646 – The Tower Door

With the death of the hecatoncheir, Aro’s level has risen from 102 to 106, whereas treant’s has risen a little more, going from level 102 to 107.
Aro of course did more damage, but I guess either treant’s [Death God Seed] counted, or his disruption was recognised.

『Ah, sorry about this! To think I’d overtake you again, Aro-dono…!』

Treant stands up straight.
Aro stares at him with an indescribable expression.

『Sorry, Miia.
I asked for something selfish and used up more energy than needed.』

I bow my head down to Miia.

“It’s okay, you didn’t exhaust yourself too much.
This much is totally fine.
Besides, I’m glad to witness the growth of my new accomplice.
Letting your sword get knocked away to catch the hecatoncheir by surprise was good.”

Miia shoots me a thumb up.

『Y-yeah, I also feel like I gained something from that.』

I feel a little embarrassed… It feels genuinely heartwarming to be praised by someone more skillful than me.

I look back over the Ngai Forest.

『…It’s not just the hecatoncheir.
I get the feeling that everybody here is asking me to kill God’s Voice.
I need to carry their will with me as I escape to the surface.』

I’ve taken their proof of having lived by taking their experience points and combat experience.
I can’t let it go to waste.
It would be unforgivable if I were to now be toyed around by God’s Voice before dying a miserable death.

Miia stares at the hecatoncheir’s dead body in silence.
Her expression is entirely blank.
Sometimes she can appear chillingly expressionless like this.

『Miia…?』

“Yeah, that’s right.
I think so too.”

Miia nods, then looks at the tower entrance.

“Let’s go.
The pitiful guardian is no more.
But don’t know what could be waiting for us inside.”

『That’s true…』

This battle didn’t exhaust us too much.
I had thought it would be a bit closer, but apparently the hecatoncheir was particularly bad at fighting multiple opponents at once.
Thanks to treant’s surprisingly effective disruption, Aro breaking it out of [Shadow Dance], and the hecatoncheir choosing an entirely inefficient strategy at the end, I still have almost eighty percent of my MP remaining.

Even if a second hecatoncheir comes out of the tower, I don’t think we’d lose.
For that matter, Miia is so reliable that even if a dangerous monster is inside, I don’t think we’ll be in much danger.
She’s a maximum level Legendary, and her sword skills are top-notch.
She’s capable of overwhelming an opponent of the same rank, and can hold her own against a more powerful opponent.
She didn’t fight God’s Voice three times for nothing.

『As the one most able to take a hit, I’ll go first.』

I say as I place a foreleg on the tower door.

『Master-dono, in that case I could…!』

『You’re not able to respond if something happens.
You also can’t fly away fast enough..』

Treant slumps down in dejection.
It seems he thought this was another opportunity to make use of his strengths.
But the door is barely ten metres tall, so he couldn’t fit through in his current form anyway.

『I’m opening it! Everyone, brace yourselves!』

I push against the door.
It doesn’t move.
I push harder.
It still doesn’t move.

The gazes on my back feel hot.
I-is it a sliding door…? I try pushing to the side with my claws, but it still doesn’t move.

“What’s wrong, Irushia-kun? I’d rather you stopped the dramatic pause.”

Miia’s words cause my spine to shiver.
Even when she’s saying something normal, it sometimes feels completely terrifying when she addresses me.

“GuuOOOh!”

Roaring, I punch the door.
It doesn’t budge.

『…Sorry, it looks like it’s not going to open.』

Upon hearing me, the tension visibly fades from Aro and treant.
Rather than being disappointed, I think just relaxed now they know nothing’s about to come barging out. 

Miia, however, is staring at me expressionlessly, not moving an inch.
Her eyes are cold…! A forced smile suddenly appears on her face.

“Hahaha… To find out we don’t fit the requirements to enter this late is a serious problem.
We probably don’t have long before my [God of Madness] progresses.
It might just be stiff.
Let’s try attacking it all together.”

『T-that’s right.
It might just be a little resistant to opening immediately after the battle.』

We stand in a line and face the door.
I gather mana in my mouth to prepare [Gravidon].
My magic is more powerful than my physical attacks, and other than [Hellgate], this is my strongest magical attack.

『Is everyone ready? We’ll do it together!』

“I’m ready, dragon-god-sama!”

Aro has split into three with [Darkness Kaleidoscope], and each copy is holding the light of [Dark Sphere] in their hands.

“I’m also ready.”

Black light is gathered at the tip of Miia’s sword.
She’s also using [Dark Sphere].
She’s better with physical attacks in combat, but I guess magic will provide more immediate damage.

『Please wait a moment, master-dono!』

As though startled by treant’s exclamation, one of the Aros fires off her [Dark Sphere] early.

“Ah,” the Aro triplets say together.
Then, as though enticed by the first, another Aro releases her [Dark Sphere], and then the last Aro hurriedly releases her own.

D-doesn’t it feel like one of her clones is always different from the rest!? What is [Darkness Kaleidoscope] doing…!

At this point, it’s probably better if I join in.
I release my [Gravidon] at the door.

“A-are we shooting? It’s okay to shoot now, right?”

Miia hesitantly releases her [Dark Sphere].
Each of our attacks explode against the door.
The black lights burst, scattering smoke and dust.
I cover my face, enduring the backlash.

『Did that do it…?』

The light clears, revealing the door without so much as a scratch.

『No way… Is it being protected by some sort of force? Do we need to go find a key…?』

Delayed, a red beam shoots from treant and strikes the door.
It’s his [Heat Ray].
The giant door suddenly shatters into pieces.

A moment of silence passes between us.

『Was my [Heat Ray] always this strong…?』

Treant murmurs in surprise… No, I think that was probably just a matter of accumulated damage.
At any rate, it looks like we’ve avoided having to leave Miia behind.