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

There was no response or reaction, and just like her sister, she was filled with anxiety because of the separation...

"Miss Tiona, there are monsters! Count them, how many!"

"!"

Upon hearing the scream of the mage Elfie, Tiona turned around and saw a new type of monster emerging from the depths of the passage—a swarm of water striders that Bert and the others had also dealt with.

Tiona hesitated for a moment, but then put her worries aside and took action.

"Let's get out of here!"

“Okay, okay!”

Regardless of her own situation, the mages (Elphie) and her companions were no match for such a massive number and would be crushed. Tiona judged this, and had no choice but to run away from the "door." While apologizing to Tione and the others, she wielded her large twin blades to disperse the monsters and led her companions into a side path.

(Finn, Grace, Ais, or Tione are all out! I hate to say this, but Bert isn't either! This is terrible~ I told you I'm not good at coming up with solutions!)

Wisdom and wit are areas she is least skilled in. In this unfamiliar maze, Tiona has no idea how to break through. Instead, she is confident that she is completely lost and anxious, wondering if she can protect the lower-ranking members who are desperately trying to keep up.

"—Ughhhhhh!?"

"Huh! Yax!?"

Hearing a shrill scream behind her, Tiona turned around and saw a human member clutching one arm, curled up in a ball.

He ran back to see what was going on and found a monster stuck to his arm.

"Poison Vermis!?"

That was a "poisonous" monster that even second-level adventurers feared.

The Poisonous Maggots also caused Loki's Familia a lot of trouble on their return journey from the previous "expedition".

"Elphie, Cynthia, get out of the way!"

Tiona had no time to be surprised and raised her weapon to strike. She used her large double blades skillfully, without inflicting any wound on her companion's arm, only cutting the poisonous maggot in two.

"No, they've been poisoned... There's no cure!"

"How could there be poisonous maggots in a place like this...!"

The Poisonous Maggot's "venom" can even penetrate "abnormal resistance." Two girls ran to the male members of the group and screamed; seeing their companion's miserable state that they couldn't heal with their current equipment, just as Tiona was also anxious—plop.

Another poisonous maggot appeared and fell at her feet.

"..."

Tiona slowly raised her stiff face, only to see countless holes in the towering ceiling, from which swarms of maggots (monsters) crawled out as if being squeezed out—

“Run!!”

The moment Tiona and the others kicked the ground, a large number of poisonous maggots rained down from above.

"Wait, wait, wait...? You're kidding me, right!?"

She carried the poisoned group member on her shoulder and fled with all her might.

The monster continued to fall, its purple skin secreting venom. Right behind Tiona and the others, a torrential downpour of poison relentlessly pursued them. As if echoing Tiona's screams, the mage girl and her companions frantically thrashed their legs.

"Being chased by a dragon isn't even this bad!!"

Fortunately, their all-out escape worked, and the group barely managed to escape the landing zone of the poisonous maggots.

However, the maze gave them no time to catch their breath, and a despairing sound erupted.

"Another 'gate'!?"

"Miss Tiona, they're coming from behind!?"

Before he could even feel lost and bewildered, he turned around and saw a swarm of venomous maggots rushing towards him.

They crawled all over the floor, walls and ceiling like countless ants; witnessing this nightmarish march, the girls got goosebumps from a strong sense of physical disgust.

The swarm of venomous maggots pounced on them, ready to ravage Tiona and the others.

"You stinky bastard—!"

Tiona handed the male members to her companions and stepped forward to wield her large twin blades.

The dual blades moved with unparalleled speed, their flashing blades transforming into a violent barrier that cleaved away the poisonous maggots. The small monsters, barely pouncing on them, let out a "Beep!?" cry as their bodies were sliced ​​in two.

Tiona had no way out and could only fight back desperately, sweating profusely, but it wouldn't last long.

The swarm of venomous maggots, halting their advance, opened their tiny mouths.

“——”

Upon witnessing the simultaneous spray of venom, Tiona's time came to a standstill.

The deadly poison transformed into a turbid torrent, erupting towards the adventurers.

"Hmph!!"

Grace's fist shattered the monster's flesh.

"It's good that Ais escaped, but what about without the axe?"

The dwarf warrior muttered as he defeated the monster with his bare hands.

The location was a large hall packed with water strider-like monsters.

While remaining wary of their first encounter with the enemy, Grace also engaged in a chaotic brawl with the other members, attempting to break through the monsters' encirclement.

(It seems like it fell quite deep. Based on my experience as a "middle-level" person, if we were to convert it to an underground city, it would be about eight stories deep.)

When Grace was still a novice adventurer, he had been taken care of a few times in the "middle-level" dungeons. He had only recently experienced a great fall in the "Dragon Pot" below the 52nd floor.

By calculating the time of her fall from the vertical tunnel, Grace pieced together her clues and determined her current location.

(I've gotten separated from more than half of my subordinates... Tiona and Tione aren't here either. I just hope they're with one of the two sisters...)

Three members of the party remained with Grace, including the second-level adventurer girl (Navi). He fought off the monsters while worrying about the safety of the lost members.

"Mr. Grace! Enemy reinforcements have arrived!"

"!"

Navi, desperately swinging her twin swords, shouted to Grace. Grace glanced in that direction and saw dark faction apostles in long robes emerging from several passageways and surging towards them.

"Oh no! If Lefia and the others' intelligence is correct, those people will self-destruct!"

This death-defying group will burn their backs (which record their real names and faction affiliations) to take their enemies down with them. For some reason, the remnants of the dark faction are fearless in the face of death.

Grace had just warned of the anomaly group exposed during the battle for the grain depot when he ignited the "Flame Stone" hidden beneath his robe.

"Herein lies the price for my foolish desires—!!"

"Eek ahh ...

The human bomb exploded amidst the monstrous wave, capturing the monsters' dying screams.

"Everyone, run!"

Faced with the oncoming hot wind, Grace and the others chose to retreat without saying a word.

They rushed into the only passage without enemy reinforcements, narrowly escaping being caught in the crossfire.

However, the enemy did not cease their pursuit. Remnants of the dark faction appeared from all directions along the intricate network of paths, launching a special attack on the group.

"I've heard about this before... but isn't this way too reckless!?"

"If they self-destruct in such a narrow passage, there will be no way to escape...!"

Hearing Navi's screams as she fled in all directions, even the mighty dwarf warrior's face twisted with hatred.

Then, just as they turned a new fork in the road.

The enemy figures that appeared in the passageway have disappeared.

"...The enemy has stopped...the pursuit?"

Navi and the others were panting heavily, while Grace leaned against the wall, her eyebrows curving in surprise.

The enemy's fierce footsteps and murderous intent ceased abruptly, and silence descended upon the labyrinth.

"—It's a success, Lord Baka! God Thanatos! The thief who threatened us has been driven into his cave by me, Tris!!"

Immediately following was a joyful shout. Turning around, a man (human) who appeared to be the leader of the remnants of the rebels stood in front of him.

The man's eyes were filled with tears, and his body trembled uncontrollably, whether from joy or fear.

As Navi and the others were shrinking back in fear, the man made a gesture as if to detonate a detonator.

—To self-destruct at this distance?

Given the current distance between the two sides, the fire cannot reach them.

To be honest, what does "rushing into the cave" mean? Grace was full of suspicion about the enemy's words and actions, and then...

"————"

He unfortunately saw something his finger touched.

Grace braced her hands against the wall, and between her fingers, a scarlet glow shimmered within the stone slab.

The same "Flame Stone" that the remnants of the Dark Faction were entangled in was attached to them.

These stones are buried at equal intervals on the left and right walls of the passage, stretching all the way down.

"Lord, please grant my wish..."

The man exploded with a loud bang, and in the next instant—

The "bombs" that had been planted in the passageway beforehand exploded in a series of explosions.

“Run!!”

Grace and the others turned around with all their might, turned their backs to the surging blast wave and impact, and ran away.

Just like landmines exploding, the "Flame Stones" mounted on the wall exploded one after another. Countless explosions roared, unknowingly forming a terrifying torrent of flames that relentlessly pursued Grace and the others as they fled.

This is a Fiery Burial Trap; any intruder who steps into this area will be completely incinerated and will surely die.

The stone slab burst open, revealing the metal inside, but the structure of the ultra-hard metal remained undamaged; only the raging flames caused the temperature inside the maze to soar.

Threatened by the giant fiery jaws, Grace, Navi, and the others were covered in beads of sweat.

Then, it was like kicking someone when they're down.

Here, another "door" blocks the way back.

"!!"

Just like with Tione and Tiona, the "door" of the hardest metal announced the start of the execution.

Grace and the others whirled around to see flames rushing in from behind, turning their faces crimson.

"Wa ...

Accompanied by the agonizing screams of his comrades, the flames engulfed Grace and the others.

"We've found you."

That man appeared at the scene of the chaotic battle between Bert and the others and the monster.

"...Who is that guy?"

The crimson spear evokes images of blood, and the dark faction's robes are open at the front.

The human male was dressed sloppily, wearing a hooded jacket to hide his true identity.

"This outfit is so tacky, I can't stand it. Even though disguising yourself is for emergencies, it's really something I don't want to do."

Bert, who was leading the charge against hordes of monsters, turned to look at the man who had appeared at the back of the squad. The man was loudly mocking his attire.

Lakta and the other members of the group continued fighting while turning to look at the man; the man—Dix—twirled the handle of his red gun and placed it on his shoulder.

Then he stretched out his free right index finger.

"Well then, even though we've only just met—go to hell."

Beneath the goggles hidden by the hoodie, her red eyes narrowed.

"Get lost in an endless nightmare (fantasy)."

The incantation was completed in an instant.

This indicates that the incantation belongs to the category of very short chanting.