novelraw Chapter 204 : Ashtaroth - (4)
Chapter 204 : Ashtaroth - (4)
Chapter 204: Ashtaroth - (4)
『Death Touch』
『Complete Summon』
He activated the Complete Summon option of Death Touch.
It consumed 500 mana in an instant, but for that reason, it was a skill that could unconditionally pull the opponent in.
Even if he ran out of mana, thanks to the “Endless Spring” effect of the Nameless Sword, he had a reliable backup.
“Ugh!”
Ashtaroth let out a coarse, metallic roar and was immediately pulled in by Sanghyun’s Death Touch.
Flailing his arms as he was dragged through the air made Sanghyun chuckle faintly.
No matter how cool and stylish a boss monster might try to look, it always lost face when being helplessly dragged in.
『Spatial Rift』
Since it was certain the opponent would be pulled in by the Complete Summon, Sanghyun had already prepared his next skill.
Spatial Rift.
This skill was easy to dodge if there was some distance, as one could see the rift’s line moving.
But in a situation like this, where the enemy was pulled right in front of him, there was very little time to react.
That was exactly why Sanghyun used Death Touch’s Complete Summon—dealing with variables at close range was incredibly difficult.
Ssshk!
“Graaah!”
In the end, Ashtaroth screamed as he lost his left arm to the Spatial Rift.
His left arm, which at least had been attached on the surface, had now vanished without a trace.
With no means to stop the bleeding, red blood poured from the severed shoulder.
If he wanted to manage the wound urgently, he would have to use his right arm to apply pressure to the area.
But with Sanghyun standing right before him, Ashtaroth couldn’t let go of the sword in his right hand.
“……”
From Ashtaroth’s entire body, who lowered his head in resignation—
Crackkk!
A violent storm of mana began to surge, and his eyes started to glow bright red.
Offering his life as collateral, he was beginning to go berserk—a kind of berserker transformation.
Sanghyun gripped the Nameless Sword tighter.
Ashtaroth’s berserk mode was an expected pattern. It was the method he always chose when cornered.
Creak. Creak.
Then Sanghyun checked the state of the Full Regeneration Potions he had tucked away. Five bottles. All well-preserved.
A brutal battle was about to begin.
Sanghyun would dig in and endure, while Ashtaroth, using his berserk state, would try to overwhelm him.
From now on, time was on Sanghyun’s side. However, that didn’t mean it would be easy to block the attacks of the now-insane Ashtaroth.
Clench.
Both of Sanghyun’s hands, gripping the sword, tightened with force.
A fierce back-and-forth battle unfolded.
Blood sprayed in all directions.
Ignoring the injury to his left arm, Ashtaroth launched a relentless assault on Sanghyun.
Sanghyun didn’t back down and met the attacks head-on.
Against a berserk opponent, continuous provocation was necessary, as their stamina would quickly drain.
The berserk state was like a high-output but fuel-inefficient car.
It could dash madly, but in doing so, it spilled fuel everywhere. In this context, that fuel was his stamina.
‘It hurts, though.’
Enduring pain and not feeling it were two very different things. Sanghyun had to grit his teeth from the many slashes all over his body.
Thankfully, thanks to Sage’s Armor, his vital areas were perfectly protected without injury. That made a huge difference.
Even if he pushed himself a little, he had confidence that he wouldn’t be taken out by a single hit to the abdomen or heart.
As he held his ground and pushed back aggressively, Ashtaroth began to feel something was off.
The more time passed, the more advantageous it became for that guy—so why was he being so aggressive?
Having no way of knowing Sanghyun’s strategy, Ashtaroth attacked like a wild beast that had bitten into its prey.
In the process, he lost a lot of stamina and quickly fell into a state close to exhaustion.
But since Sanghyun had also lost a lot of blood and sustained many deep wounds, Ashtaroth didn’t think he had been at a loss.
He believed it had at least been an equivalent exchange. If he played it right, he thought he could finish him off.
But then, a variable appeared.
Gulp—gulp—
The moment Sanghyun drank a potion, his condition changed so drastically it could be called extreme.
Full Regeneration Potion.
A potion that completely recovers all stamina, thoroughly heals all injuries, and regenerates lost parts within 10 seconds.
Its base auction price exceeded 25 billion won—a very expensive potion only obtainable in dungeons.
And its effect was just as powerful.
‘Gotta have insurance, after all.’
Sanghyun smiled.
Seeing Ashtaroth’s half-blank expression as he looked at Sanghyun’s completely restored body only made his joy swell.
Victory through scalability and versatility.
He had a wealth of skills and artifact options that could be used in different ways depending on the situation.
Against an opponent with a limited toolkit, he could always gain the upper hand like this.
If Ashtaroth had the same potion or a recovery skill, this kind of strategy wouldn’t have worked.
Crrrk.
Ashtaroth ground his teeth.
Now, the gap in their conditions was so vast it felt insurmountable, leaving him cornered.
He was desperate.
His attacks, now wild and thoughtless from losing composure, no longer posed any threat.
Using the stamina gap as a foundation, Sanghyun unleashed a steady full bash on Ashtaroth.
He didn’t expect to cause stiffness in just one or two tries, and he wasn’t in a rush either.
He simply kept trying and trying again. After all, stamina and time were on his side.
Eventually, after repeated attempts, Ashtaroth was afflicted with stiffness.
Even a low probability had to hit eventually when the number of hits increased.
From that moment, hell began for Ashtaroth.
Sanghyun used “Pitch Black” on the stiffened Ashtaroth to inflict blindness.
Then he repositioned to the side and launched an updraft, sending Ashtaroth flying into the sky.
It was an airborne strike that wouldn’t have worked under normal conditions, but in his half-exhausted and distracted state, he fell for it.
Seeing Ashtaroth floating high in the air, Sanghyun got into position for a ranged finishing combo.
『Double-Edged Sword』
『Werther’s Wrath』
『Whisper of the Sage』
The preliminary setup was flawless.
Watching Ashtaroth reach the peak and begin to fall, Sanghyun linked his skills to end him in a single blow.
『Silver Moon』
An X-shaped sword aura shot out from the blade.
It was a single strike that drew out every bit of his remaining mana.
■ Skill Level: Stage 5 (3.3%)
■ Skill Description: Releases a sharp, X-shaped sword aura.
The further the aura travels from the caster, the more its power increases.
(See detailed tooltip)
There is no cap on mana consumption. The more mana consumed, the stronger Silver Moon's sword aura becomes.
The skill description of Silver Moon, once reviewed again, was simple yet destructive.
It defied normal physical laws, so Ashtaroth would be unfamiliar with it.
And, sure enough—
Trying to block the Silver Moon sword aura flying toward him mid-fall, Ashtaroth ended up—
Shhhk!
With an X-shaped gash tearing through his body, he suffered a fatal penetration wound. It was a clean, slicing strike.
His mistake had been underestimating the sword aura launched from a long distance, thinking he could easily block it.
If only that misjudgment had ended there—but the price he'd pay was none other than his life.
『Mortal’s Wrath』
“Guhhhhk!”
With Mortal’s Wrath smashing in additional damage, Ashtaroth immediately fell into a groggy state.
『Cursed Decapitation』
Using his significantly reduced health as a sacrifice, Cursed Decapitation activated and took Ashtaroth’s head clean off.
It was over.
The master of this dungeon—one of the most difficult bosses to deal with—was now dead.
His level shot up to 302.
It was the result of the S-rank title “Rapid Growth” activating, combined with the unique condition of having soloed the dungeon.
‘I ended up saving the Enlightenment after all, just in case. Hitting Skill Level 20 isn’t a normal bonus, after all.’
A sigh of relief escaped him.
He thought he’d need to use every trick he had, but he’d managed to find Ashtaroth’s opening earlier than expected.
If he hadn’t had the Complete Summon option of Death Touch… and the Full Regeneration Potion…
He’d probably still be locked in a drawn-out battle. No doubt about it—the premise of “Complete” had overwhelming power.
Now that he had surpassed Level 300, he was also granted one chance to enhance a skill. A blissful moment of decision.
And that wasn’t the only good news.
The necklace hanging from Ashtaroth’s neck didn’t disintegrate and remained in place.
In other words, he could now obtain it as an Artifact reward!
And on top of that, a cute little spirit floated around Sanghyun with curious eyes.
“This is seriously insane. Goddess of Luck, can you see this? Ah… right, she’s in Korea possessing Siyun-noona’s body.”
Sanghyun, who naturally looked for the goddess during this string of good fortune, realized the truth and wore a disappointed expression.
If the Goddess of Luck had been watching from her Constellation seat, she would have showered him with praise and congratulations.
But now, since she had descended and possessed a human body in the human world, real-time observation wasn’t possible.
Not that it mattered.
This joy—he could still share it with her later, once he returned to Korea.
“I should clean up and get out of here right away.”
Sanghyun quickly picked up Ashtaroth’s necklace—Ashtaroth’s Necklace. It was indeed an Epic-grade Artifact.
And when he reached his finger toward the spirit Ashuneri, she gently perched on the back of his hand.
She was a feminine fairy, but her abilities were something he’d need to examine gradually.
Even the description only said “Spirit Ashuneri,” giving no clues about her specialized powers.
“Wow… so that’s what this means—get the hell out of here.”
After Ashtaroth’s death, the dungeon’s debuffs kept strengthening.
Health was dropping by 10 per second, and mana recovery had become completely impossible through any means.
Sanghyun began sprinting toward the exit.
He had achieved his goal. It had been a close call, but that made this dungeon experience all the more exhilarating.
It was also a perfect strategy that would leave a strong impression on the Nobility Guild. Everything about it was satisfying.
At the same time—
Three people who were heading toward the dungeon’s outer edge, not the exit, suddenly stopped.
Because of the message that had appeared before them at the same time.
[The dungeon boss monster has been successfully defeated.]
[Exits have been opened throughout the dungeon. Only those who entered from outside can escape.]
“He defeated Ashtaroth…? Alone?”
“The exits are opening!”
“No freaking way.”
Kyle, Sarah, and Laphern all wore expressions of shock.
It was an unbelievable solo clear, no matter how they tried to make sense of it.
When they left Sanghyun behind in the dungeon, none of the three believed he would actually defeat the boss.
They thought that at some point, he would retreat without hesitation, and that with his considerable survival skills, he’d escape without much difficulty.
In other words, they expected Sanghyun to tangle with Ashtaroth for a bit, then give up.
But the message they received wasn’t about his surrender—it was about Sanghyun’s overwhelming success in clearing the dungeon.
What kind of skills did he have, and how many, to pull this off?
How did he manage to take down the rampaging Ashtaroth, who wielded the dungeon’s powerful debuffs as his weapon? They couldn’t even begin to fathom it.
In that moment, the three of them had a realization.
That their rank didn’t match up to someone like Sanghyun.
That only players from the higher echelons of the Nobility Guild could truly keep up with him.
It was an insight honed through years of experience across countless dungeons and encounters with numerous players.
There could be no disagreement.