Chapter 52: Spartoi!

The battle continued on.

Finding her attack ineffective, Ais kicked off Udaeus's bone armor, trying to distance herself from the monster.

To her surprise, the seemingly immobile Floor Boss made no attempt to stop her retreat.

In the next instant, a jet-black pillar shot up from the ground where Ais was about to land, like a spear thrusting upwards.

"Damn it!" Trapped mid-air, Ais had no way to evade the incoming attack.

Crack—

Suddenly, the black pillar was sliced in half, and instead of the expected impact, Ais found herself falling into someone's arms.

"Don't rush in alone," Shiro chided gently, setting her back on her feet and lightly flicking her forehead.

"Sorry..." Ais mumbled, slightly embarrassed.

"Do you need me to imbue your sword with magic?" Shiro offered.

Udaeus's most troublesome traits were its incredible defense and the deadly spikes it could summon from the ground.

Shiro's ability could negate the monster's defense, making it vulnerable to a single, decisive blow from Ais.

Ais weighed the options for a moment before shaking her head.

Ranking up required accumulating enough "great feats," essentially high-level experience points.

Defeating the Floor Boss through such a "cheat" would likely yield minimal rewards.

So, if she wants to become stronger, she will have to overcome this hurdle on her own without anyone's help.

"ROAR!!!"

Udaeus's roar interrupted their conversation.

Two black spears erupted from the ground beneath them.

Ais leaned back, narrowly dodging the spear that grazed her ear and disheveled her blond hair.

Shiro opted for a more direct approach, simply slicing the spear aimed at his face in two with a downward swing of his sword.

More spikes emerged from the ground, forming an endless forest of blades that forced Ais and Shiro to retreat in opposite directions.

This was the reason why Udaeus couldn't be defeated by sheer numbers.

While only its upper body was visible, its lower half was far from inactive.

Like the roots of a giant tree, Udaeus's bones were deeply embedded throughout the hall, creating a deadly minefield of spears.

Any attempt to escape would be met with a wall of black spikes blocking the exits.

The spears, launched with surprising speed and precision, relentlessly targeted the two adventurers.

Surrounded by a growing forest of black pillars, their only path forward was towards Udaeus itself.

Ais, with her superior speed, reached the monster first and engaged in close combat.

While the surrounding traps of spears were a nuisance, Udaeus's direct attacks were even more formidable.

With a single downward swing of its massive hand, Udaeus pulverized a cluster of spears, the shockwave leveling the surrounding ground.

"[Tempest!]" Ais barely managed to evade the attack and immediately invoked a more powerful magic, its intensity causing her muscles to ache.

However, the increased power came with a significant boost to her speed.

She disappeared from Udaeus's sight, circling around its massive body and appearing behind it in an instant.

The monster, without wasting any time to roar, launched several spears directly at Ais's heart.

But Ais's speed now surpassed that of the projectiles.

The once-deadly spears seemed to move in slow motion, allowing her to effortlessly weave through them.

Reaching Udaeus's back, Ais raised her 'Desperate' sword and struck with all her might, the wind-infused blade slamming into the monster's back.

The vertebrae supporting Udaeus's upper body shattered under the impact, causing it to tilt to the right.

The monster slammed its right hand into the ground, attempting to regain balance.

"Did you forget about me?" Shiro's voice echoed from Udaeus's right side.

He had positioned himself beside the monster's arm, ready to strike.

"For Ais's experience points, please take another hit."

With a swift attack, Shiro pushed Udaeus back and Ais took the opportunity to sever its right arm at the shoulder.

The monster, deprived of its support, crashed to the ground with a thunderous thud.

"ROOOOOOOOOAR!!!" Udaeus roared in fury, and like loyal soldiers defending their king, a swarm of Spartoi emerged from the ground.

"Aren't these small fries supposed to appear before the boss battle?"

Shiro muttered, shifting his attention to the newly arrived enemies while Ais dealt with the incapacitated Udaeus.

"Perfect. It just so happens that I've been busy fighting bosses these past few days, so my basic stats could use some improvement. These monsters appeared at the right time."

With a burst of speed, Shiro appeared before a Spartoi and delivered a powerful kick to its midsection, sending it flying into a group of its comrades.

He seized the opportunity and skewered them all with a single thrust of his sword.

"Next up, defense." He mumbled, raising his left arm, protected by a bracer, to block an incoming attack from another Spartoi.

He planned to use a deflection technique to minimize the impact.

Clang—

To his surprise, the attack was completely nullified by the shimmering green veil surrounding him.

The veil's color slightly faded upon impact.

Shiro stared at the glowing barrier, his initial excitement turning into disappointment.

This buff, while helpful, prevented him from gaining endurance points.

As the battle progressed, he realized that the monsters couldn't even scratch his defense, rendering dodging unnecessary.

He watched as the glow of the veil gradually diminished.

'This won't work.' He thought.

'If this keeps up, even if Udaeus dies, these monsters won't be able to destroy this magic. So, I need another plan.'

Remembering his negotiation with Freya, Shiro raised his sword and pointed the tip toward himself.

In the distance, Riveria casually eliminated a Spartoi with her staff.

She then noticed the rapid depletion of Shiro's protective barrier and, concerned about his safety, she weaved through the forest full of traps with unprecedented speed.

However, the sight that greeted her made her want to facepalm.

She had thought the other members of their Familia were enough of a headache, but now it seemed that even the usually composed Shiro was also a problem child.

There he was, ignoring the surrounding monsters and carefully cutting away at the magical veil surrounding him, occasionally blocking some of the monsters' attacks with his left arm, seemingly trying to analyze how far the magic's destruction had progressed.

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