The seemingly unthreatening longsword landed limply at Solitär's feet; she didn't even bother to defend against it.
[Flash Bomb]
Suddenly, a blazing white light erupted from the blade. Solitär instinctively shut her eyes.
Damn it!
The instant she closed them, centuries of combat experience and honed instinct scread danger.
How could she close her eyes in the middle of a fight?
My opponent is Frieren!
Boom—
At the very mont her mind registered the mistake, Frieren's [Zoltraak] struck, fully charged.
It struck her abdon without rcy.
If not for her ingrained vigilance—her body making a slight defensive response the mont her brain sensed danger—that blow would have killed her.
Looking down at the deep gash torn across her waist, she quickly sealed the wound with mana to stop the bleeding.
Her gaze swept the surroundings, searching for Shane.
That human—weak at a glance, yet constantly interfering—needed to be dealt with first.
That was her judgnt.
But he wasn't there.
That human's presence had vanished at so unknown mont.
Disappeared out of thin air?
Impossible!
…
At that mont, Shane hadn't disappeared at all. On the contrary, he had remained exactly where he was.
The instant he threw the longsword, he activated Goddess's Barrier, enclosing himself completely.
Goddess's Barrier: Creates a powerful protective barrier and conceals everything within it.
Now curled inside the barrier shell, he looked thoroughly relieved.
Being able to learn this spell—what incredible luck!
The [Flash Bomb] attribute enchanted on the sword could create a single opening for Frieren—but only once.
Without his weapon, Shane had no offensive capability left. All he could do now was hide inside the barrier and watch.
Fortunately, Goddess's Barrier lived up to its reputation. From Solitär's puzzled expression, it was clear she hadn't detected him at all.
Shane simply sat down on the ground. If he had snacks, he might've even started munching while watching.
Frieren gave Solitär no chance to recover. Taking advantage of the hit, she unleashed a relentless barrage of terrifying attacks.
The battle had lasted only a few minutes.
Yet the massive commotion had already drawn the attention of all the guards.
From distant streets, figures began to appear one after another, crowds converging on the scene.
"General Glüx, it's a demon!"
At the shout—
A tall, imposing figure appeared at the edge of the street. He began directing large numbers of soldiers, forming a blockade across all nearby routes.
Solitär glanced around and imdiately understood—
Today's operation had failed.
Without hesitation or attachnt, she activated flight magic, shooting into the sky like a teor and fleeing toward the outskirts.
At the mont of her escape, countless massive magic swords were summoned, filling the entire sky.
As she retreated, the swords rained down!
Frieren raised a wide-area [Defense Magic], doing her best to shield the ordinary soldiers behind her.
When the aftermath of the attack faded, Solitär had completely vanished.
Frieren did not pursue.
If a demon wanted to escape, she couldn't catch it.
Flight magic was an innate ability for demons. Human mages simply couldn't match a demon determined to flee.
Besides—
She glanced behind her, where the barrier at the entrance of the Inverted Land was already cracked with fissures.
From within, a faint but familiar aura seeped out—
The presence of the "Corrupt Sage Qual."
She imdiately understood Solitär's objective.
There had to be sothing left behind by Qual within the dungeon—sothing extrely important to demons.
…
Solitär's final rain of swords had caused significant damage.
Priests hurried to treat the wounded soldiers, while General Glüx approached Frieren and Shane.
"I have learned of your deeds. Thank you for protecting Gostan City. We will never forget this favor."
"As for the demon who escaped, we will continue tracking her. However, high-ranking demons are extrely skilled at concealnt, so the outco may not be optimistic."
Shane nodded.
Indeed.
With Solitär's strength rivaling Frieren's, ordinary soldiers had no chance of tracking her. Launching an active pursuit would be nearly impossible.
On the contrary, since she hadn't obtained what she wanted this ti, the likelihood of her returning was even higher.
"General Glüx, may I ask about the sealed dungeon? Why has it attracted the attention of demons?"
"This dungeon was exposed two years ago when the ground collapsed. It has yet to be cleared, and we know very little about it."
The general paused, then added, "However, based on historical records in the Great Library of Gostan City, it may be related to a sage from the era of the Unified Empire. According to the records, that sage once served in the imperial court before returning to Gostan City. Later, due to rumors of dealings with demons, he was exiled by the nobility and disappeared."
Unified Empire era. Court service. Sage.
These keywords imdiately made Shane think of the "Mad Sage Sharl."
anwhile, Frieren focused on sothing else.
"Dealings with demons? Was it the Corrupt Sage Qual?"
The general shook his head. The records were vague, and too much ti had passed to verify anything.
Shane glanced at Frieren's expression and knew she wanted to investigate the dungeon personally.
The Corrupt Sage Qual had been one of the most formidable opponents they encountered when subjugating the Demon King. He had created [Zoltraak], which posed a deadly threat to mages at the ti. The [basic attacks] magic Frieren used now was an evolved form derived from analyzing that very magic.
Back then, the hero's party couldn't defeat Qual and had to seal him instead. It had been over seventy years since.
If Qual had left behind other powerful magic, and the demons obtained it…
The consequences would be disastrous.
With that in mind, whether it was to find clues about the "Mad Sage Sharl" or to locate Qual's remaining magic, they had to explore this dungeon.
"General, since this dungeon has drawn the attention of demons, leaving it alone will only invite them to return. It would be better to clear it, uncover what they're after, and eliminate their interest completely—to prevent future attacks on the city," Shane said.
"You're right. However, our previous attempts resulted in heavy casualties. We currently lack the manpower to form another expedition team. Even if we restart the operation, it will take ti."
"In that case… why not let Frieren and give it a try?"
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