If Bastion's currently augmented defensive abilities gave out before substantial progress could be made, the situation would become precarious.
Though Kieran possessed new skills of unknown power, he couldn't ignore the fact that Bundal far exceeded him in STR.
Furthermore, because of Hekaina's skill, Kieran was apprehensive about using Deranged Spirit. What if Argexes' Blood reacted outside of his expectations due to its inherent dislike of Hekaina and the power she wielded?
What could this mean for the Archaic Verity Compendium in his soul? Could there be conflict between the blood flowing through his body and the item embedded in his soul?
Regrettably, these were questions that required time, effort, and stringent examination, all of which Kieran couldn't afford to spare given his current situation.
A few seconds later, Kieran prepped everyone to intercept Bundal. "Alice, Khaos, Sora—focus on launching as many ranged attacks as you can. However, you must remain mindful of the fact that the boss has the ability to somewhat alter the nature of your attacks."
Since Khaos and the others were limited to Mana as their primary resource, Bundal's Imperfect Transmutations could be considered a bane of their attacks.
Fortunately, Kieran wasn't extremely reliant upon Mana.
While Mana played a vital role in Kieran's blood powers, the energy was obscured by the external coating of blood. With that in mind, Kieran doubted an opponent like Bundal could transmute his blood, which now belonged to a race regarded as superior to humans.
Not to mention, the whole premise of Kieran's class was assimilating hints of Argexes' Blood, which belonged to what Agrianos and Scar regarded as a Monarch, so treating him as an ordinary human without his recent Racial Transition would've been a mistake—a mistake that might even have potentially fatal consequences.
Once the roles were assigned, Kieran signaled the beginning of their operation.
Meanwhile…
…Bang! Bang! …BOOM!
"You insufferable mongrel! Why won't you submit to my onslaught?! Do you not understand that I possess a superior body? A body forged through several years of experimentation to reach perfection?!" Bundal shouted, incensed by the fact Bastion's resistance remained stable.
What's more, despite his relentless series of attacks, Bundal failed to make Bastion retreat a single step. Claiming that Bastion's current DEF had ballooned to monstrous heights was not an oversight.
However, this power came at a dire cost, evident by how a trickle of blood now seeped down Bastion's nose.
'Not… yet…' Bastion thought in his mind, his expression becoming stoic and unyielding. His gaze swept toward Nemean, who charged toward Bundal, his expression overcome by worry.
"Bastion, you oaf! Why didn't you tell me your damned behavior was incredibly hazardous? Damn you! Watch how I give you an earful!" Nemean screamed out, berating yet inwardly thanking Bastion for his actions.
Whoosh!
"Chain Rush: Enforcer's Lockdown!"
…Thud! Thud! THUD! Bang!
In quick succession, Nemean's fluid shield strikes rapidly picked up in force and momentum after successfully connecting with Bundal's body. At first, they were nothing more than a nuisance, but Bundal soon realized that these hindrances were becoming a considerable issue.
"Damned bug! Uncultured human! You can't overcome this body of mine," Bundal said, his voice dripping with maddened arrogance.
He prepared to transmute some of the pebbles into a large stone platform, however, Bundal couldn't spare Nemean more than a few seconds of his attention before he was forced to avert his gaze.
"Your biggest problem is me. I wouldn't advise you to take your eyes off me," Bastion confidently stated.
When Bundal whipped his head toward Bastion, he realized that this human had arrived right before him.
Upon panning his gaze down, Bundal also realized that the strange shield construct surrounding Bastion protected the area between him and this new nuisance.
"You people are infuriating me!" To no one's surprise, the madness in Bundal's eyes intensified. Despite his attacks, he had yet to successfully eliminate any of the hindrances before him.
As Bastion resisted the transmuted attack aimed at Nemean, a sharp gust of wind arrived, carrying hints of dreadfulness and forthcoming ferocity.
Sui! Booom!
Kieran suddenly appeared after Bastion's successful block and aimed a terrifyingly sharp kick at Bundal's face. The speed and precision of the attack momentarily broke through the sound barrier, but also forced Bundal back a few steps.
If one looked closely, they'd notice a metallic-looking crimson boot encasing Kieran's right leg. However, its presence soon receded back into the marking on the sole of Kieran's foot.
'So, it is possible. The Vampiric Blood Encrustation can be wielded for kicks as well. However, the burden is multiplied if I keep the one around my weapon active. Well, that's understandable, considering that they're located on two opposing ends of my body,' Kieran thought.
Bundal soon recovered from his head being knocked back, rubbing his somewhat sore jaw. 'That human's attacks are… painful. How strong is he?' Bundal worried, narrowing his gaze on Kieran.
"It doesn't feel too great, does it?" Kieran icily remarked, his eyes shimmering with a cold-blooded callousness. "There's more of where that came from because I owe you some payback for that earlier attack."
"Quite a smug and arrogant claim. Unlike you, I do not need the involvement of pests to land a successful hit," Bundal replied, laughing with apparent disdain. At the same time, another transmutation circle appeared beneath him, though it was far larger than before.
From its appearance, it was apparent that this was related to Bundal's body.
"Imperfect Transmutation: Flaming Alterations!"
All of the grains, pebbles, and rocks in the surroundings levitated before changing into embers that soon merged into one giant display of flaming glory.
"Spell of the Drowned: Torrent Downpour," Khaos exclaimed.
In response, a large magic circle appeared in the air above Bundal, light blue in color as it flickered with a substantial amount of Mana. Though Kieran advised everyone to be mindful of using a high-ranking skill that wielded pure Mana, Khaos recalled the second point Kieran raised.
Thanks to the exchanges between Bundal and Bastion, Kieran acquired some valuable information that he believed to be sound. After confirming his speculations to a certain extent, he then explained it to everyone.
Based on how infrequent Bundal's use of his Imperfect Transmutations was, it was not a power that he could wield consecutively. He surmised that it was likely an ability with a downtime.
Otherwise, Bundal would have spammed it against Bastion, who was abnormally resistant to physical damage.
Moreover, there was also the matter of the slight delay and hints of pain present upon Bundal's face whenever he activated the ability.
Although Khaos' spell had a wide range, it wasn't enough to deal with the immense breadth of Bundal's attack. On top of that, Bastion wasn't in a position to suddenly change his position and deal with the remnants of the attack.
"Sera!" Kieran commanded.
"I'm on it," Sera responded punctually, praying into the small cross held between her palms.
Soon, a milky aura bloomed from her body as she activated her Lv.50 large-scale healing chant, Whisper of the Seraph.
Many people faced a ridiculous amount of damage from the sea of flames that passed through, but thanks to the effects of Sera's skill, the number of deaths the party faced was reduced by 50%.
As much as she wanted to, Sera couldn't prevent everyone's death. Their Health was simply too low for her skill to keep them alive. One tick of Bundal's flame damage was already enough to eviscerate more than half of their Health.
By the time Bundal's attack concluded, less than ten people remained standing.
If this dungeon wasn't cleared, the unfortunate players would suffer an absurd Death Penalty. Then again, even if it was cleared, they'd still suffer from some form of penalty.
Fairness was not an aspect of Hell Mode, as already mentioned before.
If one was weak enough to die, they were deserving of the penalty they received.
On the other hand, Kieran healed himself while toggling a skill he seldomly activated these days.
"Vim Restoration!"
"Seething Ichor!"
The blood flowing through Kieran's veins roiled violently as a thin crimson mist seeped from his pores. In this state, Kieran's body would reject all forms of healing.
However, this wasn't the reason Kieran toggled the skill's activation.
In the short amount of time that passed, Kieran picked up on the evident signs that Bastion's grasp over his power was waning.
As good as Nemean and Bastion's teamwork was, Bastion swayed subtly, his tanned skin gaining a chalky texture.
'I'm not sure of the potential effects of this since Hekaina is an existence far beyond me, but breaking through Bundal's defenses is impossible without augmenting my attacks. Khaos and Alice's spells are nothing more than wafts of air against a sturdy steel beam,' Kieran muttered inwardly.
As Kieran watched Bundal transmute his body at a faster rate, he began to feel that something was amiss. Due to this feeling, Kieran's apprehension consequently began to fade.
At times, Kieran would unleash several of his skills, such as Blood Pulse, Blood Bind, and Wrath Eruption. Sadly, they were all weakened simply because Kieran failed to amass even a single Bleed stack.
Bundal's skin was nothing like a human's flesh, seemingly hardened by all the chemicals and experiments he subjected himself to. Even with the added weight of his attacks, Kieran failed to cut Bundal.
At most, his violent attacks produced sudden indents in Bundal's skin, which soon healed.
'After all this time, we haven't even managed to shave off 10% of his Health. He heals too damn fast," Nemean grumbled, panting because of the exhaustion he felt.
As he could barely survive one attack from Bundal, Nemean had to remain in motion and become a difficult target whenever Bastion tired or faltered from the rampant pain running amok in his body.
The Last Stand skill didn't heal his injuries, so Bastion still possessed several shattered bones that not even Sera's healing could quickly heal. This was one of the tragedies of Stage 1 Realism.
As it was predominantly combat-oriented, players would struggle to recover from certain injuries, unless given a certain amount of time. The required period wasn't too different from what regular humans required.
Nevertheless, it was all based on a player's Constitution, END, and VIT.
'In the end, I'll have to do it…'
Eventually, Kieran begrudgingly let out a sigh, closing his eyes as he took a few steps behind the ongoing battle.
