"The Archisus Church Always Seems to Play the Villain"

"Installation complete! I'm going to detonate it, so fall back!"

Everyone gathered watched with expressions mixed with worry and anticipation. This was a massive construction project that had mobilized every single person present. If this didn't work, they would have to rethink their strategy for clearing the labyrinth dungeon from scratch. What would happen?

Rumble... The sound of the explosion slowly rose from below. It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wasn't a single blast that went off all at once. Slowly, in a chain reaction... like a rolling snowball growing larger, the roar of the explosions intensified. Ruuuumble!

"!"

"!!!!!"

It was a skill created by a madman who had been inspired by a massive earthquake. By randomly consuming a portion of one's stats, they could imbue a bomb with the power of an earthquake. Just as Tae-hyun had obtained skills in the past, this skill was awarded as a reward for the success of this massive earthquake. However, there was no time to celebrate. An unbelievable sight was unfolding right before their eyes.

As the walls made of chaotic power crashed into each other, the surrounding area was turned upside down with a terrifying, deafening impact.

"Wait..."

"..."

Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon stared at each other in bewilderment. This was not the outcome they had anticipated. It was great that the walls had collapsed, but they were getting stronger?

"...!"

Once the walls erected by the Hungry Chaos collided and vanished, the minions who had been separated began to growl at one another. Even though they served the same master, they possessed not an ounce of camaraderie. In an instant, a hellish war broke out.

"Screeeech!"

"Wipe out those ghouls over there!"

The ghoul army and the werewolf army clashed fiercely. At the same time, Orc warriors and Elf archers engaged in a brutal skirmish.

Tae-hyun unconsciously turned his gaze to his father.

"...Why are you looking at me?"

Is this punk looking at me because I'm an Orc...?

Tae-hyun snapped out of it and spoke.

"Let's move in now!"

At first glance, charging into that chaotic mess sounded like ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠madness, but Tae-hyun was dead serious. When your enemies were fighting each other, that was your golden opportunity. If the Hungry Chaos intervened, separated them, and restored their senses, the chance would be lost forever. Now, while the earthquake had turned the area into a disaster zone and they were tearing each other apart, was the perfect time!

"Paladins, forward!"

As Tae-hyun urgently barked the order, the church NPCs stepped forward without even realizing it. Normally, they would have hesitated and held their ground a bit longer...

"Charge! Paladins, act as our shields and carve a path!"

"Wow. Those paladins are incredibly nice. To actually follow such a dog-shit order."

The Orc Ahjussis whispered among themselves from the back.

"What in the world is happening?!"

Standing atop the castle walls, Igoloyak, the Lord of the Labyrinth Castle who guarded the fortress at the center of the Labyrinth of Hungry Chaos, looked out with a face full of shock. The walls personally bestowed by the Hungry Chaos had collapsed into one another, and the minions were tearing each other apart. To waste the power of infinite multiplication on such a foolish brawl!

"You absolute fools!"

Igoloyak seethed with rage, but there was little he could do in this situation. No matter how powerful a vassal he was, and despite being the Lord of the Labyrinth Castle, he could not control such a massive horde of frenzied minions.

"There's the castle of the Hungry Chaos! Charge!"

And amidst that chaos, the Expedition emerged, charging forward while radiating a brilliant holy light. They marched majestically, hoisting the banners of their respective churches high!

Igoloyak ground his teeth. It was always the churches of the continent that interfered with the work of the Hungry Chaos. Why couldn't they just squabble greedily amongst themselves like the other kingdoms? Instead, they always banded together to invade like this!

Igoloyak stood atop the castle wall and roared.

"You detestable church hypocrites! You never tire of invading, do you? Do you truly believe you can mask your ugly, corrupt hearts with that light?!"

The Lord of the Labyrinth Castle was incredibly powerful, but the levels of the Archbishops opposing him were no joke either. Since the Expedition was composed strictly of the elite forces of each church, their specs were so high that anyone under level 500 wasn't even allowed to join.

Seeing the various Archbishops rushing toward the base of the castle, Igoloyak shifted his strategy.

"But do you fools know this? You simpletons who know nothing but the Hammer of Phytos? Do you know what those sweat-stained warriors of the Tyran Church say behind your backs? The warriors of Tyran claim they are the strongest fighters on the continent! They call the paladins of the Phytos Church nothing but brainless cowards who hide behind thick armor!"

Igoloyak was powerful, but having served under the Hungry Chaos for so long, he was also highly knowledgeable. He knew exactly how to exploit the friction and bad blood between the different churches.

"...Do you truly think we would fall for such cheap provocation?"

However, Huridos, the Archbishop of the Phytos Church, remained unshaken.

Thank goodness, Tae-hyun thought, letting out a sigh of relief. Though they usually whined and acted like a nuisance, the Archbishops of each church still possessed the dignity of high-ranking figures. They wouldn't be easily swayed by such petty tricks.

"Oh? You won't fall for it? Then how about this? The Pure White Silver Hammer! Do you know who took that silver hammer? The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠warriors of the Tyran Church stole it!"

"...?!!"

Huridos stared at the Archbishop of the Tyran Church with wide, shocked eyes. The Archbishop of the Tyran Church waved his hands in a panic.

"It's a misunderstanding!"

"Misunderstanding, my foot! Do you know what they said? They said that such a powerful hammer was far too good to be wasted on those fools of the Phytos Church!"

"Is that... true...?"

"That is not what we meant!"

"Look! He admitted it! Bwahahaha!"

Until now, the vassals of the Hungry Chaos had been brutish thugs who only knew how to use raw strength... but Igoloyak was on an entirely different level. The Archbishop of the Tyran Church hurriedly tried to explain himself.

"That Pure White Silver Hammer is an incredibly powerful artifact, and our church had a genuine need for it as well!"

"That item is a holy relic of our church!"

"Don't talk nonsense! It was never officially registered as a holy relic of the Phytos Church. Just because it's a hammer doesn't mean it automatically belongs to the Phytos Church!"

Watching the two Archbishops bicker back and forth, Igoloyak smiled with deep satisfaction. Then, he turned his sights to his next target.

"Bishops of the Neibaku Church, are you listening?"

"...We maintain amicable relations with all other churches."

The Neibaku Church worshipped the God of the Sea and Water. Since they primarily catered to sailors, navigators, and fishermen, they rarely had reasons to clash with other religious orders.

"Of course you do! But does the Church of Beretarba feel the same way? Did you know that those Beretarba bastards performed a ritual using a statue of your god on one of your sacred ships?!"

"W-What?!"

This time, it was the Archbishop of the Church of Beretarba's turn to make excuses.

"It was merely a simple blessing ritual!"

"What kind of absolute nonsense is that?! What on earth did you do to our god?!"

Beretarba was the God of Love. Performing a ritual using another deity's statue likely meant they had conducted a ceremony depicting that deity falling in love with Beretarba. From the perspective of the other church, this was an incredibly frustrating insult. If they wanted to celebrate love, they should do it on their own, rather than dragging other gods into their baseless, scandalous fanfiction.

Wow. It turns out the other churches have a bit of the Archisus spirit in them too.

Tae-hyun was slightly touched by the unfolding chaos. He had thought the Archisus Church was the only one disrupting the peace of the continent, but looking at them now, everyone had been acting pretty selfishly behind closed doors.

Igoloyak scanned the crowd for his next target. There wasn't much to exploit with the Demer Church... Wait, what?

"...Is that the Archisus Church? Wait, why are those bastards here with you?!"

Igoloyak asked in utter bewilderment. No matter how he looked at it, it was an incredibly bizarre combination. The Archisus Church marching alongside the orthodox churches? What was this? Did they blackmail them into coming?

Instead of answering, Tae-hyun prepared to attack. If he let this go on any longer, the alliance of churches might completely disintegrate.

"Listen to me, paladins of all churches! I understand your resentment and that there are misunderstandings between you! The Archisus Church has also suffered from many such misunderstandings!"

"Those weren't misunderstandings..."

"But there is nothing more foolish than bickering amongst ourselves in front of a vassal of the Hungry Chaos!"

"But those bastards have our hammer!"

"Do not worry! Once we take down that boss, I will personally set up an arena where those with grudges can fight it out!"

"..."

"..."

The players listening to him wore expressions of utter disbelief. Wait... weren't you trying to make peace? The atmosphere was getting so heartwarming just a second ago...!

"You can slaughter each other then! But for now, we fight the Hungry Chaos!"

"But..."

"Anyone who objects to my command right now is a minion of the Hungry Chaos!"

"..."

Since objecting to his command would brand them as a minion of the Hungry Chaos, no one dared to open their mouth.

Igoloyak ground his teeth. Indeed, among all the churches of the continent, none were as troublesome as the Archisus Church.

"Fine! I shall make you regret ever stepping foot into the domain of the Hungry Chaos, you arrogant pests. Come forth, my servants!"

Tae-hyun tensed up. Judging by the vassals of the Hungry Chaos they had faced so far, Igoloyak's level would be at least 700 to 800. Furthermore, considering the skills he likely possessed... even with the combined might of the churches, they had to give it everything they had!

Grrrr! Giant demons, their entire bodies bound in heavy iron chains and their mouths gagged, burst forth from the summoning circles. These were demons of the Demon Realm whom Igoloyak had personally captured and imprisoned with the chains of chaos!

"Behold, church dogs! Gaze upon this legion of demons from the Demon Realm. Could mortals like you have ever even imagined such a sight? This is the true power of the Hungry Chaos! Bow before our might!"

At Igoloyak's grand declaration, the Dwarves in the back wore incredibly embarrassed expressions.

"Does that guy have no shame?"

"Seriously. Acting like that's some kind of big deal."

Seeing the Expedition react with such utter indifference, Igoloyak was taken aback. What is this?

"...?!"

Only then did Igoloyak ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠notice the demon cages positioned behind the Archisus Artillery. His eyes nearly popped out of his head. What in the world is that?!