CHAPTER 379

VICTORY

With an insolent attitude and rarely listening to orders, Masaru often grated on my nerves. But here, I glared into his eyes, demanding absolute obedience—forcing him to comply whether he liked it or not.

"Heh-heh-hehn!"

"Just shut up and listen! All you gotta do is get me on top of that thing! I’ll handle the rest!!"

That said, I had no intention of dragging Masaru down with me. All I needed was for him to carry me up to that boss monster.

Then, Masaru kicked off the wall behind him, using the rebound to launch himself in a triangular leap. Crouching low, he accelerated before making one final, massive jump.

(Yeah, that’s it!)

With that, we broke free from the Great Ants’ encirclement. The dome-shaped cavern ceiling rushed closer as we soared higher.

(Good. From here on out… it’s my job.)

At the last possible moment before hitting the ceiling, I tilted my body and let myself roll off Masaru’s back, relying on inertia to carry me the rest of the way to the colossal aphid.

(...Tch…!)

(Ah, Shiotaro… Sorry to drag you into this, but I’m counting on you!)

The moment I began to fall, I had Shiotaro encase my body in a shell of hardened rock salt over my suit.

This was a desperate suicide bomb attack. But if I could even slightly boost my survival odds, I’d take it. If luck was on my side, I might escape with nothing worse than lost limbs.

(This fight… As long as they’re safe and I’m still breathing, that’s enough.)

I clenched my teeth, fighting to keep my poison-fogged mind from slipping. But my vision still spun wildly, making it impossible to aim properly.

(Just hit it—that’s all I ask!)

Amid the haze of distorted thoughts and warped time, I felt an impact like diving into water from a high platform. I must’ve pierced the colossal aphid’s hide and plunged straight into its body.

(Did it work…? Then… I gotta detonate the bomb…)

Forcing my eyes open against the shock, my vision flooded with yellow-green. Still, I fumbled with the smoke grenade in my mouth, prying off the resin cap with its built-in striker.

(Light this, jam it into the jerry can, and—BOOM.)

[Sssk—! Bz… BZJUBOBOBOBOM…!!]

The oxygen-rich gunpowder ignited even in the dampness.

With that done, all that was left was to adjust my grip on the jerry can—when suddenly, the awful, hazy feeling that had plagued me began inexplicably fading.

(Huh? Why…?)

Then, I noticed an odd sweetness in my mouth where I’d been holding the smoke grenade.

(No way… Does the colossal aphid’s fluid not only heal ants but also neutralize poison?!)

Testing it, I swallowed some of the sweet fluid—and the discomfort in my body faded even further…

Then—

(I’ve got my strength back…! And I can even channel magic now!!)

Hell yeah. In that case, this suicide bomb plan was officially scrapped. Time for a new strategy: using my refined magic to fire the rock salt encasing my body in a full-powered omnidirectional blast.

(Mmm-hmm, chakra on! Rock Salt… MEGA CRUSH BURN!!)

But the salt shards must’ve pierced the nearby jerry cans, because leaking gasoline caught fire from the still-burning smoke grenade—

—and in an instant, the yellow-green world before me turned blazing red.

[[[KYUBOOM!!]]]

…….

A dull ringing filled my ears, then—splashing. Sound returned. My body was numb and battered, but… I was alive.

Above me, the dungeon’s pale light filtered through like sunlight through leaves.

The spherical colossal aphid’s hide was now riddled with holes, its fluids dripping down like rain after a storm. It almost felt like standing in a forest after a downpour.

As the yellow-green fluid drained, its level sank past my chest.

(Ah, right—this fluid… It’d be a waste to just let it go!)

If it could heal and detoxify, it was basically a panacea. Channeling magic, I created a new spatial storage and opened its mouth wide, letting the fluid pour in like a waterfall.

"—Egetsu-san! Hey, Egetsu-san! Are you okay!?"

Serai-san’s voice echoed from outside.

"Yeah! I’m fine!"

My reply boomed louder than expected, reverberating through the hollow space.

"Aah~, thank goodness! Don’t scare me like that again~!"

"My bad. …Wait! What about the ants outside!?"

"All good! They were tough, but weak to magic!"

"I see… So Pixie’s attacks took care of them…"

Then, through a low opening, I saw Serai-san peering inside.

"But this boss is still here. You’re gonna finish it, right?"

"Yeah. Let’s sync up!"

"Got it! Then shout it loud! Hey Shizuu~, we’re doing the thing!!"

"Then we best sing it together!"

Seemed like the enemies outside had been wiped out while I was caught in the explosion. Nina-san’s relaxed voice carried through too.

The colossal aphid was already in tatters. The internal explosion had wrecked most of its organs, leaving it on death’s door. But thanks to its sheer size and insectile vitality, it clung to life.

"Alright, how to finish this thing… Oh, that’ll work."

As the fluid drained, I spotted an orange-glowing organ wrapped in membrane among the viscera. Wading over, I placed both hands on it—

Yep. About the size of a basketball, pulsing faintly like a vital core. Probably its weak point.

"Ready? Here we go! ‘To fall in battle is an honor—’"

"‘"‘We offer all we have and meet our end here. Skill [Usurpation]—ACTIVATE!!’"’"

Our three voices merged as we struck simultaneously from inside and out. The boss monster’s body shattered into motes of light, unleashing a torrent of golden life energy.

"Now, gather! Everyone—you all did amazing!!"

The pixies danced through the light.

The Pixie Queen, Serai-san, Nina-san—all safe. Masaru snorted, wandering nearby. And climbing onto my shoulder, reeking of burnt rubber, was the Red Slime—seemed like it had shielded me from the explosion.

(So that’s how it was… You saved me. Good job.)

Yeah—this victory belonged to all of us.