Chapter 45: The Ancient Calamity – One-Eyed Black Dragon.
.....
Nearly a month had passed since the final purge of the dark faction's remnants. Only the fallen god Thanatos remained unaccounted for. The three great familias—Freya, Loki, and Ganesha—took turns guarding the entrances to the artificial labyrinth, sending search parties deeper inside day after day.
In the Loki Familia residence, a piercing scream shattered the peaceful dawn.
"Ais!!!!!!"
Loki clung to the gate pillar, snot and tears streaming down her face, while Riveria desperately dragged her back from behind.
"Riveria, let me go! I can't just watch my precious Ais fall into that rotten brat's clutches!"
"Lady Loki, I've told you countless times—Ais is only going there to spar with Kihara!"
At those words, Loki whipped her head around, her face twisted into such a tragic, crumpled expression that even Riveria froze for a moment. "You've said that exactly twenty-seven times! And Ais has gone to see that stinking boy for twenty-seven straight days! Yesterday she even asked Tiona which outfit looked better on her!"
"Isn't… isn't that proof our plan is working?"
"Working!?"
Loki's voice shot up several octaves as fresh tears cascaded like a waterfall. "I never should have agreed to that plan! Ais is completely bewitched by that boy—she won't even let me hug her anymore!"
"Lady Loki… to be fair, Ais hasn't really let you hug her since she was little…"
"I don't care! I want my Ais back right now!"
Watching her own goddess throw a full-blown tantrum on the ground like a spoiled child, Riveria could only press a hand to her forehead and sigh deeply. "Do you really want me to call Ais back? Because if I do, she might ignore you for days."
"Gah!"
The words struck Loki like a fatal blow. She froze mid-wail, then casually stood up, brushed the dust off her clothes, and whistled innocently as she walked away.
"Never mind~ Time for my beauty sleep!"
…
Ais arrived at the Hestia Familia residence and found a wooden sign posted beside the gate that read: "Ais Wallenstein – Entry Forbidden."
She stared at it for a moment, then calmly drew the weapon at her waist and neatly scratched out one character from "Wallenstein." Only then did she stride inside with perfect composure.
Knock knock knock!
"Kihara, I'm here!"
The door creaked open. Hestia poked her tiny head out, glaring at Ais with open hostility. "Can't you read the sign, Wallen… whatever-your-name-is?"
"But you wrote 'Ais Wallentan.' My name is Ais Wallenstein."
"What!? Did I really miss a character when I wrote it in a hurry yesterday?"
Hestia immediately grabbed a quill and dashed toward the sign. The moment she saw the clean sword mark, she realized she had been tricked. Her twin tails shot straight up in fury. "Ais Wallenstein!!! This means war!!!"
Inside the villa, Ais moved with familiar ease, heading straight to Kihara's bedroom. She twisted the lock and slipped inside. Seeing him still sound asleep, she pulled a small handwritten note from her inner pocket and read it carefully, nodding occasionally as if committing every line to memory.
Once finished, she quietly locked the door, set her weapon aside, and slid smoothly under the covers with him. Her movements were practiced and fluid—clearly not her first time.
"Master, if you wake up now… there's a nice surprise waiting for you~"
"Hmm?"
In the shadow realm, Kihara lowered Shinobu's left foot—still coated in sweet cream—and wiped the corner of his mouth with her soft right one. He frowned in confusion. "Is anything more important than me savoring this original-flavor treat?"
"Ais is here."
Those four simple words made Kihara vanish from the shadow space in an instant, leaving only Shinobu rolling around in laughter.
When he opened his eyes, the breathtaking beauty of the golden-haired Sword Princess filled his vision. In a perfectly flat, emotionless voice—like a machine reciting lines—she declared:
"Good morning. I hope your first words are also 'Good morning,' followed by wrapping your arms around my waist for a sweet good-morning kiss. Not 'Why are you here?' …Is that acceptable?"
"And if I refuse… what happens?"
The question wasn't in the script. Ais fell silent for several seconds, processing. Finally, as Hestia's furious pounding echoed from the door, she gently tugged the hem of Kihara's sleepwear. Looking up at him with the sad, abandoned-puppy eyes of a loyal retainer, she murmured:
"My affection points… would decrease…"
[Whoa~ Master, your heartbeat just spiked. Does this exact situation hit your XP spot perfectly?]
Bang!
An axe smashed a gaping hole through the bedroom door. Hestia's face, wreathed in black smoke like an enraged vengeful spirit, pressed against the opening. "Ais Wallenstein! You're dead meat!!!"
"What a flash spirit," Kihara muttered dryly.
He was about to get up and face the familiar chaotic morning showdown when a violent tremor shook the entire building, as if the whole world itself was trembling.
"An earthquake…?"
Before he could think further, Kihara activated his acceleration ability. In a blur, he whisked Hestia, Lili, and Ais out of the villa and into the open clearing outside for safety.
"ROOOOOOAAAAAR—!!!"
A colossal black dragon with wings that blotted out the sky unleashed a deafening roar. The mere shockwave from its cry reduced half the city to rubble in an instant.
Ais's golden hair fluttered wildly though there was no wind. Deep within her soul, the burning desire for revenge—her sole reason for walking the path of the sword—ignited once more. The legendary final calamity said to bring ruin to the world… the One-Eyed Black Dragon had appeared before her again.
"I won't lose anything else… ever again…"
She glanced briefly at Kihara, who still held her protectively, then allowed the flames of vengeance long suppressed in her soul to consume her completely.
…
Three minutes before the One-Eyed Black Dragon's awakening—
Thanatos had been playing hide-and-seek with the search parties inside the artificial labyrinth, relying on his intimate knowledge of its layout. No matter how cleverly he moved, he could never slip past the tight security cordon that wouldn't even let an ant through to reach the central control area.
Though he was a god, his physical body in the mortal realm was no stronger than an ordinary human's. Using divine power would instantly force him back to the heavenly realm—permanently.
His supplies of food and water were running dangerously low. In a few more days, starvation would drive him to release his power and return to heaven—an ending he refused to accept.
Just as Thanatos prepared to risk everything, Ottar of Freya Familia appeared, accompanied by a massive hunting hound wearing a magic-stone collar. The boar warrior's greatsword slammed the fallen god into the ground in a single devastating strike.
"Lady Freya has declared that filth like you, who dared defile her sacred garden, no longer deserves to remain in this city."
"Wai—"
The giant blade crushed Thanatos's chest. Faced with mortal peril, the fallen god finally released his divine power and ascended. Neither he nor Ottar realized that the spilled divine blood and power had soaked into the tattered black scale hanging from his neck—an ancient dragon scale passed down through the dark faction for centuries.
The ancient calamity slumbering on the 99th floor of the dungeon was jolted awake by the hated aura. Enraged, the One-Eyed Black Dragon spread its massive wings, shattering the protective lair that had shielded its long rest, and once again unleashed death and destruction upon the land.
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Thank you for reading.