SHUFFLE OF FATE: A Deckbuilding LitRPG
CHAPTER 8: HARD COUNTER
The Iron-Weaver Broodmother didn't move like a biological creature. She moved like a machine.
Her eight legs, tipped with obsidian spikes, tapped rhythmically against the stone floor. *Click. Click. Click.*
Kai stepped back, his back touching a cold, silk-wrapped cocoon. He quickly scanned the boss's stats again.
**[Iron-Weaver Broodmother]**
**[Level: 8]**
**[Status: Hungry]**
"Level 8," Kai swallowed hard. "That's six levels above me. If she bites me once, I'm dead."
He looked at his hand. He had the **[Flashbang]** ready. It was his only crowd-control card. It had worked on the goblins. It had to work here.
"Hey! Ugly!" Kai shouted, waving his arms.
The Broodmother hissed. Her mandibles opened, dripping sizzling purple venom. She lowered her body, tensing her legs for a lunge.
"Now!"
Kai crushed the yellow card.
*BANG!*
A supernova of white light exploded in the dim cavern. The flash was intense enough to burn retinas even through eyelids.
The Broodmother shrieked—a high-pitched sound that shattered the silence. She thrashed wildly, clawing at her face.
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[Effect Applied: Blindness (5 seconds)]
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"It worked!"
Kai didn't hesitate. This was his only window. He summoned the **[Rusted Dagger]**.
He sprinted to the right, aiming to flank her. The spider was thrashing in the center, blind and confused. Kai targeted the soft tissue joint where her armored leg met her body.
"Die!" Kai shouted, leaping for the strike.
But just as his feet left the ground, the Broodmother stopped thrashing.
She didn't look with her eyes. She swiveled her head toward him with terrifying precision.
Her leg snapped out like a whip.
"What—"
*SLAM.*
The armored leg hit Kai mid-air. It felt like being hit by a swinging log.
Kai flew across the room. He smashed into a pile of rocks, rolling three times before coming to a painful stop.
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[Damage Taken: -25 HP]
[HP: 35/60]
[System Alert: Rib Fracture re-opened.]
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Kai coughed, tasting blood. "How? She was blind!"
A blue notification window popped up, answering his question with cruel indifference.
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[Analysis: Enemy possesses [Tremor Sense].]
[She can detect movement through vibrations in the ground.]
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"Vibrations..." Kai realized, horrified. "Running just made me a louder target."
The Broodmother recovered from the flash. Her eight red eyes locked onto him again. She didn't rush this time. She stalked him, savoring the fear.
Kai struggled to his feet. He looked at his right hand. He was still holding the dagger.
"One chance," Kai gasped. "I have to pierce her armor."
He didn't run this time. He waited.
The spider lunged, jaws snapping.
Kai ducked under the venomous bite, sliding on his knees across the smooth stone. He was directly underneath her. The soft underbelly exposed.
"Got you!"
Kai thrust the **[Rusted Dagger]** upward with both hands, putting all his strength into the stab.
The tip of the blade hit the black chitin of her stomach.
*CRACK.*
There was no squelch of flesh. There was only the sound of brittle metal snapping.
The rusted blade, already weakened by the acid from the spiderlings, couldn't withstand the impact against the Boss-tier armor. The blade shattered into useless shards of iron dust.
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[System Alert: Weapon Destroyed!]
[Card Lost: Rusted Dagger]
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"No..." Kai stared at the empty hilt in his hand.
The Broodmother looked down at the pest beneath her. She raised her body and slammed down, trying to crush him.
Kai rolled away frantically, barely avoiding being flattened.
He scrambled backward until his back hit the cave wall. There was nowhere left to run.
He checked his deck.
* **[Rusted Dagger]**: Destroyed.
* **[Flashbang]**: Cooldown (9 minutes).
* **[Scavenger Rat]**: Useless against armor.
* **[The Wildcard]**.
The spider loomed over him, blocking out the light. She raised her two front legs, ready to skewer him like a kebab.
Kai looked at his Aether.
**[Aether: 9/12]**
He had no weapon. He had no tricks. He had no escape.
He looked at the glitching, unstable card in his interface. The card that had given him a spoon. The card that had given him a party popper.
"Well," Kai smiled, blood staining his teeth. "I guess it's all in."
He reached for the Wildcard.