Knossos(3)

'tonf'

Landing on the ground, Mark looked around carefully, but apart from the fact that he was still in the labyrinthine, he saw no sign of monsters or his comrades. He kind of imagined it, since he dived into a different hole from them, but being in the enemy base completely alone was not the best.

"I'm seriously starting to wonder if all my luck has been used up by my reincarnation." -Mark sighed.

Too many times he had found himself in problematic situations where he risked losing his life, and the fact that he was getting used to it depressed him quite a bit.

[But thanks to that the host was able to grow up faster].

Mark couldn't deny the Guide's words, but every now and then he hoped that things might go his way just once.

"Well, let's go in that direction."

Although Mark may have seemed calm, he felt a strong sense of unease. Finn had suffered a serious injury and whether it was fatal or not he did not know, but of one thing he was certain. If Finn died, the Loki Familia was destined to collapse in no time.

'Don't you dare die, I really don't feel like joining the Freya Familia.'

He began to run, he had to find a way to the surface or rejoin another group, but it was not a simple matter. It wasn't up to him to decide where he was going, if he wanted to turn right he couldn't because there was a closed door so he was forced to turn left or vice versa. All he was doing was going down a road set by someone else.

"Continuing like this makes no sense."

Stopping, he began to think. Since they had entered, the Evilus had led them where they wanted to go, but the question was, how were they doing it? In the labyrinthine corridors, there was nothing-

"No, there is something."

Seized with realization, he approached the gargoyle statue, one of many he had seen since they had ended up there. He looked at it carefully, but other than the fact that it was well made, there was nothing unusual about it, or at least there wasn't until he saw the Falna inside the statue's eyes move. If it wasn't for the fact that he had moved closer and focused his attention on the eyes, he most likely wouldn't have noticed.

"Ehh, so that was it."

A smile formed on his lips as he destroyed the statue's eyes.

Having discovered the secret of how they could find him, he continued running, but this time he was paying attention to where the Falna focused, spotting various eyes that were not only on the statues but in every decoration in the labyrinth.

"Let us continue."

(Change of perspective.)

Inside a large room covered in what appeared to be roots, present on the ninth floor of Knossos, several figures were watching with amusement the scenes that were happening through displays that were being produced from an eerie-looking pedestal with a jewel set on it.

"Oi Barca, the screen is having trouble."

The woman who spoke was the goddess Ishtar, the ruler of the red light district and one of those responsible for the chaos in Melen. She had the skin color and eyes typical of Amazons but her hair was purple. She dressed in a thin layer of clothes that barely covered the necessary areas and every part of her body seemed to scream eroticism.

"It's not the pedestal's fault. It seems someone from the Loki Family has figured out how we watch them... this is the second time I've been surprised today."

Barca watched almost spellbound as more screens were blacked out. The work his ancestors had begun a millennium earlier was already beginning to be understood by enemy forces, increasing his desire to improve his work.

"Oh, this just won't do."

Placing his hand in front of his mouth as if outraged by the situation, Thanatos snapped his fingers, causing a member of his Familia/fanatic to approach and kneel in front of him.

"Go to Valletta and warn her of the situation. Tell her that a mouse has escaped from the group and is gnawing on something it shouldn't." -The god said, smiling.

"Ah!"

The man nodded and hurried out and Thanatos began to walk away too.

"Where are you going, don't you want to enjoy the show?" -Ishtar asked him.

"Of course I do, but I saw two elves heading to an interesting area, keep my seat warm."

Waving nonchalantly, the god walked away, leaving only Ishtar and Barca.

"Let me see your desperation Loki Familia" -Smiling smugly, she shifted her gaze back to the displays.

(Back to Mark.)

'zap!'

"They are everywhere!"

Throwing an electric dart into another eye, he immediately changed direction.

By now he didn't even know where he was anymore. Standing still was not an option, and even if he ran he had to be careful not to be spotted, and once he destroyed those types of cameras, he was forced to change direction so that enemies wouldn't know where he was going.

"Now where?"

Looking at the fork in front of him, he pondered whether to go right or left, but since the two paths seemed identical, he finally decided to choose the former, even though he would soon regret it.

He continued running down the long corridor without encountering any monsters or cameras, and when he finally thought he was lucky, fate laughed at his thought. In fact, as soon as he turned the corner what awaited him made him stop suddenly.

"Ohh! There's the little mouse that is-"

"Flashbang!"

Mark had no intention of listening to a psychopath's monologue and threw four 'flashbangs' before running in the direction from which he had come. He was not so arrogant as to fight a level 5 adventurer along with other henchmen between level 2 and 1.

Concentrating his aura on his legs, the speed at which he was running increased, making him get closer and closer to the crossroads from before, but before he could do so, a gate lowered from the ceiling, blocking his way.

"HAHAHA! Did you seriously think you could run away?" -Laughed Valletta amusedly.

"You know how it is, hope is the last to give." -Said Mark with a shrug as he drew his sword.

"...Mark Tormeto, also known as Lost Prince. One of the Loki Familia's greatest promises who reached level 3 in record time. I wonder what a genius cries out when he's about to die."

"Although it does me honour to know that I have become a target, don't you think there are more important preys? Although I haven't been in the Loki Familia for long, I can say that Finn will recover quickly from his injuries."

Mark had no problem shifting the crosshairs to another person if it meant living, but Valletta's slight smile unsettled him.

"Right, it's normal for you to think that way since you haven't seen the wound yourself." -Valletta's smile grew bigger and bigger.

"First, this floor is completely blocked. Second, you should know that the weapons we use and the one that was used against Finn are special." -She said, pointing to her broadsword with several spikes on the sides.

"They are called cursed weapons. Do you want to know what curse they inflict?"

By now Valletta's laughter could no longer be restrained, causing Mark's expression to harden as he realized he was in a very bad situation.

"It makes it impossible to heal wounds either through potions/magic or halves the effectiveness of status, hahaha!"

After she had laughed enough, she sighed contentedly and returned her gaze to him, smiling.

"Anyway, it's time for you to die. Ah but don't worry, your friends will join you soon."

Laughing maniacally, she pulled out the jewel with which the doors of the labyrinth were controlled and after it lit up, several holes opened in the ground from which several monsters began to emerge and before Mark could think of using them to escape as before, they closed.

Now what remained in front of Mark, was a group of hungry monsters and enemies that had a level 5 between them.

'... Guide, next time you decide the direction.'

[...]

(General perspective.)

The situation of the Loki Familia was worse than ever. The two initial groups had split into several sub-groups with no more than five members.

Bete's group had gone berserk after being inflicted with a curse of confusion, causing them to fight each other.

Gareth's group was fighting against Evilus members who were using explosives to blow themselves up. Unfortunately, their status was unknown after they ended up in a corridor filled with explosives that were triggered by a suicide attack by an Evilus member.

Tiona and Tione's group was in turn split in two and the sisters were no longer together. Tiona who was together with another member was attacked by what appeared to be assassins and after being wounded by a cursed weapon that halved status, she was suffering more and more injuries. While for Tiona's group the situation became unfamiliar as they were inundated with the poison of the poison vermis, one of the most poisonous monsters in the dungeon.

Aiz, who was left alone, was continuing to travel through the labyrinth, hoping to meet someone, not knowing that unconsciously she was approaching a room that was calling to her.

The remaining groups who did not have the support of one of the level 6, found themselves having to fight endless hordes of monsters without a moment's rest.

Finally, the two elves were the luckiest. Throughout their journey they encountered only a few monsters, arriving at a room where there was a strange mural on the wall. There was a picture of a dragon coiled on itself and six female figures surrounding it.

"That dragon-"

"His name is Nidhogg."

"Who is it?!"

Lefiya and Filvis turned quickly, spotting a man, or rather a god dressed in what looked like a robe made from raven feathers.

"You must know that before the monsters of the three great quests appeared, there was an existence that dominated the land, sowing fear, and despair."

"Who are you?" -Lefiya asked him, sensing the aura of a god from the man.

"Forgive my rudeness. My name is Thanatos, the last of what they called an evil god and guardian of Evilus." -Thanatos said, bowing politely.

"...Are you responsible for all this?" -Lefiya asked suspiciously.

"Oh heavens no, all I did was to welcome. See those murals, the new species, and those people who possess a magic crystal in their bodies that you call creatures? They were all brought by one person." -Explained the god patiently.

"Who is this person?" -Lefiya continued to ask, hoping to gain new information.

"I don't know." -The god lifted his shoulders.

"How do you not know?!" -Shouted Filvis.

"It is so, you must believe me. Besides the fact that he wants to wreak havoc in this land and that he calls himself Enyo, I know nothing, not even whether he is a god or a mortal." -Said the helpless god.

"That doesn't make sense...you are a god aren't you? Why do you want to destroy Orario?"

"You must know that, like many other gods, I am the god of death and reincarnation. My task was to give them a good scrubbing so that they could be ready to reincarnate. It was tiring but rewarding, at least my role was easier than the wise Hades."

"If that's the case then-"

"BUT things changed with time." -The god interrupted Lefiya.

"In the past, souls came one after the other, because of wars or monsters, but the presence of Orario changed everything. It sealed the dungeon, and its presence prevented the other nations from expanding and making war on each other. Now everything is so peaceful, people are smiling, life has increased and the terror of monsters has almost disappeared from people's hearts... haaa how I miss those times when people died daily."

The god's dead gaze rested on the two elves, who took a step back unconsciously from the madness he emanated.

"What about your followers?"

"Oh they are the funniest." -The god became smiling again.

"I offer them a pact in which once I return to heaven, I will make sure to guide their souls into reincarnation along with their loved ones, and in return, they will carry out any command I give, but do you want to know the funniest thing? I warned them that once reincarnated they would lose their memory but they say they are special and will remember everything and you know what I tell them then?"

The god looked at them as his smile became more distorted.

"With human's potential and from the intensity of your feelings, a miracle will surely happen that will surprise even us gods... HAHAHAHA! You must see how they then cry full of hope and gratitude, you don't know how many times I almost burst out laughing."

Seeing how the god was amused by people's misery, Lefiya clutched her staff even tighter.

"You monster!"

"Supreme Thanatos!"

"Take the members of the Loki Familia!"

"Oops, looks like I've kept you guys for too long."

In no time, the two elves were surrounded by the various members of Evilus.

"Lefiya cover your eyes."

FIlvis recited an abbreviated magic chant and from her magic wand came a light that blinded all the enemies around.

"Now run!"

Taking Lefiya's hand, the two elves ran from the room, pursued by the Evilus members who had recovered.

Meanwhile, Thanatos watched the elves with a smile as he returned to the monitoring room, ignoring the concern the followers had for him.