Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody

While we were chasing giant rats in the labyrinth, we suddenly found ourselves in a dire situation—being hunted by a band of villains known as bandits.

"I'll charge in first. Everyone, follow me!" I whispered to my companions.

"No way. You’ll get killed if you go alone," Zaki warned.

Despite Zaki’s objection, breaking straight through the center was our only chance to survive.

“Oh, so scary! Make sure you don't let us hear your plans!” the bandit leader sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. The surrounding bandits laughed in the same mocking tone.

“That’s right! I just thought of something brilliant!” the leader declared as he ordered the other bandits back and stepped forward alone.

“If you can defeat me, I’ll let you go,” he taunted, tapping the blade of his sword against his palm and licking his lips as he stared at us.

“Let’s do this.”

“Yeah, there’s no other choice,” Gon said shakily, and Zaki nodded, nearly in tears.

We all grabbed our spears, took our stance, and charged forward together.

“Perfect! That’s the right move!” the leader laughed, flashing his sword. The spear tips of our weapons were suddenly sliced off.

We instinctively stopped, and the leader slowly raised his sword to strike, as if toying with us.

—Now.

I dropped my broken spear and, stepping forward, drew my dagger from my waist.

The leader’s sword swung down fast.

Before my dagger could reach him, that blade would cut me to pieces.

If I stayed like this.

I used my secret technique.

“—Earth Shrinking.”

A skill that should consume almost all my magic power just to move a couple of fists’ length.

But—dodging a single sword strike is possible.

The leader’s sword swung through empty air, and I slipped into his guard range, within dagger distance.

I aimed for his ribs and thrust—

My vision spun. I hit the ground, unprotected, falling sideways and rolling on the labyrinth floor.

What just happened?

I saw the leader raising his leg to kick. So I was kicked.

He switched his sword to hold it backward and stepped toward me.

My body was numb and I couldn’t move.

Gon and the others—no good. Their spears were broken and they’d lost the will to fight.

Only Rasa was trying to sneak away quietly.

That’s fine. Run, Rasa. At least you escape.

“You did well for a newbie. But I’m not stupid enough to be killed by a measly single-digit level weakling,” the leader sneered.

Is this how it ends? Here? Like this—

That despair was denied by her.

◇

“Ravna, go!” a delicate voice echoed against the dead-end walls.

“—Slash Rock Sword!”

A knight, sturdy as a mountain, swept across the bandits behind the leader with a mighty horizontal sword slash.

“The Knight of the Crag? Bandit hunters have arrived!” the leader grimaced, facing the knight.

Two aides wielding curved swords flanked the leader.

“Shiga Kingdom official sword technique—Secret Art ‘Cherry Blossom Flash’!”

Another knight clad in silver armor appeared with blinding speed, scattering pale pink petals of light, and knocked the leader’s sword away.

The second strike aimed at his neck was blocked by one of the aides with his curved sword.

“Tch, they even have ‘Geri the Prince of Flash’ here,” the leader muttered sourly.

Drawing his dagger, the leader leaped back as his aides attacked Geri.

“Address me properly, lowlife. My name is not to be used casually by the likes of you,” Geri snapped.

Four knights appeared behind him, cutting down the bandits blocking the passage one after another.

The knight who scolded the leader was plump but surprisingly strong.

“Get them, you bastards! Finish them off!” the leader shouted.

Bandits who had been watching from near the ceiling began dropping down.

The Knight of the Crag moved to protect his comrades.

They were safe now.

“Don’t rush ahead alone, Gelitz,” a beautiful girl wielding a slender sword appeared next to Geri, taking charge of one aide.

A plump knight cut down a bandit who tried to sneak up and attack the girl from behind.