Chapter 120: Intel on the Xenos!

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They made their way back through the corridor and returned to the original room.

When they stepped inside, they found the group of Xenos huddled together on the floor, fast asleep. The sight made Liliruca Arde's usual excitement fade, leaving her feeling much more serious.

The monsters sensed August and Lili's return and began to stir. They woke up tense, but as soon as they recognized the pair, their hostility faded and they just looked confused. It was clear they didn't know what to do next.

"Human," the Siren acting as their representative spoke up. She glanced at her companions before standing up and hesitantly stepping forward.

"Hello," August greeted politely, bending slightly to meet her eyes since she was about his height.

The Siren seemed unsure how to respond to the formal greeting. She fidgeted, looking completely lost.

Noticing her panic, August smoothly changed the subject. "Looks like you've recovered some stamina."

While he was away, they must have been resting to regain their strength.

"So, what do you want to do next? I can take you to a certain floor to find your kin, or you can stay here. Hardly anyone knows you exist—just a few humans and gods, besides the smugglers."

August explained their choices, making it clear just how awkward their situation was.

"Is that... really okay?" a humanoid monster asked hesitantly. "We don't know where to go."

The monsters felt lost. Being rescued was one thing, but figuring out how to live was something else. The idea of finding 'kin' or a community was new to them. Now that they were aware, they also felt a heavy sense of uncertainty.

Lili scratched her head. Compared to the experienced Xenos led by Fels, this group seemed as helpless as newborns.

She decided to step up.

"I really think you shouldn't stay in the Knossos," Lili said. "This place is a stronghold for the Evilus, the same people who captured you. It's also home to Corrupted Spirits. They're terrible creatures that hunt monsters like you and eat your Magic Stones to make themselves stronger."

Lili explained just how dangerous Knossos really was. "If you stay here, you won't survive. If I were you, I'd go find the other Xenos. There's a small group, maybe forty of them, and they can talk and travel with you."

She looked at the Siren. "There's a Harpy and a Siren among them. They're monsters from your floor."

Hearing about the Harpy, the Siren froze. "A Harpy..."

"Forty of them," August confirmed.

That decided it. The Siren now knew where they had to go: they needed to find the main Xenos group.

"Let's get going," Lili said, stepping in front to lead. She didn't mind guiding them, since helping Xenos was nothing like dealing with mindless monsters.

"We'll follow you from a distance and make sure you get down to the 20th floor safely," August explained.

Since the Dungeon targeted him aggressively, walking right next to the Xenos would only make them bigger targets.

"Ah!" The Xenos panicked.

"You're not coming with us?" a tiny monster squeaked.

"We can't," Lili said deadpan. "Here, look at this."

She took out a device that looked like a smartphone and played a video of August's recent battles.

The screen showed a huge wave of monsters—thousands of them—charging at August, trying to tear him apart.

The Xenos stared at the screen, stunned.

They instantly understood why August kept his distance. With how tired they were, getting caught in a crowd like that would mean certain death.

"By the way, since you're all Xenos, do you sense anything strange about Lord August? Maybe something that feels familiar?" Lili said.

She decided to test a theory.

The Xenos all stared at August, sniffing and watching him closely. Most of them shook their heads. They didn't notice anything unusual.

But the tiny monster slowly raised its hand.

"It's... that. He has that on him."

While the Siren and the others didn't notice anything, the tiny creature sensed something specific.

"That... scent, he has something strange on his back," it squeaked, pointing a trembling finger at August's back.

"My back?" August blinked, twisting to look over his shoulder.

'Did it happen back then?' he wondered. He had always been puzzled by how the Dungeon seemed to know the moment he entered.

"When did you gain consciousness?" August crouched down, asking the tiny monster when it was 'born.'

The tiny monster just tilted its head, confused. It had no concept of time.

A zebra-striped, wolf-like Xenos padded forward and began scratching tally marks into the dirt with its claws.

"Six days," Lili translated. "Right around the time Lord August received his Falna."

After thinking it through, Lili realized that except for the tiny monster, the rest of the group had been around much longer.

Lili looked at the tiny monster. "Do you hate Lord August?"

The tiny creature shook its head vigorously. "He's a good person. He smells nice. But... It's like how my mindless kin treat me. I can feel it. That scent on him... it drives the normal monsters insane."

As the tiny monster spoke, the other Xenos nodded, sharing a serious understanding. Besides being hunted by the Ikelos Familia, their only other memories were of being chased and killed by their own mindless kind. Regular monsters didn't need a reason. Just a look or a scent would set them off, attacking with wild rage and forcing the Xenos to run for their lives.

A scent, huh?

'So there really was a glitch during the Falna contract,' August thought. He wondered how something strange had gotten into his Status. His abilities came only from Hestia's blessing.

Maybe it was a side effect of the Dungeon reacting to his portal?

August decided to drop it. Overthinking wouldn't solve anything.

He checked his watch. It was almost dusk on the surface.

"Let's go. It'll be dark outside soon, and the 18th floor will switch to night. We can use the darkness to sneak into the 20th floor and find your people."

"Right," the Xenos agreed. After eating and using potions, they had enough power to confront the Dungeon again.

August and Lili led the group, keeping out of sight as they headed down to the 20th floor. Before leaving the Knossos, August quietly set up some emergency beacons and a few 'special surprises' of his own in the halls.

With that finished, they moved on, heading deeper inside.

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Meanwhile, up on the surface.

Dusk had settled over Orario.

"Is August not back yet?"

After finishing the handover about the Ikelos Familia, Hestia went back to her compound to wait for him. She paced nervously and ended up by the front gate.

"They have their own missions to handle, Lady Hestia," one of the Artemis Familia members said calmly.

Since this situation touched on Orario's darkest secrets, the Artemis and Takemikazuchi Familias took an official Guild job to act as Hestia's bodyguards. Until August came back, their job was to protect her in case the Evilus tried something desperate.

"Especially with the Apollo Familia sniffing around," someone noted.

"Don't worry," Takemikazuchi said confidently. "August knows how to manage priorities. He'll be fine."

"But I never thought it would go this far," Artemis said, frowning and clenching her fists. "Artificial monsters. I swear, I want to punch whoever did this."

If this was true, it wasn't just illegal smuggling. It was an act of war against all of humanity.

"I don't know who all the players are," Hestia muttered, crossing her arms, "but there's one guy you've all met."

She wasn't going to hide it. They were all friends here.

"Who? I know him? Since when?" Artemis blinked in surprise.

Rethusa's eyes widened as the pieces clicked together. "The Dionysus Familia."

It was the only answer that made sense. "Think about it. Lord August was calm with the other gods, but as soon as he saw Lord Dionysus, he stepped in front of Lady Hestia to protect her. I thought it was just an adventurer's instinct back then."

"Captain, you can't just throw accusations like that," an Amazonian member warned. "That elf is the Banshee, she..."

But as she spoke, she realized it too. The 'Banshee' had the perfect cover for a plan like this.

"One wasn't enough? He used his own Familia children as sacrifices to manufacture more artificial monsters?" Artemis was horrified.

She knew the dark history of the Dionysus Familia. They had sent out several deep-strata expeditions, and every time, the whole party was wiped out except for one elf, the Banshee. If the first 'wipeout' was a test, then the rest were just mass murder.

Artemis felt a chill as the mystery came together, dark and disturbing.

"We have to report this to the Guild immediately!" she demanded.

"It won't work," Takemikazuchi said, leaning back and crossing his arms. He narrowed his eyes, thinking.

"In Orario, whenever a Familia member goes missing or dies, their Patron God has to file a detailed report. Missing is one thing, but if they die, the God is legally required to undergo a strict interrogation by Ganesha. It's a fail-safe to prevent gods from sacrificing their own children. Dionysus lost dozens of members. There's no way he wasn't interrogated."

"So he beat Ganesha's lie detection?"

"Exactly. If he got past Ganesha's checks, he must have a perfect way to cover it up." Takemikazuchi pointed out the hard truth: they had no real evidence tying Dionysus to the artificial monsters.

"Good catch, Take. That's exactly why I didn't want to get tangled up with that ambitious creep," Hestia praised him. "But now he's a direct threat to August."

"We can't just take him down the usual way," Hestia said, her face growing serious. "He has Demeter."

"What do you mean? He's holding Demeter hostage??" Artemis and Takemikazuchi were stunned.

Not having evidence was one thing, but holding a Goddess hostage changed everything. Demeter was the heart of Orario's food supply. If her resources were cut off, the whole city would starve. You don't mess with the farmer.

"Dionysus is holding her Familia members captive," Hestia said, her voice grim as she leaned on the table. "To keep her children safe, Demeter had to give in and supply him with top resources. She's only doing it to protect her kids."

"Damn it. That makes everything harder," Takemikazuchi sighed, finally seeing why Demeter had seemed so restricted.

Artemis and Takemikazuchi were furious.

Artemis, always fighting for justice, wanted nothing more than to draw her bow and stop him. "Dammit!"

"Let it go for now. There are too many things happening. We can't fix this in one night," Hestia sighed, waving it away.

She was about to say more when a beep cut her off. August's emergency communicator was ringing.

"Hmm?" Hestia pulled out the sleek device.

But as she read the message, her eyes went wide. Shock spread across her face, and her hands started to shake.

"No way... How... how is this even possible?" she whispered, her voice cracking.

Her sudden, violent reaction instantly alarmed Artemis and Takemikazuchi.

"What happened??" they asked, bracing themselves.

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