"Congratulations on clearing the ninetieth layer!"
"Thank you!! We couldn’t have done it without everyone!"
The news that Ealdred Crow’s Team 1 had beco the second group to get through the ninetieth layer sparked a wave of celebration at the Clan House. Rook, the Clan Leader, was practically glowing as he was tossed into the air by his fellow mbers, no doubt thrilled to have contributed once again as an active Explorer.
Among the crowd, long-standing mbers like Sova and Bittman basked in warm congratulations from familiar faces, offering modest nods in return. And yet, their eyes occasionally wandered, faintly tinged with lancholy; the absence of those not present was keenly felt.
Off to the side, Stephanie approached the manager in charge of the team.
"You’ve prepared the counterasures for the ninety-first layer, I presu?"
"Yes, everything is in place."
"Good. Then please have the equipnt and strategy files ready imdiately."
"At once."
Ealdred Crow had been carefully observing Absolute Helix through Monitor broadcasts, with informants compiling daily reports. The data had already been parsed, strategies drafted, counter-equipnt forged. With all that in place, they now had a clear path to catching up.
As Stephanie turned to return to her room, a black-haired woman approached her nervously, her voice trembling.
"G-Good work out there… my Queen."
"…Yes. Good work," Stephanie replied, her expression unreadable.
The woman was Dorssia, Team 1’s recently promoted Paladin. About a year ago, she and Stephanie had been mbers in Tsutomu’s temporary team for his Healer guidance sessions.
At the ti, she’d been a failure. A castoff in Ealdred Crow with one foot out the door, all but resigned to a quiet exit from her life as an Explorer. But that fateful victory on the thirtieth layer had sparked sothing within her, and she had clawed her way up ever since. The Dark Knight Rigas and the Dualblader who had once fought beside them had both ascended to higher ranks and were now respected Explorers in their own right.
Even so, making it into Team 1 demanded more than just a mont of resolve. Without extraordinary effort and natural aptitude, the climb was impossible. Dorssia stood now, trembling slightly under Stephanie’s cool gaze, as if bracing herself against an invisible chill. But like Garm and Bittman, she carried a certain rare instinct, one vital to the role of a Tank.
[She understands her role, executes it without hesitation, and follows orders with unshakable resolve… even if those orders an throwing her life away. So long as they co from the one she calls her Queen.]
There was Bittman, the orthodox Tank who had shouldered party aggro alone and drawn public attention. Garm, the forr Mad Dog, had refined his instincts into discipline. And Hannah, whose evasion and counterstyle srized viewers on the Monitors, had also helped make the Tank role more visible, more popular. Sponsors had even begun attaching themselves to these faces. But the Tank role itself was still new, having been only established a little over a year ago, and far from fully matured compared to Attacker or Healer roles.
Explorers might claim to be used to dying, but most of those deaths were voluntary. They would rush in as if it was their last stand, pulling their own self-destruct switch. It was the kind of romanticized death that cornered soldiers sotis sought: a retreat into theatrics rather than perseverance.
But a Tank couldn’t afford to die so easily. Even with high VIT and constant healing, they had to endure pressure like a noose tightening slowly around their throat. They had to withstand the mounting tension of knowing that one misstep could an the collapse of the entire party.
To survive that burden required iron resolve. Bittman had tempered his through years of military service, watching comrades fall while continuing to protect civilians. Garm had it, too; he was willing to keep fighting even with limbs torn off, guts spilling out, determined to remain on the frontlines of God’s Dungeon.
[She said she liked insects… but I didn’t think she ant it literally. That kind of self-projection is just… disturbing.]
Dorssia referred to Stephanie as her ‘Queen,’ not in the noble sense, but more like a queen bee. She saw herself as a worker drone, her purpose singular and absolute: to obey her Queen’s commands without question or hesitation.
[Still, she’s proven useful. Having two Tanks who understand their roles and perform them efficiently makes the Corrupted Shell fight far easier. That much was obvious.]
Until now, Bittman had stood alone as Team 1’s Tank simply because no one else could match him. In a Dungeon where death was permanent, where nightmarish monsters road, few could survive at all, let alone thrive. And with Knight-type jobs largely dismissed during the early era of Dungeon exploration, finding another like him had been nearly impossible.
But from the mont Stephanie had first seen Dorssia in action, she’d known the woman was different. There was sothing in her deanor, in her vacant yet resolute eyes… that mirrored Stephanie’s own.
Stephanie had abandoned everything to conquer God’s Dungeon, all for Tsutomu’s sake. She trained, endured, and fought with the sole intent of having him look her way. She didn’t know what had driven Dorssia down her path, but she recognized a kindred spirit.
"Haah… haah… Your skill control is magnificent as always, my Queen!!"
"……"
Still, the woman was clearly unhinged.
The way she trembled with joy when given orders, the ecstasy in her voice when calling her ‘Queen’… it was all deeply, profoundly perverse. Stephanie could only sigh inwardly, wishing Dorssia would tone it down even a little.
After sparing her subordinate a glance usually reserved for suspicious strangers, Stephanie turned away. Her movents were, as usual, graceful, as was her routine skill control practice, which she executed almost subconsciously on her way back to her room.
◆
"Now then…"
Once Stephanie stepped into her room, she first made her way to the washbasin, peering into the mirror to ensure that her appearance was in proper order, lest she offend the eyes of her Tsutomu. Her spiral curls, slightly loosened from the day’s battle, were carefully pulled taut and wound again, returning them to their morning perfection. The dark circles that had recently beco a fixture beneath her eyes were concealed as best she could with makeup. Only after a final, full-body inspection did she retreat from the vanity and return to the center of the room.
Compared to before, Stephanie’s room had noticeably fewer articles and clippings about Tsutomu. She had once ticulously collected every article about him, not out of idle fandom but to reconcile the growing dissonance between the image of Tsutomu she carried in her mind and the man’s actual exploits. Back then, her imagination had to fill in the gaps between the written words.
But now, that dissonance had been obliterated by the sheer brilliance of his actions on the ninetieth layer. Reality had outpaced fantasy, and so the shrine of newspaper clippings had slowly begun to dwindle.
Even so, his photos still clung to the ceiling above her bed, and she continued to bow to them… every morning and every night, without fail.
[We’ve cleared the ninetieth layer, Mister Tsutomu. You may have gone ahead once more while we were stuck, but soon we WILL catch up. And then… uhuhuhu…!]
From here on, progress would be faster. They rely had to follow in the footsteps of Absolute Helix. Accidental reunions on the regular layers were bound to happen, and when they did, Tsutomu would have no choice but to see her, whether he found her unsettling or not.
If the opportunity arose, she would apologize properly for her previous misstep. Maybe, if fate were kind, that might lead to so small developnt between them. Stephanie wasn’t asking for much; simply being seen by him was enough. Even a mistake would be welco if it gave her a chance to be with him in a joint exploration. To watch him heal up close, to let him witness her way of a Healer in return… that would be nothing short of divine.
She lay back on her bed and gazed up at the ceiling, where Tsutomu’s photos awaited her, and fantasies blood like wildflowers in her mind. The skill wisps around her accelerated reflexively. Now that she had gotten past what she considered the roadblock between them — and thanks to being recognized by him, albeit indirectly through the Monitors — her ntal state had settled sowhat.. But the longing remained. That deep, consuming desire to be the only one he ever looked at would not so easily fade.
"Miss Stephanie?" The manager’s voice ca suddenly from outside the door. "The materials for the ninety-first layer are ready."
"…Yes, I’ll be right there. I’ll be back soon, Mister Tsutomu."
Though a flicker of disappointnt crossed her face at the interruption, she quickly masked it in deference to the photographs. With a composed smile and a graceful bow, she left the room.
▽▽
"Bittman, fall back! Dorssia, take the aggro and avoid the acid!"
"[…"
Bittman’s right hand had been reduced to bone by the acid of their opponent: a single Sli. Stephanie ordered him to retreat while Dorssia stepped in to draw the monster’s attention. Behind them, Rook, having lost all his Eidolons, began the summoning process anew.
"Take this!!"
From the rear, Sova hurled a bottle of highly volatile oil at the Sli, following up with a volley of fire-elental arrows. The creature ignited instantly, its surface puffing and blistering like mochi roasted over an open fire.
"Whoa–!"
The burning Sli suddenly launched itself into the air, spinning rapidly as it flung burning globs in every direction. Sova shielded his face with an arm and leaped back, while Stephanie raised a [ to block the attack.
The Sli landed, returned to its usual blue hue, and began to tremble violently before launching itself at Dorssia with terrifying speed, on par with an attack from the Winter General. She barely managed to react, but the creature latched onto her left arm.
The armor it touched began to hiss and dissolve almost instantly. Even with her high VIT modifiers, the acid showed no rcy. Her flesh began to lt away.
For most people, such a mont would induce panic — a natural reflex to thrash and claw at the Sli to pry it off. But doing so would only spread the damage. Hannah had died that very way, her body half-dissolved as she fought back instinctively.
Without flinching, Dorssia waited for an order from Stephanie.
"Dorssia, your shield! Shove it off, arm and all if necessary!"
"Yes, my Queen!"
Without hesitation, she used her shield like a cleaver, peeling the Sli from her arm even as it tore away what little remained of her flesh.
"[!"
Stephanie imdiately cast a healing skill, regrowing the destroyed tissue and restoring Dorssia’s left arm. At the sa ti, she finished healing Bittman’s injuries as well. Her sharp gaze then shifted to Sova, who was hurriedly fitting an Inferno Magic Stone into the shaft of his spear.
"There’s no need to rush. I understand that speed is essential on the ninety-first layer, especially when dealing with these Slis, but even Absolute Helix struggled at first. Our acid-resistant gear isn’t functioning properly yet, either, so for today, our goal is simply to recover Sli acid samples."
"We’ve gotta fight more of THESE!?" Sova shouted.
He drove his now-red-hot spear into the Sli, the heat radiating from the Inferno Stone making the weapon glow. But the creature’s core dodged the strikes, bobbing and weaving in an unnatural direction. Then, without warning, a tentacle-like appendage lashed out from within the Sli, sweeping across the area in a wide arc.
Sova clicked his tongue and leaped to evade, barely clearing the strike.
Even Absolute Helix had struggled with the ninety-first layer until they had finished developing proper anti-acid gear. Sova had expected it would be a grueling fight, but he had not anticipated this. Five people teaming up against a single Sli, and still they hadn’t managed to deliver a decisive blow.
His face twisted in humiliation, Sova finally reached for the weapon he wielded best: his long sword.
"…Didn’t think I’d ever draw this thing against a Sli."
"Yeah, it’s crazy. Took down even my layer-eighty Eidolons like they were nothing," Rook muttered. "You know, I’d love to add this Sli to my summoning roster."
"I’ve already collected the acid. We can go all out now," Stephanie called from behind them, crouched over a puddle of the Sli’s corrosive residue.
She had tested a variety of anti-acid materials, seeing which could withstand the Sli’s touch. Once she confird which held up, she began carefully bottling the sample while issuing orders.
Sova, anwhile, fixed his gaze on the Sli, surely the most unexpectedly troubleso enemy they had ever faced. He gripped the long sword tighter, adjusting his stance.
The battle dragged on for another ten minutes. The lack of proper anti-acid equipnt left the Tanks bearing far too much of the burden. Every one of the Sli’s attacks was laced with a highly corrosive acid that bypassed even high VIT modifiers. Even Bittman, pushing level 80, suffered serious damage every ti he took a hit.
"Haaah! Finally!!"
With a shout of frustrated triumph, Sova drove his long sword straight through the Sli’s core, destroying it.
The battle was won, but the cost was steep. Both Bittman and Dorssia had lost their armor completely to corrosion, and Sova had several of his own weapons half-lted beyond repair. As a result, he was in no mood to celebrate.
"…That was dangerous. The aggro almost shifted away from you there. [."
"Apologies, my Queen," Dorssia murmured.
Her tone was calm, but the state of her body was anything but. Anyone else would have begged for death, yet with aggro managent in consideration, Stephanie hadn’t been able to heal her mid-fight. Only now were her grievous wounds being restored.
"This fight confirms it: we’ll need anti-acid gear capable of mitigating Slis’ attacks if we’re to continue. For today, let’s withdraw. Fighting like this is a waste of ti. We’d be better off gaining so more levels elsewhere."
"Yeah, that sounds right–"
Sova’s agreent cut off mid-sentence. His eyes flicked upward, toward the sky behind them. A single arrow flew overhead, slicing the air with extraordinary force.
"–Uh, that’s not sothing a Goblin could shoot, right…?"
"…!?"
Stephanie’s heart skipped a beat.
It could not be who she thought it was. She refused to believe it based on one arrow. Maybe Diniel had simply co here alone for practice. That was still plausible.
Besides, Tsutomu wouldn’t co to the ninety-first layer, this very layer, knowing Stephanie was here. According to Sova, who had actually spoken to him face-to-face, Tsutomu had taken the Guild incident to heart. And Stephanie could admit, now that she was more ntally stable, that the incident had been nothing short of catastrophic.
Indeed, knowing she was here, he would not co. That made sense. Stephanie understood that.
But even so, she couldn’t stop herself from staring in the direction the arrow had flown from.
"…Ah."
Figures erged from the distance.
One. Two. Three. Four…
"…Ah… ahh…"
Only ten people in the world could enter the ninety-first layer right now.
And she would never mistake that fifth figure.
He was flying, staff in his right hand, white hood dancing in the wind.
Wherever Ealdred Crow went, Absolute Helix’s main party was never far behind. And now, Stephanie could do nothing but watch, her face stricken with awe as though witnessing the descent of a ‘god’.
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