Chapter 133 - Closing In

Nova burst through the water surface with great speed, landing directly on the dry surface of the final room. The mix of cool air and warm sunlight felt extremely refreshing after being in the dim blue light for so long.

Anny was already there ahead of him, standing with her back turned while she stretched her neck in slow, deliberate motions. The gills along her throat sealed themselves, and water dripped from her hands as the webbing between her fingers gradually receded into normal flesh.

Nova doubled over, coughing violently as his body tried to expel the remaining seawater. A stream of salt-tinged liquid poured from his mouth back into the pool.

"God, I hate that transition," he muttered once his breath was back to normal. The familiar weight of gravity felt comforting after being suspended in water for so long.

He straightened slowly, working out the kinks in his spine, and turned to Anny. She was still facing away from him.

'She's avoiding me. Is it because of what Princess Naia said during our goodbye? Or the goodbye itself?'

The two girls didn’t seem particularly close, but Naia’s life was worthy of sympathy. Perhaps that was the part that weighed on her the most. That’s how he felt, at least.

‘Either way, there’s not much that needs to be said right now… Is there?’

The familiar blue glow announced the system's arrival before he could decide how to break through her defensive silence.

[Congratulations! Your party has cleared floor 9.]

[Your loot total comes out to:

965 x Pure KiloSouls

82 x Tier 9 Common loot

34 x Tier 9 Uncommon loot

9 x Tier 9 Rare loot

4 x Tier 9 Epic loot

2 x Tier 9 Legendary loot

Staff of Princess Naia (Legendary) {Tier 9}]

Nova's eyes widened as he read through the rewards. More kilosouls than they'd earned from any single floor, enough rare materials to craft several pieces of powerful gear, and that staff—Princess Naia's staff, somehow transferred to their possession.

‘Oh?! We got her staff? And two pieces of legendary loot? Is it because we solved the objective in a special way?’

Nova checked the staff in his core once it was handed over to him, finding the exact staff Naia had been using during their journey.

[Staff of Princess Naia (Legendary) {Grade 9}]

[A staff passed down through generations of royal mages in the kingdom of Pelagios. The staff greatly enhances magical control and lets the wielder control water with incredible acuity. It can create a powerful barrier that is sustained by the staff itself, and that will alert the wielder when it is broken.]

‘Yeah, this is definitely it. The barrier will likely come in handy, though the water control could be swapped for something better… But it will definitely make me far stronger than the staff I sacrificed, so this is a great gift.’

He chose to consider it exactly that—a gift from Naia, freely given despite the constraints of her existence. If the dungeon's rules had allowed her to choose, Nova felt almost certain she would have pressed the weapon into his hands willingly.

The other legendary item caught his attention next, drawing his focus to a heart that pulsed with deep blue energy. Even contained within his core, it radiated the primal power of the ancient leviathan they'd battled in the depths.

‘Leviathan heart. It would be a powerful transformation for Anny—even stronger than the full drake. However, without water, it would be of little use.’

He could surely find a use for it in his smithing.

The fact that the sun was out meant there would be people outside the dungeon, but Nova didn’t feel like that would matter much. Only the king himself would be able to give them much trouble in this country now, and he hardly had a reason to visit.

"Ready to leave?" he asked, watching Anny walk toward the exit with purposeful strides that still managed to avoid meeting his gaze.

"Yeah," she replied, voice carefully flat and emotionless. "There's no time to waste, right?"

"Correct. I might skip sleeping now and forge while you rest."

"No, you need rest as well."

"I can do without it. I have the Relentless Stamina trait, which means my body can go on forever."

"Your mind can't, though." Her voice carried a sharp edge of concern mixed with frustration. "You're still four years old physically."

"I'll be fine."

"Nova, are you underestimating floor 10?"

"...Honestly?" He ran a hand through his damp hair, frustration bleeding into his words. "I wouldn't mind going right now, then preparing more once we get to the entry chamber. I could maybe forge us some stuff, but we both have great weapons now, which is really the most important thing. And that way we can see what the objective and special effect is before deciding who will get the souls."

Anny's face went pale, then flushed with anger. "You are definitely underestimating floor 10! We wouldn't have made it through this floor without Naia on our side. And what makes you think floor 10 will be any less annoying with its special effect? It's been getting worse every floor!"

"Yes, that's all true," Nova shot back, his own temper rising, "but we have options! One of us will get past the one million barrier, giving us a massive boost in power!"

"Yeah, while the other will be weaker than the average creature on the next floor!" She stepped closer, voice rising. "Think a little!"

"I'm not asking you to join me!"

The words hung in the air like a slap. Anny recoiled as if he'd struck her, pain flashing across her features before being replaced by something fiercer.

"I have already joined you!" Her voice cracked with emotion. "Do you think I'd be here if not for you? Do you think I would be anywhere close to this place if you hadn't shown up in Damascus?!"

"That's not what—"

"I would die for you, right here on this spot!" The declaration erupted from her like a dam bursting. "So either we both go, or you don't!"

Her grey eyes, speckled with gold, stared straight at him as she said it. Nova felt his lie detection confirm what he already knew from the raw honesty in her voice—she was telling the truth. The simple, devastating truth shot through his heart, making a sharp ache run through his chest.

Before that moment, he wasn't sure if he could say the same thing to her. But looking at her now, seeing the fierce loyalty blazing in her eyes, he knew with sudden certainty that he really would be willing to die for her.

Whether that was love, he still wasn't sure.

"...I have a card up my sleeve," he said quietly.

"What card?" Suspicion replaced some of the hurt in her voice.

"One that could be really dangerous..." He hesitated, then pushed forward. "A heart."

Anny's eyes narrowed, then understanding dawned and they flew wide. "The Void Lord?"

"Exactly." Nova nodded grimly. "But I think it's too dangerous for you."

"On what basis?" The challenge in her voice was immediate, reflexive.

"The last time I took it out, you suddenly stood next to me, looking completely hypnotized by it." The memory made him uncomfortable. "I had to carry you back to bed."

"...Oh." The single syllable carried a weight of realization and embarrassment.

“Yeah. I’m almost certain it will influence your mind somehow, powers be damned.”

“But if I process it with the Sovereign technique?”

"...That might work." He paused, weighing the risks against their dire situation. "But like I said, it could be really dangerous."

"And going to floor 10 isn't?" She gestured sharply toward the dungeon exit.

Nova opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again. She had a point. The final floor would test them beyond anything they'd faced, and they were already operating at the edge of their capabilities.

"Well, it's..." He ran his fingers through his damp hair, sticking to his forehead. "We can make a decision when we know what we're facing. It will take you a while to absorb it either way, right?"

"Yeah, a couple of days at least." Anny's shoulders relaxed slightly as he conceded the point. "Hopefully, that will let me cultivate it before it becomes a problem."

Nova nodded, taking a deep breath that tasted of salt. He would prefer to avoid using the heart entirely, remembering all too well what influence the madness could have on her mind. But floor 10 would challenge them far more than any floor before it, and desperate times called for desperate measures.

“Then let’s go straight to the entrance. We can rest there if you need it.”

“Right… Let’s go.”

Nova slipped through the dungeon entrance like a shadow. His enhanced senses immediately caught the assault of old food and waste. The stench hit him like a physical blow and made tears gather in the corners of his eyes as he stepped through the barrier.

Trash was scattered across the room in careless piles—bread crusts gone moldy and green, strips of sausage skin dried to leather, fruit peels that had turned black with rot. Empty water bottles lay scattered like fallen soldiers, and chunks of what might once have been meat now resembled burnt coal more than anything edible. The debris painted a clear picture of someone living rough for far too long.

‘At least she didn’t starve… But judging by the mess, I’d say she’s been gone for at least two days.’

Anny arrived a few seconds behind Nova, not quite as adept at sneaking as he was. She took one breath of the fetid air and immediately grimaced. The back of her hand flew up to cover her nose. "I guess she stayed here for a while?"

“Yeah, about ten days, I’d say. Let me clean a bit.”

Essence reached out from his core as he felt for the scattered waste throughout the chamber. The magic responded to his will and lifted scraps of food and empty containers into the air like a slow-motion tornado. All the debris compressed together into a tight bundle before he guided the mass to a far corner where it wouldn't assault their senses as much.

A simple barrier formation took shape around the garbage pile, sealing both the air and the view.

"Thanks," Anny mumbled, lowering her hand from her nose as the air began to clear. "What's the damage?"

Nova's expression darkened as he turned toward the center of the room. "Worse than I thought." A step to the side revealed the blue message box that had been floating there since their arrival.

The box hung in the air with ominous stillness. Millie's presence had clearly activated it long ago when she first entered this floor.

[Floor 10 - Special Effect: All traits are disabled.]

[Objective: Defeat the Dungeon King]

[Party Size: 1 + 2]

Anny stared at the message for a long moment. "...Shit."

"Exactly." Nova's voice was flat with all emotion carefully controlled. "Now, I don't know if this will take away your beast transformations, but I'm almost certain it will remove my access to the fragments I've already absorbed. I would probably have to merge with them completely first."

"...This is so unfair." Anny's hands clenched into fists at her sides. "Even if I manage to get over a million Soul Power now, it won't matter without my trait."

“You think you’ll lose your beast powers?”

"Yeah, the wording is clear enough." Bitter acceptance colored her voice. "The trait grants me access to the powers I once made my own. So no trait, no access to anything I've cultivated."

"But they've been tied to your very being through the Thousand Beast Sovereign technique. How could they remove that?"

"Well, it might not, but let's assume the worst here..." Anny frowned, considering alternatives. "Can you sense how far Millie is from here?"

Nova closed his eyes and concentrated on the ring connection that should lead them to her. A pulse of essence reached out, searching for that familiar signature among the chaos of the final floor.

"Yeah, about five kilometers. Too far to communicate, but she's there."

‘Although, how in the world she has managed to survive out there remains a mystery. It could be that something else has equipped her ring, but it seems unlikely… Or at least that’s what I choose to believe.’

"That's not bad. But it's hard to say what we'll meet once we get out of here." Anny adjusted her gear with sharp, efficient movements. Her attention was mainly on the sword, which she still hadn’t been allowed to test properly.

"It says we have to defeat the dungeon king..." Nova gestured toward the floating message. "I'm fairly confident that will be a hard match."

"Even with our traits..." Anny's voice trailed off as the full implications settled over them both. "So, you absorb enough souls to reach one million, then you absorb the fragment right away?"

"I think that's the safest route." Nova nodded, searching through the wording of his traits to make sure nothing else would surprise him too much. "They surely can't remove the fragments I've already absorbed, since those are part of my soul now. That's also why I think you'll be fine."

"I'll still have the drake, either way. And the Void Lord." Determination flickered in her eyes despite the uncertainty ahead.

"Let's not be hasty." Nova held up a cautioning hand. "I can leave alone first, then scout the place for a while to let you know if you should absorb it."

Anny was quiet for a long moment, studying his face with those sharp grey eyes that seemed to see straight through him. Whatever internal debate played out behind her expression, it ended with a reluctant nod.

"...Sure."

Ch.132 --I-- Index --I-- Ch.134