The Killing Blow

"Ah—!!!"

Accompanied by a shriek that sounded as if hundreds of people were screaming at once, the pure white floor began to split and shake. Only then did Lize realize in astonishment that the whiteness covering the entire room wasn't made of stone slabs, but of countless white bones! They were packed tightly together, covering the floor without a single gap. At a glance, anyone would have thought they were ordinary stone slabs. The thought sent a chill down Lize's back. She could only imagine what would have happened if she had walked into the room without taking precautions. Staring at the writhing sea of bones before her, Lize turned to look at Rhode in astonishment. How had he known?

Rhode noticed the girl's surprised gaze, but didn't explain. He couldn't exactly tell her he knew because he'd died here once before...

Besides, now wasn't the time to think about that.

"Lize, get ready to attack. Give it everything you've got."

The white sea of bones had already retreated, revealing the black, filthy stone floor beneath. The atmosphere in the room changed dramatically as the beautiful dreamlike scene finally shed its veil and revealed its hideous face. The only thing that seemed out of place was the statue. Even surrounded by countless bones, it remained so beautiful and pure, as if it had emerged unstained from the mire.

But Rhode had no time to admire this beautiful menace. After giving Lize her orders, he charged into the room. At the same time, a crimson card appeared in his hand once more, transforming into Crimson Lotus Fire that surrounded him.

"—!!!"

Dozens of arms joined together from white bones reached for Rhode, but before they could get close, the flames scorched them and sent them recoiling. Though summoned spirits couldn't truly die, the pain of being torn apart still made Flame Slayer thrash about and bare its fangs in fury.

Unfortunately, the Black Hound still didn't get the chance to do anything this time. Rhode sent it forward again. The bone sea's attacks weren't much of a threat, but there were so many of them. Rhode didn't have any wide-area attack spells at his disposal, and Lize's positive energy could only inflict a little damage. They could play it safe, but that would multiply the time and energy required.

So Rhode decisively chose to imitate a suicide squad tactic and throw Flame Slayer in like a [***] bomb.

The poor Black Hound was unwilling, but it could only run forward helplessly. Rhode once again helped fend off the arms reaching from all directions. This wasn't out of kindness; he simply wanted it to get a little farther in.

Sure enough, the countless bony arms soon forced Rhode onto the defensive. Faced with the claws trying to seize him, he promptly pulled back and tossed his summoned spirit straight ahead. The mindless things didn't seem to notice anything amiss. Soon, dozens more arms shot out of the bone sea, grabbed the Black Hound tightly, and dragged it inside.

"Boom!!!"

A moment later, another violent explosion rang out. The bone sea shuddered, and hundreds upon hundreds of fragments flew into the air, scattering like a shower of petals before drifting down like snowflakes.

Rhode flipped his hand, and another crimson card quickly appeared.

Fortunately, summoned spirits couldn't rebel. Otherwise, the pitiful Black Hound—who had emerged from the flames once more, no longer looking fierce at all and gazing at Rhode with utter reproach—would surely have turned tail and run as far away as possible. Bound by the contract, it had no choice but to stay. If not for that, this poor "kamikaze squad member" might have abandoned its deranged master and fled without a second thought.

But Rhode completely ignored the Black Hound's "reproachful" gaze. He merely whistled to signal Flame Slayer to charge forward again.

And so the battle resumed.

The mindless undead naturally couldn't understand why the thing they had killed kept appearing again and again. Every time the Black Hound charged them, they tore it to pieces without mercy—and suffered another explosion in return. Flame Slayer's self-destruction was no easy thing to withstand. After several rounds, the bone sea had lost a third of its mass. It began to roll and coalesce, instinctively trying to fill the new gaps, completely unaware that Rhode, who had been hanging back, had quietly drawn closer.

Having already completed this mission once before, Rhode knew exactly what was wrong with the creature before him. The bone sea, which looked so deadly, was nothing but a smokescreen. The real mastermind was the statue in their midst, surrounded by the bones and appearing sacred and untouchable.

"Lize, shield!"

He had very few cards in his hand, but that didn't stump Rhode. He quickly made his decision and called out to the girl standing behind him.

A faint golden barrier soon enveloped Rhode. This time, when the bony arms lunged at him again, he didn't retreat. Instead, he gripped his longsword and charged toward them.

His sword flashed, and the bony claws around him shattered. In that brief opening, Rhode's figure blurred, turning into a shadow as he leapt into the air.

After activating Shadow Blink, Rhode's speed increased several times over, but the danger he faced remained. For monsters that relied on numbers, speed wasn't an insurmountable problem. Countless arms soon rose from the bone sea again, reaching for Rhode. Their sharp finger bones scraped against the golden barrier with a grating sound. But soon, the arms recoiled as if they had touched a scorching furnace, letting out low, mournful cries.

Lize had made her move.

She raised both hands, and beams of abundant positive energy rained down from above, smashing the bony arms trying to block Rhode's path. For a moment, bone fragments flew everywhere.

Though this wasn't a proper positive-energy attack spell, the Half-Angel blood in Lize's veins made up for its lack of purity. The bone sea began to tremble as if it were being doused with boiling oil. Its cries of rage rose and fell. Soon, a "stream" of bones spread out from one side and rushed toward the doorway.

Meanwhile, Rhode began to fall.

He wasn't an angel, after all. Shadow Blink could raise his speed to its limit in an instant, but it still had a time limit. And gravity wasn't just for show—clearly, old man Newton wasn't pleased with Rhode's attempt to challenge his authority and intended to teach him a lesson he'd never forget.

The bones were right before him. With his momentum gone, Rhode couldn't get past the barrier and reach his target. If he fell into it, he would undoubtedly be torn to pieces.

But Rhode didn't see it that way.

He stretched out his hand, and a summoning circle appeared in an instant. A blue-green card spun out.

Soul Bird.

The blue spirit bird circled around Rhode, and the gust it stirred immediately arrested his fall. This gave Rhode a moment to catch his breath. Then he gritted his teeth and leapt forward once more.

That brief pause gave Rhode the room he needed to win. When he leapt again, he had already reached the top of the statue. Looking down at the smooth white stone just below him, Rhode silently apologized. Then he gripped his longsword and swung it down.

But things didn't go as smoothly as Rhode had imagined.

"Whoosh, whoosh!!"

As Rhode swung his sword down, dozens of bone spikes suddenly shot up from below, heading straight for the young swordsman in midair. But in an instant, a pair of folded wings appeared out of nowhere and blocked Rhode's path.

"Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!!!"

The dull impacts rang out. The wings flickered as they endured the bone spikes' assault. Glimmering feathers fell from them and floated slowly through the air, adding a touch of beauty to the scene. By then, Rhode's sword was less than a meter from the statue.

"Whoosh!!!"

A gust of wind suddenly rose.

Rhode caught a glimpse of a shadow from the corner of his eye. A tremendous impact struck him from the side, knocking him off balance and hurling him into the wall. Seeing this, Lize was horrified. She hurried forward, trying to help Rhode, but sharp bone spikes and arms attacked again, forcing her to retreat to her position.

"Mr. Rhode!"

"Urgh..."

Rhode groaned and struggled to his feet with the wall behind him. His whole body ached, and his feet felt as if they were sinking into soft cotton, making it impossible to find his balance. Just then, the wind rose again.

Relying almost entirely on the instincts he'd honed over seven years of gaming, Rhode turned his head and narrowly dodged the sharp object that came whistling toward him. Only then did he see what it was.

It was a long tail made of bone, raised high and coiled around the statue like a snake. Having missed twice in a row, it now seemed much more cautious. It quickly drew back and coiled into a loop, leaving only the sharp bone spike at its tip raised in front like a venomous snake, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

Five meters.

Rhode quickly gauged the distance and came up with a plan.

Just then, his opponent seemed to have lost patience with the intruder in its domain. The bone sea, which had already gathered and condensed, rose high and surged toward Rhode, who was pressed against the wall. In the blink of an eye, the white flood completely swallowed the corner where he stood.

"Mr. Rhode!"

Lize saw the entire scene unfold before her. Her vision swam, and she nearly fainted. Her mind went blank, and she had no idea what to do next. She knew how dangerous this was, but the confidence Rhode had inspired in her along the way had made her believe instinctively that he could handle anything. Now, the stark gap between reality and her hopes left her frozen in place. She didn't even notice the bony claws drawing closer and closer.

But it lasted only an instant.

The surging wave suddenly rose, and blades of light whirled out in every direction. The once-sturdy cage became perilously unstable. Faced with its prey's struggle, the bone sea let out another furious roar and charged forward again, trying to eliminate this troublesome target once and for all.

This time, though, it failed.

The white wave split in two. A violently bursting whirlwind swept up the scattered fragments around it, roaring past and tearing a gaping rift through the bone sea. In its midst, Rhode held his longsword high. A dazzling star glimmered at the sword's tip.

Rhode stepped forward half a pace and swung his raised right hand.

The white blade left his hand.

As if sensing the danger, the shrieking bone sea advanced instead of retreating. Layer upon layer of bone walls rose high and rushed toward Rhode with a clattering sound. The slender tailbone whipped around, its sharp tip thrusting straight at his face.

Rhode lowered his hand and tilted his head slightly.

"Whoosh."

The icy, razor-sharp bone spike brushed past him once more. This time, it would never get the chance to make up for its mistake.

At that very moment, the threatening waves of bones seemed to crumble like building blocks smashed by a child's palm. They collapsed with a crash and scattered in every direction. Carried forward by their momentum, they slid another two meters before finally coming to a harmless stop at Rhode's feet.

Rhode raised his head and followed the bone spike's path with his gaze. The sharp blade was buried deep in the beautiful statue that had been hidden behind the bones.

Soon, cracks spread across it like a spiderweb. At the same time, a system prompt appeared before Rhode.

[Area Unlocked]

"Crack."

With that soft sound, the bone spike that had pierced the wall beside Rhode's cheek shattered into pieces.