Season 2: Chapter 186: The Final Floor (5)
Almond wasn't the only one who wanted to kill Swift.
"Swift! You deceived us!" Ben shouted with a trembling voice.
The other children also expressed their anger.
"You son of a bitch! Kill him!"
"This bastard chose option three! There's no room for disagreement!"
Most of Swift's companions were former combatants who were formidable individually and even more so when united.
Swift seemed confident that he could handle them easily.
"You bastards. You wouldn't even be here without me."
Swift drew his two blades and threw them in different directions. Countless lightning strikes erupted.
Zap zap zap zap!!!
[Flash]
[Flash]
[Flash]
[Flash]
— Whoa.
— Did the seal just break?
— Right in front of the sanctuary, it's over now.
— No cooldown Flash, haha.
It happened so fast that it was hard to understand.
Shrrrrrrrrk!
In an instant, the children began to die.
"Aaargh!"
"Cough...!"
Swift's combat skills were completely different from what Almond had seen so far.
'What's going on?'
Hitting someone using the flash skill without any cooldown was a completely different story even if Almond shot well with the bow.
— How can he hit him?
— No cooldown Flash, damn.
— Infinite drift.
In the meantime, more than half of the children had died.
"Ugh...!"
"Gah...!"
The sanctuary became sticky with blood. It would have smelled of iron if it wasn’t just a game.
"You... you crazy bastard...!"
Luna's eyes blazed.
Swift had indiscriminately slaughtered all the children he had been working with so far without any hesitation.
Zap!
[Flash]
She was next.
Boom!
"?"
Luna blocked his sword.
"It seems like it wasn't in vain to have been around for a long time, Luna."
Swift smiled as he pushed his face closer.
"It looks like I need to sacrifice you to this sanctuary. If I just put you in, it might be fully activated."
"Ugh..."
Luna grimaced under the weight.
'Now.'
Almond didn't miss the moment when Swift momentarily acted arrogant.
Splat!
A blue streak pierced through Swift, but it was just an afterimage.
Zap!
[Flash]
Swift had flashed away with the sword he threw somewhere else. Almond’s arrow had missed, but…
'Got you.'
This flash was too predictable. It was a perfect opportunity. A flying blue arrow squarely hit Swift.
Thud!
"!?"
It even struck his weak spot.
[Fireworks: When hitting a vital spot, the arrow will explode. This explosion will stun the opponent for 0.2 seconds.]
Boom!
A large explosion occurred due to the Fireworks effect. Swift was momentarily stunned even though he tried to escape with flash.
— He got hit, whoa.
— Finally!
— Just one more hit now.
Viewers still worried after Swift had been hit once, but...
'This is it.'
Almond found the answer. He found a way to prevent Swift from using flash.
'The 0.2 seconds of stun.'
During this 0.2 seconds of stun, Swift couldn't use flash. Almond had to continue hitting his vital spots within these 0.2 seconds.
'He might never be able to use it again.'
Kiririk.
Almond quickly released his bowstring. He didn’t have much time. He only had 0.2 seconds each time.
Pew!
An arrow struck again.
"Kch!"
Swift became stunned and couldn't use his skill again. It wasn’t only that.
[Bounce: Every second shot, two arrows will be fired.]
Boom!
Another bonus arrow struck him.
[Swift]
[HP: 92%]
Although Almond hit him twice, Swift was technically hit three times.
[Triple Strike: With the third hit, your movement and attack speed will greatly increase. Duration: 10 seconds. May be stacked.]
Now, the Triple Strike ability activated.
[Attack speed has increased]
[Movement speed has increased]
Oooooong...!
Almond’s body felt much lighter.
'Now...'
With this, continuously shooting arrows at Swift within 0.2 seconds became possible. Without any delay, Almond shot more arrows one after another.
Boom boom!
The arrows struck Swift once again.
[Swift]
[HP: 86%]
Explosions erupted and Swift remained stunned. Almond pulled his bowstring faster and faster.
'It's a game of 10 seconds.'
[Movement speed has increased by 30%]
[Attack speed has increased by 30%]
Pew!
Boom!
The Fireworks effect continued to explode.
[HP: 76%]
The effect of Triple Strike also continued.
[Movement speed has increased by 30%]
[Attack speed has increased by 30%]
[Movement speed has increased by 30%]
[Attack speed has increased by 30%]
Almond pulled his bowstring faster and faster. As a result, Swift's health rapidly decreased.
[HP: 70%]
[HP: 63%]
[HP: 58%]
— Whoa.
— How much did his attack speed increase?
— Whoa, insane.
— Yeah, Swift is tough.
— Amazing!
— There's no limit in story mode.
In story mode, stats had no restrictions. Almond could continue as they increased. The only restriction was the player's control.
In reality, Almond's hand began to move at an impossible speed.
Bang!
'Please just die.'
However, Swift's health was still above fifty percent.
Almond didn't care. Both he and Swift were standing still.
Almond was confident that not a single shot would miss. Whether he shot ten arrows per second or one hundred per second, he would not miss as long as the shooter and the target remained still.
'There won't be any misses.'
Almond's arrows never missed. His hand continued to flick the bowstring and countless blue arrows poured out at a speed that was impossible to count.
The blue trails converged and formed a stream of water. Soon, it became a gushing waterfall.
Kwaaaaang!
Wherever the waterfall hit, the surroundings turned blue like the sea.
"...!"
Swift's eyes rolled back and turned white.
[HP: 5%]
It was almost over now. That was what Almond thought.
— Whoa.
— Wouldn't this be a one-shot kill with one combo!?
— Insane lol.
— Swift... Die!
— ??
Crack!
A golden aura burst from Swift's body.
[Final Resistance]
When Swift’s health dropped below five percent, he became immune to all control effects and ranged attacks. All his stats increased by eighty percent and thirty percent of damage was converted into health.
— Oh, it's phase 2.
— Oh man.
— We need to kill him at once before this.
— It’s over.
— Now it’s for real.
Swift roared. He was no longer affected by control effects.
"You. You're dead."
Zap!
Swift's new form disappeared with a golden light. He had used flash.
However, it wasn’t just Almond’s attack speed that had increased. His movement speed also increased.
Thud!
As Almond kicked off, Swift's new form disappeared.
Crack!
Swift swung his sword from somewhere.
Swish!!
It only split Almond's afterimage and Swift's face twisted.
"What is this speed?"
Crash!
Almond's arrow abruptly flew in and Swift's eyebrows twitched.
"Ha?"
[Flash]
Zap!
Swift flashed away with his abandoned sword. Another arrow flew in that direction.
"You wish, but..."
Thwack!
He deflected the arrow.
"No way!"
Swift quickly threw his sword again and flashed toward Almond.
[Flash]
Zap!
Zap!
[Flash]
[Flash]
Swift chased after him with consecutive flashes. Almond turned his waist and shot more arrows at him.
Bang bang bang!
Due to Almond’s tremendous attack speed, no human could block that many arrows.
Boboom!
However, Swift managed to block them all.
'What's going on?'
Almond had felt uneasy since earlier. Swift’s speed and accuracy were strangely abnormal as if it were automatic. He felt like Swift was blocking these ranged attacks systemically.
Almond sensed that Swift was currently immune to ranged attacks.
'Ah. He's immune to ranged attacks now.'
Almond recalled the explanation he had quickly passed by. Swift now had immunity to ranged attacks and control effects.
'There are all kinds of things like this.'
The new Swift appeared in front of him.
Crash!!
"You can't!"
Swift laughed bitterly and swung his sword downward.
Shing!
Almond twisted his body to avoid it.
Swift continued to swing his sword.
Shing! Swish!
Almond easily avoided it with his increased speed. He was still faster than Swift for now.
However, if the stacked Triple Strike buffs started to disappear one by one, Almond would end up being killed by Swift.
'I need a melee weapon.'
He didn't have any bladed weapons with him.
The Bow of Liberation didn't even have arrows, so he couldn't stab with the arrows either.
Slish!
Swift's sword grazed his skin. Almond’s stacked buffs were starting to disappear little by little. Compared to Swift, his speed was slowing down.
[Flash]
Zap!
An attack immediately followed the flash.
Splash!
Blood spurted from where Swift's attack struck. It was a direct hit.
'Ah.'
Almond recalled how he had first escaped from Swift.
Thunk.
He adjusted his posture, expecting to give up one of his limbs. It was the perfect posture for a slash.
Swift flashed straight toward him and slashed.
Slash!
Almond's left arm was severed.
"Ah, Almond!!"
Luna's scream faintly echoed.
Almond didn't care and twisted his torso, rotating his lower body. Since it was close quarters, he couldn't kick like he did then. He used his knees right in the center of Swift's flash!
Pweeeoook—
"!?"
A kick went through Swift's legs.
"—Oof."
With a solid impact, Swift's eyes almost popped out.
"He must be dead..."
At this rate, Swift was almost dead. Almond thought so, but...
"Still?"
[HP: 8%]
It was because of the trait that absorbed thirty percent of the damage as health. The health he gained from attacking Almond still remained.
"Wow."
This was something Almond hadn't calculated.
— Noooo…
— Wow.
— Unbelievable..
— ???
— Oh…
Sighs flowed in the chat. They couldn’t believe that it hadn’t ended even with a critical hit.
Crash!
Swift flashed again and thrust his blade.
"You’re the one… who’s gonna die!"
Even if Almond avoided this, he would eventually end up dying after dodging for a while. After all, this type of game wasn't made to be cleared with no deaths. He just had to accept it. Unexpected twists like Swift's phase two couldn't be beaten without experiencing it several times or watching a guide beforehand.
In that regard, Almond had already done well enough. Just as he was comforting himself, Swift's blade struck.
"Oof...!"
Whoosh!
It wasn’t Almond, but someone else.
"... Luna?"
It was a small figure with flowing blonde hair. Blood was flowing from her side.
Thunk.
Luna grabbed Swift's arm and pulled him even closer to her side.
"What...!?"
Swift was momentarily stunned as Luna raised the sword she had taken back. Blue energy rippled around the sword.
[Blade Strengthening]
Whoosh!
The blue energy pierced Swift's throat.
Blade strengthening dealt proportional damage based on lost health. For Swift, who had very little health left, it was naturally fatal.
[HP: 0%]
With his health close to ten percent, all of it had instantly disappeared.
Thud.
Swift collapsed.
— ???
— Whoa.
— Luna did this?
— WTF.
— Unbelievable!
Swift had died and Almond survived. Luna was also heavily injured but alive.
Thud.
Luna gasped for air and sank down.
She roughly spat out, "You... son of a bitch... die... damn it...."
Then, belated donations came in.
[IFailedMath has donated 10,000 won.]
[Three star clear is so difficult~ Mission rewards are depleted~]
These donations were sent thinking Almond had died.
— What's this?
— LOL.
— Hahaha.
— ???: Slow.
— The timing is hilarious lol.
— IFailedMath is crying lol.
— Getting roasted by himself.
Even Almond chuckled at that.
***
"Why are you staring like that? The movie's about to start," the man asked while eating popcorn and made a small gesture.
There were actually no seats next to him. It was a space where a wheelchair could be accommodated.
Sa-Rang lifted her head and put away her phone.
"It’s just..."
"Does it bother you?"
The man already knew what she had been watching with a sidelong glance. She was thinking about Almond. He could tell because he knew her personality well even without her saying it.
Sa-Rang admitted it with a shallow sigh, "Sigh. They have my data. And you've seen everything. Why even bother asking?"
The man chuckled at her sharp tone, “Hahaha. Right. It's literally about your data. It's not about you, and you have everyone else's data too. When was that, by the way?"
"Back when I only played Flashy Blade. Before the pro league."
"Yeah. Back in the amateur days, huh? That’s not you. Oh, the movie's starting."
The man took a sip of his Coke and turned back to the screen.
Sa-Rang also looked away from her phone. In fact, it would be her data competing from that moment on. It seemed as if she didn't want to watch it with her own eyes.