The harpies attacked as soon as I entered their territory, a gust of wind carrying their piercing screeches down from the sky. Six of them, their feathered forms blending into the shifting clouds above, descended with calculated precision.
One landed ahead of me, claws raking the stone with a metallic screech, while the others surrounded me from the air, their flight patterns coordinated like a predator pack. Their eyes glowed faintly with mana, narrowed with pride and mockery. They were confident. Too confident.
They wouldn’t even know what hit them.
Without a word, I drew my sword and let mana surge through my core. The cold power flooded my veins, and my back flared with light as Frost Wing unfolded once more, the icy feathers gleaming in the mid-air glare. This time, I wouldn’t be the one fighting defensively on the ground. This time, I brought the fight into their domain—the sky.
As a mage type, my mana pool ran deeper than most. And after weeks of rest and careful training, I had refined my control even further during my time at the academy. Unlike before, when I was barely holding on with less than 35% mana, this time I was at full capacity. My mana flowed steadily, reinforced by discipline and grit.
I soared upward, meeting them in the air.
Claws clashed against steel. I blocked a descending strike with my blade and twisted mid-air, my Frost Wings deflecting a second attacker from my left. The wind howled as we danced in the sky, each of their talon strikes blocked or dodged by precise movements. The Frost Wings alone provided excellent defense, sparing me the need to cast Ice Embodiment too early. Mana conservation was key. And now, I had the upper hand.
Minutes passed, and not a single solid blow had landed on either side. But I was watching, analyzing. Unlike them, I had nothing but patience. My eyes traced their movements again and again until I saw it—a break in the pattern. Their coordination wasn’t flawless.
After every minute of sustained assault, one of them would briefly fall back, panting, staying out of the offensive for a few seconds while the others pressed on. A rotation system. A way to preserve stamina.
I baited them closer, then summoned a shadow wall the instant one of them retreated from the formation. Concealed behind the black mist, I conjured a shadow-infused ice shard and hurled it with force. The shard pierced the air and struck the retreating harpy directly. She let out a sharp cry as her form spiraled downwards.
She would have crashed into the rocky outcrop below, but one of her sisters dove after her, catching her before she hit the ground. She was breathing heavily, wounded, wings trembling.
I descended after them, landing smoothly and laying an ice floor across the open field. The chilling mist rose faintly from the frost, concealing the small Cryo Bombs I silently slid beneath the surface. My trap was set.
The harpies turned toward me, their mocking eyes now burning with fury.
Her aura was different—sharp, pulsing, intimidating. Her feathers shimmered with a glint of mana, darker than the others. She had a crown-like cluster of jagged feathers atop her head, and her talons were larger, sharper. Her wingspan dwarfed the rest, and as she entered the area, the others instinctively gave her space.
So the floor boss finally shows herself.
The moment she joined, the tide shifted.
Their formation changed immediately. They moved with synchronized aggression now, and their speed nearly doubled. Each strike came faster, sharper, and less predictable. The leader weaved between the others with practiced elegance, aiming not to test me, but to kill.
I grit my teeth and removed the Frost Wing. Instead, I activated Ice Embodiment.
A thick sheen of ice encased my body, amplifying my physical strength and defense. My speed dipped slightly, but I didn’t need agility anymore. I needed power.
Their talons scratched against my armor, sparks of frost and mana exploding with every hit. I parried three claws, turned, and slammed my foot into the ice floor, triggering a Cryo Bomb near one of the injured harpies. The explosion of frost enveloped her, freezing her mid-flight as she tried to dodge the explosion by flying in the air. She crashed into the ground, unmoving.
I caught another diving harpy by the wing, slashing through her feathers with my blade. She shrieked, spiraling away, and I didn’t give her time to recover. I launched upward, driving my blade through her chest mid-air.
The others were slower now. Fear was starting to replace confidence in their eyes. The leader noticed. She dove toward me, screeching, talons outstretched and coated in mana. I blocked with my sword but was sent flying, tumbling across the field. My armor cracked slightly, but I steadied myself and stood.
My breath was heavy. Sweat mixed with frost clung to my skin.
We clashed again, and again. Each strike of hers sent shockwaves through my arms. She was fast. Too fast.
I lured her closer to the center of the ice field. The moment her talons hit the ground for a wide strike, I activated the Cryo Bomb beneath her. It exploded with violent frost, locking her legs in a burst of ice. Her speed—her greatest asset—was gone.
I surged forward, gathering my strength, and imbued my sword with shadow mana. The blade shimmered with dark light, its edge humming with power. She screeched, trying to break free, but it was too late.
I brought the sword down in a swift arc.
A final scream echoed through the clearing before falling silent.
Silence returned, broken only by the faint wind and my heavy breaths. My blade trembled in my grip, coated with both frost and blood. My body ached, my armor cracked in several places. But I was still standing.
I took one last look at the fallen harpies. Once proud of their aerial dominance, now scattered across the ground. After the leader fell, the rest scattered away with fear so I left them since Lilith was watching. I decided to be generous.
"Told you," I muttered, breathing hard. "You never saw it coming."
The sky above cleared slightly, as if recognizing the victor. I collapsed onto one knee, exhaling deeply.
This floor was cleared.