Defense Specialization and the Castle in the Clouds Part 2
The light subsided quickly, and Maple blinked, looking around. She called out to her companion.
“…! A-Are you alright, Maple!? Ah, wait?”
Maple wasn’t there. Just as she started to think she hadn’t been able to protect her, Maple realized that her surroundings had changed.
“Oh, it’s a teleport!”
They weren’t defeated; they were teleported, probably to separate locations. Maple tried to send a message to Sally, but the messaging function had a large red ‘X’ on it, indicating it was disabled.
“A special debuff… “Severance”? Hmm, so that’s the reason.”
Unable to communicate, she even tried using a debuff-clearing potion from Iz, but it didn’t work, indicating this wasn’t a normal debuff.
“I guess I have no choice but to move forward… Maple will be fine on her own!”
Maple decided to trust Sally’s abilities and focus on what she could do.
There were no monsters around. Were the enemies outside the same, using piercing attacks, or were there other traps? Not knowing, Maple proceeded cautiously. Turning a corner, she spotted something.
“A staircase going down…”
Before her was a staircase leading downwards. Though it was the opposite direction of their goal to go up, exploring the basement first would allow for a thorough search of the castle.
“Alright! Let’s go this way!”
Feeling that starting with the basement was the best choice, Maple descended the stairs.
The next floor was shrouded in thick fog, limiting visibility to just a few steps ahead. Even shining a light didn’t help.
“No choice but to move forward…”
Standing still wouldn’t help, so Maple stepped into the thick fog.
“I know! “Predator”! “Poison Split Body”!”
Thinking of a way to detect hidden enemies, she summoned allies that could automatically sense and attack foes. Poison oozed out, forming a clone of Maple, while two monsters emerged from the darkness.
With these allies, even if Maple couldn’t see the enemies, they would attack anything that entered their range.
“”Blade Deployment”! “Afterglow of Salvation”!”
Keeping one hand on the wall to feel for corners, Maple scraped the long blade tip against the opposite wall while advancing. She used “Afterglow of Salvation” to create a defensive field, preserving “Self-Offering Love” for later.
Soon, the monsters reacted, charging ahead.
“What is it? Something there?”
As Maple peered into the fog, a large man in white armor emerged, swinging a massive axe at her.
“Ah!? Ugh…”
With a loud crash that didn’t sound like metal hitting flesh, the axe struck Maple’s head.
Maple’s head was buried in the ground, leaving only her head above.
“Phew, good thing this wasn’t Maple… though she would have dodged it.”
Though stuck and repeatedly struck, Maple remained unharmed. She issued commands to her summoned monsters.
“”Provocation”! Take care of the rest!”
Calling back the poison clone, she attached it to the armored giant’s leg. The seemingly cute clone was a deadly poison, and in Maple’s case, a lethal one.
The giant’s high HP drained instantly, killed by the curse-like poison from “Venom Incantation”.
“When will I get out of here?”
Having defeated the enemy, Maple remained stuck in the ground. She pondered a more efficient way to proceed without overusing skills.
Meanwhile, separated from Maple, Sally quickly assessed her surroundings and headed upwards.
Unlike Maple, Sally thoroughly explored the floor she had been teleported to. Some paths were blocked by impenetrable white walls, confirming that the only way forward was up the stairs.
“Maple… well, there’s no point in worrying. I need to focus on not losing.”
Sally, with her unmatched solo capabilities, knew Maple could handle herself. She pressed on, determined not to fail.
“The enemies aren’t too strong, thankfully.”
Peeking around a corner, Sally saw three cannons on platforms guarded by two armored giants with large axes, the same kind Maple had seen.
Though they were reinforcing against an invasion, Sally was confident.
“”Water Dragon”!”
She sent a directed water blast, hitting the farthest gunners and preventing their attack. She slipped past the swinging axes, sliding under their feet.
“”Fire Child”“Water Veil”“Double Slash”!”
Enhancing her weapon and executing a rapid combo, she dealt significant damage swiftly.
“Take this!”
Using her flying device for aerial maneuverability, Sally dodged attacks and deflected cannonballs, quickly dispatching the two giants and charging at the gunners.
“”Flash Flood”!”
Using the water to disrupt their stance, she closed in, finishing them with rapid strikes.
“Phew… I have enough firepower.”
Easily defeating the five monsters, Sally advanced. Unsure if she could reunite with Maple, she was relieved the enemies were manageable.
“The Fifth Floor had lots of area attacks… I hope there aren’t any here.”
Area attacks like rain and lightning clashed with Sally’s style, but she had survived so far. She pressed on, eliminating monsters as she went.
“These segmented floors are concerning… just wandering around won’t help us meet…”
Thinking of worst-case scenarios, Sally methodically took down each monster. She carefully analyzed new enemies, learning their patterns quickly.
Only a devastating initial attack from an unknown monster could pose a threat to Sally. Even that was guarded against by her skills “Spirited Away” “Empty Cicada”.
“I need to consider soloing the boss.”
Ignoring the disappearing monsters, Sally progressed differently from Maple, avoiding damage and continuing her strategic advance.
