Ais was the last to leave.
She chose a different path from the other three, even taking the route behind the group. She knew the traps in the area they had just passed had already been cleared. The party wouldn't be turning back anymore; they would only continue forward.
Moving against the group's direction, Ais didn't see a single enemy. It was as if someone had swept the entire area clean.
How could that be?
The question echoed in her mind. Even though their earlier exposure had drawn a large number of Evilus members from the Stealth floors toward the main expedition force, the opposite route shouldn't be completely empty.
The moment the doubt surfaced, Ais acted. She surged forward through the deserted corridor at an even faster pace.
Her speed was exceptional. As an Agility-type adventurer, she was in no way inferior to Bete. In fact, thanks to the synergy between her Magic and speed, once she opened up fully, she could easily surpass him. Yet even while sprinting at full speed, she still didn't spot a single person. She couldn't even sense the faintest trace of anyone.
"Strange."
This time, Ais truly felt something was wrong. Logically, this should have been the rear of the formation—an ideal position for an attacking force. But following that logic only made the empty passage feel even more suspicious.
"Finn's plan must've been to trigger the rear traps the moment he detected an ambush, completely cutting off any enemies coming from behind."
Ais was certain that was Finn's intention. Otherwise, he wouldn't have cleared out an entire zone while purposely leaving a falling-wall trap untouched. Yet there wasn't a single enemy approaching from the rear. That in itself was strange.
Suddenly, Ais stopped.
Sniff.
An overwhelming stench hit her nose, causing her brows to knit.
'The stench of blood.'
Without slowing down, she sprinted toward the source as fast as she could.
After rounding several corners, Ais found battle marks that made her heart jolt. On the wall to her right was a vertical slash roughly four meters long. Judging from the depth, it reached thirty—maybe forty—centimeters deep.
Ais noticed the surface layer of the wall was brick, but past the thirty-centimeter mark, a metallic sheen appeared beneath it. The slash had been cut deep into that metal, leaving a mark that looked nearly impossible to erase.
"Impressive."
"Only Gareth could leave a mark like this on metal of this quality."
Realizing this, Ais slowed down. Whoever carved that slash couldn't have gone far. It hadn't been made long ago—it was fresh.
But she didn't have long to ponder.
In the shadows, a pair of inhuman eyes was already fixed on her. Sharp beastlike claws swept toward her without warning, without a sound.
At the moment of danger, Ais leapt, barely avoiding the attack. But the claws still gouged five deep grooves into the wall.
"Ssshhk!"
The scraping of claws against metal produced a shrill, grating noise.
Still midair, just as Ais adjusted her posture, a violent gust slammed toward her. Before her vision could fully focus, she saw only a pair of monstrous claws stabbing at her.
She instantly drew the Desperate and struck back.
"Thud!"
The impact sent a jarring vibration through her arm, almost numbing her hand. She had blocked it with only one arm—her right hand—and that alone could barely withstand the force. The Desperate nearly flew from her grasp.
Even so, the impact threw her body against the wall.
"Thud!"
Ais let out a light groan. The burning pain across her back snapped her focus sharp.
Only then did she finally get a clear look at the ambusher. At a glance, it looked almost human. But on closer inspection, the resemblance ended at the basic outline. Both hands had transformed into thick, beast-like claws, and along its skin ran scales—fish-scale plates that matched the color of its flesh.
"Spirit Elite Soldier."
Ais whispered the words. Her numb right hand twitched, trying to shake off the paralysis. Her left hand tightened on the sword hilt.
This enemy was nowhere near ordinary. It was a foe unlike any she had faced before.
Her eyes locked onto those claws. If she were caught by them even once, her skin would split instantly. She couldn't afford a single careless moment.
The Spirit Soldier showed no signs of madness. In fact, Ais could see a feral, beast-like wildness flickering in its vertical pupils. Both of its earlier attacks had failed, and it now clearly recognized the human before it as a dangerous opponent. But its mission hadn't changed. It still intended to tear her apart.
Its knees bent slightly, and its legs erupted with explosive force as its body blurred forward.
'So fast!'
Ais's expression grew tense. She even caught the trace of an afterimage.
But years of battle experience let her react instantly. Rather than counter, she moved back to evade.
The claws tore through the air, leaving behind harsh ripping sounds.
Five claw marks slashed across the fabric on Ais's right shoulder. They didn't break skin; the attack hadn't touched her. The air pressure alone had ripped the cloth.
At that moment, Ais seized her chance, shifting into a blocking stance while driving both hands against the attacking claw.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle!"
Sparks scattered as her blade scraped against the Spirit Soldier's skin.
"!?"
Ais saw clearly that Desperate had left only a faint white line on its arm—something so shallow it barely qualified as a scratch.
Realizing this, Ais immediately pulled back.
She now understood just how dangerous the Spirit Soldier truly was.
Its strength was immense, its speed overwhelming, and even its body possessed unimaginable hardness. In a direct clash, not even Desperate could deal meaningful damage to it.
...