One versus many.

Yet the one fighting alone looked relaxed while everyone else was tense.

No one made the first move.

I could tell Soo-Young and Ye-seul wanted to check on my condition but were only looking at Minerva.

This was because they all knew she was a powerful enemy who could kill everyone present in a heartbeat.

In the atmosphere as tense as a taut bowstring, the first arrow to fly was Do-Hoon.

He literally flew as he was kicked in the head by Minerva.

“Ah, my neck.”

He was staggering back with one hand clutching his throat.

By his side, Joo-Hyuk gazed at Minerva. He was a healer rumored to be able to bring back even the deceased and a skilled martial artist who would heal chopped limbs in combat.

“Kicking a man in the head so many times, what a lack of manners.”

“He must be a strong man to have been kicked with such force and still be alive.”

Minerva looked at him as she said this.

Then she shook her head slightly and pointed to her dragon form, rampaging in the distance.

“Why don’t you go over there? All your friends are gathered there, and while none of them have died so far, it will only be a matter of time before they are annihilated the moment the balance is upset.”

Her crimson eyes bore into Joo-Hyuk’s.

“And if the one with the healing arts is missing, it will tip earlier.”

He snorted in disbelief.

“Who do you think you’re worrying about, beast?”

Joo-Hyuk cleared his throat with a rumbling sound and muttered.

“Whatever the order, it doesn’t change the fact that we have to kill the human and the dragon...”

He stopped talking and looked at me.

“Most importantly, I think you can kill her, so I’ll do everything I can to support you.”

Joo-Hyuk walked to my side.

His hand on my shoulder was firm yet soft.

A notification that I was recovering alarmingly quickly popped up in front of my eyes.

“..I don’t know what it is, but I’ll trust you.”

He walked past me, muttering in a low voice that only I could hear.

Then, as he passed next to Do-Hoon, he muttered in a low voice.

“And you’ll have to talk to me later.”

“Yes, Uncle.”

Do-Hoon replied shakily, looking over at Ye-Eun, who ran over to me.

“Yoo Ji-Hyuk, you’re going to be on house arrest in the room next to mine when this is over.”

“.....”

I stiffened and kept my mouth shut.

Then Svengali spoke through gritted teeth.

[If you die now, you can die as a hero, so maybe that’s better, right?]

I let out a small laugh.

Then Ye-eun said even more sternly.

“I’m not just saying this; I’m serious. I know I didn’t do a good job keeping it a secret from you, but I don’t want you to commit suicide like this...”

“I’ll do it.”

“Huh?”

“Not just you. Soo-Young, Ye-Seul, Hyun-woo, Ivan, Yu-Na.. I’ll do whatever you ask me.”

I muttered under my breath.

“I dragged them all here, so it’s the least I can do.”

Ye-Eun didn’t say anything and turned her head.

I slipped away from her.

“.....”

Minerva continued to follow me without speaking.

As I slowly turned my head away, feeling guilty, Svengali spoke seriously.

[Margo and his bunch won’t be able to bother you for a while.]

I gave a small nod.

[But don’t use that ability for now. Only use it when the time is right.] historical

“You mean, let’s recover and go in, right?”

I spoke softly while covering my mouth.

[Yes, we should increase our chances a little more.]

[As you know, one use has dramatically diminished your strength.]

“At least I’m not alone now.”

I declared loudly.

Soo-Young gave me a small smile.

“Ji-Hyuk, you really want to die, huh.”

Hyun-Woo said as he drew his sword.

“I’ll help you then.”

Ivan wordlessly began muttering something as he unsheathed his magic sword, and Yu-na swallowed hard and looked around nervously.

“..This time, I won’t be the one suffering.”

Ye-Seul muttered as he fiddled with the amulets with healing magic tightly wrapped around her right arm.

Joo-Hyuk shook his fist and stepped forward, and Belluna sighed, creating a small vortex in her hands.

Glancing back and forth between Ye-Eun, who stood beside me as if acting as an escort, pulling her bowstring, and Do-Hoon, raising his lance, I took a small breath.

If we fought together, there was a chance.

..I hope.

***

It was Joo-Hyuk who made the first move.

Minerva dove toward him, and Belluna bought him time.

Ahn quickly finished his spell, stacking numerous buffs on everyone in the area.

Casually committing acts that would make other healers and supporters cringe, he also applied buffs to himself and turned to face Minerva.

“..Hmph.”

The poisonous energy from Minerva’s two hands turned into dragon heads and shot out separately.

However, Belluna created small whirlwinds around them, causing them to disperse.

“Hah!”

Joo-Hyuk punched Minerva with all his might.

But she quickly blocked it with her arm, and he grabbed her wrist as if expecting his attack not to work.

But she swiftly moved it, and they clasped their hands together as if dancing.

“..You’re going to test your strength against me, human?”

Joo-Hyuk smirked, and Minerva continued.

“Even if I look like this, I’m stronger.”

“Didn’t ask.”

A terrible sound resounded as if flesh and bone were being ripped.

Minerva’s dragon claws sprouted through both his hands.

“I’m getting a little impatient now, so I’ll speed this up.”

Minerva muttered while still looking toward me as her body began to change.

Her legs, which had been white and silky smooth, sprouted reptilian scales, and her tiny, delicate bare feet were transformed into those of a dragon.

Her pupils, torn open vertically, grew significantly and became more pronounced, and her horns, which had always been large and imposing, grew into something that looked sharper than any sword.

Her crimson eyes turned redder as if stained with blood, and her mouth gaped open to reveal a pair of sharp, massive fangs as if she were a vampire.

“Do you really think you’ll be okay after taking this?”

She muttered with a snort, her voice harsher and sharper than in her perfect human form.

After holding Joo-Hyuk tightly so he couldn’t escape, she opened her tiny mouth, and a crackling sound grew louder with the light within.

“....!”

Hyun-Woo, now so close, swung his sword at her open mouth, not wanting to miss the chance.

He swung, intending to slice off her jaw from the top of her head, but it was stopped as Minerva bit down on the sword.

“An obsidian sword? Pretty good.”

Minerva muttered.

“But this is not where children should be.”

Her mouth snapped shut with a snap, and Hyun-Woo’s sword shattered with it.

Staring at the shattered sword with despairing eyes, Hyun-woo slapped the fragments into Minerva’s face.

Minerva moved to the right to dodge while blocking low, blocking the kick from Joo-Hyuk.

“I’ll take your neck first.”

She tried biting Joo-Hyuk’s throat, but he moved into her, shoving her body backward.

Then, as Minerva stumbled, arrows made of branches of the World Tree and magic power flew at her from different directions.

Arrows from Ye-Eun and Ivan shot into her blindspots.

“Hmm.. quite sharp.”

A shadow passed behind Minerva.

It was her tail.

She swung it like a whip, deflecting the arrows with ease.

She used the momentum to redirect her tail at Joo-Hyuk, aiming for the center of his chest.

“Ohhh.”

As her attack was blocked, Minerva blinked slightly in a rare show of surprise.

Her tail was trapped by a magic wall, preventing her from advancing further.

Minerva licked her lips with her tongue as she looked at Yu-Na, who held both hands out in front of her.

“Delicious looking mana.”

Suddenly, she saw something in the corner of her eyes.

Ye-Seul, traveling through Hennir’s shadow, had appeared by her side.

Minerva easily dodged her hand and skillfully deflected a wind blade from Belluna aimed at her throat.

Do-Hoon took the chance and thrust his lance forward, and Minerva dodged. However, he was still able to take a piece of her fluttering dress.

“How dare you..!”

The woman who had been so relaxed up until that point suddenly became furious and released an overwhelmingly powerful presence.

“What?!”

It was so intense that it knocked Ye-Seul off her feet.

However, the tightly wrapped tail around his waist pinned Do-Hoon to the spot.

“How dare you, how dare you..!”

Repeating those words as if she were howling, Minerva opened her mouth to snap at the distraught Do-Hoon.

The same poisonous breath was gathering in her mouth.

“Do-Hoon, get away!”

Joo-Hyuk tried to protect Ahn Do-hoon by charging at Minerva, but she anticipated it as her hand gently pushed him away, causing him to move past her.

“Arghh..!”

Do-Hoon struggled to escape the pain that threatened to crush his back, but it was all in vain.

The breath escaped from Minerva’s mouth.

But it curved and flew into her face.

“What?!”

Startled, Minerva threw Do-Hoon and stumbled away from the breath.

She turned her fierce eyes toward the distance, where Soo-Young stood shakily with a bloody nose.

“Space. Could that little girl have a Spatial-type ability?”

Soo-Young, who had used a tremendous amount of mana, glared at Minerva while shaking.

She nodded silently as she watched the young woman wipe the blood from her nose with the back of her hand.

There was another one of the five.

Minerva was about to launch herself at Soo-Young.

But another presence drew her attention, and she stopped in her tracks.

It was Yoo Ji-Hyuk.

“.....”

A notification appeared in front of me.

[You have activated King of Thorns.]

[While ‘King of Thorns’ lasts, most abilities of ‘Branch of the World Tree’ will be sealed.]

[Your Health, Strength, and Dexterity have been buffed significantly.]

[Resistance to all status ailments is significantly increased.]

[Adds a proficiency modifier to spears and bows.]

[Proportional to the amount of time spent, the moment King of Thorns is released, you will be temporarily cursed with a drop in all stats. This curse cannot be lifted in any other way.]

King of Thorns.

The authority gained by absorbing the power of Svengali.

With it, I looked at Minerva in silence.

She stared at me in a daze.

“Ah.”

It was the same figure as before.

The same figure, the same aura, that had overpowered her.

It was here now.

By the time she realized it, she had already taken a step toward me.

“Ahhh..!”

Looking at the nostalgic figure, Minerva had already rushed toward me.

It was almost as if she was running to embrace me.