Danmaku, my skills refresh weekly.

How long has it been since adventurers came to clear out monsters in the middle or even lower levels of the city?

After Zeus and Hera's departure, there were very few clans capable of undertaking expeditions. In addition, the rampage of the Dark Faction on the ground tied up most of the fighting force, resulting in the deep labyrinth being left unattended for a long time.

It is only natural that "elite" monsters, which are far superior to other monsters of the same level, would devour multiple magic stones and evolve into enhanced species.

I was careless; I didn't think of that!

In just a split second, Ciel's mouth reacted faster than his brain:

"Ais! Run!"

But... it was too late.

“Weak…” Ais’s eyes were bloodshot:

"Too weak! Monsters... dragons... should all be defeated!"

To the monster, and to oneself.

She wanted to know where her limits were!

Ciel is right, Riveria's gentle approach to growth is wrong! She can defeat stronger opponents! If she can't even beat a mere tree dragon, how can she possibly slay the black dragon hailed as "the end" by the world?

"Die...die!"

She slashed at the tree dragon, which was bowing its head and grinning sinisterly, as the black storm and an invisible, seven-colored barrier collided and tore each other apart.

Click click click——

The barrier trembled, and the weapons groaned.

After only five seconds, Ais's weapon and barrier, both forged from fine metal, shattered into pieces simultaneously.

"Um..."

Ais, thrown backward by the recoil, twisted her body in mid-air, trying to find her balance. But the next moment, the surrounding forest seemed to come alive, with countless vines stirring restlessly.

Charles noticed that between the jewel dragon's eyebrows, a piece of jade crystal was faintly emitting light.

Through the smooth surface of the jade, Charles was horrified to discover a pair of innocent eyes staring straight at Ais.

It had a wrinkled face that resembled a newborn fetus, with tentacles protruding from its head like an octopus, seemingly rooted and stuck to the gemstone. Its small mouth was sucking on its fingers as if drawing nourishment.

"What...what's going on?"

The current situation shattered Ciel's understanding of how the plot would unfold.

His voice was slightly hoarse: "A precious fetus? How come this thing has appeared in the dungeon at this time?"

According to the plot he knew, this thing should not appear until next year, which is 6 years before the start of the main story, in the 27th Nightmare stage. Why is it being brought forward by a whole year?

Is it because of... me?

"The butterfly effect? ​​No! That's not right..."

Chapter 36 Ais: Your magic is so cool, it's mine now!

In Xia Er's memory, in the near future, a being far more terrifying than the current fairy tentacles will crawl out from the depths of the dungeon.

The hellish flames will cross countless floors and ignite all the rooms below the 18th floor.

"From the information I have, the fallen fairy deep in the labyrinth was influenced by Aisfeng, which led to the idea of ​​sending tentacles to reach the upper floors."

"Ais first activated magic last year. How can a monster that dominates the 59th floor take two years to climb to the 27th floor? Something must have happened during that time. And... the seven days of death may have indirectly delayed the outbreak of this calamity."

Although Ciel himself found a reason to explain the current unusual situation, but...

A chill crept into his heart, making him feel increasingly urgent about the future.

"When I was using the plot to my advantage and pave the way, I was already deeply involved..."

Or rather, ever since Ciel awakened his memories of his past life, the world has been quietly changing.

"Ha, thinking they were the players, they didn't realize they were already caught in the game without even realizing it."

Looking back at the entire history of Orario, it seems that there was a great deal of luck involved in the victory achieved in every crisis that led to the destruction of the city. Every tiny turn of the gears could cause the story to take a different turn.

For Shire, the future may not be "predetermined" but rather "unknown".

"So, I must survive, and I must become stronger!"

Because of the "unknown" and the "unexpected," Ciel paused his slightly backward steps and abandoned the idea of ​​running away.

"If there's a 'lock-health' cheat in the game, and I'm still afraid, how will I compete with those heroes for glory two months from now?"

Watching the golden figure roar and soar among the countless vines, Charles took a deep breath and shouted:

"Ais! Are you scared?"

"Don't be afraid!" The firm voice pierced through the rushing thorns and reached Charles's ears.

"You'll die!"

"That's not a problem!"

"it is good!"

Ciel pulled out the last two finely crafted weapons from his backpack and ran towards Ais.

The reduced durability from his super domain slowed his progress considerably. Countless vines beneath his feet seemed to come alive, launching rainbow-colored fruits at Xia Er. The projectiles pierced through his body, causing him to sway and twitch, but they couldn't stop his advance.

"I can go wherever I want! If you've got the guts, kill me!"

Blood seeped through the black cloth, staining the armor red. In just thirty seconds, Xia Er leaped three hundred meters across a path strewn with thorny traps, throwing his weapon toward Ais, who was swept by a black wind.

The moment the sword hilt touched her hand, Ais's fighting spirit was rekindled.

She stared at the boy who was showing off eight blood-stained white teeth and giving her a thumbs-up, feeling a chill run down her spine.

Although he was weak, but...

If Rivera were here, she would only make me run away.

Ais has no friends in her clan.

Her exceptional talent made her seem like a monster to her peers.

Rivera, who was closest to her, did not understand her. Despite knowing her own ambitions and background, she was not as understanding as a boy who knew nothing.

That's trust in yourself.

The girl experienced the concept of friendship for the first time.

In order to prevent this trust from disappearing, she must defeat the monster before her!

"I will never let a dragon take away what is important to me again! [Tempest-Avenger, Awaken, Vengeful Princess]!"

A black storm erupted from its small body, creating a terrifying scene resembling a tornado.

Countless thorny vines, flying like spears, were pulverized into sawdust as if they were being ground into a meat grinder.

Ais lowered her body, holding a longsword in each hand, her eyes turning murderous. She parted her lips slightly and called out a name familiar to Charles:

"Tornado destroys parking lot!"

puff----

As Ais confidently uttered the line that made Ciel feel quite ashamed, his movement as he was about to chant a spell froze, and his entire body exploded due to the disruption of his magic, crashing to the ground.

"Why this of all!"

While Ciel rolled around in his hands, lamenting that someone might dig up his embarrassing past in the future...

"Your magic is so cool, it's mine now!" Ais thought to herself.

She wielded swords in both hands, transforming into Garen, and like a mad spinning top, a black storm shattered all the plants before her.

The gem dragon behind let out a mournful cry, its roots detached from the ground and snapped, uprooting the entire gem tree and transforming it into a giant monster floating in the air.

Charles looked up, a thoughtful expression on his face. "So that's it. The jeweled fetus was parasitizing this gem tree! It transformed an ordinary plant into a gem dragon. This entire gem forest is part of its body!"

"Ais, this is your chance!" Charles shouted a reminder.

Ais brandished her twin blades, her spinning speed suddenly increasing. Just as the gem dragon was retracting its body and had no time to spare, the black storm and the fleeing tree dragon passed each other.

"die--"

A flash of black light appeared, and a clear black line climbed up the tree dragon's chest. Before it could even let out a wail, the tree dragon's massive body was split in two and exploded into ashes in the storm.

"Next... is your turn!"

Ais transformed into a black wind spear, piercing towards the seven-colored dragon suspended in the sky.

The black wind, which could make Xia Er's skin sting even from hundreds of meters away, was blocked by walls made of layers of giant tree roots.

The seven-colored gem fruit shot out from the gem dragon's wings like a dazzling magic spell, its immense kinetic energy tearing through the wind arm and being knocked away by Ais's longsword.

However, quite a few stray bullets still grazed the girl's cheeks, leaving bloody marks.

Seeing that Ais's attack was thwarted, Ciel tilted his head back and drank all the spiritual potion, then raised his hands and shouted:

"Don't panic! I'll cover you!"

The dazzling magic, like anti-aircraft guns, crashed into the rain of brilliant gems, exploding into beautiful fireworks in the air.

Ais gritted her teeth, and a black storm, like a meteor, swept through the dazzling fireworks, its sharp blades rapidly approaching the Gem Dragon itself.

Perhaps it is due to the nature of the plant itself, but even when it catches the massive root and is suspended in mid-air, it cannot skillfully evade it.

Faced with the black wind that could tear everything apart, the emerald orb on the jewel dragon's forehead shone brightly once more, and a mournful roar came from the mouth of the infant inside. A layer of seven-colored rhomboid barrier blocked Ais's attack.

"Ughh ...

The offensive collapsed once again. Ais roared as the Gem Dragon's body was bent and subdued by the terrifying destructive force, collapsing to the ground.

But the sturdy barrier held fast, protecting the body from being breached.

As Ais was exhausted, endless vines transformed into whips, attacking from all directions.

The cyan vine whip tore through the blue battle skirt, leaving scarlet bloodstains on her fair skin. Ais coughed up blood and flew backward, landing like a ball.