Who was Judas Spade in Alise's eyes?
If you had asked her that question five years ago, she would have answered without hesitation: "A strong and brave adventurer."
But if you asked her who she admired most...
If Astraea was the first, then Judas was undeniably the second.
Not Finn, Gareth, or Riveria of the Loki Familia.
Not even Ottar, the strongest adventurer in all of Orario.
So when did it begin?
That day... during the battle with the Juggernaut on the ninth floor.
A foe so empowered by the Dungeon itself that Alise doubted even Ottar could triumph against it.
It wouldn't be a lie to say that battle stole her breath away.
And she knew she wasn't the only one.
Everyone who had witnessed it felt the same.
That clash was more than just survival... it was an adventure, in the truest sense of the word.
Something eternal, burned forever into memory.
But that wasn't the only reason.
On one of her usual patrols, she had seen him.
Judas, moving from victim to victim, pouring his miraculous healing magic into the injured, again and again.
Pushing himself to the brink of Mind Zero, staggering but refusing to stop.
He never asked for payment.
Never demanded gratitude.
He simply healed... then vanished once his work was done.
The way he restored smiles, joy, and hope to the broken... that was what made her admiration deepen.
And yet, Alise was no fool.
'He is definitely hiding something.'
She had also seen the shadow he carried.
That quiet darkness buried beneath his calm exterior.
But that was fine. Everyone bore their own darkness.
And despite this, Alise knew... Judas Spade was a good person at heart.
When she asked him earlier what justice meant to him...
His answer surprised her.
While others always had neat definitions, firm ideals carved from certainty, Judas's response had been different.
He had spoken like a wanderer.
A child searching for meaning.
A soul yet to decide which path to take.
In that sense, Judas was similar to a younger Ryuu, back when she struggled to define her own meaning of justice.
Judas Spade... a man who seemed complete, yet incomplete at the same time.
A living contradiction.
And yet, more than the contradiction itself, what stirred her heart was the anticipation.
The answer she knew he would one day give.
'What kind of justice would Judas Spade create for himself?'
She looked forward to it.
But that was for the future.
Right now, both were drenched in sweat, breaths heavy.
"Haa!"
"Hap!"
Their battle cries tore through the courtyard as fists collided.
Each strike met with another, blow for blow, until shockwaves rippled outward, scattering dust in violent bursts.
When the haze cleared, Judas had been hurled fifteen meters back, while Alise slid only three.
The gouged trails beneath their feet told the story clearly.
Judas glanced at his fist... bones shattered, skin torn, blood dripping steadily onto the dirt.
Across from him, Alise stood unscathed, save for the sheen of sweat on her skin.
The difference was undeniable.
'As I thought... Alise is already a level 5, standing on the verge of level 6.'
'Even at my peak, even pushing myself to the strength of a level 4, I'm no match. The only thing keeping me in this fight is my ability to heal.'
Judas gritted his teeth, forcing the bones of his hand back into place as his healing ability mended the damage.
This was no longer a contest of strength.
It had become a battle of endurance.
Would Alise exhaust her stamina first... or would Judas collapse before his healing could keep up?
That was the fate their clash had chosen.
"Alise lacks the decisive blow she needs to finish this off."
Kaguya said, keeping her eyes peeled as she watched the fight along with the members of the Astraea Familia.
"You're right... Judas' ability to continuously heal makes it feel like you're fighting a tenacious cockroach that refuses to die."
Lyra commented with a snicker.
"Lyra! Don't call Mr. Spade a cockroach, that's rude."
Ryuu said, her voice raised as her brows furrowed in displeasure.
"Hey, even if my analogy's a bit rude, I'm not wrong, am I?"
Lyra replied with a smirk.
Ryuu could only give the pallum a disapproving stare before turning her attention back to the battle.
The fight between Judas and Alise had grown fiercer.
Alise had fully committed to offense now.
Her strikes were fast, precise, relentless.
Judas could barely keep pace, catching the faintest cues.
The shift in her weight, the subtle dig of her heel into the earth... before she was on him again, her wooden sword whistling in a blur.
But this time, he was ready.
Rather than meeting her strike head-on, he pivoted.
His staff twisted in his grip, knocking her blade aside at an angle, the redirected momentum allowing him to slip past and counter with a sharp thrust aimed at her side.
"That's the spirit! You're getting the hang of this, Judas!"
Alise's eyes gleamed with exhilaration.
She twisted her body mid-motion, narrowly evading the strike, her movements smooth and fluid.
The fight surged on, an exchange of speed, precision, and instinct.
Each clash revealed the depth of their skill, pushing both to sharpen themselves further.
The spectators could only watch in awe.
And for Judas, it was exactly what he needed.
'I can read her now.'
As he slipped past another one of Alise's swings, his thoughts grew sharper, his awareness keener.
The image training he had done the previous day hadn't only been preparation for facing the Freya Familia's executives—
After simulating himself battling Freya's followers over and over again, he was forced to grow, learn, and adapt.
Ironically, the enemies he had fought had become teachers, showing him how to fight more effectively.
As a result, it had elevated his combat sense to an entirely new level.
'Combat experience. Yes, this is exactly what I was missing.'
Judas may have inherited Estelon's memories... but despite living for tens of thousands of years, Estelon's experience in close-quarters combat was practically nonexistent.
A pure mage type.
As Estelon, brute strength was all he had ever needed.
Overwhelming opponents with sheer power had always been enough.
There was never a need to refine his combat technique.
Which meant Judas Spade had to fill in the gaps Estelon left behind.
'My body... it is adapting now.'
You had to practice. Fail. Train your body until the movement became instinct—something your muscles and mind executed without thought.
Judas had fought countless monsters before coming to Orario, yes... but when it came to fighting other people?
Aside from the training he'd done with his father...
The number of times he had fought other adventurers could be counted on one hand.
'I can see them.'
『Thought Acceleration』
A spell that speeds up mental processing.
『Perception Enhance』
Sharply heightens all of the user's senses, such as sight, hearing, smell and touch.
『Focus Field』
Temporarily shuts off distractions, putting the user in a hyper-focused combat state.
『Kinetic Perception』
A spell that helps him track the trajectory and motion of fast-moving objects.
Of course, there was always a price to pay... the strain he placed on his mind wasn't something he could endure for long.
'Even if these spells push my mind to its limits… the result makes it worth it.'
He was starting to notice the small details that his previous self would never have considered.
'Her breathing, muscle tension, line of sight, stance, movement patterns, even her habits...'
By piecing together these subtle cues, he could anticipate her moves before she made them, crafting the most effective counter in an instant.
He was far from a close-combat genius, and to fill that gap, he turned to spells that could reinforce what he lacked.
'If I relied on my raw reflexes alone, I wouldn't even be able to dodge her attacks. The gap between our stats is just too massive.'
Against an opponent of this caliber, he had no choice but to adapt... to hone his technique to the absolute limit.
'Faster... sharper... stronger...'
Judas felt adrenaline coursing through his veins.
"Judas!!!"
"Alise!!!"
Their voices roared out, echoing like war drums.
In each other's eyes, they saw it... the unshakable resolve, the burning drive, the iron will to claim victory.
And in that instant, they both understood.
This battle would not end until one of them could no longer stand.
'I will win!'
'I will win!'
---
+15 chapters at patreon.com/drdedot