I have to attack. But standing before this Ogre felt like trying to bring down a skyscraper with a toothpick. The size and raw strength difference between us is just too much. It was a canyon I couldn't leap. But that wasn't even the most terrifying problem.
The most problematic trait of this ugly bastard is his thick and hard skin. Not metaphorically but literally. I have already tried Magic. Almost all offensive magic Types spell in my arsenal have been used. And the Result was quite pitiful. None of them could cause any significant damage.
In my Last Life, When I saw cases like these in Anime, I always wondered, Why doesn't the hero just wrap a ball of water around the monster's head and drown him? Simple. Efficient. Lack of oxygen kills everything, right?
If it was a PC game, using that strategy would have been impossible. But now that it is my real world, It is possible. Aside from the requirement of being very good at Mana control to keep the Water Ball always stick to Foe's Face, It was theoretically Possible.
...Is what I had thought until A year ago. Until I opened an Encyclopedia on Monsters.
And yet, A tiny bit of hope, out of desperation, was still there in my heart. So, I tried it, The Drown attack. And As expected...
It did not Work. The Guy didn't even Flinch.
Most Monsters in Verden, can Live on even Without Oxygen for a long time, as long as they can Absorb Mana from the surrounding atmosphere to use as there backup power source. And they don't need their Nose for it, Even their skin is enough.
And In case of Dungeon Monsters, They all have this Damn Feature!
I have to test the waters in other ways now. With my sword.
Flash!
I used Flash. I accelerated, a blue blur in the dim dome. And started running around him while simultaneously attacking his lower body, his Achilles tendons and knees with my Zes coated sword.
Sometimes I ran in a tight circle surrounding him, sometimes in a six point star pattern.
My sword struck again and again. Each hit felt like striking a rubberized steel beam. It was no use. No matter how much I cut, there's no blood, No scream!
Which means I am not even cutting through his thick outer skin. I can't even make him fucking bleed!
-Thud!
A rhythmic thud sound of pounding drew my eyes to the white barrier. The Warrior was screaming something, his face pressed against the mana wall. I read his lips through the distortion.
'Zes Concentrate!'
Zes Concentrate? Are you damn serious? I haven't even learned that Practically yet! How can I even use that in a life-and-death struggle when I don't even know how much mana it will consume!
"Careful!" The tiny pixie screamed.
Hearing her loud voice, I turned my head from Boran to the front.
Huh?! Careful of wha--
-THUD! Cough!
-Crash!
"Cough! Cough! Dammit!" Like a fucking Ragdoll, I was sent flying by The monster's Club and crashed straight on the wall. my spine meeting the stone wall with a sickening crunch. I didn't bounce, I was stuck there like a dead crushed Mosquito.
-Flop...
I slid down the rock like a crushed insect, hitting the floor with a wet flop.
"Haha... That was ...hard-cough! Cough!" I spat out some blood. The Taste of Blood, Taste of iron fresh in my mouth. The taste of iron was hot and thick, coating my tongue.
If not for the barrier that I had casted in the last second before the Club touched me, I am sure as hell, Half of my ribs would broken be in tiny pieces, Maybe even into fine White Powder. I still feel like there might be some tiny Cracks, though.
Gotta accept it. My logistics were wrong. It's not Forty Percent.
I stood up with difficulty, my legs shaking like reeds in a storm. and Looked up at the giant ogre. There seems to be a smile on his face. A wide, smug, yellow-toothed grin. As if he's proud of that hit just now. He finally got one hit after Swinging his club for more Forty times, After all. He ought to be Proud. But...
...Is this guy mocking me ? If he is, I can assure you that it's working, big guy.
I saw him approaching closer and closer with each second.
Somehow, after getting that hit, his giant figure seems to be even more scary than before.
The dome was a tomb, and I was being measured for the slab. I leaned against the cold stone, my fingers tracing the jagged cracks in the wall I'd just been plastered against. I brought my free hand to my face, wiping the smear of dark red iron-tasting liquid from my chin. That's when I felt it.
That's when I realized, The corners of my mouth were ..Curled up? My cheeks were tight, stinging with a tension I hadn't noticed until this very second because of how busy I was in battle but My cheeks have been stinging a bit for some Time now. This is the reason?
I am getting my ass kicked by a Fucking Mountain of green muscle, an Ogre here. And I am Smiling? And that too, Unconsciously? Am i Crazy? Did the Blow from the Ogre finally cracked my skull, or have I always been this broken? Or Did the Mental pressure made me gone Crazy?
Sigh.. Doesn't matter. Doesn't change anything. Back to battle.
Normal Zes attacks don't have much effect on the Guy. And unfortunately, my other offensive spells won't have much effect either.
How annoying!
I gotta think of a strategy! A strategy! Think! Tyler! Think! It's just a ugly brainless monster!
But What can I do?! it's no use unless I can penetrate his skin! For that I would need a Stronger Forc--wait...
Suddenly The words from The Brave Warrior came to my Mind. Concentrated Zes.
I can't use 'Zes Concentrate'. Sure, But I know the theory. So, if I use 'that' quark of Nick, i might-No I will be able learn it.
But, to use that, I need to get anxious and nervous, I need a full-on adrenaline rush. And for that In this situation, my only option is to maximize my fear of death. Fear of losing. Fear of being crushed into a meat ball under that club.
But there was the snag: I wasn't afraid of death. I was too calm. Too detached. But if there is A problem, There must be a Solution too.
And I, just happen to have the perfect spell for that. A Dark attribute psychic spell.
Self suggestion!
Well, To be precise the original Spell is called [Influence]. A lesser version of Hypnosis.
A spell that uses a psychological process of influencing, to enforce slightly control on a person's behaviors, beliefs, or mental state by consistently feeding thoughts and ideas to the subconscious mind.
But If I use it on myself and trigger the correct points, feed the correct thoughts, I can derive a Spell to influence myself, [Self Suggestion].
Yes! I can do it! I am a Magic Genius after all!
With that unwavering confidence in mind, I closed my eyes, slipping into a state of hyper-concentration. I didn't look for peace. I looked for the wounds that hadn't finished bleeding.