I Have a Task Log

Chapter 296: Chapter 295: All-In Determination

"I wanna smash your head in!"

Kase roared as he and Orelia charged straight at the Beard Demons ahead.

Colin, meanwhile, turned to support Battier and Morne.

Ale held a test tube filled with a clear, colorless liquid. After chanting a few spells, she pursed her lips and blew gently. The white vapor she exhaled expanded rapidly, becoming a gale of wind filled with ice shards.

’It’s that combination of Cautious Spellcasting and Range Magic again!’

The Inferior Demons crawling on the ground were once again frozen solid, but the Beard Demons nearby suffered little damage.

The two fiends shattered the ice encasing them with sheer physical Power, then knocked back the two bastards who tried to press the attack. These Demons possessed power that was simply overwhelming to mortals; ordinary people were no match for them.

Just as the Beard Demons swung their Long-Handled Cleavers to press their advantage, Colin rushed forward and thrust his sword forward.

The two Beard Demons worked in concert; one deflected the Giant Sword while the other chopped at him with a backhand swing.

At the same time, the beards of the two Demons whipped forward as well.

’I’m completely outnumbered!’ Colin thought.

In that instant, Battier, who had just been knocked away, lunged in front of Colin, raising his long halberd to defend him.

CRACK! The battered wooden shaft of the long halberd snapped in two. The Beard Demon’s cleaver sent Battier crashing to the ground.

Colin, meanwhile, was knocked back by two whipping tendrils.

The tendrils struck his shoulder, and purple venom seeped inward, penetrating the dented Chain Armor and the Armed Clothing beneath.

Waves of weakness washed over his body. Colin didn’t know if the weakness came from his injuries or the demon’s venom.

"Aaargh!!"

Morne threw down the empty potion bottle he had just drunk and charged forward, screaming wildly.

Seizing the opportunity his companion had bought him, Colin took out a [Healing Potion] and drank it down.

At the same time, he glanced to the side.

Battier was still lying motionless on the ground, but thankfully, his chest was still rising and falling.

The smooth Metal Plate Armor on his body had a huge, deep dent from the blow. The ribs under the Armor were most likely fractured.

In addition, the Armor on other parts of his body was also covered in dents.

Morne was likely in a similar condition. It was safe to say that without their Armor, both of them would have been killed long ago.

Seeing that Morne was on the verge of collapse, Colin quickly charged one of the Beard Demons.

With a thought, the Magic Energy within his [Empowerment Armor] was instantly released.

Colin felt as if his Armor had come alive. Every buckle and Armor Plate moved in perfect sync with his body, augmenting the force of his every action.

It felt like an exoskeleton straight out of a sci-fi novel.

The Beard Demon, sensing someone charging at it, swung its cleaver at Colin with a backhand strike.

Colin steadied himself and raised his Giant Sword high.

He blocked the attack with his Sword Guard and, in the same motion, countered with a [Radiant Sword] to the Beard Demon’s neck, executing a perfect Cross Strike.

Ale’s magical support arrived at that very moment.

Two [Chromatic Orbs] launched by [Twin Spellcasting] exploded against the two Beard Demons.

The Beard Demon in front of Colin seized violently, its body snapping ramrod straight. It twitched twice, then toppled over.

Just as the other Beard Demon was about to deal with the opponent at its side, Morne let out a great shout and split its head open with his long halberd.

"Alright, we just have to deal with the last Demon!" Colin breathed a sigh of relief.

He whipped his head around to look.

The Chain Demon’s right arm had been severed by Kase, and its body was covered in bruises from the Nail Head Hammer. It looked like it was at the end of its rope.

’Alright, we should be in the clear now...’

Before the thought could even fully form in Colin’s mind, the Chain Demon thrust out a hand and flung out a strange sheet of parchment.

The instant the parchment was thrown, it was engulfed in crimson Flame and turned to a cloud of gray ash in mid-air.

"Aaaaargh!!!"

A bloodcurdling shriek came from the Chain Demon’s direction.

A howling, gray-white wind erupted from the Demon, spreading in all directions. Strange, human-like figures swirled within the gale.

Forced to brace himself against the gale, Colin looked up.

Ale, who had been in front of him, was gone. She might have been literally blown away by the gale.

He couldn’t see the figures in the wind clearly at all; it was as if a faint curtain of light was in the way.

In addition to being masters of physical torture, Chain Demons are also masters of fear.

They can create illusions from their opponents’ deepest fears, plunging most people into profound terror.

Colin guessed the curtain of light he saw was the effect of the [Potion of Protection from Evil and Good]. Drinking it beforehand had been the right call.

Before his relief could even set in, a piercing pain shot through his body.

It was followed by a numb, aching weakness that spread through his entire body. Colin could distinctly feel his life force being siphoned away by the howling wind.

But Colin could only stand his ground, struggling to maintain his posture and silently endure it all.

He knew that if he made a single rash move, he would be blown off his feet.

The wind howled in his ears.

’I have to cast a spell... gotta stop that damned Demon...’

Colin struggled to move his right hand, trying to form the hand sign for [Misty Step], but his aching, numb muscles refused to obey.

At this very moment, a tall figure wreathed in blue flames stubbornly moved from the side to the center, shielding his companions from the worst of the gale.

It was Kase...

The moment the gale’s force weakened, Colin quickly made the hand sign.

BOOM!!

Before he could cast the spell, the Chain Demon’s position erupted in a massive explosion. A visible shockwave of black light expanded outward.

Kase, standing at the very front, was sent flying by the blast.

In that flash of an instant, the ground beneath Colin gave way. Before he could even finish casting, he was overwhelmed by a sense of weightlessness.

Gravity felt like tentacles reaching out from a viscous darkness, dragging him down. Countless brick fragments floated before his eyes, and he couldn’t see where his companions were or what condition they were in.

Relying on his extensive experience of being knocked around and stunned, he did his best to adjust his posture and protect his head, trying to avoid being knocked unconscious.

THUD!

Soon, Colin felt his toes touch the ground.

Using the coordination granted by [Sword Dance], he immediately rolled with the impact, tumbling across the ground to bleed off the momentum. The sound of bricks crashing down echoed from all around.

Debris rained down on him like a barrage of fists of varying strength, striking his armor with a CLANG and a CLATTER.

"Ugh..."

’Was that my voice?’

Propping himself up on the ground, Colin quickly drank his last Potion and gave his head a hard shake.

The fall had left him so rattled he couldn’t think straight.