I Became a Raid Boss

In front of Justina’s house, there is a plaza of moderate size.

Long ago… in a very distant past, the entire clan often gathered in this plaza to discuss major and minor matters or to check on each other’s well-being.

Well, actually, saying “the entire clan” is a bit misleading.

At that time, the number of the Purifier Clan was so many compared to now that they couldn’t all fit into this plaza.

*

“I never imagined I would see this sight again after that day….”

The plaza was filled with people.

Although the organized formation was lacking, the sight of so many people gathered together was enough to fill Justina with nostalgia.

“Chief?”

“…Hmm? What is it?”

“Is something wrong?”

“Ahh.”

Had the nostalgic moment lingered too long?

Hearing the call, Justina snapped back to reality and noticed the worry etched on the faces looking up at her.

“It’s nothing, so you may leave,” she said.

“Yes.”

With a firm order, the man stepped down from the platform.

Justina gazed with satisfaction at his retreating figure without harboring any doubts.

‘Atysha disliked things like this.’

She said it felt authoritative or something.

But Justina thought a just authority was an essential element of leadership.

It was certainly nice to get along with the clan, but the one who leads must sometimes show weight.

To instill trust that “this person is worthy of following,” it was better that way.

Atysha, after hearing Justina’s words, had said this:

“I don’t want to be treated as something I haven’t achieved…”

“That’s a rather cute thought…”

Atysha believed that the respect and treatment she received from others was thanks to her parents.

But in Justina’s eyes, Atysha was certainly deserving of respect.

This wasn’t just because she was Atysha’s mother.

Perhaps it was because she grew up watching her parents’ actions, Atysha always pondered for the well-being of the clan.

One of the proofs was that she fought at the forefront when the dimensional beings appeared.

Finishing her short reminiscence, Justina’s gaze swept over the crowd.

With every glance she made, the murmurous sounds gradually quieted down, eventually disappearing completely.

“I believe everyone knows the situation.”

Justina got straight to the point.

Despite the lack of context, no one shook their head in disagreement.

“Is there anyone against this plan? Of course, even if you disagree, I have no intention of retracting it.”

The joking remark elicited a few scattered chuckles.

Justina’s soft smile hardened as she looked down.

“Furthermore, I have no intention of discussing this in detail again. Didn’t we already do that once before? What’s the point of repeating the same thing?”

After being persuaded by a rude child, Justina gathered her clan and explained the plan.

And of course, she hadn’t sought their agreement then either.

Since it was thus decided, her attitude was that they must rightly follow.

There were no objections.

“When this is over, many things will change.”

Whether the changes were for better or worse, they could not return to their current lives.

However…

Justina recalled the proud face of the young girl who had boldly spoken to her.

There was not a hint of doubt on the girl’s face.

Because of Edel’s words?

If that were the case, it didn’t seem like the girl appeared particularly devout.

Perhaps what the girl believed in was her own strength, Justina cautiously speculated with the wisdom accumulated over the years.

On the contrary, Justina and her clan believed in the words of their creator, Edel.

The decisive reason Justina was persuaded by the girl was also due to something Edel had said, so their faith didn’t even need to be stated.

Though they believed in different things, they were headed in the same direction.

So there was no reason not to unite.

“It seems no one has changed their minds.”

Time passed after Justina’s words, yet the gathering in the plaza remained silent.

Instead, Justina, leisurely scanning their renewed determination, nodded.

“Well then, let’s begin.”

As Justina raised her hand, the enormous barrier surrounding the village began to slowly crumble.

*

You know how sometimes in life, you have one of those moments?

Like when you pulled on a loose thread sticking out of your clothes and ended up unraveling the whole thing?

The scene before me looked exactly like that.

The barrier was the clothing, and the mana was the stitches that made up the clothing.

The strings of magic falling away from the barrier fluttered about.

If left alone, they would surely drift away into the air without a second thought.

However, Justina and the demons skillfully guided it all together into one place.

“It’s getting a bit hard to breathe…”

When the barrier had crumbled halfway, Selin remarked.

If Selin, who normally doesn’t express how difficult it is, was saying that, it seemed the pressure she felt was considerable.

“It is indeed.”

And it was the same for me.

Even though there was a bit of distance, feeling this kind of pressure was shocking.

Every bit of mana in the air was pressing down on me, trying to force me into submission.

…I hate to admit it, but it felt similar to the first time I saw the snake brat.

Just a few days ago, before the promotion ceremony, the mana had been at least double what I felt now.

How long could I withstand it in such an environment?

‘Not sure.’

Even I had my doubts there.

Honestly, I had underestimated it a bit until now, but feeling the mana gather like this truly made me realize why the place was called the Mad Continent.

Of course, humans named it that to signify the demons’ homeland.

“Cough…!”

“…Are you okay? You can go in if it’s too hard.”

“Uh, um… No. I can still handle it….”

Both Selin, who was at a considerable level, and I, who was not quite as high, felt the pressure.

There was no way Da-eun, who was at the lowest level, could remain unaffected.

Even though Selin’s holy power was radiantly surrounding Da-eun, her complexion was pale enough to look like she would vomit blood at any moment.

gulp

Da-eun pulled a vial from her robe and downed its contents.

After swallowing the red potion that looked like blood in one gulp, she managed to catch her breath for a moment.

If she was struggling this much already, it wouldn’t be strange if she fainted later.

‘Gracis.’

-…Why do you call for me?

‘…Are you sulking?’

For some reason, Gracis’s voice sounded gruff.

Oh, right, it’s not a voice but a thought.

-Not really. It’s just annoying that you only reach out when you need something while ignoring me otherwise.

‘Hmm.’

That was true, I had kind of been that way.

I could hardly say I didn’t do it, with all the trivial things I ignored along the way, it made me feel a little guilty…

‘Then you should go to someone else.’

…Says the one who’s living off me.

Most disappointing is the fact that it’s not me but them who have a reason to bend.

-I wasn’t that ticked off, though.

‘That’s a bit disappointing.’

-…Sigh. So why did you call for me?

‘Oh right. Is there any way you can relieve Da-eun’s burden?’

-Are you joking? That was quite an amusing joke.

‘So it’s impossible?’

-Unless you’re thinking of bursting with mana instead of magic, that might be an interesting idea.

Of course, there was no way Da-eun could withstand Gracis’s mana.

It would be like trying to take one blow, only to end up getting hit by both.
Even if I handed over the ring to Da-eun, what would it really do?

– No way.

‘Yeah, I figured as much.’

Gracis’s reaction was especially unsurprising; I nodded.

It can’t be helped.

“…Eh? Kana?”

“Would this help a bit more?”

I took Da-eun’s hand, wearing the ring on mine.

It might not be as effective as putting it directly on her, but it was made by a dragon after all, so it should have some degree of effectiveness.

As I suddenly took her hand, Da-eun’s surprise was clearly evident, but she soon broke into a bashful smile.

“Yeah. It definitely feels better.”

“See?”

“You’re the best, Kana. Hehe, it’s soft…”

“…Is this really okay?”

I told her to feel its effect, I never meant for her to feel my hand’s touch.

I was sure it would be effective, but her reaction made me slightly skeptical.
…If this doesn’t help, I might have to force her home.

As we spoke, the barrier rapidly crumbled, and the pressure we felt steadily increased.

Finally, the barrier completely vanished.

“…Phew.”

Despite Selin’s holy magic radiating strongly for some time, it wasn’t easy to stand tall and straight.

While Selin staggered but somehow held her ground, Da-eun had completely collapsed onto the ground.

Empty potion bottles were scattered haphazardly by Da-eun’s side.

“All preparations are complete.”

As the state of the demons also looked particularly pale, Justina approached me with her singularly bright demeanor.

She stared at me for a moment before a smirk spread across her face.

“You don’t look very calm. Are you thinking of retreating?”

“Just because I want to retreat doesn’t mean I can.”

“Of course not.”

“Stop with the nonsense.”

“…Ah!”

I lightly scolded and let go of Da-eun’s hand.

Da-eun, having realized a beat too late that I had pulled away, let out a disappointed sound and grasped into empty air.

“I’ll be going.”

“C-Can I go with you…?”

“You know that’s not possible.”

“…”

I pointed at the swirling black vortex that was persistently churning.

If Da-eun stepped into that, she wouldn’t just die from magic poisoning; her whole body would be shredded to pieces.

That’s why Selin was supposed to assist from a distance.

“Don’t worry. I’ll finish this quickly and be right back.”

“Ah…!”

There was no need to prolong the goodbye.

Ignoring the sighs from behind, I stepped confidently forward.

“That little one has a lot of spirit, just like a big strong man.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“It depends on whether you succeed or not.”

“Well then, it’s a compliment.”

I deftly responded to Justina’s remark and took another step closer to the magical beast.

“I might have forgotten, but I’ll remind you one last time.”

“No need for that. Once I go in, I have to empty all the mana in my body and accept the shards of magic you release.”

“Indeed.”

I had heard several times how the promotion ceremony would proceed.

Now that I had confirmation that I remembered correctly, there was no reason to hesitate any further.

“I’m going.”

“May you succeed…”

I stepped into the swirling sea of magic, leaving behind Selin’s short farewell.

“…Ugh!”

An overwhelming pressure, far greater than anything I had felt until now, crashed down on me.

If I even relaxed for a moment, I’d be struck down by the pressure and never rise again.

Feeling this way, I grit my teeth and summoning my mana.

Kagagak!

The pink mana that sprang from my body intertwined gracefully with the golden holy power to combat the beast’s magical blades.

One step, then another.

As I trudged through the immense weight pressing down like a mountain, I noticed that the unpleasant noise in my ears gradually faded away.

But the mana, making it hard to breathe, remained.

‘Not like the eye of the storm…’

I couldn’t help but grumble to myself for a moment.

Realizing what I needed to do, I immediately began to release the mana from my body.

As I released a considerable amount, the surrounding magic seemed to dilute, making my breathing feel a little easier.

Maybe it was just my imagination that no difference existed, yet felt that way.

“Hah.”

I had already declared countless times that there was no turning back….

But now, truly, it was impossible to return.

Having fully emptied my mana, I couldn’t leave anymore.

So instead of wasting time on pointless things, I spread my arms wide.

“…!”

The moment I resolved myself to accept the magic, the surrounding shards surged into my body all at once.

Not the wild mana of Gracis, not the mana I handled, but rather something thick and slimy, a contaminated magic.

“Cough!”

Before I could even feel the pain, my body reacted first.

In the faint light, the substance I vomited onto the floor was not the usual red but a pitch-black color.

“Ah….”

With a thud!

The next moment, I found myself staring down at it from my knees.

No matter how many times I tried to rise again, my limp body would not obey.

…No.

‘…Do I even have to get up?’

As that thought crossed my mind, my heart calmed and sank into peace.

Right. There was no need to force myself to rise.

It’s not difficult, is it?

Just close my eyes and let myself be led into the welcoming darkness.

Focusing on the feeling that would consume my body, I wouldn’t have to feel this unbearable pain.

“…Yeah. Let’s do that….”

I gently sank into the warm darkness that embraced me.

---