Ogine’s point of view:

  “I can’t see the end… everything in front of us is Denosis.” I hop slightly, trying to glimpse the cave at the end of the valley. It’s impossible to see anything clearly from this distance with such an overwhelming horde of monsters in the way.

  At first, I was a little afraid to take this on with just the three of us. But when Brendu reminded me who Maki is and what he’s capable of, a seed of courage sprouted inside me. I trust my friend and teammate.

  I’m not only seeing it with my eyes. My other radar-like senses are amplified by my affinity for sound. I can “see” his movements more clearly. Every positioning choice, every slight motion has a purpose behind it. He moves like flowing water.

  How can someone that young achieve that level of combat ability? Is that even possible? I feel a little silly asking myself those questions while watching the example right in front of me. No matter how used to him I am, he always ends up surprising me—not just me, but the whole team.

  Even Areci always ends up amazed at how fast our young friend improves. She rarely gets surprised by anyone our age, no matter if they’re other limit breakers. But Maki is the exception. He’s always playing in his own league.

  Brendu and I aren’t slacking off. We’re both giving it our all, launching countless constructs to annihilate as many monsters as possible. I have to constantly keep an eye on the corpses, moving them aside so they don’t become an obstacle. There’s already a massive pile of dead monsters stacked beside the wall…

  His sword slices off a Denosis’s head, continues its trajectory to cut another one in half, and then finishes it with an ice sword from behind. His other blade pierces a monster’s chest and throws it into the others to delay their advance.

  He hasn’t stopped moving for a single second. His feet almost look like they’re floating at all times. Those electric serpents are incredibly powerful too, roasting any idiot that gets in the way.

  Each of his abilities seems to exist in perfect harmony. The most astonishing part is his swordsmanship and his ability to find the right openings. He has an incredible battle compass, and his level of swordsmanship is so high that I can’t even comprehend his movements.

  “It’s hypnotizing, isn’t it?” Brendu’s voice almost makes me jump in surprise.

  “Yes… no matter how many times I see it, he always surpasses himself.” I reply to my friend.

  “I know. I’m already used to seeing him do insane things, but there are moments when I think he’s not even from this planet.” Brendu hasn’t stopped attacking for even a second while speaking. Her acid-infused wooden constructs continue to annihilate monsters.

  “Aren’t you worried he might get hurt? I know he can heal, but still… at some point he could run into someone or something much stronger.” I ask out of genuine curiosity.

  I don’t know how I’d feel if my partner were constantly throwing himself into danger or fighting people or monsters who should be far stronger.

  “I trust him enough not to worry… most of the time. There were moments when I went crazy wondering if I’d see him again or if he’d come back in one piece. After all, life mana can be restricted in many ways, especially by Diamond or Obsidian ranks.” Her eyes grow a little sad.

  “Sometimes I want to hold him back, but I know that wouldn’t be good for him.” She turns to look at me. “Don’t make that face. Maki has improved a lot. He doesn’t throw himself into as many problems as before, and he’s much more cautious when he needs to be.” The princess forces a smile.

  “I’m sorry for asking this… but how did you feel after finding out Maki faced an anomaly alone? Or how did you handle knowing he fought a Diamond-rank for a while?” Maki himself told us those stories. I just want to know Brendu’s perspective.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  “Well, it wasn’t easy. That day when he came back after facing the anomaly, I felt immense relief. I was very worried, but deep down I knew he would win. I never doubted it for even a second.” Her eyes are completely serious.

  “It was different with that insane Diamond-rank woman. If Tiani hadn’t been there, I might be insane right now, moving heaven and earth to find him. I would’ve forced my family to mobilize every available person until we found him. Just thinking about it makes my chest tighten. But in the end, everything turned out fine.” The princess lets out a soft sigh.

  “That sounds horrible. I couldn’t handle that. You’ve always been mentally stronger than most.” I’m not lying. Brendu has always stood out for staying calm in difficult situations. She was born with an iron mindset and raised strictly to never break.

  “Thank you. I’ve worked hard to become who I am now.” We look at each other and smile.

  During all that time, Maki has annihilated several hundred more monsters. He seems to have lowered the intensity slightly, almost like he’s testing some new technique.

  “Does he always like testing new things at the worst possible moments?” I ask Brendu. We’re all friends and usually hang out just to enjoy ourselves. Sometimes he joins us in grade 4 dungeons, but he mostly just supervises to make sure everything goes well. I’ve rarely seen him push himself this hard.

  “Yes, he’s usually like that. If a new idea comes to mind, he tests it no matter the situation. Sometimes I seriously wonder if he’s sane or not. Maybe a screw in his head is loose.” Brendu’s comment makes us both laugh. I wouldn’t be surprised if a screw really is out of place.

  “Have you ever seen him angry? I can’t imagine how he’d act if someone truly made him mad.” Anyone who does that would be incredibly stupid.

  “I’ve almost never seen him angry. He’s never shown the slightest bit of anger toward me or the other girls, no matter what kind of jokes or awkward situations we put him in. He always tries to see the good or funny side.” I see Brendu frown slightly as she thinks.

  That’s typical of most users with ice affinity. They always remain calm or try not to get agitated.

  “But there were a couple of situations where he got angry because someone disrespected an elderly person or a child.” Her words remind me of that day when he defended an elderly couple. He moved without saying anything, acted instantly, leaving everyone stunned.

  “There was only one time I saw him truly furious. It’s hard to explain that feeling.” We both launch more powerful spells as she continues. “Some idiot didn’t recognize me and tried to flirt with me. I obviously ignored him. That bastard had the nerve to keep trying even after seeing me holding hands with Maki.” She gets angry just remembering it.

  “Maki ignored him the entire time, but I could feel his Imra ready to act at any moment. He even let some insults toward himself slide. The guy called him a weak man, a lucky bastard, and all kinds of pointless garbage.” Brendu looks even angrier now.

  “That bastard couldn’t stand being ignored and tried to vent his anger on me. He was about to insult me, but he never finished the sentence. His body flew several meters. I clearly heard his ribs break when Maki hit him.” Just imagining a punch from Maki to the stomach makes me feel a faint ache, but that idiot deserved it.

  “That wasn’t all. Before anyone could react, Maki had already teleported over him and started hitting him without holding back at all. The bastard was Ruby rank, but that meant nothing. Maki restrained him with gravity and Imra. Any attempt to escape was impossible from the start.” I’ve felt that sensation before. Everyone freezes like a statue.

  “He hit him from every possible angle. In less than a minute, that bastard had nearly every bone in his body broken, one arm completely crushed, the other cut off by an ice sword, blood pouring everywhere, and his legs bent in unnatural angles.” I can’t help swallowing just imagining it.

  “For a moment, I thought he’d kill him. Honestly, I didn’t care. He had disrespected a princess. The problem was paperwork and justification. That bastard was lucky Maki held back on the last blow. He stopped an ice sword less than a centimeter from his face and simply turned around.” Harassing a woman can already land you in jail for days. If it’s a princess, you’re lucky if you only die.

  “When he stood in front of me, there was no anger in his eyes. He simply said: I will never allow anyone to disrespect you or someone I love. Maki smiled at me then, and I felt safe, like no one could hurt me. The police arrived shortly after. We had to explain the situation, and they took that bastard away. I never asked Aunt Susan how it ended.” He’s probably rotting in prison—or no longer alive.

  “I’m sure Maki would do the same for you or any of his friends. He’s someone you can truly rely on.” A radiant smile forms on the princess’s lips as she looks at her boyfriend.

  I feel happy and grateful to be their friend. I turn to look at Maki, who has already wiped out a quarter of the monsters. He hasn’t stopped for even a second—and neither have we.

  “Let’s advance and finish this. We don’t want to anger the little demon.” I say with a laugh. The princess laughs too, and together we push forward.

  I never thought I’d hear a story like that about Maki. Brendu is absolutely right. It’s good to have him as a friend—and it would be the worst headache imaginable to have him as an enemy. I can’t imagine where his ceiling is. He probably doesn’t have one.