Now that I've saved Seina and Suzu, I should go look for Meradis and the corporeal spirits next, then head to that lost creature's location. But the problem is, I don't have any link with Meradis at all, so finding her will take some time.
"I can help."
Suddenly, one of the corporeal spirits spoke up.
I recognized this one. His name is Anton. He used to have major conflicts with me, but thanks to Meradis mediating, things didn't escalate.
"You've got a way?"
"Among us corporeal spirits, we can use magic to sense one another. If we all try to sense the princess's position, maybe we'll get lucky and find her."
"Alright, everyone, get started then."
While the corporeal spirits were at work, I continued using [Sensing] to investigate everything around here, but there were no clear traces at all.
<
Still nothing.
"I found her!" Anton shouted.
"I sensed her too," Seina said as well.
"The princess is quite far from here, and she seems to be in a weakened state. We need to hurry."
Got it.
Seina, which way?
"This way."
I quickly got a grasp of the direction and dashed off at full speed. Finally, after jumping down a fairly deep slope, I spotted Meradis.
I was relieved—but then I noticed she was injured and fighting off some kind of creature.
I rushed over to support her.
"Are you alright?"
The creature lunged at her, but thankfully, I pulled Meradis back just in time.
"Get inside first."
"Got it."
Without saying much, Meradis entered my [Virtual World].
Then I turned my focus to the enemy in front of me. It had no distinct shape—just a black mass like a shadow, with glowing red eyes set into an entirely dark body.
The shadow lunged at me. I was about to block it, but Meradis warned me to dodge instead. I listened, and then noticed something black had been left behind where it attacked. Those black things began to grow, and eventually another shadow creature formed.
Nai wa!
It can do that!?
"That's one of its abilities. It has a special attack—if it hits you, you'll gradually turn into one of them. But even if it doesn't hit, it can still generate another shadow."
Good thing I dodged that.
"It takes a long time to reuse that special move, so you're safe for now, Shiraori."
Oh, then this should be easy.
I charged in and slashed at it with my [Blade Legs], but surprisingly, they just passed right through—like I was swinging into thin air.
What now!?
"They don't have physical bodies, so attacks like that won't work on them."
Then how the hell am I supposed to fight this thing…?
"You don't have to, Shiraori. Just run. Their real trouble is about to arrive."
Huh??
I didn't get what Meradis meant, but I ran anyway. And sure enough, the shadows didn't chase me. Instead, another creature emerged from the void and started fighting them.
What was that?
Are they enemies?
"That's a Void Beast. They can hide between spatial layers. When I found them, they were already fighting. But then the shadows suddenly turned their attention to me, used some weird skill to blast the Void Beasts away, and came after me."
"They can attack the soul too, so it was a tough fight. I had to go one against seven. But in the end, I managed to kill three and escape."
"Luckily, Shiraori arrived just in time. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have made it."
Meradis spoke with deep gratitude in her voice.
"It was the corporeal spirits who found you. I just followed their guidance. You should thank them too."
"Of course. I saw their signal and responded. Thank you, everyone."
"No need to be so formal, Princess…"
Looks like everything's been settled.
"If Shiraori hasn't found the spirits yet, I know where they are."
Oh? Where?
"I saw them while running earlier, but I didn't have time to stop, so I planned to return later."
"Are they okay??"
"I think so. But you still need to hurry, Shiraori."
"Understood!"
Following Meradis's directions, I arrived at another area. There, I found the spirits stuck to the wall with sticky threads. Not far from them, a spider was preparing to devour them.
Nai wa!
A relative!?
"That's not a normal spider. Most creatures here can touch and attack souls."
Definitely not normal. Just looking at its entirely green body, I could tell something was off—even before considering it could affect the spirits.
This hideous thing can't be related to me. I only mistook it earlier because of the rush.
Let's use [Appraisal].
<
HP: 500/500
MP: 700/700
SP: 600/600
Attack: 5363
Defense: 3234
Magic: 4329
Speed: 5435
Hmm… not that strong. I should be able to handle this.
Let's go!
As I rushed in, the spider noticed me and shot silk at me—but I easily slashed it apart.
I quickly closed in and stabbed its rear with both [Blade Legs]—I knew that was the weakest part of a spider's body. Caught off guard, it fell from its web to the ground. It got up and charged at me.
I could see it trying to crush me with its large body, and then it tried to bite and inject poison. But come on, trying that on a fellow spider is a huge mistake.
Unfazed, I activated [Adamantine Body] and slammed into it directly. The spider was thrown backward, crashing into a wall. I only staggered slightly.
With this kind of difference in power, how could it ever beat me?
Seeing that physical attacks were useless, it switched to soul-based skills. But I could've just stood there and let it hit me all day with no effect.
Eventually, it ran out of MP and had no choice but to die.
I sent it off to the next world and calmly rescued the spirits.
I brought them inside, then healed each one. Luckily, none were missing this time—meaning I had successfully gathered everyone together.
A complete success!
…
So, where should I go now?
"You're about to evolve, right? Before heading to the final place, try finding a chance to evolve first."
"Hmm, true. I'm level 27 now—normally I'd evolve at level 30. But these final levels take ages to gain, and I'm not sure if there are enough creatures here to level up."
"Shiraori, maybe try going back to where the Evil Eyes and Void Beasts were. They're strange creatures—maybe they'll help you level faster."
"Yeah, good idea."
So we all went back—but there were no creatures left where they had been.
"Not gone... they just moved farther away."
"Let's hunt them down—more XP for me!"
I followed the tracks and found ourselves in a huge open circular chamber, with many exits branching off.
What is this place?
Then the ground trembled, and my Sensing detected vibrations from every direction.
What's happening? Are they ambushing me?
"Stay calm. It's not attacking you," Seina whispered.
But why are all these creatures gathering here?
"I think they're finding a safe spot to observe."
I hid behind a boulder. Soon, dozens of different creatures emerged, each from a separate exit. They grouped up and stood still, as if awaiting something.
Then, a hazy shape materialized overhead. As it became clearer, I realized it was the Evil Eye projection from the final chamber.
Nai wa!
Has it awakened?
Not quite, closer inspection revealed it was just an illusion, not the real Thing.
What's it going to do?
The projection then condensed a single, blood-like transparent droplet. The moment it appeared, all the creatures got agitated—but none dared to step forward. After a moment, the Eye vanished, and in its place floated an empty crystal orb.
What does that mean?
Without warning, the creatures scrambled into the center and began slaughtering each other chaotically.
Nai wa!?
What's happening?
"It seems the Eye is staging this so that the strongest creature wins the droplet, which grants power," Seina explained. "I suspect the Goblin and Orc chieftains used this to gain their great strength."
It sounds generous—but why the spectacle?
"Not as benign as it sounds. Look at that orb—each time a creature dies, it fills with something dark. I think the Eye absorbs that."
Dark Mana!
So the Eye not only feeds on the tree but also here—using this as another source of dark mana.
Cunning...
But maybe I can snatch it at the end?
"You're still considering that?!" Seina snapped.
Huh? I thought you already accept it…?
"How can that be acceptable—this is dangerous!"
I do have a contingency plan…
"That still doesn't guarantee anything. Not even Suzu would agree."
"No, I agree."
Huh?!
Suzu's answer stunned everyone.
"Hey—normally you're so lenient with her but you can't just agree to this so casually!"
What are you two on about? I'm indulgent at times, sure—yet here I want to hear Suzu's reason.
"Calm down. Actually, in the magical system, Dark Magic and Holy Magic suppress each other but what happens if they coexist?"
"Huh?" Seina looked puzzled.
"They create a completely new type of magic! Stronger than any elemental magic!"
Nai wa!
So by chance, I hit the jackpot truly delicious loot?
But how can opposing magics merge?
"Since they oppose each other, when successfully combined, it becomes the strongest. It's rare and difficult, but I found signs of it during my inner enlightenment," Suzu explained, growing more excited.
"Are you sure you can make it work?" Seina asked.
"I'm theorizing. It's never been done—but with more time and research, I believe I can."
It's rare to see Suzu this confident.
Seina, don't ruin Suzu's confidence…
"Haizzz… fine. But if things go wrong, we stop immediately—no excuses!"
Yatta.
I love you, Seina!
"Huh?" Both Suzu and Seina exclaimed at once.
Um... is something wrong?
I asked, but they didn't respond. Meradis was quietly smiling—it felt oddly familiar. Then, we agreed that just let them fight each other, and I'll swoop in at the end for the dark mana.
"You should go now."
What? Wouldn't it be better to scavenge more?
"You need XP too, right? There're thousands of them—hundreds of mutants. If we skip this, we'll have to wait who knows how long."
Oh, you're right.
"So stop just 'right,' go!"
Let the fight begin!
Watching them battle fills me with excitement.
Horde of tiny creatures, your executioner approaches!