Overlord: Multiverse

...

[Physical Attack: 68 -> 75]

[Agility: 72 -> 74]

[MP: 69 -> 60]

...

With her skill activated, she punched his palm. This time, her punch was much stronger, which caused a loud boom when it made contact with Helios' palm. It also caused an explosion of dust just like before, but a bit bigger and louder.

With her skill 'Augment,' she possessed the ability to enhance her physical in exchange for her MP. However, due to the limited level of her Job Class, she could only elevate her stats by a maximum of 9 points.

"Impressive," Helios spoke while withdrawing his hand.

"I deem you strong enough for the final test," Saying this; he brought out a scroll from his 'Item Box.' It was a summoning scroll; he threw it in the air.

The scroll opened and burned to ashes. As it was completely burned to ashes, a large magic circle manifested before Enri. Helios teleported to the viewing area using the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown.

"This is a part of your final test. You need to defeat whatever is summoned!"

Helios shouted while seated in a luxurious seat in the viewing area. To say that Enri wasn't shocked would be an understatement. She never imagined that her final test would be today, even though it was only a part of it.

She unsheathed her sword and took a stance. A few seconds later, a monster manifested above the magic circle- which vanished after the summon was completed. The monster had a cracked, grey-colored, rocky appearance, and fire was emanating from the cracks.

It was a Fire Giant, a level 89 monster.

'Well, this is going to be a hard fight,' Enri thought while taking a stance.

Because she had a mixed build between a sword user and a mage, her overall stats didn't match her level; for instance, even though she was now level 76, her Physical Attack stat was only at 68. If she was a min-maxed player, her Physical Attack stat should have been above 75.

With her current stats, it wasn't difficult for her to fight someone of the same level or someone with a trim level difference, but fighting someone who was more than ten levels above her was a challenge all in itself.

"START!" Helios shouted, which started the fight.

Enri was taking this seriously from the start, so she decided to kick things off with her favorite attack combo.

This combo was a part of the Sword Art she was working on. It was an assignment Helios had given her. Basically, she needed to combine Magic and Sword to form attack combos.

"*Earthen Hold*" She cast a 5th-tier spell, which manipulated the ground beneath her target to immobilize it by ensnaring its feet.

The floor beneath the Fire Giant twisted before ensnaring its feet.

"*Lesser Teleportation*" She used an inferior version of *Greater Teleportation* and immediately appeared near the Fire Giant.

"Mana Slash!" Her sword became enveloped in a bluish-purplish aura, a skill from her 'Magic-Warrior' job class. This aura enhanced her sword's attributes, making it exceptionally effective at cutting through rigid materials.

As her skill was activated, she slashed the Fire Giant with it. The sword left a trail of bluish-purplish color before it connected with the Fire Giant.

On contact, it passed right through its rocky skin, but due to its rigidity, the wound wasn't significant. And because of its strength, it had already freed its feet from the effects of the spell she had used earlier.

Before she could distance herself from it, the Fire Giant used his skill and punched her right in her waist, which sent her flying to the side.

"Ugh," She grimaced due to the pain as she landed on the floor; even though she had a high Physical Defense, a direct attack from someone far higher level than she still hurt her.

She got up from the floor and again took a stance, but before attacking, she used a healing spell to alleviate pain.

"*Heal,"

A green aura encompassed her.

"Now then," As the effect of the spell wore off, Enri lunged toward the Fire Giant while activating her skills.

"Augment, Bludgeoning Blade," She used the first skill to augment her speed and strength, while the second one was purely to attack the Fire Giant.

Like her other skill- "Mana Blade"- her sword got enveloped in a bluish-purplish aura, but this time, the amount was way more than the last time. Unlike her previous skill, which focused on cleaving attacks, her current skill was focused on bludgeoning attacks. Bludgeoning attacks were more effective against targets with solid skins.

The Fire Giant, too, wasted no time, conjuring a spell. A magic circle appeared beneath Enri, generating multiple sharp rocks that materialized around her.

The sharp rocks conjured by the Fire Giant shot toward Enri from all directions. Because she had used "Augment" and enhanced her agility and Physical Strength, she was able to dodge most of the projectiles narrowly. However, a few grazed her, leaving shallow cuts on her arms and legs. The pain only fueled her determination.

Without wasting a moment, Enri resumed her assault. She closed the gap between herself and the Fire Giant, her sword raised high. The bluish-purplish aura surrounding her weapon intensified as she brought it down with immense force.

The Fire Giant reacted by attempting to perry her strike with its rocky arm. The impact created a resounding clash, and sparks flew as the sword met the creature's hardened skin.

As her first strike ended, she jumped back to create some distance. With her skill still activated, she took a stance and lunged toward the Fire Giant. Enri's enhanced strength made her relentless, and she pressed on, pouring her energy into each successive strike.

Despite the Fire Giant's sturdy defense, Enri's relentless blows began to take a toll. Cracks started to appear on the creature's rocky exterior, and it roared in pain and frustration. It retaliated with a powerful kick, aiming to knock Enri back and gain some distance.

But due to her enhanced stats, she was able to evade it. She continued her assault, aiming for the cracks she had created. Her bludgeoning strikes found their mark, causing more significant damage to the Fire Giant's rocky body.

The Fire Giant, realizing it was in a dire situation, gathered flames within its chest. With a tremendous effort, it unleashed a fiery breath attack. Enri, recognizing the danger, leaped backward, narrowly avoiding the searing flames that engulfed the ground where she had stood.

Enri landed a distance away from it. She was breathing heavily; the fight had taken a toll on her.

'I can't go for much longer,' She thought while tightly gripping her sword and narrowing her eyes.

'If I remember correctly, it is a Fire Giant, meaning it should be weak to water-based attacks. But, I don't have much MP left,' The situation was quite dire; she had anticipated that her previous strikes would have been able to damage the Fire Giant a lot more. But, in the end, she was only able to make a few cracks on its body.

As if the situation wasn't bad already, the fire on its body seemed to come to life for a second, and all its cracks began to heal at an astounding rate.

'Now, that is just...' She was lost for words. 'I hope it couldn't use it again, if so, then I am fucked.'

She thought while taking a stance and activating a spell.

'*Aqua Torrent*,' It was 6th-tier spell.

It summoned a swirling vortex of water, and she directed it toward the Fire Giant. The water vortex engulfed it, sizzling as it made contact with its fiery form, which caused a large cloud of steam to form around it.

Enri didn't waste time and activated her trump card.

"Sword Domain."

It was the skill she stored in her sword. She copied it from Cocytus. A golden domain formed around her, enveloping the Fire Giant as well.

Because she stored the skill in her sword, she was able to use it without any restrictions, meaning she didn't feel tired because of it.

"And now, I will end this fight! 'Elemental Aspect: Water' and 'Bludgeoning Blade.'"

The 'Sword Domain' was a skill that enhanced the damage dealt by swords, while 'Elemental Aspect: Water' allowed her to deal water-based damage when her attacks struck her targets.

She lunged toward the Fire Giant, who was unable to see her because of the steam, but she was able to sense it because of the 'Sword Domain' skill.

Because she had the element of surprise, it allowed her to land a clean hit on the Fire Giant. On contact with her sword, sizzling sounds could be heard due to the skill she used. Due to the effect of the domain, her strike did twice as much damage, which made the Fire Giant stumble backward.

Not wanting to give it time, she jumped and attacked the Fire Giant. She kept attacking it for a few seconds before it got up to its feet and used a skill that made a wave of fire travel outwards. Due to its speed, Enri barely managed to evade it by jumping back. After the wave dissipated, she again lunged toward the Fire Giant and started attacking it.

When she was attacking the Fire Giant, it condensed the fire within its chest and caused a small explosion in a desperate attempt to create some distance between them.

Its plan was successful. Enri got enveloped in a fire torrent, but she was able to withstand it because she had been constantly healing herself whenever she landed a clean hit on the Fire Giant.

'I am so lucky to have this sword; if not for its healing ability, I might not have been able to come out of it unscathed.'

Fortunately, the skill it used also reduced its HP to be relatively low, and after a few more minutes of fighting, Enri was able to win, albeit by a thin string.

She was now standing beside the remains of the Fire Giant while breathing heavily.

'That was the hardest fight,' She thought while gazing at the destruction around her.

~Clap~ ~Clap~

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of clapping, and Helios appeared before her.

"Good job, you still need some improvements here and there, but overall, it was a good fight. I am satisfied with your progress."

Helios spoke while crossing his arms over his chest.

"It's all due to your training, Master," Enri spoke while bowing toward him.

"Don't underplay your efforts. Now, tell me if you need anything as a prize for your performance."

"Master, I would like a book on different Sword Arts."

Even though she was able to create the first combo, which was to hold the enemy using a spell and quickly reduce the distance between them and attack it. It was still the only combo she managed to complete, so she wanted some inspiration from other Sword Arts to enhance her own.

"Very well, I'll ask Elara to guide you to the library. For now, you are excused and are allowed to go back to the 11th floor to rest."

To Be Continued...