I - Ray, the Warrior of Light - was thinking back to my conversation with Magnus.

"There will be no more boss monsters around Monriver once we kill the Manticore. And with this thing at level 20, it's a perfect opponent to finish the job.
''This is the first time you're dealing with someone in the level 20's and three levels higher than us...''
''Yeah. I suppose I should consider myself roughly separate from the boss monsters I've had to deal with.
We should have a very thorough discussion about it.
'Yes. I hope so.

　Such a story had been told before they left town.

　The Manticore was rooted in a decaying fort in the old battlefield.
　It was surrounded by numerous skeletal soldiers, apparently created with evil magic, watching over it.

Let's go to the front. We don't have any covert skills anyway.
Yeah. Let's get fancy and call it a grand demon-slaying.
"Good luck to you both!

　I held my steel sword and Magnus held his staff made of total mithril and struck him from the front.
　After that, Chocolat follows, keeping a safe distance.

　The Skeleton Soldier is a level 3 monster.
　If we don't let our guard down, firmly focus our attacks on each one of them and fight to reduce their numbers, Magnus and I will not be defeated.

　We beat the guys standing around the crumbling defensive wall, the outer gate, the vestibule, and the sentinel at the main gate of the fort, and rush inside the fort.
　The same from there. One by one, the skeletal soldiers prowling the corridors for a lookout are broken down, broken down, broken down solidly.

　There's no map of the fort, so the fact that our travel routes are haphazard is inevitable.
　The important thing is to protect yourself first. Be prepared for a surprise attack. Do not be in a hurry to get there first.
　This way of thinking came naturally to me through my exposure to Magnus' words and actions. Magnus is just the kind of person who crosses a bridge by knocking on it, you know.
　Thanks to him, I feel that I'm growing steadily and steadily, little by little.

　I can't tell you how much I've been wandering around the fort in search of the boss monsters, kicking out the miscellaneous monsters and wandering around the fort - and how much I've been able to do.
　We went out into the courtyard.

"These are the foolish people who are coming home to roost, aren't they? I hope you are prepared for that, my dear.

　There was a manticore waiting for us.
　It was glaring at us majestically from a balcony that overlooked the courtyard.
　It was a monster, with a red body resembling a lion, bat wings, scorpion tails, and the face of an old man with fangs.

'No, you haven't made it. Can you come down and tell me what kind of preparation I should have to make?

　Magnus chortled and challenged him.

'Hooray!　They're going to use you as a prime example of a human experiment.　I'll make you cry and beg me to kill you already!

　The manticore, which seemed to be the most cunning of the demons, did not come on lightly.
　From the high balcony, she began to chant a spell.

　If it was me and Magnus the Martial Artist before, all I could do was watch it with my fingers in my mouth.
　But now that I've grown to level 17, I'm different.
　Magnus understands, so I don't panic or make a fuss.
　In response to his trust, I brandish the Steel Sword.

Swordwave!

　Activate the skill you learned at level 13.
　The shockwave, which should be described as a sword wave, is unleashed from the blade's barrel, aiming at the manticore above her head.

"Nuh-uh, what is this?

　Manticore was blindsided.
　The spell was interrupted by surprise.
　However, as expected of a high 【Quickness】, I quickly leapt into the air and escaped, avoiding my Sword Wave. I only ended up smashing the balcony he was on.

''I see!　You are the Warrior of Light!　An assassin unleashed by the Divine Spirit Prominence!
''It's foul to have an advance guard position that can already learn long-range attack skills in the level 10s, right?

　Magnus lightly returns to Manticore's line about using bat wings to stay in the air.
　As expected of me, I don't have that much boldness, so I desperately visit the second 〈Swordwave〉.

''Goooooooooooo.''

　This was a direct hit and Manticore let out a scream of pain.
　As per Magnus' prior information, it seems that he can't move as nimbly as he does in flight.
　Since I knew, I was able to follow up with Sword Wave without hesitation. If I hadn't known, I might have hesitated when the first shot was dodged.
The reason being that unlike a bow and arrow, the Sword Wave isn't that fast from activation to impact.

''Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

　The manticore glided in excruciatingly, took a plummeting stance, and landed in the courtyard where we were.

'Now, Magnus!'
Yes, sir.

　When Magnus and I saw that, we immediately leapt at it from both sides.

Shine Blade!
Haha!

　I slashed at him with the Steel Sword, which contains a brilliant light, and Magnus used his Qigong to raise his strength, and struck him with his total mithril staff.

"Shakusai!

　The Manticore used an order of magnitude greater amount of HP to withstand our pincer attack, or avoided it with agility, while counterattacking with its forelimb claws and scorpion tail.

　The sharpness of these claws was equivalent to a level 20 vanguard's white army attack, so one had to be careful.
　But the scorpion's tail, with its ''deadly venom,'' was even more cautious.
　Magnus told us that the venomous stingers at the tip of the scorpion's tail would continue to cause slip damage with an unbelievable force at the end.

　Therefore, when a scorpion's tail approaches, we do not hesitate to defend ourselves.

"Haha, stupid stupid stupid!　Did you think that would prevent it?

　Manticore laughed, distorting his form in an ugly way.
　At the same time, he sprayed a poisonous mist from the tip of the scorpion's tail.

　I had heard from Magnus that Manticore had this kind of attack method as well........
　When it actually gets hit, it has a wide spray range!
　I can't let you do this!

　Magnus and I were doused with them, and I was given a bad status.
　And then we had to be in a hurry to get out of there.
　Unlike being stabbed by a poisonous needle, the toxicity value is lower when it's in the spray state.
　It's not poisonous, it's just "poison". Slip damage was completely different.
　That's why I don't panic or make a fuss, but concentrate on the skills that Magnus taught me.

"Ah-un-Rena!

　Using the Internal Qi Gong, which can be used by Wu-Lu martial artists, he restores his health while simultaneously detoxifying the body.

Magnus, take over!
Yes, sir.

　While I was concentrating on the Inner Qi Gong, Magnus was continuing to engage and attracting the Manticore's attention.
　This time, I would attack and keep his manticore riveted, creating an opening for Magnus to use the Internal Qi Gong.
　Just as we discussed beforehand, this works!

"Gulp, Fran Wren--
Shut up.

　Just as the manticore, who was in a fury, began to cast a spell, Magnus slammed his wand into his face.
　I don't know what the spell is to me, but to my surprise, Magnus seems to be able to hear what kind of magic the other person is planning to use. He can even tell if the spell is long or short to complete.
　And he said that if it's a long spell, he'll be able to beat it out of him like he's doing now, but he really does it.
　It's really amazing what Magnus can do.

　I heard that Manticore is a good at magic and uses a variety of powerful magic, but this one is half as scary as it sounds.

　On the other hand, the Manticore would be unbearable.
　It was forcibly crushing its trump card (Mahou), and it was obviously upset.
　This level 20 boss monster was horrified by the fact that he was dealing with a human who had been looking down on him until now.

''QUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!''

　It is truly torn, screaming like a beast and using its huge body to hit me.
　Me and Magnus spread out to the left and right to calmly avoid it.
　Then the Manticore ran off behind us, just like that.

''Are you trying to escape?!''
Idiots!　Who would ever take a back seat to human nature!

　The manticore makes a sharp turn and looks back towards us again.
　It runs and starts chanting a spell with the distance between us.
　With this, we certainly can't hit it and crush it on the spur of the moment.
　But we've also carefully discussed the counter-measures in this case.

"A un rena.

　We'll both focus on the qigong training at the same time.
　Increase your overall stats, especially your mental strength. Your magic resistance goes up.
　While you're in this state, you'll be able to withstand the Manticore's Thunder II.
　Ouch!
　Oh, my God!
　But not unbearably so!

Magnus!
Ray!

　We were talking to each other at the same time.
　Our awareness was perfectly aligned with each other that this was the place to set up.

With the quickness heightened by the Qi Gong training, we quickly closed the distance to the manticore.
　From their perspective, they would be astonished by the sudden acceleration of our movements.
　In the stunned moment, Magnus and I perform a great move.

Judgment!
Haha!

　A skill I learned at level 17 that causes additional damage for the crimes my opponent commits.
　Magnus also uses the Level 17 Martial Arts skill, Floating Wave Reverberation, to slam into the Manticore.
　Both of them are large skills that instead of being able to expect large damage, they are easily avoided if the opponent has no openings, but the current guy, who was aghast, didn't have the luxury of time to do so.

''UVAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!''

　He screams a scream of demise and disappears.

'I won...!　I won...!

　I get a little shaky.
　I'm not just talking about the sense of accomplishment that comes with beating a level 20 boss monster.
　I'm glad that we had a careful plan to defeat the boss, and that we did it according to that plan.
　It was excruciating to feel my growth against a monster full of nasty first-time kills and not be upset when the unexpected happened.

'I told you Ray has sense, didn't I?　It was just a matter of getting used to it.

　Even Magnus was happy to tap me on the shoulder.
　That made me very emotional.

'Brilliant, both of you!　I could have watched it without any worries!'

　Even Chocolat, who had been hiding, came out into the courtyard to celebrate.
　I looked back at her and was about to say "thank you" - and was made to anguish.

　Because Chocolat was carrying a stranger on her back.

'Who is that person!'
I found her unconscious and being rolled over, so I went to her.
When?　Where!
"While you two were fighting, I was rummaging through the fort to see if there was anything of interest...
You said you felt comfortable watching us fight!
'But thanks to that, I was able to find this woman. The Manticore must have been holding her captive for some kind of human experimentation. No, it was a close call.
'It's Chocolat who's in danger, isn't it!　The fort is full of skeleton soldiers, right?

　I can't keep up with the tweaks anymore.
　This maid is really aloof and too elusive........

''But I'm sure it's a good job. I'm glad to be saved.''

　I said, regaining some composure myself.
　Then I look at the woman Chocolat carried on her back.
　The age is a little older than Magnus. I think he's around 20 years old or so.
　It is quite unusual for the hair color to be blue. Did he come from another continent?
　First of all, she was beautiful. This was also a rare sight.