"Damn it!"
Ryoji yanked back his rope and cursed. "This is exactly why I was against coming in here from the start!"
Alicia leaned against his side, still pale with shock. A rope connected to Ryoji's blade remained tied tightly around her waist. She always stayed close to him, which was the only reason he had managed to catch her in time.
The other dozen or so people had fallen straight into the abyss.
The ambush had come far too suddenly. By the time Ryoji's Intuition flared with a warning, Finn had already been cut down, and the pitfalls had triggered at the exact same moment. The enemy's coordination had not only taken out Loki Familia's brain but had also forcibly fractured the entire expedition force.
In a single, brutal instant, Loki Familia had been plunged into a massive crisis.
"Captain!" Tione let out a shrill scream and charged at Revis with a savage expression, completely blinding herself to everything else.
"Get back!" Gareth's expression changed, and he reached out to pull her back, but his hand caught nothing but empty air.
'Clang!'
Her twin kukris collided with the black greatsword. Tione's face twisted immediately; her arms shook violently under the impact, and her feet were forced backward across the metal floor.
"Your opponent isn't me," Revis muttered, stepping into Tione's guard and delivering a devastating kick.
Unable to resist while already off-balance, Tione was sent flying straight into the left-side passage.
'Boom!'
A moment later, a silver gate crashed down, completely sealing off the corridor. Loud, frantic bangs echoed from the other side as Tione desperately hacked at the barrier, but it stood firm like an immovable mountain.
Another Orichalcum gate.
"This bitch...!" Bete glared at Revis, his teeth bared viciously.
"No mistake," Gareth's eyes widened with hard-pressed anger. "...Level 7."
Even Ais's expression turned grim. There was no other explanation. Someone who could instantly defeat Finn and effortlessly overwhelm Tione could only be Level 7.
Just two months ago, Revis had been Level 5. One month ago, she had been Level 6. Now, she was Level 7. Across the entire world, there were only two known Level 7 adventurers. The sheer speed of her growth was terrifying. Just how many magic stones had she consumed?
"There are a few too many nuisances around," Revis said, glancing at Bete and Gareth before fixing her gaze entirely on Ais. "My target is only you, Aria. But if I fight now, they'll just get in the way. I'll wait for another opportunity."
As she spoke, she slowly retreated into the shadows.
"Don't chase her!" Ais instinctively moved to pursue, but Gareth immediately threw out an arm to block her. "With things like this, we absolutely cannot afford to split up any further!"
Ais froze. The secret surrounding her mother was tied to Revis; more than anything, she wanted to hunt her down. But she couldn't deny that Gareth was right. After casting one deeply reluctant look in the direction Revis had vanished, she suppressed her urge and stepped back.
"How's Finn?" Gareth turned toward Ryoji.
"Not good!" Ryoji threw an empty crystal vial onto the floor, his face dark. "I've already used two bottles of Elixir, but the wound isn't healing at all. It's actually getting worse!"
Finn lay on the ground, his face as pale as paper. A massive gash stretched from his shoulder all the way to his waist, blood pouring from it continuously. Even though a rainbow-colored healing light swirled over his body, the wound stubbornly refused to close.
"Looks like a curse," Gareth let out a troubled sigh, his expression turning ugly. "That Pallum loves barking orders when he's on his feet. Now that he's down, he's causing even more trouble."
"A curse?"
"Something similar to magic, but much rarer and far more unreasonable. Damn it," Gareth clicked his tongue. "That red-haired woman's black sword must carry an incurable curse. Once you're cut by it, healing magic won't take. That's why even an Elixir is useless."
"Then what do we do?" Raul collapsed to his knees, tears streaming down his face. "Will... will the Captain die?"
It wasn't just Raul. Most of the members behind him looked utterly lost. Finn was their pillar, the Familia's ultimate strategist. As long as Finn was standing, there was always hope. But with that pillar fallen, everyone had lost their center. Not only did their path forward feel completely obscured, but their chances of survival seemed to shrink by the second.
"How do we break a curse?" Ryoji asked, looking up at Gareth.
"The surest way is to defeat the one who cast it," Gareth shook his head grimly. "But you saw her. That woman is strong enough to crush Finn and Tione in moments, and she's hiding somewhere deep in this labyrinth, we can't even hunt her down. Our only real option is to get Finn back to the surface and see if Airmid has a solution."
Thinking about hunting down an enemy of that caliber when they were barely surviving would be foolish, especially when the foe was someone they currently couldn't match.
"So what do we do now?"
"How are we supposed to get out?"
"The Captain's down..."
Uneasy whispers began to ripple through the remaining ranks.
"Shut up, you useless idiots!" Bete finally snapped, turning around and roaring at the crowd. The commotion instantly died down.
"Ugh..."
As if jarred awake by Bete's shout, Finn groaned and slowly opened his eyes. His vision was blurred with blood. He could see Raul crying, and everyone else wearing heavy, defeated expressions. Even with his severe injuries and fading consciousness, Finn understood the situation immediately.
He had been defeated. Because of a single moment of hesitation, he had lost to Revis.
His failing gaze paused briefly on Raul before shifting away, finally settling on Ryoji. "You... take command..." his lips trembled, his body so weak that even speaking had become an agonizing chore.
Every eye in the corridor turned toward Ryoji. Among all the executives, he had the least seniority. He was also one of the youngest, having only reached their ranks half a month ago. His prestige couldn't compare to someone like Gareth.
Yet, Finn hadn't chosen Gareth. He had chosen him.
And in that desperate moment, not a single person present questioned the decision.
"...Understood," Ryoji nodded after a brief silence. At this critical juncture, with the very survival of the Familia hanging in the balance, an unimaginably heavy burden dropped squarely onto his shoulders.
Only after hearing his answer did Finn finally relax. He slowly closed his eyes, his breathing growing even weaker. Even a Level 6 adventurer couldn't survive endless blood loss for long.
"What now?" Gareth looked at Ryoji. "Give the order."
Bete's expression remained cold, while Ais silently watched him. Raul, Aki, and the remaining vanguard looked up at him with trembling, anxious eyes. There was only trust in those gazes, and frankly, they had no choice but to trust him.
"We don't have any other option," Ryoji said, standing up and gripping his twin blades once more. He closed his eyes for a brief second, as if bracing himself against fate. "Raul, carry Finn. We're retreating at full speed!"
(End of Chapter)
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