Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

She struck the monster's body with the hilt of her rapier, which had lost its blade, in her right hand.

The rebound was a hard, tactile sensation. Despite the added wind force, the enemy's skin only suffered slight dents, without any visible wounds. Seeing this, Ais abandoned her attack.

"Hey, why is it completely ignoring us? Is it targeting Ais this time?"

"Could it be a reaction to magic...!"

Despite Tiona and Tione joining the battle, no matter how they attacked, the carnivorous plant only targeted Ais and ignored them.

As she moved, she retreated intermittently, keeping the battlefield away from Lefia, while simultaneously dodging attacks. An enemy's gaping maw pierced the ground, crushing a stone slab. The numerous tentacle whips reaching for her were met by Tiona and the others, allowing Ais to dodge at the last moment.

"Ais, dispel the spell! It's chasing after you!"

"But……"

"With one person and one head, there's always a way!"

Its serpentine body writhed and thrashed about, knocking away roadside vendors in one go.

Faced with the menacing monsters rushing towards her, Ais was forced to focus on defense. Tiona and the others urged her several times as they passed by, and she had no choice but to dispel the magic.

It was at that moment.

“——”

A figure came into Ais's view.

Were they ordinary citizens who didn't have time to escape?

A child orc hid behind a roadside stall, sitting on the ground. Trembling with fear, her gaze met Ais's.

If she had run in the original direction of retreat—to her right—that long, large body would have definitely smashed the little girl and the roadside stall together.

The judgment is made in an instant.

She unleashed the wind's energy to its maximum, enveloping herself in it.

Ais made a desperate gamble, rushing towards her blocked escape route on her left.

Then, he was caught.

▲

"Are you alright?"

Lefia collapsed to the ground in agony, and at that moment someone reached out a hand to her.

With trembling hands supporting him on the ground, his body, which was trying to regain its composure, was slowly helped up.

"Kha, cough, ah...!"

Lefia coughed violently, her cough spurting blood, and propped herself up with the help of female guild staff.

My throat feels burning, and my abdomen feels like it's on fire.

With the slightest movement, a sharp pain shot through her body. Lefia frowned, her gaze barely sweeping over her surroundings.

The entire road was unrecognizable; the stone slabs were all smashed and torn up, and the shops on both sides were either completely destroyed or partially destroyed, all flattened. The roadside stalls that used to line the road had also disappeared without a trace.

Lefia's vision blurred as she looked around, searching for them.

They seek adventurers many times stronger than themselves. Those gentle yet ruthless figures who always protect the weak, those who are unapproachable.

When her eyes focused, Rafia finally saw the figure at the other end of the road.

“——”

At the same time, her breath froze.

A shop with its walls smashed.

The blonde girl was bitten by the monster's huge mouth and pressed against the massive wooden building, almost sinking into it.

Because they were being bitten, the airflow created a small, spherical whirlwind. Not only that, two more carnivorous plants squeezed in, snapping and biting incessantly. The Amazonian sisters grabbed them and tried to pull them apart, but they couldn't escape.

Countless sharp teeth tried to ravage the blonde girl's skin and shatter her wind armor.

"Please don't move, we must leave here to treat you!"

She tried desperately to stand up, but was stopped by a half-elf guild employee.

Lefia put up a resistance, leaving the guild staff at a loss, but when she followed the blue eyes, she gasped.

"...The Ganesha Familia will arrive to our aid soon. Leave this place to them; please seek refuge quickly!"

"...!"

The excruciating pain that coursed through her body caused Lefia's body to bend in two.

The guild staff tried to calm her down as she looked down at her left hand, her breathing rapid.

[Ganesha Familia]. If they were armed, they could probably rescue them, and rescue Ais and the others. Compared to the injured Lefia, they would definitely be a great help to Ais and the others.

"Stop worrying about it, leave it all to someone else," the pain in her body whispered to her.

Lefia was speechless for a moment. She lowered her head, closed her eyes—and then,

She clenched her left fist and her eyes widened suddenly.

She stood up.

"...!"

"—I am! I am Lefia Viridis! The fairy of the Viridis Forest!"

The half-elf woman stared up at her with wide eyes, and she cried out as if to drive away all thoughts of cowardice.

"I am one of the strongest, proudest, and greatest familiars in Orario, bound by a pact with the goddess Loki! How could I possibly desert my post!"

Language can be a source of power.

Like magic, Lefia roused herself, reclaimed the main stream of power, took a faltering step, and then ran out in one breath.

Lefia returned to the battlefield with the sole purpose of helping those in distress.

(—I understand, I understand perfectly!)

Lefia already knew.

(I know I'll only be a burden to them!)

He often becomes a shackle for Ais and the others.

Whether now or in the future, I must rely on them for protection.

Even if I wanted to risk my life to help them, they would gently push me away in the end. They would tell me not to worry and wouldn't allow me to stay by their side.

Just like back then.

(No matter how hard I try to be strong, I'm just not good enough for them!)

No matter how hard we try, we can't catch up. Even with relentless pressure, the gap continues to widen.

The object of her longing was too far away, causing her to suffer from feelings of inferiority and involuntarily become subservient.

They—the golden, holy ones—were so strong, while she herself was so weak, a fact that struck a chord with Lefia's heart.

(But……!)

She wanted to catch up.

She wanted to help them. She wanted to be a support to them.

If she could, Lefia would like to stay with them.

She hoped she could become that kind of person, to be allowed to stay with those who accepted her and saved her countless times.

"!"

The distance has been shortened.

She got close enough to bring the target into her firing range.

Lefia, keeping a close eye on the monsters surrounding Ais, began to chant.

"Make a wish in the name of the fairy!"

In the end, she could only relentlessly pursue him.

This is the only way to catch up with the person I admire.

"O ancestors of the forest, your noble brethren, answer my call and come to the grasslands!"

No matter how many times I vomit blood, no matter how many times I kneel, no matter how many times my tears flow, my cheeks will never dry.

Those who pursue relentlessly will only be allowed to continue pursuing.

"【The bonds of connection, the promise of a joyous feast. Let us dance in the circle】."

Willpower can be thwarted. It can be thwarted repeatedly. No vow can remain unbroken forever.

It's just that some people can keep getting back on their feet after setbacks and refuse to give up.

It's just that some people, no matter how many times they fall down in an ugly way, can get up again and again, shouting that they will never give up.

"Come, Fairy Ring!"

Rafia sang.

She swallowed the blood flowing backwards, singing a melody in order to break free from being merely protected and to catch up with the person she admired.

"I beg you—lend me your strength."

I dedicate this song to her.

He was singing a song that said, "Even if I walk slowly, I can still make sure she, who is far ahead, can hear me."

Even if I cannot make her turn back, I vow to reach her ears, heal her wounds, protect her, and drive away the enemies who threaten her.

Like a fairy dancing in the forest. Like a celestial being who has always saved her beloved.

To spread the songs that only I am qualified to sing to various places.

Send this magic (poem) to her.

"【The Ring of Elves】".

As the name of the spell was chanted, the golden magic circle turned emerald green.

"Lefia!"

"!"

Tiona noticed the gathering magic. At the same time, the monsters that had been biting at the wind around Ais with their sharp teeth turned back towards the stronger source of magic.

Ais also opened her eyes wide in surprise.

"[—O harbinger of the end, snow-covered peaks. As dusk approaches, let the winds rise!]"

The chanting continued.

The magic that should have been completed can be combined with other incantations to create other kinds of magic.

There is a limit to the number of spells you can learn.

[Ability Values] The maximum number of magic slots that can be secured is three. This means that even with exceptional talent, one can only use three types of magic.

The magic that Lefia ultimately learned was Summon Burst.

She uses the spells of her fellow (elf) magic, which she has fully mastered in terms of incantation and effects, as her own ultimate attack—an unprecedented and outrageous move (a rare spell). By sacrificing two stages of incantation time and mental energy, she can unleash any elf's magic.

Because of this magic, the gods of Orario bestowed upon her the alias "Thousand Elf".

"【Blinded light, frozen earth】."

It summoned the attack magic of the elven princess, Riveria Lyos Alfre.

It summons a frigid blizzard, freezing enemy movements and time itself, a merciless wave of snow.

During the chanting, in addition to Rafia's mellow voice, another beautiful and delicate voice appeared, overlapping and blending with it.

The emerald-green magic circle shone with dazzling light.

"——!"

The three-headed man-eating flower monster quickly approached her.

It let out a shrill cry like a broken gong and charged toward the ever-increasing magic power.