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

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"—Ais-chan! Shouting out the name when using a special move will increase its power—!" She was utterly deceived by her own god...

She parted her lips slightly and quietly uttered the name.

"Miniature strong wind"

Reciting the name of the supreme god, a one-hit kill technique, Ais transformed into a powerful wind arrow.

"!"

Like a flash of light, the powerful spiral arrow hurtled towards them with incredible speed. The wounded female monster reacted at the last moment, overlapping her remaining three flat arms to form a shield. However,

The silver sword tip, swirling with wind, allowed no instantaneous resistance.

Connected.

“——”

The monster's body was pierced along with its shield.

The ventilation hole became the fatal blow; the woman's body stiffened, and in an instant, her entire body swelled up.

The swollen body burst forth in one go, and not only that, but there seemed to be a special reaction between the exploding powder and the corrosive liquid—causing an unusually large explosion.

▲

"Miss Ais!"

Lefia let out a scream.

Ahead, a giant fireball formed a dome, scattering everything in the surrounding area.

To avoid the monster's self-destruction, under Finn's instructions, the Loki Familia kept a safe distance, observing Ais's battle from the sidelines. The aftershocks of the explosion reached them. Everyone shielded their eyes to withstand the surging heat and impact.

The view was enveloped in scorching heat, and everything was tinged red.

The explosion's epicenter was engulfed in flames, scorching the sky and burning the earth.

The fire spread into the gray forest, with flames rising everywhere.

"Ais..."

Tiona's face was flushed crimson by the firelight as she gazed at the scene before her.

The next instant, her eyes widened.

The flames swirled. The wall of fire shook as if it had been pushed open from the inside, then parted to the left and right depending on the direction of the wind.

The sea of fire split in two, and a figure emerged from it. Half-damaged armor, and the gleam of a sword.

With her back to the raging flames, the blonde, golden-eyed girl slowly returned to everyone's side.

Cheer loudly.

Side Story: Sword Oratoria Chapter 3 - White Rabbit

The terrain of the underground city changes drastically at certain floors.

Starting with the standard maze structure of the first level directly connected to the surface, and progressing to various other forms such as forests, lakes, and wilderness, each level presents an unimaginable microcosm underground. The deeper one goes, the more pronounced these changes in the natural environment become.

[Loki's Familia] They are now advancing through the caverns. The passageways formed by exposed rock are not only a chaotic network of horizontal caves but also vertical ones, making them veritable natural caves. Phosphorescent lights flicker like campfires above the walls, illuminating the dark labyrinthine interior.

This is the middle layer, much closer to the surface than the deeper layers, layer 17.

"We could still go further—I haven't had enough fun yet—"

"You're so annoying. Try to tone it down."

"But they actually turned back on the 50th floor—"

After the battle on the 50th floor, the Loki Familia abandoned their plans to proceed to the unexplored floors and instead returned to the surface. In other words, this "expedition" is effectively over.

Tiona pouted and complained, while Tione tried to persuade her.

"Has the commander already explained this several times? We've been attacked by those monsters, and we might not have enough supplies left."

"We can just find the food in the maze (over there)..."

"There's nothing I can do about the weapons and items. Especially the good weapons, almost all of them have melted down. All I have left are the worn-out items I used on the way here."

"Especially since you've run out of spare supplies," Tiony said.

Weapons and armor are, of course, consumables. Without the repair of a sharpener or blacksmith, blades will chip and dull—armor will accumulate damage and lose durability—eventually becoming unusable. Except for a few items with indestructible properties, no matter how excellent the weapon or armor, it cannot withstand prolonged combat.

No matter how much stamina an adventurer has, if their equipment is useless, it will affect their battle against monsters.

"Ugh—, I'm so frustrated—. I finally made it to the 50th floor after all that hard work—"

Six days have passed since the group retreated from the depths, following the orders of their leader Finn.

Tiona had been rendered speechless by the same words several times already, so she crossed her hands behind her head. Without a single piece of equipment on her, she looked enviously at Ais, who was walking slowly beside her.

The scabbard holding her beloved sword reflected the light, and the girl noticed the gaze and tilted her head slightly.

"It's all that monster's fault... But what exactly is that thing?"

Hearing her sister's question, Tiony shrugged and said, "I don't know."

"It can only be described as an unconfirmed monster... although it is certainly somewhat suspicious."

As she spoke, Tione reached to her chest. She slipped her fingers between her firm, mountain-like breasts and retrieved the monster's "magic stone."

Tiona, seeing the deep valley she herself had never experienced, glared at her older sister with eyes full of hatred.

"You mean, could that be a magic stone from one of those monsters? Tione, how did you find it?"

"Just stick your hand in and grab it out."

Without exception, all worm-like monsters, upon death, would slowly dissolve their entire bodies through leaking corrosive fluid, even dissolving the magic stones within them. Tiona and her companions had worked tirelessly for ages, defeating so many monsters, yet they hadn't managed to retrieve a single magic stone.

Only Tione, unafraid of dissolving and forcing his way through, could obtain the magic stone using such an unprecedented method.

"Wow, what is this? The color is so weird."

"Yes...it's a bit different from ordinary magic stones."

Although the magic stones hidden inside the monsters' chests varied in size and shape, they were all blue-purple in color.

The magic stone in Tione's hand, about the size of a small pebble, shone with an unprecedented brilliance, its center colorful while the rest was blue-purple.

Tiona peeked over from the side, and Tione held the magic stone above his head, squinting as he examined it closely against the swaying, burning phosphorescence.

Soon, the group arrived at the spacious cave chamber.

Because the passageways here are narrower than those in the deeper areas, the Loki Familia split into two forces before climbing the 17th floor. A large group would be difficult to maneuver and unable to respond to monster attacks. The advance force, led by Riveria, consisted of several dozen members, including Tiona, while Finn and Grace were the follow-up force.

Because it was the return journey after an expedition, the team members, especially the grassroots staff who were responsible for carrying luggage, all showed signs of exhaustion.

"...Line, do you need my help?"

"Huh? Oh, I... I can do it!"

Ais asked a human girl, but the girl firmly refused, saying, "How could you?" It was clear that she held the belief that first-level adventurers shouldn't be allowed to carry luggage.

Although she was practically just a figurehead, Ais was still a member of the leadership team—and given her otherworldly aura, almost all the other members treated her with the utmost respect.

"Alright, Ais. Let's ignore those small fry."

Bert, the orc who witnessed the whole incident, interjected.

This was a tall man, easily 180 cm (180 cm), with particularly long and beautiful, strong, taut legs. A lightning bolt-like blue tattoo ran from his left forehead to his chin, giving him a rugged appearance that overshadowed his handsome face.

He lightly kicked one of the supporters to shoo him away, then turned to Ais.

"You're already so capable, and you still don't understand? Getting entangled with those weaklings is just a waste of time. No matter what your reasons are, don't even think about helping them."

"..."

"Just look down on them as much as possible. All you need to do is be strong and resilient."

Bert snorted and raised the corners of his mouth; Ais remained silent.

Bert Roca.

This person, as a first-class adventurer of the Loki Familia, is a typical—no, one could say excessive—meritocracy. He holds a certain sway over the top-tier swordswoman, Ais.

He's not a bad person at heart... that's what Ais thinks.

Riveria and he often had heated arguments because of their differing opinions. Ais once heard her complain, saying in a slightly sour tone, "That orc (male) is unhappy unless he causes a misunderstanding."

He and Tiona often argued, perhaps it was his nature as a lone wolf (werewolf).

"Ais, don't listen to what Bert is saying! It's just a waste of time!"

"Go to hell, you filthy old woman. You're the one who should be doing chores for those people. You don't even have a single piece of equipment, you idiot."

"Mind your own business!"

They had barely started talking when Bert and the others started arguing, however,

Their argument quickly stopped.

"—Buahoo..."

As the group advanced into the cave, a menacing aura and heavy breathing pressed in.

Large numbers of monsters appeared outside several passageways.

"Bua bu ...

A deafening roar echoed through the cave.

Those monsters possessed a power that could terrify ordinary adventurers into fleeing in terror; their muscular shoulders and arms bulged like thick ropes. With each step they took, hoof-shaped tracks were left in the ground.

A massive physique covered in muscles, with copper-colored skin.

One of the iconic monsters is the Minotaur.

"Look, it's all because Bert was too noisy that he attracted the Minotaur!"

"What's it to me? Tsk, crowding in like a bunch of idiots..."

A group of Minotaur entered the cave one after another, forming a circle and attempting to surround Ais and the others.

The bloodshot-eyed bull monsters bobbed up and down with their breathing, displaying a state of heightened arousal.

"Rivia, since there are so many, can we fight them together?"

"Okay, Raul. Finn instructed you to take command as a learning experience for the future."

“Okay, okay!”

Facing the mid-level strongest (three-star) monster, ranked highest in the threat assessment by the management organization (guild) based on each floor's criteria, Ais and her companions remained unmoved. They had already explored the deeper realms, thirty floors deeper than the 17th floor, and the Minotaur was separated from them by an insurmountable power barrier. According to the rules, first-level adventurers like Ais wouldn't participate in the battles on the shallower floors; that was left to the lower-level members to accumulate experience points. Even among the lower-level members, those present were all stronger than the mid-level Familia adventurers. They could never possibly lose to a monster from the mid-level.

However, this time the quantity is a bit too much.

At Tione's request, Ais and the others also joined the battle.

"Buggy ooh ...

Then, the series of developments in the battle took an unexpected turn.

"Buzzing sounds like 'Ooh o ...

Just as they swiftly dealt with half of the attacking Minotaur...

Perhaps intimidated by the vast difference in combat power, one of the Minotaur turned its back to Ais and the others.

Then, as if the panic had spread to the other monsters, they all fled in panic...

An unexpected mass escape ensued.

"Eek!"

"Hey, what's going on! Aren't you monsters?!"

This situation startled Tiona and Bert.