Defense specialized. In the dark.
The sensation of falling endlessly fades. Maple lands in total darkness.
“What… what happened…?”
As Maple glances around, a patch of shadow begins to glow faintly red.
From the rift in space, a monster emerges—larger than any red spirit Maple has exorcised hundreds of times.
Only its upper body protrudes from the tear in the air. Its red arms stretch far beyond Maple’s body, longer than her frame.
“W-what should I do…?”
One glance at the creature is enough. Maple hesitates—this cannot be exorcised.
Yet the spirit does not let her be. It reaches toward her with a clawed arm, attempting to seize her.
“H-hey! E-eh? O-oh, too slow.”
Maple sprints away. She puts enough distance between herself and the arm to be safe.
Maple had rarely escaped unharmed, and she halted, startled, turning to confirm the spirit.
The spirit stretched its arm fully—then vanished with a soft hiss. The torn space sealed itself shut, whole once more.
Something unpleasant… yes, exactly!
Maple spun around—just in time to see the space tearing open behind her.
Take this salt, in my place!
Maple threw salt at the emerging upper body, then stepped back, checking for damage.
It worked—real effect!
Weaker than the red spirit in the mountains, but HP was definitely dropping.
If that was the case, she could manage. She reached into her inventory, pulling out an item, preparing for the next appearance.
Good. Now—hmm?
The space before her split open.
From the gap between the boss spirit and the rift, the red spirit from the mountains emerged, slithering through.
They approached Maple, their skulls floating behind them like a threat made visible, as dangerous as when they had emerged from the mountains.
"Stay back, you—【Throne of the Heavenly King】!"
Maple summoned the throne and sat upon it immediately, nullifying the spirit’s abilities as it drew near.
Yet, sitting still made evading the boss’s attacks more difficult.
"Better to stay here than half-heartedly flee."
Having decided not to move, the boss’s hand reached out and enveloped Maple with both palms.
"Can’t use skills now? This is my chance!"
Maple pressed paper talismans onto the hands that held her, dealing damage with each placement.
She worked with quiet pride, performing the exorcism with precision—but success did not come easily.
"Oh—oh. I’m caught."
The hands that had wrapped around her body now gripped her tightly, not releasing.
Well, never mind... ah!?
A sharp jolt strikes Maple’s body. Her HP diminishes.
She sees her HP falling faster than the throne’s recovery.
The spirit tightens its grip, inch by inch, pressing against her form. Maple struggles to break free, but cannot.
The spirit’s actions do not end there.
Eh... wait, no—ah!
It lifts Maple bodily into the air.
The throne’s effect only works while seated. Being lifted, there is nothing she can do.
Ugh... it hurts... let go... no—wait, 【Brutality】!
Being torn from the throne also severed the bonds holding her.
In the spirit’s grasp, Maple’s monstrous form manifests. She sheds the restraint easily, then steps back—too far, too quickly.
“Uuu… It’s been a while since I felt that… Got careless…”
The throne remains on the ground, unremoved by Maple.
Should Maple sit upon it again, the effect would resume as before.
“Best check the enemy’s skills while we still can… Yes, I’ll do that.”
Having taken damage for the first time in a while, Maple studies the monster with caution.
As long as the outer shell remains, no direct damage reaches Maple, and no pain follows.
“Good good, sort out the usable skills… It’s fine, it’s fine. Sally taught me how to handle this kind of situation.”
Maple speaks softly to herself, maintaining distance from the monster at all times.
After some time fighting, Maple realizes the boss spirit is entirely immune to attacks in its 【Brutality】 form, and makes a grimace.
The smaller one can be defeated by fire... but... no... I don’t want to解除 it...
Maple, gathering information, thinks ahead to the inevitable moment of 【Brutality】’s release—dull, heavy, with no relief.