Floor 5,000—-
Asmodeus dumped all of the competitors into a moonlit forest, which had spirits walking through it and eerie whispers from every corner.
"So creepy…" Rika shuddered. "Why would a deer make its home here?"
"It's the calmest, most quiet place here," Asmodeus explained. "The rules are simple, catch the Hind alive. Whoever does so wins. Harm or kill it, and the attacker's team is immediately disqualified, thus giving the opposition the win."
Hercules cracked his neck. "Enough talk. Let's go."
〈Rule: Capture the *Ceryneian Hind.*〉
〈Time Remaining: 25:00〉
Hercules jumped into the air, disappearing within the forest. Asmodeus flew away as well, leaving Typhon with the group.
"Well, no time to waste, humans!" Typhon declared. "Catch that hind!"
Rei looked around. "Where is it?"
Gakuto scanned the terrain. "Movement in the bushes over there! That way!"
He pushed through a line of bushes, where sure enough, a deer with golden antlers was roaming around, eating some leaves off the bushes.
"There you are…" Gakuto whispered. "Gotcha!"
He lunged at the deer, but in the blink of an eye, it ran away, disappearing further into the forest.
"That thing's on the loose, Mizuki! Can you nab it?"
"I will do my best. Jugen-Sōunsha: Cursed Transmission!"
Her body shifted, appearing next to the deer, which noticed her and ran even faster, leaving Mizuki struggling to keep up.
"Its acceleration…is remarkable…"
As she reached out to try and grab it, a shoulder bump sent her flying into a tree.
"!!!"
She landed face-first on the ground, and as soon as she looked up, she saw Hercules, glaring at her.
"That was unnecessary," she commented.
"There's no rules against striking your opponent! Back off! That deer is mine!"
With booming force, he ran off.
Mizuki dusted herself off, popping her shoulder back into place. Gakuto, with the others on his shoulders, dashed toward her, stopping in place.
"What happened, Mizuki?"
"The God of Strength is not playing fair."
"Well then, we'll just have to backstab him first! Which way did they go?"
She pointed deep into the forest, which showed a line of footprints in the ground.
"Climb on!" Gakuto ordered.
Typhon scratched at Gakuto. "Hurry, hurry!"
"Alright, alright! Hold on to your socks!"
With a fiery blaze around him, Gakuto dashed after the deer, knocking over trees and mowing through bushes in the process.
"I see it!" Rika pointed out.
To his left, Gakuto caught sight of the deer bursting through the trees, while Hercules attempted to grab its legs but failed.
"Stay still, you damn deer!"
It jumped over his arms, headed straight into Gakuto's path. "Hey, Rei! Use your shield and contain it!"
"Okay! Jugen-Mahōshi: Gekkō no Gokō!"
A shield formed around the deer, but before the shield could trap it, it phased through and hurried away.
"It…escaped?" Rei questioned, confused.
"I see now," Gakuto realized. "This ain't gonna be any old manhunt—-we've gotta outsmart this thing."
"Finally," Typhon sighed. "Someone's using their brain."
Hercules sized up the group, pointing a finger at them. "Last warning…BACK OFF."
Before they could respond, he took off.
"So rude," Rika stated. "He could at least give us a fair shot."
"Dungeon dwellers aren't exactly fair," Typhon clarified. "The only reason he hasn't attacked yet is that he sees you as no threat."
"Well, let's keep it that way!" Gakuto replied. "We sneak up, take the deer, and victory will be ours! Mizuki, give us some speed!"
Mizuki touched them all, and in a flash, they found themselves in another part of the forest. Gakuto set everyone down, doing a quick read of the area.
"Looks like a lake," Gakuto remarked. "And with all these trees around, it could pop out from anywhere."
"Could getting it into the water work?" Rika suggested.
"Unlikely," Mizuki said. "If it can trigger intangibility at will, we risk losing it for good in that case."
Mizuki looked between the water and Rei. "However, Rei can use reactions. If she can trigger one in its vicinity, that could blind it temporarily."
They noticed a rustling in the bushes.
"Sounds reckless," Gakuto mused. "I like it! Mizuki, you and Rika here lure that bad boy to us. Once Rei blinds it, I'll pin it down!"
"On it. Get on my back, Rika."
"O—okay."
Rika nervously climbed onto Mizuki's back, and quickly, they were gone.
"Get ready, Rei," Gakuto ordered.
"Ready!"
Beyond the bushes, Rika and Mizuki landed on a crowded path, where spirits of the dead were busy picking berries. Down at the very end was the Hind, munching on a few berries itself.
"There," Mizuki whispered. "We just need to direct it towards the lake."
Mizuki slowly crept up on the deer, being careful to avoid touching the spirits. It remained in place, pulling more berries off the bush.
"Rika, on my mark, I need you to tackle it. I'll use my power to send us all to the lake."
"Okay!"
Mizuki got closer, making as little noise as possible. "3…2…1…now!"
Rika jumped onto the hind, and it began thrashing and phased right through her arms, smacking dead into Mizuki.
"Jugen-Sōunsha: Cursed Transmission!"
Rika, Mizuki, and the hind all quickly reappeared next to the lake, where the hind began to sprint away, running along the water's surface.
"What the hell?" Gakuto gasped. "It can run on water?"
"It's getting away!" Mizuki warned.
"Right! Rei, blast it!"
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Tsuki no Megenka!"
A beam of moonlight struck the water, causing a brilliant flash of light that stunned the hind, making it sink into the water.
"Mr. Gakuto, it's drowning!" Rika exclaimed.
"Don't worry, I got it! Jugen-Tōshi: Shakunetsu Shissō!"
He dashed across the water, snatching the hind before it could sink any further. As they tumbled back toward the surface, the hind attempted to escape, but Mizuki helped pin it before it could.
〈Time Remaining: 0:00〉
Asmodeus and Typhon appeared, and with a wave of the demon's hand, the hind calmed down.
"Well," he remarked. "You've got possession of it, so this victory belongs to you."
〈Test *3* Winner: Kaitansha.〉
"You get to move on to the next trial," Asmodeus congratulated. "But I find it odd Hercules didn't put in a better effort to try and stop you."
"Maybe he gave up," Typhon scoffed.
"Well, either way, we'll take it!" Gakuto cheered.
Suddenly, the water began to turn a dark black color, and a portal opened, with a flash of wings erupting from it.
"Wait," Asmodeus said. "This isn't part of the trial—-!"
BOOM.
A powerful explosion sent them all flying back, and once they looked up, they noticed Kohaku, still in her hybrid form.
"Is that…" Rika worried.
"It's her!" Typhon exclaimed. "The Huntress!"
Kohaku landed on the ground, shifting back to normal. "How disappointing. I thought he would be here."
Gakuto stood up, getting into a fighting stance. "Hey! Where's our comrades? You stole them, so give 'em back, or else!"
Kohaku appeared behind him, lifting him by his helmet. "Or else what?"
Before he could respond, she tossed him into a tree, toppling it. Typhon frantically looked toward the others. "What are you waiting for? Do something!"
Rika took a step forward. "You heard him! Give us back our friend! And everyone else you took!"
"Yeah!" Rei agreed. "We want Han!"
A smile played on Kohaku's lips.
"Come and get him."
As Rei fired a blast of moonlight at the woman, another portal opened, and an electric gate blocked the blast.
Rika's eyes widened. "Wait—-!"
Before they could move, wires appeared from the portal, restraining Mizuki, Rika, Rei, and Asmodeus. And then, a figure coated in liquid black armor stepped through the portal.
"Come forth, my child," Kohaku demanded.
Han stepped through, the liquid peeling back to reveal his blank face. "Yes, Huntress."
Rika struggled against the bindings. "Han! What…what did she do to you?"
Han dragged another body out of the portal—-Hercules. Kohaku held it up with one hand. "They claim this is the God of Strength. I guess he was not strong enough."
Rei tried to blast the wire, but Han simply trapped her inside a cage as the liquid formed a mask around his face.
"Han, what are you doing?" Rika pleaded. "It's us!"
"Yeah!" Rei added. "We're friends!"
Han didn't respond.
"He has no friends," Kohaku declared. "Only his mother. And soon, his father."
"This is a violation of this dungeon!" Asmodeus bellowed. "You will cease this at once—-!"
Kohaku pointed to them. "Dispose of them, my child."
With a flick of his wrist, Han sent them all flying into the lake…
…and into the portal.
Kohaku glared at Typhon, who backed away. "You still live, cat?"
"You…you'll suffer for this! I promise!"
He jumped into the portal as it closed, leaving Kohaku and Han alone. Kohaku gave Han a pat on the head. "Come, child. We have work to do."
She crushed a sigil, and they disappeared.
Floor 5,002—-
Zaria and the others waited inside the pyramid as Thoth suddenly froze, holding his head.
"Something wrong?" Atsushi asked.
"Yes…I receive word that the Greek Trials have been…interrupted."
"What does that mean?" Zaria questioned.
Thoth immediately hurried them toward the inner chamber. "Come. You must not stay here. That woman…she's on a hunt."
"The Huntress? She's looking for us?"
"She's already captured some of your comrades. You must move!"
Thoth pointed down into the chamber. "Keep moving until you find Anubis. He shall escort you from there."
"The help is appreciated," Atsushi told him. "The faster we can stop this threat, the better."
As they descended, the opening closed behind them…
…just as a powerful force burst through the pyramid doors.
Thoth turned around, noticing Kohaku walking into the pyramid.
"The God of Wisdom, they call you," she noted. "What you just did wasn't very wise."
"You are not one of us," Thoth stated. "Leave at once."
"Who did you just send down there?"
"No concern of yours."
"Wrong answer."
Her eyes began to glow, and Thoth could only watch as she advanced toward him.
Down below——
Zaria's group maneuvered through the darkness, bumping into each other in the process.
"Ow!" Nonoka yelped. "My foot, people!"
"Sorry!" Kaoru apologized.
"Where are we supposed to even find this dude?" Zaria wondered. "And why are we running from the Huntress anyway? We should take her!"
"Yes, but we need the right environment," Atsushi informed her. "She's been here longer, she has the upper hand."
As they continued walking, they could see a hint of a flame in the distance. Once they got closer, they could see the form of Anubis.
"It seems we must cancel these Trials," Anubis admitted. "This *Huntress* is a great enough threat to endanger all in this dungeon."
"Didn't you make these trials to trap her?" Nonoka pointed out.
"Indeed. But we underestimated her. With a mother as powerful as hers, it was foolish to think she'd be so easily dealt with."
"Her mother?" Zaria wondered. "Who's her mother?"
Anubis stared at Zaria for a long while, before turning forward. "I cannot say. Names hold power down here, and that is the last thing we need."
"Then reunite us with our allies," Atsushi insisted. "The more of us collected, the better chance we stand."
"We must follow the path," Anubis replied. "We cannot rush."
The light began to grow dimmer and dimmer as they turned corner after corner, finally stopping before a large door. "This shall lead us to the final room. From there, you can advance deeper within the dungeon."
He pressed his hand to it, and it slowly opened.
"Now, follow the—-"
Inside was an astrology room, and sitting on the table in the center was Han, the teeth on his mask dripping with black liquid. Zaria noticed the watch on his hand.
"N…no way…"
Han slowly got up as Anubis took a defensive stance. "I warn you, get back!"
But suddenly, the head of Thoth rolled at his feet, and he noticed Kohaku behind Han.
"Hmph. Another puny god."
She sized up the group. "And yet again, the man I want isn't here."
Kohaku gave them a dismissive wave. "Ah, well. You'll have to do."
And with a snap of her fingers, Han trapped them all inside a cage.
"Bring them all, my child. Bring them, for the Hunt."
——