Chapter 17: Extra: The Onslaught of Despair

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Julius and his party continued exploring the Trad Ruins. And then… Just after taking the left at a large fork in the path, a grating, creaking sound echoed as the statues moved. Statues of grotesque creatures with wings suddenly seemed to come to life.

Gargoyles. Four gargoyles roared and charged at Julius and the others.

Garo and Julius took the front lines to counter them. Garo raised his great axe high and swung it in a horizontal slash as he charged forward. The blade struck the stone body of a gargoyle with sparks flying, but the creature did not flinch, and its sharp claws grazed Garo’s armor in retaliation. Julius swung his sword with elegant precision, unleashing a flurry of strikes, but the stone body resisted, forcing him to struggle.

Meanwhile, the remaining two gargoyles bypassed the frontliners and flew straight toward Elena and Fran. As the two lined up in a straight path, Elena calmly began her incantation.

“Source of all existence, power that pervades all… flames, pierce my enemies〈Flame Arrow〉!”

A magical arrow shot forth from Elena. She had intended for the arrow to pierce both gargoyles lined up in a row, but 〈Flame Arrow〉 only pierced one, while the other slipped past and lunged toward Fran.

“Fran, dodge! I’ll fire another─”

“Gahahaha, gotcha!”

Elena’s warning was cut off by Garo’s voice. Engaged with another gargoyle, Garo had suddenly leapt into Fran’s path. Caught up in battle, he had likely not noticed his surroundings. He slipped next to Fran, who had been near the wall─ and Garo’s heavy body collided with her.

“Huh?”

“Kyaa!”

Fran’s delicate frame was thrown to the floor, slammed against the stone tiles. The enemy wouldn’t miss such an opening. The gargoyle’s sharp claws were about to strike her.

“Source of all existence, power that pervades all… 〈Lightning Shock〉!”

Elena quickly cast a spell with a short incantation and fast activation, stopping the gargoyle’s movement. Seizing the opportunity, Fran got back on her feet and moved to Elena’s side.

“Geez, why did you move that way!? You’re putting Fran in danger!”

Elena yelled, frustrated at how inattentive he had been.

“S-sorry…”

Garo also looked awkward after shoving the gargoyle away with brute strength and scratched his head.

“Fran, are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah. I’m fine. Thank you…”

Fran responded, breathless. That was close. If she had been hit, the party might have fallen apart. As the healer, she was more crucial than the warriors. But the battle wasn’t over. Three gargoyles remained.

“Fall back! I’ll take them all down!” 

Julius shouted. At his command, the three retreated a few steps. Watching him, they saw Julius raising his sword, concentrating magic into its tip. He was clearly preparing a powerful technique.

“Take this… Ultimate 〈Rainbow Blade〉!”

A multicolored shockwave erupted from the sword, spreading out like a fan in midair. Each color carried a different element──fire, ice, lightning, wind, earth, light, and darkness──interweaving at high speed to pierce the targets. The elements interacted in a dazzling display, as if seven spells collided at once.

All three remaining gargoyles were struck precisely and, after a brief pause, shattered from the inside out.

“Hmph, pathetic trash.”

Julius snorted and sheathed his sword.

“To think the notorious Trad Ruins would be this easy… Have I just gotten too strong? I could probably reach the deepest chamber without trouble today.”

Despite his words, sweat glistened on his forehead. Even that technique wasn’t meant for such weak monsters. It was a high-level ultimate move that consumed large amounts of magic and had limited uses.

Elena then said to him.

“Julius, you’re pushing yourself too hard. You’re overusing your magic.”

“What’s the rush, Elena? Only gargoyles have appeared so far. In a dungeon with such weaklings, I can handle everything alone──huh?”

At that exact moment Julius was acting tough, the floor beneath him gave way with a “kapow” sound. Green gas suddenly spewed from the gap.

“Crap! Poison gas! Everyone cover your mouths!”

Garo yelled.

Unbelievable. To fall for such a basic trap…

“Mother of the Earth, protect us!〈Magic Shield〉!”

“Source of all existence, power that pervades all… Wind, rise!〈Wind Tornado〉!”

Fran quickly cast a protective spell over everyone, while Elena used wind magic to blow the gas away. They were safe, but it had been a close call. If either Fran or Elena had reacted slower, the entire party could have been wiped out by the poisonous gas.

“Julius, what were you even doing!?”

Fran shouted angrily, something that was rare of her. Following Garo, Julius had also been careless. Fran had nearly died twice in the same instance. Her anger was justified.

“Sh-Shut up! I just let my guard down for a moment. We’re fine, so it’s okay isn’t it?!”

Julius protested weakly.

It was only good because they were safe. It was nothing more than a result after the fact. If they hadn’t been safe, all of them would have died here.

“Haah… If it were Lloyd, he would have anticipated this kind of thing too.”

Fran muttered a quiet, sarcastic remark.

That’s something we agreed not to bring up!

Elena tried to silence her with a glance, but it was too late. Julius had heard every word, and his face flushed bright red.

“That was just because I was careless! That useless piece-of-trash, defective loser who can’t even resonate has nothing to do with it! The party is far more complete now! Right, Garo!?”

“Eh? Y-Yes. Of course, Lord Julius.”

Garo had likely realized that part of the earlier danger had been his fault as well. His awkward voice only made the heavy atmosphere even heavier.

“Come on, let’s hurry up and take that so-called treasure! Now that the useless idiot is gone, of course we can wrap this up quickly!”

Julius’ words echoed strangely hollow. Elena and Fran exchanged glances and quietly sighed. The party’s mood had clearly deteriorated. Continuing the exploration was impossible. If they kept going, someone would die. Elena opened her mouth, about to suggest retreat—but that was when it happened.

“GwoooooOOOOOOONNN!!”

An inhuman roar rose from deep within the ground. The stone tiles at their feet cracked, and fine dust burst upward. The ground heaved upward as if splitting open, and then—like something crawling out of hell—it appeared. A beast of bone and flame, a skeletal hellhound wreathed in blazing inferno.

Its entire skeletal frame was blackened with soot, charred lines cracking across its surface. In its hollow eye sockets burned pale blue flames that flickered with a steady, searing heat. Green fire dripped from its jaws like a tongue, and when it hit the floor, it sizzled sharply and scorched the stone. Along with a low, ground-rattling growl, its charred bony tail slammed against the ground with a crack.

In that instant, the surrounding air seemed to ripple unnaturally. A stench like death blended with scorching heat rose from its entire body.

“Ugh… What the hell is this disgusting dog?”

Garo’s face twisted in fear.

“…Skullhound Lord. An undead monster known as the Demon Hound King. It’s supposed to be really strong, so be careful!”

Fran shared what knowledge she had, warning the party. Elena, of course, had heard of the Skullhound Lord as well. It was called the guardian of the ruins. It was an extremely powerful monster that had slain countless treasure hunters. It was no exaggeration to call it the boss of this floor. If Lloyd were here, it might be manageable, but facing it with the current party was far too dangerous.

“H-Hmph. I’m here. Of course defeating it is going to be easy.”

Julius forced a strained smile and raised his sword. Watching the so-called hero’s back, Elena shook her head in exasperation.

We can’t fight it. We have to find an opening and run…

She exchanged a glance with Fran and nodded. If they challenged it head-on, even if they managed to win, the cost would only be enormous. And there was no guarantee that she or Fran wouldn’t be among the sacrifices.

Surviving came first.

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