Swoooosh!
It was a downpour so heavy it seemed you would be soaked even with an umbrella.
Whoooosh!
A chilling gust of wind cut through the canyon, carrying flower petals with it.
-!
The flowers played a grim, bizarre melody.
Layered on top of it was a beautiful, completely out of place, crystalline voice.
“Aaaah…!” (Maria)
It was the mental protection spell I had asked Armin to cast to prevent the ‘Frenzy’ state. (Hanho)
An increase in Mental Power.
A reduction in the duration of all status effects.
These two effects were supposed to apply to all characters in a wide area, but thanks to the ‘Ode for a Hero’, their effects were tripled but restricted only to me. (Hanho)
…This should be enough to not worry. (Hanho)
With this, I put my mind at ease about any mental issues. (Hanho)
Sizzzle!
Of course, that song did nothing to lessen the pain. (Hanho)
The intensity of the agony I felt when the creature’s fluid covered my body was still the same. (Hanho)
No, in fact, with the reduced healing, it took longer for wounds to close, so it might have even hurt more. (Hanho)
!”
But… (Hanho)
“Bahella!” (Hanho)
It couldn’t be helped. (Hanho)
If I had really wanted it, I would have used magic. (Hanho)
There were plenty of paralysis-type spells that could produce a similar effect. (Hanho)
Ah, of course, I had no intention of using them. (Hanho)
Why would I use a skill that hinders combat? (Hanho)
Join Discord
To feel less pain. (Hanho)
To slightly increase the probability of survival. (Hanho)
If I had to choose between the two, it was the mindset of a sane person to naturally choose the latter, wasn’t it? (Hanho)
Sizzzle!
“Kkeueulmeulmeul…!!” (Hanho)
In any case, whether the background music changed to ‘Wolf of the Full Moon’ or not, what I did remained the same. (Hanho)
Blocking its fists with my shield. (Hanho)
Enduring my body melting from its watery slaps. (Hanho)
Watching my flesh get torn apart as I was caught in the bombardment fired by my companions. (Hanho)
“Hehehe…” (Hanho)
“Haha……” (Hanho)
Honestly, it was tough. (Hanho)
Even without a status effect like ‘Frenzy’, I felt like I was about to lose my mind. (Hanho)
I could feel the urge to escape this place growing from deep within my heart. (Hanho)
But… (Hanho)
‘I’m not the only one struggling.’ (Hanho)
The more I felt that way, the more I looked at my temporary companions. (Hanho)
It might not be as much as me, but they were having a hard enough time as well. (Hanho)
The warriors who had been twiddling their thumbs now had work to do and were scrambling diligently. (Hanho)
Swoooosh!
The rain was incomparably fiercer than before. (Hanho)
Consequently, flower petals were being generated like mad. (Hanho)
And on top of that, new summons appeared as the petals spat their own projectiles. (Hanho)
The terrible and absurd hell created by subcontractors of subcontractors of subcontractors… (Hanho)
No, I decided to stop thinking about that. (Hanho)
Anyway. (Hanho)
“Block it…!” (Survivor)
“The barrier! There’s a crack in the barrier, and the rain is leaking in!” (Survivor)
“I know! But we don’t have the leeway to repair it…!” (Survivor)
Now, the main force could no longer fight as they had before, simply blowing up flowers as they appeared and elegantly dealing damage to the boss from a distance. (Hanho)
But is this just how the human mind works? (Hanho)
I know I shouldn’t feel this way. (Hanho)
I know that if they struggle, I’ll only have a harder time… (Hanho)
But knowing that we’re all suffering together is a small comfort. (Hanho)
[Kkieeeeeeeek!!!] (Tetrasea)
To be honest, I think I understand how this bastard ended up with a stupid skill like ‘Twisted Patience’. (Hanho)
Hae! (Hanho)
You have to hurt as much as I do. (Hanho)
Only then will I feel a little better. (Hanho)
Isn’t it likely a skill that developed from living with that exact mindset? (Hanho)
Well, if not, whatever. (Hanho)
“Oh.” (Hanho)
Lost in thought, I didn’t even feel the pain for about ten seconds. (Hanho)
As expected, thinking about other things is the best remedy when things get tough. (Hanho)
“Kkeueulmeul…!!” (Hanho)
Thus, the more the pain blossomed, the more I focused on my thoughts. (Hanho)
Not negative thoughts, but positive ones if possible. (Hanho)
It has been two hours since the battle began. (Hanho)
No, has it been about three hours? (Hanho)
Honestly, I’ve lost all track of time. It hurts so much that it feels like ten hours have passed. (Hanho)
In any case, it seemed like we just needed to continue like this. (Hanho)
Of course, it would get harder as we went on. (Hanho)
And fatalities would inevitably occur. (Hanho)
And in that state, we’d be dragged off to block the next wave with almost no rest… (Hanho)
‘This is a bad thought, so I’ll pass.’ (Hanho)
That’s it. (Hanho)
If we all just push a little harder together, we can do it. (Hanho)
Let’s not think about the next wave. (Hanho)
Could there possibly be a greater trial than this damned Floor Lord? (Hanho)
It was just as I was painting such a hopeful future. (Hanho)
“Aaaaargh!” (Warrior)
“D-don’t get pushed back!” (Mage)
“Fuck! How can we not get pushed back! It hurts like hell!” (Warrior)
“P-please don’t swear…! I’m sorry!” (Mage)
·Huh? (Hanho)
What’s this? (Hanho)
Thump!
Although I usually didn’t have the capacity to pay attention to my surroundings, I could still hear a man and a woman arguing from the main force far away. (Hanho)
“You expect me not to swear? Why don’t you come stand over here!” (Warrior)
“I-I’m also trying my best over here…” (Mage)
“Bullshit! You’re just comfortably casting spells from the back! Aaaaargh!!” (Warrior)
It sounded like a warrior and a mage were having a tense conversation. (Hanho)
It was not a pleasant exchange. (Hanho)
The comrades-in-arms who had overcome the last wave together… the same people who had respected the dead and stood by them during the funeral, no matter how hard it was, were now fighting. (Hanho)
It wasn’t that I couldn’t understand. (Hanho)
“Comfortably? Do we look comfortable to you? We’ve suffered mana overload several times already! A little more of this, and we could suffer permanent mana loss!” (Mage)
An extreme situation. (Hanho)
People exposed to excessive stress are bound to become edgy. (Hanho)
“So what! I’m about to die right now!” (Warrior)
Besides, I was a hundred percent on the warrior’s side. (Hanho)
If someone told me not to get pushed back right now, I’d probably fly into a rage too. (Hanho)
Ah, of course, that didn’t mean the warrior’s actions were acceptable. (Hanho)
“So what, you ask! You have to block! With all your might! There’s no way to escape!” (Mage)
“F-fuck…! I still can’t do it anymore!” (Warrior)
“W-what are you saying! Look over there, Viscount Yandel is holding on so steadfastly all by himself—!” (Mage)
Perhaps that final, scissor-sharp comment snipped the thread of his sanity, which had been stretched to its limit. (Hanho)
“…You crazy bitch! Fuck it, screw you all! My clan is ruined anyway, you think I give a damn!” (Brikton)
Finally, the warrior took drastic action. (Hanho)
“Wh-where are you going!!” (Mage)
“You crazy…!” (Survivor)
Thump!
I realized why I had heard the conversation from the main force so far away amidst all this. (Hanho)
This Barbarian’s body, extremely sensitive to survival, had been the first to sense it. (Hanho)
「Brikton Azkel abandons the battle due to excessive pain and leaves his position.」
That we were fucked. (Hanho)
—
Anyone who has played Jenga knows. (Hanho)
How precarious a tall tower is. (Hanho)
How crucial a role each and every block at the bottom plays. (Hanho)
“Uwaaaaaaaah!!” (Brikton)
The warrior who broke away from the main force ran towards the cliff, then lightly kicked off its edge and leaped high into the air.
And…
“C-crazy bastard…” (Survivor)
He disappeared into the darkness of the Labyrinth.
Just as everyone judged the warrior to have died in vain. (Hanho)
“I-I did it…! Fuck! I did it…!” (Brikton)
From far away, beyond the darkness, a thunderous shout was heard.
It seemed his random jump was a success. (Hanho)
He must have jumped blindly and by chance, there was a slope or something down there in the darkness. (Hanho)
Damn him for being so lucky. (Hanho)
‘He succeeded?’ (Hanho)
I was about to faint, but the warrior beyond the darkness was different. (Hanho)
“Eat shit and live well, you bastards!!” (Brikton)
The warrior left, taunting us with a voice full of elation and excitement, and never returned.
And in his place. (Hanho)
Cr-crack–
For some reason, I heard that sound. (Hanho)
It wasn’t a sign that a dimensional collapse was about to begin. (Hanho)
It was just the sound of a crack forming within our group. (Hanho)
“Brikton Azkel, a warrior of the Jagged Tooth Clan, has… deserted…!” (Armin)
At last, Armin, grasping the situation, relayed the fact to me in a flustered tone… (Hanho)
‘Oh…….’ (Hanho)
It became the catalyst. (Hanho)
A catalyst sufficient to make the fractured group completely explode. (Hanho)
“Why-why are you all looking at me like that!” (Survivor)
“I wasn’t even that close to that crazy bastard!” (Survivor)
“You all know how much we’ve struggled…!” (Survivor)
Perhaps because the warrior who had succeeded in the surprise jump was from the Jagged Tooth Clan, it seemed negative gazes were gathering on those of the same origin. (Hanho)
There is a very absolute truth in this world. (Hanho)
When injustice builds up. (Hanho)
Naturally, someone will be unable to bear it. (Hanho)
Just like this. (Hanho)
“Y-you fucking bastards…! You dare look at me with those eyes!” (Rektas)
“Rektas! C-calm down!” (Malid)
“You shut up! This is all your fault!” (Rektas)
The Vice-Captain’s urgent voice was heard, but sadly, his desperate plea did not reach his clan member. (Hanho)
“Uwaaaaaaaaaah!!” (Rektas)
And so, another warrior cut through the rain and charged towards the cliff where his senior had escaped.
Tadat!
He followed the same route as the one before him and leaped…
“Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!!!” (Rektas)
He succeeded again. (Hanho)
‘Damn it.’ (Hanho)
Why? Why did he succeed again? (Hanho)
Is there some wide terrain down there? (Hanho)
Or am I just unlucky? (Hanho)
Could the Hans effect still be lingering? (Hanho)
The answer to the mystery was simple. (Hanho)
The perpetrator himself gave me the answer. (Hanho)
“Come on over! It’s super wide, so you’ll land no matter how you jump! Let’s leave the assholes behind and save ourselves! Think we can’t make it on our own? Don’t worry! The Golden Ghost Clan! If we can just find the Golden Ghost Clan below, we can live! We can live and return to the city!” (Rektas)
For those of us left behind, it was the worst possible situation. (Hanho)
Fortunately, Armin also took swift action. (Hanho)
“L-Lord Kevron!” (Armin)
Ah, maybe it wasn’t fortunate? (Hanho)
A swift action isn’t always the right one. (Hanho)
“Gather your members and bring them to the center! You may use force!” (Armin)
An order for the Vice-Captain to personally round up his clan members to prevent them from escaping. (Hanho)
I couldn’t believe it. (Hanho)
I never thought Armin would make such a trolling move. (Hanho)
“Armin, retract the order!” (Hanho)
You can’t do that. (Hanho)
Giving a coercive order when everyone is in an extremely agitated state will only paralyze their reason. (Hanho)
I tried to stop him in a hurry, but it was already too late. (Hanho)
“Wh-where do you think you’re grabbing me…! You bastards! Let go!” (Survivor)
“He’s running away!!” (Survivor)
“Stop him…!!” (Survivor)
Since I wasn’t watching the main force in real-time, I couldn’t see exactly what happened. (Hanho)
With the wind and rain raging, and the distance, too many shouts were jumbled together to be heard clearly. (Hanho)
Swoooosh!
Only a few minutes passed after that. (Hanho)
I could only hear the result. (Hanho)
“…I’m sorry! A total of six members from the Jagged Tooth Clan have deserted! We couldn’t stop them!” (Armin)
Right, six people gone… (Hanho)
It might seem like a small number, but I could already see the future. (Hanho)
This would make the rest of the raid even more difficult. (Hanho)
Grit… (Hanho)
But what’s done is done. (Hanho)
Blaming and cursing someone now won’t change reality. (Hanho)
We have to continue doing what we must. (Hanho)
And for that, we need a change in atmosphere. (Hanho)
Therefore… (Hanho)
Sizzzle!
I forcibly endure the searing pain of my flesh melting and shout. (Hanho)
“Do not panic! Six people are gone? So what! Did you think there would be no ‘casualties’ in taking down a Floor Lord…!” (Hanho)
Of course, I know it too. (Hanho)
This time, the situation is not normal. (Hanho)
Deserters, not victims. (Hanho)
It’s only natural for the morale of those remaining to plummet. (Hanho)
So, we need to change the perspective. (Hanho)
“I apologize! It is my fault! I underestimated its Supernatural Ability!” (Hanho)
First, I protect their minds by shifting the blame from outside forces to myself. (Hanho)
“So, Elloid! Stop the ode!” (Hanho)
I deliver a clear order to the confused main force. (Hanho)
“From now on, protect the minds of the entire main force, including myself!” (Hanho)
Their desertion was not their own will. (Hanho)
It was all because the Lord of Tears inflicted status effects like ‘Frenzy’ or ‘Fear’. (Hanho)
Therefore, they are not ‘deserters’. (Hanho)
“There must be no more ‘victims’!” (Hanho)
An order with that invisible implication strongly embedded within. (Hanho)
The feedback was immediate. (Hanho)
“Ah! So that’s it! Their minds were affected because of that monster!!” (Survivor)
Ainar, along with the other survivors who were under extreme stress, easily accepted my implication. (Hanho)
The more difficult the situation, the more people tend to see what they want to see and believe what they want to believe. (Hanho)
It causes less stress that way. (Hanho)
“O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o…!” (Maria)
Soon, the ode dedicated to me ceased, and a crystalline voice flowing from the Priestess of the Three Gods Orchestra filled the canyon. (Hanho)
「Maria Shuare Elloid has cast [Wolf of the Full Moon].」
「For the duration of the song, the Mental Power of all characters within range will be greatly increased, and the duration of all status effects will be greatly reduced.」
Of course, the effect of that song itself probably isn’t that significant. (Hanho)
In my view, their desertion wasn’t 100% due to ‘mental abnormalities’. Except for the first deserter, the rest was a situation caused by human nature pushed to its limits. (Hanho)
However… (Hanho)
“Uwaaaaaaaah!!!” (Survivor)
“4th Company, listen up! As Knights of the King, I will not tolerate any unsightly behavior! For the sake of honor, defend your positions to the very end!” (Knight)
Is this what they call the placebo effect? (Hanho)
“O-o-o-o-o-o-o…!” (Maria)
The belief that the song was protecting their minds sparked their will to fight, and the battle, which had fallen into a state of panic, was back on track. (Hanho)
“…” (Hanho)
Alright, let’s try this again. (Hanho)
