The Dungeon had noticed him.
Not the adventurers.
Not the gods.
The Dungeon itself.
Morning arrived beneath gray skies. Pale sunlight filtered through the ruined windows of the church, painting long shadows across cracked stone floors.
Bell had barely slept.
Every muscle in his body protested as he sat up. His arms ached from yesterday's training, and his legs felt heavy enough to belong to someone else. For a brief moment, he considered collapsing back onto his blanket.
Then he remembered Capitano's words.
"You may yet survive."
Bell immediately sat upright.
It had not even been praise, not really. Yet somehow those words had settled deep inside him.
Outside in the courtyard, silence lingered.
Bell stepped out and froze.
Capitano stood exactly where he had been last night.
Unmoving.
Not even a shift in posture.
Thin frost covered the stones around his feet, stretching like veins of ice across the ground.
Bell blinked.
"...You didn't sleep?"
The black helmet slowly turned toward him.
"I had no need."
Bell stared.
"...At all?"
"No."
"...Wow."
He genuinely had no idea how to respond.
Behind him, the church doors creaked open and Hestia stumbled out, rubbing her eyes.
"Bell..." she yawned. "You're up alrea—"
Her gaze landed on Capitano.
"...AH! YOU'RE STILL THERE?!"
The armored giant stared at her.
"I was here yesterday as well."
"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"
Bell laughed nervously while Hestia flailed her arms.
A few moments later, Lili emerged carrying several packs and muttering to herself.
"Healing potions...extra bandages...food supplies..."
Then she stopped.
Her eyes widened.
Capitano was holding the largest pack in one hand.
Lili stared.
"T-that weighs almost thirty kilos..."
"I noticed."
"...And?"
"I am carrying it."
"..."
Lili slowly looked away.
For some reason, that answer frightened her more than if he had bragged.
What kind of monster is he...?
—
The Dungeon's upper floors bustled with activity.
Adventurers moved through the corridors in groups, steel armor scraping against stone while voices echoed through the tunnels.
Bell walked cautiously at the front with knife in hand.
Lili followed close behind.
Capitano walked behind them.
Or rather—
He simply walked.
No caution.
No tension.
No readiness.
Just calm, measured steps.
Nearby adventurers stared openly.
Whispers immediately spread.
"It's him."
"The black knight..."
"I heard he froze an entire floor."
"No, idiot, I heard he crushed a Minotaur with his bare hands."
Bell shrank slightly under the attention.
Lili looked uncomfortable.
Capitano ignored them completely.
Then—
He stopped.
Bell nearly walked into him.
"S-sir?"
Silence.
The black helmet slowly turned toward a dark corridor branching from the main passage.
Bell frowned.
"...Capitano?"
No answer.
Then—
SKREEEEEEEE—
The shriek pierced the air.
Bell's eyes widened.
Monsters flooded from the darkness.
Goblins.
Kobolds.
Dozens of them.
Far too many.
"A Monster Party?!" someone shouted.
"No way!"
Panic erupted instantly.
Adventurers backed away while weapons were drawn in every direction.
Bell raised his knife.
Lili stumbled backward.
"T-That's too many!"
But Capitano did not move.
He merely stared.
The monsters charged.
Ten meters.
Five.
Three.
Then—
The temperature dropped.
Not slowly.
Instantly.
Bell's breath became visible.
Ice exploded outward beneath Capitano's feet.
Cracks spread through the corridor walls.
Frost raced across stone like living veins.
The charging monsters slowed.
Confusion crossed their twisted faces.
Their limbs stiffened.
Then—
They froze.
Complete silence.
One heartbeat.
Two.
Capitano stepped forward.
Crack.
Every monster shattered.
Bodies became fragments of ice scattered across the floor.
No screams.
No struggle.
Only silence.
Bell stood motionless.
Lili's jaw hung open.
Even the surrounding adventurers stared in disbelief.
Capitano looked down at the frozen remains.
"...Strange."
Bell blinked.
"Strange?"
"The Dungeon."
His voice had become quieter.
"It is watching."
A tremor shook the floor.
Once.
Twice.
Then stopped.
Everyone looked around nervously.
No one understood what he meant.
No one except Capitano.
Far below—
Beyond the upper floors.
Beyond where ordinary adventurers dared tread.
Beyond darkness itself—
Something shifted.
A slow pulse echoed through the Dungeon.
Like a heartbeat.
Ancient.
Heavy.
Alive.
And for the first time in countless years—
The Dungeon felt irritation.
Something had entered its domain.
Something that did not belong.
Something cold.
And deep beneath the earth—
Something opened its eyes.
The game had begun.