Episode 97: Collapse and Escape
Even so, the fragmented body of the snake turned into liquid, gathering again in one place.
Slowly rising was a mass of metal. Twisting and forming, it took the shape of that golem with four arms.
“Not again!” Kanzaki thought, but the next moment, he and Aisha witnessed something unbelievable.
Red streaks ran through the Iron Giant’s body, spreading throughout. The streaks glowed red, and steam rose from its body.
“Bloodstained Ore!?”
Kanzaki shouted in astonishment, while Aisha behind him was speechless.
With such tremendous power, they naturally assumed it was using the power of Bloodstained Ore. The Iron Giant had been overwhelming the Chimera in its base state.
“H-hey… could this be…”
Kanzaki muttered with a bloodless face, and Aisha swallowed hard.
“Yeah, from its current state… it means it’s going to get fifteen times stronger!”
Red plasma crackled from the giant’s body. The air inside the cave tensed, and the ground began to shake.
The three arms on each side melted into a viscous gel, creating one thick, long arm on each side. The giant carefully examined its completed powerful arms, clenched its hands, and made fists.
The moment it took a stance with both arms, it closed the distance with the golem in an instant.
Incredibly fast for its massive size.
Each time it stepped, the earth groaned as if exploding.
What it unleashed, putting its weight behind it, was the Seiken Zuki (Straight Punch) that Kanzaki had taught him.
The rotating fist exploded against the golem’s body, blowing away the golem’s right half. The destroyed part didn’t remain solid but instantly turned into liquid and scattered.
Not understanding what had happened, the giant lowered its stance and readied its fist against the faltering golem.
It unleashed a barrage of unstoppable, powerful blows.
This was also the boxing rush that Kanzaki had taught him. Even without Ego, he was embodying the fighting style he had learned with his body.
The golem’s body vanished without a trace. Everything turned into liquid, scattering like shadows.
Even so, the scattered liquid began to move again, gathering in one place to form a shape. But its appearance was not normal.
The head was a snake, the body a golem, the left hand a crab’s claw, the lower body the legs of a bull. It could no longer maintain its shape, and its appearance was truly befitting of the name Chimera.
“It’s been destroyed too much, it doesn’t have the power to regenerate anymore.”
At Aisha’s words, Kanzaki swallowed.
“T-then…”
The giant stepped forward and raised its thick right fist. The blood flowing through its body grew thicker and stronger, increasing its brilliance.
The earth shook and the ground shattered as it stepped forward with its left foot.
The unleashed ‘Seiken Zuki’ tore through the air and struck the misshapen monster the moment it connected—
The Chimera burst into sand.
◇◇◇
A large amount of sand piled up on the ground.
The sand mountain disappeared little by little, as if dancing in the air.
“H-he did it, he did it! Yuma did it!!”
Behind the overjoyed Kanzaki, Aisha slumped down.
“…To actually defeat it.”
Kanzaki came out from behind the rock and ran towards the giant.
The Iron Giant stood motionless, but after a while, it melted and returned to a round sphere.
Kanzaki went to the front of the giant sphere, not knowing what to do.
Tentatively, he touched the metal—
“This is…”
When he touched it, it was not liquid but hard metal.
Unable to do anything, Kanzaki stood still as the metal sphere gradually shrank.
Finally, it became human-sized and changed into the shape of a person.
There, Yuma was collapsed and unconscious.
“Yuma!!”
Kanzaki rushed over and put his fingers on his carotid artery. He breathed a sigh of relief because it was beating normally.
He picked up Yuma and called out to him repeatedly, “Hey, get a hold of yourself!” but there was no response. Aisha also rushed over.
“Is he okay?”
“Yeah, he’s breathing and has a pulse. There shouldn’t be any worries.”
At those words, Aisha was relieved when the ground shook and a rumble echoed through the cave.
“What is it!?”
As Kanzaki panicked, Aisha looked around and pointed overhead.
“Look at that!”
Along with a rumbling sound, a slope leading to the upper floor that had not existed before appeared.
Kanzaki carried Yuma on his back and ran towards the spiral slope that had formed along the wall. The ground shook in small increments, and cracks began to appear in the walls.
“Kotaro! The monster on the lowest level is dead. The Dungeon will disappear within twenty-four hours.
It’s collapsing from here, the lowest level!!”
“I know that! Let’s get out of here quickly!”
Kanzaki ran up the slope with Yuma on his back, followed by Aisha.
When they came out to the upper floor, the Monsters that should have been there were nowhere to be seen.
“The Monsters are gone… is it the effect of the Dungeon collapsing?”
Kanzaki looked around and was surprised by the change.
“I don’t know… there are hardly any examples of Dungeon Conquest in the first place.”
Aisha looked at the Dungeon with deep emotion, looking back at the path they had just taken.
“What’s wrong?”
Kanzaki called out to Aisha, who had suddenly stopped.
“This Dungeon is like a home to me. It was the best research place, but it’s going to disappear today…”
“Hey! This isn’t the time for that!!”
“What do you mean it’s not the time!? This is a matter of life and death for me!”
Kanzaki was dumbfounded. To be worried about her research at a time like this… but this is no place to dawdle.
Kanzaki grabbed Aisha’s wrist, said, “Come on!” and forcibly pulled her along.
Aisha grumbled, but he ignored her and hurried on. Kanzaki carried Yuma and pulled Aisha’s hand as he ran through the shaking cave.
It was much harder going up than going down, but he persevered with the thought of death, and finally carried Aisha, who had run out of strength, in his arms, and reached the exit in over twenty-two hours.
The Self-Defense Forces personnel at the entrance immediately found Kanzaki, who had come up breathless, and hurriedly took him to the medical room.
Small earthquakes continued in Yokohama, and the disappearance of the ‘Black Dungeon’ was confirmed that day.
This was received with shock by the Japanese government and local authorities, and by the time it reached the media, it was a big deal as ‘Japan’s First Dungeon Conquest!’