Defense specialization and squid elimination.
Thirty minutes had passed since the battle began.
"Then... what now..."
"Sally! Anything come to mind?"
"Mmm... not yet."
Sally stood frozen, deep in thought.
Only Maple, who had attacked the tentacles first, could afford such stillness.
Maple was being pummeled by the giant squid’s tentacles.
"Still... absurd defense... again..."
A strike that would kill or cripple an ordinary player was equivalent to a rabbit’s headbutt for Maple.
Even now, Maple was flying through the air like a toy, struck repeatedly by the tentacles.
"Maple! I’ll swim over to the squid’s side—just a moment!"
"Okay, be careful!"
Wind magic had been tried, but the thick layer of water blocked it from reaching the squid’s main body.
The plan to fire Maple’s Poison Dragon into the water to poison the creature had been considered, but it was decided to keep it as a last resort. If it failed, Sally would be trapped in the water with no way out.
Sally sank into the wall of water. She remained wary, recognizing it as the same water as the Great Sea, but it proved to be nothing more than water.
Sally swam toward the squid.
Not all tentacles were attacking Maple.
Some remained to intercept what approached.
Naturally, that meant they turned on Sally.
“Oh… impressive, Sally…”
As Maple was thrown upward by a tentacle, what she saw was Sally dancing lightly past the limbs, closing in on the main body.
“Wait—HP bar dropped!”
In the water, Sally’s dagger gleamed with a shimmering effect as it sliced through the giant squid.
Maple had been struck by a tentacle moments before, yet she now showed signs of ease, as if accustomed.
“Hmm? Health points lower than expected…”
After Sally unleashed her consecutive attack skill five times, the health bar had already dropped by nearly one-fifth.
“Huh!?”
The tentacle abruptly ceased its assault, and Maple crashed heavily onto the ground.
Sally’s damage to the main body had shifted the tentacle’s target from Maple to Sally.
Sally, having noticed, swam back quickly.
Even Sally, skilled at evasion, could not avoid an area-of-effect attack.
A sweeping strike across the entire width of the broad tentacles left no room for defense.
“Pfah…!”
“[Cover Move]! [Cover]!”
Maple did not use [Malevolent Feast] here. The armor intercepting Sally’s approaching tendril attack clanked and rattled.
[Poison Dragon (Hydra)]!
The eight tendrels descending upon them were swallowed by the Poison Dragon.
There was no need to devise a strategy to hit the Poison Dragon, given the giant squid’s lack of speed compared to the monstrous bird.
It lacked the speed to dodge.
“Well, it regenerates, you know.”
The HP bar showed no change. The tendrels regenerated no matter how many times they were crushed.
Yet this was no wasted effort.
Maple had become the target, having seized the eight tendrels by their roots.
The toy game began anew.
“Sally, leave it to me!”
“Thank you! You’re dependable!”
Sally plunged back into the water.
Sally attacks. Maple bears the enemy’s assault.
Each time the target of attack shifts to Sally, Sally returns to Maple’s side, and Maple shifts the target from Sally.
For now, this repetition continues until the pattern changes.
It appears simple. Yet only Maple can endure the concentrated barrage of eight tentacles.
Without high-level skills in [Diving] and [Swimming], Sally cannot approach the squid at all, let alone deal meaningful damage.
It is only because the two of them complement each other’s abilities that they maintain the advantage.
Yet this rhythm could not last until the end.
When Sally reduced the squid’s HP bar to seventy percent, the behavior pattern shifted.
A magical circle appeared around the squid, and fish began emerging from it one after another.
Undoubtedly monsters.
Each fish moved toward the location where the two were positioned.
The tentacle attacking Maple shifted its target again and sank back into the water.
……Swimming through the air.
Maple was not in the water, yet the fish showed no hesitation. They burst from the depths, cloaked in blue effects, and swam through the air toward her.
A fantastical sight. But the fish were monsters. There was no time for wonder.
They charged from every direction, slamming into her.
Hmm… Paralyze Shout!
A clear, ringing tone filled the air. The fish lost control of their bodies and fell to the ground, one after another.
The giant squid and the fish in the water were outside the effect’s range. They remained unaffected.
This is useful, really.
Ha… Got away.
Sally splashed up from the water, splashing loudly.
Of course, the remaining fish and tentacle pursued her without pause.
Sally has already escaped, she says—because Maple is there.
Near Maple. Absolute safety.
"Maple!"
"Got it!"
Maple draws her newly sheathed crescent blade.
A violet magic circle unfolds from the blade's length.
Maple’s strongest attack, repeatedly used. Her favorite.
"【Poison Dragon (Hydra)】!"
It dissolves the approaching fish entirely, then consumes the tentacles behind them, and—
plunges into the water.
"Ah—"
The Poison Dragon sinks deep, submerging fully. Its body begins to dissolve within the water.
The water turns faintly violet. Not an illusion.
What would happen if Sally entered it? Unknown.
"Ch—ch—ch—what do we do!?"
"D—d—d—what do we do!?"
"R—right! The squid! Its HP bar!"
Staring at it, the HP bar shows no sign of diminishing.
The melted tentacles begin to revive.
The paralyzed fish rise slowly into the air, buoyed by a blue effect.
New fish are added.
“S—s—s—sally, just run around for now!”
“And dodge the fish while you’re at it!”
“S—s—s—sorry!!”
The fish overflow.
Eight tentacles descend upon them.
The fish do not rely solely on ramming—they begin scattering water of the same blue hue as their effect.
“Maple! This might be similar to my 【Great Sea】!”
“I—i—i—already got soaked… why isn’t my movement slowing?”
“S—s—so that’s right—【AGI 0】 means it can’t get worse anyway! Or… or maybe it’s just water? I—i—i—don’t know anymore!”
Maple’s minor mistake shattered the steady rhythm without trace. Poison and an unknown liquid pooled on the ground. Tentacles flailed, swinging wildly at the darting fish.
Maple, reduced to a toy.
Amidst this chaos, the two women shrieked and scrambled, devising their next plan in frantic disorder.