Solo Max-Level Newbie - Chapter 370 : The Gray Forest (3)

“Ve… Veteran Corporation? Pink? Yellow? What the hell is that?”

Craveratis tilted its head in confusion.

But there was no need to answer every little thing for a creature that was about to die.

“Yeah, something like that.”

The remaining insects would be dealt with by the others.

Now it was time to take down the main threat and save Teresa and the other players.

[Lv3 ‘Hellfire’ has been activated!]

A blazing flame appeared in Jinhyuk’s left hand.

Hellfire that could evaporate even stones on contact.

And.

[Unique ability ‘Black Tears’ has been activated!]

From the sword *Barnard* in Jinhyuk’s right hand, drops of black liquid began to fall.

“You thought you could overwhelm me with numbers, but that was a mistake.”

The end of that ridiculous amount of mana was finally in sight.

It must have been because of the use of *Army Ants*.

Jinhyuk moved first.

*Vwoom!*

The Hellfire in his left hand cut through the air.

“Screeech!”

Craveratis instinctively sensed that it must not be hit by that attack and quickly twisted its body to the side.

But with such a massive frame, dodging the rapidly approaching Hellfire was nearly impossible.

*Boom!*

“Aaaagh!”

With the eruption of crimson volcanic flame, the massive insect’s body was thrown backward.

The impact was so powerful that the bushes behind Craveratis were engulfed in flames.

*Fwoosh!*

“Screeeech!”

“Keeeek!”

The fire spread uncontrollably, burning the nearby insects alive.

“Indeed, the best way to deal with bugs is by burning them.”

Jinhyuk took a stance, preparing to leap toward the writhing Craveratis.

The black tears dripping from *Barnard* began to radiate intense mana.

“Screeeech! Screeeech!”

Desperately trying to avoid the flames, Craveratis’s movements grew more frantic.

With its movements growing larger, the location of its heart was also clearly revealed.

*Tah!*

Jinhyuk launched his attack in one swift motion.

Now that the Hellfire had weakened its defense, this was the perfect moment to end it.

*Slash!*

The dagger cut through the exoskeleton, slicing into its flesh.

Green ichor sprayed out, leaving a long gash running along its body.

*Sizzle!*

[Due to the effect of ‘Black Tears,’ decay is progressing!]

[100 damage per second is stacking!]

The wound quickly began to change color.

*Black Tears* was not only a powerful ability on its own, but it also had the special effect of worsening injuries.

Craveratis watched in horror as its flesh started to rot before its very eyes. It raised its claws.

Not to attack.

But to survive.

To escape the unbearable pain.

The sight of it tearing its own flesh with its claws was grotesque.

“Grrr…! To think I’d suffer such humiliation at the hands of a mere human! I will never forgive this!”

Its voice was filled with bitter rage.

In that moment.

The concentration of mana in the surroundings shifted.

At the same time, the Hellfire clinging to Craveratis’s exoskeleton began to extinguish.

[The ruler of the Gray Forest is initiating ‘Form Change’!]

This was known as *Phase 2*.

A characteristic unique to certain rare boss monsters.

Not only did the form change, but the quality of its mana also increased.

A boss with *Phase 2* was considered at least several levels above the usual bosses of the same floor.

*Crack… Crack!*

As its skeleton changed, Craveratis’s body began to shrink.

By compacting its mana and eliminating unnecessary energy, this was the true form of the ruler of the Gray Forest.

“Damn. I was saving this for wiping out the Black Hill Tribe, but… it feels refreshing to be in this form after so long.”

Its new form resembled that of a human, with a notable feature of five tails extending from its back.

“You’ve shrunk down a lot, so you don’t seem nearly as intimidating as before. Are you sure you’ve actually gotten stronger?”

“Heh. Keep talking. Soon, you won’t even be able to see me.”

Craveratis chuckled confidently as it scanned the area.

Then, as if it had made a decision, its lips curled into a grin.

“Fine. I’ll start by killing what you cherish most.”

*Boom!*

Craveratis vanished from its spot.

…Fast!

Jinhyuk’s gaze shot to the right.

But.

“…!?”

He grasped at the air, but there was nothing there.

Craveratis had already raced far beyond his reach, running at a maddening speed.

＊＊＊

“Hehehe! Hahaha!”

Craveratis let out a burst of crazed laughter.

The scenery passed by in a blur.

Its body felt lighter.

Even its power was overflowing!

Everything was perfect.

The only regret was that it wouldn’t be able to fully use this power in the upcoming war of the factions.

‘I was going to use this form to crush the Black Hill Tribe and the Cult of the Undead…’

Indeed, losing one of its trump cards was unfortunate.

Especially when the cult’s defenses had weakened while they were searching for something.

If Craveratis could strike at the right time, it would be the perfect opportunity to expand its territory.

But if it could tear apart these detestable humans in front of it…

Well, that wouldn’t be so bad either.

*Shff!*

Craveratis shot past the players in the blink of an eye.

Frey, who had been furiously swinging her spear, reacted a beat too late.

“Tch!”

She missed.

Her spear, which cut through empty air, stabbed into a tree and lodged itself into the rock behind it.

“Damn it! What kind of speed…!”

Chun Yoosung also failed to keep up with the movement.

The third form of his *Soul Reaping Sword* swept across the ground, two beats behind its target.

“Hahaha! Do you understand now? No matter how much you struggle, it’s still only at the level of the lower floors! You’re no match for those of us who risk our lives every day!”

The overwhelming speed.

Its movement rivaled that of teleportation, far too fast for the eye to follow.

*Splat!*

One of its sharp limbs grabbed a female player by the head.

It was the magic user standing in front of Teresa.

“Huh?… Aaaagh?”

“You only just now realized you were caught? Slow, as expected from you humans…”

*Rip!*

The head was torn from its body, and blood spurted out like a fountain.

“One down.”

“Ahhhhhh! You monster!”

A hulking male player, witnessing the death of his comrade, raised his siege hammer high into the air.

*Boom!*

With a terrifying sound, the hammer came crashing down toward the ground.

*Boom!*

But there was no way Craveratis, who had dodged the attacks from Frey and Chun Yoosung, would be hit by such a slow attack.

“That makes two.”

Another cleanly severed armor piece. Another fountain of blood.

Even the multiple layers of defensive magic on the armor couldn’t withstand an attack from Craveratis in its Phase 2 form.

Next…

Craveratis turned to Teresa.

The third target was this human woman.

‘I wonder what kind of reaction it will show when I kill the thing it wants to protect the most.’

Jinhyuk was rushing toward them from a distance.

But by the time he arrived, the woman’s head would already be gone.

“I won’t go down so easily!”

Teresa gathered all her remaining strength and focused her mana.

She was preparing to unleash a wide-range holy spell in response to the approaching threat.

“Struggling, are you? That’ll be entertaining as well.”

*Tsk.*

*Tsk tsk.*

Craveratis dodged the sword with a slight tilt of its head.

It avoided the strike aimed at its vital point with a simple step.

And.

As the blade went for its neck.

*Crunch!*

It caught the sword with its fingers.

“Is that all?”

“You… you monster…”

Teresa’s face hardened with fear.

“Now die.”

Just as Craveratis’s hand was about to touch her neck,

An enormous surge of mana came rushing in from behind.

“Already caught up? So, you’re also confident in your speed, huh…”

*Boom!*

Craveratis gasped in surprise as Jinhyuk appeared right in front of it.

It quickly swung its tails, narrowly avoiding having a large hole blown through its back.

“Heh. You really did get faster in Phase 2. I was planning to finish you off with that last attack.”

“You…!”

“Oh, calm down. You just molted into your new form. Wouldn’t it be a waste to get all worked up and die pathetically?”

“You think I’m going to lose? To a human like you?”

*Bang!*

One of its tails fired off like a bullet.

A sonic boom echoed as the sharp tip shot straight for Jinhyuk’s head.

Or at least, it thought it had pierced his head.

Jinhyuk had tilted his head just enough to dodge the tail and smirked.

“You’re fast, but your movements are too simple. There’s no challenge in predicting your attacks. It’s too easy to dodge.”

“Screeeech!”

Furious, Craveratis swung all five of its tails at once.

This time, it wasn’t just aiming for his head but also his arms, legs, and torso. It didn’t matter where it hit, as long as it could cause some damage.

*Clang! Clang! Clang!*

Sparks flew in all directions as the tails struck with blinding speed, but Jinhyuk moved even faster, dodging and parrying every strike with his dagger.

“How about this!”

*Boom!*

Craveratis buried its tails into a tree and launched itself into the air.

It shot downward from about 3 meters above, trying to land a crushing tail attack.

With the angle changed, the speed and trajectory of the tails were unfamiliar.

But once again, Jinhyuk dodged them with precision, the tails missing him by a hair’s breadth.

‘This is starting to get annoying.’

Jinhyuk moved several meters to the side, taking a brief moment to catch his breath.

Using the tree as leverage to redirect its attacks gave Craveratis an advantage in the air.

The most frustrating part was how easily it could change direction in midair.

If that was the case…

Behind Jinhyuk, blue mana began to gather.

It was time to summon his power.

[‘Memory of the World’ has been unlocked.]

This was…

The ultimate battle technique.

A power that forced advantageous matchups against opponents, surpassing any other unique ability in existence.

[Unique ability ‘Mighty Strength of the Demonic Spirit’ has been activated!]

Six translucent golden arms appeared behind Jinhyuk.

*Demonic Spirit’s Strength*.

It was the close-combat unique ability used by the Yaksha.

“W-what…?”

Craveratis stared, bewildered.

There were more arms than it had tails.

And what’s more…

“Be careful. These aren’t just fast.”

Jinhyuk thrust a fist forward.

Three sonic booms followed the trajectory of his punch.

*Boom boom boom boom boom!*

One strike.

Trees were uprooted, and the ground was torn apart.

“Screeeech!”

The strike was both faster and more powerful than Craveratis could have imagined. It completely overshadowed the speed advantage it had once boasted.

But that was not the end.

Throwing a simple punch wasn’t where true martial skill lay.

*Vwooom!*

The mana coursing through Jinhyuk’s body intensified.

Dark energy swirled from his entire being.

*Black Sky Demon Emperor Technique*.

‘I’ll combine my power with…’

12th form.

‘Through the arms of the Yaksha…’

Single Extremity Convergence.

‘I’ll recreate the martial arts of my master.’

A massive storm erupted.

The ultimate fist technique from the six arms tore through the atmosphere.

*Crack crack crack!*

Craveratis’s tails were caught in the vortex, shredded into pieces.

There was no escape.

No defense.

Even if it hadn’t activated *Army Ants*, survival would have been nearly impossible.

After the storm had passed, nothing remained.

“Grrr… gghhh…”

*Thud thud thud thud!*

Craveratis, completely ruined and torn to shreds, collapsed where it stood.

At the same time:

*Ding!*

[You have conquered one of the great forces on the 20th floor, ‘The Gray Forest’!]

[Your level has increased!]

[Your level has increased!]

[You have acquired ‘Random Skill Box(?)’!]

[The hostility and vigilance of all forces towards the Veteran Corporation have increased to the maximum level!]

The string of notifications flooded in one after the other.