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

"There are many people, like Bell... who protect someone from me."

"Just like when we first met, you (Bell) protected me from Lily and the others," Winnie said.

Is that the elf who embraced her blood-soaked lover (partner) and stood up as a shield?

Or was it a dwarf who stayed behind alone to bravely hold off countless monsters so that his companions could escape?

Or perhaps, or perhaps, or perhaps… Listening to the girl's words, fragmented information allowed Bell to imagine several images in his mind. Winnie, standing close beside him, shrank small, her long eyelashes trembling.

"Seeing those people makes me feel colder and colder."

"..."

"It's like having a hole in your chest, leaving you feeling empty... Compared to that, those people look so beautiful."

The way people help each other, protect each other, and love each other.

Seeing that they still wanted to protect their companions despite their fear, she eventually began to spare their lives in certain situations.

"Then it's all the same, I'm getting redder and redder, and darker and darker."

Then comes the recurring dream ending.

She was slain by the silver light, her body growing colder and colder. Her limbs gradually became immobile, and blood gushed out.

Looking up at the sky blocked by rocks, the view was slowly swallowed up.

"I cried and begged for help... but no one came to my rescue."

She let out intermittent screams, but none of her kinsmen around her even glanced at her.

They roared and continued to attack the people.

In the end, all that could be seen was a billowing gray mist, and everything was sealed into darkness.

"That was such a terrible, lonely dream."

She said that in the end no one lent her a helping hand, and the dream ended there.

"..."

Bell listened silently to the entire conversation, remaining silent.

Was that really a dream?

Or is it Winnie's—

Just as Bell's thoughts were about to jump to another place, the alien girl twisted her body and buried her face in his chest.

"However, I'm not afraid anymore."

"Because Bell is there," she said.

With a peaceful tone in her voice, she hugged Belle.

Winnie is smiling.

Seeing the girl seeking warmth, Bell didn't say anything and accepted her.

He simply reached out and gently stroked her silver hair.

"..."

Hestia, with her back to Bell and the others, slowly opened her eyelids.

She ruminated on the entire conversation she had just heard, her gaze drifting to the vast night sky outside the window.

Soon, the sounds of the boy and girl's breathing mingled together as they slept.

She rolled over again, hesitated for a long time, and finally hugged the girl's body from behind.

The vast, dark night stretched endlessly.

A few twinkling stars in the sky tell people it's past midnight. The moon, half-hidden by gray clouds, casts its hazy light upon the city of Orario.

Along the main road, the taverns on the street corners were still bustling with noise. Away from the most prosperous downtown areas and red-light districts, the group stayed in a back alley near the east gate of the city in eastern Orario.

At the end of this dark alley, overlooked by the massive city wall.

The adventurers sat on wooden crates and barrels placed along the road, while a male god mingled among them, playing with a feathered hat.

"Hermes, Lorell and the others have returned."

As the clouds that obscured the moon drifted silently by, a beautiful young woman with flowing aqua blue hair appeared.

She swept away the shadows with a pure white cloak, followed by three demi-humans dressed as travelers.

Upon hearing the voice of his familiar, Asphi Al Andromeda, who wore silver glasses, the god Hermes quickly jumped off the barrel, revealing a handsome smile.

"You must be tired from your long journey! Lorell, and you all too, we've been waiting for you for so long."

Hermes offered words of comfort to the elven girl who had put down her traveler's clothes and hoodie, as well as to the orc man and woman.

"So, how did it go?"

"Yes...the channels and brokerage firms involved in the smuggling of goods from the city have been identified."

"I see. Well done."

Hermes nodded in satisfaction after hearing the report from the elf named Lorell.

Orario, with its underground labyrinths (dungeons) and being the world's leading producer of Materia products, is plagued by rampant smuggling. Some products or raw Materia stones evade the watchful eyes of the governing bodies (guilds) that hold exclusive rights to Materia, exploiting loopholes in city checks to trade with other countries or cities. While guilds and affiliated groups (familias) strictly enforce these laws, in such a large city, smuggling is always difficult to prevent.

Investigating smuggling routes and uncovering related organizations is one of the tasks of the Hermes Familia. They travel outside the city on guild assignments to investigate the buyers or origins of goods. This is one reason why they, acting as "transporters," can freely enter and leave the city. As a neutral faction adept at using Perseus magic items, their credibility in completing assignments—even when falsely claiming official LV—is quite high within the guild.

Hermes and his group, who had received a report of their return in advance via letter, came tonight to welcome the members who had been away from the city for a long time to investigate smuggling.

"All the intelligence is written here... and one more thing that must be reported..."

The elven member handed the parchment scroll to Hermes, her delicate, fair skin turning deathly pale, and she spoke:

"As you said... we've also confirmed the smuggling of monsters..."

"...Who is the buyer?"

"The place we infiltrated was the mansion of the nobles of Elria... After investigating the passage, we learned that monsters could also be transported to the residences of other kings and nobles in other regions."

Perhaps recalling what they had witnessed, the elf members seemed to be enduring nausea, pressing their hands to their slender throats.

"In the underground torture chamber, there was a monster bound by chains. I can't be sure if it was trained, but it was subjected to horrific humiliation... uh, no, cruel treatment."

She quickly changed her words, her blonde hair and pointed ears trembling slightly.

"When we broke in, it was already dying... Before it died, it asked us to give this to its compatriots..."

An orc stepped out from behind the elf members and handed a white cloth bag to Hermes.

Dropped items

Hermes unwrapped the cloth bundle, revealing a monster horn bearing countless scars—a relic.

The male god narrowed his orange-yellow eyes.

Hearing their description and seeing the horned remains, the group members, including Asifi, stared in disbelief.

The male and female orcs also pursed their lips into a thin line, and the elven girl seemed to be unable to bear it any longer, abandoning her calm attitude.

"—It spoke! The monster pleaded with us for help. It understands human speech just like us, and it cried for help with tears in its eyes!!"

The girl's breathing became heavy.

She pressed her right hand against one of her wide-open eyes, revealing an unusual posture.

The fastidious elf girl was flustered and disoriented; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she was mentally unstable. Her beautiful eyes were distorted by tears as she unleashed the emotions that had accumulated over time before the supreme god.

"What is that?! Why is it looking at me like that...?! I...!!"

She was completely lost and confused.

Hermes, who had been silent, walked to her side and took her hand.

"Entrust everything you hear and see to me, Hermes. You no longer need to swallow it all alone; give it all to me and lay down your burden."

He guided her hand to his chest, letting her hear the beating of his heart.

The elven girl listened to the calm, normal rhythm as she pressed her hand to her chest, and her breathing gradually stabilized.

She slowly raised her head, trembling. Hermes smiled at her, revealing a handsome, boyish grin. Hermes took off his own feathered hat and insisted on putting it on her.

"You too." He smiled and patted the male and female beastmen on the shoulder, entrusting them and the girl with her head down to the care of the other members of the group.

Then they were handed over to the group members to escort the three back to base camp.

"...So, what do you intend to do, Hermes?"

Watching the tired girl and the others leave, Asphie said to him with some displeasure.

She coldly observed the main god, who was putting on airs towards the guild members. The person in question, speechless, looked up at the sky and asked a guild member beside her, "Lulu, you said you discovered a suspicious child, right?"

"Yes, Hermes. There was this elf girl (or imp) I'd never seen before, searching everywhere for news about the 'talking monster.' I followed her... but I got my nose ruined by a stinky bag and she dumped me."

The dog-woman with wheat-colored skin seemed to be in pain. "I'm sorry," she said in a muffled voice, pinching her nose.

Hermes glanced at her, then looked back up at the night sky, which was cut into the shape of back alleys.

"Although the Lord's orders are absolute, we can only gather intelligence from all directions..."

He paused here, then muttered in a grumbling tone, "Sigh, really."

"Uranus has given us a huge hot potato..."

After gazing intently at the moonlit night with his narrow, elongated eyes, Hermes's gaze fell upon the parchment scroll he had just acquired.

The opened parchment contained information about trading companies associated with smuggling and intelligence on the smuggling of monsters.

They traced the trail all the way to the labyrinth city of Orario, and finally came up with the name of a certain [Familia].

The name of the faction written on it is "Ikelos Familia".

The clanging of chains echoed in the darkness.

Intertwined with the clanging of metal against metal, shaking the space, were roars burning with rage, or cries tinged with sorrow. Terrifying, piercing howls echoed in the darkness.

"The dragon girl monster got away?"

One of the figures, oblivious to the surrounding noise, lazily spoke up.

This is a black-haired human, male.

He wore goggles made of smoky quartz, with faintly visible crimson eyes beneath the blackish-tinted lenses. The man was tall, with a muscular chest and neck exposed by his grimy combat clothing. At his waist hung a large combat dagger, equivalent to a short sword.

The man sat on the empty black cage, his legs splayed haphazardly, and his tone and manner gave a rude impression.

"I saw it on the 19th floor, but I lost track of it... I'm sorry, Dix."

"What a huge loss! If we could capture him alive and sell him to those nobles in Elria, we could make a fortune."

The four adventurers, men and women, were dejected, while the goggles-wearing man named Dix looked up directly above.

The stone ceiling was shrouded in darkness, creating a sense of oppression. Numerous black cages surrounded the area, with a few magic stone lamps tied with ropes illuminating the faces of several demi-humans pacing back and forth. The clanging of chains and the roars directed at them all originated from within the cages.

The goggles-wearing man spat near the adventurers' feet and stood up.

"We haven't found the monsters' 'nests' yet... They should be in the 'Great Tree Maze', no doubt about it."

He picked up the red gun that was standing to the side and walked toward one of the cages that was crowded with people.

The spear tip was twisted and crooked, as if it were not intended for efficient assassination but rather for inflicting intense pain.

"None of you will budge... It's infuriating!"

The red spear slipped through the gaps in the fence and pierced the shadow that was throbbing in the black cage.

The faint sobs, as if trying to say something, instantly turned into deafening screams. The chains rattled, followed by the sound of splashing bright red blood (something).

Faced with the figure struggling in pain inside the cage, the man remained expressionless and drew his spear.

"But speaking of which, Dragon Girl... it's been a long time since I've had such a high-quality one. I really want to get my hands on her."

He tapped his shoulder with the butt of his gun and squinted under his goggles.

"You mean the 19th floor? Tell me the details of what happened."

"Uh, okay... When we found the dragon girl, the town (Rivera) was issuing adventurer quests, asking a group of people to hunt firebirds. The adventurers had all gone upstairs."

Pressed for answers by the man wielding a blood-stained spear, the adventurer began to speak in a disheveled manner.

"Two elves were shouting that they heard monsters talking, but that's all; nobody believed them. I think the Dragon Girl is probably still in the dungeon... or maybe she was killed by other monsters."