Chapter 575

Chapter 582: None of You Are Going Back Alive (Please Subscribe!)

It all began with a gentle tremor of the crystalline ground.

Then, it suddenly erupted into a massive roar.

The entire Water Riddle City was enveloped in the thunderous might of the explosions.

“BOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM———”

An unprecedented explosion swept through the dungeon.

Crystal caverns shattered, maze walls were reduced to dust, and everything along the water’s edge was thrown sky-high.

Whether treasures from the water, monsters, or adventurers—they were all caught in the chaos.

The caverns were left in utter devastation, and the faint white mist that had once gently filled Water Riddle City was blown away to who-knows-where.

Needless to say, the marks on the floor were obliterated; scorched black traces everywhere extinguished the phosphorescent glow, plunging the maze into darkness like the arrival of night.

The shaking didn’t subside for a long time, and the echoes of collapsing rubble came from afar.

Amidst the ruins formed by broken crystals, a blonde elf slowly rose to her feet, pushing aside the crystal chunks that covered her. She then shook her head, dislodging the dust from her tresses.

For an ordinary person, being buried under so many heavy crystals would likely leave them critically injured.

But for a high-level adventurer, this weight was nothing extraordinary—it was within their tolerance.

At most, it caused some superficial injuries.

Clearing her mind from the effects of the explosion, Ryu quickly looked around.

A scene akin to the aftermath of a natural disaster—ignored.

The massive sparks and thick smoke stirred up by the heatwave—also ignored.

What the elf cared about most were her companions.

“Alice, Kaguya, Lila!? Are you alright!?”

“I’m fine—I mean, how could a mere flame harm me!?”

The first to kick away the rubble and stand up was Alice.

The young girl leaned on her sword, brushing off the dust on her body, and as soon as she saw Ryu nearby, gave her a thumbs-up indicating she was okay.

As she said,

If there was anyone here who was least affected by the explosion, it was undoubtedly Alice.

Because Alice possessed magical aptitude, and her magic was Fire Enchantment—【Scarlet Bindweed】.

The explosive damage that could be inflicted upon her was extremely limited.

It was just that compared to Izay and Ais, Alice’s enchantment wasn’t as powerful.

After all, one was just regular enchantment, albeit with a strong attribute.

The other two?

Silver Star Breath and Great Fairy Wind.

They were basically cheats—there was no comparison!

“I’m fine too, luckily I had the fire fairy cloth…”

“Thanks to Lila, we were prepared beforehand and didn’t suffer much damage.”

Lila and Kaguya gradually got up from the ground, their tones and expressions carrying a noticeable amount of resentment. It was directed at whoever had set the trap.

Who wouldn’t be upset after getting bombed out of nowhere?

But despite their anger, both quickly assessed the situation and started searching for and aiding their companions who had been blown away by the explosion.

One by one, the girls stood up from the rubble. Some were injured—burnt or scratched—but everyone was safe.

This was thanks to the sharp senses of the Halfling tactician.

When they initially reached their destination, Lila immediately detected the “trap” aura. Before the explosion happened, she warned everyone, allowing them to narrowly escape in the nick of time.

As one of the top factions in the city,

Even though they arrived hastily without preparing supplies, they certainly weren’t lacking in necessary armor.

Those were life-saving tools during battles—how could they possibly not bring them?

Under the protection of sturdy shields and fire fairy cloths, after a round of indiscriminate bombing triggered by firestones, the Astrea Familial Group still maintained a good condition. There wasn’t even a single severely wounded member.

Witnessing the desolate sight of this floor, the eleven girls couldn’t help but feel relieved that their defense had been timely.

However, this only applied to them.

Some people, seeing this scene, were absolutely furious.

“—Why isn’t a single person dead!? You bitches from the [Astrea Familial Group]! Why are you as persistent as cockroaches!?”

From a pile of charred rubble where smoke rose from the ground, Chara Halma of the [Rudra Familial Group] stood there screaming like a banshee.

The leader of the Dark Faction saw the hated enemy’s figure and was filled with anger and hatred, but also revealed a trace of uncontrollable fear.

For these members of the Dark Faction, the [Astrea Familial Group], which upheld justice and order, could indeed be described as such.

And if they could defeat them head-on, they wouldn’t have gone down the dark path to prepare traps.

This large-scale firestone bombardment almost depleted the last strength of the [Rudra Familial Group]. They had harbored beautiful delusions of burying these girls deep within the dungeon.

From the 26th to the 27th floor, they practically littered the main route with firestone bombs—a death trap laid out with all their might.

Yet, even so, they still couldn’t eliminate the righteous familial group… Despite Chara looking ferocious now, she was already starting to panic internally.

She could only reduce the fear spreading inside her heart by acting tough.

“You thought you could bury us alive with an explosion? I must admit, that was clever of you, Chara, but you obviously miscalculated some things.”

“To really kill us, you should have concentrated the explosion in one place…these scattered weak bombs can’t kill anyone!”

“…!?”

“Your schemes end here! We will finish you off right here!”

Alice raised her sword with a fierce gaze, making an announcement to the head of the opposing faction.

In the process, she even took the time to critique the flaws in their plan, drawing question marks and looks of surprise from her companions.

However, these were quickly brushed aside. Ryu and the others standing by behind Alice pierced through the retreating Chara and the other Dark Faction officers with sharp eyes.

It seemed that their fate had already been declared—they would carry out righteous punishment.

But at this moment, things didn’t develop as everyone expected.

Instead, they veered onto an unforeseen path.

A sinister gloom enveloped the dungeon.

After the explosion, a kind of wailing sound emerged. It wasn’t emitted by any monster or person.

It came from deeper underground—a sound akin to nails scratching a chalkboard, an abnormal, inorganic high-pitched noise that was unbearable.

Whether it was the group of girls led by Alice or the ones responsible for the explosion, Chara and her crew, they all clutched their ears in pain.

Depriving the blue crystals of their light, depriving the flames after the explosion of their glow, depriving the adventurers of their ability to think.

A dim purplish-red light suddenly appeared!

“——————!!”

The dull purple belonged to magic stones.

The red glow was emitted by the surrounding stone walls.

Having endured the fierce explosion that ravaged its own form, having witnessed the beautiful water paradise turn into scorched earth, having accepted part of itself becoming ruins,

The dungeon said nothing, merely using wails and gloom as its backdrop, giving birth to something, some calamity!

Only it, about to be born, understood what its mother wanted to convey.

She was saying—you none of you are going back alive!