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The roars of monsters rose and fell without end.
Dragons beat their wings, circling through the sky.
Looking around, the crimson world was filled with scenes straight out of hell.
At the center of the vast wasteland...
"Hold on tight!" Ryoji hoisted Lefiya onto his back.
Tiona had strong objections to this, but Ryoji rejected her proposal to carry Lefiya herself on the grounds that your running speed isn't fast enough, leaving her only able to watch the two pressed together with unwilling frustration.
As particles of light gathered, two Gleaming Wave Light Vrring Blades materialized simultaneously in Ryoji's hands.
"Don't pressure yourself. Just do as much as you can."
Ryoji turned his head, his gaze landing on Lefiya's tense face over his shoulder.
He paused, then continued.
"If you're really nervous, try remembering the breathing technique I taught you last night."
"…Liar."
"?"
"Nothing!"
"…Alright then."
Ryoji looked puzzled but didn't pursue the matter, his expression settling into calm focus.
Large shadows had already begun appearing in the distance.
The first wave of monsters had been summoned over by the Valgang Dragons' roars.
"Here we go!" Ryoji barked out.
The next moment, he lightly pushed off the ground with both feet, and his entire body moved like the wind!
Slash!
Within the endless horde of monsters, the foremost rock monsters were instantly dismembered.
"So fast!" Tiona gasped in shock.
This was the first time she had seen Ryoji truly fight after leveling up. That speed was unbelievably effortless, his figure was nearly impossible to follow, yet every movement carried the impact force of artillery shells.
She had seen Finn and the others fight before, but even they absolutely did not possess such terrifying Divine Speed!
It was as though a single person alone could stir up a tornado!
In the current Loki Familia, no one could rival Ryoji in terms of speed!
"Wait for me!" Tiona hurried after him.
"This feels incredible!"
As he continued charging through the battlefield, Ryoji's mood rose higher and higher.
The accumulated ability values he had built up, combined with the Twin Wings Sword technique that instantly mobilized every muscle in his body, had elevated his Divine Speed to a terrifying level.
No acceleration was necessary. He could explode into maximum velocity in a single instant. The exhilaration of running and swinging his blades freely...
Not a single monster on the battlefield could keep up with his overwhelming speed!
Even the gigantic fireballs spat out by the Valgang Dragons appeared to him like slow motion, making them absurdly easy to dodge.
This sense of power made him feel as though he held complete control over the battlefield.
Compared to the weakness of his former self, he was practically a different person!
He felt immeasurable joy at the strength he now possessed!
"...O proud warriors, archers of the forest. The advancing raiders stand before you; take up your bows."
On his back, as he sprinted at extreme speed, Lefiya's long hair streamed wildly behind her, never even getting a chance to settle.
While chanting her magic, she secretly pouted inwardly.
That so-called breathing technique was useless.
She had already tried it back when they first entered the 51st Floor.
If she was nervous, she was still going to be nervous.
And yet, strangely enough,
Now, adjusting her breathing rhythm again atop his back, her heart gradually began to calm.
"...Answer the voices of your kin, nock your arrows and kindle the flames, lights of the forest. I command you: loose your arrows, flames of the Elves."
The tension inside her was fading away.
Even though she was in the center of a monster horde. Even though they were racing forward with such overwhelming Divine Speed, there wasn't even the slightest trace of nervousness in her heart.
Instead, what she felt was an indescribable sense of security.
The scent lingering beneath her nose made her feel there was no safer place in the world than his back.
Liar.
Lefiya repeated it again in her heart.
In the end, the breathing technique had only been a trigger. The thing that truly made her forget her fear and feel such overwhelming reassurance wasn't any technique at all...
It was absolute trust. Because she trusted Ryoji completely, she could feel at ease. Because she trusted him completely, she could even believe in something like a breathing technique.
It had always been that way.
He always had this way of making her let go of her anxiety, protecting her like a sheltering bird guarding its chick.
"...Fall like rain, and burn the barbarians."
Lefiya opened her eyes.
Her gaze had become sharper than ever before.
In an instant...
A gigantic Magic Formation appeared in the sky above the 58th Floor.
Countless geometric figures revolved within it, combining into a golden two-dimensional pattern.
"...Volley of Fire Javelins!"
With a tender shout, a torrential rain of flaming arrows descended from the heavens!
Rows of flame-wreathed magical arrows radiated outward from the sky. Every second, a thousand arrows traced arcs through the air, dense as a raging downpour.
Within ten seconds...
Tens of thousands of flaming projectiles rained upon the earth.
Rocks were blasted apart.
Monsters were annihilated.
Endless crimson flames spread across the land, forcing countless monsters to unleash heart-rending screams toward the sky.
When the barrage ended...
The ground for more than ten kilometers around them had become a sea of fire.
Countless Magic Stones and monster materials lay scattered across the rocky terrain, utterly ignored.
As far as the eye could see, not a single monster remained.
"…Amazing." Ryoji stared in stunned silence.
Without exaggeration, he was completely shaken by the power of this spell. The entire landscape within his vision had been transformed into a blazing inferno.
The sheer visual impact was overwhelming.
Granted, in terms of direct combat strength, Ryoji would absolutely defeat Lefiya.
But this magic of hers… It left him feeling thoroughly outclassed.
In terms of destructive power, Lefiya far surpassed him.
Sure, the entire chanting process had taken a full two minutes, which was a glaring weakness… But that flaw couldn't overshadow its brilliance.
As a magical artillery platform, Lefiya was genuinely terrifying.
No wonder Riveria was raising her as her successor.
"Hmm hmph! See how amazing I am now? Don't underestimate me in the future!" Lefiya burst into cheerful laughter.
She seemed much brighter than before.
Ryoji glanced at her.
'So she's resolved something in her heart.' He thought to himself.
If he had to put it into words, she really had untied one of the knots in her heart.
Smiling as she stood there, Lefiya drifted through her own thoughts.
At one point, she had genuinely tried to forget Ryoji and devote herself wholeheartedly to admiring Ais-san.
As an Elf, how could she waver between two people she admired?
When this guy had disappeared for more than ten days without returning, it had given her an opportunity.
So over the past few days, she had consciously tried to distance herself from Ryoji.
But in the end…
It didn't work.
For her, forgetting him was simply too difficult.
So… she'd just let things take their natural course.
There was no point agonizing over it anymore.
"The battle's not over yet!"
Tiona arrived beside the two of them, snapping Lefiya out of her thoughts.
"ROAR!"
Right on cue, an enraged bellow echoed through the battlefield.
Looking up...
The seven Valgang Dragons rose upright from the ground.
Their bodies were covered in severe burns, but not a single one had suffered a fatal injury.
That colossal arrow storm had slaughtered hundreds of monsters...
Yet it hadn't managed to kill even one Valgang Dragon.
Apparently understanding exactly what had happened, all seven Valgang Dragons cast furious glares toward the trio.
Then, simultaneously, they broke into a charge, rushing toward them.
"Hahahaha! You little brats alright?!"
But suddenly...
A soul-shaking burst of laughter descended onto the battlefield.
(End of Chapter)