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The Sun Maiden Can Fall in Love Too – Part 03

Hikaru believed the Soul Board was his best chance against the Golem.

He had told Selyse to move away, but she just stood there, staring at him. He urged her to hurry, and noticed how effortlessly she carried his things. Experienced adventurers sure are different. Then, Hikaru started tinkering with his Soul Board. What Selyse thought was him counting was actually him operating it.

Fortunately, the Golem was still looking around, surveying its surroundings. Its enormous size was carved from the dungeon’s walls, releasing massive dust clouds that obscured its view of Hikaru and Selyse below the cliff.

To sum up the situation: Soaarunay knows what floor I’m on but not my exact location or actions. My Mana Detection sees the Golem’s interior. It’s packed with magical mechanisms, so it’s not remote-controlled. This means the Golem is autonomous, not controlled by Soaarunay.

Hikaru operated his Soul Board.

Eight points left. How should he allocate them?

【Soul Board】Hikaru
Age: 15 | Rank: 41 | 0

【Vitality】
【Natural Recovery】1
【Stamina】1

【Magical Power】

【Strength】
【Muscle Strength】4
【Weapon Mastery】
【Projectile】2

【Agility】
【Power Burst】6
【Flexibility】1
【Balance】3
【Stealth】
【Life Cloaking】5 (MAX)
【Mana Cloaking】5 (MAX)
【Imperceptibility】5 (MAX)
【Assassination】3 (MAX)
【Group Cloaking】3

【Instinct】
【Instinct】3
【Detection】
【Life Detection】1
【Mana Detection】5 (MAX)

Hikaru boosted his Power Burst from 1 to 6, picked up Flexibility, and raised his Balance from 1 to 3.

From past experience, Hikaru knew that specialists in a single skill were far more powerful than those with balanced abilities across their Soul Board. Recognizing that his strength lay in Stealth, he chose skills that enhanced it.

I wish I could invest more in Instinct and try some magic.

But he didn’t have much choice. Stealth had saved him from tough spots too many times.

The moment Hikaru started running, he felt the effects of Power Burst. In just a few steps, he hit top speed. Curious, he decided to try jumping.

“Whoa!”

He launched off the ground, hung in the air for a while, then landed on some rubble several meters ahead.

“Now, if only Stealth works against that Golem.”

His Instinct reassured him it would. He thought the same. Golems, powered by sorcery, detected enemies through life force and mana. Hikaru’s Life Cloaking and Mana Cloaking should work perfectly.

“All right, let’s do this.”

Hikaru moved like the wind.

Sluggish but imposing, the massive Golem looked like a moving building. It was impossible to miss.

Dragons inhabiting this floor roared as soon as they noticed the it. The Golem raised a fist as large as a house and crushed a dragon instantly.

Witnessing this, the other dragons fled. It seemed this floor was exclusively inhabited by dragons. The Golem watched the fleeing dragons but didn’t pursue.

Hikaru deactivated his Stealth. “Hey, over here.”

The Golem slowly turned and used the momentum to swing its arm towards him. Rubble flew, and part of the 7th floor wall was destroyed.

Close call!

Hikaru had already moved. Despite its seemingly slow motion, the Golem’s arm swung at over 100 kilometers per hour.

“Idiot, over here. You’re just as stupid as your creator.”

The Golem approached, swinging both arms down this time. More of the wall was perforated. Dirt and debris scattered in all directions.

Oops!

Hikaru did not get hit, and he was far enough for debris to reach him, but the shock wave nearly knocked him over. The power was immense.

“Whoa!”

“What is that thing?! This is bad!”

“The ground’s shaking!”

The Beastmen on the stairs to the seventh floor were panicking.

“Let’s go back, Lord Kinga!”

The female members of Kinga Wolf were already crying.

“You girls head back! With them standing their ground, there’s no way I’m turning tail and running away!”

Kinga pointed to Serika, who was leaning out from the collapsed wall to look at the seventh floor, and Sara holding onto her clothes to keep her from falling.

“I-It’s Silver Face!” Serika shouted. “What’s he doing here?!”

Stealth’s effects weakened over distance. Serika couldn’t see the face under the hood clearly, but she saw a boy wearing a silver mask.

The masked figure—almost certainly Silver Face—was jumping and climbing the rubble, now reaching the top of the canyon. Then, gathering momentum, he leapt onto the Golem’s back from behind.

“Wh-Why is he here?!”

Sara was just as shocked as Serika, but for a different reason. Unlike Serika, Sara knew that Silver Face was Hikaru and that he had been in Japan.

Did Paula use the spell for crossing worlds in Ponsonia? But I thought that warehouse was unusable after it was demolished. And even if she did, how is he on the 7th floor of this labyrinth? Did he somehow get ahead of us without us noticing?

Sara couldn’t make sense of it, but the way he moved, it was definitely Silver Face, though his physical abilities seemed greatly enhanced.

“Oh!”

When Silver Face clung to the Golem’s back, it arched, almost throwing him off. He hung on with his right hand, quickly grabbed hold with his left, and found a foothold.

“Phew. He’s giving me a heart attack!”

“Same!”

“No, it’s too soon to relax! Look at that!”

For some reason, Kinga had joined Serika and Sara.

The Golem planted its feet firmly and began spinning its upper body like a top, arms outstretched, smashing walls and swatting away dragons. It was less a battle and more an act of sheer destruction. The dragons’ cries ceased, likely because they had been annihilated. As the spinning slowed, dust reduced visibility again.

“Wh-Where’s Silver Face?!”

“He’s gone!”

“No, he’s higher up!”

Silver Face was already clinging to the back of the Golem’s head.

“He climbed up even while it was spinning,” Kinga said. “Incredible balance. Well, I could do that much too.”

The Golem bent its right arm and slammed the back of its head.

“Oh no!”

“Yikes!”

“Whoa!”

But Silver Face wasn’t there. He had moved just below the head to avoid the blow.

“Phew.”

“That was close.”

“Scared the shit out of me. What is he thinking?!”

The Golem was made of rocks and dirt bound together by sorcery. Naturally, there were bound to be gaps between the rocks.

Silver Face stuck his head into a gap at the base of the Golem’s neck. If the Golem moved even slightly, the gap—the joint—would close, and Silver Face’s head would be crushed like a sesame seed in a mortar.

“Nooo!”

“What is he doing?!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!”

Then the Golem started to move—or it should have. It stopped dead in its tracks.

First, rocks fell from its arms, then parts of its back crumbled, and as the head marked with “7” tilted, the entire Golem began to collapse.

“What?”

The three watching couldn’t understand what had happened. All they knew was that the Golem had ceased to function.

Hikaru leaped from the disintegrating Golem.

The Golem was powered by sorcery. Just as blood circulates through a human body, mana flowed through the Golem, giving it life. Hikaru could clearly see this using his Mana Detection.

He hadn’t verified if Golems were embedded in the walls of each floor. Whether for emergencies or other reasons, there was a spell pre-installed, which Soaarunay could likely activate remotely. However, the Golem only had a simple program that identified the dragons, inhabitants of the 7th floor, as enemies and attacked them.

Due to its massive size, it was difficult to destroy the magical mechanism deep within the rocks. Fortunately, by leaning in from the base of its neck, Hikaru reached a crucial part of the system and severed it with his dagger. With that, the giant stopped moving and crumbled.

Out of all the items I got this time, this dagger might be the best find.

Hikaru landed lightly on the ground and sheathed his dagger. It could cut through flesh, walls, and magic. Despite its short blade, its sharpness was remarkable. He decided to get it sharpened later.

“Hey! I know there’s people up there!”

As the dust settled, Hikaru shouted towards the passage leading to the 6th floor. He knew it was Serika and Sara, but there were also other people, so he feigned ignorance.

“Are you Silver Face?!” Serika called from above.

“I am! The Golem should have cleared the collapsed wall, so you should be able to come down a bit more! Lower a rope from there!”

Hikaru had initially provoked the Golem to clear the rubble blocking the passage to the 6th floor. A wild plan, but it had secured him an escape route.

“Selyse Lande from the Four Eastern Stars is here too! Hurry up!”

Upon hearing that, the women quickly sprang into action.

“Finally, I can go home. It’s been so long.”

As Hikaru moved away from the Golem’s remains, he saw Selyse standing not too far away.

“Thank you for carrying my stuff.”

Selyse seemed spaced-out. Hikaru attributed her puzzling demeanor to fatigue and injuries.

Taking the luggage from her, he said, “Serika and Sara will be here soon.”

Her eyes snapped wide. She had finally regained her senses.

“Serika and Sara?”

“Yes, I believe it’s those two. Anyway, doesn’t look like you can climb on your own.”

A rope descended from the hole in the wall, but it would still require a climb of about ten meters.

“Here.” Hikaru turned his back and crouched.

“Huh?”

“I’ll carry you. It might feel childish, but we can’t afford to be picky.”

“But, um…” Selyse stammered, fidgeting restlessly.

“What is it?”

“I, uh… I might be too heavy for you.”

“What?”

Why is she worried about that now?

Adventurers should act logically. At this moment, however, Hikaru was unaware of the change in Selyse’s feelings.

“No, it’s just… My equipment! My gear has some weight to them.”

“It’s no big deal. Besides, I already carried you here. Why worry now?”

“What?! Y-You did?”

“Let’s hurry up. Before more dragons arrive.”

“Ugh… O-Okay.”

Selyse reluctantly climbed onto Hikaru’s back. With the loot combined, it was quite a weight, but now that he had increased his Soul Board’s Strength stat to 4, it wasn’t a problem.

Hikaru was bothered by Selyse’s unusually indecisive demeanor. She seemed almost like a naive village girl who had just arrived in the city.

Oh well.

Hikaru started walking with Selyse on his back. He caught sight of Serika and Sara leaning out of the wall.