Defense specialization and boss elimination.

"Found a room that looks like a Boss Room!"

Before them stood a door, absent from the journey so far.

A wooden door, about five meters tall, opens to reveal the interior.

The space is vast, dimly lit.

The ceiling rises nearly ten meters, and the width appears similar.

Depth, however, is twice that, with a colossal throne at the far end.

There, seated upon it, was a massive goblin with a grotesque face.

Its exact size is unclear, as it sits, but it is at least as large as the door just passed. Three times the size of an ordinary goblin.

The goblin notices the two and roars.

The sheer volume forces both to grimace.

"Let’s take it down quickly! That noise is unbearable!"

"Agreed. Let’s go."

Sally nods.

Maple’s large shield shifts into its night-veil form—battle-ready.

The distance to the goblin is roughly twenty meters.

Sally moves at top speed to close the gap.

But the goblin does not allow it.

From beside the throne, the goblin rises, grasping a massive sword leaning against the wall, and swings it violently forward.

A deadly blade approaches with crushing force.

“【Cover Move】! 【Cover】!”

Whether Sally avoided it is unknown. Maple stands firm, unafraid of the sword twice her height, intercepting it with her great shield and driving it away. The enemy’s main weapon is shattered in the opening seconds, obliterated by overwhelming force.

The sword dissolves into light.

“Nice! Good…!”

Sally advances closer to the boss. And from this point onward, Maple’s action is unexpected—perhaps even to Sally, perhaps even to the goblin.

“【Cover Move】!”

Maple accelerates, catching up to Sally as she runs. No attack comes from the goblin.

Sally moves forward, startled, yet unyielding.

【Cover Move】!

Maple forces her way to catch up with Sally. Now both stand before the goblin.

The goblin swings its thick arm down with a thunderous crash.

The blow misses Sally.

Her famed evasion refuses such a dull attack. Sally leaps high, aiming for the goblin’s abdomen.

At the moment her dagger nears the goblin’s body.

【Cover Move】!

Sally’s lips curl in a wry smile. The use of Cover Move now feels absurd.

Maple closes in, stepping within the reach of the goblin’s massive shield.

Sally strikes once, then retreats from the spot.

Maple twists her body and swings the shield clear.

How was that! The power!

A vivid damage effect spreads across the goblin’s abdomen, wide as a great shield, its HP gauge diminishing by roughly thirty percent.

The strike drew the goblin’s wrath. Maple’s fist slammed into the ground.

Fufufu... Double damage? Zero times two is still zero!

The disadvantage of double damage from the Cabbage Move meant nothing before Maple’s defense, which defied reason. Still, the armor was not so resilient. A sharp crack split through it, and it shattered.

“Ue…!?”

Maple was startled. The broken armor glowed faintly, immediately.

It regained its original form.

"Ah! That's right—[Break Growth]!"

Damaged gear grows sturdier, more solid.

Sally calls to Maple.

Can you do it one more time!?

Of course!

Maple rises and watches Sally's movement.

And at the moment the goblin’s fist strikes Sally.

“【Cover Move】! 【Cover】!”

She steps between the fist and Sally, raising the large shield.

Her arm vanishes into the shield’s edge, scattering crimson light. The force of her downward swing, driven to strike Sally swiftly, does not cease.

HP gauge dips sharply again.

Around forty percent remaining.

Maple draws her crescent blade.

“Gotta show a little more effort, don’t you think? 【Super Acceleration】!”

Sally’s form blurs, accelerating.

Sally moves at high speed, circling behind the goblin.

“【Double Slash】! 【Wind Cutter】! 【Power Attack】! 【Double Slash】!”

The rapid barrage, amplified by the 【Super Acceleration】 effect, strikes. Even after such a flurry, the gauge drops only a little—just over ten percent. The anomaly of Maple’s shield becomes clear.

Even after such a barrage, the goblin could not help but turn its attention toward Sally.

The goblin turns, wrapping its arm in a yellow effect that overlays the red damage effect, and swings.

The blow misses Sally, but the ground beneath it collapses.

"Power’s increased... but you’re slow!"

Sally steps back from the goblin. The goblin’s eyes bloodshot, it tries to pursue.

"Is it really worth it? Chasing someone like me? You’d be better off fearing... the other one?"

"【Poison Dragon (Hydra)】!"

Maple’s voice summons the three-headed poison dragon.

The goblin, having abandoned a greater threat to chase Sally, now takes the dragon’s attack to its back.

Massive damage from the dragon, compounded by maximum-level poison damage.

Still standing, perhaps, was the stubborn pride of the goblin boss.

But that did not last long. The massive form dissolved into brilliant light and exploded.

"Good work!"

"Good work...? What was that strange behavior?"

"That 'strange behavior'—the 【Cowl Move】? That was great! I managed to use it for both movement and attack, just as I predicted!"

"Only Maple could survive using it that way. Only she can deliver a decisive blow."

In truth, any large shield user attempting to mimic it would take double damage and fall.

Few others possess such unpredictable offensive power.

A large shield is not required to deal damage.

"Sally was fast too! That last move!"

"Well, AGI increased by fifty percent. Can't use it again for thirty minutes. Still, that's enough."

“But 【Gourmand】 can only be used seven more times… I tried to conserve it, fight quickly, use it as little as possible…”

“Maple’s fuel efficiency is terrible right now. Let’s get a good skill with this one!”

“Yeah, that’s right!”

The two move toward the throne where the goblin had sat.

There is no decoration, only a large chest.

“Shall I open it?”

“Yeah! Go ahead!”

Sally opens the chest.

Inside is a saber identical in appearance to the one the goblin carried.

And two medals, glowing silver.

“We did it! Medals!”

“Two medals! Two!”

They ignore the saber completely, fixated on the medals. After all, neither of them can equip the saber, so indifference is natural.

“Two medals per dungeon… there are one hundred fifty dungeons…?”

“Could it vary by difficulty? Maybe stronger bosses exist… Or perhaps there are no bosses at all, just hidden ones…”

“Ah, right. That’s possible too.”

Sally cut off her thoughts and took up the saber, examining its properties.

[Goblin King Saber]

[STR +75]

[Damage Acceleration]

“Wow… quite the brute-force weapon…”

“How does it feel?”

“Fragile, can’t sustain long battles, but STR +75.”

“We can’t equip it, can we?”

“Yeah.”

“So it just fell off…?”

“Shall we search for the next dungeon? There’s a magic circle behind the throne. If we step on it, we should be able to exit.”

“…Maybe we could manage one more today? I think we’ll have the skill for it!”

After concluding their discussion, the two stepped onto the magic circle.

Thinking of Maple’s [Gluttony], they wished to explore as much as possible within the day and use it all up.

Postponement is impossible. The number of areas that can be cleared will diminish.

When the light fades, the place reverts to the original grassland.

"Forgot... We must start by leaving this grassland first..."

"W-which way should we go?"

"Forward! That’s likely best. The grassland can’t stretch all the way to that high mountain ahead."

"True enough!"

They began walking toward the mountainous region.