Whirrrrrr
Kerrukk?
Keek?
Grrr?
The wind that had been blowing straight started to swirl and pull the Beheader Goblin and the goblins together into one spot.
And Song Cheon-hyes large-scale magic spell descended at that center.
[Summon Thunderstorm]
Rumble! Crash!
Thick thunderbolts struck down and turned the entire area upside down.
Originally, it was a wide-area spell that inflicted damage over a wide area, but now Song Cheon-hye had slightly modified the spell to focus the lightning at the center of the whirlwind.
It struck precisely above the Beheader Goblins head.
Soon the area in front of the gate was covered in thick dust, obscuring all visibility.
When the lightning finally stopped, Kim Ho created a gust of wind to clear away the dust.
Gur, ugh
The goblins trapped inside the whirlwind had already been neatly dispatched, and the Beheader Goblin was staggering around in an almost groggy state.
Kim Ho glanced at this scene and turned his back without hesitation.
Finish it. Ill go block the others again.
When Song Cheon-hye glanced to see what the situation was like on the side wall, the wind died down little by little and the goblins were coming out of the breach one by one.
It seemed there was a time limit even to the magic channeled through his spear.
After all, it wouldnt make sense for it to last indefinitely.
Groaaar!
Even in this hopeless situation, the Beheader Goblin did not lose its fighting spirit and swung its cleaver at her.
However, the impact felt much less when the lightning struck the cleaver, which meant that the large-scale magic had significantly drained its health.
Before they even exchanged a few blows,
Kraaaah!
The Beheader Goblin roared loudly and pulled its arm back. It was the one holding the cleaver.
Seeing this, Song Cheon-hyes eyes sparkled with realization.
She had read its pre-movement for throwing the cleaver.
With a swift motion, she dashed toward the Beheader Goblin and unleashed a powerful bolt of lightning toward the swinging cleaver.
Bloock!!
iiit!!
Just as the cleaver left the Beheader Goblins hand, it collided with the lightning and its trajectory sharply veered off course.
The cleaver spun wildly before flying far from the statue and landing with a thud in an unexpected spot on the ground.
Grooo
Then as if all its health had been depleted, the Beheader Goblin simply turned to ash and scattered away.
Song Cheon-hye clenched her fist tightly.
Success!
How much health is left?
She hurriedly checked the scoreboard to find:
[Statue of the Goddess: 94%]
[Remaining Time: 1:03]
There is so much left.?
A small gasp escaped Song Cheon-hyes lips.
At this rate, it was almost as if they had allowed no attacks at all.
However, she couldnt let her guard down until the very end.
There were still remnants around, and there was always the chance that something as trivial as a blind stone might strike the statue.
Song Cheon-hye rushed towards the statue to help Kim Ho.
***
[Statue of the Goddess: 93/100% = 465 points]
+ [Goblins Killed: 120 = 60 points]
+ [Strong Enemy Killed = 100 points]
+ [Clear Bonus = 300 points]
[Total Score: 925 points]
* Ground Floor Dungeon Strategy Multiplier 0.8 = 740pts
Watching the scores tally up, Song Cheon-hye was quite satisfied.
It was almost certainly one of the highest scores in the grade.
She felt confident that this would sufficiently humble Hong Yeon-hwa as well.
Because of this, her tone was considerably gentler.
I thought it was impossible, but you really did exceed 90%. I must have been mistaken.
I was also worried about how you would use your new weapon, but you used it in a way I couldnt have imagined, which surprised me a bit.
Your decision to coordinate with me and deliver a burst attack on the Beheader Goblin was smart. The pattern emerged quickly.
However, Kim Ho just smiled broadly and watched Song Cheon-hye.
Normally, he would have said something by now, but strangely enough, he kept his mouth shut.
?
When Song Cheon-hye tilted her head in confusion, Kim Ho slowly raised one hand and lifted his index finger.
What? Was he indicating to look up?
She raised her gaze but there was nothing above.
When she looked back at Kim Ho, the smile on his lips had deepened.
Then he slowly spread two more fingers and silently mouthed the words with his lips.
Three. Wish. Tickets.
Ah.