Looking Forward to Another World Chapter 746: Riezel’s Overwhelming Magic, Ais’s Desperate Escape

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Previously on Looking Forward to Another World...
The light pillar unleashed by Thanatos's death caused a massive shockwave, forcing Riezel to witness the temple's destruction and the pillar's ascent. While attempting to escape, Riezel was stopped by Kali, who pleaded for help along with the unconscious Ishtar. Just as Riezel reluctantly agreed to save them, Kali pointed out a horrifying sight: a writhing, tumor-like mass of green flesh emerging from a passage. Meanwhile, on the 10th floor, six Demi Spirits activated ancient altars, singing a distorted song that caused them to erupt with green flesh. This revolting substance began rapidly spreading throughout Knossos, consuming everything in its path. Riezel unleashed a powerful blast of flaming lightning, then a massive explosion, to stop the flesh tide before finally escaping via teleportation, recognizing the manifestation of Enyo's power.
With a thunderous rumble, a monstrous fountain of verdant flesh erupted from the entrance of the Man-Made Dungeon Knossos, surging towards the Loki Familia's support contingent stationed nearby. Riveria unleashed an ice spell, conjuring three blizzards that swept forward, encasing the muddy torrent of green flesh in ice. This action successfully sealed the entrance to Knossos, trapping the grotesque substance within. However, before long, the ice sealing the dungeon's maw began to visibly fracture, as if an immense, swollen entity was methodically breaking free, shattering it piece by agonizing piece. Ultimately, the foul, green flesh torrent burst forth from Knossos once more, transforming into a devouring, toxic mire that consumed everything in its path. "What in the world is this?" Witnessing this horrifying spectacle, Riveria's expression shifted to one of grave uncertainty, a sentiment mirrored by the other Familia members. They gazed, stunned and disbelieving, at the relentless stream of green flesh pouring from the Man-Made Dungeon. Some of the female members visibly recoiled, their faces pale with nausea. It was undeniably a scene that tested the limits of one's composure. "Riveria!" Loki, positioned safely behind the group, her eyes ajar from their usual half-closed state, called out to Riveria. "We cannot let that thing escape!" Despite not fully comprehending the nature of the green flesh, Loki's divine intuition screamed that this entity was extraordinarily dangerous—something that should never be allowed to spread. And reality soon confirmed her premonition. A comrade was ensnared by tendrils that sprung without warning from the green flesh, almost dragged into its gooey depths and devoured. Others attempted to combat it with daggers, axes, and even magic swords, but the damage inflicted was practically insignificant. Much like the brightly colored monsters, the green flesh reacted violently to magical energy. Several members who cast spells, Riveria included, became immediate targets, nearly engulfed by sudden surges of sinew. Undeniably, the essence of this thing was profoundly vile; its growth rate far outstripped the damage it sustained. Not only had it begun to corrupt the entirety of the Man-Made Dungeon, but it was now poised to invade the surface world. Eventually, the Loki Familia members found themselves forced into a continuous retreat. No matter their assaults, they could not halt the encroaching spread of the green flesh. In a mere instant, the vile substance consumed the passageway and the stairway, pushing Riveria and the others back into the sewers beneath Daedalus Street. Observing their dire predicament, Riveria's anxiety intensified. "The surface has already deteriorated to this state... then inside the dungeon..." Riveria's thoughts turned to the advance party who had ventured into the Man-Made Dungeon, her worry palpable. On the surface, at least, there remained a possibility of withdrawal; however, within the confines of the Man-Made Dungeon, should their escape routes be severed, the advance party would face imminent peril. "Finn... Ais... Lefiya... Riezel..." Riveria whispered the names of her companions, her profound concern etched onto her face. At that critical juncture, a figure materialized before them as if by teleportation. "M-Mr. Riezel!" "Riezel!" "Mr. Riezel!" Upon seeing the individual appear from thin air, everyone initially flinched, their bodies instinctively tensing in caution. Once they clearly discerned his identity, cries of surprise and relief erupted in unison. "Riezel!" Riveria's eyes sparkled with renewed hope. "Kiddo!" Even Loki couldn't help but exclaim. Concurrently, the encroaching green flesh, seemingly provoked by this arrival, surged violently, forming a wave of biomass that crashed towards Riezel. What met the grotesque wave of flesh was a cold incantation, followed by a torrent of inferno that erupted like molten lava. A vermillion magic circle materialized before Riezel, unleashing lava-like flames that burst forth, obliterating the wave of flesh. Vast plumes of fire consumed the green substance, reducing it to cindered remnants. , a 10th-Tier fire-attribute Magic and one of the most potent spells in the fire element, boasted incredibly destructive flame power and an extensive area of effect. In Riezel's command, it possessed destructive capabilities rivaling Tactical-Class Magic. Consequently, as the flames surged like a molten river, the green flesh found itself almost entirely defenseless. It was engulfed by the fire, gradually consumed despite its desperate struggles. "What..." Led by Riveria, the onlookers stared in stunned silence at the scene, their faces illuminated by the fiery glow. Riveria, in particular, was astonished to witness Riezel casting such a potent, unfamiliar magic without uttering a single word of incantation. 'Its destructive force and reach have already surpassed my own...'

Riveria found her gaze drifting towards Riezel, whose expression remained utterly unreadable. She recalled that even at Level 5, his offensive capabilities already rivaled those of a Level 7 cultivator. Now, having advanced to Level 6, the potency of his magic attacks must have escalated further. Yet, the sheer overwhelming force she witnessed now surpassed her expectations. Even Riveria herself, having just attained Level 7 and seeing her own magic attack power surge significantly, approaching the Level 8 threshold, couldn't help but offer a wry, self-deprecating smile. If Riezel were solely a mage, he would undoubtedly be worthy of seizing her title. Unaware of Riveria's internal musings, Riezel, seemingly unfazed by the inferno of lava flames raging behind him, strode purposefully to the forefront of their formation. "Ais and the captain have not emerged yet?" he inquired, his gaze sweeping across everyone present the moment he rejoined them. "Not yet," Riveria responded, shaking her head as she refocused her thoughts. "Weren't you with them?" "We were separated partway through," Riezel stated, a slight frown creasing his brow. He then unceremoniously deposited the two goddesses he had been carrying onto the ground. "Well, these are the spoils. Keep an eye on them. I'm going to find Ais and the captain." With that declaration, he activated teleportation magic once more and vanished from their sight. "Wait—" Riveria instinctively reached out to halt Riezel, but she was too late. She could only watch in stunned silence as he disappeared into thin air, her heart once again profoundly unsettled. 'What form of magic was that...? No... could it even be considered magic?' Because Riezel had executed the teleportation spell instantaneously, bypassing the need for incantations and employing the Metamagic Enhancement technique, Riveria found herself questioning the very nature of what she had just witnessed, unable to definitively categorize the power displayed. Could it be a newly discovered skill? However, a flicker of magical energy had undeniably manifested moments prior, so it must indeed be magic. 'Riezel... he becomes more enigmatic with each passing moment...' Riveria could only heave a sigh. Meanwhile, the rest of the group began exchanging hushed whispers as they observed the two goddesses left on the ground by Riezel. "Huh? Isn't this Ishtar?" Loki moved closer, her eyes blinking as she examined the slumbering Goddess of Beauty lying before them. "And where did this little goddess come from?" Loki then turned her attention to Kali, who was unhappily rubbing her sore posterior, her golden, divine eyes narrowing slightly. "You must be Loki, correct?" Kali raised her head, meeting Loki's stare with a judgmental expression. "You were quite well-known in Heaven. I had even heard rumors of your poor reputation. But seeing you now... aren't you rather ordinary?" As she spoke, Kali's gaze drifted downwards, focusing on Loki's chest. The moment Kali's words and pointed glance registered, the last thread of Loki's composure snapped. "Hey, shorty, where exactly are you looking while you're talking? You know what, keep that up and I swear I'll punch you so hard you'll fly!" "I am simply stating the obvious. Judging by appearances, I should be the child here, yet you possess even less... are you truly a goddess?" "Alright, I've made up my mind. You're the next unfortunate soul getting sent back to Heaven!" "Your volatile reaction indicates I've hit a nerve. How pathetic." "Ughhh—!" In that instant, the two goddesses erupted into a heated argument as if no one else were present. Loki, utterly enraged, raised both her hands, emitting strange war cries as she lunged towards Kali. Witnessing this, the surrounding members quickly moved to restrain her, grabbing her arms, hugging her legs, and even holding her from behind. Nevertheless, the frenzied Loki unleashed astonishing strength, dragging several high-ranking members along with her and causing them to shriek in unison. Riveria found the spectacle too disgraceful to watch directly, so she turned her gaze back towards the front, where the furious lava flames continued their violent duel against the unyielding green flesh. "It appears there will be a considerable amount to handle moving forward..." === Inside the artificial Dungeon, a place teeming with writhing green flesh, Riezel's silhouette materialized once more. 'It's fortunate that the pillar of light earlier significantly damaged Knossos, disrupting the anti-magic stones' interference. Otherwise, there's no way I could have executed such a precise teleportation.' Upon entering the Man-Made Dungeon, Riezel immediately began assessing the situation. A powerful, invisible shockwave emanated outwards, obliterating all the green flesh in Riezel's immediate vicinity that had begun to stir upon his abrupt arrival. It was torn asunder into countless bloody fragments, raining down like heavy droplets and carpeting the ground. After cleansing the immediate area of the encroaching green flesh, Riezel activated a surveillance spell designed to pinpoint the locations of his teammates.

Riezel employed a form of scrying magic, enabling him to pinpoint specific items. This spell, once cast, allowed the user to track the location of any object they had previously touched. His chosen target for this arcane ability was Ais’s Desperate.

Given that Ais and Lefiya were his closest companions within the familia, he had naturally handled their weapons on numerous occasions. Notably, Ais’s Desperate had clashed with his own Fool so many times during their sparring matches that their contact was frequent.

Consequently, Ais’s Desperate stood as the foremost item Riezel sought to locate.

Regrettably, the anti-magic stones embedded within Knossos seemed to be fully operational, as Riezel’s activation of Locate Object was met with a significant delay before Desperate’s position became visible.

During this protracted interval, a relentless tide of verdant flesh once more erupted from the passageways on either flank.

With a decisive action, Riezel conjured a 7th Tier spell, unleashing a brilliant radiance that emanated from him like the sun itself.

This particular magic inflicted devastating harm upon unholy beings and the reanimated dead, with its potency escalating inversely to the target's justice value.

Coincidentally, the origin of this grotesque green mass was none other than Demi Spirits—fragments splintered from the Corrupted Spirit, a creature thoroughly corrupted and fallen, undoubtedly an entity possessing an exceedingly low justice value and unequivocally malevolent.

Thus, the incandescent light sliced through the encroaching flesh with ease, causing it to progressively disintegrate within the dazzling aura until it vanished entirely.

What initially presented as a profoundly vexing threat found itself utterly vanquished before Riezel, who had shed all reservations and was now freely unleashing a barrage of diverse Tier Magics.

Following another sustained bombardment of the putrid flesh, the surveillance magic Riezel had initiated finally registered a response.

Riezel instantly vanished via teleportation, abandoning the passage to be gradually consumed anew by the encroaching green tide.

===

Within a decaying artery fashioned from adamantite metal, flesh resembling rampant, malignant tumors writhed and surged, engulfing countless shards of broken stone and rubble as it pursued a group of individuals fleeing in sheer desperation.

"Hurry!"

"Run faster!"

"Faster!"

The beleaguered adventurers cried out in desperation, their legs pumping furiously through the passage as they desperately sought to escape the encroaching green mass, which surged towards them like a destructive mudslide.

"Miss Ais..."

Lefiya, already faltering and being carried on Ais’s back, murmured weakly, her consciousness clouded.

"Y-You should run... Just leave me behind."

In her semi-conscious state, Lefiya uttered these words of resignation.

"...I will get you out of here, Lefiya."

Upon hearing her junior’s inconscient mutterings, Ais’s grip on Lefiya tightened, her expression hardening with resolve.

Had she wished to escape alone, she could have absconded long ago.

It went without saying that with her Level 6 standing, abandoning everyone else would multiply her speed severalfold, permitting her to outpace the pursuing green menace with ease.

But could she truly perform such an act?

Certainly not.

Faced with the choice of abandoning her comrades, she would sooner embrace death right there.

Yet, if this continued, their collective doom was a certainty.

It was an unavoidable outcome, considering that the others were in no way capable of matching Ais’s swiftness. To make matters worse, they were all wounded and had already depleted a significant amount of their strength, making their continued flight nothing short of miraculous.

Furthermore, not only had the potions been entirely exhausted, offering no means of recovery, but the beneficial effects of Riezel’s previously cast spells had also waned and expired.

Presently, Ais could conceive of only one potential strategy to ensure everyone’s survival.

’At the next juncture, I shall draw this entity away.’

While the precise nature of the green mass remained unknown to her, its connection to the Corrupted Spirit was undeniable. If it bore relation to the Corrupted Spirit, then upon the manifestation of her unique ability, it would unquestionably abandon the others to pursue her instead. Merely by luring the green flesh away, the rest would be granted a chance at escape.

With this resolve solidifying within her, Ais prepared her magical invocation, poised to unleash it at a moment’s notice.

"As long as we make it to the next intersection..."

Ais whispered these words unconsciously, and at that very instant—

"There is no need."

From behind Ais and the others sprinting onward, a figure suddenly materialized.

Three colossal fireballs erupted forth, directly impacting the surging deluge of green flesh.

===