Chapter 1002: Futility in Motion
Chapter 1002: Futility in Motion
"Damn."
Having seen Valyr take care of the eighth wave on his own, both Tristan and Myst felt that there was no point in them accompanying the young man once he fought against the Greater Tidemother.
After all, the young man had shown all of them that his strength went beyond even their wildest expectations, causing some of them to wonder whether he'd now directly fight the Greater Tidemother now that the eighth wave was cleared.
Yet, contrary to those thoughts, Valyr remained in place after he retrieved his spear, his gaze fixated towards the Greater Tidemother from afar.
Though both of them remained at the periphery of the battlefield, both Tristan and Myst saw through their high perception that the young man seemed to be engrossed in thought, prompting the two to look at each other for a bit as a thought came to mind.
'Is the Tidemother talking to him?'
With that question in mind, it did not take long for their curiosities to be satisfied as Valyr began to speak up all of a sudden.
Understanding that the recipient of those words was none other than the Greater Tidemother, Tristan and Myst felt a hint of expectation as they thought that Valyr was going to make his move now that the conversation was over.
However, subverting their expectations once more, Valyr instead focused his attention on the item he'd brought out amidst their conversation, seemingly doing something that brought the atmosphere in the battlefield to a lull.
"What... is Valyr doing?" Watching as Valyr stuffed dark powder and what looked to be a ball made out of pure metal into the item, Myst soon had a look of confusion on her face.
Shifting her gaze towards the man beside him, she thought that the man would be confused as well.
Yet, there was no hint of confusion on Tristan's face whatsoever.
Only expectation and excitement could be seen on it.
"Is that... what I think it is?" Though the town wasn't directly participating in the war, Astarto was still contributing to the war efforts through its equipment as a forging town.
Being the leader of the town's Blacksmith Guild branch, Tristan was updated by the guild through letters regarding the general situation at the frontlines.
On one of those letters, the man read that a new ranged weapon was gradually being introduced through the soldiers, needing one to only memorize a specific set of instructions before having the ability to unleash a massive amount of damage on one's foes.
Recalling what he read through that letter, Tristan did not take long to put two and two in his mind, eventually realizing that the item Valyr brought out felt somewhat similar to the weapon he'd read.
Thankful to the heavens for the opportunity that was given to him, the man kept his eyes peeled as he wanted to see the capabilities of the new ranged weapon that shook the battlefield for himself.
Though, what he didn't know was that the ranged weapons being used on the battlefield were merely poor implementations of the real thing.
If anything, he was going to see the capabilities of the actual weapon that would shift the course of the ongoing war in the future.
...
"[Superior Analysis]."
After Valyr responded to the Greater Tidemother's words, he went ahead and armed the arquebus he'd brought out for firing, keeping an eye on what the Tidemother would do next as he activated his identification skill.
Ding!
[Greater Tidemother (Mythic Elite)] (Level 100 | Boss)
Class: Greater Tidemother (Uncommon)
HP: 735,100/735,100
MP: 329,750/329,750
Attack: 7,462-7,462
Defense: 13,535 - 13,535
Stats: 2417 VIT, 1166 STR, 1186 AGI, 1270 DEX, 1936 INT, 2153 WIS, 2482 PER, 452 LUK Concepts: [Intent of Attrition]
Skills: [Advanced Tidemother Combat Arts], [Intermediate Physical Resistance], [Intermediate Innate Regeneration], [Advanced Tidespawn Summoning], and 52 other skills. Remarks: Tidemothers are considered the leaders of monster tides, their strengths dependent on their rank. Greater Tidemothers are considered the bane of multiple towns' existences, having the strength of a catastrophe once fought.
You may have what it takes to fight against it, but always remain vigilant.
"Hiss..." Sucking in a cold breath of air, Valyr quickly took a deep breath to compose himself after seeing the Tidemother's stats somewhat resemble that of a Legend-level Void Rabbit. However, unlike the Legend-level Void Rabbit, the Tidemother's stats leaned more towards defense rather than combat power. After all, its main objective was to bring the monsters of the tide into existence.
Of course, that did not mean that the Tidemother was weak in combat.
Boasting an Attack stat that would deal a considerable amount of damage to even Valyr if he were hit by it, the young man took the defenders into consideration before coming to the conclusion that they'd probably be able to barely eke out victory against it.
However, if the Tidemother had the support of a Force behind its strength...
At the thought, Valyr's expression turned solemn. Then, while continuing to keep an eye on the Tidemother, the young man aimed the arquebus at it before beginning to infuse it with
mana.
"[Extended Charge]."
Swoosh!
As the power within the arquebus gradually intensified as time passed, Valyr went ahead and replenished his status buffs, activating all of them with Prime Azure Energy to improve their
efficacy by 20%.
At the same time, he glanced far behind him, focusing his attention towards both Tristan and
Myst.
Screeeeeeee!!!
In response to Valyr charging up the arquebus, the Greater Tidemother let out a horrendous screech, causing many to cover their ears in response.
Then, while most of the people had their ears covered, it began to close the gap between it and Valyr, getting the ominous feeling that its death was slowly becoming imminent.
Pushing its agility to the limit, the Tidemother briefly went over the conversation it had with Valyr earlier, confident that the one that tormented their kin's soul would shudder in response to its words.
Yet, against its expectations, Valyr instead mocked the Tidemother's words, deciding to take a stand as he seemingly rejected the Tidemother the opportunity to mete out its punishment. Furious at the thought, the Tidemother continued to close the gap between it and Valyr, even going so far as to use the few movement buffs it had to get closer faster.
Eventually, it entered the radius of Valyr's curse, causing its strength to go up by a notch as its multiple eyes began to glow an ominous crimson red.
Thankful to the Alltide for granting it the power to become stronger, the Greater Tidemother soon stopped in its steps, utilizing its various legs to try and inflict an attack on Valyr before his preparations could come to fruition.
Unfortunately, just as one of its legs would land on the young man, a woman in black and green armor appeared to deflect the leg away, allowing Valyr to avoid the attack as he continued to keep most of his attention on the arquebus.
Incensed, the Tidemother struck once more at Valyr, only to be deflected once more.
However, unlike before, it was now a well-built man wearing a set of red and blue gloves,
grinning as he defended against the Tidemother's actions.
Feeling its anger reach the peak, the Greater Tidemother decided to aim for Valyr at an angle that both the man and the woman wouldn't be able to react to in time, utilizing one of its hind
legs to land an insidious strike on him.
Though, just as it seemed the young man mocking its words would finally receive the
punishment he deserved...
The arquebus had finally reached its maximum charge.
"[Grand Burst]."
...
...
...
Bang!
'-926,665!!!!