At some point, the sun had slipped behind heavy clouds.
Tiona wondered if she'd misheard. Her eyes widened as she demanded, "What did you just say?!"
"I want to ask the Loki Familia to help fabricate the fact of Bell Cranel's death," the youth repeated.
"..."
Ais couldn't grasp his intent.
Death?
What was this boy talking about?
Even Gareth, who had been smiling moments earlier, froze in place, stunned by the explosive statement. Riveria, who had supported him before, was no different—she hadn't expected Bell's thoughts to jump this far outside the norm.
Only Finn stayed composed.
He brushed his thumb lightly against the pad of his right hand, thought for a long moment, then asked,
"Bell Cranel, after you were attacked this morning, who else knows you survived?"
"No one besides the Freya Familia, all of you, and the tavern waitress."
Bell had noticed it when the King escorted him toward the Freya Familia. To prevent sudden attacks by Violas and avoid casualties, Ottar had deliberately steered clear of any bystanders. As for the trip to the Loki Familia, he had been carried under the Sword Princess's hood, hidden from sight.
Aside from a small handful, no one knew whether Bell was alive or dead.
Finn understood his intention.
Bell wanted to use the news of his own death to lure out the mastermind.
"The Loki Familia can fully support this request. So, what are your thoughts on the culprit?"
The white-haired youth before him had far surpassed Finn's expectations. Who could have predicted that a frontline veteran who had weathered countless storms would find his reasoning led by a mere boy?
Finn no longer bothered with restraint. The idea was insane—yet incredibly valuable. If they pulled it off, they could uncover the culprit in one sweep.
"Two days ago, I got caught up in the Fifth Floor anomaly," Bell reported calmly. "Aside from the mutated Goblins, there was a group producing addictive potions. They understood the Dungeon's rules well and used the anomaly-created safe zones as alchemy rooms."
Hearing this, Finn frowned.
"You think the mastermind making the potions is the same person releasing monsters?"
Using potions to control monsters.
Or manipulating guild officials to secretly transport them.
Or, as Bell speculated, perhaps the Dungeon had hidden entrances no one knew about.
Any of these possibilities could shake Orario to its core.
"It's only a possibility. To verify it, once news of my death spreads, the culprit will most likely slip up."
There were no coincidences in this world.
The mercenaries and merchants who kidnapped Naaza had been trying to replicate addictive potions. The original group left no clues behind, dying mysteriously in the Dungeon. Their leader, seemingly deranged, was clearly acting under someone's influence.
And after Bell crushed their plot, only a single day passed before a high-level monster attacked him—inside Orario itself.
The reasoning was obvious.
Thanks to Ryuu, Heith, and Riveria, Bell had barely survived. But he had no intention of letting things fade away. The monsters threatened not just him, but the girls as well.
Bell was willing to serve as bait to reveal the mastermind.
Finn thought the plan through carefully.
The culprit's goal was to kill the boy.
If they heard Bell Cranel was dead, two outcomes were possible:
First, they would believe their objective complete and go into hiding.
Second, they would proceed with the rest of their plan.
...
Though there wasn't complete certainty, it was still far better than the current situation, where the enemy had already been startled. If nothing was done, and with the sewers now fully cleared, the culprit would simply continue lying dormant.
After a long silence, Finn raised the most critical doubt.
"What if the culprit is a god?"
"I honestly think it's some Evilus god stirring up trouble," Bell replied without hesitation. "To make a potion that horrifying, one that grips the mind, a god has to be involved."
"Bell Cranel," Riveria reminded him quietly, "gods can see through lies."
Against such a cheat-like ability, trying to lure them out with false information was impossible. From the beginning, this request had no viable method of execution.
"..."
"..."
Ais couldn't keep up with the discussion, but she could tell from everyone's tone that the boy had been backed into a corner. The Loki Familia had found Bell's weakness, and the air had turned glacial.
Ais didn't care about any of that. She only blinked her golden eyes and fixed them on the boy with quiet expectation.
Hang in there.
You won't stop here, right?
Under that silent encouragement, Bell took a deep breath and revealed his plan.
"This is the real reason I came to the Loki Familia. Please take me to the 18th floor of the Dungeon."
!
Finn once again marveled at the boy's insight. He understood instantly.
The Loki Familia didn't need to search for the culprit. They only had to enter the Dungeon under the pretense of a hunt, place the boy in a safe zone, and wait for the enemy to expose themselves.
Even if the culprit was a god, able to see through lies, they would have no opportunity to read Finn or the others.
As for the news of Bell's death, Finn would pass it to the uninformed members of the Familia, then let the rumor spread naturally. A rumor would become a fact no one could disprove.
The only uncontrolled variables were the Freya Familia and the tavern staff. But that could be resolved easily with a warning in advance.
"Gareth, go get Bete and the others. If he won't listen to you, beat him and drag him back."
Once Finn grasped the youth's reasoning, he quickly started issuing orders.
"Riveria, report to Loki. Tell her we've decided to fully assist Bell Cranel in this incident. And ask if she has any guesses about which god might be behind the potion."
"I'll give the orders to the rest. We leave at noon."
"Ais and Tiona… you two stay here and guard the boy."
The room came alive with movement.
"What was that pause just now? Are you looking down on me and Ais?" Tiona puffed her cheeks in protest.
Finn ignored her and hurried out.
"I'm suited for guard duty. Not like Tiona. You're slow, and you say the wrong things..." Ais stated plainly.
"—Ais! You traitor! Just wait till I get you!" Tiona yelled, tackling Ais with a mischievous grin.
In the blink of an eye, the two girls were tangled together in play.
"...."
Bell watched the two frolicking girls and couldn't help but sigh—this truly was the Loki Familia. The heavy tension from seconds ago vanished completely under Tiona's laughter.
...
"But seriously, you're really something! I've never seen anyone stand up to the Captain in a meeting and still come out on top."
"It's just a matter of shared interests," Bell admitted frankly.
"Hearing about the death reports really startled me," Tiona confessed without reservation. "You're truly impressive. I bet Ais thinks so too."
Hearing this, the blonde girl whose shoulders were encircled by an arm turned her head.
"..."
Though she didn't fully grasp everything, one fact was undeniable: the boy had met her expectations.
He had broken through that invisible shackle.
Ais couldn't think of any proper words of praise, so she simply followed Tiona's lead and offered the boy a soft smile.
"Hmm… you're quite impressive."
…
The sun peeked through the clouds.
Finn walked alone through the aerial corridor. Unlike everyone else present, he alone had discerned the youth's true intent.
Bell Cranel was using the Loki Familia.
He hadn't relied on lies—he'd laid the benefits plainly before Finn and handed the choice to him. As the captain, Finn had no reason to refuse.
If the Loki Familia failed to find the culprit, and word of the boy's "death" spread, even if the chance of exposing the criminal was tiny, it was still worth the gamble.
For them, this dungeon expedition might end in nothing… or it might seize the culprit by the tail.
But for Bell Cranel, the situation was completely different.
As a rookie adventurer, he had to explore the Dungeon anyway.
Going with the Loki Familia meant not only gaining intel on every floor but also learning from their battles and drawing strength from them.
Whatever the outcome, this would accelerate the boy's growth.
In the end, during the entire meeting, the one steering everything had been a rookie adventurer.
Despite being the one played, Finn felt no anger or surprise.
If that youth possessed his level of experience, he would undoubtedly reach even higher.
Finn suddenly realized something.
One day, this clever boy might help him achieve the revival of the Pallums.
"A wise one, huh? Sounds promising."
...
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