In an instant, the monster army vanished without a trace. Flames covered half the cavern, scorching the ground and walls pitch black.
Roy was fairly satisfied with the Spirit Holy Sword's first battle. Its power was equivalent to a Lv. 3 mage's extended-chant magic—but without the need to chant.
The special effect, Heaven's Scorch, was absurdly overpowered.
Because it absorbed magical energy from the air, Roy only needed to expend a small amount of mental strength to activate it. The consumption was far lower than that of long-chant magic.
Looking at the Spirit Holy Sword, Roy suddenly had an epiphany.
Wasn't this strikingly similar to a magic sword?
Unlike disposable magic swords, however, the Spirit Holy Sword possessed the special attribute of "Eternity"—it would never break.
The ancestor of the Crozzo family had only inherited a fragment of spirit bloodline and was already able to forge extraordinarily powerful magic swords. This blade had been personally crafted by a spirit.
Magic swords were probably just inferior imitations of this weapon.
Roy dismissed the thought. He had no interest in digging into ancient history.
"So amazing!"
Marie's eyes sparkled as she clapped. As an intelligent Xenos, she and her kind were often hunted by monsters in the Dungeon. She did not consider Roy killing monsters to be cruel.
Unlike Marie's joy, the enhanced mermaid trembled in terror. She had survived only by hiding behind rocks and using the monster army as shields.
Her survival instinct screamed at her to flee.
But if she turned her back to Roy, she would be killed in an instant.
"La la la~"
The enhanced mermaid began to sing again.
Roy frowned. Even if she summoned several hundred more monsters, it would be meaningless. With the Spirit Holy Sword in hand, a single swing would suffice.
At that moment, over a dozen figures crawled out from cracks in the rocks—it was the missing adventurers.
Roy understood immediately. It seemed Freya did not want to escalate things too far. Instead of killing them, she had the mermaid control them with her song.
The controlled adventurers, each around Lv. 2, charged at Roy like puppets.
"Did you misunderstand something?"
Roy's gaze turned icy. Did she think he was like Ryuu—the overly kind fool?
His reputation had been forged in blood.
Whether it was the Rudra Familia or the Apollo Familia, he had killed so many that he had long since lost count—like a person forgetting how many pieces of bread they had eaten.
Roy put away the Spirit Holy Sword. It was fine for monsters, but he preferred not to use it against adventurers—especially since a few among them were elves.
Crackle!
Lightning formed into a long sword in his hand. In a single step, he closed the distance and began cutting them down cleanly. Cold steel flashed—several heads flew into the air, blood spraying outward.
Controlled adventurers were far weaker than normal, even inferior to monsters of the same level.
The air filled with the thick scent of blood.
Like a god of slaughter, Roy walked toward the enhanced mermaid step by step, terrifying her to the core.
She instinctively sensed mortal danger.
Meanwhile, Mari clapped happily. In her eyes, Roy was not slaughtering adventurers—he was defending himself from those trying to kill him.
"La la la~"
The enhanced mermaid's face turned sorrowful. Crystal-clear tears fell, transforming into gemstones as they dropped. Her crying sounded like singing.
The controlled adventurers gradually regained awareness.
"Save me!"
"Justice Sprout, save me!"
They froze briefly before realizing what was happening, crying out desperately to Roy for help.
But even as they cried, their bodies continued to attack him uncontrollably. The mages in the rear began chanting, preparing spells.
Roy's expression remained indifferent.
Clever. If force didn't work, try emotion instead. Killing controlled adventurers carried little guilt—but killing those who had regained awareness was another matter.
She knew how to exploit human sentiment.
Roy's response was simple—a casual swing of his sword.
Several more heads flew.
"Ahhhh—!"
The adventurers' faces turned pale with terror.
When their pleas failed, their cries turned to rage and curses.
"Justice Sprout, how dare you?!"
"You dare kill adventurers? The Guild and our Familias will never let you go!"
"I curse you and your Familia!"
They screamed, glaring at Roy with hatred.
Roy sneered. Go complain to that madwoman Freya. These gods who toyed with the world treated it as their playground.
Spells were unleashed—flames and ice surged toward him like twin serpents.
"Guardian!"
Roy activated the Steel Armguard's special effect. An invisible shield enveloped him as he endured the magic and charged forward.
Without hesitation, he cut them down.
All controlled adventurers were slain. Corpses littered the ground, and blood dyed the once-clear lake crimson.
The blood-red surface reflected a horrifying scene.
Roy's leg muscles tightened, and he shot forward like a rocket toward the enhanced mermaid. Her face turned deathly pale as she tried to leap back into the water.
Boom!
The sword in Roy's hand transformed into a lightning spear. Pouring every ounce of strength from his body into the throw, he hurled it.
Like a bolt of divine thunder, it pierced through the panicked mermaid's chest, driving her back over ten meters and pinning her to the wall.
Mermaids were not strong in direct combat. Her song and puppets had failed to stop Roy—her defeat was inevitable.
As Bors had judged, this enhanced species was only Lv. 3, with overall abilities around H rank. She could bully a Lv. 2 Xenos like Mari, but trying to challenge Roy was suicide.
Roy closed the distance instantly.
Sharp claws extended from the mermaid's hands, gleaming coldly as she slashed at him.
Clang!
Roy raised the Steel Armguard to block. Sparks flew as the claws scraped against it, leaving deep marks.
Using the opening, Roy stepped in close. Golden lightning enveloped his palm as he thrust it forward, piercing her chest.
Inside her abdomen, his hand grasped something hard.
He yanked it out violently.
Flesh and blood sprayed as a complete, dark-purple magic stone emerged in his hand.
Bang!
The enhanced mermaid's body stiffened. Her mouth hung open as she disintegrated from the bottom up into ash.
—
At the top floor of Babel Tower.
Freya swirled a glass of fine red wine gracefully, gazing at the ruby-like liquid within as though she could see everything reflected inside.
"If that child's justice awakens… yet you still slaughter those adventurers, then you lose the right to stand beside her."
"Disappear."
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