CHAPTER 11

I didn’t realize that it’s already dusk! What a long day. How many people I beat up? Even if I ask floating words, I’m sure that it won’t answer. In my world, if I’m out in a forest, it’s a good idea to never travel during the night. There’s no telling what kind of creatures prowling in the dark. I’m sure that this world also has that kind of situation. Knowing my luck, I’m sure that I’ll encounter some insane monsters that want to eat me. I know the location of my Keyward Stone at all times. I think that I’ll call it a day. No adventuring during the night until I know how night works here. Floating words, anything I need to know during the night?

DETAIL CHECK
In World Number 39, diurnal creatures
do not retain any memory that they’ve
gained during the night. Nocturnal creatures
do not retain any memory that they’ve
gained during the day.

Of course it works in a weird way. From what I understand, I’ll have amnesia during the night. Good thing that I don’t want to go out in the dark anyway. At least I’ll still have my cave. Hopefully that it’s still empty.

Well, it is empty. Just in case, I activate my Dwarvel’s ability to see in the dark. Yep. Empty. No sign of any living creature in here. As an extra security measure, I use my Steam Sapien’s ability to create solid steam on the entrance so that no one else can enter. Just to be safe, I’ll make some non-solid steam outside of the cave so that no one can stumble upon the entrance.

Everything is done. Now all I have to do is go to sl—

—eep.

Huh? Has the time passed already? My body is fine. No one else is in the cave. That’s good. My steam wall is fine. Good. No one got in. Let’s remove both types of steam and…

What?

What is even that?

How do I describe this? It looks like a television tower, but it’s made out of white flesh? At the bottom, it seems to have white roots instead. At the top is a large CRT television that displays static. Floating words! What’s this? Should I kill it?

DETAIL CHECK
This is Contractuary. It is a hybrid of plant,
machine, and flesh that spread from Low Leyline
Point. It’s main function is to dispel the target
of all contract spell in an area.

I don’t even know what you’re talking about. Is it alien?

DETAIL CHECK
Incorrect.

Okay. Take a deep breath. It’s a… thing that somehow make contract spell invalid in its area. Okay. I can understand it so far. What’s Low Leyline Point?

DETAIL CHECK
It is the origin point of Contractuary.

Okay. So that’s like it’s home. It can spread like… spores?

DETAIL CHECK
Correct.

Okay. Will it spread to me?

DETAIL CHECK
Contractuary cannot grow on living
organism. It will spread at minimum
100 meters from the nearest Contractuary.

So it will slowly invalidate contract spells all over this world. Am I under the effect of any contract spell?

DETAIL CHECK
You are unaffected by the effect of
any contract spell.

Can I do any contract spell?

DETAIL CHECK
You are unable to cast any contract
spell.

Then I’m unaffected by this… Contractuary. That’s good to know. It seems fine so far. I don’t think that I should…

Floating words, is Low Leyline Point located in a place that was sealed by Keyward Stone before this?

DETAIL CHECK
Correct.

So I’ve unleashed this thing! But… messing with contract spell doesn’t sound that bad. Just in case, give me a list of contract spell and what they can do. You must have at least one!

DETAIL CHECK
Submissing Freedom. The caster
marks a creature as their slave.

That’s actually good! Not the spell. The blocking the spell part. I should leave Contractuary around. At least I know that I helped to stop slavery around it! Time to go and find my Keyward Stone. It’s still in the same location. That means no one picked it up.

It feels so relaxing to take a walk. I’ve been fighting non-stop yesterday that I forgot how peaceful life can be. I wish that I can do this with mom. If I have my phone, I would’ve taken several hundred pictures just in case I’ll see mom in the future.

Wait! This is too peaceful! In fiction, that means that there’ll be an unexpected conflict coming soon.

I can see several crows flying in a circle. That’s a sign. Something is coming or waiting for the correct trigger. I’m pretty sure that there’ll be a boss somewhere.

There it is! A humanoid creature with a bovine head, clearly a Demon! It—or probably he is holding an axe with his right hand.

DETAIL CHECK
Initializing boss fight.

Ready!

The Demon is looking at the crows on the sky.

“Peace in the sky. Like them, to fly free of shy. But thou art here. Thou art disturbing peace on the earth. Thou shalt pay for this sacrilege.”

I have no idea what you’re talking about, but bring it on!

DETAIL CHECK
Ocryol the Observer

Ocryol tries to slash me but he is slow. I can easily evade then deliver a hit with my spiky and hot gauntlets. He swings again, which I duck, then I deliver an uppercut! He swings wildly. This gives me a small cut on my cheek. Not a problem! I retaliate with another satisfying punch!

DETAIL CHECK
Initializing phase 2.

Wait what?! You never said that this world has that! I can’t move! At least tell me in advance! Flour!

Ocryol raises his empty hand.

“O sky, please love this beggar the way thy loves the blessed by feathers.”

One of the crow lands on his head. It dissolves into his head, leaving a patch of fur on the scalp of the bovine. The rest of the birds land on Ocryol’s body. Each one of them dissolve to become patches of fur.

Ocryol roars. He is moving to attack me!

The moment I can move, I roll to evade his axe. So far, nothing new happened.

Ocryol points a finger towards me. Suddenly, a black feather appears in the air. The feather flies to where Ocryol is pointing. I roll to the side to avoid it.

Ocryol keeps pointing his finger at my direction. I block it with my arms. The newly formed feathers cannot penetrate my metallic arms. Once they lost their kinetic energy, the feathers fall harmlessly to the ground. Good! At least I know how to deal with them!

As I’m too preoccupied with the feathers and fingers, Ocryol swings his axe. This one cuts one of my ears because I didn’t roll fast enough!

That’s fine. I’ve seen everything that Ocryol can do. This is easy! You have two phases and both of them are no match to me!

I make a wall of steam to separate me and Ocryol. This way, his feathers won’t hit me. Plus, some parts of the wall are solid while other parts aren’t. I can ambush him! Only I know which is which!

I move through the non-solid steam to deliver a punch, but Ocryol is nowhere to be seen! He vanished! What is the real trick here?

Suddenly, Ocryol appears besides me. He point to me, and a feather hits straight to my right eye! He can teleport!

How do I handle teleportation? Which direction should I prioritize first? If I focus on his general direction, he might teleport somewhere else!

There’s no choice! I have to focus on his direction! I raise one hand to cover the direction of the feather.

He got my cheek with his axe! I can feel oxygen goes into my mouth through my teeth. Good thing I evaded enough to save my entire head!

Wait! Ocyrol could’ve teleport again but he doesn’t. Why?

He’s pointing a finger. Why don’t you teleport? You could’ve backstab me with an axe! That’ll hurt me a lot more!

Ah! So that’s how it is!

This Demon will only teleport if he cannot see me! That means that I have to fight without steam. I’m fine with that! I was trying to use steam to add variety to my attacks and trick Ocyrol. It turns out that I don’t even need it in the first place! I can’t depend on it as my crutch! That should’ve been my hidden ability! I should be known as a brawler!

A feather stabs one of my eye. I lost half of my eyesight. It doesn’t matter! What matters is that my spiky and fiery fists hit!

Another punch! Another! Punch again! Punch! Punch!

The Demon stops moving.

I can see again. I can hear again. I cannot feel air going in and out through my teeth. I’m fixed!

DETAIL CHECK
Audio log unlocked:
Ocryol the Observer

Does every bossfight leads to a headache?