~~~
"Rudy!" Jin called out, his voice cutting through the sound of another laser scarring the ancient stone. "The tiles! We need to use the colored tiles!"
There's something here. Something I'm missing. The chamber design, the patterns, the way everything's laid out—I'm pretty sure that's not for decorations.
As if responding to his desperate need for understanding, [The Reader's Dominion] suddenly exploded with information that hit his consciousness like a tidal wave.
[MAZE TRIAL MECHANICS DETECTED]
The world around Jin shifted, revealing hidden connections like luminous threads weaving through the chamber. Every tile, every pillar, every floating platform suddenly made perfect sense as part of an intricate magical mechanism.
[OBSIDIAN SENTINEL — FLOOR ONE GUARDIAN]
[COMBAT MECHANICS ANALYSIS COMPLETE]
Think. Focus. Jin…
Information flooded his mind, but this time Jin organized and grabbed onto what was useful rather than drowning in the deluge of information.
The circular tiles scattered throughout the chamber weren't decorative—they were control nodes. Four colors: Red, Orange, White, Blue. Each one connected to the golem through invisible essence threads that pulsed with magical energy.
Okay, but what do the tiles do? Think, Jin, focus.
Jin's eyes tracked the golem's movements, watching the way energy flowed around its massive form. The golem itself was surrounded by a shimmer of essence.
Wait… essence?
Jin's gaze narrowed as he realized that shimmer was actually a barrier, a shield made of
essence—currently glowing with brilliant white light that made looking directly at it painful.
[The Reader's Dominion] triggered again, feeding him more information: When someone stands on the matching colored tile, the shield becomes vulnerable. But they have to maintain their position while it's being destroyed.
That's it!
"Rudy! Look at the shield around it!" Jin pointed while sprinting toward better cover. "Red, orange, white, blue—the colors match the tiles! When you stand on a matching tile, the shield becomes vulnerable!"
"What color? There's no shield!" Rudy shouted back, narrowly avoiding another laser that carved a molten scar across the chamber floor. "Jin, I need specifics here!"
Fuck... he can't see the shield.
"The colored circles on the floor!" Jin dove behind another pillar as the golem's visor tracked his movement. "Look for white ones! Its shield is white right now!"
Rudy's purple eyes scanned the chamber frantically while maintaining his evasive pattern. "I see them! There's one about twenty meters to my left and another thirty meters in front of you!"
Good!
"Once the shield drops, we can actually hurt this thing!" Jin finished, his mind already mapping attack patterns. "But we have to time it perfectly!"
"Okay!"
The Obsidian Sentinel swept its massive arm in a wide arc, forcing both boys to dive in opposite directions. Its crystalline visor flared again, and Jin felt the hair on his arms stand up from the building energy.
"Move!" he barked, "Head to the tile and dodge the attacks, Rudy!"
They scattered just as another energy beam carved through the space between them, leaving the ancient stone floor glowing cherry-red from the heat.
Damn lasers… does he have an infinite energy source for this!
Jin thought his [The Reader's Dominion] must have a hidden ability that gave heightened perception.
This boss is intelligent. It's learning from our positioning, trying to separate us.
I need to expect even more bullshit after this floor, since this is now a one-time dungeon.
"Jin! Focus on the present!" Rudy screamed from somewhere, and Jin bit his lips, forcing himself to focus.
Focus. Adapt.
Jin locked onto the white tile Rudy had spotted—a circular platform that seemed to glow with inner light.
"Rudy, white tile—ten meters to your left! I'll take the one behind you!" Jin raised Iron Howl and put three rounds into the golem's torso to draw its attention. The bullets sparked harmlessly off the barrier, but they served their purpose.
Damn… I need to hone the bullets for any damage.
There's the white tile. But getting to it means crossing open ground while dodging death rays.
The Obsidian Sentinel pivoted with mechanical precision, its massive frame turning to track Rudy's movement. The crystalline visor began to glow brighter, building charge for another devastating beam.
"This is going to hurt!" Jin broke from cover, sprinting toward his target tile.
FWOOM
The laser beam carved through the space behind him, superheated air singing his hair as he threw himself into a desperate slide. The white tile loomed ahead—twenty meters, fifteen, ten—
Another beam lanced out, this one aimed directly at his trajectory.
I need more speed.
Jin poured essence into his boots and launched himself upward, using their limited air-walk ability to vault over the deadly light. While mid-air, he reached for the essence stored in his dagger and shaped it into a familiar pattern.
'Haste' should work here.
The incantation left Jin's lips in a rush,
« "O Winds that race across the boundless fields… let their steps be carried faster than fate allows!" »
The air stirred around him and Rudy, unseen currents wrapping their limbs. Their movements sharpened, the world seeming to slow slightly as magical haste took hold.
And just as his concentration returned, back he saw a laser arching towards him.
Goddamnit!
Jin twisted mid-air, the laser passing inches from his chest, and landed in a perfect roll directly onto the white tile.
That was way too close.
The moment his feet touched the circular platform, power surged through the chamber like lightning, finding its conductor.
"It's working!" Rudy yelled from his own tile, breathing hard but grinning fiercely.
Jin saw Rudy planted on another white tile, his armor steaming from absorbed laser strikes instead of dodging them properly.
This idiot!… I swear I'm going to beat some sense into him later.
"Stay there!" Jin commanded, switching to his armor-piercing rounds. "The shield is cracking!"
"And for heaven's sake, dodge the attacks! DODGE!"
"Nah, I'll tank!" Rudy laughed, raising his greatsword as golden light began to gather around the blade.
"Bastard!"
Jin felt the essence shift as the golem's white barrier flickered, hairline cracks spreading across its surface like a spiderweb. But then new information flooded his vision that made his blood turn to ice.
o_______________o
[SHIELD VULNERABILITY ACTIVATED]
[MAINTAIN POSITION TO CONTINUE EFFECT]
[WARNING: PROCESSING TIME REQUIRED - 5 SECONDS]
o_______________o
"What?" Jin's stomach dropped. "Five seconds? I can't move for five fucking seconds?"
Why didn't [Reader's Dominion] mention this?
But even as the thought formed, he understood. The skill had shown him the mechanics, but not every nuance. Some things had to be discovered through trial and error.
Literally, trial and error.
"Rudy!" Jin shouted, his legs locked in place as invisible magical forces held him to the tile. "The shield is breaking! Hit it now! But I'm stuck here for five seconds!"
Rudy didn't need to be told twice. His greatsword blazed with golden light as he channeled essence through the blade, charging toward the golem with a battle cry that shook the chamber's ancient pillars.
"AAAAHHHHH!"
The massive blade struck the weakened barrier with the force of a falling mountain. This time, instead of bouncing harmlessly off, it bit deep into the crystalline surface. Cracks spread from the point of impact like fractured glass.
But the golem wasn't helpless.
Its head swiveled toward Jin with terrifying speed, the visor blazing to life as it registered the source of its vulnerability. It knew it was Jin who was standing on the tile.
Oh fuck.
The construct's massive arm rose, revealing not one but three separate focusing crystals built into its palm. Each one began to glow with murderous intent.
o_______________o
[PROCESSING TIME REMAINING: 3 SECONDS]
o_______________o
Three laser beams erupted from the golem's palm in perfect synchronization, converging on Jin's position with surgical precision.
I can't move. The magical lock won't release until the processing completes.
Jin watched the beams approach, his mind racing through possibilities with desperate speed.
Iron Howl won't stop energy beams. I can't dodge. I can't use sorcery with this amount of time.
Wait—
Wait—my armor.
The darkness affinity. And Essence's Edge provides 200% efficiency.
I can do that…It's insane, but it might work.
Jin flooded his armor with every drop of essence he could muster, calling upon the shadows that clung to the ancient chamber's corners. He poured his will into commanding the darkness to listen, to obey, to protect.
For just a moment, he felt it respond.
[PROCESSING TIME REMAINING: 1 SECOND]
The laser beams struck.
~~~