*BOOOOOOOM!*

Asfi covered her ears with her hands. The deafening explosion brought back memories of the Great War that occurred half a year ago. Once the tremors settled down, she fixed her glasses and glanced in the direction of the explosion. ​​

"What should I do?"

Chasing the Xenos Siren or investigating this random explosion.

"Xenos girl is more important."

The surface world will become chaotic if someone sees a talking monster. She had seen a fair share of chaos in the Great War, which swallowed the former Captain of the Hermes Familia.

Now, the question was where to find this Siren?

"It will make no sense for a monster to go in the direction of an explosion this big."

Perhaps she was annoyed by doing this task alone or her lack of understanding of the Xenos that made her severely underestimate Ray's intelligence. She headed in the opposite direction.

Meanwhile, Ray remained in the small safe room with her wings wrapped around her head. Despite being so far away, she felt like the explosion happened in her head. Having sensitive ears wasn't all sunshine and rainbows.

Unfortunately, her wings also blocked the terrifying roar that followed the blast.

'What are they doing now? Are they going to blow up this place to find me?'

Ray shuddered at the thought of being blown up into pieces.

'Humans… are as evil as Gros said.'

The gargoyle had warned everyone on numerous occasions. She might not be here if she trusted Gros. The dark, humid cave stole her usual cheeriness, filled her heart with dreary.

She pushed herself and got up. She took careful peeks around, trying to see or hear any sound of the blue-haired woman.

'The human is gone. I… Should I go to the surface or back to the village?'

She found herself in a dilemma. This had been the closest she had ever been to the surface. After all, she first spawned in the forest on the 24th floor. Lyd and other Xenos found her on the 21st floor.

She floated in the air and flew forward. As selfish as she felt, she decided to continue towards the surface. Being able to see and fly in the sky once will be more than worth sacrificing her life for.

What she didn't know was the obstacle in her path ahead. She was heading to the very place where Asahi and his party were gathered.

***

(Right after the explosion.)

Hearing the explosion, Jura chuckled heartily. The monster tamer was hiding behind another adamantite gate, using his monsters to control the situation. The Evilus had placed multiple gates in their masterpiece dungeon, which were separated by a network of intertwining tunnels. Anyone without a map had no chance of coming out on the other side.

"Oh man, I wanted to see them despair."

Jura waved his whip, smiling like a maniac. A hellhound had been hiding underneath the pile of Inferno Stones. It executed Jura's command and brought forth the biggest explosion to ever happen inside the dungeon.

"I wonder how Astraea will react when the Guild delivers the mutilated limbs of those pretty girls."

Just at that moment, a roar thundered through the dungeon. Jura turned stiff, pupils shaking in shock. A level 4 adventurer like him had cultivated instincts beyond ordinary people. Right now, those instincts screamed danger.

"A new monster?"

Jura wanted to go out and tame this menacing presence. But being the coward he was, he decided to send one of his bugbears hidden in the tunnels.

The towering bear heard the "voice" and charged toward the pile of debris.

A shadow flashed over the bear's head, chasing it through the passage.

***

Asahi frowned after hearing the roar.

"Juggernaut, huh."

The guardian that spawned to stop the destruction of the dungeon. A juggernaut from the 15th floor wasn't enough to raise his attention.

He glanced behind, confirming everyone's safety. The wind barrier bore the impact and cut down the debris as well. Ryuu kept looking in the space blankly, seemingly the most shaken out of everyone.

Asahi waited for Alise or someone else to step up and comfort the elf, but no one did. His fellow adventurers pulled out their weapons and looked to their front.

"Oh come on," Asahi said and approached Ryuu.

His footsteps snapped Ryuu out of her stupor. The wind barrier startled her. Her gaze drifted to the adventurers, and she sighed in relief. The illusion she saw wasn't real.

"Thank—"

Before she expressed her heartfelt gratitude, Asahi pulled her in his embrace and rubbed the back of her head. The elf couldn't find it in her to push away her savior, so she let Asahi comfort her. The gentle rubs made her cozy. She felt as if she returned to the time she used to laze under the oak tree's shade in her village. The unreal warmth coming from Asahi made her reluctant to leave. Alas, the thudding sounds coming closer every moment had to be addressed.

"Okay now?" Asahi asked in a soft voice, ignoring the incoming monster.

"Y-Yeah."

Ryuu squirmed out of the hug and bowed her head. Without waiting for Asahi's answer, she dashed toward her friends.

[—Ryuu: Affection +21]

Asahi chuckled at the marginal increase in affection.

Kaguya gave her a short hug, making Ryuu even more flustered.

"K-Kaguya."

"Thank god Asahi-kun set up the barriers for us. That pack of Inferno Stone was enough to kill us several times over."

The black-haired swordsman was relieved to come out alive out of the explosion. Asahi's sharp instincts saved their lives this time.

Asahi shook his head. "We can talk later. Let's get rid of this problem first."

Alise scratched her head. On one hand, she was grateful to Asahi for bringing Ryuu back to her senses. On the other, Asahi and Ryuu's intimate hug triggered something inside her.

"Captain, you heard our junior. I'm not letting Evilus walk away after this."

Just then, the bugbear walked into the cave.

A monster that shouldn't even be on this floor. As Kaguya got into her quickdraw stance, the bugbear froze in its tracks, and its head rolled on the ground.

"What?" Alise raised her voice. "A trap—"

Her voice died when a pair of crimson eyes peered from the dark ceiling, socketed in a bony skull reminiscent of a dinosaur.

"What in the world?" Alise muttered, feeling something off about this monster. A monster on the 15th floor shouldn't be strong enough to trigger her instincts like this. "An irregular?"

Sometimes, the dungeon monsters strayed from their designated floors and evolved beyond their limits. The guild called them 'irregulars.' Alise thought of juggernaut as another irregular monster.

Rika toggled her smartphone and hovered it over the monster with her telekinesis. The bony, nearly fleshless monster was gripping the ceiling with the claws of its feet. The fang-like claws stretching from its six-fingered claws glittered an ominous purple. A bone tail over four meters extended from its base. It looked oddly disproportionate whether it was thin and long arms, or the legs that bent backward.

"Juggernaut," Saeko whispered. "It's here."