The Ninth Floor Trial (4)

"Everyone, you have to keep up. Alright?"

"*Kyuuu!*"

"*Kyu!*"

Leading the divine beasts and carrying Lee Jin-hyuk on her back, Kaelion hurried forward.

Though they were still young, the divine beasts were intelligent. They clearly understood that Jin-hyuk was the one who had protected them.

Even if they couldn't grasp it intellectually, it didn't matter. They recognized the divine power familiar to them and the warmth of his flames.

They remembered Jin-hyuk's sword and armor, which had shielded them like a roof when everything around them was crumbling. Instinctively, they knew he was on their side.

And Kaelion was the one taking such tender care of him. For now, following her was their best option.

"*Kyu-gyu!*"

"*Kyuuuu!*"

They were still far too young. On top of that, they had been subjected to inhumane experiments for a significant amount of time, leaving almost none of them able to walk properly.

Even though Jin-hyuk had used his holy fire to heal them slightly, it wasn't enough to fully restore their broken bodies.

To make matters worse, they had exhausted their own divine power to help Jin-hyuk endure. Consequently, most of them lay limp and exhausted.

*Whoosh!*

Amidst this dire situation, one divine beast proved to be an immense help.

"...A horse?"

It was a pure white horse. Atop its head sat a horn as sharp and sturdy as a rapier.

Regardless of how it felt about Jin-hyuk, it seemed to have taken a great liking to Kaelion. It was the divine beast, the unicorn.

Majuron had brought it from another floor. Although it originated from elsewhere, it was undeniably a divine beast. Its horn was partially chipped, bearing the scars of harsh experimentation.

*Snort.*

After nuzzling its face affectionately against Kaelion's chest, the unicorn quietly offered its back, as if telling her to trust it.

"Oh?"

Surprised by the creature's sudden kindness and willingness to help, Kaelion hesitated.

"But right now, we don't have any other choice," Kaelion replied.

A divine decree? What is this?

It was the exact same divine decree that Jin-hyuk had received, but Kaelion ignored it without a second thought.

She was an elf by birth. Loving nature, spirits, and animals was at the very core of her being.

To violate that nature and devour these adorable divine beasts? No matter the reward, she could never accept such a decree.

*Whoosh!*

"Thank you," Kaelion murmured as she climbed onto the unicorn's back, keeping Jin-hyuk secured to her.

"I'm sorry, but... do you mind if I use this?"

In her hands, Kaelion held a saddle and reins. They were likely tools the warlocks had used to tame the unicorn.

The unicorn snorted and frowned at the sight of them, but it reluctantly lowered its head. It knew that if it didn't cooperate now, not only itself but everyone here would be in grave danger.

"Thank you."

Having received the unicorn's permission, Kaelion skillfully equipped the gear.

"*Kuuu...*"

"*Kyu!*"

"Don't worry, everyone."

Kaelion gathered the Bulgasari, the Haetae, and the Fenghuang close to her chest, securing them tightly with sturdy tree vines before mounting the unicorn.

"I'll get you all out of here, no matter what."

The moment she settled onto the unicorn's back—

"Over there! There they are!"

"It's Lee Jin-hyuk!"

"He's unconscious! Now is our chance!"

A massive crowd began rushing toward them from the distance.

*Clack, clack...*

They were warlocks clad in black robes.

Oh no!

Dark magic rained down upon them in an instant. Using some unknown method, even the warlocks and witches who had died during the battle between the Constellations were being resurrected as undead.

There's no time!

Realizing the danger, Kaelion quickly snapped the reins, urging the unicorn forward.

*Neighhh!*

With a sharp whinny from the unicorn, Kaelion bolted forward. Conveniently, the cave ceiling had collapsed during the clash of the Constellations. If they climbed up now, escaping to the outside was entirely possible.

Kaelion kicked off the ground, riding the unicorn upward.

During her twelve years on the sixth floor, she had learned a wide variety of skills. The reasoning was simple: focusing too narrowly on one thing could restrict one's perspective and hinder growth.

As evidenced by the hanbok and armor she wore, she had learned a great deal from the ranker known as the 'Black Wolf General'. Chief among those skills was horsemanship.

Over the past twelve years, Kaelion had ridden horses countless times. She had honed her equestrian skills relentlessly across plains, beaches, dense forests, and even steep cliffs.

Even if the spirits had abandoned her, she was still a High Elf by blood, and animals naturally adored her. Combining this innate affinity with her tireless efforts, no player could match her sheer talent in horsemanship.

Perhaps her years of training had not been in vain. Kaelion was now scaling the vertical cave walls, using the unicorn to leap from ledge to ledge.

"Are you kidding me?!"

"Even for a unicorn, how is it running up a vertical cliff like that?!"

"Is that thing a mountain goat or what?!"

"What are you just standing there staring for? Attack, quickly!"

A barrage of spells and dark magic rained down toward Kaelion and the unicorn.

This way.

As a Sword Master and a High Elf with heightened senses, Kaelion could clearly see the weak points in the incoming spells.

*Whoosh!*

Maneuvering the reins left and right, she dodged the magical bombardment and successfully broke through to the outside of the cave.

It was a display of horsemanship that forced even the Constellations to marvel and acknowledge her.

"What in the world..."

"This is insane!"

For the opposing warlocks, this was an absolute disaster. If they let the person who had destroyed the divine beast ranch escape, the Witch of Ruins who ruled over them would show no mercy.

"D-Damn it!"

"Pursue them!"

The warlocks tried desperately to catch up, but it was impossible. Once the unicorn reached the open plains, its speed far exceeded anything they could have anticipated.

We did it.

The unicorn was faster and smarter than any horse she had ridden before. It moved in perfect harmony with Kaelion, anticipating her every desire.

Though the warlocks here were formidable, they stood no chance against a master rider mounted on a divine beast.

"*Kuuu!*"

"Thank you."

The elephant-like divine beast, the Bulgasari, was nestled in her arms, using steel to guide their path in real-time. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Kaelion didn't realize it, but if Jin-hyuk had been awake, he would have compared it to a GPS navigation system.

"*Kuuu! Ku!*"

"*Ku-ku!*"

Beside her, the Haetae—a blue-furred divine beast resembling a mix of a cat and a tiger—handed her some water while chattering away in explanation.

"*Ku-ku-ku! Kuuu!*"

"We need to go to the Fenghuang?" Kaelion asked.

"*Ku!*"

"She is the mother of this little one? And she has been protecting you all this time?"

"*Kuuu...*"

"I see. She was injured..."

Unlike the other two who were actively helping, the smallest Fenghuang remained fast asleep. It was so severely injured that it looked barely alive, which only made Kaelion's heart race with urgency.

Fortunately, the situation wasn't entirely bleak. Thanks to the unicorn, they were traveling much faster than she had anticipated.

Just a little further.

Since the destination the Bulgasari was guiding them to matched the location Jin-hyuk had told her to head toward, Kaelion accelerated without hesitation.

*Ringgg!*

"Ugh!"

As they galloped at full speed, an ear-splitting laugh echoed from somewhere.

"Kahahahaha!"

"Where do you think you're going, pretty little elf?"

"Come play with us!"

*Boom! Bam!*

Spells incomparably stronger than before rained down upon Kaelion.

What is this...?

These weren't the simple, brute-force spells the warlocks had cast. Earlier, the warlocks had been disorganized and flustered, causing their spells to collide and cancel each other out, which had allowed Kaelion to slip through the gaps.

But the magic of the witches was entirely different.

Rocks fell from above, while wind and ice filled the gaps between them. It didn't feel like a barrage of separate attacks, but rather like a single, massive ceiling collapsing on top of them. Their coordination was flawless.

*Rumble!*

That wasn't all. Thick tree roots erupted from beneath the unicorn's hooves, trying to snare its legs.

*Neighhh!*

Kaelion deftly pulled the reins, adjusting their trajectory. Thanks to the unicorn's swift reflexes, it managed to leap clear before its feet could be bound.

Good.

Briefly letting go of the reins, Kaelion reached into her inventory.

At the same time, she reached down to the shortbow strapped to the unicorn's flank and drew it. It was no ordinary bow.

*Twang.*

A shortbow was, as the name suggested, a compact bow. Beyond being easy to carry, it offered exceptional combat efficiency. It was easy to use even while riding a galloping horse, and its aiming and firing speed were overwhelmingly fast.

Kaelion had mastered this shortbow technique alongside her horsemanship during her time on the sixth floor.

*Thwip!*

Her eyes did not waver, her breath paused, and her heart beat with absolute calm.

Firing a shortbow while activating a sword technique seemed like a contradiction, but Kaelion adapted the concept.

At its core, the Dragon Flow Sword Technique was about drawing in the surrounding flow and energy, compressing it, and reinforcing an object. Even though she was using a bow instead of a sword, the skill she had loaded bridged the gap perfectly.

*Clang!*

An arrow as hard and blazing as solidified lava pierced right into the center of the witches' magic.

It worked.

Because the witches' spells were so tightly coordinated, they functioned as a single, massive attack. However, a single ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠unified attack also meant that if one key point was disrupted, the entire structure would collapse.

Even in the midst of this chaotic situation, Kaelion had spotted the flaw and struck it with her arrow.

*Crackkk!*

A massive fissure tore through the witches' magic where the arrow had struck.

Seizing the opening, Kaelion quickly fired two more arrows. The massive ceiling of magic the witches had constructed shattered into pieces and began to rain down.

"Just one more time, my friend," Kaelion urged.

*Neigh!*

"Thank you!"

*Whoosh!*

The unicorn kicked off the empty air, soaring high into the sky.

"*Ku-ku!*"

According to the Haetae's frantic gestures, unicorns did not normally run through the air like this. Doing so drained their mental energy and shaved away their lifespan.

But the unicorn was equally desperate. It refused to be captured by those witches again and subjected to their horrific experiments.

"Our magic was broken?!"

"Where do you think you're going?! Stop!"

Witches were inherently selfish creatures. Although they had come here under Majuron's orders, their own lives and interests always came first. Even though Jin-hyuk was currently unconscious, they feared he might wake up at any moment and attack, so they only fired spells from a safe distance.

This caution allowed Kaelion to slip through the gaps in their loose perimeter.

"This isn't working."

"Release them."

Realizing their magic was no longer effective, the witches resorted to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠their next weapon.

—*Groooaaan!*

—*Screeech!*

They were Wailing Ghosts. Using a sinister spell, the witches summoned the Wailing Ghosts from the surrounding area.

"This should be enough to kill them."

"Surely."

Countless wraiths and Wailing Ghosts swarmed toward Kaelion. There were so many of them that they enveloped her like a thick, dark cloud of fog.

"*Ku!*"

"*Kuuu...*"

Terrified, the young divine beasts clung tightly to Kaelion's waist.

*Whoosh!*

Without hesitation, Kaelion fired another arrow.

*Cough!*

The backlash was so severe that blood welled up in her throat and spilled past her lips. While the skill allowed her to unleash powerful attacks without physical arrows, the toll it took on her body was immense.

But I can't use my sword techniques here.

Although her sword techniques were her strongest asset, wielding a sword while carrying so many fragile creatures was impossible. In an equestrian battle, a bow was far more practical.

*Boom!*

The Wailing Ghosts scattered momentarily upon impact. However, Kaelion's arrow was like firing an air cannon into a dense fog; the mist parted for a second, only to coalesce once more and close in on her.

"Hahaha!"

"It's only a matter of time!"

Although her final arrow had cleared a path, she no longer had the strength to lift a single finger.

No...

Even though she was a Sword Master and had reinforced her body with mana, her vision was rapidly fading to black.

The wraiths and Wailing Ghosts lunged forward, jaws agape to tear her apart. Surrounded by the spectral horde, Kaelion felt her consciousness slip away.

I can't... I can't lose consciousness here.

She tightened her grip.

I have to protect them.

To save the divine beasts in her arms and Jin-hyuk on her back, Kaelion made her decision.

"You can... go on alone, right?" she whispered.

*Neigh?*

Summoning a final burst of strength from some unknown reserve, she secured the rest of the divine beasts to the unicorn's saddle, drew her twin swords, and threw herself off the beast's back.

Her intention was clear. She would stay behind to buy them time, allowing them to escape.

If only the Constellations hadn't intervened, I wouldn't have been defeated so helplessly.

A bitter smile touched her lips.

"Nothing else for it."

Before the unicorn could react, Kaelion plummeted toward the ground, tracing a circle in the air with her twin blades.

It was the Seventh Form of her technique—still incomplete, but one she had practiced and refined tirelessly. Now was the moment to unleash it.

*Neighhh!*

But the unicorn and the divine beasts did not abandon her. They clung to her side, determined to stay with her until the very end.

"No! You have to run...!" Kaelion cried out.

*Peep!*

Suddenly, the tiny bird that had been sleeping all this time fluttered out in front of Kaelion.

In an instant, a massive wall of fire erupted, enveloping the bird's entire body.

It was a flame entirely different from Kaelion's crimson lava or Jin-hyuk's white holy fire. A warm, comforting orange blaze began to turn the world upside down.