— Very well, human… you will have your duel.
Drokan rose to his full height, his colossal body casting a monstrous shadow beneath the moon. He tightened his grip on the massive rusted axe with one hand and, with the other, made a sharp gesture ordering that no goblin interfere. Against his own nature, this would be a fair duel.
He didn't understand why that small heir shook him so deeply. It was just another goblin… right? A goblin that could be replaced. And yet, something in his chest refused to accept that thought. New, confused feelings, far too human for someone who should never have felt them.
— A good choice.
Yuto replied without emotion, drawing the katana from its sheath. The blade, naturally white, reflected a near-sacred glow under the silvery touch of moonlight.
WOOOOSH
Drokan moved first. Shockingly fast for the absurd size of his body, he leapt forward and brought the axe down in a seismic charge that made the world tremble as it fell.
BOOOOM
The ground cracked as if struck by a meteor. Earth flew, dust rose into a dense wall… but when it dissipated, Drokan found no Yuto beneath the blade.
With a simple sideways leap, Yuto had avoided both the strike and the shockwave, hovering in the air at the exact moment of impact.
— Slow…
Yuto slid the sword back into its sheath and took an attacking stance. His breathing became hot, radiant, incandescent, as if he exhaled pure fire.
— Flame Breathing — Third Form: Kien Banjō (Blazing Universe)
The technique fell upon Drokan like a descending blow wrapped in flames. He raised the axe in time to block the main impact, but he hadn't anticipated the dozens of sparks that burst from the blade. Like flaming entities, they embedded themselves into his skin, burning every exposed point.
Grinding his teeth and ignoring the growing pain, Drokan stepped back and violently shoved Yuto away with the axe handle.
Yuto let himself be carried by the force, spinning in the air before landing in a perfect roll. One hand touched the ground to stabilize his body, the other kept the katana firm, still cloaked in fire.
GRAAAAAAHHRGH!
With a visceral roar, Drokan charged again. The axe danced through the air with savage brutality, delivering three successive blows, each heavier than the last. The blades collided with dry, thunderous crashes, spewing sparks in all directions like explosions of living metal.
Plim — Plim — Plim.
The blades rang like war bells. But the difference in strength was overwhelming. Even blocking the first three attacks with perfect precision, Yuto's guard finally shattered on the third impact, his arms vibrating painfully.
And the sequence wasn't over yet…
With a crooked, arrogant grin, Drokan spun his entire body like a storm of muscle and bone, delivering the fourth blow with all the brutality he possessed.
— Damn…
Without stance, without footing, Yuto could only react instinctively. He clenched his teeth as a surge of incandescent air burst from between them, a fierce breath.
— Flame Breathing — Fourth Form: Sakari-En no Uneri (Blooming Flame Undulation).
Spinning his body, Yuto shaped a vortex of fire around himself. The undulating flames wrapped around him like a living shield, absorbing part of the titanic force of the blow.
The impact sent both of them staggering backward. Each took a heavy step and regained posture.
Drokan, now far from the irrational brute a goblin should be, analyzed, calculated, tried to adapt. He knew that fragile boy hid a nearly impenetrable defense. All he needed was an opening…
But Yuto would not give him time to think.
When the swordsman assumed his attacking stance, the world seemed to hold its breath. Silence fell like a veil.
A drop of cold sweat ran down Drokan's temple.
— Flame Breathing — Fifth Form: Enko (Flame Tiger).
SWOOOSH.
Yuto vanished. In his place, trails of blazing light. The strikes came chained together, brutal and fast, a web of flaming cuts resembling the constant flux of Water Breathing, but less refined and far more savage.
GRAAWWWWWH!
A feline roar echoed through the night. A tiger of fire materialized, accompanying every slash of the blade.
Five strikes.
Five devastating impacts.
Drokan blocked as best he could, poorly, desperately. On the final strike, to avoid losing his head, he raised the blade of his axe…
…which shattered like old glass.
All that remained was the wooden handle and a jagged shard of metal, a primitive spear. Crude, but still better than being dead.
Taking advantage of the end of Yuto's sequence, Drokan gathered every last ounce of strength he had. His muscles tensed like cords about to snap as he pulled the broken weapon back.
GRAAAAAAHHRGH!
The thrust tore through the air like thunder.
The impact displaced enough air to shake trees and huts around them.
But at the final instant, Drokan felt something wrong, as if he had been pulled forward by his own weapon.
When his eyes focused, he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
With a dry, precise stomp, Yuto crushed the spear against the ground. The movement, impeccable, like a Mikiri Counter, erupted in flames around his foot.
— It's over.
Drokan didn't even have time to react.
— Flame Breathing — First Form: Shiranui (Unknowing Fire).
Using the shaft pinned to the ground as a rail, Yuto ran along it in a blazing flash.A cutting gleam passed through Drokan's neck.
For an instant, everything was silent.
Then, slowly, the goblin chief's head lifted from his own body, floating in the air before falling.
Everyone who witnessed the scene stood dumbfounded.
Vanessa and Ricardo stared at the battlefield in disbelief, stunned by the absurd mastery of such a young boy.
Alice, on the other hand, trembled from head to toe. The fight had been so brutal, so ferocious, that just imagining herself in something like that sent chills racing down her spine.
And the goblins?
All of them stared wide-eyed, completely paralyzed by shock.
Yuto landed softly on the ground after the final blow. Without haste, he bent down, picked up the goblin chief's head, and in absolute silence, raised it toward the enemy army.
The effect was immediate.
A muffled scream echoed among the monsters, and then chaos exploded. Goblins began running in every possible direction, tripping over one another, knocking down tents, fleeing like panicked animals.
It was natural.
The goblin race desperately depended on a dominant figure; without a leader, their organization crumbled like dust in the wind. By killing the chief, we had toppled the entire hive.
Atop Drokan's head rested a shining artifact: a beautiful tiara encrusted with jewels, now stained with blood.
I carefully removed it and examined it under the silvery moonlight.
Only then did I remove the fox mask muffling my face. I took a deep breath, savoring the cool night air.
The fight had been exhausting… more than I cared to admit.
— You did amazing, brat! — Vanessa appeared at my side. — Guess the Lock's level really is no joke!
She slung an arm around my shoulders and roughly ruffled my hair, like a proud older sister.
Ricardo arrived right behind her, smiling serenely.
— You have a lot of talent, kid. Just don't let it go to your head.
His tone was gentle, almost teacher-like.
— Y-you really did it!!!
Alice appeared next, still trembling and short of breath, but with a radiant glow in her eyes. Fear and admiration mixed on her face.
Without thinking much, I tossed the crown to Vanessa.
— Here… take it!
She caught it. Looked at the artifact for a few seconds… then smiled and tossed it lightly back into my hands.
— Keep it. It's the least we can do for saving our lives.
"…Oh? That was interesting."
I didn't know much about artifacts, but something like that was certainly worth millions. I hadn't planned on keeping it… but if she offered it herself, there shouldn't be a problem.
— Hey guys, I found something here!
Alice's voice came out muffled, since her head was almost entirely buried inside a massive wooden crate beneath the chief's throne.
A crate that glowed gold.
When the four of us looked inside, the reaction was unanimous:
"Wooooow…"
A mountain of glittering treasure lay within, metallic artifacts, gold and silver jewelry, crystals, ornate daggers, small orbs glowing like monster cores.
It was obvious that Drokan had collected the belongings of every human he killed even before gaining consciousness… perhaps simply because he liked shiny things.
Vanessa, Ricardo, and Alice exchanged glances. Without a word, they all nodded at the same time.
— I think everyone agrees the loot should go to Yuto, right? — Vanessa said casually.
— Absolutely! — Ricardo replied without hesitation.
— Y-yes, definitely! — Alice added, timidly raising her fists in approval.
— Huh? Are you guys sure?
I blinked, confused. It was far too valuable.
— Of course we are, brat. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have stood a chance.
I couldn't argue with that.
Without thinking further, I opened Ouroboros Storage and dumped the entire contents of the chest inside. Despite the absurd value, the items weren't bulky, so they fit easily within the limited space.
Everyone was already thinking about the next steps. Alice, in particular, looked radiant, happy to have survived another day. But that joy didn't last long.
Suddenly, she remembered her life outside. Her mother in the hospital. The piling bills. The desperation that had brought her into that dungeon. And her light dimmed.
But she took a deep breath, clenched her fists, and as if gripping her own courage, lifted her head.
If life had given her a second chance… she had to make it count.
— Hey, Alice… catch!
Without ceremony, I pulled a small glowing orb from the crate, about the size of a golf ball, a Rank F monster core, and tossed it to her.
— W-what?!
Alice almost dropped it, stumbling backward… but in the end, she managed to catch it with both trembling hands.
— That should ease the hospital bills for your mother, right?
The words hit her like a blow to the soul. Alice's eyes widened.
— B-but… I can't accept this… — she stammered, almost panicking.
— Of course you can. But in return… you have to promise me something.
I didn't even look at her as I spoke, continuing to organize my items with total indifference.
— Promise you'll never enter a dungeon again.
Silence fell like a rock.
Alice lowered her head. Her fingers tightened around the core.
After a few seconds, she took a deep breath, as if gathering courage hurt.
— I'm sorry. I can't…
Her voice trembled.
— This money… will help a lot. But when it runs out, I'll still have to keep paying everything. I… can't afford to abandon my only source of income.
It was painful to hear her sincerity. But it was the harsh reality.
— I understand. In that case… wait a moment.
I pulled out paper and pen from Ouroboros Storage and began writing something.Alice watched, confused, as I scribbled, erased, wrote again, until finally rolling it all into an improvised scroll, held together with a rubber band.
I handed it to her.
— Here. Number 48, Nova Tokyo district, in Ashton. The landmark is an arch of stone and a large cherry blossom tree at the entrance.
Alice held the scroll, not quite understanding.
— Deliver this to the landowners and explain your situation. If you mention my name, they'll definitely find you a job.
What I had basically done was send her to my parents' house.
My mother had mentioned in recent letters that my father was looking for someone to help with dojo chores, too much work for just two people.
So I killed two birds with one stone: pulled Alice out of dungeons and placed her somewhere safe.
— Th-thank you so much… I-I… I—
She couldn't finish.
She burst into tears, throwing herself against my shoulders, sobbing uncontrollably, smeared with tears and snot.
"Argh… what a pain…"
I thought, keeping my expression completely indifferent.
Amazingly, Alice was even shorter than me, which said a lot. Maybe because she was only fourteen… maybe genetics. Either way, it was like having a crying chick pressed to my chest.
Vanessa burst out laughing.
— Hahahaha! I was thinking of taking her to work with us, but… looks like that won't be necessary.
I raised an eyebrow.
— Take her? Aren't you mercenaries?
Vanessa and Ricardo exchanged looks.
— We kind of quit, you know? — Vanessa explained. — We're getting too old for this.
Ricardo added, smiling:
— We're thinking of retiring and opening a cutlery shop in the city. Forging weapons and armor… it's always been a small dream of ours.
— Good for you. I'm happy for you. — I said, my voice as neutral as ever.
— Your blank face doesn't show that at all, brat! — Vanessa laughed, poking my shoulder.
— That's just your imagination. — I replied indifferently.
And so, the group parted ways.
Vanessa and Ricardo promised to escort Alice safely to the dungeon exit.
I left the abandoned village, ready to continue my journey.
The dungeon was far from over.
And in less than a day, it would begin… the castle of Everblood.