Knowing that his conventional methods of attack couldn't deal any decent damage, Greg decided to try a different approach.
Relying on his agile movements and anticipation, he narrowly dodged the wind-swift stabs and sweeps, as well as the wide-area poison breath, before tentatively using Dark Pulse.
The inconspicuous black orb flew out again, striking the joint of one of Lady Eight-Legs' legs.
It worked!
A system notification flashed, showing that Lady Eight-Legs had fallen into negative states like 【Sluggish】 and 【Weakness】.
However, the effect was nowhere near as significant as it had been against the Goblin Shaman, and the duration was much shorter. Furthermore, Greg could clearly feel that the mana consumed for this cast was significantly higher.
Just as he expected, large Lords with high levels, high resistance, and Divine Protection were extremely resilient to these types of negative status effects.
If he tried to wear it down this way, his mana would run dry long before the boss died.
"I can't keep dragging this out..."
Greg's mind raced as his gaze swept rapidly across the complex terrain of the surroundings.
Since he couldn't use the spider silk in the Boss room for a terrain kill, could he utilize other environmental features in this deep area?
An idea flashed through his mind.
He stopped engaging Lady Eight-Legs head-on and began to retreat while fighting, using Fireballs to harass and draw its attention toward a specific direction in his memory.
Lady Eight-Legs let out an angry hiss, moving its eight long legs with a thunderous rumble as it gave chase.
It seemed determined to shred and devour this little insect that dared to provoke it and burn it with flames.
Along the way, they surprisingly encountered no interference from other monsters.
When an area Lord personally moved out to hunt prey, other monsters were terrified and hid far away. None would be so foolish as to cross its path at a time like this.
Greg soon reached his destination.
This was a relatively narrow section of the cavern where the ceiling was slightly lower than the surroundings, and the rock walls were embedded with many sharp-edged crystals emitting an unstable, dark-red glow.
Explosive Rock Crystals.
This was a malicious trap left by the game designers.
When these crystals were stimulated by a certain degree of fire or impact, they would explode violently, triggering a chain reaction that caused a massive cave-in.
Originally, they were meant to restrict players from over-relying on fire magic on this floor.
Consequently, players would subconsciously avoid using fire magic during the boss battle as well.
But now, for Greg, this was no longer a trap. It was... a contract for a reversal!
He took a deep breath, calculating Lady Eight-Legs' pursuit speed and distance. He suddenly stopped, turned around, and faced the towering, menacing creature charging toward him.
Just as Lady Eight-Legs entered the optimal attack range and raised a front leg to deliver a lethal stab—
Greg did something any onlooker would find preposterous.
He stood his ground, neither dodging nor parrying, even dropping all offensive and defensive stances. Then...
【Whimpering LV4】 activated!
Effect: If you do not resist, it makes your enemy unable to bring themselves to attack you for four seconds. (Can only be used once per day on the same target.)
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
The aggressive, murderous Lady Eight-Legs stopped its sharp front leg mid-air.
In its eight cold compound eyes, a rare and clear flash of... human-like confusion and bewilderment flickered.
The behavior and sound of this tiny creature were so disconnected from the image of the agile prey that had been harassing it with fire that its simple predator logic suffered a brief malfunction.
Now!
A sharp light burst from Greg's eyes, and all feelings of shame or awkwardness were instantly thrown to the back of his mind.
His raised right hand had already condensed mana. A blazing Fireball was launched—not at Lady Eight-Legs, but in a precise arc toward the densest cluster of Explosive Rock Crystals on the ceiling directly above the boss!
BOOM—!!!!
The moment the Fireball hit the crystals, a blinding red light erupted! This was immediately followed by a deafening, chain-reaction explosion!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom—!!!
The ignited crystals underwent a terrifying sympathetic detonation. Violent flames and shockwaves swept across the ceiling, and countless sharp rocks of various sizes exploded downward like a meteor shower toward Lady Eight-Legs, who was still caught in a brief stun from the 【Whimpering】 effect!
"SCREE—!!"
Waking up from the skill's effect, Lady Eight-Legs' first instinct was to flee.
However, the stacking negative effects of Dark Pulse finally showed their worth. One of its legs suddenly lost all sensation, causing it to lose its balance amidst the falling rocks and collapse.
It only had time to let out one final shriek of rage and pain before being completely buried by countless burning, tumbling boulders!
The sounds of heavy impacts, shattering carapaces, and snapping limbs were endless. Dust mixed with fire rose into the air, almost obscuring the entire cavern section.
Meanwhile, the moment the Fireball left his hand, Greg had unhesitatingly activated his newly acquired skill—
【Insubstantiality LV1】!
His body instantly became blurred and transparent, like a shadow without physical form.
Whether it was the falling debris from above, the shockwaves of the explosion, or even the splashing flames, everything passed through his body without resistance, causing no damage.
Like a ghost, he dashed toward the edge of the explosion's range.
The five seconds of invincibility were just enough for him to rush out of the most dangerous core area of the rockfall and hide behind a massive, fallen stalactite.
Rumble...
The collapse continued for over ten seconds before gradually subsiding.
Dust filled the air, refusing to dissipate for a long time. The pungent smell of gunpowder and charred remains permeated the atmosphere.
The original structure of the cave was now unrecognizable. A vast amount of debris had piled up into a small mountain, completely burying Lady Eight-Legs' massive body. Only a few broken, slightly twitching tips of spider legs poked out from the rock pile.
Greg leaned against the stalactite, breathing heavily. His forehead was covered in cold sweat, and his mana was nearly exhausted.
He stared intently at the ruins, not daring to relax for a second.
Although a smoke cloud usually means no damage... with this many rocks, she has to be dead, right?
He clenched his fists, his heart pounding like a drum.
Just then—
In the corner of his vision, a long-awaited system notification emitting a faint golden glow appeared clearly and steadily:
【Redemption of the Villainous Noble: Stage One Complete! Stage Two Awaiting Unlock.】
Rate on N.U.
