Akatsuki Translations

【The Dungeon of Sin, Proudia】Middle Levels

The Castle in the Sky.

The dwelling place of the fearsome Dragon of Sin, who had long been at war with the world’s guardians, 【The Seven Heavens】.

The Dungeon of Sin, Proudia was unique in its very nature, and the structure of the dungeon itself was equally peculiar. The upper levels were still relatively normal. But beyond the middle levels, the characteristics of the dungeon’s Guardian, the Dragon of Sin of 【Vanity】, became more pronounced.

What occurred was a complete transformation of space. Even within the special environment of a sky dungeon, explorers would encounter things that were “impossible.”

For instance, a trap area with sharp thorns covering the entire floor.

Or a space with no ground at all, where the power of the spirit of the earth had no effect, and the night sky stretched endlessly in all directions.

Or a room completely underwater, where one might encounter unknown gigantic creatures that may not even be monsters.

All of these were just a part of the phenomena that occurred within Proudia.

It wasn’t uncommon for instant-death scenarios to suddenly befall adventurers who entered unprepared. Parties challenging the middle levels of Proudia always made sure to include at least one scout or a mage specializing in mapping as their top priority.

However, no matter how meticulous the preparation, there was always a chance of being suddenly thrown into a space that could unleash catastrophic danger.

For example—

“Kahahaha!!!! Look! Look! It’s magma! How stupid!! Did a child come up with this room!?” exclaimed a voice.

For example, a scorching space where the floor, stairs, and everything else had transformed into searing flames.

Caution was thrown to the wind as the Seven Heavens found themselves in a room where one misstep meant instant death. The 【Hero】 and the 【Heavenly Demon】 floated side by side in midair, with no footing beneath them. The Hero wiped sweat from her brow and said with exasperation:

“Instead of making a fuss, I’d like you to do something about this, Greylei.”

“But you see? Proudia has gone out of its way to show us such childish killing intent. Wouldn’t it be a shame not to play along for a bit?” Greylei replied.

“If we don’t hurry, Yuri will be furious when she catches up later,” the Hero warned.

“Isn’t she always furious? Oh—”

As they were speaking, the sea of magma spread across the entire floor began to bubble and churn. The sound wasn’t just from rising bubbles. The molten fluid rippled and parted as something burst forth.

『SSSSSSSSSYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!』

A 【Magma Shark】, swimming through and parting the scorching heat to devour its prey, leaped out and charged towards Diz and Greylei with its massive jaws wide open.

“【Magic Severance・ Doublefold】,” Diz intoned.

『SSYA——』

And just like that, the shark was filleted into three pieces by Diz’s sword, becoming nothing more than debris in the lava.

“We can’t afford to waste our energy in a place like this, so hurry up,” Diz sighed, sheathing her two swords.

But Greylei didn’t seem to be listening to Diz’s complaints at all. His gaze was fixed intently on the two swords she had been using, particularly the one with intermingling crimson and gold.

“Hmm, Hero. The 【Celestial Blade】 is one thing, but that crimson weapon…” Greylei mused.

“I won’t tell you. And I won’t give it to you,” Diz responded, showering Greylei with mercilessly blunt refusal to his probing words.

“Don’t you have any intention of conversing with me, you?!” Greylei exclaimed.

“I’m weak, so I don’t have the luxury. If you can do something about this place, I’ll consider it,” Diz replied.

“Hmm,” Greylei pondered, tilting his head. He then floated his body closer to the magma and lightly touched the tip of his toe to the boiling surface.

Instantly, the magma transformed from his toe into a mass of pitch-black stone. The heat was suddenly stolen, causing it to solidify. This effect explosively spread from his toe to the surroundings, and in the blink of an eye, the scorching space was completely frozen and neutralized.

At the center of this space, Greylei exaggeratedly shrugged his shoulders and smiled. “Is this good enough?”

“Wow, amazing. Shall we go ahead then?” Diz said.

“Hey, you! Not again!!” Greylei protested.

Ignoring Greylei’s objection, Diz let her gaze wander. Considering the location of the spatial transfer that had separated their group earlier, probably in this direction—

“【Heavenly Sword】,” a voice resonated.

“Ah,” Diz lowered her head. Even Greylei behind her followed suit this time. The next instant, a massive destructive flash swept through the very space above the heads of the two who had ducked down.

The walls that made the dungeon what it was were utterly destroyed. The destruction seemed to have reached most of this floor. And from beyond, the remaining members of the Seven Heavens appeared.

At the forefront, 【Heavenly Sword Yuri】 glared at Diz and the others with an displeased expression.

“What are you playing at? Even as we speak, the Wise Heavenly King is supporting this Proudia,” she scolded.

“Yeah, I agree. Thanks for finding us, Yuri,” Diz replied.

“We nearly died though! Kahaha!!” Greylei laughed.

“Any of the 【Seven Heavens】 who would die from something like this is useless. They should just die,” Yuri said, turning her back. Greylei snickered, mocking her. They were truly a close-knit group. Diz held back a sigh.

《The atmosphere is the worst, isn’t it?》

“If you and Gronzon weren’t here, I’d be crying,” Diz smiled, exchanging quiet words with Akane, who had taken the form of a sword.

Diz hadn’t told the other Seven Heavens about Akane. It was her decision, not wanting the Heavenly Demon to meddle unnecessarily.

However, under normal circumstances, keeping secrets about weapons or armor that could change tactics would be the worst strategy for a party. The more critical the situation, the more essential coordination and understanding within the group become. Secrets should never be kept lightly.

But this wasn’t just about Diz.

Among the Seven Heavens members—【Heavenly Sword】, 【Heavenly Demon】, 【Heavenly Fist】, 【Heavenly Garb】, and the 【Hero】—each of these five had powers they kept secret from each other (even Gronzon, who disliked concealment and preferred a simple combat style).

No one knew the full extent of the 【Heavenly Demon’s】 mastery of magic and knowledge, and as for the 【Heavenly Garb】, almost no one knew their true identity.

As a party, they could only be described as failures.

Moreover, despite the current world crisis, the reason they accepted this situation was—

“Here it comes,” Gronzon said, readying his golden gauntlets and glaring into the depths beyond the destroyed dungeon wall.

『SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII』

What appeared was a massive serpentine monster. Pure white with red eyes, it was a giant snake several tens of meters long. Feared to be large enough to swallow the world, it was once called the 【World Serpent】 by humans of old.

Faced with this legendary monster, the Seven Heavens party simply took their stances.

“【Magic Severance】”

“【O Sword】”

“【Shatter】”

“【Automatic Assassination Technique Activated】”

“【—】”

The reason for allowing their dysfunctional relationships to persist:

Even without superficial mutual understanding, high-level coordination was easy for them.

『S——————』

The massive World Serpent vanished without even a moment’s chance for retaliation.

“Well then, shall we proceed? Do you know where the stairs leading down are located? Greylei!” Diz called out.

“89 meters south from here, kahaha! Thanks to a certain sword demon clearing out the dungeon, it’s easy to walk! Keep it up like this!” Greylei replied.

“I’d rather not tire myself out. You do it, magic maniac,” Yuri retorted.

“…”

The Seven Heavens group moved forward once again. They advanced without hesitation towards the depths of Proudia, the deep levels, to subdue the source activating the dungeon and attempting to bring the entire structure down. However, amidst this, only the 【Hero】 Diz paused for a moment, suddenly directing her gaze downward.

More precisely, she was looking towards her friend who should be there.

“Don’t die, okay, Ur?” she whispered.

《Don’t worry. Nii-tan is tough,》 came the reply.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Diz nodded.

With this brief exchange, Diz and Akane resumed their advance.

This time, there was no hesitation.

                  ◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆◆

【Babel Sky Garden】 Outer Perimeter

“Even without… Lynne… we somehow… manage…” Ur panted heavily, confirming that the body of the defeated 【Hundred-Fang Lion】 was crumbling away. The collapsing body of the Hundred-Fang Lion was covered in multiple lacerations and impact craters. It had taken this much damage to finally kill it.

“But still… we lack… decisive power,” Ur admitted.

『HAHA! If that’s the case, is it your role to deliver the final blow?』 Rock chimed in.

“Ur-sama,” Shizuku’s voice alerted them.

Ur turned around, readying his spear. Rock did the same.

“More of them?” Ur asked.

Most of the monsters were rushing towards the center of Babel, largely bypassing Ur and his companions. However, if they were in a position that obstructed the charge, the monsters would move to eliminate the obstacle, like the 【Hundred-Fang Lion】 they had just defeated. This was far from a safe place. There was no time to let their guard down.

But what Shizuku pointed at wasn’t a monster. It was a brown-haired hobbit adventurer. Judging from the sword at his waist, he was a warrior, rare for his build. But standing here meant he was undoubtedly a first-class warrior.

“You seem relaxed enough to let your guard down in this situation, 【Slime King Exterminator】,” the hobbit said, fixing them with a sharp gaze. It was a look closer to disgust than hostility.

“Um… 【White Sea’s Ripple】, Begude-san, right?” Ur ventured.

One of the silver-rank adventurers, a hobbit who led the charge against monsters despite his size, 【Crimson Light Begude】. He was one of the adventurers selected to fight in the 【Sun-Devouring Ceremony】, as confirmed by Ikaza.

Begude neither confirmed nor denied Ur’s query. Ignoring Ur, he continued speaking.

“The others are hunting the second one. You should move immediately too. If you can’t, receive supplies. That’s the message from Ikaza-‘sensei’.”

“So fast… Understood—”

“Let me give you some advice,” Begude interrupted, still gripping his sword splattered with monster blood, glaring at them with an intensity that made them want to recoil.

“If you stick your neck out in this hellfire on your own and end up dragging others down, I’ll cut that neck off myself.”

With just those words, he vanished silently. He had likely moved to the location of his own target.

Ur and his companions were silent for a moment, then exchanged glances. Rock, slicing through the approaching monsters, asked puzzledly:

『What was that about? He seemed really confrontational. Did we offend him somehow?』

Shizuku, while continuously casting spells, answered, “Well…”

“How would you feel if a rookie with undeserved fame and high recognition but lacking real ability stuck their nose into a crucial situation where the fate of the world is at stake? And just to rack up achievements, no less.”

『If it were me, I’d dispose of them before they became a hindrance at the worst possible moment,』 Rock replied.

“So, I guess Begude-san is being considerate… Shall we go?” Ur said.

Slicing through multiple monsters with his dragonfang spear, Ur began advancing towards the second giant monster. Whether they were unworthy or resented, their march into hell continued. After all, stopping would only mean death.