Chapter 179
Chapter 179: Wrong, Wrong, I'll Never Do It Again
Bone-piercing cold light burst continuously from the walls, following the sharp claws Hera swung, launching toward Viktor.
Countless razor-sharp Bone Spears drove precisely toward every vital point on Viktor's body.
Yet the moment those Bone Spines were about to make contact with Viktor, he could always deflect them in an instant with the Round Shield in his hand.
Even when he couldn't block in time, with his fluid movements, he could dodge with ease.
Hera wove between the Bone Spears, and in the gaps between each strike Viktor evaded, she continued launching swift and ferocious attacks.
But Viktor remained composed throughout—even with room to spare.
At some point, a wooden blade materialized in his hand out of thin air, accompanied by countless iron cards that spun and whirled ceaselessly around him.
Red and green dual colors flashed through the air, stinging Hera's eyes so badly she could barely keep them open.
Yet even so, Hera's offensive didn't diminish in the slightest.
Carried on the howling wind of a broken gale, she swung her long, razor-sharp claws, Bone Spears aimed straight at Viktor's chest.
As if she intended to tear his heart completely out—like an absolutely ferocious beast.
The Adventurers behind her, watching this unfold, couldn't help but speak with voices that trembled.
Yet within that trembling, there seemed to be a hint of excitement.
"The boss is going all out!"
"Never thought I'd get to see the boss fight again."
"But that guy is too good… when did someone this strong come out of the south? A Knight?"
"Could be a Warrior."
Viktor paid no mind to the words around him. While continuously dodging the sudden strikes of Bone Spines, he swung the Round Shield in his hand and deflected every slashing claw Hera threw out.
Combat had broken out, and Hera's level and HP bar were now exposed before Viktor.
Lv48.
The woman before him was likewise a veteran monster who had survived for a long time.
Hera the Wild One—Viktor naturally recognized who she was.
In the game's background story, Hera had once put forward a theory that Adventurers should take the behavior of beasts as their guiding principle, maintaining a fierce and savage combat style that completely tore apart enemies.
But this combat proposal was naturally met with opposition from many.
The reasoning was that Adventurers were mostly human and should fight with a human sense of collective consciousness, without the need for total destruction or excessive brutalization.
This proposal—which regarded Adventurers as noble humans—received approval from the majority.
But interestingly, Hera, who had always adhered to her own combat style, made a breakthrough two years after the game's background story.
In one leap, she became the only 5th-Tier Adventurer in the Adventurers' Capital of the south.
Accordingly, with the two princes having died one after another and the south left leaderless, it gave rise to a situation where the Beast Guild stood alone at the top.
But the reason she advocated for Adventurers to be as ferocious as beasts—
—was because Hera herself was not human.
The wooden blade in Viktor's hand flashed with green luminescence and gradually transformed into a wooden hammer.
On his arms, several Formation arrays flickering with red and yellow dual colors kept constructing themselves.
A faint energy coursed through his bloodstream and gathered in Viktor's large palm.
【Strength Boost (Large)】
The next instant, the wooden hammer seemed to shatter the very air as it charged straight toward the sharp Bone Spear thrusting at him.
Thud!
A great wave surged through this corridor, and the overwhelming force swirled within the confined space.
After the fierce collision, cracks actually burst across the Bone Spear, which began to slowly crumble.
The countless iron cards accelerated their spin, and the red-green alternating colors became like streaks of shooting stars, slicing at high speed.
Hera had no time to dodge. Her fair arm was cleanly slashed open, leaving a wound.
Red blood slowly seeped from her arm.
Hera stood frozen on the spot, staring at the wound on her arm, slightly dazed.
The Adventurers who saw that Hera had actually drawn blood were equally stunned beyond belief.
"The boss… actually got injured first!?"
"How… how is this possible!?"
They stared wide-eyed at the man before them, unable to believe what they were seeing.
Hera stepped back a few paces, staring at the dripping blood.
Those bizarre and beautiful eyes—like a kaleidoscope—gradually shifted into different patterns.
Like a true beast, nearly having completely abandoned reason.
Yet right at that moment.
The wooden hammer in Viktor's hand gradually dissolved into green magical energy and dissipated.
The iron cards around him ceased their flight as well. Their radiance dimmed, merging into 2 iron cards that were collected back to his waist.
This caused Hera, who had only just gotten into the zone, to halt involuntarily, as reason gradually returned.
Even the crowd of Adventurers appeared somewhat bewildered.
What was going on? Was it over?
Hera slowly straightened her body, withdrawing the remaining Bone Spears back into herself.
The black flower buds at the corners of her eyes slowly retreated, the vines spreading open.
At some point—seemingly because she had gone too berserk—those slender black markings had unknowingly crept up to the back of her head.
Her gaze carried a faint trace of puzzlement.
"You're very strong. But—why did you stop?"
Hera hadn't treated Viktor as an enemy.
As Adventurers, sparring with one another was entirely normal.
But since Viktor had stopped early, she wouldn't be so lacking in integrity as to keep attacking.
A cold voice rang out. Viktor looked at Hera and raised a single finger.
"First—you're the one who attacked without asking any questions."
At these words, Hera felt a flicker of embarrassment, and her gaze drifted for a moment.
Though she didn't want to be this impulsive either, the wild instincts inside her were impossible to suppress at all times.
When encountering a powerful individual like Viktor, she'd instinctively attack.
She had just begun to consider offering an apology when Viktor immediately raised a second finger.
"Second."
"I never said I was done."
The instant those words fell, an extraordinarily vast and surging magical energy erupted in a flash.
Like a great wave sweeping through the sky, carrying an overwhelming oppressive force.
Viktor narrowed his eyes, both hands in his pockets.
"Earlier's close-quarters combat was only a necessity."
And now?
His MP was full.
All at once, the surrounding terrain began to change.
Massive walls became coated in flame. The ground transformed into lava that churned and roiled.
Fire erupted from the earth, and one by one, enormous trees ablaze with flames began to grow twistedly from the walls.
Light illuminated the entire space, as if a sun hung overhead, and the terrifying scorching temperature rose at a breakneck pace.
The entire cavern seemed as though it would be completely melted by this staggering magical energy.
Hera felt the incomparably terrifying temperature and pressure, the patterns within her eyes shifting ceaselessly.
The man who possessed that refined close-quarters combat skill… wasn't a Knight, and wasn't a Warrior.
He was… a Mage?
How could this be?
If the Viktor from before had radiated an aura that was evenly matched with hers—or even clearly weaker by a few degrees—
Then now…
It was as though 2 towering spectral beasts had appeared at Viktor's back, flickering ceaselessly.
The entire cavern trembled violently under this enormously impactful presence.
Viktor's cold voice rang out, like a block of crystalline ice that refused to melt even within a volcano.
"Allow me to introduce myself."
"My name is—Viktor Clavena."
The instant his name was spoken, every one of those Adventurers froze.
This was a name deeply familiar to them.
This was a name that, long ago, had spread across the Empire from south to north.
Countless Adventurers knew of this individual.
Yet just as they were carefully trying to recall exactly who this name belonged to—
The magical energy within the space began surging wildly, like the ocean pouring in, as though it would completely flood the entire cavern.
The flames began to endlessly restructure, and the scorching heat swelled further still.
At Viktor's back, what seemed like 2 miniature suns contracted and spiraled in the air, as if about to explode.
Everyone stood frozen in place, even forgetting to flee.
Because in that moment, it came back to them.
Just days ago, the Mage Council had publicly announced its youngest Mage Council Member and bestowed upon him a Mage title.
His name was—Viktor Clavena.
Also known as…
"The Arbiter Who Strips Away All Phenomena"
2 blazing radiances began growing ceaselessly, starting to devour that darkened cavern bit by bit.
The flames, accompanied by the magical energy, began exploding violently. Thunderous booms and scorching blasts of hot air started sweeping everything away.
The red color became a beast unto itself, swallowing all things within the light before anything else could.
The teal stone walls began to shatter and crumble apart, white light spilling out from within, dissolving into smoke that began rising through the air.
Whoooosh—
That radiance shimmered with waves of crimson, then white light once again blanketed all things, completely drowning out even the thunderous rumbling.
As though time itself had been stretched unbearably long in this one moment.
When the radiance finally dissipated, there was no longer any trace of the surrounding walls.
Only churning, restless flesh rippled all around, bearing the scorch marks of burns.
When they raised their heads, they could even see the roiling violet sky above, tumultuous and unsettled.
Fortunately, they were generally of 4th-Tier strength and had barely managed to endure that terrifying explosion.
The Adventurers of the Beast Guild were tough-skinned and thick-blooded to begin with—and moreover, that horrifying explosion had not been aimed at them.
Otherwise, they would likely have been reduced to dust and ashes long ago.
Countless sharp Bone Spines had shielded Hera's body, blocking the shockwave from the explosion.
The Bone Spines contracted. Hera raised her head and looked at the brightened sky as its light gradually faded, the patterns in her eyes slowly ceasing their shifts.
Her lips parted, and her voice trembled beyond measure.
"He… is the true monster."
In a daze, she caught sight of Viktor's silhouette.
The man clad in a black Coat stood suspended in midair with both hands in his pockets.
The Coat at his back billowed and swayed beneath the ceaselessly flickering radiance.
2 colors of light began flickering against each other beneath the white blazing sun, red and green in contrast.
The 2 spectral beasts seemed to let out roar after roar at his back.
As though deliberately drawing something in.
Viktor looked down at the dazed Hera, and at those Adventurers regarded as the finest—and spoke lightly:
"Very well."
"Since you're already here, stand quietly over there."
"Be an audience."
Hearing this, every single Adventurer—Hera included—instantly froze on the spot.
This… what did that mean?
But the very next instant—
"Rawwwrrrr—!!!"
A dragon's roar rang out, as if it had cleaved through the heavens, passing through layer after layer of space.
Viktor raised his head again, gazing at the tranquil violet sky.
"It's here."
The wind swept past.
In that moment, the sky was no longer still.
"The Calamity of Wind—Dorakon."