The core hunters had not found the dungeon core.
Max disliked how much they had learned while failing.
Their recovered maps covered the long table in his office. Anna had arranged them by source rather than accepting the hunters' own conclusions. Public Sanctuary maps occupied the left side. Corathian route records filled the center. Hand-drawn observations of staff movement, private portals, and Max's appearances lay to the right.
Quin stood at the far end with the portal tool's examination report.
The hunters had built their theory from three events during the challenge. Max appeared after the invaders crossed the final sealed boundary. A restricted transit ring connected that district to somewhere the army never reached. Quin arrived through routes ordinary visitors could not use.
None proved the core had been near the ring.
Together, they showed which parts of the dungeon reacted when someone approached protected infrastructure.
