Freyr and I pushed forward, driving back the monsters in our path. Using my ability, Golden Flame, I sliced through a leaping wolf. Even in the middle of combat, I couldn’t let my guard down—not with a god like him around!
“…Freyr!”
I shouted.
Before I could finish, Freyr had already cleaved another giant serpent in two. Solana moved between us, keeping a careful watch in case an attack came our way. From the side, another wolf lunged. I slid under it, spun, and cut it down as we passed each other.
“Why… are you even here?!”
At last, the onslaught paused. I exhaled in relief and wiped the sweat from my brow.
It seemed that wild animals had originally made their homes in this partially collapsed dungeon. Ymir had twisted them into monsters, leaving them behind as a warning—or a trap.
Freyr wiped the blood from his blade and gave a wry smile.
“I am not a monster. That is why I was not included in Fenrir and Hati’s coordination. Moving as I please is easy enough—but a traitor? They have a harder time.”
He didn’t seem even slightly winded. I was sure each of us had taken down more than ten monsters, yet Freyr moved as if he were simply on a leisurely stroll. Since he wasn’t a monster himself, he, like us, became a target for their attacks.
Solana crossed her arms and glared at him.
“…So Ymir’s forces aren’t entirely unified.”
“Exactly. They followed us deliberately… to better gauge Rion’s strength.”
He continued, his voice calm but teasing.
“I had hoped, if possible, to get your sister back… but that was rather bold, even for them.”
A chill ran down my spine. I was glad Heimdall had been assigned to guard Lu.
“Have they… been convinced?”
“…For the most part.”
I replied, though whether they truly accepted it was another matter entirely.
If Lu were ever truly in danger, one of the gods would find a way to break through the dungeon walls and come to her aid. It would be a last resort, of course—one that would collapse the layers of the dungeon and erase any trace of Ymir’s schemes—but it was a contingency that had been prepared.
For the same reason, it would be unwise to fight Freyr in earnest here. At the Tower of Florsia, I had already caused massive damage to walls and ceilings. If a battle of that scale erupted in the dungeon, our mission to investigate it would be ruined.
Solana spoke up.
“Rion, right now—”
“I understand.”
From Heimdall’s perspective, not knowing how one is attacked also meant not knowing how to defend. Even if adventurers or knights were gathered in the royal capital, Ymir’s evolving powers would dictate the formations and strategies needed. That was why I couldn’t strike. And with so many gods present, Freyr couldn’t initiate an attack either.
The man smiled as if he could see right through my hesitation.
“Hehe… you’ve reached a conclusion, haven’t you?”
His calm, teasing demeanor made me bristle. Even though we’re trapped here together.
Freyr waved one hand lazily, almost to emphasize the point.
“Don’t glare at me like that. Life-or-death battles… you’ll get plenty of those at the end of the world.”
Of course, I couldn’t take his words entirely at face value.
Maintaining Golden Flame, I kept my distance from Freyr as we moved forward. Solana stayed between us.
I advanced along the right-hand wall, Freyr along the left. It looked like a party moving cautiously through a dungeon, but there was no way I would ever call this man an ally. I was furious—furious at the one who had targeted Lu and betrayed the gods.
Eventually, we emerged into a vast hall-like chamber. In the shadows ahead, red glimmers indicated the presence of monsters.
“Enemy.”
Solana whispered, pointing forward.
“—Yeah” I muttered.
I crouched low. Freyr angled his sword to the rear-right, ready.
From the darkness, a massive creature emerged.
“Fugoo! Fugoo!”
Its form was undeniably that of a boar—yet colossal, easily five meters long. A grotesque, overgrown boar, its body as massive as a cart.
Twisted, goat-like horns jutted from its back, and across its forehead were three human-like mouths lined horizontally. Each gnawed its teeth violently, radiating pure rage. Its eyes burned bright red, and steam-like breaths hissed from its flaring nostrils. Four massive tusks jutted from its mouths—two pointing straight up, the other two forward—ready to gore anything in its path.
Near the massive boar, smaller boars with bloodshot eyes scurried. Perhaps they had once lived here as a family.
Solana lowered her gaze, a shadow of sorrow crossing her face.
“…How pitiful.” she murmured.
The goddess bit her lip, struggling with the sight.
“These are the same kind of monsters that appeared in the Royal Capital. Ymir was here, distorting ordinary beasts, blending them, and turning them into monsters for practice.”
Had other monsters long ago been born this way as well?
I turned to Freyr, seeking answers.
“…Freyr. What exactly was Ymir doing here? How did he send these monsters to the capital?”
The man’s narrow eyes curved in a mocking grin.
“Am I obliged to answer?”
Before I could respond, the massive boar charged.
Its target is me. Perhaps its primal instincts had judged me the weaker of the two.
“Hah!”
But I wouldn’t back down. I leapt to the side, evading its tusks, and plunged my blade into its thick, bristling hide.
“Bugooh!”
With a groan, the massive boar toppled, gouging the ground with its twisted back horns as it skidded in a sharp turn.
The three mouths on its forehead opened wide. Long, razor-sharp tongues shot out, writhing like tentacles, slicing toward the ground like blades. I was ready. With a swift motion, my short sword severed the longest tongue before it could strike.
“Wake up!”
From the gauntlet on my right hand, I summoned the water spirit, Undine. The mermaid-like spirit glared at the monster, and in an instant, water erupted from the ground beneath it.
“Subterranean water huh.”
Freyr commented with interest.
The boar stumbled as the jet of water struck its flank. I darted beneath its jaw.
| Skill 『God of Mischief’s Divine Protection』activated. 【Friend of Spirits】…… Draws upon the power of spirits. |
This skill allowed me to combine the powers of multiple spirits. I paired Salamander, the fire spirit, with Sylph, the wind spirit.
“Pii!”
“Woof!”
The two spirits leapt into the air, swirling wind and fire around my short sword with every strike.
“Gah…!”
Flames fanned by the wind rode my blade, erupting into an inferno. The massive boar was lifted, its body consumed by the explosion of fire and wind at its throat. The monster’s life seemed to end in that instant.
“…I’m sorry.” I muttered.
They had once been ordinary beasts, living here peacefully. Watching them vanish into black ash made my chest ache.
Freyr’s battle was over as well. A few magic stones lay scattered at his feet. He had likely taken down the smaller boars too.
Suddenly—a flurry of wings.
I shouted.
“Here comes the next wave!”
A swarm of monster-bats surged toward us, like a dark cloud blotting out the air.
Solana rose into the air, moving forward.
“…Rion.”
A signal: temporarily ease Freyr’s guard.
“Yeah, please!”
Solana swung her arms, releasing a wave of golden light that washed over the bats.
Their eyes had been glowing a furious red, wild with aggression. The instant they were bathed in light, black mist hissed from their bodies.
As the glow faded, the mist dispersed. The bats’ violent glare vanished. Circling the ceiling, they returned to the depths of the dungeon.
Freyr blinked, clearly surprised.
“…You turned the monsters back into ordinary creatures?”
“Indeed. Though those whose bodies were too twisted, or who had been monsters for too long, could not be saved.”
Solana narrowed her eyes as the bats vanished into the dungeon’s shadows.
“They could still be helped. When Ymir was creating these monsters, they were likely nearby and affected by the transformation.”
I found myself thinking about the goddess’s power. Her healing White Flame could cleanse even curses—it could undo the abnormal magic that twisted these creatures.
Solana smiled at me.
“In the past, this would have been impossible. I think it is because our bond has grown.”
“…Yeah!”
Freyr’s blue eyes widened. Thanks to his Blessing of the Hunt, even the smallest whispers were audible to him.
“Growth, you say? To this extent…”
After that, we continued quietly through the dungeon. The monster attacks had subsided for the moment. Only the sound of wind whistling through the corridors echoed endlessly.
As we moved along the opposite wall, Freyr murmured softly.
“…So… Freyja has awakened, has she?”
The sudden words caught me off guard. Perhaps the reason this man had followed us into the dungeon was simpler than I had assumed.
“I see…”
“…Shall I tell you a little about Freyja-sama?” I offered.
“There are questions I want you to answer as well.”
“…A bit of negotiation, then. Very well.”
In that strange, tentative flow, our exchange of information began. The dark corridors of the dungeon echoed with the footsteps of Freyr and me.
This is translated by Yume Neiji. Kindly read at yumeneijiworks.com
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