""""""Oooooh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!""""""
The successful subjugation of a Demi-Spirit with a single blow instantly surged the morale of every adventurer to its peak.
"Shakti! I have good news and bad news!"
"I know! Akumo succeeded, didn't he!"
A fierce grin spread across her face.
The aftermath of the massive explosion of flames reached the other units, momentarily disrupting the magic chants of the Demi-Spirits in other sectors.
"And the bad news?"
"A magic circle has been deployed across this entire space."
"!!"
Finn's spear whistled through the air as he pivoted.
"Akumo is a separate variable. We must overcome our own battles ourselves."
Before them stood a Demi-Spirit in the form of a colossal pillar. The creature manipulated potent magic of its own while the faces embedded at the base of the pillar deployed interception spells across the entire 10th floor.
"By ourselves..."
"We can win!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Yeah, we'll have to!!!!"
Akumo had shown them it was possible. The absolute power of the [Pioneer] was on their side.
"All units, prioritize the lower section of the pillar!! Silence the interception magic throughout the labyrinth!!"
Finn shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice acting as a bulwark against the despair that often follows hope.
""""Oooooh!!!!!!!!!!!!!""""
They inherited the sparks of a struggle unprecedented in history.
"Hurry up, you slugs! Finn and Akumo have already produced results!"
""""Oooooh!!!!!""""
The fervor of their battle reached the 5th and 2nd units, who had yet to engage their respective Spirits, fueling their resolve.
'If it were the old me, I would have barely been able to suppress my screams while fighting desperate anxiety...'
A cold aura settled over her.
'My mind is calm.'
There was no tension, no bravado, and no rage. Only the conviction that she would win, a resolve that didn't fear death, and a powerful certainty of victory remained.
'A strong certainty that he will come.'
"E-Enemy attack!!!"
"!!"
Lefiya snapped her head toward the voice. There stood the individual responsible for the brutal death of Filvis.
'The Eye of Daedalus!? Why now...!'
There was no door there. Even if there were, common sense dictated that the encroaching green flesh would hinder rapid movement, but—
"The time is not yet right."
A mechanical click echoed.
"""""!!"""""
At her words, a red jewel hidden within the bands of light from the green flesh reacted. The floor beneath Lefiya's feet opened instantly.
"What!?"
"Tch!!!"
"Lefiya! Bete!!!"
The masked figure, Ein, threw herself into the trap along with them.
What was her goal? What did she intend to do? At the very least, the Loki Familia had no way of knowing.
Simultaneously, within the 2nd Unit, Aiz felt an ominous presence.
"The constant interception magic has stopped...!"
As if the spells themselves were kneeling, the magic circles parted to open a path. They fell silent in unison, awaiting the woman in red.
"So you've come, Aria."
Heavy footsteps approached.
"This is the end."
Revis pointed a black greatsword, saturated with curses, at Aiz.
"...."
"The final battle between you and me."
They were here to settle it once and for all. It felt as though no one else existed in this space but the two of them.
"Riveria, let me go."
"..."
—'This is the settlement between her and me.'
Riveria, trusting her companion implicitly, offered no words. Through her gaze alone, she conveyed the silent command to not lose, to win, and to return, before resuming the operation.
As Riveria and the others departed, Revis kept her eyes fixed solely on Aiz.
"No explanation is needed, I assume."
"None."
"No last words either."
"None."
This was not like the sublime battle between Akumo and Ottar. Nor was it like the noble clash between Bell and Asterius. It was a relationship defined only by the cold, mutual animosity radiating between them.
"I will strike you down, and I will end everything."
Aiz gripped her sword tightly.
"I believe I heard that resolve once before."
The girl held her blade firm for the sake of victory, while the red-haired creature unleashed a torrent of killing intent.
"Lefiya!! Bete!!"
"Open!!"
Meanwhile, Aki didn't even have time to be flustered by the sudden separation. She thrust her key forward, attempting to reactivate the trap mechanism.
"It won't open...! Is the green flesh interfering!?"
Aki immediately raised her [Oculus] to report the situation to Finn.
"Captain, we've fallen into an enemy trap! Bete and Lefiya have fallen down a vertical shaft below the 10th floor!"
"Can you regroup!?"
"....No. We can't determine the drop point, and the passage is blocked."
With the loss of Lefiya and Bete, the 5th Unit was in a state of severe power depletion. It was insufficient to carry out the mission alone, a fact both Finn and Aki knew well.
"Continue the operation. The simultaneous attack on the six Demi-Spirits is an essential element of this plan."
'An ambush from the masked creature... I expected the 1st Unit to be the primary target...'
"But they went beyond that and targeted the 2nd and 5th Units instead...!"
Despite the setback, Finn had to push the operation forward. Even while commanding the 1st Unit, he had only one thing to say to them.
"Aki, there are no spare Spirit Orbs."
".....!"
"Reinforcements cannot be sent."
"Yes..."
No matter how cold it sounded, the words were laden with a heavy warmth and guilt. Aki couldn't give up.
"Listen up, everyone. We will break through this passage before the wounds Lefiya inflicted with her magic can heal."
"We will initiate the battle in the Great Hall where the Spirit clone awaits."
In their current state, having lost a Level 6 and a third of their personnel, their combat power was less than half of what it should be.
"No one in this unit is coming back alive."
The probability of them taking down a Spirit on their own was abysmally low.
"But if we fight, our comrades in other units and the people on the surface will live."
Aki clenched her fist.
"There is nowhere to run. Whether we retreat or cower, we die."
Should they give up then?
"If we're going to die anyway."
"Then let's fight together and die for everyone else."
Absolutely not. The unit responded with silent affirmation, hardening their resolve despite the desperate reality.
"Let's go!"
Without a moment's delay, Finn's voice poured through the Oculus.
"Information on the Spirit clone: there are three faces of a Grand Trent parasitic to the lower part of the main body. Each fires high-speed Spirit magic."
""""!!""""
"In addition, there are massive tentacles emerging from the flesh walls throughout the Great Hall, along with the interception magic you saw in the corridors."
Cold sweat ran down their faces and hands trembled at the additional news of despair.
"Who among you can use movement or defensive magic?"
They had to answer Finn's question. They hadn't given up on anything yet.
"I-I can... No, it's Tamanna from the Ganesha Familia! I can grant a barrier that reduces heat and cold for five minutes!"
"Denchi from the Ganesha Familia! With my magic, up to five people can move without feeling the weight of their gear! Duration is ten minutes!!"
"Bid, also from the Ganesha Familia. I can create five layers of magic interference shields. Short-chant type."
"I am Ravana of the Dian Cecht Familia. I can create twenty illusionary clones that move automatically."
The severity of the situation remained unchanged under the worst conditions.
"Form a party of seven consisting of Tamanna, Bid, Denchi, Ravana, three others from the Dian Cecht Familia, and Aki."
"Bid will protect Denchi while Denchi prepares his magic."
"The remaining thirty will form parties of three. Distribute the Magic Swords from the Hephaestus Familia equally among everyone."
"Disperse the enemy's attacks and look for an opening. Prioritize evasion; do not attempt reckless attacks!"
The precise instructions lit a fire of courage within the adventurers.
'As expected of the Captain...'
"Aki's party will remain mobile and focus entirely on healing the entire unit."
Including Aki, who had intended as much, no one was afraid anymore.
"The distance to the walls and ceiling in the Great Hall is vast! You have enough room to dodge the interception magic and tentacles before they land!"
The sounds of battle echoed through the device alongside Finn's shout, a real-time reminder that he too was fighting. Aki's group steeled their resolve further.
"Yes!!"
"I see the entrance to the Great Hall!"
With that courage, they successfully charged into the Great Hall.
"Denchi, cover the parties other than Aki's with your magic! Bid, Ravana, deploy the magic walls and illusions! Tamanna, prioritize giving barriers to the Dian Cecht Familia!"
"Front line, draw your Magic Swords!"
Following Finn's precise orders, they entered the Great Hall in their optimal formation.
"We're going in!!!"
"Fire the Magic Swords anywhere you c—"
A blinding flash of light, cold enough to freeze their souls, brought them back to reality.
"Keep running!!!!!!!!!!!"
Aki screamed at the top of her lungs as the massive flash erupted. The flames of the Magic Swords managed to slightly deflect the trajectory, carving out a path.
"Ah..."
Of course, there were those who didn't make it to the path.
Including ten illusions, three members of the party were obliterated before they could dodge. Among them was Mission of the Loki Familia.
'I'm going to die—'
A sharp metallic clang resonated.
"...Huh?"
She should have been dead.
Blue feathers fluttered from a pair of golden boots, scattering before her eyes. Mission stood dazed for a moment.
"Indeed, there are no reinforcement 'forces'."
The figure before her was unmistakably the hero of the Loki Familia—no, of Orario.
"Finn, I've successfully rendezvoused. However, [Hermes's Shoes] are now sealed for the next five minutes."
"Copy that. Deal with the Spirit and join the next unit immediately."
In that short span of time, the likelihood that the unit he would join wouldn't be theirs was high. Finn hadn't even bothered to ask Akumo to change direction, but—
"Get up. We have a fight to get to, don't we?"
He had arrived, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, to those who needed help.
With this, all six—no, now five—Spirit clones were engaged in combat.
"Haah!"
Aiz had grown stronger. After her defeat in the man-made dungeon, the appearance of Asterius, the skirmishes in Daedalus Street, and her training with Ottar.
However.
"Ugh....!!"
"..."
Revis looked down coldly at Aiz, who was struggling just to lock blades with her greatsword.
"On the 24th floor, after I defeated you once, you stopped being a doll and babbled some arrogant nonsense with your eyes burning."
"The second time was in that labyrinth. No matter how many times I broke you, you stood back up. No matter how many times I cut you, those eyes kept burning."
Revis's words were terrifying, a mixture of cold fury and a promise to tear Aiz apart repeatedly.
"I....."
Aiz gripped her sword tighter.
"I will say the same thing.... as many times as it takes."
Revis's intimidation had no effect on her.
"I won't lose to you!!!!"
'[Ariel]! Maximum!'
Unleashing [Ariel] to its limit, Aiz lunged at Revis, swinging her wind-clad blade with ferocious intensity.
[Ariel] enhanced Aiz's combat capabilities, but she had resolved to use it only against monsters.
"Ugh!?"
The only exceptions were Ottar and Akumo. Even then, she had used her ultimate technique on Ottar only once, and with reduced power.
"Lil..."
Now, without a shred of hesitation.
"Rafagaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
A single blow with her entire heart and soul. She poured everything into it with the absolute resolve to kill her opponent and win no matter what.
"Is this...."
".....!?"
"Your full power?"
Her sword, [Desperate], was embedded in Revis's palm, having only managed to sever the creature's fingers. It meant her attack had been stopped cold.
"Ngh!?"
Before she could process the shock, Revis grabbed Aiz by the head and slammed her into the ground.
"In the span of years so long they make the mind go numb...."
Revis lifted Aiz by the head with one hand and slammed her mercilessly into the floor again.
"Only you."
Slam.
"Only you."
Slam.
Even Revis herself didn't realize it. By ignoring everyone but Aiz, by silencing the interception magic just to savor this moment—
"Only you."
Slam.
"Only you."
Slam.
"Only you."
Slam.
"Only you."
She repeated those words like an obsession, slamming Aiz into the ground with enough force to make her lose consciousness.
"Only you make me forget the past."
It meant that settling things with Aiz had become the sole reason for her existence.
"But even that."
"Is over."
She was satisfied with her fulfillment, but now it was time to end it.
'She's... regenerating...'
"Your comrades will be annihilated soon as well."
".....? Why is the Arcanum...."
Aiz couldn't register the confusion and bewilderment crossing Revis's face. She only felt her own death approaching.
—There is no salvation.
'I can't win.....'
—There is no salvation.
'.....There's no way I can win.'
—There is no salvation.
'As [Me]...'
—There is no salvation.
A single phrase—no, two, no, three, no, countless words—filled her head with noise.
'Thereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvationthereisnosalvation.'
It was proof that Aiz's deep, deep darkness was leaking out.
"Of course there isn't...."
".....?"
"That is unmistakably....."
'.....I know.'
Just as the darkness was about to explode, a voice reached her.
—'Are you afraid of your darkness?'
"...."
—'Look closely. This is the power I call my darkness.'
Before the operation, Akumo had shown her the flames of chaos. Compared to the rabbit's flames she had seen, these were sinister purple flames of pure malice.
—'Now, look at me.'
Eyes turned red, pupils slit like a dragon's.
—'Do I look like darkness to you?'
No. He was definitely not darkness.
—'Just use it all if you think you're going to lose.'
—'To live, to win, for the sake of your convictions.'
Those words washed away her black tears. She finally understood. It wasn't about falling into the darkness; it was about controlling it.
"You're a monster."
'I'm glad.'
And so, the black storm arrived.
A black storm forged from deep, deep hatred for monsters, for creatures.
"[Avenger]."