Chapter 164: Dungeon Beginners
After a long journey filled with twists and turns, the group finally arrived at the White Storm Dungeon.
Despite the fact that its entrance lay deep within a forest, the place was bustling with activity. Several adventurer parties had gathered near the entrance, their armor and equipment glinting faintly in the filtered sunlight that slipped through the canopy above.
It wasn’t only adventurers either.
A number of guard knights were stationed nearby as well, standing watch with disciplined vigilance.
“There are guard knights here too, huh,” Ryu said, glancing toward them. “Must be a tough job.”
“Well, once a dungeon reaches B-rank, it becomes a legitimate national asset,” Stingray explained. “If I recall correctly, the high-rank dungeons in the Empire were also guarded by imperial knights.”
“Hohh… I see,” Esther nodded thoughtfully. “Well, dungeons carry the risk of monster overflows, after all. Especially the high-rank ones. Guarding them is practically mandatory.”
“Yes,” Stingray added. “And sometimes bandits turn dungeons into hideouts. That alone makes proper security necessary.”
The entrance itself was rather unusual.
It wasn’t a cave or a gate.
Instead, it was the hollow of an enormous ancient tree.
A cavern-like opening yawned within the trunk, dark and silent. Even though it was still daytime, the interior swallowed all light—only endless darkness could be seen beyond the first step.
Anyone who entered would likely be transferred instantly into the dungeon’s otherworldly interior.
“Onii-sama! Let’s change clothes first!” Alice said eagerly. “I want to wear the fluffy winter gear already!”
“Yeah, good idea,” Ryu replied. “I’ll set up a tent a little distance away. The girls can change there.”
Even though they could have found a quiet corner nearby, Ryu set up a fairly large tent just to be safe.
Lena, Alice, Stingray, and Esther disappeared inside.
“What shall we do?” Ryoma asked.
“Just change out here somewhere,” Ryu replied casually.
“But unlike earlier, when we only tried them on, this time we must remove everything except our underwear.”
“So you wear underwear, Ryoma?” Ryu smirked. “I figured you’d be the fundoshi type.”
“…Fundoshi, you say…” Ryoma muttered nostalgically. “There was a time when I wore such things…”
Grumbling to himself, Ryoma stripped down to his underwear and quickly changed into the winter gear.
“Come to think of it,” Ryu said, “what about Stingray? You can’t exactly wear winter clothes over armor.”
“That will not be a problem,” Ryoma replied calmly. “She can already use that technique now. Its defense surpasses armor.”
“That…? Oh, you mean ‘Mantle’.”
“Indeed.”
While Ryu had been traveling through Hinomaru and the Garcia Kingdom, Stingray had not been idle.
She had trained relentlessly—practically risking her life—to master the Wind Mantle technique.
Thanks to her sheer determination, she succeeded much faster than anyone expected.
To explain again:
Mantle was the wind magic armor previously used by the A-rank adventurer during the Mantester battle. At its highest level of mastery, such techniques could rival powers like Ryu’s Takemikazuchi or Ryoma’s Izanagi, capable of affecting the very earth and weather itself.
Of course, that level required extreme mastery.
Once everyone finished changing, Ryu and Ryoma rejoined the group of now fluffy-clad girls and returned to the dungeon entrance.
Nearby adventurers quickly noticed Axel.
“Pfft… a horse?” one man scoffed. “There’s no way that thing can move through deep snow like this.”
“Wait,” another adventurer said thoughtfully. “That’s not a military horse. That might actually be a high-rank monster. It might not follow normal logic.”
“Then how do you explain that reptile?” the first man said, pointing at Homura sitting atop Esther’s head.
“W-Well… judging by its color, it’s probably a fire-type monster…”
“At that size?” the man snorted. “Even if it breathes fire, it couldn’t melt a snowball. Bringing a lizard into a frozen wasteland like this… what a joke.”
“They’re young,” a third adventurer said calmly. “Probably inexperienced. Let’s just hope they give up early.”
“I won’t hope for that,” the first man sneered. “Idiots who underestimate dungeons die young.”
“Hey! Most of them are still minors!” someone else protested.
Homura sighed.
“Gyau…”
(They’re saying all sorts of things about us…)
“They’re probably B-rank adventurers, at least,” Ryu muttered. “Same rank as Arden’s White Wolves or Grace’s Silverwing Oath… yet they still can’t recognize a high-rank monster when they see one. Their observation skills need work.”
“Well,” Esther said smugly, “we will outpace them anyway. Let us simply stroll past later with proud faces.”
After lining up and presenting their clan tags to the guards, the group entered the White Storm Dungeon.
“Wooooah… it’s completely white!”
“To go from an ordinary forest… to such a beautiful silver world in an instant…”
Before them stretched a vast landscape blanketed in snow.
The only things breaking the white expanse were scattered conifer trees and a towering snow-covered mountain in the distance.
According to the information broker, the dungeon boss—the Snow Great Bear—dwelt at the summit.
Lena, Alice, and Esther immediately began throwing snowballs at one another.
Ryu and the others watched like exhausted guardians supervising energetic children.
After several minutes, Esther returned completely covered in snow.
“As expected,” she declared proudly, “I am the strongest.”
“You look like you got hit the most…” Ryu muttered.
“Silence! Amateurs should keep quiet!”
“Ahh, that was fun!” Alice laughed.
“Snow is wonderful,” Lena said happily. “Tonight I must build a snow hut with Ryoma-sama.”
“I want to build one with Onii-sama too~!”
Once the fun ended, the dungeon conquest began.
They formed their planned formation:
- Frontline: three fighters
- Midline: two
- Rear: one
However, the snow reached above their knees, slowing movement significantly.
Normally that wouldn’t matter to a tireless group like them—but this time they were racing against time.
“The round trip usually takes at least a week,” Ryu said. “But we need to return to the capital in three days.”
He pointed toward the distant mountain.
“Luckily we have a natural landmark. Let’s move faster. Homura, follow the plan.”
“Gyau!”
(Understood! It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to shine!)
Homura soared into the air and opened her mouth—
Not just flames.
A raging inferno burst forth.
The snow ahead instantly evaporated, revealing the ground beneath—perhaps for the first time in hundreds, maybe thousands of years.
“““““Oooooh!”””””
“Gyau!”
(It worked! I can still breathe fire, Ryu-sama!)
“Good. Keep it up.”
“Gyau!”
(Take thiiiis!)
Even though Homura had shrunk her body size, her magic capacity remained unchanged.
And if she ran out of mana, Esther could simply give her a potion.
With their path cleared, the group advanced rapidly.
Soon, their first monster appeared.
Or rather—
It was exposed.
“…Sha?”
From atop Axel, Esther and Lena could clearly see the pathetic creature.
“Um… Esther-san,” Lena said, “is that…”
“That is the infamous Snow Snake, a D-rank monster,” Esther explained. “A venomous serpent that hides beneath the snow and ambushes passing adventurers. In snowy regions, it’s feared even more than some C-rank monsters.”
“…But without snow, it’s just a poisonous snake,” Lena said dryly.
“SHAAA!”
Desperate, the Snow Snake lunged toward Alice.
She sidestepped effortlessly.
With a single slash—
The snake was cut cleanly in half.
The severed head fell, its final sight being the massive A-rank black horse Axel standing before it.
Then its eyes quietly closed.
“Something wrong, Axel?” Ryu asked.
“Brrrlll.”
“I see. You made eye contact with the snake.”
“Ryu-sensei, should we collect this?” Alice asked.
“Yeah. Collect everything. The materials will count as adventurer points for you and Stingray.”
“Understood.”
Inside an item bag, time stood still.
They could simply toss the corpse inside and process it later.
“Now that we’ve seen one,” Ryu warned, “this area must be a Snow Snake habitat. Stay alert—especially you two in the front.”
““Okaaaay!””
With Ryoma present, the frontline was safe—but caution was still necessary.
“If anyone gets bitten,” Esther cackled mischievously, “I’ll make you drink plenty of my new experimental antidotes!”
“If you don’t want to become Esther’s test subjects,” Ryu added calmly, “handle them properly.”
““Y-yes…!””
Fortunately, Esther and Lena rode atop Axel.
And Axel’s thick fur was far too tough for a Snow Snake’s fangs to penetrate anyway.
The monsters were still weak for now.
But the deeper they ventured into the dungeon, the stronger the enemies would become.
The real challenge lay ahead.
As Homura melted the snow and exposed helpless snakes, the group continued forward.
Meanwhile, the B-rank adventurer party who had mocked them earlier advanced through the dungeon.
Their six-person formation moved at the steady pace expected of experienced adventurers.
The two men at the front—the same ones who had mocked Ryu’s group—were chatting idly.
“Feels like there are more Snow Snakes than usual today.”
“I agree. If this keeps up before we even reach stronger monsters, the rest of the dungeon might be rough.”
“It’ll be a nightmare if we reach the blizzard zone like this.”
“Yeah… better keep antidotes ready.”
“Haah… let’s take a break,” one said.
“Yeah. Check the area first, then we’ll rest under that tree.”
The B-rank party sat down.
“Snow dungeons really destroy your legs.”
“I heard a friend of mine lost his toes to frostbite.”
“Ugh—don’t say that now… Hey, what happened to those kids earlier?”
“No idea. Probably gave up already.”
“Or maybe the poison got them. Or frostbite. Shame though—there were some beautiful girls.”
“That’s inappropriate. They’re still children.”
“Ha! Like I care!”
Then—
“Hey… something’s coming from behind!”
The adventurers stood.
But it wasn’t monsters.
It was people.
And they appeared together with a wave of heat.
“Alright, Homura. Melt everything.”
“Gyau!”
(I’m an S-rank dragon, you know! Not some chubby gluttonous pet dragon! Take thiiiis!)
Ryu and his group advanced leisurely across completely dry ground, the snow—and even the melted water—entirely evaporated.
““““““⁉””””””
“Hey… aren’t those…?”
“Those are the kids from the entrance. And the ‘reptile’ you mocked earlier… was apparently a baby fire dragon.”
“Gyau.”
(Ryu-sama, there’s a huge conifer tree ahead!)
“Going around is annoying. Can you burn it?”
“Gyau!”
(Of course!)
WHOOSH!
The massive tree turned to ash instantly.
Ryu’s group continued forward as if nothing had happened.
““““““What the hell…”””””””
Even the B-rank adventurers could only stare in stunned silence at the infernal dragon breath.
Soon, Ryu’s group disappeared far beyond their sight.
“…Were we the idiots?”
“Seems that way.”
“Well… let’s move.”
“Actually, let’s follow the ground they cleared.”
“Good idea.”
But—
“Hey! The heated ground got covered by snow again—it’s all muddy!”
“No choice. Guess we’re walking on snow again…”
Their shortcut was useless.
And so—
Ryu’s dungeon exploration continued.
◇ ◇ ◇
At that same time, inside the headquarters of a notorious rogue clan—
A suspicious hooded man sat across from a slick-looking, glasses-wearing man who radiated the aura of a shady nouveau riche.
The latter was clearly the clan master.
“I heard this place will do anything if the price is right.”
“Oh yes,” the clan master said with a wide grin. “We handle theft, kidnapping, mercenary work… and even assassination.”
He leaned back confidently.
“Of course, that depends on how much you’re willing to pay. But we never leak information. And our members are elites. Honestly, you’ll get better results hiring us than some random underworld group.”
“…Proof that you won’t leak information?”
“We’re still technically an adventurer clan,” the man replied. “If our illegal activities were exposed, every member here would be executed.”
“I see. That certainly discourages leaks.”
The hooded man asked calmly,
“What do you usually do?”
“If you place a request, I’ll tell you.”
“Hmm…”
The man pondered for several minutes.
Then—
“Very well. I will hire you.”
“Wonderful! So what’s the job? Stealing treasure? Kidnapping a noble?”
The man’s voice turned cold.
“—Assassinating a Hero. More precisely, assisting with it.”
“!?!?”
“You’ll accept the job, won’t you?”
“Y-yes! Of course!”
(Assassinating a Hero…? Then this man must be from the Empire or Principality. Well, whatever. I’ll squeeze an enormous fortune out of him.)
“So,” the hooded man asked again, “what do you usually do?”
“Eh? O-Oh… normally we hunt beginners while pretending to do dungeon runs. It’s surprisingly profitable.”
“…You’re truly scum.”
“Hahaha! I hear that a lot.”