Iron and Orichalcum

They reached the 40th floor.

The floor boss was even more massive than the earth dragons, and far more powerful.

Divine Beast Behemoth.

She didn't know why an existence also known as the Divine Beast of the Earth would be serving as a floor boss, but there was no doubt it was strong.

Particularly troublesome was how it could cause earthquakes by stomping.

Neither Sei nor Mako were good at aerial combat. They could use levitation magic, but that literally just let them float.

She had Mako attack from a distance with her extending spear, while Sei herself used Flight to attack from above.

Lavi reverted to her dragon form and unleashed her breath at full power.

Terrifyingly, even Lavi's breath couldn't one-shot the Behemoth.

It certainly dealt damage, but a magical barrier deployed on its skin's surface significantly weakened the attack's power.

In Sei's case with Flight, she could increase her attack power by building up momentum, but even then she was stopped by its hide.

On top of that, this divine beast apparently had high intelligence too.

Attacks aimed at its eyes or vital points were always dodged.

Any other areas were protected by thick skin that didn't let damage through.

Lavi simply kept pouring breath onto its head, which was practically their only source of damage.

And so, the Behemoth's attacks were mostly directed at Lavi as well.

In terms of threat level, their greatest combat power was certainly Lavi.

However, it was the Behemoth's overconfidence that let it not interfere with Sei's actions.

She switched weapons. From katana to spear.

She channeled magic power through the spear and attacked the back of its neck with all her might.

"Seiya!"

The thick hide was pierced through, somehow reaching the flesh beneath.

[Maximum Lightning!]

Lightning traveled through the spear into the Behemoth's body.

It dealt damage and slowed the Behemoth's movements. But only slightly.

However, Lavi didn't miss even that brief opening.

She thrust her own head into the Behemoth's wide-open mouth.

"Eh!?"

Even Mako who was watching was surprised, but it was effective.

The divine dragon's breath burned the Behemoth from inside.

Even if called a divine beast, the Behemoth was still within the bounds of a living creature.

Penetrated from within, the Behemoth died.

"I'm tired…"

Lavi, having returned to humanoid form, said that and collapsed.

Sei hurriedly helped her up, but Lavi was breathing softly in sleep, apparently in no danger.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, she just seems tired."

She cast a recovery spell just in case, but there didn't seem to be any problems.

Then a feeling of intoxication hit Sei and Mako as well.

Level-up sickness.

"Let's take a break…"

"Yeah…"

They laid out furs on flat ground the Behemoth hadn't torn up, and the three of them lay down.

It probably took several hours until they felt recovered.

When she noticed, the Behemoth's corpse had disappeared.

"Huh? Mako, when did you eat it?"

"I didn't eat it… Did it disappear?"

Looking around, something like a divine core remained.

"… Will Lavi absorb it?"

"I wonder? I'll store it for now."

Sei put it in storage, and for the time being, the three of them lined up on the furs again.

"That was tough…"

"The one on the 50th floor is even stronger, right? Honestly, I don't feel like we can win…"

There were compatibility issues, but they had no firepower beyond this for either close or ranged combat.

"Worst case, let's retreat once. But for us, as long as we kill the enemy even at the cost of our lives, we win."

Mako nodded at those words.

"Ugh…"

Right on cue, Lavi seemed to have woken up.

"After we rest a bit more, let's eat and then head for the lowest floor."

Mako nodded firmly, while Lavi tilted her head to the side.

They broke through to the 49th floor.

At this point, they created a bath and the three of them relaxed in it.

"Fatigue?"

At Sei's question, Mako nodded strongly. Lavi gave a small nod as well.

Lavi wasn't very expressive, but Sei had grown quite accustomed to reading her by now. Besides, Lavi wasn't the type to put on a brave front.

"After a night's sleep, we'll assess our condition and head to the final floor."

The other two nodded at Sei's decision again.

"What do you think the final enemy will be?"

At Sei's question, Mako answered simply.

"A vampire progenitor or something."

"An ancient dragon."

At Lavi's answer, the other two grimaced.

"If an ancient dragon and Lavi fought, who would win?"

Divine dragons should be overwhelmingly superior to ancient dragons in ability, but ancient dragons were beings who had accumulated years of experience.

"Don't know."

"A vampire progenitor would be better. Should be the same as the Demon King-san."

"Normally vampires aren't in labyrinths. They need blood."

At Lavi's answer, the two looked at each other.

They couldn't even imagine what the final floor boss might be.

Rather, it would make more sense if it were a god or their kin serving as the gatekeeper.

"Higher than a divine beast, huh… Well, if it's a living thing, we can use the strategy of eating it and crushing it from inside."

The countless weapons stored in Sei's folder still hadn't found their moment to shine.

"I'd prefer a smaller enemy. Large ones are impervious to blades."

Lying down, they speculated about the final enemy. They couldn't think of anything.

"Well, let's go in prepared to retreat. Any objections?"

The two answered with silence.

"Then, goodnight."

In the labyrinth's faint light, the three girls slept.

Speculating about the final enemy, but also to completely recover from their fatigue.

"There is nothing a katana cannot cut."

For some reason, Ria's words crossed Sei's mind as she drifted off to sleep.

The 50th floor. The final floor of the Golden Corridor.

"I see, as the final guardian of the Golden Corridor, this is certainly fitting…"

It was large, but not as big as the Behemoth. Around ten meters at most.

But this one was clearly a more difficult opponent than the Behemoth.

"Bad taste… maybe?"

Mako murmured, but Sei shook her head.

"It's not about taste."

Yes, the final gatekeeper was a golem that shone with gold.

"Orichalcum…"

Lavi murmured and immediately transformed into her dragon form.

Probably the only metal of the gods that could withstand even a divine dragon's breath.

An orichalcum golem stood there.

"How're we s'posed to deal with this…"

What Sei couldn't help but mutter about was the patterns running across the golem's surface - she had spotted the magical circuits.

Absolute magical defense. And further hardness enhancement. This wasn't mere orichalcum, but something with even greater resistance to magic.

"Can the spear do anything about this…"

Sei's katana and Mako's spear, while made using Ria's divine dragon boost and the dwarves' refined techniques, were still made of iron.

In this world, depending on how it was forged, iron could be harder and more durable than mithril, so that was fine.

But orichalcum was in a class of its own.

"Even if you made something like that, no one would buy it."

Ria, who had said that, apparently had handled orichalcum more than once.

The most precious metal in this world, created by combining gold and platinum with World Tree sap and a philosopher's stone.

"Even if such a katana existed, you'd have trouble using it. Besides, I have this."

What Ria showed while saying that was the Divine Dragon Katana, Gallach.

Sei had touched it several times, and each time she passed out - the magic-devouring divine artifact.

If she had that.

Yes, if she had that, she could have countered orichalcum.

Though if Sei were the one using it, her magic power would be depleted after swinging it just once.

"… We have no choice but to fight."

"By the way, Sei, can iron cut orichalcum?"

"… Actually, it can, apparently."

Mako couldn't help but look at Sei, but it was the truth.

"If I put maximum magic power into Kotetsu and align the blade perfectly, it can apparently be cut."

If one had that level of skill, that is.

"I'm counting on you for support."

Saying that, Sei dashed forward.

The orichalcum golem was heavy - or should be.

Despite that, its movement speed was tremendous. The core was probably different.

But still, there should be limits as a physical object.

If there was no magical enhancement.

She strengthened her body to the maximum and fully activated Kotetsu Kai's gimmicks.

The katana could scratch the orichalcum. But it was immediately repaired.

Shaving the surface was meaningless. Sei quickly realized that.

(I have to deal massive damage in one strike.)

The test cut that Ria had shown her just once.

"Making orichalcum is quite a hassle even for me, so just this once."

Saying that, Ria had brought out an ingot so thick that it seemed impossible to cut with an iron katana.

It was orichalcum. She thought that even soft gold couldn't be cut at that thickness.

But Ria cut it.

With just a steel katana she had forged herself, with no magical gimmicks whatsoever.

She bisected the orichalcum.

As Ria's disciple, she would have to demonstrate she could cut at least orichalcum with this gimmick-packed Kotetsu.

The target should be the joints. Yes, around the ankles was a bit thinner.

Mako's spear couldn't pierce it, and Lavi's breath was deflected off the surface.

That was fine. That was expected.

Lavi's breath, usually their trump card, was merely a decoy in this situation.

The real attack was Sei's katana.

It didn't seem like she could cut it at all. But without the image of cutting, she really wouldn't be able to.

"Envision your ideal sword stroke."

She recalled Ria's teachings. The weight of 3000 years of swinging a sword.

The ankle. She would aim there.

She released every useful gimmick in the katana, further strengthened her entire body with her own magic power, and wrapped the remaining magic power around the blade.

One strike. She wouldn't think about what came after.

With a piercing battle cry, Sei swung the katana.