The Queen Roach.
Rank D, level 39.
Weaker than not only the Guard, but also the Soldiers.
Physically speaking, at least. Except, the Queen specialises in [Disease Magic] —something definitely not physical. In short, a special attacker that uses magic to slowly whittle the health of its opponents. Once set, the spell cannot be evaded or dodged—it will constantly sap the strength of the targeted individual until either the Queen runs out of mana or dies.
However, as the Queen lacks any physical prowess, it uses its lackeys; the Guard and Soldiers as meat-shields to stall for time and set the spell down.
Usually, this would be a rather troublesome combo.
Buuuuttt, Soldiers—dead. Guard—DEAD!!
So I can just (hopefully) rush the Queen and kill it in a melee battle. I mean, I’ve got not only [Melee], but also [Dominator]. Don’t forget [Pain Resistance], which allows me to make risky maneuvers without risking the pain slowing me down. Also, compared to last time, my stats also took a massive leap!
Really, with the chapter title and all, the rest should be canonical.
Eventually, I make out the once daunting silhouette of the sub-nest, and the crater grows larger with each step.
One of the baby roaches notices me and lunges. I parry the bite with one of my daggers while kicking it aside, leaping up, and slicing its exoskeleton with a clean X shaped incision.
In the time it would take to blink, I had just killed one of the roaches. Even the Queen, behind her army of little buggos, seems to stare at me blankly in disbelief.
Even I'm surprised by what I pulled off. Cutting through the baby felt like slicing through butter (as usual), but there’s that thing…
My movements seemed much more dynamic and fluid just then. I moved with such ease and I didn’t even think about defending myself from that attack—it was all subconscious.
Is this the power of being locked in?
I mean, [Melee] didn’t level up, so maybe this extra smoothness comes from the bout of Combat Points I poured into my stats to improve my specs?
Probably.
Then, the two more babies that were stalking me suddenly pounce.
Unfortunately for them, I easily dodge the attack.
Jumping away, I materialise another throwing knife from my inventory, and thrust it toward the Queen.
It cuts into the exoskeleton of the Queen, but… that’s all. Unlike the roaches, who got shredded, a cheap knife can’t even pierce the Queen’s outer shell.
“Tch!”
I furrow my brow in annoyance.
That wasn't as effective as I hoped it would be. Though, it should’ve been expected considering these knives bounced off the shells of the Soldiers. And if a Queen is one below a Soldier in terms of defence then such a result wouldn’t be surprising.
However, the overall difference in stats is apparent. My clumping the babies together, the Queen just unknowingly gave me a free XP meal. Utilising my superior speed stat, I slide behind another baby without it being able to react, and jam one of my daggers directly into its brain.
Unable to idly watch their kin getting slaughtered, the roaches begin to attack me all at once.
“A swarm of weaklings can't hold me down!”
But...
The roaches bite onto me, trying to pin me down.
I ignore them. At this point, the roaches can only really prick my skin. Sure, it hurts a bit, but it’s the type of pain that can be easily brushed off. With some baby roaches latched onto me, I sprint towards the Queen.
The Queen catches my gaze and stares at me in disgust.
What are you looking at?
I’m the one that should be disgusted right now, not the Queen. So what if I killed your kids? They tried to kill me!
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
I materialise another knife and…
No. I should save the Queen for last. I’m not narcissistic or crazed enough to kill all of her kids in front of her for the sheer fun of it. But I’m still going to do it.
Why?
Because, here's something that occurred to me just then: the baby roaches aren’t running away—they’re standing their ground and fighting me off to the best of their abilities. But what if the Queen dies?
Sure, they might get mad and try to pressure me even more, but they might also scatter and run away, which would be a serious loss of potential XP.
I might be playing right into the Queen's trap to buy time, but the trade-off is totally worth it. She’s trying to stall for as long as possible for [Disease Magic] to get to me, but even though I still get that weird tingle up my spine akin to hitting a funny bone, [Disease Magic] isn’t doing jack shit.
Shaking off the babies clumped on me, I jam the knife up one of the roaches' mouths, before finishing it off with multiple abdominal slashes.
Man, it’s hard to believe that the same throwing knives that did so little damage to the Soldiers are making such quick work of the babies. It goes to show how far I’ve come!
All basic attributes increased.
Level-up proficiency acquired.
Proficiency has reached required level.
Skill points acquired.
Combat Points acquired.
50% of max health recovered>
All basic attributes increased.
Level-up proficiency acquired.
Proficiency has reached required level.
Skill [Dominator Lv1] has become [Dominator Lv2].
Skill points acquired.
Combat Points acquired.
50% of max health recovered>
From then on, the rest becomes a one-sided massacre.
After piling up an amountable number of roach corpses, I turn back to the Queen and once again launch a throwing knife at it. This time, however, instead of barely chipping her exoskeleton, the knife plunges in and the Queen grunts in pain. You see, the more I kill, the stronger I get. Which means that the tides are further turning in my favour now.
Waahahaaahaa!!
In your face, Missy Roach!
Oh well, time to end this before it becomes too much of a chore. I turn back to the baby roaches and make quick work of the remaining bugs before focusing on the Queen. Materialising another throwing knife, I hurl it at the Queen, who flails and barely dodges as the blade nicks her antennae. Without giving time for her to recover, I run up to the Queen and slice with my dagger.
The Queen blocks with a jagged leg, and strikes back with the other leg. Using the blunt side of my [Roach Dagger] to derail the attack, I run through the opening between the outstretched leg and stab the Queens belly.
She, once again, howls like a discombobulated potato, and tries to body-slam me. Swiftly sidestepping, I…
Then, I…
Dodging, I…
The Queen strikes down, and I…
I run up before I…
Using my thumb to angle the blade, I…
…
You know what, I don’t even want to bother describing such an easy victory.
I mean, the Queen was magic-centred. Of course she would struggle against a speed type, despite her ludicrously high defence stat. All I did was hack and slash and wear her down…
Look, I know I’ve said this a buncha times, but in reality, the Queen is weaker than the Soldiers, let alone that Guard. She isn’t some final-boss type monster.
Just break through the initial defence and… BOOM! Easy win. Also, [Dominator] works really well with my comp. I’m not sure if the weakness effect is applied based on a set percentage or based on the power of each attack, but if it’s a set percentage, then my style of multiple, rapid strikes pairs really well. After all, synergy is the key to victory!
I think I’ve heard that somewhere…
Part of my cheek is cleanly shaven off, but considering I one man army-d the entire sub-nest, that injury might as well be non-existent.
The Queen collapses underneath me and… SUDDENLY WITHERS?!
I feel a metaphysical hand clamp onto my spine and ruthlessly rip it out of my back, before hacking the ligaments and forcing the bone back. A sledgehammer causes my ribs to metaphorically shatter, and although no blood comes out, I feel the fragmented pieces dig into my diaphragm. My jugular seems to dilate tenfold, and my throat suddenly becomes a hoarse, dry desert. Straining my nerves to keep still under the onslaught, I quickly inch the dagger into the Queen's neck.
Like a fleeting shadow, the pain fades away just as suddenly as it appeared.
All basic attributes increased.
Level-up proficiency acquired.
Proficiency has reached required level.
Skill points acquired.
Combat Points acquired.
50% of max health recovered>
All basic attributes increased.
Level-up proficiency acquired.
Proficiency has reached required level.
Skill [Resist Acid Lv3] has become [Resist Acid Lv4].
Skill points acquired.
Combat Points acquired.
50% of max health recovered>
All basic attributes increased.
Level-up proficiency acquired.
Proficiency has reached required level.
Skill [Melee Lv4] has become [Melee Lv5].
Skill points acquired.
Combat Points acquired.
50% of max health recovered>
All basic attributes increased.
Level-up proficiency acquired.
Proficiency has reached required level.
Skill [Dominator Lv2] has become [Dominator Lv3].
Skill [Reparation Lv4] has become [Reparation Lv5].
Skill points acquired.
Combat Points acquired.
50% of max health recovered>
What. The. HELL?!
real people)