69novels Page 183
Page 183
When the three mysterious figures draped in flame-patterned cloaks passed through the hotel's revolving doors and entered the lobby on the first floor, all they could see was Asagiri, who stood quietly there wearing a long black trench coat and a dark gray mask.
"Huh? There are humans? Wait... are they humans...?"
One of the men slowly raised his head, revealing a face etched with eerie red patterns beneath his cloak, his wounds appearing as if flames were burning within them. He looked at Asagiri standing there and spoke slowly.
"Are you... a parasite?"
Just from that opening sentence, Asagiri had already gleaned a great deal of information.
These three people knew about the Thousand-Faced Monster in the hotel and the parasite it controlled, but they didn't know that the Thousand-Faced Monster had been eliminated. In other words, it wasn't because Asagiri eliminated the Thousand-Faced Monster that these three strange people were attracted, but rather that these guys were originally going to come here when the instance reached its 36th hour.
"I'm not."
Asagiri shook her head and asked in a calm tone.
"Who are you?"
Unexpectedly, upon hearing Asagiri's words, the three people draped in flame cloaks suddenly displayed a fanatical fervor on their faces. The mysterious man who had just spoken took two steps forward excitedly and spoke in a tone like that of a zealot.
"So you're human... a new, living human! Excellent! Join our sect, become a follower of the God of Fire, and serve our lord together!"
"Oh ho, so you're missionaries?"
Asagiri first replied with a smile, then asked a question.
"What if I don't add it?"
"You will join us. This is a dangerous world. Mortals are powerless in the face of death. Only by offering their bodies and minds to the gods can they possibly survive..."
"What if I don't add it?"
When Asagiri uttered those words, the faces of the three fanatics instantly turned ferocious. Their cloaks of flame burned even more fiercely, crackling and popping, and the surrounding air began to distort slightly due to the sudden increase in temperature.
"Then we have no choice but to kill you. If you are unwilling to submit to the gods, then you are an evil spirit."
"Pause!"
Just as the three fanatics were about to make their move, Asagiri suddenly raised his hand to stop them, changing the subject.
"Then I'll add it."
"Ok?"
Seeing how quickly Asagiri's attitude changed, the three fanatics were somewhat bewildered.
"Didn't you say you wouldn't add it...?"
Asagiri shrugged, speaking with an air of matter-of-fact.
"Ugh, if you'd said you'd kill me if I didn't join, wouldn't I have agreed already? It's your fault for not being clear. Your proselytizing skills aren't very professional. Once I'm in, I'll definitely give you guys targeted training, so you won't embarrass our Flame God Cult later..."
"Stop! Stop!"
Upon hearing Asagiri suddenly begin to speak, even envisioning the future in his words, one of the fanatics quickly interrupted, his face contorted with rage.
"Since you've decided to join, then join now!"
Asagiri responded loudly, not to be outdone.
"Great! That's impressive! How do I join?"
The fanatic narrowed his eyes slightly and slowly approached Asagiri, who was standing there, as he spoke.
"As long as the flames purify your body and you are reborn from the ashes, you will become a believer of the gods."
Asagiri showed no particular reaction to the approach of the fanatics, and simply smiled and asked in return.
"Let me ask first, is the chance of being reborn from the ashes 100%?"
"of course not."
The fanatic had now walked to within three meters of Chaowu and spoke in a condescending and self-righteous tone.
“Those who cannot be reborn from the ashes are not qualified to become believers; they can only become sacrifices to the gods. As mortals, it is only natural that they sacrifice their lives to please the gods.”
"Hmm, I think it's perfectly fine, so..."
Just as the fanatic was about to make a move, a tall, dark figure suddenly appeared beside Asagiri. Almost instantly, Asagiri and the human Shura, wielding cursed rope darts, were already in front of him.
"You should just die."
Before the fanatic could react, the Asura's dark hands grabbed his shoulders. As the Asura tore his body apart, Chaowu's rope dart pierced his skull. To be on the safe side, Chaowu also conjured an ice spear, which struck the fanatic's mangled body.
"You guy..."
Seeing this, the other two fanatics finally reacted. Their cloaks of flame burned even more fiercely, and flames burst out from the wounds on their faces. But just then, the girl's voice rang out from not far away.
"Touch of the Dead".
Dozens of pale arms emerged from the ground, attempting to touch the bodies of the two fanatics. However, before they could even make contact, they were melted by the intense heat surrounding them. Kotoko Iwanaga did not hesitate and immediately warned them.
"Be careful, the flames on these guys have holy properties!"
"The Grip of the Underworld!"
"Prickly light!"
"Sniper."
While Kotoko Iwanaga, Asuna Yuuki, and Megumi Kato launched their attack, Mr. Ichikawa's team and three other player teams also attacked the two fanatics. However, unexpectedly, the pale ghost hand, like the pale arms, melted before it even touched the bodies of the two fanatics. The ranged attacks launched by the other players also failed to penetrate the opponent's defenses. Only Asuna Yuuki's thorn and Megumi Kato's triple arrow successfully hit one of the fanatics' bodies, but they did not penetrate directly, only creating a few wounds.
Instead of bleeding from his wound, flames erupted, as if the blood vessels inside his body were being burned by the flames.
"you……"
The eyes of the two fanatics gradually melted, turning into burning flames. They looked at Asagiri standing there and the corpse of their companion, and slowly spoke.
"Who...who are you people...?"
"Still can't tell? Okay, then I'll tell you, I am..."
Asagiri crossed her arms over her chest and said calmly.
"I will never change my name or surname, Commander of Blackwatch, Lelouch Lamperouge."
"So it was you guys..."
The two fanatics took it to heart, and from their subsequent attitude, Asagiri gained new and important information.
“You bunch of bastards who have no reverence for the gods…we will kill you with our own hands as sacrifices to the gods!”
As soon as he finished speaking, one of the fanatics stretched out his right hand toward a player squad in the distance, and a python formed of flames immediately emerged from his palm, tearing at them.
"Shield!"
The team included a mage player who possessed the support ability Shield. However, his blue mana shield melted instantly upon colliding with the fire serpent. Subsequently, engulfed by the intense heat of the flames, the four players designated as "cannon fodder" were completely incinerated before they could even scream.
Seeing four players die right in front of them, the other players couldn't help but feel a little panicked. Even Asagiri, Yuuki Asuna, and the others realized the seriousness of the situation.
These fanatics are far less resilient than the parasitic players, but they possess the powerful ability to control fire, and their bodies are surrounded by high-temperature zones. Unless one is prepared to withstand the high-temperature burns and has a superior weapon that will not be melted by the flames, one cannot easily engage in close combat. Moreover, among the players present, only Kotoko Iwanaga and Asagiri can see the other's true form. To the others, what stands there are just two fireballs, and they cannot even see the other's spellcasting animation.
the most important is……
The four members of the Asagiri squad had never encountered an enemy with fire attributes before, which meant that Asagiri did not have any resistance to fire damage.
Just then, Asagiri suddenly spoke in a relaxed tone.
"Is that all? You who call yourselves believers in God..."
"Very weak."
39
Chapter 39 You are weak.
Upon hearing Asagiri's words, the flames around the two fanatics burned even more fiercely, their color turning a deep red, and the temperature suddenly rose.
At this moment, that saying is truly coming true.
"You must attack the minion with the taunt ability first."
Asgiri seemed to think that the sarcasm in that one sentence wasn't enough, so she added with a nonchalant smile.
"Even your so-called god is just a boast, nothing more than a strange being with slightly greater power. How dare he call himself a god? There is only one god in this world, and that is me, the god of abstraction and harem."
"You... how dare you blaspheme against the gods!"
The two fanatics' faces contorted in extreme pain, their bodies flashing like comets with brilliant trails of flame as they charged toward Asagiri, who was standing there.
"boom!!!"
Upon seeing a burst of flames erupt in the lobby, the players, including Mr. Ichikawa's team, couldn't help but change their expressions.
That mysterious player in black... is he really dead?
However, the next second, Asagiri's voice rang out from the other side.
"How weak you are! Why are you so weak? It's because your anger and hatred towards me are far from enough."
The two fanatical believers, engulfed in flames, turned around and looked at Asagiri, who was standing there unharmed. A strange look appeared on their faces as they murmured to themselves.
"Do cultists...possess the ability to swap places with their summoned creatures...?"
Just a second before being hit by the two fanatics, Asagiri activated her skill "Castover," swapping positions with Shura.
[Your Persona Shura has been destroyed. The trait "Rebirth of the End" has been activated, increasing your Fire and Holy resistances.]
Through the "Rebirth of the End" characteristic, Asagiri had realized the true nature of the fire power manipulated by the two fanatics. Similar to his Holy Light Cross, it was a mixed damage of holy and fire attributes. However, the Holy Light Cross was holy damage with fire attribute attached, and the holy attribute was the key. The power of the two fanatics was exactly the opposite, with fire attribute as the main attribute.
"Is this the evil magic that Blackwatch developed...?"
The two fanatics slowly emerged from the flames, their faces scorched and broken by their own flames, making them look like eerie, grotesque mummies encased in fire. One of the fanatics continued walking towards Asagiri, while the other looked in the direction where Asuna and the others were standing. Clearly, one of them intended to delay Asagiri's actions while the other took the opportunity to eliminate all the players.
"Tch, you've really been underestimated..."
Asuna Yuuki frowned slightly, thinking that judging from the other party's behavior, it was obvious that she thought the other players present, including her, Megumi Kato, and Kotoko Iwanaga, were just there to make up the numbers, and that the only one she really needed to worry about was Asagiri.
This made her, who had a strong sense of self-esteem, feel very uncomfortable.
However, although Asuna Yuuki has a strong sense of pride and a competitive personality, she did not lose her composure because of this. At this moment, she made the most correct choice.
"Don't panic, everyone!"
Yuuki Asuna suddenly spoke up loudly.
"I'll cast a protective spell on you right away to shield you from fire!"
Upon hearing this, the players, including Mr. Ichikawa, were puzzled, wondering how this girl in the crimson cloak, who was clearly a swordswoman, could possess magical protection that could resist fire.
Just then, the fanatic who was originally more than ten meters away from Yuuki Asuna suddenly flashed and approached Yuuki Asuna at an extremely fast speed. His right fist was wrapped in scorching flames, and his face was contorted with fanaticism as he slammed it down hard towards her head.
"Hmph, you've fallen for it..."
However, the next second, dozens of pale arms emerged from the ground, a huge pale ghost hand appeared from the void, and three jet-black arrows simultaneously attacked the fanatic, as if Kato Megumi and Iwanaga Kotoko had anticipated the opponent's actions and directly predicted the attack.
That's exactly what happened.
Asuna Yuuki does possess a protective ability, but it's a "Wind Protection" that can only be used on herself and her weapon. It doesn't actually have any effect against fire. However, the fanatic was unaware of this and thought she really had that ability, so he made what he believed to be the right choice: to kill the support class first.
When Yuuki Asuna uttered those words, Iwanaga Kotoko and Kato Megumi already understood what she meant and launched a preemptive attack.
This is the fighting synergy between the three women in the strategy team.
"Got you."
Seeing that the pale arms created by "Touch of the Dead" had successfully grabbed the legs of the fanatic, Kotoko Iwanaga thought to herself, "Just as I expected."
From the moment these three fanatics entered the hotel and began talking to Asagiri, she had a very strange feeling.
These guys... seem to be suppressing their power.
No, a more accurate description would be that because the power of this flame does not belong to them, they need to be extra careful when using it. If the power of the flame used exceeds its limit, it may cause a backlash against themselves.
So when the fanatic attacked Yuuki Asuna, concentrating most of the flames on his right fist, the flame protection on the rest of his body naturally weakened. This allowed the pale demon hand, which couldn't touch him at first, to successfully bind him. The pale demon hand's target was clear: it grabbed his burning right arm.
At that moment, the three arrows fired by Kato Megumi, like jet-black meteors, struck the fanatic's body.
When the first arrow struck, the pitch-black arrow broke in two, failing to penetrate the flames on the opponent's body.
The second arrow pierced through the flames, but the arrowhead only penetrated the fanatic's body slightly before turning to ashes.
The third arrow, however, pierced directly through the fanatic's body, leaving a hole about two or three centimeters long, with flames burning inside.
This is the passive effect of the Bloodstained Nightingale Bow. When it hits the same target, the power of the arrow will continuously increase. Unless you dodge Kato Megumi's shot, even if the arrow cannot cause damage at the beginning, its power will increase to an extremely terrifying level after hitting the target one after another.
"Sword skills..."