Chapter 85
Chapter 85
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 85
Chapter Title: The Phantom Thief Appears (5)
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“Haa… I don’t know what’s going on.”
Artel let out a sigh but carefully tucked the fruit Jeron had given her into her uniform pocket.
“But it looks like an opponent we have to fight has shown up.”
Without hesitation, she assumed a battle stance.
Shoooo—
Cold ice mana rose from her fingertips.
Artel had already faced a Giant Skeleton alongside Jeron in the underground tomb dungeon.
She could maintain her composure without flinching even before a massive magic beast.
“Yuria, snap out of it. We have to fight.”
She calmly soothed Yuria, who had fallen into panic.
“Y-Yes, you’re right…!”
Yuria was still trembling at the overwhelming size and presence of the Blue Guardian, but Artel’s words gave her courage, and she summoned her spirits.
“There’s no need to panic. We can definitely handle this.”
Artel said as she created ice platforms one by one in midair.
The source of her confidence like this.
It came partly from her own skills, which had grown remarkably lately.
“Besides, we have Jeron with us.”
But above all, it was her absolute trust in Jeron.
Artel glanced toward Jeron with expectant eyes.
However.
She froze.
“…?!”
The Jeron she trusted without a doubt wasn’t preparing for battle at all—he was slumped against a rock on the ground!
“Jeron…? What are you doing right now?!”
Artel was stunned by the unbelievable situation.
Jeron gave an awkward smile.
“Sorry. I used up all my strength stealing that jewel earlier.”
“What are you even…!”
“I’ll leave it to you two.”
Jeron clenched his fist in a fighting pose.
‘…Huh?’
Artel was so dumbfounded that she couldn’t even get angry.
She thought she’d gotten used to Jeron’s sudden antics, but he always exceeded expectations.
She recalled when they first met, how he’d boldly declared victory against the Kaiser.
Or the time he casually buffed the boss undergoing demonization.
‘Anyway, I can’t live like this.’
She shook her head and turned back to face forward.
He was a consistently unpredictable guy.
But even so, she felt a slight sense of reassurance.
Just having Jeron there made her feel secure.
Because.
Whenever he pulled stunts like this, the results were always good.
He might be intentionally sitting this one out for some reason now too.
Like testing the skills she’d learned from him, for example.
‘Whatever it is, fine.’
Artel’s eyes sharpened.
‘Jeron. I’ll show you.’
Boom! Boooom!
The relentlessly advancing Guardian finally entered firing range.
The real battle began.
***
Ding!
[You’re spectating a battle you provoked yourself!]
[This is shamelessly slothful behavior!]
[Sloth +60!]
I enjoyed the influx of Sloth points while watching the battle unfold.
As I mentioned before, my freeloading strategy has two branching paths.
The one I chose was hunting the four field bosses that exist only on this island.
Specifically, taking down the ‘Blue Guardian.’
The problem is, to encounter this guy, you have to plow through a complicated dungeon.
‘That’s too much hassle.’
Going through the cave entrance, clearing trash mobs one by one with the frontal assault method is way too diligent.
So I used a pro gamer trick that only veterans know.
A bug you can only pull off with a teleportation skill.
Using teleport at specific spots lets you phase through terrain.
A technique known as ‘wall clipping.’
I used [Shadow Passage] to skip the entire dungeon and go straight to the boss room.
Then I snatched just the Blue Crystal the boss was guarding and bolted!
The enraged guy chased me relentlessly, leading to the current situation.
I felt a bit sorry for my teammates who had no idea and suddenly had to fight a field boss….
But there was a reason for this.
Actually, planning this theft event wasn’t just to easily snag points and Sloth effortlessly.
Sure, that was part of it…but something more important.
It was to sharpen their real combat senses for the ‘real main event’ coming up.
‘Not bad at all.’
Pretending to slack off, I closely observed their fight.
Yuria seemed scared, but she was definitely pulling her weight.
“Lady Snow White…! Now!”
As soon as the battle started, Yuria activated Snow White’s ability.
The Blue Guardian received the Sloth debuff, its attack speed and movement speed visibly slowing.
“Hyaap!”
Drawing the slowed Guardian’s aggro was the battle mage Artel.
She evaded all attacks using her ice platforms while dealing consistent damage.
Yuria supported Artel from the rear with buffs and auxiliary spells placed perfectly.
The two synced up perfectly.
‘That’s a passing grade.’
I nodded.
Field bosses are recommended for teams with an S-Rank or three A-Ranks.
Yet here, just A-Rank Artel and B-Rank Yuria were handling it.
Just as the hunt seemed to be going smoothly.
Kreeeeng—!
Glowing tattoos etched across the Guardian’s entire body.
‘Berserk pattern.’
It activates when HP drops below a certain threshold.
A phase where attack power and speed surge dramatically.
And upon entering this state, the Blue Guardian shakes off the debuff, and aggro shifts instantly.
The top priority becomes the character holding the Blue Crystal.
Ignoring Artel right in front of it, it charged at the one with the crystal.
Yuria in the back.
“Huh…?”
Yuria panicked and stepped back.
But the berserk Guardian’s speed was beyond imagination.
Plus, with the Sloth debuff gone, it moved at an unpredictable pace.
Boom!
Closing the distance in an instant, the Guardian raised its massive fist high.
“Yuria…!”
Artel shouted urgently.
Even with life protection magic, taking that hit means instant elimination—and above all, Yuria would get seriously hurt.
‘Can’t let that happen.’
Spectating ends here.
I cast [Shadow Passage].
***
The Blue Guardian’s fist plummeting from above.
Yuria hastily deployed a shield borrowed from the earth spirit’s power, but instinctively knew.
‘It’s no good….’
That attack couldn’t be dodged or blocked.
Her expression darkened.
Fear of pain or getting hurt, dread of failing the exam.
Those took a backseat to guilt toward Jeron.
He’d trusted and chosen her, yet she’d become a burden in the end.
‘I thought I’d gotten so much stronger….’
She thought her spirit arts had improved a lot lately.
With Snow White that Jeron gifted her, she figured she’d grown tremendously.
But she was still sorely lacking.
Wouldn’t it have been easier if he’d picked someone else instead?
As self-recrimination welled up.
Black haze rippled, and someone appeared beside her.
“…Huh?”
It was Jeron.
“Stick close to me.”
Jeron wrapped an arm around her.
Caught off guard, she ended up nestled against him.
At the same time, a deep purple barrier unfolded in a hemisphere, enveloping them both.
Kwaaaang—!
The Guardian’s massive fist collided with the barrier.
A deafening roar and tremendous shockwave spread, exploding the ground.
“...!!”
But the shield Jeron created withstood the colossal attack unscathed.
Yuria’s eyes widened.
“J-Jeron…?”
From his embrace, she looked up at his face.
He’d been leaning against that distant rock just moments ago.
When did he get here?
Then, Artel snapped out of her daze watching them.
Now completely free of the Guardian’s gaze—this was her chance.
Time to unleash the max-output attack spell she’d developed for this exam.
She focused her mind intensely.
Mana so cold it chilled gathered at her fingertips.
“[Frost Spikes]!”
Dozens of ice spears generated and fired in unison.
Pabab! Pabang!
Countless ice spears deeply embedded into the golem’s exposed back.
—!!!
The Blue Guardian staggered violently.
But true to a resilient field boss, it hadn’t fallen yet.
That’s when Jeron calmly said to Yuria in his arms.
“Yuria, buff me.”
“Ah, yes!”
Yuria startled and hurriedly used her spirit arts.
The most powerful destructive auxiliary spell for a mage like him.
Borrowing the fire spirit’s power, she cast [Wrath of Flames] on him.
Fwoooosh!
Red energy surged around Jeron’s body.
“I was hoping to rest a bit.”
He gazed at the staggering Blue Guardian.
His eyes indifferent as always, but laced with an unusual chill.
“You’re getting on my nerves.”
He slowly extended his hand.
That was it.
The massive Guardian’s body shattered into hundreds of pieces and collapsed.