We're Closer Than Family

The scent of death descended once more.

But this time, there was no fear in Ifrit's eyes.

Her gaze passed through the deadly meteor and fixed on the Lava Giant's burning eye.

As expected, there was nothing there but boiling flames devoid of all reason.

And yet... Ifrit clearly sensed something familiar.

Having coexisted with a fragment of the Flame Demon and often been plagued by its violent consciousness, she understood that feeling all too well.

Are you... in pain?

Before the question could leave her lips, the meteor came whistling down, its scorching wind tossing her hair.

Was the girl going to die?

At that critical moment—

[A reassuring sound effect]

"The World!!!"

A sharp cry came from the passage behind her.

A strange purple curtain rapidly expanded, instantly enveloping Ifrit, the meteor, and the Boss.

Everything fell into absolute stillness.

Tick, tock...

An illusory purple clock slowly turned backward above the domain.

One second passed.

A figure sprinted toward Ifrit.

Two seconds passed.

An arm wrapped around Ifrit's waist, carrying her away as it rapidly retreated.

Three seconds passed.

They had safely withdrawn from the meteor's direct impact range.

Four seconds passed.

The clock gave one final, distinct "tick."

The fifth second arrived, and the purple curtain scattered like shattered glass.

Boom—!!!!

Time began flowing again. The lava meteor crashed down where Ifrit had been standing moments ago, violently shaking the entire dungeon as rubble rained down.

Ifrit came back to her senses and found herself in a warm embrace.

When she looked up, a pair of enormous breasts blocked her view.

Then a voice filled with obvious concern sounded beside her ear.

"Are you okay?"

Victorian? Why was it so awkward?

Ifrit blankly shook her head. The owner of the voice sighed in relief, and the arms holding her loosened slightly.

The hills leaned back, allowing Ifrit to see their owner's face.

She had wine-red, ear-length hair and two curved crimson horns atop her head.

She was a strikingly beautiful female Sarkaz.

Who was she?

It was Second!

She had saved Ifrit with the Hex Staff's special attack!!!

"H-hello!"

Ifrit suddenly stammered. For some reason, the person before her reminded her of Silence.

Another low, gentle voice came from the side.

"This child doesn't look like she's fine..."

Ifrit turned toward the voice and shuddered violently. Instinctively, she shrank back into Second's embrace.

It was an extremely tall figure, his entire body covered in black fur.

Most chilling of all was his head—a bare white skull had replaced what should have been a face, while his eyes were tightly covered by a dark red blindfold marked with mysterious runes.

Branch-like antlers grew from his head, several white candles with faint flames standing atop them and casting wavering shadows.

Seeing Ifrit's reaction, Third fell silent for a moment and took two steps back with his towering body.

He lowered his head slightly. Even the "gaze" hidden beneath the blindfold seemed to lower toward the ground, and there was apology in his voice.

"Sorry... I scared you, didn't I...?"

His voice was gentle, a stark contrast to his inhuman, almost horrifying appearance.

After her initial fright passed, Ifrit stared at him blankly. She had temporarily forgotten to be afraid, leaving only confusion.

Before Ifrit could ask who they were, another change occurred!

A dazzling light erupted from the passage again, accompanied by a furious roar.

"Third!"

"Got it!"

Enormous vines burst from the ground in response, instantly wrapping around everyone in layer upon layer.

Almost at the same moment, a devastating torrent of flames swept in and completely engulfed the vine fortress.

The blazing flames licked at the sturdy vine walls, but could not harm them in the slightest.

Fire immunity, kid!

Once the flames subsided somewhat, the vines slowly spread apart. Second glanced toward the direction the fire had come from, her brows deeply furrowed.

"I had a feeling when he didn't respond to us calling him in the group chat, but..."

"He really has lost his mind again."

Third shook his head slightly, the candle flames on his antlers flickering.

"A moment of silence for the Boss."

Boom—!

Before he could finish speaking, an even more violent impact struck.

The vines instantly closed again, firmly blocking the attack.

"Tch!" Second clicked her tongue impatiently. Making a swift decision, she said,

"Third, take this child and leave. I'll stack a few Weakness debuffs on the Boss and see if we can bring him back to his senses."

Third silently shook his head. The shadows beside him squirmed, and a giant wolf formed of darkness appeared soundlessly.

The Shadow Wolf obediently lowered its head, habitually intending to grab Ifrit by the collar with its jaws.

Third raised a hand. The Shadow Wolf jolted all over, hurriedly setting Ifrit down gently before lowering itself into a riding posture.

Seeing this, Second said no more. She efficiently picked up Ifrit and settled her securely on its back, gently rubbing her hair as her voice softened.

"Follow it. We'll come get you soon."

Ifrit's body trembled as memories surged back.

[Ifrit... can you wait here for me?]

[I promise, I'll come back for you right away!]

Silence's face merged with that of the Sarkaz woman before her. Ifrit abruptly reached out and grabbed Second's finger, saying in panic,

"D-don't leave me behind!"

Second froze for a moment, then her expression softened.

"We won't leave you behind. Go somewhere safe first, okay?"

Seeing Ifrit's pitiful expression, Third could not bear it.

"Forget it... There might still be monsters behind us that haven't been cleared out. You stay here and protect her."

"If I stay here, who's going to put Weakness on the Boss?"

Ifrit finally realized something. Looking at the two strangers, she at last voiced the question in her heart.

"Just who are you...?"

"—To prevent the world from being destroyed!!!"

A loud shout came from the distant passage, answering Ifrit's question.

Under Ifrit's stunned gaze, a dense swarm of crimson bats surged out of the passage at incredible speed, carrying a vague humanoid shape along with them, and then...

With a splat, it slammed solidly into the cave wall.

The swarm of bats instantly scattered, and the humanoid figure limply slid down the wall onto the ground.

"...To... preserve the peace of the world..."

The man clutched his apparently sprained back, trembling as he straightened up and finished the second half of the line.

An eerie silence fell over the cave.

Fourth raised his head and looked at the expressionless Second and silent Third, his tone full of confusion.

"No, why aren't you saying your lines?!"

Ifrit: "..."

Under Second's "kind" gaze, Fourth awkwardly looked away and turned toward the silent deer-headed figure nearby.

Third silently turned his head in the other direction, avoiding Fourth's pleading gaze.

"Third, you've changed... You always used to say your line!"

Having been called out by name, Third finally turned his head back and said helplessly,

"Can't you be serious for once? The problem hasn't been solved yet..."

Seeing that, Fourth put away his playful expression and turned serious.

"What's the situation? Did the Boss go berserk again?"

Third nodded and added concisely,

"Luckily, the passage is narrow enough that the Boss can't get in for now."

"Then what do we do? Wait here for the Boss to return to normal on his own?"

As they spoke, another violent strike landed.

The vine fortress formed again. Once the attack ended, Third instinctively began to disperse it, but Second raised a hand to signal him to maintain it.

"No." Second rejected Fourth's suggestion and rapidly gave orders.

"Fourth, take Ifrit farther back and hide. Third and I will try to see whether we can get the Boss back to normal."

Fourth was puzzled. "We've already found Ifrit. Is there any need to take risks? Can't we just wait for the Boss to recover naturally?"

Second rubbed her brow, looking somewhat troubled. "I'd like to, but the Boss has already killed the BOSS here."

"Isn't that a good thing? The threat is gone."

"The problem is, now that the BOSS is dead, the portals have appeared."

Second pointed toward the center of the cave.

"Two of them. One blue, one purple."

"Two?" Fourth paused before realization dawned on him.

"The blue one should be the way back, so the purple one... could it be the entrance to the next floor?"

Second sighed. "That's exactly what I'm worried about. What if the Boss accidentally touches that purple portal and gets teleported to the next floor?"

Just then, the Boss's rage-filled roar came from outside the passage again.

Third shook his head in speechless disbelief. "I think... the monsters on the next floor are the ones we should be worried about."

"No... It takes time for the Boss to regain his reason. The more dangerous the environment, the longer the process takes, and besides..."

Second paused, looking toward the passage.

"We have to try something. We can't just wait for him to recover on his own every time the Boss loses control. That's too passive. Sooner or later, something terrible will happen."

Third nodded silently in agreement, then looked at Ifrit on the wolf's back.

"I'll have the Shadow Wolf take this child through the blue portal first and ensure her safety."

The moment Ifrit heard that they were sending her away again, she hurriedly spoke up.

"W-wait! Do you know the big monster?"

Fourth blinked, quickly catching on. "The big monster? You mean that huge thing outside that's covered in fire?"

"He's our Boss."

Ifrit relaxed for a moment at those words, then gathered her courage and said,

"The big monster is in a lot of pain right now. I can feel it... If possible, please... don't hurt him."

The others all paused and exchanged looks, their expressions somewhat strange.

"Us?" Second pointed at the group, disbelief in her voice.

"Hurt him?" Third pointed toward the figure outside the passage that was frantically pouring out flames.

"The Boss?" Fourth simply spread his hands. At that moment, another terrifying boom came from outside the passage.

Ifrit: "..."

She opened her mouth, but for a moment, she did not know what to say.

Seeing this, Second raised a hand and gently rubbed Ifrit's hair.

"Don't worry..."

Ifrit looked up and met those eyes, which seemed especially gentle at that moment.

"We won't hurt him. There's no one in this world closer to him than the few of us."

An unconcealable envy appeared in Ifrit's eyes. She asked softly,

"Are you... family?"

The group exchanged looks again.

Second shook her head and answered frankly, "No."

But then, Third Brother's deep voice slowly added:

"But..."

Fourth Brother cut in, wearing an expression that was relaxed yet utterly serious.

"We're as close as family."

While Ifrit was stunned, Second Brother patted Shadow Wolf again.

Shadow Wolf understood and carried Ifrit away from the tunnel entrance.

Third Brother: "Is that necessary? I can protect that child."

Second Brother: "It is. What comes next isn't suitable for children."

Seeing Ifrit leave, Second Brother immediately turned to Fourth Brother.

But Fourth Brother beat him to it, raising a hand. "No need to say it! I already cleared out all the monsters in the passage behind us when I came through. It's completely safe!"

Second Brother raised a brow, just about to continue.

Fourth Brother interrupted again, speaking rapidly. "And there's no need to make me leave either! My third skill, [Immortal Body], can absorb massive amounts of damage. I'll definitely be able to protect myself!"

"Besides, your physical strength is the weakest among us."

A vein twitched on Second Brother's forehead as Fourth Brother continued.

"And I tested it! This body can turn into blood to avoid most damage! You really don't need to worry about... me?"

His words came to an abrupt stop, because Second Brother was staring at him with the strange look one gave an idiot.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?"

Second Brother spoke expressionlessly.

"I wasn't going to make you leave, and I wasn't worried about your safety."

"I was going to say that if you're free, activate your skill now and stand still."

Fourth Brother: "???"

Second Brother waved the Hex Staff in his hand, purple light flowing over it, and explained calmly:

"I'll use this to hit you. Once I build up ten critical hits, I'll activate time stop."

Fourth Brother: "..."

The expression on his face instantly froze. Then Third Brother's faint voice came from beside him with a precise finishing blow:

"You got carried away, didn't you?"

Second Brother's quiet voice followed close behind.

"...After finding that child, you seem to have become very lively."

Fourth Brother: "!!!"

Facing the stunned Fourth Brother, Second Brother raised the enormous staff, which stood more than a head taller than a person.

"You just said you could turn into blood to avoid most damage... right?"

"Gulp~"

Fourth Brother swallowed with difficulty and forced a smile.

"It's not like I can avoid that much..."

"This sort of thing..."

A scarlet gleam flashed through Second Brother's eyes as the staff swung down with a howl of wind.

"YOU WON'T KNOW UNTIL YOU TRY!!!"