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Volume 11 Edit

Prologue Edit

As Ais watched Bell's battle against Asterius, she recalled his battle against the Minotaur five months ago, wondering why he fought against monsters, the memories of the battle at Daedalus Street still on her mind. She wondered if she could be like him, wondering if she could become stronger and start running just like him, but couldn't come up with an answer.

Elsewhere, in a completely dark place, Ein informed Enyo that the Loki Familia entered Knossos. Upon hearing the former's report, Enyo smiled, then told Ein that things were nearing their end. Turning its back to Ein, it raised its hands up as if it were a conductor.

Chapter 1 Edit

At the Twilight Manor's cafeteria, Finn announced to the familia that they were joining forces with the armored monsters, surprising and agitating many of the members excluding Bete and those that had witnessed what had happened in Knossos. Many of the members questioned him, prompting him to explain how he came to that decision, also pointing out that the monsters hadn't killed anyone. He revealed that he had already negotiated with a group of said monsters, adding that Lefiya and the others were witnesses, and admitted that he originally planned to conceal the truth of the monsters from them despite realizing it to prevent confusion.

He answered any questions the members had, though their attitudes were still mixed, and eventually Aki asked him what he actually felt about the monsters. He answered that they were trustworthy, to which she asked if he still believed that even though there were Loki Familia members that had companions or loved ones killed by monsters, prompting him to reaffirm what he said. Satisfied with his resolve, she stated that she wouldn't say anything more, causing the others to become more accepting of Finn's decision because she accepted it.

Following this, Alicia spoke up, telling everyone that she'd been saved by an armored monster. Alicia herself was still struggling to find an answer, nevertheless she explained that a Siren had protected her out of what she believed to be friendship, and the fact that an Elf like her was feeling something other than disgust for monsters influenced the others. She finished by saying that it was hard to accept, but if they didn't accept the noble self-sacrifice, she felt that the Loki Familia would become demons worse than the monsters themselves.

Once she finished, Finn announced that they'd refer to the armored monsters as "Xenos", then told them that the Ikelos Familia had been hunting the Xenos, which meant that they also viewed the Knossos forces as enemies. He mentioned that this was a one time alliance, with Gareth and Riveria speaking up to support him, and Loki stated that they'd do whatever it took to avenge Line and the others. In closing, Finn suggested for them to think about it, adding that those who didn't like it were free to leave the familia as long as they kept quiet about the matter.

Even after Loki and the top executives left, many of the members stayed in the cafeteria to discuss the matter, and discussions continued throughout the day and into the night. Sitting down at a table with the other Level 4s, Tione, and Tiona, Raul asked what they thought about it. Cruz answered that he was fine with whichever as long as he could avenge Line and the others, though he was annoyed that they had to be helped by monsters. Elfy and Narvi were scared of the monsters, especially Asterius, to which Raul mentioned that Finn probably had a plan.

At that moment, Bete approached them, having coming back to the cafeteria to get food. He had been one of the few people who'd left right after Loki and the top executives did and he didn't try to ridicule the people who were discussing the Xenos. As Bete sat down at a nearby table, Tiona asked him what he thought, to which he asked her if she herself had come to a conclusion. She answered that they didn't need to be afraid of the monsters, revealing that she'd seen a Vouivre save a child, surprising the others except for Tione and Bete. Bete shifted his gaze to Tione, and she answered that she'd obey because it was Finn's order, then asked Bete what his answer was, mentioning that she thought he'd be one of the first to refuse.

Bete simply stated that it wouldn't be a joke if the city was destroyed while they were complaining, mentioning that they could vent their frustrations on the dungeon afterwards, and added that those who kept on complaining should just quit the familia, all the while recalling something he'd seen two days ago during the battle. After fighting with Bete due to claiming that he was trying to look good, Tiona asked Lefiya what she thought. Lefiya answered that she was scared of monsters but the Xenos felt different to her, stating that she didn't feel disgust toward them, pointing out that they looked out for their brethren just like them. Following their conversation, Lefiya looked over at Ais' empty chair. Ais had left before anyone else after the meeting.

In her room, Ais sat on her bed, the moonlight streaming into her dark room. Riveria entered the room, then asked Ais what had happened two days earlier due to her not saying anything, but instead of answering the latter asked the former if heroes existed. Riveria answered that only a handful were ever found by a hero, prompting Ais to reveal that she wasn't able to kill the Vouivre because it was crying, and that she had come to think that Bell and the Vouivre weren't wrong. Seeing this, Riveria told Ais that she'd remove her from the operation if she had doubts, nonetheless she admitted that she welcomed Ais' doubts, advising her to doubt and think until she came to a conclusion she was satisfied with, and mentioned that she wasn't alone anymore. Riveria's words convinced her to move on despite not having an answer yet. She then asked about the Hestia Familia, and Riveria informed her of their recent activities, causing Ais to decide to go see Bell in order to start moving forward.

Lefiya awoke early the next morning, spotted Ais, and left her room to talk with her in a hallway between two towers. Ais asked Lefiya what she thought about the Xenos, stating that she wanted to believe that they were disgusting so she could kill them without worry, though Lefiya answered that while she was afraid of them, they should listen to those that supported the Xenos. Upon hearing her answer, Ais resolved herself, and left to go meet Bell. Making her way to the northwestern wall, she met Bell there, agreeing to his request for her to train him. Influenced by his desire to become stronger, she herself resolved to become stronger as well, heading down to southern Orario instead of back to the Loki Familia home.

Chapter 2 Edit

A short while later, Ais arrived at the Freya Familia home. She knocked on the gate, entering when it opened, though she was soon surrounded by a group of adventurers headed by Allen. Allen asked her why she was there, causing Ais to wonder why the greeting Loki taught her hadn't worked, the former taking her silence to mean that she wanted to die. However, before his attack could reach her, Freya stopped them, asking what they were doing, and noticed Ais. Ordering Allen to lower his spear, she asked Ais what she wanted, prompting Ais to state that she had a request, asking Ottar to train her. Freya stated that she'd agree to her request as long as they formed a contract, and Ais agreed to owe a favor to Freya in exchange for Ottar's training.

After Freya left, Ottar started their training, ordering the others to not let any information about it leave Folkvangr. He requested for Allen to join, however the angry Cat People member refused and went back to their home. Once he left, Ottar told Ais that he was impressed that Finn let her train, causing her to recall that she hadn't said anything to him.

Two days after Finn's announcement, Loki and the top executives were in the familia office, discussing the letter Ais had sent them. Realizing that she hadn't said anything, Ais had written a letter telling them to not look for her because she was doing secret training, and given it to Misha at the Guild for delivery. Misha had told them that Ais looked beat up, making them mistakenly assume that she was busy in the dungeon. Putting Ais' matter aside, they began their strategy meeting for the operation. Finn decided that their plan would consist of two parts; the first attack would be to figure out how Knossos was laid out while the second was to use that information to find the best route and eliminate the Demi Spirits. They knew they could count on the Ganesha, Hephaestus, and Hermes Familia to help, with Finn asking Loki to have the Dian Cecht Familia help out as well.

They then began discussing Revis, wondering if Finn was going to sacrifice members. To their surprise, he stated that they didn't have any sacrifices to give to her, which was something the old Finn never would've said. Moving on, they decided to gather anti curse medicine, and have the Ganesha Familia set up a checkpoint at Babel to make Evilus unable to gather food outside of the dungeon. Deciding that their familia and the Hermes Familia would participate in the first attack, Finn asked Loki about the Dionysus Familia, nonetheless she stated that she'd defer for now. Riveria protested her decision but Finn accepted it, adding that the Xenos would also participate in the first attack.

At the Room of Prayer, Ouranos and Fels were reviewing the plan that was sent to them, which involved the adventurers attacking Knossos from the surface while Fels and the Xenos would enter from the 18th Floor. Both agreed to the plan, with Fels planning on giving them some occulus, and they calculated that around 30 Xenos would be able to participate including Lyd, Ray, and Gros. Asterius had left for the deep floors so they couldn't count on his support for the first attack.

As they discussed the plan, Hermes arrived, telling them that he was relieved he didn't have to act like a double agent anymore. Fels wondered why Hermes had a kick mark on his face, which the latter didn't want to talk about but explained that he'd settled things with a certain Goddess, and asked them to not involve the Hestia Familia in the operation. He explained that he didn't want Bell involved in a brutal battle so soon, though he made sure to add that it was for the time being. The two agreed to Hermes' request and his suggestion to send the Hestia Familia on a mission.

At the Loki Familia home, Lefiya was shaking upon reading the news of Bell's level up, prompting Tione to ask what was wrong with her, to which Tiona suggested that she was probably happy that he leveled up. Soon after, Riveria arrived to inform all of them members about the plan, adding that the operation would take place in ten days.

Chapter 3 Edit

Sometime later, early in the morning, Loki visited the First Graveyard with Lefiya to find Dionysus and Filvis there. Dionysus declared that he'd make Enyo pay, then asked Loki to allow the Dionysus Familia to participate, admitting that he'd just been a fool until now. He stated that he'd take care of Enyo in case it turned out to be a God and Loki agreed to allow him and his familia to participate.

As they walked through the city, Loki and Lefiya were surprised that Dionysus was popular with people, nevertheless Filvis pointed out that it was because of wine. While they were talking, Hestia ran by, stating that she was late for work. Loki called out to her, prompting the two to start arguing with each other, though Dionysus interrupted them to speak with her. While Dionysus was busy talking with some people, Hestia noted that his "sickness" seemed to have healed, causing Loki to wonder what she meant. Hestia explained that Dionysus used to have a temper back in heaven, causing him to lash out at other Gods and attempt to kill them, mainly against Zeus and Ouranos. When Loki asked why, Hestia simply answered that he "was sick", or "a fit", though she added that there probably was a reason behind it that she didn't know.

Loki then asked what she thought of the old Dionysus, to which Hestia answered that she'd been afraid of him, surprising her that Hestia used the word "afraid". She explained that she didn't like the mood during the argument over who'd be one of the Twelve Olympians so she stepped down from her position. She added that no one else seemed to notice his "sickness", making her wonder if she was imagining things, though she was relieved that he seemed to have gotten better, and left before Loki could ask her to explain it more in detail.

Later, as she waited for Filvis to finish escorting Dionysus back to their home, Lefiya wondered if she should tell her what she'd heard, but decided against it. Once the two reached a high place, Filvis asked Lefiya if she was participating in the operation, and upon hearing that she was, she suggested for her to leave Orario for a while. Lefiya was confused by her sudden suggestion, prompting Filvis to mention that Lefiya would die based on what she saw during their last attack on Knossos, pointing out that since Lefiya made light of herself, she paid the price, and she would definitely feel despair in the future. Filvis explained that she'd been scared of losing something ever since the Nightmare on the 27th Floor, asking Lefiya to accept her request, nevertheless Lefiya refused, stating that she wouldn't run. She then brought up Bell, briefly talking about him, then asked if Filvis thought she wasn't able to do stuff like he did, and stated that she'd confront fear and despair and save everyone. Hearing this, Filvis resolved to protect her with her life, and the two discussed taking a vacation after, promising to go to Wishe Forest after the operation.

Later in the afternoon, the members of the Freya Familia stopped their usual fierce training to watch Ais and Ottar train. Ottar didn't give any advice, instead having Ais learn from fighting him, and since they were fighting seriously, she'd most likely be cut in half if she made a dumb mistake. In addition, he trained her from before sunrise until it was close to midnight, and she was only given a change of clothes and a wet cloth to wipe herself with by Helun who couldn't let that pass. While they trained on the 7th day, Ottar asked her about the opponent who she was training to defeat, prompting her to answer that she didn't know as she didn't know how strong Revis could possibly become. Despite that, she told him that status wise her opponent was stronger than him, causing him to narrow his eyes.

She was surprised when he mentioned the word Creature, however he ignored her reaction and continued on, telling her that she wasn't good at fighting against people as she thought she was, stating that the true nature of her sword was killing monsters rather than fighting people. He told her that her sword specialized in killing monsters, adding that there was no way she'd win as long as she viewed the Creatures as people. He asked her if she was doubting herself because of the armored monsters, causing her to be surprised that he seemed to know so much about herself, though he simply stated that her sword showed him her halfhearted will. He continued by telling her that she wouldn't be able to defeat a far stronger opponent without putting in everything she had, and told her to control the black flame within her while remembering that the Creature was only a roadblock on the path to her true goal. He succeeded in urging her on and Ais decided that she'd defeat her opponent to protect those she held dear and not because of her hate.

Chapter 4 Edit

On the morning of the Knossos operation, Ais had Loki update her status, surprising the latter due to the fact that her status had gone up by more than 250 points.

Later that morning, all of the familia and their members participating in the operation gathered at Daedalus Street. The Ganesha Familia were stationed at the center and were tasked with patrolling the area during the first attack. The Hephaestus Familia were also not a part of the first attack and Tsubaki had been removed from the operation for helping the Hestia Familia during the Daedalus Street battle. The first attack force were all below, separated into various groups, ready to enter Knossos. Finn, Tione, Tiona, and Airmid were part of the northeastern group, while Lena tried to join Bete's southeastern group but failed, causing him to tell her to stay behind with the Ganesha Familia. Raul, Aki, Rakta, the Hermes Familia, and Ryuu were also part of Bete's group.

The southwestern group included the Dionysus Familia along with Gareth, Lefiya, Loki, Cruz, Narvi, and Dionysus. Aura complained about Filvis, nevertheless she agreed to put aside their differences to focus on the operation. Before they began, Loki handed Dionysus an occulus, which she and the group leaders each had. Once Fels and the Xenos got into position on the 18th Floor, the operation began. Bete's group immediately entered, taking out any Evilus members and killing all monsters that tried to attack them. Bete's group was centered around Beast Humans, allowing them to locate traps and figure out how the labyrinth was laid out. After they cleared the way, Raul's group followed, placing three pillars in each door to make them unable to be closed.

Over at the northeastern group, the Evilus members had attacked using curse weapons, inflicting an unhealable curse on some of the group members. Nevertheless, Airmid used Dia Fratel to continuously heal everyone, rendering the enemy's attacks meaningless. Airmid asked Finn if the operation would continue to proceed without trouble, to which he answered that it probably wouldn't, not expecting Evilus to be defeated this easily especially with Revis.

In Knossos' main room, the Evilus members continuously reported the damage the operation groups were causing, though Thanatos was impressed at how smoothly the alliance was doing their job. An Evilus member was worried that they'd be overwhelmed, nonetheless Thanatos pointed out that they'd gathered all of the Daedalus Orbs they owned in the room they were in, limiting the amount of groups the alliance could split into. Turning his attention back to the footage being displayed, he was interested in their speed, speculating that Finn had an idea where the Demi Spirits were located. He had a member report where the groups had entered from and the amount of groups, then matched that up with the number of keys he knew were missing, noting that there was a key they didn't know the location of. At that moment, a member reported that Ais, Riveria, and their group had entered through the 12th Floor.

Ais' group had used the Daedalus Orb Hermes had given Cruz, which Freya had originally taken from Ishtar, catching the Evilus members off guard. The main purpose of their group was to use Ais' Ariel as a radar to find the Demi Spirits, though her main goal was to bait Revis in order to prevent her from attacking the other groups.

The southeastern group had progressed through Knossos at high speed, finding an entrance to the northeastern area of the 3rd Floor. A Level 1 party had been fighting Goblins nearby, and they were shocked to see the Loki Familia appear from the wall, however Bete intimidated them and the monsters into running away. As Bete left, Aki ordered a Loki Familia member to report back to create a supply route through the entrance they just found, and the group chased after him. Behind them, Raul's group was being attacked by suiciding Evilus members. Despite managing to avoid deaths with explosion countermeasures, the younger members were bothered by the dead Evilus bodies, prompting Raul to encourage to keep moving forward.

Down below on the Knossos' 16th Floor, the Xenos had succeeded in destroying their fourth plant. Because the Evilus members were busy fighting the alliance above, the Xenos had only been fighting monsters, and in turn the monsters killed made it easier for the alliance above. As Lyd and Ray discussed their situation, Wiene told them that she wanted to go with them, resolving to protect Orario for Hestia and the others. Lyd, Ray, and Wiene went ahead, leaving Gros and the others to finish killing the monsters in the area.

On the 12th Floor, Riveria, using Rea Laevateinn, sensed that Revis was heading towards them, ordering their group to fall back to the room Arcs and the others were waiting in. She then informed Finn of this, prompting him to order the other groups to raise their speed.

Chapter 5 Edit

At the main room, Barca noted that the alliance groups were moving too fast, with Bete's group already on the 8th Floor while the others were on the 7th. This showed him just how different the dungeon was compared to Knossos; as the man made dungeon was predictable, the invaders were noting what they saw and developing countermeasures for it. As he thought about what to do, he was approached by Thanatos, who asked him if he was going to sell them out to the Loki Familia. Thanatos convinced Barca into staying with the Thanatos Familia, telling him that there was no way Ouranos or the Guild would allow new work on Knossos, and talked him into doing whatever it took to protect Knossos. Barca left the room, stopped by his workshop to retrieve Daedalus' Journal and something else, and headed to his destination.

He arrived at a circular room, which housed the self destruct device Dix had created. Using a mechanism similar to the one used for opening doors, it would allow him to remove supporting pillars on a floor he chose, effectively collapsing the floor, which he planned to do to the Loki Familia on the 8th Floor. However, his Daedalus blood made him hesitate, and Asfi took advantage of that to attack him, forcing him away from the device. She gave a signal, causing the other Hermes Familia members to appear, making him realize that they'd been invisible.

Not understanding how they were able to find him, he asked how they found the room, prompting Asfi to reveal that they had used their invisibility to capture an Evilus member, who Barca recognized was an executive, and forced him to talk using truth serum. She then picked up Daedalus' Journal, which he had dropped when he dodged her attack, and told him that obtaining the journal would make their fast attack possible. When she explained that the Hermes Familia's goal was to find clues about Enyo and to locate the journal, he realized that they'd been in Finn's palm from the beginning, as the first attack had been nothing more than a decoy for the Hermes Familia to do their job.

As he helplessly watched them destroy the self destruct mechanism, he asked how they were able to split off from their group without a key, causing Asfi to reveal that she had made one herself using several items from the dungeon. Having read through the journal, Lulune reported to the others through the occulus that the Evilus base was on the 9th Floor while the Demi Spirits were on the 10th. Leaving the Demi Spirits for the time being, Finn ordered everyone to attack the enemy base. In order to cover the entire floor and encircle the enemy, Finn and the other group leaders had dispersed their groups, as he arrived at the room Barca was in with only himself, Tione, Tiona, Airmid and two other healers, and four others.

Realizing that he was finished, Barca pulled out all of the curse weapon daggers he had on him and repeatedly stabbed his own body with them, all of the curses inflicted causing his blood to turn black. He admitted that Evilus was finished, nevertheless he declared that Knossos wouldn't die, and pulled out a Jewel Fetus, which was the other item he took when he visited his workshop. He revealed that the six seeds had already been released, and that the one he had was an extra that was from the 24th Floor, causing the Hermes Familia to remember what'd happened. He pressed the Jewel Fetus to his chest and it morphed his body into a 5 meter tall Demi Spirit.

While they fought the monster, Finn felt his thumb tingle, ordering Tione and Tiona to fall back. The black veins on Barca's right arm burst, showering everyone within range with black blood that inflicted a powerful curse on them which ignored the abnormal resistance development ability and was unhealable using the anti curse medicine. Airmid was able to heal those affected with her magic, though they were targeted once again by Barca's curse shower, both sides repeatedly healing and cursing respectively. Frightened by the monster, Lulune suggested to get reinforcements, however Finn rejected her request, stating that it would cause more casualties, and that it was their job to defeat it. Finn led a charge from one side while Tione and Tiona the other, leaving the Hermes Familia dumbfounded.

Chapter 6 Edit

On the 9th Floor, Alicia led a small group consisting of Elfy and four others. As they made their way through the hallways, Elfy heard the sound of metal hitting rock, and upon looking behind her, she noticed that there was a tiny crack in the adamantite wall, the faint metal hitting rock sound emanating from it. Her curiosity got the better of her, causing her to check it out. She noticed that there was an empty space behind the cracked wall, and that there was something behind it which was causing a sound reminiscent of someone dragging chains.

When she narrowed an eye to try to see more clearly, a bloodshot eye suddenly stared back at her, causing Elfy to scream and fall down out of surprise, whatever it was slamming itself against the wall. The thing behind the wall seemed to be emitting a horse groan as it carved at the wall. Before she could give it more thought, Alicia ordered her to help them fight the Violas that were trying to surround them, ignoring Elfy's comment about the wall. The eye watched as Elfy left to join the others.

Below on the 12th Floor, Ais and Riveria's group reached the room Arcs and the others were in, and immediately readied themselves to fight Revis, who appeared moments later. However, they were confused due to Revis just standing there, not expressing the will to fight.

In the circular room on the 9th Floor, Finn's group and the Hermes Familia struggled to fight Barca. The Demi Spirit Barca specialized in defense with his sturdy body, attacking them with his malformed arms, and used the curse blood shower to force his opponents to fall back or make them dodge in a way that they couldn't land a clean hit on him. To top it off, he was also able to regenerate, healing more than the damage they inflicted. Even if they dodged the blood, it turned into miasma when it hit the ground, causing the members to cough up blood if they breathed it for a while. While she healed the fighters, Airmid analyzed Barca, coming to the conclusion that he was the hexer who made the curse items, and that his mystery development ability raise the power of the curse.

Noting that the curse came from his fierce attachment to Knossos, in addition to possibly being cursed himself by Daedalus' blood, Airmid decided that she'd stop the chain of curses, ordering the two Dian Cecht Familia healers with her to take her place while she did so. She began chanting, and Barca, sensing that something was coming, attempted to attack her, though the other adventurers protected her. The others were shocked when she cast Dia Fratel on Barca, but Finn and Asfi realized what she was doing, the latter explaning that Airmid was using Dia Fratel to remove Barca's curse. Affected by the magic, Barca began suffering intense pain, making him try to kill Airmid with a large amount of miasma. The miasma caused Airmid intense pain, nevertheless she won out in the end, succeeding in removing the curse from Barca. As she collapsed, Tione and Tiona attacked Barca, cutting off both of his arms, and Finn was about to finish him off when he realized that Barca was already dead. After the battle, Finn ordered the others to use their remaining items to heal Airmid and reorganize their group with those that were still able to fight.

Elsewhere on the same floor, Gareth ordered his group to split up now that they were close to the enemy base. Gareth's main group, which included the Gods, would go straight to the main room, while the other groups would search the surrounding area. He ordered each group to have Dwarves in them, as they would help in finding secret passages, and gave Lefiya a spare occulus, telling her to report back if she sensed the masked being using Rea Laevateinn. As the groups split up, Dionysus, who was supposed to go with Gareth's group, stopped in front of a dark passageway that the group had missed because the lamps didn't shine on it. The darkness seemed to call out to him, his head ached, and he thought he smelt the sweet smell that came when he drank wine. Seeing that Gareth's group was already gone, he told Filvis that they'd go, and he walked down the dark passageway.

In the main room, Thanatos sat alone, the others having left to fight the invaders. He felt that Barca had left him, and thought about his current situation for a moment before getting up and heading down a passageway opposite from the sounds of fighting. He ended up in a vast room with numerous columns with candlestands, an altar in the back with stairs leading up to it, and the Thanatos Familia emblem hanging above it. He called out Ein, who was standing at the base of the stairs looking up at the emblem, asking for them to unleash the Demi Spirits now that Loki Familia had come this far. To his surprise, Ein refused, stating that the Spirits had their own roles, therefore they couldn't be moved from their positions. When Thanatos told it that now wasn't the time to be "singing", Ein simply answered that doing so would go against Enyo's will.

He tried to convince Ein, asking it if it planned on making Enyo into a naked king, prompting Ein to tell him Enyo's message. Enyo thanked him for his help, nevertheless they decided to finish the Orario destruction scenario on their own, promising to open the path to the underworld. In order for that to happen, Thanatos would be a sacrifice. Instead of reacting, Thanatos instantly realized what Enyo was planning due to being a God himself, and after relaying the message, Ein disappeared into the darkness. A moment of silence passed before Thanatos started laughing, realizing that he'd been used, and cursed Enyo for tricking a good natured God like him. Once he stopped laughing, he heard Loki's voice, turning around to find Gareth's group in the room.

On the same floor, Finn was busy giving orders to all of the groups. While he did so, he contacted Fels, who told him that they'd reached the 13th Floor, though they had to split their force in half. Finn asked them to locate the Demi Spirits and report back. He then ordered Airmid and the other healers to go with the group returning to the surface to resupply, and talked about whether the enemy would counterattack, all the while feeling that something was wrong due to the fact that Enyo's forces still hadn't done anything despite their current situation. He didn't think it was strategically logical for them to still not unleash the Demi Spirits. He considered the possibility of Enyo betraying Evilus, but couldn't come up with a reason why it would be beneficial to them, however he couldn't write it off as a mistake due to his thumb tingling. He told Airmid that they'd be lowering the front lines to the 10th Floor, asking her to gathered the wounded and take them near the exit, and ordered Tione and Tiona to gather the best members out of those that could still fight. Once the sisters finished gathering people, Finn led the group in the direction of the main room.

In the Thanatos Familia room, Loki declared to Thanatos that it was over for him, and asked if he was Enyo, though she felt something was off because of how easy it was. He asked her if she hadn't heard about Enyo from Lefiya, repeating what he'd said to the Elf previously, but added that he'd been used by Enyo. He continued by stating that Enyo never considered Knossos a fortress, rather an altar, its model being a sacrifice. As Loki began thinking about his words, he added that they'd been outplayed, and at that moment Lefiya reported that Ein was attacking them with a horde of Violas. Despite this, Loki continued to think, wondering who was outside of the game board, ready to swing their sword down at them, when Thanatos asked her if she was the only God in the attack party. Finally realizing that Dionysus was missing, Loki called out to him through the occulus. Dionysus apologized for leaving without saying anything but promised to get his revenge. Hearing this, Loki tried to stop him, however he ignored her words and kept on going. He ended up in a dark and open area with Enyo standing in the back, then assured Loki that he was fine because he had Filvis with him, prompting Loki to demand to know who he was talking to, causing him to stop for the first time.

Elsewhere, Lefiya and the others were busy fighting Ein and the horde of Violas. She attempted to get rid of them with magic, however Ein noticed this and began attacking her, preventing her from doing so. Aki's group came to help but they were too late, though fortunately Filvis saved Lefiya using Dio Thyrsos.

For the first time, Dionysus realized that Filvis wasn't with him, turning around to see that no one was there, with Loki informing him that Filvis was with Lefiya. He couldn't understand what had happened, not believing that he'd be taken by surprise by something of the lower world, and realized that he'd been a fool. As he watched, Enyo slowly came toward him, allowing him to see who it was. He saw Enyo smirk mockingly, and recognized the weapon they were holding, realizing what his revenge would amount to. Loki shouted his name, nevertheless he simply apologized to her. Dionysus' pillar of light broke through the ground and shot into the sky, garnering the attention of everyone in the city including Hestia, Ganesha, Shakti, and Hermes.

Due to it being a large amount of energy, the force of the pillar going through Knossos caused the man made dungeon to shake and break apart, enough to overwhelm the adventurers' senses, and the pillar destroyed anything it passed through. After things settled, Aki told Lefiya to get ready to resume the battle, however Lefiya noticed Filvis and the other Dionysus Familia members acting strangely, prompting Ein to inform her that a God had returned to heaven, wondering if it was Loki, Thanatos, or Dionysus. Realizing that Dionysus had died, Filvis tried to attack Ein, but she was incredibly slow without a falna, allowing Ein to reach out and hold her in the air by her neck. Filvis looked back at Lefiya as if to apologize before Ein snapped her neck, then threw her dead body into the air, which a Violas ate, leaving behind only an arm. Seeing this, Lefiya's heart broke, causing her to scream.

Then, as if it was synchronizing with a God's return to heaven, the altar activated. Across the floor in their respective locations, the Demi Spirits began to sing, connected together by a ring of light that ran along the hallways, and their bodies began to enlarge. Green flesh began to overflow from their bodies which spread across Knossos at incredible speed, absorbing any people it came into contact with, turning Knossos into an urn of green flesh. All of the alliance adventurers retreated as fast as they could and they had no choice but to abandon the now falnaless Dionysus Familia members or else they would've been absorbed themselves.

As she ran, Ais realized that Revis knew this would happen, which was why she didn't do anything. Revis stood still, the green flesh avoiding her location, telling Ais that she didn't like the thought of the clones absorbing her as nourishment as they were disposable. She recalled that she said she didn't care if Ais was a corpse, nevertheless she stated that "she" wouldn't be satisfied with a withered Ais, and told her to run, promising to finish things the next time they fought.

In the Thanatos Familia room, Thanatos explained that a God being sent back to heaven was the switch for the altar, theorizing that they'd done something to the Demi Spirits, all the while ignoring Loki's shouts for him to explain what he meant. Soon after, Finn's group arrived, informing Loki of the green flesh. He ordered the others to shut the doors, however Thanatos told him that one of the five entrances to the room didn't have a door, and the flesh began to cover the room. The flesh absorbed all weapons and magic swords had no effect against it. Thanatos mentioned that if things were left to Enyo, the lower world would return to how it previously was, with more deaths like he wished, nevertheless he refused to cooperate, stating that his pride wouldn't allow him to remain defeated, and that he wanted to get back at Enyo for Barca and the others' sake because of what it was doing to Knossos.

Following this, he took out a dagger and stabbed himself, using the pillar of light caused by his return to smash through the ceiling, creating an opening for the Loki and the others to escape through. The adventurers began jumping up to escape through the hole. As they were doing so, a Violas that escaped being killed appeared from a passageway on the 2nd Floor, attempting to eat Finn who was holding Loki. He quickly threw Loki up to Tione and killed the Violas with his spear in two seconds, but this put him at risk of being absorbed by the green flesh. He didn't expect himself to survive, though fortunately he was saved by Ray who'd been searching for survivors using echolocation. The adventurers successfully escaped, and the green flesh followed them out onto the surface, but it stopped in a ten meter radius around the hole as if it was putting a lid on the altar. Up in the air, Finn thanked Ray for saving him.

Epilogue Edit

In total, the first attack on Knossos resulted in the loss of 1 God and 80 members, all members of the Dionysus Familia. The Loki and Hermes Familia had wounded members but no deaths. However, Lefiya had been deeply affected by Filvis' death, not reacting to Ais or the others and simply sitting like a doll in her room.

The following morning, Loki went to Daedalus Street by herself, looking down from a roof at Knossos. After a while, she left the building, walking away from sounds of the adventurers. Soon after, Hermes appeared, looking as if he'd been waiting for chance to talk to her. He asked her for her opinion on Enyo, to which she answered that their thoughts probably didn't differ due to the lack of information, and both revealed at the same time that they thought Dionysus was Enyo. When asked, Hermes stated that he felt Dionysus' involvement was timed a little too well, adding that he'd gone to see him right after the incident on the 24th Floor. He continued by saying that he knew more about him than she did, prompting Loki to mention Dionysus' "fits", which was what Hermes was referring to, and he mentioned that Dionysus seemed to frequently be at the center of problems.

Moving on, he asked her why she allowed Dionysus to come with the attack party, which she answered by saying that she thought Dionysus would make move once they were close to the enemy base, and also because she wasn't able to completely doubt him. Hermes revealed that he was frustrated at how they were tricked into believing that Enyo was Dionysus, allowing the real Enyo to do whatever they wanted. He promised to investigate into Dionysus, handing her a black king chess piece before he left. She looked at the piece representing Enyo for a while, then looked up at the sky, thinking about everything she knew about the mysterious entity. She wondered how Enyo was able to manipulate Dionysus so easily, then wondered if he'd been manipulated ever since they were in heaven, and continued to think for while until she heard Soma call her name. Soma had been on his way to his wine cellar near Daedalus Street, using the area as a shortcut, when he spotted Loki and stopped to talk her. Loki informed him that the area was currently off limits and told him to leave, promising to not tell anyone.

As Soma passed by her, he suddenly stopped, stating that he smelt the scent of the divine liquor. Asking her if she knew about it, he revealed that the scent came from her, having rubbed off on her from someone else. He desired to learn about the person who made the divine liquor, confusing Loki who didn't recall anything, and at that moment Soma mentioned that he thought it smelt like wine, causing her to realize where it could've come from, taking Soma with her to the Dionysus Familia home. Once they arrived, Soma guided her using the smell of wine to the back fence, climbed over it, and down through the mansion into Dionysus' wine cellar, stopping in front of a certain bottle. Taking the cork out, he smelt it, confirming that it was indeed the divine liquor, and stated that it was better than his own, adding that this could potentially intoxicate even a God. Loki realized that this was how Enyo manipulated Dionysus, and at the same time knew that she'd smelt the scent before, but couldn't figure out where. She didn't recognize the emblem on the bottle, which was wine spilling out from a cup, causing her to think about where she'd be able to find it. When her train of thought shifted to grapes, she recalled that Dionysus had been drinking the wine next to a certain God.

At the room of prayer, Fels reported on Knossos to Ouranos, theorizing that the green flesh was related to the Spirits' miracle, and that several Demi Spirits were used to parasitize the area using the power of the original Corrupted Spirit. Coming to the conclusion that it was currently impossible to get to the Demi Spirits, they briefly talked about Enyo's plan, stating that everyone had been in the palm of Enyo's hand from the beginning. Fels promised to continue to investigate Knossos but was concerned that they didn't know who to suspect, prompting Ouranos to mention that they already knew who to suspect, stating that every God in the lower world was suspect.