Who goes exploring a Dungeon, says they're splitting up—and then immediately charges forward?!
Without giving the girl any time to react, Ron launched an attack on the two Floor Bosses. Perhaps he wanted to take the lead, to set an example for himself in battle?
The facts proved it.
The effect was extremely effective!
The sword-and-shield watchdog that could instantly spew out a wide range of flames, and the staff-wielding watchdog that cast frost magic, truly refreshed Mikoto's understanding of monsters.
"Is this even still a Dungeon?"
However, noticing that Ron was being besieged, the girl felt as if her heart had been violently clenched—only to see him slip away like a loach in the next moment.
Mikoto did not stand by and watch.
Also a Level 2 adventurer, although her combat style did not carry the same visually shocking impact as Ron's, she could still provide support.
Successive flashes of sword light continuously struck the back of the sword-and-shield watchdog. And when faced with the sweep of its tail, the girl likewise imitated Ron, rolling with her body lowered.
And just as she barely dodged the attack, she lifted her head and saw the other Floor Boss raise its staff high, launching a coordinated follow-up toward her position, a surge of danger rising in her heart.
But in the next instant, there was not the slightest sign of frost pouring down!
Mikoto did not hesitate in the slightest, quickly rushing to Ron's side. Yet when she saw the azure magic stone held in his hand, it felt inexplicably familiar...
"This..."
"Why does it feel like the magic stone embedded in the Floor Boss's staff?"
"It's exactly what you're thinking."
The healing effect of the "Healing Gourd" was extremely good. Even the arm that had been scorched by flames, and all the internal injuries caused by contact with frost magic, were completely healed in an instant.
'Maybe... this thing can achieve the effect of a panacea!'
Ron brushed the dust off his clothes and looked at the sword-and-shield watchdog that had risen from the ground and was slowly walking toward him, no longer in the panic he had at the beginning.
After all—there was still another Floor Boss in the distance, repeatedly raising its glintstone staff, attempting to launch magical attacks.
But no matter what, the staff watchdog's proud frost attack could never be unleashed. It could only glare at him from afar with furious red light.
"What are you looking at?"
"Anyway, once I kill you, the drops will be mine."
"The staff cannot lose its glintstone, just as the cross cannot be without Jesus, the guillotine cannot be without Louis XVI, and the 3D zone cannot be without Tifa."
All of this followed the same logic.
The reason he chose to attack the staff watchdog first was precisely that: the former was more adept at close combat, while the latter could carry out long-range attacks.
'From here on, it'll be much simpler.'
Ron quickly loosened up his body.
He put the glintstone he had pried off the monster's staff into his pocket, gripped the greatsword "Great Fortune" once more, and his next target became especially clear.
"The one in the back is yours."
"Watch out for the frost it spews from its head. Other than that... there doesn't seem to be anything particularly special."
"Got it."
Keeping Ron's instructions firmly in mind, Mikoto looked once more at the staff watchdog. She could still feel the pressure—but when she noticed the figure ahead of her, for some reason, the fear of facing a Floor Boss alone was gradually dissipating.
What followed was a simple and brutal battle.
Although the sword-and-shield watchdog clearly had a size advantage—and even possessed speed that did not match its statue-like body—when facing Ron, who held no reservations, it could not even touch the corner of his clothes.
Even the flames spewed from its three canine demon heads were easily dodged.
Instead, each swing of his sword left spiderweb-like cracks across the Floor Boss's body surface. This was the crushing dominance of mobility and stats!
When the watchdog thrust forward with the greatsword it wielded, Ron's extreme concentration made it feel as though the monster's movements had been set to slow motion. With a casual sidestep, he could evade the counterattack.
'Could it be my imagination...?'
But there was no time to think about that now!
Even with a massive greatsword, he could still wield it with one hand, producing agile arcs of sword light. Taking advantage of the brief moment of stiffness when the watchdog's charge stalled—
Ash of War: Bloody Slash!
Ron swiftly wiped his palm across the blade, and the greatsword stained with blood glowed with a sinister crimson light.
He swung "Great Fortune" again. A blood-red slash flashed past, and the wide, sweeping strike cut straight toward the Floor Boss watchdog's head.
Bang!
"..."
Already at its limit, its body covered in spiderweb cracks, the watchdog—facing Ron's full-force attack—was like a piece of porcelain shattering completely.
Unable to support itself any longer, it turned into countless fragments of stone that fell to the ground...
[Soul Shards +10.]
"There's still the other staff watchdog..."
It wasn't that Ron wanted to steal the kill.
In DanMachi's great feat system, as long as one participated in this Floor Boss raid, one could directly share in it. In contrast, the Soul Shards drop mechanism was rather special.
No one could accept letting a monster slip away.
He changed direction and rushed to reinforce Mikoto's battlefield.
...
Even without its staff, when Mikoto fought it alone, she could still clearly feel the powerful oppression emanating from the Floor Boss before her.
The frost spewed from the demon heads, and the powerful blows the Floor Boss used as if swinging a club—each strike smashing into the ground and leaving countless cracks—she knew clearly that if she was even slightly careless, her outcome… would absolutely, absolutely be hammered into minced flesh by the monster!
'Is it coming again…?'
When frost began continuously gathering on the Floor Boss's heads, the girl was already prepared. Yet just as she reacted in advance and started to dodge, nothing happened.
Instead, the monster's scarlet eyes locked onto the spot where she had landed!
Whoosh—
Frost that had condensed in an instant then transformed into densely packed icy needles, sweeping toward Mikoto's direction at a speed too fast to catch.
Even though she had already reacted, the pooled water on the ground had long since frozen into solid ice, directly restricting the girl's movement in place. Faced with such an emergency, what Mikoto could think of—was to lower her body and ensure her core would not be struck.
But the pain she had anticipated did not descend. When she raised her head, she saw the figure standing before her, holding a brass greatshield.
The boy's sharply defined features—even the tips of his hair already hung with traces of ice crystals.
Yet that did not affect how good-looking his profile was.
Immediately after, she saw the valiant figure charging toward the staff watchdog, greatsword in hand, shattering the ice beneath his feet—and the battlefield situation being instantly and completely crushed.
"This…"
Compared to the bloated physique of the Floor Boss, Ron, wielding the greatsword, always made his responses in advance. If Mikoto truly had to describe it in words, it would be—effortless.
Even with his wide, sweeping techniques, she could clearly feel the agility revealed in every roll and evasive leap. Rather than an adventurer, he was more like someone from her hometown… street dancing?
Mikoto's eyes were filled with complexity, but even more with the drive to catch up.
"So you're far stronger than I imagined…"
Only after the dense, frequent flashes of sword light completely shattered the watchdog's body did this expected Boss battle finally come to an end.
Standing before the pile of rubble formed after the monster's death, Ron panted heavily. Only when he saw the glowing ashes that had dropped from killing the Floor Boss did he suddenly feel that all the effort of the battle had been worth it.
'Ash of War: Shattering Crystal.'
'This thing… should count as magic, right?'
---
I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar
---