"Whew—finally heading home!"
"Yeah, that Valgang Dragon on the 58th floor was seriously annoying!"
The speakers were a pair of Amazonian twin sisters. Aside from the older sister having a slightly more voluptuous figure, their clothing and styles were practically identical.
"I'm sorry, Tione, Tiona."
Finn Deimne, walking at the front of the group, tilted his head slightly, a bitter smile appearing on his face.
"I'll take responsibility for this setback. It was my error in judgment that led us prematurely into the 58th floor's battle zone."
"Oh nooo~~ Captain, you'd never make a mistake~~!"
Tione, the older sister, instantly switched into fangirl mode, her body twisting uncontrollably as stars practically glittered in her eyes.
Watching her lovestruck expression, the werewolf Bete couldn't help but roll his eyes.
But even this tiny gesture didn't escape Tione's notice:
"Hey, you stupid wolf! What's that supposed to mean?!"
"My eyes felt itchy, alright?! Got a problem with that?!"
"You're lying, you definitely—"
The green-haired elf Riveria interrupted their bickering,
"Failure is natural. We'll analyze what went wrong this time, and it'll boost our odds of success next time."
Stopped by their vice-captain, Tione reluctantly folded her arms beneath her impressive assets, glaring fiercely at Bete.
Bete returned her glare without backing down.
Clearly accustomed to their daily squabbles, Riveria tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, softly remarking:
"This month-long expedition... really flew by quickly, didn't it?"
"Still, about this time—"
Suddenly, Riveria's words trailed off. She abruptly furrowed her brows, casting an uneasy glance around.
The dwarf warrior Gareth Landrock, standing beside her, asked:
"Something feels off. Where exactly are we now?"
Gareth, the sturdy dwarf carrying a massive battle axe on his back, glanced ahead and replied thoughtfully:
"We just left the sixth floor, so this should be the fifth."
Then why was there such a powerful residual magic fluctuation?
Maybe she was just imagining things...
"Hmm... Never mind, then."
At that moment, Tiona suddenly spoke up:
"Hey, isn't there someone over there?"
Everyone paused, instinctively looking forward.
"You must be seeing things, Tiona! Who'd still be down here at this hour?"
The werewolf Bete twitched his wolf ears irritably.
"Oh~ I get it. It's probably just some weaklings being chased around by a War Shadow."
"Seriously, a garbage monster like that being called a 'rookie killer'? Pathetic weaklings shouldn't bother coming down to the Dungeon!"
Yet before he'd even finished speaking, a flash of golden hair streaked past his vision!
Finn quickly made a decision:
"There might be adventurers in danger up ahead."
"Let's follow Ais and check it out."
Bete clicked his tongue in annoyance, muttering under his breath:
"Tch... Always running off at the slightest hint of trouble. When will that girl get over her hero complex?"
Despite his complaints, his pace didn't slow at all as he followed swiftly behind.
Thus, the Loki Familia members, previously advancing leisurely, now raced toward the distant figure on the fifth floor.
Up ahead, Ryota had just finished packing up his loot and had barely taken a few steps when he heard hurried footsteps approaching rapidly from behind.
Ryota's eyebrow twitched slightly, his face darkening with annoyance:
"Don't tell me it's another unlucky bunch being chased again? Am I suddenly the Dungeon's resident paramedic?"
Despite his complaints, his movements didn't hesitate in the slightest.
He swiftly turned around, slipping into a familiar combat stance:
"I'll just rescue another group."
However, the moment he looked clearly ahead—
The figure had already stopped a short distance away.
A blonde girl holding a slender sword tilted her head slightly, staring at him with innocent curiosity.
She didn't speak, just stood quietly, watching him.
Ryota slowly lowered his hands, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully as he stared into her pale golden eyes:
"Hmm? She looks... familiar?"
His mind rapidly searched through his memories for those eyes, that golden hair, and that oddly familiar airheaded expression...
One second, two seconds.
Then it hit him like lightning:
Ryota's heart skipped a beat as the realization struck him.
"Isn't this... the 'Sword Princess' of Loki Familia—Ais Wallenstein?!"
The three tomoe quietly vanished from his eyes as their gazes met mid-air.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!
Several more figures quickly landed behind the blonde swordswoman.
In an instant, the atmosphere seemed to freeze, an odd, oppressive silence spreading among the Loki Familia adventurers.
Their eyes simultaneously locked onto the charred area in front of Ryota.
There, a massive crater several feet deep stretched across the passage floor.
The edges were still blackened from intense heat, the ground shattered, walls melted, and in some places, the stone had even been completely burned through.
This level of destruction was far beyond what a normal adventurer could achieve.
"What the hell happened here? Are we sure this is really the fifth floor?"
Bete's pupils shrank involuntarily, his face filled with disbelief.
Finn, the blond-haired Pallum captain, bit his thumb thoughtfully, his eyes darting repeatedly between Ryota and the scorched crater:
"With destructive power ... would someone like him even need to be on the fifth floor?"
"Or is he here specifically to intercept us...?"
Riveria shook her head gently, focusing her gaze upon the young man standing opposite Ais:
"That young man doesn't seem hostile."
"If he was, he wouldn't just be staring at Ais right now. They'd already be fighting."
Hearing Riveria's conclusion, the others nearby nodded in agreement.
"If he's not an enemy, then there's no problem! I'll just go ask him myself!"
Tiona, ever the cheerful and straightforward girl, placed her hands casually behind her back and trotted over toward Ryota.
Stopping in front of him, she leaned forward slightly, a cheerful smile lighting up her face:
"Hey there, handsome~ Mind telling me which Familia you're from?"