A phoenix's howl.
What followed was a kind of tear in the air and an ice bird's head emerging, its entire body starting to come out. The ice phoenix had a wingspan of seven or eight meters and flapped its ice wings until it began to glide with its wings spread toward the Minotaur.
The Minotaur reacted and attacked with its club at the ice phoenix, but the result was far different from what this monster could have imagined. The instant the club struck the phoenix, it began to freeze in the air at great speed, and the rest of the Minotaur's body started to freeze as well.
Not stopping there, the phoenix pierced through the club and struck the Minotaur's chest with its beak, then began to merge with the Minotaur, freezing it instantly.
In a mere two seconds, the Minotaur, which was a C+ Rank, became an ice sculpture.
"Wow!"
"Amazing – Nyah!"
Using 'Cutting Winds,' Tomoya sliced off one of the Minotaur's frozen arms and its head.
[Level Up!]
Appearing in front of the Minotaur, he grabbed the two severed limbs in the air and sent them to the Item Box.
[+18 Gold Coins!]
After finishing selling the Minotaur, he tapped his chin, thoughtful.
Tomoya turned and said: "Okay, from now on, I won't attack the Minotaurs directly anymore. I'll leave them to you, alright?"
"Yes! Yes – Nyah!"
The two agreed.
It was easy to understand his choice.
If he acted, even if he held back, they wouldn't have a chance to 'shine.'
Since the Minotaurs didn't even pose a challenge for Tomoya, it was better to let them improve.
Of course, he would still provide buffs for them, so even without killing, he'd still gain experience points as an assistant.
Although with 70 points to distribute, Tomoya, who wanted a bit more strength and speed, chose to buy an item instead.
══════ •『☯』• ══════
[Item: Warrior's Ring]: 500 Gold Coins
Item Rank: Lower Medium
Strength: +30
Speed: +20
══════ •『☯』• ══════
[-500 Gold Coins]
Making it appear in his hand, Tomoya wore it on his left middle finger.
The ring had a simple appearance, black with a glowing green line in the middle.
Besides this item, he also saw a pair of earrings.
[-500 Gold Coins]
It was a pair of small hoops with the same pattern as the ring he had just bought. He wore them.
══════ •『☯』• ══════
[Item: Pair of Warrior's Earrings]: 500 Gold Coins
Item Rank: Lower Medium
Strength: +20
Speed: +30
[2/2]: Bonus Effect: [+3 Strength and +2 Speed]
══════ •『☯』• ══════
'Very nice, with this, my strength and speed have increased quite a bit.' He thought.
It seems like a big boost, considering the amount of improvement, but the reality is that items with % effects or special effects/skills are more expensive.
And it was understandable why. The skill of his Mage's Robe 'Ice Shards' is a good example.
'Status.'
══════ •『☯』• ══════
Name: Tomoya Yamano
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Title: None
Level: 16 -> 22
══════ •『☯』• ══════
Attributes:
Strength: 100 (+60 -> +113) [+]
Intelligence: 325 (+380) [+70]
Speed: 100 (+52) [+]
Luck: 60
Points: 70
══════ •『☯』• ══════
Attack Power: 1,000 (+600 -> +1,130)
Magic Attack Power: 6,500 (+7,600+1,000)
Resistance: 975 (+1,140+450)
Defense: 200 (+120 -> +226+150)
══════ •『☯』• ═=====
'These are good items, but they take up equipment 'slots,' so to speak.' Tomoya reflected: 'Once they're no longer useful, I can sell them to Vulcan or Aria.'
It was also for this reason that he felt no reluctance in spending a thousand points on those two items.
At the same time, he used the 70 points on intelligence.
Something he discovered: intelligence points didn't mean he became smarter because of them, but rather, they were directly tied to magic attack power and resistance.
In this case, he started with a lot of intelligence points thanks to the [Tony Stark Template]. But, while his increased intelligence influenced the increase in his status intelligence, the opposite didn't work.
Pointing his magic staff at the two, Tomoya used buffs on them.
Not far away, another Minotaur appeared.
But it was obvious; this was a floor commonly inhabited by Minotaurs.
"MOOOOOOOOO"
Raising its head, the Minotaur bellowed and continued walking. It hadn't noticed them.
"I'll go." Aria announced softly.
This time, Aria started walking toward the Minotaur.
Tomoya signaled to Vulcan, and she understood and didn't advance.
Tomoya didn't use all buffs on Aria this time, only protection and magical enchantment on her swords.
Unlike Aria, who was walking, the Minotaur charged toward her.
When it reached her, it attacked with its club.
Dodging to the left, she used the sword in her left hand to slice upward just above the Minotaur's elbow.
"MOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
A loud bellow echoed as a deep cut was made in the Minotaur's arm.
The severed artery caused the Minotaur to lose its grip strength around the club, dropping it.
With its body already leaning, the furious Minotaur threw a punch with its free hand toward Aria. Jumping back, Aria calmly pointed her sword, and the Minotaur's punch met the tip of the blade.
The enchanted sword pierced through, cutting the bones of the Minotaur's hand.
The excruciating pain made the Minotaur pull its hand back as blood sprayed.
As it leaned back with its hand in the air, Aria murmured 'Acceleration' and, in an instant, she pierced the Minotaur's throat with her swords.
With the swords lodged in the Minotaur's neck, Aria used both feet to brace against the Minotaur's waist and pushed hard, using the momentum to spin in the air and pull the swords out.
After a deadly spin in the air, Aria landed on the ground, sliding back a bit, thrusting her swords into the ground to slow herself, creating sparks.
Meanwhile, the Minotaur, with both hands useless and its throat pierced, staggered backward with heavy steps until it fell to the ground.
Tomoya approached, lightly clapping.
"Not bad. I knew you were talented and would get stronger and stronger." He said with a smile.
"Yes – Nyah – Little Aria will get stronger and stronger, I believe in that~" Vulcan also approached.
"Hehe~ All thanks to Tomoya's advice~" She made a victory sign as she sheathed her swords and showed a beautiful smile on her full lips.
"I didn't do much." Tomoya didn't deny he helped, but it wasn't all thanks to him: "You were excellent from the start; you just used to act before thinking. In the end, our best weapon is our head, got it?"
Seeing him point to his own head, Aria nodded.
Before, she fought without thinking much. It was like something natural for her. Although she had been trained, she learned to attack and defend while also being taught a fighting style. However, she always went all in headfirst without thinking much about the consequences.
Her lack of planning and caution prevented her from progressing, despite being so talented.