Roy was unaware that the surface had already erupted into chaos. The consequences of his single, unintended action were far more severe than he could have imagined.
The entire Dungeon shook violently, and Orario itself felt as if a major earthquake had struck. This was the first anomaly of this kind in over a thousand years.
Gods, adventurers, and residents were all startled, looking around with confused expressions.
In the Prayer Room beneath the Guild.
"Ouranos, what is going on?" Fels urgently asked the Great God sitting on the high platform.
Everyone knew that abnormalities occasionally occurred in the Dungeon. However, this particular event was infinitely more serious than a God releasing their Divine Might (Divine Will) in the Dungeon or the emergence of the calamity, the Juggernaut.
It was important to note that, thanks to the Great God Ouranos's prayers, the Dungeon had been prevented from affecting the surface for over a thousand years. And this anomaly reached the surface directly!
"I do not know."
The white-haired elder sitting on the prayer platform replied.
This elder was robust and unsmiling, exuding a Divine Pressure stronger than that of ordinary Gods—one of the few Great Gods remaining in Heaven. It was the Great God Ouranos!
He was the first God to descend to the Lower World a thousand years ago, bringing the Divine Grace to mortals. He continuously suppressed the Dungeon with his divine prayers to prevent monsters from escaping, earning him the revered title of
"Guardian God of the City"
and a lofty status.
"It is angry, like a ferocious beast that has been provoked,"
Ouranos said, sensing the situation beneath the earth.
Fels was stunned into silence. He had heard of people provoking monsters and adventurers, but who in the hell would be crazy enough to provoke the Dungeon? In other words, for the Dungeon to be so furious, could the cause be an entity that transcended the Gods?
"Do we need to do anything?" "No. Its anger has subsided."
Fels and Ouranos exchanged the question and answer.
The Dungeon's anger came quickly and dissipated just as fast, mainly because the person who provoked it had left.
Roy returned to the surface via the staircase.
The sky was already dim. In the Dungeon, without sun or moon, the passage of time was only a vague concept.
Roy had just walked out when he saw the golden-haired Elven girl, cloaked and leaning against a pillar, concealed in the shadows and trying to avoid attention. The Dungeon was vast and boundless; the Elven girl could not have gone inside to look for Roy. If he had already left the Dungeon, her effort would have been wasted.
When she saw Roy emerge, the Elven girl was still shocked.
"What were you thinking? Are you insane? Entering the Dungeon without any armor or gear!"
Ryu looked as if she were staring at a freak.
Roy's clothes were severely damaged. Following the traces, one could imagine the injuries the monsters had inflicted on him. The wounds had scabbed over, but there were still bloodstains everywhere.
The Dungeon monsters relied on sheer numbers. Even with sufficient stats to clear the floor, bumps and scrapes were inevitable. A normal person would wear armor, as an injury could have dire consequences. Even though the Elven girl did not appear to be wearing armor, her clothing had extreme resilience and could not be easily cut by ordinary swords. Combined with her high Agility and Concurrent Chanting, she didn't want heavy armor to slow down her speed.
Facing Ryu's sharp questions, Roy scratched his head, "I just released all the passion I'd accumulated over fifteen years inside the Dungeon. I've temporarily entered Sage Mode."
Having said that, a flicker of fatigue crossed Roy's face, and he walked towards the staircase to take the automatic Magic Stone Lift.
Watching Roy's retreating figure, Ryu felt like her head was going to split. What in the world was wrong with this person?
Babel Tower had specialized shower rooms where adventurers who came out of the Dungeon covered in sweat could enjoy a bath for a few dozen Valis to clean themselves.
Where there is demand, there is supply.
Inside Babel Tower, there was also a dedicated commercial street with equipment, clothing, food, and even a small agency for exchanging Magic Stone fragments for money.
Roy first went to the shop floor inside the Tower and bought a set of fitting clothes, spending nearly a thousand Valis. He didn't fret over the cost. The rent for shops inside Babel Tower was higher than elsewhere, so prices were naturally inflated. It was like spending at a tourist attraction.
In the shower room, hot water sprayed from the showerhead, washing away the bloodstains and sweat from Roy's body. As the gentle stream of water passed over his scabbing wound, he could still feel a faint stinging sensation.
Roy closed his eyes. Images of his battles in the Dungeon—the moments of peril—flashed through his mind. Reviewing the old allows one to learn the new. Only by recalling his shortcomings could he gain experience.
A moment later, Roy, refreshed and wearing new clothes, walked out of Babel Tower and said to the Elven girl,
"Give me a place to stay. I'm helping you deal with the Evils, and not even providing food and lodging would be too inhumane."
...
After a day of spreading, the news from the Guild quickly swept across the entire city, shocking everyone with the confirmation of the Astrea Familia's annihilation. The eyes of the people Ryu, Alise, and the others had helped were filled with tears. They felt intense sadness, hating the injustice of the world—that good people die young while villains live forever.
The entirety of Orario was plunged into an atmosphere of mourning.
In contrast, the adventurers were more concerned with the bounty quest Ryu had put forward—eighty million Valis! Even Level 5 adventurers felt tempted.
Many people had already started prematurely searching for traces of the Rudra Familia. A single head was worth hundreds of thousands of Valis, which was much more lucrative than working the Dungeon. Killing a Rudra Familia executive could net them millions, or even tens of millions, of Valis!
In a remote, old church somewhere in Orario.
This was one of the Rudra Familia's strongholds. Currently, dozens of people were gathered inside the church, with several tables spread with food and wine. They were clinking cups, and the atmosphere was lively.
"Haha, those stinking bitches from the Astrea Familia are finally dead! No one will be chasing after us anymore, screaming about some bullshit justice,"
roared a hulking man with a fleshy face, gulping down a large mouthful of strong liquor.
"Cheers!!"
The surrounding people cheered in agreement, bursting into wild laughter. If anyone was happiest about the Astrea Familia's annihilation, it was certainly this group.
Amidst the merriment, someone also raised a question,
"But what exactly was that monster?"
The banquet immediately fell silent. Fear lingered in the eyes of many present.
Even among their own ranks, quite a few had died at the hands of that monster. Its speed was extraordinarily swift, nearly impossible to track with the naked eye, and anyone who showed their face was instantly killed.
"Who cares about it, as long as those women are dead,"
another member slurred drunkenly.
"Exactly, Hahaha!"
Under the atmosphere created by the alcohol, the others had no desire to investigate the never-before-seen Dungeon monster and quickly dismissed the matter. Only one person—a ginger-haired Cat Person named Jala, hiding in the corner—had an expression of astonishing fanaticism in his eyes. Rather than fear, he was obsessed with the monster's unmatched power, which could instantly kill a Level 4!
Just then, a member rushed back in.
"Bad news! Those damned women from the Astrea Familia aren't all dead! Gale issued a bounty at the Guild for eighty million Valis, and now a lot of people outside are looking for us."
Silence descended upon the church.