HC: Card Slinger | Ch. 36 - Final Push

After a long rest, Deckard returned to the arena with a full HP bar, a full energy bar, and a deck full of cards to throw. The Radioactive Seagull had recovered its health, too.

It’s frustrating to see all my earlier work go to waste, he thought. But as Deckard locked eyes with the creature, he suspected it felt the same way.

“Round two,” he muttered.

Four Aces!

As Deckard shuffled his cards, the creature rolled toward him, its bloated body flattening rocks and debris. Deckard sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the toxic mass, and countered with a well-aimed throw.

Heavy Shot!

-32!

This time, Deckard felt more confident. Their earlier battle had taught him the creature’s movements, its attack patterns, and its quirks. He kept a wary eye on its bloated frame, watching for the telltale puff that signaled its poison attack. Sure enough, it came after a few more rolls.

When the green cloud spread, he adjusted his position. The acrid air stung his lungs, and the effort burned through his stamina, but he didn’t panic. Methodically, he threw card after card, each one chipping away at the boss’s health. Every so often, he cast [Healing Ray] to recover, maintaining his focus despite the strain.

Finally, the boss’s health bar dipped into the yellow zone. Deckard’s pulse quickened as he found himself in the same pivotal moment that had defeated him earlier.

Let’s hope this works this time.

Subdimensionalize!

The vortex roared to life, swirling with violent energy as it latched onto the Radioactive Seagull. The creature resisted, its glowing body thrashing against the pull. Each twist and jerk tested the vortex’s strength, the tension building with every second.

“Come on,” Deckard muttered, his hands tightening around his cards as if willing the skill to hold.

With a final, earsplitting screech, the seagull was consumed by the vortex. The battlefield fell silent, save for Deckard’s ragged breathing.

You’ve captured [Radioactive Seagull].

Deckard let out a shaky breath, his body sagging against the nearest rock. Relief flooded through him as the tension from the fight ebbed.

“Finally,” he muttered, dragging a hand across his damp forehead. Despite the failure of his first attempt, he’d recovered and succeeded on his second try.

Between fighting, resting, and fighting again, he’d spent far less time than if he had waited passively for his understanding of the boss to grow. A small smile tugged at his lips.
“My approach works. If I can keep this up, I’ll grow faster.”

Nearby, the loot waited for him. Deckard leaned down and picked up a pair of gloves. Their description popped into view:

Stinky Gloves (Common)

Description: A pair of gloves retrieved from a Radioactive Seagull’s stomach. They stink.

Effects:

• 1% damage reduction;

• +3 dexterity.

“Well, these aren’t half-bad,” he muttered, equipping them with a wry grin.

He turned his attention to the card he’d just captured.

Deckard stared at the card, his expression darkening. It followed the theme of near-unplayability that plagued all the other seagull cards, and his fingers twitched with the urge to toss it aside. Instead, he sighed and slipped it into his repository.

“A radioactive bird that poisons itself every turn? Fantastic,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. “This’ll definitely win the next tournament.”

Deckard pocketed the rest of the loot: coins, feathers, and another skill card he already owned. 

“Too bad that the item I want hasn’t dropped,” he lamented.

Adjusting his glasses, Deckard turned his attention to what remained of the dungeon. The final stretch loomed ahead, shrouded in mist and punctuated by distant seagull cries.

As he exited the crater, the first wave of enemies came into view: two Terminal Seagulls anchored behind three Diseased Seagulls.

This is going to be trickier, he thought, eyeing the formation. With both types of seagulls appearing together, he’d have to fight on two fronts.

He stuck to his strategy: kite the Diseased Seagulls first, isolating and eliminating them with precise throws before turning his attention to the slower Terminal Seagulls.

At first, the thought of managing both types of enemies felt daunting. But maybe it was the confidence he’d gained from fighting two different elites on his own, or maybe it was having the spacious arena from the Radioactive Seagull battle to fall back to. Either way, it wasn’t as difficult as he’d expected.

He picked off one Diseased Seagull and retreated, leading the swifter mobs into pursuit. True to their nature, the Terminal Seagulls stayed behind, unwilling to leave their position. After finishing the Diseased Seagulls, Deckard circled back to where the encounter had started and dealt with the Terminal Seagulls one at a time.

Wave after wave, he repeated the process, using the open terrain to retreat and reposition as needed. Steadily, he advanced toward his goal.

The rocky path eventually leveled out, opening onto the summit of Gull’s Rock. The final boss’s lair loomed ahead.

Empty nests and jagged, cracked eggshells littered the ground, their sharp edges casting eerie shadows across the uneven stone. Streaks of white bird droppings crisscrossed the area in a twisted chessboard pattern.

Deckard inhaled deeply, forcing himself to focus. He’d fought dozens of seagulls to get here, and he’d succeeded. Now, only one thing stood in his way.

Adjusting his glasses and steadying his stance, he stepped forward. The boss was all that remained between him and the dungeon’s completion.

SCREEEEECH!

The sound reverberated through Deckard’s chest. His head snapped toward the source.

Atop the tallest crag, silhouetted against the dull, clouded sky, stood the Sea Ghoul.

It’s every bit as ugly as I remember.

The hunched creature watched him, its dark eyes glinting with sharp intelligence. Toxic green mist seeped from its feathers, swirling around it like ghostly tendrils. Its broken beak hung slightly open, the jagged edges clacking faintly as it tilted its head. In its talon, it clutched a rusty metal pipe, the jagged surface dull and corroded, streaked with flecks of grime.

Sea Ghoul (Boss)
Lvl. 5
HP: 2000
???

Deckard’s stomach churned, but he forced himself to steady his breathing. The odds weren’t great, but this wasn’t his first uphill battle.

“I’ve got this,” he muttered under his breath.

The Sea Ghoul didn’t wait for him to make the first move. It blurred with a sudden burst of speed as it lunged at him.

Deckard barely managed to dodge as the rusty pipe slammed into the ground with a deafening crack. Shards of stone sprayed outward, cutting shallow lines across his arms and face.

-2

-2

-2

The creature pivoted immediately, its talons scraping against the stone as it charged after him. Deckard ran. Toxic mist trailed behind the Sea Ghoul, curling into a dense fog that lingered on the battlefield.

Map the route. Don’t cross the poison.

Deckard tried to plot a safe path through the arena, but the Sea Ghoul wasn’t about to give him time to think.

Swoosh!

The pipe came at him again, the jagged edge skimming his side.

-18

“Yikes! It’s so fast!” Deckard stumbled forward, nearly losing his footing.

He didn’t do well in close quarters. Memories of being hit by bullies flashed through his mind, threatening to derail his focus. He needed to widen the gap, or he’d lose his composure entirely.

“Time to slow you down.”

Four Aces!

The deck in his hands glowed faintly as he began to shuffle, the cards flickering with kinetic energy. Almost immediately, the Sea Ghoul’s movements slowed, its lunges losing their deadly edge as the skill’s 20% speed debuff took hold.

Even with its reduced speed, the boss was relentless. It swung the pipe in a vicious arc, and Deckard sidestepped, more easily this time as the shuffling continued. The skill finally finished channeling, leaving Deckard with four charged cards capable of critical hits.

The temporary reprieve gave him just enough time to adjust to the Sea Ghoul’s movements. The creature lunged again at full speed, dragging its pipe through the air with a high-pitched screech that made Deckard’s ears ring.

He dove to the side and threw a card mid-roll.

Heavy Shot!

-32!

The critical hit slammed into the Sea Ghoul’s chest, knocking it back a step. Deckard allowed himself a fleeting grin.

The best thing about having [Heavy Shot] as a system-recognized skill was the ease of use. He no longer had to channel every muscle and assume a perfect throwing stance. He could unleash it from awkward angles, even mid-roll, and still trigger its effect.

The Sea Ghoul wasn’t having it. It kept chasing Deckard. The pipe grazed Deckard and his health took a hit.

-18

His health bar ticked dangerously low, and he had no choice but to heal himself.

Healing Ray!

+10

The Sea Ghoul hissed, furious for Deckard to have recovered some health. It kept attacking Deckard, who kept slinging card after card. 

-13
-13

Finally, one of the Four Aces finally appeared in his hand. “Eat this!” The charged card streaked through the air like a bullet, striking the Sea Ghoul with enough force to make it stagger.

-26!

The creature screeched in pain, thrashing wildly. Deckard darted away, only to find himself trapped between two lines of poisonous mist.

He winced. The Sea Ghoul was smarter than any elite he’d faced before. Its thrashing wasn’t random—it was deliberate, driving him into a corner. The toxic mist cut off his escape routes, leaving him boxed in.

Deckard’s eyes darted around the arena, searching desperately for an opening, but the creature struck before he could react.

The pipe caught him across the shoulder, sending him sprawling to the ground.

-20

“Not good,” Deckard muttered, scrambling to his feet. His energy bar dipped dangerously low, and his health wasn’t much better.

Without any other option, he grit his teeth and ran through the mist, knowing full well the consequences.

You’ve been poisoned.

-5

-5

All the while, he kept throwing cards, his attacks chipping away at the boss’s health.

-13

-13

-26

Heavy Shot!

-32!

The Sea Ghoul rushed toward him, its glowing eyes locked onto its target. Deckard glanced at his HP bar and grimaced—it was deep in the red. One more strike, and he’d be dead.

At least I’ll go out with style.

“AAAH!” Deckard shouted, throwing everything he had in a desperate barrage.

-13

-13

-13

-26!

Just as the Sea Ghoul was about to reach him, it stopped abruptly. Deckard froze, confused, as the boss leaped onto the highest rock in the arena.

Toxic mist swirled around the jagged stone, shrouding it in an ominous green haze. The Sea Ghoul’s body shook violently, guttural grunts reverberating through the air and sending a chill down Deckard’s spine.

Deckard’s eyes widened as realization struck.

It’s laying an egg.

“Oh my goodness!” he gasped, relief washing over him. “I made it! I damaged it enough to trigger the next combat phase.”

Laughter bubbled out of him, unbidden. This was just the breakthrough he needed.

Meanwhile, the Sea Ghoul finished laying its grotesque mass, veined with sickly tendrils that twitched and pulsed. The creature hunched over the egg, cradling it in its talons with a triumphant screech.

Deckard’s pulse quickened as he watched the creature rear back, preparing to hurl the toxic missile.

Every muscle in his body tensed. “It’s now or never,” he muttered, gripping a card. He hurled it with all his might.

The card streaked through the air like a bullet, striking the egg just as the Sea Ghoul began its throw. The grotesque projectile detonated in the creature’s grip with a deafening crack, sending a spray of black, fizzing sludge cascading over its body.

-68

The Sea Ghoul shrieked in pain, its glowing form convulsing as the corrosive slime ate through its matted feathers and raw flesh. It thrashed wildly, its movements erratic as the poison took hold.

The boss’s movements slowed, its strength visibly sapped as its health bar plummeted. Deckard wiped the sweat from his brow, his breath coming in short, shallow gasps. “This is it,” he muttered.

He launched another card, the glowing projectile slamming into the Sea Ghoul’s chest,staggering it further.

Heavy Shot!

-32

The creature was too weak to mount a proper defense. Sensing victory, Deckard threw everything he had at the boss, card after card landing true.

The Sea Ghoul began to recover. Deckard’s pulse quickened. This is it! He had weakened it as much as he could. He reached for his ultimate skill, trusting this to finish the fight.

Subdimensionalize!

The vortex roared to life, its swirling energy locking onto the boss. The Sea Ghoul thrashed violently, clawing at the air as it resisted the pull. For a brief, heart-stopping moment, Deckard feared it might break free.

But the poison had done its work, draining the creature’s strength. With a final, pitiful screech, the Sea Ghoul collapsed inward, its glowing body vanishing into the swirling void.

The arena fell silent, save for the faint hiss of dissipating mist and Deckard’s ragged breathing.

You’ve captured [Sea Ghoul].

“That was way too close,” Deckard muttered, adjusting his glasses with trembling hands. His body felt heavy, the adrenaline crash leaving him drained.

The Sea Ghoul’s relentless speed and intelligence had made it the most challenging fight he’d faced yet. Exploiting its egg attack had been the key, and the corrosive poison from the explosion seemed to have been factored into the [Subdimensionalize] process, weakening the boss and making it more vulnerable to capture.

He had zero expectations for the card, but curiosity got the better of him. After all, it belonged to a boss—what if it turned out to be playable?

As he read its description, his eyes widened in disbelief. Suddenly, all the other seagull cards in his repository made sense.

Ch. 35 - Sitting Seagulls

INDEX

Ch. 37 - Light As A Feather