The story began anew.
Only this time, neither side in the conflict resembled what they once were.
Gold gleamed more brilliantly than ever, while the Ashen One slowly reformed. Though in terms of raw individual strength, the Ashen One had been weakened to a pitiful degree, having cast off that power brought them paradoxically closer to the essence of a true king.
Gone were the carefree laughter and the shocking proclamations of old. Though they claimed to have lost their strength, it felt more like a seal had been lifted. In what could only be described as a collapse of their former persona, they now spoke seriously, carefully studying formations, arranging strategies, and mapping out summoning plans in precise detail.
"Don't pursue them. It's likely a trap. Once you charge into that gorge, rocks or boiling oil will fall from above. The exit's probably blocked by a giant shield-bearing troll…"
"No, don't stop. We'll pretend to pursue, but slow our pace. Meanwhile, Gilika—" he turned to one of the Demi-human Queens, "—you lead your fighters up the slope and hit them from behind…"
"If it works, we'll retreat. Have your people drop supplies down and pull the rest up. We'll flank from the side. But if it fails, we'll use the confusion to push forward—charge straight through the gorge and see if we can break their line."
Lloyd was strategizing—seriously.
Admittedly, taking the role of a military strategist didn't quite fit his image. But even with all the mental and spiritual damage caused by his past chaos, his reasoning ability was still intact. When he truly applied himself, his tactical thinking wasn't half bad.
The only reason he hadn't done it before was simple—it was unnecessary.
Plans were always more troublesome than fists. The more elaborate and interconnected a plan was, the easier it fell apart when faced with the unexpected. Compared to all that, he preferred to let his fists do the talking.
Simple. Direct. Efficient.
But now, with his power restricted and this Dungeon's difficulty higher than expected, Lloyd had no choice but to dust off some long-forgotten habits and face the challenge with a bit more seriousness.
...
Thud!
A corpse tumbled down from the cliff.
Just as Lloyd had predicted, a considerable force of soldiers was lying in ambush along the cliffs flanking the valley where the Demi-human army was advancing.
The retreating outpost troops had only been bait. Though their performance was convincing, an entire advance unit—complete with warriors, archers, and support troops—losing to a band of weakened Demi-humans and retreating that quickly? No amount of acting could hide how suspicious that was.
...
But now—
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Bodies began raining from the cliffs—some human, some Demi-human, though most were human. Moments later, massive boulders rolled down from above.
Originally meant to crush Lloyd and his Demi-human forces, the trap backfired spectacularly, smashing the soldiers who had served as bait and blocking the path of another ambush unit stationed above.
"Retreat!"
The moment Lloyd saw Gilika's head peek over the cliff, he gave the signal. Following the plan, he led the Demi-humans in a swift withdrawal, while the ones above lowered ropes to pull them up.
Once everyone was secure, they moved quickly, circling around to strike from the flank. They descended upon the very same army that had been preparing to ambush them—soldiers still distracted, examining the passage now blocked by their own boulders.
The surprise assault was devastating. Under Lloyd's command—and for good measure—he summoned two Leonine Misbegotten and a small dragon from Greyoll's side to assist.
The battle was fierce. By the time it ended, nearly half the Demi-humans had fallen, but the enemy force had been completely annihilated.
After the battle, a golden light began to shimmer on the ground. It wavered, then solidified into a Site of Grace.
Upon activation, the system messages appeared before his eyes:
[Region Liberated. Foundational Order Establishing...]
[Establishment Complete. Order Level Enhanced. Current Order Level: 2]
[Current Order Effects: Slightly eased character restrictions; Slightly relaxed ability limitations on summoned entities]
The second line was clear enough—his summoned allies could now fight with greater strength.
As for the first...
Lloyd clenched his fist. Power pulsed faintly within him.
Some strength had returned.
Not much, but enough—
No. Not nearly enough.
Feeling the pitiful level of improvement, Lloyd sighed.
"Never mind. I'll just focus on being a summoner."
As he spoke, the time limit for the Demi-human summons neared its end.
He walked among the surviving Demi-humans, exchanged a few quiet words, then raised his hand and dismissed them, sending their spirits from this world.
But though they had departed, the battle was far from over.
Earlier, during the camp assault, Lloyd had called forth two Leonine Misbegotten and a small Flying Dragon. And adhering to his principle of never wasting resources, he didn't stop to mourn the fallen. Without delay, he set out again—two Misbegotten and the dragon at his side—toward Stormveil Castle.
The roads were still crawling with patrols. Occasionally, he'd come across fortified camps—enemy numbers high and far stronger than before. They were beyond what Lloyd could face alone. Even with the two lion hybrids and the dragon, the odds were grim.
But it didn't matter.
In this "Golden Age" Dungeon, the beings tied to Lloyd's Golden Order faction couldn't join him as allies until he defeated them. Even the Demi-humans he had summoned earlier had been pulled from the very fringes of that Order—after all, they too once belonged to the Golden Dynasty.
But Lloyd's contracts extended far beyond the Golden Order.
And now, it was their time to shine.
Lloyd raised his hand.
Before him, a sea of crimson runes flared to life.
"Endless Blood Monsters, emerge!"
As the words fell, countless bloated, wound-covered Blood Monsters erupted across the land.
Strictly speaking, Lloyd had little personal connection with the Blood Monsters themselves. The difference was his deep relationship with the being they worshipped. Pulling a few of its followers to lend a hand wasn't much trouble at all.
Of course, their strength left something to be desired. They hadn't been enhanced by him, and under the Dungeon's suppression, their power was clearly limited.
But that didn't matter. They liked getting beaten anyway. Lloyd only summoned them as cannon fodder. The real damage dealers were...
"Bring in the big guns."
With that command, a squad of Frenzied Flame Snipers appeared, teleported in through Chaos's power, flames blazing around them.
Using the Blood Monsters' sheer durability as cover, combined with the Frenzied Flame snipers' formidable firepower and a few elite units breaking through enemy formations, Lloyd's forces carved their way forward. Even against strong resistance, they quickly pushed up to the outer walls of Stormveil.
Then the advance stopped dead.
Unlike the open battlefields outside, Stormveil was their stronghold. The number and quality of enemies had multiplied exponentially. And even putting that aside, the dozen giant ballistae mounted on the ramparts were more than enough to halt any assault cold.
Lloyd could have forced his way through—summoning wave after wave until the defenses broke. But with the suppression placed on summons by the chaotic Order, there was no telling how many summoning chances that approach would burn through.
So instead...
"Time to go back to the old ways."
After dismissing the Blood Monsters—who had all been happily skewered into honeycombs trying to storm the gate (not because Lloyd told them to, but because they wanted to see what it felt like)—Lloyd slipped off toward the side of the main entrance.
There, he found it: the familiar narrow path winding up the cliffside, leading into the castle from the flank.
Logically, a fortress in its golden age shouldn't have such a weak point. But since Lloyd's side had been burdened with so many restrictions, it was only natural the enemy's perfection came at a price—like, say, keeping this little path intact.
Of course, while the path remained, the monsters guarding it had been severely strengthened.
Four-phase dashes, movements as fast as the wind—the Bladed Talon Eagles, defeated only after desperate effort.
Condemned Soldiers wrapped in storm energy, each swing of their blades cutting the air with slicing pressure.
And the so-called "Super Banished Knights," whose Stormcaller charges were so powerful even the Storm King himself would look pale in comparison.
If the Law's restrictions inside the city didn't prevent monster stacking and other absurd mechanics, Lloyd's current weakened state wouldn't even make it past these mobs—let alone the boss.
But there were no "ifs" in this world.
So despite the city's brutal layout, after a grueling struggle, Lloyd finally cleared the hidden path and activated the first Site of Grace.
[Region Liberated. Foundational Order Establishing…]
[Establishment Complete. Order Level Increased. Current Order Level: 3]
[Current Order Effects: Character restrictions slightly eased; Summoned entities' limitations slightly relaxed; Summon restrictions partially unlocked.]
The system prompt faded as golden runes lit up before him.
[Summon Assistant 'Storm Queen' Nepheli Loux?]
[Summon Assistant 'Soul Master' Roderika?]
"Yes."