Athena in Tower Defense Game! [LitRPG]

Chapter 175: Victory?

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Chapter 175: Victory?

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The opposition seemed unprepared for such an abrupt turn of events. As the mechanical dragon’s claw sustained a grievous wound, the rate of its teleportation visibly accelerated, a clear sign of its distress.

Its injured claw, propelled by a final surge of force, swiped fiercely through the air, attempting to swat away the pesky human attacking it. Yet, it grasped nothing but wind, unleashing a sharp gust that cut through the battlefield.

In mere moments, Athena had rendered one of the dragon’s claws completely useless.

Next emerged the metallic sheen of its head, a visage wrought with seething fury. Its eyes brimmed with an almost tangible hatred, a desperate thirst to obliterate Athena.

Following its head came the upper half of its colossal body. Seizing the opportunity, Athena vaulted onto its form, aiming directly for its eyes.

The dragon, infuriated beyond measure, lashed out with its remaining claw. How detestable was this human! Attacking while the dragon was still in the throes of teleportation? Such shameless audacity was beyond anything it had ever encountered.

From its blazing eyes, Athena gleaned its turbulent emotions. Not smart enough, she mused. It lacked the cunning required to orchestrate the chaos around them.

And yet, where was the true orchestrator? The dragon's back was bare- no visible signs of a controller. Scanning the battlefield yielded no answers, even as Witty sought in vain amid the chaos of thrashing enemies.

Damn it! Where could it be hiding?

The thought gnawed at her, but her hands never faltered. She danced across the dragon’s massive frame, evading its relentless strikes while carving precise marks into its armored body like a madman. Each new wound became a testament to her effort to divert its attention.

After all, the dragon’s immense strength meant that even a single blow landing on the walls could result in catastrophic loss of life.

However, it didn’t take long for the dragon to discern her intent. It ceased its futile attempts to strike her, knowing well that her assaults, though injurious, were far from fatal to its heavily fortified body.

Instead, its menacing gaze shifted toward the fortress walls.

“Activate Now!” Athena bellowed, sensing its change in focus. She launched herself skyward, twisting mid-air as her voice roared over the din below.

Yet, none of the artillery on the wall seemed aimed at the dragon. No turrets were directed toward its advancing form.

From behind the wall, a massive, spherical construct began to rise. Radiating an ethereal blue glow, it was encircled by two rotating metal rings.

At its core stood a woman clad in prison garb, her long hair flowing as though alive. Her face, strikingly beautiful, was pale as porcelain, her figure lithe and graceful.

She bore no semblance of a captive, let alone a mage. Instead, she seemed more akin to a celestial maiden descended from the heavens.

As she murmured arcane words and performed intricate gestures, an unearthly power surged forth from her body. Initially invisible, the energy became a vivid violet upon merging with the massive sphere, rushing toward the mechanical dragon with unstoppable force.

Encased in this otherworldly energy, the dragon found itself unable to carry out its destructive rampage.

Though unease gripped its core, the dragon remained physically unharmed. Its frustration mounted as it realized it had been outmaneuvered by humans.

Yet, an alarming development soon caught its attention. The wounds inflicted by Athena earlier had ceased healing. Worse, the injuries seemed to widen, pouring forth more of its lifeblood.

Each gash now radiated an insidious aura, promising lethal consequences.

Vathalia has activated the Curse of Misfortune!

Skill amplified: Malice of the World!

As long as Vathalia maintained her focus, the dragon’s demise was inevitable. But her trembling body betrayed the toll such power was exacting. She couldn’t hold on for long.

It didn’t matter. This was enough.

Each subsequent strike from Athena, no matter how shallow, compounded the dragon’s injuries exponentially. Minor scratches became gaping wounds.

Even if the mastermind remained elusive, what did it matter? If all its soldiers and generals fell, the king would stand as nothing more than a lone piece on the board, powerless to resist.

The mechanical dragon writhed in desperation. Every movement exacerbated its injuries, and an oppressive force seemed to crush down upon it, rejecting its very existence.

Vathalia’s ability was far more fearsome than Athena had anticipated. Seizing the moment, she unleashed a flurry of attacks on the dragon’s weakened spots.

Howling in pain, the dragon thrashed wildly, shockwaves upon shockwaves almost flattening everything around, its agony driving it to new heights of fury.

But Vathalia’s condition worsened. Her body convulsed violently, teetering on the brink of collapse.

“Hold on!” Athena shouted, her voice a rallying cry as she redoubled her efforts.

Despite her relentless assault, the dragon clung to its monstrous vitality. Its rampage left the walls in disarray, scattering debris and claiming the lives of soldiers and steel monsters alike.

“Deploy the second attack!” Athena commanded, her voice resolute.

Another spherical construct ascended, but unlike the first, this one exuded a feral, destructive aura. Within it, countless arcs of electricity coiled and sparked, converging into a singular, blinding flash.

A thunderous bolt erupted from the sphere, striking the dragon squarely.

With a final, deafening cry, the dragon collapsed, its enormous body slamming into the earth with a ground-shaking crash. Half the wall crumbled beneath its weight, leaving only its ruined, semi-mechanical corpse amidst the devastation.

Even in death, its last act of defiance wrought havoc, annihilating soldiers and monsters in the vicinity.

The scene was both awe-inspiring and devastating.

Though the loss of defenses was severe, the dragon’s demise also eliminated a significant portion of the enemy forces. A bittersweet victory, but a victory nonetheless.

With newfound morale, the remaining troops surged forward, driven by the triumph over their towering foe. The belief that they only needed to dispatch the remaining steel monsters to secure victory pushed them to fight with unyielding determination.

Under a relentless barrage of artillery, the enemy was finally subdued.

As Athena and her comrades began the arduous task of cleanup, no further adversaries emerged.

[ Congratulations, Player, on completing Quest 3: Defend the Fortress. ]
[ Contest of Peaks ]
[ Difficulty Level: LV ? ]
[ Final Stage of the Contest of Peaks will unlock in three days! ]

The absence of the mastermind left Athena uneasy. Its retreat was suspicious- was it truly gone, or merely biding its time?

Her thoughts were interrupted by an unexpected arrival: other players.

Their sanctuary barriers hadn’t been breached- they had willingly deactivated them, summoned by the system to join the ultimate battle.

[ Accept the new players to proceed to the final stage! ]