Meanwhile, on the other side.
A golden streak of light and a white blur of speed raced through the branching paths of the fifth floor of the dungeon, hot on the heels of four rampaging Minotaur.
The girl with long golden hair, Ais Wallenstein, moved with the lightness of the wind, her pure golden tresses trailing behind her like a dazzling beam of light as she moved at high speed.
Beside her, the young werewolf Bete Loga, with short white hair and alert wolf ears standing atop his head, wore metallic greaves that shimmered with a cold light: Frostwelt.
Every time he pushed off the ground, he left shallow craters in the solid rock floor, accompanied by heavy, thudding sounds.
His face was etched with impatience and manic agitation.
"Small fry! Stand still for me!!" Bete roared in a fury, suddenly accelerating!
His swift figure tore through the air in an instant, accompanied by a piercing whistle, as he slammed fiercely into the Minotaur trailing at the back.
"ROAR--!"
The bull-headed monster sensed the danger and clumsily tried to turn to defend itself.
But in the face of Bete's overwhelming speed, its movements were as slow as if frozen in place.
Bete's greaves tore through the air, striking the back of the Minotaur's heart with pinpoint accuracy and the force of a thousand jun!
BANG!!!
A dull, heart-stopping explosion erupted!
The tough body that Bell had struggled with all his might to leave even a scorch mark on shattered instantly under Bete's kick, like fragile pottery!
It took only a single strike!
The Minotaur dissolved into a spray of black smoke filling the air, unable to even let out a complete scream.
Only a fist-sized magic stone fell to the ground with a "clatter."
"Ais!" Bete didn't even spare a second glance at his handiwork, shouting without looking back.
Ais remained silent, though her movements were as fast as lightning.
The slender rapier at her waist, Sword of Despair, suddenly unsheathed, its blade instantly coated in high-speed rotating cyan gusts, emitting a low hum.
Her figure blurred slightly, dragging a faint cyan trail as she cut into the monster group like a teleportation.
SWISH! SWISH!
Two subtle yet incredibly sharp sounds of air being sliced rang out almost simultaneously.
The cyan wind blades, like the most precise paper cutters, swept across the tough necks of two Minotaur without the slightest resistance.
Two massive bull heads soared into the sky, and the hulking bodies ran forward a few more steps due to momentum before crashing to the ground, dissipating into black smoke and leaving two magic stones rolling on the floor.
Ais landed lightly, the cyan wind pressure ruffling the tips of her golden hair.
Her gaze was cold, her wrist turned, and her slender sword pointed fluidly at the last remaining Minotaur, preparing to deliver the final blow.
RUMBLE--!!!
Just then, a shocking explosion erupted without warning from the depths of a dark corridor to their left!
The massive sound echoed and overlapped in the narrow dungeon passage, shaking loose debris from the rock walls.
Violent shockwaves even faintly surged out from the junction, carrying the scent of scorched stardust.
The last remaining Minotaur was clearly startled by this sudden, massive disturbance.
It breathed heavily, its blood-red bull eyes turning toward the dark corridor where the sound originated, its nostrils flaring as if it had caught the scent of a target or presence that concerned it even more.
After only a moment's hesitation, it completely abandoned its current powerful enemies and its escape route, let out an unintelligible low roar, and swung its massive body around, charging headlong into the branching path where the explosion had come from, disappearing into the darkness!
"Hey, hey, hey! What the hell?!"
Bete scratched his white hair in irritation, a fiercer glint in his eyes as his greaves crushed a piece of gravel on the ground.
"What are these stupid cows going crazy for? We chased them from the seventeenth floor all the way to the fifth, and now they're diving into holes like that! Ais, let's hurry and chase them! Don't let that one get away too!"
Before his words had even faded, he had already transformed into a white blur, charging into the corridor where the explosion had originated.
At this very moment, Bell's battle had also fallen into a crisis.
The Minotaur's angry roars shook the very rock walls, its movements growing increasingly savage, its massive fists swinging like a whirlwind, each strike whistling past Bell's body by a hair's breadth.
The boy's white figure became blurred in the dim light, and he was sent flying by the shockwaves of the explosions time and again, crashing into the hard rock walls.
Blood spilled from his mouth, yet he struggled and gasped, his red eyes locked onto the monster.
He lowered his body once more, searching for the next opportunity to strike!
Sweat, blood, and dust mixed together, caking half of Bell's face.
Every breath he took carried the taste of rust and a burning pain deep within his chest; the edges of his vision were even beginning to blacken.
So strong!
He had already lost count of how many times he had used Star Burst.
He felt his body growing heavier by the second, and every time he used his magic, his brain felt as if it were being pierced by needles.
But he still gritted his teeth, his gaze locked firmly onto the spots on the Minotaur that had been repeatedly bombarded by Star Burst—
The side of its waist, its shoulder blades, and especially the outer side of the knee supporting its massive weight.
Those charred marks were accumulating!
Layer upon layer!
The color seemed to grow deeper and thicker!
Although the monster's movements remained savage, under the recoil of the continuous magical impacts—especially at the knee joint where it needed to stabilize its center of gravity—he keenly noticed that the Minotaur's unstoppable charging pace seemed to show a trace of imperceptible sluggishness and stiffness!
Those seemingly futile scorch marks were not in vain!
They were accumulating! They were taking effect!
The opportunity lay within these countless life-or-death bombardments!
Thor watched calmly as Bell and the Minotaur engaged in this cruel dance of mismatched strength.
The Minotaur was, after all, a monster of the seventeenth floor.
Its base defense and vitality were an insurmountable chasm for Bell, who was only Level 1.
The Steel Dagger in Bell's hand, worth 9,300 Valis, seemed fragile and laughable against the monster's hide, which was as tough as iron leather.
Every futile stab failed to draw a single drop of blood, producing only low, scraping "clang" sounds.
His only reliance was the Star Burst he had just awakened, which required mana to drive.
At this moment, every time Bell gritted his teeth to release the magic, his body groaned in pain, and the dizziness brought on by his near-depleted mana battered his will.
Thor slowly raised his right hand; above his fingertips, the [Stardust] he had painstakingly condensed from one hundred Magic Stone fragments not long ago floated silently.
It rotated slowly, like the core of a miniature galaxy.
This was the only trump card Thor had at the moment, one capable of instantly turning the tide of battle.
If Bell were truly about to die, he would crush this precious Stardust without hesitation.
The annihilation of the Stardust would be enough to blast the Minotaur into its most primitive particles in an instant.
Just as Thor's thoughts raced, the battle suddenly reached a fever pitch!
Facing the lethal giant fist smashing down from the Minotaur, the battered Bell did not retreat; instead, he erupted with even more astonishing willpower.
Dragging his body, which felt as heavy as if it were filled with lead, he chose to meet the attack head-on once again!
Seeing that Bell was about to be hit squarely by the devastating fist, the outcome of flesh and blood flying seemed imminent!
"Crouch! Use Star Burst!" Thor commanded in a low, booming voice, which exploded like a thunderclap deep within Bell's chaotic and exhausted consciousness!
The instruction came so abruptly, yet it carried an unquestionable majesty.
Bell's brain didn't even have time to think; his body, relying on the near-instinctive trust and obedience toward Thor cultivated over the past few days, made the most direct reaction!
He slammed his center of gravity down, shrinking his body low, almost brushing the ground!
Whoosh—!
That giant fist, carrying the scent of death, grazed past Bell's flying white hair!
The whistling gale made his cheeks ache!
He dodged it!
And at the very same instant he crouched, Bell's left hand, tightly gripping the starlight mana, had already aimed forward by combat instinct.
It was aimed at the outer side of the Minotaur's knee, which was charred black and even trembling slightly from the repeated explosive impacts!
"Star—Burst!!!"
The starlight, condensing the boy's final will and mana, detonated with a roar at the monster's knee joint amidst his hoarse scream!
BOOM—!!!
This explosion sounded exceptionally dull and lethal!
The specks of starlight were no longer futile surface burns, but had precisely penetrated the internal structure that was already fragile and broken!
It was like the final straw that crushed the giant pillar!
Crack—!
The sound of bone fracturing was clearly audible!
The Minotaur's right knee, which supported its massive frame, snapped in response to the destruction of the internal star explosion!
It let out an unprecedented howl of pain, its massive body unable to support itself any longer, and it collapsed heavily backward, slamming into the ground!
Having lost the support of its right leg, it struggled and roared on the ground in vain, but it could no longer stand up on one leg!
Bell gasped for air, his chest heaving violently.
He looked at the fallen beast, his red eyes, slightly out of focus from overexertion, now filled with unbelievable astonishment and a glimmer of wild joy.
I... I actually... really did it?!
"Bell!" Thor's steady, powerful voice rang out once more, pulling Bell back from his brief shock into the cruel reality. "Deliver the final blow! Complete your Great Feat!"
Thor's words ignited the last of Bell's resolve.
His eyes narrowed, and he gripped his dagger with trembling but resolute hands, preparing to step forward and bring an end to the monster that had once filled him with such overwhelming terror!
However! A sudden change occurred!
Just as Bell was fully focused on his fallen prey, a violent roar and heavy, thunderous footsteps erupted from the deep corridor to their left!
A second Minotaur charged out like a vengeful god of war!
Its blood-red eyes instantly locked onto Thor, who stood closest to the corridor entrance, appearing completely defenseless!
The monster's target was crystal clear! It raised its arm high, its massive fist crashing straight down toward the top of Thor's head!
The force of the blow was enough to crush an ordinary person into a pulp of flesh and bone in an instant!
"Lord God--!!!" Bell noticed the emergency.
He let out a heart-wrenching cry, his body instinctively lunging forward to save him.
But the distance of despair lay between them!
Having just survived a bloody battle and exhausted both his magic and stamina, his speed could never outpace the Minotaur's lethal fist!
He could only watch helplessly as the shadow of death instantly enveloped Thor's calm figure!
In that split second of extreme peril--
"Whoosh!"
A faint sound, almost too subtle to be noticed, cut through the air!
At the same instant, behind the Minotaur that had burst from the corridor, a golden streak of light flashed by at a speed beyond the limits of vision!
It was Ais Wallenstein!
Upon hearing Bell's terrified cry of "Lord God," her cold, golden pupils had instantly narrowed, and she pushed off the ground with explosive force!
She instantly overtook Bete, who was still grumbling behind her!
The moment her slender figure stepped out of the corridor like a phantom, the extraordinary perception and reaction speed of a Level 5 adventurer caused her world to enter a state of bullet time.
Everything around her became incredibly clear and slow.
The trajectory of the Minotaur's punch, the ripples in the air distorted by the sheer power, the flying shards of gravel... and the scene of the battlefield further ahead.
Her gaze swept across the entire area in an instant.
Ahead, one Minotaur lay on the ground, its massive body still struggling in vain.
And not far from the fallen monster, a white-haired, red-eyed boy stood gripping a short blade, breathing heavily, his body covered in battle-worn scrapes, burns, and bloodstains.
It was clear he had just finished a fierce struggle, and his target was that very Minotaur.
All this information was processed in Ais's mind at lightning speed, immediately transforming into a sense of indescribable astonishment!
The equipment on the white-haired boy... was the cheapest, most basic coarse-cloth novice gear, and the short blade in his hand was a common model for low-level adventurers, lacking even decent armor.
This was absolutely a rookie adventurer who had registered not long ago, perhaps not even a week!
Yet, such a rookie... had actually taken down a Minotaur alone?!
In her efficient and cold-blooded thinking, the surprise brought by this conclusion briefly overshadowed her instinct to lock onto her target.
And when her gaze shifted to the other side, toward the young man whose hair color was as deep as the galaxy, she froze.
In a fraction of a second, so short it was almost negligible, the young man's gaze had precisely met hers.
This meant he could track her Level 5 speed!
But something even more shocking happened the next instant.
Just as the Minotaur's pot-sized fist was about to strike the young man's head, Ais clearly saw his body shift horizontally backward by about twenty centimeters without any warning.
Boom!
The massive fist smashed down, grazing the tip of his nose and blasting a deep crater into the ground, sending gravel flying, yet it hadn't even touched the hem of his clothes.
Ais's pupils constricted, but her body's instincts already drove her to charge forward.
Splurt!
The Sword of Despair precisely pierced the Minotaur's chest, cutting through it as easily as thin paper, and the massive bull-headed monster instantly dissipated into black smoke.
At the same time, on the other side!
The Minotaur that Bell had knocked down, having lost a leg, was struggling in pain and fury, standing up once more on its remaining limb!
It growled, its massive body carrying a bloody stench as it prepared to pounce on Bell, who was too exhausted to react quickly.
"Get lost! Small fry!"
A volatile roar exploded from the deep corridor.
A white figure charged out like a cannonball!
It was Bete!
The cold metallic luster shimmered on his greaves as he transformed into a streak of white, slamming straight into the one-legged Minotaur.
BOOM!!!
A heavy, muffled thud!
His metal-clad foot, imbued with immense force, kicked viciously into the Minotaur's upper body.
CRACK!
The sound of shattering bone exploded!
PFFT—!
Scalding, bright red blood erupted like a waterfall from the Minotaur's ruptured chest, mouth, and nose!
Bell had no time to dodge!
The hot crimson bovine blood poured down over his head instantly, dyeing him into a man drenched entirely in gore.
HUM!
Amidst the curtain of blood, Bell, kneeling on the ground, looked up in astonishment. Within his scarlet field of vision, he locked eyes for a fleeting moment with the werewolf Bete, who hung suspended in mid-air having just delivered the lethal blow.
Bell's eyes were filled with incredulous shock.
That terrifying monster, which had forced him to exhaust every ounce of his strength just to barely knock it down... had been finished off by this adventurer with a single kick?
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