I hate being in pain, so I think I'll make a full defense build

Itai no wa Iya nanode Bōgyo-Ryoku ni Kyokufuri Shitai to Omoimasu 474

Defense Specialization and Daily Life (5)

Upon opening the door, Maple immediately checked the inside. Doors were positioned ahead, as well as left and right. In front of her, there were a pair of gently sloping stairs leading to the second floor. On the second floor, similarly positioned doors could be seen.

They had no choice but to investigate the six routes in order. Now, it was just a matter of deciding where to begin.

“Oh? It’s quite spacious.”

“Just like its appearance suggests.”

“We’ve established that it’s a majestic old castle. It’s going to be a long way.”

“Where shall we go from here?”

“Mai, Yui, Maple. Which one will you choose?”

The exploration could progress without a hitch due to [Dedicated Affection] and the flying sledgehammer.

Thus, they decided to just follow the three. Besides, they still didn’t know the correct route, anyway. As a result, there was no objection.

“The middle one might lead to a boss.”

“Then, right or left?”

“If we want to explore every nook and cranny, then we should do that…”

“I agree!”

They had painstakingly discovered a hidden map. It’d be a waste if they didn’t search thoroughly.

In the end, the eight decided to go through the right door on the first floor.

***

When they opened the door and looked for traps, the three saw a monster being illuminated by a lamp on the wall.

Like outside, it was enshrouded by black haze. Its distinctive wide-brimmed hat and long staff suggested that it was a wizard.

“Staff… A magic type, I suppose?”

“Long-ranged… Could it be an illusion?”

“He doesn’t seem to be transparent to me.”

“Mai, Yui, can we leave them to you?”

““Of course!””

Even if it wasn’t an illusion, Mai and Yui were still at a disadvantage. Not only were they short-ranged, it was a battle in an unobstructed hallway. However, it didn’t matter because Maple was there.

There was no need to fight with iron balls.

Giving priority to mobility, the twins reduced the number of sledgehammers into two, before climbing onto Tsukimi and Yukimi. They also didn’t forget to bring Maple so they wouldn’t go out of range. Then, the two sped up at once.

The wizard who saw it casted a black magic circle, from which jet-black flame erupted. Even though the flame hit them squarely, Tsukimi and Yukimi rushed through the flame.

“Don’t worry! Leave the defense to me!”

““Okay!”’

If there was no damage, there was nothing to worry about. Thus, the two arrived in front of the magician who shot flames, and swung their sledgehammers.

““Huh!?””

The two widened their eyes—after all, there was no impact.

Before they knew it, the wizard had vanished, before appearing again some distance away. The wizard had warped a short distance away and dodged their attacks.

Not only that, the wizard was about to unleash his next attack. When the wizard made a display of brandishing his staff—

““Eh!?””

The three were teleported to different positions, just like the wizard himself.

Certainly, it wasn’t that far. However, the formation change that suddenly occurred pushed the two out of the range of [Dedicated Affection].

“[Cover Move] [Multi-Cover]!”

““Chrome!””

Chrome rushed to catch the approaching flames. With a skill that allowed him to protect multiple people, he firmly intercepted the attacks, not letting the fire reach Mai and Yui.

“[Blood Sword]!”

Kasumi’s liquid sword flexed like a whip, but the enemy evaded it. At the very least, it put a stop to the surging flames. While healing himself, Chrome stared at the enemy.

“A tough enemy has appeared!”

“Kanade!”

“Okay!”

“[Water Ball]!”

“[Tornado]!”

If direct attack didn’t work, then what about magic?

The raging wind and the mass of water slammed into the magician, shaving a chunk of his HP.

“We have to make sure that he doesn’t avoid it! In that case…!”

Iz took out some crystals and set them in a small cannon. A few seconds later, with a boom, the ejected crystals exploded, sending yellow sparks running through the dark hallway.

The intense paralyzing attack ceased all the enemy’s movement. The wizard could neither dispel nor warp away.

“[Tidal Wave]!”

As a counterattack, a powerful water magic was unleashed. The magic could be acquired through basic magic training and was reasonably strong. Giant waves filled the hallway, swallowing the monsters.

The sound effect that marked the disappearance of monsters echoed along with the sound of undulating water. When the water disappeared, only the eight remained.

“This should be powerful enough.”

“Even among water magic, it’s quite strong and covers a wide area. Wizard sure is reliable at times like this.”

“My books are out of stock, so I’ll have to put up with it and fight seriously.”

“That’d be great.”

After the event, Kanade’s books were mostly out of stock. As such, the number of trump cards had decreased, but even so, he could still play the role of a wizard.

He was still dependable. Moreover, Sou’d also play an active role in most important situations.

“Can it avoid anything but magic? Didn’t he avoid Kasumi’s [Blood Sword]?”

“I can try to look into it… But as long as Kanade can defeat it, it shouldn’t be a problem!”

“Sorry! Mai, Yui, are you okay?”

“Yes!”

“Chrome did a good job protecting us.”

“Well, it’s my job. I’m prepared to act immediately in an emergency.”

“Good job, Chrome.”

“Two-tiered formation should be difficult to break through, right?”

“That’s right. Let’s defeat the monster with Kanade as the leaad. It’d be great if we don’t have to use books.”

Save where they could, and try to win efficiently and properly. If they could make the most of each other and cover each other’s weaknesses, the enemy shouldn’t be able to get through them.

If it was only this, they should be able to manage. The eight confidently marched through the dark corridor.