[Are we there ye~t?]

[Not yet, master.]

[Just how far is it again....?] [I’m tired~!]

[How can you be tired when you’ve been carried by Vram for a week?]

[Well I’m tired of being carried piggyback like this!]

[Then walk.]

[No way!] [I’m tired!!]

As the two girls keep bickering against each other, the group are in the middle of traversing inside a cave. A pitch-black cave that sized over 2 meters in diameter, covered with many shiny reddish stone that’s covering the whole cave. It was so sturdy that no amount of fighting there would cause damage to it.

[Even if our village’s location is near the redline, the border that cover between the safe region in this continent is actually more huge than what you’d expect.] [That’s why I told you to secure some kind of transportation device.]

As she was in the middle of speaking, Hildegarde currently enjoy lying down on some kind of platform with some cushion on top of it, while having Hougo below her lifting her gently while moving inside the cave like some kind of vehicle.

[... I don’t really want to treat Vram that way, though.]

[Geez, you should really use them as you see fit.] [You may see your own familiar as your lover, but when it comes down to it, they really are someone who will fulfill our every need.]

[No thank you.]

[Though well....] Hilda then shifted her gaze somewhere else. [Someone else do need another help right now.]

As Hilda says that, both Josephine and Vram also looked back seeing another person whom looked like he was about to die at any minute.

[*Zeh...! *Zehh...!!!]

With an unsteady walk, Rud can barely keeps his eye open as he walk toward the other group as Yohn can only walk beside him wondering.

[With you being like this, people might mistaken you as a zombie.]

[Sh... shut... up...!] Feeling remorsed, Rud can only retord half-heartedly.

[Still though....] Yohn then start to leave Rud all by himself and catch up toward Hilda and Josephine. [Why are we the only group that has to go?] [I mean, the area beyond this cave was supposed to be deadly right?] [Shouldn’t we bring more people?]

[A hastily group made of too many people will end up worse.] [For starters, we Frontier Unit rarely work in a group, and usually only rely on our familiar.] [And considering surviving is the 1st priority, having less people means that we don’t have to take special care toward our companion.]

[E... eeeh?!?!] Josephine suddenly reacted in surprise hearing Hilda’s explanation. [But what about when I went together with Senior Hilda, Chris, as well as Rosa??]

[It was to train you.] [You think the circles can just letting you roam free like that?] [Though in your case, it somehow become a special private training.]

[I... is that so...?]

Josephine can only scratch her hair slowly while Hilda can only slam her head with her palm.

***

[AN EXIT!!!]

Screaming with excitement, Josephine jumped from Vram’s back.

[Wait, you idiot!]

As Jospehine was about to run straight toward the exit, her neck was roughly grabbed by Hilda. Or to be exact, she was being strangled.

[*GHUHEH!]

[What are you thinking, charging straight ahead by yourself?!] [That place is different than the place we usually hunt as Frontier, you know!!!]

[I’m sorry.]

[*sigh*....] [For now, can you and Yohn wake up that red haired undead over there ?] [I’m going to reorganize our equipment.]

[Sure~!]

As Josephine and Yohn quickly went straight toward Rud whom have been unconscious for long, Hilda and Vram start to reorganize their preparation.

[Lady Hilda.]

[Yes?]

[This may be a little bit late for me to ask.] [But why do we have more than a month’s worth of food provision?] [We have a fairy to tell us her rough location, right?] [I don’t think It’d take a month or so....]

[Considering we don’t know what would happen, overdoing it for a bit won’t hurt that much.] [At any rate....] Hilda then glare straight toward Vram. [No matter what, never let your guard down, make sure Josephine’s unharmed, and if by any chance things were too dangerous, we’ll retreat even if your master refuses to.]

[Alright.] Vram just nodded convincingly toward Hildegarde.

[Good.] [Alright then, time to change our equipment.]

[He...?]

***

*BLAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

[GYAAAAA!!!]

[DON’T SCREAM RIGHT AT MY EAR, YOU DAMNED MICE!]

[THEN START RUNNING FASTER!!!]

[I’M ALREADY RUNNING FAST!!!]

[GET DOWN!!!]

Just as Vram screamed, he was ready to aim toward one of the monsters that has been chasing rud restlessly with his giant bow and spear arrow.

*BVVWASHHHHH!!!!!

*JCHRACK!!!!!

[*KHIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKK!!!!!]

And hitting it straight at its head. A flying creature with long beak and small horn on its forehead, and a kite-like exoskeleton wing with a long body but short legs.

[*SCREEEEEEEEEEECH!!!]

[Vram!] [Another one’s coming! Above!!!!]

As Josephine screamed the monster’s location, another monster jump and was about to pounce Vram. As it does so....

*JRASSSSSH!!!!

Vram already released the bow from his hand and pierce it with a lance from his storage. He then kicked the monster that’s still hanging on the lance down toward the ground, then start to aim his throw toward his own master.

[He?]

*BWASSSSSH!!!

And He throw it.

*JRAAASH!!!!!

[*KHIEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAK!!]

Or to be exact, right behind Josephine.

[Master, I suggest that you put out some kind of barrier to protect yourself and Rud.] [That way, you don’t have to risk yourself being taken down by these monsters.]

Rud and Josephine can only stay silent, unable to express their feeling.

[I’m confused now, which ones are the monster. You or them.] Yohn suddenly retorting to their current situation right now.

[Technically and literally, I’m also a monster.]

Not long after a 5 minutes walk from the cave that lies on the redline, the group was ambushed by some kind of flying monster, presumably a dragon. Unable to react and land a proper counterattack, Hildegarde suggesting us to separate ourselves for a bit and meeting up later with the help of the fairies.

[But still....] [Even with all these equipment and robes, this place feels too cold...!] [What’s with these water particles and wind....] [The amount is too much... I can barely control my own mana...!] Josephine protests as she was trying her best to maintain a barrier while shivering all over.

[Can’t... move....!] Rud then collapsed on the floor while shivering a lot.

[YO YOU RUDE IDIOT!!] [IF YOU SLEEP HERE, YOU’RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO MOVE AN INCH!!] [YOU CAN’T EVEN DIE, SO DON’T SLEEP!!!!]

[Vram!] [We need to regroup with Hilda!] [She should know a way to restore Rud’s condition!!]

Vram didn’t respond toward Josephine. Not because he doesn’t want to, but he was sensing something weird.

[The monster’s stopped being hostile.] [What does this mean...?]

Then suddenly....

*BAM!!!

*BAM!!!!

*BAMM!!!!

Following some strange noise, the ground have been trembling this whole time.

[Something’s coming!]

As Josephine and Vram still staying inside the snowy praire, some kind of creature are shaking the trees that was about 4-5 meters tall.

[*GRROOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!]

A monster. With a feet big enough to stomp Vram flat, a thick, burly body full of scales and spikes covering it as well as its mouth are somehow quite long. Some kind of Lizard.

[Whoa...!!] Yohn can only gasps in awe seeing such monsters standing before them. [That monster looked strong...!]

[B... but usually a monster as big as that move slow, so I think Vram would be okay, right?]

Just as Josephine’s saying that....

[*GHRIEEEEEEE!!!!]

The monster charged while roaring at an unimaginable speed.

[Guh!]

As the monster was about to bite Vram, he was barely able to dodge the attack by rolling sideways. But then as soon as Vram finishes rolling, Vram notices something’s weird.

*VWOOSSSH!!

The monster tried to brake its movement while moving its tail as if to strike Vram with its tail.

[Hrgh!!!]

*BHANK!!!

Vram quickly pulled a small shield from his storage and parried the tail swing, forces him to see face to face again with the monster.

[WHAT IN THE...!?!?!?] [How can he move that fast despite being so huge!?!] [That’s unfair!!!!]

[So this is why they said that an area beyond the RedLine are something that one should never cross....]

As Josephine and Yohn can only stay silent while being protected by the barrier Josephine made, Vram tried to be cautious toward the monster. But just then....

*BDHAMM!!!!!

Something is falling from the sky. A woman with a giant stone was suddenly flew right behind Vram.

[*cough* *cough*...!!] [I can’t believe that I can barely unleash most of my fire magic here...!] [The environment was harsher than I thought.]

[Senior Hilda?!?!] [Are you okay?!?!]

It was Hilda and Hougo, whom were falling together somehow in a praire in the middle of snowy forest.

[Don’t worry, naked idiot!] [In term of experience, these kinds of injury is nothing!] [Though I can’t really say the same regarding the environment....]

Not long after the two finally met....

[*SGGHRRRRAAOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

*BDHAM!!!!!

Another creature came from the sky. It has a crystal wings with crystal horn quite longer on its face, and a scale covering its whole body. A wyvern-kind.

[Ugh... persistent bastard...!!]

[Wait, Lady Hilda.] [That dragon seems different than the ones whom ambushed us.]

[It called its comrade right before dying.] [I barely remember how many of those flying lizard that I’ve defeated before I decided to blow myself up to flew here.]

[That’s one extreme method you choose for running away....] [Still though, if you experience the same kind of symptomps, I suggest that you hide inside that barrier together with Master Josephine.]

[You’re saying that I’m going to slow you down?]

[At the very least, you’ll worry Hougo and make him unable to unleash his true power.]

[Nggh...!]

Hilda’s face redden as he saw Hougo, feeling weird.

[... You’ll win right, Hougo?]

As Hilda asks her own familiar, Hougo suddenly turns bright. So bright that not even a snowstorm can hide the lights.

[[*GHRRR!!!!!]]

The two giant monsters that was about to charge somehow backed down, sensing something’s weird about Hougo.

[Naked Idiot!]

[Y... yes?!?!]

[FEAST YOUR EYES ON THIS!!!] [MY NEWLY REBORN FAMILIAR, HOUGO’S NEW FORM!!!!]

*GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

The light shine even brighter and at the same time....

*JYAAAASH!!!!!

The rock that’s made up Hougo’s body splits. Or to be exact, it seems exploded and spreaded. But the fragment was stopped midway as each fragment start to collecting itselfs on a separate light orb. The fragment then started to shape differently into 12 parts.

[REBOUND AND REJOIN!] [REPEL AND ATTRACT!] [BURN EACH PARTS AS IF EACH FRAGMENTS OF YOURS ARE A LIVING BEING!]

Then 11 of the 12 parts joined into each other differently into 6 parts.

[Ah...?!?!]

Josephine realized, the 6 parts was made of head, torso, hands, and legs.

[COMBINE INTO ONE LIVING BEING!] [THE ULTIMATE GOLEM OF HEAT!]

*JYAAAAAAASH!!!

The 6 parts then finally joined together, creating another kind of golem that has different shape than a normal Golem. The appearance is pretty much taking a human shape, with the difference being the face completely covered with some kind of glass visor. In each parts of its body, 12 orbs, with the core orbs lies in its head, shine brightly.

[Guess it’s time for me to get serious too!]

And Vram also readied himself as another redline marks appearing on his whole body.

***

[Wh....]

Josephine can only stand silently. Seeing some kind of absurd situation right in front of her.

[*GHRROOOOOO!!!]

The Lizard monster was charging something in its mouth. It was about to release some kind of breath attack toward Vram.

[WOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]

Following his warcry, Vram throwing his spear toward the Lizard monster in front of him as he charges straight toward it. As the lizard monster was about to unleash its breath attack....

*JRASSSH!!!

[*GHYOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]

It screamed in pain from having the spear pierced the inside of its mouth. At the same time, Vram whom have already went closer to the monster then taking out another spear that had some kind of weird black ornament on its tip. Without pausing for a bit, he pierces the lizard monster’s leg.

*JYASSH!!!

*BGHLARRRRRR!!!!!

Following the piercing sound, the tip of Vram’s spear somehow explode and causes the monster’s leg to flail and start to fall on its side.

*BDHAM!!!!

Not wasting anymore time, Vram releases his spear and pulled his greatsword, a sword with red, flaming ornament on it. As the red line in his body touches the sword, the sword then emits a strong fire aura as Vram start to slice through the monster’s thick scales with it.

[*SCGHREEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!]

On another side, the crystal wyvern start unleashing its crystal fragment on its wing and scale toward the air, raining fast toward Hougo. But....

*JYAAAASSH!!!

The moment the crystal fragment was about to hit Hougo, some kind of protection magic was protecting it from hitting Hougo directly. Thousand of those crystal fragment raining down toward Hougo, yet Hougo hasn’t even scratched as he keeps hovering fast toward crystal wyvern.

[*KHAAAAAAA!!!]

Then the Crystal Wyvern prepares its breath attack as well, raising its head upward, then flailing it toward Hougo

*JYASSH!!!!

A giant crystal spear was moving straight toward Hougo. But Hougo still keeps hovering forward as his right hand shining bright, preparing some kind of strike. Then....

*BVWASSH!!!!!!

Hougo strike the crystal spear with his fiery heat fist, melting the crystal spear altogether and keeps hovering fast without slowing down at all. As he finally gets closer, Hougo’s left hand shines brightly as he flail it toward the Crystal Wyvern’s head.

*BLHARRRRR!!!!

The impact causes some kind of explosion that it flinches the Crystal Wyvern. And yet, Hougo didn’t stop. He keeps striking the Crystal Wyvern back and forth with its two hands alternatively.

[WHAT IS THIS I DON’T EVEN...?!?!?!!] Josephine ended up retorting for her lack of word to express the situation that happens before her eyes.

[What now, naked idiot?] [Just because Hougo does better in a fight doesn’t allow you to scream so loud like that.] [It’s unsightly.]

[NO!] [I MEAN, WHAT IS THAT?!?!] [I NEVER HEARD A MAGIC THAT LETS YOU REPEL AND ATTRACT ONE OBJECTS TOWARD ANOTHER LIKE THAT!!!!!] [THE PRINCIPLES ARE UNHEARD OF!!!] [BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, HOUGO USES MAGIC?!?!!?] [HOW COME?!?! HOW COME HOUGO CAN USE MAGIC AS MUCH AS HE PLEASES LIKE THAT?!?!?]

[Calm down, hey.]

[I CAN’T CALM DOWN!!] [HOW SLY OF YOU SENIOR TO HIDE THIS KIND OF MAGIC FROM EVERYONE ELSE!!!] [SENIOR, YOU CHEAP!!!!]

[Wh....] [Don’t call me cheap!!!] [Besides, your blackhemy was also unheard of in terms of what our knowledge has!] [You’re the cheap one!!!!!]

[NO I’M NOT!!] [BESIDES, ONLY VRAM CAN USES BLACKHEMY SO IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU OR HOUGO!]

[And that mechanism of magic only works with Hougo too!] [I once tried to do it myself and failed hard, so it also has nothing to do with you!!!!]

[[Grrrrrrrrr!!!]]

The two girls of each familiars that was in the middle of dueling to the death somehow bickering each other in a barrier that was managed with some kind of magic tool.

[Umm... you two....] Yohn somehow worried seeing those two that he feels that he must stop them. [Your familiar are in the middle of fight, so can you two....]

[[YOU STAY OUT OF THIS!!!!]]

Upon being rejected by the two girls, Yohn looked down as he moved toward where Rud collapsed and curled under him. Just then, the two monster somehow started to retaliate.

[*SCHREEEEEEEEEEE!!!!]

The wyvern somehow jumped backward while flapping its wing once. Though the force of its wind is quite strong, it isn’t strong enough to knock Hougo back. But just then....

*FWAP!

*BRHACK!!!!!

The monster does a backflip and strikes Hougo back with its tail. The attack was coming too fast that Hougo can barely hold the attack completely and ended up thrown back.

[*GHROOOOOOOO!!!]

*BDHAM!!!

On the other hand, the monster that was lying on the ground while receiving Vram’s attack somehow jumped with its stomach and flipping its body to stand back. And without pausing, it started to swing its front mouth closed, with its jaw full of spikes.

[Urgh!!!]

Realizing its attack, Vram readied its Giant Shield to confront it, but....

*BRDHAK!!!!

The shield was crushed to bits as Vram also thrown back far, collided with Hougo.

[Grrh...!] [These monsters is not something both of us can deal each.] [Should we retreat...?]

Vram tried to ask Hougo for his opinion, but Hougo somehow rotate his head left and right, disagreeing with Vram.

[As expected....] [Even if we tried to retreat, these guys will keep chasing us.] [And Master Josephine would hate the idea of us running away.]

Vram then tried to stand up and reaching for something in his storage as Hougo charges another of his attack in his left hand. Just then, the two monster at each side are starting to charge its breath attack.

[I guess we have to use our strongest trump card for it, then...!?]

Vram pulled out his favorite giant bow as well as its lance, shaped spirally with some kind of rotating gimmick on its base while equipped with some kind of crystal, then arching the bow and placed the spear on its center. Hougo then transfered his charged mana toward the light orb on its left hand, and gestured his left hand toward its enemy, while spreading its leg widely.

[*GHROAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!]

[*SCGREEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!]

*BVWAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!!

The two monster unleashed their breath attack together while both of the two witch whom were supposed to looking out to them are still bickering.

[[OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!]]

*BVVWAAAAAAAAASH!!!!

Letting out their strongest warcry. Vram and Hougo both unleashed their attack together. Vram’s spear flew fast toward the lizard monster’s mouth as he releases his hand from the bow string, recoiled the spear fast. Though somehow, Vram’s spear has its tip rotating fast while flying toward its target. While Hougo shoot its gauntlet, or to be exact, his whole left arm with some kind of explosion magic and causes its arm to flew fast toward its enemy. Weirdly enough, the flying gauntlet keeps flying straight and quite fast despite its weird rock-like shape.

The two attack somehow pierces through the center of each monsters’ breath attack. The rotation that Vram’s spear has completely erasing the lizard monster’s breath attack while dispersing it. And Hougo’s arm completely blocked the wyvern monster’s breath attack with its barrier that completely covered its arm. Not long after, the weapon pierces both monsters’ mouth.

[[Eh?]]

Noticing something amiss, the two then turned their head back toward Vram and Hougo, but just then.

*BHLAAAARRRRRRRRR!!!!!

The inside of both monster exploded. The explosion wasn’t small either, it was big enough to fry the monster’s inside.

[Yosh!]

Both Vram and Hougo clenches their fist, declaring their victory over the two great monster.

[[DON’T ‘YOSH’ ME!!!!]] [[WHAT HAVE YOU TWO DONE?!?!?!?]]

Hilda and Josephine somehow erasing their barrier and started to run toward Hougo and Vram, looking furious and confused.

[Huh...!?]

Just then, Vram and Hougo realizes something. Many monsters are starting to move and aim for the two witch that has become careless and the collapsed human in front of them.

[Dang it!] [Hougo, take your master away!] [I’ll take Master Josephine and Rud!!]

Nodding, Hougo started to dash and grab Hilda in a blink of an eye while Vram still trying to grab both Josephine and Rud with his arms.

*GHRAOOOOO!!!

Some kind of monsters roared and jumped toward the immobile Vram that’s trying to grab Yohn and Rud, but then....

*BSHAAAA!!

Hougo released some kind of laser from his head, hit the monster in mid-air. Feeling relieved, Vram quickly grab Yohn and Rud while quickly moving away from the place. The two witches was unable to process what was happening to them and can only surrendering themselves to their reliable partner.