Lin had resolved to defeat the Bear Ghost.
The fear of the Bear Ghost and the complex relationships with the Hoyo tribe were significant obstacles, but fortunately, she overcame them admirably.
Above all, prioritizing the order of her Master was a key factor, also serving as proof that Lin’s affection for Carami had reached new heights.
Whenever her slaves placed her wishes as their top priority, Carami felt a profound sense of accomplishment and pride.
It was decided to capture the Bear Ghost. Now, the only thing that mattered was whether Lin could indeed defeat the Bear Ghost. She would need to fight alone, as there was no one to assist her.
Fortunately, Lin’s Master was a gamer who became engrossed in Taossl to the point where the line between reality and the game blurred.
Not just any minor monster, but a boss monster like the Bear Ghost—Lin’s Master had memorized its strategies meticulously.
“First, I will inform you of the basic precautions. The first one is the fog. It comes from the Bear Ghost’s breath.”
Carami squatted down and sketched a bear picture on the ground with a stick.
“When the Bear Ghost gets angry, it will huff and start exhaling its breath. The fog in Baeyun Gorge has long since dissipated and lost its power, but the Bear Ghost’s fresh breath should not be inhaled.”
“What happens if you inhale it?”
“It will make the use of spirit power difficult.”
In the game, whenever the Bear Ghost used its breath attack, slaves’ MP would rapidly decrease. This forced them to delay their skill timing as they waited for their MP to recover.
In turn-based games, losing a perfect timing for skills is fatal. Therefore, players often equipped MP recovery items or brought along slaves that could attack without MP costs or, alternatively, characters with overwhelming strength.
Fortunately, while the game required mandatory hits as part of the pattern, now Lin could defend depending on how she reacted.
“The second is the roar. When you attack, the Bear Ghost will roar, and it might make you dizzy if you hear it.”
A wide-area stun.
The ears must be adequately covered at the right moment.
Afterward, Carami explained the Bear Ghost’s attack patterns and strategy in as much detail as possible. However, some alterations needed to be made to fit the current situation.
In Taossl, battles usually involve a team of five. In story battles, one main slave is essential, and the remaining four are optional.
But even these four characters suffer from significant stat reductions. Thus, if the story slave isn’t well-developed, clearing the battle becomes nearly impossible.
Most players would then form a team of support slaves and let the story slave carry the deck solo. However, there was no one but Lin now. She had to do it all by herself.
This was also why Lin’s contribution had to stand out, fearing it might decrease if others were involved.
Fortunately, according to Carami, slaves bound by the soul contract were stronger than the ones in the game. Carami believed that Lin could successfully defeat the Bear Ghost alone.
After pondering the strategies Carami had given her, Lin stood at the entrance—and exit—of the fox den.
The eerie mist flowing from outside the ravine,
The unsettling laughter of yokais.
It was an all-too-familiar scene. Lin had been the bait to lure yokais away so that the Hoyo tribe could safely gather herbs and hunt for food.
Every day. Lin had stood in this exact spot thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of times.
Every single time, she was filled with dread.
Not once had she wanted to go out. But if she didn’t, she risked being abandoned by the Hoyo tribe. She had no choice.
‘It’s different now.’
Lin turned around. As always, the foxes waited impatiently, their brows furrowed, urging her to leave as quickly as possible. And yet, this time their presence barely registered to Lin.
“Wait here and come back safely.”
In the midst of the familiar foxes, a new person stood, watching Lin with a smile—a sight Lin had never seen before. Instead of leaving, this person waited for her return.
A faint pink emotion arose deep within Lin’s chest and engulfed her entire body. Unable to suppress the sudden impulse, Lin embraced Carami.
With her face buried into Carami’s chest, Lin greedily inhaled her scent, marking her with her tail in every possible way.
Then, with a slight tilt of her head, she grinned flirtatiously.
“Don’t fool around with other foxes while I’m gone. Wait here patiently. If my scent fades, I’ll come back soon to reapply it.”
“Okay.”
Before the mood was gone, Lin had promised with a laugh.
Carami let out a silly exclamation, surprised by Lin’s boldness.
Her satisfaction was obvious. Lin smirked and, for the first time, walked out of the fox den with a light step.
*
Squeak. Squeak.
Advancing through the mist that obscured even the next step, Lin walked through the deep forest.
The fog, alive and swirling, covered the forest. The wet leaves muffled her footsteps, and branches like the hands of the dead reached out, only to be burned away by foxfire screams.
In this demon den, filled with unpredictable threats, Lin’s steps had an unexpected calmness compared to the frantic pace she used to take trying to escape.
Having awakened five of the nine tails of the fox spirit, Lin was far beyond any lowly forest demons.
The fog merely served as her cover, hiding her until the right moment to strike with a wolf-like roar, warning her opponent.
This Lin paid no heed to the low-level threats. Her time was too valuable to focus on each of the trivial beings.
KUH-OOM.
A roar that shook the mountain.
The mere footsteps of the Bear Ghost made the entire mountain tremble.
Thanks to the vibrations, locating the Bear Ghost wasn’t difficult.
“…”
Lin stopped walking. Tilting her head back as far as it could go, she stared upwards.
Instead of the sky, all she could see was an enormous bear. Its size was so massive that it was disorienting to even refer to it as a bear.
To capture such a creature—this would have been unthinkable in the past. But things were different now. The thought of quickly finishing the job and returning to her Master filled her mind.
She would embrace her master.
She would sniff deeply.
If she lingered too long, those dirty females might try to flatter the Master. After all, the Master had a bewitching, sultry scent that all females found irresistible.
Since the Bear Ghost had yet to detect Lin’s presence, it would be best to attack now, but Lin refrained from acting impulsively.
The strategy Carami had repeatedly emphasized.
‘The first attack can take its time, as long as it hits the Bear Ghost’s weakness with maximum power. The Bear Ghost will always counterattack, so this works in your favor.’
Lin still didn’t fully understand the strategy.
The Bear Ghost’s weakness, according to Carami, was the scar on its chest. Approaching it would surely make the Bear Ghost aware of her presence.
To unleash a powerful attack, she would need time—time the Bear Ghost wouldn’t patiently wait for.
‘Wouldn’t it be better to maintain distance and bombard with ranged attacks?’ thought Lin, but…
‘No.’
It was not wise to question the Master’s words.
All she had to do was follow them like a doll.
With a light jump, Lin sprang onto a tree’s peak, gracefully leaping from branch to branch.
KUH-OOM…
The Bear Ghost passed beside her. The fog was so thick that Lin had to climb high to be at eye level with the giant creature.
Closely observing the Bear Ghost, Lin summoned the fox bead and lit the foxfire. One by one, foxfire flames erupted around her, glowing like awakening stars.
One, two, three, four… In total, seven foxfires.
Not only had the number of fires she could control increased, but their size had also grown several times larger than before.
And it didn’t end there. The seven foxfires began to rotate around Lin, gradually merging into one.
The blue foxfire merged into one mass, growing as large as the moon, giving the illusion of two moons in the sky.
Yet, the Bear Ghost remained unresponsive. Even with a fiery inferno right before its eyes, it showed no interest.
The Bear Ghost’s unshakable counterattack.
In turn-based games, players take turns attacking each other. Naturally, the first attack has an advantage, which developers counterbalance with strategies like giving bonuses to the second player or adding extra turns.
In some poorly balanced games, the player acting second might not even get to attack before losing. Hence, in Taossl, players always have the first attack when dealing with the Bear Ghost, who has patterns that deplete MP.
In short:
‘With proper buffs and debuffs in place, followed by an ultimate move, one could cut the opponent’s HP down to half from the start!’
Carami peeked her head out of the fox den to watch the sky, filled with anxiety.
Although the mist covered most of the view, it faintly glowed with a pale blue light.
“Go! Win with the first move!”
As if responding to her unheard voice, Lin acted. Remembering Carami’s advice to always announce skill names, Lin complied without hesitation.
“Blue Flame of the Sky (蒼天靑火).”
The massive foxfire slowly approached and then exploded with a tremendous force at the Bear Ghost’s chest.
KWAHAAAAANG!
The tremendous explosion sent waves of fiery air through the forest, pushing aside the mist and momentarily clearing the sky.
GWEORRRYYYYYY…
The Bear Ghost roared, shaking the air, and leaned backward. Its massive shadow covered the ground and devastated the surrounding area.
SSHHEEEEEEE…
Mist poured out from the Bear Ghost’s mouth like a giant cloud, slowly covering the once-clear Baeyun Gorge in fog again.
Then came the deafening roar, leaving creatures in the area, whether yokai or beast, unconscious.
But Lin was different. The pink barrier from the fox bead blocked out all sound, leaving her unaffected despite the quake.
‘Indeed…!’
Carami’s information was correct. Everything flowed smoothly, following the planned sequence.
Lin trembled in awe of Carami’s clear vision, comparable to the mythical all-seeing eye. Following the Master’s words, defeating the Bear Ghost would be easier than eating a potato without water.
Lin lit yet another foxfire.
Guardian spirit of Baeyun Gorge?
What nonsense.
If you’re the guardian spirit, then I’m the fox goddess.
