"Xenos, huh? Sentient monsters... interesting. Can you talk?" I ask looking in their direction, but at no one in particular.

"Yes, I can." A gruff voice resounds from the back of the group of monsters as they step aside to make way for a large, green Dragon. "My name is Gryuu, and I'm the leader of this group."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Fenrir, God of Beasts and Monsters." I say before the Xenos all start to whisper among each other, looking really excited.

I then turn to Alice. "So why, specifically, did you call me here?"

"They're in trouble." Alice says, holding a cute Al-Miraj in her arms. (White bunny with red eyes and a horn on her forehead.) "Monsters attack them, adventurers attack them. And they only have one place they can stay safely hidden away."

Despite having my Arcanum sealed and therefore my senses dulled, I sense two pairs of eyes on us that don't belong to anyone present.

I let a bit of magic stream from my hand, along the ground, towards the back of the invisible scrying portal being used. The magic surrounds it before I then let the magic infuse into it as I take control over the small portal.

I snap my head in its direction and undo the invisibility magic, revealing a skeleton wearing a dark cloak and an old man wearing a similar garb, sitting on a throne.

"Hello Ouranos, there a reason you're spying on us?"

"Quite perceptive of you, Lord Fenrir." Ouranos says, retaining a stoic expression without showing any sign of surprise whatsoever. "Not even a god has ever been able to see through Fels' magic.

For the last few years, I've been trying to protect these Xenos. It has been my hope that one day they might peacefully coexist with the races on the surface."

"I see. Is that what you want as well?" I ask Gryuu.

"Yes, we want to be able to live on the surface without having to fear for our lives all day, every day." Gryuu says dejectedly. "We have lost five of our kin over the last few months alone. Three to adventurers and two to monsters."

"Alright then." I say as I turn back to face Ouranos. "I know pretty much everything pertaining to the dungeon falls under your authority, but not this, not anymore. I am the God of Monsters. I am their God. I will take care of this problem myself, and you can just go back to focusing your attention on whatever it is you usually do." I say before closing the scrying portal without waiting for a response.

"That scrying spell needed an anchor. That skeleton gave you something. I need it." I say, holding out my hand.

"He gave us this, to contact him in case of emergency." Gryuu says as he takes a yellow-golden marble between two claws and puts it in my hand.

I crush it and throw it on the ground. "Good, now we can speak privately.

You guys want to go to the surface, but you can't. We can't exactly walk you out through the entrance either. Adventurers would go berserk.

We could dig a tunnel from the dungeon, under Orario, to our Familia compound outside the city, but that would take years.

There is another way... but it will require some careful planning." I say as I think carefully.

"What is it?" Alice asks.

"A thousand years ago, when Daedalus finished building the tower of Babel, he built Daedalus street. But what most people don't know is that he only built Daedalus Street to hide a bigger project he wanted to work on in secret.

He had grown obsessed with the dungeon and wanted to build his own version.

But in building the huge projects, Babel and Daedalus Street he had become old, and by the time he started building the man-made labyrinth, Knossos, he was already dying.

Knowing he would not have time to finish Knossos, he cursed his own bloodline with his obsession and knowledge of his plans for the labyrinth.

His descendants were as obsessed as he was and were forced to continue building Knossos.

Now, after a thousand years, they have only managed to make it as deep as the middle floors, where it is connected to the dungeon on the southside of the 18th floor."

"How does that help exactly?" Gryuu asks.

"My plan is to take control over Knossos by lifting the bloodcurse on Daedalus' descendants and then we use it to smuggle you out." I explain.

"Do you really think that would work?" Gryuu asks. "And what about the Xenos who will be born in the future?"

"You can come back into the dungeon with a party of my Familia by acting like tamed monsters. And then you can look for other Xenos.

But first, there is still another problem. The Dungeon and Knossos are connected on floor 18, which is a safe space where adventurers gather.

Taking Xenos there is almost as dangerous as simply walking them out through the entrance.

We'll have to connect Knossos to the Dungeon on floors 17 and 19."

"Gryuu! Will we really be able to go out to the surface? Can we see the sun and a blue sky?" A young Harpy asks excitedly.

"Yes, I believe we finally will." Gryuu answers her, before he turns to me. "Thank you Lord Fenrir. We will patiently await the day you show us the light, and until then, if there's anything we can do to help, you need only ask."

----

Using a reverse summoning spell, I returned to the surface.

Now I'm standing inside the I Am Ganesha, outside Ganesha's room.

Suddenly the door opens and two Azure-haired women walk out. One of them is middle-aged and the other is in her early twenties.

"Oh, Lord Fenrir, hello. This is Shakti Varma, my niece, she will be replacing me as captain of the Familia. I'm showing her the ropes before I retire next month." Captain Mata says.

"It's nice to meet you Lord Fenrir." Shakti says politely.

"Nice to meet you too Shakti." I say, before turning to Mata. "What will you do after you retire? After a life of adventure, doing nothing must seem dull."

"Oh no, Lord Fenrir, I actually look forward to spending my days in peace with my husband, raising our daughters."

"That sounds great, good luck Mata." I say before entering Ganesha's room. "Ganesha! You been keeping secrets from me?!"

"Whaa?! Noo, me? Never." Ganesha says, nervously avoiding eye contact before taking a sip of tea.

"I know about the Xenos."

*Pfffft!* Ganesha spits his tea all over the table in front of him.

"How?!" He asks surprised.

"My Familia, they stumbled upon them by chance. As God of Monsters, I've taken responsibility of them.

The Monster Filia... it's to educate people about monsters isn't it? So that the people might one day become accepting of the Xenos?" I ask Ganesha as I sit in a chair across from him.

"Yes it is. Ouranos asked me to do it after he explained everything to me. Speaking of which, does Ouranos know all this?"

"Yes, he does... mostly.

Since you already know about them, I'm going to need you to help me take care of the Xenos.

I already have a plan to get them out of the Dungeon. But this is what I want from you." I say as I slip him a note. "What do you need to get it done?"

He picks it up and starts reading.

"A day, and I'm also going to need Huginn and Muninn to help."

"Done." I say as I stand up to leave.

"There's something you might want to know.

Loki and Freya are teaming up to kick you out of Orario."

"Yeah? What else is new?" I say sarcastically.

"Well, word on the street is, they're getting support from the shadows. Some organization has been supplying them with weapons, armors, money and even manpower.

Someone really wants you gone."

"Thank you, Ganesha. Keep your ears to the ground for me, will you?"

"No problem. Be careful out there." Ganesha says as I walk out.