It had been three minutes since Dwalkie's magical support was cut off. Well, maybe even less. Still, it seemed like ten minutes.
«I admit it, Barbarian. I've never, in my entire life, met a bastard like you».
I didn't look back even once. Whether Vagos was trying to drive a wedge on this team or not, even if Dwalkie was in a state of panic, I decided nothing would change.
But did it seem boring to you? «I will put your soul to good use. So, die».
It meant the games ended here. He stabbed me with a dagger that he pulled from his waist. It came at such an exquisite angle that it seemed impossible to block or dodge it. At best, all he could do was choose the lesser evil. I twisted my body as much as I could and gave it my lungs instead of my heart. It must have been a near-fatal wound, but there was still the advanced potion left, right? After drinking it and treating this, I would somehow hold on. Both Missha and Hikurod would wake up soon. The exhaustion of the soul would not last forever.
I made the plan in a split second and put it into action when the dazzling light emerged from behind.
¡Shhhhhh!
Dozens of magical arrows warped, emitting pure white light. Faced with the downpour, the man took a step back, bewildered. But just like when Hikurod, Rotmiller, and Missha confronted him, it wasn't a meaningful response.
¡Whiiiip!
Arrows of light chased after him, bending as if each shot had a will of its own. At this, Vagos stopped fleeing and began to cut the arrows one by one using a small dagger. It didn't seem much different from cutting down a river with a pumpkin.
Holy…
Surprisingly, his actions worked. Although he became a hedgehog whose entire body was pierced by arrows of light, Vagos managed to protect his vital parts.
Step.
Suddenly, I heard someone behind me, and only then did I come to. Actually, I expected it, but Dwalkie was behind me. Simply put, it meant that the magic from just now had been cast by him.
«I'm sorry I kept you waiting. It took me a while to decide».
«Decide me? What happened...?
«We can discuss that after we get rid of that man». Dwalkie looked away as if avoiding a response. Seeing this, I was sure this was the Dwalkie I knew.
What's happening?
I couldn't understand it at all. Mana flowed from his body, so concentrated that even a barbarian with a 0 mana ability could sense it.
It wasn't just me who was wondering this. «Wizard, what have you done?», the bastard asked, as blood dripped all over his body. If I were him, I would run first.
«You ask, but you already know».
That? Know it?
When Dwalkie looked at him and muttered coldly, Vagos was speechless. Did he really know?
«I'm sorry if you were trying to buy time. I know time is running out».
What the hell? What the hell is going on?
Since when was Dwalkie so aware? It had been a long time since my head could keep up with the situation. However, he could judge one thing. This was very positive for me.
I can hear the explanation of what happened later.
I focused on the situation in front of me.
Run.
Instead of sprinting down the passage and fleeing, Vagos lunged at us with his wounded body. Dwalkie told me: «Go back. You could be hurt».
«Ah oh. Clear». I couldn't adapt to the character change, but I did as I was told. What was this now?
[Riol Warb Dwalkie has cast rank 8 Ice Spear attack magic].
Ice spears large enough to fill half the passageway fired twice in a row.
¡Sooooooot!
Sure enough, they shot at Vagos, spewing overwhelming wind pressure. However, it seemed like the guy had a lot of experience with magic on this scale. He stood calmly looking at the Ice Spear, and then quickly took out the long bow sword from subspace.
Pzzzzz!
The sword emitted sparks as if rejecting his touch. However, he grabbed it and brandished it, making the veins in his neck stand on end.
¡Pum!
As befitted a longbow sword with magical properties, the enormous Ice Spear shattered and scattered just by touching the sword. Even in such a state, Vagos kicked the ground again to close the gap.
Dash.
Seeing as Dwalkie's eyes trembled slightly, this was an unexpected situation for him as well. But it didn't last long.
[Riol Warb Dwalkie has released the rank 7 attack magic Cold Storm].
I completed the song in less than a second.
¡Shaaaaa!
At this point, they were not ice fragments, but small falling ice spears. This time, too, that rotten long bow sword was the problem. Vagos was getting closer and closer through the blizzard. When it was possible to see it with the naked eye, I saw his figure advancing as he cut only the largest blocks of ice with his sword.
Yes, it won't fall easily until the end.
I let out a silent sigh and prepared for what would happen next. There was nothing special about it. My life was far from going it alone, and wasn't the destiny of a tank to protect the one who deals damage?
«¡Behell-ahhhhh!»
The first blow wins. Pointing to the moment Vagos escaped the blizzard, I brandished my mace. Even in the middle of it, the guy distrusted me. Although it was a surprise attack, he reacted quickly and blocked the mace with his sword: a clash between the first-degree iron and the sixth-degree material bow.
King!
Regardless of its thickness or density, the mace was cut like tofu. However, Vagos was not satisfied and pointed it at my neck.
Pzzzzz!
At this moment, sparks bounced from the sword in frenzy, and he shuddered. His hand was red hot and even smoking. Could his entire body covered in burns have something to do with that sword? He couldn't know the details, but returned the sword to subspace when he judged that it was no longer possible to use it.
Dash.
Vagos drew his dagger again and clung to me. It was very clear what he wanted. I wondered why I would go so far to get through that magic, but that's what I intended.
«Bjorn, stay away from him!»
It was a strategy similar to the Barbarian Persistent Mode I used earlier, using me as a shield to suppress Dwalkie's magic. Huh, I didn't know they would use me like that.
[Riol Warb Dwalkie has cast rank 9 Slowdown curse magic].
Instead of attack magic, curse magic was stacked on Vagos, but it was not easy to get rid of him because he clung to my side and brandished the dagger.
Okay, let's try.
I stabbed the mace that had turned into a bamboo spear. You didn't necessarily have to kill him with magic.
Stab!
It wasn't as difficult to deal with him as before thanks to the Slowdown that had grown even stronger. Instead of Ice Spear or Cold Storm, Dwalkie supported and finely controlled a small number of Magic Arrows. The situation was clearly in my favor, but that made me even more alert.
There's no way he doesn't know it too.
The bastard knew the current situation, which Dwalkie avoided telling me. Still, he ran towards me. Because?
«I know time is running out».
The answer was time. Dwalkie had little time left to maintain this state. Maybe Vagos knew more about the remaining time than Dwalkie.
«Dwalkie, use the Cold Storm!» I made a decision. Judging by the expression on Vagos's face, it was the correct one.
However, Dwalkie hesitated. «But...!» Although he had changed a little, Dwalkie was still Dwalkie.
«Don't worry about me and use it!».
When I shouted a reprimand, Dwalkie cast the spell. The cold swirled over Dwalkie's hand.
«Can you tolerate the cold well?». I asked Vagos.
«Loco bastard».
More praise. I raised my shield and distanced myself from Vagos. Obstructing the ice blocks with the shield, he was determined to endure it somehow.
¡Saaaaaaaaaa!
Soon, a blizzard filled the passageway where we were both, chilling our skin. But what was this? Through the blizzard, which was difficult to make out even a hand's breadth ahead, he stabbed a dagger.
Stab!
A leaf about twenty centimeters long penetrated deep into my lungs. I couldn't breathe. Meanwhile, chunks of ice flew and crashed into my body. Crystals as sharp as the Ice Spear brushed against my skin. But he wasn't going to take any more damage.
Stab!
My body reacted first and I stabbed with all my might the short spear that was previously my mace. At that point, the blizzard ended earlier than expected and visibility returned.
Shaaaaa.
First I quickly checked my surroundings. Surprisingly, in that brief moment three unexpected events had occurred. The first was that Dwalkie was kneeling with blood flowing from his eyes, nose, mouth and ears. The second was that the short spear I stabbed at random had pierced his heart.
[The activation conditions of the Second Vagos Regal Heart have been met].
The third was that there was one more numbered item that I hadn't used yet. Ha, I really didn't want to curse like that anymore... but this damn son of a bitch.
[Until Regal Vagos' heart recovers, they will receive absolute protection.]
Something red, reminiscent of muscle, covered his body. Looking at this, I thought, How the hell am I supposed to kill this bastard? Could he really be killed? I didn't know it, but for now I vomited blood.
Come on! Tos!
The heart-shaped shell did not even make a corrosion sound when covered in acidic blood. I looked away without remorse. No. 3,120 Second Heart, a consumable numbered item that activated when instant death damage was applied to the heart. At my current level, whatever I did, I couldn't break that barrier. So I would have to take care of what I had to do.
Walk, Walk.
I led my body, which couldn't even breathe properly, to take slow steps. Luckily, Dwalkie was a wizard with a cold attribute. If it weren't for the Freezing state, blood would already be dripping.
«Dwalkie.» To say that Dwalkie's condition, even on his knees, was miserable was not enough. Blood flowed from every pore of his body. When I checked his pulse, I felt his heart beat as if the speed limit had been broken. «Please... hold on».
Since I couldn't see any external trauma, I poured an advanced potion into his mouth – only half, because there were other people dying right now.
Walk, Walk.
I walked as fast as I could. Every time I walked, my stomach twisted and I couldn't breathe, but I used the short spear as a cane to speed myself up.
«Rot...miller...» Fortunately, he was alive, at least for now. He was on his way to death in a completely different way than Dwalkie. His heart was beating weakly, as if it were going to stop at any moment. I poured the remaining advanced potion over his wounds.
¡Chhhhhh!
The wounds boiled and began to heal. I sat next to him and focused on my breathing. He kept coughing and blood gushed out, but all he could do was persevere and wait for Rotmiller to recover. After all, the remaining two potions were in this old man's Treasure Vault.
Maybe a minute passed? «B-Bjorn...!» The dwarf who had fainted with his head pressed against the wall came to. «What's up with Dwalkie? Where's Dwalkie?»
Hey, I'm dying too. Does your best friend come first?
Without the strength to speak, I pointed in Dwalkie's direction.
«W-what the hell happened?» He ran over, inspected Dwalkie, carefully picked him up, and led him toward us.
«Ugh...» Missha, who was lying about four meters from the wall I was leaning on, raised her head with difficulty. «...Bjorn?»
«Life.»
"Good..."
As always, I only have you.
Missha stood up with difficulty, holding her broken ribs. Then he came over and sat next to me. «Rotmiller...?»
«I gave him a potion», I coughed.
It was like a gathering of the sick. I wanted to rest a little, but when I finished transporting Dwalkie, Hikurod approached me and bandaged my wound.
«Bjorn, what happened? What is that strange shell over there?»
I didn't want to explain it. I had no energy, and what difference did it make? I focused on my breathing and closed my eyes.
«I'm sorry. You must be tired too, rest. I'll take care of the rest somehow».
The dwarf apologized and found out the details again from Dwalkie.
[The state of exhaustion of the soul is lifted.]
Finally, about a minute later, my stats returned to normal and I found it a little easier to breathe. Although I no longer had natural regenerative power, my own body's durability was different. I opened my eyes slowly.
«...Hey! Hold on, my friend!»
»B-Bjorn...? Rrrotmiller is shaking. It should be fine, right...?»
The line was being drawn between life and death.