Chương 71: 70. The Distorted Ankh

The rules of the Grand Arcana strictly forbade deities from offering pacts directly. Officially, they could only convey their requests through the rule-masters, but there were always exceptions. During the ten years of my previous run, I had seen deities whisper directly to participants, enter their dreams, or even use their own followers to make the request with varying degrees of force. This was the first time a deity had asked me in person.

Not only that, but unless I had heard correctly, it was offering its life as part of the bargain.

"Oh, right, you can't talk," Hyena said, misinterpreting my silence.

"Just nod if you agree." The boss started laughing again. Insanity streaked from every high-pitched sound the entity made—a reckless madness that didn't care about anyone or anything. I strongly doubted the creature cared about my answer. Whether I agreed or not, I had the strong suspicion that the outcome would be the same.

"Playing hard to get?" The monster sounded outright amused.

"How about I sweeten the deal and offer protection for your sister as well?" My right hand trembled. This wasn't the first entity that had spoken about the outside world, yet I didn't like that it had threatened my sister. My mind blanked. Gripping the saber tightly, I charged right at Anubis' Minion. The demigod must have expected that, for he also charged at me, filling the hall with his laughter. Ten of Swords! Nine of Chalice! I combined the cards, sending dozens of thread strikes right at the divine minion.

Half a dozen undead jackals got sliced to pieces, falling back to the floor. The spell circles around Hyena's hand shattered, removing the protections guarding him. The black sword swung down at me. The speed was slow enough to tempt me to block it outright. That was a trap. With the boss' raw strength, all I would achieve would be to get squashed like a bug. I leaped to the side, evading the blow. In the process, I made sure my blade came into contact with his. Restrict! I thought.

The ground shattered beneath the force of the blow. A new host of spell circles appeared on the side of the weapon. Now waiting, I used my own magician card to erect a stone wall in front of me. The intention was solid, yet my magic remained largely lacking. Steel spokes show out of Hyena's blade, breaking through my wall as if it were toffee. The only benefit was that it had restricted his vision. Damn it! I wanted to shout out to Sparta. Fighting the boss solo was beyond anyone's abilities.

Maybe if Cathy and Marcus were here, things would have been a lot better. There were no what-ifs in the Grand Arcana, though. Maintaining my momentum, I kept running. The wall burst a split second later, as the monster swung its massive sword through it. Immediately, I leaped into the air. Time seemed to slow as the death blade slid beneath me. Half a food separated me from certain death, not even counting its special ability. Restrict! I spun around, striking the top of the blade with my saber.

In addition, I also cast another earth spell in an attempt to anchor the monster's weapon to the ground. My spell circle shattered before the spell could take hold. Despite having the card, I couldn't call myself a magician. Thread strike! I spun around again, slashing in the direction of the boss' neck. Another spell circle appeared on Hyena's shoulder, causing my attack to bounce off.

"So eager to play," he laughed, spinning around with a follow-up attack. This time there was no way for me to evade. Using the Gatekeeper and Five of Chains I barely managed to block the strike. The wave of force swept through me, sending my back like a Champaigne cork. DEATH STRIKE unsuccessful Thank the cards for small blessings. Each strike by a death weapon came with a chance of instant destruction. That was why the veterans always avoided fights against monsters with death weapons.

All the skills and preparation in the world meant little when it came to a game of chance. A death blade combined with a multi-attack card was a lethal combination. Statistically, one in a hundred hits was guaranteed to kill any opponent. If some of my past acquaintances were here, they'd probably say that wasn't how statistics worked, but I had no intention of finding out. You all right, Serb? I asked. I hate death weapons, the saber replied. They taste disgusting! Clearly everyone had his own set of problems.

Mine was how to remain alive. Concentrating on the magician's card, I cast a wind and water spell. Both spell circles appeared on my back. A split second later there was a loud splash as the newly created water cushioned my slam into the wall. My chest exploded in pain, but at least it didn't seem like any actual damage had been done. In the moments I fell to the ground, I considered my strategy. More jackal warriors had come to life again.

Unlike most previous monsters, this one didn't make the mistake of underestimating me. If it wasn't for Harlequin's curses, I would have used the Bard and Emperor cards immediately. I strongly doubted they would have an effect on the boss, but they would at the very least deal with the remaining mobs. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. An idea suddenly came to mind.

It was risky and almost insane as the monster I was fighting, but desperation left me no other alternative. I glanced at Sparta. The woman had stood up, using the wall to aid her in the process. That was good. Wasting no time, I dashed forward. Hyena probably thought that I was aiming to charge again, for more spell circles appeared on his body. Wrong move. I stopped, slamming my foot on the ground. Fire! A massive spell circle filled the hall, starting from my foot.

Large enough to encompass the boss and all of its undead minions if flickered once, then unleased a column of flames. Not once in my life had I expected that I would be thankful to a scorpion queen. The spell she had used against us had shown me the power of magic. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have imagined it possible, condemning myself to lesser spells. Now, I stood a chance.

"Oh, that's good!" Laughter filled the chamber. Fire! I stomped my foot again.

"You really are something! When they told me about you, I thought they were exaggerating, but every bit of it is true." I could see several jackal warriors evaporate, consumed by the flames. There would be no returning them from the dead. The only corpses Hyena could bring back were those in the previous chamber. That said, the flames didn't seem to affect him at all.

That's usually what happened when magic faced magic: no matter how destructive the power, there always was a counter, and he was a lot more adept at using it. The large silhouette swung its sword. In an instant, all the flames vanished.

"There's no way someone like you could live," the monster grinned, eyes flashing with madness. Hyena opened his mouth to add something more, but before he could, a dagger split the air, striking his chest. A glowing thread came out of the weapon's hilt, leading all the way to Sparta.

"Using it already?" Hyena reached to grab the thread, but Sparta pulled her weapons back faster.

"I would have thought you'd leave it for something important." He slashed the air in her direction. A wave of hardened air flew at the woman. If I were in her shoes, I would have used the thread-dagger to leap up and cling to the ceiling. She chose to duck, which also proved a valid option. Behind her, parts of the wall shattered, leaving a deep groove. This was my cue. There was no point in exercising any caution. The monster held the advantage in the current status quo.

If I were to have any chance of winning, I had to make drastic changes. Thankfully, my current abilities allowed for precisely that. I stomped on the ground. As before, a spell circle formed. The difference was that instead of fire, a column of water erupted. What do you think now? I thought as Hyena was slammed against the ceiling. My aether level was undoubtedly weak.

My flames didn't burn as hot as they could; everything I created of earth would be easily shattered, yet none of that mattered when it came to water. Maybe it would take a few seconds to fill in the chamber rather than a few tenths of a second, but the end result was the same. Even demigods had to follow the rules of the trial, which meant he couldn't breathe under water. Reaching the ceiling, the column of water poured out, crashing onto the remaining empty space of the hall like a circular waterfall.

I braced myself. The Boots of Swiftness maintained their traction, keeping me from being pushed to the floor. The only thing I had to worry about now was the current that pulled the water into the neighboring chamber. Archer. I threw Serp at the monster, then took my divine blades from my inventory and threw them as well. Ignoring the resistance of water and flesh, the silver weapons crossed the distance in half a second, passing through the boss' stomach as if it were nothing, then striking the wall behind.

The saber, on its part, barely crossed half the distance to Hyena when it completely lost its momentum. So, I can't swim, Serp complained. That's an over-hyped ability, anyway! Without a word, I rushed forward to retrieve him. Unsummoning and summoning would have been a lot faster, but I could lose all the blood benefits he had gained. Two things were on my mind right now: the boss and Sparta. While not suffering the brunt of the water column, she couldn't breathe either.

Mercury could possibly grant her some temporary power to compensate, but he couldn't interfere in a fashion that would make her invulnerable. One minute, I thought. That was the amount of time someone could function adequately underwater. I remembered reading a long time ago, back before I had entered the Grand Arcana for the first time, that the human mind could survive five minutes without oxygen. Maybe that was true, but it didn't take fighting into account.

I grabbed the serpent blade and turned in the direction of the boss. The moment I did, a massive circle had emerged around his waist. Healing? I wondered. A massive air bubble surrounded him, then grew further, pushing all the water out of the chamber. What the hell was that? I wondered. No idea, but not as cool as your spell, brother, Serp said. With a loud thud, the boss monster landed on the floor. He was breathing heavily, but even then, the occasional chuckle would escape his mouth with every breath.

"That… was good," he said, clinging to his sword. On the other side of the chamber, Sparta was coughing the water out of her throat. My spontaneous spell seemed to have affected her worse than I thought. The monster's sword rose into the air, its edge aimed in my direction, but no attack followed.

"You are skilled," the boss admitted.

"Far too skilled, even for an anomaly. Are you from another faction? Have you broken the pact?" I had no idea why he was asking me these questions, especially since it was obvious I couldn't answer. Yet, I got the feeling there was more than insanity at play here. Just like the siren, Hyena implied there was something beyond the trial, possibly beyond the Grand Arcana altogether. If only I had a mouth, I would have asked what that was. Serp, can you grab things? I thought. Huh? How do you expect me to do that?

You can change form, I clarified. It boggled the mind how the serpent blade didn't seem to have thought of that. When it came to certain aspects of the Arcana, he was far more knowledgeable than me, even after I had spent ten years in the game. When it came to most basic behaviors, he remained a complete child. Maybe, he said. What are you thinking? Hold tight! I threw him straight at the boss monster's neck. Three times faster than any strike, the blade split the air.

The speed was impressive, though still slower than the time it took my opponent to cast a spell. A new circle emerged, rendering him invulnerable. Internally, I smiled. That was the thing about deities: they remained predictably arrogant. Hyena could have done a whole range of things, yet he needed to display his might for all to see. Disarm! Snatch! I ordered, then unsummoned Serp.? *^#$^ 6%&58 (^34 98g& *987$. *#4rd4##. A message of gibberish flashed before me before promptly disappearing." Now you've done it," Hyena growled. Unlike all the times before, there was no trace of laughter.