Chapter 0068 Devil
-x-X-x-
The investigation team from the Kingdom Central University was at the destination of Abel and his group.
But they couldn't afford to check their surroundings.
Dozens of Fire-Attribute Magic flew towards them while they were still trying to figure out what had happened.
"Ugaaaa."
"Hot hot hot."
Agonizing screams.
It was unlikely that the word would apply better in any other situation.
They were just researchers.
Moreover, not everyone had a connection to magic. Rather, the majority of them could not use magic.
After all, researchers who excel in magic would mainly conduct research at the Magic University.
In addition, few there had experience on the battlefield.
They could not respond to the sudden attack.
It was the adventurers who were able to respond.
"Magicians, deploy magic barriers."
A magic barrier is a kind of Non-Attribute Magic, and it is an outstanding spell that can deflect most attack magic.
It could even be used by beginner Magicians and could be said to be one of the first spells learned by Magicians planning to go on adventures and appear on battlefields.
However, it had by no means high durability.
Therefore, once a Magician advances to some extent, they would use the option of striking the opponent's attack magic with their own attack magic to negate it. It was called 『Annihilation』.
However, when it came to the situation where they had to protect many non-combatants like this time, there was no choice other than the magic barrier.
"Damn, what the heck is that?"
"I don't know. A monster I've never seen before … it's a monster, right? It has a tail."
From a distance, they could see creatures standing on two feet, wearing something that appeared to be armor or robes, and appeared to be humans.
However, the stark difference they had from humans was their large tails like a reptile.
Perhaps they could be called 『mutants』.
The other adventurer could not clearly answer the adventurer's question either.
However, there was one person who stood stock still with his eyes wide open.
President Clive.
And Clive muttered.
"Those are … Devils …"
His murmur was very soft but it was heard by a nearby adventurer.
He was the leader of a C-rank adventurer party hired from the royal capital as guards.
"Clive-san, did you just say Devil?"
"Ye-yeah … I've only read about them in literature, but they look exactly like the features described …"
Clive replied, but couldn't look away from the Devils.
"Shit … fifty Devils are too far from a joke."
The leader had also heard the legends of the Devil.
They say, they are an adversary to God and Angels.
They say, they are a creature immune to magic.
They say, they are an existence no human can beat.
They say … all there is is despair.
The adventurers hired by the Kingdom Central University investigation team were fighting well.
While protecting the investigation team with magic barriers, they counterattacked with magic at the right timing.
However, as the legend claimed, all their spells were repelled.
In that case, there was only one way to go.
A melee battle.
However, as long as the Devils didn't approach, the adventurers had no choice but to take the initiative.
The distance between them was about 100 meters.
It would take a dozen seconds to close that distance.
During that time, they would have to get closer to the Devils without getting hit by their magic.
Either dodge their spells, prevent them with magic, or deflect them with shields.
Each party had established the know-how to evade magic and bring the fight into close-quarters combat.
Some monsters mainly relied on long-range attack magic, and in some cases, it was necessary to hunt them.
"Lads, let's go!"
"Oh!"
And the adventurers started running.
Wizards protected non-combatants with magic barriers.
The Priests healed the injured.
The vanguard threw everything they had into closing the distance to bring a close combat fight with the Devils.
The distance was 100 meters and the time was slightly more than 10 seconds.
At best, they had to endure just two or three shots before they reach them.
And, as expected, many vanguards succeeded in launching into a melee battle against the devils.
"Ora, die! Guhu."
But … the Devils were also strong in close combat.
The adventurers were torn apart along with the sword they used to defend.
The Shield-holder, who was proud of his strength, was blown off his feet with his shield.
The high-speed spear strike was evaded and was stabbed with a thrust from their sword.
Meanwhile, attack magic mercilessly fell on the investigation team from the rearguards of the Devils.
The magic barrier was re-established many times and the Magicians who were out of magic laid on the ground.
Overwhelmed by magic battle and close combat didn't work.
The situation was gradually becoming worse.
At that time, all of those who could use magic in the investigation team, including President Clive, were extending magic barriers.
But … the collapse of the front was just around the corner.
It was at that time that the investigation team of the Court Magic Group and Abel's party arrived.
It was only a matter of time before the investigation team from the Kingdom Central University was crushed as their vanguard was shattered and their rearguard out of magic.
Finally, they reached a distance where the enemy could be seen and confirmed …
"No way … Devils …"
The Priest Rihya muttered unintentionally.
"Yup, those are Devils. What a rare sight … the investigation team over there has almost collapsed. It's Clive that is supporting that magic barrier."
Advisor Arthur found that Clive was the only one holding the last magic barrier to protect the Kingdom Central University investigation team.
Although Clive was a non-combatant and a scholar, he was the president of the Kingdom Central University.
He did not bring shame to his position.
"Deal attacks from the side. Magic Group, prepare combined three shots for one."
Under the command of Advisor Arthur, members of the Court Magic Group chanted the spells for long-range attack magic.
"Fire!"
The highly penetrating javelin-type spells released by the Magic Group pierced the group of Devils who were trying to break through President Clive's magic barrier.
With that one strike, more than ten Devils were forced out of battle.
"Wow … even though they said that Devils are immune to magic …"
After learning about Devils at the temple, Rihya was amazed at the incredible sight that unfolded in front of her.
"That's not accurate. It's possible to break through the magic barrier of Devils by having a group of three aim at an individual Devil. Although this would not work if the target had a 『Wind Defense Film』 like Wyverns."
Advisor Arthur said and laughed a little.
(It's possible to defeat them. It's possible but … there are too many. The javelin-type spells consume a ton of magical power and we have at most four shots … it's impossible to defeat all of them. Will close combat be necessary in the end? )
While laughing, in his heart, Advisor Arthur was calmly calculating as a commander.
After that, the combined three shots for one were repeated while they gradually reduced the distance.
With a total of four attacks, they had defeated more than thirty Devils.
However, all the members of the Magic Group, except Arthur, had fainted due to a lack of magical power.
At the Kingdom Central University investigation team end, Clive had finally exhausted his last dredges of magical power and collapsed as well.
The only remaining forces were Arthur, an adviser with little magical power left, and four Crimson Swords.
On the other hand, on the side of the Devils, there were still nearly 20 remaining.
Moreover, behind the group was a Devil with a huge body and an extraordinary presence.
"There seems to be something dangerous. Alright, we'll reduce their numbers in close combat. Warren, charge in with a frontal assault."
With Abel's instructions, Warren began to run while holding his huge shield steady.
Abel, Rin, and Rihya lined up in a row, hiding behind his shield and body.
From the Devil's point of view, it must look like a huge shield was approaching.
Warren was often thought to be sluggish due to his huge body and huge shield, but that was not the case.
His top speed was comparable to Abel's, and his endurance was almost inexhaustible. His arm strength exceeded that of even a huge Ogre.
Despite being an adventurer, it was not just for show that he was said to be the best Shield-holder in the Kingdom.
Of course, in a frontal assault, not only Abel but also Rin and Rihya were following behind, so he reduced his speed.
Even so, with a distance of less than 100 meters, they could traverse it in less than 20 seconds.
All attacks directed at the party during that time were deflected by Warren's shield.
When he reached the group of Devils, he slammed into the Devil vanguards with that momentum and blew them off their feet.
Abel jumped out from behind Warren and cut into the hole of the Devil's formation that was formed.
In addition, Rin and Rihya fired what could be called an improvised 『combined two shots for one』and struck the same target with short-range magic.
Warren entered the hole again and blew away the Devil with his shield to secure the bridgehead.
『Crimson Sword』 was centered around Warren, with Abel on the right and Rin and Rihya on the left. They spread out like a fan from the position they cut into such that they won't get taken from behind.
Among them, Abel had the fastest annihilation speed.
He parried the Devils' swords without fully committing and sent their heads flying when the opponent's posture collapsed.
However, some individuals were unusually proficient in handling swords and he was having a hard time.
Among the monsters that they had fought so far, these were top-class troublesome opponents.
After the 『Crimson Sword』 assault, the target of the Devil rearguard's magic changed from Clive from the Kingdom Central University to the Crimson Sword and Arthur from the Court Magic Group.
Moreover, when the vanguard was defeated, the attacks were focused on Abel and his party.
As expected, when it boiled down to a melee battle while dodging magic, the burden was considerably heavy even for Abel.
That was even more so for the Magician Rin and the Priest Rihya.
In the first place, Magicians always carry the risk of running out of magic.
It was not possible to fire off attack magic while deploying magic barriers.
It may be possible for a certain Water-Attribute Magician … no, in the first place, that Water-Attribute Magician had never used a 『Magic Barrier』 … In the Central Nations, the method of simultaneously casting magic had not been established.
In that case, they had to fight while switching between barriers and attacks in a short window of time.
Furthermore, they were attacking with an impromptu 『Combined two shots for one』 strategy.
Normally, under such circumstances, Magicians would quickly reach magic depletion, but both Rin and Rihya had been trained in countless battles so far.
The title of the B-rank party 『Crimson Sword』 was not just for show.
Although the Crimson Sword had slain 12 Devils in close combat after a single frontal assault, they were approaching their limits.
The first to break was, as feared, by magic depletion.
Rin collapsed the moment Rin released an Air Javelin to match Rihya's Light Javelin.
"Rin!"
Abel, who caught the scene at the edge of his eyes, shouted.
"Rin is out of magic. Warren, cover us."
Rihya called out as she pulled Rin's body and retreated.
Warren covered their bodies with his shield to prevent them from being chased.
The magic potion that 『Crimson Sword』 carried had already been emptied, and Rin's magical power had also hit rock bottom.
Rihya's magical power was almost zero and she didn't even have enough magical power to hold one magic barrier.
The remaining Devils were six. And one of them seemed to be a boss.
However, besides the boss, Abel noticed that three of the six were clearly different in atmosphere compared to the Devils he had defeated so far.
"The boss and those three surrounding him …"
"Abel … that boss, might be a Devil Prince …"
Rihya whispered from behind Warren's shield.
"... Ha?"
What are you talking about, Rihya, that can't be true, what are you talking about, Rihya, ahahahahah.
Abel wanted to escape from reality and say that.
But he understood that Rihya wasn't joking.
"The colors of the left and right eyes are different … that is one of the characteristics of a Devil Prince."
If they looked closely, they could see that the right eye was red and the left eye was golden.
"A Devil Prince, not a Devil King?"
"Yes. The Devil Prince is a Devil who may awaken to become the Devil King. Only four exist at a given time. One of them becomes the Devil King. That was what I learned in the temple."
"I've heard of the name. They are strong … right?"
"There is no record of anyone defeating them other than the Hero …"
Having said that, Rihya's voice trembled as expected.
It was said that the Hero of this generation was in the Western countries … but the details had not been passed on to the Central Nations.
There was only one Hero in every era.
"For the time being, I will try to defeat the ones apart from the Devil Prince. Don't worry … that might not be possible, but something unexpected may happen and this barrier-like space might break, or something of that sort might happen. Don't give up hope."
"Abel …"
Abel smiled and turned to the Devils.
Two ordinary Devils, three strong Devils, and one Devil Prince-like Devil.
Abel didn't think that he could win one-on-one even against the three strong Devils.
Not to mention the Devil Prince … he couldn't grasp the depths of its power at all.
Hopeless ....
(No, I guess it is still better than that time I stood in front of the Griffon …)
On his way back from the Rondo Forest, a Griffon suddenly landed in front of him … Abel decided that it was better than that situation.
At that thought, he felt extra power surging from within.
"First of all, two small fry …"
Abel stepped into the two normal Devils at once.
A Devil swung its sword sideways.
He dodged it in a forward-leaning posture, entered striking range, and thrust into its heart from below.
He felt the sensation of its magic stone crushing.
From the previous battle, he verified that there was a magic stone near their hearts.
And like other monsters, he knew that they would be killed if he crushed their magic stones.
Pulling out his sword, he rotated his body once with the momentum, leaving the defeated Devil behind, and decapitated the second Devil with that motion.
To defeat a Devil with a single blow, the only choice was to either crush their magic stones or decapitate them.
Abel learned so from experience.
And finally, he faced the final test.
But then, something unexpected happened.
The moment he registered that the Devil Prince raised its hand, a spell was released.
The target was Warren's shield.
Warren was blown back along with his shield, and Rihya and Rin, who were behind him, also flew backward.
"Rihya!"
Abel shouts unintentionally.
"It's okay! All three of us are okay."
Rihya shouted her reply.
Why did the Devil Prince do such a thing?
The reason soon became clear.
The Devil Prince came forward with a sword, holding back his three followers.
It seemed that it wanted single combat with Abel.
"Did you just blow those three away to secure this location? Devils are so rough."
He didn't think that it could understand his language, but Abel intentionally said it.
He felt that the Devil Prince grinned a little bit.
Well, it wouldn't think of having single combat with a creature that it felt below itself … but Abel couldn't tell if it was respect for a strong opponent or if it was just playing because it was bored.
But …
(This is a godsend. I wouldn't be able to fight the Devil Prince without defeating its three followers but now I can suddenly fight it. Well, it's a different matter whether I can win or not …)
Abel held his sword alert.
The Devil Prince held a sword in its right hand, and its hand remained lowered.
But Abel knew it wasn't off guard.
Unlike the swords that the Devils were swinging around, its sword was thin.
It was not a large sword.
The length of the blade was about one meter, and considering the strength of the Devil, it can be imagined that it would be swung at a considerable speed.
It was the Devil Prince who broke the lull that had lasted for a while.
The distance between them was closed in an instant and the sword sliced upward from the lower right.
(Fast!)
Because it was faster than expected, Abel, who couldn't dodge it, pressed down the sword of the Devil Prince from above.
No, he tried to hold it down, but his whole body was blown away.
(Extraordinary speed and extraordinary power. This is bad.)
The moment he noticed that he couldn't hold it down, he jumped backward on his own, so he suffered no damage.
Although there was no damage … he couldn't imagine defeating it at all.
This time, the Devil Prince switched to an upper stance. (TLN: Jōdan-no-kamae 上段の構え)
(No no, it was an upward swing just now, so I could jump backward to release the impact, but if I am hit from above, I won't be able to dissipate the power.)
Just a stance could make the other party despair…
Normally, Abel was on that side.
(It's not that its technique itself is amazing, but it's a sword that makes full use of its speed and power. But the way it moves its feet is not that of an amateur either. Does it have confidence because its followers can suppress the surroundings and it can focus on the one-on-one combat?)
Abel also readied his sword and closed the distance slowly.
However, at that moment, more than ten spells were cast from the side toward the Devil Prince.
The adventurer Magicians hired by the Kingdom Central University investigation team channeled all the magical power that they managed to save by resting into those spells.
It was released all at once toward the Devil Prince who seemed to be the enemy's boss.
Perhaps the Devil Prince was also off guard, or because he was concentrating on single combat with Abel, all the magic released hit the Devil Prince.
The Magicians were completely out of magic again and they fainted the moment they released the spells.
That might have been a blessing in the sense that they would not know the results.
Because their magical attack did no damage at all.
"All the spells were deflected …"
Rihya, who had been blown away to the area around the Court Magic Group with Warren, unconsciously muttered at the sight.
"A normal Devil can be defeated with combined three shots on one, but it may not be possible to defeat that Devil with magic …"
With a pale face on the verge of running out of magic, Advisor Arthur instinctively said.
The reactions of the Devils were fierce.
The three Devil followers fired long-range Fire Magic attacks at the Kingdom Central University investigation team one after another.
"Ku …"
No one had the magical power to deploy the magic barrier.
That not only applied to the Kingdom Central University investigation team, but also the Court Magic Team and the Crimson Sword …
Arthur, who had no way of stopping the attacks of the devils, bit his lips and endured.
Rihya collapsed to her knees and her eyes burst into endless tears.
Although it was such a dire situation, it hardly registered in Abel's consciousness.
He was concentrating on the battle in front of him.
The Devil Prince in his upper stance would definitely charge in.
There was only one chance.
And it came.
It stepped forward faster than before. However, that was expected.
The downward slash from the Devil Prince was even faster than its step.
That was Abel's aim.
"Sword Art: Zero Rotation"
It was a technique to dodge the point-blank attack of the enemy who rushed in by rotating 45 degrees with the right foot and piercing the left side of the enemy with that momentum.
Indeed, there was no other technique that suited the word deadly.
Abel's sword wrapped around and pierced from the left side of the Devil Prince …
But he struck air.
The Devil Prince slightly averted its upper body back and evaded it.
"No way …"
Abel involuntarily exclaimed.
In a sword fight, that was a deadly opportunity.
The Devil Prince struck Abel's chin from below with the back of its left hand, which had no sword.
Abel quickly avoided the backhand blow from the left fist but it barely grazed his chin.
His brain was shaken.
Immediately before it struck, he turned his upper body and jumped backward at the same time, so he managed to gain some distance, but he suffered a clear concussion.
Due to the structure of the human brain, it was a weakness that could not be avoided even if he trained.
He landed … but he couldn't stand up.
Thankfully he barely held onto his sword.
With one knee on the ground, Abel held his sword and glared at the slowly approaching Devil Prince.
"Abel!"
He could hear the voice of Rihya from a distance.
(Sorry, Rihya, but this may not be possible …)
But then the battle situation changed once again.
The ceiling cracked and clumps of rock fell to the ground.
Naturally, the Devil Prince and its three followers looked up to see what happened.
At the same time, Abel heard a nostalgic voice.
"
-x-X-x-
Turning back time to forty minutes ago.
Running out of the tent of the Court Magic Group at the entrance to the dungeon, Natalie headed for the Adventurer's Guild.
To be exact, she was rushing toward the dormitory attached to the Adventurer's Guild.
Her speed may not necessarily be quick for ordinary people, but for Natalie, it was a once-in-a-lifetime, the first and probably the last time, she ran at full throttle.
In Natalie's mind, the words Abel once said were repeated many times.
"Natalie. If you ever encounter a situation that you need someone to help you and we aren't there at the time, you can rely on Ryo."
Now was the time.
When Natalie jumped into Room 10 of the Guild Dormitory, Ryo was the only one inside.
Ryo was conducting alchemy using the magic copper ore that the other three had collected.
And he had succeeded in compounding an intermediate potion for the first time.
A potion created using magic copper ore with Wound Grass as the base.
When Ryo first saw this recipe, he wondered 'The ore is mixed in with what you drink?'. But the magic copper ore was only a catalyst and must be taken out of the potion at the end … that step was tricky and the reason why no adventurer made their own potion.
Natalie jumped in while Ryo was basking in the afterglow of success.
"Ryo-san, please help us!"
Out of breath, Natalie squeezed out those words before repeatedly taking shallow breathes with her hands on her knees.
"Na-Natalie?"
Wondering what happened and looking back at the door, Ryo recognized that she was the only Water-Attribute Magician girl he got to know recently.
"For the time being, drink a glass of water and then talk."
Then, in his right hand, he made a glass of ice filled with water and passed it to Natalie.
It was a very unusual sight, but Natalie couldn't afford to try to understand it at that moment.
She drank it all in one go and seemed to have calmed down a little as she took deeper breaths.
"Ryo-san, Abel-san and the others have gone missing in the dungeon. Please help to find them."
Upon hearing Natalie's words, Ryo immediately stood up, put on his usual robe, and equipped Michael's dagger and Murasame.
"I'll listen while we move. Let's go."
Then, he left the dormitory briskly.
Natalie, who had been sprinting from the entrance of the dungeon to this point, was exhausted, but she couldn't drag her legs here so she literally clenched her teeth and followed Ryo.
But … when she reached the main street, her legs got tangled and fell.
"Ah, I'm sorry, you ran all the way here. I didn't give enough consideration. Ride this.
Ryo then produced an ice wagon about two meters long.
It was the
It could be used without problems on the flat roads in the City of Rune.
"E-Eh..."
Natalie was hesitant in many ways.
Above all, it stood out tremendously.
Children were looking at the wagon with sparkling eyes.
Women were fascinated by the glittering wagon.
A wagon that reflected light and shined.
It took a lot of courage to ride on it.
But her companion didn't wait for her.
"I guess you don't even have the physical strength to hop in."
Then, he grabbed Natalie's waist from behind with both hands and put her on the wagon.
"Eh..."
It happened in a blink of an eye.
And Ryo started running.
Naturally, the wagon also started following him. That was how the magic worked.
"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaa"
Natalie screamed at the sudden change.
During their journey, Natalie's explanation was muddy.
That was natural.
She was suddenly placed on such a
But she was able to convey the bare minimum details.
A total of 54 members comprising of the Crimson Sword and the Court Magic Group's investigation team were transported away in the dungeon by a transfer.
Due to the function of a magic tool, there was a high possibility that the transfer destination was the 40th floor.
At the same time, it was highly possible that the Kingdom Central University investigation team, which had been investigating the 11th floor, was also teleported.
However, there was no information on their transfer destination.
"Yeah, I pretty much understand."
Upon arriving at the dungeon entrance, Ryo dispelled the Wagon.
At the same time, Natalie slumped onto the ground.
"By the way, Natalie, why did you look for me?"
Ryo asked.
Natalie was the only other Water-Attribute Magician that Ryo knew, but that was it.
He just helped to mediate a letter to Abel.
He had never met her since then.
Yet, Natalie said she looked for Ryo first.
"Abel-san said before. If you ever encounter a situation that you need someone to help you and we aren't there at the time, you can rely on Ryo."
"I see, Abel …"
Those were the only words Ryo said, but Natalie could tell that he made a resolution.
"Okay, then I'll dive in."
Ryo headed for the dungeon entrance.
The dungeon entrance was sealed.
Naturally. They didn't know what was happening inside.
At the entrance, two adventurers were standing like sentries at the request of the guild.
"I'm passing through."
Ryo tried to pass through without caring.
"No, you can't. We're told that no one can enter the dungeon."
"I'm a D-rank adventurer.
With that, Ryo put up Ice Walls between himself and the adventurers to prevent him from getting caught and secured the path to the dungeon.
"Wha-what? A transparent wall? Hey, don't enter the dungeon."
Leaving such voices behind, Ryo trotted down the 100 steps to the first floor.
The first floor hall.
"
The『Ping』 spread along the surrounding water molecules. And it would reflect whenever it hits an object.
"There's really nothing."
The information came in the previous day that there was nothing up to the ninth floor.
Active Sonar was just a confirmation.
Even if there were no monsters, each floor of the dungeon was very wide.
Searching for the stairs down was also a time-consuming arrangement.
In the first place, there was no map in the guild for the floors below the 30th floor, and the positions of the stairs were not completely known.
How long would it take to reach it he had to go down to the 40th floor…?
So Ryo thought about a way to cut out the bottom of the floor.
It was shown often in anime and manga … Ryo remembered seeing it in a couple of them!
The issue was when the walls and floor of the dungeon were unusually hard or had amazing ability to regenerate … but he remembered the Soldier Ants.
When talking about encountering the Soldier Ants on the first floor, Abel replied, 'Because the Soldier Ants dug a vertical hole and came out to the next floor'.
If ants could dig holes, then humans should be able to dig too!
It may be difficult for ordinary people, but Ryo could do it.
Yes, because he was a Water-Attribute Magician.
"
He made a hole with abrasive jets at the points of a regular hexagon so that there was a diameter of about 2 meters. And by rotating them clockwise by 60 degrees …
The floor fell out.
A hole with a diameter of 2 meters opened, and Ryo jumped in without hesitation.
The height was about 10 meters … Even if he fell just like that, if he rolled properly, he would likely not be injured, but it would probably hurt his legs.
The moment he was about to land on the ground, he sprayed water jets from the sole of his feet and gained a slight amount of buoyancy.
It was not easy, of course, but it was easier than spraying water jets from the entire of his back and charging forward.
In the first place, water jets from the sole of the feet was a technique that had saved Ryo's life many times.
Mainly from the battle with monsters in the sea.
In that way, Ryo went down smoothly to the 39th floor.
It was really strange that he didn't meet any monsters on the way.
"But it's not my job to think about that."
What Ryo had to do now was to join up with Abel and bring him back to the surface safely.
"If the 40th floor is below then …
The 『Ping』 spread throughout the 39th floor … arriving at the stairs to the 40th floor.
When it was about to go down the stairs, the spread stopped.
"Hmm? Is there some sort of a barrier …"
Here, Ryo recalled the information Natalie gave him.
There was a response from the 40th floor for an instant, but it soon ceased.
"I'm worried that I don't know what's going on, but it can't be helped …"
As he muttered, he cast the same magic as before.
"
The floor of the 39th floor fell out.
And Ryo jumped into the open hole.
He felt a slight resistance as he went through the hole.
Also, it felt as though the world had been reversed.
(This sensation reminds me of the battle with the Akuma Leonor … she called it a corridor? But it feels less concentrated than that time? Is it a defective corridor?)
When he passed through what seemed to be a barrier and looked down, he saw a strange being approaching Abel on his knees.
Moreover, Abel was holding his sword while still on his knees.
(Abel, can't stand up? For now, let's give him some room.)
Ryo chanted.
"
Ice Walls were created between Abel and the odd-shaped being, separating the two.
Ryo himself then landed between the odd-shaped being and hundreds of burnt corpses.
(Those are … the investigation team from the Kingdom Central University … that's terrible.)
With only that thought passing through his mind, he started walking toward Abel.
During that time, no one spoke anything, including the odd-shaped beings.
"Abel, are you injured?"
Even Ryo could occasionally spit out common-sense lines.
"Yeah … why Ryo is here …"
"Of course I've come to help. Leaving that aside, you can't stand up even though you appear uninjured … Oh, so it's a concussion or something like that. Even Abel is about to be killed by a concussion … you still have a long way to go."
Ryo's words made Abel want to laugh and cry, and he managed to endure his expression that was about to crumble.
"Shut up. I just slipped a little."
"A Swordsman slipping … no, I guess that is common?"
Ryo recalled his sword fights with his master, Dullahan, in his head, and remembered that the wetlands had pretty bad footing.
"For the time being, it seems that a lot of people are worried, so let's go home."
"I want to go home, but …"
Then Abel looked towards the odd-shaped beings.
"I'll defeat them. You have no issue with that, right?"
"No, Ryo, wait. That's a Devil Prince!"
Abel stopped Ryo in a hurry.
"Devil Prince? The children of a Devil King? Well, tell me such jokes at a later time. Beings related to the Devil King wouldn't seem so weak."
"The Devil Prince seems to be a monster that will become a Devil King in the future …. It's strong!"
"I see, so it really is like a child of the Devil King? No wonder it seems weak."
Then Ryo turned to the Devil Prince.
On their end, it seemed that the Devils had finally snapped out of their daze.
Punishment against those who interfere with single combat. The punishments were mercilessly enforced, as the adventurers of the Kingdom Central University investigation team, who had disrupted the fight with magic earlier, were burned down.
Six flame arrows flew toward Ryo from the three followers of the Devil Prince.
(
All of them were individually intercepted with Icicle Lances.
Having never learned magic from anyone else, Ryo did not know the existence of a magic barrier.
Therefore, he had no choice but to intercept them by blocking them with an Ice Wall or Ice Shield, or by striking them with Water-Attribute attack magic to annihilate them.
That said, he hadn't had any problems doing so.
(
As a counterattack, water jets instantly fired out from the back of the necks of each of the three followers and scythe down their heads horizontally … three necks rolled to the ground.
At the same time, the bodies of the three followers also collapsed while spewing blood from their necks.
It was only a few moments after the three followers fired their flame arrows.
No one was able to understand what had happened.
Even Abel, a top-notch Swordsman, couldn't perceive it.
(I barely perceived that Ryo intercepted with his usual Ice Spear, but … what did he do after that? Why did the Devils' heads fall off? I have no idea what happened!)
Of course, Abel wasn't the only one at a loss.
Perhaps the one who was the least convinced was the Devil Prince.
However, it could only understand that its subordinates were defeated in an instant in some way.
The hatred dyed its eyes.
No matter how many regular Devils were defeated, it didn't change its facial expressions at all, but it seemed that the death of its three followers angered it.
It turned its eyes with such intense hatred toward Ryo.
"I'm used to that gaze. Is that a sword in your right hand? Hmm …"
For the time being, Ryo also pulled out Murasame from his waists and generated its ice blade.
Seeing that, it seemed that the Devil Prince became stiff for a moment.
"Look here, you Devil Prince or what not, you can come try me."
His words were provocative, but there was no gap in his stance.
The Devil Prince understood that as well.
It couldn't move easily while it was still in its upper stance.
Seeing that the Devil Prince did not move while maintaining its upper stance, Ryo also switched to an upper stance.
It was a stance that was rarely done.
Ryo's strongest stance was when his sword was held pointing toward the opponent's eyes … The most fundamental stance of the basics, with the sword held in the middle, making it easy to shift between both attack and defense.
When held in an upper stance, it changes completely into a fully offensive stance.
One would be able to tell when actually holding the stance. You won't be able to block the opponent's attack with the sword. You won't even be able to parry it.
In other words, there was no choice but to dodge without using the sword.
Zero defense. That was why it was a fully offensive stance.
Ryo gradually closed the gap with his feet inching forward holding the fully offensive stance.
At first, the Devil Prince retreated a little, but it decided to stop backing down and to engage him.
And then …
The Devil Prince closed the gap in an instant and struck down.
"Too slow."
Ryo evaded the downward slash of the Devil Prince by putting his right foot diagonally forward for half a step, then turned to the side of the Devil Prince whose posture was broken and cut off its neck from behind.
The Devil Prince's charge and downward slash were quick … but Ryo envisioned …
"Leonor was faster …"
Yes, the Akuma Leonor's charge could be called a true Breakdown Rush, probably exceeding the speed of sound using Wind Magic.
A charge that exceeded the speed of sound that the one-eyed Assassin Hawk once showed him.
For Ryo, who was expecting that, the Devil Prince's charge was too slow.
Abel who was watching was dumbfounded.
(What was that …)
Everything is fundamentally different from the swordsmanship that Abel practiced.
The movement of the foot, the movement of the center of gravity, and of course the sword itself!
However, he could tell that Ryo's swordsmanship was unusual.
It wasn't natural talent … It was swordsmanship born from a huge amount of practice, an unimaginable amount of training, and a terrifying amount of practical training.
It was just a swing of the sword, but it was not difficult for a Swordsman like Abel to understand the vast amount of information contained within it.
It took him a while to regain himself.
After regaining himself and understanding what had happened again, Abel turned to Ryo.
Then he noticed when he tried to say thank you to Ryo.
The Devil Prince, whose neck was cut off, had not collapsed.
And that was also noticed by Ryo.
"You won't die even if I cut off your head … That's a little annoying."
Ryo jumped backward and took a distance.
"That vitality is amazing … but the Devil King is even stronger. At least not as weak as you. But you can't understand what I'm saying, right?"
While Ryo spoke, the Devil Prince picked up its fallen head and placed it on its neck.
The connected neck gave out hissing noises.
"That regeneration ability is so so, but … well, let's see how far you can regenerate.
256 lines of water jets containing ice-abrasive material generated around the Devil Prince moved in a random number of orbits and sliced up the entire space.
It was Ryo's trump card, which once (probably) chopped the Akuma Leonor.
At that time, he couldn't deal a decisive hit due to Leonor's unusual regeneration speed …
In the middle of the random number of orbits, Ryo's ears heard the sound of something hard cracking with a「pakin」.
At that instant, the body of the Devil Prince, which was still trying to regenerate even though it was fragmented, completely collapsed and never moved again.
"I broke the magic stone …"
The sound of a hard object breaking was the sound of the Devil Prince's magic stone breaking.
-x-X-x-
Although he failed to recover the magic stone of the Devil Prince, it appeared that the magic stones could be recovered from the three followers because he defeated them by decapitation.
After confirming that, Ryo walked up to Abel.
"Thank you, Ryo. You saved us."
Abel honestly bowed and thanked him.
"No, it's okay. You can express your gratitude by treating me to just one dinner at the cafeteria, right?"
"Okay, okay. I'll treat you to dinner every day for a week."
Then Abel laughed and hit Ryo's shoulder.
"It hurts, it hurts. Abel, you and your stupid strength. One week, don't forget!"
By that time, the other members of the Crimson Sword and Advisor Arthur had also gathered to Abel's side.
"Abel … I'm so glad …"
Rihya hugged Abel with a face on the verge of crying.
The moment she hugged him, she cried.
Next to him, Warren, with two hands carrying Rin who was still fainted, bowed to Ryo.
"I'm Arthur Verasis, Advisor to the Court Magic Group, the representative for the Court Magic Group investigation team. Thank you so much for your help."
With that said, Arthur also bowed to Ryo.
"Oh no, don't mention it. In the first place, I came because Natalie of the Court Magic Group told me. I'm glad I was on time. I never dreamed that it would be this way. "
Ryo turned his sight toward the members of the Court Magic Group investigation team, who had not yet fully recovered from the lack of magical power, and the corpses of the Kingdom Central University investigation team, which had been reduced to ashes by the Devils.
"I'm guessing that the people over there are from the Kingdom Central University investigation team …"
"Yeah … I couldn't help them, then …"
"Although gathering the corpses would be impossible, should I collect some keepsakes?"
"Soon, the members of our Court Magic Group will wake up, so we'll start gathering the keepsakes."
Advisor Arthur replied, looking towards the Court Magic Group.
"Ryo, let's collect the Devils' magic stones."
Abel proposed to retrieve the magic stones, accompanied by a crying Rihya.
"I want to pass some of the sales to the bereaved families."
(Sheesh … Abel isn't suited to be an adventurer. Claiming 'Those of us who survived will use the portions of the dead!' or something like that would be more like an adventurer.)
Even though Ryo was quite significantly his junior as an adventurer, he was evaluating Abel with quite a condescending attitude.
(Well, I could say that doing so was typical of Abel.)
It was an opinion of him looking down from above until the end.
However, he would likely get angry if he said it, so he kept it in his heart.
However, he realized that he heard a word that he couldn't ignore.
"Just now, did you say Devil? Are these Devils?"
Ryo looked around the battlefield and saw odd-shaped beings on the floor.
"Yeah, it's also the first time we've encountered Devils. In the first place, it has been hundreds of years since the last Devils appeared in the Central Nations … I don't know why they would appear here."
(An 『Akuma』 and a 『Devil』 were completely different things after all …. The entry that Michael (pseudonym) added into the 『Monster Encyclopedia』 was not for Devil but for 『Akuma』. I agree with Michael (pseudonym)'s claim that their 'Strength: Entire spectrum from weak to strong (The strong ones can erase a city by itself before breakfast)' … if my battle with Leonor did not occur in the Corridor, the City of Rune would have suffered considerable damage.)
Thinking to that point, Ryo suddenly remembered.
"By the way, when I used Probe-type magic on the 39th floor just now, there was something strange. It was at the stairs on the 39th floor, so we should check it out on our way back. It may have something to do with what happened this time."
After Ryo defeated the Devil Prince, the barrier-like thing that covered the 40th floor had disappeared.
(Although it felt more like a defective Corridor than a barrier … The Corridor that appeared in the City of Rune was probably maintained using the solar eclipse. That Akuma Leonor, said that there was a constraint that she couldn't do anything about either … that was a subspace … I would think of it as a bridge that connected Rune to somewhere else but … yeah, I still don't have enough information. There's a lot I don't understand.)
Give up thinking about it when there's a lot you don't understand. That was also one solution.
Ryo thought to himself.
The Court Magic Group members, who regained consciousness from their fainting spell due to magical power depletion, recovered the keepsakes of the Kingdom Central University investigation team; while the Crimson Sword, Advisor Arthur, and Ryo recovered the magic stones of the Devils.
"The color of the magic stone … is black …"
Ryo's words weren't loud, but as the person with the most experience, Advisor Arthur responded.
"This is also the first time I am collecting a Devil's magic stone, but … so it is black …"
"Arthur-san, to put it another way, it sounds like you have seen a Devil or fought one before?"
"Yes, Ryo, you're right. I did fight one in the western countries when I was an adventurer … but we couldn't defeat it."
Advisor Arthur's gaze was unfocused, as if he was recalling that day.
Usually, the color of the magic stone of a monster would correspond to the attribute of the monster.
Red for a Fire-Attribute monster, blue if it is a Water-Attribute monster.
And 『Black』 would mean … Darkness?
(But didn't those three followers shoot Flaming Arrows?)
Thinking of the battle, the things Ryo didn't know were accumulating.
"Ryo, in the Central Nations, it has been about 200 years since the last encounter with a Devil. No information on their magic stones remains even in the temples."
The Priest Rihya supplemented her knowledge on the Devil's magic stone.
"Devils were said to have suddenly appeared one day, so research into the possibility of them using Space-Time Magic has been discussed in the temple."
"Space-Time Magic!"
Space-Time Magic was a staple for otherworld stories.
(No, but Michael (pseudonym) said that magic had six attributes of Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Light, and Darkness, and No-Attribute … I wonder why didn't he mention Space-Time Magic …?)
"Does Space-Time Magic exist?"
Ryo posed the question to nobody in particular.
"What is categorized as Space-Time Magic are 『Infinite Storage』 and 『Transfer』. Both have been recorded in literature."
Surprisingly, Abel was the one who answered.
"That's great! I definitely want to be able to use it …"
When Ryo said that, Abel had a terribly bad expression.
"Ah … as far as I know, the only person in the Central Nations known to be able to use Space-Time Magic is Baron Hagen-Vender from the Empire."
"Hoho ~. With Infinite Storage, you can bring home not only the magic stones but also the entire body of the monster to sell as materials, and with Transfer, you could easily move to the hunting ground or go home."
Ryo imagined the scene and said happily.
However, Abel's expression was worse than before.
"Yeah, that would be true for adventurers. But Baron Vender is a citizen of the Empire … the Empire wouldn't let a person with that ability walk around freely …"
"Eh? What do you mean …"
"Baron Vender is 『always』 attached to the Imperial Army and hired for the movement of Imperial weapons and food. He's treated as a kind of useful tool …"
As expected, that was pitiful even from Ryo's perspective.
Certainly, from a military standpoint, Infinite Storage and Transfer would be a talent that they would desperately want.
However, it was way too pitiful to have no freedom at all.
"Infinite Storage and Transfer could only be used by Baron Vender. The former Baron Vender could use the two spells, but during that time his son Hagen, the current Baron Vender, could not use it. From the moment the predecessor died, it seems that the current Baron Vender became able to use Infinite Storage and Transfer, so it was rumored to be more like a curse than a spell."
"I see … rather than just hereditary, only one person could use it at a given era … It certainly feels like a curse."
Abel suddenly stopped after hearing what Ryo said.
(Only one person in a given era … that phrase came to mind somewhere recently … Ah, the Hero?)
-x-X-x-
Far West of the City of Rune.
More than 4,000 kilometers away if connected in a straight line.
There, a party of seven was fully armed, waiting for something to happen.
"It's here!"
Everyone held up their weapons at the Magician's words.
A rectangular space of about 50 meters in front of the seven people was dyed black.
It was 5 meters tall and 4 meters wide.
If members of the investigation team from the Knightley Kingdom's Kingdom Central University were present, they might have pointed out that the object appeared exactly like what President Clive named the 『Gate』.
A beautiful woman walked out of the 『Gate』.
She was 175 cm tall and had outstanding style … but when scrutinized closely, she seemed to have something like a miniature horn.
And a thin black tail.
It was the Akuma Leonor.
"Hmm … I dropped by thinking there was something strange but … so it was a man-made 『Altar』?"
Leonor said before she began to walk towards the 『Altar』.
It was as though the people there didn't exist in her eyes.
"Wait, Devil King. You will perish here."
The Swordsman in the seven-person party shouted.
He was probably the youngest in the party … about nineteen years old.
However, the Swordsman was also the leader in a sense.
"Hmm? Devil King?"
She intended to ignore them, but Leonor heard a word that she couldn't overlook.
"Did you call me the Devil King?"
Then, for the first time, Leonor turned to the seven-person party.
"This 『Altar』 was created at the cost of many sacrifices. It is well known that the Devil King will descend if a fire is lit!"
A man at the prime of his life who appeared to be a Priest shouted.
"And so … who are you insects who intended to cause the advent of the Devil King or whatnot?"
The young Swordsman answered that question.
"I am the Hero Roman. The one who will subdue the Devil King!"
"Yusha? A brave? Oh, the Hero!"
Leonor laughed.
Lurid was the word to describe her laugh.
"You should be strong if you are the Hero, right? Entertain me. Come on, come on, come on. Let's fight!"
Thus, in a location far West, the battle between the Akuma Leonor and the Hero Party began, with some misunderstandings and coincidental products.
"
"
"
"
"
"...
Spells were cast one after another, strengthening the Hero Roman.
Leonor looked on with a faint smile.
"I've heard that humans are boring with how they are all about long-distance magical battles but… are you betting everything on that Hero?"
"Only the Hero can defeat the Devil King. Roman will defeat you!"
The Scout, who could not engage in the magical strengthening, answered Leonor's question.
"I see. That's right, only when you cross blades that it would be fun."
In Leonor's mind, her battle with the Magician in the Corridor was relived.
(Ryo, wasn't it … that was fun. I didn't think that I would get shredded. Well then, I wonder how would the Hero fare?)
As Leonor finished that thought, it seemed that the Hero was ready.
Seeing that, Leonor drew her sword out of nowhere.
"Well, Hero or whatnot, are you ready yet? I'm ready. You can come strike me at any time."
Then, with her sword held in her right hand, she bent the finger on her vacant left hand to provoke him.
"Don't underestimate me, Devil King!"
With youthful momentum, the Hero Roman closed the gap in an instant and followed up with a thrust.
However, Leonor easily dodged that full-body thrust.
Even after that, she dodged all of Roman's sword strikes that were swung in all directions.
Dodging everything without parrying with her sword.
"Kuh."
It was Roman's first experience swinging his sword so much but not hitting anything.
"Hmm ..."
The Akuma Leonor muttered a little, and for the first time received Roman's horizontal slash from the right with her sword and parried it.
"Ugu."
Roman's posture was broken but he managed to dodge Leonor's follow-up horizontal slash by twisting his upper body before taking a large step back to widen the distance.
"Offense and defense change."
Having announced that, Leonor quickly closed the distance and directly pierced Roman's stomach with her sword.
"Eh?"
It was Leonor who made the bewildered voice.
The Hero's first move was a stab after a dive, so she just traced it and tried it herself … it was supposed to only be a stabbing motion to keep him in check … but the stab actually hit the target.
"This … is too boring."
She commented before pulling her sword out from Roman's stomach and swinging it once to fling away the blood.
"Yo-you …"
"Oh, you are free to attack me, but then I'll fight back too? Now, isn't your priority to help the Hero?"
After saying that, Leonor no longer held even a millimeter of interest in the Hero party and headed for the man-made 『Altar』.
The 『Altar』was decorated with something like a large crystal the size of a human head.
"Yeah, this is a good jewel. The fight was boring, but it wasn't a waste since I could get my hands on this."
The jewel disappeared the moment she placed her hand on it.
"Wait, Devil King …"
Perhaps it was the effect of the recovery magic by the Priest, the Hero Roman had recovered enough to stand up.
"Right. Let me correct you, I'm not the Devil King or whatnot."
"Nonsense. With that strength … what would you be other than the Devil King!"
It was the Magician woman who shouted.
"Even if you say that … Well. I can only say that I am not the Devil King. Perhaps if you combine your strength, you can defeat the current Devil King? Besides, there's a human with similar strength as I have? Yeah, that fight was fun. I would love to have such a fight once more."
Leonor smiled, recalling the battle with Ryo.
"Not … the Devil King …"
The Hero Roman groaned.
"Correct. My name is Leonor. Hero or what you call yourself, get stronger. At the very least, you have to be the strongest among humans. You are the Hero after all."
"A person stronger than me …"
"They are about 10,000 times stronger than you. You have a long road ahead to devote yourself to."
Then, Leonor entered the 『Gate』.
At the same time, the 『Gate』disappeared, leaving only the Hero party and the 『Altar』 missing the jewel.
-x-X-x-
"Something is approaching."
Ryo was the first to notice it.
Hearing his words, the Crimson Sword and Advisor Arthur stopped collecting magic stones and prepared for battle once again.
"It's humans. It doesn't feel like monsters, but … it feels like a good number of people …"
Three minutes after Ryo said so, Abel and his group also saw them.
"They … aren't they City of Rune adventurers?"
"Yeah. They seem like adventurers. But there are also adventurers from other cities."
Abel and Rihya noticed that the approaching group had many D-rank adventurers from the City of Rune.
"They are probably the adventurers that Clive and his team hired in this city. They were likely securing the passage from the surface to the 11th floor."
Adviser Arthur was familiar with those adventurers.
Some of them came from the royal capital as guards for the investigation team of the Kingdom Central University.
"So it wasn't just the people on the 10th and 11th floor that were transported …"
Then Abel stood up and raised his hand.
When the approaching adventurers recognized him, they screamed 'Oh ~!'.
It seemed that while there was no battle until they reached there, they were probably anxious because they were suddenly transferred to an unknown location.
It was a cry that blew away that anxiety.
With the help of about 100 adventurers who joined, the party collected the magic stones of the Devils and the keepsakes of the Kingdom Central University investigation team and was finally able to begin their trip home.
About three hours had passed since Ryo rushed into the dungeon.
"I think it's better to check if there are any other adventurers who were transported to this floor …"
Abel muttered and looked towards Rin.
However, in response to that gaze, Rin shook her head.
"Sorry, I can't cast
"Then, I'll check with Water Magic. It's a little difficult to use, but it should probably work out."
"Sorry and thanks."
Abel nodded to Ryo's offer.
"
Ryo's 『Ping』 was transmitted across the water molecules in the air of the 40th floor.
After a while, the 『Ping』 reached the wall of the 40th floor and rebounded back.
"Nothing. Everyone is here."
(But … the strange reaction on the stairs of the 39th floor … Did it die? Did it stop working? It's completely different from the reaction I received when I detected it with Active Sonar just now … Hmm, well, there's no use voicing it out. I should just take a look at it with everyone.)
Ryo decided not to mention the change.
"Okay, let's set off."
With Abel's command, the party began to walk toward the surface.
At the staircase that led up from the 40th floor to the 39th floor.
There was a black crystal ball that was the size of a human head … but it had a crack on it.
In relation to that, there seemed to be a lump of sand beside it as if something had shattered.
"This is the first time I've seen such an item. What is this?"
The words of Advisor Arthur expressed everything.
No one there could understand what it was.
Judging by the reaction of the 『Residual magical power detector』 that was transported along with them when they were transferred from the 10th floor, there was concrete evidence that it was emitting magical power until just now.
"Well, the barrier is gone, so the readings just now would probably be sent to the surface."
Then Arthur put the black crystal-like object in a bag.
Ryo wondered if he should so easily put something he didn't know in a bag and even bring it back to the surface …
"This is a barrier bag. It isolates magical power. As for bringing it back to the surface … well, it is kind of the sole proof."
And he covered it up with an extremely feeble reason.
After that, the group focused on advancing toward the surface in the dungeon without monsters.
When they ascended the stairs from the 12th floor and reached the 11th floor, they found the Guild Master, Hugh, and 20 C-rank adventurers who accepted his request.
"Abel-san! Welcome back!"
The one who called out the loudest was Ra, the Swordsman who looked up to Abel as his teacher.
"O-oh. Ra, I'm sorry, but could you please help to carry the Court Magic Group's luggage."
"Of course! Leave it to us!"
With that said, Ra and his party 『Switchback』 walked over to help the group of people in the Court Magic Group who had the most pieces of luggage.
After adding in the 20 C-rank adventurers, the party continued advancing toward the surface.
Meanwhile, Abel walked up beside Ryo, who was walking near the head of the group.
"Ryo, you really saved us this time. Thank you."
Abel whispered in a soft voice to Ryo.
"Abel … that again, didn't we settle this with a week's worth of dinner?"
Ryo replied as he shook his head slowly.
"Yeah, I know but …"
"If you know then you just have to do that. Oh yeah, if you're really grateful, give me this information that's very important to me."
"Oh, as long as it is something within my means …"
Abel felt anxious about Ryo's sudden request.
"Kyradea, we stopped by before returning to the City of Rune. Didn't we have curry there?"
"Curry … Oh, curry? I remember." (TLN: Same as during that chapter. Ryo pronounces it as Japanese do, 'ca-ray', while it is known to Abel as the English pronunciation 'Curry')
It was an amazingly beautiful pronunciation of the word after all.
"Abel mentioned that there is a delicious curry shop in the City of Rune. Please teach me where that shop is!"
"Th-that an easy request if you're okay with just that. I'll take you there when I treat you."
"Oh ~! Really? It's a promise? If you break that promise, you'll be sliced up more than the Devil just now!"
"That's not funny …"
Abel's cheeks cramped, imagining the Devil Prince that was shaved into fragments.
"It's fine as long as you don't break your promise."
Ryo replied and nodded to himself.
Seeing that, Abel smiled a little.
At the entrance to the dungeon, the influential members, including Guild Master Hugh and Professor Christopher of the Magic University, were waiting for the party to return.
In fact, the moment Ryo defeated the Devil Prince, the barrier that covered the 40th floor was broken, and information from the residual magic detector reached the surface.
As a result, it was confirmed that the party was safe and was moving to the surface.
"Everyone, good work returning home. For the time being, I have prepared drinks and food. Please take your time. I will ask for a detailed report at a later date."
Hugh's voice projected well to reach everyone.
But in his heart, he wasn't so calm.
(Phew, really, truly, Abel, I'm glad you came back … Seriously, yeah, this time I thought I might be in trouble! Missing, why do you go missing so often? Last time it was a smuggling ship, this time it was a dungeon … I wonder if I can deny him from entering the dungeon ever again? Yeah, he already has plenty of experience as a B-rank so he can just take on surface requests. I'll permit it!)
Hugh's heart was perturbed.
And then, Hugh found Ryo. He approached in an instant and placed his hands firmly on his shoulders.
"Ryo. Why did you break through the gatekeeper's blockade and dive into the dungeon …"
"Uh … I'm sorry …"
That was a fact, so Ryo couldn't argue at all.
"Hugh, don't say that. We could survive and return thanks to Ryo's timely aid. Could you overlook it?"
Advisor Arthur threw a lifeline.
"Eh? Oh, was that so … Well, that was … well done … no, but I don't think it's possible to completely exempt the punishment … but …"
"Okay, I'll give you a detailed report. Hugh, let's go to the tent for a moment. So you can let Ryo go now?"
"No, oh, ah … Ryo, I-I'll still follow-up with a verdict later but … Yeah, thank you for helping them, thank you."
While saying that, Hugh was pulled to the tent in the back by Advisor Arthur.
"I'm glad Arthur-san put in a word for me …"
Ryo was thankful to Arthur for helping him not get caught up in additional small talk.
Ryo, who decided that it would be okay if he left, immediately started walking toward the Adventurer's Guild.
-x-X-x-
In the tent.
"Arthur-san, please explain what happened in detail. What happened on the 40th floor?"
Hugh poured water into his and Arthur's cup and sat down on a chair.
"Let me see. Well, I shall start from after we were transported."
Arthur took a gulp of water and began his recollection.
"We were suddenly moved to the 40th floor. At the same time, Clive and his team who seemed to be working on the 10th floor were also transported. Furthermore, Clive and his team were transported in front of a group of Devils."
Arthur reported the facts in short sentences, like in bullet points.
"Debiru? Devil? Eh? Are these Devils the Devils that appear in the teachings of the temple?"
"Yeah, those Devils."
Hugh was surprised.
Naturally.
There had been no encounters with Devils in Central Nations for the last 200 years.
200 years would roughly equate to eight generations ago.
It was the age of his grandfather's, grandfather's, grandfather's, grandfather's … it was a daunting length of time ago.
Stories from such an era were almost all legends by now.
He barely knew about the name 『Devil』 because it appeared in the 『Story』 that the temple taught and spread, but that was all he knew about them.
"And there were fifty of them, including three stronger individuals, and to top it off, a Devil Prince as well."
"Devil Prince … those that will eventually become the Devil King? I'm surprised you all survived and managed to return after encountering something like that … No, I'm sorry. That's because Arthur and Abel and the others were there."
Hugh said, shaking his head thinking that it would be impossible to survive that normally.
However, Advisor Arthur shook his head and denied it.
"No … Abel was certainly amazing. As expected. Without him, we would have been wiped out early. But even Abel was inches away from being killed by the Devil Prince … … "
"Eh …? Then how … no way …"
"Yeah, Ryo appeared at that moment."
The sight of Ryo breaking through the 40th-floor ceiling and descending from the sky was truly stunning even for Arthur.
First of all, he had never heard of breaking through the floor of a dungeon.
And when he asked after it was over, Ryo told him that he traveled all the way from the surface to the 40th floor by relying on that method …
Impossible!
Yes, it was impossible by common sense.
Some of Arthur's acquaintances were top-notch Water-Attribute Magicians. He was well acquainted with several of them.
But probably none of them could break through the floor of the dungeon.
Neither could Fire-Attribute or Wind-Attribute Magicians.
In fact, he couldn't do it even with the Earth-Attribute … he was sure of it because he once personally attempted it on-site and it didn't work.
It was possible to scrape the surface slightly, but … it would regenerate after a while.
That was the characteristic of the floors and walls of the dungeon.
And … a young man who manipulated Water-Attribute Magic that he had never seen or heard before … was doing ridiculous things as if it was commonplace.
"Hugh. Who the hell is that young man named Ryo …"
That was a question that remained in Arthur's mind since the battle between Ryo and the Devils.
But, of course, he couldn't get a satisfactory answer.
"Even if you ask me … he's just the one who brought Abel back from beyond the Devil's Mountain …"
Hugh then told Advisor Arthur about Abel's return.
"I see, so he is Abel's friend …"
"Yeah, they're definitely on good terms."
As a person who knew Abel from an early age, for Abel to have a 『friend』 after becoming independent was an extremely significant matter.
At the same time, he was somewhat happy.
For Abel, Rihya, Rin, and Warren were, of course, his precious companions.
Irreplaceable companions.
However, they were not 『friends』.
They might develop a man and woman relationship, but not a relationship of friends.
Friends, after all, must be on an equal footing.
Unfortunately, those three who knew about Abel's various circumstances cannot and will not wish to be on an equal footing with Abel.
And apart from those three, nobody in the City of Rune had a possibility of establishing an equal relationship with Abel …
There were only a few in the royal capital who could … but how far could they be considered 『friends』 …?
Abel was adored by his juniors, but that wasn't friendship.
Perhaps Phelps of the B-rank party White Brigade could be a friend, but Phelps probably didn't want to.
Even though he treated him in a relaxed manner, to Phelps, Abel was essentially a person he should follow.
Whereas now, a young man named Ryo was said to be Abel's 『friend』.
Arthur found that to be great.
Moreover, that young man was absurdly strong!
In this world, or any world, strength was justice.
No matter how correct you are, it will not be accepted without the 『strength』 to back that claim.
Overturn the opposition's 『strength』.
It's not a question of what is right or wrong, but whoever has the greatest strength.
Thinking to that point, Arthur shook his head a little and stopped.
"Ryo is terrifyingly strong. No, he was terrifyingly strong. How strong was he? He was strong enough to kill the Devil Prince in an instant."
"...Ha?"
Hugh couldn't comprehend.
He knew that Ryo was strong. Abel claimed so and he had heard stories from others as well.
However, killing the Devil Prince instantly …?
"Is that … possible?"
"Because I saw it first-hand, the question of whether it is possible or impossible is now meaningless."
Arthur was right, but … Hugh could not easily accept it.
"By the way, he also killed three of the Devil Prince's followers in an instant. All three at the same time. As to how he defeated them, I have completely no clue."
At that point, Arthur had no choice but to laugh.
He had asked Abel on the way back, but Abel said he couldn't see it either.
"Abel did say that Ryo was extraordinary."
"I'm not sure if that alone is sufficient to express it …"
"Nevertheless, what else can we do? I believe the most important thing now is for that extraordinary Magician to remain on good terms with Abel and not turn hostile to our country. Hugh feels the same way too, right?"
"For the same reason, he would not be hostile to the City of Rune."
Then Hugh exhaled a deep sigh.
"As a friend of Abel, we can say that he is on our side, but it would be troublesome if some idiotic noble tries to touch Ryo. I'm not going to write about Ryo in the report. That's okay with you, right?"
"Okay, I will not include Ryo's name in the report either."
In that way, Ryo once again avoided being involved in the power struggle of the nobles.
-x-X-x-
The day after Abel and his group returned from the 40th floor of the dungeon.
Ryo had been running outside the city since the morning.
Of course, he ate a proper breakfast.
Somehow, he was still feeling restless from yesterday's battle, so he ran to shake it off.
At first, the other three from Room 10 had also followed Ryo to run, but … they gradually separated, and eventually, all three had collapsed on the ground.
"See here, Niles, how could the vanguard go down so quickly? Keep running, even if you have to run slowly."
"Ryo, just how much stamina do you have …"
While the other two were completely out of action, the Swordsman and vanguard Niles started running once more, albeit slowly, relying purely on willpower.
"That's right, it's okay to be slow, what's important is to keep moving."
After that, Ryo sped up and ran ahead.
"O-oh …"
Outside the city, Niles' words did not reach anyone.
Afternoon.
Three people gave the same reply at the same time.
"No way. I can't eat yet."
They groaned and were not in the condition to have a meal.
As such, Ryo had no choice but to look for a place to eat by himself, but … nothing stood out to him.
There weren't any shops that made him want to exclaim 'I want to eat this!'.
Naturally, after running in the morning, he was pretty hungry but … what was Ryo's stomach craving for at the moment?
He couldn't find anything on the main street that I always walked, so he walked around a back alley near the east gate, which he usually won't go to.
He was just wandering around so it was completely coincidental that he noticed a familiar scent.
An enchanting scent of intertwined spices centered on cardamom and coriander …
Curry!
Guided by the scent, Ryo entered a store.
The store didn't specialize in curry as there were also hamburgers and spaghetti on display inside the store.
"Welcome ~"
A middle-aged woman's voice could be heard from the back of the store.
When he looked around the store, there was only one customer, probably because it was a little past typical mealtime.
Platinum blonde hair, green eyes … Those eyes were opened wide, staring in Ryo's direction.
After a while, the woman moved.
With a spoon in her right hand scooping curry to her mouth, the Elf woman began gesturing for Ryo with her left hand to come over.
Ryo headed towards the inviting hand.
"Se-Sera … Hello."
"Hi. Ryo knows about this shop …?"
"Oh no, it was a coincidence. I was led by the scent of the curry."
"Oh! I know! If you want to eat curry in Rune, this is the shop. For now, come sit next to me."
Sera tapped the chair next to her and invited Ryo.
After Ryo sat next to her, Sera started eating again.
After a while, a woman brought water to the table.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. What is your order?"
"Please give me curry."
"How about the spiciness?"
"Spiciness?"
No way, it was even possible to choose the spiciness …
"There are three stages: sweet, medium spicy, and spicy."
"Medium spicy then."
When Ryo said that, Sera nodded hard next to him.
"Ma'am, I would also have another medium spicy!"
"Yes, two medium spicy~"
Then the proprietress went back to the kitchen.
Ryo gave Sera a look of surprise after she ordered a refill.
When she noticed it, Sera quickly made an excuse.
"El-elves aren't very fuel-efficient. It's not because I'm gluttonous or anything like that!"
"I didn't say anything …"
The image of a beautiful woman anxiously making excuses was cute.
After coughing intentionally, Sera forcibly changed the topic.
"By the way, where does Ryo live?"
If you want to change the topic, ask where they live. That was the tried-and-true method.
"I live in the Adventurer's Guild dormitory."
"The dormitory? The one where you can choose to stay in within 300 days after registering as an adventurer? However, you need to be D-rank or higher to use the North Library … Isn't it? Did you perhaps clear requests at an astonishing speed and achieved a swift promotion? "
"No … I registered as D-rank through a system called rank-up registration."
He was a little embarrassed to announce that he registered as D-rank without any track record.
"Rank-up registration? That's amazing. Yeah, Ryo seems strong. I'm convinced that you can directly register as D-rank."
Sera nodded many times as if she was convinced for some reason.
"That's the first time that … I'm told I appear strong …"
"Is that so? Well, that's because most people don't have a discerning eye. It can't be helped."
Just as she said that, they could tell that a captivating scent was approaching.
"Here, medium-spicy curry. Please enjoy it."
The curry that appeared before Ryo … was the curry that he ate in Japan.
Not Indian curry or Javanese curry.
Curry made with curry powder thickened with wheat flour … It was an exact reproduction of Japanese curry.
"This is..."
Of course, Ryo loved Japanese curry.
Indian curry was not bad, but Indian curry was Indian curry after all, which was different from the『Curry』in Ryo's heart.
While feeling emotional with the Japanese curry, he scooped it with a spoon and ate a bite.
"Delicious..."
A word of admiration came out of his mouth as soon as he took a bite.
"Yes, yes it is."
Next to him, Sera nodded happily like she was being praised.
From that point on, his spoon didn't stop.
Of course, he didn't devour the food.
He faced the curry seriously.
That was probably the closest expression.
Words were only in the way when eating delicious food.
Two people ate single-mindedly.
And after they finished eating … their facial expressions were filled with supreme satisfaction.
"That was delicious."
"Yeah, it was delicious."
If they were sculpted at that moment, the sculpture would have been named『Satisfaction』.
After paying the bill, the two left 『Houshoku-tei』. (TLN: Satiation Pavilion)
Only now did Ryo learn that the store he entered was called 『Houshoku-tei 』.
"By the way, I have not seen Sera in the guild even though you're an adventurer?"
It was a question that Ryo always had on his mind.
Although Ryo himself does not hang out in the guild for long lengths of time, he realized that he had never seen Sera even when he often uses the guild canteen.
"Oh … I was dispatched to the royal capital until quite recently. And I've accepted a long-term request so I don't regularly go to the guild."
"Long-term request?"
"As the swordsmanship instructor for the Knights here, the Margrave Knights of Rune."
"Swordsmanship instructor!"
Ryo raised his voice in surprise and hurriedly looked around apologetically.
"Despite my looks, I'm pretty strong, okay?"
Then she looked up at Ryo's face from below.
It was a very destructive gesture and facial expression.
(Shit, that's really attractive …)
With immense willpower, he desperately looked away from Sera.
"Because of that request, I live in the Lord's mansion next to the Knights' dormitory."
(The Lord, Margrave Rune … Now that I think about it, I've never asked anyone about him.)
"Right, Ryo, do you have anything to do after this?"
"Nothing in particular … I thought I'd go back to the dormitory and continue alchemy …"
"Your goal of creating a golem …? Well, if you like, why don't you have a mock combat with me?"
Sera's offer was abrupt.
"When you entered Houshoku-tei, Ryo seemed very dissatisfied. I mean … it was as though the fighting spirit in your heart had not dissipated."
It was bull's-eye.
The cause was the battle with the Devil Prince yesterday.
For that reason, he was running from the morning to relieve stress … however, given that Sera felt it, it had probably not completely dissipated.
"If I'm with you, you can use the Knights' Practice Ground. The practice ground has a magical barrier that is always present and there are also excellent priests assigned to the Knights, so there won't be any issues even if you get injured. It's a place that is quite difficult to gain entry into for ordinary adventurers. How about it? Would you like to take a look? "
With a beautiful woman inviting him to 'Take a look', there was no way he could refuse.
"Yes, I'll go."
Along the way, Sera explained a lot about the Knights.
The original swordsmanship instructor was Max Doyle, a master of the famous swordsmanship school Hume style from the royal capital.
The roles were split whereby Max would train them in the Hume style and Sera would allow them to gain practical experience in simulated battles.
"Max is very good at teaching. Even a beginner child can become quite skilled with the sword after joining the Knights for a year, so the Knights in this city are of a high level."
"Knight-Captain Neville Black and the Guild Master are pretty close and sometimes come to discuss with us with alcohol. The Knights and the Adventurer's Guild are two major organizations of armed forces in any city. In some other cities, these organizations would be at odds with each other but that's not the case in the City of Rune. Well, it's not as though they are very close either but … yes, they are more like rivals. They can spur each other on probably because the relationship between the leaders is not bad."
"Since the Knights and the Adventurers have such a relationship, even if I, as an adventurer, take on the role of the Knights' instructor, I do not face any strong criticism. I have quite a lot of free time, so I'm grateful that I can visit the library or have a meal at Houshoku-tei."
Sera happily talked about a lot of matters.
The Lord's mansion and the Knight Order's lodgings were in the northernmost part of the city.
At the entrance, the emblem of Margrave Rune, the 『Doe』, was displayed.
Naturally, it was a place with strict security and the general public was restricted from entering.
However, as the instructor of the Knight Order and a resident in the Lord's mansion, Sera could enter just by showing her face.
"Welcome back, Sera-sama"
The guard welcomed Sera with a respectful salute, not a perfunctory one.
"Thank you, Nash. This is Ryo, an adventurer. We will be having a simulated battle for two people at the practice ground. Please assist with the procedure."
"Understood. Ryo-dono, please give me your guild card."
After completing the procedure, he was able to enter the premises without any problems.
The Knight's practice ground.
There was also a separate training ground used for conducting group mock combat and such but compared to that, this facility could be used relatively freely by the knights.
It could be said to be a small version of the Colosseum in Rome.
Sera and Ryo entered the waiting room of the practice ground as the ring of the bell signified three o'clock.
There were priests on duty there just in case.
"Excuse me, I'm going to use the practice ground for a simulated battle. Healers, please be on standby."
Sera called out to them and proceeded straight into the practice ground.
"Ryo, let's use the practice weapons. All the weapons in this arsenal for simulated battle have dulled blades, so choose whichever you are comfortable with."
With that said, Sera chose a sword that looked like the sword on her waist.
Ryo always used Murasame.
It was more of a 『Katana』than a 『Sword』, and its shape was the closest to 『Mikazuki Munechika』 among the existing Japanese swords. (TLN: 三日月宗近)
As expected, there were no katana in this arsenal, but he chose one that was close in length and balance.
However, he suddenly felt curious.
"Sera-san. Why did you ask me to choose a weapon? I should appear to be a Magician."
Yes, Ryo didn't carry a weapon anywhere on his body.
Both Michael's knife and Murasame were in his robe, so they couldn't be seen from the outside.
Despite all that, Sera judged from the beginning that Ryo could engage in close combat with weapons.
Even Abel only knew that Ryo could hold his own in close combat after he spoke about it in the City of Rune.
"That's because of Ryo's footsteps and how you move your body …? I wondered if you are a person who can use both magic and sword … I'm one of them after all."
Yes, Sera was definitely an excellent Magician.
Likely a Wind-Attribute Magician.
Because her party name was 『Wind』 … Others would reach that conclusion based on that name but Ryo wasn't aware of Sera's party name.
In the first place, he didn't even know that Sera was a B-rank adventurer.
As a fantasy trope, he just thought that 'Elves would be good at Wind Magic'.
"Anyway, let's get started."