Gryphon Subjugation

A high-caliber explosion detonated squarely around the gryphon’s center of mass.

“Incredible…”

“Wait, did we even need to be here for this?”

Shielded completely by the kinetic barrier, Misa and Hana could only stare blankly at the destruction with their mouths wide open.

“Of course you need to be here. I calculate that didn’t quite serve as a definitive blow just yet,” Vim noted.

Based on his internal tracking of the spell’s impact, the operational yield had been merely decent.

“You mean to tell me that didn’t destroy it?!” Misa’s features twisted into an expression of pure shock.

“See for yourself.”

The moment the concussive backdraft and dust screen dissipated completely, the gryphon materialized through the haze—still standing on its own two feet. However, its overall posture conveyed the distinct impression that its vitals were comprehensively weakened.

“Moving in!”

Misa raised her blade once more. Flanking the construct in a synchronized pincer movement, Hana and Misa rushed toward the gryphon.

“Paralyze.”

Vim cast a mid-tier lightning element array. He registered the weakened gryphon’s mobility parameters dropping into an absolute, sluggish state.

“Haaah!!!!”

Misa executed a sweeping blade strike from the gryphon’s rear quadrant, driving her steel perfectly into its back. Simultaneously, Hana’s blade tore clean into the creature’s flank. It was a magnificent, textbook combination assault.

“Flawless.”

That coordinated strike proved to be the definitive blow. The gryphon collapsed heavily onto its side, completely stripped of its ability to rise again.

“Magnificent work, you two. It possessed quite a formidable threshold.”

To be perfectly honest, Vim had calculated that dismantling the entity would be a hundred times easier, so the skirmish had taken a tiny bit of effort. Even so, looking at the clock, the total elapsed combat time was well under twenty minutes. Evaluating the situation under those parameters, it was an exceptionally stellar performance.

“Yes, indeed. But it was strictly because we had the luxury of your magnificent fire support, Lord Vim.”

“Too true. Honestly, the raw caliber of your spellcraft operates on an entirely different order of magnitude. This barrier matrix alone is pure insanity.”

The only reason Hana and the others had been able to maneuver across the battlefield with absolute freedom was precisely because Vim had mapped this high-grade ‘Barrier Matrix’ onto their frames. Even if an attack happened to bypass their guard, the barrier possessed enough defensive density to completely deflect the kinetic impact away.

“To be capable of activating a high-tier matrix of that caliber with such a compressed incantation loop… it truly is remarkable,” Misa praised in open admiration.

“Spell craft is entirely dependent on the structural clarity of your internal visualization, after all.”

“Internal visualization, huh?…”

The exact fraction of a second a spell is triggered, the overall output relies heavily on how flawlessly a mage can manifest a concrete blueprint within their own mind. A wizard’s staff or wand exists precisely to act as a processing anchor to assist that internal visualization loop. Since Vim no longer required an external catalyst to stabilize his computational calculations, he had entirely ceased carrying conduits of that nature.

“Well now, shall we clear the quadrant and move on?”

With the Floor Guardian officially subjugated, the path continuing down to the next stratum was unlocked. Since the next level marked the sixth floor, the threat parameters of the local magical beasts were bound to undergo another distinct escalation.

“Let’s lock in and sharpen our focus.”

““Understood!””

Moving as a unit, Vim and his companions descended the steps leading straight into the next stratum.

The sixth floor unfolded into a properly vast structural chamber, mimicking the exact layout architecture of the third floor. However, the ambient mana density felt as though it had undergone a massive, instantaneous spike.

“Are you two holding up alright?”

Faced with a suffocating mana concentration of this magnitude, an ordinary warrior lacking proper structural resistance would find merely standing a grueling exercise.

“I-I’m managing…”

“The same applies to me.”

Both of their features contorted slightly under the atmospheric pressure.

“Mana Inoculation.”

“How does that feel?”

“Wow… the pressure disappeared instantly.”

“Seriously, it’s a night-and-day difference.”

Hana and Misa stared at him, their expressions filled with pure astonishment.

“I’ve effectively partitioned a fraction of my own mana pool and lent it to your systems. This should grant your frames an absolute resistance threshold against the heavy atmospheric energy saturating this chamber.”

“To think such a feat is even mechanically possible…”

“I have never heard of a spell operating on that paradigm in my entire career with the Order,” Misa breathed.

This was a high-tier application that could strictly be executed because Vim possessed a comprehensively non-standard, infinite volume of raw mana. An ordinary mage with standard energy metrics and purity parameters couldn’t dream of lending their power to another person; transferring mana explicitly meant permanently expending a portion of one’s own operational reserve.

“True enough. I calculate that the number of casters capable of utilizing this application is remarkably close to zero. Well then, shall we move out?”

Casting and expanding his detection magic, Vim led his party forward as they began their steady trek across the sixth floor.