Raus, Rebecca, and Carol were confronting the remaining Macronaria, with Yuri, Marisa, Viola, and Yuria joining in to provide support.
Marisa used the Lapis Light Axe, a dual-wielding axe made of Lapis Laz, while Viola wielded the Lapis Light Baselard, dual-wielding swords also made of Lapis Laz, engaging in close-quarters combat.
Furthermore, Yuri held the short staff Element Cane, unleashing water-attribute magic with Lux, the water spirit he had contracted with.
Yuria was the only one with a single-handed straight sword made of Magic Silver, but with the lowest level, she was kept at a distance.
Raus was effectively deflecting Macronaria’s attacks with the Lapis Light Shield, but his decisive attacks were lacking, and the damage dealt to Macronaria was negligible.
Rebecca was also shooting arrows to support Raus, but they couldn’t pierce Macronaria’s scales, and Carol hesitated whether to approach.
This was quite a tough situation.
Raus, who had evolved into a High Ulfy, had increased stamina and magic power, but being only 13 years old, he was still inferior to ordinary High Class adventurers.
This was no time to be complacent.
“Raus, Marisa, Viola! Fall back!”
Just as I thought that, Prim, who had gone ahead to provide support, began raining down Flare Needles from the sky.
Seeing this, Raus, Marisa, and Viola hurriedly retreated.
I should also activate Lightning Band to immobilize Macronaria.
“Ah, thank you!”
“No need to thank me. More importantly, how did it feel fighting it?”
“It was so large that our attacks didn’t seem to have any effect.”
I asked Raus, who had taken a distance and caught his breath.
As expected. Raus’s Unique Magic was still in its conceptual stage, so to compensate for his lack of attack power, he could only rely on Bestowed Magic or Beast Magic. Beast Magic, which allows one to freely manipulate attribute magic in the form of beasts, was more powerful than ordinary attribute magic and could reproduce the characteristics of the imitated beasts, making it more versatile than mediocre Unique Magic. Although it was a Bestowed Magic exclusive to beast-type races, Prim, being of the Winged Tribe, had her Feather Armor Magic prioritized and couldn’t use it.
“We’ll have to use Beast Magic, but to make it effective against Macronaria’s massive body, it will take quite some time, won’t it?”
“It won’t take that long, but the bigger problem is whether Rebecca can evolve. If she can’t evolve today, she might be incapacitated by acute magic fluctuation syndrome tomorrow.”
Ah, so Raus was worried about Rebecca. Indeed, since entering the labyrinth, Rebecca’s level had increased from 39 to 44. While she hadn’t gained so many levels in just one day, five levels in two days was enough to make acute magic fluctuation syndrome a possibility.
“If that’s the case, I’ll take on its attacks. Raus is also quite depleted, so there’s a chance of an accident if he continues.”
“No, I’ll do it. It’s been a while since I’ve moved my body, and I don’t want to lose my touch.”
Hearing that, I couldn’t argue. Since arriving in Valentia, Prim hadn’t fought seriously until this Solpreza Labyrinth. That was just a few hours ago against a Lesser Dragoon on the 5th Level. Before that, she had been solely focused on supporting everyone, but she hadn’t had a proper fight for days, so it was understandable for her senses to dull.
“Understood. Then I’ll help with support…”
“I appreciate it, but I’ll pass this time.”
Since she didn’t want her senses to dull, my support was indeed unnecessary.
“Understood. Then I’ll keep an eye on everyone and the Beast Carriage.”
Prim wouldn’t need my support. In fact, she defeated the Orc Empress by her own power, so as long as she didn’t make any egregious mistakes, Macronaria shouldn’t be a problem.
“Yes, please do.”
With that, Prim spread her Extreme Flame Wings and headed straight for Macronaria. Simultaneously, I canceled Lightning Band.
With the restraint lifted, Macronaria swung its massive tail towards Prim, who was approaching it. However, Prim used Barrier Magic to block the tail and lightly swung her Scarlet Wing. Although the tail was only shallowly cut, Prim’s strike easily sliced through Macronaria’s scales.
“That’s… amazing…”
“Such effortless handling of a P-rank Monster’s magic enhancement…”
Viola and Yuria were astonished, but Raus and Rebecca were unfazed, concentrating their magic power to cast spells. Raus used Beast Magic, and Rebecca used Aqua Arrow, but they were larger than usual. Rebecca’s Unique Magic was also still in development, so she was doing her best with what she could.
“I haven’t considered my Unique Magic yet, but I agree with the idea of doing what’s possible, like Rebecca.”
Watching Rebecca’s giant Aqua Arrow, Yuri also began using water-attribute magic. Lux, his contracted spirit, seemed to be lending a hand, as the water swirled in large vortexes.
Bestowed Magic: Spirit Magic, like Familiar Magic and Summoning Magic, is magic that commands contracted spirits. Rather than commanding, it’s more like borrowing their help. Only one spirit can be contracted, and it requires good compatibility, making it quite versatile. Lux, Yuri’s contracted spirit, is a water spirit, useful not only in combat but also in daily life. It’s said that Spirit Magic uses very little of the contractor’s magic power.
Using Lux’s power, Yuri unleashed a stacked Aqua Storm. Like summoned beasts, spirits can synchronize their magic power with their contractors, allowing the spirit’s magic to be treated as the contractor’s own. Therefore, even the same magic can have a vastly different power level.
However, Macronaria was inherently resistant to water-attribute magic, and the individual on this 6th Level was even resistant to ice-attribute magic. Furthermore, Yuri’s level was 25, making it nearly impossible to deal effective damage to a P-rank Monster like Macronaria. Yuri himself understood this, so this Aqua Storm was not intended to attack Macronaria directly. Even with resistance, it was possible to impede its actions.
“Nice one, Yuri!”
Yuri’s Aqua Storm covered Macronaria’s vision. Macronaria lived in water, so obscuring its vision with water had a limited effect, but it wasn’t nullified. The reason was that the water surrounding Macronaria contained magic power. Not just water-attribute magic, but all magic exhibits various effects when magic power is used. By consuming a little more of one’s magic power, it’s possible to change red flames to blue or white, or turn water black. In other words, Yuri’s strategy was to use a concentrated water vortex to obscure Macronaria’s vision, targeting its high affinity for water.
His strategy proved effective, as Macronaria seemed to have lost sight of Prim in front of it.
“Gah!”
Rebecca unleashed an Aqua Arrow, larger than usual, towards the Macronaria. To be precise, it was a Magic Silver arrow enveloped in Aqua Arms, with Aqua Arrow layered on top, but it was undoubtedly larger than what Rebecca usually used. Hmm? I felt an increase in Rebecca’s magic power… she must have evolved. The first Aqua Arrow was released before her evolution, so its power was inferior to that of a High Class adventurer. However, Rebecca seemed to realize she had evolved and immediately created and fired another Aqua Arrow. While the first Aqua Arrow consumed all of Rebecca’s magic power, her evolution to High Class had increased her magic power, allowing her to attempt another shot. Indeed, the first Aqua Arrow merely dampened Macronaria’s surface, but the second shot accurately pierced its torso.
“Gooooooo!!”
With a shout, Raus unleashed Beast Magic in the form of a wind wolf. Wind was the attribute magic Raus had the highest affinity for, so he likely chose it to deal effective damage to Macronaria. Ulfy, being a wolf-type beastman, was easily manageable for Raus.
However, this time, it was a failure. Not because he chose wind-attribute magic, but because he chose a wolf.
“Ah!”
After releasing the Beast Magic, Raus seemed to realize it too. Yes, wind and wolves were undoubtedly the most compatible and powerful combination for Raus, but the problem was the size. The Beast Magic Wind Wolf Raus released was only about twice the size of a normal wolf, and there was only one of them.
“Raus, even the most compatible combination for you can be a bad move depending on the situation. This is one of those times. If you absolutely must do it, it needs to be at least Fenrir-sized to have any meaning.”
“Yes…”
Raus’s Wind Wolf bit into Macronaria’s right foreleg, but it wasn’t enough to knock it off balance. Normally, I would have him attack again, this time with a giant wolf or another beast, but it would be too much to ask of Raus, who had almost entirely depleted his magic power with the Wind Wolf.
“It’s sufficient to have learned this much. Think of it as experience, and you’ll be able to prepare for similar giant monsters in the future.”
“Yes. It was a painful mistake for me, but if there’s a next time, I’ll definitely make use of it.”
I couldn’t really say much, but Raus’s lack of combat experience likely led to this mistake. Not only Raus, but all of the Winged Crest members were young and lacked experience compared to veteran hunters or the top raiders of each country, which is why such things happen. Moreover, with ultimate resorts like myself and Prim’s overwhelming power, gaining experience is more difficult compared to other raids and unions. However, Raus would undoubtedly apply this experience in the future and incorporate it into his Unique Magic. As for finishing Macronaria off, I’ll leave it to Prim.
“Prim, please take care of it.”
“Understood.”
The wounded Macronaria was pierced through the body by Prim’s Flare Penetrator and died.
“That’s all of them. Yamato, I’ll handle the collection, so you watch over everyone.”
“Understood. Though I’ve already collected eight, so it’s just the ones you and Meena’s group defeated.”
Telekinetic Magic, a Bestowed Magic, is truly convenient. Normally, it can only move objects heavier than oneself, and even High Class adventurers are limited to about ten times their own weight. However, with my evolution to Ancient Human, moving Macronaria’s massive body was not a significant burden.
“Telekinetic Magic, huh? It’s convenient, but I don’t think it suits my style.”
“It’s Bestowed Magic, so it’s not about suitability; it’s something you can use.”
“True.”
Prim said this as she returned to the Beast Carriage after finishing the collection, but Bestowed Magic is magic that is either born or granted upon evolution, regardless of personal affinity.
Speaking of which, everyone is quite exhausted. Especially the High Class adventurers, who seem to have depleted their magic power fighting Macronaria. Currently, only I, Prim, and Rebecca can fight, but even Rebecca can’t be pushed too hard, having just evolved.
“Everyone is so exhausted. I suppose we’ll camp at the next Safe Area tonight.”
“We have no choice.”
It’s a relief that the next Safe Area is close by. It’s also possible, given the time, that it might be the entrance to the 7th Level.
“Then we’ll have to leave it to fate.”
“Yeah.”
Not just in the Solpreza Labyrinth, but maps of labyrinths can be recorded with Hunter Magic Mapping. Hunters also venture to the 4th Level to hunt Lesser Dragoons, so detailed maps for the 4th Level can be purchased. However, very few hunters venture below the 5th Level, so there are no such maps. We record our routes using mapping, but it only records where we’ve been, so we have no information about Safe Areas we haven’t reached. Therefore, whether the next Safe Area is the entrance to the 7th Level is, as Prim said, a matter of leaving it to fate. Even if it’s not the entrance to the 7th Level, no hunters have made it this far, so the fact that we don’t need to stand guard at night is a blessing in itself.
