Tsuna sent a puppet out of the extradimensional pocket to scout. Once it confirmed the corridor was empty of adventurers, he stepped back into the world—and set down the shattered stone giant and the headless fae fetus.
An old-fashioned pocket watch clicked in his hand.
Time ran backward.
The fetus's burst skull knit whole; its limp body flew up and slipped back into the thinned magic stone. The living roots withdrew, shrinking and curling until they were only scattered seeds again. The rubble on the floor flowed up the giant's frame, plates rejoining like film played in reverse.
As the last shards seated, Tsuna vanished.
The stone giant froze, scanning like an actor who'd forgotten his cue. After a long pause, it hunched into a corner and folded itself into a protruding bulge in the wall—back to hibernation.
Tsuna, meanwhile, returned to the expedition through his puppet.
Finn noticed him at once. The puppet gave a slight nod; Finn understood and didn't pry. Right now he had to snake the column past the 37th floor's boss, Udaeus.
You don't always take every floor lord head-on. When conditions allow, you go around.
Floor 39—Safe Zone.
"…"
The party staggered in with fresh cuts and bruises, a far cry from their state on the 28th.
Weapons went down. Bodies went down after them. What they needed wasn't chatter—it was air in the lungs.
Deep-floor monsters were on a different scale. A "basic" stone giant took nearly ten people to dance around; one punch could end your whole run.
"This is way more exhausting than I imagined," someone muttered.
Grunts of agreement rolled through the group.
"Same. If I hadn't gotten stronger lately, I'd be tapped out."
"Yeah. I never felt it like this before."
"That's because we weren't standing where we are now."
That stopped a few chuckles before it coaxed bigger ones.
"Hah!"
"He's right. We got stronger. We're not in the back anymore—we're up front. We're not support; we're the line."
Before, most of them weren't the ones trading blows. They were support—carving magic stones after the fact. That was its own grind, but after today? It felt light next to a giant's fist.
"Compared to us, that guy Sawada is just… broken."
"No kidding. That reinforced giant—twice a normal one—every punch made the whole level quake. Take one straight and you're paste."
Finn's ear tilted toward the talk, though his eyes stayed soft and neutral. He'd felt that earlier quake and had ordered a quick pullback, so he'd missed the clash itself. He only knew it ended fast.
"Hey—spell it out," Tione cut in the instant she heard Tsuna's name, eyes wide. Everyone in the familia knew her… change of heart; no one was surprised she was all ears.
"Tsuna toyed with it," an adventurer said, still a little awed. "Fight was… surgical. He flicked out some seeds, and it was like magic—vines erupted and swallowed the whole giant. While it grew, those vines sprouted these… purple, flame-like leaves. Beautiful—and terrifying. The thing looked like it died by its own hand."
The image had branded itself into their minds: a colossal tree of living roots, leafed in ghostly violet fire.
Beauty on the outside; a corpse on the inside.
Terror didn't last long, though. What followed was naked yearning. If power like that were yours…
"Honestly, I thought Tsuna's personal strength wouldn't be that high," another admitted. "I figured it was all tools and tricks."
They all had. No one had seen him fight up close. Hearing what he could make had led them to assume the maker wasn't much of a puncher.
Turned out the maker hit like a monster, too.
"He's always been like that," Tione said, chin tipped up, just a little smug.
Finn smiled, then reminded them gently, "His personal strength stays under wraps. Don't let the outside world—especially the gods—equate his abilities with his combat power."
The point landed. Most of what they knew about Tsuna was classified. Best to keep all of it that way.
(End of Chapter)
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