So I just need to hold out as long as I can, damage its inner thigh... and trigger that life-or-death multiplier, huh?

Lucian remembered the suffocating feeling he got the very first time he was trapped in a deadly encirclement like this. But right now? That feeling hadn’t kicked in at all.

He needed it to. He needed to push himself to that absolute edge to secure the massive system reward.

He moved fluidly, easily dodging the giant’s heavy, bone-crushing swings.

First, he fired a rapid volley of fire bullets, but they simply fizzled out against the Goblin Lord’s thick, leathery hide. Next, he unleashed Chain Lightning. The electricity arced outward, instantly frying the surrounding minions, but against the giant? It only slowed its movements by a fraction. No real damage.

He considered switching to Water elemental attacks. Before that, he shot a quick glance at the girls to check their status. Elira was still executing her freeze-and-slice routine with ruthless efficiency. Covering the rear, Sera was turning goblins into charred corpses with every crack of her bat.

Since his long-range tricks were only doing chip damage to the behemoth, Lucian decided to change tactics. He needed to close the distance and go for blunt-force melee.

’System, buy another bat.’

[Purchase Confirmed: Electric Baseball Bat. -1,000 FP]

The weapon materialized in his grip. He instantly dove into close combat, smashing the heads of the smaller goblins into pulp while simultaneously weaving through the Goblin Lord’s devastating strikes.

However, after a few minutes of this intense rhythm, the pressure started to mount. Clearing out the endless, swarming pests while constantly having to dodge the giant’s massive sweeps was taking a toll on his stamina. The sheer numbers were making it difficult to find an opening.

Ugh... persistent pests.

"No matter how many I kill, they just keep coming... I need to try something else on this green trash."

He didn’t waste time. A twisted idea formed in his mind.

Sera was close by. He glanced in her direction.

"Sera, I need cover. I want to try something."

"Huh? Can’t you see I’m busy?" she snapped, smashing a goblin’s skull.

"Fine. I’ll ask Elira."

"Wait, wait! Don’t ask her, I’m coming!"

Sera hadn’t changed out of her pajamas; she had just thrown on some slippers before coming back through the portal. But surprisingly, the lightweight clothing gave her a massive advantage in mobility. She zipped left and right, her unpredictable movements keeping her safe as she battered her way backward toward him.

Huff... huff...

Why won’t they just die? Sera gritted her teeth. I have to get to Lucian. If I don’t, he’ll just ask that witch for help...

Clearing a path through sheer willpower and lightning, she finally planted herself squarely against Lucian’s back.

"Okay, do what you need to do," she panted, gripping her bat tightly. "I’ve got them."

"Yeah."

Lucian uncurled his fingers and let his baseball bat drop to the dirt. The moment his hands were empty, two Goblin Generals and a towering King Goblin stepped out from the horde, blocking his path.

Sera quickly sidestepped, smashing her bat squarely into the first General’s eyes. She ducked the second one’s counter-swing, leaped into the air, and brought the bat down hard on its skull. Without pausing, she pivoted toward the King Goblin, delivering three rapid strikes. Every hit channeled raw electricity directly into its weak spot—the hips—exactly as Lucian had instructed.

The horde’s numbers had dropped significantly by now, mostly thanks to Elira. She had slaughtered a massive chunk of the mob, endlessly chaining her freeze-and-slice combo with the Finger Blade technique. She hadn’t even taken a single step from her original spot.

If Elira actually unleashed her brute strength, this battle would have been over in minutes. Still she wanted to test Lucian’s new technique as much as possible, and more importantly, she didn’t want to get covered in gore. This clean, efficient method suited her perfectly.

Meanwhile, ever since Lucian dropped his baseball bat, he had just been standing there, his eyes scanning the battlefield as he calculated his next move.

"Lucian, hurry up and do whatever you’re doing!" Sera shouted, panting heavily.

Lucian didn’t reply. Instead, a heavy surge of water erupted from both of his palms. He projected the blast as far as his range allowed, ruthlessly soaking every single goblin in the vicinity.

Oh man, oh man... this is going to be so much fun.

A wicked, almost unhinged smile stretched across his face. Sera caught a glimpse of it out of the corner of her eye, and her brow twitched.

Has he completely lost his mind?

Though for Lucian, that familiar thrill was finally creeping in. Slowly, but surely, he was getting close to that high.

For nearly four straight minutes, he did nothing but relentlessly drench the goblin forces on his side of the encirclement. He even focused a massive stream of water onto the Goblin Lord, completely soaking its thick, leathery hide and ragged armor.

Unfortunately, The delay was taking its toll. Holding off the Goblin Lord was pushing Sera past her physical limits. She was visibly exhausted, her breathing ragged. Fighting an S+ rank giant in a head-on 1v1 while simultaneously clearing out its relentless minions was pushing her to the absolute edge.

Lucian turned his head toward Sera and roared.

"GET BACK! NOW!"

Sera didn’t hesitate. She immediately leaped backward, putting distance between herself and the frontline. As she landed, she looked over at Lucian. He had brought both of his hands close together, and a dense, violently swirling sphere of mana was gathering between his palms.

[Warning: Heavy Mana Drain Detected]

[MP: 3400 -> 3360 -> 3320...]

"Lucian, what the hell are you doing?!" She yelled.

He only smiled, his gaze locked onto the soaked monsters in front of him.

"Let’s see how this goes..."

Seeing their prey stop attacking, the goblin horde lunged forward all at once, an avalanche of green bodies closing the distance in a heartbeat. Sera stared at the terrifying energy building in Lucian’s hands, then at the tidal wave of monsters about to crash into them.

"LUCIAN, DO IT NOW!"

In a split second, Lucian injected a concentrated spark of the Lightning element directly into the swirling mana sphere. The orb instantly destabilized, transforming into a violently crackling ball of high-voltage electricity.

Without hesitating, he thrust his hands forward, blasting the volatile lightning orb straight at the massive, drenched body of the Goblin Lord.