Chapter 51

[2nd Named Boss]

[Level 40 Lion Valgar]

[HP 14,049,600/20,000,000]

*Roarrr!*

Valgar’s HP was reaching the threshold where the next set of sawblades would spawn.

Chris’s eyes sharpened as she scanned the battlefield. She had to quickly assess the location of the sawblades to make sure Rain wouldn’t have a hard time.

One well-placed sawblade cutting through the center of the battlefield would be enough to keep Valgar’s bleed stacks maintained. The remaining sawblades could be kited by the ranged damage dealers.

Of course, hitting Valgar with two or three additional sawblades would deplete his HP faster, but with the current three-person team, who had already farmed the Citadel, even a single sawblade would be enough to avoid the berserk phase.

If two sawblades hit, the tank would struggle. If three hit, the tank would start accumulating injuries, and beyond that, they wouldn’t be able to survive. Even the seasoned fighter Deathmaster struggled to avoid two sawblades while fighting.

*Whirr!*

Chris locked onto the position of the next sawblade and focused on the battlefield’s center.

But her gaze soon became unfocused.

“How...”

Fighting alongside Rain, Chris found it hard to concentrate on the mechanics.

Rain’s combat movements... they were like a painting in motion.

Rain dodged a sawblade that had come dangerously close, twisting her body just enough to avoid it. At that range, anyone else would’ve been grazed, but Rain maintained perfect distance, avoiding any injury.

*Whish! Whish! Whish!*

At the same time, Valgar launched a three-spin attack, which Rain deflected with ease. Her body shimmered, leaving afterimages, and then appeared behind Valgar, relentlessly slashing at him.

Beautiful starlight twinkled around Rain. Her gothic lolita-style dress fluttered elegantly as she moved. If it were real clothes, it would’ve seemed cumbersome in battle, but in the game, cosmetic outfits didn’t hinder a player’s movements. All it did was enhance Rain’s beauty.

Chris’s gaze followed Rain’s white hair, which flowed like the tail of a silver fox, her eyes wandering dazedly through the air.

Chris was more focused on admiring the sight than on the fight itself.

She was too busy snapping screenshots of Rain’s battle, captivated by the noble elegance of her movements.

“Huff, huff.”

While Chris was breathlessly taking screenshots of Rain, Beimerung’s urgent voice called out.

“Sis! Another sawblade over there!”

“Oh!”

Chris snapped out of her daze just as something flew ahead of her charm.

*Clang!*

It was the *Sword Throw* technique, a secondary skill used by swordsmen to distract monsters from a distance.

*Whirr!*

The sawblade locked onto Rain and flew toward the center of the 2nd Named Boss arena.

“S-sorry! Rain, are you okay?”

Rain turned her head slightly toward Chris and gave a small reassuring smile.

“Hah, okay! I trust you, Rain!”

Chris could see a look of pride in Rain’s eyes, like a child wanting to show off, silently saying, “I can do this!”

Rain looked pleased to have Chris’s trust.

*Clang!*

“Oh!”

Beimerung let out a startled cry as she approached the next sawblade. Rain’s *Sword Throw* had once again snatched the sawblade’s attention before Beimerung could act.

*Clang, clang, clang!*

Three, four, five sawblades.

Rain pulled aggro from each sawblade as they appeared.

As Valgar’s HP rapidly dropped, more sawblades appeared than could be broken, and soon there were more new sawblades than damaged ones.

Beimerung and Chris stood still, unable to do much besides attacking Valgar.

All the sawblades now targeted Rain, but none could touch her as she weaved gracefully through them, continuously slicing into Valgar’s body. Every movement was fluid and precise.

When two sawblades’ paths overlapped just enough to make it impossible to dodge, Rain activated her *One Slash* skill, slipping through the minuscule gap between them.

Chris and Beimerung watched Rain’s impossible movements with their mouths agape.

“Incredible.”

“If Deathmaster saw this, he might quit the game.”

*Roarrr-!*

Valgar, ravaged by countless sawblades, let out a final roar and collapsed onto the tower floor.

The fight had ended much faster than when Chris’s full party had tackled the boss together.

“So, it’s possible to defeat the 2nd Named Boss this quickly.”

“Do you think anyone else could pull that off? This is something only Rain can do. Even Deathmaster couldn’t manage that.”

Rain sheathed her sword, breathing heavily. Chris couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe. The entire flow of the battle seemed to revolve around Rain.

*Tap, tap, tap.*

Chris chuckled as she saw Rain, now finished with her elegant battle, approaching her with short, playful steps.

Despite the majestic, beautiful warrior image she had just portrayed in battle, Rain’s cute movements made her impossible not to find endearing.

“Rain, great job! Sorry about missing that sawblade. You must be exhausted, right?”

Rain shook her head slightly, indicating she was fine. Chris beamed.

“You even started pulling aggro deliberately halfway through. You must’ve felt confident. It was an impressive display.”

Beimerung joined them, praising Rain as well. Rain’s light, bouncy movements showed just how good she felt. It was obvious that she was pleased.

Chris grinned and adjusted the gothic lolita dress Rain was wearing.

“So, what do you think? Do you like the outfit?”

“Yes. It’s pretty.”

At first, she had looked a bit uncomfortable, but now she seemed fully accustomed to it. Rain occasionally twirled, smiling down at her dress.

Rain’s recent behavior reminded Chris of a cat slowly warming up to human affection, growing more open and trusting.

While Chris and Beimerung were busy fawning over Rain, a slightly disgruntled voice called out from the staircase leading up to the higher floors.

“Excuse me, bus drivers? The boss is down, can we go up now?”

“Oh, sorry! Coming right away!”

Beimerung hurried over to the bus passengers.

Chris and Rain exchanged amused glances and laughed quietly.

---

[3rd Named Boss]

[Level 40 Magic General Aspero]

[HP 874,360/6,000,000]

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

As explosions of dark energy filled the area, Chris and Beimerung swiftly moved through the battlefield, recalling the pattern of Aspero’s magic orb generation.

Even in the midst of this, Aspero’s fierce attacks were focused on Rain. Beimerung kept her concentration high, ready to activate her *Ice Prison* defensive skill at a moment’s notice.

In the 3rd Named Boss fight, ranged dealers were responsible for both protecting the party and dealing heavy damage. As long as the magic orb positions were memorized, they didn’t need to make any emergency evasive maneuvers.

However, one particular pattern where Aspero’s chimera arm extended to attack even the ranged damage dealers was dangerous. But in this run with Rain, they didn’t even need to worry about that.

*Wham!*

Aspero’s chimera arm extended toward the wall behind Rain. She ducked, dodging the arm, and her sword flashed wildly.

*Slice, slice, slice!* Aspero’s arm was torn apart by her sword, though it regenerated quickly, forcing Aspero back to standard close-combat tactics.

“Wait, you can destroy that part of the chimera arm?”

“That’s the most dangerous attack! We had to deal with both the orbs and the chimera arm at the same time.”

“Look how Rain’s leading it away from the damage dealers from the very first arm-extension attack. Aspero is way easier now.”

Thanks to Rain’s skillful maneuvering, Chris and Beimerung chatted comfortably as the battle progressed.

The fight smoothly transitioned into Aspero’s berserk phase.

“Graah!”

*Thud.*

*Rumble.*

Aspero’s final animation began, filling the battlefield with dark purple orbs.

This was the beginning of the 0% berserk phase, with six waves of wide-area explosions.

The three bus drivers rotated their invincibility skills in the prearranged order.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

By the third explosion, Beimerung’s *Ice Prison* protected the party, allowing them to reset their invincibility cooldowns.

During the fourth and fifth explosions, they used their refreshed invincibility skills to avoid taking damage.

*Rumble.*

As the sixth explosion approached, Chris shouted.

“Brace for impact! We only have one party protection skill, so we’ll have to tank this one!”

Chris and Beimerung positioned themselves among the orbs. As long as they didn’t take a direct hit, they could survive the final blast.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

The final explosion rocked Chris and Beimerung, sweeping them in its wake.

“Ugh!”

Barely surviving, Chris immediately gulped down a potion and looked toward the center of the battlefield, anxiously searching for Rain.

“Rain! Are you okay!? You’re still alive, right?”

*Tap, tap.*

Through the lingering dust, Rain emerged without a scratch. Seeing her, Chris’s face lit up with relief.

“Rain!”

“Wait, did you dodge that with a new invincibility skill?”

Beimerung asked, and Rain nodded.

Deathmaster had only ever succeeded at

using that brief invincibility window once during the first run.

But Rain was using it as effortlessly as breathing.

Chris could only shake her head in disbelief.

“Incredible.”

---

Chris’s party had successfully completed another bus run today. Despite the high price of early bus runs, their group’s reputation kept attracting passengers.

“Thank you for your hard work today.”

Chris grinned at Rain, who gave her a small bow.

“See you tomorrow! You did great today, Rain!”

Rain smiled softly and waved before disappearing from Chris’s view.

Rain’s ability to express her emotions was improving by the day. Their relationship was heading in a positive direction.

However, today, Chris noticed something different in Rain’s expression.@@novelbin@@

A subtle unease.

It was something Chris could only pick up on after having spent so much time watching Rain closely.

She couldn’t quite figure out what it was, but it was definitely different.

Chris muttered quietly to herself.

“I can’t shake this feeling...”