"It's a Merman!"
Slice—!!!!
Boom—!!!!
Bell and Bors's party headed toward the 27th floor.
They advanced slowly, fending off swarms of Mermen and Light Quartz.
Rat-tat-tat—!!!
Crash—!!
"Attack when the laser stops and it enters its charging state."
Dash—!!
"""!!"""
"Hey! [Rabbit Foot]!"
Driven by the singular goal of finding Ryu faster than anyone else, Bell aggressively charged the monsters, whipping his scarf with lethal precision.
Crack—!!
"Haa!"
Boom—!!!
The Goliath's tough hide combined with a weight far exceeding standard materials made for a devastating weapon. The swarm of Light Quartz was annihilated in a single strike.
'This scarf... it's incredibly durable.'
Step, step—!
"Is this really your first time on the 27th floor?"
"Ah, yes!"
"I don't know what to say... you've gotten strong."
Witnessing Bell's veteran-like movements and peerless speed, Bors immediately reorganized their positions.
"With your current skill, I can confidently leave the vanguard to you."
"Pardon?"
"I'm leaving all the troublesome work to you! We'll split the rare drops equally, of course!"
In other words, he intended to lean heavily on Bell's strength.
"You've become terrifyingly strong, Bell Cranel!"
"Remember? We charged that Goliath together."
"Is that true?"
"Can we rely on you just like back then?"
"...Of course!"
Bors and the others genuinely marveled at Bell's power, offering smiles of trust at how much he had grown since the Goliath fight. Bell felt a pang of guilt for hiding his true intentions, but he smiled back, certain he would cause them no harm.
"Where is that [Gale] hiding?"
"My hands are itching for a fight~"
"As if you'd be a match for her. She's a monster who wiped out an entire Familia alone."
Hearing their conversation, Bell asked about the rumors regarding Ryu's past that had been circulating since the incident began.
"But, there was a reason for that, wasn't there?"
"Right. It was revenge for the massacre of her own Familia, the [Astraea Familia]."
"The opposing Familia were part of the Evils—vile bastards, the lot of them."
"I can understand the sentiment, but honestly, her methods weren't exactly sane."
"In what way...?"
"First, she crippled everyone in that Familia so they could never work as adventurers again."
"...!"
"And those who took bribes from them or were linked to their crimes... she cut off their fingers, or even their entire hands, as a threat."
"..."
Bell was stunned. The thought of Ryu committing such acts left him deep in thought; he resolved to ask her about this when they finally spoke.
"Time to move!"
"We're reforming the party here! [Rabbit Foot]! You're with me!"
"Once we find [Gale], drive her toward the Great Falls!"
"""Ohhh!!!"""
The search for the 27th floor resumed. Bell now faced the difficult task of finding Ryu while also finding a way to contact her without the others noticing.
'The best thing would be to find an opening and slip away from the party...'
"B-Bors! Come look at this!"
At another adventurer's call, Bell and Bors hurried over to find a massive hole bored into the ceiling.
"What the hell is this... I've never seen a hole this big on this floor."
"It looks like something dug its way through..."
"The Dungeon isn't repairing itself."
"Does that mean something is still nearby!?"
"It couldn't have been [Gale], right? You can't do this with magic..."
As everyone's tension spiked, they asked Bors if they should continue the search. Bors hesitated, his mind weighing the 80 million Valis bounty.
"~♪"
""""!?""""
"Hey, I hear something!"
"Singing...?"
The voice was unmistakably familiar to Bell. Realizing this was his chance, he immediately bolted.
"I'll go check it out!"
"Hey, wait!"
Dash—!!!
Meanwhile, on the 25th floor.
"..."
"If you stare too much, he'll notice, Welf-sama."
Welf and Lily were investigating the adventurer named Turk, whom Bell had mentioned before heading to the 27th floor.
"Did you get any info?"
"Yes. Turk is an adventurer who settled in Rivira about three years ago."
"Stats?"
"Level 2. However, he frequently tags along with second-tier adventurers, so he has a lot of experience in the Lower Floors."
"So he's fairly well-trusted..."
Before leaving, Bell had asked the group to look into Turk's history. The fact that he harbored such intense hostility toward Ryu, was the catalyst for the current incident, and that everything started from his testimony made Bell highly suspicious.
"Is he really up to something?"
"Should we just jump him?"
""""!?""""
Aisha's blunt response to Ouka's question startled the group.
"What are you saying!?"
"He's clearly hiding something. Isn't it faster to beat him down and make him talk?"
"Wow... Amazonian logic at its finest."
"That might turn the surrounding people against us, regardless of whether it works..."
Lily spoke in a fluster, while Daphne was almost impressed by the simplicity. Only Mikoto calmly analyzed Aisha's opinion, stating it wasn't the best course of action.
"Then I'll go alone."
"To do what...?"
"Obviously, to 'eat' him in a secluded—"
"Waaaaah!!!!! You can't do that!!"
"Tch."
As Haruhime, blushing furiously, barely managed to restrain Aisha, Turk's voice echoed through the cavern.
"Hey, let's go too!"
"Can we really leave this just to Bors's lot!?"
Turk's voice rang out, rallying others.
"There's no guarantee [Gale] is on the 27th floor! Let's search this floor ourselves!"
"Bors told us to wait."
"I want to kill [Gale] with my own hands for what she did to Jean!"
"Even if you're stubborn, you'll just get killed if you actually meet her!"
"And you call yourself an adventurer!?"
An argument broke out between Turk and the other adventurers, splitting them between those who wanted to wait and those who wanted to follow Turk's independent investigation.
"I'm going with Turk! You expect me to just sit here? Don't make me laugh!"
"Sigh... go if you want. Don't come crying to us when things go south."
"Fine by me!"
Sensing something off, Aisha and the rest of the party began to discreetly track Turk's movements.
At that same time, Bell succeeded in reaching the source of the singing, finding a familiar girl waiting there.
"Marie!"
"Bell!"
Splash!
As soon as she saw him, Marie dove into his arms with a mixture of joy and relief.
However, even as he held her, Bell asked why she had suddenly called him with her song. It was a dangerous move that could have revealed her identity to the others.
"Why did you do that? There are other people around..."
Tremble!
"!! Marie, what's wrong...?"
Feeling her body shaking, Bell immediately asked what had happened. Marie slowly opened her mouth.
"There's... something here that shouldn't be..."
"Something that shouldn't be here...? What exactly?"
"I don't know... I don't know since when, or where it is..."
"!!"
'Could it be...!'
Whoosh!
Bell looked up at the ceiling. Sure enough, there was another massive hole like the one he had seen with Bors. He was certain that Marie was terrified of whatever had created it.
'I have to regroup with Ryu-san quickly...!'
"Marie. Have you seen an Elf around here?"
"An Elf...?"
"Ah, I mean... ears longer than mine, carrying a wooden sword, wearing a hood..."
"!!"
Marie's eyes widened as Bell described her. He immediately pressed for her location.
"You know where she is!? Please, tell me!"
"..."
"Please... I absolutely have to meet her...!"
"...This way."
Though she hesitated at first, Marie couldn't refuse the desperation in Bell's eyes. She began to guide him through the waterways.
"Sigh... how many does that make?"
"Still only two."
Crack!
"Augh~ when is this going to end~"
Akumo stood there, with Ryu by his side.
Drip! Drip!
She held a sword slick with blood.
Whoosh!
"Honestly, are there still bastards like this left?"
Catch!
"The information was solid, so it must be so."
Whoosh!
Even more shocking was the sight of Akumo tossing and catching a hand—presumably belonging to the dwarf adventurer pinned under Ryu's boot—as if it were a mere ball.
Catch!
"..."
'Brother...?'
Drip!
'Ryu-san...?'
The sound of Akumo catching the hand and the blood dripping from Ryu's sword reached Bell's ears, paralyzing his judgment.
Splash!!
""!!""
Schwing!
""Who's there!!""
At the slight sound of Marie diving back into the water in terror, Akumo and Ryu reacted simultaneously, drawing their weapons and spinning around.
"Brother... Ryu-san..."
"...Bell?"
"Why are you here...!!!"
Akumo was momentarily taken aback to see the white-haired boy he knew so well standing there in shock. Ryu looked like she wanted to shout at him for being there, but she simply flicked the blood off her blade and turned her back.
Flick!
"Cranel-san, leave this floor immediately."
Thud!
"And take this dwarf with you."
Ryu spoke without looking back.
"W-What are you saying..."
"Just listen to me and GO!!!!!!!!!!"
""!!""
Both Akumo and Bell were startled by the raw intensity in Ryu's voice as she screamed to get Bell away from this place.
"What on earth are you doing!?"
"And that person is...!!"
Step, step—
"Ryu-san!!"
Despite Bell's cry, Ryu simply continued walking deeper into the darkness.
Nudge—
"Bell, don't ask anything right now. Just move this pie—this guy."
Akumo also gave him a cold look, pushing the dwarf toward Bell, clearly wanting him to take the man and leave.
Step, step—!
"How long do you plan on following us?"
Meanwhile, Turk's group was conducting their own search on the 25th floor.
"If you're looking for [Gale], isn't it better to move together?"
Bell's party, led by Aisha, followed them closely, intent on extracting information.
"After all, the target is a Level 5 fugitive, isn't she?"
"...Tch!"
As Aisha nonchalantly explained their reason for following, Turk looked flustered, as if things weren't going according to plan.
"He's clearly conscious of something."
"That anxious attitude is definitely concerning."
In this situation, Cassandra was worrying about Bell while trying to interpret her prophecy. She agonized over what the 'calamity' was and how it related to Ryu.
'If [Gale] is the source of everything...'
'If the murders in Rivira and the coming disaster are all her doing...'
—'I believe in Ryu-san.'
"Then he'll be betrayed by the person he trusted..."
Cassandra's fears were more than just accurate; they were about to hit Bell as a much larger problem.
Dash—!!
"Bell!"
"I'm sorry! Don't follow me, Marie!!"
Dash—!!!
His mind a whirlwind of confusion from seeing Akumo and Ryu, Bell carried the still-breathing dwarf adventurer on his back toward Bors's party.
"What happened here!?"
"Everything is destroyed...! What could have done this..."
Look!
"These are all the guys who joined the subjugation force!"
"Is this one too late as well...!"
"This one too!"
Bors's group had arrived at a scene of total devastation. Shocked by the sight of the dead adventurers, they were frantically investigating the area.
Dash—!!
"What...!?"
'Did Brother and Ryu-san do this too...?'
Arriving late, Bell's confusion only deepened at the sight.
"[Rabbit Foot]! Where the hell did you go!"
"I-I'm sorry! For acting on my own!"
Bell lowered the dwarf from his back, and Bors immediately demanded an explanation.
"Hey! That dwarf... don't tell me!"
"This person..."
"Was he attacked by [Gale]?"
"!!"
"Dammit! Tell me exactly what happen—"
"Bors! There's a survivor!"
One of the party members shouted, pointing to a living soul.
"Kh...!!"
Tremble—!!
The beastman male was bleeding heavily, one ear and one arm having been severed.
"Hey, can you talk? What happened here?"
"!! G-Gale... [Gale]!! That Lion woman...!"
"[Gale]!?"
"She fired magic... everything went white with light...!!"
"Where is she now?"
"Wait, Bors, let's treat him first..."
Bors pressed for Ryu's location, ignoring the man's terror. Another adventurer reached out to offer healing, but—
Slap—!!
"DON'T TOUCH ME!!!"
Thud!
"Don't touch me... please don't touch me... Kh...!! Sob...!!"
He swiped the hand away and collapsed to the ground in agony.
"[Gale]... she really is a monster..."
"To actually do something like this..."
Squint—
"!? Wait, are you Jura Halmer!?"
Noticing the piercing on Jura's remaining ear, Bors immediately recognized him.
"Y-You know him!? Bors-san!"
"Yeah, he's a wanted man. A member of the [Rudra Familia], part of the Evils."
"...No way!"
"He's the one who tried to wipe out the [Astraea Familia], the one [Gale] belonged to."
"!!"
'Ryu-san's... enemy...'
Bors's words made everyone realize why the man was in such a state. Bors spoke again to get more information.
"I thought you were all dead. So you survived?"
"Y-Yes! I'm the only one who made it!"
Glare—!
"But I haven't done anything bad since then! Not once!"
"I've been in hiding...! But Lion keeps finding me..."
He looked utterly broken, as if the mere existence of Ryu terrified him. He began to plead with them.
"Please! I won't do anything bad anymore, just protect me from her!"
Bors pondered for a moment before turning to his party.
"If we have this guy, [Gale] will show herself eventually."
Grin—!
"If we take down [Gale] like we planned and hand this guy over to the Guild, we'll make even more money!"
Blinded by greed, they still intended to fight Ryu rather than talk. Seeing them, and remembering Akumo and Ryu's cold behavior, Bell could no longer make sense of what was happening.
Thud!
"....?"
As he backed away, his foot hit something.
Pick up—!
"This is...?"
Dash—!!
"!!"
At that moment, rapid footsteps approached from a distance, accompanied by a shout from the party.
"It's Gale!!!!"
"You bastards! Get her!!!"
""""Uooooh!!!!!!!!!!""""
The moment Ryu appeared, numerous adventurers charged her.
"Out of my way!!"
Crash—!!!
""""Gwaaah!!!!!""""
A single attack swept away half a dozen adventurers. Her eyes were fixed solely on Jura.
"A-Aaaaaah!!!!!!!!!!"
Overcome with terror, Jura began to run deeper into the cavern. Bell stood frozen, unsure of what to do.
"Stop her movements!!! If we break her momentum, we can overwhelm her with numbers!!"
Following Bors's command, the adventurers lunged at Ryu once more, but—
Thwack-thwack-thwack—!!!!
"Sigh..."
""""!!""""
"Stay out of it."
Akumo suddenly appeared, his fists blurring as he sent the adventurers flying.
"T-The [Pioneer]....!! Are you an accomplice too—"
"Bors. If it's money you're after, change your mind now."
"You're going to die if you don't."
Leaving Bors with those words, Akumo immediately looked toward Ryu, who was chasing Jura.
"Ryu!!! Calm down, please!!!!!"
"....."
Dash—!!!!
"Goddammit...!!!!"
Whoosh—!!!!!!!!!
Swearing under his breath, Akumo had no choice but to chase after Ryu, passing the bewildered Bell.
"Huff...! Huff...!"
'If that man Jura is really her enemy...!'
Despite his confusion, Bell ran toward them, desperate to talk to Ryu and Akumo.
"B-Bell Cranel!!"
"You...!"
"Save... save me! Save me from her!!!"
"!!"
There was Jura, rolling on the ground in terror. Footsteps approached.
Step, step—
"...Ryu-san."
'Where is Brother...?'
"Why are you..."
Clench!
"Sigh... whatever."
Ryu saw someone's shadow overlapping with Bell as he blocked her path. She sighed and simply walked forward.
"I should have just killed you back then... Jura."
Step, step—
"I suppose it was wasted mercy, you piece of trash."
"R-Ryu-san...!!"
Point!
Bell tried to block her to talk, but Ryu radiated a sharp, murderous intent, leveling her wooden sword at him.
"Move this instant. Otherwise, I will cut you down. Even you!"
========================
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