No one's POV
The Colosseum. There was only one room of its type known to exist on the thirty-seventh floor.
Although the sprawling space was far larger than any other room on the floor, its exact dimensions were not known. This was because it was so dangerous adventurers had given up on measuring it.
To Bell, it looked about the same size as the cavern on the twenty-fifth floor, or perhaps larger. As elsewhere on the floor, the ceiling was hidden in the darkness, making its height impossible to judge. Air must have been circulating in the room, because a whistling sound like dry, cold wind rushing down a narrow ravine came from the distant, rocky floor. Bell trembled at the scale.
The colossal structure rising like an island in the center of the room was especially noteworthy. It reminded Bell of a certain structure in Orario.
Bell: The Amphitheatrum...?
The huge round structure looked exactly the same. It threw off a dim phosphorescence so that it seemed to float in the darkness. Even now battle cries echoed ceaselessly from the milky white form to which the bridge in front of Bell led.
Ryuu: To be clear, the Colosseum isn't this whole area—it's just that structure in the middle. It's called that because...no matter how many monsters you slaughter, the supply never runs out.
At Slyphid's urging, they had lain stomach-down on the ground so the monsters wouldn't notice them.
Sora: In this room, the instant the number of monsters falls, more are spawned from that Colosseum. There is no way to reduce the upper limit. In other words, the supply is infinite.
Bell:...!!
Slyphid: Perhaps you could call this room a miniature version of the Dungeon itself.
Bell knew about this place. Eina had told him there was an area in the deep levels where monsters spawned endlessly to maintain a certain predetermined population. But as he looked out on the real thing and heard Sora, Slyphid, and Ryuu describe the reality they faced, he felt despair eating at his heart. Now that he was an upper-tier adventurer, he understood the full meaning of that reality.
Even in the deep levels where the battles came fast and furious, there was always a small break between encounters. But the Colosseum was different. In contrast to ordinary rooms and passageways, there was no end to the monsters no matter how many were killed. The infinite battles continued until the adventurer perished in obscurity.
A "Bottomless Goblet" of monsters. This was the nickname that trembling, terrified adventurers had given the Colosseum.
Sora: We have come to a danger zone in the thirty-seventh floor that even parties of first-tier adventurers such as myself, Aiz, and Asuna do not dare to approach.
Bell was dumbstruck by Sora's words. Even first-tier adventurers like Sora—even Aiz, Asuna and their companions—could not enter this place? It was the deadliest of "dead spots," on par with or even surpassing in danger the Monster Rex slumbering on this floor.
If they got past this, they would emerge onto the main route. Bell finally understood the true meaning of the words Sora had spoken a few minutes earlier. In order to attain hope, they had to traverse despair as deep as the abyss below them.
He broke out in sweat. At the same time, he was consumed by an impulse to rip out his hair. He thought back to the corpses of the adventurers who had died in that little room. The same despair that had broken their spirits now pressed in on Bell. Sweat beaded his forehead. He panted uncontrollably and shifted his eyes restlessly.
Slyphid:...
Slyphid who was carrying Bell on her back stole a glance at him. She narrowed her eyes, as if she had made up her mind to take on whatever lay ahead.
Slyphid: Well no matter what happens. Our only option is to pass through the Colosseum.
They had moved temporarily away from the room's entryway, but Slyphid's voice was firm. She gently lay Bell next to Sora and Ryuu and the 4 crouch together.
Bell: Sora, Ms. Ryuu, that's—
Sora: The fact is, turning around isn't an option.
Ryuu: We simply don't have the strength or the equipment.
They were midway up the stairs leading to the Colosseum. Sora and Ryuu was hurriedly pulling items from Ryuu's backpack and fidgeting restlessly with them without looking at Bell.
What they said was true. They didn't have the energy left to search for another route. At the very least, if they weren't able to make it to the main route from here, escaping the thirty-seventh floor was extremely unlikely. To survive, they must pass through the Colosseum towering ahead of them.
Slyphid: In other words. This is the crucial moment...the time to take on the one adventure we cannot avoid.
Slyphid comfort Bell with her teal colored eyes. Bell gulped...then nodded. Sweat was dripping down his body and his heart was pounding, but he trusted the Spirit Girl next to him. Slyphid nodded in response to his naked trust.
Bell: But how can we get past the Colosseum? If we have to take on monsters that spawn infinitely no matter how many we kill...
Sora: Naturally we avoid all battles.
Ryuu: We make our way across the room in secret, without their noticing.
Sora and Ryuu paused in their preparatory work. Ryuu held a piece of black cloth outstretched between her hands.
Bell: Is that...?
Ryuu: Yes. It's made from skull-sheep robes.
Bell listened in surprise to Ryuu's explanation. During the course of their battles thus far, Sora and Ryuu had been carefully selecting drop items and secreting them away in Ryuu's backpack. The skull-sheep robes were among them. She had sewn two of the robes together using a third robe torn into strips for thread and a bone needle. It was just big enough to cover two people.
Sora: Both you and Ryuu will cover in these robe. While Slyphid will return back to Spirit form and covered you two. Me on the other hand, I will use my wolf armor. That should help us blend in with the monsters.
Bell:...You mean me and Ms. Ryuu going to use this as camouflage?
The skull sheep launched their attacks by blending into the dusky darkness that penetrated every corner of the floor. The clandestine movements of the death hermits had given them plenty of trouble on their journey, but now they were going to steal from their playbook. Bell knew from painful experience how well those robes worked. He thought they just might let them deceive the monsters in the Colosseum.
Ryuu: We'll mask our scent, too. Please rub yourself from head to toe with the monster organs I'm about to mash up.
Bell: Bleh...!
Slyphid: I understand your apprehension, but you'll have to put up with it.
Bell: T-Then, Lady Slyphid should use one too!
Slyphid: I don't need it since I'm going to be invisible.
Bell: No fair!
Bell reflexively covered his nose as Ryuu held up a bag. The reddish-black substance staining the bottom of the bag was a mixture of barbarian hearts and other monster organs. This drop item was normally used like powerful smelling salts, but even through the tightly closed bag, the horrible smell of the unprocessed ingredients was obvious. It would be hard to tolerate even if it did prevent monsters from sniffing them out. Although tears pooled in the corners of her eyes, Slyphid's face was as blank as a mask.
Nevertheless, to Bell it seemed like the ultimate strategy. He knew all too well the power of the gray robe. And they'd be eliminating their scent, too. If they just took care to move silently, they should be able to fool the monsters.
Sora: When we got to the Colosseum I realized where we were.
Sora had pulled out the map.
Sora: There's only one Colosseum on the thirty-seventh floor, in the Warrior Zone between the Second Wall and the Third Wall. It's in the eastern part of that zone.
He spread the map for everyone to see. Using the blood feather, he drew a large square to indicate the location of the Colosseum.
Sora: There are four doorways in the Colosseum room—north, south, east, and west. The south doorway leads to the main route.
Bell: So if we can just get to the south side... Oh, but if we don't know which way is south...
Slyphid: There are several warped columns on the northwest side of the Colosseum in the center of the room. I saw them when we were there a minute ago and figured out our orientation. We're near the northern doorway... which means the south doorway is directly opposite.
Bell looked at the map. The main route was marked at a slight distance from the Colosseum, and opposite it was the doorway where they now crouched. Sora had combined what he remembered of the Colosseum with the knowledge and experienced on the deep level to determine the most logical way forward. Bell was filled with admiration. He couldn't help staring at the face of his Hero who had made one good decision after another in a situation that would have broken many a weaker spirit.
Bell: Sora, Lady Slyphid, Ms. Ryuu, you three are so incredible...
The words spilled unexpectedly from his lips.
Sora: Where that come from...?
Bell: Even in a situation like this you guys continue to stay calm and make the right decision... The three of you come to my rescue so many times. If you guys weren't here I'd never be able to get out of the deep levels...
For just an instant, a guilty look flickered across Ryuu's face as she listened silently. But Bell, who was caught up in regret over his inadequacy, did not see it. Only Sora and Slyphid who did.
Sora and Slyphid:...
Ryuu:...Mr. Cranell, please turn your knowledge into wisdom.
Bell: Knowledge into wisdom...?
Ryuu: Yes. If you tie knowledge to action and learn to apply it, you'll be able to help more people. You'll become a stronger adventurer.
Ryuu had paused for a moment before speaking.
Sora(mind): Those were Lyra's words.
As Sora looked at Ryuu, she seemed to be reminiscing on a day long in the past. Her words sounded as if they were rooted deep within her. Sora made a regretful look himself, to which Slyphid calms him down by holding his hand gently. Bell nodded gravely.
Ryuu: Sora... I'm sure you remember the layout of the main route?
Sora:...? Where that come from...? Of course I do... the main route is a large passageway, and as long as you don't turn down any side roads, you'll get to the connecting passage...
Ryuu: Excellent.
Sora gave Ryuu a suspicious look, wondering to why she said such thing. Ryuu narrowed her eyes with apparent satisfaction and held out the pouch that had been tied around her waist.
Ryuu: We have three Inferno Stones left. Each of you take one.
Bell: But...
Ryuu: We don't know what will happen from here on out.
Up to this point, Sora and Ryuu had supported Bell from the rear guard and managed their items. Now she was splitting them up. She wanted to reduce the risk in case of emergency. Each of them had to be able to respond to any situation they fell into. Sora was dubious, but nevertheless accepted the pouch. After all, Ryuu hadn't said anything he disagreed with. In addition to the Inferno Stone, it held the map with the Colosseum and main route beyond the south side noted on it.
Sora:...
Slyphid(telepathy): Sora... You don't think she's...?
Sora(telepathy): She better not.
Sora could not put into words the unease that haunted him. Paying him no mind, Ryuu stood up.
Ryuu: Let's go.
(Timeskip)
Four bridges led to the Colosseum. They began at the north, south, east, and west doorways and connected to the central structure like a perfect cross. Each bridge was made of milky white stone and measured about six meders across. Needless to say, there were no railings. A misstep would plunge the hapless adventurer fifty meders to the ground. Instant death awaited on the tips of the countless stone spears.
Bell:...
His body pressed close to Ryuu's beneath the skull-sheep robe that covered them from head to toe, Bell with Slyphid support who was invisible floating next to him beneath the robe advanced across the bridge with bated breath. Walking next to him and Ryuu were Sora whom is donning his Berserk Armor.
The real trial would begin when they reached the Colosseum where the monsters skulked. It was impossible to relax. The instant those monsters sensed an invader, Sora, Bell and Ryuu would be done for. The Dungeon's infinite material resources would crush them. Of course they were tense. As the stone projectiles covering the floor of the room stared up at them, they slowly moved ahead.
When they looked carefully at the floor, they could make out innumerable writhing forms among the projectiles. Peludas. Like lizards, they clung close to the rocks, moving around with a slithering sound. This ruled out the option of lowering oneself to the floor and avoiding the Colosseum altogether. A hell of poison and flame awaited anyone who attempted such a strategy.
Bell gagged, having unfortunately glimpsed several skeletons and sets of armor pierced through by the projectiles below the bridge. In contrast to the central Colosseum, the stone bridge was quiet. But that stillness was a deadly threat to Sora, Bell and Ryuu.
If they were discovered, their story ended here. They crossed the twisting stone bridge with the utmost care to silence their breath and footsteps. Slyphid had poked dozens of holes in the robe with her needle so they could see their way forward, but their narrow view further strained their nerves. They felt as if their very lives were in the hands of this endless journey at a snail's pace.
Slyphid could hear Bell's uneven breathing. Bell could feel Slyphid's warm breath caressing his neck. Suddenly, a handful of small stones fell from the bridge with a clatter. They were chips that had naturally eroded from the structure.
Slyphid: Stay quite.
Bell and Ryuu froze, holding their breaths. The noise did not seem to disturb the peludas. They were okay. If they had been seen, the monsters would have instantly torn the silence with ferocious howls announcing the quartets death. So they were okay.
They were still fine. Their lives were not yet over. Bell sent that desperate message to his frozen feet and once again began to move forward.
Bell: That's...the Colosseum.
Having neared the end of the seemingly interminable bridge, Bell gulped at the sight of the white stone structure rising up before him. The sheer mass of it was overwhelmingly stately and impressive. The perfectly even circle looked similar in diameter to Babel.
Sora:...Let's go.
Ryuu:...Yeah.
Bell:...Right.
Slyphid:...
At Sora's urging, they crossed the remaining stretch of the bridge. They now entered the outer rim of the Colosseum, which connected to the bridges. Only then was Bell able to see the inner structure of the Colosseum, which had been hidden to his view before.
Like the Amphitheatrum, the inside was shaped like an upside-down cone. There were six enormous plates arranged like steps, and at the very bottom, a round field. In terms of the Amphitheatrum, the former equated to the spectator seating and the latter to the arena where battles took place. The field was at the same level as the stone spears outside the Colosseum.
Bell:...!
As Bell took in the Colosseum's structure, he noticed something else. What he saw below him brought home the true meaning of the structure's name.
Monster: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
The Colosseum was packed with a nauseating number of monsters. But it was not this nightmarish cauldron of monsters that shook Bell to the core. The monsters were killing one another. Without a moment's break, they were roaring in outrage and mercilessly ripping one another to pieces.
Slyphid:...I've seen this multiple times. Aside from the times when someone invades their territory, the monsters in this area are constantly warring among themselves.
Slyphid's horrified whisper went in one of Bell's ears and out the other.
In addition to the arena at the bottom, the plates above were also crammed with countless monsters engaged in fierce battle. Near Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu in the fifth plate, a pack of lizardman elites was fighting a pack of spartois. The skeleton warriors had the upper hand over the lizard warriors.
At a diagonal beyond them, a barbarian was roaring as it crushed the head of a loup-garou. A fountain of blood spattered the aggressor, making its hair stand on end. Bell could tell at a glance that the huge, powerful monster was an enhanced species. But even that large-category monster was no match for the herd of skull sheep that rushed it from behind. It screamed in agony as they tore it apart.
The second the monsters fell, cracks appeared at various places in the Colosseum. A motley assortment of monsters was being spawned constantly from the floors of the plates and walls surrounding the arena. Perhaps the best phrase for the cycle of death and birth was "unending replenishment."
Everything before Bell's eyes spoke to the uniqueness of this area—to the Colosseum's danger and heresy.
Bell:...
Bell covered his mouth with his hand. It took all his strength to fight back the unease. This endless repetition of life and death. Now more than ever before Bell sensed the mystery of the Dungeon. Or perhaps he had just been reminded of it—of the horrifying power of the supernatural that defied human understanding and imagination.
Sora: Let's go...we don't have time to stand around in a daze.
Bell:...Right.
Ryuu:...Got it.
The instant this swirling fever of blood thirst turned on them, death was certain. The view before them was enough to drive that point home. Bell nodded faintly in response to Sora's whispered words. Somehow peeling their eyes away from the disturbing tableau, the trio began to move forward. Only one single Spirit still remained daze looking at the center of the Colosseum.
Slyphid:...
Sora(telepathy): What is it, Slyphid?
Slyphid(telepathy): No... It's just that, every time I look at the center of the Colosseum, I always felt a small air current coming from underneath it.
Sora(telepathy): An Air Current...?
Slyphid(telepathy): Yeah. Like something is down there.
Sora(telepathy) We can check it out once we regained our full strength. But for now, let's get out of here.
Slyphid(telepathy):...Right.
They were at the northernmost edge of the Colosseum, where it connected to the northern bridge. This was the sixth plate, the highest and outermost of all. From here they had to reach the southern edge of the Colosseum on the opposite side. Cutting straight across would be fastest, but descending onto the battlefield of the arena would be suicidal. Instead, they planned to skirt the sixth plate.
To their right, on the northwestern side of the Colosseum, were the warped columns Slyphid had mentioned. They looked like a grove of enormous stone projectiles. The sixth plate, which formed the outer rim of the structure in other places, was missing in that spot. The bottom three plates were there, but if they descended that far, the monsters would most likely detect them no matter how clandestine their movements. Everything would be over if the edge of the robe got blown back in the aftermath of a fight.
That meant they had to go east around the sixth plate, or left from where they stood.
Bell(mind): The monsters are so close...! It's like they're roaring right in our ears!
The aggravating tension was alive and well within Bell. The closer the monsters got, the more strongly he felt he was standing on the border between life and death. Every time a monster passed on the adjacent fifth plate, Sora, Bell and Ryuu had to freeze.
But fortunately—if that is the right word for it—the Colosseum gave off a horrid smell.
The corpses generated by the endless internecine fighting were left were they fell. Even if their magic stones were gone, chunks of their flesh—drop items—remained, permeating the entire space with an overwhelming stink. There was no way the living monsters could pick up the scent from Sora, Bell and Ryuu. On the flip side, they struggled to keep from vomiting.
Sora(mind): Part of this smell must be coming from the corpses of forgotten adventurers. If the monsters discover us, will we become just another smear of blood on the wall?
Sora forced his mind away from the gnawing questions that kept bubbling up. He had to focus on keeping himself, Bell and Ryuu alive. The constant roars of the monsters reverberated through the torn robe.
Bell(mind):...Why...did the Dungeon create a place like this...?
As they crept silently along in utmost secrecy, the question rose in Bell's mind.
According to the Sora, the Colosseum had suddenly appeared about thirty years ago. Its existence became known when a Zeus and Hera Familia member reported that what had originally been no more than a very large room with multiple layers of bedrock had changed into its current unique form.
The Bottomless Goblet. Endless war. Monster samsara, where beginnings and endings shared a single origin point.
Was it one of the Dungeon's gimmicks, intended to lure in invading adventurers and kill them?
Or was it a stage created so that monsters could slaughter one another?
Or perhaps it was the product of chance with no deeper meaning behind it.
The sprawling darkness gave Bell no answers. A howl echoed in his ears, as if to say that the queries of a mere adventurer did not merit response.
Ryuu: The eastern bridge...
Finally they reached the first bridge to their left. Its structure was the same as the northern bridge they had crossed, continuing to the room's wall.
Bell: Lady Slyphid... if we crossed this bridge and left the Colosseum on the left side, would we end up on the main route? If so, maybe we don't have to go all the way to the south side...
Slyphid: Unfortunately, you can't get to the main route from the east doorway. The south and west doorways both connect to the maze while skirting the Colosseum itself... but our only option right now is the southern route.
Bell had buckled under the tension and voiced his wishful thinking, only to be categorically denied by Slyphid. He was irritated by the fact that they could have used the western doorway if only the huge columns on the northwest side weren't in their way.
Still, they had made it halfway.
If they could just make it through the fan-shaped outer rim stretching from the eastern bridge to the southern bridge, they would reach their goal. But no sooner had the thought crossed Bell's mind than he recoiled in shock.
Bell:...!!
Two loup-garous had leaped onto the sixth plate near Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu. They were less than ten meders away. Bell crouched and held his breath. His heart pounded as loudly as a drum.
Garous: uuu...
The wolf-monsters scanned their surroundings. Lowering their faces to the ground, they twisted their necks several times and snorted. They seemed to have detected a scent. Fueled by panic, Bell's body temperature skyrocketed. He could sense Ryuu grimacing beside him.
Bell(mind): Go away, go away, go away...!
Beneath the robe that melted into the dusky darkness, they silently begged, pleaded, and prayed. And then. They eyes of a monster met the red crimson eyes from Sora's wolf armor.
Sora: Grr....
Sora was looking as an intimidating monster as possible to scare off the Garous away. Just when Bell's heart felt like it was about to explode...
Garous:...GURUuu!
The monsters turned tail and walked away. Five seconds passed, then ten, and they had still not turned around. They had not seen through Bell and Ryuu's clandestine advance. They were in the clear.
Bell abruptly released the tension from his body. The sudden slackening of strained muscles nearly made him sigh out loud, but fortunately Lyu pressed her hand over his mouth. Got through that one... The accelerating pounding of his heart returned to its normal rhythm. Relief flooded his body.
Monster: GYAAAAAAAA...!!
That very instant, a monster shrieked in a distant part of the Colosseum. The next moment it had become a pile of ash, its magic stone crushed. Needless to say, this led a new life to spawn in its place. The birth cry came from directly below the two humans.
Bell, Sora, Ryuu, Slyphid:—
A dense network of cracks split the floor right below Bell's feet. Time stood still. Ryuu froze. Sora was to late to react. Slyphid was caught of guard as well and didn't sense to spawning monster. They did not even have time to react before a white bone arm reached up from the cracked plate.
Spartoi: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!
Five bony fingers grasped Bell's leg. The skeleton warrior that sprang from the floor was a spartoi. Its hand still clutching Bell's ankle, it lifted him into the air. The camouflage robe dropped to the floor. Every eye in the Colosseum, every drop of monster bloodlust, zeroed in on the two exposed humans.
Bell: UAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Letting out a roar that may have been more terror than war cry, Bell cut through the hand of bone wrapped around his ankle with the Hestia Knife. As he crashed to the ground, Slyphid hurled herself against the spartoi shoulder-first, pushing it outside the Colosseum. Its howl was followed by the sound of something shattering. But it was too late.
Monsters: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!
With a chorus of war cries so violent they shook the whole room, the monsters hurtled toward Bell and Ryuu.
Sora: Run!!
The instant Bell heard Sora's heedless scream, his legs were in motion, but suddenly, his leg gave out. From the looks of it, the poison from the earlier Peluda had rendered his muscle from making big steps.
Slyphid: I'll pull you!
Slyphid appear from her invisibility and grab Bell by the shoulder dragging him upward. Sora on the other hand disarm his Wolf armor and pull Ryuu's hand and started running. The Hero and the Spirit threw every drop of energy they had into their getaway.
Sora and Slyphid: Huff, puff, huff!
Sora's breath was ragged, not from running but from the worst-case scenario that had befallen them. Gripping Sora's hand as if he would never let it go, he dashed across the southeastern fan of the Colosseum, the only way left open to them.
The unending roars of the monsters, their infinite enmity and blood thirst followed close on the heels of the 3 humans and one Spirit Girl. Unable to resist the urge to look behind, Sora turned his head only to grimace convulsively at what he saw.
The silhouettes of countless monsters writhing under the phosphorescence looked like an enormous black comet bearing down on them. Literally every monster in the Colosseum had its sights set on Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu.
An army of monsters was flooding toward the adventurers. Should this muddy torrent engulf them, not a bone would remain to bear witness to their passing.
Barbarian: GAAAAAAAAA!
Spartois: OOOOOOOU!
The monsters that had been on the fourth and fifth plates leaped over or scaled the walls, emerging onto the sixth plate. A forest of monsters blocked their way forward. In twos and threes, they gathered before the adventurers.
Slyphid: Tempest, Enforcer!
Slyphid aimed her Spear into them, then three mighty cyclones appeared. One in front of Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu. One in the back. And lastly one in the center of the Colosseum. The wind cyclone crushes their fangs and claws and sending them flying backward. No sooner were they gone, more started to spawn even when the dungeon walls had been destroyed, than a pack of spartois charged Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu as if to jeer at their struggles.
Bell:...!
Ryuu: Don't really fight them!! Just clear a way forward!
Sora: Chidori Eiso!
Leaning forward like some sort of beast himself, Sora flashed his Kanshou sword. Wrapping his sword with thunderous lightning that destroy anything in its path, Sora slices through the monsters horde
20 of the monsters collapsed on top of one another. After he was done, he grasped the hand that Ryuu had thrust out at just the right moment and pulled her close to his chest before dashing forward. Without a glance back at the spartoi's skull he had crushed beneath his boot, Bell thrust his left hand toward the wall of monsters blocking their way.
Sora: Chidori Stream!!
A horizontal slice, Sora sent hundreds of lightning needle bullets to approaching monsters.at the line of enemies. As the advancing front gave ground, he, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu charged forward.
Squeezing their way through the pack of monsters, they forced their way ahead. The claws and nature weapons of the writhing monsters thrashed recklessly at them, ripping and gouging their skin.
Sliding past countless angry howls, they emerged on the far side of this forest of monsters. They fended off the constant barrage of attacks from the scattered swarm with kicks or swipes of the sword of the dead adventurer, sending their attackers flying outside the Colosseum. The second Ryuu sensed that the pursuing horde of enemies was about to catch up with them, she shouted.
Ryuu: Sora!
Sora!!
She threw a sparkling red object behind her. It was one of their precious Inferno Stones. As the bomb arced through the air, Sora looked behind him, aimed, and shot. The electrical thunder hit its target, setting off a massive explosion.
Monster:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~aaa?!
Raging petals of flame engulfed not only the monsters but the outer rim of the Colosseum itself, sending crowds of monsters plunging to the ground below. As the plate behind them collapsed with the thundering roar of an avalanche, Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu glanced back at the monsters practically on their heels. But...
Monsters: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Every time they killed one monster, a new birth cry rang out. Here was the true power of the Colosseum that even first-tier adventurers feared. An endless flow of monsters. Cracks covered the ground before Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu like spiderwebs, sending forth new enemies the instant the adventurers thought they had made a narrow escape.
Destroying the enemy was meaningless.
There was no end to the pursuing hordes.
Bell(mind): It's impossible.
Even as Bell parried the monsters that leaped up from the fifth plate and pounced from directly next to them, cold, hard reason whispered the truth in a corner of his mind. Cold blood flowed into his overheated brain, pushing his ash-covered thoughts to their gasping conclusion. Slyphid who was dragging Bell to run was slowing her down.
Ryuu's, her hand still grasping Sora's, could not run at full speed. If Sora tried to carry her, they would be overtaken. Even if they managed to escape across the bridge and leave the room, the monsters from the Colosseum might follow them, and that would spell doom. The infinite parade would pursue them until it dealt the final blow.
It was impossible. This was the end. Ryuu had said so herself—if they were discovered, everything was over. There was no point in fleeing. There was no escape—
Sora: Not yet!
Sora screamed as if to push aside the voice of his weak heart. What he needed to do was put everything he had into fleeing.
Once they crossed the south bridge, he could use his magic to explode it. There were endless ways to evade pursuit. No matter how impossible they seemed, he would make them reality. No matter how absurd, no matter if they were castles in the air, no matter if they were childish egotism. Because if he didn't, their lives would end.
Sora: Not yet, not yet!
Screaming, he let go of Ryuu's hand and swung his sword wildly at the barbarian blocking their way forward. The sword snaked between the monster's arm and body and sliced off one leg. Pushing away the body of the shrieking giant with his left hand, he proceeded to shatter the obsidian soldiers behind the barbarian.
Ryuu grimaced as she watched Sora battle so fiercely. Unlike the daimond eyes that desperately sought the future, her own sky-blue eyes strained to see reality. Refusing to turn away from the cruelty of the world, she prepared to make a cold-blooded choice. Unnoticed by the Hero's ears, the scale began to creak.
Sora: The south bridge...!!
Sora, Slyphid, Bell and Ryuu had finally arrived at the Colosseum's southern edge, having suffered so many wounds and paid so heavily in physical and mental strength. Bell wanted desperately to find hope in the bridge that stretched straight before him, but—
Monsters: OOOOOOO—!
Bell:...?! Monsters coming from outside the Colosseum?
Perhaps having heard the commotion inside, a pack had appeared at the doorway leading to the main route.
Bell: It can't be...!
They were caught in a rundown. One group of foes was already starting down the bridge toward them while the endless hordes pursued them from behind. It was obvious that if they tried to cross the bridge they would be crushed between the two waves of enemies. They would be swallowed up from both sides. Of course, being caught in a rundown on a bridge with no exit ramp meant certain death. Bell's face burned with panic.
Sora: Slyphid! Carry Bell onwards and I'll create a path forwards!
Slyphid: On it!
Bell: !
But the Hero had not given up in the slightest. Carrying the exhausted Bell in the Spirit Girls arm, Sora started to charge up an attack.
Ryuu:...
Maybe being to focused on what's in front of him, he didn't notice what's behind him. Directly behind him, Ryuu's gaze had grown suddenly distant. The scale was slowly tipping.
Ryuu: You destroy the enemy ahead of us! I'll use my magic to take care of the ones at our backs!
Suddenly Ryuu was shouting orders in rapid succession. Sora couldn't believe his ears. True, if they were pinched between two packs their only choice was to deal with both. But in this case, Ryuu was in the rear. If one of them was going to take on infinite enemies, it should be Sora, who could still move normally. He would have a better chance of surviving. He was about to protest when—
Ryuu: Distant forest sky. Infinite stars inlaid upon the eternal night sky.
Ryuu's chant cut him off. She had stopped moving and was fully focused on high-speed recitation. He could not stop her now, but the loss of time could be lethal. At this point, Sora's only option was to take on the enemy ahead of him.
Sora: Damn...! I'll be back soon!
He glanced at Ryuu, whose back was to him, and the flood of monsters pressing toward them with Slyphid and Bell in her arms before stepping onto the south bridge. Leaving Ryuu at the point where the bridge connected to the Colosseum, he collided with the mass of monsters charging toward him.
Sora: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
With all his might, he began to slaughter them one by one. He landed lethal blows straight to their magic stones and kicked them off the stone bridge. He did not hesitate to use magic as well, raging wildly at his enemies. Creating a path for Slyphid and Bell.
Ryuu: Heed this foolish one's voice, and once more grant the starfire's divine protection. Grant the light of compassion to the one who forsook you...
From behind, he could hear Ryuu chanting rapidly. Her song was as swift as the wind, its melody paying no heed to the threats all around.
Ryuu: Come, wandering wind, fellow traveler. Cross the skies and sprint through the wilderness, swifter than anything.
The bridge shook beneath Sora's feet as a thundering roar assaulted his ears. Ryuu must have taken advantage of a peluda's fiery breath to ignite the last Inferno Stone and repel the advancing flood of monsters. That, or perhaps she was hiding within the explosion's smoke to escape capture. Either way, the move was ingenious.
Sora(mind): Ryuu... You better not do anything reckless!
All he could do was place his trust in her.
Ryuu: Imbue the light of stardust and strike down my enemy!
This was the last line of her chant, the one that announced her magic was complete. There were still a lot of monsters on the bridge. Sora hadn't yet cleared a path across, but if he didn't turn back now to get Ryuu he wouldn't make it in time. He gritted his teeth and prepared to retreat from the bridge's midpoint. He glanced back toward the Colosseum.
Sora:—
His eyes met a pair of sky-blue eyes, and his mind ground to a halt. He saw Ryuu facing him, and time froze. Ryuu was not fighting skillfully. She was using only the bare minimum of attacks and defense. She was covered in wounds. Her back was to a monster that she should have been fighting off.
For some reason, she was aiming her magic at the base of the bridge. Like a bird shorn of its wings, the battered elf smiled at Sora.
Sora(mind): You idiot!
Before the scream could erupt from Sora's throat, Ryuu completed her magic in the most beautiful voice he had ever heard.
Ryuu: Luminous Wind.
An orb of light wrapped in wind appeared on her back and took flight. The first bullet of light landed on Sora's armor where he stood rooted to the ground, the second bullet landed on Slyphid and Bell who was on her back shocking the two as well, as if to scoop them up from below. Before they moaned at the shock, they felt the wind enveloping their body. The wind enwrapping the orb of light lifted their feet from the bridge and buoyed them into the air. As the monsters craned their necks up at the trio, they were carried backward in an arc to beyond the end of the bridge.
That is, they were carried out of the Colosseum.
Sora:—
The next place the stardust magic fell was the bridge. The remaining orbs of light burst into a chain of explosions that destroyed the bridge in a cloud of dust. The monsters that had been standing on it plummeted to the rocky ground.
As he danced through the air, Sora saw everything. His eyes wide, he stretched out his right hand even though it could not reach. It could not reach the elf who, having brought down the bridge of hope, remained alone on the cliff of despair.
Sora: Ryuu!
The instant his back hit the ground, the frozen flow of time shattered. Blown to the passage outside the Colosseum, Sora called Ryuu's name. He called it again and again, even as he pressed his hands against his chest to calm his violent coughing. Far in the distance, he could see Ryuu smiling the same smile.
Sora: You idiot! Why! Why did you do it?!
As violent emotions and sorrow thrashed wordlessly in his heart, Ryuu parted her lips.
Ryuu: It is as it should be...
Her voice did not reach him, but her lips spelled out the words. Although he did not want to, Sora understood. Ryuu had made a choice. Unlike himself, who had tried to escape the jaws of death with no viable strategy whatsoever, she had assessed the situation coolly.
She knew that no matter how fiercely they struggled, they would die together, and so she threw away her life. She threw it away so Sora and Bell could live.
Sora: What do you mean as it should be?! We could make it together if we join together!
Sora shouted all possibilities at Ryuu, who had cut him loose. He screamed at the elf who had protected him like a sister. But no matter how he moaned and cried, there was no bridge to bring him to her. With his current injuries, he doesn't have the strength to jump all the way towards the other side. The river of darkness between them sentenced him to despair and eternal separation.
Ryuu: Carry on...
At the very end, he heard those words. Carry on? With life? With his journey? Her sky-blue eyes gazed at him until the last, pleading with him to live. Presently, a monster fell on her from behind her, and she disappeared beyond the curling smoke.
Sora:—Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!
With a wail that seemed to cut through his very heart, Sora turned away from the Colosseum and began to run with Slyphid and Bell following behind.
Ryuu: It is as it should be...
Ryuu squinted at the Hero as his screams faded into the distance. As she had predicted, the Dungeon had finally forced a decision on them. It had presented them with a crossroads at which everything would be lost unless a sacrifice was made.
And so Ryuu had made the decision.
She would give up her own life to save Sora and Bell's.
She would use his trust in her to achieve what she wanted.
She would use the Hero's innocence and tendency to follow her blindly without ever questioning her orders. She had been prepared to do it from the start. She had no regrets. But she did feel guilt. The sole needle in her conscience was the fact that she had tricked him.
Ryuu(mind): I've given him the map and the items... even without me—or rather, without the burden of me, they will be able to escape the deep levels...
Ryuu understood that her actions would pain the two boys. All the same, she wanted him to live. Far more than she herself, the sinner, wanted to live.
Monster: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
The monsters roaring behind her gave her no time for sentimentality. Sora and Bell had been set free. No matter how many monsters she slaughtered in
the Colosseum, new enemies would rise in their place. There was no meaning in continued struggle. Nevertheless, Ryuu resisted to the last. She was an adventurer, and she would not give up her life without exacting a price.
Ryuu: And...if I don't suffer through to the end, I won't be able to face Alise and the others.
She turned to face the approaching monsters from her position on the southern edge of the sixth plate where the bridge had once connected. She bent her knees and leaped upward.
It was a partial leap since she was protecting her wounded right leg. Still, she made it high enough into the air. As the monsters that had been dashing toward her plunged over the edge onto the pointed rocks below, countless eyes looked up at her.
She landed on the fifth plate but stumbled. As she collapsed to the ground, the shadows fell instantly on her.
A spartoi swung down its cudgel.
She rolled to avoid it and stood, pushing its hand away.
Having fallen farther into the Colosseum, Ryuu was pursued by a horde of monsters that was like an enormous serpent, or a whirlpool of beasts closing in around a pitiful sacrificial victim.
She slashed at the loup-garou that lunged at her with the sword of the dead adventurer. She managed to rip open its stomach when the blade bent, and she tossed it away with a word of gratitude for its help.
New enemies appeared. There would be no more reprieve. She fled to the fourth plate but found no escape. Monsters surrounded her. Without even the strength to use her magic, she took a body blow from a lizardman elite. She fell to the third plate and was grabbed by a waiting barbarian.
Ryuu: Ah—!
It kicked her into the air with a leg as big as a tree trunk. She landed suddenly on the bottom of the Colosseum, that is, in its central arena. With the breath knocked out of her from the powerful blow on her back, she doubled over in pain.
The monsters surrounded her mercilessly.
It was a scene without hope. She was caught in the center of a many-layered net. She was like a gravely wounded enemy general pursued by an army of ten thousand men. Intent on having her head, every imaginable fang and claw whistled through the air. If a fellow adventurer had been watching from outside the Colosseum, they would almost certainly have abandoned her as a lost cause.
The monsters did not hide their frenzied excitement over this bird who had lost its wings. They scrambled to be the first to devour her, pushing one another over in a riot of blood and screams. But that, too, was a trivial matter. The circle around her grew steadily tighter until the monsters were on the verge of trampling her.
Ryuu:...Aaah...so this is...
This was the place she would die. Now she realized it in earnest. She did feel regret. Her elf's pride screamed out that she should not die like this in a den of monsters. She did not want to be disgraced by monsters, able to leave behind neither her pride nor her dead body.
But she had secured life for one who was important to her. In the end, she had fulfilled her role as a senior adventurer.
That was enough. Wasn't it?
Because of her shameful yet noble self-sacrifice, her Hero had been saved. She had not lost what was most important to her. In response to her whispered words, her heart was silent. Her pesky elf's pride seemed to have been satisfied by her internal arguments. She smiled fleetingly.
Ryuu(mind): Syr...everyone...
The Hostess of Fertility rose in her mind. She apologized for disappearing without a word from these friends who had given her a place to feel at home when she had none.
Ryuu(mind): I'm sorry for giving up the life you saved. Lady Astrea...
Her heart throbbed at the memory of her patron deity. She lowered her head for those eyes and that sorrowful voice she could no longer remember.
Ryuu(mind): I am sorry for soiling your name and the name of our familia even at the end. Alise...
How she longed to be reunited. The death sentence she had longed for at the bottom of her heart, the time of atonement and redemption, had come.
Ryuu(mind): Please, I beg of you, pass judgment on me.
Oblivious to the monsters bearing down on her, Ryuu lay her cheek against the ground and smiled. Just as she had once done in a back alley where she expected to meet death. She slowly closed her eyes, preparing to welcome her final moment. But Ryuu had made a miscalculation. She had forgotten. She had neglected to consider the nature of the life she had cut loose. She had forgotten that no matter how much he was tricked or injured, the gray-haired Hero's philosophy. No matter what, he never go back on his words.
The Hero was so simple and good-natured he would insist on rescuing not only humans but even monsters. She had forgotten that those indomitable diamond eyes were incapable of leaving anyone behind or parting with anyone—that their owner was a fool who insisted on smashing the scales of choice. It was just like the time when the girl with the blue-gray hair saved her after she wreaked her revenge.
The person who had gripped her hand so tightly simply would not accept that her life was at its end.
Sora: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
The next instant, electrical fire erupted from the Colosseum.
Ryuu:—
As the flames roared, swirling sparks drifted down on Ryuu where she lay in the center of the arena. Ryuu paid no attention to the stunned monsters, but instead opened her eyes and looked toward the source of the sparks.
She saw blue sparks. Blue sparks raging in the midst of horror. His gray hair tousled, his body clothed in flickering light, a single Hero appeared before the monsters. All alone without the white rabbit nor the Spirit Girl.
Sora: Ryuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!
He was on the sixth plate at the outer rim of the Colosseum. He was charging ahead, kicking aside the monsters thrown into chaos by his surprise attack. He headed straight for Ryuu, who lay facedown in the center of the net of monsters.
Ryuu:...Why...?
At first, Ryuu didn't know what had happened. But the instant her eyes met his beyond the wall of confused and furious monsters, she screamed her question at the top of her lungs.
Ryuu: Why?! How?!
She pushed her trembling hands on the ground and looked up at the scene that was, to her, a nightmare. Her heart was full of a terrible mess of feelings and doubts.
She was sure Sora had disappeared from the southern side of the Colosseum. So why was he here? How had he gotten here? She had destroyed the bridge. Even an upper-tier adventurer could not leap that far. Less than three minutes had passed, so how—? Her confused train of thought had gotten that far when she stopped in utter surprise.
Ryuu: He couldn't have taken...the western bridge?
He had indeed. Sora had not given up on rescuing Ryuu after he ran out of the room's southern doorway. To save her, he had dashed around to the western doorway. Given the location of the four doorways, all of the terrain surrounding the Colosseum consisted of stairways leading upward. The unique terrain of this area led inexorably toward the Colosseum. And the Colosseum was connected to the western and eastern doorways by mazes.
Ryuu: You idiot...you fool!!
He was charging downward, from the fifth to the fourth and now the third plate without concern for what Ryuu's thought.
Ryuu(mind): Why?! Why is he doing this?!
Now it was Ryuu's turn to be consumed by violent emotions. Why was he destroying her wishes? Why would he not listen to her? Now they would both die! Their deaths would be pointless.
Ryuu(mind): I wanted you, at least, to live!
Monster: OOOOOOOOO!
Sora: OUTA OF MY WAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!
As he charged straight toward Ryuu, spartois and barbarians lashed out at him from every side. He vomited blood, but his momentum carried him forward. His reckless suicide mission had quickly run him down. His body was damp with blood. With his current injuries who is even more worst that Ryuu's broken leg, he was very nearly killed by monsters. He was like a broken doll.
Ryuu(mind): Enough. Escape! Escape while you still can!
Ryuu's lips could not form their heartrending cry in time. Before she knew it, he had landed in the arena where she lay, having ignored the fountains of blood and the walls of horrid monsters on his way there.
Ryuu: !!
He gave a now-meaningless bloodthirsty roar and tore toward her. He crawled like an animal between the monsters' legs, kicked off the ground and flew over their heads when they threatened attack, and when an iron wall of monsters rose before him, he drilled a path forward with his electrical light.
He did not pay them any real attention. Ignoring the fangs and claws that shaved away his flesh, he dashed toward the center of the living net where Ryuu lay. He became a wedge that split open the wall of monsters, a streak of blue spark.
Ryuu(mind): It's no good. It's no use. It means nothing.
Even if Sora made it to Ryuu's side, all that awaited was the humiliation of being devoured alive. The two would be shamefully torn to pieces without even the luxury of a few final words. Ryuu's wishes had turned to ash. This was a nasty betrayal indeed. A nasty egotism. A cruel kindness.
Unable to suppress the emotions that rose and fell within her heart, Ryuu opened her mouth to scream. She wanted to curse that incomprehensibly foolish valiant figure to the limits of her strength.
Ryuu:—
But before she could, she noticed something. A fine light was emanating from Sora's right hand. Particles of white light were converging as a whistle chimed. She saw that he was gripping a crimson sphere in his hand, and that the particles of light were focusing on it. She saw that his rubellite eyes had not given up at all.
Ryuu(mind): No way—!
The right hand that held no sword gripped a bomb. It was the last of the Inferno Stones, which Ryuu had handed over to him. Sora was charging the stone. This was wisdom. At great risk Sora had tied together his own knowledge into wisdom. He'd charged weapons like his Kanshou and Bakuya and the Hestia sword that Ryuu had seen thousands of times. He knew that as long as his hand was touching the weapon, it was possible to boost its power.
Therefore, he should also be able to imbue the Inferno Stone gripped in his hand with the power of his lightning. He would charge a drop item that produced explosive flames to start with. To save a single elf, he would venture the risk.
Sora: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
The blood-soaked Hero howled, his super-bomb clutched in his hand, and blasted through the wall of monsters. He had been concurrently charging during the three minutes he spent running from the south to the west side of the Colosseum and then pushing through the net of monsters surrounding Ryuu. A chime rang out.
He was fully charged. The red stone where the white particles had gathered glittered sharply as if it were crying out from within. And then—
Sora: Ryuu!!
He broke through. Running with all his might, paying in blood and wounds, and with willingness to die if necessary, he broke through the wall of monsters. He dashed into the center of the field. The elf lay prone, illuminated by phosphorescence. He reached out his left hand. He reached out the hand that was struggling so hard against cruel reality.
Ryuu:—
Fragments of memory flitted through Ryuu's mind, for which time had frozen. Memories of debating the nature of justice with her companion in battle. Of mistaking ideals for the meaning of justice. When she thought about it, she realized she had stopped pursuing pure justice.
Ryuu:...What if someone really does fulfill their ideals?
A memory from long ago. A question from long ago.
Alise: Don't you know?
That day, her dear, irreplaceable friend had answered. She was sure of it.
Alise: Those are the people we call heroes.
Ryuu placed her own hand over the hand that reached out toward her.
Ryuu: !!
She was pulled into an embrace. Into the arms of the Hero, and into the heart of an infinite prison filled with monsters' roars. Monsters closed in on them from all directions. Their escape routes were gone. Fangs and claws flashed before their eyes. As the flow of time stretched to its limit, a whistle chimed within the Hero's hand, announcing criticality.
As soon as it did, he threw the stone. It danced above their heads into the center of the Colosseum. A moment after the charged weapon left Sora's hand, the charge would lose effect and the stored-up particles of light would scatter and dissipate. But Sora had a fuse that burned faster than that fleeting moment.
Sora: Railgun!
His Lightning-Strike Magic. Refusing to allow the particles of light to dissipate, the electrical thunder raced toward the red stone. An instant—and it ignited. Ryuu saw the flames expanding outward. They were not the crimson flames that had swept through the Colosseum twice already, but instead a beautiful white flash of light.
A pure white aurora that blew away everything else. The monsters craning their necks to look upward, Ryuu's own wide-open eyes, the Colosseum itself... everything was illuminated by the blinding brilliance. And then the brilliance that was like a white sun exploded. A blue and white flare engulfed everything. The monsters' screams were blotted out and the Colosseum's plates crumbled, unable to withstand the shock.
The instant before the glittering light arrived, Ryuu had been pressed against the ground, still in Sora's arms, and the world before her eyes, too, had disappeared in a whiteout. Deafening thunder and waves of heat pounded over her. Powerful shock waves assaulted her body. Just as her consciousness faded to white, a sensation of floating enveloped her body.