Three days later—the day Amphisbaena was set to respawn.
Early that morning, Tiona and Tione were already waiting in Tsuna's room.
"So? Are we heading out right away?"
Tiona was practically bouncing in place. She couldn't wait to take on Amphisbaena.
"No rush. There are a few things we should go over first."
Tsuna didn't seem particularly anxious.
Given the current state of the Dungeon, Amphisbaena was easily one of the toughest Floor Bosses to deal with. There was no way anyone else would be dumb enough to compete for it. Unless he made a move, nobody else would.
"For the past two months, you've both gone to the Great Falls looking for Amphisbaena. Word might've spread by now—some adventurers or Familias probably know what you're up to. So this time, we need to be especially cautious."
The Loki Familia might not be the enemy of everyone in the Labyrinth City, but it came pretty close. That meant whenever they went into the Dungeon for a Floor Boss expedition, they had to keep that fact in mind.
"First priority: make sure no one spots you."
"If anyone's actually planning to ambush you down there, they've probably already laid traps in advance. Think about what happened to the Astraea Familia."
At that, both Tiona and Tione immediately tensed.
They still remembered what had happened back then.
If Tsuna hadn't intervened, those girls from the Astraea Familia never would've made it out alive.
And just like he said—after going to the Great Falls two months in a row, on the exact days Amphisbaena was expected to respawn, and without hiding their levels, anyone paying attention could easily guess what they were after. They'd basically announced that they were gunning for Excellia.
That made them easy targets for certain "interested parties."
To Tsuna, that kind of thing was just normal—expected, even.
Even if the Loki Familia was the second-strongest Familia in Orario and Loki herself held serious weight among the gods, none of that meant anything once you were inside the Dungeon.
Anyone willing to set an ambush there had already accepted that they might never come back.
If they could wipe you out completely down there, what happened on the surface wouldn't matter at all.
Just look at what happened to Astraea's girls.
Tsuna was certain—there were plenty of people in the city who'd love nothing more than to see the Loki Familia's strongest and newest members buried in the Dungeon.
"So… what if someone is waiting for us?" Tiona asked. She wasn't afraid, just curious what he planned to do about it.
Tsuna smiled faintly.
"Then it's only natural, isn't it?"
"The Dungeon's business isn't something the surface can interfere with."
"If they're that determined—then it's only fair they never leave the Dungeon again."
Tiona and Tione blinked, then grinned in unison.
"Yeah, exactly! They should all stay down there!"
Tiona wasn't the type to show mercy to an enemy.
"Anyone who tries to ambush us—kill them all."
"The Dungeon has its own rules," Tione said coldly. "If you fail your ambush, you pay the price. Simple as that."
Tsuna understood perfectly. That had been his plan from the start.
The Dungeon was a place even gods were forbidden to enter. Down there, only one law existed—survival of the fittest.
An ambush wasn't an act of mercy. It was a trap meant to kill.
So when facing enemies like that, there was no need to hold back. Cutting them down was the greatest respect one could offer.
"Good. Since we've settled how we'll handle any ambushes, that makes things easier."
"From here on, we move according to my plan."
"No objections, right?"
Tiona and Tione nodded together. "No problem."
"Then let's go."
A shimmering barrier wrapped around the three of them—then the space shifted.
In their place stood a lone figure cloaked in black, a silent assassin.
The assassin's silhouette vanished almost immediately, slipping away unnoticed.
Without anyone seeing, sensing, or even suspecting it, the figure left the estate and quietly entered the Dungeon—making its way toward the Great Falls.
As always, the place was eerily still. But this time, the silence felt wrong.
"…Just as I thought."
Hidden in the Alternate Dimension, Tsuna couldn't help muttering in a tone of grim satisfaction.
"Yeah, there's definitely an ambush," Tione agreed, her expression hardening. "Otherwise the Great Falls wouldn't be this quiet."
The Great Falls was a unique, triple-layered floor filled with all kinds of monsters. Under normal circumstances, the area was never this peaceful.
"Unless a large number of adventurers entered the floor and drove the monsters deeper in, there's no way it'd be this silent."
Tsuna nodded. "Exactly."
He might not have been a Dungeon veteran yet, but when it came to caution, he never slacked.
The moment he sensed that unnatural quiet, he knew—this place was dangerous.
"Considering Ishtar leaked some of my information at the Divine Assembly, it's safe to assume these people already know my powers involve space," Tsuna said thoughtfully.
"They've probably even prepared countermeasures. Which means…"
He snapped his fingers. Two identical Puppets appeared beside him—perfect replicas of Tiona and Tione.
"…we'll send you two out first."
"I'm sure the ambushers are just waiting for the right moment to strike."
"No point letting them sit there forever. We'll give them that moment ourselves."
"But before we do…" Tsuna's smile turned sharp.
"…we need to set up the mousetrap."
"I don't plan on letting a single rat escape."
And with that, the hunt began.
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