"Phew…. Here we go!"
Resting his left hand on his chest, Ivan took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he composed himself for the ensuing battle. This time he would be traveling light. Only equipped with his satchel of likely useful vials and elixirs.
Speed would be his ally in this fight. All living beings had at least a drop of water in them, as long as he can touch his enemy the fight should be in his favor.
His backpack and other belongings would remain stashed in his safe room, if he survives his battle with the Behemoth he would return to retrieve his items.
But, in case he died here without anyone to witness it, he left behind a little memorabilia just so his death wouldn't be in vain. Nothing to confirm his existence, but a tiny room near the exit of the 64th floor with some stamina and healing potions. As well as a note congratulating whoever made it that far.
A little way to hopefully contribute even after death. Hopefully, even despite not knowing who he was, whoever that reaches the note would find some solace in knowing there were others that believe in them.
Looking at the foreboding doors of stone in front of him, Ivan placed his hands on both of them and gently pushed forward.
A downward spiral of stairs appeared before him, swallowed in darkness the steps became more apparent as the light fixtures on the walls grew a purple flame, as if welcoming whoever dared to enter the 65th floor.
Ivan wiped the sweat from his brows before taking a step in, spreading his arms wide and ready for trouble, Ivan traversed deeper and deeper into the lair.
The staircase seemed to span on for forever, as each step became heavier than before. Ivan's breathing became erratic as the thumping in his heart grew louder.
Now that he thought about it, there hadn't been a single time since he arrived in this world that he felt his life was in danger. Not when he faced the Kingdom and Holy Church. Not when he first entered the dungeon. And not when Hiyama tried to take his life.
Up until now he was completely assured of his safety.
That's when he thought to himself, 'Will I fear for my life once I meet this hero slayer?' He was curious. Curious if the hard work he had been through up till now would be useless as he stood petrified in fear for his life.
In a sense it was this curiosity that compelled him to take another step towards his potential doom. To Ivan it was either he died here against this legendary hero slayer or out on the surface living in fear.
The thought of such a life made him clench his teeth. The more he thought about that possibility the more pissed off he became. His cautious steps turned into confident strides as he marched his way down the stairs.
The beating of his heart grew quiet as the excitement he felt in his gut was becoming so powerful that he felt like he was going to throw up. But he'd save that for when he actually saw the beast.
Tightening his gauntlets, Ivan focused on the last step as he stared at the scenery in front of him. In a single word this room was 'spacious.' If he had to use two words then he'd simply label it as 'boss fight.'
In this wide cavern the only thing that appeared before him was a large bridge that spanned over the consuming void. It was a rather grand bridge decorated with ornate stones and bricks that lined up the edges. The only other noticeable thing about the room would be the large pink crystals that floated along the sides of the bridge, fully illuminating the area.
Ivan made careful strides toward the center of the bridge, glaring intently at the grand majestic doors that awaited him on the other side. Step by step, it was difficult to crush his impulse to make a dash for the next level as the quietness he's experienced so far on this level was raising the hair on his neck.
Every floor he's experienced so far spanned quite far and wide in size. This straight bridge that connects one level to the other devoid of any life just screamed suspicious in his mind.
'Where is it gonna come from…. Above? How about below? Argh, it could even be behind…' He felt like he was going insane, it wasn't until he was three-fourths his way to the middle that a change in the scenery finally happened.
ZZZTTTT
A loud buzzing noise resounded from both behind him and the side of the bridge that held the exit. Ivan resumed his defensive stance as he took a glance at what was going on behind him. Glancing at the scene behind him, Ivan stood petrified for a moment before turning his attention to the magic circle that appeared at the entrance to the next floor.
As for what was going on behind him, well it just happened to be a fleet of Traum Soldiers, an entire fleet of skeletons….. Skeletons that had no blood or water coursing through their body….
They were a troublesome enemy type that always appeared in fleets, Ivan had his first encounter with them on the 38th floor as he was trying to find a place to use the bathroom. Since then he had often encountered them beyond the 38th floor and was quite disheartened when he realized his Water Transmutation wouldn't have any effect on them.
But seeing as how his new style would be ineffective against them, he of course thought of a few ways to take care of them. Back before he developed his water style the way he usually took care of them was by using a club or any other blunt weapon he could transmute. It was painful seeing as how they were always in group but by transmuting a few walls here and there he gathered enough time to divide and conquer them.
And of course since developing his water style he ended up finding a way to take care of them from afar.
Normally he wouldn't have any trouble taking care of them but that only applied if they were his only concern.
BBBBZZZZZZTTTTT
Unfortunately whatever was summoned at the end of the bridge has fully materialized into this world.
"GRRRRAAAAAUGGGH!!!"
The large triceratops-like monster roared loudly into the air, akin to the cries of a newborn the moment it breathed its first air. Ivan stared into its red glowing eyes before getting attracted by the bull-like horns that sprouted from its bull head. Looking at its body that spanned 10 meters in length, Ivan contemplated running away before shaking off the notion at a glance of the Traum Soldiers behind him.
Keeping his eyes on the Behemoth that took slow yet powerful strides toward him, Ivan focused his Hands of Mana to form a large wall that completely sealed the Traum Soldiers from interfering.
It wasn't exactly something that made him jump in cheer as he was sure that resourceful monsters such as the Trauma Soldiers would likely form some sort of human ladder to get over the wall.
To him if they held enough intelligence to utilize weapons effectively then he had no doubts in their intelligence.
Ivan returned the Behemoth's gesture as he in turn made his way towards it. It's not like he really wanted to provoke it or anything, he just wanted to make sure it wouldn't destroy the wall he transmuted in the heat of the battle.
40 meters changed to 30 as they made their way towards each other… then to 25 as Ivan went from a stern march to a brisk jog….. then to 15 meters as that jog turned into a sprint…. 10 meters….. 5 meters….. Then 1.
CLANG!!!
Ivan took the moment the Behemoth stabbed its horns into the ground he stood on to run along them and position himself at its head. Seeing it struggle to pull itself out he positioned both his hands on the center of its head. Seeing the sparks combust from his hands, he pressed them firmly against the beast's head, intending to boil it into mush.
And then…. Nothing.
"Huh?' Ivan became perplexed seeing as how his transmutation was ineffective. That's when he switched from boil to freeze in hopes of freezing it to death.
His hands sparked again as he pressed them into the Behemoth's head.
And then….. Nothing again.
"You gotta be kidding me… it's hide is too thick!" Ivan screamed in frustration as he came to realize his transmutation wasn't reaching the water inside the beast's body/.
"Uh-oh…" Frustration turned to panic as the Behemoth had finally unlodged itself from the bridge's surface. Holding on for dear life, Ivan was powerless as it tried its best to buck him off its back.
"Shit!" He quickly manifested his Hands of Mana before making a grab at the bridge's edge, for just a moment he found himself hovering over the abyss.
Having made his return on the bridge, Ivan dug into his satchel.
It seemed the Behemoth caught onto his intentions as it took the moment he reached over to charge at him.
Seeing the Behemoth approaching, Ivan only smiled wickedly before pulling out the thing he had been searching for. In fact they were not very deep in his satchel and he had left that vulnerability to attract the Behemoth closer to him.
Holding a tin container in both hands, Ivan's gauntlets glowed brightly before tossing each container to the face of the Behemoth. The containers glowed brightly in the air before exploding into a hot mist.
KABOOM!
The charging Behemoth was too late to close its eyes as the boiling water entered and disrupted its vision.
"RAUUUGH!" The Behemoth wept in pain as it searched around for any sight of Ivan. However with the boiling water having entered its eyes the vision it once had has been completely rendered useless.
Ivan took that moment of blindness to sneak beneath the lost Behemoth in hopes of making it to the exit.
As if sensing something beneath it, the Behemoth swept it's large tail to make sure Ivan couldn't sneak past.
WOOOOSH!
Ivan dove back underneath the Behemoth to avoid the destructive power of its tail.
Withdrawing another canteen from his satchel, Ivan emptied its contents right beneath him.
These canteens were a little something he thought of to counter the Traum Soldiers. Using the water he found on floor 45 he thought to preserve it and bring it along with him should he not find any water or his abilities failed to work on his enemies.
As for how they could be used offensively, Ivan activated his right gauntlet with mana before slamming it into the puddle he made.
The water sparked for a moment before a high-pressure water slash propelled itself from the puddle and made its way to the Behemoth's tail.
SLICE!
It containing the power of a ton of his mana made it a powerful enough force to bisect its tail. The only problem being that with how large his satchel was there are only two more canteens he had left.
The Behemoth roared in pain for a few seconds before releasing a roar that Ivan understood as 'pissed off.'
Seeing as how he was still beneath it, the Behemoth went ahead and threatened to crush him with its weight.
Noticing the growing shadow, Ivan rolled out from beneath it and made a dash for the exit.
The Behemoth turned to the way Ivan was running before arching its knees. Ivan had no idea what it was going to do but he did not have a good feeling about the pink aura it was radiating.
Seconds later and the Behemoth that stood still all of a sudden released itself from its stance, charging forward swiftly as it was engulfed in a pink light.
Ivan didn't have any confidence that he'd reach the door before the Behemoth crushed him so he manifested his Hands of Mana once more and transmuted layers and layers of walls behind him as he made his escape.
CRUSH! CRUSH! CRUSH!
His heart sank every time he heard the destruction of his walls behind him. Sooner or later the Behemoth would break through all of his defenses and crush him completely. Even with one of his swiftness potions there was no way he was going to make it to the end.
That's when he came to a decision. Either he put up a last fight to slow this thing down or see how far he could run before he was trampled.
And obviously he was going to choose the former.
Withdrawing the last canteens he had in his satchel, Ivan completely emptied their contents in front of him. Then, he stood silently as he mustered up all of his remaining mana into the transmutation circles on his gauntlets.
He then waited…. listening carefully to each sound of his walls breaking.
11 walls remaining… 9 walls remaining…. 6 walls remaining….. 3 walls remaining... 1 wall remaining!
Ivan opened his eyes widely as he slammed his palms into the puddle before him, releasing all the pent up mana stored in his gauntlets.
BBBBBZZZZZZTTTTTTT!
The transmutation circles grew brightly as sparks flew in the air, Ivan stared into the eyes of the charging Behemoth and he activated the transmutation
"Now!"
A structure similar to an iceberg manifested from the puddles beneath him and pushed back at the Behemoth's force.
"Kuh!" Ivan grit his teeth as he listened to the sound of his shattering ice. In a matter of time the Behemoth would break through the ice and squish him.
"Hahahaha!" In the face of his impending doom, Ivan laughed cheerfully. Contrary to the fear he was expecting, all he felt now was pride. Pride at having made it this far. Pride in knowing his mother and everyone he loved would praise him for his accomplishments.
And with that pride in mind, Ivan freed one of his hands and made for the dagger at his waist.
He unsheathed it swiftly and looked at himself in its reflection, then this act of his was followed by a slash at his wrist.
SWISH!
Ivan stared at the dripping blood, mesmerized by its color. He closed his eyes and awaited his death.
'Blood….. my blood….. Wait, that's it!' Coming to another realization he opened his eyes swiftly.
He eyed the oozing wound once more before placing his free hand on it. The gauntlet shined once more and the blood that had dripped to his feet assimilated into his last defense.
Looking at the frozen blood, Ivan grinned cheerfully before pulling out a couple healing potions from his satchel.
He took his dagger again and this tie opened multiple lacerations across his body. His right hand shined brightly before transmuting the blood he lost into his defense.
Ivan repeated this process over and over: withdrawing blood until he couldn't afford to then drinking the potions to replenish only to repeat his first step.
Ivan laughed proudly looking at the iceberg dyed red from his blood. It's mass and size were far greater than before.
That's when he felt a change in the force, or rather he felt no force at all.
The ice breaking, the grunting of the Behemoth, all of it had disappeared. The only thing left to hear was the Traum Soldiers hacking away at his first wall.
It had seemed that he managed to tire the Behemoth out.
"Ha! Hahaahaha! Fuck you! Hahahahah!" Ivan screamed victoriously at the unseen Behemoth. Stress turned to relief as his laughter turned into sobbing.
For the first time in his life, he was glad to be alive.
Fearing the Behemoth would regain its strength, Ivan gathered his loosely hanging arms and limped his way to the exit.
Breathing deeply at each step he took.
It wasn't until he stood at the doors to the next level that he finally turned around.
"Ah… the ice has cracks in it. It must be ready to attack…." Not minding the pursuing Behemoth, Ivan laid his hands out in front of him again and gently pushed forward.
For the first time in recent human history, the doors to the 66th level had been opened.
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MY EYES BURN!
Hello, there. I am Ardo Aleister
And yeah I admit writing fight scenes are definitely not my strong suit. It's almost 12 AM but I really needed to push this one out so here you guys go, once again I'd like to reiterate that my eyes burn. This is way out of my usual writing schedule.
Honestly I think even if I was well rested the outcome wouldn't have changed. But I'm glad that we can move on now. Time for another 100 floors woohoo!
.....As if!
I really want Ivan to have a companion that he could talk to! Even I'm starting to go insane. But we won't really be seeing one till floor 150 so stay tuned!
Also, I once again acquire your assistance, we need 1 more reviews for me to hit the goal so I'd greatly appreciate the sentiment. If you can take the time out your day to write even a short one I'll be glad.
Thanks once again for reading and you better have a great ass day/night!
If you want to support me and read ahead 10-15 chapters, you can check out my p.a.t.r.e.o.n right here: https://bit.ly/ardoaleister
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