Chapter 12 Dungeon Exploration

Their hands stopped moving.

They were caught by surprise at the sight of the monster's bloody face staring at them.

The two adventurers looked around the room.

There were a dozen dead monsters lying around the room. Each corpse had been killed by a single blow.

Ian and Asuna froze up and were unable to move.

But Gavin approached the fallen monsters and inspected them closely.

He noticed that their bodies were covered in wounds, and that their heads had been severed. The two adventurers followed Gavin's gaze.

Then Gavin noticed something more.

Small pieces of cloth decorated the fallen monsters. It was clearly a disguise.

Gavin was about to explain further when he noticed Ian and Asuna looking at him with blank expressions.

He looked up at the ceiling.

The cavern ceiling was wide enough to walk across.

Then he saw it: a large hole in the roof.

"—We need to leave this area."

The cave ceiling broke apart and the rocks fell to the ground. Several pieces struck them.

Ian and Asuna ran outside of the underground lake, which had become a pit.

"—What just happened?" Asuna asked.

Gavin shook his head.

He did not have an answer.

***

Fallbay City

The town was located near the border between the continent of Eldant and the kingdom of Ertas. It was built on the edge of a cliff.

For a while now, adventurers had been coming to the town in droves, all to hunt monsters or gather materials. The city was growing larger every day, and it was beginning to take shape. But even so, it wasn't as large as Gavin remembered it being during his childhood.

On one side of the city, there was an enormous wall surrounding the entire city. It was said that this wall protected the town from monsters, evil spirits, and various other threats.

Fallbay was not a large city, but it had plenty of shops and inns, and the people were friendly.

Most people in the town were either fishermen or merchants.

Fishermen were busy selling fish. Some sold exotic goods from far lands. Merchants from other countries supplied their wares in exchange for gold coins.

These people were happy to sell anything to anyone, but they were also very particular.

If a customer bought a cheap trinket, he might be given a bonus item free. Or if a buyer purchased a large quantity, he would receive a discount. These were common practices among these merchants.

Ian and Asuna had been invited to a party by some of the locals, and were sitting at a table with five other adventurers.

Each of them was trading their items for coin.

The other adventurers soon noticed a merchant who had been watching them since they arrived in the tavern.

The merchant seemed to be traveling alone, and was carrying a heavy pack on his back.

He wore leather armor under a black robe, over a leather shirt. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of glasses.

At first glance, the merchant looked like a rather ordinary man.

However, his appearance changed drastically when he spoke:

"—Hah!"

His voice sounded as if he drank something alcoholic.

Ian and Asuna looked at him, but he was already gone.

A tall elf man leaned forward.

He wore a white robe that matched the color of his blond hair.

He was accompanied by three elves, all with the same hair. The elves were all tall and thin, with green eyes and pale complexions.

The elves wore leather armor, and carried swords on their backs.

The elves spoke with pride:

"—Welcome to our humble home—the Elven Village."

The elf gestured to the vast forest that surrounded the village.

"…And welcome to my humble shop."

An elven woman bowed. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail.

Her clothes consisted of a long blue dress, and her eyes were emerald green.

She was the most beautiful of the elves present.

The elves explained that they were all students at the local academy, and that they lived in the Elf Village.

The girl named Alassa took one step closer to Ian and Asuna.

She pointed at a piece of parchment, and said:

I want to buy this.'"

Ian and Asuna looked at the parchment.

It was a map of the dungeon. The Dungeon Master had drawn a red line around the center of the dungeon, marking where the monsters dwelled. Above that was written:

'Red Hawks.'

Alassa continued. "This dungeon is quite dangerous. Are you two interested in exploring it?"

"Maybe. But it's better to explore the safer dungeon first. Remember we almost got buried with the dungeon earlier, so monsters is not our only concern."

"We can't afford to waste time in this place. We must reach the next town as fast as possible," Asuna said.

"Yeah, we should. Let's do it," Ian agreed.

With those words, they decided to explore the dungeon.

"You two are first, then."

The elves nodded at Ian and Asuna.

"Let's go," Ian said.

Alassa brought them to her shop, and gave them directions to the entrance.

The entrance was located some distance away from the town.

The walls surrounding the town were all made of stone. This was because there were many monsters in the forest.

The entrance to the dungeon was much simpler.

It was a wooden door, which appeared to be made of old planks.

Alassa opened the door for them.

They found themselves in a small room with a large hole in the floor.

"There is no need for us to stay here. You two may enter the dungeon."

"Will there be any problems?"

"No, I assure you. This dungeon is not as dangerous as the others."

Despite her claims, Alassa gave a warning.

"The Dungeon Master has marked this dungeon as 'Not Recommended.' Proceed with caution."

"Should we go in, when even the Dungeon Master marked this place as 'Not Recommended'?" Ian asked.

"Yes," Asuna replied. "Not Recommended doesn't mean 'Very Dangerous'."

Ian shrugged. "Then it will be fine."

Without hesitation, they stepped into the dark tunnel.

While the path was not particularly difficult, they were unable to find their way out after several minutes.

Soon they realized they were trapped within the dungeon.

Gavin didn't mention anything about this.

"Damn, we're stuck in a dungeon," Ian cursed.

"Are you kidding? We've come this far, and it's not like we could turn back now anyway," Asuna responded.

She pulled out her rapier and attacked the wooden door.

The blade cut through the wood easily, leaving a gash in the middle of the doorway.

Ian picked up a rock and threw it at the door.

The boulder bounced off the wood and fell to the floor. The door remained shut.

Ian and Asuna stood before the closed wooden door.

"Opening this door might take a while." Ian lifted his sword.