Chapter 209: Together Under Heaven — Part Fifteen
The opening shot was fired from Rust's heavy bow. The arrow, fired at the cost of the heavy bow breaking, tore straight through the sky and drove into Ctarnidd... or it would have, but it didn't.
Rust: "...That was a solid crit, too."
Sunraku: "No way it's gonna pierce through the abs of a muscle-bound gorilla like that."
That kind of muscle armor won't be penetrated unless you've got trump-card-level firepower like me or Rei-shi. Let's stick to a strategy that's faithful to the basics.
Sunraku: "I'd like to say aim for the face, but first we go for the legs. Trip him up, then focus fire on his face! For now, let's figure out what kind of attacks he's got!"
Ctarnidd, with his bizarre form that could be described as an octopus-gorilla-bodhisattva, is probably the only form across all phases that has a physical body. Meaning this isn't tentacle-slapping or glass-smashing or small-fry-clearing. This is a real, genuine brawl. His poem basically said "bring it on, asshole," too.
Sunraku: "Alright, I'm gonna crack that jaw!"
It's not time to activate it yet, but to see how he fights at close range, I ready my Gilta Brille gauntlets and close the distance. Come on, Ctarnidd, let's throw down!
Ctarnidd: "Vvvvvvvvoooooooooooo!!"
Sunraku: "Ugh... nice, that's a good roar!"
I activate Moment Sight instantly. The wild punch, from a boss I can't believe was throwing gimmicks at us just moments ago, turns into slow motion within my perception-limited view. I don't need to use this skill just to dodge, but I have another reason for using it.
There was a parrying skill among the skills Rei-shi had acquired—one that lets you deflect attacks by clashing your attack against theirs. I want to learn that somehow. I know the level cap is 99 Extend, but I also know the level cap has been raised. If that's the case, copying the motions to learn the skill shouldn't be a waste, even for me, Sunraku, who's hit the ceiling on growth for now.
The slow-motion world regains its speed as if pulled back to normal physics. But I've already gotten used to both the timing and how to move my body within the rapidly accelerating perception.
I twist my body, sidestep, activate Agatram, and my right fist, wrapped in a silver-glowing effect, strikes Ctarnidd's fist from the side. The corner of my mouth twists at the sensation that my wrist might fly off, but a solid hit registers through my fist.
Sunraku: "Looks like you've got the basic physical attacks covered. What other tricks are you hiding?"
You're gonna shoot magic from that ring on your back and the jewels hanging from it, right? Spit it out already so I can counter it. Whether my provocation carried through my gaze or not, Ctarnidd roars as he pulls back his fist, which I struck from the side, causing him to miss. In response, the ring on his back—wait, seeing it up close, I realize this is probably a ring of bones made from a large monster's ribs. If that's the case, then the owner of ribs that size... nah, going on about dead monsters won't help anything.
The jewel attached to the ring on his back glows and separates from the ring. Then it moves to above everyone's heads and stops.
Akitsu Akane: "What is this? Isn't this bad..."
Sunraku: "No, wait, that's way too little room to deal with it. It's a gimmick, so it won't insta-kill... or so I want to believe!"
Emul: "I want you to assert that, wa!"
Ctarnidd: "Analysis."
Analysis? The pronunciation of the word is similar to "analyze"... but more than that, why is Ctarnidd...
The light—no, each of us—our bodies pass through rings of light as if our data is being read. Akitsu Akane and Ceecrue are flailing around trying to escape the rings of light, but I think it's a gimmick skill you're guaranteed to get hit by, so struggling is pointless.
Sunraku: "Alright... what's coming...?"
I don't know what it analyzed from me, but the jewel that turned blue after performing that "Analysis" returns to Ctarnidd. Seems it did the same thing to the others, or something, because a total of eight jewels—some red, some purple, various colors—are set into the ring on Ctarnidd's back.
Does the number correspond to the members registered in the party? Or is eight originally the limit? Since it's a unique monster, a one-of-a-kind boss, the former is definitely possible, but it's an octopus, so I can't rule out the latter either.
Ctarnidd: "Reflexus."
Sunraku: "Hey, wait, that's cheating!"
The blue jewel lights up. There are other blue-ish jewels, but the ultramarine one directly above me is the one that analyzed something. Unlike with the cups, the blue light doesn't have enough intensity to fill my vision. But there's another difference.
The blue light, as time passes, gains directionality toward a single point. And at that single point—in other words, the moment all the light pouring onto Ctarnidd's back is absorbed into his massive body, a change occurs.
Akitsu Akane: "That's..."
Rust: "...Sunraku's stance. The one he always uses with his twin blades...?"
Blue light spills from both of Ctarnidd's hands. It materializes into two twin swords—about the size of a greatsword by our scale, but about the size he can swing with one hand by Ctarnidd's scale. And the stance Ctarnidd takes with those twin blades is very familiar.
It's "my" stance—the one where I put the left sword forward and the right sword downward, a stance I stole and cobbled together from samurai movies, Hollywood films, and of course games I know.
Akitsu Akane: "That means..."
Akitsu Akane: "...Our playstyles... were analyzed... is that it!?"
She shouted what was probably the correct answer almost exactly as Ctarnidd swung his twin blades and charged.
Emul: "Sunraku-san!"
Sunraku: "Whoa... shit... oooooh!?"
The right sword comes down, and when I dodge, the left sword thrusts in. Imagination Form Ctarnidd is only about five meters—no, four meters tall. Compared to his previous forms, he's pretty small, but maybe because he's humanoid, his physical movement is closer to human limits.
I barely dodge, but using the motion of retracting his arms, he deftly catches the thrown right sword mid-air in a reverse grip and follows up with an attack. I somehow manage to roll out of the way.
Araba: "Sunraku!"
Psyger-0: "I'll take over...!"
Sunraku: "I'm counting on you...!"
Araba and Rei-shi step forward in my place while I'm off-balance. Looking around, Mold is buffing Rust, while Akitsu Akane and Ceecrue are running in a wide arc around the colosseum to get behind Ctarnidd.
A light blue jewel glows on Ctarnidd's back. The twin swords unravel like threads and disappear. In their place, what appears in Ctarnidd's hands is a single-edged greatsword so large it could be mistaken for a greatsword even given Ctarnidd's physique.
Araba: "M-Me!?"
Psyger-0: "There's no way I can block that...!"
The greatsword swings through the air where Araba and Rei-shi's necks were just moments before they ducked in a panic. Ctarnidd tries to cut them both down on the return swing, but the explosion of a magical arrow lodged in his head interrupts his movement.
Sunraku: "He flinched!?"
Rust: "...No. His aggro just switched."
The greatsword disappears. Ctarnidd, displaying an unprecedented level of aggression—as if he'd forgotten where he left the dignity of being a gimmick-focused boss from first to fourth forms—draws a bow and aims at Rust. The bowstring drawn to its limit speaks volumes about the power of that shot. If it hits, it'll probably be an instant kill.
Akitsu Akane: "Taa—!"
But—whether she's using a skill or magic that prevents her from being targeted, Akitsu Akane, who'd circled around behind without ever being noticed, lands a flying kick with insane momentum right into the back of Ctarnidd's knee.
The secret family technique: the knee-buckler. A forbidden art that knocks anyone off-balance, no matter how muscular. Also a demonic art that pisses off the person on the receiving end like nothing else.
Akitsu Akane: "Ugh."
Rust: "..."
The arrow is released with a thunderous BANG—not a sound a bow and arrow should make—but thanks to Akitsu Akane's excellent play, that lethal shot hits no one. The arrow grazes right above my head and right past Rust's face before hitting the colosseum stands, where it explodes from sheer impact alone.
Sunraku: "Ah, so he's reflecting the main weapons and playstyles of everyone here onto himself."
If that's the case, this is really bad.
If that's the case, Ctarnidd essentially has eight forms. My playstyle and Akitsu Akane's rely on reckless moves that only work because we're human-sized, so those are still the lesser problem. Rei-shi's "heavy armored knight" style, though, is practically made for a giant. If Ctarnidd were to use it with that enormous physique...
Red light takes the shape of a greatsword.
At any rate, one thing I understand is that Ctarnidd doesn't copy the current equipment and playstyle. He probably copies the playstyle the player or NPC has used the longest, or the one they're most skilled at.
Sunraku: "Tch... everyone, focus on evasion! At this rate, we'll just have to hold out until he switches to a type that's easier to kill!"
Akitsu Akane: "Specifically when would that be!?"
Sunraku: "Mold's playstyle! Pure mage whose physical skills are garbage!"
Mold: "That's true, but you make it sound so harsh!"
For now, just survive against Ctarnidd, who's turned into a monster of pure STR and VIT!!