Chapter 25
The moment I finished speaking, Oppa quickly raised his shield, while Lee Dohyun and Han Siwoo rushed forward. I used my skill to match their movements.
[Skill, 'Enhancement Lv.5' is being used.]
A glossy shine appeared over Oppa's shield, and a similar glow covered Lee Dohyun's dagger.
And Han Siwoo....
What's that?
A blade made of mana surrounded the kitchen knife that had only its handle left. With 'Enhancement' added on top of it, its attack power looked no weaker than Lee Dohyun's dagger.
I watched them rush toward Arachne and checked my mana.
[Current Mana: (420/500)]
As expected.
It felt strange.
Before, I wouldn't even have been able to use my skills properly because I had to carefully manage my mana. But now, even after using my skills several times, I still had more than enough.
Even though that was the only difference, an overwhelming certainty that we would definitely win filled me.
It didn't matter how many times the others fell.
The current me could save them again and again, no matter how many times they collapsed.
I no longer had to desperately worry about someone dying.
Fwoom! Fwoom! Fwoom!
Maybe Arachne had become angry because its attacks kept getting blocked, because this time, poisonous spears shot out like bolts from a crossbow.
Thoom! Thoom! Thoom!
Even after taking every single attack, the Shield didn't have so much as a small scratch.
[Durability of Skill, 'Shield Lv.5': 95% remaining.]
Clang. Claang.
The poisonous spears that had been continuously fired kept falling and rolling across the floor.
Eventually, Arachne stopped attacking.
And then,
Crackle, crackle, crackle!
The sky roared loudly, and an enormous bolt of lightning, far larger than anything before, crashed down.
Even I, who was certain that the Shield would protect them, was shocked by its size.
And yet, the others continued moving forward.
Using his Assassin traits, Lee Dohyun closed the distance with Arachne, while Han Siwoo and Oppa blocked the attacks aimed at him.
They had definitely become stronger because of my skills, but their other abilities hadn't improved.
I was the only one who had changed.
Because of that, everything was still lacking and rough.
I did feel some regret about that.
Still, I thought it was fortunate.
Out of the four of us, I was the one who had changed.
Because I was a healer.
Because I could make them stronger.
And because I could now protect everyone.
Clang. Clang, clang.
Sharp metallic noises burst out.
As I watched Han Siwoo fighting Arachne, I remembered what had happened earlier.
The moment his back had been pierced, when he had been dying with a pale face, yet still made me drink the Elixir.
My stomach churned slightly.
How could he give the Elixir to me while he himself was dying?
Because he thinks of me as family?
Of course, I thought of him as family too.
But if my own life were in danger, I wasn't confident that I could give him an Elixir without hesitation.
Because I valued my own life more than anything.
But still.
Thank you.
Ever since I met you, there hadn't been a single time when I wasn't grateful.
I only hoped that someday, I would get the chance to repay this debt.
I pulled my gaze away from Han Siwoo and looked at Lee Dohyun.
No matter what happened, the one who was supposed to defeat Arachne was Lee Dohyun.
Arachne had been as unmoving as a mountain, but after taking continuous attacks, cracks slowly began appearing across its hard outer shell.
They weren't obvious fatal wounds, but even that much was more than enough for us.
Crackle!
My vision flashed brightly.
The more Arachne was cornered, the more frequently the lightning fell, and the faster it became.
Clang! Claang!
Between the bolts of lightning pouring down like a storm, I could see Han Siwoo fighting Arachne.
Unlike before, when he had been sent flying after only a few attacks, he was now fighting it almost evenly.
As time passed, it seemed like he was getting used to the fight.
Now, he even seemed to be slightly overpowering Arachne.
"Die, you damn spider bastard!"
Crunch.
Oppa smashed the edge of his shield against one of Arachne's leg joints and ground it down.
I kept watching the situation, and every time Arachne tried to counterattack, I immediately used a skill.
[Skill, 'Lag Lv.5' is being used.]
While Arachne's movements stopped for a moment, Han Siwoo and Lee Dohyun each cut off one of its legs.
Thud. Thud.
Screeeeeech!
Watching Arachne scream in pain, I became certain that victory wasn't far away.
Maybe Lee Dohyun doesn't necessarily have to be the one....
Crack!
A sound similar to an eggshell breaking reached my ears.
An uneasy feeling came over me, and I quickly turned my head.
"Ugh!"
Han Siwoo let out a groan and hurriedly pulled himself back.
The Shield I had been so sure would never break had been pierced.
Arachne's long leg, which had turned red, withdrew from the Shield almost regretfully.
Fortunately, Han Siwoo didn't seem badly injured.
[You have been inflicted with an abnormal status effect due to 'Arachne's Poison'.]
I got too confident.
I removed the Lag affecting Han Siwoo and shouted to the others.
"Let's hurry!"
The longer this dragged on, the worse it would become for us.
"Han Siwoo!"
At my call, Han Siwoo turned to look at me.
If Lee Dohyun wanted to break through Arachne's opening, he needed Han Siwoo's help.
Maybe it was an overly simple strategy, but damn it, this was the only method I knew.
It worked in the novel too... so it should probably work.
No.
It had to work.
Otherwise, we would die.
Han Siwoo met my eyes, then nodded.
"Got it."
