Chapter Eighty-Six

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Frozen Skeleton Gorilla (FLOOR BOSS)

HP: 961/1125

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The Winged Legion

HP: 359/575

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"Honestly, it feels like I'm fighting something several times my level," Edward mumbled in disbelief as he gazed upon the difference in the remaining HP between him and the boss monster. The boss had nearly three times as much remaining health as Edward, and unbelievingly so, it could still do more damage than him, "Thank god it isn't too fast. Its Luck is also pretty low, too. I can win."

The gorilla stared at Edward and spoke once more. Its voice was quicker this time, and its accent was easier to understand.

"Kill," the gorilla spoke. Then, it jumped up once more and attempted to slam its fist into Edward's body. The young man was ready this time, however. As soon as he saw the gorilla move, he turned his body and pointed his feet to the gorilla's eventual destination. Then, like a blast from a shotgun, Edward summoned two small explosions of flame from his feet.

The flames generated by this move were stronger than his usual thrusters, causing them to travel further. Thanks to the power, his body was thrown away from the fight, but Edward didn't care. He looked to the flames summoned from his feet and watched as they collided with the gorilla's chest as soon as he appeared before them. The two objects, the gorilla and the double column of flames, met like a set of cars colliding at an intersection.

As if doctored by fate, the gorilla was thrown back as well. Its fists flailed in surprise as the gorilla slowly fell to the ground. It roared once more, but it couldn't do anything with its momentum cut short. The monster didn't have any way to keep itself in the air, so all it could do was wait until it hit the ground. Edward brought himself back to a stable position and watched as the gorilla fell to the ground.

Thanks to the gorilla's fall, Edward was given a few seconds to move free from threat. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough time to reach the gorilla, so he decided to take this time to bring himself to a more advantageous position.

Edward flew to the ground and landed only a moment later. Now that he was able to keep his body in a stable stance, he could put out more attacks in a quicker time frame. He sighed in satisfaction once he felt the solid floor beneath his feet. Then, after he spread his feet and prepared for the rest of the fight, he looked up and watched the gorilla fall to the ground. A moment later, the entire platform shook as the gorilla's massive frame landed on the floor.

Then, without even waiting for the gorilla to gain its bearings, Edward ran forward to meet with the gorilla. Once he was within range, Edward quickly hopped into the air with one foot and swung his other leg horizontally. Then, as his body turned from his leg's momentum, he swung his arm. Two whips of fire shot forward.

As the gorilla began to rise to its feet, Edward landed back on the ground and skipped forward. His legs danced across the platform for a moment before he slowly swung an open palm to the ground. As if scooping something from the earth, Edward swung his arm low before pulling it back up.

A wave of flames as high as a city wall rose with his movements before slowly moving forward. Edward knew the attack wouldn't hit the gorilla in time, but he didn't hope for the attack to land in the first place. He wanted to cover the battlefield with as much fire as possible to combat the frozen environment surrounding him.

As the two whips of fire finally reached the gorilla, Edward watched as they grew weak just before they landed against the gorilla's body. Edward gazed at the gorilla with a curious expression and found a thin sheet of ice acting as armor.

'So that's why my attacks are so weak,' Edward thought to himself. As the wall of flames continued to make its way around the room, the gorilla finally found its way to a standing position before turning to look at Edward. It roared, then charged forward. As it moved, the thin layer of ice covering the gorilla's body moved with it— like a second set of skin.

As Edward watched the gorilla charge forward, a spark of inspiration appeared in his mind like a powered lightbulb. Soon enough, though, the gorilla took priority in his mind. It jumped forward, forcing Edward to fly to the side to dodge the incoming attack. His thrusters were like ice skates, but his speed wasn't fast enough to completely lose the gorilla. Soon enough the large monster was on him once again. Its fist swung forward, but Edward wasn't fast enough to completely dodge.

In a moment of pure desperation, Edward swung his arm in front of him as if he were waving hello and watched as a circular screen of fire appeared to block the gorilla's attack. The flames looked like a sturdy wall protecting Edward from his enemy, but they didn't do anything to stop the physical aspect of the gorilla's attack, as the gorilla's fist passed through the flames with ease.

Instead, Edward's desperate defense consumed every little bit of ice magic it could find. As if the wall of fire was a hungry beast, the flames surrounded the icy aura covering the gorilla's fist before the bony fingers could completely pass through. Then, the fires chomped down on the icy magic and devoured it before the gorilla's fist moved any further.

Thus, when the gorilla's fist slammed against Edward's body, it only contained the physical damage behind the monster's attack and none of the magical damage.

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-99 HP!

HP: 260/575

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'It still hits like a truck, but I can win like this!' Edward thought to himself. The gorilla's attack pushed him back a few meters as if a strong gust of wind slammed against him, but Edward managed to stay on his feet. Once he recovered, Edward quickly stomped his foot down on the ground and swung his fist forward. An arrow of fire spewed from his knuckles and struck the gorilla before him. Then, he swung his fist once more, thus attacking once again.

The gorilla charged toward Edward after tanking the two fire attacks, but Edward was prepared for it. Hell, he was willing to take damage if it meant the gorilla would be distracted for a moment. So, instead of dodging, Edward summoned a powerful defense barrier, one that was much stronger than the barrier he created when he was panicking only a moment earlier.

The gorilla boss didn't appear to be smart enough to recognize the secret behind the sudden defensive barrier, so it passed its fist through with ease once more. Like before, the barrier consumed any magic on the gorilla's fist as the physical part of the attack passed through. This time, though, the barrier was strong enough to slow down the gorilla's fist a tiny bit, thus weakening its physical power, as well.

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-70 HP!

HP: 190/575

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Edward's entire body was aching from the pain, but he pressed forward. Just like last time, Edward was thrown back a few meters, but he was able to land with ease now that he knew what to expect. Once he balanced himself, he threw out two arrows of fire. Both of his attacks pierced the gorilla's ribcage, but neither killed it. As the gorilla looked at Edward, it roared once more before charging forward.

Edward groaned, then inhaled. Before the monster could reach him, Edward released a powerful dragon breath toward his foe and watched as the impact from his attack forced the monster back. The gorilla landed on its back, severely injured.

By now, most of its body was charred. Much of the ice armor once protecting the gorilla was now gone, which allowed Edward's attacks to return to their peak performance. As the gorilla tumbled backward, it cried in frustration. The fight was nearly over. Before the smoke from his breath attack cleared, though, Edward acted one last time.

He took a step forward, then pushed an open palm in the gorilla's direction. A gout of flame emerged before encasing what little ice remained on the gorilla's body.