"So, our Finn proposed to your supporter, huh?"
"Yes... it might be good news for Lili, but I honestly don't know what to do..."
"Well, regardless, I'm going to 'leak' this little detail to Tione and Argana."
●○●○●
Ominous stone floors stretched ahead, while the dim light of magic stone lamps flickered weakly against the walls. The air carried the vivid, nauseating stench of blood and viscera, a rot that mingled with the typical dampness of enclosed spaces. It was an atmosphere that felt viscerally shocking.
An unnatural silence had descended upon the artificial labyrinth, Knossos. Though several days had passed since the fierce battle between the Loki Familia and the remnants of the Evils, this absolute stillness was unprecedented.
In the observation room at the deepest reaches of Knossos, Barca Perdix, the master of this maze, drowned in his own misery.
His first source of suffering was the structural damage to Knossos.
He had been forced to destroy entire sections himself just to halt the overwhelming advance of the "Sword Saint," a man whose very presence made them tremble. Walls and corridors lay in ruin, further ravaged by the Spirit clone that Thanatos had unleashed at Ishtar's request.
Then, there were the horrific scars left by the clash between the "Strongest Monster" and the "Strongest Hero."
The sturdy stone walls, crafted from the spoils of Obsidian Soldiers, were supposed to be highly magic-resistant, rendering the attacks of high-level mages useless. Yet, they had not only been shattered but partially vaporized by the sheer intensity of the combatants' magic. Even the solid Adamantite walls—impenetrable to most first-class adventurers—had crumbled like brittle wafers.
The traps that formed the core of Knossos, the culmination of his family's obsession and spite spanning a millennium, had been erased without a trace. The scale of the loss was enough to make anyone avert their eyes in horror.
While Barca remained physically unharmed, the destruction exceeded everything he had built in his lifetime. How many years would it take to restore this? The mere thought made his head spin. To Barca Perdix, who lived only to complete the labyrinth, this reality felt heavier than death.
His second source of suffering was the "Saint."
"I never imagined anyone other than the Sword Saint could survive a thrust from that blade..."
He had used his advanced Mystery ability to craft cursed tools carrying "unhealable hexes." These weapons inflicted wounds that bypassed standard healing magic or commercial potions, curable only by the miracles of Spirits.
Among them, the Black Sword of Behemoth, forged from the remains of the Great Black Beast of the Three Great Quests, was a peerless masterpiece. It was a demonic blade without equal in this world—a lethal weapon specialized in reaping souls and slaying heroes. It should have been enough to exterminate any first-class adventurer.
It would be one thing if it were merely the daggers meant for common soldiers, but this sword was made from a prehistoric monster, one of the strongest in history. Even Barca, who cared for nothing but his maze, had been impressed by its craftsmanship. Logically, it should have been impossible to break a curse made through the Mystery ability and fully heal the wound.
Yes, it should have been impossible. But because it had actually happened, he had to accept the reality.
"...Whether it's the Sword Saint or the Saint... what is wrong with these people?"
The "Sword Saint" shattered the mechanisms of Knossos that his ancestors had spent a thousand years building. The "Saint" healed the ultimate lethal curse with a single spell, despite being a mere human.
The thought of them brought an incomprehensible chill to his spine. Barca, who no longer understood normal emotions, failed to realize that what he felt was "fear."
●○●○●
"U-um, do you have a minute? ...There's something I'd like to ask you..."
"Hmm? Oh, Line. That's rare for you. Sure, I'll answer if I can."
"D-do you know what kind of women Bete-san likes?!"
In the Loki Familia headquarters, now quiet as most members had headed out, Line Arshe approached Al with hesitation. She was a human girl with delicate features, twin braids, and glasses—someone who didn't look like an adventurer at all.
Line was a Level 2 adventurer, serving as a healer and supporter. She had recently returned from the Dian Cecht Familia clinic after sustaining severe injuries at the hands of the Evils during the Knossos raid.
Al's eyes widened in surprise at her question, while Line's face turned bright red.
"Actually, I saw Bete-san earlier walking with an Amazon woman... they were even linking arms. Although he kicked her away immediately after, I felt worried. Since you're close to Bete-san, Al-san, I thought you might know his type..."
She was one of those girls you encounter sometimes—a quiet, literary type who falls for the "bad boy" or the "troublemaker" who is her polar opposite. Line was deeply in love with Bete Loga, the Loki Familia's biggest headache.
"Well, isn't strength what he prefers?"
"Strength... that's..."
"Right. It isn't realistic to become strong in a short time."
"...Have you considered living your life without regrets and just charging at him with everything you have, like Tione does?"
●○●○●
In the southwestern part of Orario, tucked away from the main street, sat a small tavern in a narrow alley. The sign read "Pallum Hideout," and as the name suggested, the furniture was scaled for the Pallum race. Every customer inside was a member of that same small-statured race. Even the waitresses moving between the elegant wooden tables were Pallum—fairy-like women and gentle-looking men.
" "Finn (Captain)?" "
" " " " " Eeeeeeeeeeeeh! " " " " "
Suddenly, a series of angry, muffled female screams shattered the quiet, cozy atmosphere. Everyone felt a chill as if a blade had been pressed against their necks. The killing intent in the air was so thick that they cried out in terror and took defensive stances.
Finn and Lilliluca turned to find two Amazons standing there, an ominous black aura swirling behind them.
"...Tione and Argana?! H-how long have you two been there?"
Finn cried out in shock, but Tione and her companion ignored him, stepping forward with heavy, deliberate strides.
"What is the meaning of this talk? Marriage? A bride?"
"Finn, Finn, Fiiiiiiiiiiiiinn!!"
Rage had completely consumed them; Tione's eyes were wide with a manic gleam. The air around them vibrated with their surging emotions. Naturally, this fury was directed at Finn and Lilliluca. They lunged forward as if ready to pounce.
With every step, the floorboards groaned and threatened to splinter. Under the weight of this overwhelming pressure, Finn tried to look to the other side of the tavern for help. However, the other Pallum guests, right in the middle of their banquet, all pretended not to notice and turned their faces away.
The pressure of a first-class adventurer in a state of rage was so terrifying it didn't even give the other patrons a chance to flee. Within moments, the distance closed until only a few steps remained.
"How did you know I was here...?"
"Al told us."
"(What did you do?! You betrayed me, Al!!)"
Finn screamed internally, embarrassed that his "proposal" to Lili—even if it was a half-joke—had been leaked to the worst possible people. "Devotion" might sound like a beautiful word, but for these Amazons, it was closer to a female praying mantis devouring its mate. Once they set their sights on prey, they never let go. Knowing this nature all too well, Finn's mind raced at maximum speed to find an exit.
But his thoughts vanished in the next instant.
CRACK! A violent sound echoed as Tione's fist slammed into the table, nearly obliterating it right before his eyes. That alone caused beads of sweat to pour down Finn's face—a man who, as a first-class commander, was supposed to possess incomparable courage.
"CAAAAAAAAAPTAAAAAAAAAAIN!!"
"FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINN!!"
"Calm down!!"
The charge from Tione and Argana was like a suicide rush. Inside the tiny tavern, they moved like lightning toward Finn. Despite his superior agility, he was forced to dive and roll out of the tavern just to save his skin.
─────── "Wrist Eurm" (Move Name)!
─────── Well done, Tione!
─────── W-wait. Let's talk!!
─────── Oh, we'll talk plenty.
─────── Yes, let's talk until we're satisfied.
─────── With your very booooooody!!
─────── G-Gwaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!
" " " " (This is worse than a mere beating.) " " " "
●○●○●
"...Lili, shall we go back?"
"Eh? Ah, yes."
A few minutes later, Finn was rescued by two "good" Amazons who had rushed to the source of the noise—and who strictly clarified they were not "the sisters of these two love-crazed idiots." He managed to maintain a minimum level of dignity, though he was seen muttering to himself, nearly half-naked after his clothes were almost torn to shreds:
─────── Al, I will remember this...
Because of those words, so unbefitting of the usually reliable and stoic Captain, one of the "good" Amazons couldn't hold back her tears. "May the gods have mercy on his soul."
●○●○●
News of the Kingdom of Rakia's army marching to war reached Orario in a heartbeat.
Located to the west of Orario, Rakia is a classic monarchy where the King and the ruling God hold absolute power. It is a quintessential military state. Its history is built on expansionism and conquest; its willingness to invade neighbors has made it a nation feared by all nearby countries.
The army of Rakia, which follows the God of War Ares, is known as one of the strongest on the continent. It is said that the number of soldiers who have received the "God's Blessing" reaches 600,000. These people launched occasional invasions against the Labyrinth City, Orario, the capital of adventurers.
Each time, the adventurers of Orario repelled and defeated them. Yet, they never learned their lesson, attacking again and again until they became nothing more than a persistent nuisance to Orario's residents.
This time, the force numbered around 30,000 soldiers. While 99% of them were merely Level 1 trash, that number was still more than enough to topple an entire city.
───── .....
A vast green plain stretched to the horizon without obstruction. The clouds in the clear blue sky looked like tufts of white cotton candy, and the sun sent down warm, gentle rays that lent a sense of peace to the scene.
On this plain, the forces of Rakia were stationed. Strong soldiers in heavy armor stood in precisely organized formations. Their silent stance was awe-inspiring, their silver armor reflecting the bright sunlight in a brilliant glow. This massive host, resembling a river of clouds, possessed a pressure capable of breaking an opponent's heart before a single blow was exchanged. The formations, combining powerful cavalry and sturdy infantry, made their army look like an "Iron Wall."
Yet, their facial expressions were far from bright. Tension and fear were clearly visible. This was only natural. Their opponent was the Labyrinth City, the greatest city in the world and the stronghold of heroes. Even with 30,000 men, facing adventurers who honed their skills daily against Dungeon monsters made their power feel insignificant.
Even though only "one human" stood before them, they couldn't stop the shivers running through their bodies. The commander leading them seemed to feel the same, looking with a pale face at the young man standing beside him.
He was a handsome man with white hair reminiscent of virgin snow and bright, blood-red eyes. His body, honed like a polished blade, was dressed in light, black-dominated combat gear. Though his frame seemed slender at first glance, the power within him was immense. His mere presence made even veteran soldiers hold their breath. In his hand, he carried a great Otachi sword in a pitch-black sheath.
" " " " " Uoooooooooooooo!! " " " " "
The commander, mounted on his horse at the front of the army, shouted at the top of his lungs. In response, every soldier raised his weapon with a battle cry and began the march. Their movement wasn't perfectly refined, but it was full of power. Even if it was just a show of bravado, it displayed high enough morale.
Two thousand meters, 1,500 meters, 1,000 meters, 900 meters... The moment the distance approached 800 meters, the previously still young man moved.
"Right. Thunderbolt."
" " " " " G-Gwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa?! " " " " "
A ball of lightning appeared in his raised right hand. In the next instant, thunder roared and lightning swept across the earth. In a single moment, the bolt struck hundreds of soldiers, electrocuting them with titan-like force. Even those not hit directly began to twist in terror as they were swallowed by the subsequent waves of the lightning barrage.
"Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt."
This was the brutality afforded by "Concurrent Chanting" magic that required no long incantation. Massive lightning cannons were charged and fired into the air one after another. In the blink of an eye, the Rakia army was in a state of total devastation. It was no longer a fight; it was a one-sided "extermination."
Before a magical storm that could only be described as a "mad symphony of lightning," the soldiers of Rakia fell helplessly. Some heroes tried to hold their ground or survived by chance and charged, but they were no exception. They were all neutralized by a single swing of the great Otachi wielded by the young man.
Whether they were front-line infantry acting as shields or back-line archers trying to retaliate, the lightning tore through them all without discrimination. The battlefield turned into a hell of wailing and screaming.
The young man, who was annihilating his enemies with magical precision and showing the power of a "warrior worth a thousand," bore no smile on his handsome face. He continued to neutralize the enemy soldiers with total coldness, purely mechanically, as if "boredom and weariness" oozed from his very stance. He had no desire to kill; he was doing his best just to "neutralize" them, but the Rakia army couldn't tell the difference.
"Since I'm not as skilled as Hedine, I have no choice but to use volume to crush this many people."
Al Cranel was a classic front-line warrior. To him, attack magic was nothing more than an "addition." However, to face weaklings who had nothing but numbers, his destructive power was excessive by leaps and bounds. The magic he released had the power to kill in a single hit. Against ordinary monsters, this power was enough to erase them without leaving a speck of dust.
If we were to mention Al's only weakness in combat, it would be the "short effective range" of his attacks. He was far better than pure warriors with no attack magic, but if first-class back-line mages like Riveria or Hedine maintained their distance, he would end up as a target for their one-sided bombardment.
Al had learned his third magic as a type of "wide-area" spell for mass extermination, but it wasn't something he used daily, so he felt annoyed in such situations. Not to mention reinforcement magic, the range of Thunderbolt depended on the amount of magical energy used, but it remained short compared to other single-shot spells. To inflict damage without losing power, the opponent had to be within a 100-meter range. Anything further reduced the power significantly and made accuracy very low, making it unrealistic.
Compared to the range of Hedine's magic, Kaulols Hilder, which easily exceeded 500 meters, the weakness of his long-range attacks was obvious. Well, since Al was primarily a close-combat specialist who didn't rely on ranged attacks, it was inevitable. That's why, when facing a large number of weaklings like this, he felt a lack of attack volume.
"This is really inefficient."
───── Of course, he had taken countermeasures.
It was a "rule-breaking trick" that his peerless talent had devised after facing his skills and magic for four full years. He used an "ultra-short charge" of no more than 0.1 seconds from the skill Prodigy of Calamity (Absolute Heroism).
Instead of converting that charge into destructive power, he converted it only into "sustained force" for the magic, creating a single-shot spell with a massive range. This "violation" was only possible because Thunderbolt was a quick-cast spell. By activating the skill for a fleeting moment between the "magic charging" and "firing" phases, he completed a "Great Range Magic" that put everything in his sight within his attack range.
Of course, a single-moment charge produced only weak power and attack, yet the effect was massive.
"Thunderbolt."
What launched was a lightning glow that seemed to pour from the heavens. It roamed the battlefield with a brilliance like a meteor shower lighting up the night sky. The scene was truly majestic.
The raging surge of lightning looked exactly like the wrath of a "Thunder God." Countless bolts filled the plain, and everyone touched by them was electrocuted and fell instantly. Amidst this scene that was no longer called a war but an "extermination," Al stood alone on the battlefield, sighing with annoyance.
"Damn you, Finn..."
He remembered the smug smile of that Pallum (in his forties) who had proposed to a "supporter" (who was fifteen). Al rested an iron rod over his shoulder. He had been forced into this hard labor as a form of revenge because he had leaked the proposal news to both of the "love-crazed Amazons" (Level 6 x 2), without telling them the bride was Lilliluca.
"Well, with this, I consider the debt settled."
●○●○●
Several hours later, the "Sword Saint" Al Cranel was "fleeing" with all his might.
His masterful escape—which gave no hint that he was the "Hero" who had just crushed a ten-thousand-man army alone—was even more refined than his younger brother's retreats. There was no wasted energy in his run. As befitted the title of "Fastest in the City," he fled at supernatural speed. Even as a crowd of people chased him from behind, he didn't even look back. Even Airmid would find it difficult to catch Al when he was using the advanced Running ability at full capacity.
However...
" " " " " We found him!! First one there wins!! " " " " "
The pursuers were an army of dark-skinned beauties whose eyes had changed color from sheer excitement. Among the more than one hundred women, there were humans, elves, and beast-people, but the vast majority were Amazons.
(OH MY GOOOOOOOD!!)
Their eyes were all bloodshot with a terrifying glint; some were even licking their lips crazily. Al couldn't maintain his composure before the pursuit of these women, letting out "maidenly" screams inside his heart. Most were warriors from the Kali Familia remaining in the city, or former Ishtar Familia members who had changed their affiliation.
This wasn't just a crowd; among them were those who had reached Level 4 (considered elite even in the Loki Familia), and their gazes were all dead serious. Amazons possess an instinct that makes them fall for males stronger than themselves. While strength isn't everything, their lean toward realism and power is incredibly strong.
The existence of Al, who represented the peak of power in the city despite his young age, made him the perfect prey. Since he had reached Level 8 (one of only two in the entire world) and was exceptionally handsome, it would be strange if the Amazons didn't target him. As for the members of the Kali Familia, they had felt his power directly after he had crushed them.
The scale of their emotional obsession was terrifying. No matter how many times he repelled them, they didn't give up and continued to close in, eventually forcing Al into the option of flight. No matter how much of a "Hero" he was from the Age of Gods where "quality beats quantity," he couldn't stop himself from feeling terror before Amazons who pursued him with skill and determination that put the Rakia army to shame.
He was certain that if he were caught, he would face a true crisis threatening his dignity. The depth of desire in the eyes of those Amazons was overwhelmingly certain. Well, regardless, since Al possessed Level 8 stats, it was logically impossible for opponents who were at most second-class adventurers to catch him, no matter how high their average level was.
Perhaps the only consolation was that Bache and Tiona hadn't joined this army of female warriors organized by Kali, who participated as a leader out of sheer amusement. If those two were there, things would be much more complicated. Facing an army of Amazons plus two Level 6s was beyond "difficult."
The resolve of the Amazons, who wouldn't give up no matter how far he pulled away, filled Al with a fear enough to make him tremble.
"...But tell me, Aisha. That thing the 'Hero' (Finn) said earlier about the 'Sword Saint' looking for a girlfriend... is it true?"
"...Who knows. I don't know. Well, I'm going too."
●○●○●
Help me, Airmid; save me, Filvis.
Damn Amazons, at least turn into Elves before you come at me.
I can't run because they won't give up, and if I retaliate poorly they might die from the level difference, and I feel like any reaction at all will just backfire...
That damn Finn, I'm definitely sending him to the hospital...!!
──────────────────────────────────────────────
The man who irresponsibly lit the fire of "loving maidens" twice in one day:
• Raw Attack Power (Level 8 Thunderbolt): Alfia > Al (But Al is slightly superior in speed).
• Natural Speed: Al > Allen ≧ Al (Level 6). (At the same level, Allen is slightly faster; with magic, Al gets very close even with a one-level difference).
• Healing Performance: Airmid ≫ Al (Obvious, no discussion needed).
• Endurance (Physical and Spiritual): Al ≫≫ The rest (Absolute vitality monster).
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