Redras’s spear was thrust again. Its target was Stella. Moreover, the spear was wreathed in Wind… it was undeniably a “Blast Lance.”

Stella had already moved to evade. Watching her, I immediately tried to act.

The magic I was incanting was “Air Shield,” and if I combined this with a Wind Blade at an output that wouldn’t reveal my abilities, and slightly dulled the spear’s trajectory, it would be possible to evade the attack. The moment I thought to do so –

Suddenly, I had a bad feeling.

Just as I wondered what it was, I realized my body was moving on its own. From countless battles with monsters during my training, what you might call ‘instinct’ sometimes worked. This was probably a solid Combat Intuition gained through continuous fighting – following that intuition, I turned my head not to Stella, but to Sofia.

Redras’s target was Stella… everyone else besides me probably thought so. But I followed my intuition, used magic on Sofia, and prepared to unleash a Wind Blade.

Immediately after that. Redras’s “Blast Lance” forcefully changed its trajectory and closed in on Sofia -!

“Huh!?”

I understood Sofia’s groan. She had already begun evasive action when Redras used his technique, but the surprise attack left her no time to react. However, the next moment, Redras’s attack was dulled by the effect of the “Air Shield” I used. Then I swung my sword upward and unleashed a Wind Blade.

It touched the spear, making a dry ‘paan’ sound. The output was considerably suppressed, so it couldn’t nullify the power… but Sofia succeeded in escaping the danger thanks to the magic and wind.

“Oh, you dodged that… you seem quite capable as well.”

Words of praise came from Redras. They were probably directed at me, not Sofia.

During the conversation, Stella regained her posture, and Alto launched another attack. This time it was a solo attack – no, Ignos used “Holy Shot” to provide support.

Redras blocked the magic and also parried Alto’s Sword Strike with his spear… indeed, coordinated attacks seemed to be the key. Fighting alone made it difficult to even land an attack.

However, Alto bravely attacked again. Stella dashed, and Sofia also went on the offensive. Then Redras’s gaze swept over the three of them once… and that’s when I understood.

It seemed Redras was most wary of Alto’s attacks… As I thought, Alto pressed further forward. Redras calmly blocked the attack… and also blocked Stella’s and Sofia’s attacks from the side with his spear, but perhaps prioritizing Alto, the second strike of Sofia’s Sword Strike grazed his body slightly.

They must have dealt some damage—Alto and the others retreat for a moment.

“Hmm, you seem capable.”

Redras speaks to Alto and the others, who have distanced themselves. It doesn’t look like it’s having an effect, but—

“It’s been a long time. An attack that causes pain.”

“…It seems to be working.”

Redras nods at Alto’s voice.

“Of course.”

“If you wanted to unnerve us, wouldn’t it have been better to maintain your poker face?”

Alto shows a stance ready to attack further. He must have gained confidence knowing it was effective.

Meanwhile, Redras re-positions his spear and speaks to us.

“I do not desire psychological warfare. All I seek is the clash of martial arts.”

“…It’s straightforward, which is good, but you’re a difficult opponent to deal with.”

Alto gives a wry smile. Stella also seems to have thought the same thing, smiling wryly like her brother.

“Well, whatever… If it’s working, I’ll keep attacking without holding back!”

Alto runs. Stella also starts moving. It was the same composition as before, but this time, Stella made the first move.

Was it a coordinated effort or her sole decision? Furthermore, Sofia’s movement was also off-timing, and it was definitely different from the previous flow.

How would Redras view that? There is also the option of taking an attack while targeting someone and attacking them. Ignos and I are there to provide support to prevent that, but… I realize here that Redras is also keeping an eye on me. Since he dealt with ‘Blast Lance’ earlier, he is wary of me too.

Amidst that, Stella’s attack. Redras immediately deflects it with his spear, but this time Sofia slashes from the front.

It’s obvious that she’ll be knocked away by the spear in a direct fight. But she still charges in—and at the same time, Alto approaches. Which will Redras defend against? Or will he retreat and evade?

Immediately after, Sofia unleashed ‘Fire Lance’. A spear of flame thrust straight forward, and Redras instinctively evaded. As a result, a slight opening was created, perhaps because he focused on evasion.

And Alto roared. It was a momentary opening, but for Alto, it was a perfect opportunity.

“—Ooooooh!”

He swings his Greatsword with a shout. From my perspective, it was clearly a different move than before, and I clearly understood what he unleashed.

Alto charges and unleashes a sweeping sword strike. It directly hit Redras—but it’s not over yet.

This time, he immediately brought the raised sword down. A Sword Strike from both low and high. And with the downward swing, a Shockwave caused by Magic Power was generated, blowing Redras’s body back a little.

“Guh—!”

Even Redras groaned at this… There’s no doubt. This is ‘Guilty Break’, an Intermediate Technique of the Greatsword. Through battling the formidable Five Great Demons, he has finally mastered an intermediate-class technique.

While I was surprised, Sofia launched a further attack. She poured Magic Power into her blade and unleashed it towards Redras.

“Yaaah!”

A horizontal slash was unleashed with a piercing cry. The Sword Strike, released with momentum, blew Redras’s body even further.

I understood from the Magic Power being emitted. This is ‘Earth Crush’, a low-level Magic Sword Technique. It doesn’t strike with clear physical matter like pebbles or rocks, like the Earth Elemental Magic ‘Stone Blast’, but it attacked Redras with the power of the earth, borrowing the strength of a Gnome.

Furthermore, Ignos unleashed ‘Holy Shot’ for the third time as if to pursue the attack. It also directly hit the faltering Redras—and it must have been a painful blow.

“Well done, you all!”

But Redras did not cry out in agony; instead, he erupted with Magic Power, as if demonstrating his strength to Alto and the others.

That coordinated attack must have been effective. Nevertheless, Redras is still very much alive… Here, I recall my training days.

I verified various things in battles against Monsters. As a result, even with the same Monster, there were differences in HP, and in some cases, they could be defeated much more easily than in the game.

This is probably related to factors such as where they were hit, or the power being increased beyond the game’s level due to boosted Magic Power output. Since even powerful Monsters showed similar variations, Redras should be no different.

Therefore, fewer attacks are needed compared to the game… If we attack with Alto, who has mastered Intermediate Techniques, as the main force, there’s a possibility of a quick resolution.

“You still seem to have plenty of余裕, but that smug look won’t last much longer.”

Alto says, re-positioning his Greatsword and getting ready to attack.

Redras’s appearance hasn’t changed. In the game, there were no visual changes no matter how much his HP decreased, and his movements never slowed down, but in reality, such things are entirely possible.

Then, Redras attacked first. He swung his spear, launching an attack as if to keep us in check–and I started my Magic Incantation again.

Everyone retreated at once, as if in perfect sync. Alto immediately counterattacked. There’s no doubt it was risky, but his body must have reacted, telling him to push forward anyway.

Redras met the attack. He seems to have a habit of prioritizing attacks against courageous Humans… Alto’s attack was parried.

This time, even Sofia couldn’t provide support… but she still tried to step in, ready to fight. At that moment,

“–How about this?”

Redras launched his spear. It was unmistakably a “Gale Spear,” thrusting directly towards Sofia.

I thought about providing support–but in that instant, Kyarun, who was closer to Sofia, moved first.