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

Winnie removed her robe, revealing her most natural, naked state—I at least asked her to cover her chest—and all her wounds had healed. However, even with a panacea, it wasn't powerful enough to make lost nails or wings grow back immediately. Indeed, if such a miracle were possible, Miss Nazha wouldn't need her prosthetic arm now…

As for me, although I was beaten up like that, I didn't suffer any fatal injuries.

In the end, it seems Miss Ais was probably holding back the whole time.

(As expected, I still have room for improvement...)

"She's still a long way off." I muttered to myself as I re-equipped myself, making Winnie wear the robe with the hole in the back.

There's no time to grind mushrooms; we need to meet up with Fels and the others as soon as possible.

"Lord Bell, Lady Winnie!"

"Haruhime!"

Just as I was thinking this, Haruhime, holding an eye crystal, appeared in the ruins.

Upon seeing Miss Chunji's face, Winnie embraced her with teary eyes. Miss Chunji, also with tears in her eyes, held the pale, slender body in her arms.

"Miss Haruhime, are you alright?"

"Yes, thankfully Sister Aisha came to our rescue... Lord Bell, where are you?"

"...We're alright too."

"Miss Haruhime must have heard about Miss Ais from the fairy," she asked timidly. I responded with a stiff smile. I abruptly ended the conversation and prepared to leave again.

"Also, Lord Bell... um, there's something..."

"Huh, what else—pfft!?"

"Chirp—!!"

I turned halfway to look at Miss Haruhime when suddenly something soft and furry attacked my face.

I quickly pulled it open and saw that it was a small monster—a rabbit dressed in clothes called "Heretic".

Winnie, who was clinging to Miss Haruhime, suddenly raised her face.

"Uh, you're from 'Unicorn Rabbit'... Miss Aruru?"

"Chirp!"

"On my way here, I was fortunate enough to reunite with everyone I had gotten separated from..."

The moment Miss Chunji uttered "everyone," several "heretics" walked into the ruins.

"Lord Bell!"

"It's good to see you all again, people from the surface world!"

"Mr. Rhett, Miss Faye!"

It's Mr. Rett in his red hat, and Miss Fei, the half-human, half-bird. Then there's the black dog Helge...right? Plus Miss Aruru, who's still clinging to me, making a total of four lost "heretics" gathered here. I heard they were trying to escape the adventurers gathered on the east side of the labyrinth town, so they headed north, and like Miss Aisha, they saw Miss Haruhime's "magical" light, so they took a gamble and went to check it out.

Although things were different from the original plan, we were still happy to be reunited.

"There are so many more people... We really need to speed things up."

"...Bell, about this matter..."

Beside me, "Aruru, no—!" "Chirp—!" The dragon girl pulled the unicorn rabbit down, and the two were having a little argument; the deity, who had been silent all along, spoke from his eye crystals.

"I think you'd better know that it's no longer very likely that you'll be able to reunite with Fels and the others."

"what?"

All eyes were on the eyeglass that Winnie had returned to me.

"What happened to Fehrs and the others?!"

"No, Fels and the others are fine. They survived the crisis with the Loki Familia and have now entered the passage to the 'Artificial Labyrinth'."

"That……"

"There's no road that will allow you to meet at the same time. Hearing the commotion in the west, not only the Loki Familia, but other adventurers have gathered in the center of Daedalus Road..."

"The chance of joining up with Fels and the others is practically gone," the deity told us so solemnly.

It was indeed extremely difficult to evade the gazes of so many adventurers. Even with an invisibility cloak, it was impossible to conceal so many "heretics," and transporting people back and forth would take too much time. Besides, to be honest, they would be exposed as soon as they passed Mr. Finn and his group.

The time limit is up... We spent too much time fighting Miss Ais and the others.

Winnie looked up at me uneasily, and I was speechless. Miss Chunji and the other "heretics" also remained silent.

The game is over. A phrase often uttered by the gods flashed through my mind.

"...! Lord Bell, please look at this."

"Huh, this is... the 'key' to the 'artificial maze'!?"

The magical artifact that Mr. Rhett showed me surprised me.

How did he get this? I looked at Mr. Rhett as he explained it to me.

"The last person I met handed it to said that there was no point in keeping it..."

"No meaning...? What about that 'heretic'?"

"I want to stay on the ground (here) because I feel like my 'dream' is nearby."

“…Is this okay?”

"I couldn't stop him... because 'he' always seemed to be chasing after something."

Seeing Mr. Rhett's gaze lowered, I also kept silent.

Now we finally have the "key"... but it's meaningless until we reach the "door".

That's right, how could there possibly be a path leading underground (…), that could be bypassed by adventurers and yet still be hidden from the Loki Familia's defenses?

“—Ah.”

"Lord Bell?"

At that moment, a light flashed in my mind, and I looked up.

I let Miss Chunji observe my expression as I desperately tried to recall my memories.

The path leading underground—the route connecting the "man-made labyrinth".

I didn't see it with my own eyes, and I don't have concrete evidence, but—

"I've got it! There's another entrance/exit!"

I called out hopefully to everyone who was astonished.

The residents of Daedalus Road are taking refuge as instructed by the guild. Thanks to this, the Northwest District where we are now is sparsely populated. While keeping an eye on the occasional passing adventurers, we make good use of the shortcut the gods told us about, and arrive at our destination located directly north of the Labyrinth Street.

That is, the "Maria Orphanage" where the children (Lay and the others) lived.

We successfully entered the backyard without being discovered by anyone.

"How did you know such a place existed, Lord Bell...?"

"Bell is amazing!"

"No, it was just a coincidence..."

Miss Chunji was greatly surprised, while Winnie was extremely excited. I gave them a dry laugh and walked down the stairs, activating the devices embedded in the wall along the way—magic stone lamps.

From the backyard of the church orphanage, you can walk to this sea-like ruin, where a "stone slab" door is hidden. I joined everyone in invading the underground passage that Miss Seele and the children (Lay and the others) had investigated about a month ago.

...Then we arrived at the underground cave where the "barbarian warrior" appeared.

"It's so spacious..."

"There really is such a place..."

Miss Fei and Mr. Rett looked around, and I also used a torch made of black dog (hellhound) flames to observe my surroundings, which unfolded just like the stone landscape in my memory.

After that incident, I reported it to the guild through Miss Eina... but it seems like there was no investigation at all. Perhaps it was suppressed by the higher-ups before Uranus even found out? I heard that the guild has become quite neurotic ever since a monster escaped during the Monster Festival...

"..."

In one corner of the cave, there was a tall pile of ash and completely burned "barbarian warrior's body hair." I looked down at these relics silently, then led everyone to the deepest part of the cave.

A collapsed and completely blocked passageway appeared before everyone's eyes.

"Lord Bell, it wouldn't be that...?"

That person… the hunter wearing goggles said:

--Yes, we caught that large one.

—Before it was shipped, that thing managed to get rid of a few of its (idiots) subordinates and escaped.

—I originally intended to chase it, but it ran into the collapsed underground passage.

The "large-scale" (big guy) that person mentioned is the "barbarian warrior" I encountered here, and the collapsed underground passage is the entrance to this passage right in front of me.

Mr. Rhett's gaze fell on my right hand. What he saw was a white light that rang out repeatedly, accompanied by the chimes of bells.

The hunters who hunted the "heretics" had smuggled goods through the "artificial labyrinth." And the large-scale (barbarian warriors) they captured had escaped from the front, so there must be a "door" ahead.

Two minutes of charging.

I used [Hero's Wish (Skill)] to make Winnie and the others step back, and then stretched out my right arm straight.

"[Flame Lightning]!"

After a powerful artillery barrage, all the rubble at the entrance of the passage was blown away in one go.

"~ ...

The tremors and loud noises caused Miss Haruhime and the others to cover their ears.

When everyone looked up, the rubble had disappeared, and the half-destroyed entrance to the passage and the underground passage leading forward appeared before them.

"It's a success..."

In the distant, collapsed stone wall, I spotted the gleam of an ultra-hard metal (hard steel) and murmured to myself.

That's right, this place is connected to the "man-made maze".

"If we just walk in this way, we should reach the 'door' (entrance) of the 'artificial maze.' Uh, although I don't know the way..."

"It's alright, it's alright. The scent of our compatriots still lingers deep in the passage, I think it should..."

Beside Miss Fei'er, the black dog Helge twitched its nose a few times and barked definitively, "Woof!" That fragrance must have been left behind by the "heretic" who was being treated as a smuggled commodity…

The "heretics" cheered when they saw a path open up before them.

A moment later, they turned to face me and Miss Haruhime.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Bell. I will never forget your kindness. We will always be there to help you whenever you are in trouble."

"People on Earth, please come to Miri again, so we can sing and dance together once more."

"Okay...we'll bring our lives with us then."

The man in the red hat, feigning gentlemanly manners, and the inquisitive half-human, half-bird shook hands with both me and Miss Haruhime. When the amusing unicorn rabbit and the black dog with its nose came over to say goodbye, I was delighted with Miss Haruhime… I was so happy that she was willing to shake hands with the “heretics.”

"Bell".

Finally, it's Winnie.

The dragon girl stood in front of us, looking up at our faces.

"I'm going back with everyone now, because staying on the surface (here) will cause Bell and Haruhime to get hurt."

"Lord Winnie..."

In response to Miss Chunji's sorrowful tone, Winnie wore a smile that didn't betray her grief.

"Me? I've been crying ever since I parted ways with you guys, Belle. I've felt so lonely."

"..."

"But that would make you worry, right? So I won't cry anymore, so as not to make you worry again."

"Winnie..."

As Winnie spoke, it was as if she were saying goodbye to a self that could only be protected by others.

In just a few short days, what exactly changed her?

Was it a series of encounters? Was it human malice? Was it a death we were about to face? Whatever it was, I just feel from the bottom of my heart that Winnie's smile to us now is irreplaceable.