The gods and goddesses were busy looking into their familia members' results. Hestia wasn't—she only wanted to know about one person:
[Name: Akira Akatsuki]
[Title: None]
[Affiliation: Hestia Familia]
[Kills: 532,847]
[Achievements: 1st into Filivius Tower (300)]
[Total Score: 832]
His position was 19th on the ranking list—too high for someone of his level, but that could be attributed to the lack of monsters left for high-level adventurers to kill. None of them had even broken a sweat, but the high spawn rate ensured everyone got bitten at least once.
"Ouch…" Ais cried out as Riveria applied medicine to her arm. Even she had been bitten once.
"If you don't want to feel pain, next time don't dive straight into the monster wave," Riveria lectured. Ais puffed her cheeks in protest.
"Ouch…" Riveria pressed the cotton swab harder.
"Do you understand?" Riveria asked.
"Mmm…" Ais nodded and sulked as Riveria wrapped a cloth around her arm.
"Let's go. The meeting for the plan is about to start."
Riveria and Ais left the broken building and headed toward the main square in front of Babel.
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"I'm telling you, I need at least a Level 2 to ensure people's safety. The Level 1s you added won't be enough," Shakti argued. She wanted to strengthen the defense of the Amphitheater to make sure no civilian lives were lost this time.
"No. The forces here have to face the most enemies—and the spawn point was found right underneath this area. I refuse to believe that's a coincidence," Finn rebuked.
"Then at least replace the Level 1s you gave me with ones who have better endurance. The fight hasn't even started yet and they already look tired," Shakti insisted. Finn sighed and agreed.
"Let's just hope you're right," Shakti said sincerely.
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On the 12th floor of the Dungeon, a caravan of adventurers was traveling upward. All the adventurers from Rivira had been evacuated.
The reason: half of Rivira had been destroyed by a stray magic blast launched by the Minotaur who still stood motionless in the middle of the burning jungle.
The adventurers who lived there were veterans—they knew how dangerous it could be to get caught in the crossfire between the Minotaur and the next wave.
Carrying the injured and their valuables, they were traveling as fast as possible to the surface. With Bors and other high-class adventurers leading, they easily dealt with any monsters along the way.
Back on the 18th floor, Fels watched as some adventurers ransacked Rivira for valuables. He was reporting everything to God Ouranos through Occulus, a magical video communication crystal.
"What about the Dungeon's Champion?" Ouranos asked.
Fels turned the crystal eye toward the Minotaur. "He's still standing still."
He then pointed the crystal eye upward, showing a flickering yellow basketball-sized flame suspended high above. "It's looking at that flame."
"Hmm… I can't distinguish anything from its appearance," Ouranos replied. "Anything else?"
"I didn't have anyone approach it closely, but according to Ray, even from afar it smells… disgusting," Fels answered.
"You did well. It might be dangerous. I'm sure we'll find out what it is during the Second Trial," Ouranos said. After a bit more discussion about Fels's experience during the first wave, he added, "One last thing—avoid fighting as much as possible. If necessary, fight without saying anything. The broadcasts are being monitored."
Hearing that even the Dungeon fights were being broadcasted made Fels uneasy. The fact that their location hadn't been shown made him thankful for his luck. He decided to follow Ouranos's advice.
-----------------------------------
DING! DING!
The sound of bells echoed throughout Orario.
[Time's Up]
[Second Trial Starts]
[Calibrating New Viewers]
Akira opened his eyes to the sound of notifications ringing in his ears. A ranking screen hovered before him—he swiped it away, as it only made his headache worse.
He looked around to see many people lying injured on beds. The roof seemed to be made of cloth—he was inside a large medical tent.
As he tried to stand, pain shot through his body. Still, he managed to walk outside, where a group of adventurers were readying their weapons. Above them, a large screen floated in the sky, showing a dense jungle.
"Akira-san! You should get back inside—you're injured!" Raul called out.
"I'm fine. What's the situation?" Akira asked, feeling better than he expected.
Raul wasn't convinced. Earlier, Airmid had used healing magic on everyone, and Akira had been the only one who required extra treatment. Seeing him ready to fight again, Raul sighed and explained, "We're in the Garden of the Twilight Mansion. You might've heard—the second trial's about to start. Don't worry, this is the safest place in Orario. We defeated the first wave without a single loss."
Pointing at the screen in the sky, Akira asked, "What about that?"
"Ah, you must not have seen it before. That's one of the gods'—"
"I know what it is," Akira interrupted. "I mean, why is it being used today? This isn't a War Game. And when did it start?"
"It started during the second ring. The gods and civilians have had it since the first wave. As for why… who knows what the gods are thinking," Raul shrugged.
'If it started since the first wave, that means my powers might be out. Wait!!' Akira suddenly noticed his orange hair—and when he touched his ear, the earrings from his Cú Chulainn cosplay were gone.
"How did I get here?" he asked.
"A female adventurer carried you here. I didn't get a good look at her, but she talked to Shakti-san from the Ganesha Familia—she might know who she was," Raul replied.
He placed a hand on Akira's shoulder. "Now you should rest. We've got this."
As Raul pushed him back toward the tent, Akira asked one last question,
"Are gods allowed to use their Arcanum in the Dungeon?"
Raul was about to say no—but then saw Akira pointing up at the screen.
Turning back, he saw it too: a yellow, fiery sun floating beneath the crystal roof.
-----------------------------------
On the 18th floor, a yellow sun was blazing. The ball of fire suspended above released so much magic that it dyed the ceiling crystals gold. It would have been a beautiful sight—if not for the sweltering heat.
Even through the screen, viewers could see the air distorting from the temperature. The fiery orb grew to a meter in diameter before it stopped expanding.
In its center, a dark spot appeared—growing until it covered nearly the entire sphere, leaving only its glowing edges.
"It's like a solar eclipse," Akira murmured.
From the darkened center, a black liquid began to pour down. It spread rapidly across the ground until it covered half the floor, then stopped.
The camera shifted to the darkened ground—two stone peaks emerged, followed by massive, black-armored hands pulling a body from the darkness. The "peaks" turned out to be horns as a demonic, fiery face rose from below.
The temperature soared, evaporating the floor's lakes. When the full body of the creature climbed out, trees across the floor instantly caught fire.
The monster stood roughly 20 meters tall, its entire body covered in pitch-black armor with molten yellow fire flowing between the gaps. It looked less like a creature and more like fire imprisoned within armor.
With a thunderous roar, it announced its arrival.
As if to confirm its identity, Frevius Clock Tower displayed a message: [Dadaneuph: Demon of Calamity has been summoned.]
Opposite it stood the Dungeon's Champion—Asterius.
With a roar, Asterius lunged straight toward the demon's face. Mid-air, he charged his Zangetsu for a Getsuga Tenshō—but the demon, surprisingly agile for its size, punched him. The massive punch left no escape Asterius could only place his sword and take the hit head-on.
Asterius was thrown across the floor, crashing into the far wall with a deafening boom.
Dadaneuph, sure of its victory, began searching for an exit. But the Dungeon wasn't done with him yet.
CRACK!
Dadaneuph looked up to see small crystals falling from the roof.
BANG!
A large chunk of crystal broke apart—and behind it stood the Dungeon's newest creation.
Seeing its new enemy, Dadaneuph readied a flame breath—but the new monster moved faster. It hurled a massive shard of crystal straight into Dadaneuph's collar, disrupting the attack. The unstable magic inside his throat exploded in his face, knocking him backward.
The new monster landed beside him, creating a massive shockwave that blew the flames out. As the dust cleared, Dadaneuph finally saw it—a 20-meter-tall, four-armed, red-skinned Goliath with black hair.
The Goliath grinned, its four fists cocking back—ready to pummel its opponent into the ground.
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