The period right after an Expedition ended was always delicate—especially this one.
It had been far from ordinary, and there was a mountain of information waiting to leak out. Many gods had already turned their eyes toward the Loki Familia.
"Did that recent Dungeon 'anomaly' affect Rivira too?"
Hermes leaned back in his chair, scanning the latest report that had arrived just a day after sending his captain to investigate.
Apparently, Rivira had been hit by a monster surge so sudden it nearly overwhelmed its defense force. The timing matched perfectly with the days when those Dungeon abnormalities had begun.
"Besides the monster wave, there was also an early respawn of the Amphisbaena. This anomaly's way bigger than we thought."
He tapped the paper lightly, eyes narrowing. "But that's not even the strange part. What's really odd is that the Loki Familia cut their Expedition short—and came back together with the Astraea Familia. Now that's suspicious."
Hermes could smell something unusual.
"The Dungeon anomaly, the Loki kids' premature return, and Astraea's group traveling back with them… all these threads line up perfectly."
"And the one variable tying them all together," he said, smiling faintly, "is obvious."
"The remnants of the Dark Faction that weren't wiped out three years ago."
Who else could cause disturbances deep within the Dungeon, force the Loki Familia to retreat early, and drag Astraea's children into the chaos? There weren't many individuals—or groups—capable of such disruption in all of Orario.
Right now, only the Dark Faction fit the bill.
"If their target from the start was Astraea's children, and the Loki Familia just got caught in the middle, everything makes sense."
Asfi, sitting nearby with her arms folded, frowned. "That does sound plausible, Lord Hermes. But there's something that doesn't add up."
She tilted her head. "How could the Dark Faction target Astraea's Familia when most of them were wiped out three years ago? The Astraea Familia might not have a Level 7 or 6, but they've got at least nine Level 4s. A ragtag bunch of Evilus leftovers couldn't possibly take them on. It's absurd."
Hermes smiled, completely unfazed by her skepticism. "That question's actually easier to answer than you think."
He leaned forward slightly. "Asfi, who do you think caused the Dungeon anomaly? Those lunatics wouldn't try to ambush Astraea's children without being fully prepared."
"They must've discovered some method inside the Dungeon—something that allowed them to launch an ambush. But whatever they did also triggered the chain of 'abnormalities' we've seen recently."
Asfi nodded slowly. "That… actually makes sense." She paused before adding, "But if the Dark Faction was so confident in this method, then why didn't they succeed? How did Astraea's Familia come back without losing a single member?"
She frowned deeper. "Don't tell me it was pure luck—that the Loki Familia just happened to stumble across them at the perfect moment and saved them by coincidence?"
"That's…" Hermes trailed off, his confident tone faltering.
She had a point. It sounded far too neat—too convenient.
Even he couldn't explain it with the current evidence. His theory was just that: speculation. Without proof, it was meaningless.
"We don't have enough information to draw solid conclusions yet," Hermes admitted finally. "But what we can assume is that the Dark Faction most likely launched an attack against Astraea's group. Otherwise, it's impossible to explain the Dungeon's week-long disturbances."
Asfi didn't argue. The only gaps left were why the Dark Faction would risk provoking such an anomaly—and how Astraea's children managed to escape unharmed.
"There's another question too," she said. "How did Loki know about the Dungeon so early?"
Hermes looked up.
"Without any direct communication, how did she get such timely intel? And Astraea's reaction—she clearly knew Loki's children had run into hers. Otherwise, there's no way a goddess like Astraea would've accepted Loki's invitation so easily."
"In other words," Asfi concluded, "the real mystery isn't Astraea or the Dark Faction. It's Loki's Familia."
Hermes's gaze sharpened. After a brief pause, he nodded.
"Exactly. If Astraea's group returned safely, it's probably thanks to Loki's children."
He tapped his finger lightly against the table, then made up his mind.
"Asfi, keep an eye on 'the Extraordinary Man.'"
He smirked. "The Loki Familia's Expedition ended much earlier than planned. I'd wager that 'extraordinary husband' of theirs will be visiting the Pleasure Quarter soon to blow off some steam."
"Have someone tail him. We'll pay him a visit afterward—see what stories he's willing to share."
Asfi nodded in understanding.
The so-called "Extraordinary Man" was infamous among information brokers. When tempted by beauty and drink, he tended to spill every last detail he knew.
As for accuracy? Asfi wasn't worried.
Adventurers couldn't lie in front of gods. With Hermes himself present, any falsehood would be seen through instantly. And even if his perception somehow failed, Ishtar certainly wouldn't miss it.
There was no way both gods could be fooled at once.
Confident in that, Asfi stood to prepare for the operation.
"Raul," Loki said sweetly, though her smile didn't reach her eyes, "if you pull this off today, we'll call all your past screw-ups even."
Her tone darkened. "But if you mess this up… I'll personally crush half your future happiness."
Raul froze, sweat pouring down his neck.
He knew Loki wasn't joking. She never joked about punishment.
Even with all the mental preparation in the world, her words hit like a blade to the spine.
This was it. His one shot to redeem himself—or lose everything that made life worth living.
If she shattered half his happiness, the other half wouldn't survive long either.
"I'll succeed, Lady Loki!" he shouted, chest swelling with determination.
At that moment, Raul Nord was more resolute than he had ever been in his entire life.