"Die!"
With a roar, Tiona moved back and forth through the monster group. The massive Great Double-Bladed Axe in her hands swung with fierce power, leaving no openings. With swift speed, Tiona showed no sense of danger, continuously cutting down the monsters before her. "That's the fifth one!" A powerful strike cleaved an enemy in two. Her decisive attacks exemplified her title: Great Severance! After killing the enemy in front of her, Tiona ignored the corpse and charged directly towards the next monster.
"This idiot! Follow her, Ais!"
"Understood!"
Hearing Tione's command, Ais flashed like silver light, instantly scattering the monsters attempting to surround her. This was the 51st floor of the Dungeon, an extremely rare labyrinthine terrain, and such terrain was uncommon even in the deep floors. Flat walls, floors, and ceilings, along with countless perfectly straight natural underground passages, formed numerous corners and crossroads. The pitch-black walls were neither stone nor earth, and the only light came from the phosphorescence overhead. In the spacious straight passages, Ais and her companions battled the monsters of the 51st floor.
Black Rhinos—monsters that moved on two legs with their bodies hunched forward. Though less than two meters tall, their bodies were incredibly muscular, possessing hardness far superior to the Fomorians of the 49th floor. The Fomorians were mere children in their presence.
However, their opponents were no ordinary people, but the elite team of the Loki Familia.
"Hah!" Tiona leaped mid-air, her Great Double-Bladed Axe cleaving an approaching Black Rhino in two, then with a powerful slap, she sent another Black Rhino flying. Before the thrown Black Rhino even landed, a silver light flashed, and it instantly transformed into a magic stone as Ais engaged it. With her unparalleled speed, Ais flickered through the monster group, and with every swing of her sword, a Black Rhino was slain.
Release, Light Arrow!
Holy Wood Bowstring, I am the Master of the Bow!
Intercept! Elf Marksman!
Pierce! Infallible Arrow!
About ten meters from where Ais and Tiona were battling, the elf girl Lefiya chanted a magic spell in a graceful, rhythmic tone.
"Arc Ray!"
A golden beam of light shot from Lefiya's hand. The dazzling light instantly traversed the distance, striking a massive spider monster, secretly born from the ceiling, which was annihilated by Lefiya's Arc Ray before it could do anything.
"Ais, Miss Tiona, please watch out for the Distorted Spiders on the ceiling!"
"Good job, Lefiya!" Tiona shouted in response to Lefiya's warning. Even Ais found an opportunity in the battle to nod at Tiona. Seeing their reactions, Lefiya blushed and smiled. She was extremely pleased with her own change.
"You're getting more and more confident, Lefiya!" Shirou, aiming his bow at a Black Rhino, shot an arrow, then lowered his head and praised Lefiya with a smile. If this were the old Lefiya, she probably wouldn't even be able to finish chanting! As soon as Shirou finished speaking, an explosion erupted, and the destructive power of Broken Phantasm swept through everything around it.
As the power of Broken Phantasm became outdated, Shirou had been searching for an opportunity to change it. Finally, Shirou found a new attack method: using increasingly powerful arrows to shoot into the enemy's body for an internal explosion, causing damage even to LV.5 durability. This attack was precisely that.
"Shirou, four more are coming from the right passage, they're yours!"
"Don't worry, Tione, I'll take care of them all."
Abandoning his attack, Shirou re-projected his reinforced greatsword version of Kanshou and Bakuya and charged forward. Tione, serving as the mid-guard, directed the battle while supporting the attack by throwing daggers. Coupled with the magic attacks of Lefiya, who was no longer timid, the monsters were quickly wiped out.
"Well done, Lefiya, this is all thanks to you!"
"That's right, Lefiya did great!"
"Indeed, incredibly reliable!"
As seniors, Tione and the others were not stingy with praise for their reliable junior.
"I'm not that good!"
"Don't be modest, Lefiya, just accept your seniors' praise!"
Shirou gently patted Lefiya's shoulder and also praised her. After some compliments, the five of them began to collect magic stones and dropped materials. Originally, Tione didn't intend to collect materials, but this small team operation was different. A team with two supporters, Shirou and Lefiya, still had the leeway to collect some dropped materials. After collecting the materials, the group of five once again set off toward Cadmus Spring.
In the five-person team, Tiona was the vanguard, leading the way. Tione, as the mid-guard, protected Shirou and Lefiya, who walked in the middle. Ais, the strongest, walked at the very end, covering their rear. Facing the monsters of the 51st floor, the group pressed forward irresistibly.
"I feel like there aren't many monsters coming out today!"
"Isn't it better if they avoid us? If we can complete the request without fighting, that's truly a blessing!"
"That's not what I meant! Never mind!"
After that, although they encountered monsters several more times, the five of them successfully dealt with them. But the deeper they went, the more uneasy Shirou became!
"Something's very wrong!"
"What's wrong?"
Hearing Shirou's sudden words, everyone was startled but quickly asked seriously.
"The number of these monsters is too strange! It doesn't match the expected intensity of the 51st floor. Could we be facing an Anomalous State?"
"Anomalous State!"
Hearing this term, everyone's hearts tightened. For adventurers, the most dangerous thing was an Anomalous State. It always subtly set up a trap for adventurers, then claimed their lives. Tione's heart skipped a beat as she pondered. This place was indeed too unusual, completely different from how it used to be.
"Forced march! Don't linger here too long; quickly head to Cadmus Spring!"
"Yes!"
It wasn't just Tione; everyone became nervous after hearing about the Anomalous State. If they encountered one here, even they wouldn't be able to handle it! Especially since they were already very close to Cadmus Spring. If an Anomalous State attracted the Cadmus, the guardian of the spring, that would truly be troublesome.
Their pace quickened. As the path beneath their feet grew narrower, Tione knew they were nearing their destination. Just then, she ordered the team to stop.
"We are about to reach Cadmus Spring. Before that, let's confirm the important points!"
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter