Morning.
I eat Hoss's miscellaneous meat soup to get myself pumped up.
"You can consider the Wounded's territory to be the Queen's kingdom."
Garado drew a large circle on the Heisen Great Forest on the map he'd spread out.
So this area is the Wounded's territory.
"It hasn't changed since the old days."
"The Wounded aren't the kind of monsters that expand their territory."
"I see."
"Also, the Wounded never leave their territory."
"But the Queen might be a different story."
"She could expand the kingdom, after all. She is the Queen."
"A ruler always desires territorial expansion."
Lupinus said that matter-of-factly. Garado smiled wryly.
"We need to take her down before the entire Heisen Great Forest becomes her kingdom."
Everyone nodded.
"U-um, what happened with the Forest Wave?"
Nabel spoke up hesitantly.
Everyone else exchanged glances.
"It was the Second, right?"
"I'd gone and completely forgotten about it, I have."
"It hasn't started yet?"
"I don't know."
"I don't either. Garado, you're a local, aren't you? What's going on?"
"…Honestly, everything's different from any other year. I can't even tell if a Second happened or not."
"If it had started, wouldn't the forest be overflowing with monsters?"
I'd heard that was the case, so I spoke up.
"To be blunt, nobody who's been inside the forest during a Forest Wave is around to say what it's actually like in there."
"You wouldn't go in normally, I reckon."
"That's true too."
From what I'd heard, the monster horde lined up from one end of the forest entrance to the other.
That much anyone would assume, watching them pour out of the forest.
Naturally, the forest itself must be overflowing with monsters — that's the common wisdom.
But what if it wasn't?
Until now, that had been accepted as fact. But this was a dungeon.
Maybe the forest during a Wave wasn't all that different from usual.
"Sorry I can't give you a straight answer, Nabel."
"No, given the circumstances, it's only to be expected."
"Could it be about Coran and Prancy?"
The two of them from Nabel's party had gone into the Forest Wave.
"...Worried, couldn't help it."
Not knowing what was going on was unsettling.
But there was no way to find out.
"Then why not head back with Araya?"
Galad said.
Araya, who was physically fully recovered but not in the right mental state to fight, would be heading back.
She'd also serve as a messenger to deliver a report on everything so far.
Depending on the situation, we might request that reinforcements be sent as well.
Nabel didn't respond right away.
His expression was caught somewhere between conflict and anguish, and he looked troubled.
I could tell he was hesitating.
Honestly, if he went with his gut, he'd want to go back to his companions.
"It's fine to go back, y'know."
"If you have companions, you ought to prioritize them."
"We'll be perfectly fine over here."
"Yeah. No need to worry."
"...Nabel."
We respected his decision.
"Thank you. All of you."
Nabel bowed deeply.
"But I will slay the Queen."
His expression and gaze were unwavering.
There was no hesitation at all. Garado listened quietly.
"You're sure?"
"Yes. If I came back halfway, it wouldn't set a good example as a leader."
"Is that so. The party leader, huh. Understood. I won't say another word. All right. When you're ready, we'll set out."
Garado tapped the circle drawn on the map with his finger.
"Our destination is their territory."
We nodded with resolve.
After saying our farewells to Araya, we left the subjugation village.
It wasn't much of a strategy, but here's what we decided:
First, advance to the "Marked One's" territory.
Search for Riv along the way.
Second, once we reach the territory, lure out the Queen.
Third, fight the Queen.
Fourth, after defeating her, resume the search for Riv.
Simple, with nothing complicated about it.
If there was a problem, it would be the Relic-sealing.
But the Restriction Relic and the spider-specific "Tortoiseshell Eight-Character Seal" could still be used.
On top of that, I could use the power of my gauntlets to block that Relic.
It wasn't exactly a plan, but I could handle it.
We fought our way through the spider women we encountered, drawing closer to the "Scarred One's" territory.
So far, the Relic had been working normally.
That really had been the Queen's own Relic.
And a Relic that massive, that devastating in effect.
It had to have a usage duration and a cooldown.
"That up ahead is the territory."
In the end, we never found Riv.
Territory. Just an unremarkable stretch of forest, but once the word settled in, a strange tension crept through me.
The Queen's kingdom.
"Let's go."
We entered the territory.
That oppressive, suffocating atmosphere washed over me.
"Tough, huh."
"Hard to say."
"Doesn't feel like the 'Scarred One's' territory at all, I reckon."
"So... is it really okay?"
"Yes, no need to worry."
Lupinus said with total confidence.
Luring the Queen out. The key to that was Lupinus.
"Got it. Then let's get into position. Pakira, I'm counting on you."
"Mm. I'll make sure it hits."
The plan to lure them out was simple.
We'd use Lupinus's Relic, the Battle Cry.
The Queen and her horde of spider women would come to us.
Then Pakira would slam them with her restriction Relic, Mausoleum's Eclipse.
We'd buy time by fighting.
If that took them out, great. Even if it didn't, it would deal serious damage.
We could win.
"Allow me to show you. The true essence of the Battle Cry."
Lupinus stepped forward, planted herself like a guardian statue, and drew a deep breath.
She activated it the moment she exhaled.
"ROOOOOOOAAAAARRRRR!!!!"
The deafening roar echoed through the great forest.
It didn't sound like an unpleasant scream — not by a long shot.
If anything, it was strangely pleasant.
But the monsters didn't seem to feel the same way.
"They're coming! Battle stations!!"
It came less than a few minutes after the Battle Cry activated.
Behind the horde of spider women was a massive monster.
Its body was pure white, marked with black spotted patterns.
It had the torso of a quadrupedal beast, but six spider legs protruded from its sides.
Its tail was long and pale, with an unsettling bulge at the tip.
The monster's head, to my surprise, was that of a spider.
A white spider's head, streaked with black spotted markings.
But more than that, a sword-like horn extended from its forehead.
It was a white, gleaming blade with a stony texture.
Eight red eyes lined across its face glowed with an eerie, gem-like brilliance.
At the center of its mouth, lined with sharp, thick beast fangs, was a spinneret for shooting spider silk.
That asymmetry radiated pure dread.
On the beast's torso was a large, old X-shaped scar.
In an instant, everyone understood.
That was the queen.
The queen who led the horde of spider women spotted us and immediately used her ability.
Kingdom of Unreality.
I guarded against the invisible wave with my bracers, blocking the activation ban.
"Even if I can't use it—!"
"I couldn't use it to begin with!"
Galado and Hoss roared and charged at the queen.
They scattered the spider women in their path and challenged the queen to battle.
Meanwhile, Lupinus had her shield up.
What she was protecting was Pakira, who had shed her robe and was now in a black outfit.
"<Retahara. Kararita. Remurita. Rita. Hararita. Ra. Rita. Shuku. Hara. Shuku. Rita. Amurita. Hararita. Shukurita. Rita. Ka. Rita.>"
Pakira sang as she danced, tapping the ferrule of her staff on the ground with a soft thud.
Rainbow-colored light rippled outward in an octagonal pattern for just an instant.
She moved to a dancing rhythm, thrusting her staff into the ground and into empty air as she whirled and leaped.
A strange, mystical atmosphere began to drift through the heavy air.
Above a section of the great forest, a massive vortex cloud was forming.
Pale blue lightning flashed and rumbled from within the cloud, which gradually grew larger and larger.
Whether they sensed the danger, or it was the effect of [Battle Cry]—
The spider women ignored us and swarmed toward Lupinus and Pakira.
"Nope, not happening. Take this—[Parestasia's Miniature Garden]!"
Currents of electricity crackled from the black orb that had been set down and from the spear in Bid's hands.
The spider women were shocked and discharged sparks.
"[Bekkou Yatsumoji]! [Bekkou Yatsumoji]!"
Nabel was doing her best too, cutting down spider women one after another.
I was also taking them down, but something was bothering me.
The "Knife of a Different Sea" on my knife belt was rattling and shaking too.
The sword-like horn extending from the queen's forehead. No—that was a sword.
Galado and Hoss were desperately trying to hold the queen back.
The queen was strong.
Part of it was that she was already using the body of a veteran monster called a "Kizumono."
Movements impossibly light for her massive frame, with swift, powerful claw strikes and tail attacks.
She could even use her spider legs to climb trees, making her all the more unpredictable.
And the most troublesome thing of all was the spider silk she spat out.
The spider silk was staggeringly adhesive.
A single hit could leave you completely immobilized.
Pakira spun her staff in a circle, whirling her whole body as she sang, chanted, and danced.
Sensing something, Lupinus shouted.
"Galado. Hoss. Here it comes!"
The two of them instantly broke away from the queen.
The queen—wait. She stood up?
She stood and aimed the sword-shaped horn on her forehead toward the vortex of clouds above—toward the sky.
As though raising a sword.
"＜I pray. The prayer of the myriad heavens. The prayer of the festival. The prayer of the dragons. Shukushuku. Ka. Hararita. Hararita. Ritarita. Amrita. Ra. Shuku. Rita. Shuku. Hararita. Ur. Shukurita. Hararita. On—＞. I beseech you. Come forth. [Mausoleum of the Undying Light]...!"
Immediately after.
A single streak of pale blue light descended from the swirling clouds.
"Don't underestimate me."
When it struck the queen's raised, brilliantly white sword-horn, it shattered into countless fragments.
"Huh?"
The shattered light ricocheted outward, piercing into everything around it.
In that instant, every last scattered fragment detonated at once, and the Heisen Great Forest convulsed with a violent tremor.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! A-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"
Mocking laughter echoed through the trees.
"Don't underestimate the guene of Severing... you wretched humans..."
She raised her brilliantly white sword-horn high into the air.
A human figure stood atop the queen's head.
A little earlier. The Heisen Great Forest.
A hollow in a tree, hidden behind a rock.
A slightly peculiar spider woman held a mushroom in hand and glanced around warily.
"Nobody's watching, I see."
She returned to the depths of the hollow and sat down on a stone before a campfire that crackled and sent sparks flying.
"Though truth be told, if anyone did come... my appearance alone could get me killed. Quite the miscalculation, I guess."
The rather unusual spider woman muttered self-deprecatingly as she roasted her mushrooms.
Then she cast her gaze behind her.
"Well, she shows no signs of waking up. That's rather troublesome, I guess."
On a makeshift bed of stone, Riv lay sleeping.
She was a little dirty in places, but didn't appear to be injured.
"Mmm... *zzzz*... tummy's... all full... can't eat anymore... *zzzz*..."
She lay there, letting out soft breaths and murmuring in her sleep.
"What a cliché dream are you having, huh."
I chuckled dryly while eating a roasted mushroom.