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"Latia."
"Yeah?"
"Support me from the rear with magic that has a short preparation time. The swordsmanship students alone can't hold them off. Your role is crucial."
Latia stared intently at Davian's face.
"What about you?"
Of course.
The problem is Latia's pride.
Everyone needs to move organically to keep the three swordsmanship students facing the Gray Witch on the front lines from being killed or injured.
With Latia's support from the rear, the three swordsmen, led by Bonita, can restrain the Gray Witch more easily.
But Latia wasn't one to take on a role like just stalling for time while Davian prepared the finishing blow.
'I need to persuade Latia to prevent the others from getting hurt.'
Latia isn't yet at the level where she can deal with the Gray Witch in one shot.
If she can't deal with her in one shot, the dealers' movements will gradually slow down, and a situation could arise where anyone could die.
"I need to prepare a finishing blow. This isn't the academy. This is real combat. The others could get hurt or die. I know it's a hit to your pride, but..."
"It's not."
An unexpected word came from Latia's mouth.
"It's not?"
"Yeah. Davian, you're stronger than me. I realized that for sure after seeing the duel with Rubens. I'll somehow hold them off, so you can use your ultimate move. The opponent is the Gray Witch, after all."
Davian stared at Latia.
This is the first time he's seen this in all four playthroughs.
Latia, who always had to be the best, is now willingly taking on the role of a supporter.
"Oh, okay. Thanks."
"I hate to admit it, but it's the truth. But don't think I'll be behind you forever. I'll catch up soon."
Something has definitely changed.
"Good. That's up to you. Let's get ready."
Latia is taken care of.
Now it's Bonita's turn.
Bonita is great in every way, but she's too impulsive.
"Bonita! The Gray Witch isn't an opponent you can kill with swordsmanship anyway. Don't overdo it, just stall for time. Never push yourself too hard."
Bonita nodded briefly.
Next.
"Nubes! Bellum!"
"Yeah?"
"Yes!"
"Just run around as much as possible. Make it chaotic. If Bonita gets hurt, Bellum, take her to Luna. Meanwhile, Nubes, somehow hold out on your own."
"Is that all? What's our role?"
"If you can, stick to the Gray Witch and stab her with a knife or something."
"...I'll run around as chaotically as possible!"
Finally, Luna Fieri.
"Luna! You know your role, right?"
"Yeah? Yeah!"
"They're definitely going to get hurt once or twice. You need to heal them as quickly as possible so they can return to the front lines immediately."
"Yeah! Got it!"
After giving all the instructions, Davian retreated to the back and began to circulate his mana.
A moment later.
Swish, swish, swish.
The Gray Witch appeared, dragging her long skirt on the floor.
A face devoid of any blood, silver hair.
Silver eyes.
"What are these, little kids?"
An enormous chill and a sharp aura emanating from her.
The Gray Witch's aura, which they were experiencing for the first time, was enough to make even Bonita stand still instead of rushing in.
The Gray Witch closed her eyes and spread her arms.
After a moment.
The Gray Witch, having surveyed the entire Northern Ice Field, opened her mouth again.
"How dare these bugs enter the sacred Northern Ice Field in such numbers. Did they come for a picnic? I'll kill them all."
The Gray Witch slowly opened her eyes.
Cold, silver eyes looked at Davian and his party one by one.
"Such frightened faces. You managed to get this far. Go to hell first, you bugs. I'll send a bunch of your friends soon so you won't be lonely."
A deadly chill emanated from the Gray Witch's hand.
At the same time, Bonita's figure disappeared.
Whoosh.
Bonita's sword, drawing out aura, slashed at the Gray Witch's waist.
Crack.
The Gray Witch casually grabbed Bonita's aura-imbued sword with her hand.
At the same time, her other hand reached out towards Bonita.
White frost bloomed on her palm.
Then.
Bang! Boom!
A fiery fireball struck the Gray Witch's torso.
It was Latia's rear support.
Bonita quickly pulled out her sword and retreated before circling around behind the Gray Witch.
Meanwhile, Nubes and Bellum suddenly started running around erratically from side to side.
"These irritating bugs!"
The Gray Witch, greatly angered, scattered her arms in all directions.
The chill emanating from her arms enveloped the three swordsmen.
"Ugh!"
"Aah!"
Nubes and Bellum were hit by the scattered chill and pushed back a considerable distance.
"Haah!"
Bonita's greatly swung sword cut through the scattered chill.
For now, things were going well according to Davian's plan.
If the Gray Witch's attack had been concentrated on Bonita instead of being scattered in all directions, she wouldn't have been able to cut through it so easily.
Bonita threw herself at the Gray Witch again.
At the same time, Latia's fireball flew towards the Gray Witch as well.
Luna quickly ran over and healed Nubes and Bellum.
Thunk.
Bonita's sword pierced the Gray Witch's back.
It barely pierced through the clothes, and there was no feeling of penetrating flesh at all.
The Gray Witch turned sharply and emitted a strong chill.
This time, it wasn't an area-of-effect attack but a single-target attack.
The range was narrowed, but its power was incomparably stronger.
Davian shouted.
"Bonita! Dodge that!"
Bonita quickly threw herself aside to avoid the chill.
Crack.
A large ice pillar formed in the spot where she had been.
"Phew, almost died."
The Gray Witch's remaining hand followed Bonita's movements.
Boom!
Latia's fireball accurately hit the Gray Witch's hand, which was about to emit a chill.
The Gray Witch turned her head sharply towards Latia.
Meanwhile, Nubes and Bellum, having finished healing, started running around erratically again.
Twitch.
The Gray Witch's brow furrowed deeply.
"Ugh... these bug-like guys!"
Whoosh.
A chilling aura swirled around the Gray Witch's body.
Her calmly falling hair spread out in all directions and rose up.
Davian's eyes, who had been calmly circulating his mana, narrowed.
'The difficulty is rising faster than I thought?'
It seems like I teased her too much to prevent the attacks from concentrating on Bonita.
"Everyone, be careful! Retreat! Latia! Shield!"
The swordsmen retreated in a hurry, and Latia deployed a thick ice barrier in front of them.
Boom! Crack!
As expected of Latia.
It must have been a pretty strong attack, but the ice barrier she deployed didn't break at once and held up well.
But only up to that point.
Crack! Crack!
Latia's ice barrier couldn't withstand the Gray Witch's chill and began to crack more and more.
Latia gritted her teeth and poured more mana into it.
But she couldn't stop the cracks from growing bigger and bigger.
The Gray Witch's chill on the other side also gradually increased in intensity.
Latia shouted urgently.
"Davian! Are you almost ready?"
Davian's calm voice came from behind.
"Thanks for the hard work."
Whoosh.
At that moment, several streams of wind began to blow into the cave.
The wind, which quickly grew in size, staggered Latia and Luna.
"Everyone, lie down!"
At Davian's shout, all the party members lay flat on the floor.
"The shield?"
"Get rid of it!"
Latia cut off the mana she was pushing into the ice barrier.
Crack! Boom!
As soon as the mana was cut off, the ice barrier shattered in an instant.
The wind, which had been sucked in from outside the cave, now filled the cave and swirled towards the Gray Witch.
The chill that had been reaching out towards Davian's party was blocked by the powerful wind element magic and could no longer approach.
Rather, the Gray Witch's chill was gradually being pushed back.
Even though they were lying down, Luna's body was caught in the wind and floated up.
"Luna!"
Nubes quickly reached out and grabbed Luna's ankle.
Wham!
Nubes, having strongly planted his shield on the ground, pulled Luna towards him.
"D, don't let go! Nubes!"
"Uwaaa!"
The veins on Nubes's forearm bulged out.
Luna's body, which had been floating in the air due to the wind, slowly came back down to the ground.
The wind, which was being sucked in from the wide outside into the narrow cave, gradually increased in power.
The wind element magic, which had now reached the Gray Witch, began to push the witch back little by little.
Davian circulated his inner force to avoid being caught in the wind and slowly walked forward.
Davian stepped forward in front of his friends.
Whoosh!
A large flame appeared on Davian's palm.
Whooooosh.
The flame quickly increased its temperature and density before pouring into the Gray Witch.
The flame increasingly grew in power, riding the strong wind.
It was the same principle as a flame greatly coming to life through bellows.
The Gray Witch also emitted a chill, opposing Davian's flame.
But the wind, which had already begun to be sucked into the narrow cave, continued to increase its power.
The power of the flame also increased in proportion.
The Gray Witch shouted in a voice filled with malice.
"Kkyaaaak! You bug-like bastard!"
There was no need to push in more mana.
Davian's flame covered the Gray Witch, increasing its power like an unavoidable disaster.
"Who's calling who a bug? You're just the first boss."
The flames that had clung to the Gray Witch's body blazed fiercely.
"Kk... Kkyaaaak! Ho! Hot!"
The wind that had been rushing into the cave gradually subsided.
The friends who had been lying flat behind Davian slowly got up.
The ice cave above the Gray Witch also melted, and water dripped down.
It was the inner wall of the ice cave that had not melted for thousands of years.
Luna's voice was heard.
"Amazing... Davian. To defeat the Gray Witch all by himself."
Bellum spread his arms and shrugged his shoulders.
"Defeat her all by himself? It's all thanks to us running around chaotically. Isn't that right, Nubes?"
"Th, that's right."
Latia silently watched Davian's flames burning the Gray Witch.
Ting.
An alarm sounded only in Davian's ears.
=====
[Quest 'Northern Ice Field Subjugation' Completed]
―Acquired 6,500 Mana Points
=====
Davian looked at the notification window with a puzzled expression.
'What is it? Is that it? Didn't that hidden quest pop up when the Gray Witch appeared?'
He didn't look at the notification window in detail because he was focused on mana circulation, but a hidden quest definitely popped up.
Ting.
=====
[Hidden Quest 'Unquenchable Flame' Completed]
―Achievement Conditions: Defeat the Gray Witch
① Solo Kill
② Defeat with Fire Element Magic
③ Defeat within the Ice Cave
―Reward: Active Skill 'Song of Fire Lv.1'
=====
'I knew it.'
Only in the 4th playthrough did he clear all three achievement conditions for this hidden quest.
Davian shouted 'Skill Details' in his mind.
=====
[Song of Fire Lv.1]
―Active Skill
―Cooldown: 24 Hours
―Duration: 1 Minute
―Increases the Power of Fire Attribute Magic by 10%
―Duration and Power Increase Rate Increase Depending on Skill Level
―Skill Level Increases When Mana is Raised While Possessing the Skill
―Evolves into Advanced Skill 'Festival of Fire' Upon Reaching Skill Level 20
=====
Increases Fire Attribute Magic Power by 10%.
Usable once a day.
Duration is only 1 minute.
It's a skill that's worse than the Mana Amplification Ring purchased from the magic material store right now.
But it's unknown how the power increase rate will change when the level rises.
Besides, it's an evolving skill.
The detailed information of the advanced skill 'Festival of Fire' is not yet available, but it was certain to be a more powerful skill.
Perhaps it was possible that it would become an absurdly OP skill as the level increased.
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