Dragon God's Hole — Floor 200°
The cavernous ruins of this floor were vast, far too long to be natural. At first glance, they looked like the remains of a city inside a mountain — but they did not resemble human constructions.
The pillars were crude, carved directly from raw rock. Curved, far too thick for human hands. The marks left on them were not clean tool cuts; it was as if bestial claws had shaped the stone.
Vines and moss, still green, spread across the walls despite the near absence of sunlight.
The ground was covered with bones of all sizes everywhere.
There were drag marks across the stone floor, the smell was putrid and mixed with a recent aroma of fresh blood.
Several mutilated bestial bodies were scattered across the cavernous hall. One of them still dripped the dark-red liquid, forming puddles over the rocky terrain.
And at the center of the enormous rock dome, a battle unfolded. It was different from the normal Beasts that invaded this hall — the opponents this time were more troublesome.
Rygar slid to the side at the exact instant a shadow crossed the space where his head had been a second earlier.
The Wendigo's claw tore through the cave violently.
Six deep grooves opened across the ground, each dozens of meters long, evidencing the monstrous strength behind the blow. Fragments of rock exploded into the air, striking the pillars and ricocheting across the walls.
Eris was already right behind, her sword traced a precise arc at the creature's rib height.
The sound was drier than it should have been when cutting a living being, like cutting old wood.
Even so, the strike opened a long gash, deep enough to almost split the monster's torso in half. Black, thick blood immediately flowed.
The Wendigo did not scream and did not retreat.
Its back was hunched, and it was nearly eight meters tall, but skeletal thin — long bones stretching gray skin like dried leather. The ribs marked each breath due to its dryness.
The enormous arm swept horizontally.
Rygar advanced into the blow instead of retreating.
The wind of the claw grazed over his back as he invaded the creature's guard.
Doomsday shone with blue flames.
The cut went straight into the torso, faster than the monster could follow. The blade passed through flesh and bone while blue fire spread violently across the creature's body.
This time, the Wendigo reacted.
A strange grunt escaped its throat as its body began to melt under the flames, flesh dissolving, bones turning to ash.
Within seconds, only dust remained.
And then…
Several dozen meters ahead, it reappeared.
Once again, completely intact.
The gray skin again stretched over the long bones. The sunken eyes fixed.
Its slender and sinister body flickered in the darkness, as if it had emerged from the shadow itself.
The Wendigo was fast. Among those beasts on the same floor, there was not a single one that could react to it.
Fast enough that even the Longsword of Light would have difficulty striking it. Probably even a Sword Emperor would struggle to even scratch such a monster.
But this time, it was facing Eris and Rygar — both had speed as their strong point.
Rygar, in fact, could surpass it with casual ease.
The monster's elongated head turned directly toward Rygar as he advanced.
The jaw opened beyond what should be possible. Thin teeth still carried pieces of flesh. Blood ran down the chin and stained the sunken chest.
Its eyes did not blink, they were fixed on him.
But, unfortunately for the creature, after observing the Wendigo reform and be reborn for the fourth time, Rygar finally understood the mechanism.
His Demon Eyes clearly saw the transformation of mana. How it gathered, how it shaped, and how it reconstructed.
He concluded that this was Sacrificial Magic.
Similar to the technique Milis had used to seal his senses during the attack on Milishion.
Behind the helm, he sent a mental message to Eris.
"Eris! Stay out. Strike the skull exactly when it is reforming!"
Eris, who was already preparing to advance again, stopped her movement.
"Alright!"
She leapt onto a raised rock, and her Foresight Eye glowed green. There, she remained motionless, only watching.
The monster advanced against Rygar, saliva dripping from the grotesque mouth while the claws extended.
Rygar showed no concern, he advanced even faster than the creature. Faster than the monster could react, Doomsday changed its glow.
The blade now emitted a purple and black light, magic flowing across its surface naturally — as if there were no difference between Touki and a Magic spell.
"Rift of Attraction."
The sound was sharp, like fabric being torn.
Space seemed to split where the blade cut, similar to glass breaking under pressure, followed by a deep vacuum noise.
The Wendigo's body, which was charging uncontrollably, began to twist, distort, and be pulled. The dimensional tear dragged it, ripping flesh and bone in a grotesque manner.
It barely had time to let out a grunt before turning into a shapeless mass of black flesh.
And then vanish, along with the tear.
Even the surrounding wind ceased for an instant.
But even before the process was complete, Eris had already disappeared. She advanced above the speed of sound, moving to an apparently random point.
The Wendigo's Reformation and Rebirth was instantaneous and random. It sacrificed the lives of the beasts it had killed to revive in an apparently unlimited manner.
The more beasts it had hunted, the more times it could return.
Depending on how long it had existed and how many creatures it devoured, that fight could become endless.
But there was a moment, an instant of vulnerability.
That moment was right after it resurfaced, when only the skull formed first. At that moment, it still lacked bodily consciousness, without instinct.
Thus, without the capacity to activate the magic again.
Eris could see a few seconds into the future. For a swordswoman acclaimed as the Sword God, that was more than enough.
A small bone horn began forming in the air.
And her blade was already there, a few centimeters away. The cut was simple and swift, but it was enough.
A rumble echoed, and a black light exploded from the fragment of horn.
A violent wind swept through the cave, Rygar and Eris merely waited.
Eris sheathed the sword and adjusted her tied hair that was fluttering everywhere due to the constant gale.
A few seconds of tremor followed, until the entire cave vibrated. And then silence.
Where the Wendigo had been defeated, a hole approximately three meters in diameter remained.
The path to Floor 201.
Rygar looked at Eris and smiled.
"Difficult?"
Eris lifted her chin, snorting.
"Hmph! Too easy!"
Rygar laughed while walking toward the hole, and Eris followed him.
Internally, however, he was thinking. If on Floor 200 there was already a monster of that level… what would they find in the thousands?
Of course, some floors could be avoided. In others, perhaps it would be possible to advance without combat. But there were floors like that one, where defeating the creature was a requirement.
For now, they were doing well. He cast one last look at the countless bestial corpses scattered through the cave.
Even with the progress, the bad premonition remained and would not go away...
---
Meanwhile, in the Kingdom of Gaia, Aisha had just received Pathfier's report.
Without wasting time, she departed immediately, flying on Helios's back toward the Combat Temple. The wind cut around them as the Red Dragon crossed the skies at high speed.
During the journey, she was already transmitting new orders to the warriors stationed on the Begaritt Continent — all should avoid direct conflicts and any deep investigation in the Labyrinth.
In any case, they already knew more than enough. It was not worth risking more lives just to extract a few remnants of information.
Knowing that the former Sword God was present completely changed the situation — especially considering he seemed hostile to the Iron Legion.
Shortly after, Aisha arrived at a medium-sized arena.
There was who she was looking for. At the center of the Arena, the Red Ogre Baron was fighting Ornthorn in a violent battle.
Watching from the side were Jino, Nina, and Gretta, the Demon King.
Gretta had returned to the Kingdom of Gaia two years earlier. The Titan Demon King had been challenged by Ornthorn in her homeland and, after the result of the fight, ended up remaining at his side — something close to a wife, though not officially.
Additionally, with the Iron Legion's influence now reaching the Demon Continent, she saw no need to remain there managing her Province.
The three noticed Aisha's approach.
As for the two warriors at the center of the Arena, although they had also noticed, they did not interrupt the battle.
Aisha jumped from Helios's back with agility while the dragon landed nearby.
"Hey, hey, girl, what's with those huge breasts?! Haha! Since when did you get those cannons?!"
Gretta was the first to speak upon seeing her. Aisha was wearing more comfortable clothes at the moment — she had been studying before making this visit — and the body contours were more visible.
Jino, involuntarily, followed the gesture pointed out by Gretta.
That immediately earned him a heavy punch from Nina, who had already been watching his reaction.
Aisha smiled, amused. She already knew Gretta's personality well and, deep down, was even somewhat pleased by the comment.
"Hello, Gretta. Sorry to interrupt, but we're a bit in a hurry…"
She then turned her gaze to Jino, who was still recovering from the blow.
"Jino, you have a mission. Immediate departure. The route is already prepared."
Nina and Jino stared at her, confused. Gretta simply went back to watching the fight upon realizing it wasn't about her.
"Now?" Nina asked. "Rygar left a few days ago."
Aisha nodded.
"I know. I wouldn't make this decision if I weren't certain. I'll explain the details to Jino, but considering our omniscient opponent, the fewer people who know, the better."
Nina frowned, about to insist, but Aisha continued a bit more firmly:
"Notice that I'm not asking. It's an order. I don't want to be inconvenient, but we can't let anything slip while Rygar isn't here. I'm calling Jino precisely because I need agility and security in this mission."
Nina wasn't used to following her orders, even being friends. Besides, Aisha had adapted far too quickly to the leadership role.
Even so, Nina decided not to contest. Aisha was a far more competent strategist than she herself, after all.
Jino briefly looked at Nina, then responded directly:
"Right. If the priority is speed, then let's go."
Aisha nodded and spoke to Gretta:
"Gretta, I hope I can fight you at the next opportunity! No magic, of course."
Gretta laughed loudly.
"Hoho! Arrogant brat… alright, next time then."
Aisha mounted Helios again.
"See you, Nina. Say hi to Jill for me!"
Nina merely nodded distractedly while Jino also climbed onto the Red Dragon. As soon as they gained altitude and flew for a few minutes, Aisha created a barrier around them, isolating the sound and the wind.
She spoke directly:
"You will go to the Begaritt Continent as fast as possible."
Jino's expression became serious.
"Is it about that Labyrinth of the reviving stones…?"
Aisha nodded while removing a necklace from her pocket and handing it to him.
"We confirmed that the former Sword God, Gall Farion, is there. There is also a high probability that the Ogre God Malta is present. Two individuals like that do not gather on an unusual mission… unless there is someone behind it."
Jino took the necklace. This was an item that temporarily replicated the effects of the Concealment Magic that Aisha and Rygar used.
She continued:
"Hitogami's involvement is practically certain at this point. But we cannot enter direct conflict without the Master nearby. And anyone not as strong as you would easily be intercepted by the Technique God."
After a brief pause, Aisha looked at him.
"I want you to discover, by any means possible, what Hitogami's objectives are in the Ever-White Desert."
-----
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