Byn felt slightly embarrassed and tried to brush the topic aside.

  “Regardless, you’re the true owner of Yatsufusa. Even if you handed it over to me, wielding two Teigus at the same time would be too much of a burden. So don’t overthink it.”

  “Okay.”

  Kurome nodded.

  Given the current situation, if Byn had actually wanted to take Yatsufusa from her, she wouldn’t have hesitated to agree.

  But in truth, he wasn’t suited for Yatsufusa. Even if he took it, he wouldn’t be able to draw out its full power—and besides, he had no interest in doing such a thing in the first pce.

  “This mission went pretty smoothly. Should we head back now?” Byn asked, changing the subject.

  “But considering the time, it should already be night outside. I think it would be better to return in the morning,” Kurome said.

  She had a point. Traveling at night—especially flying—was not ideal.

  Although she had acquired a Super-Css Danger Beast corpse puppet, Death Tagool wasn’t suited for aerial combat.

  This cave, however, was a perfect pce to rest for the night. The lingering scent of Death Tagool would deter most creatures from approaching, and only another Super-Css Danger Beast would dare venture here. Even then, the sheer noise of its massive body would wake them up long before it got close.

  “Alright, we’ll head back tomorrow,” Byn agreed.

  A night of rest would give his body and Eye Power time to recover naturally.

  “I’ll go bring my mount inside the cave. Leaving it outside might be dangerous.”

  With that, he prepared to head back to the surface.

  “I’ll come with you,” Kurome said, immediately following him. She was still worried that he hadn’t fully recovered.

  At the same time, Death Tagool vanished as Kurome recalled it into Yatsufusa, storing it away until it was needed again.

  Of course, finding a mount wasn’t really an issue for them. If necessary, Kurome could simply track down a Css One or Special Css flying-type Danger Beast and kill it with Yatsufusa.

  However, since their current mount was borrowed from the Empire, they had a responsibility to take care of it.

  Their return to the surface was much quicker than when they had descended into the cave.

  By the time they emerged, the sky had already darkened.

  The area was quiet—no sign of any Danger Beasts.

  However, just as they were about to retrieve their mount and take it back to the cave, the creature suddenly grew restless. Its unease suggested it had sensed a threat.

  Byn’s expression hardened as he quickly scanned his surroundings. A short distance away, he spotted a rge figure.

  “As expected, a Danger Beast has appeared. Judging by its size, it’s probably a Special Css…”

  “Even in this darkness, you can still see so clearly, Commander?” Kurome asked, slightly impressed.

  Then again, she reminded herself, it was a Teigu—having night vision was nothing unusual.

  Byn was about to draw his bck and white dual swords when Kurome spoke up.

  “This time, let me protect you. I’ll use Death Tagool’s power.”

  “Alright, I’ll leave it to you,” Byn said without hesitation.

  This would also be a good chance to test the strength of a Super-Css Danger Beast in action.

  “Yatsufusa!”

  Kurome activated her Teigu, summoning Death Tagool.

  The ground trembled violently as two massive skeletal hands burst forth, followed by the towering, nearly 100-meter-tall behemoth.

  Though it resembled a dinosaur, Death Tagool’s arms were structured more like human hands, allowing it to wield them with surprising dexterity.

  With one massive hand, Death Tagool scooped up Byn, Kurome, and their mount—despite being a Css One Danger Beast, the mount was barely the size of its palm.

  The Special Css Danger Beast in the distance froze for a moment before turning to flee, clearly intimidated by the overwhelming presence of a Super-Css Danger Beast.

  But now that she had summoned Death Tagool, Kurome wasn’t about to let it go.

  “Death Tagool, blow it to pieces!”

  At her command, Death Tagool threw its head back and began gathering energy. It inhaled violently, drawing in the surrounding air and compressing it into a terrifyingly dense mass of energy.

  When the buildup reached its peak…

  A devastating energy bst erupted toward the fleeing Danger Beast.

  “BOOM—!!”

  The explosion obliterated the ndscape, instantly transforming the pins and hills into a deep canyon. The terrain itself had been altered.

  As for the Special Css Danger Beast? It had been completely vaporized—reduced to nothing.

  “No wonder it’s a Super-Css Danger Beast… That power is insane,” Byn muttered, surveying the destruction before him.

  If he used this creature’s body as a material for a new Teigu, he could probably create an incredibly powerful firearm-type weapon.

  After witnessing Death Tagool’s overwhelming dispy, no other Danger Beasts dared to approach.

  Even their mount had been scared stiff, trembling uncontrolbly in Death Tagool’s massive hand.

  Once Death Tagool returned them to the ground, Kurome recalled it back into Yatsufusa.

  Afterward, they spent some time calming the mount before leading it back into the cave.

  Halfway in, they stopped—they wouldn’t be going all the way to the deepest part of the cave.

  “This spot should be good for the night. It’s not too cold here,” Byn said.

  The deeper sections of the cave were freezing—far from ideal for resting.

  Their mount carried some supplies for overnight stays. Byn casually grabbed a bnket, id it on the ground, and y down to rest.

  However, there was only one quilt—and it was Kurome’s.

  Byn hadn’t thought to bring one for himself. With his constitution being several times that of a normal person, he wasn’t concerned about the cold.

  “Commander, don’t you need a quilt?” Kurome asked.

  “I’m fine. You use it,” Byn replied.

  Hearing no further response, he assumed she had already gone to sleep.

  Then he heard soft footsteps approaching.

  Puzzled, he turned his head—only to see Kurome walking toward him, carrying the quilt.

  “You…”

  Before he could finish, Kurome y down beside him, spreading the quilt over both of them.

  It was a bit small for two people, so she moved in closer.

  “This way, you won’t get cold,” she said calmly.

  Her tone was neutral, but a faint blush had appeared on her face. She deliberately turned her back to him, not wanting him to see.

  PinkSnake