Freya's [Charm] over Orario was broken by Hestia's power.
As a rule, the gods leave one another's amusements alone as long as they don't cause harm, but—
"...Freya!!!"
"You crossed the line."
"So being pretty makes everything okay?!"
This time, she had clearly gone too far.
Coveting another god's Familia was one thing.
Tempting them was also fine.
But—
Forcibly taking them was crossing the line.
Doing it properly, through a War Game or mutual agreement, was one thing, but forcibly taking them—especially by even [Charm]-ing the gods themselves—was a serious overstep.
The gods all vented their anger at Freya.
"You wanted Bell Cranel that badly?!"
"We've been holding back too!"
"You don't get to take an adorable little rabbit like that!!!"
Public opinion turned against Freya.
Now,
all that remained was to bring down Freya Familia.
...
That was how it should have been.
"...Lady Hestia, just in case, but do monsters exist outside the Dungeon too?"
"Hmm... not very many, but... yes, they do."
"Then... are there any individual monsters stronger than the ones that come out of the Dungeon?"
"There is exactly one."
"..."
A small black dot appeared in the sky as we reached the top of Babel Tower.
At first, I dismissed it as a fly or a hallucination.
But then,
the dot began to grow larger and larger.
[My child... is coming.]
Why?
I didn't even have time to think that.
I shouted so loudly that the whole of Orario could hear me.
"The Black Dragon has appeared—!!!"
Freya, who had been flustered, and the gods who had been venting their anger all began guiding their Familia members toward Babel.
"Pandora, you..."
[...]
"No, forget it."
I projected a magic sword instead of Excalibur.
As the thing that had seemed like a dot rushed closer, its form finally became clear.
A black-scaled dragon with a large scar over one eye and a body far larger than most deep-floor monsters.
"■■■■■■■■■■■!!!!!"
Once its outline became visible, it let out a shriek that made my ears ache.
"Hey! Snap out of it!"
"Potions! Does anyone have any potions left?!"
Whether from the roar or from fear, people began collapsing, some fainting, others passing out with blood running from their ears.
"Goddess!"
"Bell!"
At just the right moment, Bell reached the top of Babel Tower.
"Take your goddess and get down from here."
"What about you, Brother?!"
"I'm stronger than you, so I'm fine. Stop talking and go."
"But..."
"I said go down."
"...Please come back alive!"
"That's a death flag, idiot!"
Bell quickly took Hestia and headed down.
"Now then... what should I do with that thing?"
The wind began to rise.
The wind was not natural; it came from the Black Dragon's beating wings, savage as an enraged typhoon.
[...My child has exceeded my expectations.]
"So you're saying I'll die if I fight it?"
[There's a high chance of that.]
"So you're saying I shouldn't?"
[I'm saying I'll help you.]
Urus, who had been watching from below, appeared beside me.
[I do owe you a favor.]
[And I have a lover, so don't die.]
"...That's a death flag."
It came closer.
Once it entered the interior of Orario, it charged straight at me.
"My body is made of swords."
I leaped high, dodged the Black Dragon's charge, and landed on its back.
"My blood is iron, my heart is glass."
The Black Dragon began twisting its body wildly.
As it writhed, Babel Tower started getting smashed to pieces, but I didn't particularly care.
"Beyond swords, for the sake of a single blade,"
It was already a building that had been damaged a little.
Even if it got wrecked more, no one could really complain.
"Without a single success, without a single failure, I forge an endlessly broken sword."
As the Black Dragon realized I wasn't falling off, it seemed to change plans and began diving away from Babel, dropping toward the ground with me on its back.
Thanks to the Black Dragon's rapid descent,
"Cough!... But the flame did not die out..."
my consciousness began to blur a little.
But,
"That body is made of an infinite sword."
the incantation was complete.