Chapter 16: If Eileen Were Here…

Well, they were just C-rank monsters—combat power practically nonexistent.

In Rejelif’s opinion, even if she stood still and let them hit her all day, they still wouldn’t be able to scratch her.

That was the confidence of a tank fully kitted out in max-enhanced gear!

Helga had no rebuttal to that.

The power gap between the two sides was enormous.

Maybe being cautious really was unnecessary…

Once Selene and Rejelif charged forward, the remaining orcs and trolls let out beastly howls, brandishing their massive clubs with gleeful menace—ready to “welcome” this group of beautiful female adventurers.

Selene just tilted her head with a soft, amiable smile.

The next instant, her blade gleamed—ripping the night sky apart.

The crimson silhouette of the girl flashed like lightning across the battlefield, cutting straight through the roaring orcs like a streak of fire.

And in that frozen moment… the monsters halted mid-motion, as if time had paused.

Clack—

Her blade clicked back into its sheath just as Selene reappeared on the other side.

Then came the blood.

A red mist exploded behind her.

Screams followed.

Several orcs were bisected in an instant—slain before they could even raise their weapons.

To an onlooker, it looked like a dazzling display of power.

Selene, the S-rank Sword Saint, one-shotted the entire group.

Strong, cool, unstoppable.

If Eileen had been there, she’d probably have shouted something like:

“Big sis is so cool and pretty! Let’s snuggle! Hug me, step on me!”

Selene shook her head furiously, trying to dispel the absurd mental image of that devilish girl.

She lowered her gaze to glance at her newly equipped backup gauntlets.

Just a +7 item—barely passable. Her previous gear had exploded during a failed enhancement attempt.

And with how predatory blacksmiths were, she hadn’t dared try another risky upgrade.

Maybe it’s just the gear… or maybe…

Something felt off. Even the swing just now—it didn’t feel right.

That Alpha Strike hadn’t even crit.

In the past two and a half years, that never happened.

It wasn’t until now that Selene finally opened her battle stats interface to take a proper look.

[Innate Talent — Ragnarok]

Your critical damage and equipment-based critical modifiers are increased by 100%, but your critical hit rate is permanently fixed at 15%.

Due to this trait, all her equipment focused on stacking critical damage, not critical rate.

The result?

A mind-blowing 1145.14% total crit damage—more than double the average Sword Saint.

Typical builds would need to balance crit chance and crit power.

But Selene didn’t have to—her chance was fixed. That was the whole point.

Yet oddly enough, for the past two and a half years, despite that mere 15% rate, every strike she landed had been a crit.

Not just frequently—every single one.

Call it Eileen’s “Lucky Blessing” or divine intervention, somehow, it had worked.

Selene had never once seen white numbers pop up on hit. Never missed a crit.

Until today.

For the first time in 30 months—

A non-critical.

Of course, because the monsters were weak, the difference didn’t matter in combat.

No one else noticed—only Selene herself.

Behind her, Helga finally charged into the fray.

She raised her staff, flinging low-level fireballs like a gatling gun.

Against such weak mobs, the lowest-tier spells were more than enough—her magic stats were totally overkill.

And yet…

The moment she cast the first spell, Helga felt something was wrong.

“The mana isn’t returning.”

Helga’s heart skipped a beat.

Her innate talent was Soul Burn —“Increases final damage dealt by your magic attacks by 100%, and boosts casting speed and success rate by 80%. However, your mana consumption is doubled, max MP is reduced by 30%, and natural regeneration is halved.”

In short: A few heavy spells could hollow her out completely.

So why was she still considered the strongest mage?

Because she had two talents.

The second was Mana Reflux —“Each time you spend mana, there’s a 15% chance the cost will be refunded.”

Put together, these two gifts made Helga an infinite mana machine gun:

Lightning-fast casting, overwhelming magic power, impeccable accuracy.

When she unleashed a barrage, it was faster than a rogue’s blade—and infinitely more explosive.

Every time she cast spells, it was ora ora ora without pause.

But now…

Even though she was only casting [Firebolt], which consumed very little mana, Helga noticed the difference instantly.

No reflux. Not once.

It was subtle—nobody else would’ve noticed.

After all, her MP pool as an S-rank mage was enormous.

A few missing ticks of refund wouldn’t visibly impact her performance in a fight like this.

But she knew.

She knew it wasn’t right.

Because for the past two and a half years, her Mana Reflux had practically always triggered.

The odds had always felt like 100%, not 15%.

She didn’t even carry mana potions anymore.

But now…

Not a single spell had refunded.

Not one.

Everything is just like usual… except Eileen isn’t here.

Her thoughts began to drift.

Are the others feeling it too?

Helga didn’t know her teammates’ exact talents—nobody did.

In this world, talents were considered top-secret, not to be shared lightly.

Only those willing to entrust their very lives to another might reveal them.

It was a rule everyone followed instinctively.

She glanced back.

Behind her, Rosweisse stood with her staff raised high.

A soft golden light poured out like sunlight, bestowing buffs across the team.

[Blessing of Courage]
[Angel’s Wings]
[Shield of Light]
[Prayer of Swiftness]
[Guardian’s Benediction]
[Gospel of Revelation]

Helga could recite them by heart.

But… something was off.

Rosweisse’s casting rhythm felt oddly off-tempo, not quite smooth.

There was a slight stutter in the flow.

A hesitation.

A pause that shouldn’t be there.

Is it just my imagination?

It didn’t make sense. At her level, Rosweisse shouldn’t make such errors.

Especially not against low-tier C-rank monsters like orcs.

Frankly, buffs weren’t even necessary for this battle.

Then why…?

Why did it feel like—everyone was running at 90%?

Helga’s brows drew together.

If Eileen were here… would this be happening at all?

“Mana should be saved for the final boss fight.”

Helga couldn’t help but think it.

If Eileen were here, she’d absolutely be complaining right now.

“Rosweisse, that’s a complete waste of MP, okay?!”

But none of them could change what had already happened.

The battle went as expected.

Against a swarm of C-rank beastmen, equipped with +15 gear and S-rank stats, the girls completely overwhelmed the enemy.

It was like mowing grass—wave after wave of enemies fell with little resistance.

And soon, the shrieking stopped.

No more enemies charged forward.

No more growling.

No more threats.

The cave had gone completely silent.

But not everyone was pleased with the outcome.

The middle-aged staffer from the Adventurers’ Guild, who had waited safely at the edge of the forest, was now stomping over furiously.

“The mission wasn’t just to drive them off!” he barked. “It was to annihilate the entire beastman nest! You girls call this a clean sweep? Look at this mess!!”

He pointed toward the back exit of the cave.

Sure enough, the earth was covered in a chaotic tangle of footprints—deep grooves left by the fleeing beastmen.

Judging by the density and size of the tracks, at least a third of the horde had escaped through the rear entrance.

Helga lowered her head slightly and muttered, just loud enough for herself to hear:

“…If Eileen were here, this wouldn’t have happened.”

It was true.

Before every battle, Eileen always made them do reconnaissance.

She’d call a team meeting, present a full strategy based on terrain, enemy composition, and risk factors.

She’d even quiz them on weaknesses of specific enemies.

The Adventurer’s Guild had a nickname for her: The Walking Monsterpedia.

Eileen had read all the bestiaries and tactical manuals.

With one glance, she could identify enemy types, combat patterns, and ideal countermeasures.

She would never miss something like… a second exit.

And now?

Because they’d charged in recklessly—because no one had even thought to check—the enemy had slipped through their fingers.

Even if they were just low-level trash mobs, the mission had failed.

Helga’s whisper didn’t go unnoticed.

Selena’s already sour mood—still simmering from her sudden non-crit attack earlier—boiled over.

Between Helga’s jab and the staffer’s complaints, she snapped.

With a loud crack, she slammed her fist into a nearby tree.

The trunk shattered, toppling with a deafening crash.

“Enough already!” Selena shouted.

“It’s just a bunch of trash mobs that ran off! We’ll hunt them down with that armored obsidian dragon and wipe them out together!”

Her scarlet twin-tails swayed as she spun around, fire in her eyes.

But no one answered.

No one could deny the truth.

If Eileen had been here…

None of this would’ve happened.