Rock Golem
For low-level adventurers, it is a monster equivalent to a grim reaper.
Unless you are an idiot, it is a monster which you run away from on sight.
It is common for novice adventurers to go against that rule and challenge the golem. Likewise it is common to get their a.s.ses handed to them.
I found it unusual that the path to the summit was clear of monsters
It seems that the trio had defeated all the monsters on their way here.
Perhaps the expensive equipment their parents bought them were too effective, they ended up overestimating their actual abilities and attempted to challenge the summit of the mountain.
For adventurers who try to jump ahead of the pack, a single mistake could cause them their life.
Unless an amazing person appears to save them.
[SOMEBODY. SOMEBODY PLEASE HELPPP.] (One of the trio)
The rock golem was chasing a man who was crawling on all fours in an attempt to run away
Although the rock golem"s movements was slow and dull, it had a large stride, resulting in a surprisingly high speed.
It caught up in an instant and raised its arm
If that attack lands on that boy, that boy will not survive.
I placed more strength into my legs.
At this rate, even with the bonus points in my status, i will not make it in time.
Looks like I"ll have to use my trump card.
I increased my concentration, and opened the door.
For an instant, i increased my leg power to increase my speed for two steps. In the moment before the attack connected, i arrived next to the chick.
The moment i arrived, i immediately closed the door. Opening it for too long places a strain on my body.
[If you"re afraid, just close your eyes!] (Youya)
I raised my sword, interrupting the golem"s fist as it was descending.
It is easy for me to avoid the attack, but if i were to avoid it the boy would be crushed under its weight.
On the other hand, if i were to receive the brunt of the blow, i wouldn"t survive either thanks to my weak defense
So i"ll choose the third option.
I swung up my sword following the rock golem"s attack, avoiding intercepting it directly as I would be crushed 100%.
I swung my sword at the edge of his fist, shifting the angle of the attack.
Ugh. It"s too heavy. The shift wasn"t enough to save the boy.
I slid the sword diagonally upwards and placed my palm on the sword to support the weight of the fist.
The fist follows along the slanted blade, landing on the ground next to me.
The earth was blown away along with me and the boy, surrounding the area in dust.
I landed on the ground properly and kept my sword in it"s sheath
The angle and position of the sword as well as the act of supporting the weight of the fist. The ability to guide and slide the fist away from it"s intended target. If there was any mistake, I would had been crushed without a doubt. But I didn"t hesitate in the slightest. If i couldn"t perform this kind of trick i would had been dead long ago.
Before i reset my level, i was a warrior.
My role was to be a wall for the party. With my low status, i had a weak defense and low speed, so i made up for it with techniques to receive all kind of attacks to complete my role.
Recalling the past reminded me of the strength and speed of the high-levelled monsters. Compared to them, the golem might as well not be moving.
[You can still crawl. You"re in my way, get out of here.] (Youya)
[Ah. It"s you.. Why would you-?]
[I came to help. If you understand now then get away quickly. We won"t be able to escape if you don"t get moving.] (Youya)
The golem threw another fist at us. I guided the fist with a similar technique once more.
Two attacks. Followed by a third. Multiple attacks rained onto us as I deflected them one after another.
[Why would you help us. Ossan it"s impossible for us to escape. The golem is too strong we can"t win.]
[Don"t worry. I will definitely save you guys. I am experienced at this. I am capable of beating monsters even twenty times my strength.] (Youya)
To prove my point, I countered the golem"s attacks whenever it failed to land a blow. The counters honed by years of training was capable of cutting into the hard golem.
Just because the monster had better stats than my own, does not mean that the battle was impossible. If that was the case, every adventurer would had died a thousand times over.
Well in the first place, I have beaten monsters and even other adventurers with statuses several times stronger than my own. The handicap of a cursed status became a blessing, sharpening my techniques and senses to the limit, allowing me to overcome many foes stronger than myself. It was only because I was weak, that I obtained strength through honing my techniques. The only thing that was holding me back was my cursed status.
[I"m sorry Ossan, I"m very sorry.]
The boy started crying on a fours as he crawled away.
Finally, the boy escaped.
With the boy gone, I can finally go on the offensive.
The reason why i chose to become a mystic knight was to obtain the special skill. But that skill was too risky to release with a young man to my back.
Watching the golem"s movements, it looked as if it was going to swing it"s fist down, however I know that the fist is just a feint, and the real attack will be it"s kick. It"s kick is powerful but his movements are far too telegraphed. It"s kick is probably too powerful for me to defend against.
However, I don"t have to defend anymore. I can afford to dodge with the baggage gone.
It"s kick is a powerful attack, but in exchange it leaves his body exposed.
It is the perfect time.
I began casting my magic.
The privillege that only mystic knights had was the ability to cast magic in close combat.
I approached the rock golem as i began my chants.
The benefits of casting magic was the ability to attack from a distance.
The basic movement would be to increase the distance from the target when casting magic.
It was irrelevant, so I threw that concept away
My spell is different as it"s range was incredibly short. This meant that it was only usable in close combat. It was a spell suitable for mystic knights who fought in the avant-garde.
The golem"s leg swept past my body and i felt the wind on my cheeks.
My chant was almost completed, and I felt my magic power rise.
The hidden factor, that causes the power of the mystic knight to rise exponentially, becoming the strongest cla.s.s from being the weakest.
That factor, was the special magic given to mystic knights. Customized Magic.
When a person performs a level reset as well as the status gain ritual. A special ability is given to a person who chose the weakest job. That ability was the ability to create your own magic. This discovery led to a huge influx of mystic knights as the player base was excited about a potential buff to the weakest cla.s.s. Thanks to customising your own magic, the feature given to a mystic knight could be properly evaluated.
In this world, every spell consists of four fundemental concepts.
Range: how far can the spell reach.
Area and Duration: how large of an area can the spell affect or how long does the magic last if it was a spell buff.
Power: how effective will the spell be.
Cast time: how long the casting time will be.
With Customized Magic, these concepts can be adjusted.
For this situation, I used the intermediate fire magic Fire Storm.
Originally, Fire Storm had an effective range of about 20metres, with an average area, casting time and power.
Using Customized Magic, i altered that magic to my liking.
I dropped it"s range down to nearly zero, and it"s duration was also minimized. It"s casting time was also lengthened. Every possible concept was effectively weakened to strengthen its power.
The result was..
A powerful magic spell that could only be used in extremely close range.
As the casting was completed, my left hand started to glow orange like a flame, and started to shiver.
Intermediate fire magic Fire Storm. Customized.
[Napalm Strike] (Youya)
While moving forward, I performed a motion that closely resembles Chinese martial arts, focusing my body"s kinetic energy onto my left hand, thrusting my left palm onto the belly of the golem. As a result of my customisation, Flame Storm became a left strike wrapped in flames.
The heat from the explosive strike penetrates into the body of the rock golem that boasted extreme hardness, burning it"s body from the inside.
[Gwaooo] (Golem)
The golem collapsed. Although I had the bonus points from my level reset, it is still unusual to be able to defeat a rock golem with a single blow.
It was possible because of Napalm Strike. A technique which sacrifices everything for raw power.
The Rock golem started to turn into blue particles and dropped an item.
Lucky. It"s a Karakuri Heart. It is a useful item that can be used for various reasons.
I felt my body swell up with power and looked at my status card. My levels increased by two and i achieved level three. The golem yielded a lot more experience than expected because of the level difference. When there is a level difference, the experience yielded increases.
[That magic earlier was amazing.. I have never seen any magic like that. How could Mystic Knight be weak with that kind of magic?]
[That Ossan.. He stopped the golem"s attack with a sword, and even managed to cut it.]
[You"re wrong.. He didn"t stop the golem"s attack. He deflected it. I heard that it was only possible by a master in swordsmanship… and he really did it.]
It appears that the young man who ran away helped his companions recover using potions.
Well they appear energetic at least.
I started walking towards the trio.
[You three. You may have had good luck this time because I was in the area, but do not come back here again. The next time you attempt to fight these monsters, you may as well be dead.] (Youya)
This was the trio"s chance to reflect on their actions. This was a test to see if they can learn from their mistakes and reflect on their actions. It is without a doubt, one of the most important aspect for an adventurer.
[We understand]
It seems that the trio"s att.i.tude towards me has changed after I have become their benefactor.
They started listening to me obediently now that i have saved their life.
[Ossan… I mean Youysan. Would you like to have a drink with us sometime?]
[I don"t mind.] (Youya)
[Thank you for saving our lives.]
The boys left while giving me their thanks. I pray for their safety in the future.
In the distance, I see Luna running towards me while her tail shakes back and forth.
[Youya, that was amazing! Mystic Knight is strong!] (Luna)
Her eyes were shining brightly as she looked at me.
[Well.. That is a magic that only I can use.] (Youya)
A mystic knight is extremely useless if there isn"t Customized Magic to augment his magic spells. In the situation earlier, Fire Storm would had have no effect as it"s range and power are both second-tier. When a person with half baked magic capabilties cast a second-tier spell, it"s effect would be laughable at best.
However, by focusing all it"s concepts into power, it becomes usable as an attack by combining it with a physical strike.
I talked a little bit with the trio. They were capable of returning to the entrance by themselves, so i didn"t bother with sending them.
[Well now that the problem has been removed, let"s begin hunting monsters this time Luna.] (Youya)
[Uhn! The goal is level 50 by tonight!] (Luna)
[Uhh.. Lunsan. That"s impossible you know.] (Youya)
[Aww thats too bad.] (Luna)
We"ll continue hunting for Rock Golems untill my mana runs out. Since the mystic knight"s mana correction isn"t very impressive, I only have about three more shots untill my mana is depleted. Let"s do our best to kill about three more golems.
I do have other magic spells that were customized but only Napalm Strike is effective on the Rock Golem. I look forward to the day where i can show Luna more spells.
TLN note:
Hi guys, Sorry for the rough post as i haven’t really edited the chapter properly. My head started to hurt when I stared at my screen for extended periods of time so i just decided to post the chapter and edit it afterwards. Also, the next chapter will be up next monday as I plan to rest for afew more days. Thanks for reading!