To be honest, when Leon saw Lulowo again, he was completely dumbfounded.
This was already the fourth time, wasn't it?
He had only invaded four times today to test the invasion mechanics—so why did he run into this person every single time?
It felt as though some invisible hand was deliberately toying with his life.
Leon looked at Lulowo. She lay sprawled on the ground, her body twitching uncontrollably, white foam even spilling from her mouth—looking exactly like a crab on the verge of death.
Where was that elegant woman from before?
How had she turned into something straight out of a slapstick comedy?
In this state, he honestly couldn't bring himself to finish her off.
The Guardian Ape froze the instant it noticed Leon's appearance. It turned toward him—or rather, it lifted its head, twisted its neck around, and fixed its eyes directly on him.
Invaders and monsters weren't hostile to each other—at least not at first.
In the Sein Dungeon, invaders and monsters could damage one another, but the moment an invader attacked, the monster would immediately turn hostile. It worked much like when the world owner used a Seed of the Giant Tree, forcing monsters to redirect their aggression toward the invader.
For now, Leon and the Guardian Ape were, in a sense, still "partners."
"Oh ho."
Leon broke into a grin the moment he saw the Guardian Ape. He casually twirled the Ringed Knight Straight Sword in his hand and even let out a light whistle.
This kind of flippant behavior was something his past self would never have shown—but ever since putting on the headgear, he felt strangely uninhibited.
Maybe hiding his true face also hid his sense of shame.
…No—wait. Not canceled. Just sealed away.
Clack!
A pebble struck the Guardian Ape's body.
The creature was clearly baffled. It couldn't understand why this tiny human had just thrown a rock at it.
But when it saw Leon raise his middle finger, it understood immediately.
"┗|｀O′|┛ Awooo—!"
The Ape roared in fury. Today, only one of them would be left standing!
"Perfect. I finally get my chance for revenge."
Back then, the Guardian Ape's Fear effect had humiliated him thoroughly. Even though he'd killed one later, it still hadn't felt satisfying enough.
By the time he tried to hunt it down again, the Dungeon had already mutated, and he never encountered the Ape again.
Meeting it here and now had to be fate.
Leon whistled once more and strolled forward as if he were out for a leisurely walk.
The battle itself was so simple it hardly needed describing. When an early-game elite monster ran into an adventurer whose stats and skills had increased across the board, death was the only possible outcome.
Boom!
The Ape's massive body crashed to the ground. Even covered in wounds, it continued to twitch violently. If its limbs hadn't been severed, it might still have been able to stand.
The sight perfectly matched people's stereotypical image of undead creatures—immortal, eerie, terrifying.
Yet Leon sensed something was off.
There was no trace of necromantic magic on the Ape. Even dungeon-created monsters should follow basic rules, shouldn't they?
Moreover, after its head was severed, the Ape's movements changed drastically—becoming erratic, almost like those of a… bug.
Driven by curiosity, Leon drew his straight sword imbued with Carian Greatsword magic, using the glowing blade like an oversized scalpel to dissect the Guardian Ape's body.
This earnest pursuit of truth was probably what the New Raid Group—or rather, Lulowo—lacked.
At the very end, a gigantic centipede suddenly burst out and lunged at Leon, only to be sliced cleanly in half.
Even then, its vitality was astonishing. Leon was forced to mince it thoroughly into pulp before it finally stopped moving.
"So it was being parasitized by a centipede-type monster."
Solving the mystery gave Leon a deep sense of satisfaction.
Was the Ape's relationship with the centipede parasitic, or symbiotic? Monster scholars would probably be extremely interested in this.
And speaking of which… what would happen if this centipede-type monster parasitized a human?
Would they become as unnaturally resilient as the Ape?
After a moment's thought, Leon decided that resurrection miracles from the Church were far more reliable.
The idea of being infested by bugs was simply too revolting.
"So then…" Leon glanced at Lulowo. "What should I do with this one?"
Kill her outright?
No—that would be taking advantage of someone while they were down. If he did that, he'd probably fall straight into depravity.
"Where are her teammates?"
He waited for quite some time, but no one came.
In the end, Leon sighed. He wrapped Lulowo up like a rice dumpling in his cloak, hoisted her onto his shoulder, and headed toward Firelink Shrine.
At that moment, Leon felt extraordinarily noble.
He was an invader, yet he was helping the world owner—surely this level of virtue rivaled that of the ancient Warriors of Sunlight?
"She's heavier than she looks."
"Seriously… why are there still so many monsters along the way? She didn't clear any of them?"
"My god—why are the giant and the archers still alive?!"
The journey from the Catacombs back to Firelink Shrine earned Lulowo a firm unprofessional label in Leon's mind.
Not even clearing mobs—wasn't she afraid of getting ambushed mid-fight?
Young people these days… far too impatient.
He placed Lulowo beside the bonfire, an absolute safe zone. There was no need to worry about her dying inexplicably in her sleep, and if her companions died, they would immediately notice her location.
"I've done more than enough, right?"
With his spirit fully satisfied, Leon pulled out the Black Separation Crystal.
[Warrior of Sunlight "Mysterious Hooded Man" has left]
Not long after, several adventurers returned to Firelink Shrine and were shocked by the sight of the unconscious Lulowo.
She had rushed into the portal less than two minutes ahead of them, so they were naturally assigned to the same world.
Fortunately, Leon had saved her from the Guardian Ape, and these kind adventurers successfully brought her out.
After this lesson, surely she would restrain herself and explore dungeons properly, right?
…Nope.
---
Bedford City, Clock Tower
"Captain, I brought food. Today's cooked by Chef Mira."
Belto knocked on the door of a small room inside the clock tower, but there was no response.
"…Still won't come out, huh? I'll leave the food at the door again. Remember to eat."
He placed the tray on a stool and nudged it closer to the door, making sure Lulowo would see it the moment she opened it—without spilling anything.
"It's your favorite: bean-stewed lamb, no onions or garlic. Also roast pork chops and a cocoa milkshake," Belto coaxed gently.
There was some movement inside the room, but it quickly fell silent again.
Belto sighed and walked away, shaking his head at the expectant Mira and Ais-Aim.
Lulowo had locked herself in that room for three days now.
Ever since being carried unconscious out of the Dungeon that night, she had been like this. No one knew what had happened.
The captain's condition was clearly abnormal—she must have been cursed in the dungeon!
They had brought in a priest, but even Holy Light Healing—normally famed for soothing the mind—could only temporarily suppress Lulowo's fear. Within an hour, it would relapse.
Eventually, Lulowo even developed resistance to Holy Light Healing. The episodes grew more frequent, and the priest was completely helpless.
What were they supposed to do? They couldn't just watch their captain fall apart.
Belto, Mira, and Ais-Aim were all so far beneath Lulowo in strength that it felt like they existed on entirely different planes.
Each of them had been picked up by the captain at the lowest points of their lives. That debt of gratitude bound them to her unshakably.
Without Lulowo—their main combat force—the Group's exploration plans were indefinitely postponed.
Most of the intelligence they released was genuinely useful, and over time, their reputation had begun to rise—but none of that helped Lulowo's condition.
Worse still, their growing popularity was immediately crushed by the Leon Group.
Leon and his team had successfully defeated the Death Rite Bird.
There were rumors that Sword Saint Gapar had helped them, but a victory was a victory—they had claimed the first clear of the Catacombs.
The Group had lost completely.
To turn things around, they could only target the Forest area or Farron Keep.
But whether it was the Farron Undead Legion or the Golden Lion of the forest—were those really enemies humans could defeat?
The Death Rite Bird at least had a weakening mechanic. The other two showed no such signs so far, meaning they would have to fight them head-on.
Which was even more impossible.
Even if they somehow defeated the Farron Undead Legion, people likely wouldn't recognize it as a first clear anyway. Most of the area's intelligence came from an adventurer named "Darrick."
He moved through Farron Keep as if it were his own home. Recently, he had been organizing teams to enter the Catacombs in search of an item called the Fragment.
At this point, the Group no longer cared about competing with the Leon Group.
This was a battle they could not win.
They only wanted their captain to recover.
Belto anxiously glanced toward the bell tower, wondering why that person still hadn't arrived.
Knock knock.
The sound made Belto rush to the door. When he opened it, a handsome blond man stood outside, his hair slicked back, his eyes bright and energetic.
It was Leon.
Why was he here?!
"Hello. I hope I'm not late." Leon smiled warmly.
"Please—come in, please!" Belto hurriedly stepped aside.
Belto was the one who had invited Leon.
While reviewing guild reports, he had discovered information linking the Guardian Ape to the Fear status—along with mention of an item called Pacifying Agent that could remove it.
But the report never said where it could be obtained.
So his only option was to visit the one who provided that intelligence—Leon.
Not long ago, they had been rivals. When Belto went looking for him, he had steeled himself. Even if he got punched again, it wouldn't matter, as long as the captain could be cured.
But when they actually met, things unfolded very differently.
Leon welcomed him warmly and promised to personally resolve Lulowo's problem.
Still, Belto couldn't shake the feeling that Leon's gaze kept drifting away, as if he felt… guilty.
Strange. We barely know each other. Why does he look like he's beaten us up before—more than once?
Mira nervously served tea. The moment she saw Leon, an inexplicable fear welled up inside her.
"No need. Let's get straight to business."
Leon walked up to Lulowo's door and knocked.
No response.
"I'm very sorry—our captain, she—"
"I understand that feeling," Leon interrupted gently. "I once drowned in it myself."
He waved his hand and handed an oil-paper packet to Belto.
"This is the Pacifying Agent?" Belto stared at it, his hands trembling with excitement.
Leon nodded, then turned to the door and said to Lulowo:
"I've brought the antidote. No matter what terrifying hallucinations you saw, once you take this, they'll all be gone."
There was still no response.
He continued calmly:
"I've heard about your team. Your exploration has been fast and thorough—much faster than ours. Even I felt pressured. That's a first."
"You've already done very well."
Belto stared at Leon in a daze.
Was he… comforting them?
Comforting his rivals?
At that moment, shame flooded Belto's heart—shame that they had resorted to such underhanded tactics, using invaders to obstruct someone as upright as Leon.
But words alone couldn't reach Lulowo. She remained trapped in fear.
Leon paused, then said:
"When I was consumed by fear, a shop owner guided me out of it. He didn't just dispel my fear—he showed me a path forward."
"He's a truly kind and wise man. I think he can help you too, so I told him about your situation."
"After hearing it, he asked me to pass on a message."
Leon smiled.
> "The shortest shortcut is taking the long way around."
Not long after, Leon left.
Lulowo's door remained closed—perhaps she couldn't face him.
Belto and the others were discussing whether to break the door down and force-feed her the powder when—
Creak.
The door slowly opened.
From the narrow gap emerged half of Lulowo's pale face.
"Captain!"
Belto was both shocked and overjoyed.
Lulowo snatched the Pacifying Agent and shoved it into her mouth, immediately choking and coughing violently.
"Cough—cough— I—cough—!"
Mira rushed over with tea, helping her soothe her throat.
"Haa…"
Clear tea spilled from the corners of her mouth. Lulowo wiped it away, and clarity gradually returned to her eyes.
"Captain… how do you feel?" Belto asked cautiously.
Lulowo didn't answer right away.
Complex emotions flickered across her eyes before she finally said:
"I'm going to the Dungeon."
"…Right now."