The minotaur collapses, decapitated and falling a breath too late.
　It collapses from its knees, and its massive body goes bang!　and fell with a crash.

"Oh my God, that's great, Mr. Alec!
"......
"Mr. Alec?　What's wrong with you?

　As I stared at the minotaur's corpse, Angier looked at me quizzically.

"Feeling weak,
"Because Alec-sama is strong!

　Ange, with his fists at his chest, makes a strong case.
　I'm glad you believe me, but...

　Suddenly the ground rumbles.
　The ground starts to shake, and the next thing I know, I can't feel my feet anymore.
　The floor collapsed, dropping me, Angel, and the minotaur's corpse.

Angel!

　Quickly, I pull Angier into a hug.

Hold on to me.
"Yes!　Dear Alec!

　Holding her in my arms, I often free fall.

　Relying on the faint glow of the magic ball of light chasing after me, I landed on the looming ground.
　For the length of the fall, my legs went numb.

Feng ....... Are you okay, Angel? I'm sorry for scaring you.
"It's okay!　Alec-sama was protecting me, so I wasn't scared at all!
I see.

　Put Angier down and make him stand.
　Light the area with the magic ball of light and see what's going on.

　It's a slightly open space, like an underground passage somewhere.
　There was nothing but a minotaur's torn corpse torn apart in free fall.

Where am I at ......?
I don't know, but there are wards going on, and this kind of underground passage isn't natural. It could be some kind of underground dungeon, a continuation of the cave above.
Is that so?
"I'm just curious, let's move on.
"Yes, I'll join you!

　Walk through the dark underpass with Angier.

"It's a little too dark, a little too light--

　Just as I was about to increase the magic sphere of light - just as I was about to increase the magic sphere of light - something attacked me from the light's blind spot.
　Quickly, with the back of my hand, I punched it away with my back fist.
　The thing blows off and breaks apart against the wall.

Master Alec!
"Don't worry--they're not done with me yet.
"Huh?

　A surprised Angel.
　After blowing it up, I had more time to add two more magic balls of light.

　In the brightened subterranean passageway, I saw a hulk of flesh groaning on the ground, reclaiming its disintegrated state.
　Angel gasped.

　Gazing at it, observing it.
　It shattered, and then it stood upright, fully regenerated.
　A humanoid monster about the size of a grown man.
　Even after it's reconstructed, its body is rotten in places, and its head has no eyes, ears, or nose, only a giant gaping maw.

This is ......
"Ghouls--cannibalistic zombies. Already lifeless and soulless, and therefore a vexing monster that regenerates no matter how much it is destroyed.
"I've never seen a ghoul ...... before. What should I do, I can't believe that Alec-sama can recover after defeating him.
"Ghouls are easy.

　It's not just a matter of time before you can get your hands on it.
　Slashed from the shoulder by a kasaya, the ghoul crumbled and ...... fell to the ground.

"Ghouls are vulnerable to the power of life.
"I see!
"Angel, how is your magic power?　If you put a thin layer of recovery magic around your body, it will become a barrier.
"Oh, yes!　I understand.

　Healing magic is my specialty and I've been practicing it all my life.

　Normally, healing magic is done by "releasing it at the opponent," but Angel, who has been with me for a long time, is already one of the best recovering magicians in the Empire.
　I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one.

　A thin layer of healing light surrounds Angel.

"You did it, Alec-sama--Hyah!
"Angel!

　For the second time today, the sensation in my feet is gone.
　Free fall again, this time pulling Angier in for a princess hug.

......

　The second fall was short-lived, and my legs didn't go numb when I landed.

"I'm sorry Master Alec, over and over again.
Don't worry about it, I'd rather see Angier get hurt.


"Yes ...... Mr. Alec!　Ghouls!
There you are: ...... and the mastermind.
"Huh?　...... ah.

　Notice I am told that Angel .
　. five ...... or even six .
　Beyond the six ghouls grunting as they approach, a man stands.

　He looks human, but his skin color is blue.
　It's clear that this is no ordinary man.

There you have it, mastermind.
Well, Mr. Alec, you've been calling me a mastermind for a while now, but...
"I've been wondering ever since I defeated the Minotaur. The warding was too strong for a monster of that caliber. But now I see. The warding was meant to seal him in front of me.
"Time is like a river flowing by, with new waves constantly swallowing up the previous one.


　The man behind the ghoul quietly opens his mouth.
　He sounds like a pleasant, alert opponent.

What do you mean by that?
"It's a saying from the East that says that humans are constantly evolving,
"Oh, ......

　Admire Angier, she still does not really understand its meaning.
　The man in front of me has been lifting up that I'm the wave from before - the wave that swallowed the previous one.

　For what--right.

But I'm not dead yet, I'm not stupid enough to be swallowed and disappear intact.
"Oh, Mr. Alec. Something about ...... this person ......

　Angier's words were a little shaky.
　She could sense that the man was not just a man.

"They're kids, be on your guard, come on.
"Uncle ......, you're a good actor,
"...... what?
"If you had gone straight here, you would have been fooled.
What do you mean, Mr. Alec?
If we fought at his bidding, it would have been too late before we knew it, because we would have run out of time.
"......

　A man who looks like he's been bitten by a bitter bug.

Angier, I need a recovery spell.
"Huh?　Oh yes!

　The shock of the fall had melted Angel's recovery spell before I told him to start again.
　I applied a thin layer of recovery magic around her body, and Angel's feet began to melt.
　Your feet melted, but they didn't fall.

　The cavern, like an underground passage, melts, exposing its depths.
　Some internal organs, pulsing pink flesh.

What's this?
The fall, the two falls, were because of Angel.

　Draws his sword and stabs the man straight out.

"The ground melted by Angel's recovery magic. I'm in my uncle's belly.

　As if to prove my guess is correct, the man said, "d*mn! I grunted and twisted my face so that I could clearly see that it was an act.