Judas felt a pair of eyes on him.
When he turned, he caught Alfia flinching ever so slightly before snapping her head away, pretending to look elsewhere.
'Right... ever since she nearly ascended to heaven, she's been acting strange.'
He had noticed the subtle shifts in her behavior.
During training she was harsher with him than usual, knocking him out first almost every time.
And she wouldn't even glance in his direction anymore... always turning her face or back toward him, refusing to make eye contact as if he were the plague.
Of course, considering she usually kept her eyes closed anyway, she rarely looked at anyone to begin with.
'This woman is impossible to read... probably even more than Freya.'
He shook his head and dismissed the thought.
Once everyone finished resting, Alfia grabbed Belle by the back of her neck.
"Let's go."
Her figure blurred and vanished.
No one questioned her abrupt departure... Alfia was the type of woman who considered small talk a waste of breath.
"Judas, Tione... dungeon?"
Ais asked, staring at them with her usual doll-like expression.
"Eh? We just got our asses kicked and you want to head into the dungeon already?"
Tione groaned, but she was already grinning.
"Is what I want to say... but you're going anyway, right?"
Ais nodded.
"Then count me in."
Both of them turned to Judas.
"What about you?"
Tione asked while Ais simply continued staring.
Judas let out a heavy sigh.
"Right... it's been a while since I last went. Why not?"
He shrugged.
After a couple of minutes, as the three made their way toward the dungeon's entrance, the usual murmur of adventurers was broken by guttural noises.
Roar.
Growl.
Judas slowed his steps.
'That symbol... the Ganesha Familia?'
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of several hulking silhouettes being hauled through the plaza.
A small procession of Ganesha Familia members marched past, each one gripping reinforced chains or guiding heavy iron cages.
Judas shifted his gaze toward one cage in particular.
'Huh... is that the Silverback Gorilla that Bell fought in the anime?'
As if sensing the weight of his stare, the Silverback Gorilla snapped its head toward him.
Its crimson eyes locked onto Judas, pupils narrowing.
A deep, rumbling growl rose from its throat.
Judas simply raised an eyebrow.
He felt no threat... only a faint nostalgia at recognizing another piece of the world he once viewed from a screen.
Without slowing his pace, he turned away and continued toward the dark staircase leading underground, Ais and Tione following close behind as the noise of caged monsters faded behind them.
...
The next day, the city was buzzing with excitement.
The streets were a bit more crowded than usual.
Amid the lively atmosphere, a soft, hesitant voice called out from behind Judas.
"J-Judas... can you help me practice concurrent chanting?"
For some reason, the once-proud disciple of Nine Hell had come up to him and asked him for training.
Judas paused, studying her expression.
Despite the hesitation in her voice and the slight reluctance in her posture, he could still see traces of her pride... pride as an elf, as Riveria's disciple, and as a senior adventurer.
'It probably took her a lot of courage to ask me this.'
But all of that pride was being pushed down, swallowed in favor of something stronger... a burning drive to improve.
What he saw in her eyes was the fiery determination of someone who refused to stay weak.
"Alright, I don't have a problem with it."
Judas said, his purple eyes locking onto her blue ones. Lefiya flinched at the intensity.
"But I do have one question."
"Um... ask away," Lefiya replied.
"Why ask me of all people? Why not Riveria, the other elven mages, Tiona, Tione, or even Ais?"
Judas' tone was calm, genuinely curious.
Although he and Lefiya had a noticeably better relationship ever since he gave her advice on concurrent chanting, it wasn't as if they had suddenly become close.
At best, they were somewhere between friends and fellow familia members.
"Ah..."
Hearing his question, Lefiya blinked and fell silent, her eyes widening slightly.
'Yeah... why did I ask him specifically?'
Was it simply because he gave her good advice?
If she had to be honest with herself, Judas had already imprinted himself in her mind as a reliable teacher... someone worth learning from.
That alone put him above even Ais in this regard.
'It's because I acknowledge him.'
She had declared she would be his rival.
Looking back, it sounded absurd given how overwhelmingly strong he was... but even so, she refused to give up.
'But he probably doesn't acknowledge me.'
That quiet insecurity curled deep in her chest.
And with it came a desire... small, fragile, but undeniably real.
'I want him to acknowledge me. I want to stand where he can see me.'
Her gaze lifted. The hesitation in her eyes faded, replaced by resolve.
"I want to become stronger," she said softly.
"Because there are people I want to catch up to. And... because I want you to see my growth for yourself."
She bowed her head deeply.
"So Judas, please... teach me."
Judas blinked, a bit surprised by the earnestness in her voice.
"Why are you asking me again?" he sighed.
"I already said I was okay with teaching you."
He shook his head and gestured ahead.
"Come on. Let's head to the training grounds. Let's see if your determination matches your words."
Lefiya's eyes lit up with relief and gratitude.
She stepped forward, her steps lighter than before.
"Thank you."
She said, her voice almost trembling with sincerity.
...
In a forgotten corner of Orario's underground sewer system, where the air was thick with humidity and the stench of stagnant water, a faint rustling disturbed the silence.
Moist stone walls glistened with mold, and the only light came from the occasional drip of glowing moss clinging to the ceiling.
There... half-merged with the darkness... stood a shadowy figure.
His body was draped in an unsettling outfit stitched together with dozens of colorful masks, each one frozen in a different expression: laughter, rage, grief, madness.
They clattered faintly when he moved, creating a chime-like echo that didn't belong in a place like this.
"Ah... it's that time again, Monster Feria."
The figure murmured, voice low and giddy.
His tone carried the kind of excitement one might expect from a child awaiting a festival, not from a man surrounded by horrors.
Groan...
Roar...
Growl...
A chorus of monstrous noises reverberated behind him... wet, unnatural, hungry.
"Ah yes, yes... children, be patient, your time to act is coming near."
He cooed, spreading his arms as though welcoming beloved pets.
Behind him stretched a writhing mass of grotesque plant monsters.
Man-eating flowers with long, serpentine stems slithered across the filthy stone floor.
Their petals peeled back like gruesome smiles, revealing rows of jagged, carnivorous teeth.
Thick vines twisted like veins, pulsing with malignant life.
Each one salivated, their acidic fluids sizzling as they dripped to the ground.
The figure... Enyo... smiled behind one of his many masks.
"Lord Enyo... the seeds of chaos have sprouted."
The sudden voice came from behind.
A second figure materialized silently beside him, as if stepping out of the shadows themselves.
Clad in an unassuming cloak, the figure bowed his head respectfully.
Ein. His sole loyal subordinate.
Enyo tilted his head, several of his masks tilting with him.
"Good work, Ein..."
He said softly, genuine approval woven into his eerie tone.
He turned toward the swarm of monstrous flora, the pale glimmer in his eyes reflecting their writhing shapes.
"Well then..."
He raised a hand, fingers trembling with anticipation.
"Let the chaos commence."
The monsters hissed in unison, the sewer suddenly feeling far too cramped for what was about to be unleashed.
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