Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

At this moment, the only "justice" exists for the sake of the boy and her.

"Therefore!...I will never let go!"

Like dewdrops sliding off leaves in the rain, the sweet dew dripped into Ryu's withered heart. Ryu's heart was repeatedly stirred with ripples.

This "cruel fate"... there's no reason for the "deeper" to let them go. Ryu understands this perfectly.

But even if it was just a fleeting thought, even if it was only for a moment—she did want to live.

She couldn't help but hope that she could live on with the boy and return to Seele and the others.

“Mmmmm…!”

But it seemed as if they wanted to trample on her wish—

A shadowy figure, mocking Ryu and Bell's hopes, appeared before them.

"...!? Barbarian warrior...!"

Faced with the massive monster blocking their path while breathing heavily, Ryu and Bell were speechless.

The "Brutal Warrior" was injured. Like Bell and the others, he was likely one of those who survived a fall from the arena. His muscular shoulders and arms were covered in scale-like rock fragments, and his horn was broken off.

The blood-covered monster's eyes blazed with rage as it glared at Bell and his companions as if they were its enemies.

“Hmm…!?”

The location was a narrow, single road, with nowhere to escape.

Seeing Bell standing there frozen in place, the "Brutal Warrior" gleamed with malice.

"Gaaaaaa!"

“Ugh!?”

A colossal figure charged forward, wielding a club high.

At this moment, Bale has no way to stop this attack.

Bell dropped Ryu at the last second, and was then sent flying like a piece of paper by the blow that shattered the ground.

"Ugh...!? Mr. Craney!"

As Ryu was slammed to the ground, Bell, who was sent flying by the impact, flew into the air, bounced on the ground, rolled for a while, and then came to a stop.

His body didn't move an inch; his battered limbs had no strength left to fight. His eyes, hidden by his bangs, were shrouded in shadow, making him look as if he had stopped breathing.

Once again plunged into the abyss of despair, Ryu was so overcome with grief that she could not maintain her expression.

"—Mr. Crannie! Get up!"

Liu shouted.

She tried to stand up with her last bit of strength, but she couldn't move. Her injured right foot kept slipping, causing her to fall awkwardly. She couldn't get herself up from the ground.

Ignoring the broken-winged fairy (elf), the "Brutal Warrior" moved toward the fallen Bell.

"Mr. Craney! ... Bell!! Answer me now!"

Ryu didn't realize that the voice she used to call the boy had changed.

Liu was unaware that she was gripped by panic.

She abandoned her usual composure and kept calling his name.

However, the boy's body, lying on the ground, refused to answer.

The monster, cold-blooded and ruthless, slowly approached him, intending to deliver a fatal blow.

"Bell, Bell!... Please... answer me..."

The voice calling the boy's name became weak and feeble.

In the sky-blue eyes, the image of Bell lying on the ground overlapped with that of his fallen comrade.

No, no.

I don't want to lose it again.

I don't want to open my heart to the sentiment I received.

He's the only one I don't want to lose.

Finally, my (Ryu's) heart is about to change—

Ryu's wish was in vain, as the "Brutal Warrior" stopped in front of Bell.

It probably wanted to bite him directly, so it grabbed Bell's head with one hand and slowly lifted him up.

"No, don't, wait..."

She slowly shook her head, tears welling in her eyes, and stretched out her trembling hand.

The mask of [Gale], toyed with by despair, has been peeled off.

That was Ryu's truest self.

She is not the feared Elf known as "Swift Wind," but a frail girl weeping as something precious is about to be taken away. She is Ryu's true form, hidden beneath the armor and mask of an adventurer.

She forgot her usual tone and, in the voice of a weak young girl, pleaded incessantly and meaninglessly.

"Please...don't..."

The boy's body swayed slightly as his legs went weak and he was lifted off the ground.

The monster's massive jaws opened wide, revealing its hideous fangs.

"Bell!!"

Then...

Just as Ryu's tears welled up...

“──!!”

His deep red eyes, hidden beneath his brows, snapped open, and he drew a sharp weapon from his waist.

He plunged his gleaming white dagger, "White Illusion," into the monster's chest.

"Goo yeah!?"

An unexpected stab at extremely close range.

The "savage warrior," whose "magic stone" was accurately pierced through the center of his chest, turned his shock into a dying scream.

A large amount of "dust" collapsed, and Bell, who had been captured, was thrown into it.

Upon seeing this scene, time seemed to stand still for Ryu.

“Eh…?”

Amidst the rising dust and swirling smoke, the boy's figure trembled as he stood up.

Bell slowly walked over to Ryu, who was still trying to understand what was happening.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Ryu... I did this to lure the enemy (monster) away..."

"what……"

This sentence made Liu understand.

She then realized that it was all a "strategy" to defeat the monster.

That was the "one-hit kill" technique that Ryu had taught him, targeting the "magic stone." Bel, who didn't even have the strength to lift his arm, was waiting for the large-scale (barbarian warrior) to invite him into its arms.

In order to deliver a powerful blow to the enemy's chest where the "magic stone" was hidden, he pretended to be a helpless prey.

A truly final gamble.

"I heard Ms. Ryu's voice, but... um, I'm sorry."

Bell knelt down in front of Ryu and helped her up from the ground.

Ryu sat down and stared blankly at Belchior for a moment... but then her face flushed red, as if she had forgotten her current predicament.

He heard a girl's voice.

Hearing that weak voice.

I felt like Bell seemed a bit awkward.

Because of shame, Ryu raised her hand high, her eyes filled with tears.

She wanted to slap Bell, who had her eyes closed... but in the end, she lowered her hand.

Unable to resist the feeling of comfort, Ryu buried her face in Bell's chest as if she were crying against him.

"Please... don't do that again..."

"……sorry."

She pressed her forehead against Bell's chest and whispered.

Bell, who had worried Ryu, looked at her hair and softly apologized. The sound of his heartbeat through her ear told Ryu that the boy was alive and well. That alone was enough for Ryu to forgive everything he had done.

A little while later, Bell carried the immobile Liu on his back.

The two walked along the dark, one-way street.

Although his steps were precarious, like a mud boat crossing a river, it reassured Liu.

Even though this was merely a prolonged journey toward certain death.

(...No monster aura? No monsters around...?)

The dimly lit passageway was littered with rubble and piles of monster corpses, yet there was no sense of prying eyes, hostility, or murderous intent. The "savage warriors" they had just fought were merely monsters that had fallen from the arena. Was it just luck that no monsters had been born nearby? Ryu pondered with his mentally exhausted mind.

At this moment, Bell stopped walking.

Ahead, in the depths of the darkness, the passage that originally had only one direction turned.

A faint blue light emanated from around the corner.

They had to be on high alert when they saw changes in the scenery within the dungeon. That said, they couldn't turn back; the road behind them had collapsed and was blocked.

Bell and Liu walked nervously to the front of the bend.

then……

“──!!”

The sight that came into view made Liu gasp.

Because a "water flow" has appeared in the middle of a single road that is the same width as before.

"river……?"

Just as Bell whispered, the place before them was the source of a clear, blue stream.

Water gushes from the rocky, base-like formation and stretches all the way to the far end of the straight path—far beyond the horizon.

"There's a water source on the 37th floor...?"

Liu had never heard of such a thing.

In the "White Palace," whose entire structure is composed of whitish-white rock, it is difficult to obtain food and water, which is why Ryu made escaping to the "lower levels" her primary objective. Even Ryu, who had reached the 41st level with her companions from the [Asteria Familia], was unaware that such an area existed.

"I never imagined there would be such a place beneath the arena... No, it's precisely because the arena is a place no one wants to approach that it has remained undiscovered for so long...?"

When Liu's observations were uttered in a low voice, Bell made up his mind to take the first step.

In any case, the long-awaited water finally arrived. To quench his parched throat, he planned to go closer to the river.

"...!"

But at that moment, Bale's knees finally gave way.

Unconsciously losing their balance, Bell and Ryu tumbled into the clear stream.

The impact of the fall caused the long green cloak to fall off and fly into the air.

"...Bell!"

Completely soaked, Ryu used her hands to support herself and raised her head.

Bell sank into the water beside her, offering no response. The boy, seemingly having lost his last strength, closed his eyes tightly at the bottom of the clear water, with only bubbles rising to the surface.

Fortunately, the water was shallow. But Bell's body was bleeding, and in the blink of an eye, the clear blue stream was tinged with light red. Panicked, Ryu reached out to grab Bell.