Danmachi: The Sign In System!

Chapter 148 - The Last Showdown

"Cassandra!" Sliding down from the wall, Daphne's forehead was covered with blood, and blood trickled from the corners of her mouth. 

She ignored her own injuries and staggered toward Cassandra, paying no heed to the two melee members who had attacked Lili with her.

"What an enviable friendship." Not far away, Senie walked slowly toward them, smiling as she approached.

Daphne ignored Senie entirely, instead pulling a potion wrapped in cotton from her chest pocket and feeding it to Cassandra.

Adventurers' potions are often specially treated to withstand battle damage.

Daphne's was no exception. The potion, carefully stored in her inner pocket, remained intact despite Lili's kick to her abdomen.

"Don't come closer," Daphne warned, turning her attention to Senie after seeing Cassandra's injuries heal quickly. She glared warily and shouted.

Senie ignored her, continuing to advance while saying, "Don't worry, as long as you stay put and don't make a move, I won't attack you."

Senie had learned much about the Apollo Familia in recent days, particularly about Daphne and Cassandra.

To some extent, Daphne and Cassandra were in a similar position to Orsted, all targeted by Apollo and coerced into joining his Familia.

Unlike Orsted, who could resist and fight back, Daphne and Cassandra were powerless and forced to comply.

Senie bore them no ill will.

She had been called here by Lili to keep the Apollo Familia's Level 2 members pinned down, preventing them from interfering with Tifa, Eina, and the others.

However, neither Senie nor Lili had anticipated how weak the Apollo Familia would be.

In just a few rounds, Tifa, Eina, and others had already defeated the members guarding the city walls and gates.

Now, Tifa and the others had joined Orsted and were heading this way.

Seeing Senie pause and refrain from further action, Daphne exhaled in relief.

But her relief was cut short by a sharp pain in her abdomen.

She suddenly remembered her two companions were still fighting Lili and quickly turned to look.

Her pupils shrank at the sight.

Her two companions, far from overpowering Lili in a two-on-one fight, were being thoroughly beaten by her alone, fleeing in disarray with injuries covering their bodies.

Noticing Daphne's gaze, Senie smiled and said, "Don't move, or I'll have to put you down like that girl."

Though she had no desire to harm Daphne or Cassandra, Senie wouldn't let Daphne interfere with Lili.

"I won't try anything," Daphne replied, her heart tightening. She instinctively hugged the still-unconscious Cassandra closer.

At that moment, Hyakinthos, who had been sitting confidently in the tower, finally sensed something was wrong and emerged.

He stepped out to a scene of chaos: his Familia members littered the ground.

Archers and mages alike lay defeated, their fates uncertain.

Only Daphne and the two Level 2 melee fighters remained. The melee fighters were being overwhelmed by Lili alone.

Daphne crouched protectively in front of Cassandra, warily eyeing Senie in her purple, form-fitting outfit.

"What is going on?" Hyakinthos roared, furious at the sight.

"Don't you trust your eyes?"

"If they're useless, maybe you should donate them," a calm voice replied.

Hyakinthos would never forget that voice. Its owner was the one vying for Apollo's favor, sparking this war game.

He looked up to see Orsted approaching slowly, surrounded by Hestia Familia members.

Though he walked unhurriedly, Orsted's presence, flanked by his allies, carried an imposing aura that unsettled the conscious Apollo Familia members. Upon seeing Orsted, Senie, who had been watching Daphne, and Lili, who had been dominating the two Level 2 fighters, stopped and turned to join him, standing at his left and right.

"Lord Orsted, soldiers against soldiers, generals against generals. Lili and the others have cleared all obstacles for you. The stage is yours," Lili said respectfully, placing a hand on her chest and bowing slightly.

Orsted felt an odd pang of embarrassment at Lili's formal words.

Suppressing the feeling, he focused on Hyakinthos, meeting his hateful glare with calm resolve.

Hyakinthos looked at Orsted as if he were a mortal enemy.

"You bastard!"

Orsted didn't care to guess Hyakinthos' thoughts or delve into his mind.

He only knew the man before him had to be dealt with.

Orsted and Hestia had planned Apollo's punishment before the Banquet: to send Apollo back to heaven and disband his Familia.

In the Anime, after the Apollo Familia's defeat, Apollo merely disbanded his Familia and was exiled from Orario, not returned to heaven. Hyakinthos, though resentful, wasn't extreme and left with Apollo. But this time, with Apollo facing divine repatriation and his Familia's dissolution, Hyakinthos, who revered Apollo above all, would never relent and would become a lifelong enemy of the Hestia Familia.

Enemies had to be eliminated.

War games permitted killing.

Excalibur Proto appeared in Orsted's hand. He walked toward Hyakinthos with steady calm.

Unbeknownst to Orsted, his appearance reignited excitement among Orario's gods and adventurers watching the war game.

"Oh! Orsted's finally here! Let's see what you've got!" Hermes shouted in Babel's assembly hall.

The other gods and adventurers buzzed with anticipation. Orsted hadn't acted since the war game began.

As the central figure of this conflict, his confrontation was crucial.

The siege battle's outcome hinged on this moment.

It was the climax of the war game.

How could they not be eager? They awaited Orsted's performance with bated breath.

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