Erebus.
A name from mythology.
Seeing the title "Hero Devourer" next to it, I instinctively understood—this was the guy who killed the self-proclaimed veteran hero and stripped him of his hero status.
But what truly threw me into confusion was the additional title below.
The One Who Brings Destruction.
The wandering god who sent me to this other world once said that this was a world heading towards destruction.
But that destruction wouldn't suddenly descend for hundreds of years, so I could enjoy life without a care in the world—that's what he said back then.
However, this Erebus before me, spewing black smoke, whether monster or demon, exuded a terrifying appearance and aura that made one feel that destruction was imminent.
When I first saw my horse-faced self, I was only shocked by its ferocity, but this guy wasn't ferocious at all; he was simply chilling.
Perhaps sensing my similar emotions, Lisbeth froze completely, while Ars was sweating profusely with shock.
"Gurgle gurgle!" But what happened next shocked us even more.
Just as we were about to flee, the creature that had been watching us leaped like a cat into the innermost corner of the boss room.
It curled up into a ball, its six eyes on each of its two faces fixed on us.
Despite being a creature of similar size to me, nearly three meters tall, its tense body relaxed slightly at its cat-like movements.
"...That guy...could he be a coward despite his fierce appearance?" My comment softened Lisbeth's expression, and Ars seemed to tighten his grip on his sword.
But since we didn't know its true strength or how it had killed a seasoned warrior over level 50, we couldn't act rashly.
Just as I was thinking this, the magic circle on the floor of the boss room suddenly shone brightly, and a blurry outline appeared above it, identical to the one I had seen when entering the dungeon.
Like a dimensional portal in a certain RPG game, it was a spectacle that allowed glimpses of the outside world.
The portal was just the right size for my body to barely pass through.
"Gaaaaah!" Seeing this, Elebus charged towards the dimensional portal. Ars, witnessing Elebus's actions, also began to run.
"Ah, Ars! No!"
"Liz! You stay at the entrance and hold him off! Shimo! We can't let that guy escape!" Instantly understanding Ars's intention, I shouted to Lisbeth and began to sprint.
"Lizbeth! If things get bad, run! Stay at the entrance as Ars said!" Seeing Lisbeth gripping her wand tightly, I followed Ars and charged towards Elebus. Fortunately, the magic circle was closer to us, allowing us to get there first and block it.
"Eeeaaaaah!"
"Haaaaaah!!!" Ars swung his sword at the charging Elebos. But the blade, piercing Elebos's neck, failed to cause any damage and remained stationary.
"Eeeaaaah!" Then, as if trying to sweep Ars aside, Elebos swung its front paw horizontally. Seeing this, I used my forelegs to protect Ars, simultaneously delivering a powerful kick to Elebos's front paw.
With a "bang," a strange sensation—hard or soft—of indistinguishable texture collided with the front paw, enveloping Ars and pushing him backward.
Ordinary monsters below the Cursed Mountains usually die with a single blow, but Sack's kick, which I hadn't felt any significant impact from before, was suppressed in power.
This guy, despite being a coward, is incredibly strong.
Feeling the throbbing pain in my hind leg muscles, I broke out in a cold sweat.
"Ars! Semo!" Lisbeth, positioned at the entrance, saw us being repelled and activated her magic.
Was that spell called Flame Shot?
Six fist-sized fireballs traced zigzag paths as if guided, flying towards Erebus and exploding.
However, Erebus only grimaced slightly in the face where they were hit, seemingly unharmed.
"Uh, not very effective…!" Lisbeth frowned and continued preparing her spell.
As Erebus instantly fixed its gaze on Lisbeth, revealing its lock-on stance, Ars and I charged forward again to divert its attention.
"Lizbeth! We need a large-scale spell! Prepare your maximum firepower spell! Semo! You take the right side!" Ars said, circling around to Erebus's left and charging towards its torso.
I immediately turned to the right, aiming a sweeping kick at its side.
'A feline's side is supposed to be its Achilles' heel! You've got your side wide open, you bastard!' With that thought in mind, I unleashed a full-force sweeping kick at the guy's taut side, but its side was harder than I expected.
It felt like kicking a hard rubber board.
Ars's sword couldn't penetrate it at all.
"Gahhhhhhh!" Elebus spun his massive body and swung his leg, sending Ars and me flying.
Bearing the powerful impact, we crashed into the opposite wall with dull thuds.
"Cough...!" This hurt much more than I expected.
My warhorse's body was tough enough when it was knocked unconscious by the boar monster of the Cursed Mountains, but this pain felt like my intestines were about to burst out.
Is this the kind of blood-spitting impact you see in comics?
"Ugh...!" Ars, on the other side, also planted his sword in the ground and shakily stood up.
I had worried that Ars's body might be weaker than mine; although he had suffered a huge impact, he seemed lucky enough not to be seriously injured.
"Ars!" Lisbeth called out to Ars in an urgent voice. "So, it really is the guy who killed the veteran hero; the situation is worse than expected." Lisbeth must have sensed this too.
"Ars! We have to run! We can't do it alone!" Hearing Lisbeth shout this, I knew we had to prepare for escape and mentally planned an escape route.
But Ars shouted out another option in this situation.
"No! If that guy gets out, it won't end with minor injuries! We have to stop it!"
"But, but Ars…!"
"I'm going to use Hero's Aura…!" Ars said, and soon a blue aura rose from his body.
Could that aura be what's called Hero's Aura?
"Ars…!…Understood! I'll prepare a Flame Shockwave!" Lisbeth gripped her wand with both hands, closed her eyes, and began preparing something.
Then, Ars, radiating a blue aura, charged towards Erebus, who was trying to ignore us as we jumped into the dimensional portal.
"Haaaaaaah!" Hero's Aura.
An energy that provides a buff to warriors.
Ars's released battle aura speed seemed comparable to my top speed.
He maintained this stance as he leaped upwards, swinging his blade towards Erebus's nape.
"Gahhhhhh!" Erebus's body, which had remained unscathed until now, was now cleaved open by Ars's blade. Liquid-like black smoke, rather than blood, gushed from the wound, then quietly dissipated.
"Chiaaaaaahhhhhh!" Sensing the threat, Erebus attempted to pursue Ars, raising his foot in a sweeping kick. But Ars, having just landed, swiftly circled to Erebus's side and swung his sword again.
"Haa!"
"Crack!" Ars and Erebus, inside the boss room, were locked in a fierce struggle, their legs and swords clashing like basketball players trying to prevent each other from entering the paint.
Ars's speed appeared to be comparable to or slightly inferior to my top speed, but the spin he used to change direction by pushing off the ground, like breaking bricks, revealed an unattainable speed.
Even while dodging Erepos's kicks and striking his body in this state, each strike only emitted a small amount of liquid-like black smoke; Erepos showed no signs of fatigue.
Thump!
The instant this thought flashed through my mind, Erepos's foreleg stomped down on Ars's head.
Although he raised his sword to block, the ground beneath Ars had already cracked, forcing him to kneel on one knee.
Kneeling, Ars's face was covered in sweat, and he was breathing heavily.
"Haa...haa..."
Only one or two minutes of offense and defense.
Isn't the hero's energy supposed to be limitless?
The sweat and heavy breathing didn't seem to indicate this.
Instantly, I remembered the hero's description written on the pile of papers I received at the management office.
While heroes can use unlimited energy, stamina and endurance are another matter.
So, even if the hero's battle aura is theoretically unlimited, it can't be continuously released due to stamina issues?
Just as I was thinking this, and about to rush towards Arles due to the danger—"Enough! Arles, step back!" Lisbeth, located at the entrance, unfurled a large magic circle glowing red below and exclaimed.
Immediately afterward, Arles slashed away from Erebos's foot and retreated to the opposite wall, which I was pressed against.
"Flame Blast!!!" With this shout, a floor-sized magic circle unfolded at the tip of Lisbeth's wand, from which erupted flames reminiscent of a giant flamethrower.
Despite the intense fire, the flames did not spread outwards, maintaining their jet-like form and engulfing Erebos.
"Gaa ... Scorched by the flames, Erebus's twelve once-glowing red eyes vanished, and his body steamed, resembling a perfectly roasted Erebus.
Was this…captured?
"Haa…! Haa…!" For some reason, Lisbeth's breathing was also rapid. It seemed she had expended a great deal of magic. Her hand holding the wand seemed weak, trembling slightly.
"Haa…! Haa… Is he… dead…?"
"Who knows…" As Lisbeth wondered, Ars, whose breathing had slightly returned, picked up his sword and approached Erebus.
Then, as he attempted to stab Erebus from behind…
"Gaaaaaaaah!" The fallen Erebus suddenly opened his twelve eyes, lashing out with his hind legs at Ars, while exhaling black spheres of smoke from his mouth at Lisbeth.
Ars instantly defended with his sword but was knocked back and crashed into the wall. Lisbeth's expression froze, filled with terror.
"Lisbeth!!!" My body involuntarily stepped in front of Lisbeth, engulfed by the smoke from the black sphere.
After a moment of dizziness, I lost consciousness!