The Journey Begins in DanMachi

Facing an enemy that radiated an unprecedented sense of ferocity, Ais trembled uncontrollably, but a startling fighting spirit erupted from her immediately after.

She gripped the sharp, gleaming azure sword in her hand and sprinted toward the dragon at high speed!

As she brushed past the dragon, Ais dodged a claw that could have easily shredded her body in the nick of time, simultaneously slashing at the base of the dragon's wing and chipping a small gap into its pitch-black scales.

This wound was negligible compared to the dragon's massive five-meter frame, yet it let out an angry roar and turned to charge at Ais with even greater ferocity.

Noticing that the dragon had lost its caution, Ais revealed a triumphant smile filled with fighting spirit.

She turned and ran, and when the dragon was less than ten meters behind her, she leaped onto a giant boulder, turned, and swung her sword into the stone.

Countless flying rocks shot toward the dragon's only weakness—its eyes.

Caught off guard, the dragon instinctively closed its eyes, and its diving speed slowed slightly.

Now!

4 Ais: Papa...

Ais leaped up and, with all her might, brought her azure sword down upon the junction where the dragon's massive wing met its body!

This strike pierced through the dragon's scale defense, causing bright red blood to spray from the wing.

Losing its balance, the dragon roared and made an emergency landing.

Ais, disregarding everything, put all her strength into attacking that one wing, intending to sever the dragon's means of flight.

Even when countered by the dragon's sharp claws, she only dodged the vitals by the smallest margin, ignoring all other areas.

Every time sparks flew, fragments of dragon scales and sprays of blood—indistinguishable as to whether they belonged to friend or foe—scattered into the air.

Just as Ais retreated to dodge a fatal blow and launched another attack, the dragon suddenly turned with agility that defied its massive frame.

Its scale-covered tail whipped up a vortex, sweeping away everything nearby.

Caught off guard, Ais widened her golden eyes and could only hold her sword horizontally across her chest, taking the full force of the impact, which felt like a siege hammer.

The immense power rendered all of Ais's techniques useless; her armor deformed and peeled away, and the sound of her own bones twisting and breaking echoed in her mind.

Spitting blood, the girl's thin, small body flew away as easily as a withered leaf.

"Cough, cough..."

By the time Ais regained her senses and struggled to lift her head, she found herself surrounded by a wall of fire like purgatory.

The dragon looked down at her, staring with crimson slit pupils, and began to condense a red light in its mouth.

The radiance completely covered Ais's field of vision, and the burning pain spreading throughout her body delivered a message of death.

Am I going to... die here?

How can this be...

I still have... things left undone...

But, this will be a release...

In the crimson world constructed by the heat of the flames, everything in Ais's sight, including herself, was slowly melting.

Her consciousness grew hazy, and time itself seemed to slow down.

Just as she slowly closed her eyes, waiting for the end to arrive—

The next instant, a clear sword chime cut through all the rumbling noise, piercing through countless sorrows, anger, and despair, and reached the bottom of the girl's heart.

It was like a crisp breeze sweeping across an endless prairie on a midsummer afternoon, stirring dazzling white clouds and rising toward the deep blue sky.

Dispelling the burning filth, calming the chaos, healing the sorrow, and suppressing the darkness, her consciousness recovered from the black flames.

The sword light glided like a moonbeam, illuminating Ais's eyes.

She lifted her head, taking in the swift figure that had passed by like a streak of moonlight.

It was a sword strike completely different from Ais's own, and from any sword she had ever seen.

No momentum, no sound, no brilliance.

Only a streak of silver light, unassuming yet eye-catching, swept past.

But this single strike pierced precisely into the dragon's eye, running through its skull.

The dragon roared in agony; the fully charged fire breath could not be released and exploded within its sharp-fanged mouth, tearing open its oral cavity and upper jaw, causing drops of molten fire to fall to the ground.

This scene overlapped with a certain image deep within Ais's memories.

It was a scene where, as a mortal without the 'Blessing', one used superb swordsmanship to inflict heavy pain upon a pitch-black despair, forcing it to flee in a sorry state...

"Pa, Papa..."

In an instant, an inexplicable emotion surged through her entire body.

The fortress Ais had built within her heart over a year of bloody slaughter collapsed in an instant, revealing the little girl hidden beneath the mask of the 'Sword Princess'.

Feelings of grievance and weakness gushed out, and hot tears, which she thought had long since dried up, blurred her vision.

Pulling his sword from the dragon's eye, Noah kicked out with all his might, striking the dragon's blood-spurting chest.

As his body tumbled down from mid-air, Noah used the rotational force to slash his sword sideways across the dragon's chest.

This sword completely shattered the already tattered scales on the Wyvern's chest, causing blood to gush out.

No, it wasn't just blood that erupted, but also a fiery breath, held back to its limit and then swallowed back down.

Explosions continued, blasting apart the Wyvern's muscular body, eliciting roars and cries as flesh and blood flew.

As Noah landed in front of the blonde girl and lifted her by the neck like a kitten, the Wyvern's body expanded in mid-air, finally exploding completely.

In an instant, it was as if a sun had appeared in the cave, scattering dappled radiance.

A magical storm of light and flame swept everything away.

It cracked the walls, then melted and vaporized the rock along the fissures, expanding the entire cave by a full circle from the inside out.

When the fiery storm subsided, a pile of rubble in the cave broke open, and Noah poked his head out, looking around with lingering fear.

Confirming the danger had passed, Noah stood up from the ruins, still holding the blonde girl by the neck as if she were a cat.

He felt for her pulse, and upon confirming she was still alive, Noah breathed a sigh of relief.

He had just transmigrated, his injuries not yet healed, and he had come to this godforsaken place to risk his life, all for this unlucky kid?

If she died, wouldn't his coming here be in vain?

"Kids these days are too fierce, huh? A dragon that big, and she didn't even run, just went straight for it?"

Even so, Noah knew that if the blonde girl hadn't attracted the Wyvern's attention, he wouldn't have been able to sneak attack successfully.

Although Noah detested kill-stealers, he had to admit that being one felt pretty good.

Moreover, it wasn't exactly stealing a kill just now, because the girl hadn't even been close to winning.

He had completely saved the girl's life.

Forget it, now wasn't the time to dwell on that. He needed to find a place to heal the girl, and himself while he was at it.

However, Noah didn't have any healing skills, so he could only hurry to the surface.

But as he recalled running all the way down from the cave full of branching paths, he felt a pang of dread.

Hiss, I didn't leave any markers. How long will it take to get back up?

Though it was a bit embarrassing to admit, Noah did have a problem with his sense of direction.

It was fine in cities he'd stayed in for a long time, but he'd basically get lost in the wilderness.

If he was like this in the wilderness where he could climb high to survey the surroundings and use celestial phenomena to orient himself, it would be even harder in this cave where he couldn't distinguish east from west, or day from night.

He hoped he could get out before he bled dry.

However, just as Noah took a step, he suddenly felt something unusual—a gathering of magic, the prelude to an explosion.

The location was roughly ahead, behind some ruins in the cave.

But this magical outburst wasn't dangerous, so Noah just watched as the ruins ahead were blown open.

"Ais!! Where are you?"

Amidst the lingering smoke, a figure of emerald green appeared.

It was an elven woman with long, slender, pointed ears, hair with a jewel-like emerald sheen, and a beauty that could topple nations.

She looked like a mother who, after arguing with her rebellious daughter and sinking into grief, suddenly remembered her daughter had run off, and rushed out into the pitch-black night to frantically search for her.

The next second, Noah's gaze met hers, and both fell silent.

Until--

"Father..."

The blonde girl, whom Noah was holding, had woken up at some point and immediately threw herself into his arms, sobbing loudly.

Noah's eyes widened.

What the hell!

You little brat!

Don't get me into trouble!!

5 If I'm not embarrassed, then others are

When she heard Ais call the silver-haired human 'Father', Riveria's eyes immediately sharpened.

She slowly tightened her grip on her staff, 'Magna Aivis', ready to strike him at any moment!

Don't let her appearance fool you; although she was a mage, her staff was crafted from "Refined Metal" and "Holy Emperor Ore," making it sturdier than the equipment of most first-tier adventurers.

Anyone who underestimated Riveria's close-combat abilities would suffer greatly!

Although she wasn't old... after all, among elves, she was still just a young girl!

In short, her years of travel had exposed Riveria to the darkness of the human world.

A pure and adorable little girl like Ais could easily become a target for bad people!

Noah understood the meaning behind the green-haired elf's gaze at a glance and felt a bit depressed.

Although Noah had often been seen as a butcher, a demon, and called cold-blooded and ungrateful in the past, he had never been mistaken for a pervert.

How should I put it? While being feared and dreaded is the same regardless, being likened to a ferocious lion or tiger feels worlds apart from being compared to a cockroach or a slug.

Thinking of this, Noah couldn't help but disgustedly lift the golden-haired girl who was clinging to him like a puppy, meeting her hazy, bewildered golden eyes.

This wretched child!

I'm only seventeen; I'm a child myself!

I've never even held a girl's hand, so isn't it a bit too much for you to just call me "Daddy" right off the bat?

Though, women only hinder the speed of my sword-drawing anyway...

However, Noah wasn't about to bicker with a heavily wounded little girl covered in blood and drifting in and out of consciousness.

"Little brat, I can't be your father, wake up..."

Patting the girl's face, Noah turned her around to face the green-haired elf, who had become even more vigilant and anxious due to his actions.

"Hey, take a look. Do you recognize this elf?"

After being patted several times by Noah, the golden-haired girl dazedly opened her eyes, which were blurred by blood, and locked gazes with Riveria.

Seeing the miserable state of Ais, covered in blood and riddled with wounds, Riveria felt as if her heart were being twisted. A wave of immense regret, self-reproach, and guilt surged within her as she gripped her staff tightly.