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The very moment I saw my little Fenrir hurt, something inside me shattered. My heart broke into a thousand jagged pieces, and an uncontrollable wave of pure rage flooded every inch of my being. I went completely berserk.
Right on cue, my Gust passive triggered as the accumulated damage finally crossed the threshold. Fresh adrenaline flooded my veins like liquid fire, boosting my strength, sharpening my senses, and pushing my exhausted body far beyond its normal limits.
Without hesitation, I combined every power at my disposal. I activated Spiritual Projection and fused it with Mana Aura Expansion, then merged the strength of both my Spirits into the technique. In response, a colossal giant manifested behind me — a towering embodiment of my fury and will.
Using this immense projection, I unleashed a relentless barrage of punches with everything I had. Each strike landed heavily on Ezekiel, pinning him in place while I poured out nearly all of my energy, even burning through my own lifeforce to keep the assault going.
I quickly pulled a high-grade potion from my inventory, downed it in a single desperate gulp, and tossed the empty bottle aside. Without missing a beat, I continued my ferocious attack.
This has to end it… It has to!
However, I was wrong.
"JUST DIE ALREADY, YOU DAMN OLD MAN!"
My furious shout only seemed to enrage Ezekiel further. He roared with primal fury, conjuring an endless blizzard of frost from deep within his body. The sheer cold pushed my spiritual projection back, shattering parts of its ethereal form.
"Nnngaaaahhhh!"
With a deafening bellow, Ezekiel surged forward through my attacks, unleashing his final trump card. He leaped straight toward me with murderous intent. I clenched my teeth and braced myself as my spiritual projection began fading away. I raised my weapons to clash against his sword, only to witness dozens more icy blades materializing all around him.
Wait… I recognize this!
This was his ultimate move.
His instant-kill, wide-range attack.
Sorrowful Frost Sword Rain.
Unavoidable. Impossible to dodge. The last-resort technique he only used when his HP fell below 5%.
"Freyja!"
"?! "
I summoned Freyja to my side instantly and, just like we had done during our battle against the Lich, I prepared to infuse her directly into my heart.
"Please… lend me your power!"
"!!! Okay!"
She didn't hesitate for even a second. Although Freyja wasn't a fighter by nature, she trusted me completely. We had succeeded with this fusion once before. The moment her power flowed into my very soul, the world around me transformed.
Right now, facing certain death, this was our only path forward.
The only way to win. The only way to grow stronger. The only way to protect our village from the nightmare that was coming.
In this harsh, unforgiving world, the only true answer was to crush your enemies with overwhelming, absolute might!
"Nice spell! Let me fucking copy it."
I snapped my fingers. My Spiritual Projection, Spiritual Aura, and both Spirits merged together in perfect harmony. Through Mana Mastery, I twisted and combined every offensive spell I had ever learned. In mere moments, dozens of giant spheres of roaring flames materialized around me, each one a miniature Holy Cruel Sun. I infused every single orb with the full power of my Bloodline and Tattoo, then hurled them all forward just as Ezekiel's deadly spell finished forming.
The collision was breathtaking.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions of searing flames and freezing frost clashed violently across the ceiling of the dungeon. Shockwaves rippled through the entire chamber as fire and ice fought for dominance, lighting up the darkness in a spectacular and terrifying display.
I had successfully intercepted his killing move, buying us all precious seconds. Ezekiel was right there, exposed near the throne. I pushed my body to its absolute limits and charged.
But my body was screaming in protest. The accumulated damage and soul-deep exhaustion were finally catching up to me. My vision blurred at the edges, and my muscles burned like they were tearing apart.
How can I possibly hope to face that entire Orc Army if I'm already this exhausted?! Every orc in that horde will be powerful, and dozens of their elite warriors will be as strong as Ezekiel…
I couldn't give up. I had to do this alone. For Fenrir. For the village. For everyone who believed in me.
"Ezekiel! You damn coward! Fight me like a man!!!"
I roared at the top of my lungs and activated Wild Cat's Leap combined with Shadow Step, propelling myself forward at blinding speed. I swung Atlas with every ounce of strength I could muster.
"?! "
Ezekiel was caught completely off guard. He hadn't realized the explosive clash of spells was merely a distraction to keep his focus away from me.
CRASH!
My axe struck his armored torso with devastating force. The Burning Cleave ability shattered the icy armor covering half his body in an instant.
"Tsk!"
He clicked his tongue in irritation and retaliated, swinging his massive sword. I intercepted it with my hammer, then grabbed both of his arms, leaped upward, and drove my foot straight into his chest, talons extended as I aimed for his core.
But he stopped me at the last moment. Sharp ice erupted from within his body, trying to pierce and shred my leg.
Thanks to the combination of my Bloodline and Tattoos, my foot had transformed into powerful, razor-sharp talons, tough enough to resist the freezing assault and press dangerously close to his core.
"NOOOO!!!"
Ezekiel roared in pure rage. He seized my legs with both hands and violently ripped me off his body, slamming me into the floor with bone-crushing force, just like he had done earlier.
"I'm tired of you throwing me around like a ragdoll!"
Mid-air, I spun with explosive power, channeling Mana Strengthening and War Spirit Aura Embodiment into my muscles. I released all that built-up energy in one devastating swing, slamming Atlas directly into his torso.
CRAAASH!
"G-Gaaaahah!"
Ezekiel screamed as the impact split his legs clean off. He crashed heavily to the ground, glaring at me with glowing, hate-filled eyes. Ice surged wildly around him as icicle spears shot upward, but I swung both hammer and axe relentlessly, using Burning Cleave to chop through the frozen attacks as fast as they formed while closing the final distance.
I noticed something crucial, his ice was growing weaker, and his spells were noticeably slower.
He's run out of Mana.
This was the first time I had ever pushed a boss this far.
"It's over, you bastard."
I infused every last drop of my remaining Life Force into Atlas, channeling my Talent and burning it with the very flames of my soul.
"Goodbye."
"Gaaaaahhhh!"
Ezekiel desperately raised his arms to block my final strike, grabbing the axe's blade with both hands in a last-ditch effort to survive.
But it didn't work.
"Red Fang Axe Style – Third Form: Burning Crush!"
My axe struck true with devastating force. The blade blazed with intense flames as it cleaved straight through Ezekiel's reinforced golem body.
BOOOM!!!
A massive ground-shaking explosion of mana erupted on impact, sending waves of fire and raw power surging outward. His armored torso split open violently, and the glowing golem core at his center shattered into dozens of glittering fragments.
Ezekiel, the Sorrowful Winter King of Frost, was finally dead.
"Ugh…"
The adrenaline that had kept me going suddenly vanished. My legs gave out beneath me, and I dropped heavily to the cracked floor, feeling utterly exhausted. Every muscle in my body burned, and my arms trembled from the strain of that final strike. I had insisted my family leave him to me. While they fought bravely against his endless army of golems, I had poured everything I had into this 1v1 duel.
And I won.
Ding!
[Congratulations! You and your party have slain the [Sorrowful Winter Knight Golems – Tier 3 ~ 4+] x30 and [Sorrowful Winter King of Frost: Ezekiel the Fallen – Tier 5+]!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[...]
[You have reached Level 117/130. Stat Points have been allocated; you gained 5 Free Stat Points.]
"Wow… five whole levels. That's… actually really nice," I muttered breathlessly, a tired smile forming on my lips despite the exhaustion weighing me down.
Ding!
A long string of skill notifications followed, flooding my vision.
[Your Skill: [Divine War Demigoddess' Weapon – Tier 4: Level 5/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Skill: [Mana Mastery – Tier 2: Level 4/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Skill: [Mana Aura Expansion – Tier 2: Level 3/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Skill: [Mana Strengthening – Tier 2: Level 3/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Skill: [Weapon Talent: Axe – Tier 2: Level 1/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Skill: [War Spirit Aura Embodiment – Tier 2: Level 1/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Spell Skill: [Fireball – Tier 1: Level 6/10] has Leveled Up!]
[Your Spell Skill: [Spiritual Projection – Tier 2: Level 3/10] has Leveled Up!]
Multiple Class Skills also leveled up in rapid succession, [Magic Rune: Wild Beast Path], [Fierce Charge Attack], [Healing Flame], [Shadow Step], [Future Sight], [Guts], [Beast Senses], [Holy Smite], and [Ninjutsu: Shadow Clone].
"Oh my god… almost everything leveled up," I groaned, rubbing my temples as the glowing blue windows finally faded. The rush of power felt good, but the mental fatigue was real.
"Brunhild!"
"Daughter!"
"Are you okay?!"
"Ah! Took you long enough!"
I groaned again as I heard the familiar voices of my family rushing toward me across the ruined hall. They quickly surrounded me, helping me sit up properly. I smiled warmly at them, my chest swelling with relief and affection as I took in the sight of the battlefield they had cleared.
The hall was enormous, which explained why they couldn't easily interfere even if they had wanted to. Fighting wave after wave of elite golems from all sides while trying to reach me would have been incredibly difficult.
"I'm so glad you're okay!" My mother sighed deeply in relief, pulling me into a gentle but firm hug. "I wanted to rush over and help you so badly, but those damn golems kept swarming us no matter what we did!"
"They even used spatial magic to slow us down and drag us backward," my sister added, still breathing heavily. "I've never fought such shameless, annoying creatures before. It was like they were specifically designed to keep us away from you."
"I guess they really wanted to make our fight a fair 1v1," I laughed weakly. "Oh right! Fenrir! Is he okay?!"
"He's fine," my brother replied calmly as he walked over, leading the massive wolf by his side. "He took some nasty internal damage to his stomach and cracked a rib, but you know how hardy this giant wolf is. He's no little puppy anymore. He's already healing on his own."
"Here, let me—" I started to conjure a healing spell, golden flames flickering at my fingertips.
"No, stop," my brother said firmly, placing a hand on my shoulder. "If you keep healing him with magic every single time, his natural self-regeneration will stay weak. Monsters like Fenrir grow stronger by adapting to damage. You have to let him feel it and recover naturally. That way he'll become tougher, hardier, and better able to protect you in the future."
"But…" I muttered, glancing sadly at the large wolf who was watching me with calm, intelligent eyes.
"No buts," my brother insisted with a small smile. "Fenrir is a big boy now. He can take care of himself. He told me himself that he wants to grow stronger for you. He doesn't like being babied anymore. He's over a decade old, after all."
"Hahaha… I guess you're right," I laughed softly, reaching out to gently stroke Fenrir's thick fur. The wolf nuzzled against my hand affectionately.
"Well, that does it then," my father declared proudly, looking around at all of us with a satisfied grin. "We did it, family!"
"Ooooohhhhh!" my sister roared enthusiastically, pulling everyone into a big group hug.
"Y-Yeah…" I muttered, barely managing to raise my arm in celebration. My body still felt like lead.
I could sense that everyone around me had grown noticeably stronger. They must have leveled up quite a bit from the horde of golems they had slain. That thought filled me with quiet contentment.
With Ezekiel finally defeated, we could rest for a while before pushing on to Floor 3. I knew things would become even more challenging there, but for now, we had earned this small victory.
"Oooh?! Brunhild, look over there!" Astrid suddenly called out excitedly. "There's a big treasure chest!"
"Seriously!?" I gasped, my exhaustion momentarily forgotten as I turned my head.
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