(Part II) Scylla

The Rogue Town of Rivira was bathing in the 'sunlight' beaming down from the massive patch of crystals on the ceiling. After a brief jaunt in the Lower Levels, Shay and Chloe had gone back up to the town to rest.

"Haah, why didn't we bring a supporter, meow?"

"You said it'd be a waste, didn't you?"

"...Why'd you let me convince mew?"

Coming up on a merchant's tent, the pair talked as they sold off their loot.

"Heh… Well, lesson learned. Anyway, have you given any thought to joining a familia for real?"

"...I still don't know. I think I like life at the bar, and any familia worth joining would purrobably be too strict. What about you, have you figured out what to do for Level Five?"

After his fight with the Bloodstained Troll, the months had flown by. Both Van and Chloe had reached First Tier, Lily got Level Three, and Shay had achieved Level Four. Getting Spirit Healing, a new Development Ability, Shay was now able to constantly recharge his mind, massively increasing his long term stamina. This allowed him to very casually prowl the Lower Levels, bringing Chloe along for conveniently strong company.

After her confession, the two finally started dating, and were now around nine months into their relationship. Because of this experience, Shay had finally come to understand a bit about the Einherjar's motivation, once again maxing out his Status, and was now considering how to reach the next Level. There was just one problem.

"I mean, realistically, anything that I don't have to use my magic on will be too easy for a Level up, but anything that challenges me enough while using magic will be too dangerous to get to without a large party… We can try Amphisbaena again, but that's only really Level Five."

"You haven't asked Van for a spar?"

"It wouldn't work. Van is an awesome fighter, and I hate to say things like this, but with my magic I could run circles around him."

With a contemplative sigh, Chloe racked her brain as the two collected their valis and headed for the log stairs leading up a slope to Willy's Inn.

"Oh! What about that rude shorty, meow! …I mean, the other one! The one who interrupted us at Monsterphilia! What was his name again, meow…?"

Thinking back to a couple days ago, Shay remembered the chaos that was that year's Monsterphilia. He had invited Chloe to join him in watching the taming events, but they were interrupted when monsters escaped their confinement and went on a rampage.

"I still don't understand what Freya was thinking, causing a scene like that. Then sending Allen to stop us from helping…? I heard some poor rookie had to fight off a silverback all by himself… But, anyway, I'd probably have to genuinely piss Allen off for him to fight me. And I think I'd rather take my chances with Udaeus in the Deep Levels than do that."

"Hmmm… Freya familia's scary, meow."

"Tell me about it."

As the inn's cave entrance came into view, so did the large crowd blocking it. Packed together in the narrow space, it looked as if the residents of Rivira had all gathered at the inn.

"I thought the inns here were too expensive to be this popular, meow?"

"They are. The shops were kind of deserted just now, and it looks like most of the owners are here instead. Something must've happened."

Hearing murmurs of 'murder' from the crowd, Shay and Chloe deftly slipped through the mass of people, making their way deeper into the cave. Catching parts of conversations, they pieced together that someone had been killed in one of the rooms, something that was surprisingly rare in the rogue town of Rivira. Shelving their plans of resting, the pair marveled at the inn's decorations as they made their way farther in, deciding to provide their help if needed.

Meeting three seemingly upper tier guards blocking the entrance to one of the rooms, they politely requested entrance to the crime scene. Meeting them with questioning glares, one of the demi humans spoke up with a surprisingly exasperated tone.

"This is turnin' into such a hassle… So, who're you two, then?"

"Shay Cromwell, Level Four, Freya familia. This is Chloe, uh…"

"Level Five, Njord familia, meow."

Shay suppressed his surprise at Chloe telling the truth as the guards exchanged unbelieving glances.

"Another First Tier, and Freya familia…?"

"...?"

After a few moments of indecision, the main guard seemed to resign himself with a sigh.

"Whatever. Go ahead. I'm not responsible for what happens."

With the other two guards breaking out in a cold sweat, Shay and Chloe made their way past the curtain and into the room. Shay couldn't help but think he would've enjoyed a stay here, as the room itself was very nice. There were other adventurers inside, and raising his eyes to meet them Shay was faced with a smaller, more saturated version of himself as if looking into some kind of trick mirror.

"...Braver?"

Looking up from the wheat colored body lying on the floor, Finn Deimne, the captain of Loki familia, locked eyes with the interlopers. Quickly recognizing Shay from the occasional guild notice, the prum immediately recovered from his surprise and gave a diplomatic greeting.

"Gjallarhorn…? What a surprise to run into the Record Holder at a time like this."

Surrounding the prum were mainly core members of Loki familia, including the legendary Sword Princess, Nine Hell, and the Amazon twins. Somewhat intimidated by the raw firepower in the room, not to mention the glare he was receiving from one of the Amazons, Shay did his best to maintain composure.

Loki familia…? That's not good.

"We'd been in the Lower Levels and thought to come back here for a rest. We weren't expecting to run into Loki familia either."

After some consideration, the prum captain seemed to come to a conclusion. Whispering as more of a formality than anything else given the Levels of those present, Finn spoke to his familia.

"Tione, no need to glare. Don't cause unnecessary friction."

Clearing his throat to indicate the beginning of a new conversation, he continued towards Shay this time.

"This may be the first time we've formally met. As you know, I'm Finn Deimne. If I recall correctly, I suppose I have you to thank for solving the Bloodstained Troll problem."

"Shay Cromwell. It's an honor to meet all of you. It would've been nice to do so under better circumstances."

"Chloe Lolo, nice ta' meet'nya."

"Indeed. I assume you're here to investigate as well?"

"Yes."

After being nudged by her flat-chested sister, the Amazon eventually removed the glare from her features. After some time, Finn apparently decided to work together, and Shay couldn't help but notice that Loki familia seemed far more receptive than he'd expected, especially given the familia rivalry.

"Getting back on track, the suspect seems to be a female adventurer capable of strangling a Level Four…"

His eyes suddenly widening, the previously silent Bors Elder finally butted in, looking suspiciously at the group.

"...Female capable of strangling a Level Four…?"

His animal person friend, probably the owner of the inn, joined in nervously.

"Yeah! M-most of the suspects are in this room!"

Oh, boy.

"Yeah. The killer seduced him, too. So…"

The two men looked around the room, their gazes evaluating all the women present, starting with the High Elf Queen, Riveria.

They're playing a risky game, huh?

"You…?" Getting no response, they switched targets. The Sword princess.

"You!?" Also nothing. Chloe.

"You?...eh, I mean…"

"You wanna die, meow?"

Inconclusive. Amazon.

"You?... nevermind, no chance."

"Hey!?"

Settling their gaze on the final target, the two were evidently allowing themselves an eyeful. Jormungandr.

"...Real suspicious, eh?"

"I'll say…!"

Apparently reaching her limit, the well endowed Amazon blew her fuze, stomping the ground in fury.

"I'M SAVING MYSELF FOR THE BOSS! BRING ANYTHING FILTHY NEAR ME AND IT'LL BE TORN OFF AND RIPPED TO SHREDS!"

Shay evidently suppressed the urge to cower better than the other two, unflinching as he watched them close their legs in fear, protecting what lay between. Hand on his head, Finn moved to smooth over the situation.

"Uh… Bors. As you can see, none of the women present would do something like that."

"Uh, yeah. M-my bad…"

~

Within the hour the joint investigation had broadened in scale, Finn eventually deciding to gather everyone on the 18th floor and have his familia search the women for suspicious items. After being swarmed by the women of Rivira, Finn escaped to his current perch, overlooking the crowd in Crystal Square with Shay and Riveria. As the 18th floor shifted to 'night', Shay found himself becoming more and more impressed with Finn's political skills. While he could tell he was slowly being probed for information, Shay never really found himself loath to give it, so long as it wasn't anything too sensitive.

"You seem to be quite mellow for your familia, if you don't mind me saying."

"Haha, I get that a lot... I suppose I'm a little less… fanatical than the average member. There are some great people there, though. Just a little enthusiastic."

The high elf queen Riveria of all people displaying a well humoured smile, Shay was a little starstruck as Finn responded again.

Braver and Nine Hell talking to me like I'm important… What is this?

"Is that right? If that's the case, there's something I've been curious to know ever since you broke Aiz's record."

Oh, there's my answer.

"...Were you in contact with Freya familia at that point?"

Trying to parse the question for hidden meaning, Shay took a slight moment longer than usual to respond.

Well, there's not much advantage to him figuring it out anyway, is there?

"No, I was recruited right after attaining Level Three. Freya familia isn't the secret to my success. It is fantastic for training, though."

Answering with a smile, Shay laid out some playful bait for the prum to chew on. His smile was seemingly infectious, as Finn cautiously acknowledged the game.

"I see. Well, we've been prodding you for a while now, I do apologize. Is there anything that you'd like to ask your seniors in adventuring?"

"...That's a tough question. …May I ask Lady Riveria a question about magic—?"

As the words left his mouth, Shay heard a piercing scream, like a chorus of broken bells. Looking back out over the town, the three were met with the sight of green, snakelike monsters with brightly colored heads almost resembling flowers. As the strange monsters made a beeline for Crystal Square, the prum captain voiced his confusion.

"...violas?"

"You've seen these before?"

Are they from farther in the Deep Levels?

Screams erupting from the people still in the square, Finn began issuing orders.

"Tiona, Tione, protect them!"

Seeing the sheer number of 'violas' encroaching on the square, Shay decided to jump in, shooting a question back at the prum as he started picking up speed. Switching to business mode, Finn quickly gave an answer.

"How strong are they!?"

"It varies, but generally Second Tier! The magic stones are in their throats!"

Second Tier? So they're not from farther down?

As he rushed into the rapidly degenerating fray, Shay watched the two amazons work. Dancing through monster after monster with ease, the pair were quite the sight to behold as Chloe joined the fight beside them. Wondering where the Sword Princess had gone, Shay started by taking on a single monster. The first one he encountered was easily ten meders long, with a trunk that was bigger than him.

Now in the large clearing that was Rivira's Crystal Square, Shay didn't have too many options. Reluctant to use his magic in front of Loki familia, he decided to first test the monster's strength. As the viola sent its tendrils towards Shay, he parried them directly, deflecting them with a series of sharp impacts. Satisfied with the results as the tendrils crashed into the ground beside him, Shay jumped up towards the monster, aiming his spear at what he hoped was the base of its throat. Before making contact however, the viola lashed out, using its snake-like body as a whip and batting Shay away.

Undamaged, he landed on the side of a building before jumping off and sprinting towards the beast once more. After a short dance between the thrashing monster and the dodging adventurer, Shay found himself inverted directly above the recovering monster. As he let gravity take him, it prepared to strike again. Deflecting the tendrils it sent his way, Shay managed to grab one and pull himself closer at a speed the monster wasn't ready for. Slicing downward, he felt a solid connection as the magic stone evidently shattered, the plant-like monster rapidly decomposing into ash.

Looking over the battlefield as Shay and the others slashed through the horde, Finn analyzed the ongoing battle and laid out precise orders.

"Bors, get everyone to form teams of five. It might be possible for one group to overpower one monster with that many members."

Scrambling to follow the orders amid the chaos, Rivira's generally accepted leader raced into the square headfirst, yelling at the top of his lungs.

"Y-you got it!"

"Riveria, our new friend seemed curious about magic. Why don't you give him a masterclass?"

"Understood."

A jade colored magic circle appearing around her feet, the high elf began to chant, building up magic energy as the monsters started following her beautiful voice. As Finn rushed to join the battle himself, the desperate adventurers began to stem the tidal wave of enemies. Joining Shay's side of the battle, the prum couldn't help but notice that judging by his movements, his temporary ally looked to be at the very peak of Level Four, if not already Level Five. Running up a monster's trunk before landing a precise strike to its magic stone, Shay tried to get a grasp of the situation.

"What's going on!?"

Taking his time before answering, Finn seemed to be cautious of his surprisingly powerful ally.

"...I'm not quite sure. Can you handle this side alone for a moment?"

Nodding, Shay was slightly annoyed as the prum bounded out of the square and began running through the town towards its edge. Dashing through the square, Shay continued to thin the monster herd for some time before the ground in front of him erupted into flames, incinerating most of the violas he had been fighting. Looking back to the center of the square, he saw the high elf queen surrounded by pillars of fire, bathing everything in a deep crimson light as similar pillars erupted around the battlefield.

…So this is a real mage…

Snapping out of his awe before escorting the last of Rivira's residents to the care of the First Tiers, Shay was about to reunite with Finn when he suddenly felt his insides churning. Noticing his strange behavior, the prum spoke first.

"...Shay? Did something happen?"

Before he could respond, a series of crashing noises erupted from somewhere near Cluster Street, a cloud of smoke progressing towards the group in the center of Crystal Square. Jumping on top of a building for a better view, Shay's core felt uncomfortably hot as he noticed tendrils occasionally protruding through the smoke. In front of the cloud and sheathed in flowing winds was the Sword Princess, who had seemingly just noticed where she was and started traveling eastward, away from the populated Crystal Square.

W-what the hell…!

Without warning, brilliant white-blue lightning began forking its way across Shay's skin, making him an unmistakable beacon in the floor's current 'night'. The magic seemingly wrestling with him for control, Shay felt an intense desire to kill this new monster. Seeing what looked to him like strange and chantless magic, Finn had an intuition, issuing new orders.

"Aiz! Stop your magic!"

As Shay tried to puzzle through what the hell was going on, the winds surrounding Aiz died down, the monster finally emerging from its sheath of smoke. The first thing to peek out of the smoke was a green head with long flowing hair, as if a strange plant had been grown in a human shaped container. Continuing this trend was a large body, clearly feminine, atop a horrifying green monster that reminded him of Scylla, an ancient human-octopus sea monster he'd read about in the writings of the lesser poet Hiccup. The main difference was that this monster was green and plant-like, and instead of tentacles there were over ten viola bodies, all somehow connected and moving according to one will.

Shay felt his very being recoil at the sight, but before he could move, this 'Scylla' had already turned its sights on him. Opening its mouth, Shay prepared for a horrible roar.

"R-Ai-JiNn…!"

His blood ran cold. In a broken but disconcertingly human voice, it had said the name of Shay's magic. Besides Finn and Riveria who wore expressions of disbelief, Shay could see even from this far away Aiz's expression of absolute shock.

What is this…?

Not giving anyone a chance to think, 'Scylla' began rushing towards Shay with newfound enthusiasm, saying the name of his magic over and over. Plowing through buildings, the beast was moving significantly faster than before. Puzzling through an indescribable combination of dread and disturbing joy, Shay decided he needed to escape. Leaving the city and leaping over the eastern cliff at full speed, Shay almost cleared the entire lake before using Ignis Fatuus midair to propel himself the rest of the way across, the red flare looking like fireworks reflected in Riveria's widened eyes. Watching in scared confusion as the monster jumped after him, Shay landed on the far shore, near the blue-green plains surrounding the Central Tree of the eighteenth floor.

True to its appearance, the monster was blindingly fast in the water and had nearly caught up to Shay in only a few moments. As it sent its massive arsenal of tendrils at the poor adventurer, Shay desperately blocked and parried, creating massive impacts and throwing up rocks and dirt where they hit the ground beside him.

This thing's insane…!

His arms beginning to feel numb after just a few blocks, Shay changed his plan. Seeing Chloe and Riveria on their way across the land bridge, he decided to buy time. As one of Scylla's massive legs slammed down next to him, Shay used the dust cover to get around it, focusing his Agility and leaping up to the main feminine body. As it sent a veritable forest of tendrils at the flying adventurer, Shay used his spear to either cut through or deflect the majority of them, a couple shallow gashes opening up on his sides. As he neared its head, Scylla put its arms up to block as a last resort, with Shay slicing one of them clean off with his spear. Using another Ignis Fatuus as he continued past the disquieting hybrid, Shay further damaged the monster while also gaining some distance.

With help still a ways away, Shay leaped once again to the side as Scylla slammed two of its legs down at him, creating a deafening impact as debris shot up. Still bounding backwards when possible, Shay desperately dodged the flurry of attacks as his massive opponent became a whirlwind of tendrils and snakelike legs. One of the chaotic strikes caught him in the side, nearly breaking a rib and sending him flying towards the base of the Central Tree.

If I hadn't switched to Defense in time…!

"Harbinger of the end, white snow. Gust before the twilight."

A beautiful voice reached Shay's ears as backup arrived. Chloe yelled to him as she ran to join the fray.

"Shay! We're buying time for Riveria!"

"Got it! How long!?"

"No idea, meow!"

With Chloe's help Shay expected to have a little more leeway, but Scylla made up for the second fighter by increasing the volume and ferocity of its attacks.

He's unbelievable…!

Watching Freya familia's 'Level Four' keep up with not just Chloe, a Level Five, but also the rampaging monster, which was likely closer to Level Six, Riveria realized that she might be watching a prodigy at or above the level of Aiz. It was undeniable. If that explosion magic was what she suspected, then Shay had managed to accomplish a feat that was absolutely unheard of.

As he continued to dodge the monster's attacks, Shay could sense Riveria's magic energy beginning to grow. Realizing that the magic needed to be a sure hit, Shay made a plan of action. Sprinting up the incline towards the Central Tree as the massive beast gave chase, Shay tried to make the most of his toolkit.

As he felt the elven mage's magic energy rapidly building, Shay subtly used his downforce technique to climb the Central Tree while Chloe tried to follow, jumping between roots and divots as the gap between them widened. The pair rapidly going out of reach, Scylla chased Shay by leaping upward and grabbing onto the tree with its tendrils. Driving its legs into the bark like stakes, the beast violently walked up the massive trunk as it whipped its remaining tendrils at the two adventurers. Before long, Scylla had overtaken a struggling Chloe.

"Oi, Shay! This isn't fair, meow!"

Chloe shouted upwards as she struggled to maintain her footing, barely keeping pace with Shay and the monster. Talking back down to her while dodging Scylla's attacks, Shay didn't have time to marvel at the view in front of him.

"Don't worry about fighting! Just don't get hurt!"

This should be enough…

Now nearly half a kirlo up the massive tree, Shay could see almost half of the 18th floor, with the rogue town looking like a tiny mound in the middle of the surrounding lake. With Riveria resembling a glowing green speck, Shay dashed to the side as one of Scylla's legs crashed into the bark beside him.

This was the first time Shay had really fought sideways like this, and it felt surprisingly normal to him. The world had simply made a quarter turn, and the trunk of the massive tree had become Shay's new ground. Other than the surreal view of the far western wall above him and the ground in front of him, the experience wasn't all that different from normal fighting. The only thing that really changed was that if he left the ground, he'd fall sideways.

With this in mind, Shay dodged yet another tendril as Scylla playfully repeated the name of his magic before sending three of its legs his way. He dodged to the left then the right before dashing backwards, the three legs becoming embedded in the bark of the colossal tree.

"Fading light, freezing land. Blow with the power of the third harsh winter. My name is Alf!"

Seeing his opportunity as Riveria's magic energy came to a crescendo, Shay sliced through the three legs before focusing on Agility and dashing towards the beast under a rain of tendrils.

Here goes nothing!

Rapidly pivoting back and forth, he managed to avoid the avalanche of whiplike tendrils before sprinting directly underneath Scylla and unleashing a third Ignis Fatuus with all his strength. Internally celebrating as the beast lost its grip on the tree, Shay watched it begin to fall freely as Riveria bounded up the roots to get in range.

"Wynn Fimbulvetr!"

Hanging in midair, the semi humanoid monster had no way to escape the rapidly approaching blizzard. As its lower body froze completely, the feminine upper body disconnected, leaping at Shay in an act of desperation.

"RAi-JiNn…!"

His magic lighting up his surroundings as it drew him towards the sickening humanoid, Shay leaped downward off the colossal tree before slicing through the final volley of tendrils in a flash of lightning. As his spear pierced its chest breaking the monster's magic stone, the being let out a noise that could easily be mistaken for a heartbroken sob. Feeling a deep cobalt jolt of energy as the stone's shards surrendered their color to him, Shay began to lose consciousness.