Danmachi: Strongest Familia

"Damn it, Skaarl, you coward!" Kled cursed angrily at the mount, but it was useless; Skaarl couldn't hear him. The creature's neck was twisted to the side, seemingly lost in its own world.

"Sett, be careful of the blood from these monsters—don't let it touch you!" Riveria warned, her gaze fixed on the few who were fighting on the front lines. Sett, unarmed, was undoubtedly the most vulnerable.

"Don't worry—everything is under my control!" Sett responded confidently.

Not far away, Sett had joined the defense line alongside the cadres of the Loki Familia. Unlike Kled, who had recklessly charged into the swarm of monsters, Sett was more cautious, keeping his distance from the mass of bugs. He fought with his fists, which, while less dramatic, meant fewer bloody scenes.

Having witnessed Kled's mistake, Sett was more careful, despite his love for combat. He wasn't as reckless as Kled. 

The pride within him began to condense, and a powerful aura surged around him. Even the Loki Familia members, focused on their own battles, couldn't help but glance in his direction. Was something big about to happen?

In the next instant, Sett reached out and grabbed two insect-like monsters closest to him. His fingers pierced their heads with ease, and purple blood splattered, but it was blocked by the golden aura covering his palms. With a swift motion, he swung the monsters around like ragdolls, their bodies spinning through the air. The impact sent the remaining bugs flying, and a large area was instantly cleared.

The two monsters disintegrated into black smoke as they were overwhelmed. Sett still looked unsatisfied, his eyes scanning the battlefield. Soon, his gaze landed on a particularly large monster, and he rushed toward it. 

Grabbing it with both hands, he lifted its massive body into the air. With a powerful leap, Sett launched himself like a missile, crashing down into a spot he had targeted earlier. The monster was instantly reduced to black smoke, and the resulting explosion of flesh, blood, and debris sprayed in every direction, turning the area into a chaotic storm of destruction. A deep crack appeared in the ground beneath him, leaving a huge crater in the center.

"Damn it! This guy's stealing the spotlight again!" Tione, from a distance, gritted her teeth in frustration. Her eyes flashed with competitive fire. Without hesitation, she broke free of the monster's tentacles and pierced its back with her bare hand. The stench of blood burned her skin, but Tione didn't flinch. Her fury and the chaos of the battle activated her warrior instincts, amplifying her strength when injured. It was like a berserker's skill.

In one fluid motion, Tione tore out the monster's heart and extracted a fist-sized magic stone from its chest.

"Hahaha! Trash should go where it belongs!" she laughed, her energy matching the chaos around her.

Within moments, more insect-type monsters poured in to fill the space Sett had cleared, even more than before.

As Sett moved forward, a small pit formed under his feet, cracks spreading out from the force of his movement. His golden aura exploded outward, rising like a pillar into the sky. He launched a devastating punch, unleashing a wave of power that swept across the front lines. 

"Wow, watching it a few more times doesn't make it any less outrageous," Tiona observed, standing next to her sister. She watched Sett punch with fascination. It was incredible how such a simple action could be powered by pure aura.

Tiona had grown accustomed to the 'perverse' abilities of her teammates after spending so much time with them. A pervert like Sett, who manipulated his aura, was almost on the same level as her own sister.

But my master is still the best!

Thinking about Yone's unique style in battle suddenly made Tiona feel a deep admiration. Lost in thought, she felt a familiar longing.

"Tiona, what are you zoning out for?!" Tione snapped, noticing her sister's distracted state. Tiona spent so much time near Yone, she often found herself daydreaming about him. Tione shook her head in exasperation—her sister's infatuation with Yone was both amusing and worrying.

Despite her annoyance, Tione didn't interfere with her sister's actions, though she wished Tiona would stay focused during battle.

Just as Tiona refocused, two monsters rushed toward her. With a swift movement, she swung her massive double blades, but the moment the attack connected, she regretted it. There was no way to stop the force once it was unleashed.

To her horror, the blades scraped across the monsters' bodies, leaving them shredded but also speckling the blades with dark purple blood. 

"Ah! My great double blade!" Tiona screamed in despair.

The shrill cry caught the attention of everyone nearby, and they all watched in disbelief as the once-mighty weapon began to corrode. The double blades, once taller than a person, were now disintegrating before their eyes, turning to dust. 

The corrosion spread rapidly, and soon the weapon was nothing more than a shadow of its former self.

Witnesses to the event couldn't help but frown, now fully aware of the destructive power of these insect monsters' blood. Kled's axe had been corroded by the same substance, but that had happened in the midst of the chaos, and not many had seen it clearly. Tiona's double blades, however, were clearly a first-level weapon, forged by skilled craftsmen from precious materials. 

If such a weapon could be corroded so easily, what did that mean for the other weapons they carried? 

First-level weapons were expensive, and repairing them wasn't cheap either. For Tiona, this loss would be devastating. With the proceeds from this expedition, Tione realized that Tiona couldn't even afford the material costs to repair the blade, let alone replace it.

In that instant, Tiona, an LV5 adventurer, had been instantly bankrupted.

Irelia, who had been considering joining the fray, hesitated, now realizing she wasn't needed. Seeing the state of Tiona's weapon made her own blade feel too precious to risk. Better to stay by Ari's side as a bodyguard, she thought.