The boy's figure emerged from the smoke, while Riveria stood to the side, quietly watching the battle unfold.
After probing him for a while, Anakitty had gained a proper understanding of Bell's combat ability. From what Riveria knew of her, this Cat People girl would definitely not stop here.
It was like chess. The smarter someone was, the more stubborn they became after their moves were read.
"Winning this way might be a little unfair, but it can't be helped..."
Anakitty sighed softly and sent a glance toward Alicia, who stood slightly behind her.
"..."
Alicia said nothing. She simply nodded and drew the small straight sword at her waist.
Her equipment style was similar to Filvis's, which clearly meant she possessed Concurrent Chanting technique.
Her golden hair was touched by the cold wind and sunlight. The instant her eyes met Bell's, Alicia rushed forward.
"That's how it is. Please experience what it's like to be treated as a Floor Boss. You can't call us underhanded, okay?"
Anakitty flashed a mischievous smile, round shield in hand, and charged in alongside Alicia.
The two beautiful women moved close together, seemingly not worried at all that the swords in their hands might interfere with their partner.
Bell calmly observed the battlefield.
Their surprise attack had failed to finish him off. Their actions now were clearly meant to drag out the mock battle, using two vanguards to hold him down while Line and Elfy chanted their Magic.
This was an extremely common formation when facing a Floor Boss.
Anakitty had probably made Alicia charge in with her because she noticed Bell had held back in the previous close-quarters exchange and had not used Quick-Cast Magic. That was why she chose to have the two of them attack together, suppressing the front line and cutting off the threat of his flame Magic entirely.
This Catgirl really was smart...
How should he respond?
In that instant, countless thoughts flashed through Bell's mind.
He had any number of ways to break through their formation. The simplest and most direct would be to create distance, rely on the [Magic Power] he had built up so far, and exchange Magic barrages with the Mages.
But Bell still wanted to test some other equipment.
So he deliberately chose the harder path and charged straight toward the two attackers.
Clang!
Alicia's straight sword arrived first, sending a few sparks flying as it struck the [Goddess's Blade].
A fleeting illusion passed through Bell's mind. As one of the women who had offered her hair, Alicia was now crossing blades with him at close range, and the pitch-black short blade in his hand seemed quite upset by that.
As if blaming her, or roaring in anger, the Goddess's Blade bit a jagged mark into the cheap straight sword.
"You're kidding... I picked this weapon out specially..."
Alicia frowned. The fight had only just begun, yet she already felt a little intimidated.
"It's cheap anyway. I'll buy you a new one, so don't even think about using that as an excuse to run away."
Anakitty brought her one-handed sword down hard while comforting her friend.
She knew Alicia had feelings for the boy. Perhaps, in this blonde Elf's eyes, losing the mock battle would be more fitting.
But Anakitty had no intention of admitting defeat. The boy had seen through her tactics, so how could she just let him leave like this?
"Mm... I know..."
Alicia swung the straight sword in her hand while crossing positions with Anakitty.
Although she could use Concurrent Chanting, she was not good at close combat. In this battle of attrition, Alicia was serving as support.
Golden long hair and short black hair danced amid the ringing clash of steel, weaving together a sword dance of remarkable coordination.
"Alicia-san, aren't you going to chant Magic?"
Bell was fighting one against two, yet his position was gradually pushing forward.
Anakitty and Alicia must have spent a long time in the same team. Their movements constantly overlapped, yet neither of them hindered the other at all.
It was certainly threatening, but Bell had a way to handle it.
"Firebolt."
While his pale blue short blade blocked Anakitty's assault, a Firebolt burst forth.
"You, you actually said it out loud on purpose?!"
Alicia hurriedly dodged the fireball, her expression full of grievance.
The reason the boy could calmly deal with both of them was his flame Magic. At a close-quarters distance, fireballs that required no chant at all were essentially Bell Cranel's third weapon, leaving Alicia no room to act.
"Alicia-san, your Concurrent Chanting works well against monsters, but you're far too inexperienced in battles against people."
Bell turned sideways, avoiding the straight sword while using his short blade to deflect Anakitty's attack.
"I know that already!"
Before Alicia could even fix her posture, she thrust her straight sword out in anger.
She had seen Riveria's technique before, so of course she knew she still had a long way to go.
"He's provoking you. Don't let him affect you."
Anakitty hurriedly raised her shield to cover Alicia's mistake.
Her tactic was to have the two of them hold the boy down together under the protection of their healer, wearing away his stamina and Mind.
Even if Alicia could not chant Magic and deliver the decisive blow, this situation could not continue forever.
Sooner or later, Bell would grow tired or run out of Mind. When that happened, victory would naturally belong to Anakitty and the others.
"..."
Alicia listened to her friend's warning and quickly steadied herself.
She stopped trying to chant Magic and focused all her energy on covering Anakitty instead.
But Bell did not leave it at that.
He used Firebolt to buy himself a brief opening, then spoke.
"Alicia-san, monsters only attack in a straightforward way, but humans will deliberately change their attack patterns to disrupt the rhythm of Concurrent Chanting. You react too strongly to sudden attacks."
Sometimes Bell's Firebolt only brushed past her, but Alicia still stopped her chant.
"..."
Alicia badly wanted to shout that she would not be shaken.
But when she looked into the boy's crimson eyes, she could not help beginning to chant Magic again.
As expected, Bell moved to stop her once more.
"Your eyes give away where you're going to move. It makes it easy for your opponent to predict you in advance and interrupt your Concurrent Chanting."
With the boy's words as the starting point, the mock battle began heading in a strange direction.
"Alicia-san, your movements are too big. You should trust your teammates a little more."
"Bell Cranel, what are you doing?" Anakitty could not help retorting.
"Don't worry so much about your chest. It's only shaking."
"So what exactly are you here for?"
"Don't pay attention to your opponent's eyes. Focus on Concurrent Chanting."
"You were definitely staring at Alicia's chest just now, nya?!"
Anakitty could not keep up with the boy's train of thought at all.
In the middle of such an intense battle, what on earth was Bell Cranel thinking?
"...I think I'm about to get it!"
This time, Alicia's Concurrent Chanting continued for several syllables.
Attack and defense continued without pause, and the battle grew fiercer by the moment.
Before she knew it, a blush that would not fade had settled across the blonde Elf's face.
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