Chapter 71
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Ghost Mansion
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The seventh Dreamland raid was swiftly prepared under the leadership of Count Wolfhaufen.
This time, the lineup was completely different from the previous one.
Rather than an army made up of ordinary soldiers and a handful of mages, they had mobilized as many as ten members of the Winter Wolf Knight Order—the core combatants of the Wolfhaufen County.
This amounted to one-fifth of the entire Winter Wolf Knight Order.
It was a clear sign that Count Wolfhauen viewed the Dreamland raid as something of immense value.
And that wasn't all.
His renowned retainer, the dragon Dragred, along with three spatial school mages.
And the count himself would participate in this raid.
On top of that, they had distributed those incredibly expensive escape scrolls to every participant.
It was a massive investment.
This was the moment when their determination to achieve substantial results this time was laid bare.
"Hoo..."
Inside the carriage, Dragred gazed at the Dreamland raid guide.
The guide had been updated with information obtained at the cost of Railro and the soldiers' sacrifices.
[Zone 2]
1. Zone 2 closely resembles an academy. It's a massive building around 80 stories tall, mostly filled with classrooms, and seems to have an administrative office. Time management is crucial here. From what we've learned so far, it's divided into class time, break time, lunch time, and after-school hours. (Check via clocks or music cues)
2. You must stay inside a classroom until after-school hours begin. Otherwise, you die.
3. Upon arriving in Zone 2, a faceless girl will demand your possessions. You must absolutely refuse or flee. Otherwise, all your items will be confiscated.
4. During class time, teachers occasionally enter and conduct incomprehensible lessons, asking questions. Fail to answer correctly, and a body part breaks as a warning. Accumulate warnings, and you die.
[Dungeon Master]
1. Far stronger than soldiers but weaker than knights. (Confirmed)
2. Freely roams the dungeon, killing intruders weaker than itself. (Confirmed)
[Elevator]
+ Using the elevator does not teleport everyone to the same zone.
Too much focus on one thing can lead to danger.
That's a famous saying.
Dragred flipped through the raid guide he'd been reviewing sporadically since yesterday and let out a small sigh.
People say dungeons are unknown treasure troves brimming with magic stones.
Just look at how Count Wolfhaufen is staking his all on this.
Is he really acting out of some noble sense of duty to save North Kingdom?
The value of magic stones.
Even nobles living in abundance hang their necks for them, so that must be undeniable truth.
But it was a bit different for Dragred.
And rightly so—he was born in a dungeon.
He ate in the dungeon, slept in the dungeon, and grew up there.
Looking back now...
To me, the dungeon wasn't a cherished hometown. It was a prison.
He hadn't thought that way from birth, of course.
There had definitely been times when simply serving the Dungeon Master brought him joy.
Kill intruders from the outside.
Receive praise from the Creator.
Back in his small, frail hatchling days, that was the pinnacle of life.
He wouldn't deny that.
But people change.
Dragred was no exception.
The reason for his change was simple.
He had grown.
As time passed and the dungeon expanded...
Just as humans crave the unknown and desire magic stones, he too developed a goal.
The outside—the homeland of the intruders.
A world so vast it couldn't even compare to the cramped dungeon.
A place with skies where he could freely spread his wings.
Before he knew it, that had become his destination.
Yes.
I yearned for freedom.
Someday, I wanted to see the outside world.
It was a dream he never shared with anyone.
That desire to fulfill his dream reached its peak the first time he encountered the Blessed One.
One day, the Blessed One invaded the dungeon.
Her name was Anne.
She was strong, merciless, and utterly terrifying.
She tempted Dragred.
Naturally, he ignored her at first.
There was no guarantee she'd keep her word.
And Dragred knew what loyalty meant anyway.
But.
People always value themselves above all else.
As the Blessed One kept coming, the situation worsened.
Subordinates died, traps were destroyed, structures shattered.
Repairs couldn't keep up with the destruction.
Next, it might be his turn to die.
Anne was that kind of enemy.
For the first time, Dragred felt fear.
Perhaps sensing that, she said...
The Red Dragon King spoke of hope beside her.
With the same smile as always.
He said he'd do his best, so they just had to hold on.
But Dragred thought differently.
He couldn't erase the thought of defeat from his mind.
He didn't want to die.
Was it because he had a dream?
Even if he had to die...
He wanted to see the outside world at least once before that.
At some point, that thought grew stronger.
His actions became increasingly passive over time.
He couldn't focus on the fight while prioritizing his own survival.
As if reading his inner turmoil...
Anne made the offer again.
Instead of dying fighting us like this, why not join hands?
Wouldn't killing the Red Dragon King be more rational?
She'd share magic stones as reward.
Grant him a new home.
Did he want to live like a slave in the dungeon forever?
If he allied with them, everything would be easy.
Dragred faced a crossroads.
The sweet voice of the devil.
Die fighting for the dungeon?
Or betray his Creator for his own safety and dreams?
Dragred ultimately chose the latter.
"......"
Dragred clutched his necklace.
The subordinate Dragred vanished from the world.
The life he gained in exchange was utterly pathetic.
The Blessed One kept her promise.
But it wasn't what he expected.
Instead of a necklace, she fitted him with a pendant that could explode at any moment.
And sold him to the previous Count Wolfhaufen.
It was no different from the dungeon.
More people looked up to him now, and his fame was higher.
But he was still shackled as the count's dog.
It was all an illusion.
At least, there was no freedom in the sky he gained by betraying the Red Dragon King and allying with the Blessed One.
He had finally reached a place where he could fly freely.
But his wings were bound by ropes.
Dragred thought.
The count wants magic stones anyway.
And he'll order me to fetch them.
I can't refuse that.
But I can refuse death as the price.
And that death can be averted under the assumption of obtaining Dreamland's magic stones.
If he dies during exploration, it's regrettable.
But if he somehow reaches the core room alive...
And keeps his true feelings hidden from the count...
Couldn't he grasp true freedom?
Escape scrolls are available, after all.
And with this elite group, survival is definitely possible.
Dragred now had a new goal.
This was a bit of a tangent, but...
He also wanted to witness the end of this bizarre place with his own eyes—a mysterious space where the Dungeon Master could emerge outside, defying comprehension.
He was curious why it could be free, unlike him and the Red Dragon King.
In the snowy mountains of Fireforge.
The seventh Dreamland raid party arrived at the dungeon entrance.
The total personnel numbered 15, with 11 explorers including Dragred.
The rest were mages who would stay in the safe zone with the lord, maintaining communication and recording information.
All of them were elites.
Powerhouses from Wolfhaufen whom even the Dungeon Master couldn't approach lightly.
With this lineup, smooth exploration should be possible.
Breathing out white puffs, they each voiced their thoughts.
"Dungeons make me nervous."
"I agree. Never thought I'd be raiding one at my age."
"Haha, same here."
If it were simply about magic stones...
They wouldn't have answered the lord's call.
Raiding a newborn dungeon harboring some unknown enigma required staking their lives.
But.
This was not only about obtaining magic stones—it was also about saving North Kingdom.
"The dungeon's existence can emerge outside. That poses a massive threat."
"If the beings inside escape, it'll be a catastrophe worse than the mana storm. This dungeon might even be the cause of the current one."
Not just North Kingdom.
If this dungeon grew like others, it would bring horror to the entire world.
Aboralis had mentioned it before.
Dreamland's Dungeon Master was the seed of the Demon King.
Demon King—such a being didn't exist in reality.
Ironically, many knew of it.
It was a symbol of chaos that appeared only in illusions.
Frequently featured in bards' songs and writers' tales as a great evil to be vanquished.
It wasn't a childish metaphor.
Though merely a possibility, Dreamland was fully capable of becoming that.
Why would Dreamland become a disaster?
It wasn't just because the Dungeon Master could emerge outside.
Dungeon Masters can communicate with each other.
This is widely known even to commoners.
All factions, including the Four Kingdoms, had attempted dungeon raids countless times.
For magic stones, wealth, power, to cure the sick.
Countless dungeons existed in the world.
And most had vanished into history through sacrifice.
Dreamland's Dungeon Master surely knew this.
Creatures instinctively abhor the killing of their community's members.
Some call it vengeance.
Most are wired that way.
It's advantageous for survival.
Dungeon Masters are no different.
Even if they wield the Creator's power.
Their recorded forms in history resembled ours.
"One thing we can be sure of: it's accumulating power."
Even if not...
As long as Dreamland's Dungeon Master was a thinking being...
The danger remained unchanged.
Being like us meant harboring an innate drive for ascension.
Would someone who could manipulate the world through chaos not use that power, rationally speaking?
The strong rise upward.
Nations with great power hold vast wealth and territory.
This is no coincidence.
The moment it accumulates power and reveals ambition...
The world will teeter on the brink.
"This is our golden opportunity."
Dreamland would someday become our disaster.
They all thought the bud of calamity must be nipped.
So.
Here, at least, they saw themselves as fairy-tale heroes.
To outsiders, it might look like mere dungeon raiding.
But perhaps this was a journey to save the world.
"Let's go."
Count Wolfhaufen gave the order.
The resolute raid party entered the dungeon with spirited steps.
Seventh raid.
Dungeon raid Day 1.
At the entrance elevator.
Count Wolfhaufen first used communication magic to link the exploration team and recording team.
Communication magic allows bidirectional links, but casters can usually only connect one pair.
However, by linking to another mage already using it, multiple connections are possible.
Of course, it's not a three-way chat.
It's more like the communication Dragred had with the soldier and Railro before.
Detection and communication magic are relatively easy to learn.
Most knights could use them, so every single one connected to the recording team.
"Communications linked. Remember what we discussed before entering?"
"Yes, we do."
"Those with poor memory, review the raid guide periodically. And report everything you encounter in as much detail as possible."
Count Wolfhaufen explained the key points of caution to the exploration team.
「Using the elevator does not teleport everyone to the same zone.」
「Zones 2, 3, and 4 likely prohibit escape scroll use.」
According to what Dragred revealed.
Of course, the handwriting differed, so it was probably fabricated info.
But as seen, Zone 2 had gimmicks like item confiscation.
No harm in caution.
And there's a 50% chance it's accurate.
"I have spare escape scrolls. Just focus on not dying."
The exploration team nodded.
-We've arrived at the academy.
The first one teleported to Zone 2.
"Password is 932."
"Confirmed."
One by one, they entered the elevator in turn.
After four had gone, it was Dragred's turn.
"......"
His nerves were on edge.
Everyone probably felt the same.
He knew the precedents of intruders.
Those who set foot here had a high probability of death.
"Hoo..."
Even so, Dragred advanced.
The unknown awaited him.
Dreamland Zone 3.
Ghost Mansion.
Dragred blinked.
A breeze blew in.
"This is..."
Sunlight filtered through the clouds.
The mansion before him seemed grander than any in the world.
Creak— Creak—
The rusty iron gate welcomed Dragred.
It began to slowly open with an eerie sound.