Boss: This Little Thing Sure Looks Unusual

Saria's warning still echoed through the air when Ifrit was startled backward onto the ground by the suddenly raised lava head.

As she watched the enormous hand reach toward her, blotting out the sky, her mind went blank, leaving only instinctive fear.

Yet the pain of being crushed that she had expected never came.

The giant hand abruptly froze in midair halfway through its reach.

Ifrit's heart pounded wildly. Through her tear-blurred vision, she saw the burning eyes of the lava giant fixed on her.

That gaze did not seem as purely violent as before. Instead, it carried a sense of... confusion?

"Cough, cough! Get out of there, Ifrit!" Saria's anxious shout came from below once more.

Hearing Saria's voice, Ifrit forcefully wiped the tears and dust from her face and struggled to her feet.

Then, somehow finding the courage, she looked straight at the terrifying being before her and shouted through her tears:

"I know! I know you came for me, didn't you?! Because that thing is inside my body!" Her little hands clenched tightly around the hem of her clothes, her body trembling slightly with fear and agitation.

"Don't hurt anyone else! Don't hurt Saria anymore!"

Her surging emotions crashed against her already fragile mind like a flood.

The Flame Demon fragment lurking within her body keenly seized the opportunity and began to stir and churn.

"Urgh—!"

Ifrit curled up in pain as orange-red flames burst uncontrollably from her body, bringing with them that familiar agony.

Yet amid that unbearable pain, Ifrit felt a strange sense of peace.

Since I'm a monster too... since I'm the same as it...

Then maybe... I can use this power to save Saria?

The thought took root in her mind like a curse. She gave up resisting and completely surrendered herself to the violent consciousness within her.

"Roar—!!!"

A savage, ferocious roar that no longer belonged to a young girl erupted from Ifrit's small body.

Even more violent flames enveloped her as her form began to twist and change. The consciousness of the "Flame Demon fragment" temporarily took control!

"Ifrit... no..."

At the bottom of the pit, Saria, barely clinging to consciousness, watched the scene unfold. It felt as if her heart had been torn apart.

The outcome she feared most, the one she never wanted to see, had still happened.

The perspective shifted to Boss—

Gradually coming to his senses from his frenzy, Boss obediently stayed at the bottom of the crater, waiting for the excess energy in his body to naturally dissipate so he could return to normal.

He had noticed the severely injured "Terra captain" nearby, but he did not feel like dealing with her for now.

After all, this conflict had begun with a misunderstanding. He had fallen from the sky and been mistaken for an intruder; their reaction had been understandable.

Then he looked at the hellish scene around him, one he had created with his own hands. He even felt a little guilty, thinking his "revenge" might have gone too far.

He decided to ignore everything and quietly wait until his energy stabilized.

However, a clear young girl's shout shattered his plan.

He instinctively looked up toward the edge of the crater.

A... child?

Boss froze, the brows formed from lava drawing tightly together.

Isn't this a battlefield? Why is there a child here?! This is way too dangerous!

He focused more closely on Ifrit. That very act of staring, combined with the natural intimidation of his massive body, frightened the newly risen Ifrit into falling backward.

Seeing the child fall, Boss instinctively stretched out a giant hand to help her up—

As naturally as he used to help a junior who had accidentally fallen on the basketball court.

But his hand froze midway. Looking at the enormous lava-covered palm, large enough to effortlessly grasp a small building, he suddenly came to his senses.

He stopped in frustration, feeling utterly helpless.

While he was hesitating, a sudden change occurred at the crater's edge.

A much smaller blaze suddenly erupted from where the child stood.

Accompanied by a wild roar, a blurry figure made of flame appeared there, excitedly spewing tongues of fire in every direction and causing negligible destruction.

Boss tilted his enormous head, even more confused.

"Roar?" (What is that thing?)

That kid... transformed?

Can everyone in this world transform? What kind of weird setting is this?

Driven by curiosity, Boss braced his four massive arms against the crater wall and began to climb upward.

His mountain-like body slowly rose from the bottom of the pit, its shadow completely swallowing the small flame-made phantom at the crater's edge.

The Flame Demon fragment cried out:

[Finally, I'm out! Those damned insects!]

[I'll burn them all to ashes! Everything here will be destroyed by me!!!]

"Roar?" (What are you going to do?)

The Flame Demon fragment abruptly turned around. Who dared interrupt the great...

Great...

Great...

Boss: "?"

Flame Demon fragment: "..."

The Flame Demon fragment froze abruptly. Boss narrowed his huge eyes and asked once again:

"Roar..." (What did you say you were going to do?)

The Flame Demon fragment trembled. The difference in size between them was like an erupting volcano and a flickering flame in the wind.

Under Boss's oppressive gaze, and amid the astonished stares in Rhine Lab's monitoring room—

The Flame Demon fragment, which had been baring its fangs and claws just moments ago, seemed as though it had been doused with ice water. Its flames rapidly died out, and it instantly retreated into Ifrit's body, vanishing without a trace.

It just left?

Boss blinked in surprise, then smacked his lips regretfully, splashing lava everywhere.

That little thing sure looks unusual. What a shame... It seemed like it could understand me. I wanted to have a chat with it.

Ifrit stood there blankly and blinked. The violent consciousness that had occupied her body moments ago had vanished completely.

In its place was the unmistakable... fear and panic of the tenant inside her body.

Ifrit was stunned at first, then quickly realized what had happened. Furious, she began cursing at the air:

"Hey! You bully who only picks on the weak! Weren't you so impressive when you were throwing your weight around inside my body?!"

"That thing is a Flame Demon, and aren't you a Flame Demon too? Come out and fight him!"

If the Flame Demon fragment possessed an independent consciousness, it would probably be roaring in grievance and fury right now:

[You call that thing a Flame Demon?!]

Boss looked at the little one at the edge of the crater shouting at empty air. Though he could not understand a single word, her furious, agitated manner somehow made him feel—

(I can't understand what she's saying, but I'm pretty sure she's swearing a lot.)

With one tiny unconscious movement, the wind pressure stirred up by his enormous body swept over Ifrit.

Ifrit instantly stiffened. Only then did she remember that the true "monster" was still right before her!

Fear once again coiled around her heart. Ifrit gritted her teeth and forced herself not to retreat.

Looking at the silent lava giant, she tried to communicate again, her trembling voice thick with desperate sobs:

"Please... don't hurt Saria anymore... If I'm your target... then just take my life... Let Saria go, let everyone go..."

She closed her eyes, as though awaiting her final judgment.

Seeing her trembling like that only made Boss more irritated. His hand unconsciously scratched at his lava-made head, producing a grinding sound.

What is wrong with this silly kid? Why doesn't she run? he thought anxiously.

I'm so huge that even a small movement could knock over a whole area. The ground around here is unstable too. If I accidentally touch her, then...

His enormous eyes swept over the wreckage around him, and guilt surged up again.

Could her family... be nearby?

The thought made Boss's heart skip a beat.

Even if they are... they've probably already become "family paste"...

He violently shook his huge head, trying to shake that hellish image from his mind.

However, Ifrit mistook his shaking head for a refusal.

"Wah... waaah—!!!"

Ifrit could no longer hold herself together and burst into despairing tears. Her tiny shoulders shook as if the whole world had abandoned her.

Boss was even more baffled.

Why is she crying again?! I didn't do anything?!

A very kind expression—or so he thought, though it was actually utterly terrifying—appeared on his huge lava face.

Wanting to comfort her, he raised the massive hand that could crush a mountain, only to leave it hanging in midair, completely unsure of what to do.

Just then, his anxious eyes darted about before abruptly locking onto the white figure that had been lying at the bottom of the crater all this time—

An idea flashed through his mind!

Though they did not share a language, Boss made a judgment based on animal-like instinct.

Could this child be her daughter?

Looking carefully: the same white hair, the same pair of horns, the same eyes...

Boss: "..."

Sorry, kid. I almost beat your mom to death...

The giant hand hanging in midair changed direction. With care utterly at odds with his colossal body, it avoided Saria's body.

Like the bucket of an excavator, it gently scooped up Saria along with the huge slab of earth beneath her and the broken crystal encasing her!

"Ah!"

The sudden movement startled Ifrit into crying out. Her legs went weak, and she nearly fell to the ground again.

But when she saw the white figure atop the mound of earth in that giant palm, all her fear was instantly replaced by overwhelming joy and worry.

"Saria!!!" she screamed, tears spilling out again.

Seeing Ifrit's reaction, Boss confirmed that she knew the other person and felt slightly relieved.

But he soon grew irritated again, scratching his head once more with his free giant hand.

Tch... Why did she pass out? I wanted her to hurry up and take this kid away... This language barrier is such a pain!

Holding the unconscious "Terra captain," with the emotional little one below refusing to leave and the energy in his own body still not fully calmed...

Boss could not help but wail:

"Roar!" (What a headache!)