Sword Saint Story: Starting from Zero Attack Power ~After being abandoned by my childhood friend, the princess, I enrolls in a magic school and ends up making a contract with the Demon Lord~ Volume 1 Chapter 6

 Chapter 6: Eugene aims for the 20th floor

“Defeat the floor master boss of the twentieth floor.”

That’s what Leona-san said. Her answer didn’t surprise me. If anything…

“With this group, it should be a breeze, right?” 

I gave my honest opinion. Training with the martial arts club members made it clear: their skill level is high. No offense to the Blue Sea Federation explorers we met on the tenth floor, but these guys are on another level.

“Well, I think so too,” Leona-san admitted frankly.

What’s more, I learned that Leona-san’s ‘Martial Arts Club Third String’ has already reached the nineteenth floor multiple times. No wonder we’ve been moving so smoothly.

This expedition is essentially a re-run for training purposes.

“That’s the plan… but there’s something I’m a little worried about,” Leona-san added.

“…? What’s worrying you?” I asked.

“You’ve heard the rumors, right, Eugene-san? They say the floor master bosses have been getting weirdly strong lately.”

“…First I’m hearing of it,” I replied.

Honestly, until I met Sumire, I had no intention of fighting floor masters. I wasn’t planning to push deeper into the dungeon either, so I hadn’t bothered gathering info on higher floors.

“They say the Tower of Zenith’s difficulty balance has been off lately,” Leona-san explained. “Even that ‘Man-Eating Troll’ you defeated, Eugene-san—it’s part of it. A ‘Large Black’ on the tenth floor? That never used to happen. Honestly, some say its strength would fit better on the twentieth or even thirtieth floor.”

“…Is that so?” 

It was my first time fighting a floor master, so I hadn’t noticed anything unusual. 

I’d watched plenty of explorers battle floor masters through the satellite system. When I fought one myself, I just thought, “So this is what a floor master’s strength feels like.” But Leona-san’s concerns started to click.

“So, you’re uneasy relying only on healing items, and that’s why you want me—a healer—as backup,” I said.

“Exactly! And… if push comes to shove, it’s fine if you take it down, Eugene-san,” Leona-san said with a playful wink.

“I’m not here to steal the martial arts club’s prize. By the way, the twentieth floor’s boss is…” 

“The Goblin King, right?” Leona-san confirmed.

I nodded slightly. I’d seen footage of it through the satellite system’s recording magic.

I remembered a group of explorers challenging it a few days ago—and failing. Unless someone’s beaten it since, the floor master should still be there.

The Goblin King.

Unlike the Man-Eating Troll on the tenth floor, this boss leads a horde. A single goblin isn’t strong. The floor master itself is about equal to—or slightly weaker than—the tenth floor’s boss.

The tricky part is probably their numbers.

Still, if the martial arts club members go in fully prepared, it shouldn’t be too dangerous, even if it’s not a cakewalk. It could be good experience for Sumire too.

“Got it. Leave the support to me,” I said.

“Thank you, Eugene-san! You’re a lifesaver!” 

“Y-Yeah.”

Leona-san grabbed my hands tightly. The martial arts club folks are big on physical contact.

Even the guys I bathed with at the waterfall were like, 

“Eugene-kun, your muscles are nuts!” 

“What kind of training do you do?” 

—all while poking at me. Guess it makes sense—they’re obsessed with physical conditioning. I thought we were done, but Leona-san let go of my hands, her gaze flickering as she spoke again.

“By the way… is it true you’re close with Claude from the Hero Department, Eugene-san?”

“Claude? Oh, his wyvern’s cared for by the biology club, and I’ve joined his expedition party as a temp a few times.”

The topic shifted out of nowhere.

“Huh, really?” 

“Is something up with him?”

“Nah… nothing! Never mind!” 

“…? Alright.”

I couldn’t tell what she was getting at.

“Well, nighty-night! See you tomorrow, Eugene-san☆” 

With that, Leona-san left. Right then, Sumire came back.

Fresh from the bath, steam was practically rising off her.

“I ran into Leona-san on my way here, and she said ‘see you tomorrow,’” Sumire said.

“Yeah, Leona-san’s group is aiming to clear the twentieth floor. They want our help.”

“Oh? You okay with that, Eugene-kun?”

“If you’re fine with it, Sumire.”

“I’m cool with it! I’ve made a ton of friends already.”

Her words brought a smile to my face. Sumire’s so bright and kind.

When she first arrived in this world, she was all confusion and anxiety. But lately, she’s been having fun. Getting invited to join the martial arts club’s expedition was a great call.

“Then we’d better prep for tomorrow’s exploration!” Sumire said.

“Yeah, get some rest,” I replied.

“You’re not sleeping yet, Eugene-kun?”

“I’m gonna do a bit of sword training first.”

I drew the sword I’d received from the Blue Sea Federation explorers.

(…Didn’t get to use it today, huh.)

Might as well train, then. I assumed the stance for Enmei-ryu.

I usually practice swings with a wooden stick, but a real sword feels more grounding.

(Hm?)

I felt eyes on me. Sumire was resting her cheek on her hand, watching me.

“Something up?” I asked.

“Can I watch?”

“Do whatever you want.”

I gave a wry smile. An audience, huh…

Plain swings would be boring. I glanced around—the fifteenth floor’s jungle area was full of trees. I spotted one that was half-dead, its roots gnawed away, with dried leaves barely clinging to its branches.

(That’ll do.)

I approached the tree and struck it with a palm thrust—thud! The tree shook, and dried leaves fluttered down.

(Roughly twenty, huh.)

I scanned them quickly and readied my sword. The technique to use here…

Enmei-ryu ‘Wind Form’—Kama Itachi.

A sword dance for when you’re surrounded by enemies. A technique that slashes everything in a 360-degree arc. Slash! I finished cutting the leaves and glanced at Sumire, expecting some awe.

But Sumire’s eyes were wide, her mouth hanging open.

“Sumire?”

“E-Eugene-kun…” 

“How was it?”

“You… you just sliced all those falling leaves before they hit the ground?!”

“Yeah, but my skills are rusty. I missed a few. If my dad saw that, he’d chew me out.”

“That’s insane! I don’t even get how, but you’re amazing, Eugene-kun! C’mon, show me more!” 

“Alright, how about this one?”

Her excitement got me in the mood, and I ended up showing off a bunch of Enmei-ryu techniques I hadn’t practiced in a while.

As Sumire cheered, martial arts club members started gathering, going, “What’s going on?” I ended up performing for them too.

By the time I got to bed, it was way later than planned. Oh well, days like this happen.

◇

The Next Morning

We set out from the fifteenth floor.

By the way, the stairs to higher floors in the Tower of Zenith shift locations daily due to its magic, so finding them the day before doesn’t help much.

That said, the martial arts club had already reached the nineteenth floor before. They quickly found the stairs to the sixteenth. There, we were attacked by a few goblin packs.

The pack leader was a hobgoblin, an elite variant.

I was ready to join in with my magic sword, borrowing Sumire’s mana, but the martial arts club members took it down in no time.

“Aw, too bad, Eugene-kun,” Sumire said.

“Eh, can’t be helped,” I replied, shrugging.

On the seventeenth floor, we ran into a group of orcs and crushed them easily.

We took a break near the dungeon elevator, where another club member joined us with food supplies. They shared some with me and Sumire—bread stuffed with grilled meat, veggies, and fried fish, slathered with sauce.

“Yay, sandwiches!” Sumire cheered.

She recognized the dish, apparently.

…I’m starting to like these too.

I’ll have to try making them sometime. After eating, we resumed exploring.

On the eighteenth floor, a kobold squad hit us. Kobolds often use spears or bows, so the short-ranged martial arts club struggled a bit.

Still, no one was seriously hurt. I stuck to my role as the healer.

After about an hour, we reached the nineteenth floor.

Since I was on healing duty, I stayed at the back with Sumire, behind the martial arts club members… but honestly, I was bored.

“Guess I’m not getting any action,” I said.

“Now, now, Eugene-san. Safety’s the priority. Having you here lets everyone explore with confidence,” Leona-san said, almost apologizing.

It’s probably because she asked us to join.

“Still, it’s going really smoothly, huh?” Sumire said, looking relaxed.

Time to set her straight.

“Sumire, listen up. You can only talk like that on lower floors. The Tower of Zenith isn’t called the ‘Last Dungeon’ humanity’s never conquered for nothing. I mentioned the hundredth floor before, but even the fiftieth is a huge spike in difficulty. We cleared the tenth, so we’re C-rank explorers now. Breaking the fiftieth would make us B-rank, but that’s a tough wall.”

“True, but we’re only on the nineteenth floor,” Leona-san pointed out.

“Yeah, fair enough,” I agreed.

She was right—we were still in the low floors.

As long as we kept a solid safety margin, exploring wasn’t that dangerous.

And so, we found the stairs to the twentieth floor without any major issues.

◇

The moment we stepped onto the twentieth floor, I felt something off.

(…It’s too quiet.)

It’s not unusual for a floor master’s territory to lack other strong monsters. But… something felt wrong. I couldn’t pinpoint it.

Just a gut feeling. A bad one.

“Eugene, trust a swordsman’s instincts.”

My dad’s words came to mind.

“Leona-san,” I started, about to suggest retreating, but I hesitated.

Leona-san’s expression had turned deadly serious. She’d sensed something too.

“What do you think of the twentieth floor, Eugene-san?” she asked.

“I don’t know. But it feels bad,” I answered honestly.

“Leona-san, Eugene-kun, we’re not going?” Sumire asked.

“Captain, what’s wrong?” one of the club members added.

Sumire and the martial arts club were waiting for Leona-san’s orders. The expedition had been smooth so far.

When I’m solo, I’d bail the second something feels off. But we’re a team now. Their morale’s high, and pulling back needs a solid reason.

Leona-san seemed torn. She took a small, deep breath.

“…Everyone, stay sharp and move carefully,” she said.

“““Yes, ma’am!”””

Leona-san chose to press on. I didn’t stop her.

I’m an outsider here. The martial arts club has the final say.

We slowly ventured deeper into the twentieth floor.

“…”

Unlike the first nineteen floors, everyone grew quiet.

Maybe Leona-san’s tension was rubbing off on them.

The twentieth floor was a jungle area, with tall weeds blocking visibility.

—Rustle, rustle…

I heard grass being stepped on and looked over—a deer was staring at us.

There were other harmless herbivores scattered around. No monsters.

“No goblins, huh…” one of the club members muttered.

A floor master’s domain typically has no other monsters besides the boss.

The twentieth floor should be home to the Goblin King and its horde.

But there wasn’t a trace of them. After exploring further, we found something strange.

A small humanoid monster lay dead in a pool of blood.

—A goblin corpse.

“Leona-san, we should pull back. Something’s seriously off here,” I said without hesitation.

“You’re right. Let’s retreat,” she agreed.

“Huh? Captain Leona, we’re retreating?!” 

“Eugene-kun, why?” 

“Listen, the twentieth floor is the Goblin King’s territory. There shouldn’t be any monsters besides goblins,” I explained.

“But we found a dead goblin. Something abnormal’s happening,” Leona-san added.

One possibility is a floor master swap.

Rarely, two floor masters spawn on the same floor and fight for dominance. Running into that means facing two bosses at once—a scenario Lykeion Magic Academy teaches you to avoid at all costs.

“What do you think’s going on, Eugene-san?” 

Leona-san and I took the rear, walking quickly as we talked.

“Probably a floor master swap,” I said.

“I think so too. Besides the Goblin King, the twentieth floor sometimes spawns a Kobold King or Orc King.”

If the Goblin King’s horde is fighting another monster pack over territory, that’d explain the dead goblin. But something still didn’t sit right with me.

“It’s too quiet,” I said.

“Exactly. That’s bothering me too,” Leona-san nodded.

Goblins, kobolds, and orcs aren’t exactly subtle. They’d be roaring and intimidating each other during a turf war. It should be noisy as hell.

But this jungle is eerily silent.

—Like every living thing is holding its breath.

We moved quietly, hurrying toward the dungeon elevator.

“Captain Leona, are we really turning back? We came so far…” one club member grumbled.

“I know, it might seem overly cautious, but—”

In the depths of the jungle, I caught sight of the tall, tower-like dungeon elevator.

I let out a relieved breath. Then it happened.

—Thud. The ground shook.

A massive shadow loomed before us. It stood on four legs, resembling a giant black wolf at first glance. But it wasn’t. Its body towered above the treetops.

Bigger than the tenth floor’s boss—way bigger.

The moment I saw it, a chill ran through me, my skin prickling.

My instincts screamed: This thing’s bad news…!

“The Goblin King!” someone shouted.

The floor master we’d come to defeat—the Goblin King’s corpse—dangled from the jaws of a colossal, three-headed beast that gazed down at us with cold arrogance.

“It’s Cerberus!!!” someone screamed.

The Hellhound Cerberus.

As its name suggests, this monster normally dwells in the underworld, the realm of the dead.

No—a mythical creature straight out of legend. Its sheer size dwarfs the tenth floor’s Man-Eating Troll, yet it’s agile enough to leap over our heads with ease.

It’s eating the Goblin King, the floor master.

To a beast like this, humans are probably no more than insects.

“Everyone, scatter!!!” 

Leona-san barked orders, and the club members bolted in all directions.

“Sumire, we’re running!!” 

“O-Okay…”

I grabbed Sumire’s hand—she was clearly confused—and sprinted into the jungle.

My own head was reeling. Why the hell is a Hellhound Cerberus on a low floor like this…?

“Eugene-kun! That three-headed dog—is it strong?!” 

“It’s a divine beast! You can’t kill it!” 

“Huh?! W-What does that mean?!” 

I was about to answer when—

“GYAAAAAHHHHH!”

A blood-curdling scream pierced the air.

—Crack… squish… The sound of bones snapping and something being chewed followed.

“Wha—?” 

I heard Sumire gasp. Her face was pale beside me.

“Ah!” 

Sumire tripped, her legs tangling.

“Sumire!” 

I scooped her up and kept running.

“Y-Eugene-kun… that sound just now…” 

“Don’t think about it.”

I ran full tilt, desperate to put distance between us and the Hellhound.

The nightmare wasn’t over.

—Commencing the Hundredth Floor ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline.’

A cold, mechanical voice echoed through the twentieth floor.

“T-The hundredth floor…?” Sumire stammered.

I didn’t have time to respond. I was just as confused. Why the hell is a hundredth-floor angel’s announcement playing here?

I scanned the area while running, searching for a hiding spot.

Something… anywhere we could hide… There!

A hollow in a massive tree trunk, just big enough for two.

There’s a chance a monster’s lurking inside, but it’s better than staying out here.

I dove in, still holding Sumire.

The hollow barely fit us both. We made it!

I set Sumire down and immediately cast a barrier at the entrance.

Barrier Magic: Concealment.

Now, no one outside should see us—or even the hollow itself.

But… can it fool the nose of a divine beast like Cerberus?

“E-Eugene-kun…” 

“Shh, quiet,” I hushed Sumire’s anxious voice, straining my ears.

…Thud… thud… Heavy footsteps approached.

The ground trembled faintly. My heartbeat—or maybe Sumire’s—pounded like a drum.

Huff… huff… huff… huff… huff… huff…

The beast’s ragged breathing echoed.

“Eek!” 

Sumire let out a tiny squeak and clamped her hands over her mouth.

One of Cerberus’s three heads slowly moved toward our hollow.

Its massive eye, as big as a human head, scanned for prey.

For a moment, I thought its black pupil locked onto mine, but it didn’t notice us.

The barrier was working.

Huff… huff… huff… huff… huff… huff…

The beast’s breath reverberated inside the hollow.

Sumire was covering her mouth, barely breathing.

(…Go away already!)

I prayed silently.

After glaring at the barrier for a while, it finally moved on.

We… we’re safe. I slumped to the ground.

“What… was that?” Sumire asked, her voice trembling.

I pulled her shaking shoulders close. I might’ve been trembling too.

To calm us both, I explained slowly.

“Sumire, you know how the magic academy assigns danger ranks to monsters based on their strength, right?”

“Y-Yeah… Rin-sensei taught me about that…” 

I nodded at her response.

When explorers encounter monsters in the dungeon, we need to decide whether to fight or flee. That’s why monsters are ranked by danger level.

The highest tier is ‘Disaster-Class.’

These are monsters capable of destroying—or nearly destroying—an entire city.

Adult dragons fall into this category.

Ancient dragons, said to live over a thousand years, are always Disaster-Class without exception.

I’ve never fought one myself.

My dad has, apparently, but he said, “Even I don’t go picking fights with Disaster-Class monsters if I can help it.”

“That Cerberus thing… is it a Disaster-Class monster?” Sumire asked.

“…No,” I answered, gritting my teeth.

Disaster-Class monsters are the most dangerous of their kind.

But the Hellhound Cerberus isn’t one of them.

Because that monster is a divine beast.

“Divine beasts are far above even Disaster-Class monsters… They’re mythical creatures that have lived for hundreds of thousands of years…”

“…N-No way…” 

Sumire’s face showed she couldn’t comprehend it.

I’m still half-convinced this is some kind of bad dream.

“Divine beasts… they’re vassals of the gods in the heavens. They’re not supposed to exist on the mortal plane. The only place they appear is in the ‘Last Dungeon,’ under very specific conditions…”

That’s right—creatures we were never meant to encounter. They only manifest when certain criteria are met.

“It’s said the Holy Goddess places them every hundred floors as part of the ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline.’ So we shouldn’t be running into one on any floor below the hundredth… shouldn’t,” I explained.

“…But we’re on the twentieth floor,” Sumire murmured, her voice trembling with tears.

“Yeah… it’s wrong. I’ve never heard of anything like this.”

Something impossible is happening.

Is this what Leona-san meant when she said the dungeon’s difficulty has been out of whack? Even so, this is absurd.

Throwing a divine beast at explorers who just arrived on the twentieth floor—what’s the point?!

…Getting angry won’t solve anything. Sumire was shaking uncontrollably.

I pulled her close, holding her shoulders to help her calm down. Gradually, her trembling subsided.

After a while, Sumire spoke softly.

“Eugene-kun, what did you mean when you said that monster can’t be killed…?”

“Unlike regular monsters, divine beasts have ‘infinite lives.’ So it’s not about defeating a divine beast—it’s about using wisdom and courage to overcome it and reach the next floor. That’s the ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline.’ Placed every hundred floors, they’re also called the ‘Beasts of Discipline,’” I explained.

“…How do we overcome it?”

“That depends on the divine beast…”

I answered weakly to Sumire’s question.

My dungeon record was just updated to the nineteenth floor—barely moments ago.

Fighting a hundredth-floor monster was beyond anything I’d ever imagined.

Sumire fell silent at my words.

But unable to bear the quiet, she spoke again.

“…That three-headed monster from before… is it strong?”

“Yeah, Cerberus is a famous divine beast,” I said, dredging up what I knew.

“The ‘Beasts of Discipline’ aren’t fixed—different ones can appear. Unlike other floors, the hundredth or two-hundredth floors are usually empty. Only when a challenger appears are the ‘Beasts of Discipline’ summoned. The Hellhound Cerberus has been summoned a few times in the past… but from what I know, no explorer has overcome it in over a century.”

Saying it out loud, I realized it was all bad news.

“…N-No way…”

The strength of the ‘Beasts of Discipline’ varies wildly.

The academy’s exploration classes teach that if you’re unlucky enough to face the Hellhound, it’s better to just give up.

“I wonder if Leona-san and the others are okay…” Sumire said.

“I don’t know… I hope they escaped safely.”

“What do we do now?”

“At this point, we have no choice but to wait for the dungeon staff to show up…”

This abnormality must be visible through the satellite system.

Surely, they’re already mobilizing a rescue.

“Are the dungeon staff-san strong enough to beat that monster?” Sumire asked.

“No way… They’ll probably call in high-ranking explorers who’ve cleared the hundredth floor.”

“Oh, right! Then we’re safe!”

A faint smile returned to Sumire’s face. But I had concerns.

Explorers who’ve cleared the hundredth floor are called ‘A-rank’—and there aren’t many of them.

Plus, they’re often deep in the dungeon themselves. Would we be lucky enough to get one dispatched quickly?

I glanced at my exploration bag.

Since I hadn’t planned to camp, I didn’t bring much portable food—probably enough for half a day at most. Would it last until rescue arrived?

Sumire and I huddled together in the cramped tree hollow, waiting for help.

Sumire occasionally asked questions, but honestly, with a divine beast out there, I was too distracted to focus on conversation.

…Time crawled by.

How long had it been?

A few hours, maybe? Or less than one?

Then it happened.

—The ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline’ has concluded. All challengers have been eliminated.

A cold, angelic announcement echoed through the twentieth floor.

“…What?”

Sumire was the first to speak.

All challengers have been eliminated.

That’s what the ‘Voice of the Administrator’ of the Last Dungeon declared.

But that’s wrong. Sumire and I are right here.

Except… our group and the martial arts club weren’t an official joint party.

We were just two parties traveling together.

So… what if ‘challengers’ referred only to the martial arts club?

“All… eliminated…? Leona-san…? N-No, that can’t…”

Sumire was trembling violently. I hugged her tightly, saying nothing.

(…What now? No, there’s no question. We keep hiding with ‘Concealment.’)

As I resolved to stay put, another merciless voice rang out.

—To the new challengers within the territory.

“!?”

Sumire and I flinched. New challengers…?

We’re likely the only ones left on the twentieth floor.

The dungeon administrators know Sumire and I are here.

—If you wish to abandon the challenge, evacuate the territory immediately. Failure to leave will automatically initiate the ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline.’

(…Oh, come on, give me a break!)

This is the twentieth floor, ‘Dungeon Administrator’!

Why are you casually starting a ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline’ like it’s normal!?

But I couldn’t shout my complaints.

The divine beast Cerberus is still out there.

The idea that ‘Beasts of Discipline’ only appear on the hundredth floor is just based on past records.

There’s no formal agreement guaranteeing it.

And staying here won’t improve our situation.

Sumire was pale, shaking.

I have to protect her. I’m her guardian, after all.

(…Get it together, Eugene Santafield.)

“E-Eugene-kun…”

“Sumire, trust me and stay here.”

“What are you going to do, Eugene-kun?!”

“I’ll be a decoy.”

“No way! The entire martial arts club got wiped out!”

“It’s fine. I’ve got a plan.”

“B-But…”

“We don’t have time. Sumire, don’t move from here.”

I stressed the point and headed out of the hollow.

There’s a defeat condition for the ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline’—a time limit.

I’ve heard that if you run out the clock, the divine beast returns to where it was summoned.

Since you can’t kill a divine beast, the time limit prevents challengers from stalling forever, giving the next group a shot.

Failing via timeout doesn’t mean death.

The question is whether I can stall against the Hellhound long enough…

No use complaining.

For now, I’d focus on buying time—either for the dungeon staff’s rescue or the trial’s timeout.

There’s no other option. We could keep hiding, but…

The Last Dungeon’s administrator already knows we’re here.

We’re in the divine beast’s territory.

I figured hiding in this hollow would only delay the inevitable—they’d find us eventually.

If that happened, I wouldn’t be able to fight while protecting Sumire. We’d both die.

“Sumire, I’m going.”

“Eugene-kun…”

“Can I borrow your mana?”

“Y-Yeah…”

I gripped Sumire’s trembling hand.

—Mana Link.

I drew red mana from her. A flood of hot, powerful mana surged into me.

“Ngh…”

Sumire let out a small gasp. Maybe I took too much at once.

“You okay?”

“Y-Yeah… Avenge Leona-san… No, Eugene-kun, you have to survive.”

“Got it.”

Sumire looked up at me, tears in her eyes. I forced a smile and stepped out of the hollow.

Outside, I layered more barrier magic over the entrance.

I had to make sure Cerberus didn’t find Sumire, no matter what.

I surveyed the twentieth floor again.

(…It’s quiet.)

Not a beast’s growl or a bird’s chirp.

The twentieth floor was under the divine beast’s dominion. Every living thing was cowering.

“Eugene Santafield challenges the ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline,’” I declared into my D-rank explorer badge.

The cold, angelic announcement echoed through the floor.

—Challenge accepted for Eugene Santafield’s ‘Divine Trial: Deus Discipline.’ Good luck.

(…It’s official.)

No turning back now. A glowing white line spread out around me.

The challenger’s domain—and a beacon for the divine beast’s prey.

…Thud… thud…

The Hellhound Cerberus’s footsteps drew closer.

Its three heads let out low growls as the legendary divine beast glared down at me.

My heartbeat was deafening.

I couldn’t tell if my trembling was from fear or the thrill of battle.

(Dad… what do I do in a moment like this?)

I asked my sword master and role model in my mind.

“Laugh. When you’re in a pinch, just laugh, Eugene. Things’ll work out somehow.”

The memory of my dad was as carefree as ever.

But he was never wrong.

“Phew…”

I let out a small breath.

“Alright, let’s do this!”

With a fearless grin, I assumed the Niten Enmei-ryu stance.

——.