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

"Judging by strength alone, he might be stronger than the floor master (Udeos)—"

These enormous monsters appear only on specific floors, and only one at a time. Adventurers call them Floor Lords with awe. The official name decided by the management organization (guild) is "Monster Rex".

The floor master is essentially the boss of the monsters, boasting unparalleled strength within their floor. They are the greatest obstacle in conquering the dungeon, and are usually defeated by a team of adventurers working together.

Upon hearing Tiona compare it to a floor master equivalent to LV.6, Lefia made a "gulp" sound in her throat.

"Is there... no way to avoid it?"

"There's no way around it. As long as that dragon keeps guarding the spring like a gatekeeper, it won't work. Trying to take the spring water and run away will get you killed."

"I was once knocked flying, and my whole body was covered in sores—"

For Lefia, Tiona's cheerful description was like adding fuel to the fire, making her turn pale with fright.

"We need to deal with the powerful dragon first to ensure safety, and then we can fill the spring with water."

"I...I understand..."

"Tione...what's your fighting style?"

"Let's proceed as usual. Ais, Tiona, and I will attack together to suppress the powerful dragon. Lefia will unleash a powerful magic attack on it. Then, while it flinches, we'll launch a full-scale attack."

"Lefia, it's all up to you this time—!"

“Okay, okay!”

Soon, Ais and the others stopped. Just two or three more steps from where they were on the one-way street led to an open space—the hall known as the "Cave Chamber."

The "Cadmus Fountain" is located inside this cave.

"..."

Tione silently gave Ais and the others a look. They nodded to each other, and then Tione led the way to rearrange the formation.

They walked quietly, covering the remaining short distance. Tione raised her hand to Ais and the others, signaling them to wait a moment, then secretly peeked into the passage ahead.

As soon as she gave the signal, everyone would charge in together. Everyone held their breath, the entire squad radiating a tense, almost palpable, atmosphere. Lefia's lips were pressed into a thin line as she gripped her staff tightly; Tiona, unlike usual, wasn't joking; and Ais simply stared intently ahead.

They lowered their posture, waiting for Tione's signal.

"...?"

Ais was the first to notice something was wrong... no, it was a suddenness.

She raised her eyebrows in surprise and stood up on the spot without any hesitation.

"Wait, wait, Ais!"

"...Something's not right."

"what?"

"It's too quiet."

Ais reflexively responded to Lefia's scream and walked forward.

She caught up with Tione, who was about to peek into the cave, and took a step further ahead.

In an instant, her eyes widened.

"What... what's going on...?"

"It's been destroyed...?"

Tiona and the others, who had quickly caught up with Ais, were also frozen in place in fright.

The cave was filled with trees, less dense than a forest, but every single one was broken or crushed. The surrounding ground and walls also seemed to have been extensively damaged, either cracked or shattered, with piles of debris scattered everywhere.

Most importantly, there are traces of dissolution everywhere in this scene.

Some parts of the trees, now a deep purple, still emit black smoke and a foul stench.

"It stinks..."

Tiona frowned and covered her nose with her arm.

Ais and the others walked deeper into the cave, looking puzzled. They were even more on edge and alert than before, navigating through the fallen trees.

Amidst the devastation of the landscape, only that place stood protected like a sacred sanctuary.

Ripples spread across the beautiful azure water, the spring water was clear and cool.

Located at the deepest part of the cave, a small amount of spring water occasionally gushes out from a crack in the wall—a tiny rock cave. The mysterious spring water, with its deep blue glow, slowly accumulates in the low-lying area overgrown with flowers and grass.

A large amount of dust had accumulated in front of such a beautiful spring.

"This is……"

"...The remains of a powerful dragon?"

Tiony's mutterings echoed unusually loudly in the room.

The astonishing amount of dust was almost equal to the size of the enormous dragon in my memory. Compared to the surrounding silence after the room lost its owner, there was no doubt that this was the remains of a powerful dragon.

Looking down at the fate of the monster that had lost its magic stone, Ais and the others stood still.

"...Was it a [Familia] other than ours that defeated the powerful dragon...?"

Lefia spoke cautiously.

When faced with the first possible suggestion, Thione slowly shook her head.

"There are only a limited number of teams that can reach this depth. I haven't heard of any other [Family] whose expedition period overlapped with ours."

"...That's not all."

Ais whispered, squatting down beside the dust at her feet, which had turned into a small patch of desert.

She reached out, brushed off the dust, and picked up an object buried underneath.

"The dropped items were not retrieved..."

She took out a piece of wing membrane that shimmered with golden light.

"The membrane of Cadmus".

Even if you defeat this dragon, it's not easy to get this rare item as a drop. Just exchanging it for money could yield a huge sum of money enough to equip a large team with all the necessary gear.

Adventurers who spend a lot of money exploring dungeons are unlikely to leave such excellent loot unclaimed.

"Uh, so, what exactly is going on?"

"What once appeared here? A creature powerful enough to kill a powerful dragon, and not even an adventurer. Please add more details."

Silence descended upon the four of them.

Neither Diona, who had asked the question, nor Dione, who had answered, spoke again. Ais stared at her own face, which was blurred and reflected on the golden membrane.

Lefia rubbed her slender upper arm, as if speaking for everyone.

"...I have a bad feeling. Let's go back quickly."

No one disagreed with what Tiony said.

To convey what they had seen to Finn, they put away "Cadmus's membrane" and some fragments of the color-changing tree. Just as Ais and the others began their work, Lefia, carrying a backpack, took out a bottle and drew water from a spring in a low-lying area.

Normally, the spring water would be drunk up by the powerful dragon as soon as it gushed out, so only a small amount of the spring water could usually be recovered. However, this time the most troublesome dragon is no longer there.

Seeing that the bottle was quickly filled with the amount of spring water requested by the adventurer, Lefia tightened the cap with a complicated expression and put the bottle into her backpack.

"No need to visit two different springs anymore."

"yes……"

They left the cave and retraced their steps back to the camp. At this point, Lefia managed a forced, bitter smile. Ais nodded thoughtfully, her eyes fixed ahead.

Just ahead, the Amazonian sisters walked ahead of them, discussing the terrible state of the cave.

"Hey, what do you think?"

"Logically speaking, it should have been done by other monsters, but..."

When asked about her sister's question, Tiony stopped mid-sentence.

The powerful dragons that treat the area around the fountain as their territory are rare "rare monsters" within the building, and are also formidable guardians of the fountain.

Its power is strongest on the 51st floor. In fact, if we don't count the floor masters that appear on other floors, it is definitely the monster that sits firmly at the top of the power chart (pyramid) among the monsters discovered so far.

No matter how many black rhinos or deformed spiders there are, they can't defeat it.

(...abnormal situation.)

Listening to Tione and the others' conversation, Ais silently recited the catchphrase that her main god often used.

They walked for a while longer,

"Aa ...

It happened suddenly.

A piercing scream, seemingly emanating from the very depths of their being, reached Ais and the others' ears.

The agonizing screams emanating from the humans were enough to signal the gravity of the situation. The cries echoed repeatedly within the complex maze, assaulting eardrums from every angle. This familiar sound made Ais and the others abruptly look up, exchange bewildered glances, and then accelerate their sprint.

"That sound just now was!"

"Raul...!"

Following the direction from which the screams came, and then intuition.

Ais and the others forcibly shook off the monster that had appeared, and after turning several corners in the passage, the thing finally came into their view.

"What is that?!"

"A worm...!"

Tiona and Lefia shouted in succession, and Ais also widened her golden eyes.

It is a giant monster.

Its entire body was a yellowish-green, its swollen and seemingly tender green skin covered in colorful patterns, strangely jarring. Countless short legs formed the lower body, indeed resembling the shape of a worm, as Lefia groaned. The upper body seemed to rest on the long lower body, rising like a small hill, with thin, flat organs—most likely arms—extending from the left and right sides. At the front were four slits, somewhat resembling fingers.

Even Ais and her companions, who had explored the depths of the dungeon for a long time, had never seen such a monster.

—A new type of monster?

The monster, which trembled up and down as it moved forward, slammed its massive body into the four-meter-high ceiling several times, shearing off several pieces of the ceiling. Its width was almost equal to the two ends of the road. Seeing it blocking the passage and advancing towards us, Ais was reminded of the word "tank".

"Captain!"

The second squad, including Finn, was also being chased by monsters and forced to flee.

The first-level adventurer, whose strength was comparable to Ais and the others, abandoned the fight and ran away with his back to the monster.

Tiony let out a scream that was almost a scream.

"!"

The quickest to act was Tiona.

With a fierce look in her eyes, she leaped out from among Ais and the others.

Tiona ran past Finn and the others who were being chased, slashing at the monster in an attempt to stop the enemy's advance.

"Don't go, Tiona!"

Ignoring Finn's warnings, she confronted the enemy.

Facing Tiona who was charging at it, the monster let out an unpleasant "hiccup" and opened its mouth, which was probably its face. Then it violently vomited a large amount of liquid.

A terrifying liquid, a mixture of purple and black resembling marble, was easily dodged by Tiona. She leaped into her opponent's arms and slashed at the unsuspecting body with her large twin blades.

"——!"

"!"

When the monster howled in anguish, and its croaking, like a broken gong, suddenly rang out, Tiona's eyes widened in surprise.

A liquid of the same color as before gushed from the enemy's wound, scattering before her eyes.

She twisted her neck to avoid the danger at the last second, and saw a small drop of liquid touch a strand of hair—with a "sizzle," it dissolved the hair.

A chilling sensation ran through her body, and Tiona pushed off the ground with her foot, leaving her original position.

"Huh...!"

The moment Tiona landed behind her, she doubted her own eyes.