21.

Dungeon – 13th Floor

The battle was over.

The Almiraj pack lay defeated, their unnatural coordination disrupted.

But the mystery remained.

Orcbolg turned his gaze back to Ais and her team.

"You're not here for a normal expedition."

Ais met his stare. She hesitated for a moment—then nodded.

A Mission from Loki

Bete clicked his tongue. "Tch. Figures you'd notice."

Lefiya adjusted her glasses. "We're here because of the same thing you are… the monsters are acting strangely."

Orcbolg didn't speak. He simply waited for them to explain.

Ais continued, "Loki heard reports from other Familia. Monsters fighting differently. Smarter. More coordinated. So she sent us to investigate."

Bete crossed his arms. "We thought it was just low-level adventurers panicking over nothing. But after seeing that? Something's definitely off."

Lefiya added, "We were supposed to confirm if there was a pattern. But those symbols…" She turned to the markings on the dungeon wall. "This isn't normal Dungeon behavior."

Orcbolg studied the symbol again.

It wasn't just random scratches.

It had structure.

Meaning.

Ais tilted her head. "Do you recognize it?"

Orcbolg was silent.

He had seen markings like these before.

Not here.

But in his past.

Memories of Another World

The goblins in his world… they had shamans.

They left marks like these. Symbols meant to guide, coordinate, or empower their kin.

If this was the same—

Then something intelligent was guiding the monsters.

Orcbolg finally spoke. "It's a sign. A command."

Lefiya's face paled. "T-Then that means… there's something controlling them?"

Bete growled. "Tch. Who the hell would bother controlling monsters?"

Ais's expression didn't change, but her grip on her sword tightened.

"This goes deeper than we thought."

Orcbolg nodded.

Their goals had aligned.

For now.

A Temporary Alliance

Ais turned to him. "You're investigating this too."

It wasn't a question.

Orcbolg nodded. "Yes."

Ais considered for a moment, then spoke:

"Then let's work together. At least for today."

Bete scoffed. "Tch. You're really trusting helmet-guy that fast?"

Ais didn't answer.

Lefiya sighed. "W-Well… he did help us back there."

Orcbolg said nothing.

Then—he simply nodded.

For now, they had the same goal.

He would work with them.