After listening to Bastion's harsh impact against the wall, everyone winced in pain. However, while everyone winced, Sera was the first to spring into action. When she first noticed the club coming too close for comfort, she immediately activated Cleric's Prayer in conjunction with Regeneration Burst.
Thus, two healing presences enveloped Bastion just before he slammed into the wall and caused a considerable commotion followed by a thick cloud of dust. Of course, the only one to notice Sera's rapid reaction was Kieran, and he was taken aback by it.
'That reaction speed and foresight… that's something even physical classes will benefit from greatly. Is Sera more of a natural talent than I thought? Even Altair ignored this fact, but he was probably too focused on the fact this burly guy cried out for his mommy,' Kieran thought.
As the dust cleared, it revealed a traumatized Bastion in a human-sized hole with his shield held before him. A slight indent could be seen on the surface as Bastion's face turned red as a cherry. A second later, a large vein appeared on his forehead with slight convulsions.
"Oh yeah, that's some Grade A pain right there. You can't make that up; he's definitely going to feel that later on," Nemean remarked.
Even the cold Luna grimaced for Bastion's sake as the rocks emitted slow creaking noise.
"U-ugh…"
Thud!
A pained groan sounded from Bastion as he fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Although his Health was still half full due to Sera's quick reaction, he was left in immense pain due to battle settings that couldn't be ignored. Luckily, he didn't suffer any broken bones because that couldn't happen just yet.
Of course, the cyclops didn't await Bastion's recovery. It slammed its club down, seeking to turn Bastion into nothing more than metal scraps and human paste. But, Kieran and Nemean moved lightning quick.
Although there was a vast difference in their movement speed, they arrived at approximately the same time because Nemean was much closer than Kieran. While Nemean lifted his shields to block for Bastion, Kieran slashed his sword up fueled by every ounce of Strength he could muster.
This resulted in Nemean and Kieran sinking into the ground, but Bastion remained safe from damage.
Conversely, both Nemean and Kieran lost some Health. But, whereas Nemean was momentarily stunned, Kieran shrugged it aside because this had fulfilled the criteria he was looking for.
〈Battle Alert: «Blood Mania» has entered prime condition.〉
〈Battle Alert: «Tormented Beliefs» has increased to Phase III.〉
〈Battle Alert: Physical Attack Power has increased to 2,560.〉
〈Battle Alert: Attack and Movement Speed have increased by 60%.〉
Because these two passives activated while Kieran's weapon was already broken, it paled compared to his first activation. The first usage only deducted the broken weapon's Attack Power, but now, these passives were scaling off Kieran's base 800 Attack Power.
Still, having over 2,500 Attack Power at Lv.24 was astonishing. There perhaps wasn't another player at the same level who could boast of reaching this Attack Power at said level, even more so since Kieran has yet to learn of another player who accepted the legacy of a Mythical Hero.
As he returned to his earlier state against the Giant Ogres, Kieran sensed a faint link to the source of his power but couldn't quite describe it or grasp it, for that matter. All he knew was that when he should be growing weaker, he was instead growing stronger.
Perhaps this proper originated from the unknown blood extracted from Argexes the Maddened One. Only something as perverse as that could explain this inverse power relationship between Strength and injury.
Once Kieran's power experienced this drastic increase, he roared as he slowly moved the Lesser Cyclop's arm upward by overwhelming the boss in terms of power. As soon as he lifted it enough so that all the pressure Nemean felt was alleviated, he attacked with Fury Rush.
Rather than focus on the Lesser Cyclop's upper body, Kieran focused his attacks on the boss's legs. His shoulder rammed into the monster's thick leg, but he didn't stop despite the frightening impact.
Kieran ferociously swung his weapon about, using the Crimson Barrage to open lacerations on the Lesser Cyclop's ankle and increase the Bleed stacks to 3. Only half of the blood blades successfully increased the stacks. And, the ones acquired beforehand had already expired.
But, now that both Tormented Beliefs and Blood Mania were activated at their highest degree, Kieran had no reservations about using Sanguine Slashes. The weapon in his hand pulsated as the edge thinned out and became sharp enough to open wounds on the boss with basic attacks.
Because Sanguinem Tempests was a few seconds from finishing its cooldown time, Kieran had to rely upon his other skills to make up the damage. But, with the increase in attack speed, Kieran achieved maximum Bleed stacks after two uses of Sanguine Slashes.
This usage wouldn't be possible without those Bleed stacks since it allowed Kieran to heal a minimal amount of Health. Though, because of this healing, Kieran just cleared the maximum stack before the skill's duration expired.
Even with his increased Attack Speed, since his class favored heavier weapons, he couldn't match the attack speed of classes like Swordsmen, Assassins, Rogues, etc., just yet. The heavier the weight of one's weapon and the longer its reach, the higher one's Attack Speed needed to be to compensate.
A 60% scale on his current Agility effect wasn't enough to drastically improve his speed to say five slashes per second. Kieran could barely manage three currently.
"Make sure Bastion is alright. The party interface may not reveal anything related to mental state. Who knows how he'll respond to such a blow," Kieran exclaimed from far away. Even now, Bastion remained face on the floor, motionless.
The disparity between monster and player was why soloing a boss was so hard. One unexpected attack was enough to decommission a player—even one of Bastion's caliber as seen presently.
When Kieran judged that he had dealt sufficient damage, Kieran slashed his sword horizontally, creating a massive surge of blood energy in the form of a current. The attack collided against the aggregating the many cuts into one large wound that brought the cyclops to its knees with an indignant roar.
At this point, only its upper body was mobile, but its reach was still terrifying. Regardless, its reach wasn't an issue for Kieran. He snapped his fingers and had Altair, Luna, and Cyr accompany him in dealing large amounts of damage to the boss while it lost 1,500 Health per second due to the Bleed stacks.
By the time it reached 20% Health and went Berserk, regaining use of its leg from the sudden regeneration, Kieran was prepared for it. He stepped forward while enveloped in a savage aura.
Kieran used its attacks as a means to travel up its body until he was in range. As soon as that happened, he unleashed a Wild Crash backed by incredible power. The cyclops' head whiplashed back, and at that moment, a murderous intent filled Kieran's mind.
There was no longer any need for a tank because Kieran would end the battle here and now. While Alice unleashed her elemental spells focusing on the Fire and Wind elements, Luna and Altair upheld their constant damage.
The bloody presence surrounding Kieran surged as he prepared to unleash the strongest skill in his arsenal. Because of the long cooldown, Kieran decided only to use it once he could ensure the cyclops' death.
That said, Kieran exploded at awe-inspiring speed as three menacing bloody cyclones condensed to fine points pierced the cyclops' throat from three directions.
〈System: You have gained 451,490 Experience Points.〉
〈System: Congratulations, you have leveled up! [Lv.24 → Lv.25]〉
〈System: Congratulations, you have leveled up! [Lv.25 → Lv.26]〉
〈System: You have received 24 Unassigned Attribute Points and 16 Skill Points.〉
The notification was like music to Kieran's ear as he fell to the ground almost powerlessly. Unlike before, he released his grasp of the broken Scarlet Steel Greatsword because he no longer needed to cling to it.
Having surpassed Lv.25 and with more than 460 Unassigned Attribute Points in his possession, equipping the Crimson Ashrune was now a possibility.
Bang!
Kieran landed heavily but was relatively undamaged. Falling from 20 meters wasn't that high with his current physique, but if it were to go any higher, Kieran would undoubtedly suffer fall damage.
The others remained astounded by the amount of Experience the Unique Boss rewarded. Sure it was a difficult and stressful battle, but aside from Kieran, everyone leveled up at least three times, reaching either Lv.28 or Lv.29.
Although that may be true, none of the people present could match Kieran in terms of attributes or gear.
Kieran retrieving Crimson Ashrune from his inventory made everyone stare at the majestic weapon in awe. Just stabbing it into the ground made it tremble. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that sword was comparable to the club in weight.
"Luna, Alice, collect the loot," Kieran ordered. Because it was the loot from a boss and a Unique-Rank one at that, the amount of loot it dropped was almost triple that of any monster thus far.
Although 60% of the loot was coins, the remaining 40% was valuable material and even more useful equipment, one of which being a unique-grade staff.
Without even viewing the item's specifics, Kieran made a decision. "It goes to Sera, but any other item used by a Cleric or other healing classes will go to Sithik and Cygnus.
None of the three had an issue with this outcome because the pieces of equipment numbered more than ten. Usually, a physical boss like a cyclops wouldn't drop a magic-based item, but the guaranteed unique drop was randomized because this was the first ever clear. It just so happened that this time, it favored a support class.
Once that was settled, Kieran brought up his status screen. Since there was no weapon in his equipment slot, his Attack Power, Strength, Agility, and Control were affected accordingly. But, that was only temporary.
〈System: Do you wish to use 295 Attributes to increase Strength? [Y / N] ?〉
"Yes," Kieran chose.
〈System: Strength has increased accordingly. [Strength: 205 → 500]〉
The moment that happened, Kieran grasped Crimson Ashrune's hilt and lifted it. Simply holding the weapon in hand made Kieran feel like he was teeming with power. This was the advantage of having a weapon tailored specifically for your class. The complements were astonishing.
Even after using nearly 300 UAPs, Kieran still had 171 in possession. Thus, he chose to use 100 on Agility and 71 on Control.
〈System: Agility has increased accordingly. [Agility: 141 → 241]〉
〈System: Control has increased accordingly. [Control: 142 → 213]〉
Afterward, the system regulated Kieran's status screen.
「Name: Aatrox *Trainee
Race: Human
Lv.26 (Experience: 58,570/402,504)
Item Level: N/A
Class: True Berserker (Tier 1)
Title(s): Inheritor of the Berserk Path Enduring Warrior Goblin Slayer
World Fame: 450 (Knight)
[«Stats»]-
Health: 2,680/2,680 (13.4 HP regen/sec)
Mana: 750/750 (1.8 MP regen/sec)
Stamina: 1,804 (3.5 Stamina regen/sec)
Phys. Attack: 2,785
Mag. Attack: 1,458
Phys. Defense: 389
Mag. Defense: 213
[«Attributes»]-
»Strength: 630 (447 + 183 + 0)
»Intelligence: 100 (55 + 45 + 0)
»Agility: 341 (227 + 114 + 0)
»Endurance: 134 (80 + 54 + 0)
»Control: 303 (176 + 127 + 0)
»Vitality: 210 (90 + 120 + 0)
»Perception: 125 (85 + 40 + 0)
[«Traits»]- 3
«Lifesteal» - Basic
«Zero Loss of Potential» - Unique
«Vengeful Soul» - Strengthened
[«Skills»]-
(Passive)
«Blood Mania» - S - Lv.1
«Deranged Spirit» - A - Lv.2
«Tormented Beliefs» - B - Lv.2
«Berserker's Burden» - C - Lv.2
(Active)
«Sanguinem Tempests» - A - Lv.2
«Wild Crash» - B - Lv.2
«Crimson Barrage» - C - Lv.2
«Sanguine Slashes» - C - Lv.2
«Crimson Current» - C - Lv.2
«Fury Rush» - C - Lv.2
[Unassigned Stat Point: 0]
[Skill Points: 134] 」
When Kieran saw the state of his status screen, he could only blink with an expression doused in stupefaction. The stats affected by Crimson Ashrune were far beyond ordinary, especially his Physical and Magical Attack Power. There were probably magic-focused classes with less magic attack than him!
Moreover, nearly all his skills had increased by a level, which would translate into even more disgusting numbers.
Unfortunately, Kieran couldn't relish in the power-up for long because that same destruction caused by the cyclops removing its weapon from the wall created a passage into the Underground Labyrinth's true depths.
"Hehehe, puny humans have come to my domain? Foolish. All those obstacles you have faced until now matter none!" A burst of eerie laughter sounded from within, one that, despite his current abilities, Kieran felt extreme apprehension.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Heavy steps sounded on the other side of the opening in the wall. From inside, the eye of a beast, deep black in color, shone with inconquerable pride.
〈System: A hidden pathway has opened inside the «Underground Labyrinth». Entry into the secret room has been granted.〉
