D.I.O

Chapter 188

Kyak. Oof!

The Slayer had charged forth with a scream when it was flung into the air with a deafening boom. The origin of the explosion was Bruce Waynes gun muzzle, which had easily deflected the enemys attack. Indeed, as an item purchased for 21,500 gold, or 1.3 billion won, Bruces Peacemaker III boasted tremendous firepower; however, Jeros complained, as his chant had been interrupted and his spell canceled.

Dang it, get the aggro right! My spell chant was interrupted and canceled again!

Ah hmm. Sorry, I guess? I mean, we dont have any tanks.

Ugh! Why was our team formed like this? If they werent going to give us Adol, they should have at least had Hanma in our party!

At the start of the mission, the party was organized as a singular group, but after they arrived on the planet Ayan, the party members were randomly scattered everywhere. Since Jeros destructive AOE attack needed a protracted period to focus on his magic design, he wasnt amused at the absence of a tank.

The initial party was divided into two groups: Ohje, Scorpion, Adol, and Hanma were in one group, with Ilya, Bruce, Jeros, and Lancelot in another.

The only exceptions were Cruze, Arthur, and Merlin, who were also on the planet and in the party but werent part of any group.

Dang it! Im just going to fight using quick spells! Ice Spear!

In response to the enemys constant attacks, Jeros eventually gave up on his advanced spells and focused on the three spells that he could cast immediately, namely Fire Ball, Thunder, and Ice Spear. Amongst these options, Jeros opted to use Ice Spear. Hed used these spells when he was in the lower levels, so he had essentially mastered them and could activate the spells just by shouting their activation words. Furthermore, Jeros could compress the activation words themselves; so, instead of saying Ice Spear, he could just yell Ice..

Another face-to-face confrontation there doesnt seem to be any assassination-type missions these days.

While grumbling, Ilyia melted into the darkness. Fortunately, the day was getting dark as evening fell, so the light levels were advantageous for Ilyias stealth ability.

Whoosh!

Lancelot was at the front of the party, and he changed his position in a timely manner and continued stabbing. Unlike the giant snakes that appeared individually for Adol and his party, the Slayers that appeared here were a large number of Grotesque space monsters in the Level 10 to 13 range, so Jeros group of four was constantly fighting in a frantic manner. Even though they werent in danger, they had to work hard to defeat the swarm of monsters. If one of the groups flanks collapsed, the entire formation would break down in an instant.

Everyones gotten stronger. They reached the Master Level after I did, but theyve already overtaken me.

Lancelot laughed bitterly as he looked at the other users. However, he wasnt at a loss, as he had predicted this eventuality long ago. At that time, Lancelot resolved to walk his own path at his own pace.

However, after seeing the others, Lancelot became curious about something.

How much have they developed?

As he wondered about the levels the others had reached, Lancelot continued to jab his spear outward at the oncoming enemies over and over.

***

Brr! Brr!

Ack! Ack! You bitch!

Ugh, stop talking and just die already. Why are all of you so tough?

Cruze held a submachine gun in both hands and continuously fired bullets at the Slayer, a monster with a dozen legs. After the Slayer emerged from a newly-formed dimensional rift, it was immediately met by anti-electron missiles, and afterward, it was faced with Cruzes current barrage.

My King! Give me the truth of the world!

As the Slayer shouted, the entire space reverberated, and invisible energy suppressed Cruze. When she unleashed her aura to reset, the Slayers suppressive energy shattered easily.

Boom!

Cruzes aura seemed trivial at first glance, but it was actually an illusion-based attack. The initial strike caused a chain reaction of truly terrifying explosions to occur. Not far away, the Slayer, which was caught in the consecutive blasts, curled up with its dozen legs to cushion the impact and minimize damage.

Keke. That was dangerous. Youre an unexpectedly troublesome girl-

You havent realized that youre already dead, huh?

Huh?

Zing.

In an instant, a ray of light flashed passed the Slayers body, causing it to collapse instantly. When the dust settled at the center of the explosions, a Gigas, a bipedal weapon standing about five meters tall and wearing red gloves, could be seen.

Whirl.

The Gigas, which was made from aura power, vanished, and Cruze appeared in its place, plopped on the ground. While controlling her overheating aura power, Cruze sighed.

Damn it. Theyre only Level 15, but why is it so hard to defeat them? Maintaining the Gigas for an extended period is so draining.

Cruze had been stuck at Level 16 for quite a while after meeting a barrier in her developmental progress. Yet, her roadblock was different from Arthurs or Lancelots.

Ah, I feel like I can overcome it if I work a little harder if I meditate for four hours a day, I think I can somehow overcome it.

However, the thought of working hard only lasted for a fleeting moment. Even if she set aside time to sit down and focus on self-development, her mind would soon grow distracted.

Basically, Cruze was lazy.

If Lancelot had immense will and fortitude yet ordinary talent, Cruze had extreme talent but a lazy work ethic. Even an average student could rise through their schools standings if they studied consistently for three years, yet this rarely happened for most people. This was what Cruze was facing, a self-constructed barrier stemming from her own laziness and lack of consistent effort.

No, even if I dont immediately improve, Im still at the peak echelon amongst all the users in DIO, right? Many national organizations have sought my assistance, too.

Cruze preferred comfort over hard work. When others showered her with attention and support, she became unmotivated and complacent. If it hadnt been for Arthur and Merlin, Cruze likely wouldve become content with her accomplishments long ago. If not for them, it was improbable that shed have reached Level 15 or even Level 14.

/Slayers have been detected! Twenty-five minutes and 12 seconds until the next dimensional rift opens!/

Cruze frowned when she read the new pop-up message.

So annoying.

***

Die!

No, I dont want to.

Arthur received the Slayers spewing heat attack with his Draconic Sword, Dustin. The wave of heat spun around Dustin before being [Reflected] back to the Slayer.

Boom!

Kyak!

After its attack was reflected, the Slayer grabbed its flaming head and ran around aimlessly like a headless chicken. Once the Slayer managed to extinguish the fire, it attacked Arthur with a fist full of red energy.

Soul Swordsmanship.

Hahaha! Did you think that would work against a punch- Kyak?!

When the Slayers outstretched fist touched Arthurs sword, the kinetic energy was instantly [Reflected]. Actually, the reflected attack moved slightly faster than the punchs original speed.

Just like how Arthur developed Bursting Sword Light from the Dispersing Sword Light Technique, he trained the Bright Tai Chi Sword technique to the extreme and created Soul Swordsmanship. Based on the Bright Tai Chi Swords aura reflection property, Arthur had developed a skill to reflect [All Energy] back at his opponent.

Crackle!

The lightning emitted by the Slayer was reflected and returned.

Bang!

When the Slayer swung its tail, the kinetic energy of the formidable tail attack was sent back.

Boom!

The Slayer tried to defend itself by putting up a barrier, but as soon as Arthurs sword came in contact with the shield, the power that comprised the barrier became a set of spears that stabbed its creator. From the Slayers point of view, this entire predicament was maddening.

Hey! Stop using that skill, cheater!

Im using a skill that Ive worked hard on developing, so how is that cheating?

Arthur smirked as he imbued his internal energy into Dustin. As a battle that would eventually end with one sides death, the fight should have been a bit more intense, but, tragically for the Slayer, Masters had nerves of steel, having experienced constant combat in their daily lives. Most Masters would easily laugh while standing next to a mutilated corpse.

Its kind of fun to fight against a weak opponent every once in a while.

W-what a weak opponent?

The Slayer growled, but Arthur didnt blink. No, rather, he looked at his opponent with pity in his eyes.

Im sorry I must kill you like this, but I hope you dont feel too embarrassed. You didnt live a good life anyway, right?

Of course, users from the modern world were not accustomed to harming and killing anyone or anything. In fact, low-level users avoided catching rabbits since they felt it was too cruel.

However, DIOs users were protected by DIOs mental protection system, so, like everything else in the world, users became accustomed after repeated exposure. Though they may not feel or recognize it themselves, the Master Level users worldviews and mindsets were developing into their own fairly unique direction.

Goodbye.

Arthur, already a skilled warrior, struck down with his sword.