They stepped into the grand inner hall.
Raven Eltharion narrowed his eyes, scanning the cages lining both sides of the stone walls.
Now there was no doubt.
Those monsters… were Xenos.
With his passive perception-type skill, Raven could immediately sense it—
That aura was absolutely not from ordinary monsters.
There were roughly twenty Xenos imprisoned in the cages.
Their bodies were covered in wounds, their auras incredibly weak.
They were all on the verge of death.
Atop the steps—
A man in sunglasses rested a bizarre red spear on his shoulder, a pleased grin on his face.
"What do you think?"
"Interested in my goods?"
Raven looked up and chuckled. "I suppose I am."
"A fellow enthusiast, huh? That makes things easier," Gran sighed in relief.
Dix's eyes shifted to the group of mysterious cloaked individuals.
His instincts were screaming at him—
Those people were absolutely no ordinary bunch.
Suspicious by nature, Dix slowly began clapping his hands.
In the next moment, a group of hidden hunters emerged from the shadows, surrounding Raven and his group.
Alise was just about to strike—
But Raven raised a hand to stop her.
"What's this?"
Staring at the hostile demi-humans, Raven spoke coldly, "Is this how you treat your guests?"
"Who exactly are you people?" Dix responded in an icy tone.
The atmosphere in the room instantly turned tense.
Gran, a bald-headed man and a Level 3 adventurer, realized something was off.
His gaze turned fierce, and without a word, he charged at Raven, swinging an axe.
"Die, brat!"
But—
Standing beside Raven, Silent calmly uttered a magic incantation.
"…Gospel."
Boom.
A formless shockwave burst outward, instantly blasting away all surrounding enemies.
The mixed-race demi-humans didn't even have time to scream—
They were struck down, vomiting blood and collapsing with bloodied heads.
In an instant, they all lost consciousness, bodies motionless on the floor.
As for the bald brute…
The arm he had swung with moments ago had turned into scattered chunks of bloody flesh.
Dead—completely and utterly.
Dix's heart sank.
That move just now… if he wasn't mistaken, it was the Witch's signature magic.
But…
Wasn't the Witch supposed to have died seven years ago?
Raven picked up a fallen spherical magic item, bouncing it in his hand a few times.
Looking closely, he saw a D-shaped mark etched on the outer casing.
This was a special magical key used to open the artificial dungeon's doors—created by Daedalus himself.
Raven, naturally, understood that Dix was a descendant of Daedalus.
A thousand years ago—
The Babel Tower, now owned by the Guild, had been built by Daedalus.
Raven lifted his gaze again.
His icy eyes bore into Dix as he spoke, voice deep, "Now… can we talk properly?"
Trying to confirm his suspicions—
Dix narrowed his eyes, gripping his red spear in his left hand while pointing with his right.
He chanted in a low voice: "—Lose yourself in endless delusion."
This was—
A curse.
The difference between curses and magic lay in the cost.
Curses came with a price—during activation, one would be subjected to severe backlash.
"—Forbtor Daedalus."
Just as scarlet energy began pulsing from Dix's fingertip…
"—Soul's Tranquility."
Alfia's second spell, Garden of Silence, was already in effect.
A barrier that nullified all magic enveloped the area in an instant.
As a Level 8 adventurer, Alfia could even neutralize curses.
The red beam of energy fizzled out like a dud firework—
It failed to do anything at all.
"The Witch…"
Dix's composure shattered.
Behind his sunglasses, his eyes widened with terror and disbelief.
He dared not even breathe.
"So… you noticed after all?" Raven said with a cold smile.
Seeing the situation turn dire, Dix turned to flee.
But Alfia had already appeared silently before him, blocking the way.
"Damn it!" Dix roared, slashing his spear.
Alfia caught the strike effortlessly with just two fingers.
"Sunglasses brat, you're no match for me. Give up."
"—Don't be ridiculous!"
"…Gospel."
Boom.
The shockwave blasted him away.
Dix crashed to the ground, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
As he drifted into unconsciousness…
"At least… let me show you who they are before you die."
At Raven's gesture, the cloaked figures pulled down their hoods.
In that moment—
Dix's eyes filled with sheer terror. "That's…"
"The Empress of the Hera Familia?!"
"The Crimson Righteous Flower of the Astraea Familia, Yamato Mikoto, the Cunning Rat, the Fang of Justice…?!"
"And the Witch—Silent?!"
"This… this can't be real!"
"Raven-sama, are you really going to kill him?" asked the kind-hearted Metelia.
"Mm…" Raven nodded gently. "These hunters are cruel scum."
"Countless people have died at their hands."
In the Dungeon—
Any adventurer who had encountered the Ikelos Familia was cursed by Dix—
Then driven into madness, ultimately becoming meals for monsters.
"Enough. Time to die."
Raven thrust his magical spear—
It pierced Dix's heart in one clean strike.
Splurt…
Blood pooled on the floor.
The dark faction known as the Ikelos Familia was no more.
In the original story—
Dix was killed by the Minotaur Xenos girl with a single axe swing.
But—
The moment they tried to mess with Raven, he had already resolved to wipe them out.
Consider it a public service.
To prevent further atrocities—or the slaughter of more Xenos.
After defeating the Level 5 "Savage Brute," Raven earned enough merit to level up.
Because—
Summoned allies from magic don't split Raven's EXP.
Unless other members of the Hestia Familia are present.
In other words, Raven single-handedly wiped out a dark Familia.
Yes.
His magic stat had already surpassed 500.
All that remained was for his subordinates to help max out his training stats—
And he'd reach Level 3.
"All right, destroy the cages."
"I'll heal the Xenos."
Raven said as he stored the magical key in his inventory.
This was an important item—useful for later purposes.
In short—
Raven could now freely traverse the artificial dungeon back to Orario's southeastern district.
Very convenient.
Raven thought to himself…
Once he met Ray the bird-girl, Fia (Fell), the dragon girl Wiene, and the mermaid Mari—
He'd take them out to stroll around the surface.
Of course—
They'd need to wear cloaks to hide their forms.
To avoid unnecessary trouble.
Just because the original protagonist couldn't do it, doesn't mean Raven can't.
"—Gospel…"
Boom.
The black cages imprisoning the Xenos shattered into pieces.
Looking at the beautiful humanoid monsters, Raven said calmly:
"Those hunters? I took care of them for you."
"Come on over. I'll heal your wounds."
Moments later—
Under the healing of Dreamlike Feather magic, all the Xenos were restored to full health.
A lamia with dim, hollow eyes looked up and opened her mouth: "H-Human…"
"Why… did you help us?"
They had just witnessed his group annihilate the hunters with ease—
But they were still wary.
Afraid of leaving one hell only to fall into another.
"They… can talk?" Kaguya said in disbelief.
"Don't worry. I mean no harm," Raven chuckled. "I just wanted to save you."
"Save us?" the lamia was skeptical. "We're monsters…"
"No." Raven interrupted. "You're different from normal monsters."
"You have reason and intellect—you can cry, laugh, and feel emotions."
"I believe we can coexist."
"Coexist?" the lamia stared at him. "Aren't you afraid we'll kill you?"
Raven smiled. "If you really wanted that…"
"You'd have done it the moment you were freed, wouldn't you?"
"Anyway, let me introduce myself. I'm Raven Eltharion."
"…Raven?" the lamia's voice softened.
The wariness on her face visibly faded.
Raven looked toward the open gate. "Let's head out."
…
Dungeon – 19th Floor
A giant tree labyrinth—like exploring the interior of a massive tree.
The paths twisted and turned like a maze.
The light source here was different from the other floors.
Not the familiar phosphorescence, but dense glowing moss covering the ceiling, walls, and floor.
The moss emitted a glow like a field of dreamy stars.
Bright blue light particles shimmered beautifully.
At that moment—
Having escorted the Xenos, Raven formally parted ways with them.
As he left—
The talking Xenos all bowed and thanked him deeply.
"Raven, thank you. We'll never forget your kindness," said the lamia warmly.
On the way, they'd talked a lot—becoming friends.
To them, Raven had never shown prejudice just because they were monsters.
And once word of his deeds spreads—
Wouldn't the bird-girl… be all his?
---
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