“Carla…”
This wasn’t a dungeon. In this place where only a tilted moon and a stone floor were visible, Carla was waiting for me, clad in a brand-new, pure white dress, a crescent moon-like smile on her lips.
So, she was the one who interfered with the Spirit’s space…
“The innermost area?”
The innermost area of the dungeon wasn’t the lowest level? Camille had said there was an altar in a wide space. The dungeons Elena and I had explored before also had altars on their lowest levels, and I was summoned from there to the space where the Spirits were.
Carla’s black hair swayed slightly, as if laughing, at the question that involuntarily escaped my lips.
“That’s right, Aria. This is the dungeon’s ‘innermost area.’ Indeed, no one should have been able to reach it. After all, the real innermost area was ‘above’ the Evil Race Fortress.”
“…What does that mean?”
Carla told me her theory, saying, “It’s just speculation, okay?”
First, the lowest level that Camille saw wasn’t the innermost area but just a ‘waiting room,’ and the altar wasn’t real but just a teleportation device.
“And to fulfill your true ‘Desire,’ you had to come to this place.”
The Spirits of the dungeons grant 【Divine Protection (Gifts)】 in the form of “Desires.” However, what the first Evil King, who first reached this innermost area, desired was a “Wish.”
To fulfill such a vague “Wish” as a “Desire,” this dungeon transformed into a dungeon for fulfilling “Wishes.” Even if one couldn’t reach the innermost area, as long as it aligned with the first Evil King’s “Desire” of “the Evil Race’s survival,” it probably fulfilled the “Wishes” of those who reached the lowest level.
To fulfill a “Desire” like the first Evil King, not just a “Wish,” one had to reach this place on their own.
Carla called the lowest level a “waiting room” because originally, only the Evil King who arrived would head to the innermost area, and the subordinates would be left there.
That’s because a “qualification” was needed to enter the innermost area, Carla said.
“How did you get in here?”
“It’s strange to say ‘enter’ when we’re outside. The qualification is probably the power of will… maybe? But I don’t have any Desires or Wishes to have the Spirit fulfill, so when I tried to destroy the altar, I was teleported here.”
“…………”
…What a preposterous person. But that’s Carla for you.
“You really don’t have a ‘Desire’?”
When I asked that, Carla’s purple eyes, with dark circles under them, reflected me as she looked straight at me.
“No, I don’t.”
With the lightness of refusing a refill of tea, she dismissed the Spirit’s reward.
“When I came here, I heard the Spirit’s voice. It said it would fulfill any Wish I desired… But I don’t need any more 【Divine Protection (Gifts)】, and I don’t want to heal my body and become weaker. More than that, Aria, don’t you think it’s interesting?”
“What is?”
As always, the topic of conversation with Carla changes rapidly. But even to my curt reply, Carla cheerfully spread her arms and spun around on the stone floor.
“As always, you’re cold, just like you. The Evil Race tried to manage the dungeon to reach its innermost area, and as a result of messing up the dungeon, the ‘innermost area’ ended up in a place like this where no one can reach it, you know? Hehe.”
Indeed, that Evil Race Fortress had doors to go outside, but there were no stairs to reach the roof anywhere. Probably, the space was distorted so that it couldn’t be reached by normal means.
The reason Carla called this place the “innermost area” instead of “outside” was because this place was filled with an extremely high concentration of pure Mana Particles. Since it was filled with Spirit power, it could be rephrased as divine, but with this concentration, those not used to Mana would probably feel a drunken-like nausea.
Perhaps it was because it was directly connected to the Spirit’s space. Certainly, in this place, Carla could interfere with space by forcing it with her Mana.
The current Carla (……..) has that much “power.”
“Aria, are you still not changing?”
As if she heard my inner voice, Carla suddenly threw out those words.
Carla has changed (……..). Filled with power that was the opposite of her physical fragility, she had finally stepped into the realm of “Rank 5,” which only the strong could reach.
“I thought that you would reach a higher level in this battle, but was my outlook too naive? Or Aria… have you become a little soft?”
The aura I felt from Carla gradually changed to 《Intimidation》, and the overflowing Mana saturated, causing Carla’s undulating black hair to begin to spread—
“…Shall I kill you here?”
The vast Mana, which could no longer be contained, raged along with her Killing Intent.
“—【Iron Rose】—!”
“—【Soulthorn】—!”
Releasing our powers at the same time, my pink hair changed to a scorched, ash-iron color, and black thorns entwined Carla’s pale skin.
【Aria (Alicia)】【Race: Human Female】【Rank 4】
【Mana Capacity: 338/340】【HP: 267/270】
【Overall Combat Strength: 1497 (During Special Body Enhancement: 2797)】
【Combat Art: Iron Rose /Limit 338 Second】
Flipping her skirt, she drew out a throwing Knife without even a drawing motion. At the same time, I jumped out and swung the Slashing Style Pendulum down at Carla.
Carla erupted Mana from her entire body, and while jumping back from the recoil, she blew away the Knife with Mana.
“—【Air Bullet】—”
The moment Carla’s lips chanted the spell, dozens of wind-colored Mana Particles appeared around me.
Wind bullets that could obliterate even Rank 2 Monsters with a single blow rained down from all directions, as if to eliminate my escape route.
“—【Magic Shield】—”
Dodging the wind bullets while rotating acrobatically, and deflecting those I couldn’t avoid by deploying the 【Magic Shield】 for just a moment, I used the recoil to move forward and kicked Carla with the Blade on my heel.
Carla once again erupted Mana and evaded into the sky as if dancing. I immediately swung both arms and threw multiple Hidden Weapons from 【Shadow Storage】, focusing on speed rather than power.
“—【Air Curtain】—”
The throws, focused on speed, were deflected by the arrow-repelling spell.
“—【Light】—!”
At that moment, when I flashed the 【Light】 at maximum brightness towards Carla floating in the air, Carla’s Shadow wavered slightly. In that instant, I also danced into the air and swung down the Ball-Shaped Pendulum as if piercing through the wind defense.
Clang!!
“…【Rock Skin】…”
The blow from the Ball-Shaped Pendulum was deflected by the 【Rock Skin】 armor that Carla used. From behind Carla, Ice Spears oozed out as if waiting for me to jump out.
“—【Ice Lance】—”
“A-re (Quickly)!”
Exceeding the limits of human speed, I ran through the gaps between dozens of 【Ice Lances】, and the moment I swung the Black Knife towards Carla’s throat, Carla’s entire body was covered in “Black Thorns,” transforming into a grotesque, Monster-like figure.
【Carla Leicester】【Race: Human Female】【Rank 5】
【Mana Capacity: ∞/590】【HP: 45/52】
【Overall Combat Strength: 1711 (Special Combat Strength: 4906)】
Giiiin!!
“Ah♪”
Carla’s black-dyed arm deflected the Knife’s Blade, and the black fist, swung at high speed, blew me away, who was defending with gauntlets, along with my body.
While being blown away, I placed my hand on the floor like an acrobat and landed rolling. The moment I landed, Carla’s kick, which was pursuing, shattered the stone floor.
Barely evading, Carla and I, in the slowly scattering fragments of Thought Acceleration, simultaneously pointed our fingertips at each other.
“”—【Phantom Pain】—””
The same Magic released at the same time. But I, who received Carla’s 【Phantom Pain】, was attacked by a “Pain” that could be called the agony of death, and in that instant, I was kicked away by Carla.
Zusaaa!
“Kuh…”
“Cough… Is that all?”
Carla, who was bleeding from her mouth while releasing the Thorns, pointed the flame in her palm at me, who had fallen.
But Carla, who extinguished that flame in an instant, turned on her heel without even wiping the blood from her mouth that stained her white dress.
“That was fun, Aria. Be a little better when we meet next time.”
“…………”
Carla, with a carefree, childlike smile, said that and disappeared with 【Spatial Transfer (Teleport)】 as if nothing had happened.
“…So, this is Carla’s ‘Pain’.”
If she was constantly living in that agony, I felt that Carla’s hatred for the world was greater than death.
I reach out to the stars as I lie on my back. …So far. Is that Rank 5 Carla? And to think, she held back so much, only using magic of level 3 or below.
I’ve become soft. I can’t deny it if someone were to say that.
For the sake of my “vow” with Elena and my “promise” with Carla, I had to seek “strength,” even if it meant wearing down my body and mind. But I prioritized returning to Elena, protecting Camille’s life, and above all, “living.” As a result, I still haven’t obtained the power I sought.
That became the difference between me and Carla, who even overcame death.
I have to win against that… It’s going to be tough. I can’t win as I am now. But—
“I remember the ‘promise’… Carla.”
I clenched the hand I had extended towards the sky.
『—It seems to be over—』
“…Yeah.”
As I got up, the spirit’s presence reappeared and spoke to me.
“…Is that Carla’s ‘desire’?”
『—Indeed. Although there was interference, the reason that one was sent before you is because that one desired you—』
I understood from the first words. Carla, who had neither desire nor wish, sent me, whom she desired enough to interfere with the spirit’s space, and used that as a substitute for a “desire.”
I want to tell them not to involve me, but even if they seem reasonable, spirits are still spirits after all…
『—Child of man. I certainly caused you trouble. As a token of apology, I shall grant you not your “desire” but your “wish” upon reaching this place—』
“I have no ‘wish’ for you to grant.”
A wish… Elena wished for “healing” and lost her fire attribute as a price. Carla gained “power” at the cost of her lifespan. What did the first Evil King pay as a price for wishing for the survival of his race?
I have nothing I wish for. I don’t even think about becoming stronger with Divine Protection. But I remembered that my ultimate wish, unlike Carla who desires death, is to “live as myself.”
I can’t stay as I am.
Carla… I’ll become stronger as “me.”
And for Carla’s sake… just now, I had a “wish” different from becoming stronger.
“…Can I wish in her place?”
“Aria!”
After storing the received item into my 【Shadow Storage】, I was teleported by the spirit again, this time to a hall with an altar. Camille greeted me with a relieved expression.
“Aria, where have you been?!”
“It’s just the spirit’s whim again. Don’t worry about it.”
“…Is that so?”
Camille, still slightly intimidated by the killing intent from the battle with Carla, muttered, seemingly unconvinced.
So this is the lowest level… Looking around, I saw Dowhill and Charleschan, who, like Camille, must have heard the Evil King’s voice. They seemed to have stopped fighting but were still wary of each other in a tense atmosphere.
Certainly, they wouldn’t be satisfied with this outcome, having had their subordinates killed. Moreover, the conclusion was ambiguous, as it was reached by Carla, who was not one of them.
But this battle wasn’t entirely meaningless. Because they fought for their comrades at the risk of their lives, the Evil King’s life was extended, and Camille, the Evil King’s son, grew as a person.
In the end, it led to the survival of the Evil Race as a species. And—
“Aria, that person lent us their power… You know them, right?”
“…Yeah.”
Several figures were approaching us. Jesha, Kadri, Iseru, Nero…
“Master (Serejula)…”
“You’re alive and well, Taciturn Disciple (Aria).”
Not only Nero but also my master came. Even though she’s not in a condition to fight much…
Nero came to fight alongside me. And my master understood me and protected Camille and the others.
『Gaa…』
“Don’t sulk.”
When Nero, who had to leave me so soon after we met, growled in dissatisfaction, my master gave a wry smile with a slightly tired face.
For a moment, my heart relaxed—
『Gaa!!』
“っ!”
The moment Nero barked, countless needle-like blades rained down on us, and I and Nero deflected them with our knives and tentacles, protecting my master.
But—
“Kuh.”
“Master!”
One needle pierced my master’s shoulder, and she knelt down in agony, probably poisoned. And—
“…Aria.”
Camille, distracted by us, was stabbed in the abdomen from behind by “someone” with a broken sword-like blade.
Who is the sudden attacker? What about Camille’s safety?
Next time, the final battle in the Dungeon.