“Stay back, Fiona.”
“Yes...! Please be careful, Master Lloyd.”
“Right.”
I gave a curt nod and encased Fiona within a Magic Barrier. With her protected, I could finally focus on the fight.
“The price for mocking me is steep, whelp! I shall drain every last drop of your mana!”
The World Tree raised a massive fist of hardened timber and swung. It closed the distance in a heartbeat. I’d underestimated it because it was just a tree, but it was surprisingly fast. Its fist was a mass of compressed vines, layered several times over and infused with mana.
I wondered which was stronger—its fist or my Barrier. I was actually considering letting it hit me just to find out, but then—
Boom!
A heavy boom thundered through the hall. The World Tree was sent flying, its massive frame slamming into the far wall.
“Guh... W-What happened?!”
The World Tree looked up from the crater in the wall to find Grimo and Jiriel standing in its path, having leapt from my side.
“Hey, hey. This log really thinks he can take on Master Lloyd?” Grimo jeered. “Listen, pal, there’s an order to things in this world.”
“Exactly,” Jiriel added. “If a mere plant wishes to face Master Lloyd, it must go through us first.”
Grimo had assumed his true form as a black goat, his hands wreathed in roaring flames. Jiriel stood in his angel form, wielding a pair of coldly shimmering blades. My two familiars stood defiantly before the dungeon boss.
“If you intend to interfere, then I shall simply kill you first!”
“Try it if you can! Explosive Flame Black Flash Cannon! Take this!”
A flash of pitch-black light erupted from Grimo’s hands, merged with a blast of searing fire that tore right through the World Tree. Even with a massive hole blown through its torso, the tree tried to stand, but the black flames spread across its body, incinerating it.
Mana-infused flames. It looked like Grimo was partially turning his own Magic Body into fire. He had gotten significantly better at handling mana lately.
“Gwaaaaah! D-Damn you... flames like these...!”
The World Tree tried to brush the fire off, but the flames clung tenaciously, refusing to go out. Those flames were essentially an extension of Grimo’s will; they wouldn’t be extinguished so easily.
“Curse you! Then I shall crush you along with the fire!”
Abandoning the attempt to put out the flames, the World Tree hardened its bark and went still. Then, it manipulated the vines beneath Grimo’s feet, unleashing a sudden, multi-directional assault.
There wasn't a hint of panic in Grimo’s eyes. The countless vines froze mid-air just inches from him, sliced to ribbons by a Sword of Light.
“Heh. Nice save, Shitty Angel.”
“Hmph. You’re a handful, you Stupid Majin.”
The moment the words left their lips, another brilliant flash filled the room.
“O twin wings, flicker alongside the light—Shining Cross!”
Streaks of light carved into the World Tree’s frame, halting its every movement. That wasn’t just a standard Radiant Armament. Jiriel was imbuing the Celestial language’s command for ‘stop’ directly into his blades. It wasn’t quite on the level of the Holy King, who could shut down an opponent just by speaking, but adding commands to direct attacks was proving remarkably effective.
“Hehehe! Spending this much time by Master Lloyd’s side was bound to make us stronger! Especially since he lets us feast on the mana remnants of every enemy we defeat. We have to earn our keep sometimes!”
“As Magic Bodies, we grow stronger by absorbing the mana of fallen demons,” Jiriel noted. “Setting aside the fact that it makes us feel like bottom-feeders scavenging scraps... now is the time to show our true power!”
Even from this brief exchange, it was clear they had both grown considerably. They couldn’t have pulled off those techniques through raw power alone; it was proof they had been training in their own time.
“Gwaaaah! T-To think I would be pushed back by mere familiars!”
The battle remained one-sided. Grimo and Jiriel held the advantage, while the World Tree was forced into a desperate defense.
“Did you see that?! we’re growing too! We aren't going to let people look down on us forever!”
“Are you watching, Master Lloyd?! This is the power we’ve gained from our training!”
The two of them kept shouting back at me even as they continued their assault. I didn't think the power gap was quite wide enough for them to be looking away like that. See? They almost got hit by a counterattack. I told them so.
“They’re amazing...!” Fiona whispered.
“They might look like mascots, but they’re an angel and a Majin, after all.”
I often forgot because they were usually shrunk down to miniature sizes, but they were truly powerful, otherworldly beings. The World Tree seemed strong enough in its own right, but fighting both of them at once was clearly taking its toll.
“Hey, the ‘mascot’ part was uncalled for!” Grimo barked.
“And calling us ‘after all’ is just mean!” Jiriel added.
“Sorry, sorry.”
At any rate, it didn't look like I would need to intervene. I could take my time observing the boss. Truly, good familiars are a blessing.
“Well then, let’s leave the fighting to them and enjoy the show. Fiona, could you prepare some chairs and tea?”
“Of course.”
I sat in a chair Fiona fashioned from manipulated wood and watched the battle while sipping tea.
“Oh, this tastes better than before.”
“Sylpha-san taught me the other day.”
“Heh, not bad.”
Come to think of it, I recalled Sylpha and the others giving Fiona lessons recently. They’d said something about how she needed to be capable of at least this much if she wanted to be my attendant. I had no such intentions, but I had to admit, this was quite comfortable.
“...Hm? Fiona, was that a smile?”
“Eh... was it?”
Perhaps it was my imagination. But compared to when we first met, her expression definitely seemed more lively. She almost looked like she was enjoying herself while taking care of me....Well, whatever. More importantly, the World Tree.
“Is this guy the dungeon’s Nucleus... or just the Guardian? Regardless, with this much combat power, he’s far stronger than your average demon. I suppose I should expect nothing less from the Tree of Genesis. While I have the chance, I’ll analyze him to my heart’s content—Appraisal.”
Hmm, I see. That mass of mana in the center is definitely the Nucleus. It’s a singular entity—a boss and a nucleus fused into one. It constructs its body by channeling mana through the wood, and the density is staggering. It’s impressive that it’s blurry even to my Appraisal.
But despite having all this mana, what does it want with mine? I need to look closer.
“I’ll lay your secrets bare. —■.”
Excitedly, I activated a second Appraisal via a Spell Bundle. This one used an arranged version of a Magical Song, which triggered a chain of multiple spells by converting the spell formulas into a sound source. It was an infinite Appraisal where each note gave birth to even more formulas. With this, I scrutinized every corner of the World Tree, right down to the individual Magic Lines running through its massive body.
“That is a staggering amount of information. The more I look, the deeper it gets.”
The mana pathways of a giant body grown over tens of thousands of years were incredibly vast—far beyond what a human mind could process. If I took that load directly into my physical brain, I’d probably experience an information overload, so I dumped it all into the Musical Score I’d made previously, converting the data into a song. Because the book was created from a Magic Body and bound to the format of a score, it could store nearly infinite information.
Honestly, being able to create Magic Bodies has made my research so much more efficient.
“...I see. It’s true that the World Tree is suffering from a massive mana deficiency. The mana it siphons as a Friendly-type Dungeon isn't nearly enough to sustain it.”
The mana was depleted throughout the tree’s interior, and the pathways became increasingly warped the deeper they went. The mana seemed to be flowing toward a specific point, as if the tree were cradling ‘something’ deep within.
I wondered what it could be. I was about to use Appraisal in more detail when—
“Gwaaaaaaaaaaah?!”
The World Tree let out a final, agonizing shriek and collapsed. Oh, is it over already? That was faster than I expected.
“Hehe! That was a piece of cake. This guy was nothing special,” Grimo bragged, resting a hand on his hip.
“Hmph. Or rather, it seems we have simply become too powerful for him,” Jiriel added.
They were both looking down at the World Tree with smug expressions, but I’m pretty sure it would have been a close fight if it were one-on-one. They were both covered in scuffs and bruises. I don't know how they can talk so big.
“Damn it! If only I had mana... if only I had enough mana!” the World Tree spat, pounding a fist against the ground.
It was just a bad matchup for him. Against two Magic Bodies, physical attacks don't do much damage unless there’s an overwhelming mana disparity, which there wasn’t. It was pure sour grapes, but the two took the bait.
“Huh? I didn't quite catch that,” Grimo said, leaning in. “You think you’d win just because you had a bit more mana?”
“Of course! I would crush you utterly!”
“Hmph, impossible,” Jiriel sneered. “Baseless bravado. There is no point in even listening to him.”
“...Hmph. Perhaps. Whatever the reason, my defeat is a reality. Hurry up and finish it....Ah, if only I had mana, I wouldn't have lost to the likes of you... This, too, must be fate. Hahaha! You were lucky!”
He was really laying it on thick. The provocation was blatant. Grimo and Jiriel shared a silent look before turning back to me.
“Heh, nice try, you idiot! Like we’d fall for such cheap bait! Master Lloyd, there’s no need to play along with him!”
“Precisely. It feels a bit unsatisfying, but we would never be so foolish as to give an enemy power. He underestimates us!”
They were actually being quite sensible. Personally, I thought it would be a waste to defeat an enemy with that much potential without seeing him at his full strength. His words weren't entirely bluster; my analysis showed that the deep layers of the World Tree were almost empty. He really hadn't been able to exert his true power.
If Grimo and the others had been up for it, I wouldn't have minded giving him a boost just to see what would happen, but—
“Kyaaaah!”
Just as I was entertaining that thought, vines coiled around Fiona.
What? It had absorbed the Magic Barrier I’d placed around her. Once a spell leaves my side, it eventually vanishes if its mana source is cut or depleted. Magic Absorption... that was a useful ability.
“Wait, this isn't the time to be impressed. I have to help her.”
I grabbed Fiona and deployed a new Magic Barrier, blasting the coiling tentacles away. However, the moment I deployed it, the tentacles surged back, covering the barrier entirely.
“Pwahahahaha! You finally showed an opening! Your mana is mine!”
At that moment, it began to vigorously drain my mana. I see. It had targeted Fiona specifically to lure me into a position where it could latch onto me.
But it was far too naive to think I couldn't attack while maintaining a barrier. I was about to unleash a Fireball, but then I stopped. I’d thought of something much more interesting.
“...Good grief. If you want my mana that badly, fine. I’ll give it to you.”
I immediately ramped up my internal mana to the absolute maximum. In an instant, the Magic Barrier was flooded with high-density energy. The vines that had been trying to suck the mana were shredded and blown apart by the sheer pressure.
“Nu... gwoooooh...?!”
“What’s the matter? I haven't even unleashed ten percent of my power yet.”
Draining mana from another person is incredibly difficult. You have to match the target's mana wavelength, which requires cooperative targets or complex spell formulas like my own Magic Absorption. The World Tree was doing it through brute force, like a plant pulling water from the soil. That method takes time to convert the stolen mana into its own.
If I flooded it with so much mana that it couldn't possibly process it all...
Bang!
A torrent of mana raged outward, and the vines covering me were obliterated.
“Whoa! He blasted the vines off just by flooding them with mana!” Grimo shouted.
“To destroy those reinforced vines with a raw mana surge... as expected of Master Lloyd!”
The vines that fell to the ground had been injected with so much mana that they had literally burst at the seams, reduced to nothing but powder.
“...Phew. Are you alright, Fiona?”
“I... I am fine...”
Looking down at the shattered remains of the vines, I landed safely, still holding Fiona in my arms.