Chapter 246
Now, this might seem sudden, but there are many games, including RPGs, that incorporate combat elements.
As a result, developers try to differentiate their games through unique combat systems to entertain players. Some systems are so well-received that they’re hailed as "god-tier," while others are criticized as "trash systems."
Among these, there’s a fairly common mechanic often praised for adding strategic depth.
That is—
"Indeed, iron is hard."
"But it can still be shattered."
"If you lower its defense, it’s not so tough anymore."
At first glance, with just these lines, one might think this is about romance or interpersonal relationships. But in essence, it’s about the compatibility between attack and defense.
FBO (likely a game abbreviation) has its own elemental weakness system, with earth, water, fire, and wind in a cycle, and thunder/ice, light/dark as mutual weaknesses. But beyond that, there’s another compatibility system.
That would be physical resistance and magic resistance.
The former makes enemies strong against physical attacks, while the latter makes them strong against magic attacks. That’s the system.
"Well, golems are supposed to be strong against physical attacks, but..."
"Stat-wise, I’m stronger, so there’s no way I can lose."
"Sure, that might work for an Iron Golem... But do you really think you can handle Mithril and Damascus Golems like this?"
Claudia is shattering golems—creatures that are typically meant to be defeated with magic—with her bare hands.
She easily crushed the rock golems, and now she’s pummeling the Iron Armored Golem, the boss of the Iron Golem Dungeon, with her fists, checking the feel of her strikes.
She seems unharmed, which is a relief, but overriding physical resistance purely with raw stats is something a gamer might do—though it’s not exactly recommended.
The Rock Golem Dungeon is Class 2, the Iron Golem Dungeon is Class 3, and the upcoming Mithril Golem Dungeon is Class 4.
Claudia’s stats are fully maxed out, and with Amina’s buffs, her specs are incredibly high.
"No problem. The next Mithril Golem has relatively low physical resistance, so we can handle it the same way as the Iron Golem."
It’s only thanks to her exceptional combat skills—almost making one question what a healer is supposed to be—that she can pull this off. Or rather, only Claudia could do this.
Normally, you’d need to layer strategy upon strategy to make it manageable, but with a simple "no problem," she’s already cleared two dungeons. Her pure player skill is allowing her to brute-force her way through with stats.
She wrapped up the strategy meeting in just one day and insisted that training Ingrid’s Perfect Clean was more important, even offering to dedicate her own time to it.
Is this the composure of an adult, or does she already have combat experience against golems in her mind?
She asked me about their characteristics, confirmed their behavior patterns, then sat in meditation for mental training before flawlessly executing it in actual combat.
"Claudia-sama is really amazing."
"Yeah, she took down those huge golems without taking a single hit."
Golems are slow, but that doesn’t make them easy to defeat.
Their magic resistance is low, so using wind-based magic—their elemental weakness—can easily take down rock and iron golems.
However, if you use slashing or piercing weapons like swords or spears, they become much harder to defeat.
Blunt weapons like hammers are considered effective against golems, but even they’re less efficient than magic.
And now, fighting them unarmed in hand-to-hand combat? It’s not hard to imagine how challenging that is. Even with defense-down skills, golems aren’t easy to defeat.
"Only someone like Claudia, who perfectly gauges distance and reads enemy movements, could pull this off."
What’s more, she’s doing this without her ultimate skill, her trump card. Even with passive skills boosting her damage, lacking her strongest move should make this tough.
"Really, she didn’t use any of the tools I prepared..."
I’d prepared items to compensate for the lack of firepower, but she hasn’t used any of them so far.
It’s like once Claudia decides on a challenge run, she commits to using nothing, testing how far her own skills can take her—relying solely on her body.
The items I prepared were support tools to temporarily boost stats, accessories to increase attack power, and debuff items to lower enemy defense when thrown.
All items without damage-dealing properties.
Even though we’ve been handling the dungeon’s minor enemies to conserve her health and mana, refusing to use these items feels... no, it feels extremely stubborn.
And now she’s planning to take on the Mithril Golem Dungeon like this.
"Even for Claudia-sama, while Mithril Golems might be manageable, wouldn’t the subsequent Damascus Golems be too difficult?"
Normally, this would be reckless—something only hardcore players would attempt. But rather than feeling disappointed she didn’t use my items, I’m starting to want to see her pull it off.
Watching her overwhelm golems with such refined player skills is incredibly satisfying.
With this momentum, defeating a Mithril Golem of the same class is just a matter of time.
There’s a condition that she must win consecutively, but Claudia’s movements show no sign of uncertainty.
Even from a gamer’s perspective, there’s no wasted motion!
"Wait, could it be...?"
Watching her move like this, I found myself disagreeing with Esmeralda’s concerns rather than supporting them.
"A Damascus Golem’s defense is incomparably higher than any golem we’ve faced so far, but it’s not impossible to deal damage."
The boss, Full Armor Damascus Golem, is Class 6.
The Mithril Knight Golem is Class 5.
Naturally, it’s stronger, with higher defense. Even with Claudia’s EXBP (likely a stat) maxed out, dealing damage would be difficult.
But by skillfully using defense-down skills and focusing attacks on weak points, damage can be dealt.
"If we disregard safety, it’s not impossible to defeat!"
"Um, wouldn’t it be better to just follow the normal strategy?"
"Well, yeah. I got carried away wanting to see Claudia pull off a giant-killing, but it’s safer to weaken them properly."
A challenge run focused on chipping away with minimal damage while ignoring safety.
I imagined a thrilling scene with cheers of victory, like something out of a documentary, but since real lives are at stake, I’d rather she use debuff items starting from the Mithril Golem.
"So, Claudia, let’s equip you with accessories and go all out."
"Can’t we at least try without for the Mithril Golem?"
"No. It’s the same class as previous monsters, and the boss is even stronger."
"It’s on par with the Swamp Dragon. Plus, since it has high magic resistance, physical damage will work, right?"
She glanced at me repeatedly, shadowboxing to show she could handle it, but no.
"Even so, its defense is higher than Iron Golems, and its physical resistance exceeds the Swamp Dragon’s. Besides, Mithril Knight Golems use magic, so we’ll use these magic-sealing charms and defensive talismans to shut them down completely."
"Just once! Just once is all I ask!! It’s rare to have a chance for a good one-on-one fight instead of a team battle!!"
"I understand your battle junkie blood is boiling, but isn’t there a better time for this? Why not do it after acquiring your unique skill?"
We often forget because she usually acts as our guardian, but if not for her responsibilities, she’d be a battle junkie traveling the world to fight and train.
This quest is focused on solo combat, so she’s probably excited to step out of her guardian role for the first time in a while.
"But having that safety net would be reassuring, wouldn’t it?!"
"No, losing would be dangerous, and starting over would be a hassle."
"No problem! I’ve grasped the behavior patterns of rock and iron golems. I’m confident I can defeat the next ones more efficiently."
Seeing her sparkling with excitement at fighting strong enemies, I almost considered giving permission, but it’s still too risky.
However, outright rejecting her might not harm our relationship, but it would still force her to hold back.
"...Sigh, fine. At least carry the accessories and items, and agree to use them if you’re in a pinch or running out of time, okay?"
"A compromise, then? Understood. In that case, please restrict Amina’s songs too."
"How about we just go with the full item usage route from the start?"
So, I tried to compromise by setting boundaries while giving her some freedom, but she pushed for even riskier conditions, forcing me to insist on mandatory item usage.
She probably thinks that without Amina’s buffs, it’d be a perfectly balanced, nail-biting fight.
I can’t allow that, so I smiled and confirmed:
"Let’s keep Amina’s buffs, please."
"Understood."
Claudia cooled her head a little and agreed.
I have to say, I’m genuinely surprised.
I never thought Claudia, who’s eagerly taking on Mithril Golems, would prefer fighting under such restrictions.
Well, on second thought, maybe it makes sense?
For someone who seeks to fight strong opponents and improve herself, imposing restrictions to turn combat into training might be her preferred style.
With light, swift strikes, she kicks away the giant silver-bodied golem that should have high physical resistance, sweating as she experiments with ways to deal damage.
Her expression is different from her usual serious face—she almost looks like she’s enjoying herself.
I admire her attitude of giving her all even against opponents she’s not suited for.
"So this is how you shatter it!!"
After a short break, she dashed toward the first Mithril Golem she encountered in the dungeon.
Launching a surprise attack, she applied a defense debuff while sending the heavier, larger golem flying with a smile that looked utterly delighted.
"Hmm, I wonder if she’s stressed..."
It makes me worried that the stress of being our guardian has been building up.
"Maybe I should choose dungeons that Claudia can enjoy more."
As the party leader, I pondered what to do.