Astral Online: Cursed by the Demon Lord to Become the Strongest Beautiful Girl, I Rapidly Grow and Dominate with Cheat Skills Despite Being the Weakest Profession - Chapter 114
Chapter 114: The Girls’ Growth
Upon arriving in the town, we quickly spoke to the villagers nearby and learned from one of them the location of the village chief, who was aware of the situation.
After meeting with the village chief, who lived in a modest house on the outskirts of the town, we updated the quest we received from the Dragon King from ?Heading to the Village? to ?Defeating the Mysterious Monster?.
We also heard about the ?Mysterious Monster? that was stationed at the hot spring and quickly checked the route on the newly acquired map before setting off.
Just like before, we headed to an underground dungeon, and from the information gathered on the map, it seemed that the village had constructed the hot spring deep inside.
After speaking with the gatekeeper to open the dungeon door, we had a brief discussion before rushing in.
“So, this time it’s the real deal. Let’s focus on all three types of defense instead of just evasion.”
“Okay, got it.”
“…I’ll do my best.”
This time, we changed our formation, with Alice and Kuro taking the front lines to test their training results.
I became the strongest in the party, taking on the role of protecting Satanas.
With the two of them at the forefront, I held Satanas’s hand and made our way down the dimly lit path for several minutes.
The number of skeletons we encountered along the way was quite substantial, but the now-grown Kuro and Alice fought fiercely as if to vent all the frustrations they had accumulated in the carriage, easily overcoming them.
Next, we arrived at a slightly larger area that appeared to be a rest stop for workers.
There, we encountered a mid-boss—a skeleton-type monster, about three meters tall, wielding a large scythe and literally engulfed in flames.
Its name was ?Crimson Reaper?.
Its attribute was fire, and unlike the common weakness of skeleton types to light, it was weak to water, a common attribute for monsters found in lava zones.
In contrast to the level 40 minions we had faced on the way, this opponent was a formidable foe at level 60.
Its normal attacks primarily consisted of sweeping strikes with its scythe and the magic skill ?Flame Arrow?.
The sweeping attack is easily readable as it comes from a motion where the scythe is raised high.
However, the ?Flame Arrow? can be fired from any movement, making it challenging for Kuro and Alice to defend against it.
Occasionally, the enemy targeted Satanas, but since I was the one in charge of protecting her this time, I used ?Sword Guard? with water attribute to deflect all the attacks before they could reach her.
As the battle continued, the two of them took some damage but managed to retaliate, bringing the ?Crimson Reaper?’s HP down to half.
Then, the flaming skeleton let out a war cry and took a stance, raising its scythe high above its head.
?Master, that is the advanced attack skill ?Deadly Scythe?, which has 13 consecutive strikes. If you take even one hit properly, your weapon will be forcibly knocked away, and you will definitely be hit by the follow-up second strike. It’s a skill from the top tier of the scythe category with the ‘break defense’ property.?
An advanced skill, huh? That sounds dangerous.
After hearing this information from the support system, ?Lucifel?, I immediately instructed the two to avoid blocking it with their weapons.
Of course, I wasn’t just going to stand back and watch. I readied myself to assist them whenever they got into trouble.
However, the training we did in the carriage had made the two resilient against ordinary attacks.
Utilizing a combination of incomplete defensive skills, they successfully withstood all of the ?Crimson Reaper?’s consecutive strikes using two types of defense: “deflection” and “parry.”
As a consequence of using the super powerful 13-hit combo, the ?Crimson Reaper??Crimson Reaper? entered a long period of immobility.
Not wanting to miss this golden opportunity, Alice stepped forward and activated the dual strike skill ?Ice Dual Pierce?, focusing on speed.
With sharp, fast thrusts imbued with water attribute, she pierced the chest twice, precisely hitting the crystal at its weak point.
Kuro circled around to flank the enemy and activated ?Ice Quad Slash?, attacking the fiery skeleton, which was now down to 20% HP. She defeated it by slashing its back four times.
The mid-boss monster’s HP was completely obliterated, scattering into particles of light.
Joyful about their first solo defeat of a mid-boss monster, Kuro and Alice excitedly high-fived each other.
“Big sister Alice and Kuro-chan is so cool!”
Bouncing happily and releasing my hand, Satanas rushed over to Alice and hugged her.
That heartwarming scene looked to anyone like a pair of sisters.
With only the information at hand, I couldn’t figure anything out.
They look so natural together, it’s like they were meant to be.
This was purely a wish born from my happy-ending mindset, but deep down, I sincerely wished that Alice and Satanas were actually real sisters.
“Sora! Next is the boss room! Let’s clear it quickly and head back to the royal capital!”
“The festival is in three days, and we need to solve as many problems as possible before then. We don’t have much time to waste.”
“Y-Yeah, you’re right…”
Called back to reality by Kuro and Alice, I felt my thoughts forcibly return.
I lowered my head and said, “Sorry, let’s go,” then took the lead again as we walked toward the next area, the spring where the boss awaited.
…………………
“Is it really you?!”
The heat rising from the spring.
Steam swirling in the distance.
In the center of it all, a gigantic silhouette soaking in the hot spring was unmistakably him—the ?Skeleton King?.
Moreover, the name of the revenge skill, ?Grudge?, has vanished, and he’s reverted to the ordinary ?Skeleton King? we fought first.
Could it be that by soaking in the hot spring, he has forgotten about his desire for revenge?
From the looks of it, the boss monster has his back turned to us, completely relaxed, making him appear wide open for an attack.
While there’s a possibility of a trap, if he’s deliberately luring us into a false sense of security with that relaxed posture to ambush us, that would be terrifying in its own right.
Alice, standing protectively in front of Satanas, and Kuro, next to me, looked bewildered, giving off a vibe of uncertainty about what to do.
Honestly, I felt like turning around and going home.
?Master, just a warning: you cannot exit the dungeon until the boss monster is defeated.?
I sighed at the support system’s reminder. While he doesn’t look like a particularly clever monster, if he’s willing to let us take the initiative, then taking full advantage of that opportunity is the best course of action.
Reluctantly tightening my resolve, I readied my weapon against the wide-open skeleton.
Using my enhancement skills, I activated ?Light Attribute Enchantment IV? with 10 slots and ?Attack Power Boost Enchantment IV? with 5 slots, entering a hyper-offensive mode with my sword in hand.
First, I would use the intermediate attack power increase skill, ?Strength?.
This would further raise my already enhanced attack power.
Additionally, by using the 10 slots for the attribute enhancement skill, I selected an advanced light attribute attack skill that I could execute from this position.
I cautiously instructed Kuro to step back, positioning my right foot forward to face the enemy with my right side.
Lowering my stance, I touched the hilt of my magic sword and unleashed my most powerful technique.
“Hah!”
I exhaled sharply and drew my sword.
What I unleashed in the iai stance was a skill that releases flying slashes, ?Angriff Fliegen?, combined with a light attribute enhancement skill.
Its name is ?Shining Fliegen?.
The dazzling slash that was unleashed headed straight for the defenseless boss monster’s back as if being drawn in.
Upon impact, it delivered a critical hit.
Furthermore, with the back attack bonus and the added weakness attribute, the damage skyrocketed to an incredible level.
The boss monster’s HP, which had started with two bars, began to drop at a terrifying speed, and in front of Sora and the others, one bar vanished.
But the momentum didn’t stop there. It continued to decrease rapidly until it turned completely red, and then…
The Skeleton King’s HP was entirely depleted.
“No way, right?”
It was absolutely impossible for a boss monster, regardless of various factors, to be defeated in a single blow.
As Sora grew cautious, the ?Skeleton King? began to disappear in a shower of light particles.
“Is Sora just that amazing…?”
“Or is the Skeleton King just too weak?”
Even Kuro and Alice, usually unfazed, were wearing faces that could only be described as bemused.
I was at a loss for words, unsure of how to respond, and could only manage a troubled expression.
Then, the ?Skeleton King? vanished into light particles, granting a massive amount of experience points and elixirs to the adventurers.
What remained was just the party of four who had come to battle the hot spring.
Upon closer inspection, I noticed a translucent figure in the place where the ?Skeleton King? had stood—a red-haired, naked old man.
When he looked at us, he murmured in a small voice, “I’ve finally been freed from the Demon Lord’s curse. Thank you, Lord Archangel.”
After expressing his gratitude, the old man furrowed his brow and said, “A calamity is approaching this land. Please protect my grandchild…”