"Roar!"
Sensing Kanae's fierce fighting spirit, the Minotaur wasn't about to wait passively.
Breathing heavily, its blood-red eyes locked onto the small human emanating an unusual aura.
With no hesitation, its massive body charged forward.
At the same time, it raised its heavy great axe and brought it down with a howling swing aimed directly at Kanae!
A blow like that could easily shatter even solid rock.
But faced with such overwhelming force, Kanae moved as lightly as a petal in the wind.
"Swoosh!"
She tapped her toes against the ground and, using the extraordinary agility granted by the divine blessing, became a pale-pink blur.
She sidestepped effortlessly, dodging the axe's strike.
The massive blade slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash, scattering stone debris everywhere.
Rather than retreating after the dodge, Kanae pressed the advantage.
Spinning like a blooming petal, she darted to the Minotaur's side.
With sharp focus, she slashed her Nichirin Blade at its thick arm in a probing strike.
"Clang!"
A dull metallic sound rang out.
Kanae felt a powerful countershock through her sword—her hand tingled from the force.
Despite her blade's sharpness, it couldn't pierce the monster's tough hide and iron-like muscles.
"So tough!"
Kanae was startled. This monster's defense was clearly a level above the others—unlike anything she'd faced before.
She didn't linger—using the recoil, she pushed off and withdrew.
Her form drifted back like a feather, distancing herself from the roaring Minotaur and regaining her stance with serious eyes.
Enraged after its miss and her daring strike, the Minotaur pounded its chest, howling even more fiercely.
Its thick legs stomped the ground as it charged again—earth trembling beneath its weight!
"The neck! Its weak spot is the neck!"
Phaethon's timely voice came through Bombu from behind.
With that crucial intel, Kanae's eyes sharpened.
Facing the monster's renewed charge, she didn't hesitate.
"Hoo—"
She took a deep breath, drawing oxygen into her lungs. Power surged through her body in a unique flow.
Total Concentration Breathing—the core of her strength as the Flower Hashira—now enhanced by the divine blessing.
"Breath of Flowers, Fifth Form — Peony of Futility!"
With a sharp cry, Kanae moved!
Her speed surged beyond its limits, becoming a streak of pink lightning.
Instead of retreating, she rushed toward the charging Minotaur.
Just as they crossed paths, her Nichirin Blade flared with brilliant light.
In the blink of an eye, she unleashed nine slashes around the Minotaur's massive body in a tight formation.
Each strike was as fast as lightning and as precise as a scalpel—tracing paths like blooming peony petals.
Elegant yet deadly.
These slashes weren't scattered—they all converged onto a single point—the Minotaur's thick neck!
Pierce the whole with a single point!
It was a masterful technique to break through even the toughest defenses.
"Squelch—!!"
With a gruesome tearing sound, the combined force of nine slashes broke through the monster's thick flesh—
The blade drove deep into its vital point.
"MOO—!!!"
The Minotaur let out a pained, guttural scream, its massive body freezing mid-charge.
The next second, blood gushed from its throat like a fountain, splattering the ground red.
Amid the stench of blood, Kanae floated back gracefully—
Like a dancer exiting the stage.
She landed cleanly beyond the blood spray, her white haori untainted.
The Minotaur's massive form twitched violently, the rage in its eyes fading quickly—
It dropped to its knees and collapsed with a thundering crash.
Dead.
The battle was over.
But just as Kanae sheathed her blade and stepped forward to inspect the remains—
Two figures raced in from the passage below.
"Hmm?"
The newcomers were two adventurers—one was a tall, golden-haired girl with doll-like beauty.
Clad in blue-white light armor, she carried a refined longsword at her waist.
The other was a gray-haired beastman youth with wolf ears and tail, sharp-eyed and arrogant.
They were none other than Ais Wallenstein, the Sword Princess of Loki Familia, and Bete, the Level 5 Fierce Wolf.
They had clearly been tracking the Minotaur, only to arrive and see Kanae standing beside its fallen body—
The powerful Minotaur, slain with its throat gushing blood.
Ais's golden eyes widened slightly with surprise.
Then came her signature expression—tilting her head cutely in wonder.
She seemed genuinely curious about what had just happened.
Bete, on the other hand, had a totally different reaction.
Seeing a clear rookie standing over their quarry—
Dead—his face twisted with visible disdain and irritation.
He stormed up to Kanae, sizing her up with arrogance.
Then sneered, his tone dripping with superiority:
"Hey, rookie! Got guts taking on a Minotaur alone, huh?
Tch. Don't think we don't know—that dumb ox was already half-dead from our chase.
You just got lucky and finished it off!"
Crossing his arms, Bete lectured her like a condescending senior:
"Newbies like you should stick to the first floor. Coming down here is suicide!
You got lucky this time—but next time?"
But Kanae didn't even look at him.
Her mind wasn't on this rude stranger at all.
She simply found this wolf-man noisy and annoying—not worth engaging.
Without a word, she crouched beside the crumbling Minotaur corpse.
She picked up the large, violet-hued magic stone it had dropped—noticeably bigger than any she'd found so far.
Then she turned to Bombu and naturally handed it over.
"Lord Phaethon, this is the Minotaur's magic stone."
"Good work."
Phaethon calmly accepted the stone and stored it in Bombu's spatial pouch.
This complete disregard infuriated Bete.
He felt utterly ignored—his pride wounded.
"Hey, rookie! I'm talking to you! You dare ignore me!?"
He roared and stepped forward, seemingly ready to teach her a lesson—
But at that moment, Bombu, the quiet plush—
Lifted its beady eyes.
They met Bete's gaze for a second.
No sound. No flash of power. No magic waves.
And yet—Bete, a powerful Level 5 adventurer—
Felt an overwhelming, soul-crushing pressure crash down on him like a mountain.
A primal fear rooted in his very essence—as if a speck of dust was looking into the cosmos.
His knees buckled.
Thud—he collapsed, trembling uncontrollably, unable to lift his head.
"Uuh… uhh…"
He whimpered like a scared mutt.
Meanwhile, Ais remained unfazed by her companion's strange behavior.
She simply tilted her head again, still curious about how Kanae had slain the Minotaur.
"Since our objective's been dealt with, I'd say today's hunt exceeded expectations."
Phaethon ignored the trembling wolf on the floor and addressed Kanae.
"Let's head back."
"Yes, Lord Phaethon."
Kanae obediently nodded, picked up Bombu, and turned to leave.
"Ah…"
Ais opened her mouth slightly, as if wanting to ask Kanae's name—or how she did it.
But no words came.
She simply watched as Kanae vanished around the bend—carrying the soft rabbit plush.
Leaving only the shivering Bete and the silent, wide-eyed Sword Princess...