Itai no wa iya 230
Defense Specialization and the Tower's 5th Floor 3
The four groups advanced through the thick mist.
As for who escaped it first, it was Kasumi and Kanade.
"We're finally out.""You didn't have to use magic in the end."
Kanade only needed to heal and support Kasumi, as she killed the monsters at an incredible speed.
The monsters went down so quickly that he didn't need to use any wide-area attacks.
"It's because my attack ability was strengthened quite a bit. The status reduction is pretty bad…but having more hands allows for a greater variation in strategy."
At Maple Tree, the most important thing was raising attack ability.
It should be obvious, given that there were no players or monsters that had ever gone passed Maple's iron defense and killed one of the guild members.
"And even if it wasn't, I'm pretty sure I would manage just fine… So, what should we do? It looks like no one has been killed yet.""We should wait then. Maybe they'll all come out here."
"That's true. Hmm. There are no more monsters coming out."
After the two of them waited there for some time, they heard a giant explosion echo within the mist.
And then, Izu came rolling out. She was carrying bombs under her arms and panting while drinking an HP recovery potion.
"Haahh…haaa…. So, I got out then…"
"You're alright! Amazing!"
"But I lost a lot of materials and gold… Ahhh. I won't be able to make new items for a while…"
Izu sat down on the ground and glared angrily at the thick mist behind her.
She had been spreading bombs and attack items while she ran. And when she ran out of materials, she converted her gold. The sheer amount of items used allowed her to blow away the monsters.
"Well, your safety is the most important thing. And I'll help you find more materials. Your items have helped me out a lot anyway."
"It makes me very happy to hear you say that…"
"Uh, Kasumi. It looks like someone else is coming."
Kanade looked towards the mist just as he heard the sound of cutting wind.
And then, four red masses tore out from the thick fog.
"Mai! Yui!"
"Yay! We finally got out of the fog! Woah!"
"Hey, Yui, Ahh!"
The two of them had come out with their backs together and their arms spread open as they rotated. But they were so surprised to see the other three that they fell flat on their faces.
In order to automatically kill any monsters that approached them, they had advanced by spinning like a typhoon, with their great hammers extended.
Since they couldn't react in time and attack, they used this power move that allowed them to constantly spam their one-hit-kill attack.
"Are you alright? Both of you?"
"Uhh… I feel dizzy…"
"Izu…I think I may have pushed myself too hard."
At least the violent wind that Mai and Yui had created had been strong enough to blow every monster away, and none of them ever got close.
"So, it's just Chrome now. Well, I'm sure he will be fine."
"Yes. He's certifiably stubborn."
When Mai and Yui were fully recovered. A very late Chrome finally came out of the thick mist.
"Hahhh… I'm the last one then."
"See. He's in perfectly good shape."
"And his health is full too."
"Uh, well… I was constantly surrounded but somehow got out. And if I couldn't get out, then I just killed them. So my level went up a little."
In the first place, Chrome always found it a little excessive how the members of Maple Tree were able to so easily beat large groups of enemies on their own.
Even Izu, who wasn't really suited for combat, had broken through. So Chrome wasn't wrong about their annihilation ability.
This was even more obvious given the fact that they had faced much larger guilds during the fourth event.
"I think you're plenty excessive too, just in a different direction, Chrome."
"Yes. You were able to break through even after being surrounded."
And so the trap that separated the group had not been much of an obstacle after all. Now that the six were reunited, they decided to continue.
"There is a monster that uses instant kill magic up ahead. So let's take these."
Izu said as she handed everyone a ring that had a red gemstone set into it.
"It's a 'Decoy Ring.' It will protect you from instant kills three times."
"…You had such an item?"
Chrome had never seen it before.
"It's a new item I made with the materials that the zombies dropped. Hehe. I took it in exchange for everything I lost while making the bombs."
Through the use of New Frontier, Izu was able to make items that were usually not possible. And among the numerous options, she chose to make equipment and items with the best abilities.
"This will make things a lot easier."
"Yes. And I can save the resistance enchantment books."
"Alright, let's go then. Traps that separate us aren't that bad, but if it attacks our feet, I won't be able to protect everyone. So be careful."
They were wary of traps that there was no information about. And just like before, Kasumi and Kanade took the lead and dealt with the monsters.
Mai and Yui were behind Chrome along with Izu.
"Kasumi has gotten stronger again. She must have cut a lot of monsters in that mist."
As monsters would not get close to Chrome, he could only watch Kasumi's movements as he protected Mai and Yui.
"The boss fight will be coming up soon. Are you two ready?"
"We're ready! Ah, uh…the fire item you gave us was really useful, Izu!"
"I saw that you were using it when you came out. That attack method was…a little surprising."
The reason Izu said 'a little' after seeing them spinning around with great hammers was because she was getting used to this kind that thing.
As they talked like that, they continued to make their way through the fifth floor.
Ultimately, while they did not breeze through it as easily as Maple and Sally, the monsters were not much of a burden for the members of Maple Tree.
