"—Let's go see what's behind this gate."
What Lynn and Arezu found behind the gate, upon opening the massive double doors, was a battle about to come to an end—a fight whose result was exactly as Arezu had predicted:
Liz's party, even with Brandon and Sylvie, was losing against the Dungeon Master.
It wasn't the grim sight of Liz, Hannah, and Sylvie lying unconscious on the floor, nor Ellric and Brandon's desperate struggle while injured, that made Lynn call Arezu's name anxiously. It was the sight of the Dungeon Master—a Visage of an unknown girl, yet one that distinctly resembled Arezu.
Her appearance, though much shorter and slimmer than Arezu's, bore the same presence as his. The calm and composed demeanor while fighting, the brownish-gray hair matching its gray eyes, even the tattered, ragged clothes—everything about the Visage of the unknown girl reminded Lynn of the day she had first met Arezu.
Those unfamiliar, unrecognizable words were the only response Lynn heard from Arezu before he vanished before her eyes and reappeared in front of the Visage, as if he had blinked.
Arezu had moved at a speed Lynn couldn't follow with her eyes—one that Ellric and Brandon couldn't even sense—until he appeared right between them, intercepting the Visage's blade just as it was about to cut them down.
The collision of Arezu's halberd-axe and the Visage's longsword unleashed a destructive shockwave that blasted Ellric and Brandon backward—toward where Sylvie, Liz, and Hannah lay—and shattered the floor where Arezu and the Visage stood.
Their next strike came even before the air and ground stopped trembling.
Arezu pulled back his weapon as the Visage did the same, steadied himself, and swung his halberd-axe to intercept the incoming longsword.
He skillfully spun his halberd-axe as fast as he could with each strike, building up momentum to increase both speed and power, struggling to keep up with the Visage, who easily deflected all of his attacks.
Although they seemed evenly matched, the Visage remained calm and composed while Arezu grew increasingly desperate with each clash.
The continuous collision of their blades caused further destruction to the surroundings, unleashing shockwaves that carved a massive crater into the ground and fissures that spread across the entire chamber.
All of this happened in just a few seconds—seconds during which Lynn, along with Ellric and Brandon, watched the fight between Arezu and the Visage of his Envy.
"Who exactly are you, Arezu..." Ellric murmured, bewildered by Arezu's fighting capability.
"Whoever that young warrior is, his strength is equal to that of a gold-rank adventurer," Brandon said, giving Ellric a moment of hope—only to shatter it with his next words. "But he can't win while fighting defensively."
Lynn couldn't clearly see every detail of the battle, but she understood what Brandon meant better than Ellric did.
Although Arezu was far stronger than Lynn had ever seen before, he was once again fighting with the intent not to cut down his opponent but only to disarm them. And his own words—laced with fear and panic—confirmed that he couldn't win.
"Take everyone and retreat outside!"
Giving up on the fight against the Dungeon Master and their quest to conquer the dungeon, Brandon retreated, carrying the unconscious Liz and Hannah, while Ellric carried Sylvie.
As Brandon and Ellric ran toward the exit, Lynn—who had remained outside the chamber—continued watching, her eyes fixed on both Arezu and the Visage of the unknown girl.
The Visage, paying attention only to the opponent before it, swung its longsword, manifesting four blades with a single strike.
Arezu countered, unleashing the same technique. The built-up speed and power from his spinning weapon allowed him to manifest four blades as he swung his halberd-axe.
The collision of multiple strikes—all at once—sent a shockwave that shook the entire chamber.
And in the end, Arezu lost.
Even though the Visage's longsword shattered, crumbling like rusted metal, it was Arezu who was pushed back, stumbling across the chamber until he stopped just before the slowly closing gate.
He hurriedly stood up, taking his stance again, gripping his cracked halberd-axe with both hands, eyes fixed on the Visage rushing toward him with a newly formed longsword.
But before the Visage could reach him, Lynn grabbed Arezu's coat from behind and pulled him out of the Dungeon Master's chamber—where everyone else had already escaped.
The Visage halted its charge the moment Arezu stepped past the gate.
It simply stood where it had stopped, staring at Arezu and the others until the massive double doors fully closed.
Silence engulfed the surroundings, the fear still lingering among them even though they had escaped certain death at the hands of an overwhelming opponent. Until Ellric collapsed, his blood soaking his silver armor red, forming a pool beneath him.
"Ellric... Don't you dare give up... Ellric!"
Sylvie, barely able to move due to her injuries, kept pouring high-quality healing potions on Ellric's wounds. But no matter how many she used, Ellric kept bleeding, losing more blood each second.
It was the same with Lynn's divine blessing. No matter how many times she cast Heal—wielding her ancient relic dagger to amplify its effect—Ellric's wounds wouldn't close.
"I'm sorry... Sylvie..."
He had reached the limit of what his body could endure, even with his divine gift, Bloodshed. The only thing keeping him alive was that very gift—granting him more strength the closer he came to death.
Once its effect faded, he would die. And Ellric could already feel that moment nearing.
"Thank you... Mom..." Ellric said, smiling cheerfully as he looked at Sylvie.
"Can you please cut the drama already?" Lynn said, drawing everyone's attention—including Ellric and Sylvie's. "Both of you, including Liz and Hannah, owe me big for this."
Lynn raised her dagger with both hands, holding it in a reverse grip before her chest.
Offering her prayer to the goddess Isleen, Lynn invoked her divine blessing.
Lynn collapsed face-first onto the floor, fully unconscious and breathing erratically as Arezu lifted her up and supported her with both arms.
Yet despite the immense strain she endured from casting a divine blessing on par with that of a saintess, Lynn accomplished what she intended.
Ellric survived, his wounds slowly beginning to heal. Thıs text ıs hosted at 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✦𝘧𝙞𝙧𝙚✦𝕟𝕖𝕥