“……What are you doing?”
Damon Liefte was feeling utterly dumbfounded right now.
Because of the new recruit who had suddenly hidden herself right behind him.
“I-I’m sorryyy…….”
Claire said that, yet showed no sign of coming out from behind Damon.
“There has to be a reason you’re doing this.”
“I, it’s just…… could I stay like this for a little while?”
“……Fine. Do as you like.”
Damon did have a slender build, but that was only for a knight; Claire, who was deliberately hiding behind him, was completely concealed by his frame.
So what, exactly, had Claire hidden behind Damon to avoid?
“Don’t tell me it’s because of the Guardian Knight?”
“Eek!”
He had wondered if that was the case, and sure enough, it was because of the Guardian Knight, Hio Pavlenko.
After Hio appeared, she had sucked in a sharp breath and scurried behind Damon, so it was hard to pretend not to notice.
“……I don’t know what you’re doing, but.”
Damon’s gaze turned toward Hio.
A man who had appeared and instantly shattered the tension of a situation where a clash could break out at any moment.
He was speaking with Vitalianus and Antiphus.
“Thanks to him, it didn’t go as far as an armed clash.”
Of course, considering Antiphus’s tone and the disrespect he had shown the Sword Saint, Damon wanted to draw his sword right then and there.
No matter how strong they were, did it make sense for a mere guild to try to stand on equal footing with the Empire’s greatest knight order?
If an armed clash broke out, he was confident they would win, a hundred times out of a hundred.
However, if they truly considered Vitalianus’s honor, then such short-sighted thinking was precisely what they ought to avoid.
They had a responsibility to lead this expedition to success.
There was an enormous amount riding on this expedition, after all.
That said, with the other side acting that way, they could not simply back down either.
The other party was probably the same.
Once they backed down, they would continue to be dragged around while losing the initiative, which was likely why they had taken such a hardline stance.
Therefore, in order to mediate the situation, they needed a thoroughly neutral third party who was also a representative figure of a faction.
And in truth, Hio Pavlenko was practically the only person who fit that description.
“If the Guardian Knight hadn’t appeared at the right time, a huge fight might have broken out before we even entered the Demon Realm.”
“……That’s a relief.”
Claire, who had been hiding behind Damon while carefully clutching the hem of his clothes, poked her head out.
When she did, she could see Hio standing at the very front, talking side by side with the Sword Saint and Antiphus.
“I don’t really understand what’s going on, but…….”
Were the Empire and the Guild on good terms, or bad terms?
Why were they going in to attack the place together when they trusted each other so little?
And why had she hidden the moment she saw Hio?
She had no idea. She was confused.
It was just, how should she put it?
Should she say she wasn’t mentally prepared?
She had become a Royal Knight, but in truth, hadn’t she only gotten in by luck?
Unlike the other Royal Knights, who were confident and splendid, she was still clumsy and lacking in so many ways.
She was embarrassed to show him that side of herself, and before she knew it, she had hidden.
As Claire peeked out with only her head showing, staring blankly at Hio—
“……Let’s do it that way.”
Hio suddenly turned his head and looked around.
Their discussion had concluded after some coordination.
“Now then, we have reached a conclusion.”
“Eek!”
“……Hm?”
He was about to explain the result of the discussion while looking around, when suddenly there came some sort of pterosaur-like cry.
Hio’s puzzled gaze naturally turned toward the source of the sound, and there stood Damon, looking flustered as his eyes darted about.
“Damon? Do you have something to say?”
“N-no, sir. I just got the hiccups…….”
“Oh dear. Don’t be too nervous.”
“……Yes, sir.”
For some reason, Damon’s expression looked extremely wronged, but Hio had no reason to think too deeply about that.
“……In any case, only Antiphus Praman and I will enter the Space of Ordeal.”
This was the conclusion reached through discussion with the representatives of the two factions, Vitalianus and Antiphus.
The Space of Ordeal.
Contrary to its grandiose name, in the game, it had not been difficult enough to warrant the word “ordeal.”
As mentioned earlier, it was difficult because there had been no unity, and because they had not been able to gather the right number of people; if everyone worked together, its difficulty was actually very easy compared to other types.
“As for the rest, everything proceeds according to plan. You just need to hold out well in the Space of Infinity.”
However, that was the story from the game.
Since there was no telling what might have changed now, they decided that Hio himself would go into one, and Antiphus into the other.
He thought that, if they had to consider what was different from the game and how to deal with it, the possessed ones would definitely have the advantage.
During the discussion, it had been quite burdensome how Antiphus kept staring intently at him, but…….
‘Well, I suppose he wants to get close to me too.’
He simply thought of it that way and let it pass.
Otherwise, there was no reason for him to look at Hio with such blazing intensity.
For now, he would focus on the raid, and once the raid was over, he should try speaking to him warmly.
Just as Antiphus wished, there would surely be a chance for them to become friends.
“We’ve been delayed a little, so let’s enter now.”
The moment Hio finished speaking, Vitalianus ordered everyone to prepare for entry.
As he said, they had been delayed a little longer than planned.
Even if the Infinite Floor was not a floor that pressed them for time like the previous Labyrinth Floor, unexpected situations could arise, so the faster a raid proceeded, the better.
They did not know what sort of unexpected trial might be waiting in the Space of Ordeal.
“We’re entering!”
At the order that quickly spread, the knights began to move.
There was no time for tension to spread again.
As soon as they were ready, those at the front began entering immediately.
They stepped without the slightest hesitation into the black, rippling gate.
“Don’t be too nervous. The Guardian Knight has joined us now, so we’ll definitely succeed in this raid.”
Damon and Claire also stepped into the black, rippling gate and beyond.
“……Yes!”
At last, the raid of the 53rd floor had begun.
* * *
Darkness rushed in for an instant. Their vision was soon restored.
Not the world where the morning sun had been climbing high, but a space submerged in the abyss.
The 53rd floor of the Abyss, the Infinite Floor.
The first thing that caught the eye upon entering was the pair of enormous gates positioned on either side. Gates within the Abyss Gate.
“So that’s the Space of Ordeal…….”
Hio and Antiphus would split up and enter them one by one.
“Don’t stand there gawking! Move quickly! Form ranks!”
A strange space and an eerie atmosphere.
They were distracted for only a moment by the darkness thickly spread in every direction; then, as befitted an experienced elite knight order, everyone began moving in perfect order.
It was to form the formation they had decided on in advance.
The moment Hio and Antiphus entered the Space of Ordeal, monsters would come flooding in from all directions, so they had prepared a formation that would let them hold out as efficiently and as long as possible.
“Do not get greedy, and if you think you are even slightly overreaching, fall back at once! Remember that each squad must coordinate constantly in groups of three!”
Three people, carefully grouped based on ability and individual traits, formed one squad and defended their assigned area.
There were roughly sixty such squads. With everyone forming a large circle, they would neither advance nor retreat from that spot, but hold back the endless tide.
It was a strategy chosen because their objective was not annihilation, but endurance.
“The Guild, this way!”
At Daphne’s shout, the possessed ones began to gather together.
Aside from a few with unusual abilities, most of the possessed ones used long-range skills.
Every single one of them used skills that, by the standards of this world, were enough to earn them the title of “Awakened One,” so they spread out within the giant circle formed by the knights and strengthened the formation even further.
Antiphus quietly watched them move busily, then began to walk.
He headed toward the gate on the right, the Space of Ordeal he had been assigned.
Then, when he turned his head to look the other way, he saw Hio Pavlenko also walking toward the gate on the left.
‘……The Supreme Heavenly Demon.’
He had not forgotten the warning Hio had given him at their last meeting.
How could he forget?
That arrogant warning, that wildly insolent expression telling him not to dare covet the heavens.
That day, when Hio had warned him with eyes that looked down as if saying he still had a long way to go, was a humiliating day Antiphus could never forget.
Was that why he had been unusually emotional toward Vitalianus today?
Even though nearly reaching an armed clash was in no way a good thing, whether in the long term or for the raid that was about to take place, he had let himself act somewhat emotionally.
Perhaps he had projected the image of the Supreme Heavenly Demon onto the Sword Saint, who was regarded as the strongest knight and hero on the continent.
‘At least this time, I must…….’
He could not go on like this.
This in itself was proof that he was being shaken. He could not allow himself to be shaken any further.
What he needed for that was victory.
As it happened, the only ones entering the Space of Ordeal were the Supreme Heavenly Demon and himself, so could this not also become a contest?
In a contest, there were naturally winners and losers, and what he absolutely needed was victory.
Of course, no one would acknowledge that coming out of the Space of Ordeal first made one the victor, or that coming out later made one the loser, and he knew full well that this was not something he could boast about anywhere.
Even so, he had to win.
The name of the Supreme Heavenly Demon had taken firm root within him like a wall.
A wall was not something to be climbed over.
It was something to be smashed to pieces.
And the first thing one had to do to smash it was to create a small crack.
Starting with the smallest of victories, gradually widening that crack until it became a massive fissure.
And in the end, bringing down that wall and standing tall upon it himself.
For that, he absolutely had to win.
“Hio Pavlenko.”
At the voice calling him, the Supreme Heavenly Demon’s gaze turned toward Antiphus.
Both of them were standing before their respective gates.
“Antiphus. Are you ready?”
“……Yes.”
After hearing his answer, Hio’s gaze turned behind them this time.
Thanks to their orderly movements, the knights had already completed every formation and were gripping their swords tightly.
From Commander Vitalianus standing at the very front of them to everyone else, all were looking at Hio and Antiphus.
“Then I’ll go in.”
Hio’s feet moved.
At that, Antiphus’s feet moved as well.
A step toward the towering gate.
“I wish you fortune in battle.”
With those words, his vision once again grew distant.
Half his body had crossed through the gate.
‘……I will definitely win.’
A small victory absolutely necessary for him to move forward.
Even if it was merely his own satisfaction, he knew better than anyone how great its meaning was, and so he steeled his resolve once more as he entered the Space of Ordeal.
At last, once he had fully entered the gate and stepped into the Space of Ordeal, a single message appeared in the complete darkness.
「You have entered the Space of Ordeal.」
「Entry of ‘Ruler, Antiphus Praman’ has been confirmed.」
「Trial - ‘Terror of Flame’ is beginning.」
There was no time to examine his surroundings or leisurely assess the situation.
The moment his vision returned, what he saw was fire filling every direction.
Not only beneath Antiphus’s feet, but everywhere he could see was like a sea of flames.
Amid the terrible pain that felt as though his entire body were burning away, Antiphus confirmed the message that appeared again, and his eyes flashed viciously.
「Endure and overcome your fear of flame.」
Overcome fear, it said.
Was this not a trial that seemed to know his abilities perfectly?
“Ghh…… kuh, kuhuhuh.”
And so, even as he groaned in pain, laughter escaped him at the same time.
Because a small certainty had formed in him.
A certainty that he really could overcome the trial of the Space of Ordeal and emerge before the Supreme Heavenly Demon.
The exhilaration that, for the first time, he might be able to get ahead of him.
……Of course.
“Ghhhaaaaaaah!”
The pain of his entire body being seared by flame was horrifying beyond words.
* * *
His vision sank into darkness.
「You have entered the Space of Ordeal.」
「Entry of ‘Pioneer, Hio Pavlenko’ has been confirmed.」
With that message, his vision brightened.
This place had certainly been the dim and eerie 53rd floor of the Abyss.
But when he opened his eyes to the strangely brightening view—
“Hahahaha! Now, let us drink!”
What he saw was not the murky space of the Abyss, but a bright and splendid noble banquet hall.
“Come now, what are you all doing? Raise your glasses!”
Everyone laughed merrily and raised their glasses.
At that, Hio also raised his hand in confusion, only to find that he was already holding a glass, red wine sloshing within it.
“To the great mage!”
“To the great mage!”
They shouted an incomprehensible toast and drained their drinks.
“……To the great mage?”
Caught up in the atmosphere, Hio too ended up draining his glass.
The wine gulped down his throat.
If one were to ask how it tasted—
“Blegh.”
It was disgustingly bitter.
「Trial - ‘The Ugly King’s Conviction’ is beginning.」