"Finn."
"The surrounding Dungeon environnt… is very strange…"
The only one who could call the captain by na was the vice-captain, Riveria. After sensing the intense tremor on the 12th Floor, an ominous premonition had already shrouded her mind.
Visible to the naked eye…
The cave passages on the current Floor had changed, clearly deviating from the map.
There were no alternative routes to take—one could only follow the path beneath their feet all the way to its end. Looking back on the ti she had spent in Orario, she had never encountered such a situation.
"Prepare for battle."
Could the stabbing pain in his right thumb be related to the Dungeon's anomaly?
Finn frowned slightly. His gaze swept across the mbers of his familia. Perhaps because they were in the middle layers, their attitude had beco sowhat lax.
It was understandable.
With their strength, they indeed wouldn't face threats in the upper layers.
But no matter what, he had promised Loki—and as the captain, his duty was to bring every mber of the familia back safely to Orario.
Finn reminded them: "It seems we've encountered an 'abnormal phenonon' in the Dungeon. I don't know if it's… related to those Minotaurs that escaped."
"Continue forward."
"…"
"Captain, is there really an abnormal phenonon?"
Her short black hair was tied into two braids hanging beside her cheeks, and her uniquely sun-kissed Amazonian complexion gave Tiona Hiryute a fiery charm.
She stepped barefoot on the ground.
Compared to her older sister Tione beside her, her chest appeared slightly flatter beneath the white wrapping. Holding her large twin blades, the girl stretched lazily.
"Probably… sothing like that?"
The one who gave a concrete answer
was Lefiya, whose golden hair was tied into a single ponytail, her appearance quite delicate. Speaking her thoughts in front of so many familia mbers made her sowhat nervous.
She lightly tugged at her sleeve, recalling her experience from so ti ago.
And—that adventurer she had encountered in the Dungeon, "Ron." During the ti she had been away on expedition, she wondered if his Dungeon exploration had been going smoothly.
"Mm."
"Lefiya, you know about this kind of situation?"
"…Yes."
The current environntal changes in the Dungeon, along with that intense trembling, were exactly the sa as when they had encountered the Goblin Guard.
It was definitely a Dungeon anomaly.
The elf girl did not ntion that part of her experience—she couldn't exactly say that she hadn't even faced the monster properly and had briefly lost focus under the monsters' battle cries, almost getting injured.
And under the gaze of Captain Finn and her teacher Riveria, Lefiya nodded heavily.
"Before this expedition… I already…"
"I already experienced a Dungeon abnormal phenonon."
But before the girl could elaborate further, Bete, the werewolf scouting ahead, relayed the information: "Not far ahead… there's sothing resembling a Floor Boss's exclusive chamber."
"The exact situation hasn't been fully scouted yet."
"Do we want to take a look?"
"A Floor Boss room appearing on the 12th Floor."
That combination of words felt extrely strange.
Since the breeding ground had already appeared, there must inevitably be a Floor Boss ahead. After a brief mont of thought, Finn made a decisive choice.
He nodded lightly.
"Move out."
"I'm quite curious why the Dungeon has been frequently producing 'abnormal phenona' recently. As for the Floor Boss in this area…"
"Since we've encountered it—"
"we'll deal with it along the way, so it doesn't trouble other adventurers!"
After that, they followed the path with no branches and arrived at an enormous, empty chamber comparable to Orario's circular coliseum. Finn halted his steps.
Because—not far ahead stood a colossal monster he had never seen before!
The dragon's body was covered in pale white scales, as if it had endured an imnsely long passage of ti. Its size even surpassed that of middle-layer Floor Bosses. The two-headed dragon—Amphisbaena.
Behind it, four wings spread wide, and along its spine, red lightning continuously crackled.
"This thing…"
"Is this really a Floor Boss that can appear in the upper layers?!"
Even Finn, a Level 6 adventurer, felt an unprecedented shock upon seeing the "ancient dragon Lansseax" before him.
They hadn't actually fought yet.
He couldn't determine its strength, but the visual impact alone was overwhelming.
If he rembered correctly, the strongest monster that could appear in the upper layers was the rare Infant Dragon Ais had slain years ago.
But compared to this—it was on an entirely different level.
The red lightning dancing along the dragon's spine carried a distinct magical aura. Within that crimson lightning, there was even a scent of danger.
"Sothing's off…"
"Even with a Dungeon anomaly, a monster like this shouldn't be able to appear, right?"
"…"
A heavy sense of confusion enveloped the mbers of the Loki Familia. Even Riveria, of elven royalty, had no clear answer.
Instead, she noticed—in the distance ahead, adventurers were already fighting the colossal dragon.
Compared to the large expedition party of the Loki Familia, there were only a handful of adventurers ahead, already engaged in the raid.
Even with her brows slightly furrowed, Riveria's elegance remained undiminished.
She reminded Bete, as well as Tiona and Tione, who were eager to act: "There's already an adventurer party engaging it."
"Let's wait."
In Dungeon exploration, this was an unwritten rule—when another party is already engaging a Floor Boss, unless they actively request assistance, others must avoid interfering midway.
After hearing Riveria's warning, Bete snorted coldly but ultimately did not defy the order. He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, watching the battle ahead with a cold gaze.
"Then we wait."
"…"
The previously restless mbers of the Loki Familia also restrained themselves, suppressing the curiosity in their eyes toward the special monster.
However—this did not include Lefiya.
Even though the vast chamber was dimly lit, she could still vaguely make out the figure of the adventurer fighting the ancient dragon.
'It feels sowhat familiar…'
The elf girl frowned slightly.
But as that adventurer turned to dodge, the sense of familiarity grew stronger, and Ron's refined face surfaced in her mind.
Why is it you again?!
More importantly… why are both encounters in the Dungeon tied to an "abnormal phenonon"?
Especially when she saw that, under the fierce attacks of the ancient dragon Lansseax, Ron could only barely evade, Lefiya's mood grew inexplicably tense.
'Is this… repaying the help he once gave ?'
She tightened her grip on her Twin-Stick, "Fairy Dust," preparing to assist. But when she raised her head, she t Riveria's puzzled gaze.
"Um…"
"Teacher Riveria, the adventurer fighting that dragon is my friend. I want to help him… that should be fine, right?"
"…"
Where did this girl even make such a friend?
A trace of doubt flashed through Riveria's mind. But looking at the battlefield ahead—it was entirely a one-sided suppression by the dragon—she did not stop the girl.
She nodded lightly.
However—just as Lefiya was about to assist, Bete moved even faster. Especially after hearing that the person was Lefiya's friend.
Lightning-like tattoos accentuated the arrogance on the silver-haired werewolf's already cold face.
Holding his twin swords "Dual Rolan," he prepared to assist Ron, who was struggling in battle ahead.
But unlike his usual disdain for other adventurers, Bete did not show contempt toward him.
He was indeed struggling.
Yet in the face of such an overwhelming gap in strength, the greatsword-wielding adventurer did not give up. Instead, he continued searching for opportunities.
That alone—made Lefiya's friend better than those adventurers who had no drive to improve!
"Always picking trouble!"
"Lefiya, where did you find… such a weak friend?" the gray-haired werewolf said rcilessly, though his actions betrayed his true thoughts.
But just as Bete was about to move, Finn, who had been observing all along, suddenly appeared in front of him. eting Bete's puzzled gaze, Finn shook his head with a serious expression.
"It's not ti yet."
"With so many of us here, he still hasn't asked for help. That ans this battle is still within his expectations."
"This is the path he chose. Don't interfere too much."
"And…"
"Even if he really faces danger, we can still step in later."
Just as Finn finished speaking, Ron, in the distance, once again nimbly dodged Lansseax's attack and pulled back to a safe distance.
They had thought… that he would ask for assistance next.
But under the gaze of the Loki Familia mbers present, Ron planted his greatsword "Great Fortune" into the ground and drew out the short swords tied to his legs.
Then—with a ferocious expression on his handso face, the short swords he gripped in both hands were not aid at the Floor Boss—but at his own abdon.
Without hesitation, he drove the blades into his body!!
"??"
Even Finn, Riveria, and Lefiya—who had remained calm even before the ancient dragon Lansseax—now had their eyes shrink abruptly.
That alone spoke volus of their shock.
What the hell… is this guy doing?!
...
"The defense of this ancient dragon's scales doesn't seem as overwhelming as expected. Then I'll use a 'quick assault tactic' to take down this Floor Boss."
The strength gap was enormous.
The only solution Ron could think of now was to use the Combat Art of the "Lord of Blood," combined with these two short swords, to rapidly build up a bleed effect.
Strive to—use the bleed status to completely slay the ancient dragon Lansseax!
Having made his decision, he decisively cast healing magic from the "Tarnished" template on himself, ensuring that his body wouldn't die outright after the self-inflicted wound.
As for what ca next… Ron gritted his teeth.
With a ferocious expression, he plunged both short swords deeply into his abdon without hesitation.
Combat Art—Seppuku.
At the sa ti, Ron looked toward Daphne and Cassandra behind him, who were staring in shock. His voice was filled with cold resolve—and a battle intent so fierce that even pain could not suppress it.
Using the "Healing Gourd" to recover, his tone was resolute: "Everyone…"
"Prepare yourselves!"
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