Floor 1—-
Han woke up, looking around, but the floor was empty. He quickly got up, breathing heavily, saying no words. Just then, the gate opened, and the others exited.
"Took us long enough," Nonoka scoffed. "How did getting outside the gate take longer than clearing the floor?"
"Sorry," Zaria replied. "You guys weren't BLIND."
As they got to the center, they noticed Han, absorbed in his thoughts. Sōshin immediately rushed over to hug him. "Friend Han!"
Sōshin wrapped Han in a hug, but Han remained unresponsive. As soon as the girls saw him, their faces shifted to annoyance.
"Couldn't be rid of him long enough," Zaria groaned.
"Just don't talk to him," Rika told her.
"Look at him, standing like he's all cool," Nonoka remarked. "So annoying. Can we please hurry up and clear the floor?"
Rei just remained quiet.
Gakuto patted Han on the back. "Had us worried there, kid! Where'd you go?"
"Nowhere," Han replied. "Just took a little longer to get off Floor 4."
Rika eyed him, skeptical, before waving him off. "Mr. Gakuto, what's next?"
They all crowded around the door, while Emeru shifted into her humanoid form and sized up Han. "Took a little longer to get off the floor? You know these gates lock after everyone exits, right?"
"Uh-huh..." he said, still unfocused.
"So what's really going on, then? You may be one of my handlers but you can't lie to me! Especially if it involves my brother."
"It doesn't," Han assured her. "Trust me."
Han walked off to the corner. "Mr. Nyugawa is some kinda...god? No, don't assume. I need to ask him. Like he said, tell no one. Not like they'd believe me anyway."
Gakuto sized up the sealed door. "Looks like we only need a few more seals to crack this baby open. Next up, Floor 6!"
The group walked over to the sixth-floor gate, which appeared to be upside down. The moment they reached it, a UI appeared.
〈Floor Level: *6.* Females Can Double Jump. Males Have Increased Strength.〉
"Now this one sounds interesting," Nonoka remarked. "I call first dibs!"
She jumped inside the portal, followed by Zaria, Rika, Rei, Gakuto, Sōshin, and Emeru. Han prepared to enter the portal, but a flicker of Omariro's form appeared behind him, before it abruptly vanished.
Floor 6——
〈Rule: Beat the Game.〉
The group found themselves in a 2D game-like side-scroller, with large pits, moving platforms, falling bombs, skull enemies, and even spike traps.
"Well," Nonoka said. "This wasn't what I was expecting."
There was a life counter above them.
〈Lives: 5〉
Gakuto pointed to a moving platform. "It's like a pattern! Come on, everyone! Let's play this like how Grams and I used to back in the day!"
Zaria jumped up, accidentally jumped again, and landed on the platform. "Hey! It actually works! Try it!"
Rika grabbed Emeru and did the same, with Rei and Nonoka following. Gakuto scratched his head. "Erm...we can't get up there."
Han formed his cube without a word, firing a wire that allowed the three to zip onto the platform.
They landed next to the girls as the platform moved them to the next section. Everyone ducked as a wave of spikes flew over their heads.
Nonoka got up. "So, how do we beat this side-scroller crap?"
"We navigate to the other side!" Gakuto pointed. "Also, don't stay still too long, you might get hit by a—-!"
A bomb dropped down, blowing Nonoka up. She immediately respawned, examining her body. "Uh, what just happened?"
"A bomb blew you up."
"Whoa. Just, whoa."
〈Lives: 5 → 4〉
Another platform rolled up next to them, and Zaria hopped over to it with no hesitation. "Jump, people!"
The others leapt onto the platform, with Rei and Rika pulling Sōshin up. A floating skull followed them, and Rika sized it up. "Is that a good skull?"
The skull fired a laser, turning Rika to ash. "Bad skull! Very bad skull!"
〈Lives: 4 → 3〉
"Be careful, kids!" Gakuto warned. "If one of us kicks the bucket, it affects us all!"
He threw his helmet at the skull, shattering it into pieces. The platform carried them onto a pixel cliff, where they began to run upwards.
Spikes littered the terrain, and the girls double-jumped over them, while Sōshin charged through them and shattered all the spikes to pieces. "Ooh! This is fun!"
They regrouped at the top of the cliff, navigating over pits and dealing with more evil skulls. Han lagged behind the entire time, while Zaria kept pushing forward.
Various platforms began to move around, with a totem located in the center. "There it is! I've got it!"
She jumped from platform to platform, attempting to nab the totem, but a large pixel giant knocked her away, holding a wooden hammer.
〈Guardian of the 2D Totem—-Lucky the Giant. Level: 80,000〉
The others caught up to Zaria, who landed on one of the platforms. Lucky began laughing creepily before slamming the platforms one by one, temporarily knocking them out.
〈Domain Effect: *Hard Head.* Lucky can be subdued temporarily by jumping atop his head.〉
With a slam of his hammer, Lucky dropped most of the platforms, leaving only the group's. Rei formed a shield around the group as Lucky began spinning his hammer so fast that wind began to erupt from it.
"Nonoka, do you think you can buff us?" Zaria asked.
Nonoka reached out.
〈Buff Applied. 200% Boost to All Party Members.〉
Rei dropped her shield, firing a moon beam to distract Lucky. Rika formed a sigil.
〈Sigil Created: Siphon.〉
"Here, take this!"
She gave the sigil to Zaria, and Zaria used her double jumps to make her way over to Lucky, bouncing on his head and causing his body to take on a dizzy animation.
"Got 'em!"
Gakuto charged into Lucky, ramming him hard in the chest.
〈Boss HP: 100% → 72%〉
Sōshin tossed Rei at Lucky, and she took advantage by using her moon crests to slice his shoulders, further weakening him.
〈Boss HP: 72% → 55%〉
Lucky recovered, slamming his hammer so hard that it forced everyone back.
〈Phase 2.〉
Another hammer formed in his free hand, and he began banging them like a drum, forcing the group to evade the shockwaves.
Gakuto kept the giant busy while the others regrouped, with Han staring off into space. Sōshin tugged at Han's arm. "Friend Han, we need your help!"
Rika removed Sōshin's arm. "No, Sōshin, we don't! Come on, we've got to back up Mr. Gakuto!"
Gakuto rammed Lucky, but Lucky responded by slamming his hammer onto Gakuto's head, which caused a vibration powerful enough to shake the room.
"I'll go for the head again," Zaria declared.
"I can attack the base with Rei," Nonoka offered. "I'll try to pull out my Discarded form one more time."
Rika formed another sigil. "That's three now. We've got to make it count!"
〈Sigil Created: Life Steal.〉
Rika crushed it, taking life-force from Lucky.
〈Boss HP: 55% → 45%〉
Zaria charged at the giant, allowing him to slam her. The moment he did, the sigil activated, knocking him back and giving Zaria a window to hop on his head, dazing him. Gakuto took the opportunity to ram Lucky's legs.
〈Boss HP: 45% → 32%〉
Rei and Nonoka both attacked his chest, and the moment he tried to sway them away, Zaria delivered a powerful blow to his temple. Sōshin grabbed Emeru, who formed large fists and punched Lucky in his mouth.
Han merely watched, his thoughts elsewhere.
〈Boss HP: 32% → 21% → 11%〉
Zaria spun her spear around before chucking it at Lucky, and Gakuto headbutted it to give it even more speed, allowing it to pierce right through Lucky's body and drop him.
〈Boss HP: 11% → 0%〉
〈Challenge Completed.〉
The totem appeared, and Gakuto grabbed it. "Well done, kids! I think we just need one more, no?"
The gate formed before them, and Zaria headed through it. "Move those feet, people. Our Master needs us."
As everyone walked through, Han remained behind, pondering. "Does he really? Or have we—-have I, just been a burden all this time?"
He shook his head as he walked through the gate.
???—-
Dragon Omariro and Elias walked alongside the woman as she led them through a vision of an elegant kingdom, bustling with marble and gold.
"It's so good to see you, my King," the woman stated. "It's been decades."
Omariro didn't respond.
Elias escorted her and Omariro deeper within, where a golden courtyard awaited them, with shades of children playing in the field, parents sitting at the tables, and birds flying all around.
"Danjon Bankai," she stated, warmly. "In all its glory. Don't you miss it, my King?"
"Gone," Omariro replied. "Mujinsha and Endless."
He continued walking, and the scene shifted into that of a destroyed kingdom, and the woman looked around.
"Hmm. Unfortunate," she remarked.
Elias bowed to her. "Lady Utsuroha, he doesn't seem to understand. What should be done about this?"
Utsuroha waved off Elias. "Do not worry, Fallen Knight. In time, he will."
"Woman should not be alive," Omariro interrupted. "Woman burned with flames."
Utsuroha turned toward Omariro. "This? This is but a faint projection of my spirit. My real body lies in the remains of our homeland, waiting. For you."
Her body shifted into a pure kitsune form, and she began to walk on air as she surveyed the land around her. "Those Mujinsha. Taking over our authority like such. And now one is attempting to hunt you down? With your own beast?"
"Slime will be dealt with," Omariro told her.
"He's dangerous, my King. They all are. It's a reason the Endless has given them executive authority. *Our* authority."
Omariro watched as various monstrous creatures raided the lands, tearing through corpses and sending families screaming.
Utsuroha watched it all with a saddened look, before turning to Omariro with resolve in her eyes. "You must restore this place, my King. Restore us. With the help of your beasts, Danjon Bankai can rise once more!"
"Nothing left," Omariro told her. "All gone."
And the vision retracted to show a land full of ash, rubble, and destruction. Utsuroha landed atop it. "We will be waiting for you, my King. You will change your mind."
Elias stood by her side as she gave him a warm smile. "How has my daughter been?"
"Daughter is crazy," Omariro answered.
"Ah. I see. Maybe spending more time during her childhood would have done wonders...it matters not. Find us, my King. Claim your beasts and reunite the Jōi."
The vision disappeared, leaving Omariro standing atop an endless dark sea, storms brewing around him as he returned to human form.
〈Do you understand now? If you wish my help, you must not play at being weaker than you are. As you always say: Men Don't Listen to the Weak.〉
Almost as if in response, the waters began to shift, and a large dark-blue water serpent with wings and tendrils emerged, her glowing blue eyes staring directly at Omariro.
"Leviathan," Omariro realized.
"Best me in this duel, and I shall serve you once more," Leviathan told him.
The water around Omariro rose, forming sharp ice blades that he sliced apart. Leviathan moved around him with great speed, lunging at him and dragging him underwater.
Omariro broke free as Leviathan delivered a powerful strike with her tail. Omariro met it with his arm, but the force caused a wave of water to slam on him. Leviathan began zipping around even faster, bursting up so forcefully that water shot up like torrents.
Omariro avoided her attacks as she opened her mouth, firing ice at him and coating his arm in frost. "Beast strong."
"Show me you can handle my strength."
She dove under the water, causing blocks of water to rise and form spears that slammed down, freezing portions of the sea.
Omariro ran across the water, delivering a powerful slash to Leviathan's chest and cleaving her in two, but the water rose forth, healing her as she blasted Omariro back with crimson water.
Omariro got up, blade at the ready, but in the reflection of the sea, he could see the group hastily making their way towards the next gate.
"What path will you choose, Master?" Leviathan asked.
Omariro remained silent for a long moment, before dark energy burst from him.
"No path. Only victory."
——-