Chapter 60

"It's not a maze, at least."

The cave of the sap beetles had no particular traps, and the path was a straight line, so all they had to do was keep moving forward.

"Wind Cutter!"

Kwakwakwak!

The blade of wind struck the cave wall again, slicing the beetles into pieces.

-Just one more to catch, right?

"No, it's just... what I said."

Though he said that, the beetles clinging to the walls made him feel itchy.

"How can you stand that?"

Even if there were a few scattered here and there, when he found a spot where the sap beetles were clustered together, he couldn't help but cast a spell automatically.

Karphe proceeded through the cave, collecting small amounts of experience along the way.

Then, at some point, he could no longer see any sap beetles.

"Huh?"

The atmosphere had changed.

The air, which had been hot and humid, suddenly became cool.

"The atmosphere... it's suddenly..."

-It looks like the boss is about to appear. Be careful.

As the celestial horse said, the moment he turned a corner in the cave, a vast space that was clearly a boss room appeared.

And strangely enough.

"...Fog?"

The entire boss room was shrouded in thick fog, and in the center of the fog, a vague silhouette was writhing.

'That must be the boss.'

-It feels so different from the sap beetles. The atmosphere is really intense.

'Yeah, I know.'

He understood why thick fog often appeared in thriller movies.

An incomplete field of vision itself creates a sense of unease.

Gulp.

He swallowed hard in tension.

The fog was so thick that he couldn't see the creature clearly.

But instead,

Crunch, crunch.

The sound of something being chewed was clearly audible.

It seemed he had arrived during the boss monster's mealtime.

'Phew. Lucky.'

Most living things become vulnerable while consuming nutrients.

It was the optimal timing for a surprise attack.

The boss monster didn't seem to notice the unfamiliar visitor and continued eating.

Karphe quietly extended his right hand toward the silhouette.

'Here, I need to use a silent cast.'

He couldn't shout the skill name when ambushing.

But Lase had a rather absurd system embedded in this 'skill name.'

-Do you know that if you don't shout the skill name, the effect is reduced by 50%?

When using a skill with a silent cast, the skill effect was halved.

It wasn't just about damage.

For example, with Wind Cutter, using it with a silent cast would reduce the damage by 50%, the probability of causing bleeding by 50%, and the fixed damage from bleeding by 50%.

In short, all the effects that could occur from the skill were halved.

In practice, it was almost like forcing players to say the skill name.

-Why they put in such a system is a mystery. Well, it's not entirely incomprehensible.

There was a significant difference between saying the skill name and not saying it in combat.

Especially in PvP between players.

You could guess what skill the opponent was using from the skill name.

-It's a choice between the two.

Because of this system, players are forced to make a choice in combat situations.

If you want to maintain stealth and sacrifice damage, use a silent cast.

If you want to ensure damage and effects, use a vocal cast.

By providing choices, the developers aimed to enrich the strategy.

However, most Lase players now used vocal casts as a rule.

The reason was simple.

'Saying the skill name makes it cooler, right?'

It's not for no reason that martial arts manga characters shout the names of their techniques when attacking.

In a life-or-death struggle where the difference is just a sheet of paper, they always shout the technique name because it's cooler!

Efficiency and strategy are secondary concerns.

Karphe also agreed with this.

'But, I have to use a silent cast in situations like this.'

This was exactly such a situation.

Moreover, Karphe had an item that could ignore the penalty of a silent cast.

'Enigma. Magic Storage. Wind Cutter.'

[Wind Cutter has been stored in Enigma.]

The first legendary item Karphe obtained after becoming a Mage Overlord.

-Additional Option 3 (Hidden): You can store one skill. The stored skill has reduced MP consumption and can be used with a silent cast.

* When using the skill with this option, you do not receive the penalty for a silent cast.

The unique effect of the 'Mage Weapon - Enigma' was activated.

'Wind Cutter!'

A blade of wind formed in front of his outstretched right hand.

[The skill has been enhanced, causing an additional effect.]

The 30% additional effect triggered again.

Two crescent-shaped 'Wind Cutters' shot toward the silhouette in an X pattern.

Kagakagak!

The moment the blades of wind cut through the fog and struck the silhouette,

Boom!

The air exploded, dispersing the fog around the boss monster, revealing the silhouette's true form.

Crunch, crunch.

A triangular head and two large eyes.

An impenetrable-looking carapace and two large scythes.

A mantis.

A blue mantis, about 2 meters tall, was eating something.

"What?!"

Karphe gasped.

Surprisingly, the creature blocked the two Wind Cutters without taking any damage.

It seemed to have a cold ability, as small ice crystals floated around it. The collision between the ice crystals and the Wind Cutters created a massive air explosion.

But Karphe was not surprised because his attack was blocked.

"...What is that?"

As the fog cleared, the scene revealed.

Centered around the blue mantis, countless sap beetle corpses were scattered within a 5-meter radius.

The sap beetles were covered in white frost, indicating they had likely frozen to death.

And at the center of the sap beetle corpses was a giant sap beetle, at least five times larger than the others.

Crunch.

The blue mantis was consuming the giant sap beetle.

-What's going on here?

Karphe and the celestial horse understood the moment they saw it.

That giant sap beetle was the boss of the sap beetle cave.

And the boss had been killed by an unknown monster.

[You have encountered the event monster 'Fragment of Gaizer'!]

As the notification appeared, the name 'Fragment of Gaizer' floated above the mantis's head.

A name redder than thick blood, indicating a level difference of over 35.

"This feels like déjà vu."

He had already experienced encountering an event monster with a level difference of over 35.

The insane priest he met in Luana's pit.

The situation was the same as when he encountered Maia, the Fanatic.

In other words,

"This means it's a monster related to the Mage King's relics?"

Karphe tensed up.

He had already experienced that these event monsters were not ordinary monsters.

A moment of carelessness would lead to death.

[Activating Dragon's Eye.]

Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles. First, gather information.

Karphe used Dragon's Eye on the mantis named 'Fragment of Gaizer.'

"...Huh?"

He was faced with an information window that exceeded his imagination.

Ding.

[Event Boss: Seibitei (西氷帝) - Fragment of Gaizer]

[HP: 33% MP: 33%]

[Skills]

-8-star Mental Domination (Boss-exclusive skill)

-8-star Ultimate Camouflage (Boss-exclusive skill)

-8-star Blizzard Nova (Boss-exclusive skill)

-6-star Praying Mantis Fist

[Equipped Items]

None

"Wow."

Karphe let out a sigh of amazement that was hard to put into words.

The information window of the mantis was astonishing.

The grand title 'Seibitei (西氷帝),' the 33% remaining HP/MP, and most shockingly, the fact that it had three 8-star skills.

Even a field elite boss only had one 7-star skill... Truly, this was the difficulty level of a myth-class quest.

-Hey.

"I know. I'll stay focused and not let my guard down..."

-Run. You can't beat this thing.

"Excuse me?"

Karphe turned his head to look at the celestial horse.

The celestial horse's face was serious, a look he had never seen before.

-I thought it was just Gaizer, but damn! It's a child of Seibitei?

"What is Seibitei?"

-I'll explain later, but for now, run...

At that moment,

Ding.

[Fragment of Gaizer has recognized you.]

"Kyeek? Kyeek?"

The giant mantis, which had been focused on its meal, turned its head toward Karphe.

-Damn. We're in trouble.

"Is it an invincible boss again? I think I can handle it."

It wasn't baseless confidence.

The proof appeared immediately.

[Fragment of Gaizer uses 'Mental Domination' on you.]

[Unlock activates. All mental interference magic and status effects are removed!]

Clang!

With a sound like something breaking, the 8-star skill was completely nullified.

Karphe smiled.

"One of the three 8-star skills is completely sealed."

Now, there were three remaining skills.

Among them, the two that seemed to be attack skills were Blizzard Nova and Praying Mantis Fist.

If he only had to worry about those, it might be easier than Maia...

-8-star skills aren't all of it.

"Huh?"

-If the