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

The four movers responsible for this area were all sitting on the floor, not moving at all.

She felt a surge of panic and rushed to the nearest person, finding them still breathing and without any external injuries. She looked up and saw that everyone else was in the same condition. No one was in mortal danger.

They were like puppets with their strings cut, completely devoid of strength.

“Ah…ah…”

(Monster poison... no, that's not right, what is this...!)

A faint sound. Rosy cheeks. Pupils unfocused.

She had never seen these symptoms before. Kneeling down to examine her companion's face more closely, she felt a slight chill. She had no idea what was wrong with them.

What on earth happened here? She stood up on the spot and looked around the dark room where the monster was growling.

“——”

Suddenly, the air behind me swayed.

It wasn't a sharp, aggressive movement; it was nothing serious, just a casual gesture like approaching a friend. Because it was completely without malice, it fatally caught her off guard, leaving her no time to react.

Someone was standing right behind her.

"Don't move."

"--ah."

Gently, her eyes were covered from behind.

Her delicate, soft hands, with skin so smooth it was almost frightening, covered her eyes.

Then, my body trembled deeply, as if in a spasm.

The sweet scent licking her nostrils, the soft flesh clinging tightly to her, the warmth emanating from her skin numbed all her senses. A profound and infinite "something"—"beauty"—enveloped her entire being.

An unbelievable allure.

The allure comes from beyond our sight.

Impossible. Irresistible. Unavoidable.

My mind is blank. I can't think of anything. My consciousness has been disconnected.

She was deprived of her freedom.

"Where is the key?"

"—Huh…"

"Where is the key to the cage?"

I heard a soft whisper, like a breath. My neck shuddered.

The words, spoken a second time, seemed to seep into her brain, and she obeyed them as if by reflex.

She moved her trembling left arm, picked up the keychain hanging from her waist, making a clinking sound, and raised the key to the monster cage to shoulder height.

"Thanks."

The keys she handed over were taken away, and the hand covering her eyes disappeared. But her eyes did not regain their function. Bewildered and lost, she could see nothing.

As the presence behind her receded into the distance, her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the ground.

Just as the scene had just unfolded, she suffered the same fate as her companions.

"I'm sorry."

Freya left the woman sitting on the ground and walked into the back of the room.

She monitored the guild members of Westgate and the adventurers of the renowned Ganesha Familia. She stripped the members of both organizations of their powers, allowing them to invade this place.

Freya has absolutely no fighting ability. As long as she is in the lower realm, she is just a god who is powerless to even kill a chicken.

However, she possessed an extraordinary degree of "beauty." No, she herself was the embodiment of "beauty."

A power beyond rational control. Humans and demi-humans alike, even the gods, cannot resist this overwhelming dominance. If she so desires, she can plunge anyone into an abyss of self-forgetfulness.

This time, she used that power in a somewhat unethical way.

She rendered her opponents disoriented, rendering them utterly unable to stand, turning them into spineless cowards regardless of gender. She "bewitched" them. She could pull off this trick by employing methods similar to a sneak attack.

"..."

Freya stopped in the middle of the large room.

Several cages of various sizes, each containing a monster, were lined up around them. The captured monsters, seemingly in a state of excitement, roared incessantly at Freya from all directions.

However, when she took off the hood of her jumpsuit, the deafening roar stopped immediately.

"...!"

Her stunning beauty was exposed to the public eye.

Her fair, snow-white skin stimulated the vision of all the monsters, while the overwhelming fragrance bound their movements. Her radiant silver eyes and silver hair kept these beasts glued to her.

Even the most ferocious monsters are equal before her beauty.

"...I'll choose you."

The silver gaze swept over each monster's face with amusement, then settled on a single point.

The monster was covered in pure white fur. Its muscular shoulders and arms were particularly well-developed, and like Freya, it had silver hair that grew down its back like a tail.

The wild ape monster, the "Silverback Ape," stared wide-eyed, breathing heavily as it endured the goddess's gaze.

"Come out."

She used the key she had acquired to unlock the cage.

The silverback ape seemed to follow Freya as it stepped out of the open iron cage. The still-fastened chains clanged.

Releasing the monsters free is a dangerous act.

The free-spirited goddess acts willfully and recklessly, disregarding the troubles caused to others.

There is only one purpose.

(That child has come here too...)

Freya was thinking about the boy Bell Crane.

(...Oh dear, I'm so bad. I was planning to just observe how that child grows up for a while...)

Freya knew that Bell was growing at an astonishing rate.

Although the reason is unknown, she knows that Belle continues to "leap" at an abnormally fast pace.

None of this could escape the goddess's notice.

(...I just couldn't resist teasing him.)

Freya laughed at herself for being like a child.

Playing pranks on someone you like to get their attention.

They wanted to see how the other person would react to the prank, just for fun.

What a childish thing to do.

However, she was already unable to resist. The impulse she felt for the person she fell in love with at first sight, the burning thirst deep in her heart, and the love itself prompted Freya to take action.

She wanted to see the boy's confused expression, the boy's crying expression—but most of all, she wanted to see his "heroic figure".

"..."

"Huff, huff—...!"

Amidst her heavy breathing, as she lovingly stroked the silverback ape's cheek, she suddenly remembered something.

Release the monster outside, if Bell dies due to some mistake.

This was a possibility she had never considered before, but Freya quickly smiled.

If the boy dies.

(I'll chase him to the ends of the earth.)

I will pursue those souls who leave the lower realm and ascend to the heavens, until the very end.

(I will hold him in my arms.)

Then lure the captured souls into the embrace of my goddess of love.

Beneath her silver eyes, which were filled with love and tenderness, lurked a definite cruelty. Freya narrowed her eyes, a pleased smile appearing on her face. Finally, maintaining her smile, she brought her face close to the silverback ape whose cheeks were cupped in its hands. The monster's body trembled pitifully.

(so,)

The next instant, Freya kissed the monster on the forehead.

(Will you wait for me?)

A roar suddenly erupted.

✟

"My God, what were you saying to Miss Eina just now?"

"It's nothing, just a small matter."

To find Miss Seele, I circled the arena once, then returned to East Street with the fairy. The festival performances had begun, and everyone seemed to have already entered the arena; the crowd on the main street was different from when I arrived, with only a handful of people remaining.

"Hey, Belle. The person you're looking for is a girl, right?"

"Huh? Ah, yes. She's a human lady with grayish hair and eyes. She looks a bit mature, and she's probably taller than me..."

I thought she was asking about Miss Seele's appearance, so I described her features in detail, but the fairy seemed uninterested and let it go in one ear and out the other, glaring at me with a reproachful look.

Her accusatory gaze made me panic without knowing why.

"Th-that, a deity?"

"...The consultant from earlier, you really have a sharp eye."

"Uh...wh-what do you mean?"

"God knows."

The deity turned its head and went to the other side.

The twin ponytails tied around my head began to undulate in waves, as if blaming me for my mistake.

I didn't know why the deity was unhappy; he was at a loss and didn't know what to do for a while.

"—?"

"...What's wrong, Bell?"

I suddenly stopped in my tracks, and the deity who had walked a few steps ahead of me turned around with an unhappy expression.

I even forgot to answer the deity's question, and looked around as if I were drawn in.

That was indeed true.

Something caught my attention.

It wasn't the still-unabated commotion of the festival, but another urgent, sharp voice.

"...A scream?"

When I uttered those words to myself.

Immediately afterwards, a deafening sound resounded all around.

"There's a monster! Aa ...

As if frozen in time, the peaceful and bustling avenue suddenly fell silent.

Then, I saw it.

The other end of the road leading from the arena.

Along with the sound of kicking bricks, a monster with pure white fur was rushing towards this side in a rough manner.

❧

The monster—the silverback ape—is in a state of excitement.

It exhaled a fierce breath, causing its muscles to pulsate, and its long silver fur to fly wildly in the wind as it continued to advance as if possessed by something.