On the outskirts of Ishtar Familia's territory, a white-haired boy was frantically fleeing, pulling a blonde girl with fox ears wearing a red kimono.
"Pant—pant—"
Because Bell frequently adventured in the Dungeon, running this distance was nothing to him.
However, Haruhime, who had always lived in seclusion, did not have such strong stamina and could only stumble along, being pulled by Bell as they fled.
"Bell... sir, you... pant... run alone, I can't escape."
"I will definitely get you out! Haruhime, as long as we reach Hearth Manor, Big Takatsuki will surely have a way!"
Haruhime's hand was held by Bell, while her other hand clutched at her neck.
There was a black collar there, something Ishtar Familia had put on her to prevent her from escaping.
Haruhime's magic, named Uchide no Kozuchi, could increase a specific target's level by one.
And because she was a fox-person, this magic was also called a demon art.
In this world, there was something called Killing Stone. On the night of a full moon, a special ritual could be used to kill a fox-person and imprison their soul within the Killing Stone. This way, anyone holding the Killing Stone could activate the magic possessed by that fox-person.
The Killing Stone could be shattered, and each fragment could activate this magic.
Therefore, Ishtar Familia wanted to sacrifice Haruhime to create a magical item that could raise the level of their entire Familia.
The first Killing Stone was shattered by Aisha, and she was severely punished for it, but this did not mean Ishtar's ambition had vanished.
She would find a second Killing Stone, and by then...
Haruhime's hand gradually tightened as she looked at the white-haired boy leading her escape.
She had originally given up hope, simply waiting for death each day.
Having loved hero tales since childhood, she had always yearned for a hero, but she also understood that as a courtesan, she was not worthy of a hero's rescue.
And at that moment, her hero appeared in her life.
Although he was only LV1 and his Familia was just a small one, he saved her soul.
A hero exclusively for her.
"Where do you think you're going to escape to!"
A hoarse, unpleasant voice suddenly came from above their heads.
Bell, who was running ahead, his pupils constricted, and he immediately stopped, shielding Haruhime behind him.
A huge figure descended from the sky, smashing down in front of them. If Bell hadn't stopped just now, he might have been trampled to death.
"Gwa-ha-ha! Haruhime! How dare you let Little Rookie escape!"
Phryne, wielding two large axes, let out a series of strange laughs, sticking out her tongue and licking her plate-sized face: "When I catch you two, I'll make sure to give you a good beating."
Looking at the massive body in front of him, Bell held the longsword he had picked up while escaping in front of him.
"I won't let you get a step closer to Haruhime!"
Although the disparity between them was enormous, Bell still mustered his courage and blocked Phryne.
"Gwa-ha-ha, Little Rookie, are you really that impatient? Have you been captivated by my beauty?"
Seeing Bell blocking her, Phryne wasn't annoyed. Instead, she dropped the large axe in her right hand and reached out to grab Bell.
An LV2 adventurer was truly nothing in her eyes.
"Grow. That power and that vessel. Breadth of wealth and breadth of wishes. Until the bell tolls, bring forth glory and illusion."
Just then, Haruhime, who was shielded behind Bell, suddenly raised her hands. Golden magic gathered in her hands, startling both Bell and Phryne, who had just begun to clash.
"Haruhime! You bastard!"
Although extremely narcissistic, Phryne wouldn't believe that Haruhime was about to bestow Uchide no Kozuchi upon herself.
Originally, she just intended to grab Bell's hand and forcefully slap him, trying to send Bell flying directly.
However, although Phryne was LV5, all her points were in strength; neither her agility nor dexterity was very high.
And Bell, whose agility and dexterity had both surpassed S-rank, was somewhat faster than her.
"Ah!"
Seeing Bell leap over her arm and leave a wound on her arm with his sword, Phryne immediately became enraged. She clenched her right hand into a fist and smashed it directly at Bell, who had just landed.
"Grow. Confine divine offerings within this body. This golden light bestowed from above. Into the hammer and into the ground, may it bestow good fortune upon you."
Phryne's massive fist smashed into the ground, breaking through the hard surface. Countless shattered rocks flew, hitting Bell and Haruhime.
Facing the countless small stones flying at her, Haruhime did not stop her incantation, merely closing her eyes and continuing to chant.
"Stop it, you hag!"
Phryne saw that Haruhime still hadn't stopped chanting even with this, and ignoring Bell's attacks from the side, she lunged at Haruhime.
She also knew Sanjouno Haruhime's importance to Ishtar and dared not use a weapon to cut Haruhime.
Boom!
A massive sound suddenly came from the distant main base of Ishtar Familia.
Everyone could see that Ishtar Familia's main base, which had just been standing tall, was beginning to shake, crumble, and collapse as if something had destroyed it from within.
Phryne paused briefly, noticing this scene.
And Bell's sharp sword grazed her cheek.
"Ahhhhh!!! My beautiful face!"
As Phryne screamed, Haruhime's incantation finally ended.
"Grow..."
Golden light enveloped Bell, who had just wounded Phryne.
Feeling the sudden surge of power, Bell was somewhat stunned, but he also realized that this was the effect of Haruhime's recent incantation.
"This is... Haruhime's magic."
Bell looked at Phryne, who was completely enraged by her injured face, feeling a surge of tension.
"How dare you... harm my beautiful face!"
"You're all going to die!"
Phryne picked up her giant axe from the ground and swung it down towards Bell.
"Danger!"
After pushing Haruhime away, Bell narrowly dodged the axe's cleave. The axe, missing its target, struck the ground, and the violent impact directly blew both of them away.
"This is... LV5..."
Getting up from the ground in disarray, Bell looked at the dark figure in the smoke and dust. Its massive body and exaggerated strength surpassed even that of a Minotaur.
Seeing the giant axe raised again, Bell suddenly raised his right hand.
"Firebolt!"
A burst of flame quickly appeared from his hand, then passed through the smoke screen and struck Phryne's face.
"Ahhhhh!"
Although Bell screamed, Takatsuki did not hear any pain, only anger.
"My face! All of you, die!"
Looking at the giant axe chopping down at him, Bell knew that he could not run away, because Haruhime was right behind him at that moment. If he dodged, Haruhime would surely be killed by that blow.
Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, Bell used the long sword in his hand to block the giant axe.
Suddenly, a white pillar of light illuminated the entire night sky.
Before Bell could understand what was happening, he found that he had actually blocked it!
He had blocked the Level 5 axe!
Although he didn't know why this happened, it didn't stop him from making a judgment. He stretched out his hand and aimed it at the face of the large toad again.
"Firebolt!"
He knew it was useless, but he wasn't trying to defeat the opponent with it. Instead, he intended to use Firebolt to temporarily blind the opponent.
However, what he didn't expect was that this time, Firebolt worked. A huge flame enveloped Phryne, making her scream continuously, and she even dropped the giant axe in her hand.
"What… happened?"
Before Bell could react to what had happened, Haruhime, who was beside him, turned her head to look in the direction of Ishtar Familia and spoke softly.
"Ishtar… has been sent back."