Bjorn Yandel the Barbarian

Episode 590 Boss Run (3)

Guardian Essence has two characteristics.

The basic ability value is 1.5 times higher than that of a normal entity and allows the use of all active skills possessed by a normal entity.

However, one of the cracks on the 5th floor is a gap of light.

The essence of the hell giant Herza, the guardian there, is slightly outside the general category.

“Now Emily… when you’re all rested, try it out.”

If you follow the original law, it is correct that you should be able to handle all three active skills of the rank 4 monster ‘Cyclops’, but…

Herza’s essence has only one active skill.

Even that active skill is not a skill that a regular ‘Cyclops’ possesses.

Just like this.

“Amelia Rainwales has cast [Wave Connection].”

When I use the skill, a blurry line connects between Amelia and my body. A connecting line that can only be seen with the naked eye by those who are subject to the skill.

The efficacy is simple.

“Amelia Rainwales casted [Power of the Abyss].”

Those connected can share skills with each other.

Like the black light blooming on my hammer right now.

‘I really studied this essence a lot.’

At first glance, you may wonder where this kind of dog-killing skill exists, but as you research, you will find out.

It’s definitely not a fraud skill.

Oh, except for a few cases.

Huh-!

The black light that covers my hammer scatters into the air.

Amelia disabled the skill…

“…soul consumption is extreme.”

“How bad is it?”

“Even under the best conditions, I can’t sustain it for less than a minute.”

In some ways, it can be seen as a penalty similar to [self-replication].

MP consumption is enormous.

“Then do you want to try using it in a different way now?”

When I said to move on to the next step, Amelia closed her eyes and took time to concentrate.

There were three ways to use [Wave Connection].

The first is to demonstrate your skills through your colleagues, as just before.

It is safe to say that he is a supporter type.

And the second one is….

‘It’s the pattern the boss uses.’

A dealer type that connects with the enemy and uses it aggressively.

Even the Hell Giant I defeated a little while ago had a pattern of connecting with me and using a lot of AoE attacks with high destructive power despite its large handicap.

Well, since there was no one around and every time I used Connect, I immediately attacked the snow, so I was able to get through it without much trouble.

‘Anyway, I’ll pass this.’

Amelia does not have a self-destruct skill or an AoE, so this method does not apply at all.

Therefore, the only remaining method is the last one.

「Amelia Rainwales casted [Self-Replication].」

「Amelia Rainwales casted [Wave Connection].」 A

utility type that strengthens ‘summoned entities’.

In fact, this is the standard use of [wave connection].

When used as an attacker, it is a great advantage to be able to pass on the handicap to the enemy and use the skill at the enemy’s location…

but that is only suitable for monsters with extremely large MP barrels.

[Wave connection] shines when used like this.

“Really…soul consumption has become the same. “What kind of harmony is this?”

Well, since I’m a gamer, I obviously don’t know the principles.

A wizard would have come up with unknown hypotheses, such as mental wavelengths matching, frequencies being the same, etc.

I only know the results after countless experiments.

When using [Wave Connection] on a ‘summoned object’, MP consumption does not increase.

Oh, by the way, of course, alter egos are also considered summoned entities.

“With this… more diverse battles will be possible.”

Amelia, who is well-versed in combat, seems to have immediately recognized the value of her newly acquired ability…

“By the way, the ability to embody… I haven’t heard about what is called a passive skill in your world yet…” “

Ah, about Cyclops. “Don’t you know?”

“Because it is not a commonly seen entity… it is strange that you know the characteristics of all entities.”

Amelia, perhaps embarrassed by her lack of knowledge, treated me like a strange person.

“Come on, put it on. Then you will find out. “What is the ability to embody?”

I smiled and took out the items I had managed to find before coming in.

At the same time, a question appeared in Amelia’s eyes.

“This is….”

One eye patch.

It was the so-called palace eye patch.

***

「[One-eyed] is activated.」

「The character’s visual acuity increases by +200.」

「You can see things that are invisible.」

***

After the duo raid with Amelia ends.

After that, they continued to change members and challenge the cracks. That’s because a tanker can perform the role of a tank in any situation, but a dealer cannot.

The core of [Dungeon & Stone] is ‘compatibility’.

If the compatibility is not right, there are enemies that can never be defeated, and on the contrary, if the compatibility is right, it can be much easier to attack.

And….

‘It would be a waste to just let this talent pool rot away.’

The exploration force, made up of the royal family’s elite, contained all the talents I needed.

When a priest was needed, an archbishop-level priest went in with me and followed my instructions, and when I said I needed level 2 fire magic, there was at least one wizard who could do it.

‘I understand why there is no limit to the number of people.’

A labyrinth where the main task is clearing cracks for 1 or 2 players.

However, it does not seem to be a place designed for two people to wake up. It must have been a place where hundreds of people came in and had to be divided into the right places and conquered step by step.

‘Still, it’s a little disappointing. I captured the 5th floor guardian like this, but there were too many essences to be discarded.’

In cases where it was acceptable to bring a wizard in, essence could be brought out in a test tube, but other than that, everything had to be thrown away.

‘If you put the cheapest one on the auction house, it would cost hundreds of millions of stones…’

Of course, the most disappointing thing was Einar.

Although it wasn’t a graduation essence, there was one essence among the 5th floor guardians that was good for a spearman.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t a tough guy enough to ride the bus by myself, so I had to give up on taking him with me.

Well, anyway, thanks to this exploration, I was able to feed Amelia an essence that is difficult to loot, so I am satisfied.

‘If the alter ego is a thief, it is no different from graduation essence, so there is no need to feed replacement essence…’ I

feel it again, but the first basement floor is a ridiculous place.

Would it be different from anywhere else in the labyrinth?

It’s hard to tell how many things I’ve seen for the first time since coming here and how many I’ve benefited from.

“….”

What is really going on here?

After meeting the vampire man, if I stay alone, those thoughts fill my head.

The Silver Sea, Rainy Season, Dimensional Collapse, Village Chief Hamsik….

It’s time to reflect on the things that came to mind and check if there’s anything I missed.

‘Ugh, what are you thinking about?’

As always, I ended my thoughts with a feeling of stuffiness.

And after taking a break to clear my head, I got up.

“No matter how much you say, it’s not possible on the 4th floor. “It’s too dangerous.”

An explorer was seen pleading with Raven in front of the stone statue of Calpion, the 4th floor rift guardian.

‘The name…’

What was it?

I don’t know because everyone calls me by the nickname ‘Big Hammer’.

Anyway, he was a famous level 3 explorer in the city.

“Could you please think again? “It is the essence that I need.”

At first glance, they do not appear to be a group whose goal is experience points or who are obsessed with time attack.

However, as I said, you really need that essence.

“No, no matter how much you say that….”

“I’m being presumptuous, but the Gold Wizard doesn’t really know about my skills, does he?”

“Does this mean my judgment was wrong?”

“Haha… I didn’t mean that… I just meant to give you a test. “Do I deserve it or not?”

Even though Raven spoke with a straight face, the man still did not give up his will, and Raven also sighed as if she was in pain.

Therefore, I, who had been watching, stepped forward.

Actually, if you think about it, I was the one who entrusted that annoying task to you.

“If you want to take the test, I will help you.”

“Baron Yandel…?”

When I joined the conversation, the man looked embarrassed for a moment, then nodded as if it was okay.

“Then I will ask you a favor.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he raised the ‘big hammer’ with a belligerent look in his eyes.

‘I didn’t even say how I would take the test.’

It’s not particularly new.

How many days have the explorers been so macho?

I also find it much more comfortable this way.

“Um… Mr. Yandel? “There’s no need to waste your energy because of me…?”

What are you saying about this guy again?

“It’s not a waste of energy.”

“…yes?”

“It’s about reducing wasted time.”

Soon, I activated [Giantization] and looked down at the guy.

And….

“It’s small.”

As soon as that one word was uttered briefly, the sparring began.

However, as befits a guy with the nickname ‘Big Hammer’, his body was quite strong, and because of that, the sparring went on for quite a long time.

Did it take about 15 minutes?

“I lost…”

While he couldn’t do any damage to me, he fell down every time I hit him on the chin with a hammer, and eventually accepted defeat.

“It seems I was overly ambitious. “It’s a shame, but I’ll give up on the 4th floor.”

A clean-cut attitude that contrasts with the way he behaved poorly towards Raven.

It may seem strange, but the more macho they are, the more they accept the providence of power without a word.

“Waaaaaa-!”

“It’s a victory for the Baron!”

As the match ended, the spectators gathered around cheered, but there was no particular sense of excitement.

‘At this point, I’m sure there’s no deal.’

This is the sadness of tankers that I often feel recently.

By consuming the essence of Belarius and the Aegis barrier, he became several times stronger than before, but the damage was the same as before.

“Can I talk to you about Mr. Yandel?”

“Hehehe, it’s okay if you say thank you—.”

“Ah, by making me waste 15 minutes on something that could have been done in 5 minutes?”

“Uh…”

For a moment, my head goes blank.

And Raven, looking at me like that, laughed as if it was a joke.

“Okay, follow me. “I already had a story to tell to Mr. Yandel.”

After taking a few steps, Raven activated her voice control magic and my expression changed to serious.

“Is this something that should be kept secret?”

“yes? No, that’s not it… I’m not sure. “It would be better for Mr. Yandel to make the decision.”

“Try it.”

Raven slowly opened her mouth as she bent down and took a listening position to match her small height.

“As you know, since I played a similar role as an examiner, I had many opportunities to hear what happened there. Then I found out…”

Just the main point briefly.

Before I could say anything like that, Raven took it upon herself to briefly summarize the main points.

“The Duke of Cambormire doesn’t say anything anymore.”

“You’re not saying anything?”

Wasn’t this how it was supposed to be?

That question was just about to come out of my mouth.

“No, I’m literally not saying anything. “The killing intent is rising or anything like that.”

“Ah…”

“Now, as soon as they enter, their eyes turn red and they rush at me… No matter how much I think about it, it’s strange. “You did ‘talk’ right after Mr. Yandel came out, right?”

A hand that has nowhere to go due to deep concern naturally moves towards the chin.

“Definitely…”

It’s suspicious.

It felt a little strange that a man who was fine to begin with suddenly developed mania.

Wasn’t he sane for a whopping three hours?

“There is no change in the world without a cause.”

Raven looked up at me while saying a wizard-like line.

“Then why did the duke suddenly change?”

As a barbarian, it was a question I couldn’t answer no matter how many times I thought about it.

But from a gamer’s perspective, it’s different.

Actually, the first hypothesis that came to mind as soon as I heard that story.

[Actually… the mania has been creeping up again since a while ago.]

If the fact that the man spoke to him in a normal state is considered an ‘error’ from Migung’s point of view…

‘Hot fix…’

An error occurs in real time. It may have been patched.

By someone who rules the labyrinth.

***

27 types of crack guardians from the 1st to 5th floors.

And there are 14 unidentified guardians that fall into the same category as the Duke of Cambormere.

A total of 41 types.

The boss run seemed daunting at first, but as a result of steadily continuing the strategy, the end was quickly approaching.

‘Is there one from the front?…’

Now the only statue left is the one from the 5th floor crack.

For reference, the crack in which that guy appears is a ‘unique crack’ that opens with a very low probability, so it doesn’t have a good compatibility with me.

That’s why I put it off until the end.

“Haa….”

Dozens of lights have already come on.

I sighed as I looked at the still motionless stone gate.

‘I really need to wake every last one to see if something is going to happen…’ This

means that in the end, we have no choice but to catch that guy as well.

‘But since up to two people can enter, I think it’s worth a try…’

I wondered if it would be better for me to be left out of this strategy, but there was no suitable alternative.

Due to the nature of boss battles, one tank is essential, but should I say that there is no one who can take my empty spot?

No, if you look for it, it won’t be there….

‘It’s so unreliable.’

In that case, it would be better for me to go in.

Therefore, what we need to worry about from now on is who we should take here.

‘Erwen this time?’

It was a good choice.

That’s because he’s no different from a cheat.

In fact, Erwen hunted Guardians with me the most after Raven.

I went into the easy cracks with a wizard because I could mine essence, and into the difficult cracks, except in a few situations, I went in with Erwen…. ‘…

No.’

I shook my head.

The target of this attack is not one that can be captured by force alone.

So what about Amelia?

‘She’s not bad, but…’

Einar looks better than Amelia.

Although his fighting spirit has declined and his presence has diminished, his unique luck cannot be denied.

But….

Tuk.

If you’re hoping for a fluke, there are better options.

And it’s right here in front of me.

“Get ready. You’ll fall into the crack.”

As soon as my notification was delivered, the guy asked back with a dumbfounded look on his face.

“yes? Me? Why why…?”

It was Sven Farab, a paladin of the Leatlas Church.