『As I thought, we aren’t dealing much damage.』
Despite the barrage of attack magic from Rain and Lucre, the White Snake showed no signs of slowing down. Wil’s voice echoed in my mind, his tone little more than a murmur.
『No, the damage should be accumulating steadily, even if only in small increments. It’s frustrating, but we have no choice but to keep whittling it down with magic. Selma-san, since the magic sword wasn't effective either, I’m going to join Wil in supporting the rearguard.』
The White Snake’s biology rendered physical attacks almost useless. I had hoped my magic sword might prove the exception, but that first strike confirmed it wouldn't be enough. We were forced to pivot to a combat style centered entirely on magic.
『Understood. Everyone, you heard Orun. From here on, it’s a battle of endurance. Keep your focus sharp!』
『『『『Roger!!!!』』』』
With our strategy set, I touched the ground with my left hand, constructing a spell formula and channeling mana into the earth. At the same time, I deactivated 【Culmination】 and switched to 【Restoration: Quintuple】.
As Selma-san said, this was now a war of attrition. Since I still had a specific role to play later, I couldn't afford to burn myself out in the early stages.
As the frontline fighters pulled back from the melee, Rain and Lucre intensified their assault. I began placing 【Raise Repeat】 points along their lines of fire. Meanwhile, Wil and I equipped several accessories embedded with magic stones and began clearing away the surrounding shrubbery.
The White Snake possessed magic that allowed it to manipulate flora at will. While it could manifest new plants instantly—like the giant tree it had sprouted earlier—it could also seize control of the existing shrubs in the boss area, making them act like autonomous, predatory creatures. To prevent that, we took advantage of the current lull to eliminate the obstacles.
The White Snake that the 《Golden Dawn》 once fought had been known to slither across the floor with relentless agility. Its sheer size in motion was a terror, but this current White Snake remained anchored in the center of the area, as sluggish as a serpent entering hibernation. Perhaps because of the sub-zero temperatures we’d induced, it wasn't even attempting many magical counterattacks.
The fact that it remained stationary despite taking constant magical damage suggested our plan to drop the temperature had been a resounding success. I couldn't be more grateful to the magic development room back at the 《Silver Rabbit of the Night Sky》 headquarters for perfecting the tools we were using.
—However, I didn't expect an opponent of this caliber to go down without a fight.
After a period of one-sided bombardment, the White Snake suddenly let out a sharp, menacing hiss. Its scales began to take on a distinct bluish tint. I had considered this as a possibility: it was adapting to the cold environment.
As its scales shifted to a dark navy, the beast lunged. With a speed that defied its massive bulk, it charged directly toward Rain. Its previous lethargy felt like a distant lie.
This was exactly why I had warned Wil that this enemy was different. Unlike typical magic beasts, the White Snake didn't prioritize targets based on magic stones. While stones weren't entirely useless as decoys, this boss frequently bypassed the defenders to target the mages in the rearguard.
Immune to physical strikes and indifferent to magic stone lures—the White Snake was a defender’s worst nightmare. I couldn't tell if this behavior was unique to this snake or if hate management simply wouldn't work on floor bosses from here on out; I wouldn't know for sure until we faced the 94th-floor boss.
For a front-line fighter like Wil or myself, the snake's charge would have been easy to intercept. But the snake knew exactly what it was doing, picking the target least suited for close-quarters combat. Mages typically obliterated enemies before they could get close, relying on the frontline for protection. Their experience in melee was usually minimal.
Tactically, the snake’s judgment was sound. However, it had made one fatal error.
It had vastly underestimated Rain.
『Rain, do you need backup?』 Selma-san asked via telepathy. Her voice was calm; there was no hint of panic.
『Just keep the buffs coming. I’ll draw it in, so everyone else, get your attacks ready. Oh, Lucre, have some water-type magic standing by.』
Rain’s response was equally nonchalant, showing no sign of nerves despite the massive serpent bearing down on her. As the distance closed, she tapped the ground with her staff.
The earth around her surged upward. Random stone pillars erupted from the floor, acting as barricades to block the snake’s path. Against a four-legged beast, these might have halted the charge entirely. But the White Snake simply wove through the pillars like water, its belly never leaving the ground.
Ignoring the obstacles, the serpent finally reached Rain and unhinged its massive jaws. It snapped its mouth shut, attempting to swallow her whole.
A muffled explosion roared from inside the snake’s throat. Thin trails of smoke escaped its lips as the beast began to writhe in visible agony.
"Did my magic taste good?"
Rain was already standing atop a different stone pillar, looking down at the beast. It was the first time we’d dealt a truly significant blow. Enraged, the White Snake lashed out with its tail at a speed an ordinary person wouldn't even have been able to track. The tail slammed into the pillar where Rain stood, shattering it.
But Rain wasn't an ordinary person. She was an explorer who had reached the deep floors. With the added boost of Selma-san’s buffs, her perception was far beyond human limits.
"Too slow. I'm over here."
Rain goaded the beast from another pillar. The serpent’s fury peaked. It summoned a thicket of vines from the ground around her, a mass of writhing green intended to ensnare and crush her.
『Lucre, water!』
As the vines surged, Rain cast a magic barrier around herself. Above her, several magic circles manifested, raining down high-pressure water bullets. Wetting the vines alone wouldn't stop them, so I intervened with 【Gravity Manipulation】 to pin the foliage down.
『Thanks, Orun-kun,』 Rain chirped over the link.
Then, she spoke the incantation.
"【Blizzard】."
A freezing fog erupted—a mist of mana far denser than what the white daggers had produced. The vines reaching for her froze instantly, shattering before they could touch her.
"Hehe. Sorry, Mr. Snake. Still can't reach me."
She was taunting it, keeping its focus entirely on her. The White Snake hissed, its sound changing from a mere warning to a maddened shriek of rage. It threw itself at her in a desperate headbutt.
Just before the impact, Rain activated 【Space Leap】, vanishing and reappearing several meters away.
Magic requires the construction of a formula followed by the infusion of mana. While anyone can learn the basics, most people have natural affinities or weaknesses. Someone might excel at attack magic but struggle with support, or master fire while failing at water. True all-rounders are rare—in my experience, only myself, Grandpa, and Anneri from the former Hero Party fit that description.
Selma-san specialized in support; Lucre in healing.
So, what was Rain?
An attack mage? No.
She was what we call a "Singular Mage," a being essentially born for magic. In principle, they are like us—possessing no real weaknesses—but they have one defining trait: an abnormal, logic-defying aptitude for a specific type of magic.
This aptitude might manifest as the ability to construct a complex formula in a literal heartbeat or the power to affect an area far beyond what should be possible.
Rain’s singular gift was 【Space Leap】. It was widely considered the most difficult spell formula to construct in existence, yet she could assemble it instantly. She rarely used it, as being a Singular Mage had brought her nothing but tragedy in the past. But for this battle, knowing the rearguard would be targeted, we had asked her to lift her self-imposed ban. Even with the restriction that she only teleport herself within a short radius, it made her untouchable.
『Everyone, now!』
As the White Snake’s head slammed into the empty stone pillar where Rain had been a second before, her voice rang out in our minds. We didn't miss the opening.
「「「【Mjolnir】!!」」」
「Chaos Edge!」
「Heavenly Flash!」
Rain, Lucre, and Selma-san unleashed their special-grade magic. Wil launched his Chaos Edge, and I drove my Black Slash straight into the reeling serpent.