Enhanced Species

Ais's words caused a slight change in the atmosphere surrounding the five-person team.

The group looked at each other blankly for a few seconds before speaking.

"This is the territory of the Strong Dragon. Is anyone fighting it here?"

Tiona was somewhat surprised.

"Could it be that other clans besides us have also ventured here?"

Lefiya Viridis also seemed surprised.

"Impossible." Tione shook her head, denying it. "There are only a handful of Familias in all of Orario capable of conquering this place. Before the expedition, the Guild Leader confirmed with the Guild that, apart from us, none of the Familias capable of conquering this place have taken any action during this period."

In other words, only Loki Familia will come here during this period; no other Familia will appear.

During the expedition, the floors after the 50th Floor are basically confirmed to be the exclusive domain of the Loki Spring Familia. Unless something like the Freya Spring Familia sneaks here without the guild's knowledge and carries out a large-scale campaign outside of the expedition, it is unlikely that a second Familia will appear in this place.

"What is that thing fighting with the powerful dragon?" Tiona asked doubtfully, "Or is Ais feeling wrong?"

Ais spoke, but her expressionless face clearly showed she wasn't guilty and didn't seem to have misjudged the situation.

No one believed that Ais's intuition could be wrong. They had fought side by side for so many years, and no one knew better than them how keen Ais was at sensing monsters.

So everyone looked at each other, and finally all looked at Leo, who was also silent.

After all, Finn had already said that Leo was in charge of this squad.

Unable to make up their minds, the women could only wait and see what Leo would do.

Noticing the gazes of the group of girls, Leo really wanted to complain.

Why didn't you ask for my opinion just now?

Along the way, Leo had considered taking on the responsibility of being the squad leader and giving orders, but every time a monster appeared, these girls would rush out like predators spotting their prey, without giving him a chance to speak.

But they were all incredibly fierce, killing monsters like chickens, their blades falling with lightning speed, leaving Leo no chance to even say anything to them.

What can Leo do about this?

We had no choice but to let them go.

He finally understood why those clan leaders always described Ais and the others as "reckless" and always seemed so worried about them.

Whether it's Ais, Tiona, or Tione, they are all strong, but each one is more adept at acting with their bodies than their minds, and each one is more warlike than the last. Once they get into a fight, they might even selectively listen to Finn and the others, which is quite a headache.

Fortunately, outside of combat, these girls are quite sensible and do not act rashly.

Unfortunately, Leo already had a pretty good idea of what had happened, and he didn't seem inclined to think about it any further.

"You'll know once you go in and take a look."

He uttered those words, then surprisingly took the lead and stepped out of the group, entering the cave, leaving the girls stunned.

"They... they just went in like that?"

Lefiya Viridis was still somewhat incredulous, with an expression that said, "He actually walked in so fresh and clean."

Ais realized what was happening and immediately followed without saying a word.

"Wait! Ais!"

"Hey! You guys are really going too far!"

The Amazonian twins exclaimed in surprise, but followed without hesitation.

Lefiya Viridis stamped her foot, but had no choice but to follow.

The five of them entered the cave together, and immediately it was as if they had entered another world, where they witnessed an extremely amazing sight.

"Iii,,,,,,.

"It's Strong Dragon!"

Tiona and Tione spoke at the same time, their hands instantly gripping their weapons tightly.

"This... this is the voice of the Strong Dragon?"

Lefiya Viridis fully sensed the terror emanating from the roar, and her pretty face turned pale.

Ais's eyes sharpened as if she heard the roar of an enemy, and she drew her sword without hesitation.

"Hide first!"

Leo, with Ais poised to charge out at any moment, led the group of girls to a corner of the cave and hid behind a large rock.

Immediately, through the cracks in the rocks, everyone could see inside the cave.

Deep within this cavern, even larger than the room where Goliath resided on the 17th Floor, a colossal creature appeared.

It was a dragon with a huge body and ferocious horns.

The dragon was enormous, much larger than ordinary large-scale monsters, and comparable to super-large-scale floor bosses. Its body was covered with scales and wings that shone with golden light, resembling the evil dragons in myths and legends that guarded treasures in the wild.

The aura emanating from the dragon was terrifying, far more frightening than any of the strongest monsters Leo had ever seen. Even Goliath, the master of the 17th Floor, would be overwhelmed by it.

Based solely on its imposing presence, its size, and its specifications, Leo was completely certain that this was a monster he could not possibly defeat.

Even if a group of level 5 adventurers attacked together, they would probably still be no match for the opponent.

"Is that Cadmus?"

It can only be said that he truly lives up to his reputation as being stronger than Udaeus, the lord of the 37th Floor, in terms of sheer power; his mere aura is enough to terrify anyone.

However, to everyone's astonishment, this incredibly powerful dragon was being hunted down by a group of monsters.

Yes, hunting.

Around Cadmus, hordes of deformed monsters were attacking the Strong Dragon.

Those monsters all had the same appearance, their entire bodies were yellowish-green, and their swollen and seemingly tender green skin was covered with colorful patterns. Countless short legs formed their lower bodies, while their upper bodies seemed to rest on their long lower bodies, bulging like small mountains. Flat organs with no thickness, like arms, extended from the left and right sides of their bodies, with four slits at the front, somewhat resembling fingers.

Their bodies weren't as huge as the Strong Dragon, but they were still four meters tall. Coupled with their strange colors and shapes, they gave off a nauseating feeling, making people feel physically and psychologically uncomfortable.

"What... what is that?"

Lefiya Viridis covered her mouth, almost screaming out loud.

"----worm?"

Although Tiona and Tione didn't react as strongly as Lefiya Viridis, they still frowned in displeasure.

"New species----"

Ais said this in a low voice, which evoked the thoughts in everyone's minds.

Without exception, all of them came to the idea that it was a new kind of monster.

This is because Ais and her companions, who have been exploring the depths of the Dungeon for a long time, have never seen this kind of monster before.

This was not any kind of monster they knew, nor was it anything they had encountered on this floor before; it was a completely unfamiliar entity.

Of course, this is not a serious problem.

They're just monsters. Whether they're a new species or not, as long as their strength isn't excessively high, they're destined to be slaughtered by adventurers. There's nothing to be surprised about.

The problem is that these monsters are actually besieging the Strong Dragon Cadmus, and also besieging another monster.

This is not a situation that can be ignored.

"Those monsters—could they be Enhanced Species?"

Tione exclaimed in surprise.

Enhanced Species are a completely different and rare type of monster.

Generally speaking, monsters will not attack other monsters unless there are special circumstances. Even if different kinds of monsters meet, they will ignore each other. At most, they will fight each other due to reasons such as territory and habits, resulting in some sudden battles. However, if they are at peace with each other, it is unlikely that they will take the initiative to attack each other.

But there is one monster that is different.

When some monsters kill other monsters in unexpected or special circumstances, and devour their flesh and consume their Magic Stone, their abilities sometimes change, making them stronger, much like adventurers updating their stats.

Monsters that become stronger by accidentally absorbing Magic Stone may become addicted to them and actively hunt other monsters in order to become even stronger.

These monsters, obsessed with the power gained from consuming Magic Stone, not only grow stronger but also more insane, eventually becoming extremely terrifying beings and subject to bounties from guilds.

Once upon a time, there was a monster called the Bloody Monster that became extremely powerful after hunting down many of its own kind and consuming many Magic Stones. After being discovered by the guild, a bounty was placed on its head. In the end, it actually repelled an elite adventurer team that came to hunt it down, killing about fifty high-level adventurers, which caused a sensation throughout Orario.

It was an extremely heavy loss, which eventually alarmed the Freya Familia. Only after the Freya Familia's powerful warriors launched a punitive expedition was the defeat finally achieved.

This matter is still brought up from time to time in Orario and among various clans, causing quite a stir in the world.

Monsters similar to the Bloody Monster are called Enhanced Species, meaning they have received enhancements far exceeding those of other monsters of the same type. Once discovered, such monsters are immediately put on a bounty by the guild and hunted down to prevent them from growing stronger and eventually causing the same devastating casualties as the Bloody Monster.

Since these new worm-like monsters are attacking the Strong Dragon Cadmus, they are very likely the so-called Enhanced Species.

But----

"How could there possibly be so many Enhanced Species?"

Tiona voiced her objections.

She's right. Generally speaking, Enhanced Species are individual monsters, anomalies among their own kind.

These new worm-like monsters, without exception, were all attacking Cadmus.

Are they all Enhanced Species?

How could such a thing possibly happen?