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—Tsutrail Southwest Outskirts: Second Labyrinth Vicinity—
A lion magic beast lunged at an explorer from a blind spot.
"Wuaaaaaagh!?"
By the time the explorer noticed the creature's approach, it was already on top of them. There was no room to dodge.
"Tch! [Space Leap]!!"
Reacting to the scream, Rain activated a [Space Leap] she had constructed in a heartbeat.
The teleportation spell forcibly yanked the explorer and the lion magic beast apart.
"I-I'm alive..."
"Don't get complacent! One more slip-up and you’re dead!" Selma's sharp rebuke cut through the explorer’s relief.
"Y-Yes, ma'am!"
Steeling his resolve, the explorer plunged back into the fray.
『Rotating units in one minute! Front-line explorers, keep your guard up until the switch is complete!』
""Yes!!""
Selma broadcast her orders via telepathy to the explorers holding back the swarm.
The explorers who had been resting at the rear immediately took up their combat stances.
Just as those fighting and those resting were about to swap, Rain—who had been holding the very front—raised her voice.
"I’ll cover the gap! Everyone, fall back! —[Explode]!"
A massive blast rocked the front line, slowing the magic beasts' advance.
Seizing the opening, the front-line explorers retreated. As the line thinned, Rain unleashed her next spell.
"—[Space Leap]!!"
She targeted the rubble of the collapsed outer walls of Tsutrail behind them and teleported the massive stones high into the air.
Debris rained from the sky, crushing the magic beasts below. In the interval provided by the chaos, the rested explorers returned to the front.
『...Tch! Rain! That’s enough, you need to step back too! It's dangerous to keep going like this!』
Selma’s voice rang in her head, bordering on a shout.
Rain, for her part, was gasping for air, blood trickling from her nose. She had been fighting without pause since the magic beasts first emerged on the surface.
She had clearly overextended her mana, and the strain was manifesting physically. A splitting headache hammered at the inside of her skull.
『...Sorry to make you worry. But I can't run away from this battle, no matter what!』
Rain replied to Selma even as she maintained her relentless offensive.
Magic beasts were also emerging from the Fourth Labyrinth where Katina and the others were stationed, but the individual strength of the monsters here was far higher. To make matters worse, a Cyclops had joined the fray.
Selma and the others were being pushed back, but thanks to Rain’s unrestricted use of [Space Leap], they had yet to suffer a single casualty.
(I believed the Cult’s lies and ended up driving the Village of Dawn to ruin. I can't change what’s already happened... But I can change what is about to happen. If the Cult intends to tear Tsutrail apart, I’ll stop them no matter the cost!)
Rain had learned that their current enemies were the Cyclamen Cult through the information Selma had gathered with [Mental Transmission].
Rain had been used by them in the past, serving as the trigger for a horrific massacre. Nearly ten years later, she still hadn't fully processed the weight of that event.
(I don’t expect this to serve as atonement. ...But I never want to feel that kind of regret again. I won’t back down!)
Driven by the guilt of destroying the Village of Dawn, Rain had once sealed away [Space Leap] as a form of self-imposed penance. Now, she was utilizing it to its absolute limit to hold the failing front line together.
Whether it was supporting the rotation of combat units or teleporting an explorer to safety just before a lethal blow landed, Rain’s will to fight remained unbroken despite her agony.
However, the constant casting was steadily eroding her combat capacity.
After what felt like an eternity of holding back the swarm alongside the other explorers, the number of magic beasts finally began to dwindle.
"Haah... haah... haah... Thank goodness. If this keeps up..."
『Rain! The swarm has settled down. Get some rest! We don't know if this is actually over.』
『...You're right. I’ll do—』
"——Wuaaaaaagh!?"
Away from the main swarm, an explorer fighting the Cyclops let out a desperate cry.
The man had lost his footing. The Cyclops swung its massive fist down without mercy.
"—Tch!"
Rain tried to manifest another [Space Leap].
(—Tch!? I can’t construct the formula in time. At this rate—)
Ordinarily, Rain would have completed the construction the moment the thought entered her mind. But in her current battered state, her magic wouldn't respond instantly.
Everyone watching braced for the explorer’s death.
"No..."
As Rain’s despairing whisper escaped her lips, countless streaks of light flashed between the descending fist and the explorer.
A regular hexagonal barrier, resembling a glowing spiderweb, materialized in mid-air. It caught and cushioned the Cyclops’s fist.
"—[Fire Enchant]."
Teruche, clutching a magic tool shaped like a katana, spoke the words. Roaring flames instantly enveloped the blade.
She closed the distance in a blur of Ki-enhanced speed and sliced the creature’s arm clean off.
The Cyclops let out a sound like a shriek. Ignoring the reaction, Teruche kicked off the ground, soaring far above the beast’s head. In the blink of an eye, the katana in her hand had been replaced by a bow and arrow.
"—[Thunder Enchant]."
As she nocked the arrow, lightning crackled around the tip.
The Cyclops looked up at her just as she released the string. The arrow tore through the creature's single eye, piercing straight through its brain and skull.
"You haven't changed at all, Rain. Overestimating yourself and causing trouble for everyone around you."
Teruche landed near the slumped, lifeless body of the Cyclops and turned a cold gaze toward her sister.
"Big Sis...ter... Tch! Watch out! That Cyclops won't stay down!"
Even as Rain shouted her warning, the Cyclops—whose brain should have been pulverized—swung its arm at Teruche.
Without a hint of surprise, Teruche kicked off the ground and distanced herself from the attack. As the Cyclops hauled itself back up, its single eye began to regenerate.
"...It has [Self-Healing] reflected in it. How tedious."
Teruche glared at the beast. Unlike the one Katina’s group had faced, this Cyclops lacked a mana-bullet mechanism but possessed a regenerative ability instead.
Rain slowly approached her sister.
"Big Sister, what are you doing here...? Did you come to help me?"
"My assistance is merely a byproduct. I simply want to gather as much information as possible to present to our king, in case this plan proceeds smoothly. ...More importantly, teleport me and that oversized hunk of junk over to the forest area immediately."
"Eh? Why...?"
"You don't need to know why. Just do it. You were always so good at that sort of thing, weren't you?"
"—Tch!"
The indirect reminder of how she had blindly used [Space Leap] for the Cult ten years ago made Rain’s face twist in pain.
"Hey! You're Rain's sister, right? Why are you being so cold to her!?"
Selma, having overheard the exchange, couldn't take it anymore and stepped between them.
"Selma Claudel, I presume. This is a matter between sisters. I don't believe it's any of your business."
"What was that? I'm Rain's comrade—"
"It's okay, Selma. ...I'm sending you now, Big Sister."
Rain stopped Selma before she could press Teruche further. She then teleported Teruche and the Cyclops to the requested location.
"Why did you stop me?"
"The way Big Sister acts... it’s because of me. It's my fault..."
"I don't know what happened between you two, but an older sister should at least try to support her sibling!"
"...Thank you, Selma. But right now, we have to finish off the magic beasts."
"I can tell from those movements that your sister is no ordinary person, but just how strong is she really?"
"...Actually, I don't even know the extent of her strength. ...But she’s likely stronger than any of us. Because—"
"Hm? Because what?"
"No, it's nothing. For now, we need to reorganize while the numbers are low."
"Right."
As they began to rally the other explorers, Rain kept her eyes on Teruche facing the Cyclops in the distance.
(—Because Big Sister wiped out the entire Hagwell house—a family of elite mages—all by herself ten years ago. Even our father, a renowned mage, was cut down by her in an instant.)
Trusting in Teruche’s victory, Rain turned her attention back to the monsters emerging from the labyrinth.