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

"Hermes, how could you do this! Don't teach Bell to be bad!!"

"W-Calm down, Hestia? I'm a god trying to guide Bell onto the right path..."

As for the heartthrob Hermes, he was tied up in a corner of the campsite.

Asphie saw through his escapade with Bell in the forest dome and caught him before he could escape. After being questioned by the omnipotent Perseus, they learned that the voyeuristic disturbance was orchestrated by a wicked god. The boy tried to stop him but was caught in the crossfire and fell into the pool.

Facing the handsome god-like figure who nonchalantly smiled and said, "I think little Bell should be quite satisfied, right?", the goddess's jet-black hair (twin ponytails) rippled like waves as she smacked him on the head with a "smack!" "Really, I knew something was off, so that's why...!"

Hestia couldn't believe that her weak-willed subordinates would dare to commit such a daring crime, and she was furious.

"Finally... is there anything you'd like to say in your defense, Hermes?"

"—Peeping is a man's romance, Hestia!"

"Enough, just die."

"Goo ...

Asphi took action against Hermes, the disgrace to the Hermes faction (familia).

The various forms of corporal punishment, carried out with faces flushed red from anger and shame, made Hestia and the members of the Loki Familia tremble.

"It turns out to be just another of the gods' usual antics."

"What? So Argonauts didn't come here to play after all!"

"But...where did he go?"

Ais, along with Tione and Tiona, watched Hermes get a good beating, then looked around the campsite.

The special criminal... Correction, Bell Craney is still on the run in the great forest, or rather, his whereabouts are unknown.

He hasn't returned to the campsite yet.

As Ais worried about the loss of the blue sky below, a figure appeared from the direction of the 17th-floor passageway.

"It's so noisy... What's all this commotion about?"

"Ah, Bert!?"

Bert the werewolf frowned at the group members' frenzied frenzy and Hermes's piercing screams. Slung over his right shoulder was a backpack filled with numerous test tubes.

He acquired the special antidote from the entire city and returned to the 18th floor.

"Hey, you're so slow! Everyone's getting tired of waiting!"

"Then go ahead, you stupid Amazon."

"Commander, Bert is back!"

"Uh, you're back..."

The original hustle and bustle of the campsite was instantly drowned out by the panic of preparing for treatment.

Each member of the group received the special medicine, contained in a special container (bottle), and fed it to the patients lying in the tents. After drinking the bluish-purple solution, which was anything but pleasant to smell, the wounded, who had been groaning in pain, instantly calmed down. A few healers cheered, and seeing their companions' conditions improve, the other members held hands and shared their joy.

"That's great! I'm so happy for everyone. ...Well, Bert can be of some help sometimes."

"Hehe, at least I can finally rest easy now."

Seeing that the female members were much better, lying there with wry smiles, Tiona and Tione exchanged a smile as well. Hestia and the others, who had been granted permission to stay at the campsite, also came to help with the treatment.

"Thank you for your hard work, Bert. You've done us a huge favor."

"Your clothes are pretty dirty. What happened? You haven't been getting any rest?"

"Stop nagging, old woman and old man. Finn, I'm going to bed."

"Yes, get some rest. ...Thank you, Bo Dai."

Bert didn't even glance at Riveria and Grace, who were smiling at him, before rudely walking into a tent.

Seeing the werewolf youth with his hands folded and head down in a deep sleep, Finn offered words of comfort and thanks.

The Loki Familia camp, which had previously suffered from severe poisoning, has finally shaken off its gloomy atmosphere.

"...Uh, Lefia?"

"..."

In the suddenly bustling campsite, Rafia quietly performed her treatment alone in her tent.

Ais, carrying the special medicine, called to her from behind, but she didn't respond. The rabbit girl and others who were silently feeding her the medicine were trembling with fear for some reason.

A sense of déjà vu washed over her... Ais saw a hallucination of black miasma from the girl's back, and cold sweat trickled down her back.

It was like the calm before a storm, which frightened her a little.

(...not back yet.)

When everyone had received the antidote, the campsite began to return to calm.

Ais looked up at the ceiling of the building, which had just darkened above her head and was covered by branches and leaves.

Monsters roam the middle levels of the forest, and visibility decreases as darkness falls, naturally increasing the threat. A newly promoted Lv.2 adventurer alone in the forest is likely in danger; he might already be lost and unsure what to do.

Ais knew that searching aimlessly in this vast forest would be futile, but... with dinner time approaching, Ais began to worry about whether she should go look for him.

"Thank you, Ms. Ryu."

"No, I'll be going now."

—Just at that moment.

As Ais was heading towards the waterfall pool, Bell and an adventurer appeared from the depths of the forest.

I remember that person was... a masked adventurer from the search party.

Ais remembered that during the banquet yesterday, that person, along with Hestia and the others from the 17th floor, spoke with Bell. She just didn't know why, but afterwards, he seemed to disappear without a trace.

The person was wearing a long hooded cloak, which still covered their face. They were dressed in a thin combat suit, shorts, and long boots, and were slender, so they were likely a woman.

It seems that she brought the lost Bell back.

After exchanging a few words with the boy, the masked adventurer returned to the forest.

Anyway, she was relieved and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sigh—" Bell sighed as he walked over, and the moment he looked up... his eyes met Ais's.

"ah."

"ah."

The two exclaimed in unison.

In an instant, both of them blushed, as if they were looking in a mirror.

Both of them had the scene from a few hours earlier flashing through their minds. Ais blushed because he had seen her naked; Bell blushed because he had seen her beautiful naked body.

"...Uh, that..."

She fidgeted with her hands, her gaze frequently drifting to her feet.

Ais was unusually flustered and unable to look the boy in the eye. Not only her cheeks, but every part of her body was burning hot; she had never felt this way before.

And the same goes for Bell.

He was more flustered than Ais, sweat pouring down his face like a waterfall—then he knelt down violently.

"I'm so, so sorry!?"

Bell yelled and kowtowed, begging for mercy.

He set aside his shame and disregarded any sense of propriety, making every effort to apologize.

The sudden kowtow startled Ais. The only thing she could understand was that Bell was apologizing with all his might, and she quickly stopped him. The boy's forehead was bleeding from where he had hit the ground.

After Ais helped him to his shaky feet, he continued to mutter "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." as if in a dream. His cheeks, hidden by his white bangs, were still flushed.

Ais was also affected by him and blushed again.

"Um...it's alright now...okay?"

“Okay, okay…”

Ais told Belle like an older sister, and he answered in a low voice with a pitiful expression.

An awkward atmosphere began to form in a corner of the campsite.

The two people facing each other blushed, but neither dared to look at the other's expression.

Bell was quite busy afterward.

He went to apologize to all the women who had peeked at him taking a cold shower, and to each and every one of them, sincerely and wholeheartedly.

Bell knelt on all fours and head to apologize, barely sinking into the ground; seeing the boy repeatedly perform the Far Eastern-style prostration (dogeza), the girls weren't truly angry. Because they believed he was being instructed by God, they thought he could be treated leniently, and only gave him a stern warning.

Tiona and the others didn't take it to heart at all, laughing it off; Asphie apologized to Bell instead; Hestia was quite skilled, able to lecture and go berserk at the same time. Hermes was beaten beyond recognition and on the verge of death, which frightened Bell so much that he cried out "Eek!"

Later, the mixed-gender Sword Maiden's Royal Guard nearly rioted, but Ais's desperate persuasion brought it to a peaceful end. Bell apologized to Finn and the others for causing so much trouble, which made the leadership team smile wryly.

"well--……"

After finally apologizing to all parties, Bell sighed for what seemed like the umpteenth time.

Shame, guilt, and exhaustion were written all over his face. Dinner time was approaching, yet he was running around the campsite with a portable magic stone lamp in one hand. Incidentally, upon returning to the campsite, he removed all his equipment, leaving only his defensive weapon.

Just as I was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief after struggling against the inescapable, immoral emotions—suddenly…

“——————”

A terrifying and menacing aura appeared behind the boy.

The heavy pressure of his heart being gripped caused his throat to make a "whoosh" sound, like a broken flute.

Bell was instantly covered in sweat and turned around with rusty movements, only to see a forest elf holding a wand for attacking.

She carried the dark miasma on her shoulders, silently bowing her head.

The boy was frozen.

The sheer terror emanating from the beautiful elf before him was equivalent to that of the Minotaur, who had once prepared him for death, or even more so to the floor master (Eurya) he encountered on the 17th floor, or even greater than them.

The crimson-eyed figure saw a terrifying dragon's illusion behind the elf.

Finally, the elven girl slowly raised her head.

"I will not forgive you, I will never forgive you, you are unforgivable."

His originally azure eyes now radiated a sinister light.

Like a broken doll, his repeated, murderous "I will never forgive you" sounds just like the Grim Reaper.

The image of a young girl's pure, naked body was defiled, and the fire of anger burned within her.

The mage's wand, gripped tightly in both hands, made a squeaking sound.

The boy's sensory experience time was stretched to its limit.

As the girl's body sank, he spun back to the front at supersonic speed and kicked the ground with all his might.

"Stop right there!!"

"Eek e ...

The battle royale has begun.

The crying white rabbit and the furious elf engaged in a fierce chase.

On one side is the Lv.2 escape speed, which has increased compared to half a month ago; on the other side is the pursuit speed of the mage who has turned anger into power.

With an acceleration surpassing their previous escape and chase, the two burst out of the campsite in an instant and disappeared into the depths of the forest.

"Oh dear, where's Rafia?"

"There's not a soul in sight anywhere—?"

"...?"

Everyone was about to have dinner in the center of the campsite when the younger elves were nowhere to be seen, prompting Tiony, Tiona, and Ais to look around the garden.

Oh right, that child isn't here either...?

Ais searched for Lefia and the boy, then tilted her head to the side.

✿