"How boring."
Ikelos walked down the street with his hands in his pockets.
It was deep in the night. Adventurers who had finished their evening gatherings were returning to their lodgings in small groups.
One shop after another closed down, and the crowded streets gradually emptied, leaving only the moonlight and God as company.
"Ahhh~ So uninteresting. Come to think of it, it's been a long time since I've seen Dix and the others."
Ikelos yawned lazily, thought for a moment, and then turned toward the direction of Daedalus Street.
Due to the need to capture Xenos, the members of the Ikelos Familia often participated in battles and proactively sought him out to update their blessings after the fighting ended.
However, it had been almost a week since he last met Dix and the others.
He vaguely remembered that during their last conversation, Dix had mentioned capturing a batch of good goods that needed some time to process.
But no matter what, a week was too long.
After wandering around for a week with nothing to do, Ikelos decided to take the initiative and go find Dix.
The surrounding scenery constantly shifted as he moved through the narrow alleys of the night, and Ikelos arrived at Daedalus Street.
"Let's see... I think it's this one."
After looking around, Ikelos walked toward a two-story pavilion.
This was the stronghold of Dix and the others, where they often processed Xenos.
When he had nothing better to do, Ikelos would sometimes come here to find some amusement. Over time, this place became the spot where Ikelos looked for his Familia members.
"I'm coming in~"
Ikelos reached out and pushed the wooden door.
Just like before, the attic door was unlocked, opening easily with a gentle push.
However, just as he pushed the door open and was about to step inside, a cold glint suddenly flashed across his vision.
"Huh?" Ikelos blinked, looking down at the blade held against his neck.
Realizing what had happened, the corners of his mouth began to lift uncontrollably.
"Hey, hey, kids these days are really over the top. Robbing a house is one thing, but actually holding a God hostage?"
"Let me think... This already counts as sacrilege, you know. If you're discovered, you'll be punished by the Gods~"
"Don't worry, God Ikelos."
Fels retracted the dagger and took out a rope to bind Ikelos's hands. "I'm just putting on a show. I don't have the guts to kill you."
Ikelos tilted his head. "But kidnapping a God is a bit much, isn't it? By the way, who are you?"
Fels: "A lost soul who cannot rest even after death because of a God's cruel sense of humor."
"Ooh! Can you elaborate?!"
Ikelos's eyes instantly lit up.
He could feel that most of what Fels said was true; this black-robed person clearly held a huge secret.
As a God who was idle and only wanted to find some fun, Ikelos was filled with anticipation at this moment, wishing he could run out, buy two bottles of wine, and sit down to chat with the other.
But unfortunately, Fels didn't have the inclination to discuss her past with him.
"What a hassle."
After bringing Ikelos in and having him sit down in the attic, Fels got a headache.
Under normal circumstances, she would never reveal herself in front of a God, to avoid exposing her identity.
But this time, there was no choice; the timing of Ikelos's arrival was too coincidental.
After rescuing Lena from Lynn that morning, Fels had contacted Reed and the others in the Dungeon.
According to the plan, she would bring Lena and the other Xenos into the Dungeon late at night when no one was around, heading to the middle floors to meet up with Reed.
But who knew that Ikelos would time his arrival so perfectly? Just as she and Lena reached the attic exit, he pushed the door and walked in.
The two sides met face-to-face instantly. Now, not only could she not hide, but if she didn't find a way to deal with Ikelos, the news would leak out by the next day.
"Fels, what should we do?"
Lena walked over to inquire.
Behind her, the other Xenos were all staring at Fels, awaiting her reply.
"Now, now, you don't need to be so nervous. My lips are actually quite tight~"
Ikelos's voice came from the sofa not far away. "Can you tell me what the situation is right now? You must be the shipment Dix caught, right? How are you outside the cage now?"
After muttering a few words to himself, Ikelos looked at Fels with a faint smile.
"Let me guess, this must have been done by the undead lady. You came to rescue those monsters, but why don't I feel a decrease in the number of blessings?"
"After you defeated my child, you didn't kill him? No, that's not right. With your personality, capable of kidnapping even me, there's no reason you'd let scum like that go."
Ikelos had some understanding of the members of his Familia; simply put, every single one of them possessed unique skills and was not a good person.
"Could it be that someone betrayed you? That traitor cooperated with you to rescue the monsters, gaining benefits from you through a transaction... Your emotions seem to have shifted a bit. It looks like I guessed right."
"What a hassle."
Fels let out another sigh.
Gods were just too overpowered.
Without needing an answer, she could glean the truth just from the subtle shift in his emotions.
"God Ikelos, please remain quiet for now."
"Eh? That would be too boring. Chat with me! Tell me about your past or something!"
"Sorry, I don't have time for that."
"Fels, use this."
Just then, Lena seemed to have thought of something and took out some tape from a nearby drawer.
"Eek? Wait a moment, don't treat me like that. No matter what, this is too... Ooooh oh oh oh!!!"
Due to her past experiences, Fels generally held no good impressions of Gods.
Especially a God like Ikelos, who was unreliable and only sought amusement, immediately triggered her PTSD.
After tearing off the tape and covering his mouth, she found a sack and stuffed him inside.
"What do we do now?"
Lena brought the topic back to the beginning.
"Don't worry, I've already thought of a solution."
Fels took out an Eye Crystal from her robes.
Her current main God was Ouranos, so she couldn't deal with Ikelos herself.
But it didn't matter if she couldn't solve it; she just needed to find someone who could.
...
"So, you brought him to me?"
Freya crossed her legs, propping her cheek up with her right hand, observing the man and the God before her with interest.
"What do you want? For me to send him back to the Heavens?"
"Ooooh oh oh oh!!!"
Ikelos shook his head frantically.
He hadn't had enough fun in the Lower World yet; sending him back to the Heavens would be too cruel.
"I'm not sending him back to the Heavens."
Good person!
Ikelos looked at Lynn with joy.
"I just want to find a place to lock him up. Do you have any facilities like a Dungeon here?"
Demon!
Ikelos let out the 'oh oh oh' sound again.
"We don't have a Dungeon, but we can find a room to confine him. I have quite a few empty rooms here," Freya replied.
To be honest, she was not unfamiliar with Ikelos.
About five years ago, Ikelos was considered a major Familia in Orario, albeit in a negative sense.
At that time, due to the battle against the Dark Faction, the previous generation of the Freya Familia members was nearly wiped out.
Thanks to him, she held no good impression of Ikelos; their relationship was even worse than with Ishtar.
"Allen, take this guy to the room on the east side and assign an LV4 to watch him."
"Yes."
Allen stepped out from the shadows.
After taking Ikelos from Lynn's hands, his gaze naturally fell upon the black-haired youth before him.
"Lynn, fight me."
"Later. I have things to do today."
"Tch."
Allen curled his lip.
Without further ado, he took the still 'oh oh oh'-ing Ikelos and left the hall, heading east.
"Ottar, I need your help with something."
After handing Ikelos over, Lynn looked towards the other figure beside Freya.
"Can you come with me to the Dungeon?"
"..."
Ottar remained silent, looking quietly at Freya.
"Go ahead," Freya agreed immediately.
Through her observations recently, she had noticed Lynn's importance to Bell.
If she couldn't find a way to draw Lynn away, it would be difficult for her to have time to chat with Bell within her Familia.
"...I understand."
Seemingly sensing Freya's thoughts, Ottar let out an almost inaudible sigh.
However, after sighing, his attention immediately shifted back to Lynn.
He had already heard about it.
Yesterday, when he wasn't around, Lynn had defeated Allen using a special magic spell.
"Are we going to the Eighteenth Floor?"
"We aren't training today. We have something else to do."
"What?"
"Fish blasting."
"?"
...
Since he was going with Ottar, Lynn didn't take the shortcut through the Artificial Labyrinth this time.
Starting from The Babel, the three took the regular passage to the Twenty-fifth Floor, and then completed the cliff jump under Lynn's guidance.
Having experienced one cliff jump, Lynn completed the landing very smoothly this time.
It was even simpler for Ottar; he jumped directly into the pool, completing his landing without any form of buffering.
But compared to Lynn and Ottar, the last member of the trio was not so smooth.
"Haruhime, how is your recovery?"
"Still... still a bit dizzy."
Haruhime shakily stood up from the ground.
As an LV1, she naturally couldn't complete the feat of jumping off a cliff by herself.
It was Lynn who, while jumping, held her with one arm, jumping down step by step.
If one word were needed to describe the process, it would be 'world-turning'.
Even though several minutes had passed, Haruhime still felt her legs trembling when recalling the experience just now.
"Lord Lynn, can we take the regular passage next time?"
Rarely, the Fox Maiden offered a suggestion.
"That's too far, it wastes time."
Lynn immediately dismissed the suggestion.
"Haruhime, if you don't want your fate to be held in the hands of others, then strive to become stronger."
"Work hard to break through to LV5 soon. Then you'll be able to complete the cliff jump on your own."
"I think overcoming the fear of heights would be simpler,"
Haruhime couldn't help but complain.
Perhaps distracted by Lynn's words, she quickly recovered from the aftereffects of jumping off the cliff.
Her head no longer spun, her legs were no longer weak, and her whole being became sturdy; her mental state was excellent.
"Lord Lynn, what do we do next?"
"Watch from the side for now. If needed, you can buff me and Ottar."
Lynn had Haruhime stand next to Ottar while he walked to the edge of the pool.
Yes, he had come to challenge the Dungeon again.
Because Hestia had mentioned yesterday that plundering souls from the Dungeon again would lead to more severe targeting, he brought Ottar and Haruhime along as bodyguards this time.
"Spirit Devouring Barrier."
Magic power surged as a massive barrier rose out of thin air.
Perhaps because his Spirit attribute had grown, or because he had consumed enough souls.
Compared to yesterday, the scale of the barrier was several times larger today, enveloping a fifth of the pool.
"Come on, Dungeon!"
"Let me see your limits!"
Activating Current Propulsion again, Lynn summoned a mass of lightning and hurled it toward the pool ahead.
Boom—!
A deafening roar rang out, and a spray of water over ten meters high shot into the sky, sweeping up a large number of monsters.
The current spread, and the surrounding monsters turned into dust and vanished, while their souls turned into streaks of white light and flew toward Lynn.
Boom—!!!
Another roar sounded.
But this time, it wasn't lightning hitting the pool; the ground of the entire floor began to shake.
"Oh? The reaction speed is quite fast this time."
Feeling the vibration that was all too familiar, Lynn stopped his movements and looked toward the waterfall ahead.
Like a scene from yesterday repeating, the waterfall slowly parted from the middle to both sides, and Amphisbaena emerged from within.
Compared to yesterday, its size had exploded from twenty meters to thirty meters tall, and its heads had increased from two to eight.
"Roar—!!!"
Like the legendary Yamata no Orochi, the massive monster let out a thunderous roar toward the sky, announcing its descent upon the world.
After that, Amphisbaena's eight snake heads looked toward Lynn simultaneously, their eyes glowing with a crimson light.
A voice from deep within its soul told it that its purpose for being born was to deal with this thief.
A roar sounded, the ground shook again, and the water in the pool surged up, creating a massive wave dozens of meters high like a tsunami, crashing toward the edge of the pool.
"This intensity is indeed not simple."
Lynn let out a word of praise.
A normal Amphisbaena has only two abilities: breathing fire and breathing blood mist.
This ability to manipulate water currents was clearly a new awakening for the mutated Amphisbaena.
Combined with the environmental advantage of the Water Maze City, this single strike alone could threaten a Level 7.
However, ...
"I can still handle it."
Lynn's hand tightly gripped the hilt of his blade.
He had been gathering power since the moment Amphisbaena appeared.
State of Selflessness, Current Propulsion, and Dismantle...
With Fading Light Slash as the core, Lynn fused the powers of different systems together.
After gathering power, the maximum-strength Fading Light Slash fell with a crash, splitting the wave in two.
After that, the Fading Light Slash continued forward, reaching Amphisbaena in the blink of an eye.
But at that moment, two of Amphisbaena's snake heads suddenly let out a roar, its massive snake body took on a metallic sheen, and its surface was covered with a layer of blue light film.
The Fading Light Slash collided with the blue light film, and in the blink of an eye, its overall scale shrank by more than half, its power drastically reduced.
After that, the Fading Light Slash landed on Amphisbaena's torso, pushing it back and skidding over ten meters.
As the waves tumbled, Amphisbaena relied on its Hardening to block the blow, with only a small scar appearing on its body surface.
"Roar—!!!"
Amidst the deafening roar, the scar vanished.
...