She always maintained a composed, sharp intellectual beauty in front of everyone — but right now, even the tips of her trademark pointed Elf ears had flushed a deep, ripe pink.
"D-Don't make such a fuss!"
Eina buried her face behind a stack of documents, her voice thin as the whine of a mosquito.
Misha leaned in close, her short pink hair swaying with the motion, and jabbed an elbow into Eina's ribs.
"My, my — our ever-serious, ever-proper Miss Eina, thrown into complete disarray by a single sentence from Lord Haimer." "'When I have a free evening, I'll come pick you up from work~'"
Misha pinched her voice into a deliberate imitation of Haimer's calm, measured tone.
The male colleagues nearby beat their chests in anguish, cursing their own misfortune for never receiving such treatment.
Eina bit her lower lip, snatched up a notebook, and rapped Misha squarely on the forehead with it.
——
The far end of Northwest Main Street.
The outer-ring district.
What had once been a sprawling, disorderly wasteland had been cleared entirely. Countless towering construction rigs now stood beneath the open sky, gleaming in the sunlight.
And at the same time —
The Dungeon. Sixteenth Floor.
In the dim subterranean labyrinth, fluorescent moss breathed a faint, eerie green glow.
The air was thick and heavy with the reek of blood.
BOOM!
A Minotaur — enormous, its entire body matted with crimson fur — was hurled into the rock face with tremendous force. Chunks of stone rained down.
Amou Kirukiru planted one foot on the Minotaur's chest. She pressed her right hand flat, five fingers held together like a blade, and drove it straight through the creature's sternum — her forearm disappearing to the elbow.
Splurch——!
Amou Kirukiru wrenched her hand free, trailing a long, dark ribbon of crimson blood.
CRASH!
The Minotaur's body dissolved in an instant into a cascade of drifting ash, leaving behind only a single massive Magic Stone on the ground.
Amou Kirukiru shook the blood from her hand with a casual flick and clicked her tongue.
"These mid-level monsters just keep getting weaker. They're not even worth calling a warm-up."
Some ten-odd metres away from her —
Onigawara Rin stood gripping a nodachi whose blade gleamed with a dark, subdued lustre, its tip angled toward the ground.
Three Hellhound carcasses lay strewn in every direction around her. The cuts were mirror-smooth — so clean that barely a drop of excess blood had spilled before the bodies crumbled away to ash.
Onigawara Rin raised the blade into the faint light of the fluorescent moss and studied it with care, running her gaze along its edge.
Not a single nick. Not the faintest trace of a rolled edge anywhere along the blade.
"A weapon forged personally by Kami-sama truly is something else."
Onigawara Rin rotated her wrist in a crisp flourish and slid the blade back into its sheath.
"Not only is it a huge step up from what I had before — I didn't even feel the drag of the air against the blade when I swung."
Elsewhere —
Kikakujou Mary held a blood-red Western sword in one hand and was quietly wiping the blade clean.
Nomura Satori stood balanced on a jutting outcrop of rock, idly tossing a handful of throwing knives from hand to hand.
Hanasaka Warabi sat perched on Kyoubou's back.
Beneath Kyoubou's feet lay several pelts stripped from monsters.
Tendou Kisara stood at the far side of the passage, her pure-white sleeveless bodysuit unmarked by so much as a speck of grime. Her left thumb rested against the hilt guard of her sword, and her gaze swept ceaselessly across the surrounding tunnels.
Aihara Enju, wearing her metal-plated boots, launched herself off the rock face again and again in rapid succession, finally dropping to a clean landing beside a Magic Stone. She scooped it up and tossed it into the pack on her back.
Hibiko Kohina held two short blades in a reverse grip, one in each hand.
The Holy Emperor stood at the centre of the group.
When the party had been surrounded by a large wave of monsters moments ago, she had already deployed the wide-area magic of 『Utopia』 — its green radiance washing over everyone and keeping every one of them at peak condition.
"Speaking of which —"
"To be more precise — we're the ones who keep getting stronger."
"After Lord Haimer's level advancements, the addition of new members, and the Holy Emperor's magic support — the vast majority of the mid-upper floors pose no threat to us whatsoever anymore."
"Though, now that you mention it —"
Hanasaka Warabi sat riding Kyoubou's broad back.
Kyoubou had his head bowed, tongue lapping at the monster blood smeared across his claws.
Hanasaka Warabi gave his head a pat.
"This morning, when we came down from the surface — did any of you notice?"
Hanasaka Warabi looked around at the others.
"The adventurers on the streets. And the merchants."
"The way they looked at us — it was even more extreme than a couple of days ago."
"Before, they only kept their distance because of the killing intent rolling off Kirukiru. But today — a lot of them, even the gods just passing by, were pressing themselves flat against the walls. They wouldn't even glance in our direction."
Kikakujou Mary slid her Western sword back into its scabbard.
"It's true. The way they scattered looked even more exaggerated than yesterday — like they were looking at monsters, not people."
"Well, of course they're frightened."
"After all — we are, in the truest sense now, a Familia that walks side by side with monsters."
Inaba Tsukuyo stood cradling her sheathed sword, poised atop a flat slab of stone.
"The attitude this world's inhabitants hold toward monsters — we witnessed it firsthand last night and again this morning."
"In this world, monsters from the Dungeon and the people above-ground have despised one another for over a thousand years."
"To do what he has done — I'm sure Kami-sama has shouldered no small amount of pressure for it."
After Inaba Tsukuyo's words, the girls fell silent.
In each of their minds, the same image surfaced — Haimer's face, always wearing that gentle, unhurried smile.
Until Amou Kirukiru walked over and kicked aside a broken stub of horn lying on the ground.
"Pressure?"
"Give me a break."
Amou Kirukiru let out a cold laugh and rolled her neck — a sharp, clear crack of bone.
"Haven't you all noticed? The way those gods don't even dare breathe when they're standing in front of our god?"
"The Guild. The Ganesha Familia. The Loki Familia. And the Hephaestus Familia."
"Every major power in this city seems to have a deep, tangled relationship with our god."
"With those connections behind us —"
"Other than the Freya Familia — the one they say rivals the Loki Familia for the title of Orario's strongest, and the only major force we haven't had any dealings with yet —"
"I honestly cannot think of a single god in this city who would dare challenge ours."
Amou Kirukiru dropped onto a boulder, crossed one leg over the other without a hint of propriety, and smirked.
"Speaking of which —"
"I've been hearing about something interesting lately."
"The 『War Game』 — an officially sanctioned duel fought between Familias under rules agreed upon between gods. The gods set the terms, and the Familia members serve as the pieces in what amounts to a lawful, all-out battle."
"I'd very much like to find an opportunity to convince Kami-sama to declare one against another Familia."
A fierce, burning fervour ignited in Amou Kirukiru's eyes.
"Stop giving Kami-sama more headaches to deal with."
Onigawara Rin heard that and furrowed her brow at once.
"Kami-sama these past few days has not only had to oversee the construction of the new base — there's also Lady Rei's situation, and the matter of the other heretics still waiting in the Dungeon."
"And just look at where we stand right now."
Onigawara Rin raised a finger and pointed — at Tendou Kisara, Aihara Enju, and Kohina standing nearby, and finally at the Holy Emperor.
"We're all still only Lv. 2."
"And Kisara and the others only received their Grace yesterday. Their combat ability is remarkable, yes — but on paper, our registered headcount and levels aren't nearly enough to support a War Game of any real scale."
"Not enough?"
Amou Kirukiru let out a derisive snort, then stepped forward to meet Onigawara Rin's gaze, closing the distance between them to less than half a metre.
"I advanced to Lv. 2 only a few days ago — but I've been measuring myself. Setting magic aside since that's still at zero, my Strength, Endurance, Dexterity, and Agility proficiencies have all already reached the B tier."
Amou Kirukiru turned to look at Tendou Kisara and the others.
"The moment I achieve one Heroic Feat, I can level up to Lv. 3 any time I choose."
"Besides —"
"Our new members are hardly weak."
"A swordswoman who can release Sword Aura. And two little monsters with monster blood running in their veins."
"Even if those three are only Lv. 1 — killing a Lv. 3 adventurer would be child's play for them."
"Not to mention —"
"We now have a healer who can provide wide-range buffs and sustained support across an entire battlefield."
"And knowing our god as I do — I'm quite sure he'd be more than pleased to see me court his favour this way."
With that said —
Amou Kirukiru folded her arms across her chest, crossed her legs, and looked back at Onigawara Rin.
Onigawara Rin's brow remained tightly knitted.
The two faced each other, neither willing to yield a single step.
The Holy Emperor stood to one side, her hands wrung together. She opened her mouth, intending to say something to defuse the tension, but couldn't find a way to insert herself.
Nomura Satori saw this, hopped down from her rock, and walked over to the Holy Emperor's side. She gave her a light pat on the shoulder and smiled.
"Don't worry about it."
Nomura Satori's expression was utterly unbothered.
"Those two are always like this."
"Kirukiru only cares about fighting. Rin worries about everything and always wants to have every last detail planned out in perfect order."
"Let them bicker for a bit and it'll blow over on its own."
"Exactly, exactly — a good argument never hurt anyone."
Hanasaka Warabi, still seated on Kyoubou's back, fished a sweet out of her pocket.
Kikakujou Mary had just finished smoothing out the cuffs of her sleeves and was about to add something — when her gaze abruptly froze.
Nomura Satori likewise stopped tossing her throwing knives and turned her head toward Inaba Tsukuyo.
And she saw —
Inaba Tsukuyo had not relaxed her guard.
Because —
More than a hundred metres away, behind a massive stalactite pillar at the mouth of a branching passage —
there was a group of people.
——
The Lizardman Reed, along with two other fully-armed heretics, was concealed behind the enormous stalactite pillar at the entrance to that side passage.
Having heard the news that members of the Haimer Familia had descended to the Dungeon's mid-floors, Reed had quietly followed with a few companions.
They didn't dare get too close — they only wanted to take the opportunity to confirm the situation of Rei and the others.
Just moments ago, every word of the argument among the young women of the Haimer Familia had drifted cleanly into Reed's ears.
Reed's scale-covered Lizardman face broke into an expression that was unmistakably, humanly, relieved.
He turned his head and dropped his voice to barely a breath.
"Did you hear that? Rei and the others really did make it safely to the surface — and Kami-sama has been taken care of properly."
"It seems that dark-haired god truly does have the means to shelter us."
The shoulders of the other two heretics, which had been drawn tight with tension, visibly eased.
"Well then — intelligence confirmed. Let's get out of here quickly."
"Yeah!"
"Let's go. We'll bring this good news back to Himitsu — tell Gurosu and the others."
Reed gave a nod, tightened his grip on his weapon, and slowly began inching his heels backward, preparing to retreat through the hidden passage back toward the eighteenth floor — back to [Himitsu].
——
Only —
When Reed's broad, rough-scaled feet made the faintest shff of friction against the dust-covered stone floor —
Reed himself didn't even register the sound.
But —
The next instant.
"Come out."
Inaba Tsukuyo's voice rang out.
At the sudden sound of that voice, Reed and the other two heretics went visibly rigid.
Had they been spotted?
Impossible.
Both he and the other two heretics were veterans of the outside world with vast field experience. The weakest among them possessed ability comparable to a surface-level Lv. 4 adventurer.
And Reed himself, having survived countless trials over the years, had already reached a level of capability that could hold its own against a surface-level Lv. 5 adventurer. How could someone of his calibre possibly be detected by a Lv. 2 human adventurer?
With that thought, Reed gritted his teeth and signalled the other two heretics with his eyes to stay perfectly still and silent.
From experience, he decided to take the gamble — to bet that the other side was only bluffing, calling out into the dark at no one in particular.
And so the three of them held their half-turned postures, motionless as stone, suppressing even the rhythm of their own heartbeats by sheer force of will.
But —
Reed had bet wrong.
Inaba Tsukuyo's hearing was beyond any dispute.
If she said something was there — every one of them believed her without question, one hundred percent.
Especially when the possibility existed that their conversation had been overheard by an outsider.
In a situation like that, this sort of thing was, to them, an unforgivable liability.
"If you won't come out — then die where you stand."
Having already avenged the Tendou clan —
Tendou Kisara had long since made her peace with killing. Her voice carried not a trace of hesitation.
Hmmm!
The air emitted a sharp, piercing shriek.
Tendou Kisara wasted not a single word.
Left thumb against the guard — right hand snapping to the hilt!
SHHRING——!!
In an instant!
Tendou Kisara's draw tore the air asunder!
A colossal crescent of Sword Aura, charged with terrifying power, erupted forth!
It skimmed along the ground, shearing clean through several stalactite pillars in its path, and slammed into the enormous boulder behind which Reed and the others were hiding.
BOOM!
A thunderous detonation exploded through the passage!
The solid stone, before Tendou Kisara's Sword Aura, was sliced cleanly and diagonally in two — smooth as silk.
The upper half of the boulder ground loose and crashed to the floor, throwing up a storm of dust.
Reed hastily signalled the two heretics not to draw their weapons.
But —
The assault did not stop.
"Me too!"
As the dust swirled thick and blinding —
In the same instant —
A bright, energetic young voice rang out!
Aihara Enju bent her knees — and the metal boots on her feet blazed with a sudden burst of red light!
BOOM!
The ground where Aihara Enju had been standing cratered in an instant, shards of rock scattering in every direction.
Her body launched into the air!
She completed a breathtakingly difficult forward flip in mid-air —
then brought her right leg arcing upward before driving it downward with devastating, falling momentum!
Straight into the boulder behind which Reed and the others were sheltering!
CRACK!!
The sixteenth floor shuddered!
The rock shattered outright, sending shards of stone blasting outward in every direction!
What terrifying force!
Could this little human girl truly have monster blood running through her veins?
Just as Reed was throwing up both arms to shield against the flying debris, his mind reeling at the thought that Aihara Enju's leg strength was so monstrous she might genuinely be half-monster —
"Kill them! Kill them! Kill them all!!!"
Through the billowing dust —
A flash of red!
Reed fixed his eyes on it.
And saw —
A blue-haired little girl with the same pair of burning orange-red eyes — moving every bit as fast!
Her body practically skimming the ground!
She burst from the swirling dust in an explosive surge!
A deranged, ecstatic grin split her face as she crossed her two short blades into an X!
Aimed straight at him!
Those crimson eyes were filled to the brim with a bloodlust that burned like hunger!
——
Fast!
The killing intent rolling off her was overwhelming!
It was so dense it had almost taken on physical weight — a pressure that slammed into Reed like a wall, making even this battle-hardened veteran's scalp prickle.
Especially as Hibiko Kohina's slashing blades came screaming in at him.
Reed's pupils contracted violently.
Could a speed like this truly be produced by a human child?
Reed sensed the danger — he could not afford to be careless.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
CLAAANG——!!
"Got you!"
"Nani?!"
Reed's mind went blank for a split second.
Hibiko Kohina saw her opening, her red eyes blazing. She bared a sharp little fang in a grin — and in the same breath, both short-blade edges swung straight for Reed's throat!
____
👻🔥Seek: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: Jujutsu x Mieruko: Oh no, am I a villain too?
Let's hit these goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = 1 extra chapter for the public!