Ihoujin, Dungeon ni Moguru

Chapter 069: Lola Of The Maniacal Floor II

Translator: Solo

「The grace of the hidden name」

I nocked an arrow, and then channeled a small amount of magic power into the hand drawing the bowstring. No, it didn’t accept my magic power and the hero possessing the hand protector imbued the arrow with a feeling similar to ecstasy instead.

Found you.

Those words and rampaging emotions made my blood boil. The Lycan bow creaked.

The arrow won’t miss.

As if it would miss a second time.

This one arrow will put an end to it all.

It’s time to put the quarry that had escaped being hunted down to rest. To put the long history between us to rest.

After hundreds of years, "I(feminine)" have encountered my sworn enemy again.

The faceless part of its head slid open, revealing a skull-like and wrinkled face. The darkness in its eye sockets was far darker than what was normal. The flesh on its arms sloughed off, and two scimitar-like claws emerged.

Its lower body disappeared like a mirage, and its skin drifted like a cloak off its skinny and emaciated upper body.

「It's an ironic appearance, but I won’t mistake you! Lolaaa!」

At my shout, Souya's party members and my girls froze.

Lola also uttered a shriek.

And then, tried to escape again.

The petty fool who called in the large spider that defiled this land and country is trying to escape again.

There’s probably no reason or intellect left in this trash anymore. This detritus has lived on in the dungeon only because of her obsessive desire to survive. By sipping on the lifeblood of monsters, sipping on the lifeblood of people, sipping on the blood of my descendants!

Die.

Die! I’ll finish you off here! Until your reason returns, I'll hurt you and force you to remember! What you did! What you triggered! And then, die! Die! Dragon-eater Lola! The shame(also means impurity) of the clan who ate my mother’s honor!

「Onii-chan! What's the matter?!」

「You’re in the way! Girl!」

My girl is in the path of the arrow. It’s a foolish act. That probably shows how much she trusts Souya. Even parents won’t stand in front of their children when they have an arrow nocked.

It’s a far too foolish act.

It's foolishness that has already doomed her to be pierced through at the same time as Lola.

Even if she’s my descendant, my obsession cannot be stopped.

I(masculine)……

……regained control of my body amid the torrent of emotions, and shifted the aim of the arrow to one side.

Rather than an arrow, what was released was more of a magical beam of destruction. It whizzed past Lola and largely destroyed the wall it hit.

As the sound of the explosion echoed in the passageway, Lola raised her claws overhead,

That wasn’t it.

She was spreading her cloak to abduct Ea.

No one,

No one other than me could see her. No one was even reacting. I ran, jumped, and struck her claw with my bow.

I though I heard Lola laugh.

Two hits, and both my shoulders were torn open by her claws. The blade-resistant poncho couldn’t stop them at all. Too optimistic blood sprayed from my wounds.

However, I had been able to cover Ea with my body. Lola tore my back asunder as she left. I felt heat rather than pain. I let out a breath. The taste of iron filled my mouth.

「Onii-chan!」

「It’s here, isn’t it?」

I had protected her.

I had my sister in my hands.

「Souya! What's with those wounds?」

Starting with Shuna, everyone in the party expressed their surprise at my wounds. They were unable to see “that”. It probably looked to them like my blood had sprayed out all of a sudden.

I had been caught off guard. I was aware that she was likely an opponent that Lumidia had a history with, but to think that she held so much anger and obsession towards Lola that she took over my body. She had almost been about to shoot an arrow through Ea.

「Lys, can you heal me please?」

「No problem」

I was still lying on top of my sister, but I couldn’t move. Perhaps because the wounds on my back were deep. Ea stroked my head with a worried look on her face.

「Gather light, heal, pray, and implore. In the name of――」

「Urgh」

Though it wasn’t as bad as when Rana healed me previously, heat and pain spread throughout my wounds. It felt as if the flesh on my back was fusing together and closing the wounds. It felt the same for the wounds on my shoulders as well.

「You’re fully healed」

The pain disappeared. With my sister lending me a shoulder to lean on, I stood up.

Naturally, my poncho and combat uniform remained torn.

「Lys-san, is what you’re called, right? What is that magic that you used? That healing speed. It's beyond the realm of human knowledge」

「Hah, mediocre mortals won’t understand it」

「What did you say?!」

Lys and Frey got confrontational. I had Shuna check the condition of my wounds, but it seemed that there were no problems.

Unexpectedly.

Otou-san was cloaked in an eerie silence.

………………Huh?

「No way」

I exclaimed as I surveyed the party.

Ea, Shuna, Lys, Frey, Lazarissa, Gashuraku-san, Otou-san.

「Rana?」

She wasn't there.

『Huh?』

Everyone except for Otou-san looked at one another in shock. It was no wonder. A person right beside them had disappeared all of a sudden. I would likely have been unable to cope with it if I hadn't been prepared.

I stepped away from Ea and snapped out of it.

「Yukikaze, you’re tracking her using the tracer, right?」

『Yes. Many apologies, team member Souya. There was a problem with Yuikikaze’s functionalities, and Yukikaze was unable to detect the anomaly with madam』

Rana’s location was displayed on the LCD. She was moving quickly. She was already more than 100 meters away.

「Souya, wait」

Otou-san stopped me right when I was about to dash after her.

「You saw it, right?」

「Yes」

「Got it, go after her. But leave all of your magic items here. The containers for the regeneration point too」

「Medimu, what are you saying?!」

My sister raised her voice at his suggestion.

「It’s a hunch I have. It has some way of detecting magic power. Listen, Souya. Find Princess Rauaryuna. And once you’ve found her, let me know the location. You must have learned from what just happened that you’re no match for it. Don't fight, you only need tell me the location. Using the techniques from a foreign land and your keen insight, see through the invisibility it possesses that has deceived numerous adventurers for over 30 years」

「Wait, wait, Medimu. Onii-chan can't protect himself without the magic sword」

「Don’t worry. We’ll take on all of the enemies」

Sounds were coming from a distance. Sounds of many “somethings” congregating at our location.

They were『seedlings』that had been drawn here by Lumidia’s arrow.

Furthermore, Otou-san took out a strange apparatus. It looked like a gun’s firing mechanism with a simple trigger attached.

「This apparatus is packed with the prohibited gunpowder. When I pull this trigger, it’ll make a loud boom. That’ll most likely call every『seedling』in the dungeon here. It's dangerous. I'm sorry, but brace yourselves. If you guys survive, I’ll pay you any compensation you desire」

As he was explaining, I was already getting ready.

I took out the needle that the Demon King had given me and removed the Heures’ hand protector. Having taken it off, I would no longer be able to use Lumidia’s power. I couldn’t care less about their past history and whatnot.

I took off the containers for the regeneration point hanging from my neck as well as the necklace given to me by Geto-san, and then dropped my quiver and placed the Lycan bow on the ground. Taking Agathion, I stabbed it into the ground.

「Agathion, don't protect me. Protect the party」

I gave the magic sword that order.

Rana's location had moved further. She had moved another 600 meters.

「Onii-chan, use this」

「No. You’ll definitely need it for the upcoming battle」

I turned down the compound bow that my sister had proffered to me.

That weapon would be needed for shooting『Mouths』when the battle got messy.

「I’ll be able to move more quietly if I travel light. Don’t worry, Ea. I’ll definitely save your Onee-chan」

「I know! But………sorry」

Ea was about to say something, but she swallowed her words back.

She’s a good sister. She’s too good for me.

「Souya, leave it to me」

「Shuna, I’m counting on you」

The words we shared were few. Between male friends, actions spoke louder than words.

「Here we go, cover your ears and open your mouths」

Without giving me any more time, Otou-san pulled the trigger.

The loud boom echoed through the dungeon. My head spun from the shock and noise of the explosion even though I had covered my ears.

After a short silence, the sounds of footsteps and moans came from the depths of the dungeon. White shadows surged towards us like a wave.

「I order you in the name of Gastolfo」

Frey stuck her staff into the floor and began chanting.

「Respond to my voice, reward my blood, this is a miracle, but just short of an act of god. Luteyugun of Kazaana and Ri?Bau, the color of death. Oh gods that are worshiped side by side, follow my orders and deprive」

She put her palms together, and when she spread them apart, between her palms was a mass of white fog.

「This breath is the harbinger of death. Oh life, disperse and fall. Hohens?Romea?Last Neomia」

She blew on the fog and white doom engulfed the passageway.

30『seedlings』were completely frozen by it.

「Lazarissa, do it」

「Got it, Ojou-sama」

Lazarissa leaned her body forward. Her tail was bigger and had extended further than usual. Using her tail like a third leg, she shot her body forward, tackling and blowing away the frozen『seedlings』.

The passageway opened up.

It was my path forward.

「Go, Souya. You will surely save my friend. After all, you’re a Brave who has been recognized by me」

Frey had the smile of a goddess on her face.

I gave her a small nod, and then dashed away.

『Seedlings』were surging forth in large numbers from the other end of the passageway and behind me, the party had started fighting.

I won’t look back anymore.

My party members are strong. They’re much stronger than I am.

However, there is an enemy that only I can see. That only I can defeat.

Save Rana. With just that one thought in my head, I plunged into the darkness.

Run.

Run.