Volume 17 Chapter 27 The road to the Second layer
"I suppose I'll move on ahead. What will you all do?"
Flora stared at Bernard.
"Perhaps you consider yourself the leader... Will you fight me?"
She said, laying her hand on the hilt of her sword.
Scritch, scritch, scritch...
In the next moment, a burst of purple lightning exploded behind Bernard.
"Huh...!?"
Flora had done something, but Bernard had no idea what.
"I didn't sense any magic power activation... It's not a lightning magic..."
"──Seems you can't see anything~at all, huh?"
Flora let out a small sigh.
"This guy... "
Bernard swallowed hard.
If they chose to fight──they might be struck by that lightning now, or perhaps be cut to pieces.
Just like Razerseid earlier.
His back tensed up.
If you can't see the attack itself, there's no way to deal with it.
If it came to a fight──.
He tried to simulate it in his mind.
Even if Ziredurzo, a high-ranking demon (mazoku), was there, he probably couldn't beat Flora.
Rath could follow her movements with his eyes, but that alone didn't make for a fight.
Even if he was a genius swordsman, he was still only 14 and lacked real battle experience.
The assassin Mirabell might be able to strike a fatal blow through Flora's opening, but the outcome was uncertain.
Anyway──Flora was just too strong.
Even Razerseid, who was overwhelmingly pushed back by them, she effortlessly defeated.
It would be reasonable to think that there's almost no chance of winning.
And,
"Wow, amazing! That move just now, could it be... you created static electricity with the friction between your feet and the ground, and then transferred it to the sword...?"
It was Rath who shouted.
"... "
Flora looked at him in surprise.
"...Did you really figure out the principle of the [Celestial Claw Black Lightning Slash] at first glance?"
"My feet are a bit slippery, and I thought, why not just go super-speed and slide my feet subtly as I step in? Am I right?"
Rath explains it as if nothing happened.
Upon being told, it was true──the ground under Flora's feet was uneven.
But Bernard had no leeway to notice such a detail.
In front of the overwhelming presence she emitted, there was no room to observe such trivialities.
Even if he had the mental capacity, it's uncertain if he could have observed that far──.
"Wow, this is the first time I've seen it... There's such a technique in swordsmanship...!"
Rath gazes at Flora with sparkling eyes, seemingly impressed.
Flora steadily returns his gaze,
"You have sharp observational skills, I see."
"How about it... I'm not sure myself, but──"
"Would you mind trying to swing this sword once?"
Flora offers the sword.
The blade and the hilt are both pitch-black.
The aura rising from it all is ominous, to put it simply──it's 'demonic'.
"...! This sword has a strange aura of pressure."
"The legendary sword 'Purgatory'. It's considered the pinnacle of blades, crafted through technological exchange between the Eastern and Central Continents' dwarf clans."
Flora smiles.
"Normally, 'Purgatory' is a sword that chooses its wielder, but if it listens to me to some extent, I can temporarily allow someone else to hold it by strongly imposing the will to 'lend it to another'. Please, go ahead."
"Th, thank you."
Rath cautiously takes the black sword.
"It's light──"
He lifts it in surprise, moves to a distance, and swings it once.
Shun!
A sharp sound, as if slicing through space, echoes.
"Oh! Such a good swing~!"
Flora's face brightens up.
The previously vague expression on her face now slightly reddens, and the void-like gaze in her eyes begins to warm up.
"Hmph."
Flora suddenly closes in on Rath, staring at him intently.
"Eeek... Y, you're a bit close..."
Rath is bright red.
"Perhaps... it might be you who could ignite me after all."
"Huh...?"
"Please become stronger."
Flora, having taken a sword from Rath, shows a faint smile as she says that.
Her face is genuinely cheerful and innocent, from the bottom of her heart.
"Let's put fighting you on hold for now. I like him."
Flora turns to Bernard as she says that.
"If you insist on fighting right now, I will accept, of course."
If Flora decides to go for it, Bernard wouldn't even have time to react before being killed──
But he accepts her gaze without flinching.
"Even if we fight, we probably can't beat them."
Bernard calmly states.
Inside, he's full of anxiety and fear, but he tries to hide it.
If he shows negative emotions, it only gives them a chance to exploit him──
Even though he couldn't contribute much in the fight, he wanted to make some contribution as a veteran in negotiations like this.
"We... have some comrades who got separated. We want to meet up with them first. Moving ahead rather than waiting here increases our chances."
"Then shall we go together? Our interests probably line up for now, right?"
Flora says.
"Understood. We see no benefit in fighting you here. Actually, traveling together has more advantages. Rath, Mirabell, is that okay? And... you too, right?"
"Got it."
"Okay."
"You still haven't given up on not even calling my name, huh... Well, I agree to stay with you."
Rath, Mirabell, and Ziredurzo nod in agreement.
* * *
With Flora joining them, the party of 5──Bernard, Rath, Mirabell, Ziredurzo, and Flora──began to move.
Their destination is the Second Layer, closer to the deeper part of The Heart of the Stars.
"First, let's introduce ourselves. I am Flora Vermilion. I used to be an adventurer, and before that, a mercenary. Now, I am independent, yeah."
"Seriously... you're the Vermilion of the [Dark Heavens]?"
Bernard asked.
"Yes. I was an adventurer for about a year..."
Flora nodded.
"Thanks to your efforts alone, the 'Fallen Purgatory' adventurer guild, which was only C-rank at the time, quickly rose to S-rank, and even after you left, promising adventurers kept joining, and it flourished... and now it's considered one of the Big Five."
Bernard said.
"Why did you quit being an adventurer? You were promised status and honor, right? If you had stayed with 'Fallen Purgatory', you might have been Guild Master by now."
"It was boring."
Flora sighed.
Her eyes had a look of emptiness, and were vacant.
"This is──"
Bernard gasped, looking at the huge door looming in front of them.
The door, which stood as if blocking the entire passage, was even redder than its surroundings, and a pattern resembling a crown was drawn in the center.
"I think the Second Layer is probably beyond this."
Flora said.
"How do we get through?"
"I don't know."
She shook her head at Bernard's question.
"Shall we try unlocking magic?"
Ziredurzo stepped forward and said.
"I have the highest magic ability among us."
"That's right. Can I count on you?"
Bernard said to the demon.
"Huh. You admit it so easily, don't you? That I have higher magic ability."
"Huh? That's obvious. My magic can't compare to yours, a high-ranking demon."
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