'Something is wrong.'
The dungeon's anguished screaming and the violent tremors.
'I don't remember this happening in the story.'
The mutated monsters spawning everywhere.
Even if this was an alternate universe, there was no reason for this to happen.
'There was one instance.'
That one time where Hestia released her godly powers inside the dungeon and caused the black goliath to appear.
'This seems similar.'
A reaction that occurs when the dungeon rejects someone's presence.
'There shouldn't be any reason for a God or Goddess to go inside the dungeon at this time.'
Only two possibilities entered his mind.
'Either a God entered the dungeon secretly...'
'Or it is reacting to me.'
Then realization struck.
The Spirit King Estelon, born from the World Tree, was an existence similar to a God.
Even after reincarnation, traces of his power still lingered. His will lived on through his next incarnation—Judas Spade.
'How could I forget? Estelon's power is comparable to the divine power of the Gods... the dungeon must have sensed that.'
He hoped his speculation was wrong, because if not...
'I screwed up.'
He bit his lip, cursing himself.
'I will fix this.'
With an outstretched arm, Judas summoned forth dozens of sharp spikes from the ground.
Screech
Every monster around them was killed instantly, torn apart without resistance.
He didn't even care about destroying the valuable drop items.
Ren's eyes widened in shock at the display.
"Huh? What?! How?!"
His mind couldn't process what had just happened. He stared at the decaying corpses, then at Judas, who simply pointed his index finger at him.
Ren instinctively crossed his arms, a defensive motion born from confusion and instinct.
『Heal』
A soothing light enveloped him. His wounds vanished as his body was covered in a soft green glow.
"Mister Satoshi, return to the surface immediately. I will take care of the irregular monsters."
Judas didn't wait for a response. His figure vanished from sight.
Ren stood there dazed for a moment before shaking his head and rushing toward the surface.
There were countless questions he wanted to ask, but he knew his role. He had to report this to the Guild.
Along the way, he passed corpses of monsters sprawled everywhere, slowly crumbling into black ash.
The dungeon itself looked ravaged, its walls and floors scarred by massive destruction.
"This kid... what kind of freak did our Goddess manage to pick up?"
He also passed by many adventurers, most of them in groups, either treating their wounds or running in panic toward the surface.
In the corner of his eye, he spotted a corpse on the ground.
He grit his teeth and looked away.
There weren't just a few. Many adventurers had died during the incident.
By the time he reached the surface, the outside world was already in chaos.
"Please, someone help!"
"Ah! My legs! My legs!"
"Let me in! My familia members are still in the dungeon!"
Judas, who had already exited earlier, stood surveying the scene. He glanced at the corpses being carried out, at the injured, and closed his eyes.
His senses spread outward like sonar, piercing beneath the surface, deep into the dungeon.
'These irregular monsters... they're only appearing on the first to the ninth floors.'
He rushed back to the dungeon's entrance and stopped, staring at the ground.
"What is he doing?"
"Hey you! Evacuate immediately! Can't you see there's an emergency?"
Onlookers shouted at him.
『Sinkhole』
Judas ignored them. He slammed his fist into the ground, opening a massive hole that connected the first nine floors together.
Everyone who saw it was left speechless.
Without hesitation, Judas jumped in.
'The first to fourth floors are already cleared.'
He landed directly on the fifth floor, immediately facing a group of irregular monsters ready to pounce.
Judas didn't even glance at them. A simple swipe of his hand conjured several magic circles that summoned a horde of energy blades, tearing the monsters apart in an instant.
'Faster!'
He blitzed through the fifth floor, exterminating every monster in sight while casting recovery spells on adventurers he passed.
'Faster!'
36 seconds.
That was all it took to completely clear the fifth floor and rescue its survivors.
An impressive feat, considering the dungeon's maze-like structure made navigation notoriously difficult.
But for Judas, it was too slow.
His mind drifted to the villagers he couldn't save, despite having the power to do so.
'Faster!'
41 seconds.
The sixth floor was cleared. Not a single monster remained.
'Faster!'
44 seconds.
The seventh floor was ravaged by an unstoppable storm.
'Even faster!'
54 seconds.
The eighth floor was left in ruins, unrecognizable from its original form.
Judas's mind operated at blinding speed, performing dozens of spells every second.
Meanwhile, deep within the ninth floor—
"Sacrifice yourself for us, you stupid pallum!"
A rough, bald adventurer gripped a small figure by the neck.
In a random corridor, a barricade held against an overwhelming horde of irregular monsters.
The adventurers there were battered, injured, bleeding everywhere.
They ignored the corpses around them and turned their frustration toward the weak supporter, intending to use her as bait.
"Cover yourself with Monster Lure. Make sure to get all their attention and die for us."
The bald man barked the order while his comrades pulled items from their bags.
Monster Lure—an item that emitted a scent to attract monsters.
A cruel, simple solution.
"No... please, don't kill me... Lili didn't do anything wrong!"
The pallum supporter named Lili pleaded, tears running down her face as she realized their intent.
"Shut up! A useless supporter like you dares order adventurers around?!"
The bald man snarled and punched her across the face.
"It... hurts... please... stop..."
Her pleas fell on deaf ears.
They threw her to the ground and doused her with Monster Lure.
"That should do it."
"Captain, the barricade won't hold much longer!"
A skinny adventurer shouted, panic written all over him.
"Throw her! Make sure you get a good distance!"
"No! No! Don't do this!"
Her begging was ignored. No one cared. Their eyes held no remorse.
'Ah... adventurers... I hate you all.'
She closed her eyes. The pain dulled her mind, numbing her until resignation settled in.
But seconds passed.
Nothing happened.
'Huh?'
Hesitantly, she opened her eyes again.
A boy stood before her, his back turned.
The scenery around her had changed—completely obliterated.
"Are you alright?"
The boy turned, not caring about the utter destruction of the ninth floor.
Though her vision blurred, she saw his face clearly. Instinctively, she knew—he was her savior.
"Th-thank... y-you..."
She whispered weakly, tears spilling down her cheeks before finally passing out.
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