The day of the mid-layer boss subjugation had arrived.

The members included me, Alec, Zighart, Fiora, Teresa, Luban, and August.

August had joined the team after the time when Riana’s elite group defeated Cymodoki.

As expected from elites, we reached the mid-layer entrance in less than an hour.

This time, slightly under an hour, was set to match Fiora’s pace. Despite her title, Fiora, though a researcher by nature, was fully capable in combat. However, she seemed more suited for defensive battles rather than dashing through battlefields or dungeons. She lagged slightly compared to the rest of the group, setting the overall pace.

Even so, the speed was impressive.

The shallows were almost like a free pass since the knights and adventurers had cleared most of the monsters, and even the upper layers posed no challenge.

I led the way through the corridors using my bow, but Alec and the others relentlessly attacked and defeated the monsters in the halls without hesitation.

There was no need for formation or tactics; they simply overpowered the enemies, demonstrating their sheer strength.

Even though I had cast 【Prayer】, each member naturally dealt with two or three monsters at once, perfectly overwhelming them.

In fact, cleaning up the monster corpses took more time than defeating them.

From midway, stronger monsters like ogres began appearing, which I would usually consider formidable foes, but…

They were overwhelmingly strong!

“Are your current equipment fine? If you need replacements, I can fetch them now.”

At the entrance to the mid-layer corridor, Alec and the others peeked ahead. Was this setup really sufficient?

Prioritizing speed, everyone carried lightweight, easy-to-handle weapons, primarily swords. However, considering the potential unknown monsters ahead, spears might be more effective.

“I’ll switch to a mace. You can’t carry it, so store it for me.”

“Got it. Anyone else?”

It seemed Alec was the only one changing equipment; the others shook their heads, indicating no changes.

“Alright then, Alec.”

“Right.”

I followed Alec into 【Hideout】 to make the switch.

In the end, Alec was the only one who made adjustments. It seemed I had been right to stop them from preparing an excessive arsenal yesterday!

◇

We finally stepped into the mid-layer of the dungeon.

Unlike the upper layers, it was a vast, open space with no walls or corridors separating areas. The structure resembled the shallows but on a much larger scale.

It felt more like a “stalactite cave” than a “forest.”

Scattered throughout were earthen pillars of varying thickness connecting the floor to the ceiling, creating numerous blind spots.

The ground was uneven, with height differences making it far from easy to traverse.

While the entire hall was faintly glowing, the light wasn’t strong enough, leaving the area dim overall.

If an ambush occurred, it would be quite troublesome in such a terrain.

“…Are there monsters here?”

Though no monsters were visible to the naked eye, 【Fairy’s Eye】 and Akame’s vision revealed them clearly.

Raising my altitude to gain a broader perspective might help, but to avoid risks, I matched the others’ height.

“Yes. They’re observing us. They’re like the monsters in the shallows, but… significantly different.”

Alec, leading the way, answered my mutterings.

As expected of elites, even without seeing them, everyone had sensed the monsters and remained alert.

“Sera, do you see anything behaving strangely?”

“No… So far, they’re just watching. Their strength is about the same as monsters from the demon realm. Quite strong.”

The group of monsters, a mix of demonic and beast types, matched the strength of demon realm monsters.

Stronger monsters were also more intelligent, so we couldn’t let our guard down.

Not that anyone here seemed remotely careless.

“I see… Keep watching closely.”

“Got it.”

It seemed we would prioritize searching for the boss rather than initiating combat.

While the monsters were undoubtedly strong, they weren’t enough to pose a serious threat to this group.

Waiting for the monsters to make the first move seemed like the better approach.

…Though it made me uneasy!

◇

Several minutes into the mid-layer, feeling the monsters’ gazes as we advanced, the monotony of the dungeon landscape was starting to wear on me.

Suddenly—

“!”

“Wha—!?”

Alec abruptly leaped to the side, and Teresa and Luban grabbed my sleeve, pulling me behind them.

What just happened?!

Before I could voice my confusion, a loud impact reverberated as something hit Alec’s shield with considerable force.

It sounded heavy and powerful. This was followed by a clattering noise, as if something scattered.

“What… was that?!”

It was clear something had been thrown at us, and Alec had blocked it.

But what?

Ogres were known to throw objects, but this was far more intense.

“There.”

Teresa pointed to the right corner of the hall. Looking there—

“Huh…? What the…?”

I saw it.

A large, ape-like figure stood on an elevated position, several dozen meters away, looking down at us.

So it had been the one to throw that object.

Despite its strength being apparent now, I hadn’t noticed it until Teresa pointed it out.

Was it hiding its presence?

Humans could suppress their aura and magical power, but could monsters do the same?

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Sera: 【Hideout】, 【Prayer】, 【Mira’s Blessing】, 【Floating Orb】, 【Shadow Blade】, 【Crimson Bee’s Stinger】, 【Fairy’s Eye】, 【Dragon’s Lung】, 【Amber Blade】, 【Danrem’s Thread】, 【Serpent’s Tail】, 【Ankle Bracelet】 – 60 cards

Seriana: 【Range Identification】 – 28 cards

Elena: 【Green Fang】 – 1 card

Alec: 【Strong Strike】, 【Red Shield】, 【Fierce Horned Trumpet】 – 2 cards