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 449

Defense Specialization and Northern Light

“—No way…!?”

Like Wilbert, Hinata also understood that their plan had been foiled. Even though their positioning should’ve been a mess, and their movement speed decreased…

Prior to Hinata’s use of skill, Sally—who’d become immune to all effects due to [Spirited Away]—dashed out of range in an instant.

Sally didn’t hesitate to abandon her valuable defensive resources, and as a result of her quick-wittedness—the situation had been reversed in an instant.

“[Emergency Charging]!”

At Velvet’s voice, the previously stunned Hinata regained her bearings.

Lightning struck Velvet, and sparks erupted from her body.

Nevertheless, Velvet was in an emergency. The skill itself was a last-ditch effort to postpone the side effect of [Overcharge], and at the same time, allow Velvet to use lightning skill for a brief period of time.

“[Electromagnetic Jump]!”

Velvet leaped at once, leaving a flash of thunder behind. With the help of Hinata’s gravity control, she flew into the sky.

A flying machine driven by Lily approached the two, leaving a trail of blue flames in the dark sky.

“Ray, [Dragon Star]!”

Upon witnessing that, Payne jumped on Ray’s back and soared towards the sky at once.

“Catch them—! Ray, [Breath of the Holy Dragon]—!”

“[Reproduction] [Puppet Wall]!”

Ray’s gleaming breath destroyed the wall made of minions summoned by Lily, who’d switched equipment, and smashed the scaffolding of their transport.

“Ugh…!”

“[Wide Range]! [Holy Blade of Brilliance]!”

As Lily and Wilbert were thrown into the air, a torrent of light shot towards them.

—However, just when they were about to get hit…

As if being drawn by a strong force, the two were pulled downward and managed to avoid the attack at the last minute.

“—I won’t let you!”

Hinata manipulated gravity to pull them down, closing the distance between the four of them.

Lily waved the flag in her hand as a tremendous amount of magic began to gather around her.

“[Formation Change]!”

Immediately after that, the four vanished.

The skill—which was similar to teleportation—ignored the terrains and the opposing players.

Seeing that, Kasumi and Chrome exchanged glances before charging towards the outer wall.

Payne also followed suit. Seeing that, the other players began their pursuit for the four.

Even if they could teleport, they could only run so far. Not to mention, the three were familiar with Maple’s [Ark]. As such, they could predict the destination of [Formation Change].

Passing the gate, they began to look around. Kasumi spotted the blue flames that must’ve been emitted by Lily’s flying vehicle.

“Haku, [Super Giant]!”

“I’ll give you a ride!”

The two members of [Maple Tree] responded steadfastly. Ray was also gaining speed in midair.

“We’ll catch up with them!”

“Maple is still faster than that flying machine!”

As the distance decreased, the trail of blue flame could be seen changing its angle as the transport descended to the ground.

Ray also lowered his altitude and approached the four of them.

“Wow, you guys sure are fast!”

A rematch. Tension filled the air. The silence was broken by the crackling sound of Velvet’s lightning.

“[Heightened Output]! [Northern Light]!”

An ultra-wide skill. In an instant, Velvet’s surroundings shone brightly.

It was a lightning skill with enhanced range. With a roar, the white pillar that connected Heaven and earth blocked the path of the three.

—A few seconds later…

After the roar of thunder subsided, and the pillar of light disappeared, the four enemies were no longer there.

“It’s a distraction…!”

“Let’s look for them! I feel like we can no longer use detection. Kasumi, block the escape route!”

Leaving aside Velvet and Hinata, Lily and Wilbert shouldn’t be that far off.

After all, the distraction only lasted briefly.

Payne searched from the sky, while Kasumi and Chrome scored the ground while searching for hidden areas.

Other players also joined the search. Then, after everyone had thoroughly searched the area…

…They found out that no one was around.

It was as if the four had vanished into thin air.

Payne, Chrome, and Kasumi discussed the situation.

“How is this possible…?”

“Did we overlook anything? Or had they simply vanished?”

“I flew around for a bit. If something had flown by, I’d have noticed. I also didn’t see any suspicious effects.”

It must’ve been the light. After the light had subsided, there was no trace of the four. They had no choice but to think so.

“…Assuming it was some kind of powerful retreat method, then I can understand Velvet and Hinata’s unreasonable powerup.”

“That’s right.”

“Basically, they’d prepared an escape plan—one that’d guarantee them an out even if they’re inside the wall.”

“Seeing that they didn’t immediately use that skill after the operation was foiled, that skill must’ve had some conditions.”

Payne concluded that it was an escape skill of some kind. Chrome and Kasumi shared his view.

Judging from their series of actions, it’d be more plausible for them to prepare some skills rather than scrambling to get away.

“It seems that we’ve been tricked.”

“Well, it can’t be helped. We are still indebted to Sally.”

“Yes, she had an impressive reaction. Did she foresee everything?”

“Considering our next plan, it seems difficult to defeat them without taking some risks.”

The main force was the [Maple Tree], which boasted overwhelming defensive ability, and the [Congregation of Holy Swords], which specialized in group combat and strengthening each other with buffs. Certainly, many methods could be used to counter the enemy, one of them by receiving the attack. However, by doing so, they’d be giving the enemy an opening.

If so, they had to devise a strategy. Now that Dred was gone, things had become more difficult for the [Congregation of the Holy Swords]—nevertheless…

While incorporating [Maple Tree] into the strategy, Payne concocted the next plan.