After several exchanges with the minotaur, the stiff tension had finally vanished from Mika and Saori-chan’s faces. They watched the creature's movements with neutral expressions, handling each attack calmly and methodically as if confirming a checklist. The frantic desperation of their first battle was gone, replaced by a steady sense of stability.
Mika’s harassment attack created a massive opening, and Saori-chan didn’t miss the opportunity. Her spear pierced the center of the minotaur's chest. The beast shrieked in agony, clutching the hole in its torso as it slumped forward and collapsed.
"..." "..."
The two girls stood over the fallen minotaur for a few moments. Once they confirmed its body had begun the process of particleization, Mika stepped forward and gave it a quick jab with her skinning knife. The particleization accelerated instantly, leaving behind a block of meat.
"...Phew."
Having confirmed that a block of minotaur meat had dropped, Mika and Saori-chan let out long, relieved exhales, letting their guard down at last.
"Good work, you two. You’ve stopped tensing up and are fighting much more smoothly now."
"Ah, yeah. I’m starting to get a feel for how it moves, so I was able to stay calm enough to handle it."
"Its movement patterns are different from the monsters we've faced before, which was confusing at first. But after watching closely, I realized its style is actually quite orthodox, just relying on physical power. I think as long as we stay calm, we’ll be fine."
Mika and Saori-chan shared faint smiles, radiating a new sense of confidence. It was hard to believe they had been so intimidated by minotaurs just a short while ago.
Well, I was glad they had overcome their aversion. However, getting too comfortable could lead to a lapse in focus. I needed to make sure they stayed sharp.
"I'm glad to hear you're feeling better about it. Composure is good, but don't let it turn into complacency."
"Yeah, I know. Even if I say I’m composed, it’s only because I generally understand its patterns now. I know that if I get careless here, I’ll end up paying for it."
"I won’t confuse composure with complacency. I've seen plenty of people learn that lesson the hard way. Even when you're confident, you should still take every precaution, right?"
Both of them looked me straight in the eye, asserting their commitment to safety in clear, firm tones.
It seemed I was worrying for nothing. Neither Mika nor Saori-chan were the type to let a flawless victory against a difficult foe go to their heads.
"If you understand that, then you’ll be fine. Most people mess up right after a perfect win against someone they used to struggle with."
"Ah, I can see that. You get a bit of a big head because of how much trouble it used to give you, right?"
"Exactly. You start thinking you're stronger than you really are, and that's when you get careless."
"That makes sense..."
Even if you can win, you have to understand that the gap in strength is small enough to be overturned by a single lapse in judgment. If you don't realize how fragile that advantage is, you'll end up with a serious injury.
On the other hand, if you're wound too tight all the time, you'll eventually burn out mentally. You need a certain amount of breathing room.
"Anyway, since the two of you can handle a minotaur together without breaking a sweat now, do you want to try going solo next? It’ll be a struggle, but I think you can win without getting hurt."
"Yeah, based on how that felt, I think I could do it. But..."
"Doing it without taking a single hit is still a bit worrying," Saori said. "I think I could win, but I haven't fully mastered the minotaur's reach and movement patterns yet. If possible, I’d like to fight alongside Mika-chan one more time to verify a few things."
"Oh, I want to fight with Saori-chan again too! I want to check how the minotaur moves when it’s unarmed. We only saw that for a moment during the first fight!"
Now that they mentioned it, we hadn't properly tested the minotaur’s unarmed patterns. When they had successfully disarmed it in their first encounter, they were too busy panicking over its unexpected counterattack to do any real analysis.
It made sense to verify its unarmed behavior before they attempted solo runs.
"That’s a good point. A minotaur is unlikely to drop its weapon on its own, but it’s better to be safe and know its patterns for when you disarm it."
"Yeah. Its main attacks are with the club, but you taught us that just because it's unarmed doesn't mean it's helpless. If we’d stopped moving back then, it could have been bad."
"I never imagined it would launch such a desperate attack. It almost got me."
Mika and Saori-chan looked off into the distance, their eyes reflecting the memory of that first encounter.
Most of the monsters they had encountered until now would either panic, freeze, or flee if they lost their weapons. Encountering a monster that would immediately launch a suicidal charge the moment its weapon was gone must have been a real shock for them.
"A wounded enemy is not to be underestimated. In fact, they require more caution than an enemy at full health."
"Yeah, I really feel that now."
"Yes. The wounded ones are the most unpredictable."
They both nodded solemnly, taking my words to heart. They had learned that lesson through experience.
"Alright then, how about the two of you fight another one? This time, we’ll start by taking its weapon and focus on its unarmed combat."
"Yeah, that sounds good. Oh, but..."
"But what?"
Mika looked a bit anxious as she turned to Saori-chan.
"Can we actually disarm it in the very first exchange?"
"...I think we could, but it might not be the ideal setup for a test."
"Right?"
The two of them sighed. The ideal scenario for their verification was facing a healthy, unarmed minotaur from the start. Mika and Saori-chan could certainly disarm one, but to do so, they would likely have to injure the arm holding the club, just like they did in the first fight.
Fighting a minotaur that was already hampered by a mangled arm wouldn't provide the best data for their training.
"In that case... how about I help you with the disarm? If it's a minotaur, I can strip its weapon without hurting it at all."
"Eh? No, but..."
"We're supposed to be doing this on our own today," Saori-chan said, her eyes darting back in hesitation. "Having you help, Daiki..."
They were clearly conflicted. My offer was tempting, but they didn't want to undermine the point of their training. Still, the chance for a perfect verification was hard to pass up.
I didn't plan on carrying them, but helping with the setup seemed fair.
"I'll only take the weapon, nothing else. I won't lift a finger after that unless I think you're in immediate danger."
"Hmm..."
The two of them agonized over it for a moment before looking at each other and giving a small nod.
"If it's just the disarm..."
"Understood. I'll help with the weapon, then the rest is entirely up to you."
"Okay." "Yes."
Mika and Saori-chan still seemed a bit conflicted about taking the help, but the desire to not waste a perfect training opportunity won out. After all, it wasn't every day you had a top-tier explorer around who could disarm a minotaur flawlessly just to help you train.
Besides, once they were skilled enough to do it themselves, they wouldn't need this kind of verification anyway.
"Alright, let's go find a minotaur."
We set off deeper into the dungeon.
After about five minutes of walking, we spotted a minotaur's silhouette at the end of a corridor. It was alone and hadn't noticed us yet.
"There's one. I'll take the weapon as planned, then it's all yours."
"Got it." "Yes."
Once I saw they were ready, I called back to Yuji and Hiiragi-san.
"Alright, Yuji, Hiiragi-san. I'm going in for a second. It should be fine, but keep an eye on our rear."
"Yeah, yeah. Just don't overdo it and kill the thing by mistake."
"Good luck!"
After leaving the backup to them, I gave the girls a quick signal and walked toward the minotaur. I closed the distance at a leisurely pace until the creature finally noticed me.
Right, time for the standard opening...
"Hup."
The moment the minotaur raised its club and opened its mouth for an intimidating Roar, I vanished. I closed the gap in an instant and delivered a light palm strike to the pommel of the club while it was still mid-swing.
And just like that...
"Huh?"
The club already had significant upward momentum, and the sudden addition of force from below sent it spinning right out of the minotaur's grip. It sailed through the air and clattered to the ground well behind the beast.
The minotaur stood there with its eyes wide, completely bewildered by the incomprehensible event that had just occurred. Success.
"There, that should do it."
"???"
I quickly backed away from the stunned monster and called out to the girls.
"Alright, I'm tagging out! The rest is up to you!"
"Eh? Ah, right!"
"Wait—yes!"
Mika and Saori-chan were both momentarily stunned by how fast I had moved, but they snapped back to reality when I reappeared at their side. They immediately rushed in to close the distance. Their movements were a little stiff from the shock, but since the minotaur was even more confused, it didn't matter much.
Now then, I’ve given you the perfect setup. Make the most of it.
"Nice work, Daiki. That was smooth."
"Masterful as always," Hiiragi-san added.
"Haha, thanks. It's only because they always react the same way when you approach them like that. It's just a little trick of timing and physical power. Mika and the others could probably do it too if they practiced."
I stood back with Yuji and Hiiragi-san, watching as the minotaur began to swing its fists at the two girls.
"Oh, Mika and Saori-chan are doing great," Yuji noted. "They’re properly accounting for the difference in reach between the club and the fists."
"True," Hiiragi-san said. "They’ve adjusted their positioning for the new threat and have a solid handle on the distance."
"They've really grown. They aren't hesitating like they did during the first fight. Look at that—they dodged the tackle perfectly without missing a sign. Their balance is perfect, and they aren't wasting any movement on the evasion."
Having learned from their previous mistakes, Mika and Saori-chan were fighting with precision. They tested various scenarios, staying just outside of fist range, then moving in to see how to handle being inside the minotaur's reach.
"Hmm. The difficulty really does drop once that weapon reach is cut in half."
"Well, the minotaur is a power fighter," I said. "It doesn't have the speed to close the distance against an agile opponent. When the speeds are similar, reach is everything."
"Plus, they already know it'll attack with its fists if it's unarmed," Hiiragi-san added. "Not being surprised is half the battle. When you’re calm and have the reach advantage, it’s only natural for them to dominate the fight."
After about ten exchanges, Mika and Saori-chan finished their verification and moved in for the kill.
"Hah!"
"Gmooooh!"
Mika used her reach advantage to its fullest, piercing the center of the minotaur's chest with her spear from a position where its fists couldn't even touch her.
Good form. There’s no reason to fight on your opponent's terms if you have a better option.
Note to self: when swinging things around, make sure they don't slip out.