Defense Specialization and Darkness 3.

"Wha—!? I can't see anything at all!"

Maple tries the lantern again, but the result is unchanged.

"W-where? Ahh!?"

A cold hand seizes her from behind, panic rising in Maple.

The hand carries the effect of temporarily stealing 【STR】 and 【AGI】, but fortunately, it has no effect on Maple.

"Ugh... I can't break free..."

The lack of 【STR】 means she cannot escape the spirit's grasp.

The spirit's arm lifts Maple slowly, steadily, for ten or so seconds.

"Damage... wha!?..."

Maple narrows her eyes, sensing damage—but this time, no pain comes.

Instead, her HP drops to zero. 【Indomitable Guardian】 activates. Maple falls to the ground.

No fall damage, but another hit would finish Maple.

“Ugh… e-e, what…!?”

To Maple, one thing was certain: she could not endure that attack again.

“G-g, throne! Where…!?”

Maple ran through the dark, searching for the throne she had left behind somewhere.

Returning would take time before it could be used again—too long to escape. She could not return.

Yet she did not think this through. She ran only to flee the immediate danger.

That instinctive motion, by chance, proved the right choice.

“Can’t find it…!”

Maple felt something approaching from behind. She dodged left, then right, without pause.

As her breathing steadied, she began to consider her options.

Maple considered using self-destructive flight to gain distance, but abandoned the idea. A direct collision with an unseen enemy would end it all. Not something to test.

Only one path remains—running. Cold wind brushes her back. Her face turns pale.

Maple flees, breath ragged. Then another thought strikes. She acts.

"Shiroppu, return… good. The Spirit Cannon is charged! This time… I'll bring back the throne too!"

Maple starts forward again, certain she can manage. Something wraps around her foot.

"Wha—"

She looks down. A white hand extends from the ground, wrapped around her right leg.

"Ugh! Let go! Ah—"

Cold hands close around her body.

The ground holds her fast, stitched by hands. She cannot rise. Death approaches.

Maple called out to Shiroppu in an instant, but her mind would not settle. She could not command clearly.

"Eh? Eh? Ah—w-what should I do?!"

And so, frantic, Maple did what she could with the time left, reacting to what had become instinct.

"【Predator】【Oozing Chaos】【Hundred Demon Procession】【Poison Dragon (Hydra)】【Spirit Cannon】【Great Nature】!"

Behind Maple, spirits formed a line. In the dark, two demons rose.

From either side, faceless creatures emerged. Before her, one creature advanced with the Poison Dragon.

A thick vine writhed through the ground in darkness, following the Spirit Cannon with a thunderous roar.

The demon’s flame blazed through the darkness, filling it with fire. The crunching of the monster’s jaws, the clang of the iron rod striking, echoed between the creak of the vine stretching.

“Uuuuugh!”

Maple pressed the talisman she had drawn toward the grasping hand with unrelenting focus.

A new fear surged through her—she might be struck down in the next moment.

Then, before her HP was drained, a sharp crack rang out. A blinding light pierced the darkness.

“Huh…?”

The darkness shattered like broken glass, collapsing outward. Light poured in, growing stronger.

The blackness vanished entirely. The space that had been shadowed turned into a white room.

“Hah… hehe, thank you.”

Maple, overwhelmed by relief, slumped backward and fell to the floor, still gazing upward.

And Maple gently smiled up at the many watching her from above.