"RAAAAAAAH!"
With a fierce roar, Tiona charged straight into the horde of monsters.
With speed and brutal strength, she slashed at the enemies before her.
One powerful strike split a monster clean in half.
Without sparing a glance at the corpse, Tiona pressed forward, heading straight for the next beast.
"That idiot! Ais, follow her!"
"Understood!"
At Tiona's command, Ais rushed in, instantly dispatching the monsters that tried to surround her.
This was the 51st floor of the Dungeon—a rare labyrinth-type layout, unusual even in the deeper levels.
The walls, floors, and ceilings were unnaturally smooth, with neatly arranged underground passageways that formed countless corners and intersections.
The pitch-black walls were neither stone nor soil, and the only source of light was the faint phosphorescence glowing from above.
In one of the wide, straight corridors, Ais and her companions clashed against the monsters of the fifty-first floor.
Black Rhinos.
Bipedal rhinoceros monsters. Standing over two meters tall, with two horns jutting from their foreheads. They were renowned for their durability, their hide as thick and strong as high-grade armor. Compared to the Fomoires, they were like walking fortresses.
But their opponents were no ordinary adventurers—they were the elite of the Loki Familia.
"Haah!"
Leaping forward, Tiona brandished her twin blades, slicing a rhino in two. With another heavy strike, she sent the next Black Rhino flying.
Before the beast could even crash to the ground, a flash of light gleamed, and it was shredded into pieces by Ais.
Moving at blinding speed, Ais's figure flickered among the hordes.
With each swing of her sword, another Black Rhino fell.
—[Release a flash of light, bend the boughs of the sacred tree.]
—[You are a master of the bow. Shoot, fairy sniper. Pierce, arrow of absolute precision—Alio.]
About ten meters away, the elven girl's beautiful, melodic voice rang out as she chanted her spell.
"Arcs Ray!"
A golden beam of light shot forth from Lefiya's hand. The radiant blast cut across the distance in an instant, piercing its target before it could even react.
The giant spider monster that had been stealthily crawling from the ceiling was obliterated by Lefiya's arrow of light.
"Ah, Tiona, watch out! There are Deformis Spiders on the ceiling!"
These warped arachnids were massive red-and-purple spiders with eight legs and clusters of eyes.
"Good job, Lefiya!"
Tiona shouted back in response to Lefiya's warning.
Even Ais found the chance to glance back and nod at her during the battle.
Seeing both of their reactions, Lefiya blushed, smiling shyly.
She was satisfied with her growth.
"You're becoming more and more confident, Lefiya."
Shirou loosed a Múspellsflamme arrow straight into a Black Rhino's eye, then lowered his bow with a smile, praising her.
If it had been the old Lefiya, she wouldn't even have been able to finish the chant.
As soon as Shirou spoke, the arrow lodged in the monster's eye exploded.
The blast, ignited inside the rhino's eyeball, instantly vaporized its head.
"Shirou, four more are coming from the right passage! I'll leave them to you!"
"Don't worry, Tione. I'll handle it."
Shirou set aside his bow and drew the katana at his waist.
As their leader, Tione commanded the battle, supporting the group with precise dagger throws.
Combined with Lefiya's no-longer-cowardly magic, the monsters were swiftly annihilated.
"Nice work, Lefiya! That was all thanks to you!"
"Yes, Lefiya, you did great!"
"Indeed, you're incredibly reliable now!"
As veterans, Tione, Tiona, and Ais did not hesitate to praise her dependable support.
"How… how could I have done so well?"
"Don't be so modest, Lefiya. Just accept the compliments."
Shirou gave her shoulder a gentle pat as he praised her as well.
After the battle, Shirou and the others began gathering magic stones and discarded materials.
Normally, Tiona wouldn't have bothered collecting loot, but with Shirou and Lefiya's support, the team now had the lingering desire to pick up materials along the way.
Once finished, the five set out once more toward Cadmus Spring.
Tiona led the way as vanguard.
Tione stayed to the side, guarding Shirou and Lefiya in the middle.
And Ais, the strongest of them, protected the rear.
Facing the monsters of the 51st floor, the five advanced with unstoppable momentum.
"There sure are a lot of monsters here."
"It'd be nice if we could avoid fighting. If only we could finish this mission without having to fight at all!"
From then on, they ran into several more monsters, but all were quickly defeated by the five.
And yet, the deeper they went, the more restless Shirou became.
"Something's wrong."
"What's wrong?"
Startled by his sudden words, everyone turned serious immediately.
"There are a lot of monsters here… but they're nowhere near as strong as what we should expect from the 51st floor. We might be in an unusual situation."
At that simple statement, everyone's hearts tightened.
For adventurers, unusual situations were the most dangerous of all.
Tione paused, thinking carefully.
This place really was different—completely unlike their previous visits.
"Move quickly! Don't waste time here. We need to reach Cadmus Spring as fast as possible!"
"Yes!"
Not only Tione, but the others also felt their nerves rise at the mention of an unusual situation.
If something truly abnormal occurred here, even they might not be able to handle it!
Especially since they were already so close to Cadmus Spring. If anything drew out the mighty dragon that guarded it, they'd be in real trouble.
The group picked up the pace, and as the path grew narrower, Tione realized they were getting close to their destination.
At that moment, she ordered the group to stop.
"We're about to reach Cadmus Spring. Before we go further, let's make sure of a few things!"
---
(End of Chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."