Deafening silence filled the room.
Nobody had expected the outcome to be like this. Sirius, a level three adventurer, completely dominated the cursed spirit. Its strength is no less than a level seven, yet he managed to do it.
An entire four level gap!
It's not just surprising—everyone does not know how to react to this.
In the midst of stillness, Nobu's aura converged. It was no longer as deadly as before. Nevertheless, his basic coercion remained.
The star-like eyes scanned the room before stopping at Aiz. The said girl wore twice the question marks than when she saw the beatdown happen.
Surprisingly, she felt something familiar about him. Nobu disappeared on the spot and appeared right in front of her. Aiz couldn't react as the boy hugged her. The tail behind his back swayed back and forth, showing his joy.
"Hm…"
It didn't end there. Nobu stuck his cheek to hers like a bonafide wolf. Her embarrassment visibly crept on her face.
"S-sirius…"
Fortunately, she was spared of it. Nobu lost consciousness in her arms. The inhumane features dissipated, leaving countless stardust. His stable breathing reached her ears. It resulted in her feeling ticklish in her ears.
Not knowing what to do, she turned her reddish face to Riveria.
"What should I…"
"...Put him down gently. I will check for injuries." Riveria replied.
Aiz followed her words. Seeing that he doesn't have a pillow, her eyes went to her lap. She gained an incredible idea. Aiz slightly pulled over her metallic skirt and allowed Nobu's head to rest on her lap.
"..."
Inwardly, Riveria recalled Loki's jokes.
'Wouldn't it come true..?'
Their goddess acted like a perverted old man at times. She doesn't allow outsiders to 'come close' to her children—specifically, the female adventurers.
Riveria pushed these idle thoughts aside and began checking him for injuries. It is common knowledge that one has to pay the price for a burst of power. Finn paid it by forgoing his rationality while others sustained injuries all over their body.
The trio arrived by their side.
"I admit he looked cool just now."
"Isn't it?! That was awesome!"
The two sisters talked about that scene with relish. Both of them are aware that they might not be able to defeat the cursed spirit. Yet, Nobu redefined the 'impossible' once again.
In Tiona's eyes, he pulled off something straight out of the heroic tales—the hero awakening his power in crucial times. He already did it with Goliath once. Now, he did the same feat with a stronger enemy.
It became more interesting upon seeing that he prevailed in both struggles.
"I agree with the young lass. T'was nothin' short of a fairy tale." Gareth laughed as he spoke. "How was he?"
"This is..! How is this possible?"
Riveria discovered Nobu's pristine state. She didn't find any abnormalities—that is the most surprising. His mind is fully recovered along with his body. It was as if he never underwent that battle before!
"...He's fine. He will wake up after a while."
"I see."
After settling it, Gareth and Riveria checked the location of the curse's downfall.
"Elements… No, it is something more complex…"
"Malicious intent?"
Gareth's words pushed Riveria to the answer.
"A solidified malicious intent. This dark spirit had either lost control or its nature is as such from the beginning. Sirius faced this kind of spirit outside Orario…"
Gareth's expression turned serious. He understood the implication behind these words.
"There are more of it outside?"
"It's possible. We'll know after he regains consciousness."
On the other side, a peaceful scene emerged.
"It's not fair, Aiz!"
"Don't move Sirius. He'll wake up."
"You have a point…"
Tiona was relegated to the sidelines—staring at Nobu's sleeping face. She squatted while resisting the urge to touch his face.
He kept his elegance and did not do something like leaving his mouth open. Still, it contradicts his usual formal expression.
Tione observed Tiona looking at the sleeping Nobu.
'She beat me to it…'
This is one of Tione's wishes—to see her captain's vulnerable sleeping face. Her first attempts of barging to Finn's room was thwarted in the past. When she gradually knew him more, she began to 'respect' their distance. She longer tried to initiate intimate contact, only observing Finn peacefully.
Upon seeing the same thing on her sister, Tione made a pause.
'Is this how I looked like?!'
*****
"Mn..?"
"He's waking up!"
When I opened my eyes, I saw two familiar faces in my sight. They are somewhat close. A portion of the breastplate occupied the upper portion of my vision.
Aiz-san… and Tiona-san?
What is happening?
What did I do this time?
I kept my calm composure—at least on the outside. Feeling the back of my head, my mind went on overdrive.
'Laying down… Aiz-san's breastplate… Am I resting on… her lap..?'
The legendary lap pillow.
'Ah..?'
I am completely caught off guard. I did not expect to encounter the second cliche in my life. First, it was a bath scene. Now, it is the lap pillow.
…
I slowly raised my head before I sat on the ground. I faced the two girls.
"...Thank you, Aiz-san." I said. "Thanks for coming too, Tiona-san."
"No problem…"
"I didn't do much! You were the one who brought down that scary spirit!"
For some reason, Aiz-san seems more meek than usual.
"That spirit, Sirius. How did you beat it?" She asked.
"How I beat it? To be honest, I don't have an idea. I lost consciousness after using that magic."
"Oh? I see..." Tiona-san said. "You're becoming more and more similar to captain!"
Tiona-san told me about one of Finn-san's skills which increased his strength at the cost of rationality.
"You're strong."
"Yes..?"
Aiz-san looked at me strangely. I could tell it has something to do with [Mana Furnace]. It might have come off as a shock. I knew her thirst for power well enough.
"Sirius."
"Ye did well, young'un."
Lady Riveria and Gareth-san came back. I stood up before the others followed.
"Was the evil spirit settled?"
"Yes. Its traces no longer remained."
"Alright…"
For a while, we talked about what happened while I was unconscious. From them, I discovered how I defeated the cursed spirit. I couldn't identify its rank, but curses who could use Domain Expansion are at least Grade One.
Hearing how I thrashed a potential Grade One with ease, I felt relieved. At least, my [Mana Furnace] isn't compromised in terms of strength.
It was also thanks to the resistance I built up due to my zero cursed energy trait. I didn't have Toji nor Maki's strength, but I have some of their benefits.
For once, I could hide in the domain's sure-hit effect. My resistance to cursed spirits is also considerable. The latter works on both demons and curses. These are similar to fighting buffs that activate on a specific enemy.
It is also the reason why I could fight back, though I am still fucked when facing a stronger enemy.
"Did you encounter them before?"
"Yes, I did. They were troublesome enemies."
I involuntarily recalled the volcano-head curse. He is my reminder to not slack off. He took the second spot on my hit list.
Of course, the top one belongs to the ancient dragon.
Meanwhile, Dionysus took my third spot.
"What about Finn-san?"
After the unexpected curse, the overall situation of the Knossos raid came to my mind.
"They're done. Most of the Evilus members went to the sixth floor. The remaining few that slipped out were captured as well."
I nodded upon hearing Lady Riveria's words. As expected, choosing Finn-san as the commander is the best choice. His built-up fame and skills are suitable for this raid.
"Sirius. Will there be something like that evil spirit in other Demi-spirits?" She asked.
"I don't know. There is a small chance of their appearance. Airmid-san's magic should be able to counteract them. The evil spirits are similar to the cursed weapons."
"Dea Saint? I see."
Later on, it was decided that we will reunite with everyone on the ninth floor. They are guarding the floor while the other teams mapped it out.
On the way, we passed through the broken adamantine walls. Gugalanna's sheer strength pierced through walls that a level six could barely break open. If not for Lady Riveria's magic, it wouldn't have been that quick of a fight.
Then again, Tiona-san kept telling me how easily I thrashed the cursed spirit. From her descriptions, I deduced I must've used [Maximum Output: Seiden], [Raiju], and [Abraq Ad Habra]—all of which are grand-scale magicka.
I required [Judgement]'s help back then, but I could do it alone now.
Soon, we arrived in the temporary contact point. It is the place where the recon team gathers after scouting the floor.
"I knew ye could do it!"
Tsubaki-nee approached me. She gave me a pat to the back.
"Oh? Gareth was also there to witness it?"
"Ya should've seen it. I haven't been this surprised for years." Gareth-san commented. "The young'un did something amazin'."
Tsubaki-nee realized there was something more to his words.
"You used it?" She asked.
"Circumstances forced me."
"Well, that came off as no surprise! Ya could totally thrash yer enemy with it."
She is one of the few that knew [Mana Furnace] in-depth. She told me about its horrors and how powerful i was during our tests. That included testing it inside a dungeon with her guidance.
In a sense, Tsubaki-nee is the reason why I chose to use it.
At this time, Asfi-san's voice came from the orb.
"The targets had been found. There are two of them in separate rooms."
Targets referred to the 'Demi-spirits' inside Knossos. If only two of them were found… this operation is already a half-success.
"It's time to end things…"
*****
Bam-!
Shatter-!
Finn-san's spear pierced the crystal on the Demi-spirit. The latter let out a horrified scream before turning into gray ashes.
One.
Two.
Three.
Inwardly, I kept counting. I didn't have much role in this fight except to cast magic now and then. We took down the Demi-spirits one by one—with our entire force, to be exact.
A total of three level six, eleven level five, and a dozen level four ganged up on the Demi-spirit. It is a far cry to Loki Familia's previous forces when they fought one.
Needless to say, the first Demi-spirit was easily taken down. The second one is killed a few seconds ago.
"There are no curses."
I waited for a while before concluding.
The other adventurers on my side cheered with the felling of the Demi-spirit. All of that while organizing the injured ones. I came closer to its remains and examined the shattered Jewel Fetus closely.
I squatted and grabbed one of them.
'There isn't any cursed energy.'
I saw Lady Riveria and shook my head. She flashed a visible smile as a result.
"We're fucking done here…" I mumbled lowly. "Knossos…"
A sense of melancholy swept over me. I brought this event three years earlier. It might bring unknown changes. Still, I believe it is for the best. We obliterated Evilus completely.
Also…
'We got Jura Halmer.'
He was one of the Evilus members who set up an ambush. He controlled several monsters to attack the infiltration team. Asfi-san was the one who caught him, but Rethusa-san asked for his custody.
Knowing the history between Rudra and Astraea Familia, Asfi-san handed him over.
"Fu…"
Right now, I felt lighter than before. It's as if a huge burden was lifted off my chest.
Of course, I am not done yet. I still have to do something after this.
Enyo...
Upon examining my memories, I found out how he hid his true personality when teaming up with tricky gods like Loki-sama and Lord Hermes. It is impossible to not slip up in front of them.
Dionysus is the god of wine. If he wanted to 'hide' his true personality, it could be done with wine. Being drunk could explain why Dionysus is that kind in front of others.
This is merely a conjuncture. I would be finding out if it's true today.
"Sirius."
"What's the matter?"
Aiz-san approached me.
"How are you?" She asked.
"I'm good. I didn't have to participate much in these fights."
"Me too…"
She made an aggrieved look.
"Finn-san must have considered our previous fight. We don't lack upper-class adventurers, after all."
"..."
Hearing this, Aiz-san pouted.
'Did she just..?'
I realized it must be due to siding Finn-san. Indeed, she could be like this.
"We could make it up later. If you want, I will come with you on the lower floors."
"It's a promise."
"...Yeah."
We talked more after that. The settlement of the aftermath took time. The injured were carried on stretchers while the vanguard team scouted the area ahead.
"Dragons… What do you think of them?"
Suddenly, Aiz-san asked this question.
My hand briefly froze. My body remembered its four deaths from that damnable dragon.
"I don't particularly like or hate them but… I hate one of them."
I spoke my truest feelings.
"That hatred urges me to kill it… rather, I hate it so bad I want to kill it."
My fingers dug deep into my palm.
I didn't conceal the bloodlust laced in my voice. For the people of this world, hating monsters is completely normal. At least, I could speak the entire truth at this time.
"That remains to be one of my hardest goals currently."
"...I see." She nodded before adding, "I will help you accomplish it."
"Aiz-san?"
I looked at her in surprise. I saw a similar bloodlust deep within her eyes. That alone made me realize her hatred for a dragon.
A dragon…
"Was it the One-eyed Black Dragon?"
"..!"
"It is…"
I thought about it.
In this world, there is only the One-eyed Black Dragon that poses a great threat.
Meanwhile, my world has Kenjaku and Sukuna in Japan, the ancient red dragon in Europe, the manifestation of the 'end' faced by Lord Nettesheim, chaotic gods from the spirit realm…
We never had a shortage of troublemakers. If not for them, the powerful magicians wouldn't have let the ancient red dragon do its thing. They were held back by other matters, hence the future I saw kept happening seven times.
Counting the special-grade sorcerers in Japan, we have three: Gojo Satoru, Okkotsu Yuta, and Tsukumo Yuki.
Meanwhile, Lord Nettesheim, Kazamitsu-san, 'Gluttony', and Suimei represent the Magisters (Great Scholars).
The Rank A and Semi-Magisters aren't small, either. They amount to around forty worldwide. They are at least level seven in power.
In short, our world has many high-end powers.
"Then, when the time comes for the fight against it, I will be there. That should make it up."
"..."
I didn't decide it on a whim. My friends in this world would be in danger due to that Black Dragon—including Aiz-san.
I don't want anyone to die, both in my world and in this world.
"...Thank you."
At this moment, Aiz-san wore a bashful look.