"Alright, I'm going to open the door. Are you ready?"
"Yes!"
Seeming a bit nervous, Agetha response was barely audible.
I made a final check in my mind.
I had raised both my skills, "Swordsmanship" and "Provocation," to level 3.
Since "Vow" was a skill without levels, it remained unchanged.
My equipment was a one-handed sword from the Golden Living Armor. It was very easy to use.
I had also conveyed a winning strategy to Agetha.
Alright, I haven't redone anything.
"Let's go, Agetha."
Saying so, I opened the door.
"Kugoooooo!"
I heard the cry of the monster.
It was the Great Centipede Rumoahz, an S-rank monster, a giant centipede with potent venom.
It's alright, I've defeated this monster once before. So, I should be able to defeat it again.
"Agetha, be careful of the poison that monster releases."
"Yeah, got it."
After her response, Agetha leaped away from me, just as we had planned.
"Hey, you monster! Let's dance together!"
"Kshaaaaaa!"
Rumoahz, the giant centipede under the influence of "Provocation," charged at me, and I deflected its attack with my sword.
"I see, you're tough, huh?"
The scales of Rumoahz were as hard as steel. Thanks to that, my attempts to cut through them with my sword were futile as they were just repelled. However, I couldn't afford to be intimidated.
"I'm not impressed with this level of challenge!"
I used "Provocation" again and deflected Rumoahz's next charge with my sword. The clash produced repeated metallic sounds.
Then, suddenly, Rumoahz shot something at me.
"Ah!"
What Rumoahz had shot was poison, and I tried to intercept it with my sword, making sure it didn't touch my body. However, the sword that came into contact with the poison didn't fare well. Just like when the sword touched Magna, it quickly melted away with a sizzling sound.
This was bad; I had lost my weapon.
"Kiska!"
Agetha was shouting, her eyes expressing deep concern for me. Every inch of her body seemed to be filled with the desire to rush out and help me immediately.
"Agetha, don't come to me!"
So, I said that to stop Agetha.
"But!"
"Trust me! That's why you need to do what you have to do!"
Saying so, Agetha bit her lower lip and nodded.
To defeat Rumoahz, the giant centipede, it was not the right time for Agetha to join me. I understood her feelings, but for now, she needed to hold back.
"Hey, if you want to kill me, take a good look and aim carefully."
I used "Provocation" once again to divert Rumoahz's attention. It hurt to have lost my weapon, but all I needed to do now was avoid its attacks.
"Kshaaaaa!"
After that, I continued to dodge Rumoahz's attacks relentlessly. Dodging and dodging again, and then, during one of the attacks I managed to dodge,
"Kiska, sorry for the wait."
Agetha's voice echoed.
"Agetha, go for it!"
I encouraged her with all my might.
I had taught her a technique she had shown me before, even though she had lost her memory. This technique took some time to activate. So, I drew the monster's attention by dodging its attacks relentlessly while she prepared to launch her attack.
The name of that technique was…
"Holy Sword Technique: Dragon Slayer!"
It was a finishing move that could bury any enemy in a single strike. With a burst of brilliance, she moved in a straight line, slashing as she went. The moment her great sword touched Rumoahz's tough scales, they were effortlessly sliced through.
"Kugoo!"
Rumoahz let out its final groan, lost its strength, and fell.
At the same time, Agetha exhaled with a "phew" and relaxed. There was nothing left in her path.
▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽▽
Confirmed the defeat of the monster.
You have earned skill points.
△△△△△△△△△△△△△△△
I felt a sense of accomplishment as the message window appeared, confirming its defeat.
"Agetha, you did it!"
With joy, I turned toward her.
"Fue."
For some reason, tears welled up in her eyes.
"Hey, what's wrong? Crying at a time when you should be happy isn't normal."
I was puzzled, not understanding why she was crying.
"Well, when I suddenly felt relieved, the tears just started flowing. It's because I'm so happy that I could be of help to you… So, these are tears of happiness, but is it weird?"
"No, it's not weird at all."
Knowing that it wasn't because of something sad, I felt relieved.
"Hehe, um, can I ask you for that usual thing?"
"Yeah, sure."
Saying that, I gently stroked her head.
"You did great, Agetha."
"Yeah! I did my best!"
Saying that, she smiled.
I thought it was a beautiful smile.
I wanted to protect this smile of hers. It seemed that I had become quite attached to her by conquering the dungeon together. I thought of myself as a simple person objectively.
"Oh, Kiska, there's a sword!"
Suddenly, just as she said, a single sword was thrust into the ground. It was a sword with a red blade, the " Blazing Sword."
I remembered obtaining the same one as a reward for clearing the Katarov Dungeon when we defeated the boss together with Puppeteer.
"Are you sure you want me to use this sword?"
I asked Agetha as she tried to hand the sword to me.
"Yeah, I have this greatsword, and it's probably better if you use this one, Kiska."
"In that case, I'll gratefully accept it."
"Oh, what's that light over there?"
Agetha pointed, and there was a shining teleportation circle on the floor. It must have appeared after defeating the boss.
"It's a teleportation circle. If you touch it, you can 'exit' the dungeon."
"Really! Let's go, Kiska!"
"Yeah, that's right."
Agetha seemed to be more excited than usual. Well, she had just defeated a tough boss, so it was only natural for her to be in high spirits.
While thinking about that, as I was about to follow Agetha, I heard a swooshing sound.
I also heard the sound of splattering blood.
"――Huh?"
Agetha said that as she looked at her own arm. Her right arm was missing from the middle.
"Ahahhhhhhhhh!"
A split second later, Agetha screamed in intense pain.
"Hey, Agetha!?"
What just happened? I had no idea. All I knew was that something had caused Agetha's right arm to be severed.
I had to help Agetha, that was the only thing on my mind as I reached out my hand to her.
Thud! I felt a shock running through my body.
"Ouch!"
I groaned as I rolled on the ground. I realized that someone had kicked me. There was a third party present in this situation, someone other than Agetha and me, and that person was attacking us.
"Who are you…!?"
I shouted as I turned to confirm the identity of the third party. And there, standing before me was…
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