The Misfits team led by the Prophet Helena and Dietrich was breaking through with overwhelming momentum, unlike the other two parties that headed underground.
In truth, the path leading aboveground was more lightly guarded than the underground routes.
“Oh my! This one’s a bit tougher!”
But more than that, the real reason for their progress was the sheer strength of Dietrich himself.
The world’s sole bearer of the title Sword Saint, the strongest swordsman alive.
With awakened abilities, swordsmanship, innate talent, and unshakable conviction, Dietrich wielded power that rivaled even that of an archmage.
In fact, given his strength, their current pace could be considered slow.
“Helena, are you okay?”
“Yes, I can move a little faster if needed.”
“But you’re sweating a lot.”
“It’s just the heat.”
Helena, seemingly unwilling to hold Dietrich back, tried to appear stronger than she was. Seeing her push herself made Dietrich look a little troubled.
“I see. Well, I’m tired, so I’d appreciate a short break.”
Jeff stepped in to mediate between the two. As a Holy Knight directly blessed by Kultus Hereticus, Jeff had no trouble keeping up, even while wearing heavy armor.
“Ah… I didn’t think of that.”
“Apologies, senior.”
Despite her initial insistence, Helena had no choice but to relent. On the surface, Jeff’s reasoning made sense.
“No need to apologize. I’m not going to feel bad about it either.”
Jeff served as the sturdy shield of the Misfits.
No matter how powerful Helena’s support or Dietrich’s swordsmanship was, without Jeff, their formation would inevitably have holes.
After all, unlike Jeff, Dietrich still wasn’t adept at defensive fighting.
“And even if things are fine now, we don’t know what might jump out later, so let’s take a more cautious approach.”
At the moment, Dietrich’s blade was silencing every mechanical device in their path, but should a formidable enemy appear, they would definitely need Jeff’s assistance.
It was important to cool their heads and proceed carefully.
“Yes!”
“Understood, senior!”
Despite being a so-called “Misfit” group, their formation held steady. And that was the right decision.
But then…
“Grrrrrrr……”
There were problems in this world that couldn’t be solved by judgment alone.
Overwhelming force that shattered the very premise of ordinary situations.
And the moment they came face to face with a symbol of that force, Jeff who was the most experienced among them shouted.
“Dietrich!”
They had to end this quickly and decisively.
Now was the time before the enemy could assess their full strength.
…Why is a monster like that in a place like this?
A sentinel wandering through a steel fortress full of mechanical devices, yet made of flesh and blood. This was a bioweapon.
The moment that monster appeared, most of the group froze, their minds going blank.
They all felt it instinctively. There was no mistaking it.
‘The presence of a Great Warrior…?’
A bioweapon created from the cells of the Great Warrior. Minos.
These monsters reproduced about 8% of the Great Warrior’s strength and had the distinct advantage of being mass-produced.
But as with most mass-produced weapons, there had to be a fully developed prototype that ignored cost-efficiency altogether.
“Kuoooooooh!!”
They had clashed with the Great Warrior once before, during Ariel’s debut as a hero.
They could not forget the might they had faced then.
And now, before their very eyes stood the one and only perfected model of Minos.
This monster’s power…
“You caught it…? With your bare hands? A blow from my sword, marked deep—?”
About 20%.
Compared to the wounded, exhausted Great Warrior they had once fought, this creature held strength amounting to roughly 50%.
***
After that minor incident, unfortunately Ariel’s face was nowhere to be seen.
“Ariel, are you feeling alright?”
“…Yes.”
Ariel had wrapped herself in magic.
A spherical barrier kept the outside from seeing in.
Probably because she was too embarrassed to show her face.
Still, now that she had come to her senses, it seemed she understood what she’d done.
“She does have some shame, at least. Don’t you think so, Johan?”
“Go easy on her. It’s just… Ariel had a side we didn’t expect.”
“Ugh…”
A scream echoed from inside the sphere, sounding as if someone were in pain.
But it was fine. Ariel was healthy…. perhaps a little too healthy.
Still, about Ariel…
I’d thought lately that she might have that side to her, but I never expected her to act so boldly without hesitation.
“Ariel, have you been under a lot of stress lately?”
“Johan, please just kill me.”
“Haha, just kidding.”
Why would I, when I was planning to tease her about this for a long time to come?
Still… it really was unexpected.
I’m not talking about the fact that Ariel tried to overpower me with brute force and pounce on me.
Yuna could do that much too. Broadly speaking, every woman around me probably could.
How did I end up surrounded by so many violent people?
Overpowering a well-built adult man with strength alone seemed to be the bare minimum.
“Ariel, wouldn’t it be fine to speak a little more casually?”
“I-I’m more comfortable like this, though?”
“But just earlier, you were—”
“Ah! Aah! Please, stop!”
“You don’t have to be embarrassed about it now.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Someone who shoved her tongue in during a first kiss, then climbed onto my lap and left kiss marks on my neck during our reunion, didn’t really have much reason to be embarrassed at this point.
Honestly, there wasn’t much difference.
It was just… a slightly more raw choice of words, that’s all.
“N-No! That’s not it?! Earlier was just—!”
“Alright, enough small talk.”
Unfortunately, it didn’t seem like Ariel would get a chance to explain herself.
“Wow… isn’t that just outright disrespectful?”
What appeared this time was the monster Ariel had buried earlier.
If it had stayed as it was, there wouldn’t be any reason to be this startled.
“What, did they go and strap some kind of cutting-edge weapon onto it…?”
A bioweapon created by the Scriptwriter appeared, wielding a high-output energy weapon.
It held, in one hand, a weapon so heavy that an average person wouldn’t even be able to lift it.
It made us realize all over again just how much the Great Warrior had been going easy on us back when he was alive.
That man fought barehanded… Though, to be fair, how many weapons could’ve withstood Vidar’s strength?
But the monster before us was different.
For one, it was far weaker than the Great Warrior.
And since its weapon had been made by the Scriptwriter, it was likely built to last.
Most importantly—
“It’s carrying a whole stash of spare weapons.”
Even if one broke, it had the resources to pull out another.
“Ariel, this is your chance to redeem yourself. Though whether it’s redemption or just your true colors finally showing, I’m not sure yet.”
Thunk.
I tapped on the barrier surrounding Ariel, calling her out.
She was probably already watching the monster from inside, but we couldn’t see how she was doing from our side.
“…It’s redemption.”
A moment later, the barrier around her popped like a soap bubble, revealing her figure.
But then…
“Are you still feeling the effects of the drug?”
“It’s your fault for teasing me like that, Johan.”
Her face was still bright red.
She even looked like she was on the verge of tears. Must’ve been a bigger shock than I thought.
Well, I hope this little shock therapy sticks with her.
Looking ahead, it needed to. For my own survival.
It was important to lay down some groundwork now and set some boundaries.
“Anyway, I’ll handle this one too, right?”
“I’d appreciate it.”
“It’s a bit cold of you, keeping your plan a secret, even from me. What are you saving your strength for?”
“Because someone’s always listening.”
If it was the Scriptwriter, he was probably listening to everything we were saying.
So it wasn’t wise to reveal our hidden cards so carelessly.
“Well… fine by me.”
Crunch!
What followed was a gruesome scene.
As I watched the monster get crushed alive and eventually burst apart by Ariel’s telekinesis, I made up my mind.
“…Ariel really is the best.”
I shouldn’t even think about defying her.
Discipline? Yeah, she had me in line instantly.
From now on, I’ll just crawl like a dog.
***
The path ahead was smooth.
Of course, there were annoying traps from the Scriptwriter scattered throughout, ready to trip us up.
From high-tech weapons to primitive traps like massive boulders rolling down the corridor, there was no shortage of variety.
It was like every single trap existed solely to mess with us.
Just imagining the Scriptwriter watching our struggle with a smirk made my blood boil.
Though, to be fair, there was a reason the traps had already been taken care of.
“We finally caught up, Your Highness.”
“Johan?”
Someone had smashed through those horrible traps before we got here.
Yes, we had finally caught up to Theseus and Immun.
“Oh! Johan! You’re finally here. I knew you’d come.”
“You seem… not exactly well, Immun. But at least you’re alive. That’s something.”
“Luck was on my side. And I owe my life to His Highness, too.”
Immun was leaning on Theseus for support, dragging one of his legs behind him. He clearly wasn’t in good shape.
His complexion was pale, but he put on a cheerful voice, probably trying not to worry us.
He really is a good guy.
Of course, that kind of mindset is probably what got him all beat up in the first place.
“Well then…”
I took a moment to scan the group.
Ariel was worn out by the time we got here, but Yuna was still holding strong.
Immun was in rough shape, but he didn’t look ready to back down.
As for Theseus…
“Prince Theseus, are you alright?”
“Yes. This is something I must do.”
Despite most likely clearing the way all on his own, he didn’t show the slightest hint of exhaustion.
Is this the power of a true hero? The kind they call superhuman? Mental strength is more important, of course, but still…it’s impressive.
Meanwhile, our Archmage is barely standing.
“Well, if you say so.”
That just leaves Emily, doesn’t it?
Fortunately, Emily didn’t seem to be in any serious trouble.
She hadn’t joined any of the battles, and all she’d done was check out some of the mechanical devices the Scriptwriter had left behind.
“Huh?”
“……”
But something felt off.
Her face was flushed red, and her breathing was heavy.
Her eyes were hazy, like she was half-asleep, and her body was swaying.
How had I not noticed until now?
She’d been so quiet, I didn’t even realize something might be wrong.
“Emily? Are you okay? I mean if you’re feeling sick, you should’ve said something—”
A sudden sense of wrongness hit me.
Something I had forgotten. Something I hadn’t had time to pay attention to in the chaos.
“You… don’t tell me—”
Emily wasn’t a superhuman, and unlike Yuna and me, she didn’t have much resistance to the drug.
Flinch!
I stepped back almost instinctively.
Ariel had been hit hard by the drug’s effects because of how much physical exertion she’d gone through.
That might be why Emily didn’t stand out as much at the time.
But how long had it been since then?
How much of the drug had built up in Emily’s system by now?
No…more importantly…
“Emily?! Are you really okay?!”
“Uuh…”
How had she held out this long?
Even an Archmage like Ariel had her mind thrown off by that drug and yet Emily had stayed calm all this time?
No… Maybe I was jumping to conclusions too fast.
“……”
“Johan, it’s not that I have weak mental strength.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“And I’m not a pervert either.”
“Seriously…I didn’t say anything.”
The way she kept insisting just made it more confusing.
Also, that kind of personal stuff shouldn’t be affected by the drug.
It was purely a mental issue.
In that sense, it wouldn’t be surprising if Emily had already reached her limit.
“I…”
“Emily? Alright, talk to me. Ah, but don’t come too close.”
“It’s just… my body feels tingly, and my head’s a bit hazy, that’s all.”
“Yeah, and we call that not okay.”
“But still, I didn’t lose control and go berserk like Miss Ariel did.”
Emily swayed unsteadily.
We’d been so busy dealing with the Scriptwriter’s traps, but to think I hadn’t noticed things had gotten this bad for her…
This was clearly a failure on my part.
“I’ll be fine, really.”
“……”
Unlike Ariel, Emily had simply been unaware of what was happening to her.
“If you say it like that, it really does make me sound like a pervert, you know?!”
For some reason, Ariel was shouting like she was about to have a breakdown.
“Anyway, we need to start detoxifying her…”
Unlike with Ariel, this wouldn’t be so simple.
Too much time had passed.
If she was this far gone from the drug, her life could already be in danger.
Detoxifying her would take a significant amount of time.
And if we wasted time on detoxing now, we’d be playing right into the Scriptwriter’s hands.
Still, that didn’t mean we could just send the others ahead.
Even if I told them to go on, Ariel and Yuna wouldn’t listen.
Honestly, I wouldn’t be able to leave either. I’d be too worried.
Besides, I am engaged to both of them. It’s not like they’d trust me to behave.
“Scriptwriter… You bastard.”
To resort to something this underhanded…
I couldn’t leave Emily behind.
But I couldn’t waste precious time detoxing her here, either.
Sending someone else ahead was too risky. It was out of the question.
There was only one viable option left to me.
Alright. First, I need to convince my two fiancées.
“Hey, uh, girls? Just…please don’t get mad and hear me out first.”
“I’m going to get mad.”
“I’m already mad.”
“Then listen while you’re mad.”
Ah, this is gonna be rough from the very start.
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