Capítulo 96: Chapter 96: Another Reason Not To Die
"Mn… I knew it."
Upon waking up, Filvis heard Ein say some incomprehensible things.
"How did I not think of this until now..?!"
"What is it..?"
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Ein began explaining her realizations.
"Nobu and Hephaestus-sama attended some matters for tonight. What if… it's their date?"
"Eh..?!"
At first, their disappearance didn't mean anything. It could be a coincidence that both of them were out for the night. After all, they simply informed them about it, nothing else.
Although, Ein had the experience of having a random realization during unexpected times. If it's not the shower, it would be right after waking up.
"How could we miss something so obvious?"
"Well…"
Even Filvis was startled by her words.
"We will know about that later…"
*****
'In the future…'
There are few notable things I saw in that future. Haruhime-san lived until the final fight against the Black Dragon. Lili took the vice-commander role just beneath Finn. Ottar and Leon entrusted the role of the leader to Finn as he is the most fit to lead them all.
Along with them are basically the complete Loki Familia executives.
As for Filvis, Ein, and Hephaestus Familia…
'Damn it...'
I knew from the information I received from Miku that they perished during the Black Dragon's surprise attack.
That surprise attack is the reason why I asked her to program more than a dozen contingencies on the off chance this happens. Although, I am still confident enough that it wouldn't choose to do so. Its injuries are debilitating enough to prevent it from taking the initiative.
Until those injuries get healed through its cursed technique, [Skip], Orario has the grace period to grow.
It has already been a week since I woke up. My schedule was just as constrained as before, though I do not feel it much due to my time with them.
By them, I meant my two goddesses.
After those dates, our times became a bit more special… and intimate.
I could say that my experiences rose up a lot within this period.
Then again, neither of us had any intention of touching the next base. For once, I am still considered as thirteen-years-old. They are thoughtful enough to consider it, too. I also didn't want it that much. Our feelings are enough for now.
"Akasaka-san will be watching us..?"
"That's right. I want to see how you would fare in the deep floors. I might be able to do more specialized teaching after I do that and… Lili will be joining."
Lili was standing behind my back. Ever since I woke up, she followed me like this—like a protégé.
Surprisingly, she was the one who grew the most in my six-month long absence. She might not have progressed on [Mana Furnace] to match Haruhime-san, but her willpower and strategies drastically improved.
I was right when I thought she has a mentality most suited to be a magician.
"As far as I know, Haruhime-san, Filvis, and Ein didn't have a leader, right?"
"Yes…" Haruhime-san replied. "We took turns on our roles."
"Then… How about letting Lili take the lead for once?"
"Ah..?!"
This time, I managed to see her startled expression. She always kept her emotions bottled up—even in the ninth iteration. Perhaps it is something she did for reasons unknown.
Even before I went back to my world, she was still like that. She is one of the few people whom I didn't fully understand.
"Teacher… I'm not sure if I could…"
"You already led the new Soma Familia for six months. You are qualified enough."
The three girls also agreed to my sentiments.
"Arde-san is a good leader…"
"Yeah. I've heard you even led your familia members to the twenty-fourth floor expedition."
"I agree with Ein. Your achievements are impressive."
Hearing their praises, her ear turned slightly reddish.
"Alright. I won't disappoint everyone."
I smiled at her upon seeing her resolve.
Out of everyone I know, Lili is the one most suited to become a leader. As long as this potential of hers bloom early, I will have less worries when I return to my world. I still have to settle things regarding Kenjaku and Sukuna early on… especially the latter.
I couldn't have Sukuna nearing fifteen fingers. He has a special cursed technique that could make his body revert to his peak form from a thousand years ago.
Things could get troublesome at that point. I am not sure how everything went in my world, but I am hoping that Miku succeeded in guarding Suguru Getou's corpse.
If Kenjaku somehow manages to acquire it again... things could get more troublesome.
"Let's go."
*****
Thirty-seventh floor.
Udaeus was recently cleared by the Loki Familia on their fiftieth floor expedition. Nevertheless, it is still challenging due to the fast spawn rate of the undead. It didn't have much weakness save for Holy-attribute magic, something that only the Dea Saint has.
However, it changes when the four-adventurer team enters this floor.
Buzz-!
More than fifteen radius of distance obtained a white sheen from the Holy Magicka cast by Haruhime. The spartoi and skull sheeps started to move sluggishly.
Shiing-!
Filvis' sword beheaded three spartois in one go, leaving their skeleton body and chipped weapons on the ground.
Bam-!
Shatter-!
Lili utilized her spear in full, activating its magic at times. The sharp side cut through their necks cleanly while the blunt side crushed their skulls. Not a single bit of her movement was wasted. Her attacks connected smoothly until she and Filvis cleaned up more than forty monsters in one go.
All this time, Ein remained at Haruhime's side. She acted as the spotter to remind the two vanguard of possible ambushes.
That was how they divided their roles.
Filvis acted as the vanguard.
Ein served as the overseer and Haruhime's guard.
Haruhime became the overall support of the team.
Lili took the role of both the vanguard and the overseer.
Lili's responsibility, in particular, has the heaviest of them all. She was accustomed to fighting on the frontlines while observing the changes from it, in turn giving more accurate commands for her familia members.
In a sense, Finn's commanding style could be seen on her.
"Is everyone good?" She asked. "There's still a while before we reach the safer zones… around two more stops in total."
"I'm still good."
"Same goes for me."
"Me too…"
Filvis, Ein, and Haruhime responded positively. The dream organs powering them at this moment removed some fatigue from their continuous descent. Even though they could already start on the fortieth floor, Nobu opted to start on the twentieth floor. He wanted to see how much they could handle at this time.
'I see… Perhaps the sixtieth floor..?' Nobu analyzed their overall combat prowess. 'With the suits, they could get past the Dragon's Vase. Mn, it's definitely possible.'
At this moment, Filvis and Ein were level four. Lili and Haruhime also reached level two at this moment. In fact, the latter two already did so two months ago.
Challenging monsters far stronger than them—existing on the deep floors—as a level one was unprecedented. They are only below Nobu in terms of combat prowess as a level one.
The Mana Furnace gave them enough leverage to do so. They even surpassed Aiz in terms of accomplishment. Only, they chose to not report it to the guild as they possessed magic items that could conceal their level.
It was one of Nobu's numerous creations during his spare time.
As for their actual strength, it remains quite the mystery. They hadn't chosen to go into the floors deeper than the forty-fifth floor. After all, the floors beyond it are extremely dangerous.
Lili glanced at where Nobu was supposed to be. Only, she couldn't feel an ounce of his presence.
'Teacher's magicka… It became far stronger than before.' She thought. 'He became very strong after he woke up…'
A mix of emotions were stirred up within her. She thought that her current progress was enough, but it seems that it wasn't. Her best wasn't enough to be by his side.
Lili felt a tinge of envy to the goddesses who were able to be by his side. She knew it simply by looking at their current relationship. They were able to do something she longed for a long time ago.
'When will I be able to reach it..?'
"...ili?"
"Ah… yes?"
Filvis' voice woke her up from her deep thoughts. She then realized that they were about to make a decision about their next move.
"I know a place on the thirty-eighth floor suitable for resting. It was modified a few months ago when I explored up to floor forty."
Lili regained her calm and began leading the group as usual.
After having their discussion, the four-adventurer team continued on their descent. They easily took care of the monsters sent on their way, purely with their coordinated firepower.
Soon, fifteen hours had passed.
They managed to go past the forty-fifth floor. At this moment, they are on the fiftieth floor—the same floor that served as an obstacle to the Loki Familia.
"Ugh… Even with the ice magicka…"
"I'm sorry…"
"Hey—it's not your fault! No need to apologize!"
The change in temperature surprised them. The temperature regulation magic item that Haruhime used couldn't fully nullify the heat.
"The fiftieth floor… It is different from what I expected." Filvis muttered. "Should we bring them out?"
Lili shook her head.
"We need to familiarize ourselves first. The fifty-second floor has those monsters living beneath it."
"...You're right."
The Valgang Dragons are one of the most notorious monsters within this floor range. Aside from the lambtons and Juggernauts, they were the ones who could break through the dungeon's environment. Their breaths could span from the fifty-eighth floor and reach them on the fifty-second.
If they couldn't fully adapt to these environmental changes, the deeper floors could prove to be more difficult.
Just as they spoke, several silhouettes dropped from the ceiling made of magma.
"Eek..!"
Instinctively, Ein let out a squeal.
"S-sum letum pruina!" (Be eroded with frost!)
Never had Ein casted a spell this fast.
Blue orbs converged at her side before they went after the black-purple spiders. Their eight purple pupils saw the incoming projectiles and tried to evade.
Psshk-!
Fuzz-!
The moment these light orbs came in contact with matter, their heat was deprived. Thick layers of frost calmed the blazing igneous rocks.
Some of them stuck on the spiders' legs while the others sustained no damage. There are also a select few who got hit straight into their heads, killing them effectively.
"Haruhime-san..! You don't want them to touch you, no?!"
"W-well…"
Haruhime's smile turned complex as she recalled the times she played with spiders. It is more of her happy childhood memories than the biological terrors Ein viewed them as.
"Eek..! Their furs..!"
She felt a chill as she saw their finer details through her use of [Mana Furnace].
Meanwhile, Lili and Filvis dealt with it more calmly.
"I'll bring out the rifle. Can Filvis-san deal with them if they get closer?" Lili asked before eliciting a nod from Filvis.
With that, Lili stored her qian and took out an M4A1 rifle. She already switched the regular magazines with the ones filled with ice magicka bullets.
She looked at the scope before briefly calculating their trajectories.
Bang-!
Bang-!
Bang-!
…
A hail of bullets rained down from her. As a result, the spiders dropped dead one by one. Ein deftly dodged the falling corpses and burnt them with flame magicka. It left them with big magic crystals as well as item drops ranging from silk to spider legs.
Pssshk-!
Fuzz-!
There are some bullets that were blocked with flame breaths from the spiders. They were then able to land properly on the ground. However—
Pssshk-!
Pssshk-!
—Filvis' sword and magicka pierced through their heads and necks one by one.
Haruhime also supported them by casting several AoE spells. She also blocked their attacks by remotely deploying magicka shields—something inspired from Nobu's [Militaris Fortilitia].
Their extermination speed was extremely fast—to the point the spawn rate couldn't catch up.
Lili considered it the moment she chose a more aggressive approach. She didn't forget that they were brought here to reach their limits.
Most importantly, she trusted her teacher to have their back. If she didn't mind dying for him before, why would she now?
In a sense, it is Lili's side that Nobu missed. He didn't notice her extreme fanaticism towards him. If she wasn't unconscious due to her early rampage before he arrived, he might've seen her wreak havoc on the front lines.
After all, Lili's vengeful side took over the moment he died. She became a wraith consumed with hatred.
'...Ah.'
At this moment, Nobu realized exactly just that.
'Hatred. Black Dragon. Curses. My death. Could it be..?'
It became yet another reason for him to not die.
*****
A/N: Filvis and Ein are recorded as a veteran level three before they died in the twenty-seventh floor nightmare. It is the reason behind their current level up. Anyways, it looks like I'd be able to update more frequently during this week. I'll try to reach four chapters to conclude the current Danmachi arc and move onto the next. The next arc was already hinted in the previous chapters ;)
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