Bell once again stood in darkness and snow. However, this time was different. He was inside an empty castle. Not a soul was around. The torches were lit, and there were fresh footprints in the snow, yet Bell saw no one. A banner was hanging on the walls. It was a wolf but bigger.
"Where am I?" Bell wondered.
This was different from his usual dream. He didn't see an army of the dead anywhere. Nor did he see White Walkers or the Night King. Just where exactly was he?"
Bell felt the wind pick up, covering his vision with a flurry of snow. When he opened his eyes again, he saw a battle playing out in front of him.
A young man with dark curly hair was currently standing on a mountain of corpses. Alongside him were many others. All desperately fighting for survival.
Bell felt the temperature drop behind him, and he turned to see the Night King staring at him. Bell stared back into the icy cold eyes, unflinching.
The Night King raised his arms as if to show Bell what he was capable of. Bell looked around, and the scene changed again.
This time, the Night King was surrounded by thousands of corpses. The castle was gone, and the two were in a field. The snow was painted red with blood. He gave Bell a small smirk as he raised his hands up slightly.
Cold, dead eyes opened. Their pupils greyed out as light no longer shone behind them. All of the bodies surrounding the Night King slowly rose and stood before Bell.
From this battle alone, his rough estimate was close to five thousand corpses added to the Night King's ranks. Bell felt a tiny sense of dread fill his body.
If the Night King could so easily raise this many dead. What type of chance did he have to save the world? Sure, killing the Night King was simple on paper.
But Bell would have to fight through hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of corpses. How was he supposed to do that if he was only one person?
The Night King, as if sensing his dread, cruelly smirked as if enjoying Bell's turmoil. He tilted his head and gave Bell a mocking wave, and then he woke up.
.
.
.
.
Morning rose on the 18th floor. Most of the adventurers of the Five Familia collation were still asleep, while the ones who were on watch were already wide awake and preparing breakfast.
Welf and Mikoto were on watch as they weren't going past the 18th floor. They were surprised to see Bell still up resting on Met. When they asked why he wasn't sleeping in the tent, he just told them he couldn't.
Seeing as they weren't getting any other answers, they decided to leave it at that.
"So, what are we having for breakfast?" Bell asked.
"Mikoto's cooking up a stew, it looks like. Something you'll be able to pack away and take down with you." Welf answered a cup of tea in his hand.
"Smells nice. So Welf, what's the plan for you guys being down here?"
Wlef shrugged. "I don't know. Probably explore a bunch. It's my first time here, so there'll be lots to see,"
Bache stepped out of the tent and yawned. Once she saw Bell, she immediately walked over to him and sat down.
"You weren't in the tent last night. Where'd you go?" Bache asked, grabbing his arm.
"Just right here. Sleep and I are mortal enemies, so we don't always get along." Bell joked.
He could tell Bache was frowning under her scarf and felt her grip on him tighten. "If you're having trouble sleeping, I can hold you."
Bell chuckled while Welf awkwardly sat there. "I'm fine, Bache. It's been like this since I was a kid. Sleep, and I just don't get along."
Bache held his arm tighter and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Hmm, ok. But if you have trouble sleeping, ask me for help. I can tire you out."
Welf spat out his drink while Bell nervously chuckled. "Uh, thanks for the offer Bache. But we're sharing a tent with like eight other people."
"They can watch." Bache simply stated.
Bell facepalmed while Welf slowly walked away to get away from this talk. Lucky for him, Mikoto was close by cooking the stew.
"Something wrong?" Mikoto asked as she stirred the stew.
"Bache's talking to Bell about certain activities she wants to do with him," Welf answered.
Mikoto blushed a little before glancing at the two. "Oh my." She ignored the slight pang of jealousy.
"Bache no. That's something we should do when no one else is around." Bell said.
Bache nodded, acting like she agreed. "Very well, if that is what you wish."
"Thank you. Now, how's your spelling coming along? Anything you're having trouble with?" Bell asked.
Bache shook her head. "No, it's a lot easier once I know the letters. When are you gonna help me with reading?"
Bell chuckled. "When we get back to the surface and have books."
"Oh yeah, fair point. Can we start with hero stories? I want to learn how to read those first."
Bell smiled. "Alright, I'll teach you with hero stories then. Pretty sure I learned how to read with those, too."
Bache smiled and hugged Bell tighter, which he returned.
"So, do we know each other well enough now? I've been waiting patiently." Bache asked.
"Well, it has been a month since I said we should wait. Yeah, I guess we know each other well enough now. Once we get back to the surface, I'll take you up on the offer."
Bache felt butterflies flutter in her stomach, happy at what Bell said.
.
.
.
.
Once breakfast was over and everyone else woke up, the group was packing up their camp. The level ones and twos would remain on the 18th floor while everyone who was level three and above continued on. Met and Silver would remain as well.
"So you sure you'll be alright with us gone?" Bell asked.
"You worry too much, you know that. We'll be fine. This is a safe floor, and there's about 75 other people here in case we need help." Welf explained.
"Oh, you can't fault him. Bell didn't have any friends at Hearthome." Beatrix teased.
"Don't tell them that!" Bell hissed.
Beatrix pretended not to hear him and walked over to Mikoto.
"Hey Mikoto, right?"
"Um, yes?"
"Nice to meet ya. I'm Beatrix. Are you from the Far East?"
"Uh, yes, I am. I grew up in a shrine near the Sonjuro estate."
"Oh, that's so cool! I've always loved Far Eastern culture. Say we should get together and talk some more once I get back. I'll also tell you embarrassing stories about Bell."
Mikoto was a little confused and offput by Beatrix. But she really wanted to hear those stories about Bell.
"Oh, um yeah um sure. I don't have a problem with that. Good luck." Mikoto said.
Beatrix waved goodbye while Mikoto was still a little taken aback by the woman. But if she only had to talk about her culture to get embarrassing stories about Bell, that was a small price to pay.
As if her day couldn't get any weirder, the Amazon, who she knew as Bache, stood in front of her.
"Girl, I expect you to protect Haruhime while I'm gone. I want no hair harmed in her hair when I get back." Bache ordered.
"Wha-what, of course, I will protect Lady Haruhime. She's my childhood friend, and I won't let any harm come to her!" Mikoto swore.
"Good, then we're in agreement. Haruhime is delicate and needs to be protected at all times."
"Absolutely."
"Good. Now, I bid you farewell, Mikoto. I must say goodbye to Haruhime as well."
Mikoto just stared in confusion. Bell sure knew how to attract some interesting people.
.
.
.
.
"So, ready to take on the lower floors?" Raul asked as he put his armor on.
"Yeah, I am. Can't wait to see all this scenery I've only heard about from Alfia and Zald." Bell answered. He put his sword belt on and made sure his dagger was tucked neatly in its sheathe.
"Oh, just wait til you see the Water capital. Biggest waterfall you'll ever see." Cruz added.
Once the boys were done getting their equipment, they said their last goodbyes to the friends that would stay on the 18th floor.
"Well, guess this is it. See you when you get back." Welf said.
"I better see a cool-ass Warhammer when I get back. If not, make it when we return to the surface." Bell said.
Welf chuckled before the two hugged. Bell turned his attention to Haruhime next, who looked at him with worry.
"Be safe, Sir Bell. I will pray for your safe return."
Bell smiled before patting her head. This caused the renard to blush. "Don't worry, Haruhime, I'll be fine. We'll be gone for three or four days. A week max. Maybe two."
"I'll still pray for you. For all of you." Haruhime mumbled.
This caused the three boys to smile. To Cruz and Raul. Haruhime was a personification of kindness and purity. Right then and there, they also vowed to protect her no matter what.
Bell then turned his attention to Mikoto, who stood up straight. She was standing at attention like Bell was a drill sergeant.
This made Bell chuckle. "Mikoto, you don't have to stand like that. I'm not some lord who demands respect. We're friends, aren't we?"
Mikoto relaxed her posture. "Very well, Sir Bell. I wish you luck on the rest of your expedition. May you and everyone else have a safe return."
"Thank you for your kind words. Now we're off. Time to head down to the 70th floor!" Bell declared.
"Uh, Bell, we're heading to the 39th floor. It's another safe zone, and then we're heading to floor 50." Raul pointed out.
"To the 39th floor then!" Bell declared.
.
.
.
.
Further down in the dungeon. On floor 59, a vast snowstorm was raging. Floor 59 was a vast tundra. Everywhere you looked was pure white. Off to the side was a bottomless cliff where no bottom could be seen.
On this floor, the group known as Evilus waited. They wore white clothes to blend in with their surroundings.
They were lying in wait for the expeditionary force to ambush them. These were all higher-level Evilus members, so the casualties were hoped to be high.
Now, all they had to do was wait.
.
.
.
.
Over the next two days, the expedition made quick progress. They passed through the great tree labyrinth and the Water Capital without problems. The monsters there were easy to handle, and no one fell into the water, thankfully.
Bell didn't have much time to take in the sights, but the things he did see amazed him. Giant trees stretching all the way to the ceiling. The trees twisted and turned, causing the floor to be made of wood and leaves with lush green grass under his feet.
The Water Capital. Two floors connected by a giant waterfall. The water was filled with monsters that would tear someone limb from limb. The walls and floor were blue, and the sound of rushing water could be heard constantly.
Once reaching the 29th floor, the expedition entered the dense forest ravine. Like the Great Tree labyrinth, the floor was covered in trees. It was also covered in fog, making it harder for adventurers to see.
Yet they still had no problems. No Evilus attacks or sightings at all. Making some in the expedition wonder why Finn was leading them so far down. They had yet to encounter a single member of this organization. But they pressed on, hopeful to at least find some evidence of their presence.
.
.
.
.
Once reaching the 37th floor, it was dark. So dark that Bell couldn't even see his own hand that he was waving in front of his face. Nor could he see Bache, who was holding onto his shoulder so as to not get lost.
"Lanterns on," Leon ordered.
Small bursts of light shot forth from lanterns, providing the group with small amounts of light. They huddled together in a tight formation as they made their way through the darkness.
The 37th floor was comprised of five rings. Adventures had to make their way through the five rings to end up at the entrance to floor 38. Located in the fifth ring and outside of the entrance to the 38th floor was the Uedeaus. The Monster Rex of this floor.
The expedition got lucky as it wasn't supposed to spawn for another two weeks, thanks to the Freya familia taking it down earlier to get stronger.
But the expedition still had to fight through dozens of Spartoi and Pedula's. Which meant Bell was having the time of his life right now. All for their goddess's love.
A fierce battle was raging between the expedition and monsters. Anyone level six and above stayed back to watch and let those below them get experience. They would jump in to make sure no one died, however.
"Alicia. Pedula on the ceiling!" Raul yelled.
Alicia pulled back her drawstring and aimed up. She loosed the arrow and smiled when it dug into the Pedula's head.
Raul bashed his small shield against a Spartoi's head and went to finish the job. But quickly had to parry another Spartoi's bone sword.
Cruz stabbed that same Spartoi in the back and was saved by Narvi, who stabbed one in the head. It almost stabbed Cruz in the back.
"Don't leave yourself open!"
Cruz nodded before stabbing another Spartoi in its monster stone. Lefiya was behind Alicia and chanting her spell, while Bell was nowhere to be seen.
"Has anyone seen Bell?!" Raul yelled.
He punched a Spartoi in the face before slicing its head off. He blocked a bone spear while Aki stabbed its monster stone. She pointed a bit further down into the Spartoi's ranks.
Raul squinted and saw two flaming swords in the crowd.
"Oh, that dumbass is gonna get himself killed! He's too far from everyone else!" Cruz yelled, impaling two Spartoi with his spear.
"Arc's Ray!" Lefiya shouted.
A beam of gold shot forth from her wand, killing every Spartoi in its path. She was careful not to hit Bell as she could see where he was, thanks to his swords.
Thanks to her magic, the battle was soon over, and hundreds of Spartoi laid dead at the expedition's feet. The battle was rough and tiring. Raul and the others were tired as the battle had lasted hours. But they needed to go and get their wayward companion, who ran off on his own.
"Bell, you dumbass! Do you have any idea how worr-
Crus stopped his yelling when he saw Bell sitting on a mountain of Spartoi corpses. There had to have been at least 300 of them. Bell was sitting atop the mountain with a smile on his face.
"Oh hey, guys. Sorry, I got a little lost and ended up deep within their ranks. You guys look tired." Bell said.
Everyone else just stared at him in shock. While the rest of the expedition was struggling against the Spartoi, thanks to the monster's teamwork. Bell was having the time of his life in their rearguard.
"What the fuck!" Raul said.
"There's so many corpses," Aki muttered.
"And he took them down by himself," Cruz added.
Lefiya looked on in horror at Bell. This was the guy she made mad. The same one who threatened to cut off Ais's hand if she so much as looked at his dragon wrong. What was she thinking, talking down to him the way she did?
Narvi was impressed at Bell's prowess as a warrior. She heard him laughing while fighting, so she was gonna do her best not to get on his bad side.
"Bell, come down from there! You could get hurt from a Pedula!" Alicia demanded. Since it was so dark, no one could really see the flush on her face.
She was admittedly a little worried about a Pedula spike hitting him as they were extremely poisonous. But she also felt a weird feeling coming from her loins. She didn't know what was going on, and she hoped no one would notice.
"Alright. Alright, I'm coming. Honestly, you worry too- oh shit!"
As Bell made his way down, a bone rolled out from under him, causing him to tumble off the mountain of bones and land on the ground.
"Nice one, Bell. Wanna do that again?" Leon asked, lifting the boy up.
"Shut up, Leon."
Leon chuckled, and the expedition continued their journey.
.
.
.
.
After resting on the 39th floor, the expedition set off once again. This time, they were aiming for floor fifty. They still found no trace of Evilus, and more and more in the expedition were starting to get angry at Finn. No one had died yet, but they were brought here on the pretense of fighting Evilus.
Yet hide nor hair of them had been spotted. They at least expected a minor skirmish here and there. But all they'd been met with were just monsters, and none of the ones that Evilus made.
Yet they continued on. They kept marching down floor after floor. Once they reached floor 50, they set up camp once again and decided to rest.
Tomorrow, they would descend to the 51st floor and have the fun job of killing Valgang dragons. Bell would get another taste of fighting more fake dragons. He'd have fun.
Once the morning came. Or what Bell thought was morning, the expedition descended into the 51st floor. From here until the 58th, Valgang dragons would be shooting through multiple floors to try and burn the adventurers alive.
However, there were some holes the adventurers could jump through to take a shortcut to the 58th floor and distract the dragons.
Finn and the other captains were at one of these said holes.
"So who are we gonna have jump down?" Beatrix asked.
"Well, it can't be all of us, as some of us need to remain here to keep cohesion," Finn added.
"I shall go. Hedin and Hogni will join me as well. We'll prove our strength for our lady." Ottar said.
"Not gonna have Allen with ya, Ottar? Ain't he supposed to be the fastest one here?" Tsubaki asked.
Tsubaki was the half-dwarf, half-Amazon captain of the Hephaestus familia. She was a level five high smith who was very good at fighting as she tested out her weapons herself. She is one of the only ones to be kind to Welf, even if she doesn't agree with his choice of not making magic swords.
"Allen shall remain here. He can use his speed to scout ahead and take out any monster ahead of the main group so they can move faster." Ottar responded.
"I'll go as well. Been a while since I fought some dragons." Leon said.
"I'll remain here and lead the expedition down to the 59th floor," Finn added.
"I'll grab Delta and have her join you, Ottar. She's been itching for a fun fight ever since we got down here. Had to hold her back when we encountered that army of Spartoi," Beatrix explained.
Back with the others who were waiting, Bell and Cruz were making a bet. Delta was currently on Bell's shoulder, which, at this point, no one but Bete seemed to care about.
"Hey, Bell."
"Yeah."
"50,000 valis for you to jump into one of those holes," Cruz said.
"That's a lot of money, Cruz. On gods?"
"On gods."
Bell nodded as Raul spoke up. "I'll also add 50,000 valis."
"So if I jump in one of the holes right now, I'll get a 100k?"
Both Cruz and Raul nodded. Bell gave it a thought while Alicia glared at him.
"You better not." She growled.
"Hmm, I don't know seems pretty dangerous. I'll wait and see who they're sending down."
"Oh, so you're scared then?" Cruz teased
"No. I'm gonna wait and see who's going then and join them. Assuming you won't be afraid to pay me."
"And what if you're not a part of the team going down?" Aki asked.
"Aki, I don't have to listen to Finn. I mean, I wouldn't even if I had to. I'll just tag along with the team going down. What are they gonna do, grab me and hold me back?"
Aki nodded as he made a good point. Bell didn't like Finn, so why would he listen to him?
"Anyway, Raul. Have you come up with an answer to the brain puzzle yet?" Bell asked.
"No, not yet. Having trouble coming up with an answer."
"Well, just take your time. No rush."
.
.
.
.
After waiting for another couple of minutes, the captains came back and assigned the group that would head down while the rest of the expedition would take the normal route.
The lucky few were Ottar, Leon, Gareth, Hedin, Hogni, Bete, and Delta.
Bell rolled his eyes as he felt sending all the level eights was stupid. That was pure overkill for the floor, and it would also leave them weaker without one.
"Now, with that settled, once they jump down the holes, we continue our descent. Any questions?" Finn asked.
"Yeah, why are you sending all the level eights down? That's just stupid, sending our greatest assets away from the main group. I mean, what if the Mountain decides to show up? He'd slaughter us easily."
Finn frowned in annoyance. He was hoping no one would question his authority. He was the smartest man in Orario. He was the Braver he knew what he was doing. Who did this kid think he was talking to him like that?
"I can assure you he won't. My thumb isn't hurting."
Bell gave Finn a dumbfounded look. "Are you serious?"
"Yes, my thumb isn't hurting. Now, if you have no more-
"No, I'm talking about you relying on your thumb to make decisions. That is idiotic and stupid and can lead to the deaths of everyone here. Leon, back me up here. You were at one of the most important battles of all time. Did the Empress say anything like that?"
Finn growled in annoyance at Bell's disrespect. But before he could retort, Leon answered.
"No. When she led us, she led from the front and was able to give up clear and coherent orders. She didn't rely on something hurting to tell us when we were in trouble."
"Ok, so do you really want to put 225 lives at risk all because someone's thumb doesn't hurt? I mean, seriously, is this how he's been leading you guys?"
Aki was quick to speak up. "Yes. He relies on his thumb to predict when danger is close. Most of the time, it hurts. We nearly get killed."
Bell sighed in annoyance and pinched the bridge of his nose. "My gods, what has he dragged you people into? Makes me feel sorry for you."
Finn had enough of the disrespect. "If you don't like it, you're welcome to leave! Better yet, why don't you come up here and lead if you think you can do so much better!"
"Hey, don't talk to Bell like that!" Beatrix yelled.
"Yeah, say something like that again, and I'll rip your face off!" Delta added.
"Careful, Finn. You better watch how you talk to my nephew. He's the only reason most of us are here. He goes we go simple as that." Leon coldly stated.
Ottar watched silently, a little impressed by Bell calling out Finn. Ottar knew the idea of sending all of their level eights was stupid, but he didn't say anything. He wanted to see how Bell would react. Safe to say, Ottar was more than pleased with his reaction. His desire to fight him grew even more.
"I must say Braver. From the stories I'm told and heard, I believed you to be smarter than this. The only reason the Freya familia is here is because our lady asked us to look after her beloved." Hedin said, pushing his glasses up.
"Wait, what?" Bell asked.
"Never mind that boy. That's beside the point. If Braver here wants you off the expedition, over half of us will follow you back."
Finn growled in annoyance. Bell was ruining his image and everything he worked so hard to build. How dare this brat from the Zeus familia treat him like this. His pathetic excuse of a familia couldn't even kill the OEBD.
Not that his could come even close to even wounding the beast, but Finn wasn't thinking about that.
"Look, I'm leading this expedition, and my decision is final. But if anyone else wants to step up, then they can be my guest. Let them lead all of you."
"Alright, I'll step up then," Leon said not a second later.
Finn was shocked as he didn't expect anyone to actually step up. He was used to getting his way with things like this. It seems like he miscalculated his importance.
"Alright, Bell brings up a good point with the level eights. Gareth and I will stay here while Bell and Bache will take our place. The rest of you have the mages in the middle guard to protect them. Rearguard will be composed of anyone level four and below. Gareth and Ais will be posted there as well. The vanguard will now be comprised of the heavy hitters like myself and Beatrix. Now, any questions?"
No one said anything, and Leon smiled. "Good now, Bell, Bache, get up here. The rest of us will begin the march down once you jump in the holes."
Bell and Bache swapped places with Leon and Gareth. Now, the group was ready to make their plunge into the unknown.
Ottar looked at Bell with a small smile on his face. "You did good, boy. I also disagreed with Finn. But I wanted to see if you'd say anything."
"So you were testing me?" Bell asked.
"Correct, and once we're back on the surface, I want a spar," Ottar stated.
"Uh, why?"
"You seem strong. I wanna fight you to see how I'd fair."
"Can you wait until I level up one more time? That way, it'll be even?"
Ottar surprised the group by chuckling. "Very well. But make our fight interesting."
With the conversation finished, the group took the plunge into the unknown.
.
.
.
.
Bell was falling, his swords unsheathed. The wind was blowing his hair as the hole never seemed to end. To his right was Bache falling alongside him.
Neither could speak as the wind blowing past them was too loud for them to hear anything else. Eventually, the hole opened up into a room, and multiple Valgang Dragons were spotted. Some were flying around while others sat on perches. Seeing fresh prey enter their domain, they flew toward their prey.
Bell maneuvered himself and used his ice magic to push himself into one. He stabbed his blades into its neck and dragged himself down. The Dragon screamed in pain as blood spurted from its wounds.
It dropped to the ground dead as Bell used his ice to dance around the battlefield.
Bache unsheathed his Kukri and followed what Bell did. Except she coated her blades in poison and dragged them down the Dragon's throat.
The Dragon choked as its blood turned to a viscus purple, which foamed as it touched the air. Bache rode the Dragon as it fell to the ground.
Hedin landed on the ground and had already finished his chant. Casting his Caelus Hildir, multiple orbs of lightning rained down on a nest of the Dragons.
Delta landed next and started cackling as she tore apart Dragons limb from limb. Using her claws to climb atop them, she tore out their eyes, wings, claws, and other limbs. The Dragons tried to get away as they feared this ferocious beast. Yet she always seemed to catch them. Soon, she was bathed in blood yet still wanted more.
Bete and Hogni landed next.
Bete jumped in the air and axe kicked a Dragon to the ground. The Dragon slammed hard, causing the ground to crack under it. Delta took her chance and tore it to shreds.
"Thanks, pup!"
Bete clicked his tongue and went back to fighting. He wasn't a pup.
Hogni nervously looked around the battlefield. He felt the gazes of the dragons on him, and he hated them. But he also felt his blood pumping in excitement. He was about to fight in a bloodbath.
"Dainsleif." Hogni chanted.
Like a coin flipping, Hogni's personality changed, and he unsheathed his sword. It was a long black blade named Victim Abyss. It was a longsword, and the blade was pure black. Like the light was scared to invade it.
His sword is a cursed weapon that can extend the length of his blade in exchange for his stamina. But thanks to him being a level seven, he had plenty to give.
Thinking quickly, he extended it to 30 meters and decapitated three dragons. He shrunk it and then had a crazed smile on his face as he began slicing through dragons like a hot knife through butter.
Ottar was the last to land, and his weight caused the ground to crack under him. He unsheathed his greatsword and lazily looked at a few dragons.
"Hmm. Weak."
With a single slash, the wind pressure sliced the head off the dragons before they even knew what hit them.
His attention was turned to a cheer above him. What he saw was Bell ice skating in mid-air. He was killing dragons left and right and seemed to be having fun.
"Great, another battle maniac. Hogni will have fun if they ever spar." Ottar thought.
.
.
.
.
The battle raged on for hours as the expedition made its way down. Allen, with his spear and speed, easily cleared a path for everyone else. After four hours of descent, the group finally reached the 58th floor.
Upon reaching it, the sight surprised the expedition. The graphite walls were painted with blood and entrails. Severed limbs of dragons were strewn all about and piled up into tiny mountains.
Navigating their way through the mess of corpses and limbs, they reached the advance team who were sitting near the entrance to the 59th around a makeshift campfire Bell had made.
"Oh hey. Took you guys long enough. Only took us like two hours to clear this place. Looks like the dungeon got scared." Bell joked.
His white hair was slightly red because of the blood. His face was dirty, yet his eyes still shone brightly with excitement.
"You guys did all of this?" Leon asked, chuckling a little.
"Yup. You guys have any problems on your way down?" Bell asked.
"Nope. No signs of Evilus either."
"Hmm. Are we sure they're even down here? We've been marching further and further down yet have seen hide nor hair of them." Hedin stated.
"He brings up a good point. They haven't even had scouts watching us nor sent skirmishers to test our strength." Gareth said.
A chorus of agreement and jeers rang out as more and more people didn't see a reason to be down here.
They were told it was a mission to fight Evilus and gauge their strength as a whole. As well as protect Orario from this, who wished to see it burn. Yet nothing had happened. If Evilus wasn't even here, what was the point of coming all the way down here?
"Everyone, I understand your worries. But we have a duty to Orario and its citizens. We are adventurers. We are all that safeguards Orario from the monsters that lurk here. So what if we haven't found Evilus yet? Bell has told me of their capabilities. They're probably hiding away right now, waiting for us to turn around and leave. I say no! I say we keep moving forward! We continue our advance and kill these bastards that want to hurt our city and our familia's! Who's with me?!" Leon asked.
The 58th floor was filled with cheers at Leon's rousing speech. With their morale lifted once more, the expedition continued their march to the 59th floor after dressing up in their winter equipment.
As Bell and Raul stood in front of the entrance. Bell smiled.
"Ah, feels like home."
"It's fucking cold!" Raul shivered.
"You'll get used to it." Bell joked.
.
.
.
.
The group stayed close to each other as they made their way through the snowstorm on floor 59. Their progress was slow, but it was better to be safe and keep everyone together.
Leon and Finn were leading the main group. The two were having a conversation as Finna hadn't said much since Leon took over.
"Look, Finn, you weren't very popular the further we went down. Sooner or later, that would've happened, and the whole expedition would've failed. Only a fifth of our forces belongs to your familia. Tsubaki and her forces were neutral, so they could've gone to either side. But pretty most of your heavy hitters would've been gone."
Finn grumbled as he kept walking. "He still shouldn't have questioned my authority in front of everyone. He's barely been here three months, and he questions me like that. Who does he think he is?"
Leon sighed. "Look, Finn Bell was only pointing out the flaw in your plan. His mind is sharp, but you don't need a genius to figure out your plan was dumb."
Finn went to respond, but the ground from under him broke apart. Finn stumbled back, but his head was grabbed by a hand covered in plate armor.
Leon didn't even have time to react before the Mountain crushed Finn's head like a walnut. Blood splattered, coating Leon's face in Finn's blood.
The Mountain simply dropped Finn's corpse like he was nothing before swinging his sword at Leon. Leon was quick to block, and a shockwave was sent out.
"To arms quickly!"
More of the ground broke apart, revealing many Evilus members dressed in white. The lowest among them was a level five. They quickly descended upon the group, cutting down a number of level threes and fours.
Among those cut-down but not killed was Narvi, who had her arm cut off. Bell was quick to react and used his fire magic to set the enemy on fire.
Cruz rushed to her side, a potion in his hands. "Don't worry, Narvi, you'll be fine. I'm here, don't worry."
He quickly poured the potion over her wound, causing the bleeding to stop.
Raul saw an arrow heading for Aki, and time seemed to slow down. Alfia's words rang out in his mind as he saw the arrow get closer and closer to Aki.
"If you had to trade your life for theirs, would you?"
Raul's body moved without thinking. He ran toward Aki, his hand outstretched. His hand met her shoulder, and he pushed her to the ground right as the arrow struck him in the eye.
Raul collapsed to the ground, and Aki looked on in horror.
"NO RAUL!" She shouted. She quickly moved over to him in a panic.
"Please don't be dead! Please don't be dead!" She begged.
Reaching him, she felt for a pulse and waited. Her heart dropped as she didn't feel one, and she began to feel guilt and dread. But right as she was taking her hand away, she felt one.
"Yes, you're alive! Thank the gods you're alive. Oh, I don't know what to do though!" Aki panicked.
.
.
.
.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, Revis and Ais were engaged in a fierce dance of blades. Ais was using Ariel and Avenger, yet Revis still kept up with her.
Both were evenly matched and were locked in a stalemate. Revis couldn't break through Ais's defense, and Ais could break through Revis's defenses.
The battle raged on as Ottar and the Freya familia were beating back anyone who came close. Riveria, Alicia, Lefiya, and the mages were chanting spells while being protected by Beatrix, Tiona, and Tione.
Bache was engaged in a dual with two elves known as the Dis sisters. Gareth was busy defending the wounded while mages tried to heal them.
Tsubaki, along with Bell, were engaged in fierce combat with weird-looking soldiers. There were a dozen of them, all level five.
Delta was busy tearing apart an Iron Golem-like monster that seemed to be under Evilus's control.
The battle being raged was fierce and unforgiving, with both sides suffering heavy casualties. Leon still engaged in his duel with the Mountain, but neither was gaining an edge over the other.
Ais and Revis continued their duel as Ais felt the effects of a mind-down approaching. She had to get rid of Avenger and Ariel to avoid collapsing, giving Revis the edge she needed.
She started breaking past Ais's defenses, leaving deep gashes on her skin. Ais blocked a slash aimed at her face and was about to counterattack before a blade found its way through her abdomen, which was odd as Revis's sword wasn't near her stomach.
The blade was taken out, and Ais was kicked to the ground by a masked figure behind her.
"I had her, Ein," Revis growled.
"You were taking too long. But you did give me a lengthy distraction."
Ais lay in the snow, slowly bleeding out as Revis moved closer to her. Ais tried to reach for Desperate, but Revis stomped on her hand.
"Nothing personal." Revis coldly stated.
She swung her blade down at Ais's face, but Revis was shoulder tackled away from Ais by Bell.
"Revis, so nice to meet you again. Look, I have my swords now, and you don't have a fountain to kick me into." Bell joked.
Revis growled in annoyance as Ein had her blade ready. It was a short sword she used in close-quarters combat despite being dressed as a mage.
Bell noticed that Revis was also dressed differently. She wore a red cloak and almost looked priest-like.
"We can't kill him," Ein stated.
"I know! But we can still incapacitate him and then kill the Sword Princess."
Before their fight began, a dozen more of those weird soldiers appeared alongside Revis and Ein. Bell clicked his tongue in annoyance as he was about to fight what he assumed was a level seven. A high level six and 12 level fives.
He'd have his work cut out for him.
But one of the strange soldiers' heads was ripped off, and Delta appeared right in front of him.
"Bell, grab her and go! I'll hold them off!" Delta ordered.
"What?! I'm not leaving you! We can take them together!"
"No! Go, and I'll be right behind you! Leon has already signaled a retreat!"
Bell looked over to the main force and saw them pulling back while Leon and Ottar held back the Mountain.
"But-
"No buts! Take her and go now! It's my job to protect you! So go!" Delta demanded before attacking another soldier.
"FUCK FUCK!" Bell yelled before shearing his swords.
He grabbed Ais in a Princess carry before grabbing her sword. He ran as fast as he could to the main force while hearing the sounds of Delta fighting behind him.
He looked back but wasn't able to see her due to the snowstorm.
.
.
.
.
Once reaching the 58th floor, the expedition set up a defensive position while mages and healers alike tended to the vast number of wounded.
Evilus didn't pursue, and Delta hasn't returned. That battle had been a heavy blow to morale as they were caught utterly off guard.
Finn was dead, his head crushed like a grape. Ais was injured, and it was unknown if she'd pull through. Delta had been left behind. Narvi lost her arm, and Cruz hadn't left her side.
Aki was fearful and full of hysterics, and healers tried to save Raul's life. Alicia comforted Aki as best she could. Lefiya was angry and felt useless. Like she didn't contribute enough.
Riveria was able to get a causality report and reported it to Leon. Fifty were killed, while another 85 were wounded.
Leon had to sit down and process this. After an hour of fighting, only 90 remained out of the 225 that came down here.
Bell, on the other hand, was angry. Delta still hasn't returned, and it had been hours. Leon stopped him from going back down by himself and told him to rest and wait. He'd send a search party out for Delta later.
But Bell didn't want to wait. Not while his big sister was stuck in a frozen hell being hunted. Or maybe she was already dead, and if that was the case, Bell wanted to find her body. So she wouldn't be desecrated.
Bell made sure her swords were secured and his provisions packed. He began making his way out of the camp when Bache was following him.
"Don't try and stop me," Bell told her.
"I'm not. I'm going with you." Bache answered.
"Why?" Bell asked, confused.
"Where you go, I go," Bache responded.
Bell smiled before getting serious again. The two walked to the entrance of floor 59 but stopped when they got there.
Sitting on a rock sharpening her katana was Beatrix. Gone was her upbeat attitude and cheery smile. Instead, she had a look of fury in her eyes.
"I thought Leon told you to stay put," Beatrix asked, a dangerous edge to her voice.
"I know. But I'm not listening to him. Don't try and stop me, Beatrix. You won't succeed."
Beatrix stood up, her katana in hand. Bell reached for his swords, and Bache reached for her Kukri. Beatrix stared at the two before sheathing her Katana and putting on her wool jacket.
"Well, come on. Let's go get her." Beatrix said.
Bell nodded, and the three headed down to the 59th floor.
Man, what a chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the battle. I feel like it was kind of choppy and fast, but I'll work on that as I progress.
Anyway just letting you know right now that Ais and Raul's lives hang in the balance right now. So do with that information what you will.
Well later.