For a creature to reach the apex of C-Class, it naturally could not rely solely on physical strength. After all, there would always be some entities specifically built to counter physical types.
While the giant forest wolf possessed extremely high magic resistance, it also possessed magical means of attack. It could gather the mana within its body in its throat, then release a roar that manipulated the surrounding mana.
Such a roar would directly cause the opponent's mana to go out of control; even magical creatures specialized in countering physical types would find it difficult to withstand this move.
...
Hit directly by the roar, all of Shulim's active spells were instantly dispelled. Her body immediately reverted to its ordinary state, making her unable to withstand the terrifying sonic blast any longer. She felt as if her entire body was about to be torn apart.
Shulim grit her teeth, enduring the agonizing pain as she withdrew her wand from behind her back, gripped it with both hands, and plunged it into the ground in front of her.
“【ᛖᛏᛋᛒᛜᛋᛃᚷᚺᛖᛚ...”
“Pfft, cough, cough...”
The moment she tried to channel her mana to cast a spell, the raging mana inside her surged into a chaotic mess.
...
Shulim grit her teeth and tried again.
“【ᛖᛏᛋᛒᛜᛋᛃᚷᚺᛖᛚᛜᛋᚷᚺᛜᛏᚠᚪ...”
“Cough, cough!”
“【ᛖᛏᛋᛒ...”
“Cough, cough...”
After trying multiple times, she finally succeeded: “【ᛖᛏᛋᛒᛜᛋᛃᚷᚺᛖᛚᛜᛋᚷᚺᛜᛏᚠᚪᛡᛃᛋקיᛚᚺᛜᛃᚾᚪᛜᚻᛁᚢᛗᛜᛖᛗᛃᛟᚺᛜᛃᚾᚠᛞᚷᛜᛖᚱᚠᚺᛖ】”
A bright white light shone around Shulim, and in an instant, the feeling of chaotic mana vanished. The barrier stood firm like a reef in the sea, unshaken by the raging storm.
It was Third-Tier Light Magic—Sacred Barrier.
Unlike other protective barrier spells, Sacred Barrier was not designed to defend against physical attacks; rather, it was a special protective barrier against curses and negative status effects. It could not block physical attacks like arrows or fireballs, but a negative status effect like the one currently causing her mana to run wild fell precisely within its defensive domain.
Unfortunately, Shulim had not looked up the giant forest wolf's offensive capabilities in detail beforehand. To begin with, records on this topic were scarce, so she had not known the creature possessed such an attack. Had she cast Sacred Barrier from the very start, her injuries would not have worsened to this extent, and she would not have come so close to defeat.
It was not hard to imagine that if she had failed to cast Sacred Barrier, she would have had no chance of survival. Even if she didn't die from the sonic wave itself, once it ended, she would have been severely injured and stripped of all her buffs when facing the giant forest wolf.
“...But in the end, I'm the one who wins!”
The continuously roaring giant forest wolf did not hear what Shulim said, nor did it notice that she was no longer affected by its howl.
“Reinforce!”
“Swiftness!”
“Fortify!”
“Battle Cry!”
“And...”
“Ice Weapon Creation!”
Flashes of light burst forth, and in a short span of time, Shulim returned to her peak condition once again.
“Phew—!”
Just then, the roaring stopped.
Slightly out of breath, the giant forest wolf struggled to recover its breath while looking in Shulim's direction. When it saw Shulim standing completely unaffected on the spot, it froze in disbelief.
In its past experience, whenever it roared for this long against an opponent, even if they weren't shattered, they would temporarily lose all combat capability. Yet, no such signs could be seen on Shulim.
While it was dazed, Shulim had already prepared herself.
“...My turn!”
Watching the petite figure rushing toward it at high speed, a trace of panic flashed through the giant forest wolf's eyes. However, it was reluctant to accept this, refusing to believe its tried-and-true trick had failed.
Thus, it opened its massive jaws once more, inhaling sharply to fill its lungs, preparing to blast Shulim with another roar.
“Did you think I'd let you do that a second time?!”
“Water Cannon!”
Just as the roar was about to erupt, a massive torrent of water materialized out of thin air, blasting directly into the giant forest wolf's open mouth.
“Awoo—”
A massive amount of water rushed down its throat, instantly choking the giant forest wolf. The roar it was about to unleash was cut short, forcing it to cough in sheer agony.
“Lightning Strike!”
Shulim pressed the advantage.
A bolt of lightning fell from the sky, instantly striking the giant forest wolf. Normally, a bolt like this would struggle to even pierce its thick fur, but since it was now completely drenched and had open, bleeding wounds, the electricity coursed directly into its relatively vulnerable internal organs.
“Awoo—!”
The giant forest wolf let out another scream of agony.
Whoosh—!
Hearing the sound of tearing air, the giant forest wolf quickly rolled on the ground to dodge.
The freezing ice greatsword grazed along the surface of its body, carving another bloody gash while severing a large clump of fur.
“Grr...”
The giant forest wolf scrambled up in disarray, vigorously shaking its head to focus its vision on Shulim. However, due to the residual effects of the electricity, its limbs remained stiff, leaving it practically full of openings.
“Tidal Surge—!”
Whoosh! A massive wave of water materialized out of thin air, surging toward the giant forest wolf.
The giant forest wolf shuddered all over. The agony of being electrocuted earlier had left a deep impression; it was now somewhat terrified just looking at water and absolutely did not want to go through that experience a second time.
However, the range of Tidal Surge was immense, leaving it with no room to dodge, and it was thoroughly drenched.
Now looking like a drowned rat, the giant forest wolf immediately tried to scramble to its feet and flee.
Fortunately, the lightning it dreaded did not fall this time. Unfortunately, something else did.
“Deep Freeze—!”
A biting, frigid wind blew through the giant forest wolf's fur, rapidly freezing its thoroughly drenched body.
The giant forest wolf shuddered violently, its limbs shivering uncontrollably from the cold, severely reducing its movement speed.
Squinting against the sunlight, the shivering wolf saw her figure leaping high into the air. The ice sword, shining brilliantly in the sunlight, made it feel the chill of impending death.
“...Roar—!!!”
Sensing the true threat of death, the primal ferocity within the giant forest wolf was fully unleashed. It completely ignored its injuries and slowed movements, relying solely on its most primitive and vicious weapons—fangs and claws—to launch a frenzied attack against its opponent.
Shulim, refusing to yield even an inch, clashed head-on with the frenzied giant forest wolf.
Ice shards and crimson blood once again intertwined at the center of the battlefield...
...
By the time a sliver of twilight painted the sky,
the grueling battle finally came to a close.
A cold, sharp sword pierced the giant forest wolf's throat, leaving a gaping wound.
Gurgle! Gurgle! Gurgle...
Hot blood continually gushed out, slowly melting the ice greatsword.
Neither of them moved.
Covered in wounds, the giant forest wolf was no longer capable of movement. In its final moments, its eyes quietly gazed at the opponent who stood upon its head, the one who had defeated it. Yet, the only response it received was her hollow eyes and a body that looked as if it could collapse at any second.
You won...
The giant forest wolf's eyes slowly shut, never to open again.
Shulim remained half-kneeling on the giant forest wolf's head, leaning on her melting ice sword for support. She, too, remained motionless, the light completely gone from her eyes.
A deep silence descended upon the forest.
The pack silently watched the scene.
At some unknown point, the first wolf stood up, turned around, and slowly walked toward the endless forest behind it.
Then a second, a third, a fourth...
In total silence, the entire pack acknowledged Shulim's victory, signaling the dissolution of the mixed pack...
...
“Caw! Caw! Caw...”
As the cries of scavenging birds gathered on the treetops around the goblin village, consciousness suddenly returned to Shulim's vacant eyes.
She with a quick roll, she dropped to the ground and warily scanned her surroundings. The goblin village was deathly quiet now, save for the incessant cries of the scavengers. Not a single one of the hundreds of wolves that had once surrounded the settlement was in sight.
If not for the numerous severed limbs and carcasses of the wolves left on the ground, one might have thought it had all been a dream.
...
Shulim stared into the dark forest ahead, remaining silent for a long time.
Then she turned around and walked inside. Passing by the massive carcass of the giant forest wolf, she paused briefly to cast a look at it before continuing her way forward...
...
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