The next morning, everyone reported to the plaza that served as the entrance to the Great Orcus Labyrinth early enough that the sun had
still yet to rise.
The students were all filled with equal parts trepidation and curiosity. Hajime, however, had a more complicated expression on his face. He was also somewhat excited and nervous about his first excursion into a dungeon, but when he saw what the entrance to the Great Orcus Labyrinth looked like, some of his excitement faded.
What Hajime had expected was the standard cavern entrance leading into unknown dark depths. However, the sight that greeted him was something that looked more akin to the entrance to a museum, complete with its own receptionist counter. A girl in uniform was checking over the people going in and out of the labyrinth with a smile. It appeared that everyone's status plate was checked at the entrance. That way, the number of casualties could be accurately tallied. With the threat of war looming overhead, the government wanted to avoid losing too many men, so they implemented that policy as one of their countermeasures.
Numerous stalls were lined up on the plaza surrounding the entrance, the merchants all competing with each other to show off their wares. It felt almost like a festival.
Shallower labyrinths that didn't have as many floors were popular with merchants, since people naturally gathered there. The people present ranged from boisterous adventurers who talked big but quickly lost their lives in the labyrinth, to criminals who operated out of back alleys and other unsavory locations. As the government was preparing for war, they didn't want to waste too many resources handling those problems, so they cooperated with the local adventurer's guild to keep the area safe. People were selling their wares all the way up to the receptionist's desk at the entrance, which in a sense made life easier for the adventurers who were setting out into the labyrinth's depths.
Hajime pulled himself together and scratched his head as he looked around, seeing all of the other students gawking like country bumpkins as they followed Captain Meld in single file, like a row of little ducklings.
Once inside, the lively atmosphere that had surrounded them mere moments ago vanished. In front of them was a passage that was a little over five meters wide. Though there was no obvious light source, the entire labyrinth was dimly lit, enough that one could vaguely make out their surroundings without the help of a torch or magical item. In truth, the passages were all lit by a special mineral called green glowstone that was buried in the walls. The entire Great Orcus Labyrinth was actually an excavated vein of green glowstone ore.
The party all filed into ranks and slowly advanced through the labyrinth. After a few uneventful minutes, the passage they were walking down opened up into a wide plaza.
Towering seven or eight meters above them was a dome-shaped ceiling. The students were all looking around curiously, when suddenly a number of gray creatures resembling furballs burst out from cracks in the wall.
"Alright, Kouki, your team's up front! Everyone else fall back! I'll have you switch in after some time, so stay sharp! These monsters are called Ratmen! They're quick on their feet, but not all that strong. Keep your cool as you fight!"
As Captain Meld had said, the Ratmen were quite fast, and rushed at them with alarming agility. Pairs of dark red eyes gleamed with a ghastly light from within the balls of fur. Their name was rather fitting, as they looked like giant, muscular rats... that stood on two feet. Only the area around their corded chests and impressive eight-packs was bereft of fur, almost as if they were trying to show them off.
Kouki's group, who were facing them head on, all grimaced when they got a better look—especially Shizuku, who was standing up front. They certainly did look disgusting.
Once the Ratmen entered into range, Kouki, Shizuku, and Ryutarou all attacked at once. In the meantime, Kaori and two of her close female friends, the glasses-wearing Eri Nakamura and the childish and energetic Suzu Taniguchi, started chanting their spells. They were preparing their magic already. That was the basic formation they'd practiced during training.
Kouki swung his bastard sword faster than the eye could follow, and slaughtered a score of them with his first swing. His sword was one of the artifacts that had been resting in the Heiligh treasury, and had the rather cliched name of "The Holy Sword." It was blessed with the light element, which had the sickeningly efficient properties of simultaneously weakening enemies that were hit by the light it emitted, while also increasing one's own physical strength. It sure played dirty for a "holy" sword.
Ryutarou, on the other hand, had the job of Monk, which was a martial arts class that fought with its fists. He was equipped with a pair of gauntlets and greaves. Those were also artifacts, and were capable of unleashing enchanted shockwaves. They were also unbreakable. Ryutarou took up a stance and splendidly beat down any enemy that came close with punches and kicks, not letting a single one pass. Despite being practically bare-handed, his massive frame made him seem like an armored heavy knight.
Shizuku, meanwhile, possessed the job of Swordsman, which was fitting for a samurai-esque girl like her. She wielded a blade that was midway between a katana and a shamshir, and made short work of any enemies that got within reach of her sword with her quick-draw skills. She had refined her swordplay even further since arriving in Tortus, and had even earned the admiration of many of the knights. While everyone was busy watching Kouki and the others fight, the girls in the back line finished their chants.
"Flames blacker than pitch, swirl about thine enemies! Burn until naught but their ashes remain, Spiral Blaze!"
They cast the spell in unison, and a huge whirlwind of flames enveloped the Ratmen, burning them to a crisp. The Ratmen screeched in pain, flailing wildly until the flames pouring down on them reduced them to ash. In the blink of an eye, all of the Ratmen had been annihilated. The other students didn't even get a chance to fight. It looked like monsters on the first floor were far too weak to even put up a fight against Kouki's party.
"Wow, well done! Alright, the rest of you will be up next, so don't relax just yet!"
Captain Meld reminded the class not to let their guard down, though he was smiling, impressed at their prowess. Still, he couldn't prevent the students from getting pumped up about their first dungeon monster elimination expedition. He shrugged his shoulders helplessly as he saw the students breaking out into smiles.
"Oh, and... while you don't have to worry about it this time since it's training, in the future try and kill your enemies in a way that preserves their mana crystals. What you did back there was overkill."
Kaori and the others blushed at Captain Meld's words, realizing they may have gone too far. From then on, the class smoothly advanced through the floors of the labyrinth, rotating the vanguard between battles.
Eventually, they arrived at the twentieth floor, the floor that separated skilled adventurers from rank amateurs. Currently, the deepest floor people had managed to reach was floor sixty-five. However, that was a legendary feat that hadn't been replicated since, so in recent times anyone who made it past the first twenty floors was considered a highly skilled fighter. Anyone who made it past the first forty was superhuman.
With Kouki at their head, the students were able to easily advance through the floors. Though they had little combat experience, their overpowered abilities more than compensated. The most dangerous enemy the students faced was actually the traps scattered about. Some of them were even lethal.
The most common countermeasure for traps was something known as a Fair Scope. A Fair Scope was a handy tool that detected traps by reading the flow of mana. Most of the traps in the labyrinth were magical in nature, so a Fair Scope detected around 80% of them. However, the Scope possessed a very limited range, so it was only effective in the hands of an experienced user.
Therefore, the real reason Hajime and the others were able to descend so smoothly was because of how well their knight mentors were guiding them. Captain Meld also often reminded the students to never enter a room that hadn't been scoured for traps first.
"Alright everyone, from this point on, monsters won't come at you just one species at a time. They'll coordinate with each other and attack in large groups. Don't let your guard down just because we've had nothing but easy victories so far! Today's training will conclude once we clear the twentieth floor, so let's end things with a bang!" Captain Meld's voice echoed throughout the room.
Up until that point, Hajime hadn't done much of anything. He'd once taken on a monster the knights had weakened for him, trapping it in a pitfall and stabbing it to death with his sword, but that was all.
Essentially, he had just spent his time standing by in the rear protected by the knights, without being able to join anyone's party. It was honestly rather pathetic. However, using his skills in combat helped increase his magic stat, so it wasn't completely useless. Hajime's magic stat grew enough to raise him two levels, so the combat practice had helped some.
But man, I totally feel like a leecher for doing this. Haaah... The knights sent another weakened monster Hajime's way, and he approached it with a sigh, placing his hands on the ground to transmute the earth around it. He immobilized it in a pitfall on the off chance that it might still pose a threat, then skewered it with his sword.
Well, at least my transmutation skills are growing a little... I'll just have to keep at it. Hajime swallowed a mana pill and wiped the sweat off his brow. He didn't notice that the knights were all staring at him in admiration.
In truth, the knights hadn't been expecting much of anything from Hajime. They were just having such an easy time of it that they decided to send a few monsters over to him, since he'd seemed so bored. Weakened, of course.
They'd all thought he would just flail his sword around helplessly for a bit. However, he had effectively used his transmutation skill to immobilize the enemy before dispatching it, a tactic the knights had never seen before. They had assumed Synergists were only good for blacksmithing, hence their belief that their skills would be useless in combat.
Hajime only had his single transmutation skill, so he had trained it diligently, assuming that his ability to transmute ore could extend to the earth as well. It had worked, but with how difficult it was for him to take down a single weakened monster, and how strong everyone around him was, he still thought himself weak.
That was the first time he'd shown this ability to people. He'd made an utter fool of himself during their previous excursion to slay monsters outside of the capital, and this was the solution he had come up with.
While he was taking a short break, Hajime glanced over to the front lines, and his eyes met Kaori's. She was smiling at him. She had taken her promise to "protect" him quite seriously, and Hajime looked away, embarrassed, as he realized she had been watching over him the whole time. Kaori pouted a little when she saw him look away. Shizuku chuckled softly as she watched their little exchange out of the corner of her eye, then softly spoke.
"Kaori, why do you keep staring at Nagumo-kun? Don't you know it's wrong to pick up guys in a dungeon?" Shizuku said that in a teasing manner, but Kaori blushed, and angrily rounded on Shizuku.
"Oh, come on, Shizuku-chan! Could you please not say strange things like that! I was just wondering if Nagumo-kun was okay!"
That's basically you trying to pick him up then, isn't it? Shizuku thought, but not wanting to make Kaori sulk, she decided to keep quiet. Still, she was unable to hide the mirth in her eyes, and Kaori just pouted and said "Jeez" when she saw Shizuku's expression.
Hajime had been watching their little exchange when he felt someone's gaze on him and reflexively straightened up. It was a glare dripping with hatred. He was used to getting such gazes from his classmates, but the intensity packed in that one was on a completely different level.
That wasn't the first time he had felt this gaze either. He'd felt it multiple times since that morning, but whenever he tried to look for the one who was doing it, they seemingly calmed down. Hajime was growing tired of it.
What's going on...? Did I do something to someone? Though all I've been doing is trying my best despite my incompetence... Wait, could that be the reason? Maybe they're thinking "the hell do you think you're playing at, acting like you can be helpful!?" or something...
"Haaah..." Hajime sighed deeply. He had started to think there might've been some wisdom in heeding Kaori's warning.
The class continued exploring the twentieth floor.
Each of the labyrinth's floors spanned a few kilometers in every direction, and new floors usually took a team of dozens anywhere from half a month to a month to fully search and map out.
However, at present, all the floors until the forty-seventh had been mapped out, so they were in no danger of getting lost. Nor should they have been in any danger of falling into a trap.
The deepest room in the twentieth floor was like a limestone cave, but made of ice. Icicles protruded from the walls, some of them melted, creating a complex topography. The stairs leading to the twenty-first floor was just past it.
Once they made it that far, their training for the day would be over. Sadly, while teleportation magic had existed during the Age of the Gods, it no longer did, so they had to walk back to the entrance. The students had already begun to relax when a protrusion in the wall had prevented them from advancing in formation, forcing them to continue in single file.
Eventually, the two people at the head of their procession, Kouki and Captain Meld, came to a halt. Puzzled, the students prepared for battle as they looked around. It seemed they had encountered a monster.
"It's camouflaging itself! Keep a close eye on your surroundings!" Captain Meld yelled out a warning to everyone.
An instant later, the thing everyone had mistaken for a protrusion suddenly changed color and began to move. The creature that had assumed the shape of a wall was actually a dark brown color, and it stood there on two legs. It began beating its chest. Seemed the monster was a gorilla that could camouflage itself like a chameleon.
"A Rockmount! Watch out for its arms, they pack quite a punch!" Captain Meld's voice resounded throughout the cavern as Kouki's party prepared to engage the enemy.
Ryutarou repelled the Rockmount's enormous arms with his fists. Meanwhile, Kouki and Shizuku shuffled to either side to flank it, but were unable to properly surround it because of the rough terrain.
Realizing it couldn't get past the human wall that was Ryutarou, the Rockmount fell back and sucked in a deep breath.
"Graaaaaaaaaaah!!!" Seconds later, it looked back and roared so ferociously that the entire room shook.
"Guh!?" "Uwaaah!?" "Kyaaah!?" Though the shockwave of sound that hit the students did no harm, it made everyone stiffen in fear. That was the magic Rockmounts were capable of using, "Intimidating Roar." It was a mana-infused roar that could temporarily paralyze all who heard it.
Kouki and the others, who took it head on, found themselves unable to move an inch. They expected to be attacked while stunned, but the Rockmount sidestepped past them, picked up a nearby boulder, and hurled it at Kaori's group. And what a spectacular throw it was! It flew cleanly over the heads of the immobile front line and headed straight toward its intended target.
They all pointed their magic circle-amplified staves at the boulder and prepared to intercept. There was no space to dodge.
However, they stopped their chant midway, the sight of what was coming toward them shocking them into inaction.
The boulder the Rockmount had thrown was a second Rockmount! It somersaulted in the air and spread its arms wide, heading straight for Kaori. The way it spread its arms out resembled the Lupin Dive. The resemblance was so uncanny that one almost expected it to scream "Kaori-chaaaan!" as it hit her. It even had the bloodshot eyes and heavy breathing down pat. Kaori, Eri, and Suzu all screamed in terror and forgot to keep chanting.
"Oy, what do you think you're doing in the middle of a fight!?" Captain Meld swiftly cut down the Rockmount that was diving toward the girls.
They all quickly apologized, but that must've been quite the disgusting sight to see, as their faces were still pale. A certain someone completely snapped when he saw how rattled the girls were. Amanogawa Kouki, the class's resident self-styled hero of justice.
"Bastard... How dare you hurt Kaori and the others... I won't forgive you!" He must have mistakenly thought their paleness came from their close brush with death, and not how disgustingly creepy the Rockmount had looked.
How dare you frighten a girl like that! Kouki flew into a rage over that rather cliched reason. Pure white mana began leaking from his body, and almost as if in response, his holy sword began to glow.
"Soar unto heaven, O divine wings— Celestial Flash!"
"No, stop, you idiot!" Kouki ignored Captain Meld, raised his sword up high, and swung down with all his might.
He finished chanting his spell the same instant, and his holy sword unleashed a dazzling blade of light. There was no escaping it. The curved light passed through the Rockmount with only the slightest hint of resistance, cutting it cleanly in two, and stopped only after crashing into the wall.
There was a loud rumbling, and pieces of the wall began to rain down. Kouki breathed a deep sigh, then turned to the girls, a lady killer smile on his face. He had defeated the big bad monster for them. Just as he was about to say "It's okay now!" Captain Meld, who was smiling angrily with veins popping out of his forehead, walked up to him and delivered a punch.
"Hobwah!?"
"You damn fool! I understand why you got angry, but you can't use skills like that in a narrow passage! You could've brought the whole cave down on us!" Kouki's complaints died in his throat at Captain Meld's chastising words, and he apologized awkwardly. The girls all smiled wryly and tried to comfort him.
Then suddenly, Kaori turned to look at the crumbled section of the wall.
"...What is that? It's all sparkly..." At her words, everyone turned to look in the direction she was pointing.
There was a strange mineral emitting a pale blue glow, protruding from the wall like a flower in bloom. It looked like a crystal with Indigolite buried in its center. All of the girls, including Kaori, were entranced by the beauty of the gem.
"Oh, that's a glanz crystal. And a pretty big one to boot. How rare," Captain Meld said.
Glanz crystals were basically a type of raw gemstone. Though they held no special properties, their luster and radiance made them popular among the noble ladies and their daughters. They were often processed into rings, earrings, pendants, and such other jewelry to be given as gifts. Apparently most girls were overjoyed to receive glanz jewelry as gifts. It was among the top three jewels used in proposal rings.
"That sounds so lovely..." Kaori blushed when she heard Captain Meld's explanation, and was further entranced by the stone. She then stole a glance at Hajime. It was so quick that it almost went unnoticed. However, Shizuku and one other person most definitely did take note.
"In that case, I'll go grab it for us!" Hiyama suddenly ran forward after saying that. He swiftly climbed up the debris of the crumbled wall, heading toward the glanz crystal as fast as possible. Captain Meld hurriedly tried to stop him.
"Hey! Don't just run off on your own! We're not even sure it's safe yet!" However, Hiyama pretended not to hear, and he was standing in front of the crystal before long.
Captain Meld chased after Hiyama in an attempt to stop him. At the same time, one of the knights pulled out his Fair Scope and scanned the area around the crystal. A moment later, his face went pale.
"Captain! It's a trap!"
"What!? Stop!" However, both Captain Meld and the knight's warning arrived a moment too late.
The second Hiyama touched it, a magic circle appeared in the center of the crystal. The trap had been set for anyone foolish enough to touch the glanz crystal. "If it seems too good to be true, then it probably is." That was one of the world's golden rules.
The magic circle glowed bright, then grew large enough to encompass the entire room. It was just like the day they had been summoned.
"Crap, retreat! Everyone get out, now!" Captain Meld's words spurred everyone into action, and they all scrambled for the exit... but they didn't make it in time.
Light filled the room, and before long white was the only thing anyone could see. Everyone was assailed by a momentary sensation of weightlessness.
Hajime and the others could feel the atmosphere shift. A moment later, they all fell to the ground with a thud.
Hajime groaned in pain as he felt his aching butt, then looked around. Most of his other classmates were still on the ground, but Captain Meld and his knights, along with Kouki and the other vanguard fighters, were already on their feet, examining their surroundings.
The magic circle from earlier must have contained a teleportation spell. Magic from The Age of the Gods was remarkable because it could easily do things that no modern-day mage could.
Hajime and the others had been teleported onto a massive stone bridge. It was around one hundred meters in length. The ceiling also towered a full twenty meters above them. Below the bridge was not a river, but instead a dark abyss with no visible end. The gaping chasm resembled the very pits of hell.
Though the bridge was ten meters wide, it had no railing at all, so if someone slipped, there would be nothing to catch their fall. Hajime and the others had been sent to the middle of the bridge. One side of the bridge was a passage heading further in, while stairs leading upward were at the other end.
After confirming the situation, Captain Meld curtly barked out orders.
"Everyone, get up and head for the stairs! Now!" His voice boomed louder than thunder, and the students hurried to follow his orders.
However, labyrinth's traps were not so easy to escape. They would not be allowed to retreat so easily.
New magic circles suddenly appeared on either side of the bridge, accompanied by a swirling torrent of dark red mana. The magic circle on the passage-side of the bridge was ten meters wide. The ones on the stairs-side were only one meter each, but there were many.
The dark red magic circles resembled pools of blood, and gave off an ominous feel. They pulsed once, and waves of monsters began pouring forth.
From the countless magic circles near the stairs came a horde of skeletons wielding swords, Traum Soldiers. Their empty eye sockets gleamed with the same blood-red light as the circles they came from, and they rolled around like real eyes too. Within seconds, the stairs were teeming with nearly a hundred of the creatures, and more were still pouring out.
Despite their numbers, Hajime thought what was coming out on the passage-side of the bridge was far more of a threat.
From within the ten meter wide magic circle emerged a monster as big as the circle that summoned it. It stood on four legs and had some kind of helmet on its head. To Hajime, the closest thing it resembled was a triceratops. However, unlike a triceratops, its eyes glowed bright red, and as it clacked its wicked sharp claws and fangs together, flames sprouted from the horn on its helmeted forehead.
Everyone stared at it in slack-jawed horror, and Captain Meld's terrified whisper resounded surprisingly clearly throughout the room.
"Oh my god... It's... a Behemoth..."
A wave of unease washed over the students when they saw Captain Meld, the reliable captain who'd always been their reassuring pillar of support, break out in a cold sweat.
Kouki realized he was up against a truly fearsome opponent, and turned to ask Captain Meld about its properties.
However, the Behemoth, a monster that had even the kingdom's strongest knight quaking in his boots, refused to grant Kouki the luxury of time. It sucked in a huge breath, then let out a guttural roar, signaling the start of the battle.
"Graaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
"Huh!?" The roar brought Captain Meld back to his senses, and he quickly began barking orders.
"Alan, take the kids and break through the line of Traum Soldiers! Kyle, Ivan, Bael, create a barrier! We have to stop that thing, no matter what! Kouki, head to the stairs with the rest of the students!"
"Please wait, Meld-san! We'll help too! That dinosaur thing is really bad news! We'll also—"
"Idiot! If that thing really is a Behemoth, you kids don't stand a chance! It's a monster that shows up on the sixty-fifth floor! Even the legendary adventurer, who everyone called the strongest in the world, couldn't stand against it! Now get out of here! I definitely won't let you kids die!"
Kouki faltered momentarily at the intensity in Captain Meld's gaze, but he refused to leave. Captain Meld opened his mouth to yell at Kouki, but before he could say anything, the Behemoth roared again and charged... straight toward the retreating students.
In order to protect their summoned heroes, Heiligh's strongest warriors chanted together in an attempt to form a barrier.
"Grant thine protection to your beloved children, O God! Reject all malice and let this be a holy ground that denies thine enemies passage! Hallowed Ground!" The spell was four verses long, inscribed on a magic circle two meters long, and drawn on the highest class magical paper. On top of that, it had been invoked by three people in tandem. Though it had only one use, and lasted for only one minute, it created an impenetrable barrier that could not be broken.
A glowing dome of light materialized, stopping the Behemoth in its tracks. A huge shockwave spread out as it crashed into the barrier, pulverizing the ground near the impact. Despite being made of stone, the entire bridge shook precariously. The retreating students screamed, and some of them fell down.
Traum Soldiers were powerful monsters that appeared on the thirty-eighth floor and deeper. They were far stronger than anything the students had faced so far. With their path forward blocked by a horde of ghastly skeletons, and a lumbering beast at their backs, the students fell into a panic.
All semblance of formation crumbled as everyone scrambled for the stairs, trying their best to escape. The lone knight that stayed with the group, Alan, tried to calm everyone down, but they were all far too terrified to listen.
Amidst the panic, someone shoved one of the female students from behind, and she fell forward. She groaned in pain and looked up, only to see a Traum Soldier brandishing its sword right in front of her.
"Ah!" At the same time she let out that gasp, the soldier swung its sword down at her head.
I'm going to die, she thought, when the ground at the Traum Soldier's feet suddenly bulged upward.
It lost its balance, so the swing went wide, hitting the ground with a clang. The protrusion in the ground then swelled forward, taking a few Traum Soldier's with it, and drove them to the edge of the bridge, where it then tipped them into the abyss.
About two meters from the edge of the bridge squatted Hajime, panting heavily. He'd transmuted various parts of the ground in quick succession, dragging the soldiers to their deaths on an earthen slide. His transmutation ability had grown rapidly, and before he knew it, he'd been able to transmute in quick succession. The total area he could transmute had increased as well.
However, he could still only transmute a short distance from where he was touching, so Hajime trembled in fear as he squatted within range of the Traum Soldier's swords.
He popped a mana pill into his mouth and ran over to the collapsed student, grabbing her with his gloved hands and pulling her up to her feet. She silently let herself be pulled up, still in shock, and Hajime smiled reassuringly at her.
"Come on, we've gotta hurry. Don't worry, as long as we stay calm, these pile of bones are nothing. After all, everyone but me is OP as hell!" Hajime confidently slapped her on the back, and she stared at him for a minute before saying "Yeah! Thanks!" cheerfully, and running off.
Hajime continued creating pitfalls and protrusions to immobilize and unbalance the Traum Soldiers, while keeping an eye on his surroundings. Everyone was still panicking, swinging their weapons wildly and firing their spells off at random. If that kept up, it was possible someone might die. Alan was trying his best to reorganize the students, but it wasn't going well. And all the while, soldiers continued pouring out of the magic circles.
"I've gotta do something... What everyone needs right now is a leader... someone with enough strength to blow open a path for us... Amanogawa-kun!" Hajime started sprinting toward Kouki and the Behemoth.
The Behemoth was still ramming the barrier over and over. A huge shockwave accompanied each charge, and the stone bridge began creaking ominously after his repeated assaults. Cracks were forming along the barrier, and it was only a matter of time before it shattered. Meld was adding his incantations to the barrier as well, but it didn't appear that it would last long.
"Agh, blast! It won't hold much longer! Kouki, you need to retreat! The rest of you as well!"
"I refuse! I can't leave you guys behind! We're all going to make it back together!"
"Kuh, now's not the time to go on an ego trip..." Captain Meld grimaced as those words left his mouth.
In such a cramped space, it would be difficult to dodge the Behemoth's charge. Which was why the best course of action was to run while the barrier was still up. However, the knights only realized that fact because they were veterans of numerous battles. For the students, it was still a difficult order to swallow.
Unfortunately, though, Meld had tried to explain the situation to Kouki, who absolutely could not accept the idea of "abandoning" anyone. Plus, to make matters worse, he still thought he could take the Behemoth head on. The glint in his eyes clearly showed that he wanted to fight.
Captain Meld realized it was the overconfidence of someone who was still wet behind the ears. It appeared that praising Kouki and the others for their skills to make them feel more confident had backfired.
"Kouki! You have to listen to the captain and retreat!" Shizuku had grasped the situation, so she grabbed Kouki's arm, urging him to retreat.
"Eh, this isn't the first time we've had to put up with your dumb antics, Kouki. I'm with you all the way!"
"Ryutarou... Thank you." However, Ryutarou's words solidified Kouki's resolve. Shizuku clicked her tongue impatiently at the exchange.
"You're letting the situation get to your head, stupid!"
"Shizuku-chan..." Kaori worriedly looked over at the irritated Shizuku. It was then that a certain boy ran up in front of Kouki.
"Amanogawa-kun!" Hajime screamed.
"N-Nagumo!?"
"Nagumo-kun!?"
"You need to retreat! You have to go back to where everyone is! They need you! Now!" Hajime yelled angrily at the surprised party.
"What do you mean? And more importantly, why are you here!? You shouldn't be here! Leave this place is to us, Nagumo, and—"
"This isn't the time to be saying that!" Hajime cut off Kouki, who was implying that Hajime would be of no use and should retreat, and yelled with a vehemence he had never expressed before. Kouki unconsciously stiffened up. He didn't expect the guy who was usually so quiet and mature, the one who generally blew everything off with a smile, to yell so angrily.
"Don't you see what's happening behind you!? They're all panicking because their leader isn't with them!" Hajime grabbed Kouki by the collar and pointed behind him.
Kouki saw his panicking classmates slowly being surrounded by the Traum Soldiers. All of their training had flown out the window and the students were all fighting wildly. Because of their inefficient fighting style, the steady rush of reinforcements had kept them from breaking through. Their exceptional stats had protected them so far, but it was only a matter of time until someone died.
"They need someone who has the strength to blow all that away in a single attack! They need someone who can blow their fear away! And the only one who can do that is you, Amanogawa-kun! You're their leader, so quit being so focused on what's in front of you! Look at what's behind you for once!" Dazed, Kouki looked from his panicking and screaming classmates back to Hajime, who was furiously shaking his head, and nodded.
"Yeah, I get it now. We're retreating! Meld-san, sorry—"
"Get down!" Kouki turned to Captain Meld, planning to say "Sorry for retreating without you," but at that moment Captain Meld screamed out a warning as the barrier finally shattered.
A massive shockwave headed toward Hajime and the others. Hajime instantly transmuted the ground to make a stone wall, but the shockwave shattered it with ease, sending everyone flying. His wall had managed to lessen the force a little... but then the Behemoth let out a huge roar and the dust cleared, only to reveal Captain Meld and the other three knights lying on the ground, moaning in pain. The shockwave had robbed them of their ability to move.
Kouki and the others had collapsed too, but they were able to quickly get back up. Since they'd been behind both Hajime's wall and the knights, they hadn't taken as much damage.
"Gah... Ryutarou, Shizuku, can you buy us some time?" Kouki asked. It looked like they were in pain, but they still stepped forward. Since the knights had been defeated, they had to do something about the Behemoth themselves.
"Not like we've got a damn choice!"
"...We'll manage somehow." The two of them charged the Behemoth after uttering those responses.
"Kaori, you need to heal Meld-san and the others!"
"Got it!" At Kouki's command, Kaori ran over to the knights.
Hajime was already kneeling beside them. He created another stone barrier to keep the effects of the fight from reaching them. He doubted it would be of much use in the grand scheme of things, but reasoned that it was better than nothing.
Meanwhile, Kouki began chanting the strongest spell he knew.
"O Holy spirit! Bring ruin to all that is evil with thine divine light! By the breath of God, may these clouds of darkness be swept clear, and the world bathed in sanctity! By the mercy of God, may this strike redeem the sins of man! Divine Wrath!"
Auroras of light poured out from the holy sword. The skill Kouki had used was of the same category as the Celestial Flash he'd unleashed earlier, but this one was far more powerful. The bridge creaked ominously as the rays of light gouged furrows through the stone while racing toward the Behemoth.
Ryutarou and Shizuku retreated the moment Kouki finished chanting. They were in bad shape and wouldn't have lasted much longer. Though it had been a scant few seconds, they'd suffered quite a bit of damage in fending off the Behemoth.
The bombardment of light crashed into the Behemoth with a thunderous roar. It was covered in a coat of white as the light enveloped it. Cracks began appearing in the bridge.
"That should have been enough... Haah... Haaah..."
"Haah... Haaah... Yeah, that had to have killed it, right?"
"I'd like to think so, but..." Ryutarou and Shizuku fell back to where Kouki was standing. He was panting hard after casting such a powerful spell. That last attack had been Kouki's ace in the hole. It had used up almost all of his remaining mana. Captain Meld stood up behind him, his wounds healed.
Gradually the light began to fade and the dust surrounding the Behemoth cleared. And the Behemoth... didn't even have a scratch on it.
It let out a low growl, and the dark red mana that was unique to monsters began pouring out of its body. The murderous glare it aimed at Kouki was so intense that Kouki felt he might die just looking at it. Then it raised its head high, and its horn began letting out a high pitched buzz as it glowed red hot. The red spread to the rest of its helmet until it seemed like its entire head was a glowing ball of magma.
"Don't just stand there! Run!" Captain Meld's shout brought Kouki and the others back to their senses. Finally over the shock that Kouki hadn't managed to even scratch it, they prepared to run. But it was at that moment the Behemoth chose to charge. Before it reached Kouki, it leaped into the air and hurtled toward them, head down, like a burning meteor.
They were able to leap to the side to avoid a direct hit, but the shockwaves from the impact bowled Kouki and the others over. They rolled across the ground like toppled pins, and were covered in wounds from head to toe when they finally stopped.
Captain Meld was still somehow able to move and he ran over to the others. The rest of the knights were still being healed by Kaori. The Behemoth braced its legs and tried to pull its head out of the hole it had smashed into the bridge.
"Can you guys still move!?" The only responses Captain Meld got were groans. Their bodies had been paralyzed by the shockwaves, just like Captain Meld's team had been a while ago. Their internal organs had taken quite a pounding too.
Captain Meld turned around to call Kaori over. But the words died in his throat when he saw Hajime running toward him.
"Kid! Get Kaori to help you carry Kouki out of here!" Meld decided to ask Hajime instead.
He asked Hajime to take Kouki and Kouki alone. In other words, his orders implied that it was impossible to save more than one person in this situation. Captain Meld bit his lip so hard it drew blood and grimly raised his shield, lamenting that he could not save everyone. Still, he resolved to give his life to stop the beast for as long as possible.
However, instead of obeying, Hajime desperately yelled out an alternative plan. It was possibly the only way everyone would be able to escape with their lives. However, it was an insane, reckless plan with chances of success that were beyond slim. And to top it off, Hajime himself would have to play the most dangerous role.
Captain Meld hesitated for a few precious seconds, which was enough time for the Behemoth to get its head unstuck. Its helmet began glowing bright red once more. Meld was out of time.
"...Are you sure you can do it, kid?"
"I am." Meld laughed and broke out into a grin when he saw the resolve in Hajime's gaze.
"Never thought I'd trust my life to you of all people... I promise I won't leave you behind. So... don't let me down, kid!"
"Yes sir!" Captain Meld finished talking and walked up to the Behemoth. He unleashed a weak spell at it, provoking its ire. It appeared that the Behemoth had a tendency to focus on whatever was attacking it, which was why it had aimed for Kouki earlier. The spell did the trick, and the Behemoth's gaze locked onto Captain Meld.
It finished charging up its helmet, rushed forward, and jumped. Meld was planning on drawing its attention for as long as possible and got into an evasive stance as the Behemoth hurtled toward him. He then whispered a short chant.
"Be swept away, Wind wall!" Meld quickly jumped back after he chanted that spell.
The Behemoth smashed into the ground, pulverizing the spot Captain Meld had been standing on not even a second before. The shockwave and rubble were blown away by the wind wall, keeping Meld unharmed. With how imprecise the Behemoth's attacks were, even a weak spell was enough to help avoid indirect damage. But if Meld had been forced to defend Kouki and the others he would have been utterly crushed.
While the Behemoth was still stuck in the ground, Hajime jumped up onto it. The residual heat burned his skin as he landed. However, he ignored the pain as he gathered his sky blue mana, and chanted. He said no more than the name of the spell. It was, after all, the simplest, most basic magic.
"Transmute!" The Behemoth, which had been struggling to unstick its head from the ground, suddenly stopped moving. Because every time it tried to dislodge itself even a little, Hajime reformed the stone around it, keeping its head buried.
It braced its legs, attempting to use the weight of its whole body to rip its head free, only to find that the ground around its legs had been transmuted as well. The Behemoth's legs had sunk a full meter into the ground. And to make completely sure it wouldn't be able to break free, Hajime hardened the stone around them as well.
Even then, the Behemoth's strength was fearsome, and Hajime knew even a moment's lapse in concentration would allow the Behemoth break free. It kept struggling, cracks continually forming in its stone prison, but Hajime continued to relentlessly transmute the ground to repair them. The end result being that the Behemoth was unable to free its head. Were this not a matter of life and death, it would have looked rather comedic.
In the meantime, Captain Meld gathered the recovered knights and Kaori together, and they began carrying Kouki and the others to safety. It seemed that some of the students had finally regained their composure, as they were working in tandem to push the Traum Soldiers back. The one that had rallied them was actually the female student Hajime had saved earlier. Despite his weakness, he had still contributed greatly.
"Wait! Nagumo-kun's still over there!" Kaori started arguing with Meld, who was trying to get everyone to retreat.
"This is all a part of the kid's plan! We're going to break through the soldiers and set up a defensive line so the mages can bombard it with spells! Of course, that comes after he's out of our line of fire! Then he's going to run back to us while we keep the Behemoth busy with a barrage of spells and we're all retreating together!"
"Then I'll stay behind with him!"
"No, you can't! Once we've made it to safety, you have to heal Kouki, Kaori!"
"But—" Kaori's angry protests were cut short by Meld's next words.
"What you're doing is nothing more than spitting on his resolve!"
"Ah—"
After Captain Meld, the strongest member of their party was without a doubt Kouki. They would need every bit of firepower they could get to hold the Behemoth at bay with just magic. Kouki's condition meant the difference between life and death for Hajime, which was why Kaori needed to be healing him the whole time while they retreated. The Behemoth would be free the moment Hajime's mana ran out and he could no longer transmute.
"O breath of life, grant succor to this injured soul, Heaven's Blessing!" Kaori began chanting, tears in her eyes. Her artifact, a white staff, glowed faintly, and wrapped Kouki in a gentle light. Heaven's Blessing was a high level healing spell that restored mana on top of healing wounds.
Captain Meld gripped Kaori's shoulders and nodded encouragingly to her. Kaori nodded back, then turned around to look at Hajime, who was still desperately transmuting the ground. Then, she began retreating from the bridge, together with Captain Meld and the knights, who were carrying Ryutarou, Shizuku, and Kouki.
The Traum Soldiers were still increasing in number. There were more than two hundred of them crowding the landing by that point. There were so many that a chunk of them had spilled over onto the bridge itself.
However, that was actually a blessing in disguise. Had they spread themselves out properly, they would have easily been able to surround and then subsequently slaughter the students who charged through the ranks. After all, a good number of the students had done just that when the initial hundred had appeared.
The only reason no one had died yet was because of the knights. It was only because of their excellent skills that were able to cover for the students' inexperience. However, because of how much it had taxed them to keep all the students safe, they were all covered in wounds.
And so, with the knights' support flagging and the army of monsters only increasing, the students were slowly falling into a panic once more. They forgot all about using magic and swung their weapons blindly. In a few more minutes they would've surely been annihilated.
The students had realized the gravity of their own situation as well, and despair painted their faces. The girl Hajime had saved continued trying to coordinate her small knot of students, but they too were reaching their limits, and there were tears in her eyes.
Everyone was on the verge of giving up, when suddenly—
"Celestial Flash!" A blade of pure light tore through the center of the Traum Soldiers, obliterating the enemies in its path.
The ones that weren't instantly destroyed were blown away by the force of the spell, and tumbled to their deaths in the depths below. A new wave of Traum Soldiers rose to take their place, but for an instant the students caught a glimpse of the stairs that led to their salvation. The hope that they had been unable to see even for a second no matter how hard they had fought.
"Everyone! Don't give up! I'll carve open a path for us!" Kouki accompanied his shouts with a second Celestial Flash, mowing down yet another group of Traum Soldiers. His overwhelming charisma bolstered the students' flagging morale.
"You morons! Did all your training just fly out the window!? What the hell has gotten into you! Get back in formation this instant!"
The ever reliable Captain Meld unleashed an attack that was arguably even more powerful than Kouki's Celestial Flash, annihilating another line of Traum Soldiers. The students' depression was blown away as their pillar of support returned to assist them.
The haze of panic was lifted from their eyes, and strength returned to their limbs. Though, part of that was due to Kaori's magic. She had cast a mental focus spell. Normally it would do no more than help someone relax a little, but its effect multiplied exponentially when combined with Kouki's morale-boosting speech.
The healers began healing the injured, while the mages fell back and started chanting their most powerful spells. The vanguard got into a proper line, and focused on defending the backline.
Once healed, the knights returned to the fray as well, and the counterattack began in earnest. Everyone's overpowered skills and weapons hit the soldiers in waves, drowning them in a sea of attacks. They began destroying the soldiers faster than the magic circles could pour new ones out.
Finally, a path to the stairs was secured.
"Forward, men! We need to secure the landing!" Kouki ran forward, leading the way.
Ryutarou and Shizuku, who had both recovered somewhat, followed close behind him. Together, they cut through their enemies like a hot knife through butter.
In moments, everyone had escaped the encirclement. The soldiers attempted to make a meat wall, or rather bone wall, and close off the path to the bridge again, but Kouki unleashed another spell to blow a hole open in their lines.
His classmates all stared at him in confusion. That was only natural. After all, the stairs were in front of them, not behind. All of them were only thinking of escape at this point.
"Everyone, wait! We still have to save Nagumo-kun! Nagumo-kun's still out there stopping that monster all by himself!" Her classmates all then stared at Kaori in confusion. That too, was only natural. After all, Hajime was the class's supposed "incompetent."
However, when they looked past the thinned crowd of Traum Soldiers toward the bridge, they saw none other than Hajime.
"What on earth? What is he doing?"
"Is that monster buried in the bridge?" As more and more classmates began crying out in surprise, Captain Meld gave his orders.
"That's right! That kid's stopping that monster all by himself. He's the only reason your sorry asses aren't skeleton fodder right now! Vanguard, advance! Don't let a single soldier past you! Rearguard, start preparing long-range spells! His magic won't last much longer! Once the kid's clear, start blasting away to keep it busy!" His deep voice resonated through the room, and the students all refocused their attention.
A few of their gazes lingered longingly on the stairs still. And who could blame them? They had been on the verge of death but moments ago. It was only natural they would wish for the safety of the floor above. However, Meld's "Hurry up!" got even the most reluctant students to finally turn around and return to the battlefield.
Daisuke Hiyama was one of the last to follow. Despite the entire mess being his fault, he was still overcome by terror and wanted to escape as swiftly as possible.
However, in the back of his mind he remembered the events of the previous night.
The night before they had entered the labyrinth, and what he had seen at Horaud's inn. He had been too nervous to sleep, so Hiyama had stepped out for a bit to go to the bathroom and feel the night breeze. He had been enjoying the cool night air and was about to return to his room when he spotted Kaori in a negligee. He had been so surprised by her sudden appearance that he had reflexively hidden himself in the shadows and held his breath. Kaori hadn't even noticed he was there as she passed by. His curiosity piqued, he'd followed Kaori and watched as she'd knocked on the door of a certain room. More specifically... Hajime's room.
Hiyama's mind had gone blank when he saw Hajime answer the door. Hiyama, like most other guys, was completely infatuated with Kaori. However, he did not think himself worthy enough to stand beside her, and had decided that if his competition for her affections was someone like Kouki, who lived in a totally different world, he might as well give up.
But Hajime was different. Hiyama couldn't understand why Kaori would want to be with someone that, at least in his mind, was even lower than him. If he's good enough, then why not me!? His twisted mind actually believed that was a logical train of thought.
His dissatisfaction with Hajime quickly gave way to hatred. The reason he had jumped at the opportunity to get the glanz crystal was also because he wanted to impress Kaori.
Hiyama remembered the events of that night as he watched Kaori gaze worriedly at Hajime, and a wicked grin formed on his lips as the beginnings of a plan took shape in his mind.
Hajime's mana finally began to run out around the same time the students all turned back to the bridge. And he was all out of mana pills. He stole a quick glance back at the bridge and saw that everyone had safely managed to retreat. They had turned back around and were lining up to start firing their spells.
The Behemoth was still struggling against its restraints, but at that point they would only last a few seconds without constant transmuting. He would have to get as far away as possible in that time. Sweat beaded down his forehead. His heart was pounding louder than it had in his entire life, and he was so nervous he was trembling.
He was going to need impeccable timing to make it out alive. After cracks started appearing for the dozenth time, he transmuted the ground once more, and strengthened the Behemoth's restraints for good measure. Then he jumped.
A scant five seconds after Hajime had started running for his life, the ground behind him shattered, and the Behemoth roared menacingly as it freed itself from its restraints. Hajime risked a glance back and saw pure rage in its eyes.
It looked around wildly, searching for the one who had forced it into such an unsightly struggle, and quickly found Hajime. It roared again, angrily, bringing its head down and prepared to charge Hajime. However, before it could move, a barrage of spells slammed into it.
It was like a bizarre meteor shower, where each meteor was a different color. The various spells didn't do any damage to the Behemoth, but they definitely slowed it down.
I can do this! Hajime thought, and sprinted forward, his head bowed low. Despite the procession of spells flying inches above him, Hajime wasn't afraid. He was certain his cheat-level classmates wouldn't miss. Within a few seconds he was already more than thirty meters away from the Behemoth.
He unconsciously broke out into a smile.
An instant later, however, that smile froze in place.
Among the multitude of spells flying at the Behemoth, one of them had a slightly lower trajectory... And it was heading straight for Hajime. Someone had clearly aimed their attack right at him. But why!? A moment of surprised confusion passed through his mind.
He quickly braced his legs in an attempt to stop, so the fireball merely exploded inches in front of his face. The shockwaves blasted him back toward the Behemoth. He had avoided a direct hit, and suffered no lasting damage, but his semicircular canals had been thrown into disarray and he completely lost his balance.
Hajime staggered to his feet, trying to put as much space between him and the Behemoth as possible, but the Behemoth was tired of being bombarded. Right after Hajime managed to find his bearings, it let out another roar. He glanced back and saw it gathering its dark red mana for the third time as it finished heating its helmet. It was glaring squarely at him.
It then used its heated helmet as a shield against the spell barrage and charged at Hajime. He was still somewhat disoriented, his vision still blurry, so he could only hear the Behemoth closing in behind him, and his classmates screaming and yelling ahead of him.
Hajime gathered the last remaining dregs of his strength and jumped to the side. A second later, the Behemoth smashed into the ground, using all of its hate and rage to fuel its attack. The entire bridge shook as it fell. Massive cracks spread out from the point of impact. The bridge groaned in protest one last time, before... collapsing entirely.
The repeated attacks had finally driven it past the point of endurance.
"Graaaaaaaaah!?" The Behemoth roared angrily as it desperately tried to find purchase on the crumbling bridge with its nails. However, everywhere it latched onto crumbled as well, and after a final, fruitless struggle, it fell to the depths of hell. Its final screams echoed throughout the chamber.
Hajime too, crawled desperately across the collapsing bridge, trying to find somewhere to grab, but all of his handholds crumbled away just as quickly.
Ah, I'm not gonna make it... He muttered those words inside his head as he gave up. Looking over to his classmates one last time, he saw Kaori desperately trying to run over to him, while Shizuku and Kouki had both of her arms and were holding her back. His other classmates were all pale as well, covering their eyes or mouth with their hands as they watched. Captain Meld and the other knights all watched with painful expressions on their faces as they saw Hajime fall.
Finally, the entire bridge fell away, and Hajime plummeted down to the depths of hell, face staring blankly up at the sky. His outstretched hand grasping uselessly at the fading light.
Listening to the screams of the Behemoth that grew fainter and fainter. Listening to the bridge crumble away into nothingness. And then, all too soon, Hajime was swallowed up into the darkness along with the last of the rubble.
Time itself seemed to slow down as Kaori watched Hajime fall to the depths of the earth, despair evident in her eyes. The conversation she had last night with Hajime played back in her mind over and over. They had talked under the moonlight, drinking Hajime's subpar excuse for black tea. That was the first time she had ever had such a leisurely conversation.
She remembered the nightmare that had prompted her visit, and how surprised Hajime had looked when she'd suddenly showed up in front of his room. He had even taken her silly dream so seriously. And before she'd realized it, her fears had vanished and they had been talking happily about anything and everything.
She had returned to her room on cloud nine, until she remembered she had visited him in a rather daring outfit, and squirmed with embarrassment. Then seconds later she felt a little depressed, thinking she must not have much charm since Hajime hadn't reacted to her appearance in the least. And then, she also remembered how she'd tried to forget the whole thing had ever happened when she saw Shizuku's exasperated expression.
But most importantly, she remembered the promise she made with Hajime that night. The promise to protect him. The promise Hajime had suggested to ease Kaori's fears. She repeated that promise in her head over and over and over again as she watched Hajime get swallowed up by the murky abyss.
She heard a faint, distant scream, and then realized it was her own, before returning to her senses. Her face twisted in anguish as the reality of what happened hit her again.
"Let me go! I have to go to Nagumo-kun! I promised him! I promised I'd protect him! Let me goooo!" Shizuku and Kouki struggled to restrain Kaori, who looked about ready to jump into the chasm herself. She struggled more fiercely than anyone would have thought possible given that slender frame of hers.
If that kept up Kaori would end up hurting herself. However, they definitely couldn't afford to let go either. If they did, she would most certainly jump off the cliff without hesitation. She was already beyond any sense of rationality. Grief had completely overtaken her mind.
"Kaori, stop! Kaori!" It was precisely because she understood how Kaori felt that Shizuku was unable to find any words to comfort her friend. All she could do was keep calling her name.
"Kaori! There's no point in throwing your life away too! Nagumo is already beyond help! Calm down! You'll hurt yourself at this rate!" Those were the best words that came to Kouki's mind. However, they were also the worst words he could've said to Kaori at that moment.
"What do you mean beyond help!? Nagumo-kun's not dead! I have to go save him! He needs me!" It was clear to everyone else present that there was no saving Hajime. He had fallen off a cliff so deep that no one could even see the bottom.
However, Kaori wasn't in a state of mind where she could accept that fact. Anything anyone said would simply backfire and double her resolve to jump down there herself. Ryutarou and the other students were all looking at her worriedly, at a complete loss for what to do.
It was then that Captain Meld walked up to Kaori and gave her a hard chop to the back of her neck. She spasmed once, then fell unconscious. Kouki caught Kaori before she fell, glaring angrily at Captain Meld all the while. Before he could say anything, Shizuku cut him off and bowed to Captain Meld.
"Sorry. And thank you."
"I... don't deserve your thanks. But I cannot allow anyone else to die. Everyone, we're heading back to the surface as fast as possible... I'll leave her in your care."
"I would have taken her myself even if you tried to stop me." Kouki unhappily watched Captain Meld walk off, but he remained quiet. As Shizuku was taking Kaori from him, she softly told him the following.
"We couldn't stop her, so Captain Meld did it for us. You realize we don't have much time, right?"
"Kaori's grief might have affected the entire class's morale, and more importantly, someone had to stop her before she hurt herself... Now get your butt up front and open a path for us. You have to take the lead until we all make it out of this... Nagumo-kun said the exact same thing, remember?" Kouki nodded reluctantly at Shizuku's words.
"You're right, let's get out of here."
One of their classmates had died right in front of their eyes. That had shaken the whole class a great deal. Everyone was staring at the chasm where the bridge had been in a daze. A few of the students even sat down where they were, proclaiming things like "I'm done with this crap!" Just as Hajime had told Kouki earlier, they needed a leader to guide them.
Kouki turned to his classmates and raised his voice.
"Everyone! Right now we need to focus on surviving! We have to retreat!" His words slowly spurred the class into action.
The magic circles were still spitting out more Traum Soldiers. Their numbers were gradually being replenished. A head-on battle would've been dangerous, and besides, there was no need for them to fight anymore. Kouki yelled as loudly as he could, urging his classmates onward. Captain Meld and the other knights all tried to inspire some vigor into the students as well. Finally, everyone had made it onto the staircase.
It was a very long staircase. They kept climbing through the darkness, unable to see where the stairs truly led. Judging by their pace, they must have climbed over thirty floors already. Even with body-strengthening magic, the students soon began to grow tired. They were already partially exhausted from their earlier fight, too, so the never-ending darkness of the staircase sapped at their willpower.
Around the time he was thinking he should stop the group for a short break, Captain Meld saw a wall up ahead with a magic circle engraved on it.
The students all began to look a little more hopeful as Captain Meld cautiously approached the door set into the wall and began investigating. He passed a Fair Scope over it as well.
The results showed that it was unlikely to be a trap. The magic circle's purpose was to move aside the wall, or so it seemed. Captain Meld chanted the inscription on the magic circle, pouring his mana into it. Like a ninja's hidden passage, the wall began to turn, until it revealed a short corridor leading to the room ahead. As they passed through, the students found themselves on the twentieth floor once more.
"Did we make it?"
"We made it!"
"We did it... We really did it..."
They all let out relieved sighs as they finally caught sight of the familiar scenery of the twentieth floor. Some of them burst into tears, while others just sat down where they stood. Even Kouki was leaning against the wall, and it looked like he very much wanted to sit down as well.
However, they were still in the labyrinth. Even if this was a floor higher up, monsters could still appear any time. As such, they had to escape the labyrinth proper before they could fully relax.
Captain Meld buried his sympathy somewhere deep inside and yelled at the students to get back up, his face now a commander's mask.
"Hey, you louts! Quit laying around! If you relax here, then you'll be dead before you make it out! Now get into formation, avoid combat as much as possible, and take the quickest route back up! Come on, we've only got a little ways to go!"
Some of the students tried to complain about how he could let them take a short break at least, but his pointed stare cut them short. The group reluctantly staggered back to their feet. Kouki hid his own exhaustion and took up the lead again. The knights did most of the fighting in the few battles they couldn't avoid, and the party took the shortest route they could back to the surface.
Until finally, the nostalgic sight of the main gate and receptionist's desk became visible. Though it hadn't even been a full day since they had entered, many of the students felt as if it had been ages since they last laid eyes on it.
The students all felt relief wash over them as they stepped outside. Some of them just sprawled out on the ground, spread-eagle right outside the gate. Most of them were just glad they made it back in one piece.
However, some of the students like Shizuku, who was still carrying an unconscious Kaori; Kouki; Ryutarou, who was staring worriedly at them both; Eri; Suzu; and the girl Hajime had saved all had glum expressions.
The receptionist's gaze lingered on those students for a while, until Captain Meld went up to her to give his report.
The trap they had discovered on the twentieth floor was exceedingly dangerous. Though the bridge had been destroyed, it was possible the trap was still functioning, so it needed to be reported. Along with the fact that Hajime had died. Captain Meld struggled to keep the pain off his face, but he was unable to repress the sigh that slipped through.
None of the students felt like exploring Horaud, so they all returned to the inn. Some of them chatted with each other, but most of them just went straight to sleep, burned out by the events of the day.
Only Daisuke Hiyama left the inn, found an inconspicuous corner of town, and squatted down, hugging his knees. He buried his face into his legs and sat there, unmoving. Had any of his classmates picked that time to pass by, they would have thought he was simply depressed.
However, the truth was...
"Heheheheh... Hee hee hee. I-It was all his fault. Because that damn loser... g-got cocky... I-It was divine punishment. I didn't do anything wrong... It was all for Shirasaki's sake... Now she... doesn't have to waste time with that loser... I didn't do anything wrong... Hehehe." He cackled evilly as he justified his actions to himself.
Indeed, it was Hiyama who had unleashed that errant fireball at Hajime.
Back when Hajime had been running to the staircase, Hiyama had still been undecided on what to do. But then he had caught sight of Kaori gazing at Hajime, and it felt as if a devil had whispered in his ears; No one would notice if you killed him right now.
And so, Hiyama had sold his soul to that devil. He had timed it perfectly, making sure no one would notice, and hurled his fireball at Hajime. It would have been impossible to realize that it was his fireball specifically amidst that storm of spells. And Hiyama's particular affinity was with wind magic. There would be no proof he altered his trajectory, and no one would even notice.
Hiyama kept trying to convince himself he was safe while grinning gleefully to himself. However, it was at that moment that he heard a voice behind him.
"Huh, I should've known it was you. To think the first murderer I'd meet in another world would be my classmate... You're pretty rotten, you know that?"
"Huh!? Wh-Who are you!?" Hiyama turned around in a panic. The person standing behind him was a classmate of his. More importantly, it was someone he recognized.
"Wh-What are you doing here..."
"That's hardly what's important right now. So... how does it feel? To be a murderer? To remove your love rival permanently by killing him in the confusion of our escape?"
The figure snickered, as if watching a particularly funny comedy. Hiyama knew he wasn't really one to talk as he'd committed the murder, but it was amazing how unfazed his classmate was at the death of another person. Until just moments ago, the person had seemed just as exhausted and shocked as his other classmates, but there was not even a trace of that any longer.
"...So this is what you're really like?" Hiyama muttered, utterly dumbfounded.
The shade sneered haughtily at Hiyama.
"What I'm really like? Please, there's no need to make such a big deal
out of it. Everyone masks their true selves somehow. But we're getting
off topic here... What do you think would happen if everyone found
out? What would she think of you?"
"Wha—!? N-No one... would believe you... You don't have any
proof..."
"You're right, I don't. But everyone trusts me, so they'd still believe
me. Especially if I'm accusing you, who caused this whole disaster in
the first place."
Hiyama suddenly found himself cornered. His adversary was just
teasing him at that point, playing with an already trapped rat. No one
would've imagined this hidden side of their classmate, so they would
never have sided with Hiyama. It would've been far more believable if
someone had just told Hiyama that the person standing in front of him
had multiple personalities. The sadistic expression he saw looking
down at him sent shivers down Hiyama's spine.
"Wh-What do you want with me!?"
"Hm? Now now, don't be like that. You're making it sound like I'm
blackmailing you. I actually don't want anything from you right this
minute. I guess if I had to say, I'd like for you to become like my hands
and feet."
"Y-You can't mean..."
Hiyama was practically being asked to become a slave, so he
naturally hesitated to agree. He wanted to refuse, of course, but he
knew if he did that the figure in front of him would tell everyone
Hiyama had killed Hajime in cold blood.
Trapped between two unacceptable choices, Hiyama slowly began
thinking, Someday I'll kill you too. However, it appeared his adversary
had anticipated even that and tempted him with the one thing Hiyama
couldn't resist
"Don't you want to make Kaori Shirasaki yours?"
"Huh!? Wh-Whatever do you..."
His dark thoughts vanished in an instant, and Hiyama stared in
slack-jawed shock. The figure grinned wickedly, then continued
pouring out honeyed words.
"If you swear your loyalty to me... I'll give her to you. I had originally planned to give Nagumo-kun this offer, but... well, you killed him, didn't you? Though I guess you're more suited for these tasks than he is, so all's well that ends well."
"...What are you after? What's your endgame!?" Hiyama's words were frantic as he still couldn't grasp the situation.
"Fufu, my goals have nothing to do with you. Let me just say there's something I want... So? What will it be?"
He'd been made a fool of the whole time, and Hiyama couldn't stand that, but his fear at his classmate's sudden transformation greatly eclipsed his vexation. And either way, he realized he didn't really have a choice, so he nodded, resigned to his fate.
"...I'll listen to you."
"Ahahahaha, perfect! Truth be told, I really didn't want to incriminate my fellow classmate. Well, let's get along now, Mr. Murderer. Ahahaha."
The blackmailer spun around and headed back to the inn, laughing heartily. Hiyama watched as his living nightmare walked away, then softly muttered, "Damn it..."
No matter how much Hiyama wanted to forget it, to pretend it didn't happen, the memory of what he'd done refused to leave him. And the same could be said for the sight of Kaori's face when she had seen Hajime fall. Her expression had shown her feelings more clearly than any words ever could.
Once his tired classmates had rested up, they too would calm down a little and the reality of Hajime's death would hit them. And then, they too would realize Kaori's feelings. That she had hung around Hajime out of more than just goodwill.
Once they realized how hard it had hit Kaori, they would focus their anger on the cause of it. On the person who'd carelessly ensnared them in that trap.
Hiyama would have to tread very lightly. Or else he would lose his place among them. He knew he had already crossed a line, so there was no stopping now. So long as he followed his classmate's orders, a future he had thought no longer possible, a future where he made Kaori his own, might still exist.
"Hehehe... I-It'll be alright. Everything will work out. I didn't do anything wrong..." He buried his face in his knees once more, then went back to muttering.
This time, no one interrupted him.