Compared to the Astrea Familia's side, the battles of the other two squads were not going smoothly at all.
Needless to say, Finn's group had it the hardest.
Within the first few minutes after the fighting began, the Pallum [Braver] had already confirmed it—had he not already leveled up to Lv.7, then at his previous Lv.6, he would very likely have been beaten down by now.
This thing—it's strong!!
The Guild had estimated the Corrupted Spirit's true form to be at least Lv.8 or above.
And now the members of the Loki Familia could be even more certain that this thing's strength was utterly different from a mere "Monster"—the Monster Rex Balor was estimated at Lv.7, so judging by their opponent's caliber, Lv.8 was an entirely acceptable figure no matter how high one pushed it.
But now.
The strength displayed by the Corrupted Spirit simply exceeded everyone's imagination.
"Ailiya, Ailiya, Ailiya, Ailiya, my Ailiya—"
Upon that incomparably beautiful face was an expression twisted with ugliness to the utmost extreme.
The Corrupted Spirit drifted and swayed in midair.
Its attention was almost entirely fixed upon the distant girl wreathed in golden breezes; it hadn't so much as glanced at Finn or Riveria.
And yet, even so.
Whether it was the [Braver]'s spear or the [Elgarm]'s cleaving axe, neither could inflict virtually any wound upon her.
Those deep-violet, exquisitely tender and slender palms could block them all.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
In order to counter the enemy's magic, Riveria had already given her all—one could say she bore the greatest pressure of the three.
And at this moment.
It was plainly obvious—the Corrupted Spirit had not gone all out in the slightest.
Even though, over on the Astrea Familia's side, the counterfeit Black Dragon had already been completely suppressed and even slain, it still maintained an air of utter indifference.
[What other cards does it have left?]
Finn couldn't help but ponder this.
Clearly.
Having "cultivated" this place in the deep levels for so many years, the Corrupted Spirit was no brainless fool. A Monster that would even cooperate with—even strike deals with—the Dark Familia surely had its own plans and schemes.
Its dwelling here.
It was managing its own domain, and waiting for adventurers like themselves to come delivering themselves to its door.
To say it had made no preparations whatsoever was impossible!
One could even say this very place was a trap the Corrupted Spirit had painstakingly prepared for them all, over who knew how much time.
Yet even so, as adventurers, they had no choice but to come—it simply couldn't be helped.
[Let's stall for time first.]
Given the current situation, it was impossible for the three of them to slay the Corrupted Spirit.
So they could only stall.
Wait for the others to finish off their enemies, and then come to reinforce them.
For now, the tide of battle still favored their own side. The girls of the Astrea Familia had already defeated that counterfeit Black Dragon, and next—
"Ais! You lot go reinforce Freya's people first!!"
Finn made his judgment swiftly.
To be fair.
As to which was stronger between the Corrupted Spirit and that so-called ["God of Death and Wine"], even Finn wasn't certain.
But over there they had not only Hedin, Hogni, and Allen Fromel—three Lv.7s—but also Ottar, a Lv.8. In terms of combat power, they far surpassed his own side.
In that case.
The odds of them settling their battle first were higher than his own side's.
Even if the ["God of Death and Wine"] were stronger than the Corrupted Spirit, surely there was a limit to it?
Though... no matter how one looked at that thing, it wasn't normal at all.
A deity devoured by a Jewel Fetus—just what sort of Monster had been born?
At this very moment.
The situation over on the Freya Familia's side was—
"!!!"
What a wicked existence!
This is a thing that should not exist in this world—it must inevitably be destroyed by my hand!!
Hogni clenched his teeth, spat out the mouthful of fresh blood he'd just taken, and then gulped down great breaths of air.
His condition was not good; Allen, not far off, was the same.
The two of them were supporting Ottar in the fight against the ["God of Death and Wine"] before them, but in a mere few minutes, they had already sustained quite serious wounds.
[I must undo the seal.]
The youth known as the [Dark Elf Magic Sword], unlike Hedin, was always terribly afraid of interacting with people he didn't know. Thus he would either put on an aloof front, or spout "nonsense" (chuunibyou lines) that no one else could understand, all to conceal his fear of strangers.
And because of this.
Under normal circumstances, Hogni couldn't bring out his full strength—even facing an enemy, he would show his socially anxious side.
That was precisely why he had to undo the "seal."
"Unsheathe and bloom, radiance of the Sword King. At the cost of reason and the blood of offerings, until the feast comes to its end—slaughter to your heart's content!!"
"[Dark Elf Magic Sword]!!"
With magic, he summoned forth his combative second personality.
Hogni's eyes turned resolute, blood-red, and as the cursed weapon in his hand—the "Sacrificial Abyss"—extended blades of deep-violet dark light, a violent bloodlust instantly spilled out in all directions.
Silence utterly "covered" this dark elf youth; from his lips one could only hear the cold, murmured chanting of magic.
"Might of the magic sword, annihilation everlasting."
The magic activated alongside the ultra-short incantation.
As the light of the longsword in his hand surged violently, deep-crimson flames also coiled around Hogni's left arm, interweaving with the sword's glow as it roared toward the enemy not far away!
And on the other side.
Allen too had unveiled his "seal."
"Wheel of gold, collar of silver. Love of loathing, phantasm of remains, here fate is fixed—"
"Vanish, golden wheel, before the wheel-ruts slay you!"
"Whip of glory, lips of favor, here lies the price!!"
"Roll on, silver wheel, until the day the head falls—beyond the heavens, until after death you hear the song of the wheel—bearing the goddess's divine will, race onward!!"
"[Grasneze Flom]!"
The Cat Person youth transformed into a golden streak of light.
Faster than lightning, swifter than a raging gale, the longsword in his grip carried the momentum to grind all things to dust, and in an instant he had already arrived before that "deity."
Together with Hogni's magic, they struck from front and back in a pincer.
However.
The "deity's" body shattered in an instant, breaking into countless tiny chunks of flesh, letting both their weapons pass through without any resistance.
From a visual standpoint.
It was as though the golden radiance and the deep-violet flames merely grazed past each other, and then the ["God of Death and Wine"] simply burst apart.
And because their speed was too great, Allen and Hogni were both swiftly carried on toward their respective ends—that is, in the very instant the two of them passed through the "deity's" body—
it revived.
The body of the ["God of Death and Wine"] sprouted countless tiny branching tendrils, forcibly "dragging" the scattered flesh and blood back together, once again reassembling its original form.
"How could a god of death ever die?"
That "deity" roared with laughter.
At the same time, its body began to overflow with a gem-like, deep-crimson liquid—
And as the fragrance of wine spread all around, countless Monsters began to struggle and crawl out from that liquor.
____
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