TRPM 225

chapter 225

I watched as the wind Elena summoned ripped an Ent apart, and I thought to myself:

‘Not bad.’

The technique she just used—did she call it Biting Wind?

A technique that compresses wind into thin blades, unleashing them like sword slashes.

If she could control it well, she wouldn’t just shred things like that—she could cut as though wielding a real sword.

‘It’s not without flaws, but that just seems to be a matter of practice.’

It must be a technique she either learned or created not long ago.

With that in mind, I turned my eyes to Elena.

“Phew…”

She was taking deep breaths, absorbing the overflowing spirit power of this dungeon.

She looked a little tense. Understandable—she said this was the first time she’d entered a dungeon suited to her actual level.

From my perspective, Elena was far stronger than any single Ent here. But taking on all the Ents in this dungeon would be impossible.

‘It’s not just that she couldn’t win if they swarmed her—it’s that she’d collapse from exhaustion long before killing them all.’

Spirit power itself wasn’t the problem. This dungeon had it in abundance.

The real issue was Elena’s body, steadily accumulating fatigue from channeling it.

“…”

As I was thinking that, Elena stirred up another wind to lure a monster over.

It seemed she planned to fight one, rest, fight another, then rest again—repeating that cycle.

‘By the book.’

As long as she didn’t make mistakes, and the monsters didn’t notice anything strange, there should be no problem.

In theory.

‘…Elena might handle her part, but the monsters not noticing? That’s impossible.’

Ents often stayed still, disguised as trees. But once they noticed too many of their kind dying, they were bound to sense something was off.

—Spirit Arts: Biting Wind.

As I kept track of the Ents’ positions, Elena once again shredded one that wandered too close.

“Next…!”
“…”

Over and over, she lured and tore them apart.

I wasn’t sure how much time had passed when finally…

‘…The Ents are moving as a group.’

Once the number of dead Ents reached double digits, they changed tactics.

The ones that had been motionless began gathering together.

‘Smarter than I thought.’

They must have realized they were easy prey alone, so they clustered up.

Elena seemed to notice through her wind as well—her expression turned thoughtful.

“Mmm…”

At her current level, she couldn’t take on that many Ents at once.

And since she didn’t ask me for help, she clearly wanted to try handling it herself.

Naturally so.

She wasn’t here just to make money clearing dungeons—she came for her own growth.

And growth comes most when one pushes past their own limits.

Of course, if she overdid it, she could get seriously hurt—but if that happened, I could step in.

‘All right, Elena… how are you planning to deal with them?’

It was no longer possible to lure them one by one.

Which meant… she’d have to face them all at once.

“…Let’s go.”

She made up her mind, moving forward.

I followed quietly, watching her actions.

“…”

She didn’t speak, but I felt spirit power emanating from her body, spreading across the dungeon.

No—let me correct that.

It spread everywhere except where the Ents were gathering.

‘She avoided sending spirit power to them to keep from being detected…’

The rest was to map out the dungeon’s structure.

Soon after…

“This way.”

Elena must have found something, guiding me in a certain direction.

‘That way… there’s a mountain.’

Not a very tall one, but still the highest ground in this dungeon.

So, she wanted to secure the high ground before battle?

I thought as much as we climbed.

It didn’t take long to reach the summit. There, Elena finally began her counterattack.

“(…Come at me!)”
“…”

She used wind spirit arts to amplify her voice, shouting loud enough for the Ents to hear.

Naturally, they started rushing toward us.

‘…Not bad.’

I would have done the same.

Securing the high ground and provoking them was risky, but since the Ents were already clustered, they would come charging in a line.

That didn’t mean she’d have to fight all of them at once.

‘They’ll have to come up single file to reach us.’

They weren’t Goblins or Orcs—Ents lacked the intelligence to split up and surround us.

So at most, Elena would face only the few at the front at any given time.

As long as she cut them down quickly, she could manage the flow.

And if things got too dangerous, she could just blow them back down the slope.

Moreover…

—Spirit Arts: Piercing Wind.

Elena revealed a new technique, different from Biting Wind.

She focused wind into a single point and fired—just as its name implied, its penetration was terrifying.

Which meant she could strike multiple Ents lined up in a row.

‘She probably can’t kill them in one shot… but incapacitating several at once is more than enough.’

The real question was: would her body last long enough to finish them all?

That thought crossed my mind just as—

Thud…! Thud…! Thud…! Crack…!

The sound of Ents charging toward us echoed, smashing through any trees in their way.

“…”

Elena retracted some of her spread spirit power, no longer needing it to track such obvious movements.

She kept just enough to be safe.

And when she was ready…

Roooar…!
Grooaar…!

The Ents revealed themselves, crashing through obstacles as they rushed to kill the one who had called them out.

Fwip…!
Crackkk…!

But before they reached her, Elena’s spell pierced through their bodies.

It shattered the chest of the lead Ent and burst out its back—

Crunch…!
Craaaack…!

—before slamming into the next, repeating the same destruction.

‘Two, maybe three Ents down with each shot.’

Her spell skewered five to eight at a time, but only a few fell outright.

Some survived because vital spots weren’t hit; others only suffered superficial damage after the attack weakened piercing earlier targets.

‘If it were living arrows, that’d be different… but this is still good.’

Not bad at all.

This was the best she could do right now.

Whoosh…!
“(Ugh…!)”

Suddenly, one Ent swung at her.

Its arm and part of its head had been blown apart earlier, but since it wasn’t a fatal wound, it charged anyway.

Luckily, Elena had kept some spirit power in reserve and sensed it in time, dodging the strike.

But the Ent was a giant of wood—its swing created a blast of wind that knocked Elena off her feet.

“(Damn…!)”

She couldn’t regain balance in time, slamming chest-first into the ground and bruising herself.

Thud!
“(Urgh?!)”

I instinctively reached for my sword, considering stepping in—

But then I stopped.

—Spirit Arts: Howling Wind.

Even injured, Elena used her arts to push the Ents back.

Her eyes, fierce and burning, seemed to tell me not to interfere yet.

And above all…

“(Huff… huff….)”

Her gaze was overflowing with determination.

Seeing that, I leaned against a tree and kept watching.

“(Haa… ssshh… haa….)”

While the Ents stumbled from her blast and charged again, she steadied her breath.

I felt the dungeon’s spirit power gathering around her—more than she should have been able to handle.

‘…Normally, I’d stop her here.’

Taking in more spirit power than she could endure could make her explode from within.

But if she didn’t break—if she succeeded—she would grow far stronger.

“(…Here goes….)”

Elena absorbed spirit power beyond her limits, then released it all at once.

—Spirit Arts: Annihilating Tempest.

The power bursting from her body became a storm.

It swelled and swelled until it was no longer just wind—it was a tempest.

So violent, it changed the climate of the dungeon itself.

Rumbleee…!

Then it reshaped the very land.

The storm overturned the ground and devoured everything upon it—trees, rocks, soil.

And of course… every Ent that had been charging at Elena was swallowed whole.