Chapter 84: Despair-Inducing Magic!
"Roar, roar, vortex of flame. Crimson cliff, howl of hellfire. Borrow the power of a sudden gale and seal the world. Burning sky, burning earth, burning sea, burning spring, burning mountain, burning life. Reduce all to scorched earth and fire the cannon of wrath and lament. As the price, offer the life of the hero I loved—"
What came from the female-shaped monster's mouth was not an ordinary chant.
It was an extremely long chant, one that represented magic on a massive scale.
"—Dance, spirits of the air, rulers of light. I form a pact with the guardian god of the forest. Let the song of the earth resound, cover us, and protect us—"
During that same time, Riveria's chanting speed was completely unable to keep up with the female-shaped monster.
Seeing that the situation was turning bad, Ais cut apart the tentacle beside her and wrapped herself in wind as she charged toward the monster.
In that instant, the monster that had been chanting moved.
Ssshk—
Countless spears shot out from the ground.
One of them pierced Ais's left shoulder and pinned her in place.
Blood immediately poured from her wound.
At the same time, the spears formed a five-meter-tall wall for the female-shaped monster.
Hiding safely behind the wall, with Ais pierced by vines in front of her, the female-shaped monster let out a mocking laugh and continued her chant.
"By the name of the proxy, I command. The name granted to me is Salamander, incarnation of flame, queen of fire—"
"Ais! There's no time! Everyone else, retreat into Riveria's barrier!"
The monster's chant had already reached its end.
There was no way to interrupt it now.
After seeing the situation clearly, Finn immediately ordered the adventurers to retreat for the moment.
After receiving Finn's order, Gareth used his immense strength to throw his axe.
The spinning axe flew straight toward Ais and cut through the vine piercing her left shoulder.
Ais ignored the wound on her shoulder.
She raised her head and looked deeply at the female-shaped monster before jumping backward.
At some point, the crystal hanging at her waist had quietly begun to glow.
"I ask thee to become the great star of forest light and protect us—my name is Alf."
The moment Ais stepped into the range of Riveria's magic, Riveria deployed her defensive spell.
The third-stage barrier, Via Shilheim.
Just as the name implied, its effect was to block all physical and magical attacks launched at the barrier.
It was also the strongest defensive magic currently known in Orario.
"Via Shilheim!"
Almost at the same moment, the female-shaped monster also finished her chant and activated her magic.
The world was dyed crimson.
A tsunami-like stream of explosive flame surged from the female-shaped monster.
The monsters along its path could not even scream before turning into ash.
The storm of fire swallowed the entire floor, including Riveria's barrier magic.
Crack—
A crisp sound reached their ears.
"Gareth, protect them!"
Riveria, the caster of the magic, was the first to sense something was wrong and shouted to the dwarf behind her.
Crack, crack, crack—
The sound of glass breaking came from every direction.
Countless cracks spread across the entire barrier.
Spiderweb-like patterns covered it.
Gareth snatched two large shields from the supporters, slammed them into the ground, and braced his shoulders against their backs to face the coming impact.
Riveria's barrier magic soon reached its limit.
After releasing a sharp sound, the barrier shattered in every direction.
And Riveria, who stood at the very front, would be the first to suffer the female-shaped monster's magic attack.
"Riveria!"
Ais's cry was drowned out by the heat wave.
Riveria looked at the explosive flames before her and raised both hands in front of herself, trying to reduce the damage she would take even slightly.
"Move."
Suddenly, a hand grabbed the back of her collar from behind and tossed her behind Gareth's shields like a small chick.
While flying through the air, she also saw the person's true identity.
The white-haired boy drew his sword.
His golden pupils reflected the vortex of flames and the monster sneering at the end of that vortex.
Magic power rapidly gathered on the sword in his hand.
At the moment the flames touched the blade—
A flash of sword light appeared.
The explosive stream of fire filling the entire floor was cut in two from the center.
The heat waves crashed against the walls on both sides.
A scene like Moses parting the sea appeared before the adventurers' eyes.
Between the adventurers and the monster, a tunnel made of fire appeared.
Through that tunnel, Ais could even see the distant monster frozen in place.
"This is way too ridiculous..."
Although they had seen it several times before, the scale this time was completely different from before.
Shiro's slash on the 58th Floor, the one that cleared out a quarter of the monsters, was something Riveria could also achieve with magic.
But this time, even the torrent of flames that Riveria's strongest shield could not endure had been cut apart from the middle.
"Sorry... this time, we dragged you down."
Finn's tone carried a hint of emotion.
A few months ago, Shiro had still been a newcomer who had just joined the Familia.
Yet not much time had passed, and now even the executives needed his protection.
If Finn had not told Shiro to stay behind, Riveria would undoubtedly have been badly injured by this magic.
"Instead of saying that right now, Captain, shouldn't we think about what to do next?"
Shiro did not feel proud just because he had cut apart the monster's magic.
The fact that only he could block the monster's magic meant that he had to protect everyone around him at all times.
The moment he stepped forward to attack the monster, the monster would seize the chance to deliver a fatal blow to Finn and the others.
Right now, the only option was for him to stand at the very front and slowly push the battle line forward.
Fortunately, the monsters along the way had all been killed by the female-shaped monster's magic, so no monsters would jump out to stop them.
However, they also could not guarantee that the monster would not run away once they got close enough.
"Come, come, come. Shell of the earth, black iron treasure of light, star-flashing hammer. By the pact of creation, I command thee to reverse. Burn the sky, shatter the ground, raise a bridge, unite heaven and earth as one. Descending axe of the sky, calamity of destruction—"
Seeing her magic cut apart by a single slash, the corrupted Spirit lost her previous calm.
At an extremely high speed, she began weaving a second spell.
A black magic circle that represented disaster surrounded her.
"By the name of the proxy, I command. The name granted to me is Gnome, incarnation of the earth, queen of the earth—"
The magic had changed from an extremely long chant to a long chant.
That also meant the spell was about to arrive.
"Meteor Swarm."
Without giving the adventurer team any time to breathe, a huge amount of magic power gathered overhead.
Immediately after, countless black meteors fell from above the adventurers.
The situation was urgent.
The Level 6 adventurers each grabbed a supporter with one hand and jumped far away.
Huge meteors smashed the ground until it was full of craters.
The adventurers who had finally gathered together were scattered by the corrupted Spirit's method.
At the same time, that also meant there was no one left to help them block the next magic attack.
Her plan had succeeded.
The corrupted Spirit narrowed her eyes and spread both arms.
The flower buds on her lower body opened wide.
The crimson particles drifting through the floor were drawn back into the giant blooming flowers.
…
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