Refusing to be distracted by the enemy’s words, I swung my sword. The spell severed the enemy’s arm, yet the blade returned no sensation. The moment I realized I’d swung at thin air, the giant’s left arm distorted like a mirage and vanished. Then, Dimension sensed a massive presence closing in from directly beside me. Not from above, but from the side—the giant’s left arm had been approaching. Why hadn’t I noticed until now?! It must have been Nosfy’s magic; she was laughing at me!
“Another light refraction?!”
“Correct answer! This is the magic you taught me! A matching shifting technique! Hee hee, matching with Master Kanami! Hee hee hee!”
I didn’t understand the principle, but Nosfy alone could nullify Dimension. I’d been completely deceived by her magic.
The giant’s arm approached from directly sideways, carving through the capital city as it came. Even just the palm alone towered higher than any ordinary castle. If this continued, the entire roof I was standing on would be scooped up by that colossal hand. I strained my legs, trying to flee in the opposite direction of the arm. But right where I aimed to escape, Nosfy stood, flag in hand, blocking my path with an adorable smile.
“No, Master Kanami. You must not flee from a duel. Unlike you, who chose the cowardly path of exploiting family ties for a peaceful resolution, Chancellor Ide is heading to the duel with true righteousness—without tricks, detours, or distractions, cursing his inherent weakness. Faced with that full-hearted determination, are you really going to run? Even now, he waits within the castle! Yes, he waits! He has waited for so very long! For you!”
Overwhelmed by her cry, I halted in my tracks. Then, the giant roared overhead.
“Viaysia Castle! Transition to the Divine Seal form! My soul’s Yggdrasil! Seize my sworn enemy, Kanami the Founder!”
The giant’s approaching palm writhed and squirmed, its roots and branches multiplying until it became a hundred-fingered hand. That monstrous hand scooped up the house where Nosfy and I stood, along with the ground beneath it. Though my feet touched the roof, I was overcome by the sensation of floating.
The giant, having literally taken me into its grasp, did not immediately crush me. Instead, it intended to carry all the earth and the building it had scooped up, right up to its torso. Visible at the giant’s core was a massive outer gate. It was a gate leading into Viaysia Castle—no, into the giant’s own body. Ide was inviting me in. In other words, this giant wasn’t created for battle but solely for capturing me.
If I tried to jump off its palm to escape this invitation, Nosfy nearby would surely interfere. She’d been insisting on a duel from the start, so there was no doubt about it. With no other choice, as a final act of resistance, I shouted a message to my comrades on the ground.
“Titee, Snow! Negotiations have failed! Stop wasting time trying to persuade them! I’ll be back soon, so you focus on your part! Got it?!”
Seeing my resignation, Nosfy also called out. “Hee hee! Then I will take that as agreement to a duel! Apostle Sith, you secure Lorde and Snow Walker!”
“I won’t say we’ll secure them, but we intend to hold them back! However, our opponents are the ancient Sovereign Queen Lorde and the new Dragon Incarnate! If both me and Hikaki give it our all to hold them back, there’s a high chance we’ll freeze them solid!”
“Hee hee, as expected of Apostle Sith! What reassuring words! Please, do not hold back! As long as you do not die, I will definitely heal you! I, the greatest healer in history!”
Sith’s and Nosfy’s statements, brimming with absolute confidence, flew back and forth.
Titee’s voice cut in. “Kanamin! Don’t worry about us either! We’ve got the invincible me on your side!” Dimension showed me Titee, who stood facing Sith and the others with a wind barrier raised. Within it, Snow and Rouge were securely protected.
I knew Titee’s ridiculous strength better than anyone. No matter how beyond the norm the enemy might be, she wasn’t the type to fall so easily. As I thought that, my voice caught. The entire city I’d been scooped up with, along with my body, was carried to the castle gate in the giant’s torso. Then, the gate opened on its own, and the giant’s left arm thrust us through it.
Beyond the castle gate, awaited another gate. Probably the official gate of Viaysia Castle. That main gate also opened automatically, and the left arm passed through, forcibly carrying us deep into the castle. A third gate came into view, opened similarly, and as the left arm tried to pass through it, a thunderous roar and shock wave surged. The arm was too massive to fit through completely and slammed into the barrier.
Even with the giant’s arm wedged in the gate, my sensation of floating persisted. Next, writhing branches and trunks tore the roof off the house that served as our footing, carrying me and Nosfy through the third gate as if we were delicacies on a platter. Passing through the half collapsed castle entrance, through every door within the castle, carried on and on and on before finally, we arrived.
It was a sight I’d seen even beyond floor sixty-six of the Dungeon. We were in the courtyard, the vast natural space that was the pride of Viaysia Castle. The momentum of the transport halted, the platform settling firmly on the ground. Simultaneously, the door through which we had just entered was blocked by thick wooden roots forming a lattice. Cutting off the retreat meant this was the place Ide had chosen for the duel.