"Mika, let me tell you one thing..."

"...?"

Mary suddenly turned to the ashen-haired girl and spoke in a cold voice, making the younger girl flinch.

"We were told that there is no need for us to kill a lot of titan-class, but I need at least ten whole bodies of those monsters, not the shreds that are left of them after the artillery barrage at the second line. It doesn't have to be during this wave either, so don't think I will be risking my life or the lives of anyone else - I simply NEED ten whole titan-class monsters' bodies to complete a very important quest. Still, we will not be able to get that many by ourselves..."

Mary said while patting the head of the massive skinny wolf, salivating by her side as he looked towards the approaching monsters.

"Can I count on your cooperation?"

She asked looking into Mika's eyes.

"...I... I'll try..."

The ashen-haired girl nodded and ended up agreeing.

"That's perfect then, this quest wasn't a complete failure and a waste of time then."

Mary allowed herself a little smile.

*¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤*

At that moment Shank's rifle let out a low hum from above and a ray of a pale blue light pierced right through another massive spider-type titan-class, killing it in one shot.

...

...

"Watch out. For now, don't try to eat them from the start or the other titan-class will crush you during your cooldown."

Mary instructed her first tamed monster, the black wolf, Arion, while patting his head affectionately.

"Raor. (I know.) Raor. (I'll try, I do want to break my curse after all.)

Arion barked in response and his tail twitched nervously.

"Raor. (Also, you didn't have to lie to that girl.) Raor. (Us three could hunt ten titan-class in the remaining three waves.)"

He let out a low growl while looking up at the soaring griffin.

"Maybe, but it won't hurt to have a backup plan."

Mary smiled sweetly and patted the side of Arion's neck.

/05:00:01

/05:00:00

/8th monster wave - start

/04:59:59

The monsters were still far away, kept at bay by the deadly aim and power of the rat-faced Shanks flying on Bluberry's back - but the three humans just as the countless ones on the first and second lines all trembled in anticipation.

When will the golden ray have its appearance again?

Their forces were already decimated multiple times by the very attack that always arrived out of nowhere, will it show up again just like the day before? Who will it hit? Who will be sparred?

Those were the questions that everyone was asking themselves.

But despite being launched right at the beginning of the monster wave for two days straight already, the attack didn't come even after the wave officially started.

"&@:±€$`[»«.¡%"

Funnily enough, the nearest titan class seemed just as confused as the humans were, as it roared and looked over its shoulder in confusion.

"Almost time, better get ready."

Mary breathed out and closed her eyes.

"Raor, raor. (You don't have to do this, this skill isn't for humans to use in the first place.)"

Arion growled and nudged Mary's side with his cold nose.

"I survived it each time we trained before, I'll survive it now too. I can't have some side character take all the spotlight from the heroine, can I now?"

Mary opened her eyes, glanced at her wolf with a smirk, and then winked.

Then she looked at the ashen-haired girl who already activated her skills.

The air around Mika was trembling.

The crimson glow that she emitted was more similar to gas than to light in its behavior, it didn't just radiate, it was rising up as if it was air on a scorching hot day.

The young girl crackled her knuckles staring at the approaching titan-class monsters - there was no longer any trace of fear or even hesitation in her posture and her expression could be only described as elated.

She seemed to be barely containing herself from pouncing in the middle of the enemy group to wreak havoc and destruction, she was constantly clenching and opening her fists as if they were itchy to punch something.

If Mary wanted to be her support, she had to prepare fast, or else the young girl would go get herself killed in record time while in fully activated berserk mode.

"Fuuu..."

Mary closed her eyes again and breathed out...

/Begin sharing skills...

/Skills selected:

Blueberry: Storm talon (level 37) ; Rapid acceleration (level 11)

Arion: Starvation (level 14) ; Battle instinct (level 20[max])

Cinnamon: [unavailable]

/...

/Skills share activated successfully

/Warning

/Starvation skill active

All base stats increased by 1400% until player's status will change to satieted

*CRACK* *RIIIIP*

"URGH!"

As the messages had popped up, every bone in Mary's body begun to crack, and each muscle got torn from the insane stat increase and she spat out blood.

"MEND!"

*CRACK*

"GHHRGH!"

She managed to shout and with an even more disgusting sound, all the injuries were forcibly healed without even a bit of anesthesia, which caused the brown-haired girl to growl out in unimaginable pain.

But once the pain subsided, the short girl straightened her back and looked up at the closest titan-class monster over thirty times her size.

It had an almost fully humanoid shape, with the only exception being a whole another grossly animated face where his torso should be.

It was of course naked, but thankfully it also boasted a long beard that conveniently protected the bystanders from any unwanted sight.

...could it really be called a beard though...?

Anyway, thanks to the second skill she shared with her wolf, Mary had a feeling that if any monster had to be taken down first, it would definitely be that one, the mocking expression of both of its faces was just too annoying.

And who knows? Maybe the monster was actually using taunt too?

*BOOM*

And just as Mary expected, as soon as Mika shattered the ground with her mad charge, the first opponent she chose was the two-faced giant.

*SMASH*

The ashen-haired girl's fist hit right in the middle of the giant face and the monster faltered but hadn't taken a step back!

Instead, its body released a muddy glow and the eyes in his proper head begun shining with a golden light - an eerily similar color to the gigantic golden beam that decimated so many of the Sloth soldiers...

And it was aiming straight at Mika who was about to punch it again.

*SQUELCH*

Before Mary even finished thinking about it, her body already reacted and she launched herself at the two-faced monster.

With enough strength to make her calves explode into a bloody mess, she arrived at the monster's head just as fast as if she teleported, and tore at the beast's glowing eyes with her right hand glowing with intense light.

*SLASH*

"¿£€•¿¡^>?%"

*RIIIP*

Her fingers, just as powerful as an emperor griffin's talons cleanly cut through the titan-class monster's eyeballs and the monster howled in pain while Mary gritted her teeth as her fingers got ripped off one by one by the power of her own skills.

*SMASH*

"...±..."

Mika, who didn't even notice Mary's assist, delivered another hit on the monster's giant face and this time she managed to cause it to cave in and the beast fell.

Meanwhile the airborne Mary...

"MEND! ARGH!"

She shouted and screamed in pain once the broken bones, flesh, tendons, and skin didn't regenerate but instead returned to their place and got welded together in a process more painful than getting wounded in the first place.

"One down! Ahaha!"

Mika exclaimed happily watching the lifeless two-faced beast keel over lifelessly.

"Eh...?"

She tilted her head looking at the yellowish blood pouring out from the monster's head.

"I didn't do that..."

She grumbled to herself as if disappointed that she got helped.

"MIKA! BEHIND YOU!"

*SHING*

*RIIIIP*

Mary roared as she unleashed the storm talon skill from a distance, ripping off her newly reattached fingers just to cut off the tentacle-like tail of a beast-type titan-class that was about to pierce through Mika's back.