Loud cheers erupted throughout the Colosseum.
If Alfia were here, she would've blown this entire place to smithereens.
Watching a member of the Ganesha Familia tame a Silverback Gorilla... the very same species from the anime... performing tricks for the crowd, Judas briefly wondered if he should try taming a few powerful monsters himself.
However, a nagging feeling continued to prick at the back of his mind.
'The event where Freya charms a horde of monsters and unleashes them on the city... that shouldn't happen right now.'
After all, he and the Loki Familia had already paid her a visit.
He even taught her executives a very painful lesson.
'She should be laying low after that.'
And yet, the unease refused to fade.
He didn't know why... but he could feel it.
'That figure from earlier...'
Something was coming.
Something that would turn this lively celebration... into the first spark of chaos.
"Oh? You feel it too?"
A voice chimed beside him.
Judas turned and met Loki's gaze.
"I feel it... rustling all around," she said.
"As if telling me to be careful of this Monster Feria."
Her slit-pupiled eyes narrowed as she looked down at the stage below, a wide grin spreading across her face.
"That's what my intuition is telling me... the intuition of the trickster who once threw Heaven into chaos."
Judas blinked at her words.
If even Loki was saying that, then it practically confirmed that something was going to happen.
A thunderous explosion echoed from outside the arena.
Then another. Then the distant terror-filled screams of civilians.
"Ha! I knew it."
Loki clicked her tongue.
"Trouble never misses a festival."
Judas, Ais, Tione, and Tiona exchanged quick, determined looks.
Loki groaned theatrically when she saw their expressions.
"Right, right... go wild, you battle-obsessed zealots."
That was all they needed.
The group immediately took off.
"W–Wait for me!"
Lefiya yelped, gripping her staff with both hands as she scrambled after them.
The moment they exited the colosseum, a wave of chaos greeted them... citizens fleeing in panic, guild employees shouting orders, smoke rising from multiple streets.
Judas immediately spotted familiar faces.
'Rose... Eina... even Misha's here.'
There were also some other guild workers whose names he didn't know.
"What's happening?"
Judas demanded as he reached them.
The guild workers turned... and their shock was instant.
"Judas!"
"The Loki Familia is here! Thank the gods!"
Relief washed over them, though their postures remained tense and vigilant.
"This is perfect timing... please, we need your help," Rose said urgently.
"For some reason, plant-like monsters suddenly appeared all over the city."
Eina added, adjusting her glasses with trembling hands.
"They're attacking indiscriminately and causing destruction everywhere."
"The Ganesha Familia has been deployed," Misha said, voice shaky.
"They're helping citizens evacuate and trying to contain the monsters, but—"
"—if we let this continue, the damage will become catastrophic," Eina finished.
She bowed her head slightly.
"So please... lend us your strength."
But the plea had barely left her lips when a violent roar shook the alley nearby.
ROAR!
A massive plant-like monster burst out... towering, hulking, its body made of writhing vines and thorny tendrils.
Its eyes glowed as it flung debris aside like toys, smashing walls as it shoved its way forward.
"What kind of monster is that?"
"A new species...?" another whispered, paling.
The monster turned toward them, vines snapping like whips as it let out another thunderous bellow... this time aimed directly at Judas and the others.
Eina, Rose, and the other guild employees went pale the moment the plant monster emerged.
Its sickly green glow reflected in their eyes, the sheer pressure of its presence freezing them in place.
Judas stepped forward without hesitation.
He lifted his hand.
『Barrier』
A translucent wall of shimmering light erupted between them and the beast.
The monster slammed into it with a thunderous crack, the force trembling through the ground.
The shield held firm, humming with magic as vines scraped wildly against its surface.
"I'll handle this one," Judas said calmly, a magic circle blooming beneath his feet like a luminous flower.
"You guys deal with the others."
"Don't let your guard down, Judas."
Ais crouched, golden hair swaying, her eyes locked on danger like a drawn blade.
"Ah! Wait! Ais, let me help y—!"
Before Lefiya could finish, Ais vanished, shooting upward with wind-like speed, leaping from rooftop to rooftop like a phantom.
"..."
Lefiya stood frozen, mouth slightly open, arm half-raised toward the space where her idol had been a heartbeat before.
"Lefiya, come with us. These plant monsters seem a bit strong... you won't be able to handle them alone."
Tiona called out, already jogging alongside Tione toward another street.
Lefiya bit her lip, nodded, and hurried after them.
Judas returned his attention to the monster thrashing in front of him.
It writhed like a giant serpent made of brambles and rage, letting out another guttural roar before hurling itself forward again.
'At least Level 4.'
Judas assessed, his expression unchanging.
"Judas! Be careful!"
Rose shouted, unable to keep her fear from leaking into her voice.
Judas casually snapped his fingers.
『Earth Spikes』
The ground beneath the monster ruptured with a violent crunch as jagged stone spears exploded upward.
Several pierced its body, impaling it mid-charge.
The creature wailed, vines shaking as it writhed in agony but remained pinned.
Judas lifted his hand again, a new magic circle forming... this one red and pulsing with heat.
『Fireball』
A flicker of flame appeared above his palm.
Then it grew.
And grew.
Until it was the size of a massive boulder, heat rippling off it in waves that made the air shimmer.
Citizens stopped running.
Guild employees froze.
Even passing adventurers turned to stare.
The street fell silent as all eyes fixed on Judas.
He exhaled slowly... and swung his arm downward.
The massive fireball descended like a miniature sun.
The impaled monster looked up... its last vision a blazing sphere before flames swallowed it whole.
RRAAAAAAH!
The explosion was deafening.
Heat washed outward like a tidal wave, forcing onlookers to shield their faces.
Dust billowed up, swallowing the scene in thick smoke.
When it finally cleared...
A scorched crater remained.
Nothing else.
Not even ash.
"Amazing..."
Eina whispered, almost breathless.
Her glasses reflected the fading glow of residual embers, her usually calm green eyes shimmering in awe.
Even after several seconds, she couldn't tear her gaze away from Judas.
'So this is the man Belle admires.'
'I suppose... this is why she fell for him.'
Eina found herself lingering on his striking features longer than she intended.
She wasn't the type to be swayed by appearances, yet even she felt her heart give a small, unexpected flutter.
"So that's Judas Spade..."
"The rumors were true..."
Misha and the other guild workers murmured, admiration coloring their voices.
"..."
Rose remained silent, but her eyes were wide with disbelief.
As his advisor, she had read countless reports detailing Judas' strength, and she had heard the stories passed from mouth to mouth from eye witnesses...but seeing it with her own eyes was an entirely different experience.
In that moment, it finally sank in just how absurdly powerful Judas Spade truly was.
"Wow..."
Heat rushed to her cheeks, her heartbeat quickening uncontrollably.
Something warm, confusing, and impossible to ignore bloomed inside her chest.
In that moment... unmistakably... a feeling she couldn't explain took root, and her tail began to wag uncontrollably.
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