Chapter 38: The Holy Knight vs. Ainika, the One Who Loathes All Life (Part 2)
Ainika, the One Who Loathes All Life, was relentless.
As expected, no matter how many times I obliterated her, she resurrected completely each time, and it was becoming exhausting how persistently she aimed for my life.
In contrast, thanks to the spell symbol Sena, I was freed from the limitations of my Mana Capacity. However, that didn’t mean that the battle against Ainika was any easier.
I refrained from using the Out Strider del Sole as much as possible in this unpredictable fight, due to the physical strain and Mana consumption it required, along with its Cooldown.
Instead, my primary strategy involved constantly accelerating my thoughts with Autobahn, allowing me to perceive Ainika’s fast and heavy attacks. I layered Autobahn onto my arms and legs to counter her strikes.
Of course, using Autobahn wasn’t without its risks. Fatigue accumulated, and while it wasn’t as severe as the strain from Out Strider del Sole, I still needed to take brief moments of Cooldown, just like catching my breath.
In this battle against Ainika, where I had no idea when I could escape, three major concerns loomed over me: water, food, and the remaining Healing Potions.
As time passed, the most rapidly consumed of these three was the potions.
Ainika was the strongest undead I had faced among all the monsters so far. There was no way I could come out unscathed. Therefore, I decided to endure the fatigue from using Autobahn and the intense combat until I sustained injuries that would clearly hinder my fighting ability before consuming any potions.
However, no matter how much I tried to conserve them, the consumption of potions was unavoidable.
And then, after two and a half days had passed…
—Seventy percent of the potions I had stockpiled were gone.
Running out of potions equated to death. A sense of dread began to creep into my mind. Even now, my battle with Ainika was precariously balanced, and any single trigger could tip the scales dramatically.
Just as I had adapted my tactics during the fight against the Reverse Dead, Ainika seemed to gain some advantage each time she resurrected. Though these advantages were slight, they were certainly not to be ignored.
“Not again!!”
The monster before me charged through my Rain spell barrage without a hint of hesitation. It was the moment I could visibly see her resistance to Light Magic.
“No matter how many times you try, it’s the same! Fragile human!!”
I deflected the descending serrated great sword with acceleration and countered with a swift slash.
“Condenser!”
Unlike Rain, which dispersed its power for wide-area attacks, the Condenser concentrated its force as its name suggested. I struck Ainika with it, and she vanished with a sizzling sound.
At this point, even a spell like Rain was nearly ineffective against her. So, how long could my Light Magic still hold up? The fear I had once experienced in the Labyrinth of Immortality began to sprout anew within my Heart.
Another six hours passed.
Ainika’s resistance to Light Magic might have been due to my overuse of it, I thought. Unlike my previous battle with the Reverse Dead, I decided to conserve my spells for critical moments. Then, suddenly,
“Ha!!—”
The sword, accelerated by Autobahn, pierced into Ainika’s body, but it became increasingly difficult to slice through her with a single strike.
“—Take this!!”
I accelerated my legs and arms with Autobahn—coordinating my movements—I spun my pivot foot in the opposite direction and delivered a slash from the opposite side of where I had struck earlier.
“Guh!!”
Ainika groaned, but I ignored her and cleaved through her once more, reducing her to pieces with my accelerated sword.
“How long can I keep this up—”
I couldn’t finish my thought. If I voiced it, I was sure I would—
And then, another six hours passed.
My battle with Ainika had entered its third day. Ainika was incredibly tough, absurdly fast, and her attacks were unbelievably heavy. On top of that, she possessed resistance to Light Magic, resurrected multiple times, and grew stronger each time—she was the most vicious monster I had ever faced.
I had forgotten.
Just as I had unleashed a barrage of Light Magic, she too began to use Dark Magic—
“—”
Until then, she had primarily engaged in physical combat, but now she started to unleash Dark Magic in rapid succession. This time, she employed a tactic known as “gummy shooting.”
I kicked off the floor with accelerated legs, dodging all her attacks, and anything I couldn’t evade, I sliced with Gram—just after,
“Guh!!”
From behind the barrage, a great sword gleamed.
It was Ainika’s strike. My left arm was severed, and the follow-up Dark Magic completely obliterated it.
“How inconvenient it is to be human.”
Ainika spread her arms wide and proclaimed triumphantly.
“Making a fuss over losing an arm. It’s utterly unbearable to watch. If you’ve lost an arm—”
She severed her own arm with her great sword and kicked it away. Then,
“—just grow it back.”
She declared, as black tendrils sprouted from the severed stump, intertwining and swiftly restoring her arm as if nothing had happened.
“See? It’s that simple, isn’t it?”
I gritted my teeth against the pain of losing my left arm while listening to her taunts.