Raid: The Blacksmith-Chapter 71: Wolf Spirit Amaruq: Part Two
About a hundred Snow Dire Wolves have been taken out now, with only three of them being Sentry Snow Dire Wolves. The Warden is situated way back. He’s not attacking, only watching. Closely. As if studying me. In addition, about three and a half hours have passed.
"This is a first." I comment. "I’ve never taken this much time in finishing a Quest before. Even though it’s five hours, meaning I still have a bit of time, it’s starting to worry me. I haven’t gotten weaker. Hell no. Not in the slightest. These wolves, they’re just..."
Way too resilient. And so durable that it’s annoying. They don’t die instantly unless I truly exert myself to use more strength and Mana to increase the force of my attacks.
"Furthermore, if I don’t kill them instantly, their injuries only cause them to stumble for a few seconds, then, seconds later, they’re back to nearly a hundred percent. It’s not regeneration, because then, their wounds wouldn’t still be existent. It’s more like..."
Rejuvenation.
"Almost like it’s their internal energy that’s being healed, instead of their outer wounds and scars and the like. Almost like, they’re being supplied Mana from an outside source, each time they get injured. That’s unsettling."
"Fine! I didn’t wanna exert this much energy, but so be it." I exclaim as I gather Mana onto my fists. It spins vigorously around my knuckles to my wrists, forearms and all the way to slightly below my shoulders, like hungry vipers, itching to start hunting down their prey.
Bracing myself accordingly, I then yell, my voice echoing through the half quiet surroundings that only carry the sounds of the howls and growls of magically modified canine.
"Demolition Strike!"
The air ripples, as waves of pure and utter shock travel through the area. A great gush of wind emits from the centre, departing the trees to go their separate ways. The force alone is so great that it takes the lives of well over a hundred of the Snow Dire Wolves, with six of them being Sentry Snow Dire Wolves.
I’d be salivating right now if there wasn’t a slight problem...
I’m getting tired.
I ended up using a lot of Mana for that Special Attack, on top of having fought for three hours straight without rest.
There were three-hundred and thirty-three Snow Dire Wolves when this all started, now there’s only seventy-six left. Thing is, even after seeing me take down so many of their allies, the Snow Dire Wolves that remain haven’t lost their resolve in the slightest. With the Warden now joining the three Sentries and seventy-two normies remaining, they all keep attacking, coming at me from all sides. Slowly growing more and more exhausted, I parry and dodge as best I can but it’s not easy. No. Not easy at all. Their speed increases as mine dulls. They’re no longer simply rejuvenated, but straight up energized. Like they’re on steroids or just pumped full of adrenaline.
For the first time since coming inside this Dungeon, I’m wounded. They slash at me with their claws out, as every attack makes contact. "Kurk!" I agonize, albeit slightly.
Resilient Regeneration activates automatically, probably courtesy of my subconscious responding to the impending danger. I create some distance to take a breather, even if for a split second, as I perform a great number of backflips.
Stopping to look up straight ahead after sliding against the snow, I notice the Snow Dire Wolves running towards me at full speed and brace myself.
"Hoo." I breath in. "Haa." Then breath out.
Then, I dash at my opponents as they dash at me. Activating Cultivator, Fury of Dantian and Soul-Piercing Eyes on top of the already still active Brawler Skill, my speed increases beyond my previous performance. Noticing the fact that some wolves, namely, the Sentries, having gotten a headstart, are ultimately closer to me than others, I see it as an opportunity to steamroll through the swarm, taking them out one by one.
I kick the closest Sentry Snow Dire Wolf after getting close enough for my hits to land. He flies straight forward, colliding against a few of his allies, the next Sentry, I grab by the ears, pulling his head down to meet my knee, his nose breaking from the impact, that along with his skull. I then spin clockwise with him still in tow, turning back around to smash him against about three other wolves that have closed the gap. Their ribs clash, breaking on impact as the wolves are catapulted to the right and up. I continue my assault, taking down one wolf after the other, sometimes two at once, sometimes three. I sidekick, knee hit, elbow blow, uppercut, roundhouse kick, side kick, even head-butt. Every attack unique and different. Their numbers just keep dropping as I keep launching my bombardment of assaults. I sense that I’m getting more and more tired with every hit, but I don’t stop. I don’t let up.
The Snow Dire Wolves go from seventy to sixty, from sixty to fifty, and from fifty to forty. They drop, bit by bit, as I perspire even in the cold snowy wind, sweat freely dripping down from my forehead like water from a broken faucet.
Then, after a long, annoyingly prolonged battle, I stand with my right hand raised. At its end, the body of the last of the Snow Dire Wolf, the Warden, hangs dangling at the whims of my firm grip. It’s a big dog, so my hand isn’t nearly enough to cover it’s entire neck, but my strength does not correspond with my size, it never has.
I squeeze at the small part of the wolf’s neck I have locked in my grip, and the wolf whimpers while moving about vigorously like a headless chicken, even clawing at my hand and upper body, until finally...
~Snap!~
Silence. Finally. I’m no longer hearing any annoying growling, barking or howling.
[Report. Immediate Quest: Snow Dire Wolf Pack Domestication has been completed. Now calculating rewards...]
...
I let out a sigh as I drop down on the soft snow, letting it break my fall, as I read through my rewards.
"That was not easy. And that was just three hundred of them. Considering all Dungeons have at least six thousand monsters in them, this might actually start to become dangerous. Should I jet?"
"Hah..." I scratch my head as I sit up straight. "Can’t do that. My pride won’t let me. If it were me from the past, I wouldn’t have even had a second thought. But right now, my pride is telling me, that I need to clear this Dungeon. I’ve set a goal for myself, I have to achieve it no matter wha-"
Silence. For real this time. Not like before, after I finished killing off the wolves. At least then, the cold quiet wind still blew, but now, even that has stopped. It’s so incredibly quiet that it feels as if the very concept of sound has been erased. I can’t move. I’m completely paralyzed as I sit on the snow. My brain sends the signal to move, to react one way or another, and yet there’s no response, like there’s a wall in between, completely disconnecting my brain from the rest of my body. My arms feel like heavy disconnected dead weight. I can’t make heads or tails of whether it may be fear or something else entirely. I can’t hear or move, but I can feel. I can feel the very soft sensation of fur, silky smooth fur resting on my left shoulder, brushing gently against my left cheek. Though I can tell, this is no caressing gesture. This is an act of dominance.
Then for a brief moment, a cold sensation like no other envelopes my entire body, though it goes away almost immediately. A white noise of sorts, my nerves misfire one last time before going completely dark.
For a split second, my body basically reaches sub-zero temperature, no, it’s beyond even that, and then... nothing. It goes entirely numb. Hollow, like some sensory void. Now I can’t feel. It’s as if my arms and legs are non-existent. If I closed my eyes, I’d feel like I was just a floating head, with no body whatsoever. Thing is...
I can’t close my eyes. Even my breath has been cut off. It doesn’t feel like suffocation, since that would mean that my sensory system is still in tact. It just... feels like I’ve forgetten how to breath. Or the subconscious ability to do so has been cut off from my respiratory system. Even now, I have to manually, consciously try to draw breath. Soon, even that skill may fail.
After the long silence, sound finally travels through the air. Although it isn’t words. Rather a simple rough huff. Like when a dog exhales. It doesn’t take me long to realize what that means.
"No normal Snow Dire Wolf would put me in this state. This has to be..."
That’s right. The Dungeon Boss. But how? How did they approach me so quickly, without me even sensing them, and without even triggering an Immediate Quest?
My eyes, though their lids immobile, move about in search for answers. Soul-Piercing Eyes is till active. My eyes then light up briefly as the message signalling the commencement of the Immediate Quest starts being revealed. Although, it doesn’t appear the same way it usually does. Instead of it widening out vertically from a thin line, it materialises bit by bit, in no orderly fashion, like a glitching video screen, parts of it being displaced and overlapping with other parts. Until finally, there it is, plain as day.
[Report. Subject has encountered the Dungeon Boss, The Snow Dire Wolf Queen, Wolf Spirit Amaruq. Subject will now receive an Immediate Quest...]
[Immediate Quest contents.]
Immediate Quest: Subject must clear the B-Rank Dungeon. For that to happen, subject must exterminate the Dungeon Boss, The Snow Dire Wolf Queen, Wolf Spirit Amaruq within the given time duration.
Duration: 9hours
Upon Success: The B-Rank Dungeon will be cleared.
Upon Failure: Subject will die.
Rewards will be calculated after the Quest is completed based on the Subject’s efficiency.
"So that’s it, huh? My senses. This monster, this... Wolf Spirit Amaruq, has the ability to tamper directly with my senses. My sight, hearing, and even my sixth sense, that allows me to be able to pick up on any impending danger. The message had actually popped up a long time ago. This monster just didn’t allow me to see it. What an unsettling set of Skills. And now, I’m paralyzed. Must also be one of her Skills. Maybe the ability to manipulate snow or ice, considering that brief instant sting of cold that I felt earlier. Is this... Is this it...? How I’m gonna die?"
My brain starts working overtime. Trying desperately to figure out any scenario in which I survive this mess.
"Wait... ’Survive’! Key word! My Title, Sole Survivor!... Damn it! No, that won’t work. I’m the only one in this Dungeon. Now what!? Think Raid, think! Maybe... Maybe if she doesn’t kill me instantly, then Resilient Regeneration might... or better yet, my identity as an Aspect Bearer! Yeah! I can’t die unless Tenacity itself ceases to exist, right!? The System said so itself when I was fighting Sonoran! But... am I really gonna take that risk? What if I die regardless!? What if this Boss monster has some sort of Skill that allows her to bypass that rule?"
Thoughts continue to war in my head.
"Is there really no escape?"
Then it hits me.
"Escape! That’s it! My teleportation Spell! The unnamed Spell I created next to the Overseer Spell! I had forgotten about it completely, all because I didn’t name it. That’s a habit I really need to work on. Procrastination never really helped anyone. Alright, let’s try it."
I concentrate like I’ve never concentrated before. Mana builds up from within my core, and I immediately disappear from the Wolf Spirit Amaruq, only to materialize a fair distance away from her as I begin to feel my senses coming back to me.
"Haah." I exhale heavily as my muscles begin tensing up as a result of regaining their connection with my brain. It feels like my whole body is being stabbed by thousands of pins and needles. No. It’s more intense than that. Like billions of stinging wasps. I’d collapse from the pain alone if it weren’t for Resilient Regeneration. "It hurts, but I can handle this much at least. I’m just glad teleportation worked."
"Skills and Spells don’t necessarily rely on the connection between a person’s brain and body. That’s especially true for me since, unlike other Warriors, whose Mana Source is an actual organ within their body, mine is a core made purely out of Mana. A dantian. So I can regulate my Mana more efficiently without having to rely on anything else. Thank goodness for that. Being an Aspect Bearer makes it sound like I might just be straight up immortal, but I’m not ready to test that theory just yet. My teleportation Spell really helped me out of a jam. I should name it as courtesy. From now on, it’ll be called, Domain Transit."
[Report! Spell nami-
"-Eahhh whatever." I brush away the message.
Having materialized in mid-air, I let gravity do its thing as my body descends and I land softy on the snow, about thirty metres away from the Dungeon Boss.
