Ambushed and Fleeing

"Because of the abnormal situation here, I won't beat around the bush and will get straight to the point."

"If we want to obtain the water from Cadmus Spring, we must defeat its guardian, the Strong Dragon. There is no other way to get the water."

"And you all know how strong the Strong Dragon is. In terms of sheer power, it's even stronger than the Floor Masters we've encountered."

After Tione finished speaking, Tiona added with a grin, "I have personal experience being blown away by it, with my insides all messed up!"

Good grief, just like you. You can still grin about something like that? You really don't care at all.

Although he wanted to retort, Shirou Emiya held back.

After all, he knew that Tione was explaining the precautions specifically for him and Lefia.

So, it was better to listen carefully at this moment.

"Tione, how exactly should we fight?"

Hearing Ais's question, Tione replied seriously, "It's the usual plan. Ais, Tiona, and I will suppress the Strong Dragon's attacks, and then Lefia and Shirou will use Magic to suppress it."

"Once it's scared, we'll finish it off in one go! So Lefia, Shirou, we're counting on you this time!"

"Leave it to us!"

"Yes, yes!"

Seeing that consensus had been reached, Tione led the four of them forward. Soon, they arrived outside the room at the end of the path.

Cadmus Spring was located in this room.

The five of them tiptoed forward, cautiously peeking into the room.

But soon, Ais sensed something was wrong.

"It's too quiet!"

No longer concealing her presence, Ais walked straight in.

"Ais!"

Seeing Ais's unusual behavior, Tione and the other three had no choice but to follow her in.

However, the situation inside was completely beyond their expectations.

The trees that had originally grown in the room were all broken, as if crushed into pieces by something.

The surrounding walls and ground had also been ground into powder by something unknown.

But what was even more puzzling were the traces of melting everywhere.

"This was done by the New Species bugs."

Shirou Emiya had already identified the cause at a glance. After all, on this fifty-first floor, there were no other monsters that could melt substances besides the New Species bugs.

Tione and the others, who were constantly exploring, soon found clues around Cadmus Spring.

"This... is the corpse of a Strong Dragon?"

After comparing the astonishing amount of ash on the ground with the Strong Dragon's size in her memory, Tione reached this conclusion.

Ais, having discovered something, reached out and pulled a dragon wing membrane shimmering with golden light from the ashes.

Strong Dragon's Hide Membrane.

This was an extremely precious drop item, appearing with only a very small chance even after a Strong Dragon died.

"It really is the body of a Strong Dragon!"

Tione's unease grew, and she quickly said, "Quickly collect the spring water, and let's leave immediately!"

Everything that had happened here was too abnormal.

"Yes!"

Shirou Emiya and Lefia quickly took out their specialized water collection equipment and began to gather it.

Furthermore, because the Strong Dragon was dead and they weren't using the spring water, the amount of spring water collected was far more than they had prepared to gather.

"It looks like we don't need to go to two places to collect it. This one spot is enough!"

"Indeed!"

After storing the water bottles, the group of five left the Strong Dragon's room and quickly headed back.

"Who do you think did it to the Strong Dragon?"

"Common sense would suggest it was other monsters, right!"

Tione vaguely answered her sister's question, while in her mind, she recalled the various anomalies she had encountered on this floor.

"This is definitely an abnormal situation. I just don't know how it will unfold!"

At this moment, Shirou Emiya's vigilance had also reached its maximum.

If they were to encounter the New Species, their way back was the most likely place for trouble.

With various thoughts swirling in their minds, the group continued to move forward.

"Ah!!!"

Suddenly, a scream echoed from the depths of the dungeon!

"It's Raul!" the five of them said in unison.

The five made a swift decision and rushed towards the direction of the scream. Soon, the appearance of a monster came into view.

It was a creature that was yellowish-green all over, resembling a caterpillar.

On both sides of its body, it had over a dozen pairs of legs, making it look like a combination of a caterpillar and a centipede.

This was a monster Tione and the others had never encountered before.

A New Species!

Looking at the monster before him, Shirou Emiya's eyes lit up. It finally appeared, a New Species.

Facing the monster right in front of her, Tiona, who knew no fear, charged forward with the great double blades in her hands.

"Stop, Tiona!"

Finn's voice came in time, but Tiona, already worked up, didn't show any signs of stopping and plunged the great double blades directly into the monster's body.

And then...

And then her great double blades, worth 120 million Valis, melted into liquid.

"Ah! My great double blades! You can't just play like this!"

"Didn't Finn already tell you not to go? You idiot!"

Bete, who was being chased by the monster, looked at Tiona, who was on the verge of tears, and grumbled helplessly.

Watching this scene, even Shirou Emiya felt like laughing. How could someone be so brave!

Reuniting with the second party, the Loki Familia elite group of nine people began to desperately flee.

"Hey, hey, what is that thing, Finn? My weapon!"

"I don't know, we were attacked suddenly too."

Glancing back at the enemies behind them, Shirou Emiya said urgently, "There are so many monsters behind us, I estimate over a hundred."

"What?"

Tiona, who thought there was only one, almost popped her eyes out. One of these monsters was already troublesome enough, and now there were hundreds of them.

"Why can't I see them!"

"I have a Skill, do you?"

Clairvoyance's enhancement to Shirou Emiya's eyesight was not a small matter.

"Guild Master, are you alright?"

"We're fine, but Raul is badly injured. He was directly hit by that liquid."

Looking at Raul, who was being carried on Gareth's shoulder, everyone felt a chill.

Raul was now in a weakened state, emitting a foul odor.

At the same time, his skin and even his light armor had melted away, his entire body turning a purplish-black color.

With just one blow, a veteran Level 4 adventurer had entered a near-death state.

This raised everyone's vigilance to the maximum.

They absolutely could not be attacked.

"Look, these New Species are even attacking the Black Rhinos on the road. I suspect they are the cause of the disturbance we encountered!"

Hearing Shirou Emiya's words, Tione quickly relayed their sightings to the confused Finn.

"Is that so? I didn't expect that guy could even take down a Strong Dragon!"

"What a monster!"

The fleeing group ran through the dungeon like headless flies.

Just then, Ais suddenly asked, "Finn, can those monsters be defeated?"

Hearing Ais's question, everyone turned their gaze to Finn.

After a moment's pause, Finn turned back to Ais and said, "The attacks themselves are effective, but just like Tiona earlier, losing a weapon with each attack is too costly."

"..."

"Fighting an enemy of that number would be even more difficult."

Looking at the somewhat silent group, Finn continued, "However, we can use Magic. If we can buy enough time to chant Magic, we can indeed annihilate them!"

"Then I'll do it! My Super Illusionary Collapse doesn't require chanting!"

Shirou Emiya, who had been observing the New Species' movements, eagerly volunteered upon hearing Finn's plan.

"No, Shirou's Super Illusionary Collapse is too powerful, it will engulf all of us. It's too narrow here!"

Indeed, Shirou Emiya understood as soon as he was reminded.

Although the passage here was wide, it was only for close-quarters combat. If he unleashed a nuclear blast, no one would escape.

"In that case, the only one who fits the criteria is..."

Sensing everyone's gaze, Lefia shrieked.

"Ah!"