“[Fireball]!” I intone and aim the spell simply with my hand.
The swirling ball of fire I conjure isn’t on the level of a nuclear bomb, but its potency is still definitely not up for questioning. For a second the energy gathers in front of my palm, strangely not causing me any discomfort, before shooting straight ahead.
It’s not as speedy as the Aqua Bolt, but still fast enough to make it hard to dodge even for Agility builds.
The fireball slams into the monster’s armored body. The force of the impact rocks the chamber with a sudden flare of heat and light as a small explosion occurs where the insect once stood. Its exoskeleton cracks and melts away instantly. The creature exploded into ash and sparks before it can even react.
While it’s true that it disintegrated entirely, soon a carapace item materializes into existence through some great illogical phenomenon. This shows that the items that the labyrinth monsters leave behind aren’t even part of their bodies, but just magically created loot drops.
[You’ve Slain Steel Carapace Beetle (Level 1). You’ve Gained 0 XP]
Yep, the XP nerf is in full swing now. I’ve become too strong for the first floor. The Goddess or the system itself, or whoever is responsible for all this, doesn’t want me to live in the labyrinth for centuries straight while farming safely on the first few floors, so my gains will be heavily reduced in the beginning of this labyrinth dive.
“Damn. That felt great.” I mutter with a wicked grin. Yeah, it was a level 1 monster, but I just cast a Fireball! I roasted it alive!
A few eyes glance at me like I’m some unhinged pyromaniac.
“That’s why I was surprised when I thought you got the Hydro Arcanist class. Fire fits you so much better.” Ayame comments.
“I agree. Daddy is so hot!” Aurora responds cheerily, eliciting a pained, cringe-fueled sigh from both Lucille and Ayame.
“Thanks for the compliment. Two noobies, you are up. I just wanted to cast a fireball, now with that out of my system the first few floors are yours. Lucille at front, Aurora behind. Lucille, your job is to kill the monsters and also to protect the backline. Aurora, your job is to stay safe so that you don’t disturb the frontline, and to keep Lucille alive with your innate spell, the shield.
When she engages with a monster, cast it on her.”
Both of them nod as their features turn dead serious.
A Brambleback welcomes us in the next chamber, a giant wild boar-type creature. The most ideal of the three possible monsters we could encounter for the axe-wielder.
It immediately charges at the leather-armor wearing woman. She shows no sign of hesitation as she lifts the giant axe above her head to swing it down vertically. Then… She falls back onto her butt unceremoniously due to losing her balance.
“[Protective Shield]!” Aurora’s support comes just in the nick of time to save her life, not that any of the three of us couldn’t have stepped in should it be needed.
The brambleback slams its head into her, but gets stopped in its track by the shield, which dissolves immediately. Seems like the collision of its head with the shield gave the monster a concussion. Looks like its own immense velocity came back to bite it in the ass.
The shield absorbs 100 HP worth of damage, and Lucille most certainly has less than that, so she would’ve just died on the spot if she did this stunt of hers while being alone.
I knew the Ravager’s Fang was too unwieldy for such a delicate, level 1 woman, but didn’t want to say it. It’s best she realizes these things for herself. “Looks like we know which stat you will be investing your first Free Attribute Points into, old lady. Or do you want to go back to your panty pooper’s embrace and begin cooking my dinner already?
I want something tasty and filling, spicy and nothing sweet. Some greens would be appreciated on the side, you know, to make it more healthy.” I mock her just for good measure, fully aware how she will react.
“Shut!” Lucille yells, then swings her axe with fury right into the left eye of the momentarily dazed monster, who begins squealing in anguish like a pig in a slaughterhouse. “Up!” She manages to free the axe from the writhing monster’s eye socket after great struggle, then stands up and delivers another swing into the same spot. “Young man!!!”
Due to how heavy her axe is, she can’t actually deliver strong enough blows to swiftly kill the monster it seems. However, with a third, well-aimed one she finishes the piggy off.
“Pfew!” The light caramel haired beauty exhales with obvious ecstasy surging through her system. She seems to feel even more joy than I did after my first kill. To me, it was a ‘job well done, now onto the next’ thing, to her, it seems like it’s a ‘I’m the queen of the world!’ kind of triumph. Maybe her bloodthirsty axe isn’t that misplaced in her hands after all.
Thankfully Aurora had invested all the attribute points she had as a level 5 human into Magic throughout her life, since that was the only useful stat for her as an alchemist. With that, she could cast her shield spell quite a bit, allowing the duo to blitz through the first floor. At least, blitz by the end. The beginning was definitely rough.
The three of us had to step in on occasions as even the shield wasn’t enough to save this manic innkeeper who seemed adamant to jump into harm’s way so that she can swing her giant axe to her heart’s content.
However, by the time we got to the boss room she was completely exhausted.
“Wow! Look at those armors! So cool…” A boy shouted while waiting in line to the monster.
“The dog slave is so fucking hot, holy hell!” Another horny teen shrieked. Yep, she is in her favorite BDSM-themed beast-kin armor.