Chapter 68: Hellish Training: I Want To Go Home! Part 5 - Outside of a New Place

{Day 9/14}

After what happened yesterday, I spend my whole day doing some basic exercises as I can.

Ever since I got to see Luna and Dawn worried at me, I felt angry at myself for not being cautious, and not even thinking about how my friends would all feel if they saw me in that scenario.

"*Sigh*" When Ryou stayed behind for a bit to talk to me, we talked a lot of things about what they have been doing while I was training.

Apparently, it looks like the Archdukes are training too. He said that their training is exactly like mine, going to the forest to hunt, hiking a giant mountain or a volcano, fighting tons of dangerous creatures, diving down underwater, and going inside caves. And he said that they've been training ever since the war ended, and are still doing it today.

I'm glad that Ryou was honest with me, and now that I know what everyone has been doing lately, I need to be equally as strong as them in our way of training.

"So! Come on Haruki Hotaru! Let's do this!" My task for today is to go 10,000m up high, fight the abominable snowman there, and get out of the cave.

Another fight is about to happen, and this time I'm gonna fight the famous abominable snowman, other known as the yeti.

This is gonna be an experience to have since I'm gonna fight a legend of a creature famous on Earth. "This is gonna be cool!"

So, time to set off and embark on a new journey for the hunt of the yeti! "Off we go!"

Also, I have new pair of fur clothes that Ryou gave me, which is comfier than I used to have, including a new map and guidebook that he gave me that is entirely made out of some kind of metal that can't be easily destroyed.

Fun fact: Apparently, Sora and I were the only two who have lost or destroyed many maps and guide books in training.

This is why Ryou gave both of us an unbreakable map and guidebook because he doesn't want us to dangerously affect the beautiful natures of Hell.

Now that I was more careful than before, I avoided many traps that were laid down. Before, I can get hit by any traps every time I took a step, but now I can easily dodge activating the traps by using my wit and luck.

"That's there..." Using a piece of hair that's on my clothes, I activated the traps with it.

Thanks for this Ryou, now I can fight the yeti with no injuries from the traps, but if the yeti is on the last stage of the cave, that means that it can easily defeat me, so I'll have to use Soul Bound as a last resort. Even if I don't like the idea of using it...

But if it'll lessen everyone's anxiety and anxiousness from watching me, then I'll do it.

After all, I heard devils can't die of old age, so it won't affect me that much... I think... "But better careful than never." Kinda ironic that I don't want to use it, but I used it for push-ups...

"..." As I was walking and setting the traps on, something came up to me, and I thought. If I'm gonna save the world from the Gods, how would I defeat any of them? Do I just rely on the Gods that we're gonna be allies with?

"*Sigh* I guess I'll find how I would defeat them when I fought at least one." Also, that mysterious blonde girl might help me find a way to defeat them since she has helped and saved me many times already.

Groan! The cave started to shake from that groan. "What's that?" That was all I can say. I stopped moving and listened for more.

Groan! Groan! It looks like it's coming from where I'm headed to.

I looked at the map and saw that I was 9,950m high on the mountain, which means that the next 50m is where the yeti is located in and that groaning that I heard is probably the yeti.

I didn't even notice that I was this close already at my destination, and I still haven't got caught on any traps yet... "Wow, sometimes I'm confused about my luck..." Then if luck sided with me this time, I better use it in good use.

So now knowing that luck sided with me right now, I pushed my pride and ran in the yeti's direction as fast as I can. "Here I come!" I shouted in excitement.

The tunnel in the direction of the yeti ended, and I saw a giant arena that's identical to the place where I fought the ice golems at.

It appeared that the yeti is tired and is ready to sleep.

My only reaction when I saw the yeti was admiration for it. It's huge, much larger than a gorilla.

It's humanoid but has white hair like everyone imagined it to be, it's as wide as an African elephant and as tall as a giraffe. And it has muscles that even a professional weightlifter would be jealous of. "So this is what a yeti is..." Even if it's scarier than what I imagined it to be, I remained calm and went down the arena.

If I keep on being afraid of something, then I would not improve, so that's why I need to solve that problem of my fear now with the yeti.

"Ignisvem." I summoned Ignisvem on my right hand, and the left; I created a sword made out of fire.

The yeti is looking in a different direction, so if I sneak up on it I can defeat it easily.

I walked slowly and quietly, and when I got close to it, I jumped and thrust both of my swords, directly to its neck.

"How?!" Both of my swords have hit the yeti's neck, but what's odd is that it didn't go through its neck, actually, I don't even think that my sword gave the yeti a cut.

Its skin is thick, really thick that my sword is completely useless.

Growl! The yeti spins very fast, and his right arm hits me.

I was pushed away at a great length. "This guy, its punch is stronger than the golems."

Growl! The yeti looked at me menacingly. Roar! And let out a roar filled with rage.

"Oh sh*t-" The yeti runs at me very fast, that I couldn't even run. When I tried to run from it, the yeti was already behind me and kicked me.

"*Cough*" This is bad... I let Ignisvem absorb the flaming sword, and created another one.

Growl! The yeti was behind me again, so I flew above. "Huh you can't do the same trick agai-" I couldn't go above, because the yeti's arm was so long that it caught my leg.

It let out a smug smile, and used my leg as a handle, and hit me on the ground. The impact on my chest was powerful that I coughed up blood.

The yeti used my leg again and hit me on the ground, and my back was damaged this time. "*Cough*"

And a third time again, I couldn't react or dodge this, because the way he swings me was so fast that the impact was more powerful.

Another one again. "*Cough*" It's surprising that I'm still alive after that.

The yeti stopped and jumped very high to stomp on me.

I rolled immediately even if it's painful to dodge his massive foot.

Roar! It was angered when it didn't land on me, so he got close to me and let out an angry roar.

"Take thi-this." I created a wall made out of fire and it burned the yeti. "I bet you didn't saw that comin-"

When the firewall disappeared, the yeti wasn't affected by it, not a single burn is on its body.

It was just looking at me with a smug and prideful face. I tried to stand up since it appears that it want me to fight him more, but even if I tried; standing was very painful that I fell when I tried.

Seeing me suffer from standing up, the yeti started to laugh.

Now that I'm on the edge of despair and giving up, I started to think to myself that I'm really the weakest among my friends.

If they can handle things like this, while I can't. Then why am I even at their side? In the end, no matter what I do, I can't stand equally to all of them; I'm always behind.

But I don't want that! I want to be on equal footing with them.

"So why am I giving up-" the moment I said that I saw Ignisvem glowing, and that moment I remembered something.

Ignisvem has the blessing of the Legendary Phoenix... So a mere yeti cannot defeat it.

"Hahaha!" I let out a happy and smug smile. "As the King of Hell with the trust and acknowledgment of the Archdukes and my people, I can do anything-" I found myself saying what she said, even if I haven't memorized it. "Even if the deceased is not beside me, they're still along on the path that I chose-" I already stood up, without my knowing of it. "With the power of flames that the feathers of the phoenix had bestowed upon my sword-" The yeti was happy to see me stand up, and went for a punch directly to my head. "I summon thee. Ignisvem!" Before the punch landed on me, Ignisvem flew to the yeti and Ignisvem cut through its hand.

It went back to me and I caught Ignisvem on my right hand.

The yeti was surprised by the sudden turn of an event and got angrier.

Roar! It looks like it's now serious. With its right hand now gone, the yeti started using his left hand and started attacking me very fast.

I was more faster and stronger. I immediately dodged the punch and sliced its chest.

With Fire Manipulation, I put fire on my hand and Ignisvem absorbed the flames. The yeti tried again for a punch, and I dodged it. With Ignisvem being powered by my fire, I hit my sword to the yeti's neck and it let out an explosion.

Growl! Roar! It started hitting and stomping the ground, so the ground shakes tremendously.

It started to crack, so I flew above and powered up Ignisvem more.

The yeti jumped really high directly at me and punched me.

Even if I was pushed back, it doesn't hurt a lot. "*Tsk* So you're still energetic despite your injuries..."

It started running to me to try for a tackle, but I dodged it. And I went to its back and stabbed Ignisvem again in its neck; creating again another explosion.

Roar! It painfully let out. It grabbed a large rock with its left hand and threw it to me.

"That's all?" When the rock got close, I slashed it cleanly in half with Ignisvem. "Take this!" Now I'm going for the killing blow.

I put many flames on Ignisvem to tremendously power it up, and when I put many flames on it, Ignisvem started glowing a bright red light, and so I threw it to the yeti.

Ignisvem traveled really fast, and the yeti tried to catch it, and surprisingly the yeti caught Ignisvem.

Even if Ignisvem is still moving, the yeti's thick and strong arm still manages to catch it, but that's just the beginning of it. Since Ignisvem is not made out of metal but a flaming spirit and a phoenix's feathers. It's a deadly bomb, especially with electricity.

Phenex said to me before I started training here about the feathers, and she said that there are five types of feathers that the phoenix has.

It can be determined by its five colors, red, orange, yellow, white, and blue. Red is the coolest and blue being the hottest.

And she said that if a different color of feathers touched a different color, the feather would explode.

And Ignisvem was mostly made out of orange feathers, and she said that yellow feathers are good sources of electricity.

So with the power of Electric Manipulation, I fired a strong voltage of electricity to Ignisvem. When it got close to the sword as I expected, it let out a massive explosion. Bang!

"I did it!" I went to the yeti and took Ignisvem from it. "I actually did it!" The yeti was sitting on the ground with many burns and it appears to be dead.

"Take that!" Now I just need to get out of the cave and then my tasks are complete.

I looked at the arena to see if there's a way out, and I saw a tunnel that has plants on it.

So I ran there excitedly. "Goodbye cave! I have lots of wonderful memories with you!"

Insects were flying, and the snow that falls in the sky was very strong, but despite that, I was really happy to have escaped the cave.

I look above to see the time and saw the sun was there. "So I killed it very fast..."

[Travel 11,000m, and confirm the dwelling ice spirit at that location.]

Oh, it's already a new day...

{Day 10/14}

After I reported my task to Dawn, I took a rest outside to feel the nature around me.

Even in this cold, life still exist. "This is truly a fantasy world."

I was reading the guidebook to know more about the life here on Mt. Levi, and also to read about that dwelling ice spirit that Dawn tasked me to capture.

About the plant here, it looks like even with the lack of oxygen here on the mountain, the plants found a way and created a new element.

It's like oxygen but different because apparently, the plants here produced oxygen that has mana inside of them.

To know about mana, it is the fundamental of the Universe, it's the material the power-ups skills and also life too.

It says that mana is the smallest thing in the world, far smaller than atoms and even beating the quarks who are known as the smallest thing.

This is why life exists here not because of oxygen, but because if mana that powers them up.

It truly is impressive to see something like this, I wish that Earth has something very magical other than Gods and witchcraft, but maybe something like magical plants and animals.

Now about the dwelling ice spirit, now that I've read the basics about it, I can see why Dawn tasked me with two tasks only.

It said that the dwelling ice spirit only appears to the people they chose and the people who believe in them.

They dislike people who have bad intentions for their surroundings, hence why they were also named as one of the guardians of Mt. Levi.

They're neutral spirits that don't side with both good and evil and they believe in the rule of equality.

The spirits were created by the dead body of Archduke Leviathan a long time ago.

And it doesn't have a picture here in the guidebook at all, because no one knows if the spirits truly exist.

The only claim they have they said that could make the spirits exist was a long time ago, it said that the spirits are one of the reasons why Akemi Leviathan the current General of Envy has the position of an Archduke and a General of Hell.

So they don't have any evidence that the spirits truly existed, but what intrigued me is that the spirit is somewhat connected to Akemi.

This is why Dawn wants to check if the spirits that do exist in Mt. Levi.

"The dwelling ice spirit that's made out of the dead body of Leviathan... And it's connected to Akemi..." If I ever find one, then I can see and know how Akemi suffered from the curse of the Sin of Envy, and why Ryou is saying that not even him can make Akemi smile.

Knowing about the possibility of that, I smiled. "Now I'm interested."