章 42: Ambush from Evilus
We were on the 16th floor of the dungeon, right after the floor where the Monster Rex, Goliath, had been. It was a shame that Goliath had already been defeated, so I didn't get a chance to fight it, but maybe some other time in the future.
I let the girls take the lead to grind Excellia since I thought it was better for them to get stronger. I had grinded enough already. Despite being lower-leveled, their teamwork was surprisingly good, and their coordination was impressive too.
The knight girl took the front, protecting the others behind her. Her armor allowed her to move freely even amid monsters. She had a unique skill called "Knight Wall" that protected her and her team as long as she wielded a weapon.
Her long spear pierced the tough hide of a minotaur, and with enough force, she managed to make it scream in agony. A second later, beams of light stormed the poor minotaur, killing it instantly.
"Good hit, Liberia! Keep your mana steady, or you'll end up in another mind down just like yesterday!" Emma teased the young elf, making Primo embarrassed.
The fight went on, and the girls gave it their all. Emma, despite being cheerful and energetic, was a strong adventurer with unique skills and a powerful set of abilities.
She wielded twin swords with a fancy look, made from a rare material called Hihiirokane or something like that, according to her.
Emma moved swiftly, cutting down monsters from the sides. "My older sister would scold me for talking while fighting, but I can't express enough gratitude for your help, Niall."
Emma smiled, but then the masked girl came to my side, her glare full of hatred. "Why don't you move your ass up front and ease the situation a little? Hmph."
The other girls were too busy fighting to notice the masked girl, who was supposedly named Gita Meyers. She was a Chienthrope with brown eyes and yellow hair, wearing a suit resembling a cat, which matched her profession of intelligence gathering and similar tasks.
Before joining the Player Familia, Gita had worked as an intelligence gatherer for many other familias in Orario. She benefited from acting friendly with other familias and eventually crossed paths with the cat girl, Love Silva.
"Are you going to fuck off before I send you flying into that wall over there? The monsters would love some meat served on a golden plate." My comment seemed to piss her off, judging by the vein forming on her forehead.
But she quickly gave up on fighting me and went up front to join the others. Strangely enough, she wielded an axe like some lumberjack. The girls continued slaughtering monsters until we reached the 9th floor.
These floors were a breeze compared to the rest, so there was no need for heightened caution. The girls chatted with each other while I observed from the back. From time to time, Emma would turn to smile at me before turning her head back.
I could only commend her for her patience with the girls; after all, she was like a big sister to them, except maybe Gita. The mist was a bit of an issue for the girls, but I could see through it, so it wasn't a problem overall.
"Halt."
My cold, commanding tone stopped their movements, and they all turned their heads toward me, except for Gita, who was smart enough to keep her eyes on the front.
"Someone's hiding in that corner over there, behind the mist. I saw a shadow peeking out before retreating into the corner."
The girls' eyes widened, and a shiver ran down their spines. Despite killing monsters daily, their faces revealed that they weren't accustomed to handling horror.
"You can see through the mist? Impressive. So, what do you want us to do? It could be Aeshma Familia preparing an ambush or just some adventurers checking us out," the knight girl spoke, holding her spear.
"Maybe I should check it out since I'm difficult to notice. Worst-case scenario, it's Aeshma Familia along with Enoch. Best-case scenario, it's just some adventurers curious about us."
Gita spoke with her eyes fixed on the front. I knew she had a good set of stealth skills, but she was still far too underqualified compared to me. I wouldn't risk their lives, even if Gita could be a bit of a handful. I wanted to deal with this situation alone.
"No, I'll check it out and take care of anyone with ill intentions. They don't know we've noticed them, which gives us an advantage. But I can't let you go since you can't see through the mist like I can."
All attention was on me, and the girls nodded in agreement. Emma looked genuinely concerned for my well-being, but I reassured her with a Fallout Boy thumbs-up.
"You guys hide behind that rock formation over there and wait for my signal. If I don't come back, just run as fast as you can to Rivira and seek aid there." My little speech seemed to boost their morale a bit, and they quickly went to hide behind the rocks.
"Why are you doing this for us? I don't want to lose a new ally, you know. Why don't you let me go with you, hm?" Emma expressed her feelings as a proud captain. I understood her need to be a leader and a big sister figure to these girls, but this wasn't the moment for that.
"Thank you for your concern, but I don't want to risk anyone dying. Hermes recommended me for this job, and I'm going to do it professionally. As for a reward for helping you out, let's just say I don't need anything."
Emma stared at me with concern before gently smiling. She took my hand, not with romantic love, but with the love shared between siblings. She trusted me completely, and I trusted her. I was even more certain now that I would help her until the end.
"Alright, now go before the monsters spawn." The pink-haired girl turned back and ran toward the rocks where her group was hidden.
With nothing left to hold me back, I moved forward to the corridor where I had seen the mysterious shadow earlier. A minute passed as I cautiously approached the destination, but then I suddenly felt the ground cracking beneath me.
BOOOOOOOOM
Terrifying explosions shook the entire floor, and the fire seared my skin. My bones burned like premium-tier steak on a BBQ. There was no denying that this would probably cause a Juggernaut to spawn. If that truly happened, we would have to run for it.
Fire swept across my body, and debris fell on me for what felt like an eternity before everything went silent. Heavy rocks covered my lower half, and only my skull remained of my head—yet somehow, I could still see.
What kind of sorcery was this?
"HELL YEAH, we got him good!" A voice full of malice spoke, and a silhouette of a man with dead eyes appeared in front of me.
A cat person with one arm and an ear missing laughed maniacally. It was the same guy who had summoned the Juggernaut that killed the Astrea Familia. Along with him were other men I couldn't recognize.
His involvement meant that Evilus knew about me and was after my head, or maybe they were just after the Player Familia. Either way, they tried to kill me, and I was going to show them the ultimate reverse curse technique.
"Wasn't he supposed to be with those Player Familia bitches or something? Morana told us there'd be plenty of women to have fun with, along with this dude here. Did we just buy into a bullshit story?"
Hearing the name Morana made me pause. A Slavic goddess of death and winter was somehow involved in Orario. Then it hit me—Svarog had warned me about her presence somewhere in Evilus.
'Guess I need to take care of these guys first before finding this bitch...' I thought as flesh began to form where my body had been destroyed.
The Evilus members stared at me in pure fear and disbelief. They couldn't believe what they were seeing, and that made them unsheath their weapons.
With ease, I pushed the heavy debris off me, my body fully regrowing, with only my face being the last to regenerate. Once the visible skull transformed into my beautiful new face, the fear in their eyes was palpable.
"Gentlemen, please...."
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