I feel the heat of battle. It's as if hot winds are dancing vigorously nearby. The surrounding air grows warmer by the moment, and though I've only been moving for five minutes, my breathing becomes increasingly rough.
Despite having a Hero's body that shouldn't tire easily, I'm already struggling. This must be what they call the pressure of facing a true monster. When every second could determine life or death, the physical demands become overwhelming.
However, despite all that...
*This is manageable.*
That's what I thought. The battle was going more smoothly than expected.
While the monster's strength is overwhelming—almost impossible to block—fortunately its attack patterns are simple.
Even my party members, whom I'd worried might cause trouble, are fulfilling their roles perfectly.
Thanks to that, we still had some breathing room.
Of course, having some leeway didn't mean we could afford to be careless.
We merely had a slight advantage, but situations can change at any moment.
"Keep up the pressure."
As I corrected my thinking, Camilla spoke beside me.
Her shield showed visible damage in several places, though she'd only deflected the axe a few times.
I readjusted my grip on my sword and spoke to Lily behind us.
"Please prepare another spell. This time for the right horn."
"Tsk, I know that without you telling me."
After grumbling once, she immediately began preparing her magic.
Dense mana began to ripple around her.
If we could hold out for another five minutes and cut off the creature's horn like before, the battle would be practically over.
But things are never that simple.
"GUOOOOOOO!!"
Suddenly, the creature let out a roar. Apparently furious about losing its horn, it bellowed with rage.
And simultaneously, it began charging toward us.
The Minotaur's characteristically merciless and powerful rush. The ground shook—thump, thump, thump!—hinting at the danger.
This was the kind of attack you couldn't block.
"Dodge!"
Fortunately, Camilla and I reacted in time. We moved away from the creature's path and heightened our senses.
We needed to prepare for whatever it would do after the charge.
But the action it chose wasn't changing direction or stopping its charge.
"Huh?"
It rushed past us, heading straight for the mage positioned at the rear.
"Lily, dodge!"
We couldn't help but be flustered.
Who would have thought it would ignore the two of us drawing aggro and charge straight for the mage?
It must have realized what posed the greatest threat.
Contrary to our hopes, monsters can think and make judgments too.
It wasn't just mindlessly swinging its axe.
We each took action to stop it.
Camilla and I hurriedly swung our swords to wound its lower body, while Adel, who was relatively faster, rushed to save Lily.
"Ugh!"
Thankfully, Adel arrived in time, preventing the unfortunate scenario of Lily's head flying through the air.
Whoosh!
A massive axe passed over their fallen heads.
The creature had swung its axe horizontally while still charging.
The resulting air pressure gave a hint of its power.
"Lily, are you alright?"
"Ugh, yeah. I'm fine. Thanks to you, I survived."
She gave Adel a brief thank you.
"But all the mana I gathered is gone... I have to start the incantation from the beginning."
"...I see."
It seemed her concentration had broken, causing her prepared spell to dissipate.
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
*Tsk, as expected.*
The Minotaur seemed to have become stronger than in the game.
Its attacks remained simple, but despite all our sword strikes, we'd only managed minor wounds.
Even accounting for Camilla being a defense-oriented character with lower attack power, this was an unreasonable outcome.
That meant the creature's durability had increased.
"Let's change the plan."
I had no choice but to make some adjustments.
We couldn't stop its charge with just our attack power. We needed external help.
"Saintess, could you cast an attack buff here?"
I spoke to Yulice. Normally she wouldn't agree easily, but given the situation, she would likely comply.
When I spoke this way, clear confusion spread across her face.
"W-what? But I'd have to remove the defensive blessing I've already cast..."
"That's fine. Just remove it."
Simple solution—just don't get hit.
Fortunately, I knew the creature's attack patterns precisely. And with a Hero's body, my reflexes were quite good.
I was confident I could avoid getting hit.
Despite this simple solution, she seemed quite hesitant.
Whatever made her so anxious, I could clearly see her pupils trembling from side to side.
Tsk, is her suspicion activating even here?
I frowned slightly and said to her:
"If you're that worried, just cast it on me. There's no need to remove Camilla's defensive buff."
"No, that's not it..."
She sighed.
"Sigh... Alright. I'll cast it."
Finally understanding, Yulice began casting the buff on me.
Once again, she clasped her hands together and began chanting prayers.
With each word that echoed through the air, an inexplicable vitality rose within me.
The sacred flame bestowed by the Sun God Enen. This shall become a sharp blade to punish evil.
['Iron Wall Protection' has been removed, decreasing your defense!]
['Yulice' uses Advanced Blessing. Your strength increases significantly!]
[Your weapon is blessed. Sharpness increases!]
Hum, hum, hum.
The finely honed holy sword gleamed sharply. I could clearly feel its edge, capable of cutting through anything.
"GUOOO!"
At that moment, the creature began charging again.
Once more, it targeted Lily, our team's glass cannon.
The situation was identical to before. Adel rushed to prepare for any contingency, while we swung our swords to stop its charge.
The only difference this time was that I had become more irritating to it.
Slash.
A cold cutting sound, different from before, echoed everywhere.
The buffed blade easily sliced through hide and instantly carved away the creature's flesh.
Though I still couldn't cut through bone, it was undeniable that I had become a threat it could no longer ignore.
"GUEEEEEK!"
Finally, it began to scream in pain.
Fresh blood flowed from the thigh I had cut.
Whether from surging anger or a change in its threat priority, I saw its red eyes turn toward me.
I forced a smile and said:
"Now you're looking at me?"
Those eyes flashing with madness and rage were quite thrilling.
My heart nearly dropped.
Thanks to that, the aggro directed at Lily was completely cleared.
The problem was that the aggro had shifted entirely to me.
So enraged it seemed, the creature ignored even Camilla slashing at its side and prepared to swing its axe.
Its toughness was insane as always.
The axe came crashing down toward my head.
I hurriedly raised my holy sword above my head.
Clang!
"Nnngh...!"
Despite receiving strength enhancement twice, a groan escaped automatically.
Crack, crack!
Muscles exerting beyond their limits made ominous sounds.
The sound of muscles tearing and bones dislocating—evidence that my body was being destroyed in real time.
My face automatically grimaced at the burning pain.
But there was no time to suffer. The axe, nearly as large as my upper body, was being swung again.
Very fortunately, I was able to dodge this one by twisting my body sideways.
Whoosh!
The fierce air pressure made my hair flutter.
"Monster! Look over here!"
"This is... it doesn't even turn when arrows pierce its body."
I was wrong. This creature seemed to be enraged beyond measure.
I could feel its killing intent—its determination to tear me apart.
With each swing of the axe, a terrifying gale made me wince. Each strike was a potentially fatal attack being swung fiercely.
However, despite all this, I could feel somewhat relieved.
*That's good.*
As the creature focused on me, damage was definitely accumulating.
At this rate, it would be the one to tire first. And if we could buy enough time, its horn would eventually be cut off.
In other words, victory was assured as long as I could endure.
Even in this urgent situation, I called out to our party's mage:
"Lily! How much longer?"
"..."
"Three minutes! Just hold on for about three minutes!"
Strangely, the answer came from Yulice.
Lily must have been too busy concentrating, so she answered instead. I don't know how she measured the time, but she probably wasn't lying.
I mulled over her shout.
*Three minutes.*
Three minutes.
A short time in some contexts, long in others.
And for me, facing death in real time, it would be an extremely long time.
From that moment, a game of chicken began between the creature and me.
It would swing its axe wildly, and I would try my best to dodge.
Though its attacks were fast and powerful, the pattern itself was consistent.
Attacks swung in straight lines, without technique or variation.
Strikes driven solely by the desire to tear the opponent apart—terrifying but predictable.
At this level, focusing was enough.
[You have acquired the skill 'Combat Focus Lv.1'!]
Additionally, with the help of my teammates, the creature quickly began to tire.
"Haap!"
Slash!
Suddenly, Camilla's sword cleanly cut the creature's back.
A blue light shimmered around her sword. Unlike me, she had a clear and distinct Sword Aura.
Though it might take some time, she was definitely an aura user.
"GUEEEEEK!!"
Thanks to that, the creature's movements noticeably slowed.
After that, the outcome was predictable.
Eventually, the same spell as before flew through the air.
It cut off the creature's horn without hesitation.
Slash!
The horn scattered beautifully in the air. Simultaneously, the creature's knees hit the ground.
Seeing this, I inwardly rejoiced.
*It worked!*
Great, now we don't have to worry about it going berserk!
Since it seemed to have lost all its strength, all that remained was to cut off its head—
—
—
.
That's when it happened.
Thud!
Someone grabbed the back of my neck.
"?"
Before I could even be surprised, my neck was quickly pulled backward.
It happened too quickly to react. My body falling backward in an instant.
And simultaneously.
Whoosh—!!
A gust of wind pressure rose.
Incomparable to anything before, literally like a typhoon.
I couldn't see it, couldn't feel it.
Couldn't sense it, couldn't even predict it.
All I could see was the afterimage of the axe connected by a line and...
[WARNING! WARNING!]
The system's intense warning messages blaring loudly.
Red messages urgently appeared before my eyes.
[Fate Forced!]
[Unexpected variable in the scenario!]
"Hero, are you alright?!"
"Huh? What?"
Coming to my senses belatedly, I could see it.
The Minotaur I thought was dying was glowing with red eyes.
Black smoke I had never seen before was rising from nearby.
[Warning! Berserk mode has been activated!]
The very berserk mode we had tried so hard to prevent.
I was dumbfounded.
*What the hell is this...*