Chapter 35: The Vengeance of the Kodo Beast—Death!
“...Idiot!”
At the very instant the Poet Saint struck the Kodo Beast’s face, I couldn’t help but curse inwardly: What kind of eyesight is this? Anyone with a bit of sense would realize it’s better to target the frail human body attached to the magical Kodo Beast, rather than directly attacking the beast’s head. After all, a human’s physique is nowhere near as tough as that of a beast.
As expected!
The Poet Saint’s finishing move barely dealt fifty points of damage to the magical Kodo Beast. The moment the beast broke free from the frozen state, it launched a counterattack!
I panicked.
Just as a small fireball struck the Poet Saint, I dashed out from behind him, rushing in front of the magical Kodo Beast. Driven by sheer momentum, I thrust my bronze short sword upward, aiming straight for the beast’s glittering eye amid the flickering flames.
With my current strength, there was no other way to deal with this boss—I had to go for its weak spots. My attack power wasn’t enough to break through the Kodo Beast’s defenses otherwise.
Fortunately, though the magical Kodo Beast boasted superior offense and defense compared to an ordinary Kodo Beast, its movements lagged just enough for me. My bronze short sword found its mark with ease!
A howl pierced the air.
Amidst its agonized cries, the system promptly reported the outcome: “Critical hit to vital point. Dealt 20 points of damage to the magical Kodo Beast.”
The Poet Saint, not bothering to restore his HP, caught up to block the beast’s retreat, swinging his sword at its head once more. With a standard attack, the damage he dealt was about the same as my critical strike—just over twenty points.
Still, there was some comfort in our relentless assault; our coordinated attacks not only interrupted the magical Kodo Beast’s retaliation but also left it trapped, unable to advance or retreat.
Swiftly, we each launched two more attacks, though the damage I dealt was practically negligible...
Most of the harm came from the Poet Saint—after all, he was on the verge of moving up to a second-tier Bronze Lion Warrior, while I was still a novice yet to officially change classes.
But...
Even a rookie who knows how to seize the right moment can make a difference.
At the very least, the Poet Saint across from me knew perfectly well that, without my frequent efforts to disrupt the magical Kodo Beast’s line of sight, his meager HP would have been wiped out long ago.
Now, the magical Kodo Beast, battered by our seamless flurry of attacks, was left nearly helpless, unable to escape the onslaught thanks to the surrounding terrain. For the first time, it was being attacked while its fellow Kodo Beasts stood by, unable to intervene.
The pitiable magical Kodo Beast howled in anguish, its HP dropping by twenty to thirty points per second.
Yet...
After three rounds, aside from a few extra wounds atop its head, the magical Kodo Beast seemed largely unscathed.
And at that moment, the surrounding Kodo Beasts began to thaw—the effects of the freezing spell were fading...
By now, our total damage to the beast hadn’t even reached thirty percent of its HP—already five to ten times that of an ordinary monster of the same level.
“Frost!”
Between White Day and Big Bear, Black Tea—the one attuned to elemental magic—kept a vigilant eye on both the front and rear. Silently counting to five, she finally unleashed her last spell.
A wave of intense cold swept across a ten-meter radius!
Several dozen just-thawed Kodo Beasts, including the magical one, were frozen solid once again...
Exhausted from draining her MP, Black Tea collapsed limply to the ground, her ice armor dissolving into a mist of elemental water and vanishing.
“Poet Saint! While it’s frozen, attack its wounds!”
The moment the magical Kodo Beast was affected by the frost, I recalled what Black Tea had told me earlier—she could only support us with two spells at most... and that was the second one!
I hurriedly shouted a reminder to the Poet Saint.
But...
I was too late! The Poet Saint had no realization of the opportunity the frost presented for a devastating blow. He replied distractedly, “Huh, what did you say?”—his attack already in motion!
Perhaps he realized it a split second later, but he couldn’t stop in time. His strike broke the magical Kodo Beast out of its fragile frozen state, dealing 25 points of damage.
Damn!
As the magical Kodo Beast staggered, my heart plummeted... This fool really was unreliable—slow to react in the worst possible way!
There was nothing we could do now but grit our teeth and keep whittling it down! I could only hope the surrounding Kodo Beasts, once freed from the frost, wouldn’t heed the magical one’s call and turn on us... Otherwise, we’d have no chance at all.
At that moment, the Poet Saint seemed to realize he’d missed a crucial opportunity to severely wound the magical Kodo Beast. As if to atone, he quickened the pace of his attacks, but it was futile—the massive and heavy bronze greatsword limited his speed, allowing only one strike per second at best.
Fortunately, within the next five seconds, I managed to seize two opportunities for bonus damage—two strikes of forty-two points each, which left both me and the Poet Saint elated.
Afterward, the Poet Saint finally “caught” a chance, his bronze greatsword carving a triple-digit wound into the scarred head of the Kodo Beast.
But just as the magical Kodo Beast began to falter... the five seconds of freezing ended...
A piercing shriek erupted from the beast’s maw!
Suddenly, the entire Kodo Beast Valley was in an uproar! Countless Kodo Beasts roared, their terrifying cries surging in overwhelming waves!
The air thickened with rage and killing intent as nearby Kodo Beasts shook off the frost... Scores of ferocious, gleaming eyes fixed upon us!
The Poet Saint panicked instantly. In the magical Kodo Beast’s resentful, vengeful gaze, he read only one message: revenge!
“Damn it! Why aren’t you dead yet?!”
We launched another desperate round of attacks... but countless Kodo Beasts surged toward us!
With my comparatively frail physique, I was sent flying toward the magical Kodo Beast by several adult Kodo Beasts... As I fell, a blazing meteor crashed down from the sky, striking the magical Kodo Beast almost simultaneously!
Amid the chaos and clamor, I felt my hand close around something warm and slightly hot—it was instinct to grip it tightly...