Before anyone else too, since it had been less than two hours since this entire second semester trial started.
Everyone would surely cry when they realized half the colosseum was beaten in such a short amount of time, heh.
The door shut behind them with a thunderous boom, sealing them inside the massive arena.
It was much larger than the previous floors, the stone walls towering higher, the air colder.
The ground beneath them was no longer simple dirt or sand; it was black, like polished obsidian, reflecting the faint light that flickered from the walls.
The air was thick with an oppressive energy, and they could all feel it, the presence of the mini-boss.
“Maybe it’s finally gonna be a challenge,” he mainly spoke to Sora, and Lana gulped as she feared for her life.
A low rumble echoed through the room, the sound growing louder as something massive stirred in the darkness at the far end of the arena.
Stark’s took his usual stance, with his fists in front of his face, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the room, looking for the source of the noise.
Sora stood beside him, her hands already glowing with the energy of her plant abilities, ready to act at a moment’s notice.
Lana, bow at the ready, drew a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves, though she knew her arrows wouldn’t do much.
Maybe putting on a cheerleader outfit and dancing would be more useful than what she was currently doing, heh?
Suddenly, the ground beneath them trembled violently.
The obsidian floor cracked, and from the cracks, glowing red fissures spread like spider webs.
A massive figure slowly emerged from the shadows.
“…” so much presentation for a floor 5 mini-boss?
At least, that is what Sora and Lana believed after the former demolished all the bosses that came before.
Everyone believed that… except for Stark, who’s eyes widened in shock.
“Hey there… Chosen…”
Because if the creature at the end of the room was the mini-boss, then what the fuck was that thing?
And that’s when Stark realized something else as he focused, because the mini-boss wasn’t actually hiding to make some sick entrance or whatever: that thing was trembling fear.
Its figure was hidden from him, impossible to see what it looked like, but Stark knew it, deep inside.
[Olikar, The Colosseum Warrior (GODLESS DEMON APOSTLE)]
[Level 400]
“HOLY SHIT, GET THE FUCK OUT,” he shouted to Lana and Sora, but mainly Lana.
“If you want to fight me,” Olikar pointed upward, “At the top of the tower is where you need to go, have fun.”
Olikar was looking at him, as if judging him, “Hey, you,” he pointed at the mini-boss, “Get rid of the other two.”
And once Olikar snapped his fingers, the mini-boss suddenly went crazy.
[Wrought Iron Gargantua has received the ‘Berserk’ effect from ‘Olikar’s Colosseum Authority’, it will last until the end of the battle!]
“Hahaha…” the apostle laughed as he disappeared into the darkness, leaving the three classifiers and the mini-boss, which now had the power of a boss, alone.
And now, they needed to face what was left: the floor 5 mini-boss.
It was a [Wrought Iron Gargantua], a hulking monstrosity that stood over ten meters tall, its entire body encased in dark metal, polished and jagged.
Thick iron plates covered its body like armor, and its head was adorned with a twisted crown of rusted metal.
Its eyes glowed with an ominous red light, and its entire body radiated an aura of ancient power.
The massive creature’s arms were unnaturally long, ending in enormous hands with spiked, clawed fingers.
It carried a colossal iron hammer in one hand, its head almost as large as a boulder.
Stark quickly checked its stats.
[Name: Wrought Iron Gargantua]
[Level: 225]
[HP: 700,000]
[Strength: 4847 (+3000 from berserk state)]
[Stamina: 4365 (+3000 from berserk state)]
[Speed: 2371 (+3000 from berserk state)]
[Defense: 18371 (=3000 from berserk state)]
[Skills: Ironclad Skin, Earthquake Hammer, Shockwave, Metallic Regeneration, Magnetic Pull, Iron Spikes, Tremor, Steel Rampage, Crushing Strike, Titan’s Will…]
“This one’s no joke,” Stark muttered, already calculating their approach, “And fucking hell… 21000 defense…”
That thing’s armor was pretty much impenetrable, abandoning all of its other stats in exchange for a defense that would take them hours to break through.
Sora clenched her fists, her plants blooming under her feet, “Doesn’t matter, just kill it.”
Without warning, the [Wrought Iron Gargantua] let out a deafening roar, raising its hammer high.
The ground beneath them trembled as it brought the massive weapon down with a devastating force, unleashing its first skill: [Earthquake Hammer].
BOOM!
The impact sent shockwaves rippling through the arena, cracking the ground and sending debris flying into the air.
Stark immediately activated [Invincible Dodge], rolling out of the way just in time as a massive chunk of stone flew past where he had stood.
Sora, too, managed to sidestep the attack, her agility enhanced from countless battles.
But Lana, less experienced in direct combat, wasn’t as fast. She stumbled, losing her footing as the shockwave knocked her to the ground.
“Lana!” Stark sighed, a bit concerned.
But before he could move, the Gargantua activated its second skill: [Magnetic Pull].
The iron spikes jutting from its body began to glow, and an invisible force yanked Lana toward the monster, her metal-tipped arrows and gear dragging her closer to the beast.
The Gargantua raised its massive hammer again, preparing to crush her beneath its weight.
Sora acted quickly.
With a flick of her wrist, she summoned a flower from the ground—the delicate bloom of [Flower Analysis]. The petals shimmered, and the flower whispered to her, revealing the creature’s stats as well.
But that wasn’t all that small flower said.
“Shoot for the joints! Its iron armor is weakest at the elbows and knees!” Sora called out just as calmly as before, almost making it seem like they weren’t in a life or death situation.
Lana scrambled to her feet, narrowly dodging the hammer’s descent as it slammed into the ground where she had been.
She nocked an arrow and aimed for the creature’s knee.
“Got it!” she shouted, releasing the arrow.
The arrow flew through the air, striking the Gargantua at the joint of its knee. It clanged against the iron but didn’t pierce through.
-371!
“Dammit, it’s still too tough!” Lana growled, frustration bubbling up.
Stark, seeing the opportunity too, summoned the five spears of [Crimson Spears], each glowing with a fierce red energy as they span around him.
He launched them at the Gargantua’s exposed knee, aiming to break through the weaker joint.
The spears slammed into the monster’s leg with a thunderous impact, shattering the armor slightly but not breaking it.
-4727! -5481! -4938!
“…” he didn’t say anything, but they just need to keep going.
The Gargantua roared in anger, lifting its leg and activating another skill.
“IRON SPIKES!”
Dozens of long, jagged iron spikes shot out from its body, aimed at the trio.
“Get down!” Stark shouted, rolling to the side as the spikes embedded themselves into the ground. Sora managed to dodge in time, the spikes grazing past her, but Stark was forced to take a hit to protect Lana.
-7361!
Thankfully enough the damage was low, and if Lana had been hit, she would have probably bleed out, making it worth it.
“This isn’t working,” Sora said calmly, because even though she tried to use [Evergreen Resilience] and [Vine Surge], the vines couldn’t hold down or hurt the massive beast.
Which meant that they couldn’t use their usual ‘strategy’ to beat it.
Stark nodded grimly, “It’s built for defense, just keep hitting it in the same spot.”
Sora’s eyes narrowed as she summoned her next ability, [Elements of Nature].
The ground beneath them rumbled as five massive flowers erupted from the earth: a sunflower, a tulip, an iris, a poppy, and a lily.
Each flower bloomed to an enormous size, their petals glowing with energy.
“…” Sora was focused, not speaking at all.
After a few seconds, the flowers began to generate energy balls, powered by the petals. The energy pulsed, growing larger and more potent.
With a simple gesture from Sora, the flowers fired their energy balls in unison.
The glowing orbs of energy shot through the air like meteors, slamming into the Gargantua’s iron body with explosive force.
BOOM!
The impact caused the Gargantua to stumble, its iron armor dented and cracked in places. Its HP bar dropped significantly, but it wasn’t enough.
-73781!
“Nice job,” he was happy Sora managed to do damage, because it meant he could as well!
The Gargantua roared in fury.
“STEEL RAMPAGE!”
The iron spikes on its body began to spin, turning it into a whirling mass of metal and destruction.
It charged forward, the spikes tearing through everything in its path.
Stark quickly activated Invincible Dodge, rolling out of the way just as the Gargantua barreled past him. But as the monster turned, one of its spikes grazed Lana’s side, sending her flying across the arena.
“Lana!” Stark’s heart dropped as he saw her crumple to the ground, blood trickling from her side.
She wasn’t dead, but she was hurt—badly.
A cold rage surged through Stark as he saw her lying there.
His usual calm demeanor gone.
His hands clenched into fists, and the crimson energy around him flared brighter than ever.
“That’s it…” Stark growled, his voice low and dangerous.
He could feel the power of his new ability surging through him—the ability he hadn’t fully tapped into yet.
[Crimson Soul].
