—A massive red monster's arm emerged from the golden magic circle.
The moment I saw it, an indescribable sense of fear gripped me.
"Eugy-kun…" (Sumire)
Sumire tightened her grip on my arm.
"Eugy…" (Airi)
Airi anxiously leaned closer to me.
I placed my hand on my sword's hilt, ready to draw it at any moment.
However, the magic circle seemed too small to accommodate the size of the red-arm monster.
(With that magic circle, it shouldn't be able to come through… right?) (Eugene)
For a brief moment, a hopeful thought crossed my mind.
But as if to crush that hope… —crack, a fissure ran through space itself.
The crack widened.
Like the sky itself was breaking apart, slowly forming fractures.
"This… This can't be…" (Rebecca)
I heard Rebecca-senpai murmur.
"Rebecca-senpai, what is that…?" (Eugene)
"It looks like…it's trying to cross over by directly breaking the world's barrier instead of using a teleport spell from another realm. No good, I can't read the magic formula. This isn't magic humans can wield." (Rebecca)
I noticed Rebecca-senpai trembling slightly.
Crack… crack… crack…
The sky was slowly cracking apart, like an eggshell.
It was a sight that made one feel as if the world itself was crumbling.
Not just us, everyone present was staring in stunned silence at the surreal spectacle.
Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble…!
The sky shattered into fragments.
A massive hole opened in midair.
—And then, "it" appeared.
…Thud! A loud impact shook the ground.
What appeared was, in a word, a huge red dragon, like fire itself.
It had seven heads.
Ten horns.
And on each head, it wore a crown.
It resembled the Divine Beast Hydra I had seen before, but it was far larger and exuded an overwhelming presence.
Just by sitting there, it felt suffocating.
Sumire nearly collapsed, and I caught her.
Airi had already fallen to her knees.
Looking around, I noticed some of the explorers had fainted.
(What…is this Divine Beast…?) (Eugene)
"This…isn't this the Crimson Dragon of the Apocalypse we studied in Mythology?" (Airi)
Airi muttered in a daze.
"This is…?" (Eugene)
A Divine Beast from the teachings of the Goddess Church, said to turn the land into a sea of fire to punish the fallen.
Now that she mentioned it, I recalled seeing a mural in the church resembling this creature.
A painting of a crimson dragon battling an army of angels.
"........."
All seven heads remained silent, not letting out a single growl.
We could only stare up at it.
"Dungeon Guild, all personnel! Set up a barrier! Do NOT engage that dragon! Any explorer below B-rank, guide the civilians to safety! All academy students must evacuate as well!"
A commanding voice rang out. It was Principal Uther.
A voice filled with tension, unlike his usual demeanor.
"Yes, sir!"
"Understood!"
"Move quickly!!"
The Dungeon Guild staff scattered in a hurry.
A massive magical barrier began forming around the red dragon.
(…Something's off.) (Eugene)
There was no announcement from Rita-san about the Trial of the Gods.
The Divine Beast had already appeared.
Normally, there would be an angel announcement confirming the start of the trial.
Then…
"W-Wait! You can't be here!!"
The Dungeon Master, Anemoi Babel, suddenly appeared via teleportation.
She looked completely panicked.
Could it be…?
No, without a doubt…
"…Hey, Eugy-kun." (Sumire)
"…Hey, Eugy." (Airi)
Sumire and Airi gave me weary looks.
The Dungeon Master had messed up again.
"Dungeon Master! What's going on?!" (Eugene)
I shouted at her.
"Why… Why is this happening…?!" (Anemoi)
But Anemoi had no response.
Someone else answered instead.
(Eugene, this is bad.) (Eri)
"Eri?" (Eugene)
The Demon Lord's voice, unusually tense, called out to me.
(This thing…it was supposed to be chained up in the depths of the Underworld, Tartarus. What the hell is it doing here?) (Eri)
"Eri, tell me about that Divine Beast." (Eugene)
(Eugene, you already know, don't you? This is a relative of one of the Old Gods, the Dragon God, who waged war against the Holy Divine Race in mythology. The embodiment of world-destroying crimson flames. An ancient Divine Beast from the mythological era…) (Eri)
"But it was summoned to the Zenith Tower, right? How is it different from Cerberus or the Nine-Headed Hydra?" (Eugene)
(You don't get it? Cerberus-chan and Hydra-chan were summoned through the Zenith Tower's system, which enforced the Trial of the Gods' seal on them. But this red one…) (Eri)
"It wasn't sealed and retains its original power…" (Eugene)
But wait…when I fought the Hydra before, wasn't the seal removed due to the Dungeon Master's mistake?
(Hydra-chan was still holding back and fighting as part of the Divine Trial. But this red one…) (Eri)
"It came here of its own will, unrelated to the Trial of the Gods…" (Eugene)
(That's why… I think you should run.) (Eri)
For once, Eri's advice was cautious.
Yet, the Crimson Dragon remained still.
Only those around it were panicking.
The Dungeon City's alarm bells rang out.
Principal Uther's demeanor was different from usual.
The Dungeon Master was visibly flustered.
"Why did the Crimson Dragon suddenly appear…?" (Eugene)
According to mythological records, the Old Gods were defeated in a great war.
It was also said that when people forgot their gratitude to the gods and fell into corruption, the Crimson Dragon's seal would be broken.
But there was no reason for such a legendary monster to appear next to the Lykeion Magic Academy.
(Back when I was in the Divine Realm, I wasn't deeply involved with the management of the Zenith Tower, so my memory is hazy…) (Eri)
Eri spoke hesitantly.
(But as far as I remember…the Crimson Dragon is a Divine Beast from the 900th Floor.) (Eri)
"900th Floor?!" (Eugene)
I instinctively shouted.
Hearing that, Principal Uther suddenly teleported right next to me.
"Eugene, is that true?" (Uther)
"You heard? According to Eri, that red dragon is a Divine Beast from the 900th Floor." (Eugene)
"So it's like Bahamut; a trial beast from the upper layers of the Zenith Tower… Meaning it descended to the surface through the 900th Floor." (Uther)
Principal Uther groaned.
Then, he turned toward the flustered Dungeon Master floating in midair.
Snap
He snapped his fingers.
In an instant, the Dungeon Master appeared right in front of him.
"Huh?! W-What are you doing?!" (Anemoi)
"Dungeon Master Anemoi-dono, you didn't summon that Divine Beast intentionally, did you?" (Uther)
"O-Of course not! I don't even have the power to summon it to begin with!" (Anemoi)
"But it's here." (Uther)
"T-That's…" (Anemoi)
"What did you mess up this time, Dungeon Master-san?" (Eugene)
"T-That's not it. It wasn't me!" (Anemoi)
The Dungeon Master frantically shook her head when I questioned her.
The one who answered instead was Principal Uther.
"My guess…is that the new Zenith Tower Floor Zero summoning system had a loophole, allowing a Divine Beast meant for the upper Floors to slip through. Since it wasn't summoned properly, the Trial of the Gods' seal wasn't applied, and the trial itself didn't activate. That's likely what's happening now…" (Uther)
The Dungeon Master fell silent.
…She did mention creating a backdoor for the Floor Zero trials.
Did the Divine Beast exploit that?
"What is its goal, Principal Uther?" (Eugene)
"That… We'll have to ask it directly. But the entire Dungeon city will be destroyed if an unsealed Divine Beast goes on a rampage. We need to find a way to send it back peacefully if possible."(Uther)
At that moment, Principal Uther fixed a sharp gaze on the Dungeon Master.
"Is there any way?" (Uther)
"W-Well…" (Anemoi)
Just then—pop! A golden magic circle floated in the air.
And from it, two figures appeared.
"Oh crap! That's the Red Dragon-ssu yo, Mariel-senpai! It's supposed to be in the Abyss of Tartarus…" (Rita)
"Ehh… What do we do~? We probably shouldn't declare the start of the Trial of the Gods, right, Rita-chan?" (Mariel)
It was the angels who managed the 100th and 200th Floors: Rita-san and Mariel-san.
Both of them had come to check on the situation, but now they were bewildered at the sight of the Divine Beast.
"Angels!!" (Uther)
Principal Uther shouted.
"Us-ssu ka?" (Rita)
"…What's wrong?" (Mariel)
The two angels turned their gazes towards him.
"You must absolutely not declare the start of the Trial of the Gods! The current Red Dragon is bound by the Divine Realm Regulations and cannot wield its power on the surface. If you make the declaration, the trial will authorize its interference with the world!" (Uther)
"G-Got it-ssu!" (Rita)
"You're right… We should report this to Goddess Ilia-sama~." (Mariel)
"Mariel-senpai, should I go?" (Rita)
"Yes, hurry. Rita-chan." (Mariel)
"Understood-ssu!" (Rita)
With that, Rita-san vanished via Teleport.
"King Uther! The evacuation of the civilians near the Zenith Tower is complete!"
"The students of the Lykeion Magic Academy have mostly withdrawn as well!"
"The gate to the Dungeon City has been temporarily sealed off!"
The Dungeon Guild members reported one after another.
Principal Uther listened carefully and issued detailed instructions.
Meanwhile, the Dungeon Master remained flustered and panicked.
Mariel-san was observing —or rather, watching— the Red Dragon closely.
The explorers had also distanced themselves from the Divine Beast at the Principal's command.
There didn't seem to be anything else they could do at this moment.
(Why did this Divine Beast even come here…?) (Eugene)
As he turned his gaze to the unmoving Red Dragon…
A sudden chill ran down his spine.
The seven-headed dragon was…grinning.
Its seven mouths slowly formed words.
"""""""We…to the people of this land…"""""""
"Principal!!" (Eugene)
I shouted, and Principal Uther seemed to realize it as well.
"""""""Shall commence… the Trial of the Gods."""""""
Mariel-san's face twisted in shock.
"No…way." (Mariel)
The Dungeon Master collapsed onto the ground.
"…It can forcibly begin the Trial of the Gods even without the angels' announcement?" (Anemoi)
Principal Uther grimaced bitterly.
"King Uther! Once the evacuation is complete, we Twelve Knights will assemble and—"
The First Knight appeared.
"Thank you, Claire-kun. But…it seems we're out of time." (Uther)
"Huh?"
Rumble…
The ground trembled.
The Red Dragon, which had remained motionless until now, slowly lifted its seven heads.
—The First… Flames of Divine Punishment.
One of the dragon's seven heads opened its mouth wide.
From deep within, a sinister red light swelled.
—By the command of King Uther. All those in Dungeon City, evacuate immediately.
Principal Uther used an amplification spell to issue a warning across the entire city.
"Sumire! Airi!" (Eugene)
I grabbed the two of them and leaped away with Sky Walk.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!
A blinding inferno.
A scorching wind and an explosive shockwave raged.
"Kyaaahhh!!"
Sumire's scream.
"Ghh…!"
Airi's pained groan.
I held onto both of them and was blown into the air along with the debris but managed to regain my balance and land on the ground.
"..."
Sumire had lost consciousness, completely limp.
"Haa… haa…!"
Airi panted heavily.
Fortunately, though they had some scrapes, neither suffered serious injuries.
(We got thrown pretty far…) (Eugene)
I checked my surroundings.
"Wa?!"
I looked around…and was left speechless.
—The Lykeion Magic Academy… had been completely obliterated.