"Alright, I'm opening the door. Ready?"
"Yes!"
Ageha’s voice was a bit high-pitched, betrayed by a hint of nerves.
I did one final check in my mind.
I’d managed to raise both my Swordsmanship and Provocation skills to level 3.
Covenant was the type of skill that didn’t have levels, so it remained as it was.
For equipment, I had the one-handed sword I’d taken from a Golden Living Armor. It was well-balanced and handled easily.
Beyond that, I had already explained the winning strategy to Ageha.
Good. No more second-guessing.
"Let’s go, Ageha."
With those words, I threw the doors open.
"Kugoooooooooooooh!!"
The roar of a beast shook the air.
Lumoahaze—an S-rank monster.
It was a centipede-type creature that secreted a lethal poison.
It was fine. I had killed one of these before. I could certainly do it again.
"Ageha, watch out for the poison!"
"Got it!"
As she replied, Ageha leaped away from me, putting distance between herself and the beast. It was exactly according to the plan we’d discussed.
"Hey, you oversized bug! Come and get some!"
"Kshaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Falling for my Provocation, the Lumoahaze lunged toward me.
I parried the strike with my blade.
"Damn, you’re a tough one!"
The Lumoahaze’s scales were as hard as tempered steel. Even when I tried to find an opening, my sword was simply deflected away.
But I couldn't let it intimidate me.
"Is that all? You’ll have to do better than that to hurt me!"
I used Provocation again, keeping its focus pinned on me.
When the Lumoahaze lunged once more, I caught its blow on my blade. A series of sharp metallic clangs rang out as I parried its relentless strikes.
Suddenly, the Lumoahaze hissed and spat a glob of fluid at me.
"Oh—"
It was the poison.
I caught the venom on my sword, barely preventing it from touching my skin.
However, the blade didn't survive the contact.
Just as it had when I’d touched the magma earlier, the sword hissed and dissolved in an instant.
Damn it. I’d lost my weapon.
"Kiska!"
Ageha cried out, her eyes wide with worry.
Her entire being seemed to radiate the urge to rush to my side and save me.
"Ageha, stay back!"
I shouted to keep her in position.
"But!"
"Trust me! Just do what you need to do!"
Ageha bit her lower lip and gave a sharp nod.
If we were going to kill the Lumoahaze, I couldn't have her intervening now. I understood how she felt, but she had to endure this.
"Hey! If you want to kill me, you’d better aim straight!"
I used Provocation again to keep the monster’s attention fixed on me.
Losing my weapon was a blow, but now I just had to focus entirely on evasion.
"Kshaaaaaaah!"
I spent the next several minutes doing nothing but dodging the Lumoahaze's strikes.
I ducked, weaved, and rolled, evading one attack after another. Then, just as I slipped past yet another lunge—
"Kiska, sorry to keep you waiting."
Ageha’s voice cut through the air.
"Ageha, do it!!"
I cheered her on with everything I had.
I had taught her the technique she’d once shown me, back before she’d lost her memories.
The move required a significant charge time.
That was why I’d spent the whole fight drawing the monster’s focus, buying her the precious seconds she needed to prepare.
The name of that technique was—
"Holy Path-Style Sword Technique: Dragon-Slaying Slash!!"
It was a lethal strike designed to bury any foe in a single blow.
In a flash of blinding light, she moved in a straight line, carving through the air. The moment her greatsword made contact, the Lumoahaze’s steel-hard scales were shorn apart like paper.
"Kugoooooooh!!"
With a final, rattling groan, the Lumoahaze lost its strength and collapsed.
In that same instant, Ageha let out a long breath and relaxed her posture.
Nothing remained standing in the path she had carved.
Monster Subjugation confirmed.
Skill Points acquired.
The appearance of the message window made the victory feel real.
"Ageha, we did it!"
I turned toward her, grinning with relief.
"Fweh..."
For some reason, her eyes were swimming with tears.
"Hey, what’s wrong? Usually, people celebrate when they win. Why are you crying?"
I was completely bewildered, having no idea what had upset her.
"Um... once I realized it was over, the tears just started coming. I'm just so happy that I could actually be useful to you, Kiska... So, these are happy tears. Is that weird?"
"No, it’s not weird at all."
I felt a wave of relief knowing she wasn't crying because of an injury or sadness.
"Ehehe... Um, can I ask for the usual reward?"
"Yeah, of course."
I reached out and gently patted her head.
"You did a great job, Ageha."
"Mhm! I worked really hard!"
She beamed at me, her smile radiant.
It was a beautiful expression.
So much so that I felt a sudden, deep-seated urge to protect it.
It seemed that by conquering the dungeon together, I’d grown incredibly attached to her. I suppose I’m a simple man after all, I thought to myself.
"Oh, Kiska! Look, there’s a sword over there!"
Sure enough, a single blade was thrust into the ground near the center of the room.
The blade was a deep, burning red—the Sword of Raging Flames.
It was the clear reward for the Kataroff Dungeon. I remembered receiving the exact same weapon when I’d defeated the boss with Puppeteer in a previous loop.
"You should be the one to use this, Kiska."
"Are you sure?" I asked, as she tried to hand it to me.
"Yes! I have my greatsword, and it’s better if you’re the one with a good weapon, Kiska."
"In that case, I’ll accept it gratefully."
"Oh! What’s that light over there?"
Ageha pointed toward a glowing teleportation circle on the floor. It must have manifested once the boss was confirmed dead.
"That’s a teleportation circle. If we touch it, it’ll take us right out of the dungeon."
"Really? Let's go, Kiska! Hurry!"
"Yeah, let’s go."
Ageha seemed to be in even higher spirits than usual. Well, she’d just taken down a massive boss; a bit of excitement was only natural.
I was about to follow her as she ran ahead, but then—
I heard the sharp whistle of something cutting the air.
A sickening crunch followed, accompanied by the sound of blood splattering against the floor.
"—Eh?"
Ageha let out a small, hollow sound as she looked down at her own body.
Her right arm was gone from the elbow down.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
A heartbeat later, she screamed in agonizing pain.
"Ageha!?"
What just happened?
I couldn't process it.
In an instant, for no reason I could see, Ageha’s arm had been severed.
I have to help her—that was the only thought in my head as I reached out for her.
Suddenly, a massive impact jolted through my body.
"Agh!"
I let out a pained grunt as I was sent sprawling across the ground.
I’d been kicked. Hard.
There was a third party here. Someone other than me and Ageha was in this room, and they were attacking us.
"Who’s there!?"
I shouted, rolling to my feet and turning to face the assailant.
The one standing there was—