The dragon's roar pierced the heavens.
The corrupted spirit parasite attached to its head gazed intoxicated at the night sky.
"I see it! I see it! This is the outside world! This is the sky!"
She spread her arms, cheering with unrestrained joy.
"Roar!"
The dragon opened its massive maw, condensing terrifying heat within its jaws before unleashing an unstoppable breath attack upon the land below.
Flames cascaded down in an instant, sweeping across hundreds of meters as the dragon turned, the scorching wave engulfing half of Daedalus Street in a sea of fire!
"Monster!"
"No!"
"Run!"
People screamed in terror.
Even Guild employees fled in panic.
"We've never heard of anything like this!"
Adventurers paled in horror.
A single breath had nearly obliterated the entire Daedalus district!
What kind of monster possessed such terrifying power?
Compared to this creature, even the most fearsome monsters of the past seemed like mere children—toys in the palm of this colossal dragon.
"Everyone, retreat!"
Chaos spread throughout Orario.
The dragon's roar lit up the city as lamps flickered to life in every direction, countless eyes turning toward the southeast in shock.
"An unforeseen development has occurred."
Freya looked up at the sky, her expression sharpening with tension.
"Whoa! That's way beyond expectations!"
Even Kali, watching from afar, was left speechless.
"That monster is something Orario can't handle as it is now!"
The gods scattered across the city immediately recognized the truth.
This creature far surpassed the current strength of Orario's adventurers. If it were fifteen years ago, when the great Familia still stood, perhaps they could have defeated such a foe. But with the highest level now only at Level 7, Orario stood no chance against it.
The gods' expressions darkened—some shook their heads and turned to leave with their Familias, while others led their members rushing toward Daedalus Street.
"Thankfully, we evacuated the residents earlier—otherwise, thousands would have died in an instant!"
The adventurers stationed there hurriedly guided nearby civilians to safety.
The dragon in the sky, however, seemed uninterested in other areas, relentlessly bombarding Daedalus Street with its breath, rapidly melting the upper layers of the artificial dungeon into molten metal.
"That dragon... seems to have its own objective?"
Freya was soon surrounded by adventurers, all forming a protective circle around her. Yet she paid them no mind, her focus entirely locked onto the dragon above.
"Lady Freya!"
Before long, a familiar voice called out.
The boar-man Ottar returned to her side, his expression tense. Behind him followed the cat-person Allen and others—all those who had been dispatched into the dungeon had now emerged.
"You returned so quickly?"
Freya looked surprised.
"The dragon tore through half the dungeon—we climbed up through the gaps."
Ottar replied grimly.
Meanwhile...
Finn and the others escorted Loki back to the surface.
And the mastermind behind it all—Enyo, also known as the god Dionysus—was now in their custody.
Though a prisoner, Dionysus showed no trace of dishevelment.
"Hahaha! At this point, nothing can stop it! After absorbing six clones and Filvis, the evil dragon's power far surpasses anything Orario can muster now—it's utterly invincible!"
"My ideals shall be realized here!"
His eyes widened manically, lips stretching into a frenzied grin as he laughed with exhilaration.
"Wasn't Filvis your most trusted familia member?"
Loki violently grabbed his collar, her furious gaze threatening to consume him.
"Precisely. That's why I assigned her this mission. Isn't this the most fitting use of her?"
Dionysus looked down at her with arrogant composure.
His shameless demeanor drew looks of disgust from the surrounding crowd.
"To you, familia are just tools, is that it?!"
Unable to contain herself any longer, Loki drove her fist into his face.
Filvis had been deeply moved by his words, swearing to do anything for him.
Even being devoured by the dragon, she bore no resentment.
But to Dionysus, his so-called "beauty" was merely praise for Filvis's value as a pawn, not for who she was.
He saw in her the fallen spirit, the possibility of destroying Orario and achieving his ideals—that was why he praised her.
This man was a complete and irredeemable evil god!
"Is your so-called ideal the destruction of Orario?"
Finn closed his eyes.
Suppressing his rage, he struggled to maintain his composure as commander.
"Hah!"
Dionysus wiped blood from his lips and let out a derisive laugh.
He didn't answer Finn directly, only offering an eerie smile.
Finn frowned, a subtle unease rising in his chest.
"Finn!"
Soon after, the eye crystal in his hand suddenly lit up, Riveria's frantic voice echoing from it.
"It's bad—the labyrinth exit has completely melted! That dragon is fixated here—we can't get out!"
Finn's expression darkened, a foreboding sense of dread washing over him.
After the fallen spirit clones were dealt with, the first unit had immediately headed to the ninth floor, while the Freya Familia had left right away—both groups could escape the labyrinth quickly.
But now.
The evil dragon circled above Daedalus Street, the fallen spirit seemingly intent on never leaving, continuously spewing fiery breath into the labyrinth, destroying it layer by layer.
In mere minutes, the upper floors had completely melted, rendering the exit unusable.
Riveria and the others were now forced to descend deeper to escape the intensifying heat and molten metal dripping from the ceiling. But the allied forces knew little about the labyrinth's lower levels—at this rate, they might never escape!
"Ground forces, move out immediately—divert the dragon's attention!"
Finn gritted his teeth and issued the order without hesitation.
"But how are we supposed to fight that thing with our strength?!"
A voice of protest rose from the crowd, thick with despair.
"And how do we even attack something flying that high?"
Another added despondently.
No—objectively speaking, they were right. Finn was asking the impossible.
"No—we have a way!"
But Finn's declaration rang out with unwavering conviction.
"The most important thing now is to get the people below out. As long as we rescue them, we'll find a way to defeat that evil dragon!"
"Or are you all planning to just surrender here? As adventurers, do you not even have the courage to fight to the death? Were you all cowards who ran away with their tails between their legs whenever you encountered strong monsters in the dungeon?"
"Let's do it! Who's afraid of who!"
"Who's a coward here!"
"A beheading just leaves a bowl-sized scar!"
"If we're going to die anyway, let's die heroically in battle!"
"Hopefully there's actually a way to defeat it!"