512 – An Opening

I dive down towards Eldia. As he lifts an arm, I quickly swing my own. [Dimension Claw] cuts through space to rake his arm. His tendons sever, and his arm falls.

This can work. At this distance, I can kill him before he can escape.

…I’ll do it in close combat. That’s the most certain way. If I give him a chance to recover, I’ll be pressured by Beelzebub. With this difference in stats, I should be able to kill him in close combat without taking much damage in return.

I meet his eyes. I wonder for a moment if he’s about to use [Scorching Breath] or [Freezing Breath], but instead he just unmovingly stares at me through empty eyes.

I’ve reached him. I swing my foreleg down, but just barely miss. Eldia didn’t dodge, nor did I hesitate. Instead, my body suddenly lurched backwards.

Black walls have appeared, surrounding me on all six sides and trapping me in a translucent cube.

…This is Lilixira’s skill, [Gravillion]. It’s a vicious skill that traps and squishes the target.

It apparently also has the effect of pulling the target towards the centre.

The black walls surge towards me as the cube contracts. My legs, head, and tail are pressed in.

An immese forces presses in on me within the cube. I’ve seen this used once before, but the gap between activation and effect was way too short this time.

From how Lilixira used it against Eldia before, I didn’t get the impression it was very usable against an opponent that hadn’t already come to a stop, since there’s a considerable time lag before the effect takes place at the targeted space… But, if she knew I was about to dive down towards Eldia, it wouldn’t have been impossible for her to predict my position.

But, where did she cast it from…?

Just I begin to wonder, I spot her through the front face of the cube. She touches down on Eldia’s head.

The staff in her hand is trained squarely on me, and her clothes are drenched in saliva.

She must have hid in Eldia’s mouth to mask her presence! She lured me into close combat, then used [Gravillion] to seal my movements. She’s had me dancing to her tune. I should have been more cautious while her position was still unknown.

But I won’t let it end so easily!

“GuuOOOOOOOOOOOOh!”

Raising a mighty [Roar], I push against the sides of the [Gravillion]. The cube stops shrinking, and it begins to expand. Although he struggled against it, Eldia was unable to escape, but with my stats I should be able to break free. I should be able to get away with only a little damage… But, the problem is the opening that the [Gravillion] has produced.

Eldia and Beelzebub fly around, both of them diagonally above me. Eldia is in front, and Beelzebub is behind.

A large ball of flames appears in Eldia’s mouth, which he then swallows. Beelzebub sucks in a small breath and takes aim at me.

It’s a pincer attack of Eldia’s [Dragoflare] and Beelzebub’s [Storm of the Fly King]. Beelzebub’s attack might be smaller than I’ve seen him do, since it doesn’t look like he’s enhanced it with [Inhaala], but it’s still a significant threat. I can’t let them hit me with both at once.

It’ll cost a bit of MP, but should I use [Dragon Mirror] to vanish for temporarily? If I do that, I can escape from the [Gravillion] restriction and then reappear after the [Dragoflare] and [Storm of the Fly King] have passed.

…No, if I do that, I’m forced to be defenceless as I reappear. It’s possible I could catch them by surprise and slip away, but… With Lilixira as their leader, being optimistic is dangerous.

Then, it’s a bit out of left field, but there’s only one thing to do here! The skill that twists space and allows for travel through another dimension, [Wormhole]! Using that, I can escape from the [Gravillion]!

While resisting the compression of [Gravillion], I look up. A thick pillar of fire is spitting from Eldia’s mouth. On the opposite side, a thick purple smog billows towards me from Beelzebub. It looks like they’re going to hit me at the exact same time.

Now! I activate the [Wormhole] I had prepared. Black light envelops me, and at the same time, a field of black light spreads out in the air near Eldia.

Th-this shitty skill…! It totally revealed where I’m going. Even though I thought it was useless, I should have still tested it out beforehand.

Lilixira’s brow furrows as she glares at the sudden black light. It should be her first time seeing it too, so she shouldn’t be able to respond right away…

“Diabolos! Move away and hit that with a [Lightning Strike]!”

S-she saw right through it? Is my skill backfiring!? To take advantage of Eldia’s retreat, I swing my claw at Lilixira on his head to strike at her with [Dimension Claw]. Eldia’s tail swings to the front, barely managing to block. Flesh strips away from his tail, fading to white as it disappears.

I swing my claw again as I dive into the [Wormhole], aiming another [Dimension Claw] at Lilixira.

“[Dimension]!”

A three-metre tall humanoid statue with wings appears in front of her. Is it meant to be an angel? A line carves through the statue, then cracks run through and it shatters into fragments.

It’s a skill lets you take objects out of your own personal subspace whenever you want. She used it for a throwaway blocker.

White light covers my vision, and a sharp pain envelops me. Eldia’s [Lightning Strike] has hit. But, I push through the damage, closing in on Eldia.

Then, I use [Gravity]. A sphere of black light bursts out of me, and Eldia’s balance breaks.

I swing my claws to attack directly. Eldia uses my [Gravity] to suddenly fall, skilfully dodging my claws.

But that was what I wanted. I swing my other foreleg to release a [Dimension Claw] at Lilixira. She frantically points her staff at me, but doesn’t make it in time. I finally hit her. Her clothes tear, and blood spurts from her back as she’s thrown into the air.

To prevent my follow-up, Eldia presses forwards, blocking my field of view. At the same time, Beelzebub returns to human form and collects the bloodstained Lilixira from the air.

…Did I fail to finish her off? But, this can work. If they try attacking me seriously now, I’ll be able to attack her again.

511 | TOC | 513