Fireball after fireball detonated in rapid succession, each blast painting the hall in fresh waves of light.
Goliath, already torn apart and battered beyond recognition, could do nothing but lock its arms in front of its body, curling inward to shield what was left of its vitals in a futile defense against the onslaught pouring in from every direction.
Leon's unbroken stream of fireballs was doing the worst of it. The damage was staggering.
Half of the giant's body had been charred black, and deep gashes that cut to the bone covered what remained. Under the combined assault, Goliath had been forced into a corner with no way out, reduced to pure passive defense.
The floor boss sank slowly to one knee, and every adventurer in the hall saw it. Eyes lit up. Someone let out a roar that cut through the chaos:
"It's going down! One more push and we've got it!"
"All-out attack!"
"OOOOOAAAAAHHHHH!"
The war cry shook the hall from floor to ceiling.
Leon exchanged a glance with the others and charged without hesitation, weapons drawn, joining the flood of bodies surging forward.
"While it can still breathe, get in there and carve it up," he called to Laurier and Aura as they sprinted beside him.
"Yes! Finally time for my beloved sword to shine!" Laurier's face was pale, but her steps had gone light with excitement, almost bouncing.
Aura kept her usual cool composure, expression perfectly still, but her eyes were shining so brightly they betrayed everything she was trying to hide.
Thk-thk-thk-thk - a dense rain of blades punched through the brown hide and sank into flesh.
Thoom-thoom-thoom - blunt weapons whistled through the air and slammed into Goliath's swaying body, one crushing blow after another.
Swords, axes, staves, daggers - they fell like a downpour on the giant as it knelt on one knee with a hand pressed over its face. The adventurers had it completely surrounded, and it took hit after hit after hit like a caged animal with nowhere to go.
In the state it was in, a second wind was out of the question. It didn't even have the strength left to thrash.
And yet the Dungeon's bottomless capacity for the unexpected kept Leon's guard up like a thorn pressed against his spine. Even now, in what looked like the final stretch of a guaranteed victory, he refused to let a single thread of vigilance slip.
He moved in, used the Twisted Staff's hardened frame to land a few solid strikes, then pulled back to a cautious distance and switched to magic again.
Scorch - Fireball - Fireball - Fireball - Scorch -
Precise, efficient bursts of flame launched from his hand every few seconds like guided munitions, hammering Goliath's exposed head without pause.
"Hah-!"
A clear, sharp battle cry rang out from behind him.
He glanced back at the Apostles of Justice as they wound up for the killing blow, and he knew. This long, grinding floor boss raid was finally reaching its end.
"Shikai!"
"Arvelia!"
"Wingus Smite!"
"Luminous Wind!"
Four spells converged into a single bombardment, and for one brilliant instant the hall exploded into prismatic color.
BOOM!
The torrent of magic kicked up a storm of raw power that swallowed the giant's silhouette whole.
Crack... crack-crack-crack-!
A jagged fracture split across the massive Magic Stone embedded in Goliath's chest, spreading like black lightning.
And then -
BANG.
The Magic Stone shattered, erupting into a cascade of glittering fragments that drifted down through the air like falling stars.
"..."
"Did... did we win?"
A stunned silence, and then a single trembling voice.
"WE WON!"
What followed was an eruption that could have drowned out a volcano.
"YEAAAAAAHHHHH!"
"HELL YEAH!"
"That's what I'm talking about!"
"We beat the floor boss! Ha ha ha ha ha!"
"Long live the Astraea Familia!"
"All praise to the Goddess Astraea!"
With Goliath's Magic Stone reduced to dust, the brutal floor boss raid was over.
The roar of celebration hit the vaulted ceiling so hard it felt like the whole chamber might come apart. Adventurers surged toward the Apostles of Justice in a jubilant tide, sweeping them into the center of the crowd. Weapons and armor went flying into the air, and the shouting and laughter drowned out everything else as nearly five hours of accumulated tension and fear came pouring out all at once.
"Whew! And that's a wrap! A flawless victory, and it's all thanks to this beautiful genius right here. Heh heh~!" Alise threw up a peace sign, beaming with her usual unstoppable energy.
"Hah... I'm a little tired." Kaguya flicked her wrist and slid her katana smoothly back into its sheath. Exhaustion was written all over her face, but the slight curve at the corner of her mouth said everything.
Lyra dropped to the ground without a care for appearances, wiped the grime off her face with the back of her hand, and grinned wide. "Winning feels pretty good. What do you think, Ryuu?"
The golden-haired elf swept her gaze across her celebrating companions, and on that famously cold face, something rare and fragile appeared - the faintest, most awkward trace of a smile.
"See? I told you, Ryuu. At times like this, all you have to do is smile. Stop looking so serious," Lyra said, sidling up to her.
"Exactly! Come on, Ryuu, give us a smile!" Alise pressed in from the other side, bumping shoulders with her.
"B-but..."
"No buts! Come celebrate with us!"
"D-don't push me, Lyra! Alise!"
Ryuu's voice, for once, carried a note of genuine panic.
With the full roster of Apostles together, the celebration kicked up another notch entirely.
"YEAAAAHHHHH!"
...
At the edge of the hall, Leon collapsed onto a chunk of rubble, let out a long breath, and sagged with relief.
"Finally over. You know, having too much Mind has its own problems. I was completely wiped and my body still kept pumping out fireballs. Couldn't decide if that was a blessing or a curse."
With the tension fully drained, he couldn't help cracking jokes with Jeanne and Rose.
"That's the kind of problem other people would kill to have," Rose said, sheathing her sword. "Say that out loud in front of anyone else and they'd beat you senseless."
Leon opened his mouth to say something else, but one look at Jeanne and Rose shut him up.
Compared to the rear guard - Leon and the other two, whose worst damage amounted to singed robe hems and a coating of dust and gravel - the front-liners looked like they'd been through a meat grinder.
Jeanne and Rose's armor was cracked and missing pieces. Their weapon edges had gone dull and curled. Their shields were cratered with dents, and their cloaks had been torn and burned until barely half remained.
Laurier and Aura, as Supporters, had fared slightly better, but only slightly.
Leon did a quick scan of everyone's condition and gear, and sighed.
"Well, we got our high-quality Excelia, and the training was worth its weight in gold. But the cost..." He winced. "That stings."
The thought of everything they'd burned through - potions, supplies, weapons, armor - hit him like a needle through the heart.
"Ugh... Goliath better drop something good to make up for this. Otherwise this whole expedition is a net loss and then some."
Jeanne rolled her eyes. "Oh, give it a rest. We picked up plenty of materials on the upper floors, didn't we? That alone should cover the trip's expenses."
Leon waved a limp hand, wearing the expression of a man trying to explain economics to someone who'd never seen a balance sheet. "You don't get it. Not turning a profit IS a loss. And don't even get me started - we grinded through all those monsters on the middle floors, survived a whole Monster Party, and didn't pick up a single drop. Not one."
The memory of coming away empty-handed, scraping by on bare minimums, dragged up old fears from his solo days. The cold, familiar dread of poverty.
"Huh? Hey, did anyone else notice?" Laurier blinked and pointed toward where Goliath's body had been, her eyes wide and bright. "After the body disappeared, there's something glowing over there. It's gold. Really bright gold!"
"Hm?"
It was like someone had flipped a switch. The instant the word "gold" hit his ears, Leon shot to his feet.
"What? A golden glow?"
"Where? Where is it?"
Tired? What tired? Every trace of exhaustion had vanished from his body.
His neck craned forward, eyes wider than anyone's in the room, scanning frantically over the heads of the celebrating crowd like a radar dish locking onto a signal.
"Right there!" Laurier pointed with certainty.
They all looked where she was pointing, and sure enough, a brilliant golden radiance stabbed straight into their eyes.
A grin split Leon's face wide open.
"AWESOME-!" His voice cracked on the last syllable.
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