"You're right."
Yuuki Asuna realized she had been somewhat reckless. After regaining her composure, she sighed.
"Since she willingly signed up for the Instance, it means she made the corresponding commitment. Even if she dies in the Instance, that was her own choice. We should focus on our immediate goal, which is clearing this Instance."
"Exactly."
Asagiri agreed, then continued walking down the increasingly ominous and dimly lit stairwell with Yuuki Asuna.
During this process, Yuuki Asuna chose a very deliberate position: she stayed slightly a half-step ahead of Asagiri while ensuring that every time they descended a floor and prepared to continue down, she was on the outer side—the side closest to the large door connecting the stairwell to the corridor.
This was based on rational consideration.
From the Instance Warning, with only one weapon made of ordinary material, it was nearly impossible for Yuuki Asuna to defeat an Evil Spirit one-on-one; otherwise, she wouldn't have received the warning to avoid fighting them.
Asagiri was different; the system's hint to him was to fight quickly.
Yuuki Asuna's logic was simple: she was a close-combat class, while Asagiri's class was the supportive Diplomat. Although he could use the power of his Persona, it would take at least two seconds from forming the gun-shaped summoner to completing the summoning.
If Asagiri were ambushed and incapacitated, it would mean a total party wipe. Therefore, the most rational choice was for her to act as the first line of defense during an Evil Spirit's attack, buying Asagiri time to summon his Persona.
"You don't need to be so tense."
Seemingly noticing that Yuuki Asuna's nerves were overly strung and she was constantly wary of a potential Evil Spirit appearance, Asagiri spoke softly.
"It goes back to the same point: a good game should avoid punishing players when they haven't made a mistake. Between the elevator and the stairs, we chose the latter. This cannot be the wrong choice, so we are unlikely to encounter an Evil Spirit. The Instance has just begun. If you remain this highly stressed, your mental reserves will be exhausted in less than two hours."
Yuuki Asuna nodded, forcing a smile.
"Mhm, I know. I'll try to relax..."
Just as Yuuki Asuna was mid-sentence, an eerie sound suddenly came from below the stairwell, sending a chill down her spine and instantly freezing her body.
"Wuwuwuwu..."
Hearing the sound, which resembled a woman crying and was mixed with the screeching noise of a sharp object scraping against a wall, Yuuki Asuna's face instantly went deathly pale. She tremblingly turned her head to look at Asagiri's profile, her lips quivering as she said,
"Leader, what should we do..."
"Persona!"
Asagiri didn't hesitate for a moment. He immediately summoned his Arsène. The colossal black shadow appeared instantly within the stairwell, following him as he rushed downwards, even seeming quite eager.
"You like crying, do you? I'll give you something to cry about today!"
"Oh my God..."
Yuuki Asuna was briefly stunned, then immediately followed, thinking, Isn't this too reckless? In a horror movie, shouldn't you retreat as fast as possible when you hear an eerie crying sound? How can anyone charge forward instead?
"Those who trespass my domain shall be struck down!"
Upon hearing this sentence from Asagiri, even in such a tense moment, Yuuki Asuna almost couldn't stop herself from complaining.
Wait... isn't this the Instance? Isn't this the Evil Spirit's domain? How did it become yours?
When Yuuki Asuna rounded the corner of the stairwell and reached the next flight of steps, she witnessed an incredible sight.
Asagiri's Persona, Arsène, was using its massive hands to press down on a female ghost wearing blood-stained red pajamas, with bare feet and long black hair covering her face, revealing only a pair of eyes filled with malice. Her fingernails were ridiculously long.
Asagiri himself was not idle. He had raised one foot and placed it on the female ghost's head.
For some reason, Yuuki Asuna suddenly felt this scene resembled a mischievous delinquent leading his hulking bodyguard to bully a defenseless, single woman.
"Wuwuwu..."
Crack!
The red-dressed female ghost was about to cry out, but Arsène violently ripped off one of her arms and then handed it to Asagiri. Asagiri, to Yuuki Asuna's horror, shoved the ghost's own arm directly into her mouth.
"Mmm..."
Using her own hand to gag her?
Yuuki Asuna had truly never seen a sight like this.
"Violet, equip your weapon."
"Oh... oh, right."
After Yuuki Asuna equipped her rapier and walked closer, Asagiri pointed at the red-dressed female ghost.
"Stab her, but don't aim for vital spots. I still need to use her later."
Yuuki Asuna felt the phrasing was slightly odd, but she followed Asagiri's request, quickly plunging her rapier into the red-dressed female ghost's body.
The next second, when she pulled the rapier out, she noticed that the wound wasn't bleeding, and it healed instantly, in the blink of an eye. However, the severed stump of the arm that Arsène had ripped off showed no sign of recovery.
"I see. That's what they mean by 'Weapons made of ordinary materials cannot completely destroy the Evil Spirits'..."
Yuuki Asuna realized that while her rapier couldn't completely destroy the Evil Spirit, it could still inflict damage. Though the injury healed instantly, at least if she encountered an Evil Spirit alone, she could use the agility bonus from her Wind's Blessing to quickly sever the opponent's legs and escape during the momentary reprieve.
"Mmm, mmm..."
"Still 'mmm'-ing here? Don't 'mmm'!"
Asagiri, standing on the ghost's head, now looked like a true demon.
He first took his foot off, then crouched down, reached out, gently stroked the red-dressed ghost's hair, and then leaned in to smell it.
Yuuki Asuna was dumbfounded watching Asagiri's actions, recalling his earlier statement that he still needed to use this female ghost later...
No, this is... a bit much, isn't it?
Could it be that the moment Asagiri heard the crying, he rushed down eagerly because he has a... special fetish for female ghosts?
"Shampoo scent, and there are water droplets on her hair. A drowned ghost? If I'm not mistaken..."
Asagiri stared directly into the red-dressed ghost's eyes and slowly said,
"You drowned in a bathtub when you were alive, right?"
Upon hearing this, the look of malice in the red-dressed ghost's eyes dissipated slightly, but she still stared at Asagiri with extreme vigilance, unsure what he planned to do.
Yuuki Asuna, however, already knew what Asagiri was aiming for.
The Diplomat was about to engage in diplomacy.