The descendant of the master craftsman "Daedalus," Barca, who held the right of control over the Artificial Dungeon, was filled with shock at the scene before him, rendered speechless.

Too strong.

Whether it was the combat power displayed by the enemy's fighting members or their overall strength beyond their ability values, everything far exceeded Barca's imagination.

It had been half a day since the faction alliance launched the assault operation. No, perhaps it should be said it had "only been half a day."

The adventurer army centered around the [Loki Familia] advanced like a raging fire, conquering each floor of the Artificial Dungeon with unstoppable momentum.

Their speed was unbelievable. Perhaps it would be understandable in a dungeon already explored and mapped in detail, but this was a Artificial Dungeon, for the [Loki Familia], this place should still be an "unknown" realm.

"The attitude, it's different, huh," The god Thanatos stood nearby and said calmly.

For adventurers to conquer a dungeon, in a certain sense, it is an economic activity.

The "experience points" and "great deeds" adventurers gain in the dungeon are also calculated into the gains and losses. For a faction, only when averaged out and exploration and expeditions yield positive returns, can adventure continue.

For a faction like the Loki Familia, whose expeditions often lose money in terms of "cash," the hidden gains lie in the continuous improvement of its members' abilities and levels.

"But now, their campaign against the Artificial Dungeon is an 'act of war'."

Disregarding gains, ignoring costs, and even being able to temporarily abandon "morality" and "principles" if necessary, that is war.

"Moreover, we must admit, the opposing side has the best commander and 'war machine'," Thanatos praised.

"Even the thousand-year obsession of a lineage can be overcome…", Barca listened heavily to the god's praise of the enemy.

They made Barca witness the difference between the extraordinary world Dungeon that defies the gods' thinking, and the man-made counterfeit [Knossos] created by humans.

As long as it's man-made, it will always leave some kind of rule, form some kind of order. The arrangement of stone materials, the sequence of paths, the placement of doors… all of it inevitably reflects human intention.

And as long as the creator is not a god, true perfection can never be reached. At this moment, Barca seemed to feel the frustration of the progenitor Daedalus in his pursuit of perfect chaos.

Thanatos sighed, "I've already asked dear Revis to deploy all usable Xenos clones… Even now, Enyo and Ein still haven't appeared. I don't know what else I can do."

A faint gleam returned to Barca's eyes, and he muttered softly, "Unleashing those things inside the dungeon…"

Thanatos tilted his head, "Indeed, it will damage the Artificial Dungeon, but there's no other way. If we don't defeat the enemy, there's simply no future."

"By the way, dear Barca…", Thanatos silently leaned in, naturally wrapping an arm around Barca's shoulder.

"Are you thinking of betraying the Artificial Dungeon and joining the [Loki Familia]?", he whispered, his voice laced with probing chill.

Barca remained silent, just slightly lowered his head.

"To protect this Artificial Dungeon… are you thinking it might be better to betray us?", The god's voice struck precisely into Barca's heart.

Barca only wished to fulfill the ancestor's long-cherished desire, to complete the Artificial Dungeon.

For him, joining the Evilus and becoming a follower of Thanatos was just one means to that end.

He had remained loyal to Thanatos until now only because the god could help him expand the dungeon.

Therefore, if the Guild teamed up with the [Loki Familia] to completely wipe out those attempting to destroy the city, he could totally choose betrayal, hand over the intelligence, and surrender in order to protect himself.

"But even if you betray us and survive… do you think the Guild and Ouranus would allow you to continue expanding this Artificial Dungeon?"

Thanatos' voice, like a serpent's whisper, entered Barca's ears, "For the sake of the city's peace, any area connected to the Dungeon is a hidden danger… There's no way they'd permit such an obstruction to exist."

"Let's say, stepping back, even if the Guild decides to preserve and even expand the Artificial Dungeon, would this dungeon, its construction, its future, still be related to you, or to the bloodline of 'Daedalus'?"

The god chuckled, "And, what would happen to this 'Knossos' held in the city's hands?"

Thanatos spoke as if bestowing a divine revelation, pouring these dark, cold, and realistic words into Barca's heart.

"I understand…", Barca spoke softly, "After I leave, no one will be able to operate the 'doors.' The command, I leave to you."

He said no more and turned to walk toward the exit.

Under the gaze of the god, the builder of the Artificial Dungeon walked out of the command room and into total darkness.

———

Barca walked through the corridor like a wraith. As he passed a hidden room he once used as a workshop, he picked up a black book, Daedalus' Notebook.

After Dix's miserable death, Barca had retrieved this notebook, which contained the design of the Artificial Dungeon, without emotion.

Not long after, he arrived at a circular hall, slightly smaller than the Maze Master Hall, but still quite spacious. The ceiling was very high, the space wide like a small lecture hall.

"Dix… to think I'd have to rely on your 'resentment'… how hopeless," Barca murmured the name of the man who had already died.

Within the Artificial Dungeon, a self-destruct device.lay hidden. This device was limited to the eighth floor of the Artificial Dungeon and could destroy the "pillars" of this floor.

And the designer of this device was Dix.

This was the final rebellion left by the man Barca never truly regarded as a younger brother, against the progenitor "Daedalus."

Dix longed to be freed from the curse of blood. He may have once dreamed of perishing alongside this Artificial Dungeon, ending the endless bondage together.

Due to lack of time, this device was not yet fully constructed and probably could not wipe out all the intruders at once. However, what came next would be left to the power of the [Jewel].

"Now, I just have to wait for Loki Familia to reach the eighth floor…"

Even if it was just the collapse of one floor, it would cause significant damage to the Artificial Dungeon, built upon a delusion that took a thousand years.

To witness the completion of the Artificial Dungeon, that was the only desire in the heart of the man who had never seen sunlight, with pale skin, cold-hearted, and devoid of emotional turmoil. A wish related to his long-cherished goal, both a longing and an obsession he could not let go of.

Barca opened the modified notebook left by Dix, searching for the activation method of the self-destruct device.

However, just at that moment, a slicing sound pierced the air. A hand suddenly reached out from the front and crushed Barca's neck in an instant.

An irresistible force, too fast to react to, a fatal blow from an absolute powerhouse.

White long hair fluttered, brown skin smooth as silk, a curvy body, so beautiful one couldn't look away.

"Amazon…?", This was Barca's final thought before death.

Lv.6, [Kalima] Argana Kalif.

"Will this help Lord Emiya?", Argana asked toward what appeared to be empty air beside her.

"Yes, thank you for your hard work," The air rippled slightly, and a blue-haired woman holding a "black helmet" slowly appeared, "Thanks to your magic, we were able to track the enemy's location."

[Omnipotent One] Asfi Al Andromeda had been wearing her greatest magical tool creation, the invisibility item [Helmet of Hades], since entering the battlefield.

As a surprise strike force, they had acted at the most critical moment.

Barca Perdix, according to information provided by the god Ikelos, was Dix Perdix's half-brother and also a descendant of Daedalus.

For the conquest of the Artificial Dungeon, this builder was one of the most critical targets.

Barca's level was Lv.4. The difficulty in capturing or killing him wasn't in his combat power, but in how to find his location.

Coincidentally, in the port town of Meren near the city, a group of Amazons unable to return home due to lacking money to build ships were working odd jobs.

Among them was one who possessed the cursed skill [Kalima].

In Argana's hand was a sword, [Redfang Hound].

This magic sword had the ability to track blood traces. When combined with Argana's cursed skill [Kalima], it produced a special effect that could track the whereabouts of blood relatives based on someone's blood traces, whether sibling or sister.

To verify the feasibility of this method, both the [Phantom Tri Stars] and the [Hiryute Sisters] had shed considerable blood in the literal sense.

"As long as I could help Lord Emiya~", Argana licked her lips and gave a "sweet" smile that made even the [Omnipotent One] shudder.

'To provoke so many Amazons, and all of them so strong… that [Saber] sure is brave…', the human girl couldn't help but think.

Asfi walked to Barca's headless corpse and picked up the black notebook from the ground, Daedalus' Notebook, the design blueprint for the Artificial Dungeon.

"The enemy base is on the ninth floor," Asfi quickly flipped through the notebook and shouted into the communication crystal.

["Understood,"] On the other end of the crystal, Finn replied briefly.

Behind Asfi, the rest of the Hermes Familia were busy destroying the Artificial Dungeon's self-destruct device.

———

"—We've been played," Elsewhere, Thanatos, who was observing the adventurers' movements, closed his eyes in surrender and let out a long sigh.

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