Danmachi: The Focalors Familia Starting from the Dungeon

In an instant, the flaming rose insignia erupted with intense red light; a warm, powerful energy surged outward from the stigmata, immediately wrapping around Aiden’s soul just as it was being dragged away.

In his sleep, Aiden’s deeply furrowed brows smoothed out immediately.

The endless, maddened tide of monsters before his eyes rapidly melted and disintegrated, like snow exposed to bright sunlight.

The icy, pulling sensation trying to drag him down into the abyss vanished without a trace.

The strange, exhausting dream had finally disappeared.

He could finally enjoy a peaceful night’s sleep.

Yet, the moment Himeko merged into the stigmata and it flared with red light, the long eyelashes of the deeply sleeping Robin suddenly fluttered.

Her perception was far sharper than that of a normal person; even in deep sleep, any subtle, discordant fluctuation was enough to startle her awake.

Though the moment of Himeko’s appearance had been so brief it was almost negligible, her acute spiritual senses had still picked it up.

She slowly opened her beautiful eyes, clear as lake water, though still clouded with a touch of post-slumber haze.

She instinctively scanned her surroundings; the room was empty.

”Was it an illusion?”

She furrowed her brow, but then her gaze was drawn to the stigmata on Aiden’s hand, which was emitting a faint red glow.

The light was warm and fiery, yet it carried the undeniable aura of another woman.

In just a fraction of a second, the clever Robin connected the dots.

—That fleeting presence that had just startled her awake.

—This glowing mark right before her eyes, which belonged to Himeko.

She instantly deduced what had just happened.

—Himeko had been here.

—And worse, she was very likely ”living” inside the stigmata on Aiden’s hand right now.

At this thought, Robin’s face instantly exploded into a bright crimson, a flush even deeper and more vivid than when she had been swept up in passion earlier.

She had been here?!

The mere thought that another woman might have clearly seen her in such a defenseless, exposed state made Robin so embarrassed she wanted to dig a hole and hide inside it forever.

She shot a mortified look at the still-glowing stigmata, glaring daggers at it as if trying to pierce it with her gaze.

Unable to maintain her usual grace and poise any longer, she let out a whimper as soft as a mosquito’s buzz, violently rolled over, and buried her head tightly beneath the covers like a startled ostrich, completely refusing to come out.

Right now, all she could do was pretend she hadn’t noticed a thing.

Otherwise, when they saw each other tomorrow, the only person who would truly be dying of awkwardness would be her.

”Ah—! We can finally head back to the surface!”

On the 38th Floor of the Dungeon, inside the massive labyrinth constructed of pure white rock dubbed the ”White Palace,” the Loki Familia expedition team’s return journey was suddenly brightened by an energetic cheer.

Tiona Hiryute casually rested her massive, taller-than-herself double-bladed weapon, ”Urga,” on her shoulder; her face showed absolutely zero fatigue from the long expedition, radiating instead the sheer excitement of someone about to break free from a cage.

”Hacking up monsters down here was super fun and all, but I’m already missing my soft pillow and big bed! I just wanna roll around on it right now!”

”As long as I can be with the Captain, anywhere is fine with me,” her older sister, Tione Hiryute, chimed in, staring intently with eyes full of adoration at the small figure leading their formation.

To her, the hardships of the Dungeon and the comforts of the surface were nothing compared to a single smile from Captain Finn Deimne.

”Yeah, me too...”

Lefiya Viridis, trailing behind the Amazon sisters, nodded in agreement.

She rubbed her aching shoulders, her pale face practically screaming her longing for home. ”I really want to hurry back to the Twilight Manor, take a nice, hot bath, sleep like a log, and then go to the Vienna Cafe tomorrow morning for a hot cup of coffee...”

Meanwhile, Ais Wallenstein, another core figure of the group, remained silent as usual.

Her golden eyes weren’t focused on the path ahead; instead, they drifted absentmindedly, her thoughts wandering far away.

Unconsciously, another figure surfaced in her mind.

That miracle-making boy with the striking white hair.

She wondered just how much stronger he had gotten since they last saw each other.

Just as the girls in the party were lost in their own thoughts, a sudden commotion broke out at the front of the formation.

The vanguard squad led by Bete Loga, tasked with clearing residual monsters from the return path, seemed to have spotted something.

”What’s happening up ahead?”

Finn halted his steps, his sharp blue eyes, which always shone with intellect, narrowing as he looked forward.

Without needing his command, all the executives of the Loki Familia instantly shifted into high alert.

When Finn rushed forward with the main force, the scene before them left everyone stunned.

They saw no monsters, nor any traps—only an intense one-on-one battle.

On one side was someone they knew all too well: Bete, famous for his speed and berserk ferocity.

And on the other side... was a red-haired figure with blazing fire wrapping around all four of her limbs.

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