042 The Main Body in the Water Tank
Seeing Asagiri summon his Persona again and have the Human Asura charge towards the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit standing in the hall once more, Yuuki Asuna's expression became extremely solemn. The knuckles of her right hand, gripping the sword hilt, were slightly white from excessive force.
She wanted to go up and help, but from time to time, highly corrosive dark green liquid that could instantly melt even the Human Asura would burst out from the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit's body, and it also emitted a stench that was unbearable even while wearing a mask.
If it weren't for this, Asagiri wouldn't have let the Human Asura fight alone while he watched from a distance.
Is this the true difficulty of the instance?
No, that's not right.
According to the normal process, Players wouldn't need to come to the First Floor hall at all, and wouldn't even go down to the Fifth Floor of the Hotel. Instead, they would encounter the Floor's guardian spirit around the Tenth Floor and then start a chase and escape battle.
It's even possible that the Red-Clothed Female Ghost that Asagiri and she captured at the beginning of the instance was the most powerful Banshee that Players would encounter according to the normal process, and they wouldn't directly face this Floating Corpse Evil Spirit that was nearly three meters tall.
At this time, Yuuki Asuna only regretted that the profession she obtained was a melee Swordsman type, and not a ranged profession like Warlock, Mage, or Archer. Otherwise, she could provide remote assistance to the Human Asura who was fighting the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit from a safe distance where she wouldn't be affected by the dark green liquid.
"Wait a minute... This guy..."
Iwanaga Kotoko saw the Human Asura extend its hands and forcefully crush the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit's head, but the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit did not dissipate. Instead, a dark green corpse water gushed out from its neck and it instantly recovered to its original state. On the contrary, the corpse water that splashed out when it was injured corroded a part of the Human Asura's body. Seeing this scene, Iwanaga Kotoko suddenly showed a look of realization and immediately said to Yuuki Asuna beside her.
"Violet, I know why that guy is attacking proactively! Because the one fighting the Human Asura right now is not its main body. Its main body is very fragile and doesn't even dare to let us get close. As long as the main body is still there, its anomalous power will not dissipate, so... we need to find its main body!"
"Main body... water tank?"
Yuuki Asuna immediately reacted, immediately gripped the Exorcist Longsword in her hand, and shouted to Asagiri.
"Leader, don't get entangled with that guy here, we need to go..."
Just as Yuuki Asuna was halfway through her sentence, the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit seemed to have guessed her intention. Its mouth split open and it let out a sharp roar, trying to break free from the Human Asura's restraint and charge over, but the Human Asura's speed was faster than it. It directly locked the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit's neck in a standard posture, and then pulled its head off.
"I heard what you said."
Asagiri didn't turn around, just stood with his back to Yuuki Asuna and Iwanaga Kotoko, speaking in a calm tone.
"I'll hold this guy off, you two go find its true body."
Although Yuuki Asuna was very worried about Asagiri's condition, she also knew she couldn't hesitate too much at this moment, so she immediately nodded.
"Okay, I understand."
Seeing Yuuki Asuna and Iwanaga Kotoko leave the Hotel lobby and head towards the room where the water tank was located, the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit's face became even more hideous and terrifying. It bared its teeth, aiming at the retreating figures of the two.
But before it could spray that corrosive dark green liquid, Asagiri spoke softly.
"Human Asura, block its mouth."
The moment Asagiri's words fell, the Human Asura raised its arm without hesitation and directly shoved its entire arm into the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit's wide-open mouth.
"Ugh..."
The Floating Corpse Evil Spirit made a sound similar to retching, its body struggling non-stop, its eyes directed at Asagiri filled with intense distortion and malice.
"Very anxious, aren't you?"
Asagiri leaned against the Hotel reception counter, looking directly into the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit's eyes, a smile on his face.
"Heh heh, just be anxious, it's useless even if you are. There's no way I'll let you pass. Knowing your true body is about to turn to dust, clearly powerless, yet still trying to cling to life, refusing to accept the reality of defeat..."
"Truly ugly."
......
On the other side, Yuuki Asuna looked at the metal object in front of her, about two meters high, which almost occupied an entire room of nearly one hundred square meters, her brows tightly furrowed.
"Is this the water tank where that guy's true body is... Necro, help me look, if it's a normal water tank, there should be..."
Before Yuuki Asuna could finish speaking, Iwanaga Kotoko had already raised her staff and pointed to the top of the water tank.
"It should be on top."
To ensure the cleanliness of the water source, Hotels not only use filters, but the source water tank is also cleaned internally regularly. Therefore, the water tank is not a sealed metal box, but has a lid on top that can be opened to allow people to enter for cleaning.
"On top, huh... Wind Blessing."
Yuuki Asuna used the Wind Blessing magic. Her movements were very agile, wasting not a single bit of time. She climbed onto the top of the water tank directly in a parkour-like posture, pushing off the outer wall of the tank.
As expected, she saw something like a lid, and it wasn't locked.
Yuuki Asuna walked to the lid and opened it. The moment she opened the lid, she immediately smelled an extremely pungent, unbearable stench. Moreover, there was about half a meter of water accumulated in the tank. Her expression couldn't help but become a little nervous.
If Iwanaga Kotoko's speculation was correct, then after she entered the water tank, she would see the true body of that Floating Corpse Evil Spirit, which was...
The opponent's body, bloated and swollen from God knows how long it had been soaking in the water tank.
Actually, Yuuki Asuna had a slight phobia of dirt.
In the past, it would have been absolutely impossible for her to enter this foul-smelling corpse water that had accumulated for who knows how long.
But now, there was a reason she had to act.
"Leader... Asagiri..."
Thinking of Asagiri, who was currently delaying the Floating Corpse Evil Spirit, enduring even after consuming a large amount of physical and mental energy, yet still forcing himself to summon his Persona once again in a short time, Yuuki Asuna made up her mind, gritting her silver teeth, and jumped into the water tank.
In the dimness, she saw in a corner of the water tank, a body that was bloated and swollen, almost unrecognizable as human, with only black, seaweed-like hair floating on the surface of the water.
The next second, the tip of the Exorcist Longsword in Yuuki Asuna's hand had already pierced the center of that body's forehead.
"Found you."