The light radiating from within the pure white cavern chamber was far more dazzling than anywhere else.
Like a shrine maiden bathed in holy radiance, the entity riding atop a giant wolf launched an attack directly at him and his companions.
Facing this sudden BOSS, everyone mobilized immediately.
Their coordination was already tacit.
They had even formed a unique rhythm exclusive to their squad.
Accompanied by the youth who had transformed into a steel behemoth, Ais, wielding a giant Tachi, summoned a breeze. Flying together—one above and one below—Isagi and Ais rushed toward the Witch riding the giant wolf in the distance.
At the same time.
Ryuu and Tiona remained in place, standing with Lefiya and Heith.
Ryuu had completely become the "Commander" during combat operations. Since Isagi needed to take the vanguard when encountering a BOSS for the first time, the task of coordination and command naturally fell to the "Mid-guard."
Compared to the others, Ryuu was the only one standing still without making any major moves.
The Elf maiden simply stared tightly at the distant BOSS. The Rabbit Witch riding the giant wolf continued to ring the bell in her hand. Subsequently, the giant wolf beneath her spewed a massive, scorching fireball from its mouth.
It almost burned and distorted that piercing light.
Simultaneously.
Isagi, Ryuu, and even Tiona, who was waiting for her opportunity in the distance—all three discovered that with the shaking of the bell, the terrain of the cavern began to change.
Ais, flying in the sky, was the first to notice sharp stone spikes beginning to fall from the ceiling above her head, like falling rain, severely restricting their movement.
As for Tiona's side...
She found the ground beneath her feet constantly unstable. From time to time, it would suddenly rise or sink slightly. Every change occurred the instant she was about to step down. If she wasn't careful, she could trip or step into empty air!
What the hell?!
Although it looked a bit "comical," it was undeniably extremely annoying!!
On the other side.
Isagi's situation was even more peculiar, as the giant wolf's fireball was heading straight for him.
Just as the scorching crimson flames were about to obscure his entire field of vision...
Suddenly, incredibly thick stone walls appeared to his front, back, left, and right. Like a stone coffin slamming shut, it trapped him inside. The most unbearable part was that the interior space was extremely narrow, giving him absolutely no room to move or even an angle to exert force, as if it were a mold instantly customized to his body measurements.
He was rendered immobile in an instant, unable to smash his way out on his own.
But as luck would have it.
As that massive fireball approached, a hole suddenly appeared in the originally sealed wall directly in front of the stone coffin, as if welcoming the flame inside.
"?"
Isagi twitched the corner of his mouth. What is with this BOSS's ability? It feels like it's trolling people! he thought.
It's too random... no, it's too nonsensical!
Even if you are a Bunny Shrine Maiden, you can't go taking the cute route or something. This is a Souls-like game!!
"Raise the cup as a shield, the chalice that breaks evil!"
Lefiya ran over quickly, casting defensive magic to cover him.
A deep blue magical barrier unfolded before his eyes in the blink of an eye. Following that came the instant magic cast by Ryuu-senpai—[Glintstone Stars].
Deep blue streaks of light quickly detonated against the earthen walls behind him.
Then, immediately following up, Miss Heith fired her hook claw. The Lv.4 maiden, using the "monstrous strength" peculiar to adventurers, forcibly dragged him out from between the earthen walls.
A minor crisis averted.
Accompanied by the violent sound of the explosion from the fireball colliding with the light barrier, the first wave of probing attacks only left them feeling annoyed.
Ais and Tiona were restricted, making it difficult for them to approach the enemy.
However, this wasn't a bad thing. Since it possessed so many "interference skills," it proved that this guy's weakness was indeed close-quarters combat.
Tactics were changed quickly.
Without needing words, Isagi had already used the "Aspects of the Crucible" skill. Spreading golden wings, he took flight once again. Then, alongside Ais, he headed toward the distant giant wolf and Witch.
As the sound of the bell rang incessantly, the rock spikes fell like rain once more.
But this time, Isagi covered Ais, wielding his Greatsword to destroy all the falling spikes.
This allowed the maiden to finally break through to its side.
On the other flank, taking advantage of the BOSS's attention being drawn by Isagi, Tiona also leapt up, decisively pouncing toward the giant wolf!
Although she couldn't fly!
But jumping into mid-air meant she couldn't be tripped or made to fall anymore!!
The result.
The giant wolf, originally crawling on all fours, suddenly stood up. Using a pair of sharp claws, it began a melee engagement with the maidens.
"?"
It can do that?!
It just felt ridiculous. Especially since the Rabbit Witch, originally sitting on the giant wolf's back, had now climbed onto its shoulder. Taking out a small crossbow and a dagger, she actually started jumping up and down, coordinating with the giant wolf in close combat.
You don't say.
The dagger in her hand was incredibly fast, so fast that even he couldn't see it clearly.
And accompanied by the eerie light flashing along its blade, that thing was either poisoned or carried some strange abnormal status.
While the Rabbit Witch attacked, she didn't forget to shake the small bell. This caused the loose stones on the ground to constantly fly up suddenly, either acting as hidden weapons shooting toward the maidens' eyes, throats, hearts, and other vital areas.
Or, they floated in mid-air, blocking the attacks from the weapons in the maidens' hands.
Don't look down on those small, inconspicuous stones. It seemed that after being imbued with power by that small bell, they became incredibly sturdy, even able to intercept Tiona's "Great Dual Blades" which were already filled with blood energy, causing the Amazon maiden a moment of surprise.
Soon, Isagi joined the battlefield.
The three of them suppressed the BOSS before them with close-quarters combat, allowing Ryuu to quickly judge that this BOSS's strength was roughly between the peak of Lv.5 and Lv.6. Mechanically, it might be somewhat troublesome, much stronger than the "Manifestation of Something-or-other" they had encountered before.
If one were to use Isagi's words, it belonged to the category of "The first big BOSS located in the first half of the level"—that is, the classic "Old Man Godrick."
Ryuu pondered.
While her brain spun rapidly, she was also chanting magic.
"Now, the distant forest canopy, the infinite stars inlaying the endless night sky—"
Deep green orbs of light began to gather beside the maiden.
With a light tap of her finger, one by one, they swiftly flew out, entering the "battlefield" ahead. Then, accompanying the attacks of Isagi and Ais, they constantly inserted themselves into gaps, either detonating in blind spots the BOSS found hard to defend against, or deliberately moving forward to block the Rabbit Witch's attacks.
Blinding deep green light exploded from time to time.
This was the method of participation Ryuu was most accustomed to, and the most common, during BOSS battles nowadays.
She was still thinking.
Searching for the "opening" in the giant wolf and Witch before her.
Should we kill one of them first, or attack both together?
Looking at it now, it seems better to separate them.
Obviously, the Witch, being a Rabbit Person, is faster, so will they separate actively...
The Elf predecessor had more things to consider.
In contrast.
Lefiya didn't need to think about anything at all right now. She just needed to raise her staff and chant magic.
Choosing the most suitable magic based on the situation.
At this moment.
Lefiya did not choose to use her [Fusillade Firebolt] or the like to attack the giant wolf. Instead, the Elf maiden began to chant the Ice Magic she had learned from Alicia.
"Frozen sky, azure rain of high heavens. White ice embellishing the forest, please expel the shallow barbarians—"
Ice crystals were condensing.
Lefiya began to continue controlling her Magic.
Ice crystals, like countless tiny droplets of water, began to accompany the youth and maidens of the moment, just like Ryuu-senpai's light orbs.
Then, they collided with the tiny stones that flew up due to the Rabbit Person's bell sound.
Snap!
The stones were swiftly frozen by the frigid Magic, then shattered directly into crystal powder, turning into sparkles filling the sky.
Not only that.
Lefiya also used the ice crystals to directly cover the area where Isagi, Ais, and Tiona were fighting with a thick layer of ice composed purely of magical crystals.
The Elf maiden's goal in doing this was very simple.
Because the Rabbit Person Witch was also using Magic to manipulate the ground and rock walls. But if the earth was also sealed in ice by her Magic, then the Witch's Magic would fail!
Between the ice surface and the ground.
A very fine, crackling sound of small explosions began to emerge. That was the sound of two forces of Magic surging and neutralizing each other in a contest of strength.
Lefiya was fully focused. The maiden's role in this battle was not a DPS turret, but had become a support in a certain sense.
On the other side.
Heith continued silently applying continuous healing to Tiona, as well as throwing a group heal from time to time, maintaining the stamina and status of Isagi and Ais.
The current battle posed no threat to her.
However, even so, the woman was very professional, standing at a distance from Lefiya that was neither too far nor too close. The distance between the two right now was just enough to help each other, but not so close that a sudden monster attack would cause them to scramble together.
At the same time, Heith was also observing.
She wasn't a commander—in the Freya Familia, command was generally done by Hedin.
In reality, Heith could be said to have withdrawn from frontline combat within the Familia, belonging to the logistics unit. This was also the reason why the woman was so excited when she adventured in the Dungeon with Isagi and saw her Ability Scores increase, and even her [Excelia] rise.
Switching her class to Healer meant, in a certain sense, that for her, "the career of an adventurer was over."
But now, it was a brand new beginning!
Gradually adapting to the squad, Heith felt a sensation she hadn't felt in a long time, which was—
"!"
So fast!
Almost in the blink of an eye.
The Rabbit Person Witch, who was originally tangled with Isagi and the others, had already arrived in front of her and raised the dagger in its hand.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing rang out. The magic staff "Crimson Golden" in Heith's hand was not a simple healing staff. On the contrary, this was modified from the second-tier armament she used when she was still a Lv.3 adventurer.
The "Crimson" in its name meant it had been soaked in the blood of countless monsters.
Although it was a bit chuunibyou.
But the combat power Heith suddenly erupted with at this moment was definitely at the forefront level, even among Second-Class Adventurers.
However...
Her [Strength] was still somewhat lacking.
The Rabbit Person Witch's figure was incredibly petite. It wasn't noticeable when she was sitting on the giant wolf, but now that she was in front of her, Heith felt the opponent might not even reach her knees if she jumped.
But even so.
The thrust of the dagger she swung while leaping up knocked Heith flying instantly.
Immediately after, she charged over violently again, beginning to pursue and attack Heith relentlessly.
She could only barely defend.
But even this was enough. The golden-haired maiden wrapped in a breeze had already rushed over at high speed. Simultaneously, there was also Ryuu, who was originally responsible for support on the side.
Starlight, flames, cherry blossoms...
The "special effects" wrapping around the Elf maiden simply made one's eyes dazzled.
But if one looked carefully.
They would discover that the different magics lingering around the maiden now showed a trend of faintly merging together—those shining stars turned into a crimson color, as if transforming into meteors falling from the sky, giving an extremely terrifying illusion.
And amidst such raging burning.
Cherry blossom petals danced. Within this breathtaking phantom scenery, an extremely fierce cold light was hidden.
Accompanied by the rapier itself which scorched into crimson lava once again, Ryuu swung the weapon in her hand. The sound of it breaking the air even emitted an incredibly terrifying "hissing" noise.
Dagger and rapier collided silently.
Visible to the naked eye.
The weapon in the Rabbit Person Witch's hand was melted into a small spot.
"?"
It seemed quite confused, and also felt it was inconceivable, but there was no time for it to waste like this. Behind it, the fierce wind had already arrived.
Ais, wielding a Great Tachi, found it inconvenient to attack such a petite monster, which was like a small dog.
So Ais followed suit and recalled her [Despair].
She truly discovered that Isagi was right.
Different weapons could adapt to different enemies. So, as long as one carried enough weapons simultaneously, one could respond to all situations at any time!
Simultaneously pincered by Ryuu and Ais.
On the other side, the giant wolf was "grabbed" by Isagi and Tiona.
Heith was quickly pulled to a distance by the hook claw, supported by Lefiya.
This BOSS was actually quite smart, knowing to cut the backline.
Unfortunately, let alone Heith, even Lefiya had now been "trained" to possess basic close-quarters combat capabilities. This was a necessary quality for adventurers.
It wasn't requested by Isagi, but something the Elf maiden learned from Riveria.
The battle soon entered a "stalemate" again, only this time, the scales were slowly tipping toward the youth and maidens.
It was just a BOSS with no difficulty. Of course, looking at Ais, Lefiya, Ryuu, Tiona... and even Miss Heith included.
Every single one of them had grown a lot.
Quite gratifying.
Isagi was even already curious: after defeating the BOSS, could he take that small bell to use for himself?
The result—
It actually worked?
____
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