Floor 5,001—-
Deep inside the caves, Omariro, Loki, and Sōshin traversed through the tunnels as the air grew thicker.
"Where are we going, Friend Omariro?" Sōshin asked.
"Wolf," Omariro replied. "Big wolf."
"Not just any wolf!" Loki teased. "His name is Fenrir. He's my son."
"Ooh, can we be friends?"
"He's not very…friendly. But you're welcome to try!"
They continued walking through the caverns, finally reaching a cavern chamber with a massive river leading deeper inside.
"Come, come!" Loki cheered. "My son is close by!"
There was a line of broken boats stationed on the surface, and Loki took one, touching it with her magic. "Let's fix you right up, shall we?"
The boat began to fix itself up, and Loki hopped aboard, lazily crossing her legs. "You two coming?"
Sōshin eagerly hopped into the boat, while Omariro teleported aboard. As soon as he did, Loki wrapped an arm around him, yawning.
"So, what's your story?"
Omariro whacked her hand off with his staff. "Speak clear, woman."
Loki rubbed her arm, sighing. "I mean, who are you, really? Most humans I've known never get this much attention. Not from the Mujinsha, the dungeons, and especially not the Endless. What's inside that frail body of yours?"
"Flesh," Omariro answered. "Bone. Organs."
"Unt-uh! See, you can't outsmart a literal trickster! Tsk, I see YOU like to keep your secrets close to your chest."
She lay back, shrugging. "Whatever. We're gonna see once we arrive at our destination."
Loki pointed to Sōshin. "What's his relation to you?"
"I'm his student!" Sōshin announced, proudly.
"Interesting…"
The boat slowly drifted along the river, twisting and turning through the tunnels as the environment became colder and colder. The boat stopped at a jagged edge, and a giant locked door awaited the trio.
"Here we are," Loki stated. "Fenrir's pen. Much more secure than that little doghouse Asmodeus uses for his pet mutt."
Loki walked up to the door and placed a hand on it. "I call upon my divine authority—-let me inside this cage!"
With a green glow, the door slowly began to crack open, and the goddess pushed it aside. "In we go!"
She escorted them inside, where they found a gigantic wolf chained by dozens of chains, sleeping on the floor.
"Fenrir!" Loki called out. "Time to wake up!"
The wolf slowly lifted his head, noticing his mother before him, who welcomed him with open arms. "Who's a good wolf? Did you miss mommy?"
She stepped aside, pointing to Omariro and Sōshin. "You've got guests!"
Fenrir's expression immediately shifted, and he began bearing his teeth, growling loudly.
〈Rule: Free the Wolf from his *Chains.*〉
Fenrir immediately lashed at Omariro, who stopped him in place with one hand. Loki immediately backed away.
"Sorry, I forgot to mention, he doesn't like strangers!"
With a casual backhand, Omariro sent the wolf stumbling, but he shrugged it off, charging at the man with unnatural speed.
"Sir, the wolf is charging!" Sōshin pointed.
"Boy get chain! Move with haste!"
Sōshin quickly sped onto Fenrir's back, attempting to pull off a chain. "Oh! It's stuck!"
His vision began to dim, and he shrugged to stay upright. "Oh…feeling…a bit doozy!"
Taking advantage of his hesitation, Fenrir slammed into a wall, knocking Sōshin off. Once he turned back toward Omariro, the latter held out a hand.
"Jugen-Kōbisha: Forbidden Prison!"
A portal formed, but Fenrir ate it.
"Did I mention he's called the Devourer of Ragnarök?" Loki called out.
Fenrir slowly approached Omariro, his teeth dripping with blood. He lifted a paw and slammed it against Omariro, who blocked with his forearm.
BOOM.
The room shook so violently that one of the chains began to slacken, and both Fenrir and Loki noticed it.
"Incredible," Loki gawked.
Omariro clapped his hands together. "Jugen-Metsusha: Obliterate!"
A shockwave forced Fenrir back, but when Omariro checked him, he noticed the chains were still intact. "Hmm…"
Sōshin slowly pushed himself up, placing a hand onto one of the chains. "Jugen-Sōunsha: Densō—Dai-ni Giyā!"
It began to move incredibly fast, and Fenrir tried to tug on it as the chain dragged him back. Fenrir bit on the chain, but nothing happened.
"Jugen-Tōshi: Mugengan no Ōgonjin!"
A large circular blade formed, and Omariro sent it flying straight toward the vibrating chain. In one quick move, it shattered the chain.
〈*1* Chain Broken. *23* Remain.〉
"Not even Thor could break that chain!" Loki gasped. "I'm impressed!"
Without missing a beat, Fenrir howled at Omariro and headbutted him, forcing him to slide back. Sōshin touched two chains at once, speeding them up.
"There you go, sir!"
"Jugen-Tōshi: Seijin Rangeki!"
He launched a barrage of blades at the wolf, and while the latter dodged most of them, two struck the moving chains, breaking them in the process.
〈*21* Chains Remain.〉
Fenrir got into a low stance, his body glowing light blue.
〈Use *Sōunsha* to overload Fenrir's *Lethal Skill.*〉
Fenrir opened his mouth and tilted his head upward, forming a large storm of ice above his jaws.
"Now, boy!" Omariro ordered. "Jugen on wolf!"
Sōshin placed both hands on Fenrir's fur. "Jugen-Sōunsha: Densō—Dai-ni Giyā!"
Fenrir's body began to move incredibly fast as he attempted to continue charging up his storm, with the temperature in the room severely dropping.
"Almost…got it…!"
Fenrir's body shook even faster, breaking the ice storm and taking several of the chains with it. Ice coated Omariro's body, but he brushed it off.
〈*17* Chains Remain.〉
"You're doing amazing!" Loki cheered. "A+ so far! But please, don't be so rough with my child?"
Omariro ignored her.
Fenrir attempted to crush Sōshin, but Omariro quickly rushed in and blocked the blow, before forming his bow.
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Ten'yokukyū Bow!"
The arrows fired, causing Fenrir to back up. With a roar, he unleashed a wave of ice at the two, which Omariro countered with more arrows.
Fenrir slammed into Omariro, who recovered and formed his armor. As the wolf sent another mouthful of ice at him, Omariro clapped his hands.
"Obliterate!"
The shockwave briefly caught the wolf off guard, and Sōshin hurried to touch more of the chains, speeding them up.
Fenrir tried to stomp him underfoot, but missed, and Sōshin slid to safety as Omariro cut through more of the chains.
〈*13* Chains Remaining.〉
〈Domain Effect: Frenzy. Fenrir can periodically enter a *frenzied state* where he is immune to all ATK damage.〉
Fenrir's eyes began to glow.
〈*Frenzy* Activated.〉
"Hold, boy!"
The wolf charged at Omariro, sending him crashing through the wall. Omariro pushed the rubble off his body as the wolf stared him down.
"He has taken an interest in you," Loki noted. "He sees you as a threat."
Fenrir bit Omariro's arm, but he pulled back after his teeth stopped against the armor.
"That's odd…" Loki thought. "My son's teeth can carve through anything!"
The two began trading powerful blows as Sōshin rushed in to touch more of the chains, accelerating them and dragging the wolf back.
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Tenjō no Ōgon Bunshin!"
Multiple clones of himself spawned in, and they all teleported toward the chains, slashing them to bits.
〈*7* Chains Remain.〉
Fenrir and Omariro continued dueling, with the wolf striking so hard that Omariro's feet began to sink into the ground.
"His strength is increasing!" Loki warned. "The more you enrage him, the stronger he gets!"
Fenrir continued pummeling Omariro, but to his shock, the old man withstood the blows.
"Wolf bad. Will submit."
Omariro pulled his fist back and delivered a powerful uppercut to Fenrir's jaw, causing him to fall square on his butt. While he was incapacitated, Sōshin took the opportunity and touched 6 of the remaining chains.
"They're all yours, sir!"
Omariro directed his clones to the chains, and they slashed them to bits.
〈*1* Chain Remains〉
Fenrir repeatedly tried to bite at Omariro, who blocked with one arm, delivering a sharp strike with his hand to the wolf's neck.
"Hey!" Loki yelled. "I said not to be rough!"
Fenrir whacked Omariro away with his head, just as Sōshin slid under him and touched the last chain, making it shake violently.
Omariro blocked the wolf's paw with his elbow, and with a fierce throw, he launched a barrage of blades at the remaining chain, shattering it into pieces.
〈*0* Chains Remaining.〉
〈Trial Complete.〉
Fenrir took a step forward, looking toward his mother, before allowing her to pet him.
"It's okay, dear," Loki assured. "You're free now."
Loki turned toward Omariro and Sōshin. "Well, you've done what my family could not. You saved my child. My thanks!"
Sōshin clapped, but Omariro didn't utter a word.
"I believe it's time we head back, now. Everyone will be waiting for us."
Loki gave Fenrir a pat on the back. "Would you like to come with us, son? We could use the ride."
The wolf made a soft noise, lowering its head and allowing the three to climb on. "Onward, Fenrir! Onward!"
He slammed through the walls of the cage and sprinted out of the room, free at last.
Meanwhile, Floor 10,000—-
Zaria awoke inside an open cage, noticing a path that led to a jungle before her. Lining the path were various hunters, who all pointed her into the jungle.
"Uh, hello? Where am I? Where did your psycho leader dump my ass?"
None of them responded, so she followed the path, entering through the gate. Inside, she found the bodies of various Kaitansha, and she saw others running from feral creatures.
"This…this isn't real…"
Nearby, she could hear someone calling her name. "Zaria!"
When she turned to look, she noticed Rika running towards her, throwing her into a hug. "Zaria! Are you okay?"
"Rika! I'm fine, are you okay?"
Rika nodded. "I lost Rei and the others! And Han, that woman's done something to him!"
"I know! I saw! Where is he—-?"
A bloody figure emerged through the bushes, and both Zaria and Rika noticed it was a girl with orange hair.
She paused, taking in their outfits. "Those colors…you're in Han's group, right?"
"Who are you?" Rika asked.
"I'm Shino," she explained. "Me and Han kinda became a duo down here, but that Huntress woman corrupted him."
"She what?" Zaria exclaimed. "Where is he?"
Shino pointed to a large mansion-like base in the center of the jungle, where smoke was erupting from the top. "There. They're looking for Mr. Nyugawa."
"Han…" Zaria worried.
"Shino, right?" Rika asked. "Can you please get us there?"
"Sure, but don't you wanna wait for backup? That Huntress is strong!"
"We can't afford to wait!" Zaria insisted. "She's got our friend!"
"Alright then," Shino agreed. "Let's move."
They pushed through the bushes, solemnly watching as more Kaitansha fell victim to the animals. A young boy quickly rushed over, grabbing Rika's shoulder.
"Please! You have to help! They're coming! They—-!"
An arrow was fired through his head, killing him instantly. Shino grabbed the other girls' hands and pulled them further in.
"It's horrible…" Shino murmured. "They've killed most of the rookies already. And Han, she wanted to use him as her new 'child.'"
Zaria gritted her teeth. "She'll pay for this."
Rika pointed towards the mansion. "We…we can't think about that now. We have to focus on doing what we can, and that means helping Han."
"Right," Zaria nodded. "Can't waste time."
The girls slowly maneuvered their way through the trees and over the bushes, until they finally reached the door of the mansion, which was surprisingly left open and unguarded.
"Is she…asking for us to come?" Zaria questioned.
"She let me escape pretty easily," Shino recalled. "I wouldn't put it past her."
"Please be safe, Han," Rika begged.
The girls entered the base.
Base—-
Inside, Kohaku was seated on a throne of animal corpses, casually tapping her fingers on the handles. As soon as she saw the girls enter, she looked up.
"Hmm?" Kohaku noticed. "Little girls coming into my domain? Cute."
Zaria pointed at her. "Where's our friend?"
"Han? Oh, my perfect child. Right here."
With a clap of her hands, Han lowered himself from the ceiling, taking his side by Kohaku.
"Han!" Rika called out. "Listen to us, please!"
"Don't you remember us?" Zaria pleaded.
Han didn't respond.
"It's no use…" Shino realized. "Her hold on him is too strong…"
Kohaku stood up, cracking her neck. "Foolish little children…you all should have stayed outside."
They all got into a fighting stance as Kohaku stepped down, little by little, with claws forming under her fingers.
"It's a shame you would bring such weakness to my doorstep, Shino. Do you really think this is enough to beat me?"
"No," Shino admitted. "But we're here to try."
Han watched, blankly.
"Well then," Kohaku chuckled.
She leapt into the air, slamming the ground beneath the girls' feet and sending them all flying back.
"Try."
——