Thud!
"Brother...!"
"Bell... grow a little more."
"No... I'll take the watch now...!"
Akumo looked at the worried Bell and smiled, as if proud of his growth.
Clatter!
"!!"
'Skull Sheep...!'
"I'll—!"
"No, Bell."
Slide.
Akumo stepped in front of Bell, gently pushing him back to take the lead.
"Observe closely. The denizens of the Deep Floors are not like the mindless beasts you've faced until now. They possess a primitive cunning."
'And because of that... this is possible!'
Akumo stared silently at the pack of Skull Sheep ahead.
Rumble—!
"Whoa!?"
In an instant, Akumo's eyes bled into a deep crimson. He focused a concentrated, lethal aura directly onto the monsters.
—!!!!
Unlike the monsters of the Upper, Middle, and Lower Floors, these Skull Sheep possessed enough intelligence to recognize a predator. Driven by a raw survival instinct that screamed of certain death, they immediately fled the area.
"Huff... huff..."
'Damn... maybe I should have just killed them...'
The technique was mentally taxing, but in a state where physical fatigue had reached its limit, it was the most efficient method of subjugation.
"See that?"
Grin.
"Whoa..."
Bell watched in awe. The brief respite seemed to have cleared his mind, as the focus returned to his eyes.
Stagger!
"Ah—"
'My head is spinning...'
"Brother...!"
Despite his display of power, the dizziness returned, forcing Akumo to lean on Bell for support.
"Anyway... don't just spam magic like you did earlier. Learn to manage your presence like this..."
"Ahaha... sorry, Brother."
"Seriously, I thought I was going to lose it back then. I was worried..."
As they rested, Akumo's familiar, pragmatic demeanor allowed Bell to feel a fleeting sense of security. They began to converse quietly.
"I wonder if Lili and the others are okay..."
"Well... they should be fine, shouldn't they?"
"But considering what we've been through, there's no guarantee the 25th floor is safe either...!"
"..."
Akumo saw a reflection of himself in Bell's concern for his comrades. The desire to see his juniors grow, yet the agonizing worry that they might get hurt—the instinct to protect them at all costs.
"Let's say something did happen."
"...Yeah."
"Why wouldn't they be okay?"
"Because—!"
"Because you're not there?"
"...!!"
Bell fell silent, the words dying in his throat.
"Listen, kid. You haven't even been an adventurer for a year... and you're already trying to carry them all on your back?"
"In my eyes, you and they are exactly the same."
Slide.
'The same goes for Ryu...'
Akumo always worried. He always wanted them to be safe. But he realized that perhaps this protective instinct was becoming a shackle for them both.
"So, have some faith. Those guys will find a way to pull through..."
He needed to believe in their strength as much as his own.
"Enough of that, Bell. Listen carefully from now on."
"To what...?"
"I'm going to impart knowledge of the Deep Floors. Commit every word to memory."
"!!"
As Akumo lectured him on the ecology and hazards of the lower depths, Bell felt a strange nostalgia, as if he were back in a study session with Eina.
"If I happen to fall, you're the one who has to protect Ryu."
"Brother!!"
"Alright, alright, I get it~"
Whenever Akumo mixed his grim, half-serious jokes into the lesson, Bell would flare up in protest, his frustration clear.
"..."
'I've run out of things to say...'
Minutes passed. The brief lecture, the jokes, and the casual chatter had all run dry.
"Hey, Bell."
"....."
"Bell?"
Grip.
"W-Whoa...!! Ah...!"
Akumo reached out to check if Bell was alright, but when he received no answer, he gripped the boy's shoulder. Bell jumped, looking flustered.
"What are you staring at?"
"Nothing...! Ah! It's just..."
Akumo followed Bell's gaze.
There, he saw Ryu, sleeping peacefully and breathing softly.
"...."
"It's just the first time I've seen Miss Ryu look so... defenseless..."
Thwack!
"Ouch!?"
"You're perfectly fine. More than fine, apparently."
'And here I was, actually worried...'
Akumo attributed this lack of filter to the 'education' Zeus had provided Bell since childhood. He made a mental note to pay the old god a visit if they made it out alive.
Rustle!
"They're coming again!"
"Yeah!"
They stood together to repel the next wave of monsters, the count of which had long since become meaningless.
"Nyaa...!!"
Meanwhile, the reinforcements for the Hestia Familia—Tsubaki, Anya, Chloe, and Lunoire—were frozen by the sight before them.
"What is this...?"
"Does the Water Capital always look like this hellish landscape, nya?"
They stared at the entrance to the 25th floor, which had completely collapsed into a sheer cliffside.
"I've never seen anything like this either."
Tsubaki calmly analyzed the destruction.
"The Monster Rex must have gone on a rampage here in the Great Falls."
She could tell that a massive battle had taken place between the floor boss and some party.
"The Monster Rex of the Lower Floors is the Amphisbaena, nya."
"Are you saying someone fought it before we got here, nya?"
"Then where did the boss go? Was it defeated, nya?"
Anya and Chloe speculated that someone had either slain the boss or knocked it down to the lower floors.
"We don't know that! The adventurers fighting it could have been wiped out!"
Lunoire, assuming the worst, suggested that the party involved might have already perished.
"That's also a possibility. Only one thing is certain."
"We are too late. There's nothing we can do from up here."
'The ones who faced the Monster Rex were likely the Hestia Familia party...'
Tsubaki prayed for their survival and decided they had to reach the 27th floor immediately.
"Ryu will be on the 27th floor, nya!"
"We're going down right now, nya!"
"But... everywhere you look is collapsed! There's no footing! How are we supposed to get down!?"
Lunoire barked at Anya's casual attitude, but Tsubaki answered with even more nonchalance.
"Well, we'll just have to scale down the cliff~"
"Gek... are you serious, nya?"
Chloe looked disgusted by the reckless suggestion, but Anya spoke up with confidence.
"It's fine, nya! There are no monsters here right now, nya!"
"If there's no interference, we can definitely do it, nya! My brother used to climb down walls like this all the time by himself, nya!"
"So we can do it too, nya!"
Despite Anya's words, Chloe and Lunoire looked entirely unconvinced.
""...""
"W-Well, probably..."
Even Anya started to lose her confidence under their stares.
"Oh, damn it! Fine, we have to do it, right?"
"Sigh~ No choice then, nya~"
"Well, worst-case scenario, we just end up with some broken bones!"
"Yeah!! That's the spirit, nya!!!"
As the women prepared to throw themselves down the cliff of the 25th floor—
"Dammit!"
Slash!
"Don't screw with me!!"
"No matter how many we kill, they just keep coming!!"
Having entered the 26th floor, Welf was struggling against an overwhelming number of monsters, swinging his greatsword relentlessly.
"Haaah!!!"
Crunch!
To make matters worse, Haruhime and Mikoto were out of the fight due to injuries. Chigusa and Cassandra were busy supporting them, leaving Welf, Ouka, and Aisha to handle the entire front line.
"Ouka, on your side! And more are coming from behind!"
"We're surrounded! Where are these numbers coming from!!?"
Surrounded by Mermen, Lili immediately loaded her crossbow.
"We can't fight them head-on! It'll just waste our stamina!"
Thwip!
—!!!!!!!
"I've taken out the leader! Fall back now!!"
Lili's bolt struck the Mermen leader squarely in the eye. As the formation faltered, the party quickly broke through the gap.
"This is insane! We've been under constant attack since we stepped onto the 26th floor..."
Daphne, overwhelmed by the difficulty, tried to reason with Lili.
"In this situation, we don't have the luxury to look for [Rabbit Foot]...!"
Lili cut her off sharply.
"Are you still saying that?"
"The moment we chose to move forward, meeting up with Master Bell became our only objective!"
Daphne tried to explain the grim reality of their situation.
"I know you won't abandon your comrade!"
"But finding one person without a single clue is impossible, isn't it?"
Daphne had a point, but Aisha reminded her that they weren't just choosing to go—they were forced to.
"We have to go."
"What?"
"We can't return to the 24th floor until the Dungeon finishes repairing itself."
"If that's the case, our only option is to find Bell Cranel and head for the Safety Point on the Lower Floors."
"But...!"
"The situation is what it is. Any sane adventurer would take the regular route, so if we meet them, all the better."
Aisha remained on high alert, her hand never leaving her weapon. Welf and Ouka stood ready beside her.
""""...""""
Splash!
"Something's coming!"
—Neigh!
A massive horse-like monster erupted from the water.
"A Kelpie...!!"
"Kelpies are 27th-floor monsters! It migrated up a floor...!?"
"Uooooh!!!!"
Crunch!
"Run!!!!"
With the sudden appearance of the Kelpie, they retreated toward a cave entrance to find better ground, but they weren't the only ones there.
"!!"
"Lamia, Abanc, Dodola...!"
—!!!!!!
"You've got to be kidding... these are all 27th-floor monsters!!"
"What on earth is happening!?"
"Ask the Dungeon yourself!!!"
Aisha didn't waste time on questions. She charged the monsters with her greatsword, and the battle reignited.
Slash! Crunch! Boom!
The party's coordination was superb, carving through the monsters with lethal efficiency. But eventually, a gap appeared.
Thud!
"Gah...!!"
'Dammit...'
Welf was sent flying into a wall by the Kelpie's hind kick.
Clink.
"This is...!"
'Lower Floor minerals!'
Even in pain, the blacksmith in him noticed the rare ore. A monster lunged for his opening, but Aisha intercepted it just in time.
"What are you doing, [Ignis]!!"
"Ah, sorry..."
"Keep moving!! We're heading deeper in!"
"Got it!"
Welf snatched up the mineral and followed the group toward the sound of human voices echoing from within the cave.
"""Aaaaagh!!!!"""
"It came from up ahead!"
"It might be the adventurers from the 27th floor!"
Encouraged by Lili's words, they rushed forward.
"You bastards!! Don't you dare die!!!"
""""Oooooh!!!!!""""
There, they found Bors's party desperately fighting a horde of monsters.
"Phew... we're saved. Thanks to you guys."
"Where are the others from the subjugation force? I don't see Bell Cranel or the rest."
"""""....."""""
At Aisha's question, Bors and his men fell into a heavy, guilt-ridden silence.
"...They're all dead."
""""!!""""
Ouka and Daphne were struck with shock.
"How... that force was made up of so many high-level adventurers..."
"Wiped out...!? That's impossible!!"
"Wait. He's not finished."
Aisha calmed them down and pressed Bors for details.
"So, are you saying you were all taken down by [Gale] and the [Pioneer]?"
"...No."
"Then what?"
"A new species of monster appeared... one we've never seen before..."
"A new species?"
"Didn't you hear it? That horrific, screaming sound..."
Aisha realized he was referring to the massive explosion and the subsequent shriek they had heard earlier.
"So that really was the sound of a monster being born..."
"That's not all...!!"
Tremble!
"That robed monster...!! That monster!!!"
"What? A robed monster?"
Aisha was taken aback by the sheer terror in Bors's shaking hands.
"Wait! Tell me about that new monster first...!"
"...It was a giant, skeletal beast. It was impossibly strong."
"With one swing of its claws, adventurers were slaughtered instantly... but...!"
Shudder!
"But! It was nothing compared to the other one..."
Bors, trembling with fear, recounted everything he had seen. His party members looked equally traumatized as the memories resurfaced.
"With one swing of its sword...!! It summoned three more of those monsters..."
"The [Pioneer] fought it, but..."
"...To protect us..."
""""!!""""
Hearing Akumo's title, everyone—Aisha included—gasped.
"What happened to the [Pioneer]!"
"What happened to Akumo!!"
"..."
"Speak up, you bastard...!!!"
Welf grabbed Bors by the collar, his eyes burning with desperation. He could see the crushing guilt on Bors's face.
"He was taken down."
"...What?"
"That robed thing... it severed his arm and pierced him through..."
Bors reached into his pocket.
"This is what we found at the site...!"
"..."
Bors pulled out several fragments. They were a mixture of black and blue shards, nearly unrecognizable to a stranger. But Welf knew them instantly. He had seen them countless times.
"[Gram]... [Balmung]..."
The masterpieces his senior had forged were shattered into pathetic remnants.
"Explain!!!!"
Welf couldn't believe it. Akumo's defeat, his weapons destroyed, his arm severed—it was impossible.
"Wait!! Welf...!!"
Lili pulled Welf back before he could punch Bors. She turned to the Rivira leader with a pale face.
"Bors...!"
"...What?"
"What happened to Master Bell...?"
The atmosphere grew even heavier.
"[Rabbit Foot]... was also taken down."
"!!"
"Not only was his arm severed, but his neck was..."
"...Liar."
"It's not a lie!!!"
Bors shouted, his voice cracking with terror and remorse. His party members slumped to the ground.
"The [Pioneer]... [Rabbit Foot]... [Gale]... they all fell trying to protect us...!!"
"I'm sorry...! I'm so sorry...!!!"
Bors wept openly. Because they were a hindrance, Akumo couldn't use his full power. Because they were targeted, Bell and Ryu were put in danger. Because they were deceived by Jura, so many had died.
"This... can't be happening..."
Aisha was in denial. The heroes who were stronger and more reliable than anyone else—dead?
"[Rabbit Foot]... and the [Pioneer]... dead...?"
Daphne couldn't process it. Akumo, the undisputed strongest, and Bell, who had shown such insane growth—both gone?
"Master Bell... Master Akumo..."
Haruhime's legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.
"You're joking, right...?"
Ouka tried to force a smile, as if waiting for the punchline of a bad joke.
"Ah...!!!"
'Why...? The white light was supposed to...'
Cassandra was horrified. The white light in her prophecy had clearly cut through the darkness. So why was Akumo dead?
'A brilliant darkness...? I don't understand anything anymore...!!'
The situation defied her prophetic logic.
Rumble—!
"!! Monsters! Everyone, move!!!!"
The Dungeon didn't wait for their grief. A new wave of monsters charged.
"Let's go!"
"Hurry up!!"
Bors's group, despite their trauma, moved to shield the Hestia Familia party, determined to save at least them.
"We still have numbers!! Move forward!!"
"!! More from the front!!!"
As monsters blocked their path, Bors prepared to use a magic sword, but—
"Aaaaaagh!!!!"
Fwoosh—! Boom!
Welf unleashed a magic sword fueled by pure rage, incinerating the monsters in front of them.
'One more time...'
"What do we do now..."
'No, now isn't the time for that...!!'
Welf pushed the horrific thoughts aside and ran.
"Dammit..."
He just kept running.
"Huff... huff..."
The group eventually reached a dead end.
"A dead end..."
"Dammit!"
Ouka and Welf cursed, while Lili tried to analyze the situation as a commander.
'If we're attacked here, the casualties will be catastrophic...'
'Everyone is exhausted...'
"And... Master Bell and Master Akumo are..."
Pessimism began to cloud Lili's mind. But Aisha stepped forward, recalling the words of the heroes she had seen.
'No, there's still hope.'
—'I save people because I want to save them.'
"I'm going to believe that."
Aisha approached Bors.
"Hey, Bors."
"...What is it?"
"Tell me exactly what you saw."
"I already told you—"
"More precisely. Tell me everything from the moment Bell Cranel was attacked to Akumo's battle. Everything."
"Give me the facts, not your pessimistic assumptions!!"
"!!"
Aisha's shout sparked a tiny, fragile flame of hope in Bors.
"First, [Rabbit Foot] had his arm severed by the beast's claws."
"Then he was struck in the neck by its tail and lost consciousness. I heard the bone snap; it was a fatal wound."
"....!!"
Then, Bors remembered something else.
"But then... [Rabbit Foot] somehow stood up again to face that monster!"
"Wait, really?"
"The [Pioneer] intervened, and whether it was [Gale]'s healing or something else, his arm reattached and he recovered...!"
"Then!"
"Wait, kid. There's more."
Aisha silenced Lili and gestured for Bors to continue. Bors calmed himself and described the scene.
"A white sword appeared in the robed one's hand, and it sliced through the floor with a massive shockwave."
"Then the monster [Rabbit Foot] was fighting turned black, and three more appeared."
Bors squeezed out the details of their helplessness.
"We couldn't do anything... we just watched the [Pioneer] get torn apart by that robed thing and the monsters..."
"Fighting the robed one was hard enough... but he kept taking hits to save us from being killed by the monsters...!"
He described Akumo's battle against the black Juggernauts and Bell's fight against the one Jura had summoned.
"In the end, he sent us away and faced the robed one head-on with blue flames..."
"And?"
"He lost. The [Pioneer]'s arm was severed."
"...Again."
"After that, we were running for our lives, so we didn't see the rest."
It sounded impossible to survive, but then an Amazon woman from Bors's party spoke up.
"I saw a Lambton with its head sliced off still moving..."
"!!"
"And that robed guy... he didn't kill the [Pioneer] immediately after taking his arm...!"
Suddenly, a memory flashed through the minds of everyone who had been there.
'The Xenos incident...!'
'That robe...!!'
That alone was enough to suggest they might still be alive.
"They definitely survived!"
"They must be alive!"
Welf and Lili clung to that conviction. Their idols, their heroes, could not be dead.
"The plan remains the same!"
Aisha gripped her sword, betting everything on that hope.
"We're heading to the Safety Point on the Lower Floors! We'll regroup with Akumo and Bell Cranel there."
"...We're coming too."
"Yeah...!"
Bors and his men decided to descend again, hoping to repay even a fraction of the debt they owed.
"Bors..."
"It's fine. We're adventurers, aren't we...!"
The trembling in his hands no longer mattered.
"Hope still remains."
'They can't be dead...!'
Cassandra refused to give up. If they were going down, they had to return to the regular route.
"But we're in a bottleneck, and the monsters are everywhere."
"Take a short rest. Then, with Aisha and Bors leading, have Bors's party scout the exit!"
""Leave it to us.""
The flickering hope moved them once more, but Lili knew the truth.
'Nothing has actually improved yet.'
'The monsters keep coming, and we have no plan to break this stalemate.'
Welf felt the same weight.
'What should I do? How can I... get to where Akumo and Bell are...?'
'How do we overcome this?'
Welf looked at his last remaining magic sword and agonized. He hated relying on them, but then a voice echoed in his mind.
—'In the end, a magic sword is just another form of power.'
—'To carve a path forward, to protect your convictions.'
It was the advice his idol and senior had given him.
—'As long as you have earth, iron, and a roaring flame...'
—'You can forge a weapon anywhere.'
Those were the words of the goddess he loved and respected.
"...You guys!!"
Welf stepped forward.
"Can you trust me with your lives?"
"What do you mean..."
Welf Crozzo made his decision. He would embark on his own adventure.
"I'm going to forge a magic sword. Right here, right now!"
========================
The website for reading paid chapters is available on my Patreon. The number of chapters on Patreon: 168
Link: patreon.com/UltraMagnus_T