Even if Goliath's regeneration was terrifyingly strong, it was still, in the end, just an ordinary Floor Boss.
Not one of those black, mutated variants. Not something with that near-undying, absurd healing factor.
Its regeneration really was powerful, powerful enough to drive most Level 4 adventurers to despair.
A wound from a single slash could seal in seconds. A crater blown open by magic could recover to normal in half a minute.
But it still had a limit.
Under Genichi's relentless pressure, the damage piling up on Goliath's body kept increasing. The rate its wounds closed started to slow.
One wound went from a few seconds to more than ten.
Ten wounds went from a few dozen seconds to nearly a minute.
And once dozens of wounds stacked on top of each other, Goliath's regeneration finally began to buckle.
Its movements grew heavier. Its roars weakened. The injuries on its body multiplied, deeper and deeper.
At last-
"Gospel!"
Genichi seized the opening and fired another bombardment spell straight into Goliath's face.
Invisible soundwaves condensed into a cannon shell, striking that face that had regenerated countless times with perfect accuracy.
Boom!
Flesh and blood exploded outward, spraying everywhere.
Goliath's head was blasted into mush again.
This time, it didn't snap back the way it had before.
One minute, two minutes, three minutes-
A full ten minutes passed, and that ruined head still hadn't finished regenerating.
Genichi watched in silence, a satisfied gleam flickering through his dark eyes.
That's about enough.
Time to finish this Floor Boss for good.
He drew in a breath and tightened his grip on the blade in his hand, steadying himself.
Then-
"Gospel!"
Another bombardment spell.
The half-regenerated head detonated again, blown apart before it could properly reform.
Its recovery slowed even further. Before the shattered skull could even begin knitting itself back together, the massive body started to sway, on the verge of collapsing.
Now.
Genichi closed his eyes and began to chant.
"The cursed root of blessing."
His voice was low and even, carrying a strange cadence.
Magic surged through his body, like a tide pouring into the spell he was about to unleash.
Goliath seemed to sense it too.
Its head, still not fully restored, twitched faintly.
Its ears were gone, torn apart. It couldn't hear a thing.
But instinct didn't need sound to scream one word at it-
Danger.
Lethal danger.
It swung its enormous palms wildly, sweeping the air in every direction.
There was no technique to it, only a desperate animal struggle to live.
It wanted to catch the enemy bringing it death, but it didn't even know where that enemy was.
"The sin of my origin is devouring my own flesh."
Genichi's chanting continued.
The mana raging inside him grew more violent, and a faint golden radiance began to rise around his body.
That was the mark of Alfia's magic.
A forbidden art that had once nearly destroyed Orario itself.
"Unable to purge, unable to cleanse, unable to redeem-"
Goliath went even more berserk.
It stopped flailing blindly and started running, crashing around the chamber.
Its huge body pounded the ground with thunderous impacts, making the entire space tremble.
It smashed boulders, split the floor, and still it couldn't find the one reciting the spell.
"Ah, the sound from the heavens is my own sin."
Genichi opened his eyes.
In those pitch-black pupils, a cold clarity burned.
"The trumpet of the gods, the harp of the spirits-"
Mana gathered in the air overhead.
A phantom bell tone began to take shape.
It was an enormous bell, vast enough to make the space feel small.
"The melody of light, the brand of sin-"
Goliath finally understood.
It stopped and lifted its head, using the faint, barely restored blur of its vision to look up.
And then it froze.
In its deep crimson eyes, despair flashed.
It knew what that was.
That was-
A death sentence.
"O fate beloved by the fabricated heavens-"
Genichi's voice rose higher, louder.
His magic reached its limit. His head swam.
A sign of severe mana overdraw. This spell was far too heavy.
But he didn't stop.
He couldn't.
"Shatter into ash, for I hate you so-"
Goliath let out a wail of despair.
It tried to run. Tried to flee this place of execution.
But its legs wouldn't move, as if something had nailed it to the ground.
Not magic.
Fear.
The instinctive terror that the tolling bell brought to every living thing.
"The cost is here. With proof of sin, destroy all things-"
Genichi inhaled sharply and spoke the final line.
…"Please give flowers…"
"Weep-"
"Holy Bell Tower!"
Boooooom!
The gigantic bell rang out.
It wasn't a normal chime. It was a vibration like something born at the edge of the world, a sound that could annihilate everything.
Invisible sound became a visible shockwave, expanding in all directions from the bell.
Where it passed, everything shattered.
Rock shattered. The ground shattered. Even the air seemed to rupture.
Goliath's massive body crumpled under the impact like it was made of paper.
Its upper half was erased in an instant.
Flesh became a red mist. Bone became dust. It didn't even have time to scream before it vanished into nothing.
The remaining lower half stood rigidly for a few seconds-
Then collapsed.
All that remained on the ground was a horrifying smear of blood, and-
Fragments.
The fragments of Goliath's magic stone.
Along with the monster, even that enormous magic stone had been completely destroyed in the final strike.
Level 4 Floor Boss Goliath-
Subjugation complete.
Genichi dropped to one knee, breathing hard.
His mana was nearly drained dry, his body hollowed out.
The dizziness in his skull threatened to drag him into unconsciousness.
But he raised his head, looking at the fallen giant, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
He won.
The magic stone was shattered. A huge amount of money had been burned away.
But-
He won.
Alone, as a Level 3, he had defeated a Level 4 Floor Boss head-on.
That achievement-
Was enough.
"Heh… hehehe…"
A trembling voice came from behind him.
Genichi turned his head.
Tiona stood there with her mouth hanging open, shaking like she'd forgotten how to breathe.
Lefiya was just as stunned, her staff nearly slipping from her hands.
Even Ais, those golden eyes of hers, showed a flicker of surprise she couldn't quite hide.
They had witnessed everything.
From the way he'd danced around Goliath with Astraea Familia swordsmanship, to the repeated bombardments with Alfia's magic, to that earthshaking, impossible finishing blow-
They saw it all.
Genichi was silent for a moment, then slowly stood.
He looked at the three of them, his dark eyes showing no ripple at all.
Then he turned around and walked away.
No greeting. No explanation. No pause.
He simply left.
Leaving the three members of Loki Familia standing there, staring blankly, unable to come back to themselves for a long, long time.
(End of Chapter)
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