Eastern Zone

  At the top of the mountain, two entities were gathered, holding small, glowing fragments and placing them into a broken portal that emitted a faint light.

  — Hurry up! The master won’t be pleased!

  — Damn it! I know, but do you have any idea how heavy this is?!

  — Hey, you two.

  They flinched when they heard someone calling them. It was their superior.

  — Who gave you permission to complain about the master’s orders? You should

  be grateful you’re not being beheaded right here!

  — Y-yes, sir!! — They nodded frantically in fear.

  As they returned to their work, the superior muttered to himself.

  — Ah... now that I think about it, they have a point. This thing is heavy!

  Inside the bar, at door 57, Erick sat, staring at the girl in front of him.

  — So, that’s what happened… — he said, finishing his explanation.

  — I see... and now you want me to go with you?

  — Exactly!

  — I refuse.

  She crossed her arms and turned away abruptly, her expression serious.

  — Huh? Why?! — Erick asked, confused.

  — I have my reasons. Besides, I don’t trust you.

  — Stop being so stubborn!

  — I already said no. Hmph! — She huffed, turning away again with an annoyed look.

  Erick sighed, running a hand through his hair.

  — Looks like she’s not giving me any other choice… I’ll have to do it.

  Without further delay, he walked out the door, leaving the girl relieved.

  — Finally… a little peace…

  Suddenly, Erick returned, swiftly throwing a bag over her.

  — H-hey! What are you doing?! Let me go now!

  — Sorry, but I don’t have another option.

  — You!!

  She tore through the bag with her sharp claws and leaped at him. Erick struggled to defend himself as she attacked him fiercely.

  In the hallway of the bar, the commotion inside the room caught attention. Customers gathered around door 57, curious and frightened.

  — What’s going on? — someone in the crowd asked.

  Louis and Lilithy came running up the stairs, alarmed by the noise.

  — It’s Onee-sama’s room! — Lilithy exclaimed.

  — We have to get in there now!

  Before they could move, a huge wolf-man blocked their path, lazily holding a glass of wine.

  — Where do you think you’re going? Can’t you see the man is working in there? — he said mockingly.

  — H-hey!

  They slipped past him and rushed to the room. Upon opening the door, they saw Erick being held by the neck by the girl, who looked ready to kill him.

  — Louis, help me! Tie her up with that rope! — Erick shouted.

  — Lilithy, stop him! Beat that brat up! — the girl shouted back.

  — This is all a misunderstanding!

  Both yelled at the same time.

  — Huh?

  After some struggle, the situation finally calmed down. Louis explained everything that had happened.

  — And that’s what happened…

  — I see… but even so, I can’t go with you.

  — But, Rose nee-sama, why? — Lilithy asked, concerned.

  — You know we can’t trust humans. Especially that one. — Rose shot a furious glare at Erick.

  — I already apologized for that… — he muttered.

  — Hmph. Besides, we can’t leave this village.

  The atmosphere grew tense. Rose looked uncomfortable, her face beginning to pale. Erick noticed she was hiding something but chose not to push her.

  — If you have nothing else to say, I ask you to leave.

  — Nee-sama…

  — So you’re really not coming with us… In that case, I think I’ve found the solution!

  Erick stood up and ran toward the door.

  — Hey, Nii, where are you going?!

  The door slammed shut.

  — What’s up with him?...

  — I’d like to know too… — Louis murmured.

  As Louis and Lilithy waited, worried about Erick’s delay, a loud crash echoed from outside. The bar’s wall was destroyed, and Erick emerged holding the old Gur, tied up.

  — Oh, hey.

  — What are you doing, human?! — Rose yelled in disbelief.

  — I thought that if I brought him here, you’d come with us. With his permission, you can leave, right?

  Rose was in shock, but before she could answer, an overwhelming aura filled the room.

  — How dare you, brat?! — the Gur roared, his voice reverberating like thunder.

  The pressure was so intense that everyone around could barely breathe. Erick felt paralyzed as the ground began to shake violently.

  — “What is this pressure?!… I can’t breathe…”

  — You fool! Did you really think I would just let you take them away?! Never! I would never let those two failures leave this village.

  — But you even gave us their room numbers! So you were lying this whole time?! — Erick said, irritated.

  Rocks began to rise around them as he chanted an ancient spell.

  — W-what’s happening?!

  — Golem Creation Magic: Murahura!

  A gigantic golem emerged, its presence intimidating everyone around. Louis barely had time to react before a colossal hand came crashing down toward him.

  — Louis, watch out!

  Fortunately, Erick pushed him away at the last second but ended up being thrown far off, crashing into the trees.

  — Nii! Are you okay?! — Louis asked, running to Erick.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  — Yeah… it didn’t hurt that much…

  At the moment Louis was helping Erick up, a heavy sound of footsteps caught his attention. He quickly turned around and saw the golem advancing toward him.

  Louis instinctively placed himself in front of Erick, even without knowing how to face it.

  — Please! Stop! Don’t hurt them! — Lilith shouted. Her eyes shone with a mix of fear and courage, but her expression pleaded for mercy.

  Gur abruptly stopped the golem and looked at her, his eyes now full of disdain.

  — Shut up, you freak — he said with cutting coldness.

  Those words weighed like a blade on Lilith’s soul, and she lowered her head, visibly shaken.

  — Don’t talk to her like that! — Rose advanced with uncontrollable rage, ready to face Gur.

  Gur raised an eyebrow as if he found the situation pathetic. But before he could respond, the older sister leaped forward in a swift jump, attacking him with all her strength. Gur, in turn, summoned a smaller golem to attack her.

  Louis and Erick watched the scene in astonishment as the girl fought fiercely against the village leader.

  — “Such strength…”

  Erick thought, looking in amazement.

  — Nii, can you move? We need to help her! — Louis grabbed his brother’s arm, who, with effort, nodded.

  The massive golem was coming toward them.

  — Why does this old man have to be so strong?! — Erick shouted, panting.

  The battle had only just begun, and the field had turned into the stage of an intense and relentless fight.

  Inside the Paths' base, Cosmo was sitting calmly, observing the horizon without showing any concern.

  — Captain... are you sure they’ll be okay? — Wally asked, visibly worried.

  — Don’t worry. As long as they don’t anger that old Gur, everything will be fine.And I trust Erick; he wouldn’t do anything like that! — Cosmo replied with a carefree smile.

  Meanwhile, Erick could barely contain Gur’s advance.

  — "Damn it, I can’t even get close to him…"

  The enormous golem continued its devastating attacks while Erick and Louis did their best to defend themselves.

  — You’re skilled, but you chose to hide it for so long. Why? — Gur said as his smaller golem attacked Rose relentlessly.

  Rose, already visibly exhausted, tried to dodge the attacks. Her breathing was heavy, but the fury in her eyes did not wane.

  — Tch! You’ll pay for everything you did to me and Lilith! — Rose declared, consumed by rage.

  The smaller golem struck her hard, throwing her violently against several trees.

  — Rose-nee! — Lilith screamed, running toward her sister.

  Rose struggled to get up as the smaller golem grabbed her. Gur approached, holding her chin with disdain.

  — You should be grateful I spared you and your sister. Working in that bar was a favor. Otherwise, you’d both be dead by now.

  — You… damn old bastard…

  The golem began crushing her slowly, and screams of pain echoed through the field.

  Suddenly, an electric attack was launched toward Gur, who managed to dodge at the last moment.

  — Let her go! — Erick shouted, his clothes in tatters but his determination intact.

  — What?! How did you get past Murahura?! — Gur asked, incredulous.

  — It was tough, but we managed. Right, Louis?

  Louis appeared behind the smaller golem, managing to free Rose.

  — How is this possible?! — Gur shouted, surprised.

  — Your biggest mistake was creating such a big golem, old man. As they say, the bigger they are…

  With impressive speed, Erick attacked Gur, throwing him against several trees.

  — …the harder they fall!

  Lilith ran to Rose, who was in Louis’ arms.

  — Nee…

  — Don’t worry, she’s just unconscious. — Louis reassured her.

  The ground began trembling violently. Erick went on alert as Gur got up, his aura becoming even more intense.

  — I am Gur Herwolfys, the leader of this village. Do you really think I’ll lose to a mere human?!

  — Golem Transformation Magic: Albion!

  Rocks began covering Gur’s body, transforming him into a colossal golem, larger than the forest itself.

  — W-What a huge… — Erick said, swallowing hard.

  The giant attacked, creating a massive crater in the ground around them. Erick quickly checked on his allies.

  They nodded silently, but the fear was palpable. Erick clenched his fists, his strength starting to wane.

  — "Damn it… why did the captain send us on such a difficult mission?!"

  Erick finally made a decision.

  — Louis, take Rose and Lilith away from here. Now.

  — No! I can’t leave you alone again! — Louis protested, his voice heavy with painful memories.

  — I know… but this time, I need you all to be safe.

  — Lilith, go with him… — Rose said, waking up dazed.

  — Rose-nee, what about you? — Lilith asked, distressed.

  — I have unfinished business with this old man…

  Reluctantly, Louis and Lilith began to retreat.

  — Don’t die this time, Nii. — Louis said before disappearing into the forest.

  — I’ll try…

  Now, only Erick and Rose remained against Gur.

  — Hey, Rose… I wanted to apologize for trying to kidnap you before. I’m sorry. After this, can we be friends?

  Rose rolled her eyes and pushed away the hand Erick extended.

  — Hmph. I still hate you, human.

  — Ahhh… — Erick sighed, disappointed.

  Without more words, the two charged at Gur, dodging his devastating attacks. Rose used her feline abilities to climb the gigantic golem’s arm.

  — Get off my arm!

  Golem Gur raised his massive hand, destroying trees and rocks around him. But Rose didn’t stop. With swift steps, she ran up the steep path without hesitation.

  Several mini golems emerged from the arm where Rose was and began attacking her. She struggled, as more mini golems appeared every moment.

  — Tch, damn it…

  Rose noticed another arm coming toward her, ready to crush her. With an agile movement, she jumped onto that arm and, without losing momentum, kept running, skillfully dodging the mini golems’ attacks. Every move was precise until she finally reached the top of the golem’s head.

  — So this is where you are.

  She broke part of the golem’s head, revealing Gur inside.

  — You…!

  Gur emerged from the golem and started fighting Rose.

  — Do you think only my golems are strong?!

  Gur unleashed a series of heavy blows toward Rose, who struggled to dodge. Her movements were fast and precise, but she was having difficulty keeping up with Gur’s speed and strength.

  — “He’s too strong!”

  Rose was struck hard, being thrown onto the golem’s shoulder. Dazed, she tried to recover while Gur glared at her with eyes full of hatred, his fury overflowing.

  — After I kill you, I’ll kill your little sister too.

  Rose smiled.

  — Hm? What’s so funny? — Gur asked, surprised by her reaction.

  — Don’t you think you’re forgetting someone?

  Gur felt a great surge of energy and quickly looked up, seeing Erick with his hand pointed at him.

  — Lighting Magic: 100-Volt Power!

  A massive surge of electricity struck Gur from above, enveloping him in a blinding light. The impact was so powerful that Gur fell unconscious, while his immense golem began to break apart, collapsing in pieces around him.

  — We actually did it! — Rose said excitedly.

  However, her happiness vanished when she saw Erick falling unconscious.

  — Human! — Rose exclaimed, running quickly toward him.

  After a few minutes, Erick woke up, still dazed from extreme exhaustion. Louis and the others sighed in relief at seeing him awaken.

  — Nii! — Louis said, hugging Erick.

  — Did we… win?

  — Hmph, of course, you idiot.

  Rose crossed her arms.

  —Well... now that we’ve defeated him, have you changed your mind about coming with us? — Erick asked hopefully.

  Rose was about to refuse, but Lilith held her hand firmly, determined to support whatever decision her sister made.

  —Ah... alright... we’ll go...

  Erick, unable to contain his joy, jumped with happiness and hugged her, causing Rose’s face to turn red immediately.

  —You!!...

  "After Gur’s 'defeat,' Erick, Louis, and their new companions headed toward the Paths’ base. Upon arriving, they found Cosmo sitting calmly, sipping his tea near the Paths.

  —Ah! Young Erick, I see you managed to complete the mission… Huh? — Cosmo furrowed his brows, confused, as he noticed Erick’s face covered in claw marks. —What happened to you, boy?

  —It’s a long story, Captain...

  —Hmph!

  Rose crossed her arms while Louis and Lilith exchanged small chuckles.

  In the forest, after Gur regained consciousness, he found himself facing a hooded man sitting atop a tree.

  —Who… are you? — Gur asked warily.

  —…You’re going to tell me everything you know about Cosmo and those two boys.

  —…And if I refuse?…

  In the blink of an eye, his foot was severed, and Gur collapsed to the ground, groaning in pain as blood spilled everywhere.

  —I’ll tell you, I swear! — he pleaded.

  —Good...

  Some time later, a village woman was walking through the forest when a strange sound made her stop. As she approached, she witnessed a horrifying scene. The village leader, Gur, was disfigured, his body shredded and strewn across multiple trees like a grotesque decoration. His entrails hung from the branches, twisted into ropes of flesh.

  The woman screamed in horror, but before she could react, her head was brutally torn off, blood gushing as her lifeless body fell to the ground.

  —I’m coming, Cosmo…

  Like a shadow in the wind, the hooded man vanished, evaporating without leaving a trace.