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

Belle, Lily, Hestia, and Ming all returned to headquarters. They were now gathered around a crystal on the table. Just as they were all in a room in the mansion, holding their breath and staring intently at the crystal that had remained unresponsive—suddenly, it began to glow faintly.

"Can you hear me, Bell Craney?"

"Fels!"

Then the magician's voice came, and Bell cheered. The crystal surface reflected a dark space that looked like an underground sewer, as well as the figures of Fels and many "heretics".

"First of all, I would like to thank you. I also thank the goddess Hestia for her magnanimous and compassionate heart; I am deeply grateful."

"Don't be so formal, Fool (Fels). This is the second time I've spoken to you, but I'm already completely unable to let go of Winnie and the others. And it was Bell and the others who made the choice."

"Bell, Haruhime!"

"Lord Winnie!"

"Little Belle, and Little Lily! I'm so sorry to have troubled you two again..."

"Lily has given up on being a good Samaritan."

This is a magical artifact called "Eye Crystal". Bell and Lily brought back many magical artifacts. Upon returning to the mansion, they entrusted one of the two most important crystals, as noted in the letter, to their owl familiar to take to Fels.

Hestia spoke to Fels, who was reflected in the crystal, while Haruhime and Lily spoke to Winnie and Reed, who were peeking out from beside the man in black. From the other end of the crystal came the excited clamor of "Heretics!" "Quiet! We'll be discovered!!" the gargoyle Gross shouted.

After a brief and touching reunion concluded with a crystal, Bell and the others began discussing their future plans.

There are six paths you can take.

Fels said, holding the radiant eye crystal.

He asked Bell and others to use crystals to reflect the design of the "artificial maze" in the "Daedalus Handbook" and make a correct copy. He then spread the map out on the stone floor and explained the plan to the "heretic" and Bell in turn.

"According to the notes, there is an underground 'man-made labyrinth' in the central area of ​​'Daedalus Road', with six doors: northeast, northwest, west, southwest, southeast, and east."

The fingertips of the black gloves glided across the six indestructible (ostrich) doors on the map, drawing a perfect circle.

Around him, the "heretics" remained motionless, heads bowed, staring at the map.

"We need to break through one of the doors and head to the dungeon."

"You mean a breakthrough, which means..."

"right."

Fels responded to Lily's voice coming from the crystal, replying:

"A battle with the heavily fortified Loki Familia is inevitable."

A deathly silence reigned over the other side of the crystal.

The "heretics" here are in the same boat. Forced to recall the battle on Daedalus Road and the terrifying power of the city's largest faction, both humans and monsters feel the same fear.

"...This means that to break through, we must first remove as many Loki Familia's defenses as possible along the route, right?"

"That's right."

Welf spoke up, saying that the scale of the battle should be kept to a minimum, and Fells agreed with him.

"Therefore, Bell Craney, I hope you can distract the Loki Familia."

"Me, me?"

Bell stared intently at the crystalline eyes that glowed in response to Fells's voice.

"Given your current position, you're perfectly suited for this role. I hope you can attract as much attention as possible."

"Um, excuse me, may I ask a question? If that's the case, does Lord Bell not need to go to 'Daedalus Road'...?"

"No, I want to invite him to the Labyrinth Street (this way). If he runs off to some corner of the city, the Loki Familia will probably only send the bare minimum, but if he snuggles into their arms, that's a different story. And if he just wanders around aimlessly, he'll be impossible to ignore."

Fels rejected Chunji's timid suggestion.

Not only from the surroundings, but also from the other side of the crystal, several gazes came, making Bell's palms sweat.

"Could I ask you for help, Bell Craney?"

"...I'll do it, please let me help."

Bell exhaled from his lungs and nodded.

He clenched his fists, bearing the gazes of Hestia and the "heretics."

"Mr. Bell, I'm so sorry... I always cause you harm..."

"Miss Lei, I'm alright, because I've already decided to help 'Heretics' and save you, Miss Lei..."

"Mr. Bell..."

"Ray, why is your face so red? Does it hurt somewhere?"

"Vivian, Vivian!?"

First came the somber murmur of the singer, Rei, followed by Winnie's words, which immediately caused a commotion on the other end of the crystal. Hearing his compatriots become agitated again, this time with a different kind of excitement, Guross roared, "I told you to shut up!" The violently shaking images on the crystal made Bell break out in a cold sweat.

Not only that, Hestia and Lily also pinched his buttocks, and the boy screamed, "Whoa!?"

"Bell Craney, watch your mouth."

"Huh, is it my fault...? Ah, no, it's nothing, I'm sorry..."

"Back to the original topic... there's no need to be too pessimistic. We have a map of the 'artificial maze' here, and the Loki Familia may not even know about these entrances and exits that we have."

Ignoring Bell's slight grievance, Fels said there was still a glimmer of hope.

He said that this "Daedalus Handbook" contained all the structures of the "Man-Made Labyrinth" and might act as a signpost (Ariadne) to help them find a way out. Hearing this, Lily, Mikoto, and Haruhime all felt hopeful.

"However, Uranus actually managed to get his hands on the master craftsman's notes... I had only hoped that he could find out the location of the labyrinth's entrance and exit, but now that he has this, the plan is even more foolproof."

"I heard it was Hermes who got it? He said he got it from Ikelos."

"I see, that's how it is... Indeed, Hermes had contact with Icarus back then."

Hestia held the notebook and recounted what the old god had told her, when a voice of sudden realization came from Fels's side.

Then the man in black said, "Besides Bell Craney, I'd like to ask you all to do a few things." He then rattled off all the methods he could think of at the moment.

"Lord Bell's duties are dangerous, but Lily's aren't much better off...!"

"Hey, good luck, Lili! We're counting on you!"

"You're just making sarcastic remarks...!"

"Lord Welf, our duties are not easy either... we have to be on our toes."

"Haruhime and I are in charge of rear support, but that sounds like it'll be quite a lot of work~"

"I...I will try my best!"

Lily held her head in distress, while Welf smiled at her, trying to encourage herself. Hestia crossed her arms, and Haruhime placed her hands on her chest, each saying something different.

"Little Bell, and everyone... I'm so sorry, really, thank you all."

"Mr. Reed..."

"Although I have a lot to say... I'll wait until I get through this before I say it in front of everyone."

"—Okay!"

The monster's expression appeared in the very center of the crystal, and Bell could now tell whether it was laughing, angry, or sad.

Bell smiled back at the lizardman with his narrow, bright yellow eyes.

*

Day and night, the guild headquarters was always filled with noise.

People were constantly running around in the corridor, and attractive waitresses were repeatedly reassuring citizens who came to the windows. The public seemed unable to hide their unease; some even occupied a corner of the lobby and lay down, refusing to leave. The staff were overwhelmed, but apart from those who came to gather intelligence, they saw very few adventurers. The lobby was almost entirely filled with ordinary people, staging a scene rarely seen in normal times.

This is considered a relatively stable situation. When the armed monsters appeared on the surface, the chaos and commotion in the lobby far exceeded that when news of the destruction of the 18th-floor town (Rivera) arrived. Whenever adventurers brought news of monster sightings, the guild headquarters was overwhelmed with work. However, after some time, the staff have started to have time to chat idly. Everyone has begun to express their dissatisfaction with the higher-ups' withholding of certain information—the existence of the "artificial labyrinth"—and many speculations have arisen from this.

This also includes criticism and dislike towards the "newcomer".

"I still find this strange!"

As Missia Flott brushed past people, she overheard the employees' comments condemning the boy. As soon as she returned to her office with her desk in the corridor, she couldn't help but yell.

"It's clearly the Ikelos Familia's fault! Why are you portraying Eina's little brother... Bell's brother as a villain?!"

Unlike the petite 150C (Sehr) who could produce a loud voice that shook her pink hair, the office staff and the waitresses who were taking a break all kept their mouths shut and their eyebrows lowered.

"Flot, calm down."

"But, team leader! Bell's actions might be inappropriate, but doesn't everyone know that it's the Ikelos Familia hunting monsters?"

The team leader wanted Missia to make something herself, but she had been holding a grudge for days and refused to listen to advice.

The orc superior understood that she was right, but still kindly advised her:

"Including the War Game incident, [Rookie] has attracted too much attention, both for the better and for the worse. The current wave of disappointment proves that the citizens originally had a great deal of goodwill towards him. Perhaps the greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment. In addition, the adventurers' resentment has also taken this opportunity to erupt."

The boss stated that this was a backlash from excessively high public expectations, and mentioned that the downsides of a heavyweight newcomer's sudden fame have come to the forefront. Furthermore, achieving instant fame as the "world's fastest white rabbit" in a short period inevitably leads to facing such consequences.

"The biggest problem is that the city has been damaged."

“!…”

"Flot, as you've seen, a corner of Daedalus Road has become a charred ruin. Although he wasn't the main cause of the disaster, the situation has inevitably caused resentment among some. Uranus is still directly ordering the evacuation of residents and the reconstruction of the disaster area, but..."

The scene of ruins and billowing black smoke was indeed enough to evoke negative emotions in people.

To be honest, Missia also felt that Bell's behavior was "a bit excessive?" She also felt that it was inappropriate, even disorderly.

However, ever since that day, Missia has seen her colleague... her best friend fall into a slump. She wonders who the real culprit is and then begins to vehemently defend the boy.

"Eina..."

Turning my gaze, I saw the half-elf employee with his head down, engrossed in his work at his desk.

Her face was hidden by her bangs, and she had lost her usual cheerfulness. Her hand, holding the quill pen, trembled as if she were enduring something. Seeing Eina like this, Missia could no longer hold back and approached her, with the staff watching.

"Hey, Eina, cheer up..."

"……Come."

Missia called out to her with a pained expression, and upon hearing the faint murmur, she opened her eyes wide.

This time, the half-elf's lips uttered a clear sound.

"Didn't come (、、)..."

The next instant, Eina suddenly raised her face.

Then, anger flashed across his face, which had been hanging down for so long.

"Why...why isn't that child coming!?"

"E...Eina?"

"Yes, I hit him, and I was really upset at first! But, but! It's one thing if he doesn't want to talk to me, but he won't even show his face! What does that mean!? It's so strange, isn't it strange!? What am I to Bell!?"

"Sister Eina—?"

That was the first time I ever cried in front of a boy!

Her emerald eyes, visible beneath her glasses, were wide open, her cheeks flushed with anger, as she unleashed her pent-up frustration and resentment. Her tone was almost as if she were blaming her boyfriend during an argument.

Missia called out her best friend's name and reflexively took a step back.

The other staff members were speechless with astonishment when they saw the gentle, virtuous, and easy-going half-elf had changed so much.

“I’m so pissed…!”

Eina rudely signed her name on the parchment and suddenly stood up.

"Team leader, I'm going to patrol the city!"

"!?"

Then, everyone was startled.

Everyone in the office panicked.

"Wait, wait, Zul!? The files are already piling up, if you leave, who's going to handle them...!"

"Yeah, Eina~!? I don't understand the situation, but calm down anyway!?"

"The idea that work will come to a standstill if one employee leaves seems a bit exaggerated! Shouldn't workplace operations be improved?"

"S-Sorry."