"[Kokonoe]!!!!!!"
Shuuuu-!!!!!
With Haruhime's declaration, mana began to coalesce around her body, illuminating the cavernous depths.
—Kigigik!!!
The party members weren't the only ones who sensed the surge; Blue Crabs immediately closed in, targeting her as the source of the magical disturbance.
"Hraaaah!!!!"
Fwoosh-!!!!!!!!
"Uwaaaa!!!!!!"
Crack-!!!!!!!!
"Hah!"
Slash-!!!
The party had no intention of letting her be interrupted. Welf immediately unleashed his magic sword while Ouka and Mikoto utilized their refined techniques to cleave through the monsters before them, forming a defensive perimeter around Haruhime.
"[Lovely eyes. Lovely crimson.]"
Kiiing-!!
While Haruhime's chant echoed and her magic took shape, Aisha focused solely on providing close-quarters cover.
"[Lovely white light. Pray, be with me──]"
Slash-!!
"[The heart found at the end of two thousand nights.]"
Thump-!!
"[My name is Hoyo, the Fox Demon, a fleeting ruin. My name is Koyo, the Ancient Song, a fleeting longing.]"
Despite the visceral sounds of monsters being slaughtered and the vibrations rocking the cave, Haruhime remained indomitable. For the sake of everyone, her resolve was absolute, her voice devoid of even the slightest tremor as she recited the incantation.
"What is that...?"
Shuuuu-!!!!
Luviss and Dormul watched in tense anticipation, unable to fathom the nature of the magic being woven.
Ring-!
"[For you who flutters like a bird, I shall harbor the Kuyo, the Nine Demons. Ring, song of gold, song of Tamamo.]"
Ring-!
To become the strength her hero needed, Haruhime unleashed a gentle yet overwhelming magic. Accompanied by the clear chime of bells, her tail glowed with ethereal light and split into five distinct tails.
"[White-faced, Gold-furred, King of Nine Tails. The tail of the auspicious beast that devours all and achieves all──.]"
Ring-!!
Ring-!!
"[──Grow, O Magic Hammer.]"
""!!""
"It's connected...!"
The moment the chant for [Kokonoe] concluded, Haruhime immediately transitioned into the next incantation.
While the rest of the group was stunned by the spectacle, Lili and Aisha—who were already aware of Haruhime's new potential—watched with eyes full of absolute trust.
"[That power in that vessel. Countless treasures for countless wishes.]"
Ring-!!
"[Until the moment the bell tolls, pray, grant glory and illusions.]"
Shuuuu-!!!!
"[──Grow, O Magic Hammer.]"
Radiant mana gathered above her head, manifesting into the form of a massive mallet—the visual signifier of her [Level Boost].
"[This body that has devoured the divine offering. This light offered to the Gods. Reach the hammer and return to the earth, pray, grant them your blessing.]"
'This magic allows me to chain my sorcery...!'
"[──Grow, O Magic Hammer]!"
The singular, massive sorcerous hammer shattered into fragments of light, embedding itself into each of her five tails and emitting a staggering pressure.
"[Uchide no Kozuchi]!!!!!"
As the sorcery was finally unleashed, the glowing tails dispersed once more, surging toward Aisha, Mikoto, Welf, Ouka, and Daphne. Above each of them, a miniature magic hammer began to take shape.
"[Dance!]"
Shuuuuk-!!!!!!!!!!
A mystical power instantly saturated their bodies.
"Good!"
""""!!""""
'The strength in my body...!!'
"It's overflowing!"
Aisha grinned as she felt the surge of power. The others realized the nature of the phenomenon almost instantly.
'A simultaneous [Level Boost]!'
Slash-!!!!
Boom-!!!!
Crunch-!!!!
With all five combatants granted the strength of a higher level, they tore through the monster horde with lethal efficiency, rapidly thinning their numbers.
'The tide has turned.'
Thump-!!!
'At this rate, we can break through.'
The miraculous occurrence of a mass level-up allowed Welf to conserve his magic swords. Escape from the crisis seemed certain.
'The only question is how that Enhanced Species will react...'
Aisha remained vigilant, certain that the Enhanced Species was still stalking them.
Thump-!!!
"!!"
'Found you...!'
As she suspected, the Enhanced Species was observing them from behind a screen of Blue Crabs. It was stooping down, picking something up from the cavern floor.
Grip-
'What is that thing doing...?'
Slide-!
'!!'
Clatter-!
The sound of stone-like objects clashing together reached her ears. Aisha's eyes narrowed as she identified the objects in the monster's grasp.
'Its true objective was...'
—...
'The magic stones of the monsters we killed!!'
Cold sweat trickled down her brow. The realization that everything had been part of the creature's design left her paralyzed for a fraction of a second. By then, the Enhanced Species had already devoured over a hundred magic stones.
Crunch, munch-!!
—!!!
Kugugugugu-!!!!!!!!!!
Crack-!!
Snap-!!!
As if evolving into a higher existence, the creature's form transcended that of a standard Moss Huge.
Its body didn't just swell; branch-like skeletal structures erupted from its frame, elongating and reinforcing its limbs. Its mouth tore open to an impossible width, revealing rows of grotesque, jagged teeth.
Thump-!! Thump-!! Thump-!!
"It's coming!!"
Sensing the threat, the Enhanced Species charged directly at Aisha, the strongest member of the group.
Clang-!!!!!!!!!!
"!!"
'It's strong...!! Even with the [Level Boost]...!'
The power of the evolved monster was overwhelming, enough to pressure even Aisha, who had reached the equivalent of Level 5.
—!!!!!
Boom-!! Boom-!!!
Crash-!!!!
Clang-!!
'This thing... just how far does its unpredictability go!'
Exploiting the power gap, the Enhanced Species unleashed a relentless barrage of heavy strikes. Aisha used her podao as a shield, barely parrying the blows before leaping back to create distance.
Step-!!
—...!
Snap-!!!
"What!?"
Crunch-!
""""!!""""
"Aisha-sama!!"
The evolved monster's jaw extended like a striking serpent, lunging for Aisha's throat. Its sharp, bizarre teeth sank deep into her shoulder instead.
The group watched in horror as the creature's expression shifted.
Grin-!
'It's laughing... this piece of filth...!'
Retracting its jaw, the Enhanced Species yanked Aisha toward it like a fish on a hook, mocking them with its gaze. But that mockery was born of overconfidence.
Slash-!
—!!!!!!
Step-!
"Huff...! Huff...!"
'I messed up...'
Aisha managed to cut into the monster's body and pull herself free, but the creature regenerated instantly. Conversely, parasitic vines began to sprout from her own shoulder wound, threatening to turn the injury fatal.
"You overgrown weed...!"
"Move!!"
Aisha wasn't the only one fighting.
"[Kouga]!!!!!!!!!!"
Fwoosh-!!!!!!!!!
Boom-!!!!!!!!!!!
A massive pillar of flame engulfed the Enhanced Species, incinerating dozens of Blue Crabs in its path.
"!!"
However.
Grin-!
—...
"It's unscathed...!?"
"How is that possible..."
They had landed a direct hit with the strongest fire attack available—the monster's known weakness. The reason for its survival became clear as the smoke cleared.
Ssss-
"An Undine Cloth...!!"
"That thing!"
"Did it loot that from an adventurer's corpse!?"
Before they could process the horror of a monster utilizing tactical items, the next wave of monsters swarmed them.
Shatter-!
"This is the worst!"
To make matters worse, [Kouga] shattered. Victory was no longer the goal; they were now in a desperate struggle for mere survival.
Clang-!!!
Clash-!!!!!
"Uooooh!!!!"
Lili assessed the situation with cold, analytical detachment.
'It is impossible to defeat an Enhanced Species that overwhelms even a Level-Boosted Aisha-sama.'
"The buffs have already worn off..."
Grip-!!
As Lili noted, their primary combatant was no match for the evolved monster, and their trump card, [Kouga], was gone. Even the wounded adventurers were forced to stand and fight just to buy time.
"Run!"
"Just survive!"
"Leave us behind!!"
"..."
'But...'
The shouts of Luviss, Dormul, and their comrades echoed in Lili's ears, placing her at a crossroads.
—'Beyond this point is the Lower Floors, where even I haven't ventured.'
—'From now on, we must assume the absolute worst-case scenario.'
Daphne's bitter advice from earlier resurfaced, cooling Lili's mind into a state of pragmatic logic.
—'But if it's you, I know you can make a calm, rational decision.'
For some reason, those words sounded incredibly cruel right now.
'She's right... I just have to run...'
Grip-!!
'I've done plenty of dirty work. There's no reason to hesitate now...'
Drip-! Drip-!
Yet, tears began to stream down her face.
Her head knew the truth. She understood perfectly that a cold, rational decision was required for survival.
Grip-!!
—'Please, believe in everyone.'
—'I came to save you, Lili.'
—'It might not be too late.'
"!!"
The heroes who had given her a new life flashed through her mind.
Crack-!!!!!!!!!!
"...Those people wouldn't abandon anyone."
"Those people didn't abandon me! So I...!"
Grip-!!
"Lili will not abandon you! I will never give up!!"
The sincerity those heroes had shown her was more than enough to change her entire world.
"Because Lili... is that person's Supporter!!"
And that shout, that desperate wish...
—Kigagak!!!!!!
'The magic sword...!'
Slash-!
"!!"
'Akumo-sama...?'
Was answered by the surgical decapitation of the enemy in a single stroke.
Dang-!
Dang-!
Dang-!
"Bell-sama!!"
And the chime of a bell, clearer than anything she had ever heard.
"You look pretty cool, you know?"
"Lili!!!!!"
They had reached her.