Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darouka III – 03

「異端児ゼノス」 (Zenosu (Itan-ji))
“Xenos (Outliers)”

It seemed to good to be true when the Hestia family receive a mysterious letter inviting them to the 20th floor – especially in the immediate aftermath following Wiene’s incident in town. My blood boiled when the town denizens misconstrued her actions as an attack on the child, when she had in fact saved the child. They distorted a truth for the sake of convenience so that their twisted narrative could be fed. And it certainly looked bad when the Hestia familia were ambushed by loads of monsters.

However, it turns out to be some sort of test. These monsters are all sentient like Wiene. Intelligent and cognisant of the societal dynamics between monsters and mortals, they refer to themselves as Xenos. And they’ve formed something of a hidden community too. This is a place where these monsters can be safe, free from persecution and discrimination. So it’s a relief to see there’s a haven for Wiene to belong.

Perhaps more fascinating is how Ouranos actually has this grand vision where monsters and mortals can co-exist. I have to say I might have misjudged him, because he looked extremely shady. But so far, his intentions look good. I can’t imagine why integration between monsters and mortals would be a bad thing – unless it’s a secret plan to make the monsters go berserk and attack mortals when they least expect it. If Wiene’s visions suggest anything.

After all, Ouranos is in charge of the guild. And we don’t know if he has any secret links to Evilus. Maybe they stand to financially benefit from the surge in quests, should there be a sudden drive within society to exterminate monsters. That would be a really dark turn. But as long as Bell can protect Wiene’s smile and keep her safe, I’ll be able to make it through. Seeing him shake hands with the Xenos leader for Wiene’s sake, in spite of his fear, made for a truly heartwarming moment – the elation on her face being my highlight.

Now, what next? Even if there are idealistic intentions behind the Xenos project, the townspeople still haven’t come around to that idea. Ikelos’ familia also remain at large, capturing and ruthlessly enslaving – if not slaughtering Xenos they find within the dungeon. Fuck Dix. All my homies hate Dix. They also followed Hestia’s familia into the 20th floor, so I’m expecting violent confrontation where blood will inevitably be shed. Hopefully nothing bad happens to these sincere folks who are working towards a better world. One where Wiene can freely live in the sunlight without fear of discrimination.

Anyway, that’s about everything I wanted to discuss. As always, thanks for reading this post – and see you all next week for regular seasonal coverage!