Tense Confrontation, Resolving the War Shadow

Liber rapidly closed the distance between himself and the War Shadow.

He charged straight toward the center of the monsters, observing the still-chaotic War Shadow as he neared them.

From his position, he unleashed all the remaining arrows from his spatial storage, aiming them at the gaps in the monster group and firing them in a single burst.

A staggering number of arrows shot out in a dense, torrential stream, plunging directly into the midst of the confused monsters.

The War Shadow, having halted their advance, felt the onslaught of the arrow torrent.

Except for those still hindered by the previous debris, the other War Shadow that sensed the movement each took evasive action.

The few War Shadow at the front of the group reacted with lightning speed.

Some utilized their superior speed to dodge the incoming attacks nimbly, using their hooked claws to deflect the arrows.

Others, located at the rear of the formation, were too slow to react and could only raise their wrists, using their sharp hooked claws to fend off the barrage.

However, the strength of an individual proved powerless against this torrent of arrows; ultimately, they could not handle the sheer volume and failed to block them all.

Their bodies were gradually covered in arrows, and the bizarre forms of the War Shadow were pushed back by the force of the torrent until they were pierced through.

This powerful stream of arrows killed three or four of them instantly and inflicted varying degrees of injury on a dozen others before being blocked and dissipating among the monster horde.

Liber felt no regret at this sight; although the arrow barrage was powerful and dense, the material of the arrows meant their durability plummeted after high-intensity use.

Aside from the hardened metal heads, the shafts were merely ordinary wood and feathers.

These arrows had already been used multiple times in previous battles, and he had never expected them to last forever.

He had exhausted the supply simply to further disrupt the monster group and deepen their confusion.

As long as these remaining arrows served their purpose, they could be considered used to their full potential.

Liber quickly closed in on the nearest War Shadow, stepping forward to arrest his momentum.

Simultaneously, he ducked to avoid the elongated arm of a War Shadow that sought to cleave him in two.

As he leaned, he used his Greatsword to sever the two thin, bizarre thighs of the War Shadow appearing before him.

The shadow-like monster made no sound of pain, merely falling backward in silence.

However, the arm he had just dodged suddenly folded in reverse, its sharp claws stabbing toward his exposed back.

Feeling the accelerated airflow at his back, Liber focused his mind, manipulating the Broadsword hovering beside him to slash at the incoming claws.

"Bang!"

He heard the sound of claws colliding with the Broadsword, which had successfully blocked the strike.

Reacting quickly, he straightened his posture and swung his Greatsword, cleanly severing the arm of the fallen War Shadow in front of him.

He followed through with a diagonal slash from top to bottom, but was blocked by the surrounding War Shadow, who had reacted and extended their arms to grab him.

As Liber dodged the incoming attacks, a glance at the severed monster arm revealed that the hooked claws, which had just collided with his blade, bore only faint white marks and had not been severed.

A sense of trouble welled up in his heart.

The durability of these War Shadow limbs and torsos was far superior to the monsters on previous floors.

He had already felt a distinct resistance when hacking at them with his Greatsword, and their claws were even tougher—comparable to refined metal.

If he couldn't cut through their claws directly, things would be truly difficult to handle on his own.

While pondering, Liber used his Greatsword to parry the assault of a War Shadow that was not only reaching out with its claws but also pressing its body toward him.

He exerted all his strength to fling the monster's hooked claws onto the ground to his side.

On the ground behind it, an arrow that had snapped, leaving only the front half, was swept up by the Broadsword; it began to spin in mid-air before slamming into the back of the War Shadow, whose posture had been skewed by Liber's shove.

The arrowhead sank into its body, the sharp tip protruding from the War Shadow's chest.

Seeing the War Shadow, pierced by the arrow, merely pause and prepare to raise its wrist, Liber decisively swung his Greatsword and cleanly decapitated it.

With its head gone, the War Shadow's body finally fell completely still, then went limp and began the process of vanishing.

He had only just finished off one War Shadow when he felt the airflow around him change rapidly.

After dodging a series of hooked claws from the surrounding War Shadow, he realized he still hadn't heard the sound of Lefiya chanting her spell.

While blocking and evading, he glanced back at the spot where he had left Lefiya.

He saw her still struggling to calm her emotions, unable to settle down and begin casting.

Seeing Lefiya in this state, he felt a touch of urgency.

Liber observed the War Shadow that were gradually surrounding him.

Looking at his predicament, with sharp hooked claws reaching out from all sides—front, back, left, and right—the tips gleaming with a metallic luster, he took a deep breath and let out a fierce shout.

"Lefiya!!"

Lefiya, who was struggling to steady her emotions nearby, heard Liber calling her name.

She looked toward the center of the monster cluster where the voice had originated.

Liber leaped forcefully from the center of the encircling monster horde.

The space he had occupied was immediately filled by the throng of monsters the moment he jumped away.

Below him, the War Shadow that had surged into the vacancy stretched out its arms, reaching for his body with malicious intent.

Liber did not look at the War Shadow displaying such hostility and aggression beneath him; instead, he faced Lefiya, who was watching him.

He gazed at Lefiya, his eyes filled with trust.

Only then did he turn his attention to the monsters below, manipulating the Broadsword hovering beside him to slash directly at the wrists of the War Shadow that had reached out with hooked claws to seize him.

The controlled Broadsword struck the wrists of the War Shadow, which had gradually converged into a single mass, but it only severed half of them before becoming lodged in the wrist of one of the War Shadow.

Seeing this, Liber followed the trajectory the Broadsword had just carved, swinging the Greatsword in his hand to finish severing the remaining portions of the clustered War Shadow wrists.

In mid-air, he extended a hand and tapped rapidly against the severed War Shadow wrists.

He then flipped his body in the air, dual-wielding the Greatsword to pierce through a War Shadow, pinning it to the ground from its head downward.

Those wrists Liber had just brushed remained suspended in the air, their sharp claws pointing downward as they slashed toward the necks of the monsters surrounding him.

After raking across a few War Shadow, the claws were blocked.

The War Shadow that had blocked the attack staggered backward from the impact, creating a sudden clearing around the descending Liber.

Lefiya watched Liber leap and land amidst the monsters, the determination and trust revealed in his eyes as he looked at her from the air.

Watching his figure rise and fall, the anxiety in her heart slowly receded like a receding tide.

Lefiya took a few deep breaths, sweeping away the restless emotions that had previously clouded her mind.

Upon landing, Liber did not dare to slacken for a moment; he pushed his Greatsword horizontally, driving toward the weakest point in the encirclement he had spotted while in the air.

He put distance between himself and the monsters behind him once more, preparing to repeat his previous tactic and leap upward again.

In the air, he felt a dazzling light emanating from Lefiya's direction behind him.

"[Release the arrows of light, trunk of the sacred wood, I am the master of the bow.]"

The familiar sound of a magic incantation began to ring out.

"[Intercept! Fairy Archer.]"

The second part of the incantation followed, seamlessly and skillfully connected.

"[Pierce through! Sure-hit arrow!]"

The concluding verse of the incantation was chanted in a steady, clear female voice.

Liber watched the light grow increasingly intense and listened to the soaring chant.

A smile could not help but appear on his face.

His body ceased its descent, flying directly toward Lefiya.

"[Arc Ray]"

Following the call of the magic name, a massive orb of light gathered at the tip of the Staff Lefiya pointed directly at the monsters.

The orb of light gradually bulged outward, forming arrow-like beams.

As Liber leaped toward Lefiya, the circular formation of monsters behind him gradually stretched out, turning into an arrow-like procession that continued to chase his airborne figure.

From the massive orb of light before the young girl, several thick arrows of radiance scattered outward all at once.

They passed by the incoming Liber.

The light arrows struck the War Shadow monsters chasing behind him.

The beams pierced through the clustered monster horde, leaving gaps as if they had been erased.

The beams that had passed through the monster group began to change direction collectively, striking the War Shadow once more.

By this time, Liber had already leaped in front of Lefiya, turning his back to her to face the monsters and stand guard.

He saw the massive, chaotic horde of monsters decimated and scattered by a single volley of magic.

Only a few remaining War Shadow stood before him, still continuing to charge toward them.

Seeing this, Liber instinctively wanted to wield his sword to continue the fight.

He watched as the returning beams struck the backs of the monsters before him.

Before they could even engage in combat, the War Shadow grazed by the light were left as mangled husks, falling scattered to the ground.

Watching the monsters he had previously struggled so clumsily to handle being annihilated with such ease by Lefiya's magic, Liber sighed once more.

"This is what true magic is."