"You're late, Zanis."
In the dim room, a bald, burly man sat lazily in the corner, holding a wine bottle.
"I need a reason."
"I took a detour to the wine cellar."
Zanis raised his hand, gesturing to the divine liquor he had just retrieved from the cellar.
"Not bad, I forgive you."
Gran raised an eyebrow, took the bottle, and gulped down a large mouthful.
"Refreshing! Real divine liquor tastes so much better!"
"Zanis, can you get me some more using your status! One bottle isn't enough!"
"I regret to say that the output of genuine divine liquor is fixed. Bringing out one bottle at a time is already the limit."
"Tsk, useless."
Zanis pretended not to hear him. "How was the haul this time?"
"Average, only caught two."
"Only two?"
"Yeah, those beasts are acting in groups now, much craftier than before."
"We only managed to catch these two because they were born recently and were easier to trick."
Gran took another large swig of wine, his face full of displeasure.
Monsters that possess intelligence and can communicate with humans, the Xenos, were extremely popular outside Orario.
Many wealthy individuals with a fetish for monsters wanted to acquire one to satisfy their desires.
But ever since the Xenos discovered something was wrong and started acting in groups,
The difficulty in capturing them had been increasing, incomparable to before.
Finishing the remaining divine liquor in the bottle in one go, Gran stood up and gestured toward the corner of the room.
"Don't worry about capturing the monsters; we'll find a way to deal with it."
"You just need to find buyers for these two monsters, and we'll leave our share of the money in the usual spot."
"No problem."
Zanis looked toward the two cages in the corner.
The monsters inside the cages were a Siren and a Lamia, both belonging to the lower levels of the Dungeon.
However, compared to the ordinary Sirens and Lamias, these two monsters looked as if they had received special favor from the Dungeon, possessing extremely beautiful faces.
Coupled with their decent figures, finding two buyers with a fetish for monsters wouldn't be difficult.
After chatting briefly with Gran and confirming the situation, Zanis left the room and headed back to the Soma Familia.
Not long after he left, a slender figure followed him out of the house.
"I didn't expect there to be an LV4."
Turning to look at the second floor where someone had just infiltrated, Ryuu's face showed a hint of seriousness.
Although Gran hadn't actually made a move, Ryuu felt a dangerous aura emanating from him.
That was definitely not an aura an adventurer below LV4 should possess; even among LV4s, he wasn't weak.
"Monsters, acting in groups, crafty..."
Recalling the conversation between Zanis and the other man, Ryuu's doubts grew stronger.
Were they really talking about monsters with these descriptions?
Could it be that intelligent monsters were already beginning to appear within the Dungeon?
Standing there contemplating for a moment, Ryuu followed Zanis in the direction of the Soma Familia.
Before going to find Cain to inquire about the situation, she still had some things to investigate.
What Ryuu failed to notice was that shortly after she left, a figure cloaked in a robe jumped out from the second floor.
"Smuggling intelligent monsters..."
Recalling the conversation he had just eavesdropped on, Hedin turned to look at the second-floor building behind him.
His intuition honed over many years told him that this matter was deeper than it seemed.
"Looks like I'll be busy."
...Three days later.
After finishing a day of adventure, Cain and Lili returned to the abandoned church as usual.
"Hm?"
As soon as he walked into the church, Cain noticed a beautiful figure sitting in the corner not far away.
"Long time no see, Ryuu."
"Why are you sitting here? Didn't I take you to the basement last time?"
"I don't really want to be alone with that Goddess."
Ryuu stood up and replied truthfully.
Just like Lili, she also felt a warm aura from Hestia.
Spending too much time in contact with her would make Ryuu involuntarily recall the Goddess of Justice who shared a similar aura and had left Orario at her request.
"Lord Cain, Lili will go down to find Goddess Hestia now."
Seemingly realizing Cain had something important to discuss, Lili spoke first and walked into the basement.
"That Dwarf is from the Soma Familia, right?"
Ryuu looked thoughtfully at Lili's retreating figure.
After two days of investigation, she had gained sufficient understanding of the members of the Soma Familia.
If she remembered correctly, the Dwarf who was just beside Cain was also a member of the Soma Familia.
"Why are you with someone from the Soma Familia?"
"We were short of a supporter for exploring the Dungeon, and Lili's conditions were good, so I hired her."
"Is that all?"
"There are some other reasons, but they are too troublesome to explain, so I won't."
Regardless, Ryuu was once a member of the Astraea Familia and was full of a sense of justice.
It was better not to mention borrowing money from Lili, as it might cause misunderstandings.
"How is the investigation on Zanis coming along?"
"It's done."
Ryuu took out a crystal ball from her embrace.
This crystal ball was a magic tool capable of photography and recording, extremely rare on the market.
To obtain this crystal ball, she had even gone to the Hermes Familia and sought Asfi's help.
As the crystal ball was activated, Zanis's figure appeared on the screen.
Leaving the Soma Familia, meeting Gran on Daedalus Street, their conversation about smuggling monsters...
Ryuu played back the content she had recorded from beginning to end without reservation.
"This should be enough, right?"
"Yes, it's enough."
"Then it's your turn."
Ryuu tossed the crystal ball to Cain. "Tell me, where is Jura?"
"Daedalus Labyrinth."
"Daedalus Labyrinth... Do you mean Daedalus Street?"
"No, the Daedalus Labyrinth is located in the Dungeon, and it is also the base of the Dark Faction Remnants."
"The base of the Dark Faction Remnants..."
Ryuu seemed to have realized something. "The man who is secretly smuggling monsters with Zanis, is he from the Daedalus Labyrinth?"
"This question probably has nothing to do with Jura, right?"
Cain did not answer directly.
However, upon hearing his words, Ryuu further confirmed the guess in her heart.
She hadn't just been investigating the Soma Familia these past few days; she had also been investigating Gran's identity.
As a Second Class adventurer, an LV4 was a significant existence in all of Orario.
But no matter how Ryuu investigated, she couldn't uncover his identity.
Originally, Ryuu thought he was hiding his true strength and that his records hadn't been updated at the Guild.
Now it seemed that the probability of him being from the Daedalus Labyrinth was much higher.
"Where is the entrance to the Daedalus Labyrinth?"
"You want a freebie?"
"..."
"Don't be anxious, Ryuu."
Cain tucked the crystal ball into his embrace.
"I told you when we last met, the location where Jura is is very dangerous."
"The Daedalus Labyrinth is the base of the Dark Faction Remnants, filled with numerous dangerous traps."
"Forget about you, even an LV6 charging in alone might not necessarily return alive."
"Compared to rushing in to seek death, patiently waiting for the right time to arrive is the best choice."
"..."
Ryuu fell into a brief silence.
To be honest, her knowledge of the Daedalus Labyrinth was limited, and she wasn't clear about the situation inside.
If what Cain said was true, then rushing in alone was indeed no different from seeking death.
Although she wanted revenge for her comrade, pointless sacrifice was foolish, and Ryuu understood this clearly.
After a moment of silence, Ryuu temporarily suppressed the irritation in her heart and asked,
"What do you mean by the right time?"
"About half a year later."
"Half a year later? Why?"
"Because by then I will have broken through to LV5, and if things go smoothly, I will be able to fight against an LV7."
"Are you kidding me?"
Ryuu felt like she was being toyed with.
"I am serious."
Cain drew the weapon at his waist, the blade aimed at the Elf Girl.
"Want to test it out? My current strength?"
...
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