As everyone knows, monsters are born from dungeons. They have no intelligence—only instincts to fight and hunt—making them the natural enemies of every intelligent race on the continent.
At the same tier, there are weaker monsters and there are powerful ones.
And the Minotaur is a formidable monster whose name even appears in the continent's mythic histories!
Even if the one before them was only second tier, the sheer oppressive force granted by its racial talent was anything but ordinary.
It possessed extremely high magic resistance and thick, tough hide that was hard to cut, as well as high-speed mobility. Its HP was at least 35+, making it the most dreaded kind of opponent for ranged spellcasters.
BOOM!!!
A barrel-sized fireball slammed into the Minotaur—then instantly went out, producing no burning damage at all.
Leon's probing fireball, cast before the real clash began, perfectly confirmed the rumors about the Minotaur's high magic resistance.
"Didn't expect things to get this spicy as early as the 14th floor," Leon said. "If regular magic won't work, then we'll try martial techniques."
He adjusted his breathing, a sharp glint flashing in his deep eyes.
Iris also shifted into full seriousness, completely focused. Whether she still distrusted Leon or not, this enemy was the real test of their combat synergy.
This was an encounter fight—they couldn't afford to burn all their mana on a single battle.
So even if they had big, mana-hungry moves, they couldn't throw them out casually. They had to ration carefully.
"Iris—remember our rule. Unless it's a fourth-tier opponent, we only use low-cost spells!
Now, cover me with your barrier!"
Leon gripped his silver sword and lunged forward.
ROOOOAAARR—!!!!!
A nearly crazed bellow exploded out, and a powerful sonic shock slammed into them.
It was the Minotaur's wind-up skill: Bloodthirsty Roar.
Using Bloodthirsty Roar inflicted a degree of mental intimidation on its enemies.
And after that came the classic follow-up—
a heavy battle-axe smash!
A streak of black axe-shadow, laced with gale-force wind, chopped down at Leon as he rushed in.
One hit from that axe could leave even an ordinary third-tier monster half-dead!
Iris swung her staff—no chanting—the staff head flared with light.
At the same moment, a translucent, white-glowing barrier appeared in front of Leon.
BOOM!!!
The axe struck the barrier head-on. Chaotic ripples exploded across it—clearly on the verge of collapsing.
But that split-second opening was all Leon needed.
His foot tapped lightly, his body turning ghostlike.
Phantom Walker movement technique: Phantom Step!
Stamina -1, Mana -1!
He slipped out past the barrier, his body accelerating like a blink as he dove beneath the Minotaur's massive hips.
He raised the silver sword, twisted his waist, and used the momentum from his burst of speed to spin into a sideways slash—
Dark shadow surged from the blade, extending into a longer, sharper edge, accompanied by a violent whistling that tore the air!
Phantom Walker sword technique: Shadow Sword Slash!
Stamina -2, Mana -1!
SHK—!!
A forty-five-centimeter gash opened on the inside of its thigh, spraying thick black blood like dark pearls that splattered everywhere.
ROOOAR!!
The Minotaur let out a pained howl and swept its axe sideways.
Leon retreated immediately after landing the hit. The axe smashed into the ground in front of him, blasting gravel—rock fragments—into the air.
Leon calmly avoided the debris and shifted to the side again.
That slash should've taken roughly 6 HP off the Minotaur.
His stamina cost looked high, but with the second-tier Phantom Walker boost, his stamina recovered faster than usual—especially compared to relying on High-Speed Mana Recovery.
Worth it.
The Minotaur's magic resistance was stronger than its physical resistance. If he and Iris coordinated, they could win using combat techniques alone.
In the blink of an eye, Leon ran the math while moving.
Every fight had to be calculated—mana and stamina allocation. That was the only long-term way to clear dungeons.
But after that opening, the Minotaur's frenzied axe swings dominated all the space around Leon, making it hard for him to re-enter for another close strike.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Several palm-sized cones of light streaked in.
It was Iris's beginner light-element spell from the rear: Light Spike—known for speed and penetrating force.
However, the spikes only bored a short distance into the Minotaur's hide before stopping. Its knotted, terrifying muscles squeezed them out, and they dissipated into mana particles.
Seeing this, Leon's expression shifted slightly.
That hit probably only took 1–2 HP.
Better than ordinary magic, but still not as effective as Leon's combat techniques.
Even elemental magic—against a target with such high magic resistance—would require higher mana expenditure.
Or… they'd need to bypass the hide and drive the attack into the body.
Iris alone could theoretically kite it and burn through most of her mana to kill it.
But that would be gambling their post-fight safety on whether any other monsters heard the noise and came to pick them off.
"Iris—when I turn my back to you, or when I move into a corner against the rock wall, support me with a defensive barrier. Then use Light Dazzle to blind the Minotaur!"
"Got it!"
Leon continued dodging.
He didn't use any speed-boosting techniques—just constant footwork and positioning, drawing the Minotaur's attention and making it ignore Iris.
Thanks to the Phantom Walker class's traits, Leon's agility was a whopping 39—enough to surpass most human third-tiers, and only slightly below Iris, who didn't even specialize in agility.
Still, as Leon kept evading, the Minotaur gradually herded him toward a corner.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The heavy axe kept smashing the ground, blasting shards of stone at Leon.
Some fragments were too awkward to dodge, and they chipped away a bit of Leon's HP.
But at that moment, the perfect opening Leon had been waiting for arrived.
He was completely tucked into the corner—outside the coverage of the dazzling spell!
A defensive barrier—cast in support by Iris—appeared in front of him.
BOOM!!!
That barrier barely managed to hold back the Minotaur's axe.
Then, in the next instant, an intensely blinding flash erupted from Iris's position—
Beginner light-element magic: Light Dazzle!
A terror-bright radiance—brighter, harsher than ordinary Dazzle—instantly turned the dark cavern into broad daylight.
ROOOAAAGH—!!
The Minotaur's huge bovine eyes were stabbed with pain. It threw its body back and howled madly.
Leon had already prepared.
He stepped out of the barrier's range, took a long accelerating stride, and leapt!
Both hands gripped the sword hilt. The blade tip rose skyward as mana gathered, shadow stretching into a sharp sword-shape—
Then—
His body rotated midair into a downward chop!
Phantom Walker technique: Shadow Sword Slash!
Stamina -2, Mana -1.
This time, he aimed for the Minotaur's neck.
SHK—!!
At the crucial moment, the Minotaur twisted its pillar-thick neck aside, narrowly avoiding the fatal line.
The slash landed on its shoulder instead.
A fifty-three-centimeter wound tore diagonally down from its shoulder to its chest, spraying a huge amount of thick black blood over coarse fur.
It wasn't the vital point, but it still hit a major area—drawing a lot of blood.
Leon instantly estimated the damage in his mind—about 6–8 HP.
Much better than the first strike.
But before Leon could capitalize on the blindness and follow up—
The Minotaur roared, and its axe suddenly accelerated, sweeping horizontally at Leon while he was still midair.
BANG!!!
Leon had to abandon the second strike. He raised his silver sword to brace, using yielding force to reduce the impact.