A couple of minutes before Alfia crashed into the Astraea and Loki Familia.
Being blown away by Alfia’s magic, Cirrus was sent a considerable distance away.
"Grr…aunty? How the fuck did you get here!!" Cirrus said, getting back up and restraining his anger.
"You lost focus on the battlefield. That is your own fault." She said with what looked to be a quality sword.
"So, it seems you’re going to fight me seriously, huh?" Cirrus sees the shield is bent. "(Damocles)." The shield creaks and returns to its normal shape.
"So it’s magnetism. How interesting. No wonder you made movements I couldn’t copy. A style built entirely around your magic. "
"Finally took you what? Almost an entire year to figure it out? Hera was right, you are a thick-headed girl." He said with a smirk as he put his shield on his back.
"!!" Alfia opened her eyes in anger. "I’ll be sure to preserve your voice in a nice jar when I’m done."
"Funny I was gonna say the same thing about your heterochronic eyes!!" Cirrus then kicked off the ground and began to twirl his spear. "(Damocles)!!"
The twirls became faster and faster. Alfia was able to keep up with him until she found an opening.
She deflected his swing and lunged in.
As she went in for the attack, she saw Cirrus make a smile and he said a single word.
"Hecton!"
Before her eyes, he disappeared from her view.
"??"
And a foot landed in her stomach-
Thud!!!
"Guh!?!?" She could feel a few of her ribs starting to crack.
-And was sent flying back over a cliff.
Crash!! Crash!! Crash!!
She went through 3 trees before stopping her momentum.
"Huff!! Huff!! Huff!!"
She looked up to see him above her on a cliffside.
"What’s wrong? You figured out one of my moves, but I still have a lot more to use. (Damocles, Sing) (Damocles)!!!!"
The metal of the spear turned white-hot before her own eyes, along with the shape-changing to that of a sickle spear. Cirrus then spun it to cool it off, yet it retained its shape. His armor faded off of him as he did this.
"H-how!?"
"Didn’t you know? Blacksmith was one of my development abilities. Now shall we see if you can live long enough to figure out my other tricks? "(Exousía, Adorn: Cretan)!!!" The armor equips on to him and he slashes the ground near him leaving a deep cut into it.
"The more I learn of you the more your noise becomes distinct and annoying." She got back up taking out a potion and drinking it down quickly.
"Thank you, but fighting you is mentally exhausting, so..."He kicked off again and went for a horizontal strike.
Cirrus began to spin rapidly. One could feel the sliced air around it and Alfia knew the dangers it posed.
"(Gospel)!!"
Cirrus kept moving and with the force of his spear along with his armor, he sliced into the attack, cutting it down the middle.
"Sound can’t travel where there is no medium!!"
"!?"
He had cut into the air so violently that he made a momentary space devoid of air.
"Now off you go to play with others!! RAAAAA!!!!!"
His charge has increased even more, and with no room to breathe. Cirrus charged right into her with Alfia blocking his attack with her sword, but she was still pushed back.
"Guh!! Your dam armor!! (Lugio)!!"
Boom! Boom!
Cirrus’s magic armor exploded, and his charge stopped.
"Huff! huff!...come on I know your-!!"
A fist pierced through the smoke and landed square in her face.
"Gah!?!?" Her head and even her eyes rolled back a bit before she willed herself back.
Now she finds herself backed against a toppled tree.
"That’s something new?" The armor then reappeared again. "Let's see how good you are in hand to hand!!" He kicked off with his fists clenched.
"You damn monster!!" She shouted with a bloody nose and eyes widening. In a single movement, she ripped her dress to reveal her bare legs and the spats she was wearing and came at Cirrus.
Cirrus threw his fist first, and Alfia bobbed and weaved, striking Cirrus, but she found his armor was as thick as it looked, absorbing the blow.
"Shit!" She kicked back to get some distance, but Cirrus didn’t relent.
Swish!! Swish!! Swish!! Swish!! Swish!!
Alfia knew both from experience and instinct how he was going to move. After all, Hera herself was not shy about using physical force.
"Your Pankration is spotty!!" She shouted, continuing to bob and weave his attacks.
"Hand to hand is not my forte! But surprises are!!"
"Try and-thud!!" Alfia could see Cirrus getting lower. She felt something hit the bottom of her feet, sending her up.
‘What the!? How did-!?’ She looked to see Cirrus’s shadow shift. ‘He doesn’t need to call it!?’
"Come over here!!" Cirrus grabbed her by the legs.
"(Gospel)!!!"
Blocks of sound struck Cirrus, but he brute-forced his way through and swung Alfia back into the ground.
"Raaaaah!!!!!"
Crash!!!
"Gak!!!" Small amounts of blood came out of her mouth. "(Gospel)!!!" She chanted again.
Cirrus blocked the attack, but he was sent back a bit, enough for Alfia to get up again and drink a potion.
"You…" She said weakly. "You are not normal."
"Of course not but neither are you!" Cirrus held his hand before her as his armor disappeared. Underneath the armor he was rather bloody. "I’m too busy to deal with you. (Exousía, Adorn: Ceryneian). Snap!!" As the armor wrapped around him, he used the Magic Eaters, A shock wave struck Alfia sending her back.
"Gah!?"
Cirrus quickly covered the distance and grabbed her arm.
"How about a little trip!!"
"!?"
Cirrus threw her across the 18th floor with all of his strength to just fling her like a ragdoll.
"Gaaah!!!!" Alfia shouted in pain of her arm popping off from her joint.
‘He nearly tore off my arm! He’s far! Far stronger now!! His speed, strength, endurance, everything feels like he’s a level-DAMMIT!! Why didn’t I think he would have leveled up!!! But this strength! It rattles me to my bones, I’m not surprised it causes fractures to level 7 adventures on mere impact!! Child of the Tyrant!!!! Nephele!! You gave birth to a dam monster!!’
Crash!!
Alfia collides with the floor's walls.
"Cough!!!" she coughed up blood intently from the sheer impact. "Dam…mit."
She slowly removes herself from the hole and falls down to see the Astraea Familia and everyone else.
"So you all came as well…what rotten luck." She said as she popped her shoulder back into place.
"Alfia! How did you get past the barrier!!" shouted Riveria.
"None of your concern, I’ll just have to deal with you before that monster comes here."
‘If he makes it out of here alive, he will be this era’s hope or its doom.’
Back to the present.
"So the Nightmare’s flame blasts are reaching the lower floors?" Cirrus said, walking through the inferno of the once lush 18th floor.
‘Yup! That’s what Gareth said!’ said Circe.
"Haaa…great. Did Nox report in?"
‘Yup! Ai and Nox are on their way down now! They should be on the 14th reaching the 15th floor soon.'
"Good now…do you think I can slow the monster down?"
‘You don’t plan on actually facing it alone are you?’
"Well someone has to while they are dealing with Alfia."
‘…You’re on your own on this one I’m not a skilled flyer like Nox is so I’ll be staying here reporting to you on the situation.’
"That’s fine, I never want to put you in more danger than you are. I know your strengths are not on the frontlines. "
‘Good luck!! But if you are in actual danger do summon me! I WILL fight for you.’
"Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind."
A geyser of fire appeared near Cirrus, reaching higher than he could see, and after it faded, Cirrus looked down at it.
‘Just like the Valgang Dragons, so be it.’
He disengages his armor, showing a rather bloody mess.
"Lugio huh? So it makes magic power explode…dangerous trick in your arsenal. " Cirrus walks up to the hole. "(Exousía, Adorn)!!"
Cirrus then dropped down the hole as his injuries quickly heal.
Woosh!
Woosh!
Fuwaah!
The scene on the 19th floor was an utter scene of true hell, the once lustrous forest floor now filled with lava, fire, and toxic gases.
But the thing that truly cemented this place as hell was the Nightmare. A massive black dragon that looked like a winged serpent with purple flames spewing from different parts of its body.
"Heh…hehahahaahahahahha!!!!!!!!!!!! THIS IS THE NIGHTMARE!!! A Black Dragon! WHAT FUCKING LUCK!!!! DISENGAGE!!!" Cirrus’s anger rose exponentially from seeing it. The more he looked at the black dragon, the more he wanted to kill it.
The dragon spotted Cirrus and fired several blasts of purple flame at him.
"(Exousía, Adorn: Stymphalian)!!!"
Bwoosh!! Bwoosh!!
Bwoosh!!
Bwoosh!! Bwoosh!!
Cirrus avoids the blasts and flies towards the dragon.
"Hey there, you dragon piece of shit!! (Sing your Vespers.)!!"
Cirrus fired off several of his metal feathers and with the lighting crashed into the dragon but with no visible damage.
"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" It roars in retaliation.
"You’re really living up to the name of a Black Dragon!!!" Cirrus then draws out Gram. "Well then, Gram!! It’s time to make you into a Dragon-Slaying Sword!!!" The ruby and emerald blade glowed with runes on the spine of the blade. "RAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Cirrus was channeling all of his anger at the dragon.
Back in the Room of Prayer.
"To think a black dragon would be the Nightmare." said Ouranos.
"This…is vastly unexpected! Cirrus’s attack did nothing!" said Fels. "It’s on the same-no greater strength than the Hecatoncheires!! It’s at least a level 9!"
"…Then let us wait and see how the situation goes, I know Cirrus will not go down without a fight."
They watched as down on the 19th floor, thunder and lightning crashed into the dragon. Sword and steel could be heard among the sounds of battle that spread throughout the 18th floor like omens of battle.
The 15th floor.
"Huff! huff! I need to keep going!!" "Ai!" exclaimed Ai.
"That’s enough! Let me take it from here! I know these floors like the back of my head!! So just rest on my back, okay! "
Nox turned into an owl large enough to carry Ai on.
"Hurry!" She got on, and Nox quickly began to fly.
Thanks for the chapter and congratulation on Castoria.
TFTC congrats on the castoria 🎉
Thanks forvthe chapter! and congratz on the castoria
thanks for the chapter
To think one of the alternate Endings for this is Ai dying and what follows gives me chills.