Chapter Text
“Looks like the Lords of Heaven and Hell are finally gonna get what’s coming to them,” A lithe man said, leaning against a throne of pure onyx metal.
The man on the throne, made of metal himself, like an automata, scowled at the man besides him as they watched the carnage unfold amongst the many Floors that Momo and Izuku tore through.
“Your mouth betrays you more than you betray others.”
“Well I’ve never betrayed you,” the Lithe Man pointed out.
“But it is how you ended up as a bounty for all of the Monarchs and Rulers, Stain.”
“These two are worth it…” Stain muttered, smiling at the display, “Something about them is so… pure…”
The metal man rolled his eyes. “And they too will realize the burden of a king. Then they will become impure.”
“Just because you failed does not mean others will, Raia.” Stain rebuked.
“History never repeats itself the exact same way… but it does repeat itself. We’ve been around long enough to prove that theorem.”
“Then why help?” Stain asked.
Raia shrugged. “Because my people come first, and even if I don’t believe in them, I must take this risk on the Shadows, for the sake of my kingdom… my family…”
Stain chuckled. “Now that’s a true Hero.”
Raia’s lips twisted into a messy smirk, “Oho. You and I both know I’m not even close to a Hero.” The magical display changed as Izuku and Momo reached a new floor. “I’m just a King.”
*******
[You have gained 10 Levels!]
[1,523 Noble Tenebris Souls]
[Floor 50]
“Well this has almost been boring,” Izuku said as they prepared to siege the 50th Floor, about a third of the way to their destination.
“I too am… surprised,” Quorra remarked. “Your strength is more than we could’ve possibly imagined.”
“We gave you a poor showing at first huh?” Momo asked, referring to their encounter with the Lux.
“It did give a distinctly different impression,” The Angel admitted. “We knew you were effective combatants, but your first fights with the Lux and Tenebris betrayed your true potential.”
So far, every Floor had been a repeat of the first city they Raided, just without a Boss of any kind. But all they really needed to do was destroy the artillery towers to cause the rest of the Tenebris to dissolve back into a Soul, which Merix referred to as a Spiritual Form.
And despite traversing 35 Floors, they didn’t get many Souls or Levels, likely due to the ease at which they fought.
Izuku would never complain about something being easy. He hadn’t been handed many easy moments in his life, but it made him concerned for the future of the Dungeon. If they didn’t acquire enough strength, they wouldn’t be able to face the Lux. On the opposite end of that, the ease of the previous Floors could have meant that the coming Floors would be anything but easy.
Izuku didn’t know a ton about video games, but he knew that certain milestones led to a marked increase in difficulty. The 50th Floor seemed like it would be one of those milestones.
“How long have we been in here?” Izuku asked. Time, without a clock or sunlight, was pretty difficult to calculate inside of Gates. Some mechanical watches worked inside Gates, but they usually were broken during fights. Thankfully, someone like Momo was able to keep a pretty good track of that sort of thing.
“Well, assuming time doesn’t move differently inside this Gate, we’ve only been in here for about… six or eight hours?”
Izuku shook his head. “Feels like days… But if you’re right, and you almost always are, then the Jeju Raid shouldn’t start for another 48 hours right?”
“Something like that,” She responded. “Why? Are you nervous about it?”
Izuku nodded. “The longer we’re in here the more I think about what Iida said.”
“What?” Momo thought for a moment. “Oh! You mean when he said we weren’t properly using our strength to benefit others?”
“Yeah.”
“To be fair, we did ask Takashi to put that ‘Agent’ he mentioned on the Raid. He said they were close to National-Rank. And we are on our own rescue mission here.”
“Yeah…” Izuku repeated. “Just a gut feeling…”
Momo winced at that. As much as her intellect proved sound, Izuku’s instincts did the same. If he believed the Jeju Raid was going to go badly, there was a good chance it would. But unfortunately, there was no changing their path. They were already too deep into the Raid and couldn’t exit it as far as they were aware. Both their course, and the courses of the Korean and Japanese Raiding groups had been set. It was up to fate to decide from there on out.
“This is… different,” Izuku realized as a set of stairs appeared before them. Rather than a fortified gate, it was just a plain old twisting staircase. “Definitely a Boss of some sort.”
“Then let’s make sure our Ranks are full.” Izuku nodded at Momo.
““Arise.””
[Kerris Lvl. 1 - Elite-Knight Grade]
[Gorgon Lvl. 1 - Elite-Knight Grade]
[305 Noble Tenebris Lvl. 1 - Elite-Knight Grade]
Noble Tenebris looked similar to standard Tenebris, except their forms were bulkier, as opposed to the slightly skeletal appearance of their lesser brethren. Kerris appeared to be little more than a Noble Tenebris himself, which made sense given how weak he was. As for the final Shadow…
“A Gorgon?” Izuku thought back for a moment. “Oh… I completely forgot about that.”
When the Gate by the hospital broke, Izuku and Momo had torn through it, even mopping up the Boss with the help of the strongest Shadows. It was a Gorgon, with the bottom half of a snake, top half of a woman, and hair made of vipers.
She was memorable because of how weak she was. Her Skill, Mana Shield, gave her a lot of tank potential by using Mana to negate damage, but she didn’t have a lot of Mana to begin with. And without her Skill to protect her, her skin was basically made of paper.
To an A or even S-Rank Hero, it was a deadly boss, but that was because there were usually only ten or so members per Raid. But with hundreds of Shadows wailing away on the Gorgon, her Mana vanished almost instantly.
[Error, Mana Shield incompatible with Shadow Extraction]
[Mana Shield has been reintegrated as Mana Void]
*******
[Skill: Mana Void]
- Passive Skill
- Mana Cost: 0 Mana Cost.
- Description: Gorgon now converts 95% of damage done to her to Mana, redistributing it to the Shadow Monarch.
*******
“That’s… helpful…”
“Well, any damage done to her would add Mana rather than subtract it. So if she’s the only Shadow out, she’s truly immortal,” Momo concluded. “Looks like she’s the consummate tanker of the Shadow Army.”
“Her only real counter would be ignoring her in lieu of targeting other Shadows or us,” Izuku added. “But that requires at least some Skill detection and intelligence.”
“Should probably give her a name,” Momo said, to which she winced.
“What?”
“Izuku… I know what your first thought was when I said that.”
Izuku averted his eyes. “There’s no way you could know-”
“Your first instinct was to name her Medusa.”
“...”
Momo sighed. “We’re no good with names.”
“Hmm… Mana Void… We could name her Null?” Izuku suggested.
The giant snake lady perked up as the name was suggested, and she slithered over to Izuku, coiling her body in circles around him lovingly.
“I think she likes it,” Momo said, “And I think I should be jealous,” She added jokingly.
Izuku tentatively laid a hand on the shimmering shadow of Null’s lower half, sending a ripple up her body as her scales moved in accordance.
“Okay she got a little too happy from that,” Momo said, gesturing for the group to get a move on. “Reminds me of the staircases from SAO.” She noted as she took the first few steps.
Izuku chuckled, remembering his own comparison he made to Sword Art Online inside the Job Change Dungeon. “Maybe the System is a fan of anime.”
“Wouldn’t that be nice.”
Izuku tilted his head as he followed Momo from behind. “How do you mean?”
“We’re all the main characters of our own stories. So that means we’re main characters, with the System guiding us. The main characters always get random power-ups in anime.”
“I’m not a fan of what you’re implicating,” Izuku said, “ Because it would mean we have no free will.”
Momo winced, being perfectly familiar with a lack of free will. “I didn’t mean to get that deep into it.”
“You humans have odd conversations,” Quorra commented.
“We do,” Izuku agreed, leaving it at that, instead focusing his attention upwards. “Wow… this place is gonna be a bit bigger than the previous cities.”
“Yeah, it feels similar to the size of the Demonic Tokyo. But… is it empty?”
“Very few structures… no movement… Odd…”
Momo glanced back at Merix and Quorra. “The end of the staircase is just up ahead. Maybe you two should stay back.”
“Why?” Merix growled, his mind already twisting with insinuations.
“We don’t know what’s up ahead, and no offense, but neither of you are as strong as us or as immortal as our Shadows.” Izuku held his hands up in placation as he saw Merix scowl in anger. “It’s not worth us reaching your daughter if both of you are dead.”
“I won’t sit idly by whilst others risk their lives for my responsibilities,” Merix spat.
“Do you have a problem with us all of the sudden?” Momo asked innocently. “Was it just our encounter with Vexor or is there something-”
“My husband’s past is just as fraught with strife as my own, if not more so. We all deal with our memories in different ways,” Quorra explained, doing her best to end the hostilities.
“We know all about that, trust us,” Momo retorted. “And we are here to help you. So let’s not try to snap at each other’s throats.”
Merix averted his eyes, putting one hand to his forehead, as if he was suffering from a headache. “Sorry…” He grumbled.
“Apology accepted,” Izuku responded immediately. “Now, together , let’s see what’s up top,” He said, making sure Momo didn’t try to keep them below once more.
She nodded and took the final steps up into the mostly dark cavern.
As Izuku emerged behind her, he spotted the dozens of ruins that his Sense Stat had picked up on. Half toppled buildings, similar to the artillery towers, as well as many other decaying structures that he didn’t recognize. Possibly houses, or military barracks? Although some did look too large for such a purpose. It made Izuku wonder if the Tenebris had things like bathhouses or recreational centers. They seemed to be a species that indulged in the finer things, or at least the nobility did.
In the previous caves, the ceiling had been so high up that it felt like it wasn’t even there to begin with, but it was still visible thanks to Izuku and Momo’s Sense Stat giving them great vision. However, in this cavern, it was just an endless abyss of darkness above them. It was impossible to see the ceiling and it made them wonder if it existed at all.
“You ever seen footage of World War 2?” Momo asked. “Of what the houses look like after air raids?”
Izuku simply nodded, knowing what she was getting at.
They stood back to back, scanning the cavern for any sign of danger as Merix and Quorra emerged from the staircase… which promptly slammed shut behind them.
“No way out,” Izuku noted, not spotting any other doors in the cavern walls. It wasn’t like his plan was to run, they were here to kill everything after all, but Izuku was the type of person to take note of emergency exits in a movie theater when the pre-show told him to. He was mature enough to know that running and living for another day was not shameful.
HURRRGH
A strange gurgling noise echoed off the walls from above.
Izuku and Momo looked up to see the belly of a large worm-like being dart in and out of the darkness, flying along the edge of the Monarchs’ vision. It was like a leviathan peeking out from the depths of the ocean to scare away fishermen.
“Come Forth.”
“Tusk! Tank!”
The Orc Shaman used his Hymns to buff the Ice Bears, allowing their artillery to fly with nearly triple the power.
The icicle blasts flew into the darkness, exploding with incredible magic force, briefly illuminating the shape of something that was as long as an office building was tall.
“That’s… a really big wyrm.”
*******
Present Time: 10 Minutes Before the Jeju Raid
Takashi Arata stood inside the Safety Commission’s monitoring center, surrounded by about a hundred other people coordinating the Raid. Camera crews, satellite imaging, Villain monitoring, comm networks, and so on. There were a few other Commission heads, but Takashi was the highest ranking head present. The president himself purportedly didn’t have the stomach to watch the actual Raids, but he handled massive amounts of paperwork, so Takashi couldn’t complain.
“Sir, the helicopters are spinning up!”
“All naval systems are ready!”
“Real time satellite imaging is ready!”
“We’re getting multiple video angles! Porting them to the main display now!”
The screen in front of Arata lit up like a Christmas Tree, showing off dozens of different feeds. From the boats, from the satellites, and from the camera men on the helicopters. Because the Jeju Raid was so famous, the do-over was being broadcasted all over the world. It was something Takashi didn’t like, but the camera men were A-Ranks and they were responsible for themselves. If they got into trouble, it wasn’t the S-Ranks job to save them. They were there to eliminate the Nomu Queen and get out.
“I’m in position, Sir.”
Takashi reached up to his earpiece, which Lady Nagant was speaking into. She was already on the island, using a special cloak to hide her presence atop one of the decaying buildings in the city. It was one of the few Stealth items in existence, created by the Yaoyorozu company specifically for their strongest soldier.
“Just hold for now. Only intervene if the S-Ranks need you.”
“Copy.”
“Mister Arata?” A voice came from the command center’s door, which had a big “Keep Out” sign on it.
“Hey! This is restricted-” The man was cut off as Takashi rushed over to the door.
The woman at the door was one of his assistants. Not just that, but she was the assistant that knew about all of Takashi’s “cult” activity. Well, it wasn’t really a cult anymore with the elimination of the Yaoyorozu’s. It was more of an underground organization working to prevent the apocalypse.
Regardless, her presence in such a situation was critical, because she knew to intrude only if something was important. And also because she had access to information gathering methods that the Safety Commission didn’t, illegal methods.
“What is it?” Takashi asked, closing the door behind him as he came out into the hallway.
“I finally managed to pull Endeavor’s phone history. I even got some of the recordings of the calls. There’s one for the President himself.”
“Okay…” Takashi said, waiting for the reveal. After all, many S-Ranks had close relations with the Commission President and called occasionally.
“I’m sending the recording to your earpiece right now.”
Takashi listened intently as the two powerful men exchanged words in his ear. His eyes grew wider and wider as the call continued. He had known Endeavor was corrupt to some extent, but this was…
Takashi burst back into the Command Center, “GET ADMIRAL MORI ON THE LINE NOW!”
The men and women looked towards him in shock, “Sir? What’s-”
“DON’T LET ANYTHING TAKE OFF FROM THAT BOAT!”
They didn’t question him any further, looking to connect the necessary comms.
“Sir! We’ve got the Admiral on the line, but we can’t reach any of the aircraft! They’ve already lifted from the decks!”
Takashi’s face was white with stress. “Damn you… Endeavor…” If looks could kill, Takashi would’ve had the entire room on the floor clutching their chests in agony. “Nagant come in!” The line buzzed for a moment, but quickly turned to static. “Someone get me the president! Arrest him by any means necessary! That’s an order!”
*******
48 Hours Earlier: Inside the Gate
“Again! Continuous Fire!” Momo shouted, pulling a rifle from her skin and unloading at the dark shape.
The artillery bears launched magical barrage after magical barrage. But with how dark it was, it was impossible to get a clean hit.
Izuku channeled Mana into his gauntlets, creating a ball of pure light and sending it skyward, but it fizzled out in the darkness. Even with his armor bonuses and high intelligence Stat, the Omni-Elemental Gem was still D-Rank. It simply wasn’t strong enough to negate whatever darkness was blanketing the ceiling.
*******
[Skill: The Mist]
- Toggled Skill
- Mana Cost: 0 Mana Cost.
- Description: Causes a mist of darkness to blanket the area around the User. Also causes most targeted Skills, Spells, and assorted ranged attacks to miss more frequently.
*******
THOOMP THOOMP
“Artillery!” Izuku warned, as the sound reached him. It was no different than the artillery towers on other floors.
And yet, nothing impacted. Or at least, nothing exploded near them.
Instead, the ground was peppered with dozens of spheres, curled up like a Roly Poly. And as they unfurled, they revealed Tenebris.
*******
[Skill: Drop Pods]
- Active Skill
- Mana Cost: 0 Mana Cost.
- Description: The User can launch and deploy allies within armored shells.
*******
Izuku grumbled under his breath. “Igris, handle them. Behemoth, Null, make sure we’re covered.”
The knight nodded, taking some of the High Orcs and Tenebris Shadows under his command and leading them against the approaching hordes.
“We need more light. Quorra can you-”
FWOOOM
Behemoth smacked something out of the air with his hands just in the nick of time, sending it flying into a wall.
“What the hell?” Izuku looked up to see dozens upon dozens of fiery spheres raining down.
*******
[Skill: Indiscriminate Barrage]
- Active Skill
- Mana Cost: 5,000 Mana Cost per volley.
- Description: The User launches a hundred explosive shells containing Fire Magic. The shells cannot be aimed and instead fire in a scattershot pattern.
*******
“At least it can’t aim properly,” Izuku said, noting the third Skill in the Boss Villain’s arsenal. With Behemoth and Null the Gorgon forming a barrier around them, and with Igris and his forces tearing apart the attackers, Izuku had time to finish his question.
“Quorra how strong is your Light Magic? Can you dispel that mist?”
“To an extent. I can’t properly clear all of it, but I can focus on the creature itself to give your forces a clear shot.”
“Then that’ll be enough,” Momo said, casting aside her semi-auto rifle and beginning to construct a much larger rifle, an anti-material rifle that Izuku recognized.
“Merix, make me a portal under the creature.”
Merix nodded, building a swirling mass of magic in front of him, directing it towards the belly of the beast.
“Tusk! Give her the orb!” Izuku directed the Orc Shaman to Quorra, causing the Shadow to hand off the Orb of Avarice to double her magical power, and he also imbued her with a few other buffs from his arsenal. Now, she just needed to hit the mark.
“Portal’s ready in three…” Merix began counting down, stepping back far enough for his wife to get between him and the portal. “Two… One!”
Had Izuku looked directly at Quorra’s hands, he probably would’ve gone blind, but thankfully he had the foresight to avert his gaze and look towards the mist above him. It was far enough away that the light from the portal didn’t ruin his, nor Momo’s vision.
It illuminated the underside of a creature with heavy, overlapping plates of armor. It was no doubt durable, but it wasn’t built to withstand a magically enhanced Tank-Killing gun.
Momo wasted no time pulling the trigger and letting the bullet fly, cracking the armor on the underside of the beast.
Unbeknownst to Izuku or the others, Momo had created an explosive round which would expand out and create shrapnel within the creature’s body for maximum damage.
Almost instantly, the mist cleared and the Boss began to fall from the heights, unable to control itself whilst in such immense pain. It really did look like a Pill Bug, just with a few extra limbs that looked like flippers, presumably to let it float through the air.
As it flailed and fell, it released another volley of explosives, this one even more uncontrolled than the last, splattering its own forces and many of the Shadows in fiery magic. But only one of those groups would be standing back up. of course.
The Boss hit the ground with a sickening thud, but even still it got back to its feet. Again, it was like that of an insect, so its underside was covered in a disgusting amount of spindly legs.
The hole in its midsection was still leaking fluids and guts, but it intended to go down swinging.
*******
[Xessis, The Demon of Repulsion]
Rank: XS
Species: Tenebris Mutate
Skills: The Mist, Drop Pods, Indiscriminate Barrage
*******
“Apt name,” Momo commented, chambering another round as Izuku shot forwards, using Speedstrike and Echo Attack to accelerate to the speed of Momo’s bullets.
Instead of swiping with his scythe, Izuku reared back his gauntlets. If there was one rule about killing bugs, it was to crush them outright.
Xessis turned just in time to meet Izuku’s fist head-on. The first impact decimated half of its body, the Echo Attack made sure that the following ripple attack would turn the rest of it to mush.
[You have gained 5 Levels!]
[You have acquired Items!]
[Your Skills have Leveled Up!]
Izuku fell back to the ground as Igris and the Shadows cleaned up the rest of the Tenebris. At the same time, Izuku tried to clean himself up from all the bug guts hanging off of him… “Ugh… so gross…”
“You should’ve just let me shoot it,” Momo said with a disgusted grimace.
“Ah… I really should’ve… But I wanted to contribute…”
Momo laughed, throwing him a dozen towels to wipe himself off with. “I’m not kissing or hugging you until you get to take a shower.”
Izuku smiled deviously, thinking of how his sister would act in this situation. He spread his arms wide and jokingly wobbled at Momo, who shrieked and backed away. Out of the corner of his eyes, Izuku could see Merix and Quorra, the two smiling briefly amidst their struggles.
For just a moment, they forgot that they were all within some crazy hellish dimension.