Once you defeated the core of the dungeon, which, in most cases, was the strongest monster around, the magical energy holding the space together collapsed, and another crack in the dimension opened up.

Similar to the one through which the dungeon opened.

Shirley, still shocked by the Behemoth, followed me toward the place where its body had fallen.

In between the clearing—an almost mountainous extension formed by the Behemoth's body—was a giant circle. Electricity crackled around as a crack in space floated above the Behemoth.

"Crazy… who in the world are you?"

"Is it anything strange?" I asked, shrugging my shoulders. "If you think this is strong, then you should probably give up on creating any change."

Shirley shook her head. "No. Defeating a Behemoth without using any magic spell is crazy. You can't convince me otherwise."

Oh? So she kept in mind that I hadn't used a spell. The truth was that I couldn't use any magic spells, but noticing it in a battle was quite the task. If someone saw me punching a monster the size of a mountain until it died, they would think I used more magic spells than stars in the sky.

The more I watched her, the more useful she seemed.

"Let's get out of here."

Shirley and I stepped into the dungeon's exit.

The world around us changed. The dungeon's exit was usually in the same place where its entrance had manifested, and this time, it seemed to be the case as well.

The sight of the grand forest was replaced by processed lumber forming a cottage, and the body of the Behemoth was turned into creaky floorboards.

Spiders and bugs had made their home in this place. I looked back at the dungeon's exit and entrance, which had taken the form of a single crack. The electricity crackling around it had lessened. It will close soon.

"This place… I think it was built around this dungeon," said Shirley. "A dungeon being formed in the backroom of a house is not impossible… but it's hard to believe."

I nodded at her assessment.

"Just how long has Mrs. Frock been planning this?"

With a sigh, I gestured at Shirley to follow along. There was still blood seeping out of my head, so I hoped to find a potion or two around here—or, more importantly, my attache.

There was nothing here. And if we had to guess, the guards we didn't see outside the caves would probably be out here in this cottage and around it. Shirley and I exchanged a nod.

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I placed a hand on the door, and Shirley stepped behind it.

Three, two, one, I pushed the door open—

"Oh, this one has to be pulled."

"I think blood has gotten to your brain, Mr. Professor."

"Just call me Ethan. Not like you stopped me anyway."

It wasn't my fault they made the door open inward. I pulled the door open, and Shirley charged out.

Her daggers flew to both her sides, and immediately after, groans echoed out.

"Clear."

I left the room behind Shirley and took a glance around. Two bodies were on the ground in the living room of the small cottage. More footsteps rang around us.

More people were coming.

Shirley took to the main entrance of the place as I checked the two she had killed.

Once again, both of them had tattoos of a completely different group. One could assume they were members of the groups that had gathered around Mrs. Frock, but would anyone tell them about the location of a dungeon?

Even Shirley had no idea we were in a dungeon despite being the leader of one group.

These people were from Mrs. Frock's original group, and the same organization that I expected was behind it—the bastards who used everyone else as a cover.

No one knew about their operation except themselves. Even after chasing them for a few months during the war, the hero party's scout could not learn much about them.

Nothing, except their existence.

The Devil's Palm. If those guys were indeed involved, then Mrs. Frock would probably be the least of our concerns. Her chimeras might be strong, but the Devil's Palm was worse.

Way worse. They were some of the few people that did not discriminate between the different races. Humans, elves, dwarfs, or demons, to them, everyone was nothing but a bug to be used for their goal of taking over the world.

Groans and screams continued in the back. When I left the bodies alone, I saw Shirley dusting her hands with a dozen more corpses around her.

Not bad at all.

Knowing Devil's Palm, it was likely that none of these guys knew what they were a part of. It would be useless to interrogate any of them.

"Find a potion?" asked Shirley.

"No. They aren't carrying anything good."

Shirley stepped out of the cottage. I followed behind her.

"It's past sunset…" said Shirley.

My expression hardened. We were already quite late…

"Do you recognize this place?" I asked. Things seemed terrible, but we had a different objective for now.

We had to stop the Chimera from being formed at all.

"Hm. Not really," Shirley said. "I do know we are in the mountains south of Glorenstein."

"I don't recognize this cottage either."

I placed a hand on my head and gazed toward the city. It was distant, so I couldn't see much. I was already too low on mana to use it on this.

"I am worried," Shirley said, trembling slightly. I think we should go to Glorenstein first… if something has already started… There is someone I need to keep safe there."

I looked down at her hand. She was wearing a ring. A husband or a lover? Or could it be someone else?

Someone with a family was not bad. In fact, it was a good reassurance. Shirley checked all the boxes on my list.

"I am worried, too," I said. But we have to stop it from getting worse. If the Chimera awakens, even I can't rule out casualties—not in my current state."

It was then.

A bright light flashed in the distance, in the sky above the city. A magic circle wide enough to cover the city center, one larger than the Behemoth, formed in the middle of the night.

"L-light magic…?" Shirley muttered.

Rays of light started to simmer below the circle. At once, they shot through like a pillar, as if divine judgment was being passed down.

A chuckle escaped me.

"Haha… I guess there is no need to worry about the city now. We can focus on the Chimera."

I knew this. I knew this very well. The executive manager of the Ministry, Gladwin Hark, had taken the matters into his own hands.

The Hunting Hound of the Empire was let loose.