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Chapter 9 - 09. Momentary Fear

"Zeha, do you want to go in?"

It wasn't a question, but an offer. Even though Zeha couldn't sense mana yet, his instincts screamed that whatever lay beyond that vortex was dangerous.

Deep down, Zeha wanted to return and report this strange phenomenon to the Academy. But on the other hand, he didn't want to be a coward who kept running away just because he was afraid of dangerous situations.

More than that, he realized he wasn't actually afraid enough to run. Perhaps it was because the grandma was standing beside him, giving him a strange sense of courage without meaning to.

"Let's go in, Grandma," Zeha said with a spark of excitement in his eyes.

They stepped into the vortex. At first, the grandma was anxious about what might happen when they crossed through, but nothing happened, aside from finding themselves in a place that could only be described as another world.

The surroundings were dim, making it difficult to inspect the area.

The grandma conjured a baseball-sized fireball to serve as a light.

The space was vast, like a cave, its ceiling as high as the portal's diameter.

"What is this place?" Zeha asked in confusion. They walked, scanning every part of the cave carefully.

The grandma suddenly stopped, sensing an unfamiliar presence ahead. Zeha didn't need an explanation, her tense expression told him everything.

"Is something there, Grandma?"

The grandma frowned. "This mana…?"

An instant later, a red-blue aura flared around her right hand. The aura shifted, shaping itself into a sword.

Zeha's eyes widened in astonishment. It was his first time seeing someone conjure a sword out of magic. But his awe vanished when rustling noises began echoing from the darkness ahead.

"Zeha, stay behind me."

"What's going on, Grandma?"

The grandma smirked faintly. "I'll show you why they once called me one of the strongest Swordsman Mages of my generation."

Zeha had no idea what she meant, until a dozen giant spiders crawled into view.

Before he could call out, the grandma darted toward them at a speed he couldn't follow. All he saw was a white flash, like lightning. When she stopped, the spiders also froze—only for their bodies to split cleanly into pieces.

In just one second, she had slain twelve giant spiders. Zeha could only stare in awe.

"She's so strong…" he murmured.

The grandma turned and smiled proudly. "Well. I'm strong, right?"

"Whoa…" Zeha barely had time to react before more giant spiders appeared out of nowhere.

"Grandma! Behind you!"

As the swarm advanced, twenty magic circles appeared overhead. From them, fireballs rained down, exploding on impact and reducing the spiders to ash.

Once the danger had passed, the grandma approached Zeha, relief on her face.

"I think this is a monster nest," she said.

"A monster nest? You mean those giant spiders?!"

"Yes."

"So… what should we do?"

She thought for a moment before replying, "I don't sense any more of them, at least for now."

"Are we going back, then?"

"Do you want to go back?"

The question caught Zeha off guard. Simple as it was, it stirred something inside him.

His expression hardened, his gaze sharp. "No. I want to explore this place."

Her smile widened in pride. "Good. First, you need to focus on sensing—"

The cave suddenly shook violently as a massive surge of mana erupted. The pressure was so great it froze the grandma in place. Even Zeha, who couldn't sense mana well, felt chills crawl over his skin.

A heavy thud echoed from the depths of the cave. The grandma sensed a terrifying presence approaching.

[Kkhkkkggrr…]

Both of them stood frozen, as if their bodies were bound by invisible chains. From the shadows, the presence slowly revealed itself. The terror Zeha felt was far beyond anything the grandma was experiencing.

It was nearly as tall as the cave itself, an ogre-like giant with four arms and a single horn on its forehead. Its appearance was nothing short of horrifying.

[Grrr…! Humans…!] the giant growled, its tone filled with rage.

"It can talk?!" Zeha's eyes widened, fear slowly creeping back into his heart, the same fear he thought he had long since buried. The crushing sense of helplessness when facing an overwhelmingly powerful enemy.

"ZEHA! MOVE!"

The grandma shouted as she shoved Zeha hard, sending him crashing into the cave wall. Less than a second later, a massive axe, five times larger than normal, slammed into her.

The impact shook the entire cave. She managed to block it with her magic sword, but the sheer force made her arms tremble. Her expression hardened in frustration.

Zeha, regaining his senses after being thrown, was shocked to see the battle unfolding.

"GRANDMA!"

He was about to run to her aid, but her sharp command stopped him.

"Stay back!"

She kept the ogre occupied, deflecting relentless attacks. Each of its four hands held a different weapon; right now, it was wielding its axe, and even that alone had her struggling.

Zeha stood frozen, unsure of what to do. If he joined in, he'd only be a burden. He knew he didn't have the strength to even scratch the creature's skin.

"Zeha! Get out of here!" she shouted again, while Zeha still hesitated.

"There's no way I'm leaving you behind!" he yelled back.

She gritted her teeth, barely able to speak between attacks. "Don't be naive if you don't want to die!"

A magic circle appeared above the ogre, forming a massive spear of light that struck down toward its back. The grandma had poured a tremendous amount of mana into it, but the spear barely scratched the creature's steel-like hide.

The ogre roared, swinging its axe. She was forced to dodge, unable to block any longer.

Even one of the strongest Swordsman Mages in history was struggling against this monster.

"What are you waiting for?! Get out!" she shouted, frustration lacing her voice. Zeha still refused to move.

[Hahaha…! Pathetic weaklings…!]

The insult made Zeha freeze. The words were aimed at the grandma, but they cut deep into him as well.

[There's no way I'll let a weak insects like you escape.]

The ogre roared again, louder this time, shaking the cave. Small collapses occurred throughout, most importantly, the area around the portal was buried under rubble.

"Damn it!" the grandma cursed, her jaw tightening, her eyes blazing with fury.

"The p-portal…" Zeha whispered, stunned.

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