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

Ignoring Hestia's worries, Lily grabbed the equipment and stuffed it into her backpack.

“Eh…”

"Miss Supporter?"

Lily, who was selecting large weapons, suddenly stopped.

Ignoring Hestia's astonishment, her eyes remained fixed on a certain weapon.

"This is... a 'dropped item'...?"

The large, sword-like object, wrapped in cloth instead of a scabbard, gleamed with an unpolished, jet-black sheen, resembling a massive, black-dyed bone. Only the base of the blade was fitted with a crude hilt. The cloth bore what appeared to be the holder's name, but it was illegible and unreadable.

This must be a spare weapon entrusted to Rivera Town by some adventurer for safekeeping. Carrying large luggage around is time-consuming and laborious, so adventurers often temporarily store spare supplies in the Rivera Town warehouse located in the middle area of ​​the mid-levels, retrieving them from town when exploring areas below the 19th floor—a common practice among adventurers. Perhaps due to the current urgency, this weapon was also taken from the town warehouse.

"Not much processing... no, but this..."

The weapon, which looked almost like a natural weapon, made Lily's throat tighten. Her eyes correctly assessed the weapon's hardness, sharpness, and destructive power.

According to her judgment, this should be the claw or teeth of a powerful large-scale (monster) weapon (dropped item).

It's highly likely that this monster originated from the "deep area".

Lily's eyes widened, and as if she had been electrocuted, she picked up the black greatsword and shoved it onto her backpack.

"Hey, Miss Supporter!"

With the added power of her "behind-the-scenes hero" ability (skill power), Lily effortlessly filled her already bulging backpack and, ignoring Hestia's calls, dashed off.

(Give this to Lord Bell...!)

—If this is combined with the white light attack that Bell unleashed, perhaps…

In order to hand over the discovered weapon to Bell, Lily swung her backpack and rushed off the hill.

●

"!"

Goliath's fingertip passed by the side of Ryu's body by a hair's breadth.

Having narrowly escaped the enemy's attack, she immediately suppressed her hesitation and struck the enemy's ankle with her wooden sword. Hearing the giant's roar echoing around her, she did not flee, but maintained a distance, repeatedly slashing with her sword.

"Li Ang, you'll die if you keep going like this!"

"Everyone is risking their lives in this battle. I have to do my part too."

Hearing Asphie's distant shouts, Ryu answered with unwavering resolve.

She deliberately stayed in the giant's embrace, continuing her attack and making herself a "target." Goliath could not ignore Ryu's sharp blow. Several times she was beaten by the wind pressure of the giant's fist, and her cloak became tattered, but she still continued her reckless and courageous battle as if she were facing a storm head-on.

"Andromeda, can you aim your attack at the enemy's core (magic stone)?"

"It's impossible! That monster is too tough; weapons can't pierce it."

After dodging the "bowl" with a large movement, Ryu and Asphie reunited and ran side by side. Each of them took out a elixir from their pockets and quickly drank it.

"And what about 'magic'?"

"...My incantations are incredibly time-consuming and ineffective. Goliath, with his powerful healing abilities, is a natural enemy of my magic; don't place your hopes on me."

As her pure white cloak billowed in the wind, Asif wiped her mouth with her arm, a bitter expression on her face. "I understand," Ryu replied calmly.

"We still need the mages' support once again."

"Even if it hits directly, it will all recover in the end!"

"Then keep reducing the opponent's stamina until its magic is exhausted."

"It would be a miracle if they could even do that...!"

Seeing Ryu abandon her and speed up, Asphie's expression twisted as she reached for her belt. She threw out her last remaining explosives, blasting Goliath in the face.

The outcome of the desperate situation was self-evident, but even so, she, like Ryu, did not give up the fight and rushed into the arms of the giant emitting red particles.

"Those mages...!"

—On the other hand, around Ryu and Asphi, who are fighting Goliath.

Although the encirclement had collapsed, the adventurers used their remaining strength to surround Ryu and the others in the center. Sakura saw another mage fall among them.

Goliath, seemingly on high alert after the earlier simultaneous firing, quickly pinpointed the mages who were casting spells, ignoring even Ryu and the others' attacks, and unleashed "Bowl" to snipe at them. To continue their spells, the mages were forced to stop moving, leaving them helplessly caught in the explosion. Some were even attacked by surrounding monsters, without even time to prepare their own magic.

The mages' bombardment is strategically crucial in defeating the floor boss. Without their power, conquering the floor boss will become extremely difficult.

The human wall blocking the mages proved ineffective. No shields could protect them.

No matter how hard Ryu and Asphie fight, if things continue like this... Sakura is deeply worried.

"Cherry blossoms!"

"Chigusa!"

Just then, he saw a girl running towards him and called out.

Chigusa's deliberate crossing of dangerous territory left him speechless, but the sight of the backpack on her back—containing all sorts of equipment, including her shield—made his shoulders tremble.

He couldn't wait to run towards the girl.

"Chigusa, bring me the shield!"

When Chigusa ran up to her and shouted, she was initially puzzled. Soon, however, she seemed to understand the meaning of her words, and her beautiful eyes, usually hidden beneath her bangs, filled with a chilling, frozen fear.

She kept shaking her head.

"Chigusa!"

"No, you'll die...! Facing an opponent like that, if we go to be the vanguard wall... Sakura, Sakura will die!"

Qiancao cried out loudly, tears streaming down her face.

Seeing the girl crying and looking up at his tall figure, Sakura seemed to also show a tearful expression, and then pleaded with her with a resolute look in her eyes.

"Chigusa, please, don't let me become a loser!"

"...!"

"I don't want to be a spineless coward who only knows how to talk! I don't want to sacrifice other people's lives while being a coward myself! I am a member of Takemikazuchi's kin!"

Faced with the man's words and gaze, Chigusa's wide eyes shed a tear.

The next moment, her expression turned sorrowful, she lowered her head, and took out a shield from the backpack she had put down.

"Thank you," Sakura said, taking the large shield and running towards the battlefield without looking back.

Chigusa suppressed a sob as she stood up, watching his receding figure.

◆

The white light particles stopped converging.

"All accumulated...!"

Three minutes. This is the longest charge time for [Hero's Wish] so far.

The bells were still chiming softly. Bell gripped his right hand, which was maintaining the glow, and with a leap, he dashed off.

Bell moved across the grassland like an arrow, gradually approaching the rampaging Goliath ahead. To bring the enemy into sufficient firing range, he had to get as close as possible to his opponent, until he reached his limit.

"Mr. Crannie!"

Ryu, who was weaving around the monster, noticed his approach. Asphie and the other adventurers fighting the monster also focused their attention on him. Even the giant standing before them had blood-red eyes that were no exception.

The fervor was building to the point of imminent explosion, and Bell, enduring the enemy's glare, leaped out from the front.

"Could it be—Leon, let's leave!"

After confirming that Bell's right hand was glowing, Asifi, who knew that Bell had once used a fatal attack to kill a young dragon, loudly urged Ryu to retreat immediately. Ryu hesitated for a moment, but still quickly escaped from the boy's firing trajectory.

Then, leaving a distance that the giant could easily reach, Bell took his position.

Goliath, facing him head-on, raised its massive body.

"--Whoa whoa!"

A powerful "bowl." A burst of magical energy.

Bell raised his right arm almost at the same time as it, assuming a shooting stance.

He roared at the top of his lungs.

"[Flame Lightning]!"

His feet sank into the grassland.

The reaction force from the massive fireball emanating from his glowing right hand pushed Bell backward.

The enemy's "bowl" attack was broken through by [Flame Lightning].

“——”

With a deafening roar and a burst of white lightning, the Great Flame Thunder shattered the colliding magic blocks, then swept across Goliath's head—piercing it through.

Only a few parts remained, including the right eye; eighty percent of the giant's face was gone. There wasn't even time to scream. A beat too late, and the magic exploded at the far end of the enormous space, blasting the sheer cliff face to smithereens.

Missed.

The bullet was originally aimed at the chest, but due to the excessive force, the trajectory became unpredictable and it hit the enemy's head.

Bell still had his right arm outstretched, his eyes wide, staring intently at the giant who stood frozen in place. Witnessing firsthand the destructive power that could easily pierce through skin as solid as a fortress, the surrounding area fell into an eerie silence.

No living being can continue to move after losing its head.

They had won—the adventurers wanted to believe it, but in the next moment…

Countless red particles emerged from the base of the giant's neck.

"!"

Witnessing the particles of light erupting like a volcanic eruption, everyone was stunned. The giant's lost face was gradually recovering at an alarming speed. The adventurers were too terrified to move, filled with trembling and despair. Before their eyes, the exposed eyeballs moved restlessly in their not-yet-fully-recovered sockets.

Even after losing its head, Goliath remained alive. With extraordinary vitality, it withstood the charged [Flame Lightning] and successfully regenerated using its astonishing healing abilities.

[Hero's Wish] is useless.

The giant's blood-red right eye, which had escaped destruction, and its resurrected left eye, driven by a clear killing intent, stared at the astonished Bell.

"—Bell! Run!"

Liu lost her composure and screamed, but it was to no avail. Goliath unleashed his "bowl".

The not-yet-fully-repaired muzzle—the mouth—exploded, sending fragments of teeth and flesh hurtling towards Bell with terrifying force. The recoil from [Hero's Wish] caused a fatal delay in his dodge, and numerous fragments and magic blocks struck him squarely.

Bell's body was injured, and his feet left the ground due to being knocked away. Covered in wounds, what he saw in the next moment was a massive body, as large as a mountain, charging towards him like a cannonball.

Goliath roared with murderous intent, his stomping causing the grassland to cave in as he rapidly approached. Ryu and Asphie were too late to help. His massive, powerful arm, gathered behind him, tore through the air and swung forward.

It was impossible to dodge, and there was no doubt that it would be a fatal blow.

The giant's hammer was about to strike the victim directly when Bell's time stopped.

Then, in the next instant, he appeared.

“——”

Holding a shield, he leaped out from behind Bell, his massive body visible.

The adventurer who rushed forward before anyone else—Sakura—drifted between Bell and Goliath.

He raised his great shield with a tragic expression, defending against the sweeping attack. As time slowly passed, the giant's middle finger flattened him and shield together, embedding itself into Sakura's body.

He coughed up a large amount of blood. Several bones broke as Bell's body, which was pressed tightly against Sakura's back, also cracked. Even with the shield and Sakura's body blocking the impact, the shock still pierced through his body.

Their eyes widened in disbelief, and Bell and Sakura were both sent flying.

"Roar! Ro ...

Scattered bloodstains, peeling off the [familiar] emblem.

Struck hard by the giant's roar, the two were sent flying into the air.

◆

"Bell—"

Hestia, who witnessed that scene from the outpost, murmured blankly.

She abandoned everything and rushed out of the hill.