Chapter 52: Half a Second

Max rose to his feet, his movements even slower than his previous walking pace. Although the Priest had detected his presence through the skill's activation, Max deduced that the enemy still could not actually see him. He needed to maintain this advantage; revealing his exact location was out of the question.

After standing, he remained frozen in place, simply observing his surroundings. Since his party members were also unaware of his exact position, they wouldn't inadvertently give him away through their reactions.

"I have been waiting for you," the Priest spoke for the second time.

Upon hearing this, everyone in the hall lost their focus for a fleeting moment before snapping back to reality. It was an understandable reaction. Even if given another hundred years, they never would have anticipated such a statement. Why would this Priest be waiting for a first-year student like Max? However, the implication quickly dawned on them: the Priest was referring to someone capable of curing his poison.

Max had also realized this underlying meaning, so he felt little surprise. Disregarding the Priest's words entirely, he turned and took a deliberate step towards Adrien. If they had any possibility of winning this battle, it would stem from Adrien's Sword Aura. While it might not cleave the Priest in two, it would undoubtedly inflict a wound.

"At first, I thought you were all fools for coming here without any precautions, unlike the others," the still-invisible Priest continued. "I assumed you were simply arrogant. However, I underestimated you. You brought the very person I have been waiting for."

The Priest then made his offer. "In exchange for this gift, I will grant you all a wish. Hand this person over to me, and take whatever you desire. What do you say? Doesn't this offer seem reasonable?"

Max abruptly halted his steps. What the hell is this bald guy talking about? A sudden tinge of dread spread through his heart. He could only hope that his seniors would refuse the proposal. If they agreed, he was doomed.

Meanwhile, the seniors showed not the slightest reaction to this proposal. Their focus remained absolute, fully prepared to unleash a deadly attack the moment the Priest dared to approach them.

"You must all know that you lack the strength to defeat me," the Priest declared to the world. "I am the god of this realm, and no being can defeat a god."

'Well, he wasn't wrong on that claim,' Max thought as he continued to move at a snail's pace. Everyone in this world was afflicted by some kind of disease, and this man was undoubtedly the cause. With no one left to save these people, the Priest could indeed act as a god who dictated everything.

"You should know that I could kill you all in a single second," the Priest said, finally resorting to the ultimate threat: death.

However, this threat was a hoax or at least a half-truth. The strange aspect of this Boss Battle was that there were hardly any casualties among those who challenged it. The reason was simple: the Priest's poison lost its effect the moment a person stepped out of the hall. Even if someone were afflicted by the poison and stood at the brink of death, as long as another person dragged them past the tall doors, the waiting area would cure them of the toxin. Hence, the Safe Zone was a literal safe zone.

This was one of the primary reasons the seniors were confident enough to attempt this Boss Fight. They had already achieved a significant feat by crossing the villages, a place where they could have definitely died. Yet, they wanted to achieve more. They intended to kill the Priest, become the second party in history to defeat him, and break a 25-year-old undefeated record.

But did things ever go exactly according to plan? No. Their escape plan had suddenly become a difficult choice after seeing that Katerina couldn't move a single inch once afflicted by the Fungi Poison. Clearly, this Priest's poison had grown stronger over the years.

Usually, people who decided to challenge this boss came prepared with Elixirs and [Rings], only to try their hardest and eventually fail. In contrast, they had arrived completely unprepared, leaving themselves wide open for the Priest's attacks.

As a result, everyone's life now rested in Max's hands. If they were afflicted by the Fungi Poison, he would need to be the one to drag them all out of the hall.

"I will give you ten seconds to think about the offer. Just think about all the treasures and power you will obtain." the Priest said, attempting to tempt everyone with rewards.

Max could do nothing but curse the Priest inwardly. Glancing at everyone from the corner of his eye, they seemed resolute about not taking the offer. However, if the Priest gave them more time, there was a chance people could change their minds.

After walking half the length of the hall, Max finally reached Adrien's spot. He stood still beside him, waiting quietly.

He had a full hour before the Elixir wore off, and they had just entered a minute ago. With plenty of time on his hands, he could afford to wait, hoping the seniors would not sell him out.

Soon, the belief he held in them proved true. No one spoke; no one made any extra movements or signals. Their focus remained absolute. Seeing this determination, the Priest finally deactivated his invisibility, revealing himself standing before the altar where he had previously been seated.

"Very well, do not shy away from the offer. Just look at these rewards," the Priest said. Suddenly, multiple items began to appear: a golden pot full of gold coins, a mysterious bow, a mysterious treasure box, and finally, a parchment.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

'What bountiful treasures this Priest possesses,' Max thought. He eyed the treasures, but his gaze eventually locked onto the mysterious bow. This was supposed to be his payment for completing the Quest with the seniors. When they had first approached him, they promised him this exact reward: an A-Rank Long Bow capable of shooting an endless number of arrows without the need for traditional Arrow. Max's eyes glittered at the sight of the weapon. It was an excellent item, a true treasure. But the question remained: would he actually get it?

"These abundant treasures are all for you. Just hand over the person who cured the poison, and take everything," the Priest reiterated.

Max noted that the initial time of 10 seconds had already passed, yet the Priest continued to insist, going so far as to display the treasures after their first silent rejection. This was definitely a deceitful tactic. The more time he gave these people, the more thoughts would begin to arise in their minds, dangerous thoughts at that.

'Should I go and take the bow?' Max thought for a second. Since he was currently invisible, he could definitely do it and run away to the Safe Zone. Even if the Priest discovered him, the Fungi Poison would not affect him. Even, if the Priest was attacking him, he could definitely escape with the item.

However, before Max could finish this thought, Adrien moved and sent out a Sword Aura. It took a single second to reach the Priest's midsection, about to dissect him. But before the attack could connect, the Priest disappeared. Max, whose eyes had been locked on the Priest, noticed a clear change. The Priest was not teleporting; he was simply moving fast. This sensation of teleportation stemmed solely from his ability to disappear from his spot. By combining this disappearance and moving fast at the exact same time, he created an illusion of teleportation. With this discovery, the party finally had a chance to defeat him.

Max shifted his gaze toward the others; they were all in the middle of launching an attack. This was because the Priest could attack anyone at any given moment. Therefore, when the Priest escaped Adrien's attack, they activated their own. If the Priest were to come near them now, they would be a millisecond faster than him and successfully land an attack.

However, the Priest directly appeared before Candice, the Healer, and blew the Fungi spores onto her face. The attacks everyone had cautiously prepared instantly became useless. While they were in the middle of activating another attack, the Priest targeted Leon, the Tanker. Caught amidst activating his Shield Bash skill, Leon could do nothing as the Priest appeared before him and inflicted the spores.

Following this, the Priest moved toward Harold, then Katerina, and finally Ewan, the Battle Mage. Guessing the attack pattern, Ewan had waited for the Priest to move from Harold before activating his first skill. Then, when the Priest appeared before Katerina, Ewan activated another skill. Currently, he was activating two skills at the same time. It was similar to how Max utilized his [Celestial Arrow] and [Rapid Reload]. The only difference was that while Max combined his skills, Ewan was executing them individually with a millisecond gap between the two. By doing this, when the Priest finally appeared in front of him, Ewan would have a chance to land at least one of the attacks.

If the Priest appeared quickly, the first skill would land on him. If he arrived a moment later, the second skill would behead him. However, this clever plan failed, not because of Ewan, but because of the Priest. Instead of attacking Ewan, the Priest directly appeared in front of Adrien.

Adrien, however, had fully expected the Priest to target Ewan next. Consequently, he had not activated his skill; he was a whole second too late. By the time the Priest appeared and moved to strike, the Sword Aura finally left Adrien's sword. Unfortunately, the attack was still delayed by a full second; Adrien needed to have activated it a second earlier.

If this incoming attack were to land on Adrien, the only person capable of injuring the Boss, then the fate of the entire battle would fall to the Priest's mercy. Then again, one could consider that the whole battle had been at the Priest's mercy from the very beginning.

But what were the chances of making Adrien's attack actually land on the Priest now? The only option was to delay the Priest's movements for at least half a second, just enough for Adrien to inflict a surface wound. But was that even possible? Who in this hall was capable of doing such a thing?

Surprisingly, it was Max himself.

At the exact moment the Priest appeared before Adrien, it was not only the Sword Aura aiming at him. Another attack was already closing in on the Priest. This attack obviously came from Max. But How could a Level 4 Awakener possibly attack a Boss that was estimated to be around Level 100? It was almost impossible, yet Max could do the impossible.

Composed of dark green energy with light green energy sparkling across it, the attack aimed directly at the Priest's face. Max named this technique:

[Basic Healing Magic Reversal]

He had been practicing this technique for the last three days, and he had learned it to some extent over the past two days. While resting for two days, his main focus was Mana Channeling, but he also spent the rest of his time practicing this technique. This unique technique was capable of affecting anyone. Unlike a skill that used Mana, it used Life Force.

However, how did Max activate the attack at the right time, as if knowing the Priest would attack Adrien instead of Ewan next? That was just guesswork. He guessed that Ewan was stronger than Adrien, and that the Priest was targeting people from weak to strong. So, Max held a one percent doubt that, although Adrien was the Party Leader, Ewan was actually the strongest on the team. That guesswork made him prepare for this attack.

The attack was an inch away from the Priest's face. The Boss noticed, his eyes widened, and his expression changed. He moved with a blur, and his body started to disappear at the same time. But the green energy activated its reversal, absorbing the Life Force of the Priest. This made the Priest's movement delay. It was not much, just half a second, but that was all Adrien's Sword Aura needed.

The Sword Aura struck him squarely on the face, gouging a deep, jagged trench across his flesh and sending him flying to the floor. With shock and despair on the Priest's face, a rage erupted, and he started to exude an eerie smoke around his body. However, before he could do anything to vent his anger, his eyes widened and he cried out.

"No, wait!" the Priest's voice echoed throughout the hall as his head was suddenly severed and slid across the floor. Two blades made of pure Mana Energy continuously landed on the neck of the Priest, chopping his whole head off his body. The attack came from Ewan, who had kept an attack ready for himself.

Max didn't wait for the victory shout. He dashed toward the poisoned members and quickly healed everyone. Since the Priest was dead, they didn't know what would happen to the infected people. But the good thing was nothing happened to anyone. Once Max used [Salvation], they became healed.

When Max healed the final member, the hall went quiet for a while before everyone started to laugh and do a victory celebration.