Chapter 511 Venom Clone

The two remaining members of the Shield of Iron Rock reacted far less intensely to Hogk's death than they had when Agu was sliced in half.

Part of the reason was exactly as Xia Nan had guessed: when the squad first recruited the half-orc warrior, they merely viewed him as an expendable asset.

Even if years of fighting side by side had eventually earned the half-orc recognition as a genuine member of the squad and a comrade...

...his death in battle ultimately just fulfilled their original expectations for him.

They might have felt some sorrow and regret, but it wasn't enough to trigger outright fury.

The other reason was that Habik and Seli were currently overwhelmed and could not even fend for themselves.

When one's own life was under severe threat, there was naturally no time to worry about someone else's survival.

Truthfully, under normal circumstances, their roles made for a decent combination.

One was a defensive vanguard wielding a heavy shield, and the other was a ranged attacker relying primarily on a bow.

On a standard battlefield, this setup—coupled with the special abilities of their professional combat techniques—was enough to sustain a small-scale skirmish.

But the situation right now was completely different.

Their enemies numbered in the double digits, a mix of Ebb Tide Gang thugs and sahuagin, peppered with numerous low-level Class Holders and elite fishmen.

At the start of the battle, Habik had managed to use his Taunt combat technique to create room for Seli to fire from the backline.

But as screeching fishmen surged forward wave after wave and thugs closed in with swinging weapons...

...the fatal flaw in their composition was glaringly exposed.

They lacked a melee striker to bridge the gap between the frontline meat shield and the ranged damage dealer.

Previously, the half-orc Hogk had filled this exact role in the squad, which was why the two of them had called for him to fall back into formation earlier;

Occasionally, in special situations, the gnome Rogue Agu could somewhat cover for it as well.

Now, both were nothing more than warm corpses.

This left the squad's two surviving members in critical peril.

It had to be noted that Habik and Seli were not low in Class Level.

Aside from "Carrion Vulture" Gerry, they were the highest-leveled individuals on the battlefield.

One was Level 4, and the other Level 3.

Habik's level was even higher than Xia Nan's.

Yet neither possessed Xia Nan's fortuitous encounters or deep foundation; they had climbed their professional ranks relying on low-quality combat techniques, leaving their actual combat prowess thoroughly unremarkable.

This made facing the enemy siege—especially those elite fishmen who boasted a Challenge Rating of at least "1"—exceptionally strenuous.

"Die, all of you!"

The dwarf Habik roared wildly, the bulging veins on his neck practically bursting through his skin.

His stocky frame was planted in place like a tree stump. His bulging left arm hoisted the heavy tower shield in front of him, trembling as a dense, rain-like barrage of impacts battered the other side.

His right hand gripped his Faceted Hammer tightly, swinging it sideways to force back the vicious enemies who had passed the check of his Taunt combat technique and circled to his flanks to ambush him.

Even so, the area one person could defend was ultimately limited. In just a few minutes, the dwarf's body was riddled with numerous large and small wounds.

Meanwhile, the Ranger Seli, who should have been using this opportunity to ease Habik's burden, found it impossible to hold her position.

Having taken the [Ranger] class, her defenses were paper-thin and her margin for error was low. She knew that getting surrounded meant certain death.

Facing the tidal wave of enemies, she had to activate her combat technique, stirring a light breeze under her feet to nimbly retreat.

She drew her bow and fired while ducking, weaving, and kiting across the battlefield.

The Shield of Iron Rock Squad's initially stable formation was gradually split apart.

"Carrion Vulture" Gerry did not stop moving.

Right after killing the half-orc Hogk, he charged straight toward the Ranger Seli.

He had seemingly chosen the ranged attacker as his next target.

But moving even faster than him was the piercing wolf howl that once again echoed through the night.

Truthfully, Xia Nan did not have a great impression of the Shield of Iron Rock Squad; he was only fighting alongside them because of his status as a temporary teammate.

But regardless, right now they were allies on the same side.

He could not possibly just stand by and watch them fall into danger while he still had strength to spare.

Because he had needed to decapitate the fishman priest, his timing had unfortunately overlapped with Gerry's ambush on the half-orc Hogk, leaving him unable to intervene.

Now, seeing the pirate boss aiming for the squad's Ranger next, he was naturally not about to let him have his way.

Yet Gerry had apparently anticipated Xia Nan's interference.

Halfway through his charge, his entire body suddenly shuddered.

A layer of pus-green mucus oozed from his pores, completely enveloping him.

He took two more steps forward, shedding the slime as easily as an empty shell and leaving behind a physical clone made entirely of pure venom.

Strangely, despite looking like a hollow shell, Gerry's Venom Clone possessed the ability to act on its own.

It paused for a split second before sprinting straight toward the dwarf Habik.

"Watch your flank!"

Forced into a split-second choice between the two, Xia Nan's instincts made the decision before he could even think.

He shouted a warning to the dwarf Habik while his own body, cloaked in the phantom of a black wolf, stuck to his original plan and hurtled toward Seli.

The Ranger's defenses were frail. She was already struggling under the siege, her movements visibly slowing as she neared her limit. The dwarf Habik looked battered, but his life force showed no signs of waning; covered in a metallic sheen meant for defense, he could likely hold out much longer.

Furthermore, Seli was facing Gerry's actual body, while Habik only had to deal with a clone.

Weighing it all, backing up the Ranger was Xia Nan's best move.

Clang!

The Gray-Black Straight Sword clashed violently against the cutlass, sending a dazzling spray of sparks from the point of impact.

The fierce gales whipping around them shredded the nearby thugs and fishmen into mists of blood.

Xia Nan flexed his arm. Boasting far superior Strength, he met Gerry's slash head-on and sent the pirate flying backwards.

The [Heavy Tide] imbued in his blade triggered at the same time. Even though this was his second time unleashing it, the force still made Gerry stumble, allowing Xia Nan to follow up with a [Spinning Slash] that carved a deep gouge into the pirate's chest armor.

Behind him, Xia Nan's intervention gave the critically exhausted Seli a moment to breathe. She seized the chance to pull away from her enemies.

"Carrion Vulture" Gerry's assault seemed to have been neutralized.

But at the same time, a bloodcurdling scream of pure agony tore across the other side of the battlefield.

Thanks to Xia Nan's timely warning, Habik had spotted the Venom Clone long before it reached him.

His response was simple and effective.

The dwarf, his feet originally planted firmly on the ground, suddenly raised his thick right leg and stomped down hard.

Boom—

Fine cracks spiderwebbed outward from the ground beneath his boot. The ensuing shockwave staggered the enemies swarming him, buying Habik a hard-fought, brief window to move.

His left arm flared with strength, shifting the shield that guarded his front.

He turned the face of the tower shield directly toward the charging Venom Clone.

Since it was not a true clone with its own mind, this empty shell birthed from Gerry's combat technique could only run in a predetermined line.

Faced with the massive tower shield dead ahead, it made no attempt to dodge, slamming right into it.

One was a blurry humanoid made of pure liquid; the other was a solid plane of forged metal.

The outcome of their collision was obvious.

The very second Gerry's Venom Clone struck the tower shield, it instantly shattered into a shapeless mass of pus-green slime.

Was Habik's defense successful?

Yes, but only halfway.

Though he had reacted to Xia Nan's shout in time to block the Venom Clone's impact with his tower shield...

...the shattered, viscous poison subsequently bypassed his defense. Driven by the momentum of the crash, the slime flew up into the air and rained back down.

The dark green mucus, carrying both toxins and corrosive acid, splattered indiscriminately over the thugs and fishmen besieging the dwarf.

Scales curled. Skin melted. Toxin spread.

And Habik, standing the closest, naturally took the brunt of the venom.

Sizzle...

His metal armor offered limited protection against the slime, visibly softening and corroding into craters.

Unlike physical blows, the liquid easily slipped through the armor's seams.

His soft undershirt and leather padding provided zero resistance to the acid, melting away in an instant.

First the armor, then the lining, and finally, his skin.

With his armor covering him, onlookers could not tell exactly how badly Habik was hurt.

But they could see his exposed hands and cheeks burning away under the splattered venom, leaving grotesque wounds that looked like severe scalds. Even the blood dripping down his body had turned a horrifying pus-green.

The excruciating agony ripping through his entire body forced the hill dwarf to howl in pain.

As a Level 4 [Shield Guard Warrior], his Constitution was inherently exceptional. His pure dwarf bloodline made his body as solid as stone.

When it came down to it, "Carrion Vulture" Gerry was only a Level 5 Class Holder. Even if his class traits made him a master of poison, stripping a Level 4 dwarf warrior of his combat capabilities with venom alone was pure fantasy.

However... right now, it was enough.

The toxins seeping into his system drastically sapped Habik's Strength and reflexes.

And the blinding pain completely shattered his focus, violently severing the Taunt combat technique he had been sustaining while severely impairing his battle instincts.

Almost the moment Habik screamed, the throngs of thugs and fishmen crammed in front of his shield snapped out of his Taunt's influence. They abandoned their futile assault on his bulwark and swarmed around to his flanks.

Crack!

It was the crisp sound of the Faceted Hammer shattering some unlucky thug's skull.

Squelch!

It was the simultaneous, wet thud of a harpoon plunging down through the dwarf's foot.

A Rogue who had only recently gained a Class Level hid in the shadows beneath the crowd, seizing the opening to drive his Short Dagger deep into the dwarf's thigh.

Although the Rogue's hands were pulverized a second later by the descending Faceted Hammer, his strike gave two elite fishmen on the other side the chance to run their harpoons through the dwarf's left elbow and waist.

For every hammer blow Habik delivered, he suffered sneak attacks from at least two enemies simultaneously on other fronts.

In just a few seconds, he was reduced to a blood-soaked mess.

The dwarf warrior, who had already been struggling to survive the siege, was finally pushed over the edge.

The last straw that breaks the camel's back came in the form of a nameless, insignificant thug.

Originally from a farming village, he had joined the Ebb Tide Gang purely because the money was good, and he relished the thrill of lording over others.

The pre-battle promises of Boss "Carrion Vulture" had temporarily overridden his fear of Adventurers, plunging him into the fray.

The roar and gore washing over the battlefield made his blood boil, filling him with the urge to dive into the killing.

He had only ended up trailing in the back because he could not push past the throngs of thugs and fishmen.

By the time he finally managed to shove his way to the front, the blood-drenched dwarf was standing less than two feet away.

The massive tower shield had long since been dropped somewhere. Habik's crippled left arm hung uselessly at his waist. His right hand swung the Faceted Hammer up and down—its surface matted with blood and meat—caving in the skull of a fishman before him.

Whether born of some innate talent or sheer dumb luck...

...the young thug keenly sensed a fleeting opening.

He crept forward, lunging exactly as the dwarf's hammer swung down. He didn't aim; he just drove his short sword forward with all his might.

Squelch.

He felt a bizarre, heavy friction shudder through the hilt into his palm.

Before he could even check if he had landed the blow, the shriek of metal splitting the air right beside his ear erased his consciousness.

His headless, shattered corpse slumped to the dirt.

It revealed Habik's exhausted, blood-soaked body—and the short sword buried deep inside his right eye socket, straight into his brain.

No one knew what the dwarf was feeling at that moment, or what agony he was enduring.

With the blade lodged in his skull, his entire body froze like a statue the instant his instinctive counterattack ended.

The Faceted Hammer hit the ground.

His bloodstained right hand rose sluggishly, as if to pull the blade from his eye.

But he only raised it halfway before a Professional Warrior flanked him, swinging a cutlass that cleaved his right arm in two.

A harpoon thrust out from the side, punching cleanly through his neck. The blood-streaked, barbed tip jutted out the other side.

Two longswords pierced his broad chest at the same time—one from the front, one from the back. The blades scraped together inside the dwarf's body, mangling his heart into bloody mush.

The roaring died.

Blood sprayed.

Habik was dead.

(End of Chapter)