Things had somehow gone from bad to worse.
The last time Jinyoung scanned the monster, its HP was at 50%. But that was before he [dashed] in and made his attack. Now, a dark aura emanated from the monster. He tried to [scan] it, but the system returned a garbled mess. Worse still, [dash] barely worked meaning that all skills were also affected. And from what he could tell, the Guild Master was feeling the same effects. Even the clan chat was useless. His messages went unanswered and the few answers he was getting were unintelligible.
The only clue as to what was going on was the [scan+] data. While the majority of the information was unreadable, one part stood out.
[SCAN+]
M0{...er: SIN DRACONIAN
R3comm–ded Level: $+
H… At_ib-tes_: SHI3LD3D (low), BTLE HA..3*3D, SIN (Active) W3…n3ss3s: E___TR-CITY, ICE, ^%C|.E "Get the hell outta here, kid! We don't stand a chance here!" The monster was only getting stronger while the two of them were next to helpless. "I'm not leaving you behind!" Jinyoung... can you... me? Willow?! Jinyoung scanned the rooftops until he spotted her on the 12th floor landing far above his head. It's a *eb...ff. What?! I can't understand you. “Watch out!” The onion knight turned his head just in time to see the dragon launch itself off the ground and flap just once. But once was enough to produce gale-force winds that lifted Jinyoung clear off his feet and sent him flying. For a precious few seconds, he felt himself tumbling through the air before gravity reintroduced his body to the concrete and he tumbled a few feet before coming to a blessed rest. J—-ung!! Jinyoung!! The “sound” of Willow screaming in the clan chat brought him back from the warm brink of unconsciousness. He needed to stand up. I hear you. Calm down. Are you okay?! A few pats and a bit of gingerness when he stood told him nothing was broken but there would be pain in the days to come. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. You need to get back in there! The Guild Master is doing his best, but he won’t last long. Jinyoung shook the cobwebs loose in his head. Even together they didn’t stand much of a chance against this thing. Can you get word to Hana? We need backup now. No, I can only communicate with you because we’re so close. But the debuff radius from that thing is massive. The others are too far away for us to communicate with. That explains it, Jinyoung thought. The Sin effect must be a passive skill that kicked in once the dragon was below 50% health. If anything, this was a sign that they needed to- Did you say debuff? Jinyoung quickly opened his status screen. He needed to check his skills. One in particular. [CHARGE+] The PLAYER enters a [CHARGED] state for up to 1 minute. While [CHARGED+], all PLAYER STATS are increased including AGILITY and all PLAYER debuffs are removed. Willow, I need you to back me up, but keep your distance. He felt it before he heard or saw anything. A low rumble that gave him seconds to move before a very large, very angry dragon came bursting through the walls of a parking garage. Jinyoung [dashed] immediately, but he could still feel the cut of concrete shrapnel etch his skin. “Timburr!!” a rough voice called out as the dragon went crashing into another building beyond them. The Guild Master helped Jinyoung to his feet. “You’re supposed to say that before-” “No time for chit-chat,” the old fighter pointed. The dragon had already shaken off the impact and was getting back on its feet. Two [arcane bolts] came from above and slammed into the dragon, pushing it back into the rubble of the building. “Now’s as good a time as any,” Jinyoung muttered. [Charge+]. He felt the difference immediately. He could see the aura from the dragon around him, unable to touch him. The [charge+] increased all his stats making Jinyoung stronger, but more importantly faster. Jinyoung turned to the Guild Master and got a good look at the older warrior. He sincerely hoped that the Guild Master felt better than he looked. His armor was shredded and tiny wounds from shrapnel peppered any exposed skin including his face. “Took you long enough!” He yelled out between breaths. It’s just around the corner from you. Just above Jinyoung, Willow had found a perch. The alleys were tight enough here that she could move from rooftop to rooftop. At least, with enough of a run-up, that is. We need to be in sync on this, Willow. Don’t strike until I do. Jinyoung turned back to Muho, “You need to hide up here. You’re not in any shape to fight. I’ll draw the dragon away and you find some cover.” The Guild Master nodded gruffly. “You go ahead, I’ll leave once the coast is clear.” The monster poked its head out of the corner. Scanning the environment. Hunting them. Hunting him. Once it had fully moved into the open, the onion knight made his move. Jinyoung [dashed] in and swung his sword at the dragon’s legs, just like he did earlier. Except this time, he pulled his strike short. Instead, an [arcane bolt] shot in from the rooftops and struck the dragon squarely in the leg. The dragon screeched and brought its tail down hard. The whiplash motion shook the ground and left a crater in its wake that would’ve surely killed Jinyoung had he not double [dashed] back. That was almost too perfect, Jinyoung. Stay hidden up there, Willow. The [charge+] increased all of his stats including those that affected his MP. Two [dashes] one after another like that would’ve left him breathless, but he was barely winded. As long as he didn’t attack the dragon, he would stay [charged] and he could stay one step ahead of the beast. Get ready because here we go again. Again and again, Jinyoung charged in and pulled himself short to give Willow an opening to strike it with an [arcane bolt] from range. Finally, after three more strikes, he backed off. “Come on, you ugly bastard.”