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Positioned with legs slightly apart, arms arched like a bow, and chest proudly puffed out—the quintessential body-builder’s ‘Relax’ stance—Jotun transitioned into a pose with both fists placed at the sides of his waist.

“Lat spread!”

Twitch-Twitch. The giant’s muscles wriggled unsettlingly, resembling earthworms more than human anatomy.

“Side Chest!”

Next, it twisted its body and bent its legs into a ‘く’ shape, showcasing its flank while emphasizing the bulging biceps, chest, and shoulders.

“……”
“Side Triceps!”

He maintained the posture, facing forward, but placed his hands behind, further accentuating the triceps.

“……”
“Most Muscular!”

This time, it twisted its torso sideways and clenched both fists, emphasizing muscles such as the trapezius, arms, and shoulders to showcase its strength.

“……”
“Double biceps!”

Then, the giant raised both hands to head height to accentuate the muscle bulges and emphasized the inverted-triangular silhouette—the ultimate pose to showcase the body’s musculature.

“Ah, so sublime! This is absolutely artistry of the highest order! Truly a giant of unparalleled beauty and grace! Fufu, surely you’re just as enchanted by the divine spectacle of these muscles that you’re rendered speechless, right, lil’ Hiyuki?”

Like the barking of a dog, Shima’s enraptured voice echoed through every nook and cranny of the spacious passageway. Interestingly, he was right about one thing this time. I was truly astounded, not by the supposed beauty of the muscles—

“……”

—but at how utterly comical and trivial the spectacle was.

Everyone else seemed to share the same sentiment. Mikoto was actually pressing the side of her temple, not even glancing in this direction. Utsuho had hidden her mouth behind her unfolded fan, although she didn’t conceal her disgust, muttering, ‘What freakish taste.’ Kokuyou stood silently, speechless—though, that was his usual demeanor. Tengai, however, howled in a loathsome voice, “Princess, please do not gaze upon the lowest of scum, lest it taint your noble sight!”

True to his reputation as the poster boy for short-temperedness, I could already imagine him unleashing a shower of his destructive breath on Jotun, if not for being in «Pet Unison». On the other hand, Shima seemed far from satisfied and continued with his posing; this time, he had the giant strike an ‘Oliver Pose,’ showing no signs of stopping.

“Err, so that’s your hobby, Shima…?”

Upon hearing my words, Jotun, who had been contorting its body backwards, turned its head—ah, right. It was Shima inside Jotun. Shima slightly tilted his neck toward me. Ugh, so gross!

“What do you mean by ‘so that’s your hobby’…?”

“…I mean, if you like, uh, flaunting muscles—”

“I absolutely dig them!!” Shima cut me off before I could finish and replied excitedly. “Cuteness is justice! BUT muscles are righteous!”

What in the world is the difference between them, for heaven’s sake?

“Nothing beats the combination of cuteness and muscles; to me, it’s the very epitome of perfection! Macho x Macho = Uff! This pulsating masterpiece truly embodies a maiden’s desires!”

…Wow, he really is thoroughly peculiar.

“Well, that’s the situation, Hiyuki. I am unmatched, the strongest in this form! You better be prepared to face my beefiest state!”

…Huh? True, the body might be unmatched, but there’s still that defenseless neck sticking out like a sore thumb, you know? After releasing the «Pet Unison» state, it would take only one attack to end the game… I’ve always thought he was foolish, but this is probably the first time I’m acutely aware of it.

“—Then let’s begin. Everyone, you know the target, right?”
“As clear as day, Princess.”
“Well, let’s just hope it doesn’t come off on its own.”
“……”

Everyone’s gaze was focused on Shima’s neck, protruding from the giant’s torso. Right, as if anyone would miss such an obvious weak point—…Ahem, typically, no one would.

“Start!”

At my signal, everyone instantly dispersed in four different directions.

“Haaaa!!”

Utsuho was the first to spring into action, taking a massive leap forward. Jotun swung with left and right punches aimed at her, but they failed to even graze the hem of her clothes as she fluttered through the air like a leaf, deftly maneuvering into the defensive gap between Jotun’s chest and outstretched arms.

“Ying-Yang Force: Eight Leaves Great Wave.”

Upon reaching her target, Utsuho unleashed a full-throttle attack from her nine tails, incorporating a barrage of elements and types—Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Lightning, Tree, Quake, Shadow, Plane—all converging on Shima’s neck, which bore a strained expression.

Boom-Boom-Boom-Boom-Boom-Boom-Boom-Boom-Boooooom!!!

Her onslaught included Repulsion, Absolute Zero, Infernal, Wind Blast, Thunder, Rotting Poison, Shockwave, Dimension Edge, and various physical attacks—it was her secret technique designed to overwhelm foes with a relentless barrage.

A single one of these attacks could deplete more than half the HP of a Level 100 boss-class monster, not to mention these were nine consecutive strikes. Thunderous echoes resonated as Jotun staggered into the billowing fumes of the explosion. Its body leaned back, teetering on the edge of collapse—but it didn’t fall and somehow regained its footing.

“Tsk, he escaped into the dog house, huh.” Tengai muttered irritably as he glanced at Shima’s body. I had leaped into Jotun’s bosom pocket just moments after Utsuho’s attack made impact.

As the smoke from the explosion cleared, Jotun’s figure was revealed, missing a huge chunk from its chest and above—as if gouged by an ice-cream scoop. The damage appeared severe, or at least it initially seemed that way. Jotun assumed a power stance, and the hollowed-out section of its body instantly regenerated to its original form, as though it had never been injured. The only difference was the comical emoji face above the neck, now replaced by Shima’s.

“Huh, is he playing the witch in a gourd? Princess, this will merely turn into a battle of attrition and waste our time unless we can damage the core body.”

Utsuho remarked, scowling as she observed the aftermath of her attack.

“So you’re saying we either need to split the body and try to smash the head wherever it appears, like a whack-a-mole game, or just wipe out the whole thing in one go, huh?”

The option, however feasible it sounded, was challenging to execute. Jotun might be dwarfed by Nidhogg, but its HP far surpassed the latter. We could utilize our wide-range spells or AoE attacks more effectively, but expecting him to simply stay out of his protective shell to be killed was a fool’s dream. It wasn’t feasible; it would merely waste our energy. A war of attrition seemed our only viable strategy at that point.

“In that case—!” Mikoto soared into the sky, her six wings shining brightly. “Holy Feather Shower!”

Following Mikoto’s command, feathers fluttered into the air like special effects, and then light arrows rained down upon Jotun’s entire body. The goal was to either lure out the main body or, if fortune favored us, land a decisive blow to reduce its HP. Unfortunately, neither outcome materialized as Jotun crossed its arms in front of its face defensively. Mikoto’s attack ultimately inflicted minimal damage, merely scratching Jotun’s face.

“If it’s going out of its way to defend the face, then maybe the core is either in the heart or the face?” Tengai shared his analysis through our link.

Kokuyou shouldn’t have been able to hear him, but he seemed to share the same suspicion. Using a shadow transfer, he suddenly reappeared behind Jotun and thrust his spear towards the creature’s heart. —Did it work?

I watched in anticipation, but it lasted only a moment. Jotun contorted its body, seemingly disregarding all its joints—I doubted it even had bones—and swatted Kokuyou away like a fly.

Kokuyou absorbed the palm strike with his Pavis shield, then nimbly leaped back to create distance.

“Just what I would expect from Shima. It won’t be easy to figure out the weak point…”

I was naive to think we could resolve this quickly. “It’s about time,” I muttered, reflecting on my concern, when Jotun’s demeanor, under Shima’s control, shifted abruptly from its previous nonchalance.