Stab.
Djeeta dropped to one knee, stabbing the blade into the ground and leaning against it to keep herself from collapsing.
"So… tired…"
Using the blade had drained all of her strength. Now, she barely had enough power left just to stay upright.
Her boundary power was completely depleted, and without her connection to the Boundary, she could no longer use it at all.
"Djeeta, are you okay?"
Vyrn and Lyria immediately rushed to her side, worry clear on their faces as they checked her condition.
Lyria placed her hands together, her crystal glowing as she invoked Gabriel's power. Gentle light wrapped around Djeeta's body, and her wounds slowly faded away.
"I feel better already," Djeeta said weakly, "but… sorry. I can't move at all. That sword drained most of my energy."
"What is that sword anyway?" Therese asked, glancing at the blade with curiosity. She looked tempted, almost wanting to reach out and touch it.
"No—don't touch it!" Aliza warned immediately. "If you hold it, your energy will get drained by that blade."
This was already the second time she had seen the sword used—first by Rei, and now by Djeeta. She knew just how dangerous it was.
After making sure Djeeta was stable, they decided to let her rest for a while, then began discussing who should go look for Katalina and Jessica, since neither of them had returned after splitting up earlier.
While in the middle of the discussion, the entire factory—and even the cave—suddenly started shaking, making everyone freeze in confusion.
"What happened!?" Vyrn yelled as he struggled to stay in the air while everything trembled.
"The entire cave is going to collapse! Djeeta's attack earlier, combined with Aviza's power, is making the whole cave fall apart!" Lyria said urgently.
"What!? Then we need to get out of here!" Aliza shouted.
"But what about Katalina and Jessica? They still haven't returned!" Stan said, reminding everyone of them.
Little by little, the factory began to collapse first as pieces of the cave ceiling started crashing down around them.
Large chunks of debris slammed into the ground, forcing Lyria to activate her shield again to protect everyone.
"We're going to get buried alive if we stay here!" Therese said in a hurry.
"Listen, I'll go find Katalina and Jessica. The rest of you leave this cave right now!" Djeeta said as she tried to stand up.
"No way! You can't find them in that condition!" Vyrn immediately protested, clearly seeing how unsteady Djeeta's legs were.
The longer they talked, the worse the cave became. More and more of the factory was destroyed as debris continued to fall around them.
Outside the factory, monsters were also being crushed by falling rocks, killed instantly as the cave collapsed.
"I'm gonna call Yggdrasil," Lyria said, her hand moving toward the crystal on her chest as she prepared to fully manifest the primal beast.
But just before she could release her power, a sudden sensation rippled through her body.
It was familiar. Too familiar.
"Is this…?" Lyria's eyes widened slightly.
The flow of energy stopped instantly. The pressure she had been holding back faded, and her tense posture relaxed as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders.
"Huh? Why did you stop?" Vyrn asked, hovering closer in confusion. "Aren't you gonna summon Yggdrasil?"
"It's fine," Lyria said softly, a small smile forming. "We're already safe."
"What do you mean?" Therese asked, glancing around as debris continued to fall in the distance.
Before Lyria could explain, a calm, familiar voice cut through the noise of the collapsing cave.
"What she means is, everything is fine now. You all did a great job."
Everyone turned toward the source of the voice.
From behind the falling debris, a figure emerged, walking forward as if the chaos around him didn't exist. In his arms, he carried two unconscious figures with ease.
"Rei!" Djeeta called out the moment she recognized him.
Lyria's breath caught as her gaze shifted downward.
"Katalina? Jessica?"
Seeing the two of them unconscious in Rei's arms, worry immediately surfaced in her eyes.
Rei walked toward them, casually passing straight through the barrier Lyria had created.
"Katalina and Jessica are fine," he said calmly. "They're just exhausted after fighting that Minotaur."
"They managed to beat it with just the two of them?" Aliza asked, clearly surprised.
"Yeah. Don't underestimate Katalina—she's really strong, you know. And Jessica's cannon isn't something you should underestimate either."
Before their conversation could continue, the cave shook even harder. Cracks spread across the walls, and chunks of stone began falling from above, forcing Rei to stop talking and glance around.
"This isn't a good place to talk," he said seriously. "Let's get out first."
As soon as he finished speaking, twelve wings burst from his back in a radiant display.
He needed his wings— he never try to teleporting this many people at once. Still, it would be fine. The distance was short, and all he needed were the coordinates.
"Let's go."
A bright light enveloped everyone, swallowing their figures in an instant as they vanished from the cave.
Moments later, the cavern collapsed completely, the ceiling crashing down and burying everything beneath it—leaving nothing behind.
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A few days had passed since the death of Aviza.
Djeeta and her companions had defeated Aviza and restored peace to the Valtz Duchy. Thanks to everyone working together, there were no casualties among the townspeople. Even the damage to the city had already been repaired, largely due to Rei's help.
Because of that, the duchy only needed a few days before daily life fully returned to normal.
That said, Aliza was the exception.
Because of her uncle's actions, she had an overwhelming amount of work to handle—compensating the citizens for the damage, explaining what truly happened, and making sure her family wouldn't suffer the consequences. For days, she barely had time to rest. Even Rei and the others hardly saw her during that time.
"Ahh… Valtzian cuisine really is delicious!" Lyria said happily as she enjoyed her meal.
At the moment, everyone except Aliza and Stan had gathered to try the local food of the Valtz Duchy.
"And they even serve apples too… That's how it oughta be!" Vyrn added, munching contentedly on one.
"It's not bad," Rei said, also enjoying the food. "I might ask for the recipe later."
"Still no news from Aliza and Stan?" Katalina suddenly asked.
"No," Djeeta replied. "They're really busy… I kind of feel bad for them."
While everyone else was taking a break, the two of them were still buried in work. Stan, being Aliza's bodyguard, had to stay by her side and accompany her everywhere.
"Didn't Aliza say she wanted to quit being the heir?" Jessica asked.
"Yeah," Rei answered, "but it seems like she feels responsible for this. So she decided to handle it one last time before actually stepping down."
"I see… I hope she's taking it easy," Therese said before putting more food into her mouth. "She's been working nonstop for days now."
After enjoying their meal, the group decided to continue exploring the Valtz Duchy before their departure the next day.
Rei, however, stayed behind at the restaurant. He wanted to ask for the recipe of the food they had just eaten. He even offered to pay the chef as thanks for sharing it, but the chef firmly refused. He already knew who Rei and the others were—the saviors of the Valtz Duchy. In fact, he said that if they didn't insist on paying, they would be welcome to eat there for free anytime.
Left with no other choice, Rei simply thanked him sincerely before leaving the restaurant and trying to find Djeeta and the others.
"…Well damn, they really left me, huh," Rei muttered when he couldn't find even a trace of them.
They were probably rushing to shop around, wanting to see as much as possible before leaving. Waiting for him would've taken too long.
In the end, Rei decided to return to the mansion where they had been staying for the past few days.
Aliza had offered them her mansion until everything was settled. With such a large group, they all agreed it was better to stay there rather than at an inn.
During the walk, Rei was thinking about the Blade of Olympus and how he could optimize it even further.
Djeeta had only used it for a few minutes, yet the blade had already drained almost all of her energy, leaving her barely able to stand.
He probably needed to adjust its output. Instead of directly drawing power from the user, he could make it absorb the surrounding energy continuously until the blade was fully charged.
"But that would probably reduce the blade's overall power, since in the game, its true potential could only be unlocked by absorbing godly power or something similar…"
Without realizing it, he had already arrived at the mansion. The guards immediately noticed him and opened the gate in greeting.
Inside, he was also welcomed by the maids working in the mansion.
"Welcome back, Lord Rei," one of the maids said, bowing slightly.
"Thank you. Has Aliza returned yet?" he asked.
"Yes. Lady Aliza returned about half an hour ago. She is currently in her study room."
"I see. Then I'll go check on her."
After thanking the maid, Rei went up the stairs and walked through the hallway, stopping in front of a familiar door—Aliza's room.
Knocking lightly, he spoke. "Aliza, it's me. Rei. I heard you're here."
"Rei? Come in," Aliza replied from inside.
With her permission, he opened the door and stepped inside.
Aliza was sitting on the couch. In front of her, multiple letters and documents were scattered across the table as she focused on reading one of them.
"You seem busy," Rei said, looking at the mess of paperwork.
"Yeah… even after Aviza died, he still managed to make me suffer like this…"
"Yeah, that's probably the biggest damage he's done to you so far."
Aliza simply shook her head before shifting slightly to the side of the couch. "Go on, sit here."
"Sure."
Even though there were two couches in the room, Aliza still gestured for him to sit beside her.
"Do you need my help with this?" Rei asked. "I can't do much, but I can organize the documents and make things more efficient for you."
"Sure. I need any help I can get right now."
With her permission, Rei started helping. Aliza continued reading letters one by one, stamping the documents she approved, while Rei sorted and arranged everything beside her.
They spent twenty minutes in silence, fully focused on their work. The only sounds in the room were the rustling of paper and the dull thump of the stamp.
After a while, Rei decided to break the silence.
"By the way, where's Stan? I thought he'd be with you."
"He's taking a break," Aliza replied. "Earlier he was already really sleepy, so he's probably asleep by now."
"Even he's that tired, huh."
"Yeah. But with your help, we can finish this faster."
Another ten minutes passed, and finally, the documents were all taken care of.
With the last document stamped and set aside, Aliza finally let out a long breath.
"…That's everything."
She leaned back against the couch for a moment, shoulders relaxing as the tension drained from her body. Then, without much thought, she raised both arms above her head and stretched.
"Ugh… I'm exhausted."
The movement made the fabric of her noble outfit tighten slightly around her body. Her posture straightened, her chest lifting naturally as she stretched, the elegant design of her clothes doing nothing to hide how well-fitted they were to her figure.
Rei, who was still organizing the papers beside her, paused for a brief moment before quickly averting his gaze.
Aliza noticed it—and smirked faintly.
Despite being a draph, her body didn't have the overly soft fullness most people expected. Years of training since childhood had shaped her physique into something refined and disciplined. Her arms and legs were slender and firm, carrying clear strength beneath her skin.
Only her thighs remained undeniably draph—full, strong, and still carrying that natural softness that contrasted with the rest of her build.
The thin makeup she wore only enhanced her features. Her eyes looked sharper under the soft light of the room, and her red lips—usually hidden behind a serious expression—stood out more now that she had relaxed.
Aliza finished her stretch with a slow exhale, her arms lowering as her posture relaxed.
The movement made her chest rise naturally beneath her noble outfit, the fabric pulled just tight enough to emphasize her figure before settling again.
She didn't miss Rei's gaze.
Instead of calling him out, she leaned closer—close enough that he could smell her faint perfume, warm and subtle.
"You've been staring for a while now," she said softly, her voice low and deliberate. "I don't mind, you know."
Her red lips curved into a confident smile as she shifted even closer, one thigh brushing lightly against his.
She had planned to tease him, thinking there was nothing else to do here—but unfortunately for her, Rei was already used to this kind of situation.
Instead, he moved closer as well, their shoulders touching. His hand came to rest at her waist—not gripping, just steady, warm, undeniably present.
"!?" Aliza jolted in surprise, not expecting him to act first.
Recovering quickly, she slid her hand up to his chest, her palm resting flat against him.
Rei's fingers tightened slightly at her waist—not enough to hurt, just enough to make his intent clear. He leaned in, their foreheads almost touching.
"Are you tired?" he whispered, a teasing smile on his lips.
He could clearly see how Aliza's face had turned red. It was rare to see her like this, and he was enjoying it far too much.
"O-of course I'm tired. I've been working for days," Aliza said hurriedly, turning her face away to avoid his gaze.
Rei's thumb traced a slow, deliberate line along her side, stopping just before it could become too much.
"Then, my lady, you should rest instead of doing something you're not used to," he said softly. "Your face is very red right now."
"Wh-which face is red!?" Aliza panicked, shifting away as she quickly pulled out a small hand mirror.
The moment she saw her reflection, her breath hitched—her face was undeniably flushed.
She sat there, flustered and unsure of what to do, while Rei simply watched her with quiet amusement.
Before she could panic any further, Rei suddenly caught her right arm, stopping her movements.
Gently, he guided her down, placing her head onto his lap.
"This position…"
Aliza murmured softly, memories surfacing clearly in her mind.
It was just like what had happened on Tarvi Island—only this time, their roles were reversed.
Thankfully, Aliza's horns weren't in the way, allowing her to rest comfortably as she lay there, looking up at his smiling face.
"Are you comfortable?" Rei asked gently. "What about your horns—are they fine?"
His fingers lightly touched them as he spoke.
"They're fine… and I'm comfortable," she replied, though the last part came out so softly it was almost inaudible.
"Then sleep," Rei said quietly. "You need to rest. Don't overwork yourself like this."
His hand moved slowly through her hair, brushing it with care before gently massaging her scalp. The steady, soothing motion made it hard for her to stay alert.
At the same time, he used Tiamat's power to create a cool, gentle breeze that filled the room, keeping the air comfortable around them.
At first, Aliza didn't feel tired at all—but the moment he did that, the exhaustion she had been holding back finally caught up to her. Her eyelids grew heavy, the tension in her body slowly easing.
Bit by bit, her eyes closed.
The last thing she saw was Rei's face, quietly watching over her as she drifted off to sleep.
Hearing the light sound of her breathing, Rei knew she had already fallen into a deep sleep.
He remained seated, unmoving, letting her rest as he quietly waited. His thoughts drifted back to his experiments, ideas forming and fading as time passed.
Then, suddenly, the door opened.
"Aliza, my daughter, I'm here," a mature woman's voice called as she entered the room.
[IMAGE]
She took a few steps inside—then stopped.
What she saw was something she had never expected.
Her daughter was sleeping peacefully, her head resting in the lap of a man she didn't recognize.
Rei lifted his gaze at the same moment she noticed him.
For a brief moment, the two of them simply stared at each other in silence.
Then, without warning, the woman brought both hands up to cover her mouth.
"My~ my~ my~," she said with clear amusement in her voice.
"And who might this handsome man be, sitting so closely with my daughter~?"