"Relax. I'm here. You don't have to be afraid."
Takumi pulled Filvis to her feet and gently brushed the dust from the hem of her clothes. Staring at him—so powerful, yet so gentle—Filvis's awe only deepened. She took a steadying breath, finally forcing her emotions back under control.
"Thank you so much, Takumi-san… If it weren't for you, we would've been wiped out."
"Save the thanks for later," Takumi said, his expression tightening slightly. "The real danger is only starting."
He gave her a quick, streamlined explanation of the Evilus remnants' plan.
The moment Filvis realized how bad it was, she clutched Takumi's hand hard.
"T-Then… what do we do…?"
"Filvis, I need you to organize everyone and retreat. Get out of the Dungeon—now."
As he spoke, his eyes drifted toward a distant corner.
Ever since fusing Godslayer Power (Purple), his sensitivity to divine energy had sharpened dramatically. And Dionysus's hatred—his sticky, resentful gaze—was so obvious it was almost laughable.
A weak little wine god, hiding in the shadows and trying to puff up at me…You're dead. I'm not letting you walk away.
A wandering god in the lower world was rare prey. Takumi wasn't letting this one slip.
At the same time, the floor's violent upheaval and thick blood stench had drawn monsters up from below.
Hiss—hiss—!!
With a piercing screech, a vine speared out of the ground.
Then—a gigantic carnivorous flower erupted upward.
Its petal mouth opened, jagged teeth lining the edges, revealing a humanoid figure inside.
It was a breathtaking woman—supple arms, a lush chest, a smooth waist—an upper body wrapped in vividly colored petals like an exotic dress. The side of her face, tilted up toward the Dungeon ceiling as if trembling with joy, was beautiful enough to rival a goddess.
Green hair. Green skin. Green upper body.
Only her eyes were wrong—no pupils, no irises—just vacant, lifeless gold.
And below the waist… was pure nightmare: enormous petals and countless writhing tendrils that made your stomach turn.
[Corrupt Spirit]
The term surfaced instantly in Takumi's mind.
The moment it appeared, the Corrupt Spirit's avatar attacked.
Hundreds—no, thousands—of vine-tentacles shot forward like a storm of spears.
"AAAH!!"
The scene collapsed into panic. Adventurers screamed and stampeded toward Takumi.
"Save us, Takumi-sama!"
"Hero-sama—help!!"
Takumi glanced at the crowd with a flat, unimpressed look.
But honestly? Expecting them to fight a Corrupt Spirit's avatar was asking for a massacre.
Even as an avatar, this thing was far more dangerous than Amphisbaena. Those thick tendrils, fired at that speed, hit like boulders launched at supersonic velocity.
Too bad for it—
Against Takumi's Limitless, it still wasn't enough.
One by one, the tendrils froze in midair in front of the group, unable to advance even an inch.
The adventurers gaped, stunned out of speech, like they'd just witnessed a miracle. Some looked ready to drop to their knees on the spot.
Takumi, however, didn't even blink. His mana surged, gathering at his fingertips.
Sensing lethal danger, the Corrupt Spirit's avatar instantly spiraled into frenzy.
"Fire… come…"
A soft chant—almost like song lyrics—spilled from its lips.
The next instant, a massive magic circle unfolded beneath its grotesque lower body.
Sinister patterns and rising crimson mana flared around the female-shaped torso.
"How is that possible—?! A monster is chanting?!"
"You've gotta be kidding me!!"
The adventurers were horrified.
Monsters lived on instinct and destruction. They didn't have the reason and wisdom required for magic—that was supposed to be humanity's domain.
Even if her origin was spirit, that body and face were undeniably monstrous now.
Her chanting made even Filvis cry out, eyes wide.
Filvis tried to step forward—to interrupt, to help Takumi—but a roaring tornado of flame flooded their vision with red.
BOOOOM—BOOOOM—BOOOOM!!
A fiery storm like a tidal wave manifested out of thin air, heat and flame surging toward Takumi in a choking, lethal torrent. The pressure alone made people feel death looming—power so far above them it wasn't even something they could reach.
And yet, in that moment, Takumi's mana was already condensed at his fingertip.
He overlapped Blue and the reversed Red, creating a virtual mass that could be fired like a projectile.
This was—
"Purple."
Takumi murmured it and flicked his finger.
A massive violet wave erupted with a roaring crackle of purple lightning arcs. It tore forward, slicing space itself—shredding and pulverizing everything in its path.
The raging firestorm was snuffed out the instant it touched that wave.
Carving a smooth, gouged corridor into the ground, the violet blast swallowed the Corrupt Spirit's avatar whole.
Vmmm.
A silent ripple flashed.
Like an eraser casually wiping away ink.
The monster—so overwhelmingly powerful seconds ago—vanished completely.
Only a few severed vine-tentacles remained on the ground, twitching weakly.
"…!"
The floor went dead silent—then the explosion of cheers hit like thunder.
Takumi found it annoying. He simply blocked out the noise, filtering their shouting from his mind.
Their praise meant nothing to him.
He glanced at his status window as new information popped up:
[Ding! Randomly plundered trait: Energy Absorption (Blue)]
[Energy Absorption (Blue): When struck by physical, magical, or energy attacks, converts part of the damage into energy.]
He didn't care much—still, he fused it immediately.
Then he released his cell spores, swallowing up the severed tentacles. After editing the absorbed genes, his presence climbed again.
[Ding! Gained traits: Spirit Bloodline (Purple), Magic Affinity (Blue), Cell Assimilation (Blue), Photosynthesis (Green)]
[Cell Assimilation (Blue): You can parasitize other lifeforms with your cells, assimilate and enhance them, and control that host.]
Takumi clicked his tongue.
"Like I needed this. My cells already assimilate and control living things."
And then—his gaze shifted.
Toward the corner where Dionysus was already trying to slink away.
Watching even the Corrupt Spirit's avatar get erased, Dionysus finally accepted one hard truth: Takumi was a monster beyond comprehension.
If he wanted to win, he'd have to keep plotting.
What Dionysus didn't realize was that Takumi had already locked onto him.