Dungeon Oratoria Online

by asdf1asdf1

DOO is the first game to be created in a long awaited category, a VRMMORPG. Follow Kirito and co as they seek to clear out the depths of the dungeon located beneath the city Orario. However, this game is no mere entertainment, it's a real world, where death in the dungeon means death for your body. The only way they can escape the game is to clear the bottom floor of the dungeon.

63. Chapter 58

Chapter 58: Balor

Alise:

"Wha…" The sound slipped unbidden from Alise's lips. It was always dark in the dungeon, but it seemed even blacker while everyone slept. Alise herself should have been sleeping. She would be leading an unexperienced party into hell the next day. A week-long roundtrip that would culminate with a fight against one of the strongest floor bosses in the entirety of the explored dungeon.

Her instincts were screaming at her right now that something was out there. The thirty-ninth floor was relatively open, but there were still enough obstructions in her line of sight to hide many things.

"Do you know what it is?"

"No idea," Alise responded to Lion. "You should be sleeping."

"So should you."

"…Yeah, I know." Even during that brief exchange, the sensation faded. Alise could not tell where it was going. If forced to guess, she would assume up to thirty-eighth floor. That would be disturbing.

"Should we delay by a day to hunt it down?"

Alise did consider but shook her head. "There is no real way to do that. Floors are too big, especially if it gets to the thirty-seventh."

"Unless we go now."

"Yes but…"

Lion smiled at her hesitancy. "Your instincts tell you not to?"

"You got it!" Alise replied mischievously. "It's probably an irregular of sorts but as long as it sticks to the deep floors we will have no issues."

"As you wish."

Alise grabbed unto Lion's arms as the elf started to leave to go back to sleep. "Have you thought about what I mentioned last night?"

"…I do not believe that it is right. He is too unexperienced."

"I agree."

With that, Lion left to go back to sleep. Alise herself closed her eyes where she was resting. Her consciousness drifted but she never lost awareness of her surroundings. It was a trick that almost all first-tier adventurers picked up at some point. Alise was not sure the last time she entered a sleep deep enough to lose awareness.

In this state, Alise did not have normal dreams but a kind of lucid hallucination. She had no idea why, only that many of the others got the same images in this state. Similar to the other nights, Alise replayed the day and their trek through the thirty-seventh and thirty-eighth.

It had gone well—if one ignored the high concentration of monsters along the main path. Udaeus had been exactly as strong as she remembered. The floor boss deciding against revealing its powerful sword. The major event was the trap that should have killed the two girls.

A sphere of black liquid that granted a burst of power… Alise had never heard of something like it before. She tried more than once to force the hallucinations to summon up the moment when she had walked past the side hallway.

She had taken a glance down, analyzed threats, and moved on. For that brief moment her level six eyes had laid upon the flower of blue crystal.

Had she seen it then? Alise mulled it over. A core of black obscured within. It was possible. Before Alise could consider the matter further, she was being shaken awake.

"It is time to prepare."

Repressing a yawn, Alise stood up and flashed her second-in-command a smile. "Excited, Kaguya? The real adventure starts today!"

"…You did not sleep well."

"Ehh?" Alise gasped under the accusation from her closest friend. "H-How can you tell?"

"Because you never sleep well after trouble strikes. You feel responsible for not stopping that trap."

Alise had no response for that. "We need to move anyway." Beginning to move. Alise woke the rest of the expedition and began giving orders to the ones that were coming with her further down. The party would be an elite one.

The four of them and Ais would make up the adventurers. For supporters Lefiya, Asuna, Kirito and Anikitty would accompany them. Astrid would stay behind to protect the rest.

Having not done it the night before they distributed food, water, weapons, and consumables. The process took hours as they carefully balanced the distribution of gear and responsibilities.

Through the process, Alise was surprised by how inexperienced Lefiya was at this. She was almost as raw as Asuna and Kirito. Of them, Asuna took more readily to the process, clearly having some experience being a supporter before. Kirito, however, took in everything with a disappointed look. Thankfully, Anikitty took more responsibility onto herself and began to teach the others and go through who would be directly supporting what adventurer.

Stretching, Alise gave Kaguya a nod that she was in charge and went to go relieve herself. It may be her last chance until Balor was defeated. Another advantage of her status.

Blocking her way was the other catgirl, Astrid. "Do you need something?"

She hesitated, looking back at the group. Getting the sign, Alise tugged her sleeve and led Astrid away from the group.

"I am worried about my ability to protect this group."

Alise nodded slowly, understanding the girl's worry. She was the only level four staying behind. "How many monsters from the fortieth do you think you can deal with?"

"Not an entire pack. I only levelled up a few months ago. I'm almost certainly weaker than Kirito, and Asuna is likely as fast as me already."

"Hmm…" Alise digested the information. "It won't be fun for you all, but I think you should be fine. This safety point has been peaceful so far. Only command the retreat if absolutely necessary."

"Of course. And… as you wish."

Finally left alone, Alise was quick with her business and returned. When she got back, preparations seemed to be complete. The last event occurring was a string of visitors saying goodbye to Kirito in clumps of one and two.

Many of the girls looked extremely unhappy to be left behind. The hunger in their eyes to press deeper; it was a crucial part to being an adventurer.

This familia is going to be extremely important… Alise was realizing that more and more as the days progressed. "Alright everyone, let's go!"

Breaking from the midst of the group was Hestia familia's second male member, Bell. "I-I want to come with you!"

So do all the level threes… Alise instead gave him an awkward smile. "As discussed previously, we have no more room for—"

"Then I will trade places with someone!"

Bell's declaration was as arrogant as it was bold. Staring into those rubellite eyes, Alise only saw determination. "And who do you think you are better suited to travel to the forty-ninth than?"

Bell blushed bright, the scrutiny of every single person. The harshest stares were from the people that Bell had just asked to replace. To Alise's surprise, Bell did in fact look at one person, but said nothing.

Anikitty's ears flicked with amusement. "I'm the only one here who knows how to support properly."

Astrid came up and tugged on her sister's arm. "Actually… I too am in favour of this substitution."

"Huh?" Anikitty whirled on her sister. "Where is this coming from?"

"W-Well… I am uncertain of our safety."

It was a repeat of the talk that Alise had had with the girl. Both had valid points. "Maybe it would be best to leave behind another level four…"

"I as well think we should change Anikitty for Bell."

"Lefiya!?" The betrayal from both her sister and familia member had completely blind-sided the elite adventurer. "W-Why?"

"M-Magic," Lefiya explained with an embarrassed blush. "You have no meaningful spells, Bell on the otherhand…"

"True," Kirito chimed in, "but there is no doubt that Anikitty's knowledge and higher status will be more useful in general."

"I think that it would have been useful to have this debate earlier," Kaguya drawled, stepping into the debate. "However, the question is this: can the group staying here survive without Anikitty to lead them?"

"No offense Bell… but I would like another level four to stay." The Miach familia representative said. Daphne, Alise believed her name was. She did not have Lion's ability to instantly remember everyone's name.

"Umm, thank you?" The boy that wanted to transfer groups replied awkwardly.

"Hold on! What about me?" One of the level three girls blurted out. "My magic is powerful, I'm stronger than Bell, and I have better chemistry with Kirito!"

"Enough!" Kaguya declared. "Bell asked first, it is between him and Anikitty."

That you, Kaguya… Alise could not have been that harsh herself, but having a lieutenant to suffer the myriad glares was extremely helpful.

"Hmm," Anikitty turned to examine Kirito and Asuna. The two-level fours stiffened under her stare. It lasted for only a handful of seconds before Anikitty spread her hands in defeat.

"Well, I guess I should have expected this. Don't die down there without me, Ais, Lefiya."

Anikitty gave her pack to Bell and began to lecture the boy severely.

Before it could go too long, Alise clapped her hands to get the groups attention. "W-Well, no more substitutions, let's go!"

---

Bell:

"Ah… Ah…" Panting heavily, Bell's legs shook from exertion as the raid group moved at a blistering pace. It was made worse from the extraordinary heat that emanated from the dungeon floor.

He had not been prepared for the increase in speed that would occur after parting from the supporters and carts. Travelling as such a small group allowed them move. And move they did.

Falling a step and a half behind Lefiya, Bell forced himself to stare at her swaying pack. The thick brown fabric filled his view as he ran. Jumping over an obstacle, Bell crashed into that very pack that had stopped.

"Ow!"

"S-Sorry…"

Before he could drag himself off, Lefiya's hand was in his face, shoving him away. "Pay more attention!"

"Sorry," Bell repeated, clambering to his unsteady feet. The rest of the much smaller party were staring at him. Standing in that circle of mostly women, Bell felt oddly exposed.

"Are you two playing?" Ais asked in her typical dopey voice.

"Playing?" Lefiya replied chagrined. "He crashed into me!"

"I-I did not mean to." Bell answered weakly.

"He is flagging," Kaguya surmised harshly. "This may have been a mistake."

"I can keep up! I swear." Bell answered quickly.

"Do we want to redistribute packs?" Kirito asked. "Anikitty had originally taken a lot of the heavier pieces."

"…Yes," Alise finally said. "Let's be quick, we only have five minutes to rest before we are off again. I don't want that roving monster party to find us."

Bell's face paled. "R-Roving monster party!?"

"You do not know, Mr. Cranel?" Lyu was quick to interject. "Starting on this floor, monsters purposely form up into hordes and travel around looking for adventurers."

"That's…" Groaning, Bell held a hand to his head as his perspective of the dungeon was forced to rearrange again. He had grown up with stories of things like this. Now, facing them as a young adult, the fantasies of his youth were recontextualized into the nightmares of the present. His saving grace was that Kirito and Asuna shared a discontented look.

"Do you want me to rig the side tunnel?" Lyra drawled, looking forwards. "I'll be able to replenish on the forty-fourth anyway."

"No need. The raw stones are less powerful than the synthesized items."

"Aww…"

"You just want to blow things up again," Lyu said disparagingly.

"I would not mind killing them if you want me too…"

"Ais is just as battle-crazy as you, Lyra," Alise muttered.

Bell was not sure what to think of Ais' newfound closeness to the Astraea girls. The fight on the surface and distance seemed like distant, impossible images. Ais seemed closer to them than even Lefiya in a way.

The elf appeared to be having the same thought as she frowned and stared at her familia member.

Searching for something else, Bell addressed Alise. "Umm, why are we moving so fast?"

She laughed. "It is said that the thirty-seventh floor is of a similar size to orario. Do you know how long the main path is through the fortieth, a larger floor?"

"Err, ten kilos?"

"Try double that. It is nearly twenty and the forty-fourth is nearly thirty. The others are shorter until the fifty-first thankfully."

"S-So…" Bell's mind was whirling as he tried to do the math of the distance that they needed to cover. They planned to camp the third night and fourth night at the divide between the forty-eighth and ninth. That meant the three days down and the three days back up they had to cover to the entire distance from the safety point to the forty-ninth. After adding twenties together, a couple of times, Bell moaned in defeat.

"It's so big…" Asuna gasped, clearly reaching the same conclusion. "We are looking at nearly two hundred kilometers in three days."

"Kilos," Kirito corrected her with a smile.

"Around that number," Alise agreed. "That's why we need to get through the first seventy or so today. The floors only grow more challenging as we go down."

"Yes," Lyu agreed. "As we run, I will lecture you about the monsters we will encounter. You must react appropriately. Failure to do so could cost you your life."

Lefiya, the only one who had experience on these floors nodded frantically with a half-traumatized expression. "Poison vermis…"

"They are one of the big ones," Lyu agreed. "The other being Flame Rocks. They drop very valuable items that we have been tasked with collecting, but given their nature, the whole monster can explode."

"Explosion is a powerful move…"

Bell stared at his captain dumbstruck by the strange sentence. He was far from the only one. Even Asuna seemed to have no idea what he was talking about.

"Ah, never mind, but aren't our five minutes up?"

"Ten more seconds," Alise answered precisely. "Also, you all forgot to rearrange the packs."

Having no chance to lighten his burden, Bell could only suck it up and pursue the group as they took off into the dungeon.

---

Lefiya:

"Urgh…" Groaning, Lefiya collapsed to the floor on the forty-third floor. It was a small room just off the main path. Each floor from the fortieth had betrayed the standard dungeon gradient and were actually getting brighter. Small cracks in the rock glowed orange. The source of that heat was the forty-fourth floor. The so-called volcano that leeched it presence unto the entire area.

After running all day, Lefiya wanted nothing more than to cool off and go to sleep. Instead, she got heated, uncomfortable rock, bad food, sore muscles, and her slowly drying sweat sticking her clothes to her and matting her hair.

A few moments later, Bell stumbled into the room. The level-three looked dead on his feet. "Good work, Bell. You did well today."

"Thank you… Lefiya…" The words were faint.

Lefiya was surprised as he bowed to her. But he did not rise. "Umm, Bell?" In slow motion, he fell towards to her. Barely reacting in time, Lefiya caught him as he fell on top of her.

Ears going scarlet, Lefiya mouthed wordless sounds of horror as she stared down at the boy resting his head against her chest. Most of his body was laying on hers with their legs intertwined.

Lefiya resisted the urge to throw the boy to the side. He hadn't even managed to take his backpack off before collapsing!

"Oh my, what have we here?"

With Lefiya's upperbody propped up against the wall, she did not even have a way of hiding her face from the first-class adventurers that were only now entering the hollow after destroying the nearby walls and making sure there were no monster groups close.

"T-This isn't what it looks like!" Lefiya protested. That did little to repress their snickers.

Ais stepped forward with large eyes. "He really is like a pet bunny…"

"W-What are you talking about!?" Lefiya complained. Her hands wrapped around Bell's body to stabilize him twitched, a desire to do something with them warring with an inability to let him go and fall unto the rock.

"Doesn't he remind you of a rabbit?" Ais pressed, sitting beside Lefiya. "Do… Do you think I can hold him next?"

She really does see him as only a pet! Lefiya wondered with amazement. The grief from having a boy on top of her was lessened by having Ais within touching distance.

"Absolutely not!" Lefiya rejected her request.

"W-Why?"

Lefiya winced in the face of those pitiable golden eyes. "H-He is dangerous! Just look at that face of his! He'll grope you like Loki if you let your guard down!"

"He… will?" Ais tilted her head as she examined the boy. Lefiya could not stop her as she reached out a hand and wiped away his sweaty white bangs off his forehead.

"Y-Yes!" Lefiya confirmed. Then, a piercing glare consumed her soul. Ripping her eyes from Ais, Lefiya sought out the source. She found it easily. A fellow elf with a matching bright red face.

"W-What debauchery is this!?"

"Eep!" Lefiya did not have a response. It was one thing to be seen in this position, it was entirely another to have a fellow elf here judging her.

"Ms. Viridis! To engage in contact like this without having sworn an oath under the boughs of the holy tree. I cannot believe that a fellow elf would—"

"Hush, Lion."

"Alise!?"

"Just be honest and admit that you're jealous you aren't the one being touched."

"H-HUH!? H-How dare you insinuate that—EEP!"

The elf practically screamed as Alise got extremely friendly with the elven adventurer. Lyu looked helpless as Alise wrapped her in a big hug from behind, running a hand up her stomach.

"A-Alise?"

"Hmm, more? Okay!" Opening her mouth into a comical circle, Alise chomped down onto Lyu's pointed elven ear to Lefiya's horror.

"Ahh…" A noise somewhere between a moan and a gasp of horror was ripped from the elven girl's lips. With a jerk of strength, she pulled away from Alise, covering her ears as she stumbled into a wall of the small cavern. Only half a dozen paces across, the traumatized adventurer had as much chance of hiding as Lefiya did.

Lefiya watched with a fascinated horror as Lyu slumped to the floor, a distant expression in her eyes. I always knew our ears were sensitive but…

Glancing back over at Ais, Lefiya could not contain the thought that flitted through her mind. I wonder what it would feel like if Ais did that to me…

"Lefiya?"

"Nothing!" Turning away from her instantly, Lefiya was just in time to spy Kirito sneaking up behind Asuna. Her blue-haired companion was caught unawares as Kirito copied Alise's crimes.

"Uhhh…" This time, it was clearly a moan that escaped Asuna's lips. Her back arching, eyes closed. Lefiya's blush deepened just watching this.

"Wow, it really does work on—" Boom!

Kirito's words were cut off as Asuna whirled around, her fist sending him into the far wall back on the main path.

"Y-You idiot," Asuna cried out. Covering her face, she burrowed herself into the wall next to Lyu. The two violated elves now sharing in their mutual sorrow.

"You are all idiots," Kaguya declared with a growl. "Get Bell's backpack off and redistribute the weight. He'll be dead by the end of the third day otherwise."

"Kaguya is right," Alise followed up. "We set off again in four hours. Get him stripped Lefiya and get some sleep yourself."

"Ehh?" Lefiya was left sitting there as the first-class adventurers began their own sleep. All but Lyra who must have been by the entrance.

It was not until Kirito entered, covered with shards of rock and looked at her that Lefiya began to move again. Reaching down to Bell's shoulders, she tried to slide the straps off him.

"Do you want me to take him?" Kirito asked softly, aiding with the straps. "He is my familia member after all."

"W-Well…" Lefiya was not sure if she still could blush, but it felt like another round of heat was coming to her cheeks.

Before she could the chance to respond, Asuna was there and pulling Kirito away by the ear.

"W-Wait!" Lefiya's plea was ignored as Asuna walked off with Kriito in tow, and Kirito with Bell's bag. They left the boy behind, laying comfortably on Lefiya.

"He looks so comfy…"

"Ais?" Feeling a spark of inspiration, Lefiya finally worked up the courage. "C-Can I rest on you?"

"…Of course."

Heart fluttering, Lefiya slowly leaned to the side until her head was resting on Ais' shoulder. Is this okay? Is someone allowed to be this happy!?

"You can do more."

"Huh?"

Ais' arm was suddenly looped around her and Lefiya found herself falling to the side until her head was stopped by Ais' soft thighs. There was the perfect amount of fat to make it the most heavenly pillow imaginable.

Without even considering what she was doing, Lefiya wrapped her arms around the object in her arms and closed her eyes. In seconds she drifted off to a blissful sleep.

---

Alise:

They're so cute… Waking up after her nap, Alise remained lazing around for a while more as she stared at her expedition party. Lyra was conked out with her head on Lion's lap while the elf's head was on Alise's own shoulder. Kaguya was taking the final shift at the entrance, watching for monsters.

Alise's attention however was on the other side of the room. Kirito and Asuna were cute enough, upper bodies pressed together as their heads rested on each other. The main attraction was the trio of Ais, Lefiya, and Bell.

Only the first-class adventurer was propped against the wall while Lefiya and Bell looked like lovers wrapped in an embrace, heads supported on Ais' legs. For a while Alise had deliberated on which one of the three she would wake up first. Watching them now, Alise had decided to let fate play out as it may.

Who would wake up first? How would they react? The entire relationship between them may hinge on this one moment. It was the kind of tension that Alise was unused to on expeditions into the dungeon. Coming from an all-female familia there was limited sexual tension between any of them. Even Alise's own actions against Lion were little more than teasing. If she asked Alise to stop, she would.

"So, are we betting on what happens?"

"Lyra," Alise frowned at the prum. "You should continue to sleep. You were on watch, you need more time than the rest of us."

"Sleep?" Lyra chuckled evilly, "I need answers! Their expressions are going to be priceless! Especially after missing how this all happened and your assault on Lyu."

"Ahaha, well don't overextend today, alright?"

"Fine, fine… How long until we depart?"

"Twenty minutes."

"Hmm…"

Now having a partner, Alise leaned her head back against the rocks and waited patiently for the inevitable explosion.

As the minutes ticked past, Lion blinked once and sat up, perfectly refreshed. Receiving a glare for her previous indiscretions, Alise smiled apologetically.

Once forgiven, Alise leaned in. "Are you wishing you were Lefiya right about now?"

"O-Of course not! It is indecent!"

"Sure, sure," Alise agreed with a laugh. Their talking was too loud and Ais opened her eyes. Unlike Lion's seamless ability to rise, the golden-haired swordswoman yawned. The innocent action was unbelievably cute.

"We are leaving soon, yes?"

"Unn," Alise nodded to confirm. "Let's just give our supporters another ten minutes or so. This journey is a lot harder on them then us."

"Not… today, I think."

Ais' statement was an accurate one. There were monsters on the forty-fourth that would not go down to a single careless slash at half-power. It would be their first big test of the expedition and determine the feasibility of tackling Balor with such a small group.

Alise gestured to the two people resting on her legs. "I never expected that from someone like you."

"Someone… like me?"

Alise raised an eyebrow at her confusion. "You admitted it yourself two nights ago. That you struggle to communicate with others."

Ais lowered her eyes to the sleeping figures, a soft smile playing across her lips. First Lefiya, and then Bell, she brushed their hair with the gentleness of a mother for her children.

"I do… but I… I…"

Alise waited patiently for the girl to string her thoughts together. Even Kaguya who should have been looking out for monsters had her head poked into their small cave to listen.

"I want to be able to make friends. But… But I got one of my friends killed already."

"Yes, and some of ours as well," Alise replied truthfully, causing Ais to wince painfully. "But as I said, if you need more friends, we are here for you."

This time, unlike the surface, all three agreed. The sentiment did not have the desired reaction, but the expected one as Ais only looked more troubled, her hand shaking as she stroked Lefiya's head.

The action was too strong and Lefiya moved under the contact. Blinking awake, her exhaustion was clear. The sleep had not been long enough for her to fully recover her strength. Lion's magic may be necessary to keep the supporters moving.

"A-Ais… I slept on your lap?"

"You did."

"Hmm, what a wonderful dream…"

Ais' doll-like face did not often convey strong emotions, but the confusion was plain in her furrowed brows.

"Hey, dream Ais?"

"Uhh, yes?"

"Next time I want to help you when you need a break. Have you sleep on my lap, okay?"

"…Sure."

Lyra let out a guffaw that broke the tender moment. Truthfully, Alise was struggling with her own laughter. Kaguya restrained hers by hiding her mouth behind the sleeve of her kimono.

Upon having her dream shattered, Lefiya's eyes widened with horror as she sat up, or tried to. Body entangled with Bell, who was now starting to rise himself.

"W-What is this!?" Lefiya wailed. The echoing sounds in the small cavern ensured that no one could remain sleeping.

Kirito and Asuna collided heads as they both jerked up, looking for danger. More importantly though, Bell opened his eyes and beheld the situation that he had spent all night in.

"Still betting on tries to flee?" Lyra asked, her eyes finding Kaguya.

"Oh yeah."

Lefiya's reaction was almost as strong as Bell's, "Get off of me already!"

The pitiful scream was matching by a wail from Bell. "L-Lefiya!? AIS!? AHHH!"

Somehow finding his feet, Bell bolted up and sprinted for the entrance. Kaguya reached out a blurring hand and grabbed his collar. Letting his momentum spin her around, Kaguya dropped him again so he ran straight back into the small room.

"Urghh…" Letting out a frankly pathetic sound, Bell collapsed before the two girls, covering his face. "W-What happened?"

"You, my dear familia member," Kirito said happily, smacking him roughly on the shoulder. "Enjoyed a loving embrace from Thousand elf and a lap pillow from Sword princess. Be sure to thank them properly for their generosity!"

Alise blinked in surprise. She had taken Kirito as a diligent, serious familia leader if a bit naïve and unexperienced. This teasing side was one that she had not seen before.

"Guh!?" The noise Bell made was one that a human throat should be able to make. He sounded like a dying orc.

"I did not mind," Ais said conciliatory. "And stop being rude Lefiya, it was your decision to sleep with him."

"Don't phrase it like that!" Lefiya whined, covering her own face.

"While I know some people are enjoying this debaucherous display, we need to set off."

Alise patted the angry elf on the back. "Aww, don't be so angry Lion, I'm sure they'll share him if you ask politely."

"T-That's not what I was asking for!"

Bell was still a motionless ball of moans on the ground and Lefiya was little better, but Alise was able to get everybody else ready. Another five minutes and Lefiya was able to calm down enough to finish the repacking and get ready. That left only Bell on the ground. It took Kirito whispering something into his ear to get the boy to rise, don the backpack and continue marching with a blank expression.

Waving the Hestia captain over as they ran, Alise asked him. "How did you get him moving?"

Kirito shrugged as if it was unremarkable. "He wants to be a man."

"…And?" Alise did not understand how that explained anything.

"He wants to be seen as tough and dependable." Kaguya interjected from Kirito's other side.

Kirito gave her a respectful nod. "Every moment spent on the ground only hurt him more."

Alise put her irritation at Kaguya understanding and not her into teasing. "Well, aren't the two of you getting along well."

Kirito rolled his eyes. "I'm afraid I am neither Bell nor Lyu. You'll need to do better than that."

"The boy speaks true, Alise. I have not taught you well."

"You two…" Pouting at them, Alise stuck out her tongue because she had nothing else to say. Sniffing once to drive home the shame of the actions, she sped up to open a gap between herself and them.

"Your captain is an interesting one."

"That's the polite way of putting it."

Tuning out the rude people, Alise focused on the dungeon. The monsters were limited in this area at the end of the forty-third. She could feel the temperature rising with every step they made closer to the forty-fourth. They should arrive in under an hour.

Before they could get to the last major obstacle prior to the forty-ninth, a monster party emerged from a side passage fifty meters ahead.

"We got a party!" Darting forward herself, Alise led the charge and bisected the first monster with her sword. It was a lesser phoenix, an advanced version of the firebirds from the colossal tree labyrinth. The brilliant crimson plumage was stained black as Alise's sword decapitated the beautiful bird.

Next up was a rock golem. Lines of red crisscrossed through the light-brown stone. Similar to Udaeus, the golem had magic stones embedded at its joint to enable free movement.

Ducking under an attack, Alise cleanly cut through both knees before removing the head of the falling creature.

Next in line were two of the standard creatures from these floors: Lava Lizardmen. The variant monsters were also recycled from higher floors. Alise had no idea if there were reasons for the repetition or if monsters just liked certain forms, similar to how all species of humanoids had the same body structure. Made in the image of the gods they called it.

Blocking the nature weapon attacks, Alise pushed the swords to the side and counterattacked, killing both with one blow. Their hot blood steamed into the air, their bodies dissolving into pools of lava.

Jumping over those puddles were Lion and Kaguya. Twin shadows of death that began executing monsters with a fervor.

"Oh my, half a dozen already. Is that only your third, Lyu?"

"I'll catch up momentarily!"

Alise sighed as she watched them carve their way through the monsters. Mere moments later Lyra and Ais were there as well, killing their own section.

"Hey! Don't leave the supporters alone!" As expected from battle hungry first-tier adventurers, none of them listened.

"Aww, jeez…" Stomping on the ground, Alise pouted like a little girl. How dare they leave her behind? She was the one that had gotten to the horde first!

"Err, you can fight. We can handle anything that slips past."

Turning around, Alise gave Kirito a grateful smile. "I'll be off then!"

"Woohoo!" Cheering her new freedom, Alise leapt over the cooling lava and darted for a knot of Obsidian slugs.

Slightly more than a mel in length, the slugs were the dark red of lava mixed with chunks of black rock like obsidian. Despite having no shell, the sheer density of their flesh was enough to stop most attacks. In fact, many a weapon was lost when it stuck to their flesh and melted within the slugs.

Alise did not have that problem. Her blade cut true through the dense flesh to pierce the magic stones within. After them it was a flood of Lava Lizardmen. The fight was finished in another minute.

Turning back to the supporters, Alise raised her hand. "We're all done here, feel free to—"

There was another group of monsters attacking them. Feeling incredibly guilty, Alise knew that she would be too late to help them.

Thankfully, she did not need to. Kirito was a high enough level to deal with monsters on this floor with only slight problems. Buffered by Thousand Elf's Arc's ray clearing out major problems, they were well prepared.

With incredible coordination, Kirito moved back at the exact time that Asuna's magic went off. The water spears finishing off the remaining troops.

"Look at them, not completely useless!" Kaguya declared, slapping Alise on the back. "A bit hard for a practice run though, wasn't it?"

"S-Shut up!"

---

Asuna:

Panting desperately, Asuna was getting a first-hand lesson in exactly what Dante meant when he described Hell. It was no abstract concept, but a very real place.

On the forty-fourth floor of the dungeon, every second was torture. Lava flows twisted through the massive corridors. One moment it would be roaring along with a bright-red texture, next it would solidify, and another flow would break through a wall.

More than once Asuna had been called on to solidify the main path with her magic, releasing incredible amounts of steam in the process.

An hour into the floor with no end in sight, she finally panted out her question. "How do you get carts through here!?"

"Slowly," Lefiya responded, likewise overheated. "Our familia would take turns inside of Ms. Riveria's magic to endure the effects. Well, that and copious amounts of salamander wool."

"Urgh…" Asuna mumbled, conscious of her mistake. Glaring at her boyfriend, Asuna could not repress the bitter words. "And why do you look so comfortable?"

Kirito gave her a strange look. "You don't remember?"

Opening his black coat was all the answer she needed. It was lined with salamander wool. Kirito was always wearing the magical fabric. "Unfair…"

"Definitely unfair." Lefiya agreed.

"Haha yeah… How could Kirito do that…"

Like robots, Asuna and Lefiya turned their suspicious gazes to Bell. "He's too casual about this, isn't he?"

"Definitely…"

"Ahaha… I mean, I may also wear salamander wool under my armour…"

Asuna met Lefiya's eyes. "Men are the worst."

"Absolutely."

"Aww, don't be so mean," Kirito joked, falling back to walk beside Asuna and Lefiya. Casually, he threw an arm around her shoulders. "You can always do what Lyu and Alise did and take off some of your clothes."

Asuna elbowed him in the ribs, eliciting a grunt. For once, she was not sad to see his arm go. She was too hot for contact. "It's indecent."

"Agreed!" Lefiya nodded rapidly. "You don't see Kaguya or Ais taking clothes off!"

The loud declarations had drawn the attention of the entire expedition group. Lyu in her short shorts and wrap blushed but did not move to cover herself up further. Alise, the other one that had removed her top only let out a loud laugh.

"It took us a long time to get Lyu comfortable with even this much," Alise admonished them, "don't go reversing our hard work!"

"And Kaguya?" Asuna asked, curious.

"Like your man there, my clothes are enchanted. This kimono could absorb a hit from a great axe."

"M-My man?" Asuna stuttered. "That's…"

"I hope it's true," Kirito said in an affronted voice as Asuna stuttered.

Blushing, she averted her gaze, feeling even hotter. But taking off her dress now!

"Do you want my coat for a bit?" Kirito asked.

"Ugh, I didn't sign up for all this drama," Lyra drawled. "I thought we were getting promising rookies, not lovesick actors."

"Oh, as if you aren't eagerly waiting for each new development as well, Lyra!" Alise laughed back.

"Or maybe Lyra is just jealous because her romantic escapades have been stalled for years." Kaguya added, hiding a mischievous smile behind the fold of her kimono.

While their leaders descended into light-hearted bickering, Asuna pulled on Kirito's sleeve to grab his attention. "Please…"

To his credit, Kirito did not rub it in at all. He only removed his backpack and then his salamander wool coat. While his back was to her, Asuna did the same. Only her full-length dress was far harder to take it off. The last time she removed it had been a day and a half ago at the safety point for a quick bath with the water from her magic.

With accurate motions, she started on the buttons and cursed women's fashion. She really should just suck it up and dress like the other female adventurers. Maybe not to the extremities of amazons, but Lyu's normal garb was good enough.

Ais' would be okay, as long as she wore shorts under the skirt, which the blond swordswoman did not. Asuna had gotten enough looks under it to convince her that there are other reasons why Ais is so popular.

"Here," Lefiya offered, helping out.

"Thank you." Asuna gave up and waited. Once the back was fully undone, she slipped her arms out and stepped free from the garment. Underneath the dress, Asuna wore a sheer shift. Of course, she wouldn't allow herself to be seen in something that amounted to a sleeveless shirt, so she had bought amazon clothes that amounted to underwear that she wore under her shift.

"I'll get the coat," Lefiya spoke again forcefully. "And umm…"

"I'll lend it to you after," Asuna assured the girl.

"Thank you."

Throwing the coat on and strapping her rapier on top, Asuna sighed. It was clear that there was a magical force surrounding her body, dissipating heat. It was cooler with the coat on than with just her shift.

Another benefit of wearing Kirito's coat was that he did not have it. His shirt was stuck to his skin with sweat, revealing the contour of his muscles.

From the intimacy of the expedition, Asuna had seen far more already, but there was something different about the situation being less awkward that let her enjoy it more.

Staring at Kirito, Asuna hand drifted up to her ear as she remembered last night. The sensations that had coursed through her body… Feeling the heat course through her again, Asuna slapped her cheeks to drive away the emotions.

"Asuna…"

Ahaha…" Refusing to meet Lefiya's eyes, Asuna sped up to catch up with the resting party.

"Ready to go?" Alise asked, smiling at them. "You're really rocking that look, I must say. The bare legs, with the opening and closing cloak drawing eyes to your breasts… My oh my, poor Kirito doesn't stand a chance!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Struggling under the embarrassment of Alise's words, Kirito's flat response drew a sharp gaze from her. His slightly red cheeks were accentuated by his averted eyes.

Approaching from behind, Kaguya grabbed him and turned him to look at Asuna. "Are you one of those boys that get turned on by a girl wearing their clothes? The satisfaction of a successful conquer filling you?"

"W-What are you, an amazon!?"

Asuna gaped at him and his inability to look at her. "Is it really that easy!?"

"I-Isn't this floor really dangerous!? Shouldn't we be on the lookout for those exploding monsters?"

It really is that easy! Suddenly, the day had gotten far, far better. As Kirito managed to get the expedition back on path to much laughter, Asuna skipped along happily.

"Hey, isn't it getting hotter?" Lefiya complained only minutes later.

"Yes," Alise yelled back. "We need to move through the hottest part of the floor soon. The 'Volcano' as the gods call it."

"Aww, you ruined it!" Lyra complained.

Growing curious, Asuna waited anxiously for the upcoming structure. Based on the way the dungeon was going, she was sure that it would be greater than anything before.

Eventually, nearly a kilometer later, the passage opened up into a chamber. But the word chamber was inefficient to describe what Asuna was seeing.

The center was a bubbling geyser of lava over thirty meters high. Surrounding it was a lake of bubbling molten rock inducing the melting and rehardening of the very path that they stood on. The air itself was on the point of boiling. The level one supporters would have died screaming from the ambient heat.

All of the rising heat was melting the ceiling that dripped viscously like water in slow motion forming stalactites from the yawning ceiling.

"High tide Alise, what do we do?" Lyu asked, her voice unaffected from the heat.

Even through the salamander wool, Asuna was suffering. Lefiya looked to be on the verge of passing out. "You should take your dress off."

"I… I did not know that it got this hot…"

"How? You have been past here."

"There is a slower route," Alise mentioned. "Adds some time on and avoids most of the fire rock drops that we were tasked to retrieve."

"We often sent a small group to retrieve them…" Ais said, speaking up surprisingly. "Come here, Lefiya."

"Huh?"

Asuna suppressed a chuckle as Ais wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders and activated her magic. Instantly, the signs of fainting vanished from the elf's demeanor. Instead, they were replaced with the fidgeting of a girl being embraced by their crush.

"Did you want in to, Bell?"

"M-Me!? N-No! I-I have salamander wool!"

"Okay."

Bell had a conflicted half-open expression where it was clear he wanted Ais to press him on it, but also could not possibly accept. Asuna did feel a certain sympathy for the boy. Having feelings for someone completely out of your league could not be easy. Doubly so when that same girl thought of you as a pet rabbit.

"Not to stop the drama," Lyra drawled, "but there are monsters coming."

"Monsters?" Asuna twisted around seeing nothing in the massive room. Actually, wasn't that really strange? This floor was a paradise untouched by adventurers in nearly two years. It should be teeming.

With an odd sucking sound, the surface of the dense lava lake parted as hundreds of monsters began to emerge.

"Battle positions," Alise said, voice completely serious for the first time that Asuna remembered hearing it. "Lion, Asuna, Magic. Lefiya start something big but hold it for now."

"Got it!" Raising her staff in two hands, she immediately jumped into the chant.

"Rise and flow. I am the Master of Water, servant of Neptune.

"Rise and obey. Destroy those who obstruct."

It was so natural to her by now that Asuna could track the general flow of combat at the same time. Bell had backed up between Asuna and Lefiya, arm raised to provide instant covering fire at anything that got too close.

Kirito meanwhile had drifted over to flank Kaguya who was squaring off against a swarm from the right while Alise and Ais dealt with the left. Lyra, meanwhile, was muttering to herself and burying small objects in the heated ground behind them.

"By my will, I give you life. By your will, I wield it.

"Chosen not given, I call. Answer my prayer and heed your duty."

There were some Lava Slugs in the mix, but the primary monster that surrounded them in groups of a dozen of more were the creators of inferno stones, Flaming Rocks. The name potently described the lumbering beasts. They looked carved straight from a chunk of obsidian and had eyes of fire. From every orifice, plumes of fire poured. The monsters were slow enough that a level two adventurer could fight them. The problem was that there was no level two adventurer that could dent their rocky exterior or survive the heat of their existence.

"Wash away the rabble and purify the streets.

"Put out the fires and drown the nonbelievers"

With her chant almost finished, Asuna was confident. She would deal with one side and Lyu could attack the other. The hundreds of monsters would break on their defenses.

"Blessed of the Undine.

"My name is Necksa!"

With her magic prepared, Asuna lost the race as Lyu activated her own magic. The cry of 'Luminous Wind!' was drowned out by an eruption of exploding orbs of wind energy. Flashes of green light consumed Asuna's vision with its awesome display of power.

Refusing to be completely shown up, Asuna activated her own magic.

"Vannforlengelse!"

Asuna knew that something was wrong as soon as the water began to form. She chose her typical shape of meter long spears. The forms looked lazier than usual.

Pouring more mind into them, Asuna fired the magic at the monsters infringing on the shore near Kaguya. Her missiles reached the shore before the evaporation became obvious. Her water was steaming into useless vapour faster than they could cut into monsters.

"Ahaha…" Laughing at her uselessness, Asuna managed to kill maybe two monsters with her spell. She should have expected this. Water magic was not particularly useful when the air temperature was closer to boiling than the temperature of the human body.

"Lefiya!" Alise called out, "How long!?"

"One minute!" The elf replied in the transfer from elf ring to her actual magic.

"M-Ms. Lyu! Can I help?"

"No Mr. Cranell, stay here!" Darting off, Lyu went to help the embattled Kaguya. Having not received the support that she had anticipated, the level six adventurer was darting back and forth across twenty meters of coastline killing powerful monsters.

Behind her stood Kirito. For the first time that Asuna remembered, he was wielding two swords, one black, one white, the edges tinged with the colors of the other blade.

With the perfect symmetry of the yin-yang symbol, he leapt forward and cut down a monster that had slipped past Kaguya. Each powerful stroke of a sword left a massive rent or missing limb.

Asuna could only stop and stare, her gaze enraptured. The coat she wore that was keeping her cool suddenly felt a lot warmer, more protective.

He really is amazing…

"Good job boy!"

"Good work, Mr. Kirigaya!"

Kaguya and Lyu said the words that Asuna had been thinking. He'll be stolen if I can't fight by his side. The faces of the girls before they parted infiltrated her mind. People that had grown used to being at his side every day paralyzed with the sudden realization that they weren't strong enough to be there. That they were a liability to him if they tried to remain there.

I will not be one!

Drawing her rapier, Asuna called out to Bell, "protect Lefiya!" In moments she skidded to a halt beside Kirito. "I'm here."

Kirito grinned broadly. "Nice magic. Real effective."

Just like that her worries and determination popped like a balloon poked with a needle. Getting doused by the cold shower of the balloon's contents, Asuna sighed. "Why do I ever worry when it comes to you?"

"What was that?"

"Nothing! Pay attention and kill things you brute!"

"Got it!"

The fight around Asuna proceeded at a dizzying rate. All around her was a surging tide of adventurer vs monster. Constantly changing battle lines where the monsters would press to gain ground only to leave vulnerabilities the first-tier adventurers would exploit to surround and kill them. It was like a war rather than a skirmish. Asuna could not focus on the shifting lines as her responsibility lay with the individuals.

Running by Kirito's side they focused on any strays that broke through. He seemed to have a preternatural instinct as for where it would happen.

"Through the eye!"

"Got it!" Asuna responded. Leaping forward, she exploiting an opening Kirito created for her by cutting off the rock monster's front leg.

The blistering heat of the monster turned the steel of her rapier red. Sweat coated Asuna's face and she would not be surprised if she got sun burn from this.

Despite the tension of the battle, Asuna loved every second of it. There was a primal intensity of fighting next to the person that she loved. Asuna knew that no matter how many years passed, she would always treasure this sensation.

"Wynn Fimbulvetr!" Unlike Asuna's paltry attempt, Lefiya's giant column of ice was unabated by the temperature and lava. Cruising forward, it left a sheet of ice behind it and the statues of what were once monsters.

"Amazing…" Kirito breathed out.

His praise was short-lived as massive cracks sounded out. In mere moments the winter's influence was removed and the only change was the massive amount of steam clogging the chamber.

The once frozen monsters were slowly beginning to move again. Lefiya's borrowed magic ended up accomplishing even less than Asuna's magic.

"Can you two stop using water based magic!?" Alise yelled at them.

"S-Sorry!" Lefiya stammered.

"Grawwh!"

The new cry made Asuna whirl around. From the edge of the cavern a beast smashed its way through a waterfall of lava. Lavafall, maybe? The thought was the only thing going through Asuna's mind. She struggled to comprehend the immensity that had appeared. It was shaped like a humanoid but was almost entirely made of flame. It cast a shadow that trailed behind it, shaped like massive wings that would pull them into hell. It its right hand it wielded a sword of flame over two meters in length.

"No way…" Kirito's voice was missing the fear that it should contain. Instead, there a boyish giddiness to it.

"Flame demon," Lyra laughed, "Oh boy, this will be fun!"

Fun!? FUN!? Asuna did not understand first-tier adventurers. How could they be so nonchalant in these situations!?

And then it approached.

BOOOOOM!

With an ear-splitting explosion, the whole room was bathed in white light as Asuna cowered. It felt like an eternity later that the rumbling died down and Asuna thought that her senses were working again. "W-What was that?"

"Lyra's explosives," Kirito said the words like a curse. "That bloody pyromaniac will take any excuse to blow the world up."

"I-I see…" Blinking, Asuna rubbed away the stars from her eyes and looked around back to where the Flaming Rocks were massing again.

"Well, you ready partner?"

Sighing, Asuna nodded reluctantly. "I'll be right beside you."

"…I count on it."

Heart fluttering, Asuna slayed monsters with abandon for the man she loved.

---

Bell:

"Urgh…" Groaning from the effort, Bell stood up for the fourth day. The entrance to the forty-ninth floor was only half a kilomel away.

Every day had been worse than the previous. His shoulder burned from the mere thought of donning his pack again. After the delays on the forty-fourth floor, they had rested on forty-fifth and ran for twenty-four hours straight to reach the forty-eighth on schedule. These last six hours after reaching this place were the closest thing Bell had had in that time to a proper sleep.

And I have to do it all in reverse the next few days… That was something rarely discussed with adventuring. Reaching the point where you decide to turn around did not mean an end, it meant the halfway point.

His feet were aching from the sharp pain that had plagued him most of the last day by the time they halted at the entrance to the forty-ninth. It was not the sloping path that Bell had grown accustomed to in the deep floors.

Instead, it appeared to cut off after a dozen meters and turned into a cliff. "What… it that?"

"We are entering hell," Alise answered plainly, seriously. She stared directly into his eyes as she spoke. "Keep up or die."

"Y-Yes!"

Alise frowned, maybe disappointed by his stuttering, uncertain answer.

Shuffling from foot to foot, Bell winced again at that sharp pain from the back of his foot. He'd need to get his boots adjusted after this.

Climbing down last in the group, Bell paused at the edge of the precipice. Hell, Alise had called it. The forty-ninth floor. The realm of the great Monster Rex, Balor. Moytera: the great wasteland.

Swallowing despite his dry mouth, Bell leapt down after them. The fall was only half a dozen meters. It would be possible to set up some ropes to lower a cart down. Thankfully, they did not have to.

From where they landed, Bell looked out over the single largest expanse that he had ever seen. Mile after mile of sand and rock with nary an obstacle but a stray dune or formation. Colouring the bleak landscape were hundreds of monsters. An uncountable horde that would ravage them all.

"Impossible."

The word was echoed what was in Bell's mind but was still too stunned to speak out loud.

"It is not impossible, Mr. Kirigaya," Lyu replied. "The monsters here are… I am unsure how to word it."

"Cowards?" Alise suggested with a shrug.

"Pretty much," Lyra drawled, stretching in preparation. "They refuse to group up too much."

"While Balor is alive," Kaguya interjected.

"Balor…" Ais spoke, Bell's ears straining for each one, "has noticed us."

"Shit, she's right. Let's go!" Just like that, they were off.

Doing his best to keep up, the pain in his body was muted by the adrenaline pulsing through his veins, keeping him moving at the same speed as the others.

"Alise, Ais, what are you talking about?" Kirito asked as they ran. "I can't sense anything that noticed us."

"That's why you aren't a first-class adventurer."

Kaguya's verbal jab drew a snort from Kirito. "Is that why the level five noticed before you?"

"Hey, shut up, boy!"

The elf trio laughed softly at the exchange. Beginning to relax a little, Bell suddenly caught a flash of light from the corner of his eye.

Just before he could ask about the light's origin, the air split with a roar of power and force. That brief flash of light became an all-consuming pillar of crimson power that vaporized land and monster in search of its goal.

The place where they had jumped down just moments before suffered that same fate as a massive chunk of the dungeon wall was stripped away and the floor above crumpled down through the expanded opening.

"W-What…"

"Balor." Lyu said, speaking the monster's name as a curse.

With a shaking body, Bell slowly turned from the destruction at the edge of the floor and traced its path back to the source. It wasn't hard. A hollow half-cylinder of vaporized earth tracked kilomels away, further than Bell could see.

Knees giving out, Bell collapsed to the ground. It simply wasn't possible for a monster to be that strong. It was a strength that could not be contested, could not be rivalled.

There was a reason this floor had no walls or obstructions. There was a reason the monsters refused to group up around adventurers.

That reason was that there was no need. The forty-ninth floor had one true king. There was no gauntlet of minions that Udaeus deployed, those were unnecessary. Balor could execute judgement upon all intruders without even moving.

"So, this is one of those bosses, is it?"

Kirito's flat words jerked Bell out of his reverie. Even the first-tier adventurers looked surprised.

Shrugging off the attention, Kirito waved in the general direction of the floor destroying Monster Rex. "It's weak defensively, right? The hardest part is getting to it."

Bell perked up at that. What Kirito said made a lot of sense. The boss was like a mage. It had access to an incredibly powerful spell but could not take care of itself.

Laughter. "You're really that naïve? Balor has the physical strength of Udaeus without that boss' obvious defensive weakness."

"Ahh… H-Hold on, but that kind of is weak defensively, right? I mean, it's twelve floors lower but is the same strength physically?"

"You know…"

"The boy has a point," Kaguya was forced to admit. The swordswoman did not look happy at having to reverse her previous statement. "Don't fall behind now."

"Yeah, yeah."

And just like that, they were off again. Stumbling after them, Bell ran on in a daze. Nothing about this floor felt real. Massive lasers the width of buildings that annihilated everything in their path, hundreds of monsters.

These simply weren't things that people could face and survive. But we aren't people… That was clear from the endurance run they had accomplished while carrying their bodyweight in armour and gear across rough terrain all the while killing incredibly powerful monsters.

It was only right for their journey to climax here against such a powerful boss.

Having arrived at such a conclusion, Bell felt that same adrenaline once again begin to reignite his veins. Each powerful pump from his heart sent more life through his body, reinvigorating it.

I will not slow them down!

Astraea familia proved as formidable as always. The girls worked in perfect concert to cut down the monsters they came across. Single strikes to the chest of the powerful formoire was enough to shatter the stone buried there. No one slowed to pick up drop items. They had no time.

"Fifteen seconds!" Alise called out. "Hit the ground on the other side of this rise!"

Despite there being no walls or anything, lines of sight were cut off by the curving of the dunes. Bell now recognized them for what they were. Valleys cut into the floor from Balor's beams of death. Once the tunnel ground cooled, the Formoire walking over it would shape it into a more natural formation, soothing the sharp edges.

Forcing himself to follow on Lefiya's heels, Bell slid over the rock infested sand down the far side. Losing control of his trajectory, he ended up in a pile with the girls. Sliding straight into Ais, Bell tried to stammer out an apology but found his mouth covered by Ais' hand.

Her face was mere inches away from his. She shook her head and held up a finger to her lips.

So cute…

A flash of crimson light.

Vision ripped apart once more, Bell closed his eyes to try and weather the blast. He could feel the floor beneath him buckle and shift from the impact. Bell could not say that he often thought of the fact that the floors of the dungeon were little more than thin sheets of rock. That became abundantly clear now as he wondered if the very ground would crack and sent them tumbling to their death on the fiftieth floor.

"Let's go," Ais spoke softly.

"Huh?" Struggling to keep up, Bell had to be pulled to his feet. The pace had increased from before. Sprinting across the loose sand, Bell clenched his teeth against the shooting pain that coursed up his leg at every step.

"Hurry!"

"I am!" Bell retorted, panting. He hadn't done anything today and he was out of breath already. Reality had crashed through the thin veil of protection that he had formed.

This really was too much for him. I should have let Anikitty come.

That thought was only exacerbated as Alise's words hit him. Keep up or die.

Exploding off his right foot to try and catch up, Bell was doing good, until his left foot hit the ground. Three solid days of ill-fitting shoes caught up in one moment as his foot gave out in a spasm of pain.

Moaning, Bell hit the sand hard.

"Bell!" Ais called out his name, kneeling beside him. "You have to get up! Balor has locked on and…"

Crimson light.

No, it's too soon! Bell could not move.

"Awaken tempest, Ariel!"

It's pointless…

"Lil Rafaga!"

Wind met light in a massive explosion, the area around the intersection of ultimate skills disappeared completely.

---

Alise:

"Noo…" Gaping, Alise could not believe that things had gone wrong so soon.

"Bastard fired off a second weaker blast without a full recharge," Lyra said, "I didn't even know Balor could do that."

"It usually can't," Kaguya growled, drawing her katana in irritation. "Alise, let's go."

"Yes, we need to—"

"AIS!" Lefiya's scream of terror echoed sharply across the floor. The high-pitched notes alerting all of the nearby monsters that were still alive.

"We have to go!" Grabbing unto to Lefiya's arm Alise tried to pull her into a run. Upon feeling resistance, Alise tsked and swooped in. Wrapping an arm around her waist, Alise carried the elven mage on her shoulder.

"NO! We need to go back… We need to…"

Alise did not hear the words. All she could hear in her mind was the screams of her dead friends. Those that had died only a short month ago.

No! It has been two years! Focus!

"Alise," Lion spoke up approaching. "What do we do if the Balor is enhanced?"

Everyone was listening but Alise prepared her words while jumping from rock to rock. Simply moving in Moytera could be a struggle as the sand shifted in waves, removing seemingly stable footing.

"We kill it of course. If you are the last person alive, return to the surface and relay what we learn."

A silent group answered her. Alise had her doubts that Lion would listen to that order, but Kaguya and Lyra would. The girls had good heads on their shoulders.

"Hand her over."

Glancing over at Kirito, Alise was impressed by his stoic face. Despite receiving countless surprises today, he had not crumbled under the tension. Asuna was barely managing to follow along, Kirito being forced to pull her to get her moving.

Taking a brief look at the groups of monsters ahead, Alise relented. "If she becomes too much, drop her."

"Got it."

Passing Lefiya off, Alise darted ahead faster, transferring her sword to her primary hand. "Arga. Arvana. Arvelia!"

Without breaking stride, Alise intoned the incantation for her magic. Balor was less than a kilomel off now. With the enhanced eyesight of a level six, she could make out its hole that the massive creature fired from.

A group of Formoire tried to strop them. "Agaris Alvesynth!"

Incantation magic completed, Alice blurred. Her back was hot from the power of her skill that pushed her body to incredible heights. In this state with her magic on and her unique skill, Lubrude Bequia fully activated there were no level six adventurers that could come close to matching her.

With a single swing of her sword, a wave of fire consumed the formoire and Alise was through the middle, heat parting around her.

The sand on the ground cracked, melting into a molten white and reformed into glass in her passage.

Any moment now…

The flash.

Dodging to the right, Alise channeled her magic into her sword and swung. Balor's mighty laser encountered her wall of fire. Like a river, the beam of energy flowed around her obstacle, bending and undulating.

Gritting her teeth, Alise's arms shook under the massive force. Even just deflecting the massive attack a little was an incredible feat with repercussions.

But it was a weaker attack that Ais tried to block, maybe…

Forcing the foolish hopes down, Alise stumbled to one knee as the attack finished. Her hands gauntleted in fire and armour had been stripped down to the skin. Alise could not find a single trace of what had happened to the second-tier metal. Flexing her hands, Alise was not sure if she still had feeling in them.

"Noah Heal!"

"Thanks Lion!" Jumping to her feet, Alise winked at the helpful elf. "Let's go!"

Power reduced from deflecting the beam, Alise could not separate from her familia members any longer. The three supporters were flagging behind. Honestly, Alise should have left them all on the forty-eighth. If she had, Ais and Bell would still be alive.

And then they were there. Cresting one final dune, Alise slid to a halt as she beheld the central dominance. Balor was a twenty mel plus monstrosity.

Balor's overall form was humanoid. Two large upper arms with rock-like protuberances extending from them supported its upperbody. The head was not that of a human, it had a snake's grace as it curved and gave it vision over most of the floor form its place on high. Three pairs of red eyes observed everything that happened in its domain. Between the small eyes was a giant lid concealing a seventh eye. It was from there that Balor unleashed its landscape altering ability.

Balor's skin was a seamless black substance halfway between scales and chitin. Despite being glossy, it had the texture and hardness of a dragon without the weakness to blunt impacts that many shells possessed.

"Surround it!" Alise called out. "I want the stupid thing turning in—" Cutting off, Alise's eyes widened as twelve motionless lumps began to move. Spread out in an equidistant ring around Balor's hundred mel hole were a dozen creatures. They must have stood three mel in height individually.

"Formoire warlords!?"

Lion's exclamation of surprise and despair could be understood. The creatures usually led roving bands of the smaller ones. Seeing them here guarding Balor was not only annoying, but it also signified something far, far more terrifying.

This was a trap.

"GRAAAAH!" The loud howl echoed across the floor. From all over, responding monsters answered. The once languid creatures only interested in protecting their small patch of land began to charge.

Alise had been an adventurer for over a dozen years. During that time she had suffered heartbreak, loss, grief, despair, and made her peace with them. She had been to the depths of the dungeon and heard about the lowest floors every explored.

Never again did she expect that an event in the top fifty floors could scare her. She was wrong. Right now, she was absolutely terrified that the remains of her familia were about to be stripped away from her.

---

Kaguya:

Sliding down the side of a dune, Kaguya came to a stop with four pairs of eyes staring at her. Three came from the large Formoire that guarded Balor, the last was the boss itself. She wasn't important enough to demand its full attention.

Kaguya's fists clenched in anger at the disrespect that was being shown to them. The other nine Warlords did not even bother rushing them. They continued to stand in their ring as lookouts, watching the flanks and preparing to fight anyone stupid enough to challenge them.

"Well?" Kaguya yelled at them, "come get me!"

They did not move. The Warlords stood still, a high level of intelligence and strategy reflecting back as they held positions. Above them, Balor's eye continued to charge. In seconds, it would have its full charge back and they would have to deal with dodging a wide-area attack that could come at any moment.

"Fine."

Running towards the one in the middle, Kaguya analyzed her opponent for weaknesses. Normal Formoire were level four monsters known for their immense strength and pack tactics. These warlords had no need for support.

Standing head and shoulders over a standard Formoire, its goat horns curled once completely in an extravagant spiral. No spittle fell from its maw, nor did its eyes have the standard pulsing red veins of anger pulsing through them.

In her mind, Kaguya switched from analyzing it as a monster to an adventurer. Unfortunately for you, that won't help you against me.

The warlord raised its club and smiled. The twisted human expression grotesque on the goat features.

Laying a hand on her hilt, Kaguya recited the words from her past. Her heritage, her sins. "Issen."

True to its name, her katana was little more than a flash of light. A single bisecting line that combined status and skill into a moment of transcendent speed.

"Graa!" Roaring in pain, the Warlord fell to one knee.

One down. Turning the right to find the next one, Kaguya barely had time to stumble backwards away from an onyx club swung at her face. Strands of her long, beautiful hair soared through the air.

Her attack had nearly cut the beast in two. She had felt its spinal cord split around the tip of her katana. Her eyes confirmed what she had felt, there was black blood matting the gray fur across sixty percent of its torso.

Even as she watched through, the blood welled, coagulated, and stopped flowing. It moved awkwardly, but the Formoire Warlord would soon be at full power again.

"What kind of Monster Rex shit is this!?"

Even as she cursed, Kaguya had to be cognizant of the actual floor boss standing directly behind her. Balor's arms were no more than a dozen meters from her.

It was also in range to try and bite her. Balor did not move, instead perfectly content to charge its ultimate technique.

Getting closed in by the three warlords, Kaguya identified the formation. It was a hunting trap. Enough room to fight without chances of hurting an ally yet close enough to strike if they turned their back on you.

"Stagnating, garbage place." Cursing, Kaguya paused with indecision. Any over extension on her part could led to her incapacitation. Any delay would lead to the death of her friends and then herself.

No choices remaining, she charged toward the rightmost Warlord. "Higan's Flower of Calamity!"

The short chant was all that she needed. A technique steeped in the blood of a nation. Perfected over the course of a thousand years; Kaguya unleashed the full legacy of the Gojourno name.

"Gokou!"

Five slashes. Five flashes of light.

The confused monster was still swinging its club when it began to fall apart. Its torso and club cut cleanly into half a dozen pieces that slid apart and crumbled to the ground.

With her katana already back its sheath, Kaguya drew her short swords, Futaba. One to each side, she blocked the dual club strikes that tried to crush her between them.

Shit! The shock that ran through her body was enormous. It was a strength she would expect from Cadmus or Udaeus, not random monsters.

Trapped between two unstoppable objects, Kaguya felt her body slowly begin to be crushed. Every second, her shaking arms bent further. The strain becoming a sharp pain as the unnatural forces on her body mounted.

"Gigas Cedar!"

In her haze of pain, Kaguya had not even heard the boy approach. With the endurance of a level six adventurer, Kaguya shoved off the attacks and whirled around to face her attackers.

Both were twitching on the end of Kirito's black spear of energy. It had gone through the arm and torso of the first and the chest of the right.

Jumping up Kaguya whirled in a circle and dismembered the heads. That makes three.

"Uh oh."

Above them, Balor was finally moving. Its right hand cocked back and ready to swing.

"Shit!" Swearing, Kaguya jumped back to the limits of her agility. Shards of broken rock crashed over her from the shockwave of the fist's impact.

Where is he!?

"Boy!" Head on a swivel, Kaguya could not find him. The air was filled with dust and sounds of combat and screams. "Kirito!"

She was out of time. Another Warlord was approaching with half a dozen Formoire surrounding it. Behind it, dozens more were aggregating to the central hole.

Lifting her Futaba, Kaguya resolved herself for a long fight.

---

Bell:

"Ais…san?" Body shaking from residual shock, Bell's mind failed to process the events that were occurring around him.

The energy beam that should have killed him, Ais somehow parting it, the absolute destruction that had occurred around them. They two of them were left remaining on a triangular spit of land bordered by cliffs on all sides. Beyond that were walls from where the land had piled up to create a barrier separating them from the rest of the floor.

Because of the attack however, Bell and Ais had a perfect view of where Balor was. The trench it had ripped in the ground ran straight back to the monster rex. It was smaller than the first one Bell barely managed to notice.

"Ais!" Bell repeated, desperate for guidance.

The girl in front of him, golden hair shining in the low light, collapsed. When she did, Bell got a view of her front and almost threw up.

The collision of energy had shattered all armour and clothes coating her right hand and arm, and parts of her body's coverings. Bell could not gaze in wonder at her partly exposed stomach, thigh, or right breast. He was too busy staring with a horrified gaze at the tangled mess that remained of her right hand.

Like the hilt of her blade that had fallen from her hand that was deformed and melted into an unrecognizable mess, her hand had been shredded. Bell had heard of the term degloved before but had never thought to see it for himself.

Every second fresh blood splattered from the artery of her wrist onto the mangled flesh that was once pearly, perfect skin.

"Ahh, Ahhh…" He could not scream, he could not move, he could not help. Staring in horror at the beautiful girl that had gotten mercilessly mutilated helping his useless self had taken a hammer to the fragile ideals that had begun to blossom in his heart.

The fractures rapidly spreading were on the verge of breaking him forever.

"B-Bell…?"

Inhaling sharply, Bell moved purely by instinct rushing to Ais' side. His tongue was still stuck to the roof of his mouth, unable to say anything.

"Ah… You're alright. That's good… Lefiya would be sad if you were hurt."

Tongue unfreezing slightly, Bell could only think one thing. "Why? Why?"

His words trailed off, but he kept repeating the same sentiment in his head. He was not worth this girl's life. Compared to her he was garbage. Worse than garbage, he had betrayed his family by fleeing to that farm.

If I had started adventuring immediately…

Ais' eyes closed, her usually doll-like face taking on an expression of peace as she smiled softly. "When she thinks no one is looking, Lefiya looks at you like a favorite pet… I think. She would cry if you were taken away from her."

"But aren't you more important to her!?" Bell pled. "Please, please get up…"

"Aren't you… the one with the potions?"

Stripping off his bag, Bell dug frantically into the side pouch with the healing potions. Pulling out the only elixir that he had been gifted, Bell pulled off the cap and dumped it over Ais' body.

The magical liquid sank into her skin, giving off green sparkles that twirled for a moment before fading. Like magic, the injured skin and flesh began to knit back together. The once mangled appendage slotting the pieces into the correct orientation.

"Urgh…" Eyes flickering back open, Ais still did not rise. "This Balor… is strong. Really strong."

"W-What do you mean?" Bell pled.

"Lefiya… The girls, Asuna and Kirito… we need to save them. Please."

Those golden mirrors asking for his help. The cracks in his core were slowly healed by that golden light. Forged into an essence stronger than what had been there before.

Bell looked up once at the slowly cooling pathway that the monster Rex had rated for them. "Let's go."

Bell retrieved Ais' sword. The weapon' blade shone with the light of a perfectly maintained weapon but the cross guard was completely shattered and the handle would make it unruly. Handing Ais the remains of her sword, Bell scooped her up under the knees and around the shoulder.

"Can you use your magic if necessary?"

"Yes."

With nothing else to say, Bell held the half-naked girl to his chest and began to run. He had failed once already and had endangered the party; it was time for him to help.

---

Alise:

Good job, Kaguya!

Cheering on her party member below who was working her way through the Warlords, Alise took one more look at the armies milling around the dune.

Lion and Asuna's magic were doing well to keep them at bay. Lyra was busy doing the same, burning through the stock of inferno stones they had just harvested at an astounding rate.

If they only had Lefiya functioning things would still not be going well, but Alise would give them an honest chance of surviving this without losing any more members. As it was…

"Shit." Swearing, Alise had to abandon the hill and the battle against the Formoire army. It was now up to Lion and Asuna on that front.

Balor's gaze was fixed directly on Kaguya. Any second now… A flash of light, the lid of the seventh eye sliding open.

Accelerating beyond her normal limits, Alise pushed off over the ground, leaving a crater in her wake as she soared for Balor's extended head.

"Take this!" Swinging her blade, Alise contacted the side of Balor's head at the very moment it opened its seventh eye. The scarlet light searing a wide swath as its head snapped to the side.

Falling back to the ground, Alise could not see any visible damage dealt to the floor boss as its main eye closed once again, but she had averted one disaster.

"Alise!"

"K-Kaguya?" Finding herself grabbed by the collar by the familia member she had just saved, Alise reacted poorly.

"Kirito! Is he alright!?"

"Huh? Y-Yeah, he ran off to help you since he said his magic was better suited for it…"

"But where is he!?" Kaguya yelled, panic in her eyes.

Oh Kaguya, you always want the things you can't have, don't you? Now was not the time to tease the stricken woman. "I'll find him. You keep killing the Warlords. Each one that falls in less Formoire attacking us."

"Got it."

To her credit, Kaguya was doing an incredible job. Still, Alise was surprised at how fast the boy had wormed his way into her heart. Kaguya was not someone to extend her loyalty beyond the familia.

Darting backwards, Alise frowned up at Balor that was following her with its head. Its intention was clear. Store up for another beam and destroy her with it.

Cutting through Formoire as if the tough level four monsters were no more than big sticks of butter for her really big, really hot knife, Alise searched for the boy in black.

"Kirito! Oi, Kirito!"

A brief flash of white metal. There! Darting faster around the hole, Alise finally cleared enough of the obstacles to get a good glimpse of the level four adventurer.

He had both swords out with that peculiar dual-wielding magic of his. It was little help against the horde of enemies that were closing in on him. Kirito danced and swung against half a dozen Formoire on equal footing. There was no doubt that the boy had exceptional potential, but potential was just that. It would get him out of that, but a Warlord waited just behind them for a moment to crush him.

Plans began to form in Alise's head. That Warlord was distracted, if she could flank it, Alise could take it down quickly, save Kirito, and return to Lion before…

"Alise!" And just like that they crumbled.

"Lion!?" Alise shouted back up the hill.

"I'm running out of mind; we need to pull back! I need her help here!"

Frustrated, Alise shouted back at her. "Give me a minute! Get that useless elf functioning again!"

Darting for Kirito, Alise found her path intercepted by a massive fist. Forced backwards, Alise's mouth tightened, her eternal smile finally slipping. Again… I'm failing everyone again…

Staring up at a smug Balor that was not going to let her help anyone, Alise finally had to acknowledge it. She had been gung-ho about this expedition and pushing this far just to prove it to herself and she had failed.

I'm not a hero.

Screaming out her rage, frustrations, and failings, Alise jumped for Balor and began to lay into the floor boss with her flaming sword. Each attack had the power to disintegrate a level five monster.

When matched against the endurance of a floor boss, her attacks only scratched. Its black skin parting and sealing in waves.

The laser, it's soon.

Balor's greatest weapon was also its greatest weakness. That laser cuts through ground, flesh, monster, or even itself with equal impunity.

Tensing her muscles to execute her plan, Alise's plans were thwarted once again by a shape dressed mostly in black hurtling through the air.

Kirito's body crashed mercilessly into the sandy rock, white sword shattered in two and left arm bent at an awkward angle. He groaned once and then fell silent.

Pursuing the boy was a whole contingent of Formoire. A group thirty strong with a cheering Warlord at the center.

"You did well, boy…"

Abandoning her fight against Balor, Alise scooped him up in her arms and ran for the hill where Lion fought. It was time to cut losses and leave.

If we can…

It could be hard to even reach the forty-eighth floor again. Balor had destroyed the entrance with its first attack. Alise could not see that as a coincidence anymore.

The safety point on floor fifty?

The problem was that the safety point was on the far side of them. It would be impossible to get everyone over there. Not to mention having to traverse floor forty-nine again made it a stupid idea.

"Lion, I've…" Skidding to a halt, Alise gaped at her friends. Lyra and Lion were in the middle of an army of Formoire, blood leaking from their bodies as they drove the creatures into a frenzy.

Asuna was kneeling, staring at them, staff dropped beside her. Lefiya's face was buried in her hands, avoiding the tragedy.

"CAST!" Alise screamed at them. "Are you mages or not! Your frontline is fighting to its fullest, now cast!"

"I… can't…" Asuna replied dully. "I… I can't find my staff."

Mind down. Somehow the mage was still moving while having no mind left. Alise had expected it after hearing that Lion was low. Asuna must have been casting her annihilation magic consistently.

But that left one. Grabbing Lefiya's arm, Alise ripped it away from her face. "Are you dead already!? I thought you were heralded as Riveria's successor!? Don't let Ais' death be in vain!"

"I…" Lefiya winced. "I just got her back… I… I… lost her! And at the same time… I lost the one I thought… I thought could lead me to an answer."

Bell. Alise realized. Their embrace that whole night. She should have realized sooner. One or the other and the other could have inspired her to fight. Asuna was not enough alone and no one else had a bond with the elf.

Lefiya's cold hand slipped through Alise's fingers and just like that, it was over. Lion and Lyra were trapped in a Formoire army, accruing damage. Kaguya was fighting the remaining warlords, mind and stamina being worn down. The three of them were about to die, standing atop a hill to Balor's next laser.

"Ah… Sorry, Astraea…"

Just as the first tear began to form at the corner of her eye, she heard it.

Gong!

A loud, majestic noise that Alise was intimately familiar with. Impossible. Memories surging back, she whirled for the source.

Gong!

That loud sound like church bells. Only two people in the entire world had magic that made that sound. "Alfia… or Empress?"

Gong!

It did not matter to Alise. Collapsing to her knees, the tears streamed downed her face without a care in the world.

Gong!

Hera familia was alive. Maybe they spawned in on the fiftieth floor and were waiting for this chance! The possibilities were endless as to who could be alive now!

Gong!

Alise found the source now. A soft glow of white light from the trench that Balor had formed when it killed Ais and Bell.

Gong!

Leaning forward eagerly, Alise waited for the resurrected hero to rush out and save them.

Gong!

Two figures emerged from the tunnel. Wrapped in a veil of wind, it was a boy with white hair, carrying a girl in his left arm and a knife in his right. The maiden's hand was placed on top of his, wind flowing around the knife pulsing with an inferno of fire and light.

"GOOOAH!"

Gong!

The two sounds overlapped as hero and monster fought each other for dominance. Balor instantly recognized the danger, opening its eye of annihilation, power recharged again.

It's not enough. Reacting instantly, Alise knew what she had to do. "Lefiya, you better cast this time or they really will die! Destroy that horde."

Running for Balor, Alise lifted her sword in a practiced gesture. The slow sweeping motion turned into a sharp point at Balor.

"Lion, Lyra!" She did not know if her voice carried to the two slowly dying in a hopeless fight, but the flame rising in the motion of her sword should be noticed. That left only one.

Kaguya had pulled back from her own endless fight, bleeding and bruised. She glanced at the flames, nodded once and leapt for Balor.

The floor boss did not even notice as Kaguya ran up its arm, using the spike-like protrusions as landing points to scale the creature.

"Gokou!" Leaping off the arm, Kaguya soared past the eye and slashed at it with blade and magic. Its eyelid snapping shut just in time to endure the impact, a network of fissures sprawled across the protective surface.

For Kaguya, there was no way to avoid the outcome of her decision. Balor roared in anger and swatted her from the sky. Alise could not tell where she would land.

"Here!" Lyra called out.

"Then let's go!"

"Luminous Wind!"

The magic cast under their feet blew them upwards towards Balor's head. The monster raised an arm to swipe at them.

"GO!" Using the rest of her magic, Lion sent a few motes to explode in Balor's face, and the rest to change Alise and Lyra's trajectory.

She sacrificed herself to endure Kaguya's fate. Alise could not help but feel that she could have at least sent herself back down with one.

"Lyra, blast that eye open for me!"

"Already there!" Laughing maniacally, the demolition-happy prum charged up half a dozen inferno stones. The faintly glowing red rocks scattered through the air ahead of them. As they crested in their path in front of Balor's face, a sharp piece of metal caught up and pierced one of the stones.

With a massive roar that seemed to shake the entire world, the stones detonated, a wall of fire approaching Alise and Lyra. Gritting her teeth, Alice crossed her arms in front of her, parting the heat and force that threatened to drive her away.

"Good luck!"

"Lyra!?" Spinning down to look at her, Alise realized that the girl had been blown back further than she had by the force of the explosion. Actually… Alise no longer would reach.

Or she wouldn't have.

"Here you go!" With that, Lyra tossed one of the inferno stones into the air between them and cut it with her dagger.

Detonating such a large explosion in front of her face was probably a bad idea, but Alise could only hope that Lyra was alright.

With the additional momentum provided, Alise was propelled up to Balor's face. The monster was still reeling from the explosion to its face. As planned, the eyelid weakened by Kaguya and Lion and been shattered by Lyra.

"Now it's your turn to fear my perfect strike!"

"Astraea!" Calling out not only the name of her goddess, but the last of her magic's capacity.

Balor had no choice but to respect the attack. Its eye flashed and Alise's magic raged. The two forces pouring out together in a collision of dreadful force.

"Push… through!" Roaring with all of her might, Alise's sword completed its journey through the beam of energy, shattering the great eye.

Boom!

Her entire world went white as the intensity of the light stole her vision from her. Clothes ablaze, armour melting, Alise fell back to the earth.

Good luck Bell, Ais.

---

Lefiya:

"Fusillade Fallarica!" As the army of Formoire burned, Lefiya turned away from it. Standing alone beside the mind dead Asuna, Lefiya had the perfect viewpoint to watch.

Gong!

The grand bell had rung for the last time.

Lefiya's heart fluttered beholding Ais and Bell standing side by side, hands overlapping on the handle of the Hestia knife.

Flame, bright-hot and voracious licked along its length as sparks of lightning jumped intermittently. Keeping it all together was a sheath of wind that pressed inward on the energy.

Alone, it would be powerful, but that was nothing compared to the motes of white light that surrounded and swirled around them. It was a storm centered upon the dagger and the fire contained within.

At the same time, their dual voices rang out clearly across the plains.

"Lil Rafaga!"

"Argo… VESTA!"

As the blade descended it expanded to impossible lengths. Ten, twenty, thirty mels. Balor, still reeling from Alise's attack could not dodge. The damage it had suffered was healing, but not nearly fast enough.

The combined attacks looked like a divine weapon as it sliced down with unstoppable momentum. Wind, fire, lightning, light.

A calamity of power.

A storm of magic and determination was brought together to bring down the floor boss.

It halted only momentarily as it encountered Balor's head. Then, with an emphatic roar, the blade cut cleanly through the floor boss. There was a brief silence, and then Balor's two halves split apart, the flesh dissolving into ash as it fell.

"Amazing…" Falling to the ground, Lefiya found something waking inside of her. Something that had been dead, stamped out on the day that she had lost Ais.

Hope.

There was a hero.

Only a small, fledgling light, winking in the gale of the storm, but it existed. For the first time in years… she had hope.

---

Kikuoka:

Entering the command room, Kikuoka smiled broadly. Today would be interesting. It was finally time for the test. The boy that had first taken off his NerveGear.

"Higa, is everything prepared?"

"Unn… but Kikuoka… are we really doing this? Our clones didn't exactly…"

"We need to know, " Kikuoka overrode his objections.

"Sir?"

Turning around at the feminine voice that entered, Kikuoka frowned. She should have been in the bay with Rinko and the soul translator. "Nurse, what is it?"

"This boy… has anyone thoroughly been through his file before?"

"Not as far as I am aware. Is he ill?"

"Well, no… I just noticed a trend."

"What trend?" Kikuoka asked sharply. He was so close; he did not want a setback at one of the most crucial moments yet.

"His heartrate has continued to slow."

Frowning, Kikuoka did not quite understand. "How was that not noticed? Is he dying then? How long do you give him?"

"N-No." Aki shook her head. "A slower base heartrate indicates better fitness actually. The stronger the muscle the slower it needs to beat to fulfill its function."

"So?"

"So the boy's fitness… is increasing." Aki shrugged. "I don't blame no one for noticing, it's been a slow process, but over half a year the trend is clear. There was an initial decay in the body that has rebounded and has now become stronger than he was initially."

"Fascinating…" So there is a connection still.

It was what Kikuoka was banking on. That there was a connection between the boy's soul and the game he has entered that was deeper than what the NerveGear could provide. That was why the device was no longer needed.

Time to test that.

Stepping up to a control panel, Kikuoka initiated the copy.

Time ticked by to the sound of soft beeping and occasional clacking of keys. As he waited, the soft whir of the air conditioning started up again. Looking into a monitor that displayed the room that the boy was in, Rinko was at his side, gripping his hand with both of hers. A few moments later, Aki was back and confirming his vital signs.

"Done," Higa said tonelessly.

"Load it."

"…Done."

"Mr. Kirigaya?" Kikuoka spoke loudly at the speaker.

Coughing was the answer and then a pause. "Did I… die?"

"No, you are not dead."

"But… Who are you? I can't sense anything… I'm in a void. Is this magic?"

"Unfortunately… You are a clone. Your real self is still trapped in the game Dungeon Oratorio Online. Using revolutionary technology—"

A harsh laugh cut through his words. "Game!? You think this is a game!? This world is as real as the one I came from. I don't know how you contacted me but release me! People are fighting for their lives right now, they need me!"

"Calm down, Mr. Kirigaya," Kikuoka spoke, trying to sooth him. "I cannot release you because you are a copy. Your real self is still fighting."

"Real self!? Real self!? I will burst through this stupid illusory magic and return!"

"Kiku! The parameters are off the chart!"

"Tsk, its collapsing?"

"N-No… It is… breaking itself."

"…What?" Kikuoka could not move, could not respond. From the speakers a roar of determination and struggle rang out. A battle cry stronger than any he had heard in any anime or movie ever.

Suddenly, it cut off. The soul was gone.

Collapsing into his chair, Kikuoka wiped his forehead with an arm. "What… just happened?"