Seeing the front line secure, Rayleigh turned his attention to the middle of the battlefield.
By now, Evilus members had infiltrated the lines, sparking fierce clashes.
Every Adventurer desperately protected their Patron God.
But soon, he spotted a critical situation.
A blonde Goddess with a huge boobs stood there, flanked by two Familia members—a man and a woman—struggling to fend off the enemy.
The enemy outnumbered them more than two to one.
Forced to protect the Goddess, they were trapped in a desperate defense, unable to press any advantage even when their foes left openings.
If Rayleigh remembered correctly, that Goddess was Demeter, the Goddess of agriculture.
Hephaestus noticed the situation and spoke up. "Rayleigh, go help them. I'll be fine here."
Rayleigh glanced at Riveria and she nodded in agreement.
He charged toward them.
Clang!
Demeter's female Familia member, momentarily distracted, was struck on the wrist.
Her weapon clattered to the ground.
Without her weapon, she had two choices: shield the Goddess with her body or flee.
She didn't flee.
A shortsword plunged into her abdomen, followed by a dagger thrusting toward her eye.
She twisted away, but the blade sliced a deep gash across her face.
Then, an Evilus member kicked her aside.
Goddess Demeter was exposed to the enemy's fangs!
Rayleigh saw the distance was too great to cover with Shunpo.
He raised his hand, pressing his index and middle fingers together, extending his thumb, and gathered his spiritual power.
"Bakudō One: Sai."
The spell shot from his fingertips.
The assassin, drawing back his shortsword to strike Demeter, froze in place.
His eyes widened in shock.
The Goddess was right before him, yet he couldn't move. He couldn't comprehend what had happened!
In that blink of an eye, he saw a black-haired youth appear beside the Goddess.
The youth scooped her up, and in an instant, they vanished.
And the assassin felt the restraint on his body disappear.
He scanned left and right, searching for the vanished youth and Goddess.
After checking his front and sides, he whipped his head around—and felt a cold sensation on his forehead.
'Ah, I found him.'
Staring at the black-haired youth whose fingers were pressed against his forehead, the assassin's lips curled into a grin.
His expression froze forever in that moment.
Rayleigh withdrew his fingers, not sparing another glance at the Evilus member whose head had been pierced by Byakurai.
Thud.
The assassin collapsed, his savage smile still etched on his face as a hole had been bored through his brain, killing him instantly!
After dispatching this foe, Rayleigh used Shunpo's superhuman speed to ambush and eliminate the remaining enemies, rescuing Demeter's male Familia member.
He used Shunpo again, reappearing beside the Goddess.
Scooping her up once more, he carried her over to the heavily injured female Adventurer lying on the ground.
Being held like this and has been saved by this handsome boy—Goddess Demeter felt a long-forgotten flutter of youthful infatuation.
Fortunately, her reason prevailed.
She hadn't forgotten the girl wounded for her sake.
Rayleigh knelt, extending his palm toward the injured girl and activating Kaidō.
His mastery of Kaidō was average, so its efficiency wasn't high.
Even so, the girl's complexion regained its rosy hue.
Demeter gasped, covering her mouth. "Ah, you know healing magic too?"
"I'm not very skilled at it," Rayleigh admitted.
Currently, his mastery of Hadō and Bakudō surpassed his skill with Kaidō.
This wasn't due to a lack of effort, but because Kaidō demanded far more precise control over spiritual pressure.
Although reaching Level 2 improved his control, he was still leagues behind true masters like the First Generation Kenpachi, Unohana Retsu.
Her spiritual pressure control was so refined she could build a path through the Dangai—a feat that defied logic.
Gradually, the girl's breathing steadied, and her complexion returned to normal.
"I've treated the wound. The remaining scar should heal without leaving a mark if you use potions later."
Rayleigh turned to the male Adventurer. "Help me carry her."
Once the Adventurer lifted the injured girl, Rayleigh scooped up the Goddess.
He carried them both to the rear, away from the fighting.
As he surveyed the battlefield again, a nagging thought surfaced: something about this situation felt wrong.
'The Evilus can't be foolish enough to stake everything on a decisive battle here, can they?'
Judging by the forces committed, this wasn't an all-out assault.
The outcome of such a limited operation was a predictable failure, yet they attacked anyway.
This scene wasn't in the original story he knew.
'Still...'
He just needed to do what had to be done since the real world never unfolds exactly as planned.
Unbeknownst to him, he was already being watched.
A black-cloaked figure glared at him with venomous eyes.
Suddenly, the figure moved.
Rayleigh sensed killing intent and turn around, swinging Senbonzakura without hesitation.
Clang!
As the sharp ring of metal echoed, Rayleigh got a clear look at his attacker.
To his surprise, it was the same man who'd been with Thanatos in the Dungeon.
During their last confrontation, Rayleigh had only been Level 1, while he'd estimated his opponent to be at the peak of Level 3.
Now... The man's Level hadn't changed, he still hadn't reached Level 4.
'Which means... I have a fighting chance!'
'Heh.'
A smirk spread across Rayleigh's face, and he let out a low chuckle.
The man before him froze, then snarled, "What're you laughing at?"
Rayleigh could feel the fury simmering in his tone.
Instead of answering, Rayleigh sidestepped past him, using his blade to knock the man's weapon aside.
The man was stunned that Rayleigh had blocked his attack. Unlike their last encounter in the Dungeon, this time he'd attacked seriously!
Putting it all together, he reached a conclusion. "Brat! You've leveled up, haven't you?"
Rayleigh had no intention of answering.
Without a word, he flung out Bakudō Four: Hainawa.
Before the man could react, his arms were bound tightly.
"What?!"
He didn't expect Rayleigh to be able to use Magic at this range—and so quickly at that.
'Instant-cast Magic?'
Despite the crisis, the man didn't seem panicked.
Seeing this, Rayleigh held back his attack and scanned his surroundings.
He realized he'd fallen into a trap.
The four enemies who'd been behind the enemy lines were gone. Instead, they reappeared nearby, forming a triangular encirclement around him.
Rayleigh's gaze fell on the faint smirk playing on the bound man's lips.
His brow furrowed, and he coldly said, "You think you've got me cornered?"
He decisively released his Shikai.
"Scatter, Senbonzakura."
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