Everyone except Finn launched an assault on the corrupted fairy clone.
As for Finn… there was no need for anyone to worry about him. With "Savage Magic Spear" already activated, taking down Valleta was almost guaranteed.
But things weren't looking great on the other side either—"Kasharod" was still in effect, and fighting the corrupted fairy clone under its influence was no easy feat.
Even Charles felt his strength being sapped, down to roughly 80% of normal.
It was either end the battle quickly or hold out until Finn defeated Valleta. Everyone understood this.
In the original storyline, the Loki Familia had fought a corrupted fairy clone during their second expedition, but the situation then was very different.
The Loki Familia was missing Riveria and Lefiya, who provided magical firepower support, but now they had Charles.
And although the corrupted fairy clone was also in its mature form, it didn't have the time to mass-produce monsters like on the 59th floor.
Instead, it was backed by an assassination group wielding cursed weapons, plus the red-haired woman and Valleta—both formidable enemies. In terms of strength, this version might not be any weaker than the 59th floor's corrupted fairy.
After cutting down the lightning spear, Gareth charged forward, slamming his battle axe into the ground, sending shockwaves that launched a large group of enemies into the air.
The Amazonian sisters seized the moment and dashed forward like sharp blades, heading straight for the corrupted fairy.
Ais, meanwhile, had been pinned down by the red-haired woman from the very start and couldn't break free.
For some reason, it seemed the red-haired woman was obsessed with Ais. Rather than simply following the corrupted fairy's orders, she seemed personally intent on fighting Ais.
Tsubaki also joined the fray, her war hammer sweeping away countless assassins and monsters.
Charles punched an assassin flying and looked at the corrupted fairy, who had begun chanting again, letting out a sigh.
He'd once mocked Bell for always getting into trouble in the Dungeon, but it seemed he wasn't much better.
While fighting Amphisbæna, he ran into Jala; during the Loki Familia's expedition, they encountered the white-haired ghost; and when returning from slaying the corrupted fairy, he bumped into Ottar.
Now he was just here to test a weapon, and ended up dragged into this fight. In the original plot, this battle was definitely not supposed to be this intense.
Charles was annoyed—so he decided to vent a little.
"Fahr!"
With his call, Fahr appeared in midair, wrapped in blazing flames, lighting up the entire 24th floor of the Dungeon like a miniature sun.
"Burn them all!"
Charles landed on Fahr's back and gave the command.
Charles rarely fought while riding Fahr—it made battles too dull, and while Fahr's attacks were good for clearing fodder, they weren't very effective against powerful enemies.
But for this kind of situation, it was perfect. Fahr let out a roar and spewed a pillar of fire at the ground.
The fire swept across the surface, triggering a series of explosions. The ground beneath the mushroom clouds was completely overturned. Man-eating flowers and the assassin group were all blasted into the air.
Even Gareth and the Amazonian sisters halted their charge, afraid Fahr might accidentally blow them away too.
Tiona looked up at Fahr in the sky. "So that's the true power of Charles's fairy? That's not what I read about in the stories!"
In the legend of the Hero of the Labyrinth, fairies were never symbols of strength—they were wise mentors who offered guidance and support.
So seeing Fahr unleash such overwhelming violence left Tiona utterly stunned.
The others reacted similarly. Fairies only existed in legends, so no one could really say if Fahr was "a proper fairy" or not.
Even Finn, in his berserk state, stopped in his tracks, staring at Fahr in astonishment.
Valleta, on the other hand, was completely falling apart. She had thought she could finally kill that bastard Finn—but now, some random freak had appeared out of nowhere.
"No one ever told me some monster like this would show up! Damn it! That bastard's luck is ridiculous—how is he turning this around?!"
Finn pointed his spear at her and said, "No matter what you try, your defeat is inevitable!"
Valleta looked grimly at Fahr, who was rampaging across the battlefield, no longer spewing curses as before.
But she was grinding her teeth audibly, seething with hatred—whether at Finn or at the meddling Charles, it was hard to say.
Riding Fahr, Charles continued clearing enemies below as they closed in on the corrupted fairy.
The corrupted fairy was almost done chanting an ultra-long incantation, but Charles's attack arrived just in time.
"Flamehorn of the Fire Dragon!"
Charles transformed into a flaming meteor and launched himself from Fahr's back, headbutting the corrupted fairy's humanoid form right in the abdomen.
The chant was interrupted. The corrupted fairy's body bent backward from the impact, and the raging flames ignited her humanoid form. She crashed into the quartz pillar behind her, shattering it completely.
And because the ultra-long incantation had been interrupted, its magic energy went out of control. The massive surge of mana scattered the flames and blew the corrupted fairy's body apart.
Gareth slammed his axe into the ground and said, "So this is the guy who fought Ottar? Charles really is full of surprises."
Tsubaki, resting her Return Hammer on her shoulder, laughed. "See that? My junior's amazing! Actually, maybe too amazing. He's giving us seniors a lot of pressure!"
The damage from Charles's single attack was so impressive that even Gareth couldn't help but comment.
"But we can't afford to fall behind either!" Gareth said, dragging his axe forward as he charged again.
This was the indomitable will of a first-class adventurer. Gareth's words inspired the others.
Tione hurled both of her curved blades, piercing through two assassins and sending their bodies flying.
Now unarmed, Tione became even more ferocious—she smashed through a man-eating flower with her bare fists.
Tiona wasn't far behind, swinging her giant dual blades in a whirlwind of ferocity.
With Fahr having cleared the battlefield once, the group quickly reached the corrupted fairy.
Charles frowned slightly as he watched the corrupted fairy regenerate in the blink of an eye.
This clone's self-healing was far superior to the one on the 59th floor—likely because the food storage area's quartz pillar had provided it with massive nourishment, giving it exceptional regenerative ability.
That meant taking it down in one blow was going to be difficult.
As Charles observed, countless tentacles extended from the corrupted fairy's vines, the sharp tips shooting toward him like spearheads.
Before Charles could react, Gareth stepped in front of him and cleaved through all the tentacles with a single swing of his axe.
And the corrupted fairy, who had started chanting a short spell, was suddenly struck and knocked back by a flying war hammer.
Charles smiled. Unlike last time, he wasn't fighting alone anymore.
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! Only $5 per novel or $15 for all!!] [www.p@treon.com/Mutter]
[+100 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[+5 Reviews = +1 Extra Chapter]