Chapter Summaries

Seitenshi worried that she was unnecessary on the Dungeon expedition, but the others reassured her and explained that their weapons had been chosen with Lord God's help. Meanwhile, Haimo and Hephaestus worked together to forge deep-floor ore while Loki struggled to keep the furnace hot.

• Seitenshi said she felt helpless on the tenth floor, and Onigawara Rin, Kikakujō Mary, Hanabishi Warabi, and the others encouraged her and called her an indispensable member of the Familia.
• Hanabishi Warabi worried that Enju Aihara's boots would wear out, but Onigawara Rin said Lord God would provide suitable equipment and showed off her Famous Sword: Black Crow.
• Kisara Tendo asked about the swords, and Hanabishi Warabi explained that Lord God had asked the captain of the Hephaestus Familia to help select them.
• Haimo hammered heated deep-floor ore in Hephaestus's Workshop while Hephaestus turned it with tongs and Loki pumped the bellows.
• Loki complained that the work was exhausting, but Hephaestus warned her not to let the furnace temperature drop or the ore would be ruined.

Haimo and Hephaestus finished crafting specialized metal boots for one of Haimo’s children, and Loki eagerly asked him to upgrade her Familia’s equipment next. When Loki discovered Bete had left the corridor, Haimo invited Ais in to take his place.

• Haimo explained that the newly forged boots were designed for a child whose combat strength lay in her legs, giving her aerial mobility and explosive attacks.
• Loki forgot her complaints about working the bellows and asked Haimo to improve her children’s gear using the remaining ore.
• Haimo agreed, saying the people whose equipment would be modified needed to be present.
• Loki opened the Workshop door and found Ais waiting alone; Ais said Bete had gone back because it was too hot.
• Haimo came into the corridor and invited Ais into the Workshop in Bete’s place.

Haimo examined Ais’s damaged Sword of Despair and proposed modifying it into a semi-living weapon that could repair itself by absorbing energy from slain monsters. Ais agreed to consider the idea, leaving the sword’s upgrade awaiting Haimo’s work.

• Loki pulled Ais into Haimo’s Workshop and asked him to upgrade the Sword of Despair.
• Haimo used Divine Appraisal to identify hidden damage in the sword and said it had reached its limit.
• Haimo outlined three possible upgrades, but Loki demanded that he turn the sword into a soul-devouring weapon like his own.
• Haimo struck Loki for her reckless suggestion, then asked Ais what she wanted from her weapon.
• Ais said she wanted the sword never to break, so Haimo proposed a semi-living sword that would absorb magic stone energy from slain monsters and repair or evolve itself.
• Ais wondered aloud whether a living sword was possible.

Haimo began reforging Ais's Sword of Despair, while Loki worked the bellows to fuel the furnace. As the forging continued, Ais wiped Haimo's sweat, prompting Loki to demand compensation before the weapon was finished.

• Ais chose the weapon's property and asked Haimo to upgrade her sword, and he agreed.
• Haimo ordered Loki to work the bellows, and she enthusiastically fueled the furnace for Ais's sake.
• Haimo hammered Ais's sword into a new form while Ais watched, and Hephaestus adjusted the materials during the process.
• When Haimo paused to quench the blade, Ais offered to help and wiped sweat from his forehead with a towel.
• Loki scolded Ais, then demanded that Haimo forge two hundred weapons for her Familia as compensation.

Haimo finished forging a semi-living Sword of Despair for Ais, then kept Loki and Hephaestus working through the day to make protective gear for his Familia. The workshop doors opened after the final piece was completed, leaving Loki exhausted and the batch of equipment finished.

• Haimo warned Ais that close physical contact could cause misunderstandings, and she stepped back without clearly showing whether she understood.
• Haimo completed the Sword of Despair’s partial activation, adding a dark red line to its blade and making its semi-living properties permanent.
• Ais accepted the reforged sword, and Haimo explained that it would grow tougher as it absorbed energy from monster magic stones.
• Haimo brought out more ore and ordered Loki to keep working the bellows while he and Hephaestus forged protective equipment for his Familia.
• After the final piece of gear was placed in the box, Loki collapsed from exhaustion and Hephaestus opened the workshop doors.

Haimo and the others returned to his mansion, where they found Hestia asleep in an undignified state and Hephaestus scolded her. Ais carried the equipment trunk inside while Hestia begged Haimo for help.

• Ais carried Haimo's trunk of freshly forged equipment as the group left the Workshop, and Hephaestus agreed to visit Haimo's mansion.
• Haimo led Ais, Hephaestus, Tsubaki, and Loki to his mansion and found Hestia sprawled asleep on the sofa with toast in her hand.
• Hestia woke, belched loudly, and Hephaestus pinched her cheek while scolding her for eating and sleeping in Haimo's home.
• Hestia begged Haimo to save her, but he ignored her and told Ais to bring the trunk into the hall.

Hestia and Loki bickered at the Obsidian Round Table while Rin’s group descended to the seventeenth floor of the Dungeon. After finding the floor boss already defeated, the group headed toward the safe floor and learned that Rivira was a dangerous, lawless town.

• Loki mocked Hestia, who broke free of Hephaestus and lunged at her.
• Kisara Tendo defeated two Minotaurs with a single strike, while Enju Aihara and Kohina Hiruko cleared other monsters nearby.
• Rin’s group reached the Wall of Sorrows and learned from Hanabishi Warabi that Goliath had been defeated recently and would not respawn for two weeks.
• Mary led the group toward the eighteenth floor and explained that it was a monster-free safe floor with an adventurer-run town called Rivira.
• Rin warned that Rivira was expensive and lawless, then admitted that it was the group’s first visit there.

The [Haimo Familia] reached the eighteenth floor and saw its vast, brightly lit landscape before arriving at Rivira. After Sasamori Aya silenced Adventurers gossiping about her party, they entered the town and began exploring its rough main street.

• Hanabishi Warabi reassured the party before they descended the passage to the eighteenth floor.
• Enju Aihara and Kohina Hiruko marveled at the enormous underground cavern, its forests, lake, crystals, and Central Pillar Tree.
• Veteran Adventurers recognized the [Haimo Familia] and whispered about its all-women party and their rapid rise to Level 2.
• Sasamori Aya threatened the whispering Adventurers and silenced them with her killing intent.
• Sasamori Aya led the party through the woods and along the lakeshore to Rivira, where they stepped onto its crowded main street.

Enju Aihara and her companions explored Rivira, where a vendor explained the steep prices before Enju traded magic stones for meat skewers. Enju shared the food with Kohina and Hanabishi Warabi, thanking Warabi for lending them clothes and shoes.

• Enju Aihara ran to a barbecue stall after smelling the meat, and the vendor charged one thousand Valis per skewer.
• Onigawara Rin protested the price, but the vendor explained Rivira's high costs and pointed out that other goods were similarly expensive.
• Enju Aihara traded medium-purity magic stones for ten meat skewers.
• Enju Aihara shared a skewer with Kohina, who eagerly ate it and called it delicious.
• Enju Aihara offered skewers to Hanabishi Warabi and thanked her for lending clothes and shoes; Warabi accepted one, insisting she was only helping Enju hold it.

The girls explored Rivira on the 18th Floor, where Kikakujō Mary explained how Message Runners served Adventurers unable to return to the surface. After leaving the lawless town, they rested in a peaceful clearing and learned that the entrance to the 19th Floor lay nearby.

• A wounded Werewolf Adventurer paid a Half-Elf Message Runner to deliver news to Mia at the Demeter Familia residence.
• Kikakujō Mary explained that Message Runners carried messages between the Dungeon and the surface for Adventurers who could not travel themselves.
• Kisara Tendo observed shady deals and disputes in Rivira, while Sasamori Aya called the town a cesspool and led the party out.
• The girls left Rivira and reached a grassy clearing beside a stream, where they stopped to rest.
• Hanabishi Warabi checked her map and told the group that the entrance to the 19th Floor was just through the woods ahead.

Hanabishi Warabi led the party to the entrance of the 19th Floor, where Kisara Tendo described the devastating power of her sword technique. Tsukuyo Inaba then detected an armed group approaching, led by someone she judged to be Level 4 or higher.

• Hanabishi Warabi suggested the party visit the entrance to the 19th Floor, and the others agreed.
• The party entered the Great Tree Labyrinth and admired its dense greenery and enormous roots.
• Sasamori Aya asked Kisara Tendo how powerful her full-strength Sword Aura could be, and Kisara said her technique could split a Level 4 Gastrea in half.
• Kisara described a Level 4 Gastrea as a giant beast dozens of meters tall with hide ordinary artillery could not pierce, astonishing Onigawara Rin, Kikakujō Mary, and Hanabishi Warabi.
• Sasamori Aya challenged Kisara to a match someday, and Tsukuyo Inaba interrupted to report eleven approaching adventurers led by someone powerful, possibly Level 4 or higher.

The Haimo Familia encountered Dix Perdix and his Ikelos Familia party in the Dungeon, but both groups passed without conflict. Tsukuyo Inaba overheard that Dix’s men were hunting intelligent monsters for trade, leaving the girls wondering how the illegal creatures could be smuggled out of the Dungeon as they prepared to return before dark.

• Kikakujō Mary, Onigawara Rin, and Sasamori Aya readied the Haimo Familia as Dix Perdix and his men approached.
• Dix led his Ikelos Familia party past the girls without speaking or starting a fight.
• Glan suggested targeting the Haimo Familia’s weapons, but Dix warned him that Ikelos had ordered them to leave the Familia alone and focus on capturing intelligent monsters for trade.
• Tsukuyo Inaba used her keen hearing to tell the girls that Dix’s party was hunting intelligent monsters to sell.
• Kikakujō Mary explained that privately taking live monsters out of the Dungeon was illegal, and she speculated that the traders might know of another exit to the surface.
• The group wondered how the monsters could be smuggled past the guarded Tower of Babel, then noted that it was getting late and they needed to return.

The Familia returned from the nineteenth floor after deciding to report Tsukuyo Inaba’s discovery of illegal dealings and a possible hidden Dungeon exit to Haimo. Back at the Mansion, Haimo reassured Seitenshi about her role on the team and noticed Enju Aihara’s damaged boots.

• Onigawara Rin led the group in deciding to return and let Haimo judge how to handle the suspicious dealings and unknown exit.
• Enju Aihara’s boot fell apart during their return through the Dungeon, so she rode on Fierce Man’s back.
• The group reached the Mansion after dark and found Haimo waiting while Hestia and Hephaestus had gone to dinner.
• Seitenshi told Haimo she felt useless in combat, and he encouraged her to develop her rare Dual Wide-Area Magic as the Familia’s support.
• Haimo noticed Enju Aihara’s bare feet after her boots had been destroyed.

Haimo comforted Enju Aihara over breaking her borrowed boots and gave her new Dungeon-made footwear and protective gear to the others. As the group prepared to visit the Hostess of Fertility, Tsukuyo Inaba told Haimo they had encountered a strong adventurer party on the 19th Floor whose god feared his name.

• Enju Aihara confessed she had accidentally broken Warabi's boots, and Haimo reassured her that it was no trouble.
• Haimo cleaned Enju Aihara's feet and fitted her with light metal boots made from deep-floor monster materials, explaining their special abilities.
• Haimo distributed light armor and protective equipment to Seitenshi, Sasamori Aya, and the other girls.
• Haimo suggested the group head to the Hostess of Fertility to meet Hephaestus and the others.
• Tsukuyo Inaba told Haimo that a strong party had avoided them near the 19th Floor entrance because their god was wary of his name.

Haimo explained to his Familia that the intelligent monsters called Xenos were a closely guarded secret known to Ouranos and the Guild. When Seitenshi asked why the Xenos could not live openly among surface races, Haimo began explaining the deep-rooted history of hatred between people and monsters.

• Onigawara Rin and the others described the man they had encountered, and Haimo identified him as Dix Perdix, captain of the Ikelos Familia.
• Haimo praised Tsukuyo Inaba for overhearing the Ikelos Familia members discuss capturing intelligent monsters and trading them.
• Haimo revealed that Ouranos and a small number of Guild officials knew about the Xenos, whose intelligence and emotions varied but could resemble those of surface dwellers.
• Seitenshi asked why the Xenos had to hide in the Dungeon instead of living openly on the surface.
• Haimo pointed to the ancient conflict between monsters and surface races as the basis of the hatred that shaped life in Labyrinth City.

Haimo explained the Xenos’ persecution and the Guild’s covert efforts to protect them, then told his Familia they could defy the rules and help the Xenos if they chose. The girls’ anger and sympathy turned into resolve as Enju Aihara praised her God.

• Haimo explained that the Xenos faced attacks from surface dwellers and Dungeon monsters, while the [Ikelos Familia] secretly captured and sold them.
• Enju Aihara was reminded of the persecution she and her companions had suffered as cursed children, and Onigawara Rin and the other girls reacted with anger.
• Kikakujō Mary asked why the Guild did not punish the [Ikelos Familia], and Haimo explained that exposing the Xenos could trigger their extermination.
• Haimo told the girls that they could help the Xenos and confront the smugglers without being constrained by the city’s rules.
• Enju Aihara praised Haimo for standing by his Familia.

Haimo went to the Guild after learning about the Ikelos Familia’s smuggling of intelligent monsters and planned to use the scandal at the upcoming Denatus to pressure Ouranos. He found Eina working late in the Guild’s VIP area, where she hurried to greet him.

• Haimo told his Familia to rest and meet him at the Hostess of Fertility while he went to the Guild.
• On the way, Haimo decided to confront Ouranos about the Xenos, the smuggling, and the Guild’s complicity at the upcoming Denatus.
• Haimo arrived at the Guild headquarters and asked Misha Flott where Eina was.
• Misha directed Haimo to the VIP area, where he found Eina working late.
• Eina recognized Haimo, jumped up from her stool, and hurried around the counter to greet him.

Haimo confronted Ouranos over the Guild’s concealment of the Xenos and the Ikelos Familia’s trafficking operation. Their argument ended with an unknown voice interrupting them.

• Haimo found Eina exhausted from working late to organize Dungeon information, and she told him Royman was still at the Guild.
• Royman led Haimo through secret passages to the underground altar where Ouranos was waiting.
• Haimo challenged Ouranos for omitting the Xenos from the information he had sent and revealed that the Ikelos Familia was capturing and selling them near the eighteenth floor.
• Ouranos warned Haimo that exposing the Xenos could destabilize Orario and make their destruction more likely.
• Haimo accused Ouranos of justifying the trafficking as necessary sacrifices, and an unknown voice spoke after Ouranos fell silent.

Haimo confronted Ouranos over the treatment of the Xenos and demanded to meet them and gain authority to act in the Guild’s name. Ouranos agreed to arrange a meeting for the following night, leaving Haimo with official backing for his plans in Orario.

• Fels emerged from the shadows and angrily defended her years of efforts to protect the Xenos, but Ouranos stopped her from confronting Haimo further.
• Haimo told Ouranos he wanted to meet the Xenos himself and receive authority to issue orders in the Guild’s name.
• Ouranos weighed the consequences of Haimo’s demands and agreed to have Fels take him to meet the Xenos the following night.
• Haimo left the Guild Headquarters and considered how the Guild’s backing would help him confront the Ikelos Familia and address the Gods at the Denatus.

Haimo arrived at the Hostess of Fertility and joined Hephaestus, Hestia, and the others for a lively dinner. He avoided discussing his Guild visit, and the night ended with Hephaestus and Tsubaki confronting a hefty bill.

• Haimo entered the tavern and found Hestia and Ais fighting over a huge piece of meat while Hephaestus waited for him.
• Haimo wiped grease from Hestia's chin, then sat with his Familia as Enju Aihara and Kohina Hiruko shared food and fruit wine with him.
• Hephaestus asked whether the Guild's old man had caused trouble, and Haimo vaguely said they had discussed the city's management.
• Loki joined the table and tried to pry into Haimo's Guild visit, but he refused to comment.
• Mia brought the bill to Hephaestus and Tsubaki, whose eyes twitched at the total, and Haimo announced it was time to go home.