episode_0013

Cedric was listening to the lecture like any other day.

And in the middle of an uninteresting general education lecture, the strange incident began.

What he felt at first was a sense of foreignness.

Something happened. It was just a feeling, but it was a distinctly different feeling.

Before he could find the cause of the strangeness, the incident began.

Boom─

A strange sensation suddenly enveloped my son-in-law, and the inside of the building began to deform.

And when I realized it, I was already in a completely different space.

“This is… What the hell is this… … ?”

With a girl named Mary Bluenoa.

It was a sudden and confusing situation, but the two were not given time to slowly savor the confusion.

Cheolgruguk─

Armor that moves on its own, living armor.

Because a monster that is rarely seen appeared making noise.

Before he could even understand the situation, Cedric drew his sword and rushed towards Living Armor.

Because it was made of armor, it was a difficult monster for low-level swordsmen to deal with, but this did not apply to Cedric.

As expected, Cedric disposed of the Living Armor without wasting much time.

It was after that that Cedric and Mary began to understand the situation.

“I think the lecture building has become a dungeon.”

This was the opinion of the girl I was with, Mary Bluenoa.

Mary carefully examined the walls and floor.

“Moreover, it appears to be a closed dungeon. You probably can’t just leave.”

“How to unlock dungeon?”

“You have to remove the central core or deal with the monster.”

Cedric followed her advice and began advancing through the dungeon, setting the goal of unlocking it.

It was as obvious as seeing fire that Living Armor would block the way in the process.

In fact, as he expected, a large number of Living Armors appeared in front of the two.

There was only one thing that was different from his expectations.

This is Mary Bluenoa’s ability.

Honestly, I thought it would be a burden.

I went along with him because I could clearly see his fate if he abandoned me, but I didn’t think it would be of any help.

But it didn’t take long to realize that that thought was wrong.

Mary was not a burden.

On the contrary, it was quite helpful.

She seemed so weak, but she had excellent magic skills and did not feel intimidated at all even in the face of monsters, showing the side of a wizard.

Cedric even received help from her a few times.

Looking at his appearance, he appears to be very weak, but he is calmer than you think and his abilities are outstanding.

Little by little, Cedric became interested in a girl named Mary Bluenoa.

By joining forces, the two continued to progress through the dungeon.

However, as time passed, the speed slowed down.

Because there was a limit to the physical strength and magical power of the two.

Nevertheless, the two did not stop walking, and were finally able to reach a room that appeared to be the end of the dungeon.

And there I encountered an unexpected person.

Ira Librion.

She was waiting there.

“… I think Miss Aira is the cause of the dungeon.”

Cedric also instinctively noticed.

That Aira is different from usual.

Also, the fact that the strange sword in her hand was suspicious.

Mary added that the sword appears to be a parasitic demon sword, and that Aira appears to have been consumed by the demon sword.

The two immediately entered into a battle to subdue Ira.

Cedric was confident.

The opponent is someone who has already beaten twice.

I didn’t think I would lose even if the Demon Sword intervened.

However, in the end, it was too hasty a judgment.

“Qu… !”

Cedric had to retreat with a fairly deep wound to his side.

‘… ‘I never thought it would be like this.’

Ira was not the Ira I used to be.

Perhaps it was due to the magic sword, but the level of strength, speed, and magic power were all different from before.

Although the technology itself has not improved, great power can overwhelm technology.

Moreover, for Cedric, who had used up as much stamina and magic power as he could through the dungeon, the current Aira was a difficult opponent. Even with Mary’s help.

It was such a difficult situation, but that didn’t mean Cedric gave up.

Because he was not a man so soft that his heart would break just because he faced a difficult opponent.

“Huh… … !”

Taking a rare deep breath, Cedric rushed towards Aira.

Even the child holding the magic sword reacted immediately.

Huh!

The magic sword swung towards Cedric, making a terrifying sound.

Instead of stepping back, Cedric took a step to the side and avoided the magic sword falling towards him.

However, at the same time, they prepared to attack.

Wow─

The sword imbued with magical power cried.

The target point was clear.

It’s Ira’s arm.

The intention was to completely separate the magic sword from Aira by cutting off her arm.

Originally, it would have been a path I would not have taken, but the situation was urgent.

The encroachment of the magic sword was taking place in real time.

‘You just need to reattach the arm.’

A high-ranking priest can reattach even a cut part.

With the power of the Academy, it would be possible to call such a priest.

After making that decision, Cedric struck down his sword.

The opponent’s gap is exposed.

If this continued, Ira’s arm being cut off would become a reality.

However.

Kang!

The sword, which must have cut the fabric, bounced off with a metallic sound.

“… … !”

Although shocked by that fact, Cedric immediately tried to pull away, but the magic sword moved faster than he could move his body.

Huh!

The magic sword rushed towards Cedric, making a sharp sound.

Even if Cedric twisted his whole body, it didn’t seem easy to avoid the magic sword.

“It’s dangerous!”

bang!

The fireball that flew at that time hit the magic sword and created a gap.

Although the gap was not large, it was enough for Cedric to adjust his posture.

Cedric took the sword at that moment and blocked the path of the magic sword.

thud!

“Qu… !”

Although I barely managed to defend myself with my sword, I was unable to relieve all of the shock, and my posture naturally collapsed.

And that served as a fatal factor.

bang! bang!

A series of attacks that use force and speed and cannot be escaped.

Cedric became obsessed with blocking attacks, and became increasingly disadvantaged.

“Cedric!”

Mary cast spells one after another to save Cedric, but even that didn’t help much. Ira put pressure on Cedric by naturally avoiding Mary’s magic or just getting hit.

Visible through gaps in clothing, black metal has grown where skin should have been.

Cedric realized that it was due to the encroachment of the magic sword. That may have been the reason why the attack was blocked a little while ago.

Meanwhile, the encroachment was progressing, and Aira was becoming stronger.

Cedric gritted his teeth and responded, but he was unable to let go of all the barrage of attacks with his ignorant strength, and soon ended up creating a huge gap.

bang!

“Wow… !”

Cedric was thrown back with great force and flew away.

It wasn’t a direct hit from the magic sword. I barely managed to stop it.

But in return, his left arm was broken and his internal organs were crushed.

Even as his mind was shaken by the pain, Cedric immediately tried to straighten his posture.

Because he knew that in a fight like this, a moment’s lapse would lead directly to death.

However.

The moment he barely got up, Aira was already in front of him.

Holding the magic sword high.

“Cedric… !!”

Mary’s urgent voice was heard.

And, Cedric faced the shadow of death coming towards him.

It was then.

Suddenly, a shadow came between him and Aira.

***

Kang!

Feeling the repulsive force rising through my hands, I internally breathed a sigh of relief.

‘… ‘I almost got into real trouble.’

If it had been just a little bit late, Cedric would have died without making a move.

It was rewarding to run with all my might without considering physical strength or magical power.

I was so surprised to see this situation, it felt like my lifespan had been shortened.

No, maybe it really has decreased.

About 3 years.

“Wade!!”

I heard a familiar voice calling me.

Of course it was Mary.

I turned my head slightly to look in that direction, and fortunately, Mary seemed fine except for looking a little tired.

Feeling relieved at that fact, I turned my gaze towards Cedric.

“You… … .”

Cedric was looking at me with rarely shaking eyes.

This guy probably doesn’t know me, so this situation may be confusing.

Even if you knew, it would still be confusing in its own way.

But of course there was no time to kindly explain the situation.

Because it was an urgent situation.

I quickly check Aira’s condition.

Black metal glimpsed through clothes.

It was evidence that the encroachment had progressed significantly.

Huh!

Kang!

I rolled my head, blocking the swing of the magic sword as if I wasn’t even going to give myself time to think.

“… be careful. I tried to cut my arm, but it didn’t cut me.”

Cedric said.

Any questions remain, and we share the information we need right away.

He is definitely a cool-headed guy.

I didn’t reply much and focused on Aira in front of me.

There are no methods that come to mind. So, I decided to try what I could.

I got out of my defensive stance and swung my sword.

With as much magic power as possible.

bang!

Then, a sound too loud to be thought of swords clashing rang out.

The magic sword shattered into pieces.

“… … !”

I could feel Cedric swallowing his breath behind me.

You were probably quite surprised.

You wouldn’t know it if it were an ordinary sword, but Cedric, who has encountered it himself, would know that the strength of a magic sword is stronger than that of an ordinary sword.

However, Cedric ended up being surprised once more.

The shattered magic sword turned into black smoke and was soon restored to its original form.

I furrowed my eyebrows at the sight.

If the encroachment hadn’t progressed that far, it would have been possible to end everything just by destroying the magic sword.

But now, the encroachment had progressed too far to finish the job.

At that time, a figure behind me got closer.

“… If even breaking it doesn’t work, there is no way.”

Cedric approached me with a frown as if he was enduring pain, looked at Aira and calmly sighed.

“There is no choice but to kill.”

It was an extremely calm voice that could be considered as mentioning death.

Some might say he was a cold person, but looking at it objectively, Cedric wasn’t wrong.

If breaking the magic sword doesn’t help, there’s a good chance that keeping the magic sword away from Aira won’t work either.

Moreover, in a situation like this where there is no priest, it may be right to make such a judgment.

As time goes by, the magic sword will become stronger, and those trapped in this dungeon will become more dangerous.

So, you must kill Ira while you still have the strength left.

Cedric must have decided this way.

“… … .”

After hesitating for a moment, I looked at Ira again.

Blurry eyes that are not properly focused.

Judging from the current situation where the encroachment has progressed, after a little more time, her ego will be completely eaten by the demon sword.

Her body may remain, but the human being, Aira Librion, will die completely.

I think about that fact again.

I finally made a decision.

I don’t feel like it, but there’s nothing I can do when things turn out this way.

***

You’ve decided.

Ira noticed the man, Wade’s expression, when he saw it.

The man has finally made a decision.

Now that the situation was like this, they had only one option.

Just kill her.

Of course, the process may not be as simple as it sounds, but it would be possible for the man in front of me.

Wade Heblon.

He’s a strange man.

Ira said that about her opponent.

The first time we had a proper conversation was because of a group project that happened not long ago, but I knew of its existence even before that. Because we were students in the same combat department.

What can I say, he was a person who always seemed exhausted.

He is far from an active personality and is not the type to take the initiative to talk to someone.

He always attends class as if he is bored with an expression that does not show much emotion.

Grades are average. There may be an error, but it is within a range that does not significantly deviate from the average.

Combining these factors, he was not very noticeable in the combat department, which was full of unique people, but surprisingly, the man was quite famous.

Because of an incident that occurred during dungeon training the other day.

From what I heard, he went back into the dungeon on his own to save someone.

The rumor was that he attempted such a crazy thing and succeeded.

When I first heard that rumor, I was quite surprised.

Because he never seemed like such a passionate personality.

But that was just about it.

It’s just that he’s a different person from what he appears to be.

It was after the group assignment began that the perception about him began to change in earnest.

He wasn’t as friendly as expected, but he was more polite and kind than I thought.

Ira came to think of him as a kinder person than she thought.

Another change in her perception was after her first sparring with Cedric.

He tried to hide it in his own way, but it seems the man could see that he was depressed.

The man began to comfort her with somewhat unexpected words.

It was clumsy, crude in content, and somewhat stereotypical, but Ira realized that the man was not comforting her with mere pretense.

Of course, that didn’t ease my gloomy heart, but I felt a little gratitude.

Ira came to think of him as a better person than she thought.

And now, finally, my impression of him has changed once again.

His skills, which suddenly appeared in a dramatic situation, were on a different level from anything I had seen before.

Even Cedric was overwhelmed by her now.

However, the man blocked her attack without much difficulty and even broke the magic sword once.

He had been hiding his skills until now.

How does he have this kind of skill?

And why did you hide your skills?

Questions about the man arose.

But that question will never be resolved.

Your life will end here.

She felt it herself. My sense of self is gradually fading away.

It won’t be long before he’s completely eaten by the demon sword.

If you are asked if you want to die, you will of course answer that you do not want to die, but it is still better for you to die than to kill an innocent person.

Looking at the man’s eyes filled with firm determination, Ira accepted her own death.

And the man moved.

Soon, her body moved on its own and she hurled her sword at the man.

It was a sharp stab, but Aira knew.

A man would react sufficiently.

After easily dodging, he would swing the sword to end his life.

That’s why I relaxed.

However.

Phew!

It didn’t happen that the man dodged the sword.

The magic sword cruelly pierced the man’s body.