“W-What?! H-He's Greg?!”
At the sound of Silvia blurting out that name, Alvin, Leonard, and Leah—who had only just been pulled back from the brink of death—froze as if struck by lightning.
They reflexively glanced at one another, reading the exact same doubt and intense suspicion in each other's eyes.
How could that be?
Greg Sass?
Was he the same Greg Sass they knew?
The former Duke's son who, ever since enrollment, had been infamous for being arrogant, foolish, relying on his family background to act brazenly, and possessing utterly mediocre magic talent?
The former noble who, even after reaching his second year, had his level pitifully stuck at around LV10, and had even been publicly expelled from his family, becoming a complete laughingstock?
Could someone like that really be the mysterious powerhouse standing before them? The one who wore a mask, manipulated strange wooden sticks to effortlessly bind three fierce monsters, and swooped in like a god from above to save them at their darkest hour?
Absolutely impossible!
It had to be someone with the same name, or that pink-haired girl had made a mistake!
Alvin and Leonard immediately came to that conclusion in their minds.
This had to be some low-profile, powerful Senior who happened to be named Greg as well, or... perhaps a lone wolf using a pseudonym.
However, after her initial shock passed, Leah, the only female among the three, kept her gaze firmly locked on the masked, golden-haired figure.
Her heart began to thud violently, entirely of its own accord.
That hair... that shade of gold...
Greg's physical appearance might have had a limited effect on protagonist-level characters like Victoria or Lilith.
However, for a side character like Leah, it carried a non-negligible, near-lethal level of attraction.
She still clearly remembered catching a distant glimpse of that golden-haired youth, dazzling like the blazing sun, who had been on everyone's lips during the freshman orientation.
The awe she felt at that moment had left her convinced for a long time that she would likely never find a man more handsome or... more captivating than him.
Right now, even though the mask hid half his face, that exposed, flawlessly chiseled jawline, that tall and erect posture, and those shoulder-length golden locks—dazzling like flowing molten gold even in the dim light—rapidly overlapped and aligned with the distant, breathtaking figure in her memories.
That's right... That hair, that frame... Though his aura felt completely different, it... it was definitely him!
Greg Sass!
Leah's breath grew slightly shallow, and her cheeks began to burn.
She confirmed the masked man's identity almost instantly.
This sudden realization brought a wave of confusion even more overwhelming than the shock of being hunted by monsters moments ago.
How could the rumored good-for-nothing Greg Sass possess such deeply hidden, formidable power?
Why was he here?
And why had he saved them?
Question after question swirled in her head, remaining unanswered.
Meanwhile, the moment Greg heard Silvia shout “Senior Greg,” his expression under the mask collapsed instantly.
Just as he was about to capitalize on the other two's doubt, dash over to cover Silvia's mouth, or simply deny it to the death with a deep, disguised voice saying, “No, I am not Greg, you have the wrong person”—
Reality gave him no such chance.
“Roar—!!”
“Skree—!”
“Wuuu—!”
Though bound by the wooden sticks and burdened with a heavy Weakness effect that slowed their movements and drained their strength, the three monsters were, after all, apex predators at the top of the food chain in this deep area. Their feral ferocity remained unquenched, and they were certainly not about to wait for death.
After a brief moment of shock and struggle, they unleashed their respective racial skills almost simultaneously in an attempt to break free by force.
The Spine-back Lizard's scales flared out as a dark red, viscous liquid seeped from the roots of its bone spikes. The highly corrosive fluid sizzled as it burned through the sticks binding it, while its tail slammed hard against the ground to violently twist its body.
The Moss-rock Golem let out a guttural roar as its grayish-white stone skin suddenly hardened, producing a grating sound of grinding rock. Under the immense force and friction against the stone skin, the sticks binding it began to show hairline fractures.
The Shadow-eater Beast screeched as the edges of its body blurred, seeming on the verge of melting into the shadows once more to break free of physical restraints through Insubstantiality.
Crack!
With a few faint snaps, the resilient wooden sticks gave way under the monsters' sudden outburst—some eaten through by corrosion, some snapped by brute force, and others simply losing their target as it slipped away.
All three monsters broke free almost simultaneously. Though hampered by their Weakness debuffs and visibly less agile and fierce than at full strength—
—their post-escape rage and bloodlust instantly drove them to lock onto Greg, who was both closest to them and the most dangerous threat.
“Senior Greg, be careful!”
Silvia cried out, immediately casting magic with movements far smoother and swifter than before.
Flashes of pure white light erupted one after another, landing squarely on Greg.
Bolstered by the buffs, Greg immediately slid backward and to the side, narrowly dodging a stream of foul, dark-green toxic acid spewed right at him by the Spine-back Lizard.
The acid struck the ground, instantly dissolving the thick humus layer and sizzling into a small, white-smoke-emitting pit.
“Tch.” Greg's eyes narrowed.
With the other three present as witnesses, he absolutely could not use dark-attribute magic.
If his identity as the Messenger of the Goddess of Night were exposed, Heaven only knew how much trouble it would bring... which ran completely counter to his original intention of staying low-profile and surviving safely.
Furthermore, dark-attribute magic consumed an astounding amount of mana.
Given his current level and mana reserves, he had already expended a significant portion during the earlier fight.
He still had to face the Floor Boss in the deepest section of the first layer later, so he needed to preserve enough mana for that grueling battle.
Fortunately, although these three monsters were fairly high in level, there were only three of them, unlike the swarming horde of Goblins from before.
With Silvia supporting him, victory was far from impossible.
“Alright, let's do this.”
Greg lowered his center of gravity slightly, taking a combat stance. Behind the mask, his eyes calmly scanned the three distinct monsters. He felt little to no nervousness; instead, a strange sense of familiarity washed over him.
“Though this might be our first meeting to you, it's definitely not the first time I've met your kind.”
Rate on N.U.
