185

Slosh slosh

"Disgusting."

Ichika muttered under her breath as she looked at Suzuki Satoru, who had entered Phase 2. His appearance was grotesque.

His entire body was covered in melted, swollen, smooth flesh, with dozens of mouths opening with a crack, sticky tongues dripping with saliva, and a pungent stench that assaulted the nostrils. Veins pulsated eerily on the eight red scythes that protruded from his back like spider legs.

There was nothing human about him anymore.

"Ichikaaaaa…"

"Ichikaaaa…"

"Ich… ika…"

The only things that indicated he was Suzuki Satoru were the unpleasantly clear eyes that stopped rolling and the dozens of mouths that uttered Ichika's name.

What was terrible wasn't just his appearance.

Even for me, with mental strength far superior to that of ordinary characters, I found myself momentarily thinking that he was 'charming'.

'This is the power of an incubus's apostle, capable of seduction…'

In the game, during boss battles with this guy, party members would sometimes switch sides and attack their own team, and it seemed this sensation was the reason.

'… If I don't keep my wits about me, I could be in danger too.'

With heightened tension, I looked at Ichika with newfound eyes.

It wasn't easy to dismiss that appearance as disgusting at first sight.

'… Not bad.'

A burden that stays put is better than one that actively interferes.

I felt less worried about Ichika being charmed and doing unnecessary things.

"Ichikaaaaa…"

Suzuki Satoru, having fully transformed, called out Ichika's name as he swung his giant scythes.

The scythes stretched out and then disappeared in an instant.

Shatter!

With a sharp sound tearing through the air, sword energy was unleashed.

The sword energy split apart and filled the air, each strand distinct and tangible.

It was the same type of attack as the one I had faced earlier, but the difference in intensity was clear.

I sharpened my mind and glared at the sword energy strands.

"Right. Vertical attack."

'Right… Huh?'

Whoosh!

Even as I dodged to the side, I couldn't help but be surprised. After all, Ichika had spoken up from behind me, faster than I could detect any sense of danger.

Boom!

A massive explosion erupted where I had just dodged, creating a deep crater.

"Above. Horizontal attack."

Whoosh!

Following Ichika's calm voice, I ducked low.

'… Not bad.'

Ichika, whom I had thought would be nothing but a burden due to her low health, was unexpectedly useful, and I revised my opinion of her.

'This changes things.'

If she could distinguish the nature of the attacks, I could focus solely on the offense without having to split my attention.

Slick

I lowered my body, stepped heavily, and channeled my mana.

Dark Stride.

Thud!

My body shot forward into the relentless storm of sword energy without hesitation.

"Left. Diagonal attack."

"Below. Horizontal attack."

"Left. Three."

"Right. Diagonal."

"Above. Horizontal."

Like playing a rhythm game, I weaved through the intertwined illusions and real sword energy, successfully approaching the boss.

And…

Swoosh

Swish!

With flexible wrist movements, I swung my sword.

Skill, Sword Dance.

The soft sword danced like a fast-paced dance, carving into the boss's body.

Whoosh!

A fountain of blood spurted out of the boss's body a beat late.

"Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!! Ichikaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!"

"Get back."

The frenzied boss twisted its bulky body, contorting it.

Crash! Crack!

I swept my surroundings with the recoil, but by then, I had already withdrawn.

Thud!

Thuuuud─!

And I managed to inflict damage on the creature a few more times in the same manner.

"Ichika!!!!!!"

However, things didn't go as smoothly as I hoped. If it could be resolved this easily, I wouldn't have needed to wait for my party members.

Crunch.

The creature that had been taking my attacks unilaterally…

Scythes sprouted from its back, split into two masses, and began to merge. Bat-like membranes stretched between the scythes, forming large wings that wrapped around its body.

Indeed.

The true prowess of Suzuki Satoru, the boss of Jukai Forest, lay in aerial combat.

Flap.

As the massive wings flapped slowly, the heavy mass rose into the air, defying gravity.

Then, its clear, keen eyes fixed on me from the sky.

With one fold and spread of its wings…

"Screeech!"

"Screeech!!"

"Kyaaaa!"

The dozens of mouths that had sprouted from the boss's body opened wide and flew at us with chilling screams.

This time, they were all real attacks, and Ichika seemed to notice this as well, as she remained silent.

I predicted the attack paths of the incoming mouths, my face hardening.

'… I don't think I can dodge all of these.'

In the end, I made a decision and channeled all my magic power, intending to minimize the damage.

But then…

Halt.

One of the mouths that had been flying towards us suddenly stopped in midair and changed its course.

And my heightened concentration didn't miss that momentary pause.

Thud!

Flash!

Even as I took advantage of that opening, a thought crossed my mind.

'… Why did it stop? Why did it change course? It was the perfect opportunity to exploit my weakness…'

In fact, the altered attack was headed towards the path I had deemed unavoidable, aiming for my back.

I had intended to turn and sacrifice my left arm to protect Ichika, who was behind me. But the boss's sudden change of attack allowed me to escape without sacrificing anything.

'… Ichika? Satoru, you bastard… Could it be…?'

A spark flashed in my eyes.

'He's a guy.'

I smirked and called out to Ichika behind me.

"Ichika."

"Yeah."

I called her name, and she, with a blank expression, tilted her head, confused.

"You can't get away from me right now. All you need is physical contact with me, right?"

"Yeah, probably. And I have a feeling… that staying close like this also recovers my health."

'I see…'

I didn't know why I had become her charger, but if that was the case, it was actually better.

"Then, I'm sorry, but could you get off my back and hold my hand instead?"

"Hmm… Hand?"

"Yeah."

"Hand… I think it's too early for that." (Hand? How Lewd!)

Ichika turned her head to the side, embarrassed.

… What was she saying about being too early when she had been busy groping my chest during the fight?

I looked at her with cold eyes.

'Well, I'll just apologize later. If it doesn't work out, I can at least get her out without any harm.'

Grab.

I put her down and suddenly grabbed her arm firmly.

And then…

Swoosh

"Ah."

I swung Ichika, still holding her arm, towards the incoming attack.

As expected…

Halt.

The mouths stopped just short of reaching us and hung in midair.

"As I thought."

I twisted my lips and nodded.

"… "

Before I knew it, Ichika had changed her position and was now hanging from my arm like a cat, looking up at me.

Paan

Why.

What.

It's your fault he awakened.

You should take responsibility.

Is there a problem?

So, with the Ichika shield, we started fighting again, but it was still difficult.

The original boss wasn't an easy opponent, but the biggest problem was that reality was different from the game.

In the game, the enemies and my character were always within the same screen, so even flying enemies didn't fly too high.

But when I approached the boss while actively using Ichika, he flew to a distance where my sword couldn't reach and unleashed attacks from there.

Of course, thanks to the Ichika shield, I wasn't taking critical damage, but if this continued, I would be at a disadvantage.

'… I can't do this alone.'

At the very least, if Kang Do-hee threw me up with Lim Ga-eul's acceleration, it might be a different story.

Fighting this guy without them was like a soldier fighting a fighter jet with just a sword.

'I guess I'll have to hold out and wait for the party members…'

Then…

"Step on the ghost."

Ichika, who had been silently watching me, spoke up.

"Huh… What?"

"My ghost can become a platform for you."

"!"

I widened my eyes at her suggestion.

'Now that I think about it, her ability is to temporarily materialize shadows and use them for attacks, right?'

Ichika's ghosts were very fast and free-moving, which meant they weren't restricted by terrain, whether on the ground or in the air.

If she could temporarily materialize them in the air, what would happen?

'… Could they be used as platforms?'

Ha.

A laugh escaped me at the absurdity of the idea.

If this method worked, it would drastically increase Utopia Party's attack range.

However, it was clear that it wouldn't be easy.

Ichika would have to predict my movements, considering my speed, and create platforms in advance.

In a situation where we hadn't even practiced together, should I trust her with my body?

"This is crazy…"

But my voice sounded a little excited.

"Let's do it right now."

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