Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: The First Step Into the Dungeon
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Shhhk!
I lightly threw the knife I had been twirling freely in my hand.
The motion was so concise it barely looked like a throw.
It was as if a mere flick of my wrist sent two blades flying into their target.
Thwack!
The throwing knives, arcing in a gentle parabola, embedded themselves side-by-side in a tent post.
And then, from that seemingly empty spot, a human figure abruptly materialized.
It was a middle-aged man in dark-colored armor, who didn’t even unfold his arms despite the blades flying toward him.
Shing!
The sudden display of knife-throwing prompted an immediate reaction from the escort knights.
As if they were already aware of the man’s presence, their killing intent was focused solely on me.
But when Sophia raised a hand to stop them, they carefully sheathed their half-drawn swords.
Her eyes now held a spark of interest.
"How did you know?"
"Seeing through invisibility magic? It’s not that difficult for a treasure hunter worth his salt."
As I spread my hands as if it were obvious, Sophia finally let go of her distrustful expression.
Since she was forming a small, elite team, there would be no shortage of martial prowess.
She naturally turned her gaze to meet the eyes of the middle-aged man who had been hidden by the invisibility magic.
When he gave a slight nod of agreement, Sophia continued with a satisfied expression.
"You look so young I thought you were a complete fraud, but it seems you have some skill after all."
"I do have quite the baby face. I’m actually older than I look."
"Now I’m starting to have a little more faith in your resume."
"I just wanted to point out that in a dungeon, insight and experience are more important."
"Fine. I’ll acknowledge that. You passed the interview. Go over there and sign the contract."
"Thank you."
I rose from my seat with a smile.
The first step, at least, was cleared with ease.
When I went behind the tent, I saw the others who had passed the interview.
They were following the procedure, reading an information sheet given to them by an old gentleman.
I also received a sheet of paper and read the terms of the contract.
Just as I’d hoped, the phrase I was looking for was written there.
'It’s really here. A deed to a new villa.'
If the information I got from the mercenaries had been false, I was planning to give up and leave.
But this was a jackpot contract, with a minimum reward of 20,000 Gelt.
Passing up such a sweet deal would be a grave mistake.
As I was carefully reading the contract, the old gentleman suddenly spoke to me.
"Sign at the bottom. Give me your mercenary tag. I’ll stamp it with ink for you."
"Here you go."
I handed over the mercenary identification tag issued in the Ruberic Autonomous Region.
"Is your name Ray?"
"...Yes, it is."
Perhaps because it was an identity I rarely used, it felt quite awkward.
No, this won’t do.
'I have to get into character. I am a treasure hunter! I am the mercenary, Ray! Oh, that feels much better.'
And so, I signed a dungeon exploration contract with Sophia, the eldest daughter of the House of Marquis Pennant.
* * *
The mercenary recruitment continued for a few more days.
It seemed she was trying to assemble the highest quality expedition team possible to challenge the dungeon.
After all, it was an ancient ruin that had already claimed the lives of hundreds, so they couldn't afford to be careless.
I got a room at an inn near the mercenary guild and gathered information about the dungeon.
To avoid arousing any suspicion, I didn’t visit the eastern branch or any safe houses.
I holed up in the inn and trained, only heading to the meeting point on the day of the summons.
The expedition team consisted of thirty people in total.
'Is this everyone? Even for a small, elite team, this seems too few.'
There were several reasons for forming an expedition with a minimal number of people: security, logistics, and internal factors.
Throwing wave after wave of personnel at a dungeon certainly increased the success rate.
However, it also made it extremely difficult to prevent the leakage of valuables and to supply the team deep inside.
Furthermore, there were various magical devices in place to prevent large numbers of people from entering.
The mages who built the dungeons knew that they could be easily cleared if you just threw a massive number of people at them.
"Surprised there are only thirty of us? We have no choice. This dungeon has a personnel limit."
Sophia pointed to the eerie blue haze at the entrance and began to explain about the dungeon.
Just as I expected, it seemed a very powerful entry restriction magic was cast on this place.
Moreover, it had a function that ejected anyone who failed, then automatically restored itself and changed its trap patterns.
This meant that any subsequent expedition team would have to start from scratch.
'No wonder they haven’t been able to figure out this dungeon’s secrets for over half a year.'
This ruin exploration was the result of a combination of Sophia’s thirst for adventure and Marquis Pennant’s desires.
Normally, a noble lady would never get involved in such a dangerous undertaking.
But since it had been a persistent headache for so long, it seemed the lord had given in to his daughter’s request.
Having studied at the Magic Tower, she would know far more about ancient ruins than a bunch of muscle-bound knights.
"Alright, let’s enter."
"Yes."
At Sophia’s command, the expedition team passed through the blue haze in unison.
The underground dungeon of the villa district was pitch-black.
"Let the brilliant light of magic drive away the darkness! Wisp."
The pitch-black darkness was illuminated by the marquis’s daughter’s magic.
The small, green orb of light flitting about looked just like a fairy.
However, a single Wisp spell was not enough to secure a clear line of sight.
Two of Sophia’s escort knights took short rods from their pockets.
Tzzzt!
Seeing them emit a white glow, they were clearly light artifacts.
'So typical.'
The underground dungeon was a series of perfectly square corridors that stretched on endlessly.
Of course, I had never explored ancient ruins myself, but I had picked up some information from the assassination guild.
Featureless, repetitive spaces were designed to make you lose your way or easily fall into traps.
"Here it is."
An escort knight unfolded a large sheet of paper and showed it to Sophia.
It was a map of the dungeon’s early sections, obtained through the trial and error of countless previous expeditions.
Although the ancient ruin had a function to change its trap patterns, there were still some standardized rules.
They had figured out that certain types of traps were more likely to appear in specific sections.
This, too, was a fact uncovered after the marquis’s daughter began her investigation of the dungeon.
'Oh, she’s pretty sharp.'
But that was merely a reference; they would have to face the traps head-on to know what lay ahead.
While she was lost in thought, studying the map, the expedition team could only stand around blankly.
But I was different from those foolish mercenaries who just waited for orders.
My plan was to make a spectacular showing and then demand the deed to the best villa.
Just as I took a step into the dungeon corridor to scout for traps…
Click! Shhhhhk!
The moment I took my first step, I heard a heavy sound, and then something came flying from both sides.
They were sharply honed, long needles.
Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack!
Their force was so great that the needles embedded in the wall plunged so deep they left no trace.
It was a good thing I reflexively pulled back; any later and I would have been turned into a pincushion.
"Ahaha..."
I turned around awkwardly to find the other members of the expedition staring at me with dumbfounded expressions.
The incident had occurred just as they were comparing the map to the corridor, trying to calculate which trap was most likely to appear.
But who was I?
A person with a face of steel—no, a plate of mithril.
I shamelessly spread my hands and shrugged.
As if to say this was nothing.
"The first trap is an easy one."
With that, I calmly stepped forward again.
Step! Click.
I was certain I had stepped in a different spot this time, but that same eerie sound echoed once more.
The terrifying noise of a mechanism activating.
Shhhhhk!
'Seriously? Once should have been enough! Isn’t twice a bit much?'
I quickly rolled on the floor, retreating a few meters.
I wasn't hit by the needles, but I couldn't help feeling embarrassed.
"Triggering twice in a row... a classic pattern."
Surprisingly, Sophia’s reaction wasn’t bad.
The dim lighting had hidden my slightly panicked expression, and in the end, the result was good.
"Well done. We would have had to trigger that trap intentionally anyway. But, as a treasure hunter, did you see through it?"
Though unintentional, the situation was flowing quite naturally.
Since I’d already decided to be shameless, I nodded without a change in expression.
"...Of course."
"Hmm. Still, moving without orders is quite displeasing."
"Yes! I’ll be more careful next time."
"Good."
Flicking the hem of her light green robe, she stepped forward and sent the Wisp ahead.
Other than the first trap having been triggered, there was no other movement.
Sophia gestured with her chin toward me and the heavily armored mercenaries.
"Proceed."
It seemed their role was to be meat shields.
I’m a treasure hunter, for crying out loud. Surely she doesn’t think of me that way too, right?
* * *
Navigating the dungeon and disabling traps wasn’t a major problem.
While not perfect, they had more or less memorized the trap patterns of the early sections.
Because of this, I didn’t get another chance to show off my keen eye and skills after that first time.
In fact, it seemed they weren’t expecting much from me anyway.
Sophia and her escort knights just thought of me as a mercenary with some dungeon exploration experience.
'My time to shine will come eventually.'
With a tense expression, I glanced at the other mercenaries carrying out their respective duties.
They were my rivals for the villa deed, after all.
When the time was right, killing them all and clearing the dungeon myself didn’t seem like a bad idea.
If I were the sole survivor, I could easily get the villa in the best location.
'But I wonder if Sophia’s escort knights are also after a villa deed.'
As I walked along, lost in these idle thoughts, the mercenaries ahead of me suddenly stopped.
"Ma'am, there’s something up ahead."
"What is it?"
Shining the light artifact forward revealed a dead end.
Two glowing doors stood on either side of the path.
As if forcing them to make a choice, Sophia’s brow furrowed.
"This is unexpected..."
"This structure isn't on the map."
After a long moment of thought, she made a decision.
"We’ll push through one way. Let’s start with the left."
"Yes."
She couldn't split up a team of only thirty people.
But the marquis’s daughter had no choice but to stop in her tracks.
Because I had suddenly raised my hand and posed a question.
"What if we get cut off?"