I hate being in pain, so I think I'll make a full defense build

Itai no wa Iya nanode Bōgyo-Ryoku ni Kyokufuri Shitai to Omoimasu 495

Defense Specialization and Gathering Magic Power (2)

After laying all the monsters that obstructed their path to waste with Mai and Yui’s godly damage, they finally arrived at their destination. A gentle breeze swirled across the grassy plains that expanded in front of them.

There were neither monsters nor notable buildings. There were no caves or craters in the ground like when they subjugated the poisonous slime, either.

Looking up, the vast blue sky spread endlessly.

“Is this the place?”

“According to the map, it seems so.”

“But…”

“There’s nothing here…”

Even though they had reached the destination. As if to prove that, the four of them were swallowed by a large tremor soon after.

Darkness unfurled in front of them. Seeing a phenomenon similar to the effect of Maple’s [Darkness of Rebirth], the four of them hurriedly distanced themselves and watched.

Is something about to appear? Or is it some kind of ambush?

Given that it was related to the quest, they couldn’t let their guard down.

“…Nothing happens.”

“The darkness no longer spreads.”

“There’s something in the middle… Is that a magic circle?”

The overflowing darkness ceased to expand. Other than the flickering around the edges, there were no other movements. At the center was what seemed like a magic circle that emitted a dark, enigmatic glow, luring Maple and the others in.

“…Maple, this will be a great time to use [Dedicated Affection].”

“Okay!”

From here on out, achieving victory wouldn’t be as easy as when they were on the road. Moreover, this time as well, Mai, Yui, and Sally couldn’t afford to take a single hit.

Maple’s [Dedicated Affection] was a necessary skill in combat.

“Let’s double check the effects of the item just to be sure.”

The item they received when they accepted the quest was a usable item that nullified the boss’ skill effects.

Three extremely powerful items. That was how they knew the enemy that awaited them wasn’t to be underestimated.

Sally held two of the items, while the remaining one was with Maple. Sally, who had excellent decision-making skills, was in charge of the items. To diversify the risk, she asked Maple, who was the toughest out of them all, to keep one.

The four of them braced themselves for the presence of a formidable enemy. No matter how strong the enemy was, they were still powerful. Without being overly afraid, they stepped into the glowing magic circle of darkness, under the protection of Maple’s [Dedicated Affection].

Encompassed by the black radiance, the four were teleported. As the light subsided, they checked their surroundings, their vision returning.

The surrounding area was an open grassland like before. The two differences were that the once clear sky was now overcast with clouds, while the stronger wind gave off an ominous feeling.

“Something is coming.”

Just like when they arrived, darkness spread across the ground. However, they weren’t teleported anywhere. From there, a monster—the final quest the four of them had received—the boss that had to be defeated, emerged.

Thin, jet-black limbs akin to branches growing from a dead tree moved with a crackling sound. A tattered cloak, stained with dark red blood. Something akin to an animal bone covered his face, acting like a mask. An eerie blue flame flickered ominously at the tip of his bone staff. His eyes gleamed menacingly at the four of them.

The Boss stretched his arm and brandished his staff. At the same time, the engulfing darkness swirled, expanding all at once.

“S-stay focused!”

“Yeah!”

““Okay!””

The darkness was subsiding. Even without Maple’s [Dedicated Affection], they wouldn’t suffer any damage whatsoever. They knew because of the information they’d gathered in advance.

Where did the vast grasslands that were spreading around them go? Instead, Maple and the others found themselves inside a deep forest, surrounded by tall trees. The Boss had disappeared, yet rustling sounds which indicated the enemies could be heard around them.

“A forest, huh? Lucky. Let’s stay in this place.”

“Okay!”

A gimmick where the area was selected from multiple patterns and would switch periodically based on the boss’ skills.

The items they’d previously received allowed them to skip areas they were incompatible with. Basically, it was akin to redrawing a lottery.

Nevertheless, Maple’s existence had broadened their options. With Maple around, situations that’d otherwise be hopeless for other players became nothing. Not to mention, the four were quite lucky to draw the forest first. After all, unlike other areas, the forest had no troublesome terrain effects.

Black humanoid monsters appeared one after another, surrounding them. It was jet-black, as if it was darkness given form. Just like the Boss, its eyes were fiery blue. The monster’s slender arms and claws, along with its spindly body gave an impression of a speed-type monster.

Just as the four had thought, the swarm of monsters dashed towards them, attacking at speeds inconceivable with normal eyes.

Because they were surrounded, they were bound to be attacked from blind spots. Only Sally was able to react in time, while the remaining three became victims to their claws.

“You’ll be fine!”

‘“Thank you, Maple!””

As long as there was no Piercing Attack, there was no need to aim for a short-term, decisive battle or use skills in rapid succession. They realized that despite the agility, the monster didn’t have any power or knockback.

It was a rapid fire that took advantage of numbers, giving the players no time to catch their breath. As always, it was nothing for Maple. Maple and her friends, now safe, began to look for the missing boss.

“Where is it?”

“There’s no end to them. We have to find the Boss.”

“We’ll thin out the numbers.”

“That’ll make it easier for us to look…”

It’d be convenient if the enemy charged towards them. Mai and Yui started spinning a total of 12 sledgehammers, crushing anyone who came close.

Given that was how they’d grind in the basic field, Mai and Yui were used to that basic movement. Even though it wasn’t an automatic operation, they were able to look for the boss while attacking.

“—There it is!”

While crushing the monsters around her, Sally spotted the Boss amidst the row of trees.

“Big Sis!”

“I know…!”

Now that the boss had been found, the game was on. Knowing that Maple had their backs, the two paused the spinning sledgehammers and trained their eyes at the Boss.

Paying no heed to the monsters that were about to pounce on them, the twin fired a shock wave at the Boss.

“[Flying Attack]!”

All the monsters in front of them shattered like glass. The trees exploded from their trunks and collapsed. Caught up in the devastating aftermath, the Boss was crushed to pieces. A perfectly-timed ultimate attack. Still, more than half of the Boss’ HP remained.

“There isn’t any information, yet. But this one seems impossible to defeat in one hit.”

Even though the number of players who could do it was increasing, Mai and Yui were the only ones who could defeat a boss with one blow without any setups. Therefore, it was no surprise that no such information was available.

A stream of jet-black darkness swallowed the four, who weren’t able to achieve immediate victory as planned.

“No damage!”

“Which means…”

When they regained their vision, they were inside a pure white, square room. The Boss was also there. Mai and Yui brandished their weapons.

“Be careful, there hasn’t been any information on this one yet…!?”

When the Boss waved his staff, the four floated into the air—

—no, they were “falling to the ground.”

Because of the reversed gravity force, Maple and the others were stepping on the ceiling.

“Wow, wow, wow!?”

“At the very least, [Dedicated Affection] is still working, but…!”

Had Maple been the sole focus of the change in gravity, Mai and Yui would’ve been left behind.

However, they had no time to celebrate, as a multitude of skull-shaped black beams were fired at the four of them, who were falling.

Unlike the previous area, the effects linked with attacks were unknown. Sally determined that it was too risky to receive an attack as they weren’t prepared to intercept it.

“Maple, let me show you something interesting! [Leviathan]!”

A single burst of water, akin to a tornado, was unleashed from Sally’s blue magic circle. The end of the stream formed a dragon’s head, making the undulating stream itself seem like a body of a dragon.

As the water dragon lunged towards the boss, it swallowed the incoming attacks and nullified them. Seeing that, the Boss instantly teleported and evaded it, giving the four enough time to land on the ground and recover.

“Hehe, I can’t lose to Maple’s [Poison Dragon]?”

“Way to go, Sally! Is that part of [Water Manipulation]?”

“Uh-huh.”

As Sally used it more and more, the skill level had increased, causing her to unlock new ones. Thanks to Sally, they could catch a breath. Deciding to quickly conquer that room and escape, the four of them floated away from each other, before confronting the Boss once again.

A black glow radiated from the Boss’ staff.

They could try to counter it. However, despite their enthusiasm, the reality wasn’t sweet.

The gravity changed faster than expected, and the three key fighters of the “Extreme Swinging Club” couldn’t keep up.

“Uwaaaah!”

“Maple!”

“I can’t stand still…!”

“After the Boss teleports, the gravity will change once he lands…”

Currently, it was like being placed inside a rolling dice, so it couldn’t even be called a battle.

Even if Sally, who managed to adapt, were to fire magic, the Boss would simply dodge it by teleporting. As long as Sally was dealing damage against the Boss, they wouldn’t necessarily lose. However, by the time they won, Maple and the others would be too exhausted to continue.

“Maple, Mai, Yui! Let’s skip this room!”

“U-understood!”

““That’s a relief…!””

When Sally used the quest item, the pure white, square room shifted to a different area.

The next area they arrived at was one with many boulders and blind spots. Sally immediately memorized the place. Sally, who knew that the concept was similar to the forest, nodded in relief as if she’d hit the nail on the head.

Meanwhile, Maple called out to her.

“Salllyyyyyy—!”

…Maple was being gnawed by a giant worm that had leaped out of the ground. While being devoured, she was in a incapacitated state where she couldn’t move or attack. However, as far as Maple was concerned, it wasn’t a huge problem.

“Sorry, Maple, but please stay like that! Mai, Yui, clean up the surroundings first!”

While Maple herself was being targeted, other players could move more freely. The reason was because [Dedicated Affection] was a skill that only accepted attacks, instead of removing the monster itself from right in front of the user.

“Maple!”

“Please wait a moment!”

As Maple was being attacked by the monster, the two quickly carried out a plan.

The deadly sledgehammers began to rotate at high speed as usual. However, their target wasn’t the worm, but the surrounding boulders.

Every time the sledgehammers came into contact with them, the huge rocks crumbled, as if they were made of Styrofoam. Only the resounding roar and the billowing dust clouds told them that they were truly hitting rocks.

Within a few minutes, all the large rocks that’d lined up in a row were reduced into pebbles, and the rocky jungle with poor visibility became completely barren—like a grassy plain.

““We’re done here!””

“Nice! Now don’t hold back and help Maple!”

Monsters without special defenses couldn’t survive Mai and Yui’s attacks. When the sledgehammers that had been used to clear the land switched their target to the monster, only death awaited.

Mai and Yui caught Maple, who’d been freed from her restraints, and checked their surroundings once again.

The dust cloud caused by smashing the boulders had settled down, and they could see the Boss on the unobstructed battlefield.

In front of them were wriggling worms. Under normal circumstances, they wouldn’t be able to break through such a formation and close the distance easily.

“Maple, Sally!”

“Please follow me…!”

“Okay! Leave the defense to me!”

“I’ll stop the movement at the end.”

—Again, under normal circumstances.

Every time Mai and Yui collided with the approaching worms, the worms were obliterated without having a chance to perform a single attack motion.

A massacre. Their kills increased with each step they took. The rotating sledgehammers served as both their weapon and shield. Whenever a new worm would leap out of the ground, its life would be cut short. Mai and Yui would shine the brightest in a suitable environment.

With Sally casting spells and Maple countering the Boss’ attacks with gunfire, they were unstoppable.

“Oboro [Binding Barrier]!”

Sally stopped the Boss for a moment. A single moment was enough. Once the two were within range and ready to attack, everything would be over in the blink of an eye.

“[Flying Attack]!”

The second direct hit. The Boss’ HP dwindled to half. Judging by the remaining HP, they could defeat the Boss in two more hits. Even though the Boss was designed not to die in a single hit, the fact that it only took them four blows to slay it was insane.

“Alright! Let’s keep this up, you two!”

““Understood!””

If possible, they had to deliver another blow before the area changed once again. If they could do that, it’d be much easier. If they couldn’t, then that was that.

“…Okay.”

Sally mentally sorted out her remaining skills and the strategies she could devise using them.

The closer they were to achieving victory, the more careful they had to be so as not to get carried away.

If anything, Sally’s main role in this party was to assess the situation.

Sally’s role was to remain calm so that they didn’t lose due to trivial mistakes. While the three of them were in high spirits, Sally was on guard.

Before her eyes, the world tumbled into the darkness once more, before quickly rebuilding itself.

The surrounding area was a dazzling red. The four of them were completely engulfed in the blazing flames. Immediately after they saw the damage effects bursting from Maple, they grasped the situation.

“[Afterglow of Salvation]!”

Maple sustaining damage meant fixed damage. Also, because she was covering multiple people at once, her HP quickly dwindled away. Even with healing from skills, it was unlikely that she’d be able to handle it.

Using the quest item to teleport would be a great idea. Nobody wanted to fight in flames that dealt fixed damage. Everyone thought so at first.

“Maple!”

“Yeah!”

As expected, information was the greatest weapon. Sally stared firmly at the black glow beyond the flames.

The black sheen of the Boss’ attire stood out against the all-red background.

They had information about this particular area. The most important one being that the Boss only moved at regular intervals.

“[Water Path]!”

“[Deploy All Weapons]!”

Sally fastened her thread to Mai and Yui, before swimming through the pillar of water that stretched beyond the air. Meanwhile, Maple was sent flying directly below by the blast.

Maple’s role was to keep the three people within the range of [Dedicated Affection]. As for Sally, her role was to deliver Mai and Yui to the Boss floating in the air.

While they were tempted to re-draw the lottery, the four of them held back and set up a very short, decisive battle.

“It’s easy if the boss doesn’t move!”

“Yui!”

Nevertheless, it was difficult for the twin to move because they were being pulled up by Sally’s thread. Since they couldn’t aim and attack accurately, the two arranged the twelve floating sledgehammers into a rectangle—three vertically, and four horizontally.

“Heave-ho!”

In such a close distance, there was no way they’d miss. Mai and Yui swung the sledgehammers in unison. Like a giant hammer, all twelve sledgehammers slammed into the Boss’ body, throwing him into the ground with a thump.

“Nice, you two—!”

After Sally had landed, she untied the thread that connected both Mai and Yui.

“It worked out!”

“What a relief…”

“Thank you! Even though it was tough, it was a one-shot!”

If they hadn’t secured the kill, Maple wouldn’t be able to withstand it, and they’d have to teleport right away. However, Mai and Yui’s wonderful mechanic once again.

“There are two items left. Let’s calm down and make the final decision.”

“Okay!”

““Got it!””

It only took one more hit from Mai and Yui to defeat the Boss once and for all. The flames disappeared, and darkness spread all around. Before they knew it, the surrounding area had reverted into the same grassland as before, with no obstacles in sight.

Meanwhile, the Boss emerged in front of them, crawling out of the ground. Seeing that, Mai and Yui decided to settle the matter here and immediately swung their sledgehammers. A resounding roar. However, the Boss, who was under the sledgehammers, slipped through and advanced. A magic circle manifested in front of him, from which a shining black laser was unleashed.

“It’s not working…!”

“E-even though it should’ve been a clean hit…”

“It’s okay! We don’t suffer any damage, either!”

““Maple!””

Maple calmed down the two, who were confused. As they did that, the enemies that looked exactly like the Boss appeared around them.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. Maple is here, so it should be fine. Calm down and look for the main body.”

““Okay!””

Surrounded by invincible enemies, intense magical attacks came one after another from all directions.

If it was only that, the situation sounded bleak. However, Maple was with them. With her around, all of those issues suddenly disappeared.

Now they needed to find the Boss among the clones. The clones were invincible and wouldn’t suffer any damage, but it wasn’t all bad.

“Sis, let’s do the usual!”

“Okay!”

“Leave this to me! [Commence Attack]!”

“[Flash Flood]!”

The four of them turned around, attacking in their respective directions. Mai and Yui used sledgehammers, Maple fired her guns, and Sally mixed items with water to attack the “phantom bosses” in rapid succession.

This time, rather than power, attack range was what mattered the most. Maple scattered the bullets as much as she could while changing the angle. Suddenly, a damage effect popped out from one of them.

“Maybe it’s that one!”

After all, there was no way the main body would be invincible as well. That prediction was right on the mark.

“[Super Acceleration]!”

“Both of you, get on!”

Sally accelerated at once, disappearing from their sight. Maple, who had Mai and Yui on board her deployed weapon, used [Cover Move] to catch up and took advantage of Sally’s speed to close the distance between them.

“Mai, Yui! That one! Give it all you got!”

““[Decisive Battle Specification]!””

At Sally’s words, the two wielded their sledgehammers. After passing through many illusions, the two managed to find the main body. The rotating mass of iron—the embodiment of death—made a high-pitched crashing sound, literally smashing the boss into pieces.

“We got it!”

That sound signified the victory of the four. Mai and Yui smiled in triumph, while Maple and Sally followed suit. They decided to watch as the darkness unfurled, swallowing their surrounding landscape, and returning them to the original one.

After the boss was defeated, Maple and her friends returned to the original field, and the first thing they saw was a black mass slowly falling through the air.

Weh it fell right in front of the four, it stopped and floated there.

“Why don’t you pick it up?”

“Okay.”

Maple reached for the lump at Sally’s request. As soon as it touched her hand, the black mass burst. At the same time, a notification that the quest had been cleared could be heard.

When Maple and Sally checked, they found that it was an item called [Demon King’s Magical Power I]. Based on the item’s description, once they’d collected all the necessary items, the path that led to the Demon King would open.

“It’s not necessary for everyone in the party to have it. Just a player who’s in the same party.”

“Then, if we try to look for them together, it might be done in no time!”

“If we’re just going to do it once, the quickest way is to work together with the guild. However, if you want to farm the loots, you’ll have to conquer everything.”

The objective this time was to defeat the Demon King before they got too busy. As Sally said, Maple wasn’t aiming for drop items, so it’d be helpful if everyone could work together in advance.

“Is this the end of the current town’s quest?”

“It seems so. As I said before, when it comes to hidden areas and events, they are endless. So I guess I’ll just put them off for now.”

After all, it was difficult to find something that might not even exist in the first place. Moreover, Maple didn’t have that much time. It’d be better to proceed with exploring the areas that were necessary for the Demon King’s questline. They hoped that they’d encounter one by sheer luck while at it.

“Mai, Yui, you were so helpful! Thank you for today!”

“I’m happy to be of help!”

“If the timing is right, I’m always eager to help…!”

Mai and Yui were very powerful due to the synergy with Maple. If possible, they’d like to borrow the twin’s power for the boss battle.

“Maple, where are we headed to next?”

“I wonder about it… Maybe we should check the 3^rd Floor Area? Look, there are shoes that can fly in the sky, right?”

““There is!””

“It might be great for me, too. After all, without those shoes, there’s a limit to how much you can fly.”

Scaffolding generation skills such as [Water Manipulation], [Icicle], [Use Threads], and [A Step Towards the Underworld] allowed Sally to perform aerial maneuvers that were normally impossible for players. Nevertheless, those skills were restricted by cooldown, while [A Step Towards the Underworld] decreased her status when casted. In that respect, the device they used when they were on the third floor didn’t have that. If the degree of freedom in battles significantly changed in the future, it’d be better to tackle this first.

“The 3^rd Floor Area is being conquered by Iz, Kanade, and us!”

“If we listen, we might discover something.”

“Okay! I’m counting on you!”

““Got it!””

Once the next destination was decided, Maple and Sally thanked Mai and Yui once again, and said goodbye.