Defense specialization and counterattack two.

After the light of Pain swept through, a gentle glow enveloped the area. The player on the verge of vanishing barely held their ground.

"Markus, how's the trap?!"

"Ugh... most of the active ones were blown away by Pain..."

Though the situation had not collapsed entirely—thanks to Shin's judgment—the pillars that had been blocking the monsters were shattered by Pain's attack. The volume of debris collapsing increased. Wilbert had reduced the number of monsters, but without Shin, the pace faltered. When the front-line players could no longer stop the monsters, everyone behind them would become prey.

In other words, this was a slow drain.

"Wilbert, can't you do anything...? We're only buying time here."

Using remaining traps, they generate currents and gusts to halt the enemy's advance.

"Sorry...! One-on-many is Lilie's domain."

Wilbert fires arrows without pause. As he eliminates monsters, he pierces the heart of any player who missteps, halting their progress. This slows the enemy forces.

Still, they do not stop. Slowly, one by one, the waves of monsters swallow those whose wounds cannot heal fast enough.

To the enemy, terrifying. To their allies, dependable.

Now that Shin is gone, the powerful aerial bombardment from Mai and Maple above, combined with the monsters, gives the ground unit centered on the Gathering Holy Sword a one-sided advantage.

"Pain-san!"

"Coming down."

"Ah, Sally! You did well! As expected."

There was a chance of success. That said, it wouldn’t work every time. But for this event, one good attempt should be enough.

That's right.

Ah, thanks to that, it’s much easier now! Wilbert’s still the same as ever!

Using the creature as a flesh barrier, deflecting Wilbert's arrows while felling the player one by one.

Vines. Flame. Ice. Wind. Beyond the traps’ interference. The fortress—Night Castle—comes into view at last.

Just a little more. The moment of victory drawing near. Dread, centered on the shadow, attacked. Sally followed, her eyes snapping upward for a fleeting instant, catching a flash of light hidden within the effect. A bad feeling. A warning, if one could call it that. Yet that sensation carried enough weight for both of them to trust it.

Immediately after. The sky flares—lightning strikes in a storm of countless bolts, descending upon the land.

"Velvet...!"

"Shadow [Realm of Shadows]!"

By detecting the threat at maximum speed, Velvet concealed the players within shadows, shielding them from the lightning strike, blending among the swarm of monsters.

Maple noticed Velvet’s arrival, gathering the monsters into a layered formation to absorb the attack from above.

"Notes—Sona!...and descending!?!"

Frederica sensed the approaching presence with overwhelming force, raising her staff in haste.

"Hinata must be here! We can slow it down!"

"That’s right!"

Velvet, accompanied by Hinata, moved through the air with greater freedom than Sally, abruptly shifting direction just before impact with the ground, lunging directly toward the five.

"Hinata! Please!"

[Isolation Field]!

A violet aura erupted around Hinata, spreading rapidly across the surroundings.

"...!"

"Whoa, I’m being pushed back!?"

A dome of violet light spreading outward. Under Hinata’s gravity control, surrounding presences are pushed out one after another. As its name suggests—[Isolation Field]. The dome, forged by twisting gravity, deflects interference from outside, and likewise prevents any influence from within.

Dread extends a hand toward the purple wall, releases a spell, and confirms it is repelled inward. He turns toward Velvet.

“Ah. A deathmatch with equal numbers…”

“Yessir! Fast learner, aren’t you!”

“Drag, looks like we’ve no choice.”

“…Yeah. Fine by me! What’s the point, anyway? This space stops lightning from above! There’s nothing we can’t do here!”

“Ah.”

This is the third time they face off. Frederica and Pain were expelled. The fact that only Velvet and Hinata remain within this inescapable domain means they chose the two of them as opponents after two battles. That is, they believe they can defeat the two.

"Do not think you can win so easily."

"Of course not! I'll give it my all!"

Lightning rains are blocked by the wall of gravity, but lightning cannot be entirely forbidden. Velvet clenches both fists, unleashes a violent surge of lightning, and dashes forward at once.

【Grand Armor】【Stone Skin】!

Drag dons a rocky armor, increasing defense, and charges in sync with Velvet.

As Dread closes in, swinging his great axe in a horizontal arc, Hinata lowers her stance to slip beneath it. Dread advances, closing the distance.

"……!"

【Violet Lightning】!

Dread swings his short sword, but Velvet slides to the right, killing her momentum completely, and releases a bolt of lightning to push Dread back.

“Gravity control… remarkable. Truly effortless.”

Velvet floats slightly above the ground, then settles back onto the earth, ready once more. Hinata’s manipulation of gravity made movements impossible on foot now possible.

Drag speaks quietly to Dread, watching the scene.

“Too much difference in mobility. My attacks will miss. But I can force her to dodge.”

“Yeah. I’ll close in at the end. Shadow — [Pack of Shadows]!”

Dread summons the shadow wolves and sends them at Velvet.

“[Thunderclap]!”

Columnar lightning erupts, burning the wolves as if in place of a rain of thunder.

“[Heavy Charge]! [Earth Wave]!”

Through the lightning, Drag closes the distance in an instant, shattering the rippling ground.

[Ice Wall]! [Frostbound Earth]!

That won’t work!

Ice spreading across the ground is ineffective if it does not make contact at the start—something already known.

Drag jumps briefly, cleanly exiting the effect’s range, then uses the momentum to smash through the ice wall.

[Electric Acceleration]! [Heavy Double Strike]!

Drag takes Velvet’s accelerated punch with his body, gripping her hand despite the damage. Reach—short as it is—is the greatest weakness of a fighter who wields fists.

Caught! [Ground Lance]!

[Aurora]!

From Drag, a stone spear erupts. From Velvet, a colossal lightning strike. Both strike true.

The moment the lightning faded, Dread closed the distance in an instant. This was the chance—while Drag held him in place.

“[Cocytus]!”

“Shadow [Hide]!”

Action suppression—dodge by vanishing into the ground. Even Hinata’s cold could not reach that deep.

“Velvet-san!”

“[Discharge]!”

“Gh— even so, that’s too much……!?!”

Drag took heavy damage but did not release his grip. The blinding lightning struck, yet as a true frontliner with high stamina and defense, Drag did not fall.

Narrowing his eyes against the glare, Drag noticed Velvet’s hand, still clasped in his, glowing a pale blue. Not the crackle of lightning—something like an aura.

Immediately afterward, a surge of force tore his grip loose. A heavy fist drove into him.

“Gh!? Hey, Dread! Trouble—!”

“……!”

Breaking through the lingering light of the lightning, Velvet surged forward with a blue aura trailing behind her, her speed increasing severalfold, pressing against Dread in return.

What did you do…!?

I have more than one trump card!

[Top Speed][Over Acceleration]!

Dread barely managed to align his short sword with Velvet’s blindingly fast fist. Each blow grew heavier, faster. Dread, who should have been doubling his acceleration, began to lag behind.

[Thought Freeze]!

Tch. Sealed…!

Though the effect lasts only briefly, Hinata’s skill seals the [Divine Speed] enhancement, locking away further acceleration. That instant proved fatal. Velvet’s fist pierced through, shattering Dread’s HP.

[Charge]!

Velvet-san, behind you!

Drag closes the distance from behind in an instant. His axe holds lethal force. Velvet avoids it and moves to deliver the final blow.

"Can't catch up, huh."

Velvet, faster than the speed-focused player, dodges Drag’s axe and lands a counterattack.

Even as he fades, Drag locks eyes.

Dodge the axe. Land the counter. At that moment, Dread strikes from directly behind, driving a dagger into Velvet’s back.

"……!"

An unnatural evasion. As if leaping over the blade, Velvet inverts midair. A movement that defies gravity—no matter how one might imagine control over gravity, it remains impossible to predict. She twists her body and brings her foot down toward her shoulder.

"…I guess the letter was answered…"

“……? It was so much fun!”

The right foot, leaving a blue trail, strikes Dread’s shoulder—its HP, barely sustained by skill, shattered away.

As Velvet’s aura fades, so too does the purple dome that had enclosed the four.

“Wah!? I lost—!?”

“Sally.”

“Hai.”

Responding to Pain’s brief call, the two push off the ground and accelerate toward Velvet.

“[Gravity Cage][Ice Column]!”

The increasing gravity slows their momentum. In that moment, a thick pillar of ice erupts before them, blocking their path.

Just after swiftly circling around, the two are gone. Instead, the ground trembles. Thick columns of light rise beyond the ice pillar, scattered across distant points. They are unlike Velvet’s lightning.

“This is….”

The two who circled the ice pillar saw a vast, glowing magical array spreading across the ground, and lifeless soldiers rising from it in succession.

“Even if it’s mass summoning, we’re not behind.”

“Too slow, Lily… when shall we activate the trap?”

“Sorry.”

Ignis stands atop the Night Castle. Mii releases flames.

“[Full Deployment]!”

“[All Traps Activated]!”

At the pre-set locations, massive magical arrays unfold alongside pillars of light, generating a flood of soldiers. All traps, set in advance, activate regardless of distance, altering the situation entirely. The battlefield is not confined to this place alone. Thanks to Mark’s and Lily’s meticulous preparations, the power balance across other battlefields has collapsed.

“Velvet handled it well. Now, counterattack!”

Flames spiral upward. Mii raises the morale of all. The situation shifts rapidly amid conflicting wills. Now, Maple and the others stand at a critical juncture to contain the damage.

"Pain-san! That light just now…!"

"Ah, we can only分散 our forces. With 【thunder storm】 gone, the other battlefields are in danger."

"We'll draw them here. Leave Maple behind."

Maple is the commander of the creatures. The operation collapses if she leaves.

"How strong is that soldier, I wonder?"

Frederica studies the soldier she has created. Sally quickly transmits the plan to 【Maple's Tree】. The distant artillery support ceases. From behind, Maple descends, spreading four white feathers from her back.

"Fast, Maple."

"Yeah! Dread-san and the others…"

They caught the two quite neatly, didn’t they? A pity. That’s the end of it.

No major mistake. That only means the enemy is strong.

Maple and the others face the three from the Flame Emperor’s Kingdom and the two from Rapid Fire. Each raises their weapon.

Player against player. Maple’s monstrosity clashes with Lily’s soldiers. Yet the four press forward at the front of the Night Castle.

Other players—friends and foes alike—avoid the center, circling around to fight again. The reason is simple.

“[Radiant Holy Sword]!”

“[Bloody Great Flame]!”

Staying here means being caught in any attack. Even with ten lives, it would not be enough.

Maple avoids using [Love That Offers the Body], focusing instead on weapon strikes and directing her monster. She keeps clear of piercing attacks.

"Sally! Don’t hit me, okay? [Multiple Flame Bullets] Notes [Roundelay]!"

"I’m fine. I’m in rhythm."

Sally moved as she spoke, using Marx’s stone pillar and her own ice pillar with practiced precision, slipping through the storm of flying magic and returning her own strikes.

Frederica’s attacks shattered the soldiers born from her magic, while Lily and Mii’s strikes severed the monster’s life.

"Frederica. Increase output—can we clear them all?"

"Maybe temporarily. But—"

She glanced at Pain, as if asking whether it mattered if they keep regenerating so quickly.

With Marx and Mizari providing strong support, it was uncertain whether any one of the five could be defeated decisively.

"If those soldiers keep appearing without limit, this battle turns against us."

Maple’s constructs were prepared in advance and maintained in number. Once felled, they could not be easily recreated. She had slaughtered many players, ravaged through ranks, and performed as expected—yet their numbers diminished steadily.

“I do not doubt the [Maple Tree], but other battlefields concern me.”

“So you wish for us to retreat at a favorable moment this time.”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll handle it with Sally. Look—there!”

While maintaining fire, Maple spoke to Sally. Sally understood immediately what Maple meant by “there.”

“I see, Maple. Then, if needed, I can create the timing.”

“Reliable. Helpful.”

“So, what now?”

“We must inflict a wound that makes pursuit hesitate. We go to eliminate those two who forge the base and strengthen the enemy’s formation.”

“Ah, then tell me when you’re ready.”

The target is Marks and Mizari. The four wait for the right moment, to strike down the two who uphold the enemy’s line.