Chapter 319 : I Missed You

Crash! Thump!

The lava magical beast, split in half, fell on either side of Ashuban.

Its cross-section was frozen white, covered in frost.

"..."

Viola, who had been rushing over, stopped and stared blankly at the sight.

It was definitely a high-grade magical beast.

A fish-shaped magical beast that swam in the lava and hunted intruders, the Volcaillac.

It attacked by spitting lava, and it was also smart enough to use it as bait.

It would suddenly shoot up from under the intruder's feet and attack, or it would soar high into the air and fall, swallowing its prey whole with its huge mouth.

Its scales, harder than steel, were impervious to most auras.

And its teeth, which could chew through rocks, could dig into the hard ground as if it were sand.

It was one of the most difficult magical beasts to deal with because of its habit of hiding in the lava when it was at a disadvantage.

Even the Triple Horns had a hard time with it.

But, to think that he had defeated such a high-grade magical beast, the Volcaillac, in a single blow?

Was he a Quadra Horn, or even one of the Eight Sword Masters?

It was a sight she couldn't believe even after seeing it with her own two eyes.

Thump—

In her memory, Ashuban was a wounded wolf-like man who had struggled to become stronger, gritting his teeth.

But now, he had become a confident predator, defeating a monster in an instant and letting out a relaxed laugh.

Thump, thump—

Viola was confused as to whether the man in front of her was the same Ashuban she had known.

That confusion was mixed with the pounding of her heart, and it brought out an old emotion that had been buried deep inside.

An intense emotion that had been suppressed by feelings of joy, surprise, and happiness raised its head.

"H-he's so cool..."

While Ashuban was humming and rummaging through the frozen corpse of the magical beast, collecting the magic stone, Viola just stared at him blankly, her cheeks flushed red.

* * *

"Hehe, this one's a good one."

I was humming and tearing out the magic stone from the split chest of the guy and putting it in my bag.

It would have been quite profitable to sell the guy's scales or the thorns on his back, but I didn't have the time, so it was a little disappointing.

Siri ran over with a worried face.

"Big Brother, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?"

I puffed out my chest as if to show off.

"Haha, do you think a mere lava fish like that can do anything to me?"

Siri pouted and then slapped my shoulder.

"Don't just rush ahead! I can't help you. What if you get hurt..."

"Sorry, sorry."

After roughly appeasing Siri, I saw a guy who was frozen like a statue a little ways away.

"Viola!"

"..."

"Hey, crybaby!"

"Uh, huh?"

Viola snapped out of it as if she had woken up from a dream.

"What are you doing over there, just staring blankly? Aren't you going down to the 7th floor?"

"Ah, ah... y-yes, I have to go down, yes."

And then, she walked over, creaking as if something was broken.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Yes! O-of course...!"

"Your face seems a little red."

"Th-that's, it's because of the lava...! The color is reflecting...!"

"Ah, I see."

Viola came over hesitantly, and then, as if she were looking for something, she looked around and then picked up a few thorns from the back of the fish magical beast, and then glanced at me.

"What are you looking at?"

"Ashuban... you've gotten really strong...?"

"I told you. How many times do I have to say it? Did I not give you enough faith in me?"

"Yes. You always lied and teased me."

"..."

The Heavenly Demon laughed slowly.

[You reap what you sow.]

"Anyway, hurry up and take the lead."

"Okay..."

Viola took the lead, and Siri and I followed her closely.

Seeing Viola's surprised expression, I felt a sense of how much I had grown.

It felt a little real.

When I had just returned to Maia, I had cut down a B-rank magical beast with a single blow.

And now, I had reached the point where I could cut down an A-rank magical beast in one go.

The Heavenly Demon recited slowly.

[If you strike it, it will become hard.]

After falling into the Blake Kingdom, I had gone through a lot of hardships, beating up the demons that were chasing after the dagger.

And I had clashed swords with the royal knights to put the Black Prince on the throne.

And when I returned to Maia, I had a dance with the magical beasts.

And I had even gone to the Holy Empire to save Siri and had a fight with the famous Hero of Light.

And when I returned, I beat up the Dark Heaven Society guys...

Busy, busy.

Looking back, I wondered how I had lived so fiercely without a moment's rest.

As Istradel had said.

I was a sword that had been forged by trials.

Well, sometimes I wondered if I had been struck a little too hard.

But I overcame it, so it was fine.

Didn't Tina say it too?

That all trials were tests to make me grow one step further.

'...The end is not far off.'

I had a feeling.

That the time when all these things would converge at one point and come to an end was not far off.

I didn't know what kind of ending it would be, but I would just do my best.

So that I would burn myself out and have no regrets.

I would think and ponder with all my might, and I would squeeze out all my strength and put a period on it myself.

And then, when it's all over...

I think I'll go on a trip to the Blake Kingdom.

Since there are many nostalgic connections there.

With those thoughts, I walked through the 6th floor lava zone.

I followed Viola and walked on the ground where lava was flowing here and there, and sometimes, when the original path was blocked by overflowing lava and Viola was flustered, I would freeze it with my ice art and make a path.

As I had heard, it was inhabited by terrifying A-rank magical beasts, but since there were few of them, it was relatively quiet.

After receiving a welcoming ceremony that started with lava-mixed saliva as soon as we arrived, a golem-like magical beast that looked like a moving rock picked a fight with us.

It was a guy that exuded a tremendous sense of pressure, with the lava flowing between the rocks looking like blood vessels.

But he was easily defeated by a joint attack from Siri and Viola.

Seeing that, I could see that not only I, but they too had become stronger than before.

Siri, who had rejected the gods for some reason, had finally accepted a god, and not just one, but the two most influential gods, so that was understandable.

And Viola's movements were also nimbler than before, and each and every arrow she shot was stronger.

It was as if she were shooting a battering ram.

An archer who shoots a battering ram without rest.

Who would not be afraid?

When I asked about it, Viola blinked as if she didn't know.

"Really...? I don't know. Maybe because I've been in the demon realm for a long time...? I've been cooped up in the demon realm for most of the time."

"What did you do while you were cooped up?"

"Just... I would stare at the wall blankly, and then when I suddenly got angry, I would go out and shoot magical beasts to death."

"Hmm."

I had nothing to say.

Didn't geniuses grow on their own even if they lived as they pleased?

It was best to just let it go.

And as we walked, occasionally beating up magical beasts...

"We're here. This is the way down to the 7th floor."

In front of one wall, a black hole was open.

Siri summoned a light and shone it, but we couldn't see the end.

It was all black darkness.

I said, staring blankly at what looked like the entrance to hell.

"Does the 7th floor have a name too?"

"The abyss... is what they call it. When you go down, there's no light. So you can't see anything."

"Hmm."

"The demonic energy is also incomparably thicker than before, so only those who are Triple Horn or higher can enter. Otherwise, you'll be infiltrated by the demonic energy..."

"...Really?"

I said, looking at Viola's head.

Three cute horns were sticking out from between her hair.

"Then you can go in. Since you have three horns."

"Ah."

Viola quickly covered her head with her hands.

I said, finding it absurd.

"What's with you now? Who here doesn't know you're the princess of the Kingdom of Sorrow?"

"B-but... isn't it very strange...?"

"No, it suits you in its own way."

"Really...?"

Viola slowly lowered her hands that had been covering her head.

It wasn't an empty compliment, it was as natural as if it had always been that way.

The horns that were sticking out from between her hair like sprouts were quite cute.

Come to think of it, when she was living in Maia, she was a girl who never took off her hat.

She had so many kinds that she could fill a whole wall with hats.

"Come to think of it, what happened to all those hats?"

"...I burned them all."

"Why?"

Viola glanced at me and then hung her head.

"...Just because."

Since I didn't have anything to say, I just said roughly.

"Good. Go around without a hat. It's much better."

"Okay..."

Viola hung her head and fiddled with her cute horns.

I looked at her and then crossed my arms and muttered.

"By the way, if the demonic energy is that thick, we might be in some danger too."

If even those who were born and raised here had a hard time, then for us outsiders, it would be unimaginable...

With that thought, I looked at Siri, and surprisingly, Siri said confidently.

"It's okay!"

"It's okay?"

"Yes! You're Ketel's apostle, Big Brother."

"Ah."

"You might not be able to see it, Big Brother, but I can see it. Ketel's grace is surrounding you. Even if you go in, the demonic energy won't dare to infiltrate you."

I looked around me.

"I don't see anything."

Siri giggled.

"I can see it, so you don't have to worry."

"And you, Siri?"

"I'm a follower of Ketel who has accepted the darkness, right?"

"Oh?"

Come to think of it, that was right.

And not just a follower, but an unprecedented black and white saint who received the love of both light and darkness, the sun and the moon, in abundance.

Wasn't she a cunning, two-timing saint who received the grace that the two gods were pouring out, as if they were competing with each other, for fear that she would turn to one side?

It's not that the god chooses the follower, but the follower chooses the god.

So this is what happens when you're too talented.

This is probably the first and last case of its kind.

Siri opened her arms wide and said.

"The darkness is our friend!"

I chuckled.

"Yes, you're right."

We said to Viola, with our arms crossed confidently.

"We're invincible. Let's go and have a surprise party in the abyss."

"Ahem!"

Viola looked at us with a dumbfounded expression.

"Uh... so you'll be okay?"

"Of course! Ketel is with us."

"Ahem!"

Viola chuckled and said.

"Alright. Then wait here for a moment. I need to prepare too."

And then she went to a black rock on one side and took out a dagger, and then, with an aura wrapped around it, she began to carve the rock.

I stared at her blankly.

"...What are you doing?"

"Mmm... I'm preparing some arrows."

"Arrows? You're the one who just picks up whatever and shoots."

"The opponent is the opponent... I have to prepare thoroughly."

Scrape! Scrape!

Viola explained, carving the rock with a dagger wrapped in a dark indigo aura.

"This is mithril."

"...Mithril?"

"Have you heard of it...?"

"I think I've heard of it vaguely. Isn't it called the dream metal of blacksmiths?"

"Yes... that's probably it. This dagger is also made of mithril."

Curious, I said to Siri.

"Siri."

"Yes, Big Brother."

"Shine a light over there."

"Alright. Hmph! Light!"

It certainly wasn't an ordinary rock.

Even when I shone a light on it, it didn't seem like I had shone a light on it.

Whether it had absorbed all the light, it didn't reflect any light at all.

"Oh... how strange."

I watched Viola blankly as she trimmed the mithril ore and made arrowheads.

Then Viola glanced at me and muttered.

"W-why are you looking at me like that..."

"It's just a little strange. You're making the arrowheads with that, but what are you going to do for the arrow shafts?"

"You know the thorns of the Volcaillac you hunted earlier... I can use those."

"Ah, that lava fish? You were so meticulous in picking them up, you had a plan."

"O-of course...!"

I lay down next to her and said.

"Tell me when you're ready."

"Okay..."

Siri also giggled and took a seat next to me.

Siri and I poked each other's shoulders and played around, and then, whether she was tired from waking up early, she soon fell asleep.

I chuckled and looked at Siri's sleeping face, and then, looking at the black ceiling reflected in the lava, I fell into thought.

The expression and voice of the Demon King, who had been talking about his 'son' so calmly, came to mind.

"Ashuban."

"Hmm?"

When I looked to the side, Viola, who had been carving the arrowheads, was looking at me with a determined face.

"I-I have something to say."

"Something to say? What is it?"

Viola looked at me straight and said.

"I missed you. A lot."

...Huh?

(End of Chapter)