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

Whether by scent or aura, the "monster" accurately pinpointed the location of Transparent Asphie, which is why it launched a wide-range shotgun attack in all directions.

Ryu's body became a barrier, slowing down Asphie's dodging movements.

"Andromeda..."

The black helmet was destroyed after being hit by a barrage of crystal shotgun shells.

The beautiful woman, whose "transparency" had been removed, lay face down on the ground. The pure white shockproof cloth (cloak) she had worn at the last moment was riddled with holes and stained with blood, and her broken silver glasses had fallen to the ground.

"..."

Liu stared blankly at Aisha and Asfi, who were no longer able to fight, before turning his gaze back to the front.

The "monster" stood there solemnly, like a symbol of nightmares.

It swung its double-edged axe, stained with blood from the slaughter of countless adventurers or monsters, and approached her step by step, accompanied by tremors.

Liu remained silent, lowered his back, and assumed a fighting stance.

She gripped the wooden sword tightly with both hands, turning to face the enemy.

Upon seeing that appearance, the pitch-black "monster" also stopped in its tracks.

It first stared at Ryu with eyes that couldn't see through its emotions, then quietly raised its double-edged axe.

Ryu stands alone, confronting the "monster".

"..."

The enemy's attack knocked off her veil, revealing the elf's beauty in the forest.

Their fighting spirit remains undiminished.

That fierce look, with its raised eyebrows and stern gaze fixed on the enemy, is the expression of a warrior.

However, the profuse sweat streaming down her face spoke volumes about her state of mind.

(I haven't felt this way in a long time...)

A strong "sense of death".

It's been a long time since Ryu stopped being an adventurer and stayed away from dungeons.

That was the absolute death line she crossed when she was in a situation where she had a near-death experience.

At this moment, she was facing a death line that was more intense and severe than any she had ever experienced before.

A moment of silence pierced Liu's eardrums.

The rapid heartbeat acted as an alarm bell, shaking his mind and ears. Liu slightly loosened his grip on the wooden sword, then tightened it again.

The next moment.

"—Roar!!"

"!!"

Ryu and the "monster" took action.

As the cleaver roared and unleashed its slash, Liu crawled on the ground to dodge, thrusting his wooden sword out from below.

Her own attacks were dodged, but it didn't matter. Ryu didn't stop, but increased her speed.

Looking back at Aisha's battle with it, it's clear that defense is a poor strategy when facing the enemy's overwhelming strength. Even the slightest contact is unpredictable, and carelessness is unacceptable. Ryu runs like the wind, dodges like a whirlwind, and then unleashes attacks that are swirling with gale-force winds. Ryu focuses all her energy on attacking and dodging, confronting the pitch-black "monster."

The opponent's astonishing potential always gives them the upper hand. Ryu is always left on the defensive.

Not only that, the "monster" could also see through attacks and use "techniques," just like some armed monsters. For Ryu at this moment, this was more threatening than anything else. Each time she was attacked, a terrifying chill would run through her, but Ryu still did not back down. To back down meant defeat, meant death.

When facing opponents of enormous size, Ryu often lowers his posture and stubbornly attacks his feet.

"—Hmm..."

Witnessing Ryu's attacks, which grew increasingly faster, sharper, and more powerful, the "monster" widened its eyes. To Ryu, it even looked like an expression of joy. This "monster" was completely different from any monster it had encountered before.

This monster is not "slaughtering" humans, but "fighting".

This thought flashed through Ryu's mind. And Ryu had already experienced firsthand what this difference would bring to the battle. The difference between a killer and a warrior lay in their endless thirst for the pinnacle and their unwavering pursuit of victory. Ryu distorted her exposed features.

Then, the battle between the sprites, who seemed to be constantly moving in multiple directions, and the "monster" that had unleashed unparalleled power, reached its decisive moment in less than a minute.

Ryū never intended to wage a protracted war from the beginning, and has always acted with all his might since the start of the war.

The elven warriors knew the battle had reached its limit and decided to fight to the bitter end.

"Drink it!"

"—!! Hoohoo ...

A charge from the side. Facing the special attack launched by the beast with its low stance, the dark "monster" raised its double-bladed axe high. With a speed far exceeding that of its opponent's running pace, it caused the large blade to explode on the ground.

「!?」

Immediately afterward, the blast wave blew the wooden sword into the air, startling the "monster's" shoulder.

It didn't feel like I hit anything.

The double-edged axe, swung in vain, only shattered the ground, offering no sense of victory to those strong arms.

For a moment, the "monster's" body went blank, and then a shadow covered it.

(—Got it.)

It's Ryu.

Just before she raised her double-edged axe to strike, she switched from a sprint to a leap, soaring into the air.

She was paving the way by constantly drawing the enemy's attention to the lower section. This was to manipulate the opponent's thinking, allowing for a swift and decisive surprise attack.

Ryu's final move was aerial warfare.

For an enemy engaged in prolonged ground warfare, initial actions become fatally slow at this point.

Ryu's "tactics" triumphed over the "monster's" strength and skill.

"Haa ...

Aiming at the astonished enemy, she drew the two small katanas from her waist.

"Short Sword - Futaba". These are two short swords given to her by her deceased companion (family member) from the Far East.

Ryu flashed his twin blades, intending to take the "monster's" life.

"--What!"

However—it was blocked.

Ryu unleashed all his attacking skills, but they were blocked by the horn.

The red horns that grow from its head resemble those of a fierce bull.

As if to say that only this horn will never break, the "monster" blocked the double attack that was infused with all its power.

Then, using only the muscles in its neck, it forcefully bounced Ryu, who had been deflected by the fatal blow and was now airborne, back up.

"Ugh!?"

With a loud crash, Ryu's slender body was slammed into a large tree.

Even though her breath was being forcibly pulled from her lungs, she tried to regain her balance, but the dark shadow instantly closed in on her.

“——”

The double-edged axe was raised high above my head. There was no time to dodge.

Looking up at the massive, black body, Liu was already prepared to die.

"————…………"

However, just moments before the axe was raised high to strike.

The "monster" stopped moving and looked up in a completely different direction. Ryu, staring wide-eyed, noticed it too. From deep within the forest, the monster's distant howl could be heard, as if it were announcing some situation.

The silent, dark "monster" put down its axe and started to walk away from Ryu.

The "monster" abandoned her, who stood there bewildered, and with a tremor of the ground, disappeared into the depths of the forest.

"...It let me go."

After the "monster" figure completely disappeared, Ryu murmured weakly.

She looked down at her convulsing hands, which she could no longer clench, and then, unable to hold on any longer, leaned her exhausted body against the trunk of a large tree.

Liu squinted one eye, gazing up at the blue sky created by the buildings.

In the forest battlefield illuminated by crystal light, many adventurers fell, but no one made a move except for her.

*

"You really can't tolerate me, [rising star]?"

In the midst of endless madness, Dix asked him.

"They can just talk. They're monsters too."

"Ugh, ah...!?"

Bell was constantly injured and became covered in wounds.

Although he managed to dodge the "Cursed Spear's" stab, the man held a decisive advantage in the battle, personally beating Bell to a pulp. Some time had passed since the start of the war, and Bell was now riddled with wounds.

However, those eyes still held a bright light that was far from dim.

"What's wrong with torturing them and letting them die a horrible death?"

“Wu!?”

"Haven't you been doing the same thing all along? Slaughtering monsters for money, how is that any different from what I'm doing?"

"Ugh...!?"

The opponent used the handle of the red spear to punch the boy's unruly body away.

Although Bell deflected the attacks with Hestia's Blade, he couldn't defend against all the blunt weapons that flew at high speed in diagonal arcs. His feet, arms, and face were repeatedly struck.

With a smile on his face, Dix treated it as a joke, thrashing Bell so badly that he couldn't get up.

At the same time, under the guise of questions, they also used words as a weapon to pierce the heart and shatter the brilliance in the boy's eyes.

"...Even if that's how it is...even if it was like this before...!"

"?"

"Mr. Reed and the others... those monsters, they can laugh...! Just like us, they can cry...!"

Bell glared fiercely at Dix with his deep red eyes.

"They can still shake my hand...!!"

He clenched his right hand, as if recalling the lingering warmth in his palm.

"...So you've gone crazy too."

Dix's smile deepened.

It was as if his sadistic desires had been ignited, and his crimson eyes behind his goggles began to gleam with a fierce light.

"Let me think about how to cook you."

"Ugh...!?"

A heavy blow to the shoulder finally brought Bale to his knees.

Dix looked down at the boy, who was leaning on the floor with his left hand, panting heavily.

"Oh, right... I remember you were really infatuated with that dragon girl (Vivel)."

he said softly.

This whisper stopped Bell's time.

"—Okay, I'll enlighten you."

The man etched a cold smile onto his face.

"wait……!"

"Just lie down."