Crack—!
Crunch!
"Have you truly lost your mind...?!"
"What about it?"
"Dix and his group are our collaborators. How could you—"
Step.
"Does this look like my fault to you?"
Akumo, his body radiating a readiness for slaughter, was loosening his joints. He spoke with a chilling composure, showing Ein the scenes reflected in the scrying gem as she protested.
"Dix has already made his move. This is simply the consequence of his actions."
Ssh—
"Now that the wheels are in motion, I will simply steer the situation toward the outcome I desire."
"....."
"This incident will inevitably lead to the discovery of the passages to Knossos."
Tramp, tramp.
Akumo read the battlefield with surgical precision. Dix's reckless hunting and capture of the Xenos had provoked them beyond repair. The resulting catastrophe threatened to expose not only the Xenos but the very existence of Knossos to the world.
"More importantly."
Thud.
"I've taken quite a liking to those creatures."
"....!!"
"At the very least, they attempt to affirm their own humanity, don't they?"
With those final words, Akumo took the Knossos Key and walked away from her.
Grit!
"Don't make me laugh....."
'Those mere monsters... human?'
Clench—!!
"They're nothing but monsters...!"
Ein gnashed her teeth as she watched the faint smile Akumo directed toward the Xenos. She stared at the scrying orb with pure loathing. The sight of the Xenos fighting for their kin filled her with rage... or perhaps, a darker, more twisted emotion.
'They are nothing but monsters unworthy of salvation....'
Grab!
Ein seized the scrying orb. She slowly vanished into the shadows, her bloodshot eyes sinking into the darkness with a terrifying intensity.
"Why...."
Thump!
"Why did you come here, Bell-chi!!"
Lyd shouted, his voice a mixture of panic and concern as he saw Bell emerge, hidden beneath a robe.
"I heard... that Rivira was destroyed by armed monsters...."
Step, step.
"Was it really... was it really you and your friends, Lyd-san?"
".....Yes. We did it."
Confusion and doubt flooded Bell's mind. He turned his head and shouted at Lyd. He couldn't accept that things had come to this—the fact that he might have to fight Lyd's group was unbearable, and that grief manifested as anger.
"WHY?!"
Clench!
"..."
Lyd felt a crushing weight of guilt. Yet, he could not back down.
"Our kin were killed. By poachers."
"!!"
"Viene, and the others! They were kidnapped by those poachers!"
Grip—!!
"I'm sorry it had to be like this, Bell-chi."
Lyd remembered. If not for Akumo, Lanye would have been violated and slaughtered. He remembered the kin who returned bloodied and broken, only to die despite their efforts to save them. He had no choice but to be enraged. It was the only natural response.
"But!!! We tried so hard....!!"
"We tried to talk! We tried to defend the humans...!!"
Boom—!!
"But the rage won't stop rising!!! This injustice feels like it's tearing my very entrails apart....!!!!"
Clench—!!!
Gripping his sword until his knuckles turned white, Lyd stared at Bell with eyes of absolute conviction and roared.
"We want coexistence, and that is why we fight!"
"Because we consider ourselves people!"
"We are going to save our family! I will not yield on this, Bell-chi!"
Bell felt the raw sincerity in those words. The way Lyd grieved for his lost family, the way he burned with indignation—it was indistinguishable from a human.
"...In that case, I will also!"
Swish!
"Don't come any closer!"
"Lyd-san?!"
"Bell-chi, you're a human. Don't involve yourself in our affairs any longer."
"Lyd-san...!! I'm sure there's something I can do to help!"
"That's not the problem!!!"
"....!!"
Lyd raised his voice even higher, forcing Bell back precisely because of the boy's kindness.
"Bell-chi, you are a human! If you're seen with us, it won't end well for you!"
"But...!"
"This is our fight. So please, do not interfere."
"....."
"Go back to your family. Unless you've come to fight as a warrior."
Despite the warning, Bell showed no sign of retreating. As a last resort, Lyd let out a roar so loud it shook the surrounding forest.
"Even so, I—!"
Grit!
"KROOOOOOOOAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"L-Lyd-san...!!"
It was a cry intended to draw any nearby adventurers.
Whoosh—!!!
"Cranel-san!"
"Lion-san! How did you....!"
"...."
Slash—!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Ryu appeared just in time, attacking Lyd to force a distance between him and Bell. Lyd looked relieved at the intervention. He immediately turned and vanished into the woods, running toward where his kin were waiting.
"Are you unharmed, Cranel-san?"
"How are you here....."
"We can talk later. It is dangerous to be isolated. Let us join the subjugation force."
"....."
"Cranel-san?"
Despite Ryu's urging, Bell didn't move. His feet were rooted to the spot.
"I'm sorry, Ryu-san....!"
'I have to go.... I have to save them, my friends....!'
"I'm going after him!"
"!!"
Ryu was taken aback, her mind racing to organize the information she had.
'The Ikelos Familia, armed monsters, and the personnel assigned to watch Cranel-san and Akumo-san....'
"....Cranel-san, this is no ordinary matter."
"I know."
"This is an incident far greater than a mere conflict involving Evilus."
"....!!"
Reach.
"Syr is worried. Please, return now."
"..."
Clench—!!!
Even seeing Ryu's sincere gaze and outstretched hand, Bell simply tightened his fists and steeled his heart.
".....So, in the end, you too are an adventurer."
'Both you and Akumo-san.....'
Thud!
"Then take this. It will be of help."
"This is....?"
Ryu handed Bell a bundle.
Inside were various potions and the Knossos Key she had received from Astraea.
'This choice might put Cranel-san in grave danger, but.....'
"This is your choice, and mine."
'This man is not one to abandon his adventure.'
"Thank you.... and I'm sorry!!!"
Dash—!!!
To save those he wanted to save, to do what he felt he must, the young boy ran. Not to become a hero once more, but to save fellow beings as a human himself.
"Open the door, Grak."
"Dix! Are you sure about this?"
Grin!
"Those monsters won't give up. It's pathetic, really."
Dix touched his scarred eye and smiled. He tossed the Knossos Key to Grak and spoke in a low voice.
"I'll just hunt them all down right here!"
To feel alive, to achieve what he desired, he couldn't stop. No, he had no intention of stopping.
To prove that he was human.
Dash—!!!!
"Bell Cranel!!"
"Fels-san!?"
"I'm glad I'm not too late."
Fels hurried toward Bell as he ran through the forest. Seeing Bell running alone instead of following Ryu, Fels realized the boy had made his decision.
"Follow me!"
"Yes!"
Dash—!!!
Following Fels, Bell ran toward the edge of the floor. When they reached the floor's boundary wall, Bell saw familiar faces.
"Bell!"
"You're....!"
"!?"
'Ardee-san.... and the one who was with Gros-san....!?'
There stood Ardee and Lanye, along with other Xenos from the village, gathered before a wall. They showed no hostility toward each other; they weren't fighting. They were simply staring at the wall with eyes full of worry for their kin. They turned their gaze toward Bell as he arrived.
Hummmm—!!
"Bell Cranel! Open the bundle."
"The bundle...?"
A light began to leak from the bundle Bell was carrying. At Fels's urgent command, Bell opened it to find a glowing item nestled among the potions.
"Give that to me."
"Yes....!"
Step, step!
'This must be the Knossos Key he mentioned.'
"To think [Gale] had this in her possession...."
Hummmm—!!
Receiving the glowing eye, Fels noticed it shone brighter as they approached a certain spot. He immediately moved to the wall and used the eye.
Rumble—!!
"As I suspected. This was the door."
"Unbelievable....."
Recovering quickly from the shock, Bell and Fels led the group inside.
Step, step—
"Clearly an artificial structure.... and an Orichalcum door, no less."
'To think it was on this scale.....'
Hummmm—!!
"To think such a mechanism existed not just in Daedalus Street, but inside the Dungeon itself.....!"
"Could it be...."
"Exactly as you suspect. This man-made labyrinth is connected all the way to the surface."
Entering Knossos, Bell and Fels were stunned by the massive work of engineering. Realizing that Evilus had been hiding here, they couldn't even fathom what might be waiting in the depths. Ardee and Lanye, following behind them, felt the same.
"Those bastards....!"
"They were hiding in a place like this...?"
"It doesn't matter how many there are. We're going to save our kin."
"....I'll help too, Lanye."
"""!!"""
At their words, the Xenos behind them cried out in agreement.
After they entered, a man emerged from the thicket.
Step, step—
"So this is where you hid it.... Dix."
Hummmm—!!
"For someone who cursed his own lineage so much, you certainly make good use of it."
Akumo held up the Knossos Key in his hand and activated it against the wall. The wall crumbled, revealing the entrance.
Rumble—!
"Come to think of it, I believe Bell and someone else just went in....."
'Hmm..... Well, it's not like I'll end up fighting them anyway.'
"Whatever. It doesn't matter."
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