A Cyclops that was both blind and devoid of its sense of smell had become nothing more than a perfect target.
The beast could only stomp and howl in place, its massive limbs slamming into the earth to create craters that only served to further restrict its own movement.
Soon after, a pain that felt as if it were searing into its very soul began to appear across various parts of its body.
This was the divine damage dealt by the Little Demon Cleaver projectiles.
The one eared student and his roommate had reached a very clear understanding of their role: they were Chris's human shaped mobile inventory slots.
During their rest at the campfire, Chris hadn't been shy about discussing the requirements for [Knight's Throw]. Once they saw Chris jam his straight sword into the giant's nostril and realized the beast had lost its ability to track him, they acted decisively. They dug out the baseball bats, heavy hammers, cleavers, and axes from their inventories and tossed them into the grass near Chris before retreating back to the safety of the foliage.
Evidently, the two once noisy college students had finally learned the art of observation and self preservation.
Even a blind Cyclops was far too dangerous for them to cross, and at this point, keeping weapons for self defense was irrelevant. If Chris fell despite these advantages, they wouldn't survive much longer anyway.
Chris's [Knight's Throw] required the weapon currently held as a template.
The Gentleman's Cane dealt too little damage, and the Vampire Killer didn't meet the criteria for a throwable projectile, so the timely assistance from his two "human inventory slots" was invaluable.
Even if the Vampire Killer could maximize divine damage, Chris had zero desire to engage the giant in close quarters again after experiencing that slam attack. What was worse than the risk of paralysis was the creature's overwhelming, stomach turning stench.
Backed by an ample supply of mana and Innocent Souls, Chris began to circle the Cyclops like a moon orbiting a planet, raining down a constant stream of divine infused projectiles.
Against the giant's thick hide, the physical impact of a hammer or the edge of a cleaver was significantly mitigated. Only the low, single digit divine damage bypassed its defenses entirely, making the process feel like a slow, agonizing "shaving" of its health.
The eyeball was the giant's only true weakness, but it was kept firmly protected behind its massive hands. After taking several hits to the back of its head from the heavy hammers, it had moved its other hand to cover that secondary weak point as well.
Now, the giant had stopped flailing. It curled into a ball, clutching its head in a desperate, defensive posture.
As he ran his laps, Chris found it hard to imagine how anyone could defeat this beast through conventional means without a holy weapon or the Vampire Hunter template.
However, he was unaware that if he hadn't been here, the Red Arremer and the Cyclops wouldn't have been nearly this powerful.
Capcom's famous Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment was at work here.
Without Chris, if those initial ten or so players had survived, the Red Arremer would have been a mere Leader template at most, and the Cyclops would have been an Elite. The minor enemies would have dropped limited use daggers, lances, and fireballs more frequently, allowing regular players without Arthur's abilities to deal effective damage.
Theoretically, if enough newcomers survived and fought with sufficient courage, they could pass this first stage with less than half their number in casualties.
Of course, they would have missed out on the [Midnight Parade of a Hundred Demons] skill, and the Achievement module likely wouldn't have unlocked for another mission or two.
Chris's foresight in accumulating over a hundred Innocent Souls and maintaining his mana levels was the only reason he could even "shave" down a Champion tier giant.
To maximize his single hit damage, Chris eventually settled on the heavy hammers. Though their throwing rate was slow, the target was stationary, making fire rate a secondary concern.
Slowly but surely, the giant's health was whittled away. From over nine hundred, it dropped past the hundred mark, finally falling below 10%, still roughly equal to what Chris had started with.
Although he couldn't see a health bar, Chris could sense the giant's agony and exhaustion. It was on the verge of death.
Yet, instead of relaxing, he became even more vigilant.
There was a fundamental ability from the original game that this defensive beast had yet to reveal.
Was it unable to use it? Or was it waiting for an opening?
Suddenly, the giant moved.
It dropped its hands, leaving its face completely exposed as its head took on an unnatural, glowing crimson hue.
Seeing this, Chris didn't hesitate. He immediately backed away, putting a significant distance between himself and the beast.
An instant later, the giant forced open its ruined, sightless eye and tilted its head back. Opening its maw toward the sky, it unleashed a massive, searing fireball into the air.
The fireball soared into the heavens before exploding in the night sky, creating a magnificent, final burst of fireworks.
Chris had remained wary of the giant's fire abilities. Although he didn't know the beast possessed the "Faint Bloodline of a Fire Titan," he remembered that in both Ghosts 'n Goblins and Ghouls 'n Ghosts, the giants could always breathe fire, regardless of the model.
The Heaven's Selection Space had evidently balanced the creature by granting it a single, devastating fire breath that could one shot any conventional intruder.
Unfortunately, with its sight and smell destroyed, the beast had no way to find Chris as he circled randomly.
A giant chosen as a Demon General naturally had its pride.
Realizing it could do nothing to the intruder, the beast made its final choice: to send a warning to its fellow demons within the castle.
A new human hero had arrived!
After unleashing that final warning shot, the giant's remaining health vanished instantly. Its massive body collapsed to the ground with a thunderous thud.
That final fireball had far exceeded its limits. It wasn't fueled by a mere 5 MP, but by the complete exhaustion of its paper thin Fire Titan bloodline.
The backlash from such a desperate move manifested as a total wipeout of its remaining life force.
The Cyclops guarding the gates of the Demon King's Castle was dead.
At that moment, a brilliant light erupted from the giant's chest. A massive metal key, styled after medieval European designs, burned through its breastplate and hovered in the air before drifting toward Chris as if guided by fate.
As Chris grasped the radiant key, three things happened simultaneously.
First, a fresh set of Knight Armor materialized on his body, covering his strawberry boxers and restoring his dignity.
Next, the massive gates to the outer perimeter of the Demon King's Castle slowly rumbled open.
Finally, the main mission timer froze at 3 hours, 45 minutes, and 39 seconds.
[Main Mission Complete. Commencing Final Settlement.]
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]