Ethan found the old man’s unfamiliar tone strange, only for Asterion to immediately smack him across the back of the head.
"Let me finish talking, you ungrateful brat!"
Ethan grabbed his head in pain. A single casual smack from the old man beside him had made him feel as though his head was about to fly straight off his neck.
"What I’m trying to say is... all of you have come a long way. You survived for months inside a Legacy Dungeon far beyond your level. You’ve grown stronger, and you’ve done well."
Asterion paused for a moment, his gaze drifting almost unconsciously toward his two granddaughters.
Moon and Luna.
He did not show much emotion, but Ethan had seen the relief on his face earlier when he realized that both of them were still alive.
"There’s only a little left now. Don’t let everything you’ve accomplished so far go to waste."
Asterion’s voice grew firm.
"I’m here now."
"And I’ll give everything I have to make sure all of you leave this place alive."
Coming from the strongest living Hunter, those words carried a weight Ethan could feel clearly.
A wide smile slowly spread across his face as a large part of the tension weighing on him finally began to fade.
"If you’re capable of saying things like that, you should give everyone a speech."
Ethan glanced toward the other Hunters before looking back at the old man.
"I’m pretty sure it’d do wonders for their morale."
"I was never much of a speaker. Fighting is what I’m good at..."
"But let’s see. Maybe after all these years, I’ll finally give a speech."
Asterion rose to his feet and left Ethan’s side.
The latter understood that the uncrowned Emperor would not have said those words to just anyone.
He had said them to Ethan because, in his own way, he genuinely cared about him.
Their relationship was never formal, but it had gradually become something close to that of a master and disciple.
At least...
That was how Ethan saw it.
"This feeling..."
"It’s not bad."
In the end, it seemed human relationships were not all terrible after all.
Strangely enough, time passed quickly after that exchange.
The Hunters encouraged one another, finalized their plan, prepared everything they could...
And then the moment of truth finally arrived.
Wearing torn clothes and armor covered in scars from months of endless fighting, the Hunters left their hideout and headed toward the Cathedral.
The place destined to become their final battlefield.
Asterion walked at the front, carving open the path without caring what kind of monster dared stand before him.
Jackson positioned himself directly behind him on the right, with his granddaughter Moon on the left.
Behind them came the knights and every fighter capable of enduring close-range combat.
The Mages and the only archer remained at the rear, while Ethan and Raiden protected them from behind.
In the blink of an eye, they reached the Cathedral.
Every creature that attempted to stop them along the way had already been crushed, leaving them standing before the enormous open gates.
When Asterion turned around to inspect everyone behind him, he found himself frowning slightly.
Their numbers were far too small.
They did not even reach fifteen.
Only twelve survivors remained from the squads that had entered Old Ashvarn.
Among them, the Third Squad was the only one that had managed to preserve every single member.
Adding Asterion and Jackson brought their final number to only fourteen Hunters.
Fourteen people.
That was all they had to challenge the final region of a high-level Legacy Dungeon.
And somehow...
They had to win.
Taking a deep breath, Asterion placed one hand upon the hilt of his sword.
"Alright, everyone."
"The time has come."
The Hunters gathered around the uncrowned Emperor as he delivered his final words to them.
"You are most likely about to face the hardest battle of your lives."
"The monsters inside will show no mercy, and a single mistake could end your life."
"So stay alert at all times."
"Never lower your guard."
"Follow the plan, support each other, and do not break formation."
"Your cooperation is the only thing that will give you a chance against monsters that surpass you in rank."
Drawing one of his great swords, Asterion raised his voice.
"Fight savagely!"
"Fight for your lives!"
"If you win here, songs will be written in your names."
"History remembers only the victors."
"So..."
"Do not die."
"Yes, sir!!"
The Hunters answered as one.
Asterion nodded in satisfaction.
Then he turned toward the Cathedral gates and took the first step forward.
Everyone followed behind him.
And with that...
The Cathedral Raid began.
...
...
...
— Ethan Heart’s POV —
The raid had finally begun.
We entered the Cathedral...
The place none of us had ever dared approach before.
Until now, all we had done was stare at it from afar.
The interior was dark.
The walls stretched impossibly high, while the ceiling towered far above our heads, making all of us tense at the possibility of something suddenly attacking from above.
"O spirits of flame, answer my call and illuminate my path!"
Luna raised her staff.
Several fire orbs formed around her before flying forward and illuminating the way.
They looked almost like glowing fireflies...
Only many times larger.
Thanks to them, we could finally see clearly.
But what the light revealed was anything but pleasant.
Luna’s flames exposed an entire battalion of Black Knights waiting for us ahead.
Then I heard footsteps behind me.
Only then did I realize more of them had appeared behind us without me noticing.
For a moment, I found myself wondering how they had even done it.
Had they dropped from the ceiling?
Or something else?
It no longer mattered.
They were already in front of us, which made my body automatically prepare for battle.
Then I suddenly froze in place.
A crushing aura pressure erupted from nowhere, numbing my senses in an instant.
I quickly realized who it belonged to.
Asterion.
The old man moved first, attacking the knights before they could even get close to us.
His sword was absurdly fast.
A flashing blur impossible to follow with the naked eye.
And the power behind it matched that speed perfectly.
His blade tore through the knights’ armor with ridiculous ease, as though their black steel had been made from paper.
The range of his sword was equally terrifying.
Despite standing at the front, he struck the knights approaching from behind us as well.
It was one of the advanced applications of aura manipulation.
By spreading his aura across a vast area around himself, he became capable of striking any target the moment it entered his domain.