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

We are currently on the 26th floor, which is deep inside the "lower levels".

The "Water City" is formed by beautiful crystals and several streams of water.

Vinnie and Rey were traveling on the shortest route to the next level, which adventurers called the "main route," while Reid and Gross were on the so-called "longer route," deviating from the main path. They could hear sounds of battles between monsters emerging from the water, but occasionally they would peek out from the side path to check on Rey and the others on the main route. After exchanging glances with Rey to confirm they were alright, they would retreat back into the passage, repeating this process continuously.

Feeling safe and secure because of Reed and the others' protection, Winnie looked up at Rey, who was standing close to her like a sister.

"...Besides, it might provoke 'her,' who knows?"

"tā...?"

Winnie was puzzled when she heard a short sentence murmured from the songbird's mouth.

Just as Rei was smiling and about to explain, something suddenly burst out from the water flowing parallel to the passage.

"Bah!"

“Wa ...!”

"Winnie, back off!... Uh, you shit..."

Lei shielded Winnie, who had jumped up in fright thinking it was a sudden attack by a fish-like monster, behind her. But when she saw the figure of the newcomer, she immediately showed a helpless expression.

"Mary...please don't play pranks."

"ei hehe~"

"Ah, it's Mary!"

What appeared before Winnie and her friends was a 'mermaid'.

Its upper body is a pale blue human form, while its lower body is covered in green scales and a fish tail fin. Its hair and eyes are a beautiful emerald green. Its ears are different from those of fairies, covered with small, cute, slightly pointed fins.

Winnie cheered with joy at her reunion with Mary, the 'mermaid' heretic.

"Ray~! Winnie~!"

"Mary, it's been a long time!"

Even among the heretics, Mary was a veteran, but because she was a 'mermaid,' she couldn't move on land. In other words, she couldn't leave the 'Water City,' and always felt lonely. That's why she would act like a child whenever Rey visited her.

Winnie and Mary met after the turbulent Orario turmoil on the ground had subsided.

It's said that Mary and Bell started communicating without Winnie's and the others' knowledge. Now, Mary is completely infatuated with Bell, even telling Rey and the others, "I want to see Bell!" which is bothering them.

Mary, with her elfin-like lack of self-awareness and childlike mannerisms, quickly became close to Winnie. This was probably thanks to their shared trait with Smoothie. Right now, Winnie, unconcerned about her soaked robes, embraced Mary, who had her arms outstretched.

"You've found new pearls?"

"Yes, no problem!"

When Rey asked this question, Mary revealed the pearls that adorned her emerald-colored hair.

Adorned with a hair ornament made of seashells and pearls, and wearing a seashell bra, she was dazzling even in Winnie's eyes. This was what was commonly referred to as "dressing up." Even among the heretics, Mary was more interested in adventurers' clothing than ordinary people—more than monsters—as Rey had once described.

"Ray, Winnie! Shall we chat? Shall we play?"

"Sorry, Mary. We have somewhere to go right now."

"Eh~. You're so mean!"

Mary, whose emerald eyes had been sparkling, immediately deflated.

She leaned her upper body, which was protruding from the water, against the shore, then pressed her face against the ground and pouted. Winnie bent down and reached out to pat her head gently, saying, "Good girl, good girl." Just like Chunji often did for herself.

Mary, who had been squinting her eyes as if tickled like a cat in the mortal world, calmed down and looked up abruptly.

"Ray, Winnie, are you going to Nali?"

In response to Mary's seemingly simple question, Rey summed it up in one sentence.

"Go to Mother's."

Upon hearing this, Mary's eyes widened to their limit.

"Take Winnie to see 'her'"

The sound of the flowing water faded away in an instant, and the maze became completely silent.

Winnie felt this way.

"...Winnie, be careful!"

"Eh?"

"Don't be afraid"

Mary, who had become quiet as if her lively demeanor up to this point had been a lie, swayed from side to side and advised Winnie in a somewhat uneasy voice.

Before she could be asked anything in return, Mary left the shore and returned to the world of water.

Winnie stared intently at the foamy surface of the water, and soon turned to Rei, who was right behind her, like a startled puppy.

"Am I... going to a terrible place?"

"Don't worry, Winnie. Mary is just overly sensitive... she's not overly afraid of things she doesn't understand."

Mary, who fears conflict, has a habit of hiding in the deep water whenever something unusual happens in the dungeon. It was the same when she met Bell—even though the 'Calamity' was unavoidable at the time—she heard that she once clung to him and acted spoiled because she was so afraid of a certain 'enhanced species'.

While giving a wry smile, Lei carefully crafted her words to reassure Winnie.

"We're definitely not going to any dangerous place. Even if something happens, Reed, Goros, and I will protect you."

It spread one of its wings, which was covered in golden feathers, and gently enveloped Winnie.

Unable to hug her back, Winnie gently pressed her face against the warm feathers that were tickling her skin and nodded.

Seeing the trust in the girl's eyes, Lei smiled back and continued walking.

At the same time, the roar of the gargoyles, indicating that the danger around them had been cleared, echoed as if protecting Winnie.

Winnie traversed a long and dangerous road, as the name "hiking" suggests, and perhaps far beyond that word.

Led by Rey and the others, they passed through the 'lower level' and ventured into the 'deeper level'. By this time, the number of adventurers exploring had significantly decreased, and the chances of being discovered had also dropped dramatically, so Reed and Gross reunited. Afterward, they moved together to the next location. Of course, vigilance remained unchanged, while also utilizing routes unknown to adventurers.

After nearly two days since their departure, they arrived at the Heretic's Secret Realm located in the 'Deep Layer'. Although Winnie, being a dragon, showed no signs of fatigue, she had lost track of how far she had traveled or which layer she was on. She only remembered traversing what seemed like a hidden passageway, walking an unusually long downhill path. In this 'Deep Layer', which exceeds the entire area of ​​the labyrinthine city of Orario and is incredibly complex and bizarre, it's common for even those with accurate maps to easily lose their bearings.

"ah--"

This is a spacious area, similar to a stalactite cave, filled with blue and silver hues. Because it is located in the dangerous realm of the 'deep layer,' there are no other heretics among them.

Apart from him.

"Asterios..."

Clad in heavy armor and wielding a double-edged axe, the black Minotaur.

Seeing the soldier slowly turn his head, Winnie murmured in a daze.

"When I returned from the 'Deep' after the battle at the artificial labyrinth of Knossos, I told him to wait here... The reason is the same as in Winnie's case: to take him to the same place."

Reed's explanation went through his ears but vanished without a trace.

The black Minotaur was far calmer than imagined—far more so than Aruru had exaggerated to frighten Winnie—and possessed a pair of rational eyes like transparent rubies.

Winnie never spoke to Asterios. He rarely spoke, always chasing after the struggle and disappearing into the "deeper realm." Winnie herself also didn't know how to deal with him.

That's because she knew he was eager for a "rematch" with Bell.

Their fight would injure each other, and perhaps one of them would be killed. This thought filled Winnie with intense unease, making her paralyzed with fear.

"...Asterios. Can't...give up the fight against Bell?"

However, it seems there's no problem now.

In this tranquil space, facing those eyes that reflect my image, I can finally ask the question.

"...I'm sorry. That's impossible."

Asterios's voice, reminiscent of a warrior, made the air tremble.

"Bell must be waiting for this too."

Those words made Winnie's amber eyes widen.

Then—the image of the boy gazing into the distance flashed into my mind, and I realized that what he said was true.

"You two, get out of here!"

Urged on by Guros, Winnie and Asterios looked away and walked in the same direction.

They descended along the gentle slope that stretched out from the depths of the secret realm. In the wide, dark cave, a faint phosphorescent light, like the stars Winnie had seen on the ground, shone on the ceiling as the group moved through the ever-flowing time.

Softly, softly.

It seems to lead to the land of the dead, or to the realm of the underworld.

then,

“————————”

We arrived at that place.

A “great void” that Winnie had never seen before.

It's no exaggeration to say that this is a vast expanse, higher and more expansive than any other space, almost large enough to accommodate a small country. Compared to this "great void," Winnie and her companions are as insignificant as ants.

There lies a plain. Beyond that, a mountain rises. The faint sound of flowing water can be heard. Glaciers and seas of sand coexist side by side, and beyond them, a desolate wilderness unfolds. On the ground, what occasionally glistens are either crystals or clusters of quartz.

The surroundings were as dark as night. Above, it shone like an aurora bridge, swaying gently.

That scene was truly indescribable with the words Winnie possessed.

If there were adventurers present and they were forced to describe it, they would definitely say it was something called "world" or "universe".

The gap between reality and dreams. The realm of fantasy and mystery.

Witnessing this 'unknown' scenery, which would surely enchant even adventurers, not only Winnie but also Asterios widened their eyes.

"Can you see that... deep down over there?"

I saw it. It's impossible that I didn't see it.

The seemingly endless "great void" has its end. Deep within the steep walls, the "sphere" exists.

It looks like black, gray, and dark purple all at once.

Winnie remembered the sunlight on the ground that had captivated her.

A black sun. Or perhaps a 'giant magic stone'. There's no other way to describe it.

"Kid, we... call that 'shell' Mom."

Mother. Mother. Labyrinth Mother - Underground City.

While young Winnie was still unable to understand anything, a sharp, piercing intuition made her realize that the 'sphere' was the root of their monster-like existence.

"...Reed, Rey, Gross...Where is this place?"

"We call this place 'The Most Abyss Cassios.' Only your compatriots... no, only monsters of your own kind can enter this forbidden zone."

"I once informed the magician Fels about the existence of this hollow place, intending to investigate... but I was unsuccessful. Mother began to tremble as if issuing a warning, attempting to crush us through the collapse."

After Winnie, whose mind was blank, asked the question, Gulus responded, while Rei added her own comments.

It's not the deepest part of the labyrinth, but the "most abyss of Cassios".

The meaning is unclear. But it is vaguely understood that this place, which belongs to the 'humans' on the ground, is definitely not allowed to enter, and it is an extremely important place in the underground city.

"We'll find an opportunity to bring all our compatriots who join us here."

However, he'd been too busy lately to bring Winnie over, so that was postponed. As for Asterios, he was oblivious to these matters due to his "hunger for past life dreams." Reed shrugged as he explained.

"...Why were we brought here?"

"In order to perform the worship ceremony like the human Bell family... although that's what I meant, I was actually checking if there was anyone who could understand Mom's 'voice'."

"A 'sound'...? You understand...?"

Winnie turned her head to ask, and Reed squinted his sallow eyes and answered somewhat dreamily.

"Yes... or something like aura. What is this labyrinth considering, what is it planning to do... and why did it give birth to beings like us... I've always wanted to figure these things out."

An outcast, attacked by both humans and monsters of his own kind. An incomplete being, and also a being that cannot be seen by others.

Where did they come from, who were they, and where were they going? Even the gods on earth didn't understand the true meaning of the Labyrinth Mother, and Reed and the others probably always wanted to figure it out.

The 'shell' that existed at the deepest part of the great void suddenly began to glow eerily.