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

"I will reorganize the remaining surface forces. Then I will surround the north and corner the 'Black Bull'—"

That's right, Finn was convinced there would be no more "trouble".

Until his thumb started to throb.

“Eh…?”

"Hey! Look at that!"

As soon as Finn heard the stiff voices of his bandmates, his blue eyes also caught sight of that person.

Not far from the main camp, on "Twentieth Street" on the west side of the central area, more than one alien figure leaped into the air.

The "winged monsters," suddenly spreading their wings and soaring into the sky, seemed to unleash their monstrous instincts, causing their throats to vibrate:

"Roar! Ro ...

The gargoyle's hideous roar shook the dark night.

As if to attract attention, the horde of monsters roared and flew to the northwest of Daedalus Road.

The actions that were so "contradictory" to his previous behavior—the monstrous actions that made it impossible to grasp his "intentions"—made Finn stare in astonishment, and then he narrowed his eyes.

"Commander!?"

"I know."

Finn didn't even glance at Raul, who was tumbling in, but stared intently at the northwest outskirts where the monster had landed.

"This is practically the same as a dungeon..."

Seeing the inexplicable situation unfolding one after another, Finn let out a long sigh.

Judging from the monsters' actions so far, Finn originally believed they wouldn't attack the residents' shelters. This was also because he trusted Bell Craney, who wasn't wary of the "Armed Monsters."

Therefore, Finn did not deploy his troops in the outer areas, leaving the defenses weak.

The monsters' inconsistent behavior made it seem as if a "third party" had intervened.

(Was the monsters' perplexing path also the work of that "third party"? That person wanted to take advantage of the situation... How unpleasant.)

While he thought this, he also understood that since the situation had already occurred, the Loki Familia had no choice but to send out troops.

Finn's gaze then fell on his right hand.

Although I could only feel it slightly, my thumb was definitely throbbing.

(Has something happened... or is something about to happen?)

Finn stuck out his tongue and licked the pad of his thumb, recalling the words of the Supreme God.

"You want me to see it clearly myself, huh... That's a headache."

He couldn't help but sigh in complaint, and then made a decision.

"Huh? What did you say, Commander?"

"Raul, I'm going to lead the troops there."

"Huh!? The commander himself has come out!? Where is the command at headquarters (here)?"

Finn said he would hand over command of the main camp to Riveria and Raul, who would return sooner or later, so that he could clear his name. Upon hearing this, Raul screamed, "Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!"

Finn ignored his wails and quickly got to work.

Needless to say, Finn also instructed the first-level adventurers to stand by for the time being, and then led the team northwest.

*

"No, Thanatos. One of the crystal strider's makeshift seedbeds has been breached."

Arrive at the stronghold within the man-made maze, the "Master's Hall".

Baka, standing in front of the pedestal, monitored the interior of the labyrinth and spoke to the other party in a flat, emotionless voice.

"Whoa... Was it Nine Hell and the others who did this?"

"Yes, they discovered the makeshift seedbed on the 12th floor. They took advantage of the fact that the fairies' tentacles (monsters) are attracted to 'magic' and followed the paths taken by the monsters that approached them..."

In the water film that Baka looked down upon, the profile of the rapidly moving elven royal was reflected.

As the remnants bustled about, creating a chaotic commotion, Sanatos heard his report and sighed deeply.

"Not only the [Hero], the [Nine Demon Princesses] are also incredibly intelligent... It's really a shame that Valetta died."

Even as the Grim Reaper, he still felt sorry for a soul that had returned to heaven.

Despite being outmaneuvered, the smile on the male god's face never faded. He seemed to be enjoying a different kind of "unknown," refusing to surrender and continuing to manipulate the pieces on the chessboard, playing a losing battle with great enthusiasm.

"Besides the Loki Familia, there's another group... no, two groups of invaders. But these aren't human..."

Aside from Riveria and the others, Baka saw the "alien" figure flash across the image for a moment and narrowed his eyes, which were marked with the letter "D".

"Oh, Ikelos and the others' toys... I've been keeping myself busy with the Loki Familia alone. To be honest, I haven't paid much attention to them before, but I remember they have 'keys' too? Is there any way to deal with them?"

"The smaller group... we can't do anything about the ones with the dragon maiden. They've invaded through one of the abandoned 'doors' leading directly to the seventeenth floor. Did they open up a secret passage that collapsed and became unusable before...?"

While sitting on different levels of the floor, Sanatos listened to the intelligence provided by Baka and mentally described the battle situation.

One of the Dark Faction's makeshift nurseries was captured. Although their fighting strength wasn't halved, they suffered serious losses. It's pointless to just take the beatings and then let the Loki Familia go.

They've located Rivera and the others on the tenth floor of the artificial labyrinth. Even with a large force, monsters alone probably wouldn't be enough to stop them. The remnants of the dark faction are concentrated on the first floor, which is under constant attack from the main force (Loki's Familia) on the surface, while the rest belong to the unit responsible for pursuing Rivera and the others. The latter are currently moving on the ninth floor.

"Where is my sister, Rives?"

"He's healing, it might... take a while longer."

After inquiring about the situation of the only "bodyguard" he could rely on, Sanatos tapped his temples a few times with his slender fingers.

They have enough strength to deal with Riveria and the others. That being said, sending out "Fairy Clone" is not a good idea. If the previous situation were to repeat itself, this time Revis would really kill him.

(But judging from the way the Nine Demon Princesses are acting, they must have already found the "tunnel" to the twelfth floor...)

Even if they were prepared to attack, their opponents could easily retreat outside the artificial labyrinth. It's highly likely, extremely likely. Riveria and her group must have a way to escape to continue causing trouble inside the labyrinth.

What Thanatos wants now is the "time" to get the war preparations in order, and the "situation" that makes it impossible for the enemy to escape.

To put it more clearly, it's the "bait" that keeps the elves in place.

"...Baka, where is the other group of invaders now?"

"On the tenth floor, far from the soldiers."

After listening, Sanatoz pondered for a moment, then spoke:

"Open all the 'doors' along the route I'm about to tell you about."

"……What?"

"Then we need to operate the 'doors' near the area where the crystal striders roam, to prevent them from heading towards the intruders."

This instruction is tantamount to leading the invaders into a man-made maze without even delaying their advance.

The enemy possesses a "key" that allows them to move freely within the labyrinth. A single mistake could reveal the location of even crucial structures or the "Fairy Chamber."

Baka began to doubt the command he had heard, and when he turned around, he saw Sanatos coldly narrowing his eyes.

"Let them crash."

*

"Is this right, Fels!"

Upon hearing this "voice," the magician in black stopped in his tracks.

The location is inside the "artificial maze".

After making a deal with the male god, Fels was able to take a "shortcut" and successfully infiltrated the secret base of the dark faction—an area connected to the underground labyrinth (dungeon)—with "them".

"Considering Little Bell and the others' situation, kid, maybe we should do this! But leaving Guros and the others to die is really inexcusable, isn't it!? Only we going back... it just doesn't feel right, does it!?"

"No, Reed, I believe him."

Just as the group escaped the fierce battle with the Loki Familia and made their way to the dungeon, a "voice" called out to Fels.

Even in the presence of his master—the old god (Uranus)—the magician, who had never panicked or lost his composure, clenched his fists tightly with his black gloves on, and his black clothes trembled.

"I believe that foolish boy is capable of transcending divine will and such nonsense—"

He showed a hint of trust in a certain boy and began to run forward.

Seeing that brave and forward-moving figure, "they" who had stopped earlier seemed to be propelled to follow.

The group rushed down countless steps.

Fels' destination was the "tunnel" leading to the underground city. In order to ensure the safe escape of "them" who were following him, he went deeper and deeper underground to get away from the fighting atmosphere on the surface.

Fels used the "key" in his hand to open the "doors" made of the hardest metal (ostrich). One of them (one person) used an astonishing high-frequency echolocation to accurately grasp the route of the vast maze, never losing his way and steadily and surely completing the maze.

"I originally said that as long as we entered the man-made maze, we would have won... but as expected of the secret base of the dark faction, it seems that it is not that simple."

Whenever hordes of monsters appeared in the intricate network of passages, Fels would unleash shockwaves from his glove to scare them away. He blew countless crystal tortoises away and blasted parts of large carnivorous plants to pieces. Their counterattacks quickly cleared out the remaining enemies.

(But they were all monsters, I didn't encounter any remnants... Is there some kind of chaos inside the dungeon?)

Fels discovered that the resistance from the remnants of the Dark Faction was less than expected, and sensed that some kind of "anomaly" had occurred within the man-made labyrinth.

Fels was right. The Loki Familia's attack, occurring in places unknown to them, had drained the Dark Faction's resources. They were also preoccupied with dealing with Anachidi and her group's repeated attacks in the secret passages beneath the Labyrinth City and at the opened doors. Their fighting strength was exhausted, leaving them with no energy to deal with the new intruders (Fels and his group).

"In that case..."

Just as Fels was about to say "feasible"...

A deep bass boom echoed from the depths of the maze.

"...?"

Then the same "boom...boom..." sound rang out continuously.

Fels quickly realized that it was the sound of "doors" opening. However, the black-clad magician couldn't understand why the "doors" kept opening one after another without them disabling the mechanism.

(Is the dark faction manipulating the "gate"...? Are they trying to lure monsters? No, but the path the enemy opened is...)

After following the echolocation for a while, Fels guessed correctly and found a staircase leading to the next floor.

"Fels! I can smell a faint scent of Mom's... underground labyrinth (dungeon)! It's all connected down here!"

"..."

Hearing the excited sounds coming from "them", Fels fell silent.

The floors ahead have "passages" leading to the underground city; once you reach them, you can escape the man-made maze.

However, this timing is most likely a trap.

Is the dark faction deliberately "leading" Fels and the others to the next floor?

"Hey, Fels? What's wrong with you? Those disgusting monsters are coming soon!"

"...No, it's nothing. Let's go!"

In any case, Fels and his companions were unfamiliar with the structure of man-made mazes and had no other choice.

Since there's an escape route ahead, we should use our speed to escape the enemy's trap and rush through. This opportunity shouldn't be missed.

"Full speed ahead! Just a little further and we'll escape!"

Fels and "them" sped down the stairs.

His judgment was correct. He deduced that even if the enemy forces were prepared, they could be defeated with their own fighting power, and even if there were man-made dungeon traps, he was confident that he could overcome the difficulties with his magician's insight and magical artifacts; all of these ideas were correct.

If we were to point out Fells' only miscalculation, it would be that they broke into the "twelfth floor".

The direction the enemy pointed to did not contain any "traps," but rather indicated the presence of "other forces."

The ferocious "elves" that were still causing havoc in the maze were unfortunately also on this floor.

"────"

The one who noticed its presence first was, as expected, the magician Fels.

"This is……"

"Is it the one that appears when adventurers use 'magic'...?"

Upon seeing the emerald-colored patterns spreading across the ground, "they" also stopped moving.

Only Fels understood what the patterns expanding outwards from the "door" opened by the dark faction were.