Volume 9, Chapter 36 – The Trap Set for Red

Upon reaching a position ten meters above the treetops using [Fly] magic, Purple and Red stopped ascending. The previously dim and constricted view instantly opened up.

“Red, you deal with that pure-blood. Leave the others to me. Be careful not to get too carried away and fly too high.”

Using [Fly] in an unexplored forest was quite dangerous. Appearing above the forest meant becoming a living target visible to all monsters. Setting aside aggressive, highly territorial carnivorous bird monsters, some ground monsters also had the habit of attacking moving objects. Flying too high would attract a swarm attack from the forest’s monsters—this was common knowledge.

“Yeah. You don’t stray too far either, Purple, or I won’t be able to provide backup in time.”

“I know.”

After a serious nod of agreement, the airborne Red and Purple separated, heading straight for the location where they remembered Edith being. However, contrary to expecting Edith to have vanished, she was standing right below their previous position in the clearing, as if she had been waiting for a long time. But she wasn’t alone; standing with her was a purple-haired Blood Clan member dressed as a maid.

Two of them?

An unexpected bonus.

A predatory smile appeared on Red’s face.

Even if both attacked together, there was no chance of her losing. Gathering her fighting spirit, Red descended to the ground under the watchful eyes of the two Blood Clan members. She feared magical attacks, but in close combat, especially against opponents of a lower level, failure was impossible.

“Hehe… I originally thought you’d hide and drag it out until the fifteen minutes were up. I didn’t expect you to dare stand here. Though reckless, I commend your courage. Even if you lose this battle, I will still regard you as admirable opponents.”

“Hoh.” Facing Red, who was approaching with [Degraded Demonic Blade] covering her fists, Edith raised an eyebrow with interest, planting Gungnir into the ground with a thwack. “It’s not certain we’ll be the ones losing—at least, I won’t.”

“Then let’s see!”

Having always disliked verbal exchanges before a fight, Red immediately used magic.

[Flash], [Pierce].

First, she used [Flash], a spell comparable in speed to [Blink], to appear before Edith. Then, covering her right fist with [Pierce] magic, she threw a punch at Edith.

The advantage of trigger-activated items lay in surprise. If one knew the opponent had such an item and didn’t imbue their attack with magic capable of breaking through magical defenses, they could only be called brain-dead. The reason this pure-blood dared to clash head-on was primarily her reliance on that trigger-activated item, powerful enough to be measured in gem coins. Therefore, as long as the barrier it generated was shattered, she would immediately show surprise and panic.

However, unexpectedly, Edith simply leaned back slightly, easily dodging her right-to-left swing. At the same time, Refina, reacting on the other side, swung a fist glowing with earthy yellow light from the flank.

Although [Degraded Demonic Blade] would prevent her from being seriously injured by this punch, if she didn’t dodge in time, her soft waist might be paralyzed by the blow, ending the fight.

“Hmph.”

[Heavy Peaks].

Centering on Red, an imperceptible wave of transparent airflow pulsed outwards. Refina’s attack was like punching rubber; the moment it touched the outward-rippling air, her motion stopped uncontrollably.

“Tsk, as expected of someone approaching the quasi-heroic domain.”

“Your reaction isn’t bad either, pure-blood.”

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To react to her attack in the blink of an eye… setting aside levels, this pure-blood’s close combat skills were equal to, if not better than, her own.

That makes sense. With that Angel of Guidance teaching her, it would be strange if her combat skills were worse than mine. But what Red found odd was that she had seen this pure-blood fight before, and her speed hadn’t been this fast then. Now, it was as if she were a different person, her speed only slightly slower than her own.

Could it be because of the trigger-activated item? But how can a trigger-activated item enhance the body? That makes no sense. Engraving multiple magic circles onto an item could easily cause it to break due to the material being unable withstand the immense magic power. And simultaneously inscribing powerful defensive and enhancement magic—not to mention making the defensive magic trigger-activated—even if both were actively used spells, not even Crimson Gold, with the highest hardness and magic conductivity, could possibly withstand it.

No, now is not the time to think about this. Since it happened, I just have to deal with the situation as it is.

While thinking this, Red began to layer magic onto herself. Since she couldn’t gain an advantage through skill, she would choose to overwhelm her opponent with sheer magical power difference. Purple was still struggling on the other side; she had to end this quickly.

[Fighting Spirit].

If it were night, Edith and Refina would surely see countless blue motes of light gathering around Red. Like [Fly], [Fighting Spirit] was a spell that could only be learned after reaching level 30. While using it, the rate of magic power consumption increased drastically, but in return, both strength and reaction speed received a significant leap.

This was just the beginning.

After using [Fighting Spirit], Red continued to cast [Sevenfold Barrier] and [Martial Blessing] on herself—spells that could block seven attacks and greatly increase her own strength, respectively.

At the same time, Edith on the other side wasn’t just sitting idle. Red’s aura was visibly growing stronger. If her side didn’t react, she likely wouldn’t be able to dodge an attack like the previous one again.

Chanting a spell in a low voice, Edith’s azure eyes gradually turned blood-red.

[Night Shadow].

A pure-blood’s innate magic, drastically enhancing physical abilities at the cost of blood. Then, Edith raised Gungnir and thrusted at Red, who was continuously retreating while casting enhancement spells.

“Too slow!—Hah!”

Instead of dodging, Red stopped retreating, roared, took a step forward, and directly grabbed Gungnir with both hands covered in [Degraded Demonic Blade].

“Tsk.”

Perhaps unexpected that her thrust would be stopped by being grabbed with both hands, the pure-blood’s annoyed click of the tongue made Red grin wildly. Under [Fighting Spirit] and [Martial Blessing], she held an absolute advantage in both speed and strength. Even Lin, before fainting, couldn’t compare to her in strength.

She gradually applied pressure with her hands.

Once I take her spear, she’ll be at an absolute disadvantage without her weapon. While warriors become stronger relying on weapons, they also become weaker. Once disarmed, they become like toothless beasts. But she, who fought entirely without weapons, would never fall into such a predicament.

The power difference brought by levels was obvious. Edith couldn’t gain an advantage in strength, and Gungnir gradually moved closer to Red.

Wuff .

Red flames erupted on Gungnir.

It’s probably some magic the pure-blood is using to make me let go, Red guessed. But her hands were protected by [Degraded Demonic Blade]; this level of flame was no different from lukewarm water. The maid on the other side was also attacking her desperately, but due to insufficient power, she hadn’t even broken through the first layer of the [Sevenfold Barrier] yet.

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As long as this stalemate continues, victory is mine.

—It should have been.

Crash.

The sound of shattering glass.

Then.

Clang clang clang clang.

Four more shattering sounds in quick succession.

“Damn it.”

Someone had broken her [Sevenfold Barrier]—not the purple-haired maid, but someone else.

Four layers shattered in less than a second. Although three remained, continuing the stalemate without knowing who the attacker was was tantamount to waiting for death.

Instinctively, Red released Gungnir. The balance of power broke, and Edith and Red were both pushed back, creating a ten-meter distance between them.

Who is it?

Slightly lowering her center of gravity, Red scanned her surroundings. But in this forest thick with shrubs and poor visibility, she couldn’t find the attacker at all, nor could she even tell which direction the attack came from.

This is a trap.

There were more than just two of them from the start.

Just as Red’s heart skipped a beat, the sound of the [Sevenfold Barrier] shattering echoed again.

“Behind me!”

This time, Red sensed the direction of the attack. But just as she turned, preparing to grab the ambusher first, a sharp edge that made her scalp tingle and sent a chill straight up her spine came from behind her.

If I don’t deal with this properly, I’ll be seriously injured.

In the nick of time, Red activated [Heavy Peaks] again, simultaneously gathering all of [Degraded Demonic Blade] in front of her, forming it into a pointed, cone-shaped shield facing Edith’s direction.

Then.

A red meteor rapidly expanded in her vision.

[Guaranteed Hit Spear].

A trump card wasn’t meant to be held onto forever. Throwing it out at the right moment was how it fulfilled its purpose. And the [Guaranteed Hit Spear], infused with at least half of Edith’s magic power, was the strongest trump card in her hand. With Edith’s current level 27 magic power, a single strike’s power was fully comparable to a Tier 3 single-target attack spell.

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BOOM!

Ignoring the effect of [Heavy Peaks], Gungnir easily tore through the remaining two layers of [Sevenfold Barrier]. At extremely close range, it slammed fiercely against the cone-shaped [Degraded Demonic Blade]. The tremendous impact made even Red grunt involuntarily. Her legs not only sank into the mud but also scraped two shocking gouges in the ground. Unlike the initial iron spear’s power, Gungnir caused Red’s arms to fall into temporary paralysis.

This is bad.

Although the paralysis was temporary—with her recovery ability, she could recover in at most two breaths—now that the [Sevenfold Barrier] was shattered, she was as vulnerable as a butterfly caught in a spiderweb. Who knew when the hidden—undoubtedly a magic caster—would attack again? Even if she wouldn’t immediately lose combat capability after being hit, defeat was only a matter of time.

In the corner of her eye, a purple figure charged towards her.

It was the maid Blood Clan. She was buying time for the pure-blood to retrieve Gungnir.

But her arms hadn’t recovered yet; she couldn’t mount an effective response.

“Damn it.”

Forced, Red dodged Refina to the right. But immediately after, Edith, having retrieved Gungnir, attacked again. The coordinated offense of the two Blood Clan members gave Red no breathing room. Even when Red jumped far away from them, they could always catch up at a speed not much slower than hers.

I have to find a way to deal with the magic caster quickly.

Red made the judgment instantly.

But the reality was, Red couldn’t break free from the intertwined attacks of the two vampire princesses. Especially the purple-haired one. Initially, Red hadn’t paid much attention to this opponent who couldn’t even break her [Sevenfold Barrier]. But as time went on, she discovered something that made her want to curse—every attack from this purple-haired vampire slowed her movement speed. She hadn’t noticed at first because each contact only slowed her by a minuscule amount, but as the number of hits increased, the cumulative effect became impossible to ignore.

The earthy yellow light covering her gauntlets must be some kind of slowing magic.

Realizing this, Red’s movements became even more hampered. She not only had to barely fend off Gungnir but also had to avoid being hit by Refina as much as possible.

If this were an open field without obstacles, the situation would be completely reversed. I’m confident I could defeat everyone. But unfortunately, this is a forest, and Purple isn’t nearby.

If Purple didn’t arrive soon, once the magic caster finished chanting, she would lose. Although that caster hadn’t used the unknown attack again, Red was certain that just a few more hits like that would spell her defeat.

The continuous attacks from her opponents made Red anxious.

The immediate priority was to leave here and regroup with Purple. But shouting for help against opponents not even level 30… Red’s pride wouldn’t allow it. Without thinking, Red seized a gap in the two vampires’ coordinated attack and used [Fly] to leave the ground.

This was her advantage over them. Unless someone specialized in wind magic, people below level 30 absolutely couldn’t use [Fly]. Next, she just needed to regroup with Purple, have her unleash a magical carpet bombing, and the battle would end—assuming Camilla didn’t take any action.

As Red flew up to the level of the tree canopy, Edith, once again imbuing Gungnir with the effect of [Guaranteed Hit Spear], shouted.

“Camilla! What are you waiting for!”

“I don’t need you to command me.”

The reason Camilla hadn’t used [Ice Lance] on Red again wasn’t due to lack of magic power, but because she had been preparing another Tier 2 spell. Due to lack of experience and the spell’s inherently difficult incantation, Camilla needed an extremely long preparation time.

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From the very beginning, Edith and Refina never intended to defeat Red. Their attacks were just stalling for time.

When Red saw a fiery red light ignite in the forest’s shadows, her eyes widened abruptly, her heart clenching uncontrollably.

“What?”

“Blazing light filling heaven and earth, gather all darkness into my hand!—[Elemental Dispel]!”

In an instant, as if the sky itself had caught fire, the air within a twenty-meter radius around Red was filled with orange-red flames. But these flames didn’t possess burning heat; they were merely the physical manifestation of elements. [Elemental Dispel] could use the caster’s proficient element to dispel any other element in the air except for the higher elements of light and darkness, thereby rendering specific elemental magic unusable. Now, fire element was being used to drive out wind element, nullifying [Fly].

Like a string-cut kite, no matter how Red tried to manipulate her magic power, she couldn’t stop her descent. At the same time, Edith’s [Guaranteed Hit Spear] reached full power, its dangerous red glow causing Red’s chest to ache just by looking at it from afar.

Undoubtedly, she had become a living target while falling.

However, unlike before, Red started laughing.

It was the anger born from being toyed with by weaker enemies after underestimating them. Like gasoline hitting a spark, even while falling, the aura enveloping Red surged to a level clearly perceptible to everyone. The explosive increase in power even made the surrounding trees rustle violently.

“Hehehe… To force me to use this spell, you indeed have the strength to challenge me. However, playtime is over!”

A dragon claw phantom appeared over her right hand. Red, who should have been falling straight down, suddenly changed her trajectory. As if pulled by an invisible string, she shot straight towards Camilla like a cannonball fired from a barrel, trailing an iridescent flame in the air.

The terrifying aura reminded one of a meteor about to crash into the earth. If this blow landed, even the ground would crack—anyone seeing this strike would think so. This was also Red’s strongest trump card, the blow known as [Dragon Breaker], capable of shattering a dragon’s jaw.

But Red still hadn’t realized she wasn’t fighting just one person.

“Miss Camilla!”

“Leave the rest to Mary! Everyone, activate magic items! [Aegis Shield]!”

Without warning, a petite figure with long chestnut hair and short elven ears appeared on the other side of the forest. After Camilla cast [Aegis Shield] on Mary, the blow that should have hit Camilla abruptly changed direction, turning towards Mary who held her shield aloft.

At the same time, the Divine Key on Mary’s neck flashed golden light repeatedly. Her right bracelet also conjured a thick wall like a crystal barrier in front of her. As if feeling this still wasn’t enough insurance, the Divine Key added countless Tier 1 [Magic Shields] outside the crystal wall. The layers upon layers of defense made it seem like an impenetrable fortress.

The next second.

A strike that whipped up a storm in the forest.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

With the point of impact as the center, all trees within a fifty-meter radius snapped at the trunk as if cut by [Wind Blade]. Spiderweb cracks appeared on the ground. The nearby lake erupted as if a depth charge had been dropped, sending waves ten meters high. All monsters in the vicinity were terrified by this [Dragon Breaker] strike, fleeing frantically to their lairs.

Five minutes passed before the dust gradually settled, revealing the figures beneath.

Red, breathing heavily from massive magic power consumption, her clothes tattered from the explosion. Mary, completely protected by multiple layers of defensive magic, with only a small dent on her shield. On the other side stood Camilla, Edith, and Refina, protected by an eggshell-like magic barrier. Because they had activated their trigger-activated magic items at the last moment, everyone, including Mary, the main target, was unharmed by the explosion, aside from having their clothes and hair messed up by the wind.