"Buzz!"
The faintly glowing red blade struck, colliding with the Goliath's scaled arm. Sparks flew like metal against metal.
It worked. The armor had been breached…
A fierce sword mark was carved into the crimson scales.
But the intense recoil that shot back through his sword made Kai's face go even paler. His stats were too low. Forget withstanding a counterattack—just holding onto the sword was already nearly impossible.
Behind him, Asfi stood frozen in shock.
"Hey! You idiot! What are you still doing here? RUN!"
Catching sight of her dazed expression, Kai growled angrily, dodging the Goliath's attack while shouting, "Go to the 18th floor! Find the Sword Princess from Loki Familia! Only she can save us!"
Only when he yelled a second time did Asfi snap out of it.
Looking at the blood-covered Kai barely dodging attacks, she opened her mouth, as if to say something—but in the end, she said nothing.
She only gave him a long look, then turned and ran toward the passage leading to the 18th floor.
Sensing her escape, the Goliath turned its head and opened its mouth toward her path.
A distorted red wave began forming in its jaws.
Seeing this, Kai's expression changed drastically.
"Watch out! It's [Roar]!"
As he shouted, he raised his rapier and slashed down at the Goliath's head.
Crimson sword aura burst forth, shooting several feet beyond the blade.
"Zzzzzz—!"
The sword aura tore through the air, making a sharp screech like glass being scraped. The Goliath seemed to recognize the danger, turned back—and released the energy from its mouth.
A wave of invisible, violent air pressure mixed with sound waves strong enough to shatter stone surged forward—but the red sword aura split it in two.
Not far away, Asfi turned to look—and her face turned pale.
If not for Kai, she would've been hit directly.
Shaking her head to dispel the thought, she glanced gratefully at the black-clad Kai—then turned and disappeared into the shaft.
Seeing her escape, the Goliath turned back toward Kai. Its crimson eyes were filled with unmistakable hatred.
Locked in its gaze, Kai felt a wave of killing intent crash down on him. His spine turned cold. His sword hand trembled uncontrollably.
"Hu…"
He exhaled through clenched teeth, as if cutting off his fear. He slashed his sword across the ground—red sword aura surged out, carving a line in the floor.
Like a cornered animal bluffing before a predator.
A threat display…
The Goliath bared its teeth.
The next moment, it stomped the ground. Though its body seemed massive and clumsy, it moved with the swiftness of a hunting eagle. As it lunged forward, its massive hands swirled with violent wind, unleashing a powerful strike.
Only when Goliath's broad, dark-red palm rapidly expanded in his view—just meters away—did Kai react. The blue sword blade suddenly lifted, and pale red sword aura erupted. As Kai swung the sword, a burst of sparks and deep sword marks appeared on the scales covering Goliath's palm.
...It worked!
Seeing the effectiveness of his strike, Kai couldn't help but show a surprised expression.
Though his attributes were now at their weakest and the dual-wielding special effect had been forcefully disabled due to missing a second sword, as long as he could release sword aura, he still had a chance of victory.
Even this enhanced Goliath, whose newly grown scales couldn't be pierced by even Lv.4 Asfi, couldn't stop his slashes—or more precisely, the sword aura he unleashed.
That seemingly unstoppable sword aura had become Kai's greatest trump card.
An extremely powerful offense became a form of extreme defense. As long as Goliath couldn't stop the sword in his hand, Kai could continue this fight.
If he could hold off the enhanced Goliath long enough, once Asfi brought the Sword Princess from the eighteenth floor, everything would be over.
Perhaps sensing Kai's thoughts, Goliath's attacks grew frantic. Several times, Kai almost sliced its arm off.
The tide of battle seemed to shift in Kai's favor. Hestia and the others couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. They didn't know why the once-mighty Goliath had suddenly been overwhelmed by Kai, but at least it was clear—Kai was now in control of the fight.
But in truth, Kai was silently suffering.
It looked like he held a major advantage. Thanks to the sword aura shielding him, Goliath dared not land a single blow, while Kai's attacks could inflict considerable damage.
But everything hinged on the sword aura. And to release it, Kai was constantly enduring the pain of sword intent invading his body.
It was like boiling a frog slowly. The effects weren't immediately visible, but with time, the massive drain on his life force would drag him into ruin even if he had the upper hand.
No—this can't go on. I need to end it quickly...
If it came down to a battle of endurance, Kai, as a human, could never outlast Goliath. Making up his mind, he quickly stepped back twice and shifted the stance of his sword.
He raised the rapier to his ear, bent his arm, and took a fencing stance.
—Come.
Whispering in his heart, Kai completely relinquished control over his body.
In that instant, It descended.
[Strategy Fiend]—when bloodlust is activated, sword intent consumes life force to release sword aura. The more life force consumed, the stronger the aura.
If the system's default drain rate already allowed Kai to release sword aura capable of piercing enhanced Goliath's scales, what would happen if he intentionally increased the drain?
Kai soon had his answer.
It was...power like that of gods and demons.
The forbidden power of the [Fiend].
Visible deep-red whirlwinds spun rapidly around Kai. Though merely air currents, they sliced the surrounding air with screeches, as if they were tangible blades.
Standing at the center of the vortex, Kai slowly opened his eyes. A scarlet line flickered within his pupils. The moment it appeared, the atmosphere in the entire stone hall on the seventeenth floor turned heavy.
"So this is what Strategy Fiend truly means..."
Lifting his left hand, Kai muttered thoughtfully. He extended a slender finger and pointed directly at the enhanced Goliath.
The moment he pointed, Goliath's crimson eyes shrank. With a roar, it began to run wildly through the hall like a beast.
Kai silently kept his finger locked on Goliath, as if targeting prey.
"AO! AIO! AOAOAOAOAIOOOOOO!!!"
Goliath's chaotic roars echoed as it accelerated.
Like a mad fugitive, it charged straight toward Hestia and the others.
"Lady Hestia! Please step back!"
Bell and Lili shielded Hestia and drew their weapons. Kai's fierce and unrelenting battle had deeply moved them. In the past, monsters like Goliath would've left them trembling in fear. Now, although they were still terrified, they could at least stand their ground.
Other adventurers followed suit. Ouka, Chigusa, and Mikoto of the Takemikazuchi Familia protected their god. Hermes was guarded by a group of solo adventurers.
At the rear, a female adventurer in a hooded robe stood silently. At some point, she had drawn a simple wooden sword with a floral hilt, pointed directly at the charging Goliath.
As she gripped the blade, a formless current swirled around her, giving her movements an ethereal lightness.
Seeing everyone quickly brace for impact, Goliath opened its mouth wide, charging a twisted sonic blast.
They had already witnessed that roar's destructive power. The weaker adventurers' legs trembled.
But the next moment, Goliath suddenly shut its mouth, stomped hard, and veered off course.
"Zzzzzz—"
At the same time, several streaks of deep-red sword aura slashed across its original path.
The aura carved deep fissures into the ground. If Goliath hadn't dodged, it would've been cleaved into pieces.
After dodging, Goliath turned its gaze toward the source.
Meeting its eyes, Kai gave a helpless smile. The swirling aura around him had dissipated—his life force nearly drained.
Those sword strikes had consumed 99% of his life force. Out of biological instinct, his body deactivated the bloodlust state.
"What a shame..."
Seeing Goliath had dodged, Kai's face turned pale, his smile bitter.
His body wobbled, then collapsed. Even though he had endured countless attacks from the enhanced Goliath earlier without buckling, now he fell.
Clang!
His rapier dropped with a crisp ring.
"Kai!"
"Kai-sama...!"
"Senpai!"
"AIOOOOOOOOO!!!"
The cries of Hestia, Lili, Bell, and Goliath's roar filled the air.
Though his eyes remained open, Kai could see only darkness.
Completely drained, gravely wounded, with no cards left to play...
Seriously—why is it that in all those isekai novels, the protagonist gets an easy ride, endless power-ups, miracles, and harems, while he had to grind day after day, struggling to complete some unclear trial?
If there truly was a god, that god was far too cruel.
So tired. Maybe... it's fine to end here.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom—
He heard something approaching in the distance.
Goliath... coming to end his life.
In the darkness, Kai felt himself sinking like a drowning man...
{—You're so weak, Kai.}
Until that whisper echoed in his heart.
Then a light, bright and blazing like a star, tore through the darkness, engulfing him.