DanmachiMC - Chapter 278: Loki Explodes

"Don't be so nervous, Haruhime." Tiona tried to comfort her from the side. "Awakening magic is totally random. It’s not something you can co

"Don't be so nervous, Haruhime."

Tiona tried to comfort her from the side.

"Awakening magic is totally random. It’s not something you can control in the first place. Honestly, not awakening the right magic is the norm, so don’t stress yourself out too much."

“Tiona’s right.”

Finn also agreed. Using a Grimoire to awaken magic was just a method to strengthen Haruhime, but it didn't diminish her own worth.

"Forcing a magic awakening through a Grimoire is a gamble. And with gambling, there’s always a chance of winning or losing. Even if it fails, it’s not a big deal—this is something we all understood from the start."

"Haruhime, even if you don’t awaken a suitable magic, you don’t need to worry too much."

Although Finn had placed his hopes on Haruhime, he didn’t want her to feel overly pressured.

Just as he said himself, gambling comes with risks. Since he chose to bet, he was also ready to accept the possibility of losing. Finn wasn’t someone who couldn’t handle defeat—he accepted the risk, and he didn’t want Haruhime to carry that burden alone.

“But...”

Even though Finn and the others had done their best to reassure her, Haruhime still couldn’t stop worrying.

Everyone could see it, but there was nothing more they could say. All they could do now was wait for her new magic to awaken.

"Knock, knock!"

At that moment, someone knocked on the office door.

Finn glanced at the people in the room and said, "Bell-kun, you can come in."

All the girls turned their eyes toward the door, and even Haruhime, who was under immense pressure, momentarily forgot her anxiety.

The door opened, and the boy walked in, still cloaked and hooded.

"As expected of you, Finn. You figured it was me."

"No. Everyone in the Familia knows we're having a meeting right now. Aside from Ais and Riveria, who haven’t returned yet, you’re the only one who’d show up."

"It’s a reasonable guess, but being able to respond that quickly is a quality I lack."

Despite Finn’s explanation, Bell still held him in high regard.

Knowing something is one thing, but reacting that quickly is another.

Finn didn’t refuse the compliment. Resting his chin on his hands, he looked at Bell.

"So, Bell-kun, are you here to deliver intel again?"

"Intel… I suppose you could call it that. Though it's not exactly new. It's information from three days ago—about the ‘Sword Princess’ and Vice Captain Riveria."

With a snap of his fingers, an image appeared in the center of the office.

"!?"

Everyone jumped to their feet in shock, even the normally composed Finn.

In the image, Riveria was holding Ais—covered in blood, missing her right arm and both legs.

For the entire Loki Familia, this was a devastating blow.

"Ais—what the hell happened to her!?"

Bete was the first to lose his composure. He stormed up to Bell, reaching out to grab his collar.

“Bete...!?”

Finn, quick to react, was about to stop him—only to be stunned by what happened next.

The moment Bete’s hand extended, his entire body froze in place, as if restrained by some invisible force.

"W-What’s going on!?"

It felt like an unseen hand was gripping him tightly. He couldn’t move an inch.

Bell didn’t explain right away. Instead, he looked calmly at the “Vanargand” before him.

“It’s not wrong to be upset seeing one of your Familia members injured. But next time, at least let me finish what I’m saying.”

“And besides—this isn’t exactly bad news. I came to offer Loki-sama some good news.”

“Good news?”

Loki’s shocked expression turned to fury. Seeing Ais broken and bloodied—arms and legs gone—there wasn’t a trace of joy in her. Her anger was ready to explode.

“You little—if you don’t explain this right now...”

“Stop! Rather than saying that to me, why not ask Captain Finn? He probably understands better than anyone why the ‘Sword Princess’ ended up like this.”

Before Loki’s wrath could turn on him, Bell cut her off and shifted the focus to the only other person in the room who knew the full story—Finn.

“Finn! What the hell happened!?”

Loki snapped at her own captain.

Ugh... my head’s starting to hurt.

Finn let out a bitter smile under Loki’s roar. He knew it—the bigger this blew up, the more it would fall on him.

Truthfully, the moment he saw Ais in that condition, his calm mind already pieced together what had happened.

But what he hadn’t expected... was that even with Riveria at her side, things would turn out like this.

“I think... Ais challenged the Floor Boss.”

“She challenged the Floor Boss!?”

Loki looked at Finn in disbelief. She hadn’t expected him to know what Ais had been doing—and even if he did, he still let her go?

That thought alone made her blood pressure spike.

“Finn, you let Ais and Riveria go up against the Floor Boss alone!?”

“Loki-sama, you might want to reconsider your wording. If they’d gone together, do you really think the ‘Sword Princess’ would be that badly injured?”

“She went alone!?”

Loki nearly blacked out. She challenged the Floor Boss on her own!?

If it had been a lower-level Floor Boss, Ais would’ve managed. But the kind of opponent that could reduce her to that state—and one she would voluntarily fight—there was only one possibility.

The Floor Boss of the 37th Floor. Lv.6 Udaeus.

Everyone knew—the Floor Boss on the 37th Floor wasn’t someone you fought alone. And Ais had gone in at Lv.5.

From Loki’s point of view, that wasn’t a challenge—it was suicide.

“Loki-sama, there’s no need to get so worked up. In the end, the fact that the ‘Sword Princess’ returned alive means she defeated the Floor Boss. That means Loki Familia now has another Level 6 adventurer—and our influence in Orario will only grow stronger.”

That statement was like pouring oil onto the fire already burning in Loki’s heart.

“Have you ever seen a Level 6 with missing arms and legs!? Am I supposed to be happy seeing Ais like that!?”

But Bell just chuckled.

“Loki-sama, you really are forgetful. Isn’t that right, Captain Finn?”

Called out, Finn covered his face in embarrassment. In the end, he had no choice but to remind the mentally frayed Loki.

“Loki... you didn’t forget about ‘Limb Regeneration,’ did you?”

...Huh?

At that moment, Loki’s raging mind came to a screeching halt. She froze, completely dumbfounded.