The Final Boss Has Returned
Chapter 79
[Then attack.]
[I shall obey the Apostle’s command.]
At the Immortal King’s command to attack, the Army of the Dead charged toward Old Moonlight City, engulfed in a purple haze!
Under the command of the Arch Lich, countless undead surged like crashing waves toward the city covered in flesh and tentacles. Inside the city, the twisted Dark Elves stood against them, but they were overwhelmed before the undead’s numerical onslaught.
[Kiiiiiiiek!]
[Keaaagh!]
The twisted Dark Elves rushed in waving their tentacles, while the undead opposing them fought back reeking of a death aura!
The spectacle of tentacle monsters dripping with purple mana and corpses brandishing blue mana clashing on a massive scale was a sight worthy of a Hollywood fantasy film laden with CG.
Truly, a battle of evil against evil was unfolding now.
[Send those corpses back to the earth! For the Great Providence!]
[It is the Immortal King’s command. Kill all those disgusting lumps of tentacles!]
The Arch Lich, commander of the Army of the Dead, and the Unclean One, leader of the twisted Dark Elves, let out eerie sounds as they rallied their respective forces.
But the side that had seized the initiative in the war was the undead.
An army where fear did not exist, and undead that infinitely resurrected even as their bodies were torn apart by the death energy flowing from the Obelisk, displayed a might that was, truly and literally, no different from an immortal army.
[D-damn it!]
[Where the hell did these corpses come from?]
The waves of undead surged endlessly, to the point that the tentacle monsters were bewildered.
And watching that scene, a smile tugged at Drakan’s lips.
*So the undead forces are at this level. It was worth the wait. They’ll be useful going forward too.*
An undead force test!
That test had easily surpassed the passing mark.
*If this is what it’s like while the Immortal King is sealed, then if his seal were broken…*
What was even more frightening was the fact that this was only a fraction of the power he displayed while still sealed!
Now that he had handed over Laevateinn, if the Immortal King’s seal were broken, the forces Drakan himself commanded would only grow greater.
Chewing over that fact internally, Drakan spoke to Idun, the Dark Elf Queen, who was observing the battle from beside him.
“It’s about time we attacked from this side as well.”
“Just the words I wanted to hear, Contractor. Everyone, prepare for battle! It is time to reclaim the heart of the kingdom!”
At the Queen’s command, the waiting Dark Elf army charged onto the battlefield, and as Drakan watched, he saw Bone Wyverns flying into view.
“Are we starting now too? Our first drive after getting together being in the sky… how romantic?”
Seeing that, Shin Ha-yeon clung to Drakan’s arm and whispered sweetly.
Drakan smiled at her words.
“Yeah. Then let’s go out on our first date.”
The undead force test was over.
Now, it was time to start testing his own changed character specs after completing the undead quest.
* * *
Toward the center of Moonlight City, where the ‘Gate’ was located, undead and Dark Elves surged endlessly!
Watching that sight, the Unclean One, leader of the twisted Dark Elves, cried out in a devastated voice.
[If only, if only we had a little more time!]
If only there had been a little more time, he could have completed the Gate and purified this corrupted world by the will of the Great Providence!
The Unclean One was truly enraged by the enemy throwing a wrench in the works at the final hour, but there was no time left now.
The undead, whose origins were unknown, surged endlessly no matter how many were killed, and the Dark Elves, who had been desperately focused on maintaining the status quo, were also pushing in with irresistible momentum.
[Is this truly the end? No. Not yet…]
Just as the Unclean One was about to move.
Piercing through the dark clouds heavily covering the sky, a flock of Bone Wyverns nosedived straight toward the ground.
Riding the lead Bone Wyvern was none other than Drakan!
Drakan raised the Executor of Iron Blood toward the sky and, looking down at the writhing tentacle monster, the Unclean One, spoke in a low voice.
“Rain of Steel.”
In that moment, a rain of steel poured from the sky toward the earth.
* * *
KRA-BOOM!
An explosion loud enough to burst eardrums filled heaven and earth.
A rain of red aura falling from the dark clouds was turning the ground into scorched earth.
[Kyaaaaagh!]
[Kiek!]
The twisted Dark Elves gathered near the tentacle monster that appeared to be a boss screamed and died.
I smiled in satisfaction as I watched the scene.
*Not quite at my prime, but considering my overall level is low, this is astonishing firepower.*
I was still far from reaching the level of my heyday, but at this point, it was enough to hold my own anywhere.
That was the conclusion I reached after testing the skill.
I had sensed it from the skill description, but it was plain to see that the power had actually grown even stronger than before.
From atop the nosediving Bone Wyvern, I tried not to be conscious of Shin Ha-yeon’s body heat as she hugged me from behind, and looked toward the city center.
In the city center, I could see a disgusting tentacle monster—a giant lump of flesh covered in tentacles and eyeballs, called the Unclean One by the Dark Elves—and a giant stone structure literally shaped like the ‘Gate,’ which the monster guarded like a sacred object.
*Is that the Gate?*
The Gate!
The objective of this Dark Elf quest!
Having confirmed my objective, I landed the Bone Wyvern on the ground below, which had become a mess of blood and flesh from the twisted Dark Elves.
KWA-KOOM!
Though it wasn’t as intense as when I had first cast the skill, the rain of aura blades falling from the sky still came down intermittently, taking the enemies’ lives.
I watched the scene and lightly descended to the ground. After me came Shin Ha-yeon, who had been riding behind me, and then the Arch Lich, and finally elite undead and elite Dark Elves including the Dark Elf Queen, Idun, descending from Bone Wyverns one after another.
[Human. Are you the one behind this?]
The tentacle monster, the Unclean One, asked me in a voice laced with fury.
But I had no obligation to answer its question.
Looking at it, stained all over with purple blood from taking quite a beating from the Rain of Steel, I sneered, kicked off the ground, and shouted.
“Attack.”
The Dark Elves and Death Knights receiving my command instantly kicked off the ground and leaped.
[You shall suffer for eternity!]
Tentacles burst from the Unclean One’s body!
I deflected all the tentacles rushing toward me with the Executor of Iron Blood, but no matter how many I cut down, its regeneration was endless, and they kept growing.
BOOM!
The moment the last aura blade from the sky pierced its body.
[Blizzard.]
The Arch Lich’s voice rang out coldly, and a blizzard raged in the heart of the sweltering great forest.
[Kuuaaaaaaaaaagh!]
The Unclean One, struck head-on by the blizzard, screamed.
Its thick flesh, overflowing with regeneration, could not withstand the blizzard’s terrible might. From its body, mangled to the point that its flesh was torn to shreds, a sinister voice echoed.
[Since it has come to this, I must open the Gate even if I must devote my soul!]
The devastated cry of the Unclean One, its flesh torn to shreds by the Blizzard!
But I had no intention of letting it have its way.
Hearing those words, I quietly used my second ultimate skill.
“Avatar of Iron Blood.”
[Skill ‘Avatar of Iron Blood’ has been activated.]
[All stats temporarily increase by 50%.]
[Attack and Defense temporarily increase by 50%.]
[All skill effects temporarily increase by 50%.]
[Allies’ stats in the vicinity temporarily increase by 20%.]
[Enemies’ stats in the vicinity temporarily decrease by 20%.]
In that moment, a dark red aura enveloped my entire body, and endless notification windows began appearing before my eyes.
Feeling the power surging like boiling water, I let out a laugh.
It still couldn’t match the might of my prime, but as expected, like the Rain of Steel, the skill’s potential itself was at a higher level than before!
I glanced to the side and looked at the duration in the corner of my vision.
[Skill ‘Avatar of Iron Blood’ Duration: 5 minutes]
*Five minutes is enough.*
Five minutes!
Five minutes was more than enough time to kill that boss monster.
RRRRRR!
The ground shook.
The ‘Gate’ slowly dyed purple, and a terrifying energy began to spread, but I paid it no heed and kicked off the ground, soaring into the air.
“Steel Storm.”
WHOOOOOOSH!
As I uttered the skill activation phrase, a storm of dark red aura gathered around the Executor of Iron Blood.
I thrust the storm of aura condensed on the dark red blade straight into the Unclean One’s ruptured hide.
SPLAT!
And it exploded.
The giant lump of flesh burst apart in a single blow, and flesh and blood soared into the sky.
[You have slain the Unclean One.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
…
[The Demon God of Darkness is greatly pleased with your exploits.]
[The Demon God of Darkness has sponsored you with 10,000 points.]
…
I wiped away the flesh and blood splattered on my face and breathed raggedly.
These byproducts would disappear after a certain amount of time, but thanks to the excessively realistic implementation, I couldn’t help feeling unpleasant.
[The duration of ‘Avatar of Iron Blood’ has ended.]
Along with that message, I waved away the semi-transparent windows floating before my eyes and approached the Unclean One’s corpse to collect the items.
[You have acquired a highest-grade magic stone.]
…
[You have acquired 100,000 gold.]
*Nothing that can serve as a clue.*
I had finally killed a monster that seemed related to the ones behind the Great Upheaval, but all that came out were material items and gold.
Of course, it wasn’t bad, but it was a shame there were no items containing clues about the ones behind the Great Upheaval, this so-called Great Providence, or whatever.
*Well, if it were that easy to solve, it wouldn’t be the main story.*
I smacked my lips, pointed at the ‘Gate,’ and spoke.
“Destroy it.”
For the ‘Gate’ to be destroyed by the undead army under my command did not take very long.
[You have completed the quest ‘Calamity of the Dark Elf Kingdom.’]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
[Your level has increased.]
…
[All stats have increased by 100.]
[The new race ‘Dark Elf’ has been unlocked.]
[The path of the Dark Elves, an elven race that rejected harmony and chose change, has opened!]
[Dark Elves are elves who, in the Mythic Age, chose change over harmony and entrusted their bodies to the Demon God. The Elves say that Dark Elves were corrupted by darkness and that even their skin color changed to become dark, but the Dark Elves’ change was a result of their own choice, and they do not regret that choice.]
[Dark Elves receive an environmental buff bonus in dark places or at night, and have double proficiency bonuses to Assassination, Stealth, and Black Magic skills, but in exchange, they cannot learn Spirit Magic, among other unique racial characteristics.]
[From now on, you may select the new race ‘Dark Elf’ during character creation.]
[The Dark Elf starting base is Night Haven in the Dark Elf Kingdom.]
[A new possibility has opened in Arde World. Participate in the new history.]
And so, the moment the giant stone structure, the ‘Gate,’ was destroyed.
Along with the quest completion notification, as expected, a message appeared stating that the Dark Elf had been unlocked as a playable race.
The moment I waved away the semi-transparent notification windows messily covering my vision.
[The Demon God of Darkness smiles in satisfaction at you, who have restored half of the ancient alliance.]
[The Demon God of Darkness delivers an oracle to you.]
[A quest has been generated.]
The moment I saw the Demon God’s quest content that appeared immediately after, Shin Ha-yeon’s voice reached my ears.
“Shall we go back now?”
“We should.”
I nodded at her words.
Now that the quest was finished, it was time to return to Lawless Harbor.