Chapter 17: The Long Road to the Imperial Capital – 08
The next day begins on the 16th floor of the Dungeon.
As I descend the stairs, a vast expanse unfolds before me. The stone walls on either side stretch at least 100 meters apart, and the depth is so great that it seems endless.
From this point, the Dungeon’s atmosphere shifts dramatically, revealing a single, expansive space.
After moving forward a bit, I sense the presence of numerous monsters approaching from the depths. Rather than just a multitude, it feels more accurate to describe it as a horde.
What emerges is a legion of bipedal lizards known as Lizardmen. At the top stands a single Lizardman King, flanked by ten Lizardman Generals, with a total of around 300 Lizardman Soldiers and Magicians. It seems that Larni’s God of Plague and Karma’s Synergy Skill have worked quite hard.
Normally, such a large group would require multiple parties to tackle, but with Soul’s Guidance and Shizuna’s Spirits included, we have an eleven-member formation, so numbers aren’t an issue.
“Let’s take the initiative with magic first,” I declare.
With her newly acquired staff, Sfenia has powered up and combines her First Strike, Dual Magic, Mixed Magic, and Charge Skills to unleash a Lava Cyclone.
Two swirling torrents of lava wreak havoc, decimating the Lizardman horde. The overwhelming force leaves all our members in awe.
From there, our front line systematically cuts down the Lizardmen rushing at us one after another.
With each flash of Larni and Karma’s swords, and each sweep of Sakurahime’s naginata, Lizardman heads go flying. The Iron Golem, a Spirit standing over two meters tall, crushes Lizardmen with its powerful arms.
Of course, my mace also sends many Lizardmen flying into oblivion. With the horde already half-destroyed, there’s no need for my Shockwave skill.
The backline, including Freinir and the others, targets distant Magicians and picks them off with magic and arrows. Finally, Mariane, who stealthily maneuvered behind the Lizardman King using her Stealth skill, beheads it, bringing the battle on this floor to a close.
“Sfenia’s magic has become incredibly powerful!” Larni exclaims.
Sfenia smiles happily, her eyes narrowing. “It’s thanks to this staff,” she replies, carefully placing it back in its holder.
“Mariane’s movements were impressive too. Taking the commander from behind could be an effective strategy in such group battles,” I add.
“That’s true. However, if there are still many subordinates left when you take out the commander, it could lead to chaos, so timing is crucial,” Mariane responds.
“Indeed, if we’re not careful, Mariane could end up isolated. We need to watch out for that.”
The 17th floor features another group of Lizardmen, while the 18th and 19th floors are filled with Orcs. However, Sfenia’s preemptive strikes are just as devastating, allowing us to easily defeat them as well.
Now, we descend to the 20th floor, where we will immediately face the boss. This battle resembles the previous group fights.
However, the opponents are a horde of Ogres, each standing at least two and a half meters tall.
“What a brutish-looking bunch,” Shizuna comments, her tone lacking tension, but it’s hard to argue with her observation.
Muscular Ogres with bare upper bodies fill the expansive space. Though the back is out of sight, it seems there are at least 100 of them.
“Led by an Ogre Champ, this group consists of Ogre Grapplers, who excel in grappling techniques, and Ogre Strikers, who specialize in striking attacks,” Mariane explains.
As she described, all these Ogres are unarmed. They appear to be a martial arts collective, and any average adventurer would likely be overwhelmed by their sheer numbers.
“I feel a bit bad about using weapons against them,” I say.
“What if the Champ were to fight you barehanded?” Mariane suggests, an outrageous idea that I can’t help but find amusing.
“Alright, leave the Champ to me.”
As I relay this to the team, a relaxed atmosphere begins to settle in, even before the boss fight.
“Alright, everyone else will proceed as usual. First, we strike with magic, then we engage in a brawl up front.”
“Oooohhh!”
The Ogre Champ roars from the back of the horde, and 100 Ogres charge toward us in unison.
Of course, our magic also unleashes a barrage in response.
Over 30 Ogres are turned to ash by the lava whirlwinds, around ten are sliced in half by vacuum blades, three are impaled by fiery spears, and many others are struck by beams of light raining down from above, suffering massive damage.
The front line engages the Ogres, cutting them down one after another. Larni and Karma fight without a hint of danger, while Sakurahime effectively utilizes her naginata’s reach. The Iron Golem also holds its own, trading blows despite the height difference, though one is caught by a Grappler and thrown.
Amidst this chaos, I swing my mace, obliterating the charging Ogres as I make my way toward the Champ.
Have I taken down twenty? Suddenly, a particularly muscular Ogre with reddish-brown skin stands before me, wearing a belt reminiscent of a champion’s. This must be the Ogre Champ.
He smirks at me, his gaze looking down as if mocking my smaller stature.
I stow my mace in my Item Box and assume a fighting stance with my bare hands. I raise my left index finger in a gesture that says, “Come at me.” A little provocation, but all in good fun.
“Ugaaaah!”
The Ogre Champ charges at me with a furious expression.
I expected a brawling style, but surprisingly, he employs a traditional martial arts style reminiscent of karate.
Refined punches and kicks come flying from his massive frame. With a height difference of 1.5 times, his reach is long and quite troublesome.
I either absorb, deflect, or evade his attacks. Each strike feels like being hit by a log, but with my heightened skills, the damage feels more like being tapped with a twig.
I deflect a low kick and step in quickly, delivering a punch to his gut. My fist sinks into his muscular armor, causing the Champ to grunt and take two or three steps back.
I press forward. The Champ regains his footing and attempts to grapple me. I grip his hands firmly in a position akin to a sumo “te-yotsu” stance.
From here, it becomes a simple test of strength. The Champ, perhaps confident of his victory, smirks again.
But soon, that expression fades, replaced by doubt, and finally, a look of desperation as he stares at me.
If a smaller human is overwhelmingly stronger than him, it’s no surprise he’d wear such a face.
As I concentrate my strength, the Ogre winces in agony and drops to one knee. He struggles to push back, but the outcome is already decided. To the Champ, I must appear as an unstoppable force of power.
I shatter the Champ’s arm and deliver a powerful punch to his head.
With a look of shock, the Ogre’s head explodes into fragments, marking the end of the boss battle on the 20th floor.