第四十七話 六十秒の死闘
「総攻撃するぞ! ここから一分が勝負だ!」
俺は声を張り上げる。
スカルロードが三種のデバフで攻撃力と速度が落ちている今が最大にして最後のチャンスだ。
「オオオオオオオオオッ!」
スカルロードが剣を振るう。
俺は〈パリィ〉で受け流し、反撃を狙う。
だが、呆気なく返す刃に防がれた。
力ではこちらが圧しているが、速さが圧倒的に足りない......!
ルーチェの連撃は盾で確実に防ぎ、ケルトの攻撃は身体を反らして躱している。
不意を突けなければ、ケルトの矢は決定打どころかまともなダメージにもなりはしない。
骨の身体には刺突より衝撃だ。
弱点のコアは、少し角度が変われば胸骨に防がれる。
デバフの重ね掛けでステータスを落とした上で三人で総攻撃しているのに、全く崩れる気配がない。
「クソッ! 馬の下半身を射てもビクともしねぇ!」
ケルトが苛立ちの声を上げる。
レベルの地力が違い過ぎる......。
ここまでやって、まるで隙を見せないとは。
むしろ圧されているのは俺達の方だった。
「オアァッ!」
「きゃあっ!」
スカルロードは盾でルーチェを殴り飛ばした後、俺目掛けて鋭い刃の一撃を放ってきた。
これは〈パリィ〉では往なせない!
俺は素早く〈狂鬼の盾〉を投げて剣にぶつけ、辛うじて凶刃から逃れた。
まだ、まだ〈ライフシールド〉を潰されるわけにはいかない......!
スカルロードのスキルも見ていないし、まるで隙も見つけられていないのだ。
だが、こうしている間に時間は刻一刻と過ぎている。
真っ先に効果が切れるのは〈ディザーム〉だ。
ただでさえ圧されているのに、このスキルの攻撃力減少効果が切れたらまず打ち合いで競り負ける。
俺は地面を蹴り、距離を保ったままスカルロードの側面部へと回り込むように跳ぶ。
スカルロードは俺の攻勢が止まったのを隙と見たのか、高く剣を掲げた。
剣先に雷の光が宿る。
これは......見覚えがある。
スキル、〈雷地衝〉だ。
「まずい、全員離れて宙に逃れろ!」
俺は大声で叫んだ。
次の瞬間、スカルロードが剣を地面に突き立てる。
雷がスカルロードの周囲を覆い尽くすように地面を駆け、爆発が巻き起こった。
俺はすぐ至近距離であったため、避ける余地がなかった。
爆風に弾き飛ばされ、すぐ後ろの壁に叩きつけられる。
「うぐっ......!」
俺を覆う魔力の鎧に罅が入り、消滅する。
生命線......〈ライフシールド〉が途切れた。
ルーチェは〈曲芸歩術〉で壁を走って天井に向かったが、爆風から逃げきれずに吹き飛ばされた。
距離は取れていたため致死ダメージではないはずだが......すぐに再起できるとは思えない。
メアベルは位置としては安全圏だが、彼女のMPでは現状できることがない。
ケルトは接近戦を挑んでいた俺やルーチェより距離を取れていたこともあり、壁にナイフを突き立て、そこに足を掛けて宙へ跳ぶことで逃れていた。
「ここまで生き延びてきた年長者、舐めるんじゃねえぞクソ骸骨......!」
次の瞬間、宙に浮いた無防備なケルトを、スカルロードの刃が叩き落とした。
ケルトが血塗れになって地面を転がる。
「ケルトォッ!」
格上の〈夢の主〉の攻撃の直撃だ。
〈ディザーム〉一発で多少威力が落ちているとはいえ、紙装甲の狩人が耐えられるものではない。
「オオオオオオッ!」
即座にスカルロードが俺へと迫って来る。
「ぐっ!」
剣の一撃を〈パリィ〉で受け流す。
強引に隙を狙って懐へ潜り込もうとしたが、速度の差と、そしてリーチの差が苦しい。
近づく間もなく二振り目の刃が放たれた。
再び〈パリィ〉を試みるも、受け流し切れないと判断し、俺は地面を蹴り、転がって強引に刃から逃れた。
俺のすぐ後ろで、スカルロードの一撃が床を砕く。
「奴の攻撃力が元に戻った!」
〈ディザーム〉の最大の弱点は効果持続時間である。
勝ち筋を作るために用いたが、元々〈夢の主〉相手には頼りない効果だった。
今でさえ限界だったのに、スカルロードに力が戻った。
速度不利を力と技術で補い強引に〈パリィ〉していたが、ここから先はそれも通用しない。
そして〈ディザーム〉が切れたということは、じきに速度減少と毒効果付与も限界が来る。
体勢を立て直せていない俺へと、スカルロードが大振りの一撃をお見舞いしに来る。
スカルロードは、明らかにこの攻撃で、目障りな俺を殺し切るつもりのようだった。
「今だケルトォッ!」
「くたばれクソ骸骨がぁぁぁっ!」
スカルロードのコア......胸部奥の球状の魔力の塊に矢が突き刺さる。
スカルロードの動きがガクンと止まった。
上体を強引に起こしたケルトが、至近距離より射抜いたのだ。
「すぐ背後でぶっ倒れてる俺を意識から外すとは、余裕ぶっこいてくれたもんだな......!」
そう、スカルロードの意識は俺に完全に向いていた。
通常であれば、スカルロードが至近距離の敵から意識を逸らすなど有り得ない。
ケルトのスキル〈擬死〉の効果だ。
スカルロードの攻撃を受けたケルトが、〈擬死〉を用いて奴の意識の外へと逃れたのだ。
俺は交戦前、メアベルにケルトのHPを最大近くまで回復してもらった。
そしてその上で、一撃目の被ダメージを三割抑える〈プロテクト〉を掛けていたのだ。
〈プロテクト〉の効果持続はせいぜい三分だが、元々スカルロードを倒すには不意打ちで仕掛けた状態異常が残っている間に仕留めきる必要があった。
無論、危うい賭けだった。
〈擬死〉の条件を満たすため、〈プロテクト〉を消耗しないため、ケルトの受ける最初の攻撃は致死ダメージでなくてはならなかった。
あの距離の〈雷地衝〉の爆風を受けていれば、中途半端に〈プロテクト〉だけ消滅して作戦が台無しになっていた。
ケルトとしても、俺の計算が少しでもズレていれば、スカルロードの一撃で致死ダメージでは済まず、そのままHPが全損していたのだ。
俺としては元々ゲーム時代から重騎士であるためHP管理には自信があったが、スカルロードは初遭遇の敵。
恐怖と不信感があれば本人のパフォーマンスも狂いが生じる。
そんな中、ケルトは完璧に役割を熟してくれた。
「終わりだ、スカルロード!」
俺は地面を蹴り、大振りを構えた姿勢のまま硬直するスカルロードの懐へと飛び込む。
「オオ......オオオオオオオオオオオオオオオオッ!」
コアは脈動しながら小さくなった後、爆ぜてスカルロードの胸部を吹き飛ばす。
スカルロードの頭部や肩の骨が辺りに散らばり、馬の下半身がその場に倒れた。
【経験値を9057取得しました。】
【レベルが66から71へと上がりました。】
【スキルポイントを5取得しました。】
スカルロードの残骸から煙が昇り、蒸発するように消えていく。
本当に、勝ったのだ......。
ここで敗れていれば、今回の
スカルロードはそれだけ危険な相手だ。
今回は状況もかなり危うかった。
そうなれば、冒険者の都ラコリナが傾く事態になっていてもおかしくはなかった。
「ほ、本当に勝ったんよ! あんな格上の相手に......! ウ、ウチ、まだ信じられないんよ......」
メアベルがへなへなと力が抜けたようにその場に崩れ落ち、感嘆の声を漏らした。
ケルトはもう余力が残っていないらしく、天井を見上げたまま安堵の笑みを浮かべていた。
「ケルトもよくやってくれた。柄にもない、危険な役を押し付けて悪かったな。あそこで〈雷地衝〉を躱してくれなかったら勝ち筋が途切れていた」
「本当によ......もう二度とこんなギリギリの戦いはやりたかないけどよ......」
ケルトが目許を手で押さえる。
死闘から解放された安堵か、勝利の喜びか。僅かに涙に濡れていた。
「なんでだろうな、チクショウ。悪くねぇ気分だ」
Volume 2 - Ch 47
"Go all out with your attacks! We have one minute to deal with it!"
I raised my voice.
With the Skull Lord under the effect of three different types of debuffs and with its movement speed decreased, this is our best and last chance to take it down.
"UOOOOOOOOOOH!"
The Skull Lord swung its sword.
I deflected it with [Parry] and tried to counterattack.
However, it was easily blocked by its returning blade.
In terms of sheer strength I have the advantage, but in movement speed I'm far too behind....!
It managed to block Luce's barrage with its shield and evade Celt's attack by shifting its body too.
Without taking it off guard, Celt's arrows fail to deal not just decisive damage, but barely any at all.
Its skeletal body is much weaker to direct impacts, rather than piercing damage.
It only needs to shift its body a minute amount to block the attack targeting its weak point, the core, with its sternum.
It currently has multiple debuffs on it, so its stats are much lower than normal, and yet even while weathering an all out attack from three people, it shows no signs of breaking.
"Dammit! Even if I shoot its horse-like lower body, it doesn't even twitch!"
Celt gave voice to his irritation.
The difference between our level granted power is simply too big....
To think it would fail to show a single weakness even after all that.
It seems like we are the ones who are being pushed back instead.
"OAAAHH!"
"Kyah!"
After sending Luce flying with its shield, the Skull Lord sent out a sharp slash in my direction.
I can't [Parry] that!
I quickly threw my Mad Demon Shield into the sword's path, barely making it miss by a hair's breadth.
I can't let it break my [Life Shield] just yet.....!
I haven't seen the Skull Lord's Skill yet and haven't found a weak point either.
However, the time keeps ticking and ticking even now.
The first effect to run out will be the [Disarm].
We are getting pressured even with that, so if the Attack decreasing effect runs out, we will lose in the exchange of blows.
I kicked the ground and circled around to the Skull Lord's flank while maintaining my distance.
Maybe the Skull Lord took the stopping of my attacks as an opportunity; it raised its sword high.
The tip of the sword lit up with lightning.
I can vaguely recall something like that.
It should be the Skill, [Lightning Ground Impact].
"This is bad, everyone get back and jump in the air!"
I yelled in a loud voice.
In the moment, the Skull Lord thrust its sword into the ground.
Lightning raced through the surrounding ground, creating a shockwave.
I was nearly at a point blank range, so I had no way of avoiding it.
Blown away by the shockwave, I was slammed against the wall behind me.
"Ugh....!"
A crack appeared in the magic shield covering my body, then it simply vanished.
My lifeline....my [Life Shield] was used up.
Luce used her [Acrobatic Steps] to run up the wall and head for the ceiling, but she was also caught by the shockwave and blown away.
She was far enough that it shouldn't be a fatal wound, but.... she most likely won't be able to return to the fight right away.
Although Mabel was at a safe distance, she won't be able to help out with her current MP either.
With Celt fighting at a distance farther away than Luce and I, who were in melee range, he was able to escape it by stabbing one of his daggers into a wall and standing on top of that.
"Don't look down on a seasoned adventurer who survived for a long time, you damn skeleton bastard....!"
In the next moment, the blade of the Skull Lord knocked down Celt, who was defenseless off the ground.
Celt crumpled to the floor, covered in blood.
"Celt!!"
It was a direct hit from a higher leveled Dream Lord.
Even though its power was decreased by [Disarm], it's not something a lightly armored Hunter could take.
"UOOOOOOOOH!"
The Skull Lord started coming at me right away.
"Guh!"
I used [Parry] to divert the first hit from its sword.
I tried to get in closer to force some kind of opportunity, but my slower speed and the reach difference made it extremely difficult.
Without any time to actually get closer, its second swing came at me.
I concluded that even if I try to use [Parry] again I won't be able to divert it this time, so I forced myself to jump back fast enough that I ended up rolling on the floor, but I managed to avoid its blade.
The Skull Lord's hit broke the floor where I just was.
"Its Attack power went back to full!"
The largest weakness of the [Disarm] was its short effect duration.
I used it so we could find a way to somehow win this, but against a Dream Lord its effect is suboptimal to begin with.
We were at our limits even before this, but now it regained its full strength.
I used strength and skill to make up for the difference in speed to successfully use [Parry], but I won't be able to do the same after this.
That means that now that the [Disarm] has expired, the poison status effect with its movement speed decrease will run out soon too.
A large swing of the Skull Lord is approaching, even though I wasn't able to regain my balance just yet.
The Skull Lord obviously intends to finish me off with this blow, since I was such a thorn in its side until now.
"Now, Celt!!"
"Go to hell you damn skeleton!!!!"
An arrow pierced into the Skull Lord's core, the spherical mana within its torso.
The movements of the Skull Lord have stopped at once.
Celt was able to shoot it from a point blank distance from the floor.
"How complacent of you bastard to simply put me out of your mind, even though I fell down right behind you.....!"
That's right, the Skull Lord's focus was entirely on me.
Normally, it would be impossible for the Skull Lord to take its attention off someone who was at a point blank range to it.
It's the effect of Celt's Skill, the [Fake Death].
Celt used [Fake Death] right when he was hit by the Skull Lord's attack to escape its attention.
I had Mabel recover Celt's HP to nearly full before the battle.
In addition to that, I also used [Protect] on him to decrease the damage caused by the first hit he received by 30%.
The [Protect]'s effect only lasts for three minutes, but we had to take down the Skull Lord by the time the debuffs we managed to get on it with an ambush ran out anyway.
It was a dangerous gamble even so.
To fulfill the conditions for [Fake Death] to activate, to avoid using up [Protect] beforehand, the first damage he took had to be a potentially fatal one.
If he got hit by the shockwave of [Lightning Ground Impact], then it would've used up his [Protect], ruining our entire strategy.
For Celt that means that if my calculations were even a little off, he may not have gotten off with critical damage; the Skull Lord could have extinguished his entire HP in one go.
I had confidence in managing my HP since I used to play Heavy Knight even when it was just a game, but this was an opponent I haven't seen before today.
Dread and suspicion could affect a person's performance.
Even in a situation like that, Celt did his job perfectly.
"It's the end, Skull Lord!"
I kicked the ground and charged closer to the Skull Lord that was still frozen in a posture where it was about to swing its sword.
"UOOO....OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOh!"
The core halves started pulsing as they shrunk down, then they exploded, blowing out the Skull Lord's torso.
The skull and shoulder bones scattered to the ground, then the horse-like lower body simply fell down to the floor.
[(You have gained 9057 experience points.)] 
[(Your level has increased from 66 to 71.)] 
[(You have gained 5 Skill points.)] 
Smoke started pouring off the Skull Lord's remains, then they simply disappeared into thin air.
We really, managed to win.....
If we failed here, then perhaps the majority of the Raid Quest participants....no, maybe even the city itself could've fallen into disaster.
The Skull Lord was simply that dangerous of an opponent.
Our current situation was also quite precarious.
If it came to that, then it could've led to the ruin of La Colina, the City of Adventurers.
"W-we really won! Against a higher leveled opponent like that....! I-I still can't believe it....."
Bonelessly drooping to the ground, Mabel let out some words of relief.
Celt didn't have the energy to even do that, so he kept staring at the ceiling with a relieved smile.
"Celt, you did good too. Sorry about pushing a dangerous role like that on you, even though it shouldn't have been your responsibility. If you haven't managed to evade that [Lightning Ground Impact], then we would've lost any chances of winning."
"For real....I don't want to fight even one more down-to-the-wire battle like this one anymore...."
Celt covered his eyes with a hand.
Perhaps it was from the relief of getting through a battle to the death, or perhaps it was from the joy of victory, but some tears could faintly be seen.
"Dammit, what the hell. It's not a bad feeling at all."
The Reincarnated Heavy Knight Who Was Exiled After A Supposed Big Miss Is Unparalleled With His Game Knowledge
大ハズレだと追放された転生重騎士はゲーム知識で無双する
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/the-reincarnated-heavy-knight-who-was-exiled-after-a-supposed-big-miss-is-unparalleled-with-his-game-knowledge/
Action Adventure Fantasy Romance Shounen
Abandoned Children Adapted to Manga Adventurers Alchemy Arrogant Characters Artifacts Blacksmith Calm Protagonist Clever Protagonist Determined Protagonist Dungeons Fallen Nobility Fantasy World Game Elements Guilds Hot-blooded Protagonist Level System Love Interest Falls in Love First Lucky Protagonist Male Protagonist Mystery Solving Naive Protagonist Nobles Poor to Rich Previous Life Talent Reincarnated in a Game World Romantic Subplot Skill Books Strategic Battles Strong Love Interests Strong to Stronger Sword Wielder Underestimated Protagonist Weak to Strong
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n8465gx/
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