Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

"You're just a nobody."

"..."

"Do you understand?"

"……Um."

Lina abandoned her usual tone and nodded obediently.

As the "weaker" one, she understood the hidden meaning behind the word "small fry" in his mind.

Lina, who had once driven Bert into a predicament under a gloomy sky and in the rain, revealed her frustration, sadness, and heartache, and agreed to withdraw.

"...You stay on the surface with the Ganesha Familia. Understand?"

After saying that, Bert immediately turned away, completely disregarding her feelings and ignoring her.

Looking at his cold and rude back, Lina smiled gently and nodded.

"...Bert Roca, you must come back. Be careful on the road."

Then, she hugged Bert tightly from behind.

Close your eyes and enjoy the male's body heat on your cheek.

But then a vicious elbow strike came flying, "Ouch—!?" sending her flying.

"Hey, that Amazonian just blurted out Aisha's affairs... Won't our [Family's] illegal activities be exposed, Asphie?"

"You're not exactly tight-lipped either, Lulu. In other words, only my headache is getting worse, so don't worry..."

Meanwhile, a group from the Hermes Familia was watching Bert and his group's noisy conversation from afar.

As the dog-woman tapped her shoulder and kept asking questions, Asifi, shaking her light blue hair, put her glasses back on to hide the persistent weariness around her eyes.

Tiger ManFalgar, along with the other members of the group, including the dwarf Mary, also cast sympathetic glances at her.

"I know that now that we've formed an alliance, we have to participate in this first wave of the attack... but it's so boring! Deflecting the traps is fine, but we also have to draw a map of this ridiculously huge maze. And this maze is super dangerous, right?"

"Our job is simple: just follow behind the Loki Familia and secretly investigate their cleared passageways... That's all. Relax."

Seeing Luluni start to wail, Asifi sighed and switched her mindset.

Hermes' right-hand woman understood how important this "preliminary battle" was, so she put on the mask of a clever and witty leader and invigorated herself.

"Besides... we have powerful reinforcements with us."

She turned her gaze away.

Behind her, a masked adventurer—an elf—stood silently, his hood pulled low.

"Lefia!"

"Miss Philweis!"

The troops were deployed in front of the southwest gate.

Phil Weiss ran over, and Rafia responded loudly.

"Is Miss Philweis in this unit too?"

"Yes, to serve as protectors of Dionysus. I'm glad you're here too—"

The two elves were about to share their joy at being assigned to the same unit when someone interrupted Philwiss.

"A protector of Dionysus, huh? You really think you're that man's right-hand man. You're just making a fuss about the unfortunate events on the 27th floor as if they were your own tragedy, trying to gain his sympathy and monopolize his favor."

"Aura..."

A girl who was an elf like Lefia and the others spoke with a tone of condemnation.

Compared to Phil Weiss, who has black hair, the girl has her long white hair tied up and her eyes are deep blue-purple. She is about one or two years older than Lefia and the others.

Her combat suit is red and black, and the staff that identifies her as a mage seems to be shaped like a moonlit flower, a unique design. She displays a fastidious nature common to elves, or in other words, a slightly neurotic temperament.

Ola Murière.

She is the vice-captain of the Dionysian Familia, Level 2. Her nickname is the "Cup of Grapes".].

She joined the group around the same time as Philvis and has the longest tenure among their [Familia]. When the alliance was formed, Lefia did a general survey of the members of the [Dionysus Familia] and remembered her.

"First you led that person on sneaky trips around, and then you dragged the entire [Family] into it... Are you trying to kill us this time, 'Death Spirit'?"

"...!"

The word "death elf" uttered by Aura triggered a sensitive reaction in Lefia.

That was the nickname Philvis had been given since the "Nightmare of the 27th Floor," after she had watched helplessly as all her companions except herself perished. Moreover, Lefia knew that she was being treated as the fairy (elf) who had caused the deaths of her teammates, and even as the leader of the guild, she was ostracized within the Dionysus Familia.

"...I'm sorry, Aura."

Illustration 58948

Even under the condemning gaze, Phil Weiss only apologized and did not retaliate.

It's said that Aura couldn't join the party on the day of the "Nightmare of the 27th Floor" six years ago. Perhaps Philvis, who allowed all the senior members, including the then-leader, to perish while she herself lingered on the brink of death, felt guilty towards her. In reality, Aura probably hated her too. Even after six years, the rift between them remained unbroken.

There is probably another reason: Aura, like Philweis, was also obsessed with Dionysus.

When speaking to Philvis, who had been appointed as the current leader and was in charge of the faction by the side of the main god, her words revealed an undisguised womanly emotion. It's not hard to imagine that, as a veteran member, this emotion, along with other intertwined factors, must have led her to exclude Philvis from the faction.

Philweis lowered her head, and Rafia beside her was about to refute her—

"...However, let's put those boring old grudges aside for now."

"what?"

This surprise came from both Rafia and Phil Weiss.

Although Aura's face showed reluctance, she still clearly told her:

"I understand the situation. And Dionysus also told me that this battle is to avenge our fallen comrades... There is no reason to disregard our people for a trivial grudge."Colleagues.

"Aura..."

"I'll do my best to help, so as not to hinder the Loki Familia. You also need to fulfill your duties, and not just cling to that fellow countryman."

Despite making sarcastic remarks, Aura, who had turned her back to her, clearly expressed her willingness to help.

This made Rafia very happy.

Thanks to Phil Weiss's long-term efforts, she has finally gained the recognition of her fellow members of the [Family].

"That's wonderful, Miss Philweis."

"…………yes."

After Rafia smiled at her, Phil Weiss smiled back.

The smile seemed to express both gratitude to his compatriots for finally being willing to compromise after such a long time, and sadness at being "forgiven".

"Are your children alright?"

"There's a distance between Philvis and the other members. But only this time, I've asked everyone to bridge that gap. Aura is a smart girl; she won't let personal feelings interfere in a battle for the city's survival."

—After Loki, who had been watching Aura and Philvis's conversation from afar, raised a question, Dionysus, standing beside him, tossed his hair in response. His tone carried a hint of pride in his lovely retinue.

His pretentious actions made Loki yell and stick out his tongue.

"I'd rather ask you two if things will get out of hand if you come along..."

"Sorry, Grace! But you'll definitely need us then! Absolutely, definitely, probably! So please protect us well~"

Grace, who was appointed to command the southwestern troops, interrupted the conversation between the two gods.

Wearing heavy lifting gear and a helmet, the dwarf, with his eyes half-open, seemed to find the goddess who had come to put her arm around his shoulder too hot and pulled her away.

Loki and Dionysus, the two chief gods, will also participate in this first wave of attacks.

They reasoned that to corner Thanatos, who led the dark faction, and Enyo, the suspected mastermind behind the whole affair, they had to use the power of the gods.

I'm sorry, [Chongjie]However, putting aside my own situation, the members are at your beck and call. As I just said, my [familia] will only be united in this meeting.

At this moment, Dionysus narrowed his eyes.

"This is also to avenge my family members."

His eyes, which were usually unreadable, now revealed a distinct and intense divine intent.

Loki watched the scene with Grace, who remained silent, then took something out of his pocket and tossed it to him.

"Just to be on the safe side... take it."

She tossed a piece of crystal to Dionysus. Unlike natural crystal, an incredible brilliance emanated from the depths of its crystal.

Loki was holding the same thing in his hand as well.

"...Thank you, Loki."

Dionysus slightly widened his eyes, then smiled at the goddess who was coldly watching him.

"—All personnel, prepare."

then……

Finn's words announcing the start were brief and clear.

At the northeast gate of the man-made maze, the group members stood around the little people holding long spears, exuding a strong sense of tension and fierce fighting spirit.

Unlike during the "Expedition," Finn did not use speeches to boost morale.

As if it were no longer necessary, they made their appeals with only a sharp eye.

He glanced at his hands. In them lay a fist-sized crystal, the same type as Loki's.

After confirming that the magical artifact was glowing, he looked up and roared at the tightly closed door made of the hardest metal, orogen:

"Operation begins!!"

The leader of the group held up the "key," and the door opened.

The adventurers roared and charged into the man-made labyrinth.

Illustration 54093

"Time is up."

Hearing the adventurers' thunderous roars and countless footsteps coming from the magical artifact "Eye Crystal" in his hand, Fels raised his head.

This is the 18th floor of the dungeon, the labyrinthine paradise of "Night"..

The chrysanthemum-like white crystals that grew on the ceiling fell silent. Unlike the surface of the earth during the daytime, the entire floor was shrouded in darkness, and the shadowy figures of monsters swarmed about.

The fully armed "heretics" are poised to attack at the entrance to the artificial maze on the east side of the floor.

They used Fels' "Eye Crystal" to transmit intelligence. Grace, who led the other units, also possessed this magical artifact to signal the start of the operation.

Even the difference between the surface and the underground is no longer an obstacle; the combined forces of humans and monsters are about to launch an attack from multiple directions.

Fully armed lizardmenThe gargoyle's claws slammed into the ground.Spreading its stone wings, the singing birdIn the instant that followed, Fels gave the order:

"We must put an end to this series of battles. — Let's go!"

The monsters roared as well, invading the demon's lair.

Illustration 54104

"Garua ...

The ferocious werewolf's roar drives away any obstacles in its path.

This was no metaphor; a large group of water strider-like, colorful monsters called "Crystal Striders" were kicked and blasted into pieces by the intense kick.

"Don't let Bert leave us behind! Keep going!"

Anaquiti's Loki Familia followed behind Bert, who relentlessly drove away the monster walls with his astonishing offensive power. As Bert pierced the enemy ranks like a wedge, the pitiful cat-woman, riding the momentum of her rapid advance, wielded her sword to repel the monsters surging from the side passages. Even when some escaped, other high-level adventurers with impressive Lv. 3 strength smoothly slaughtered the monsters. They trampled the monster corpses reduced to blood bags, countless colorful "magic stones," and piles of dust, creating a resounding clatter of military boots.

The location is on the first level of the man-made maze, in the southeast.

The moment the assault troops used the "key" to open the "gate," they immediately launched a full-speed attack and began the battle.

The unstoppable charge terrified the remnants of the dark faction's defenses, swiftly breaching their defenses. It was as if pent-up anger and hatred had erupted and invaded the man-made labyrinth.

The team members had already heard Finn relay the details of the operation.

This is both military reconnaissance and strategic warfare.

Even though the second wave of the attack was the main event, now that they had entered the enemy's stronghold, there was no reason not to cause widespread destruction. They needed to map the vast labyrinth as much as possible, while also attacking the key facilities.