At that moment, all the mages in the Salamander group stopped chanting and looked ahead at the massive explosion, filled with astonishment and sneers.
"Did he just charged straight through?"
"Does that guy have a death wish?"
"Even with defensive magic, charging directly into such an explosion is a dead end."
"Even if his HP can withstand it, the side effects of the explosion will be unbearable."
"Such stupidity."
"Indeed."
One by one, the Salamanders mocked him.
In ALO, no player would dare to do something like that.
Charge straight through?
Not to mention whether one's HP could survive it; even if it could, there are two reasons why it's nearly impossible to get through.
First, the blast wave from the explosion would prevent any enemy from getting close. Like Leafa, who was blown away by the shockwave, charging directly into an explosion without being thrown back is impossible without exceptional balance.
Second is the well-known side effect. Charging into an explosion like that would likely leave any player dizzy, nauseated, and seeing black for two or three hours. It's such an unpleasant experience that some players have even ended up hospitalized for a day before feeling better. Returning to the game, they were so scarred by the experience that they avoided explosive spells altogether.
Therefore, only a fool would charge into such a blast.
The Salamanders stopped their chanting, and even the shield-wielding swordsman in the front lines wore sneers.
Even their squad captain sighed with relief, adding sarcastically, "Just as I thought, a rookie who's just entered the game—no matter how skilled, without experience, the result is the same."
The captain assumed Rozen had no understanding of ALO and, overestimating his skill, made a foolish decision.
"To think he was humiliated by such a little brat. That guy really is useless."
The captain seemed utterly disdainful of him.
Unfortunately…
"Boom!"
In the explosion ahead, flames and winds suddenly parted.
An incredibly swift figure burst through.
"Swish!"
Amidst the piercing sound, a figure enveloped in flames, trailing a fiery tail, shot forward like a phoenix reborn from fire, wings spread wide, dashing towards them.
In an instant, it appeared in front of the relaxed shield-bearers.
"Whoosh!"
A hot wind surged from the figure, blowing over the five shield-bearing swordsmen.
"Wha—!?"
The closest one's face turned pale.
Then…
"Clang!"
A flash of a sword.
"Splurt!"
The shield-bearer was cut clean through, split in two in an instant.
"Splurt!" "Splurt!" "Splurt!" "Splurt"
In the next moment, sword flashes continued, taking down the remaining four shield-bearers before they could react.
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"
Finally, all five shield-bearers burst into flames, leaving only remain lights as they vanished.
"What...!?"
Watching this unfold, all the Salamanders, including the captain, froze in shock.
Frozen to the core.
The flames and wind scattered from the figure, revealing a figure standing there, smoke rising from his body.
"That was an unpleasant experience."
Holding his fairy sword, Rozen stood slowly, looking toward the fifteen remaining mages with a mix of irritation and disdain.
"Such shock and vibration directly transmitted to the brain through NerveGear are unavoidable. I had to endure it. If not for Virtual Ether strengthening my brain, I would've been left dizzy, too. You've have some guts."
Perhaps a hint of frustration colored his words.
But...
"You came at me first. Even if I vent my frustration on you by taking you down, you can't exactly complain, can you?"
Rozen smiled at them all.
Yet his eyes held no trace of warmth.
"You...!"
"This guy...!"
One after another, the mages raised their staffs in panic, preparing to chant against Rozen.
Unfortunately...
"Too slow."
Rozen's figure disappeared from sight, scattering like countless shadows in all directions.
"Ah!"
"Urgh!"
One by one, the Salamander mages cried out in agony.
Rozen, with his incredible speed, moved like the wind, like a shadow, flickering among the enemies like countless afterimages, a dazzling sight.
Each time he reached a mage, his fairy sword would gleam and slash down.
"Splurt!" "Splurt!" "Splurt"
With each sword flash, the Salamander mages couldn't even react. They could only scream as their bodies were cut in half, burning into remain lights.
With the speed and precision from Virtual Ether technique enhancement, Rozen's attack power was superhuman, allowing him to cut down even armored shield-bearers with a single blow—let alone these frail mages.
Before long, all fourteen mages, except for the captain, fell in agony, turned into remnants of fire, slain on the spot.
"Ah!"
Seeing this horrific sight, the captain screamed in panic, terrified out of his mind.
He immediately turned to flee, completely disregarding his comrades and the direction in his panic.
So much so that he didn't notice the girl blocking his path.
"Ha!"
With a loud yell, Leafa, who had stood up at some point, drew her long sword, raised it with both hands, and faced the running captain.
"Head!"
Shouting the term, Leafa took a big step and swung her sword down.
*Splat!*
The sword slashed through the captain's head, splitting it down the middle, unleashing blood-red effects, brutal beyond measure.
"Urgh…"
The captain looked at Leafa, wide-eyed, as if in disbelief at her brutality.
Then, his entire body ignited in flames, vanishing into remnants of fire.
Only Leafa remained, holding her sword stance as she watched the captain burn away and disappear, letting out a cold snort.
"That's what you get for recklessly blasting us. Take that."
Leafa muttered in annoyance.
Watching this, Rozen shivered on the spot.
"This girl...so brutal."
The boy, who had just sliced nineteen players in half, couldn't help but shiver in his boots.
After all, they were siblings.