Chương 70: Secret Dungeon

Ch 70 - Secret Dungeon The portal spat Evan out inside a cell. Unlike the first time he entered a Rift, he managed to land on his feet without making an embarrassing entrance. He glanced around, taking in the iron manacles hanging from the walls, the dirty straw scattered across the floor, and, most notably, the iron bars covering one side of the room. Evan approached them and peered into the long hallway, barely illuminated by small lamps along the walls.

Squinting through the dimness, he could make out the shadowy figures of tall creatures making their rounds outside. Great. They really had been dropped inside the Secret Dungeon. There Evan was, hoping that maybe, just maybe, they had ended up in some other freak accident Rift instead. Sighing deeply, he wondered if he could take it easy this time. Reika was here, after all. Maybe she could go ahead and blitz the boss, then he could just jump into the exit portal.

Just as he started considering that plan, someone ran past him, then stopped and turned to look his way.

"What are you doing?" Reika asked with a frown.

"Don't you see? I'm locked in here," Evan said. She gave him an incredulous look, then pushed the door open.

"It's not locked."

"Dang," Evan muttered, lowering his head. There went his break plan. Under Reika's gaze, he could only shuffle out of his prison.

"Keep up. We can't afford to dawdle here, or we'll get caught by the Ash Wardens," Reika said, then led the way. Evan followed as they passed through several rows of cells, ducking into another when a shadowy creature emerged in the distance. Closing the door behind them, they moved away from the bars as the dim light revealed a tall creature covered in a long ragged cloak. Its entire body was shrouded in darkness, and its shape vaguely resembled a human.

Long fingers made out of ash gripped a rusty halberd as it wandered past them. Once it passed their hiding place, they continued upward, climbing the stairs while occasionally ducking into the nearest hiding spot whenever an Ash Warden passed by.

"This is going to take a while," Evan muttered as they waited for another Warden to pass. Reika crossed her arms.

"It can't be helped. We don't want to get entangled with any of the Wardens, or we might trigger the alarm and get swarmed. I'm sure the others will know to head upward as well. We'll eventually regroup. There's something else I've been wondering about, though. You told us to run before the monoliths even activated. How did you know?"

"I have a very good instinct," Evan lied easily.

"If you guys had listened to me instead of being so busy trying to finish off that drake, we wouldn't be in this situation." Reika frowned.

"You could've explained things more."

"That would've taken too long. At least your brother listened to me, but he wouldn't leave without you, so here we are." She turned her head away at the mention of Hiroto, then left the cell. The two continued their ascent in silence and soon came across a doorway leading into another section. Stepping inside, they found themselves in a long hallway barely illuminated by a handful of torches.

The walls were lined with murals, but time had worn them down so badly that most of the paintings were little more than cracked fragments. Even so, anyone who squinted closely could just make out several figures standing side by side, as though they were about to set off on some grand adventure.

"Have they ever figured out the story behind the boss of this Secret Dungeon?" Evan asked.

"Is there a point to that?" Reika asked.

"We've already found the fastest way to clear this dungeon and defeat the boss. What's the point of digging up useless information?"

"Who knows? Maybe it contains clues about the Tower's origins."

"Those kinds of mysteries aren't going to be solved by a bunch of students like us," Reika replied, continuing down the corridor. Evan lingered on the black-robed figure in the mural for a moment, then turned away. They moved into another section lined with cells, where numerous Ash Wardens patrolled the walkways. The pair ducked into an open doorway as another Warden approached. A humanoid creature greeted them inside, its body thin and emaciated, its bloodshot eyes glaring at them with feral madness.

Its nails were cracked and filthy, and heavy manacles chained its ankles to the wall. Despite that, the prisoner still lunged at them, screaming incomprehensible words with its jaw stretched wide as if it wanted to tear a chunk of flesh from their bodies. Reika stepped forward and drove her fist into its stomach. Lightning erupted from her knuckles and tore through its torso. The prisoner crumpled to the ground with a gaping hole in its chest. Evan let out a low whistle.

"Grrrrraaaaaa?" Flinching, the two turned toward the entrance and found an Ash Warden standing just beyond the bars. It had no eyes, yet they could both feel it staring at them. Evan's gaze shifted to the cell door, which had been left slightly ajar. He inched toward it and pushed it shut. The creature remained motionless for a few tense seconds, then finally turned away and resumed its patrol. Both Evan and Reika sighed in relief.

"We need to be more careful," Reika said, rubbing her forehead.

"Next time, remember to close the door unless you want us dealing with hordes of enemies." Evan couldn't argue with that. He really had forgotten. Once the monster was out of sight, they slipped out and continued climbing toward the upper levels. Fortunately, both he and Reika had studied this Secret Dungeon beforehand, so they already knew what they would face during their final exam. Hiroto should be fine as well, since Evan had already briefed him on everything they were likely to encounter.

He couldn't say the same for the cannon fodder trio, though. Hopefully, none of them got themselves killed. As little as he cared for them, dealing with the aftermath of their deaths would be far more troublesome than keeping them alive. Turning a corner, they passed another entryway and entered what seemed to have once been someone's bedroom. A carved canopy bed occupied one side of the room, while a low table piled with scrolls sat against the opposite wall. The remaining walls were lined with bookshelves.

Curious, Evan picked up one of the books, only to find that it was written in a language he couldn't understand. The closest comparison he could think of was ancient Chinese writing. He already struggled to read modern Mandarin beyond a few simple greetings, so deciphering this unfamiliar writing was completely out of the question.

"Why are you wasting your time? We need to get going and regroup with the others," Reika said.

"Hold your horses. There's no need to be so impatient. It's not as if we get many chances to enter a Secret Dungeon like this. Since we're already here, I don't see any harm in poking around a little," Evan replied. He picked up one of the scrolls and unfolded it. At least he could understand this one, since it was a painting rather than a written record. Whoever had once lived here had possessed considerable artistic talent, judging by the intricate details that remained.

Unfortunately, much of the artwork had been ruined by large blotches of ink and what looked suspiciously like dried blood. Several figures were still visible, but one had been almost completely obscured, leaving only what seemed to be a man's hand gripping a sword. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Did you find anything useful?" Reika asked as she walked over.

"That depends on what you consider useful," Evan replied. She gave the ruined painting an unimpressed look.

"Let's just move on already, unless you can actually find an item that'll help us beat the boss."

"You think I'd find something like that in here?"

"Didn't you say you have good instincts? Either way, it's strange that this Secret Dungeon activated so prematurely." Evan did his best not to wince since, technically, it was his fault.

"Who knows? Maybe that drake's attack messed with the glyphs on the monolith or something."

"The best-case scenario is that the boss hasn't respawned yet, and we can simply leave through the exit portal. On the other hand, if there's no boss to kill, the portal might not activate at all, which means we'd be trapped here until the phoenix is reborn."

"Please don't say that," Evan groaned. With his curse in full effect, that nightmare scenario suddenly felt far more plausible than it should. If they really ended up trapped inside this dungeon, what would they even eat? The only obvious source of food would be the prisoners. Even if the RCB classified them as monsters, they still looked human enough that the thought of eating them felt disturbingly close to cannibalism. Then there was the lack of clean water. No way. They had to get out.

Evan tossed the scroll back onto the table.

"Let's keep moving. It's probably best if we don't linger here."

"That's what I've been saying," Reika complained. And so they continued their ascent through the dungeon, slipping past the Ash Wardens and dealing with any prisoners unfortunate enough to occupy the cells they used as hiding spots. After what felt like an endless trek up the mountain prison, they arrived at the miniboss chamber. The rest of their group was already waiting there. Hiroto ran over, relief evident on his face.

"You guys are okay!" He raised his arms as if he intended to hug Reika, but one sharp glare from her made him quickly lower them. Turning to Evan instead, he asked, "Did you run into any enemies?"

"Eh, just a few prisoners. Reika killed them in seconds. How about you?" Evan replied, glancing at the three cannon fodder characters. They had a few scrapes and torn clothes, but none of them seemed seriously injured.

"We're fine too, but we'll have to fight the Chief Warden to get the key, right?" Hiroto asked. Reika nodded.

"Yeah. It shouldn't be too difficult. My main concern is the phoenix."

"Let's worry about that when we get there," Evan said before looking toward the other three.

"You guys can still fight, right?"

"Of course!" Emma replied.

"We're not that weak," Ji-ho added. Andrei shot Evan a dirty look, which Evan ignored as he discussed their strategy with Hiroto and Reika. The Chief Warden shouldn't give them too much trouble with a formidable A-rank attacker like Reika leading the assault. Once they had finalized their plan, the group approached the massive stone gate. It creaked open as they drew near. Beyond it lay an enormous chamber, its surrounding walls lined with prison cells stacked floor upon floor.

The maddened rattling of chains echoed through the chamber as countless prisoners hurled themselves against their bars. A towering figure stood alone at the center, sharpening its halberd. Like the other Wardens, it wore a tattered black cloak that concealed most of its body, with battered pieces of armor strapped across its torso and shoulders. The Chief Warden noticed their arrival. With a single swing of its halberd, the great stone doors behind them slammed shut.

Andrei moved first, targeting the creature's legs with his petrification ability. Ash rapidly hardened into stone, locking the boss in place for a brief moment. Reika surged forward, sending a bolt of lightning straight into its chest. Electricity coursed through its body, further slowing its movements. Taking advantage of the opening, Evan used a crystal to launch a crescent of compressed air at the petrified leg, slicing through it and shattering the stone.

At the same time, Hiroto, Ji-ho, and Emma rushed into melee range, their weapons carving deep wounds into the Chief Warden. No blood flowed from the injuries. Instead, clouds of gray ash spilled from every cut. The Chief Warden answered with a guttural roar. Planting the butt of its halberd against the floor, it released a shockwave that blasted everyone backward. Using the weapon for support, the creature hauled itself back to its feet, then reached beneath its cloak and produced an old bronze bell.

The boss rang it once. A sharp peal echoed throughout the chamber. Immediately, every door in the chamber swung open. Dozens of prisoners poured out, rushing toward the group in a frenzy.

"Hiroto!" Reika shouted.

"Got it!" Hiroto opened a portal to his Pocket Refuge, and the rest of the team leaped through just as the prisoners reached them. The instant they vanished, Reika slammed both palms against the ground. Lightning raced across the stone floor, branching through the chamber before erupting beneath the horde. One after another, the monsters were consumed by crackling electricity until the entire horde crumbled into smoldering heaps of ash.

At that exact moment, Hiroto reopened his portal, and the entire team charged toward the Chief Warden, weapons raised. Their sudden assault caught the monster off guard, staggering it beneath the combined barrage. Ji-ho's strike landed hardest, amplified by his Pain Conversion ability. The team scattered almost as quickly as they had converged. Reika stepped forward, lightning gathering along her naginata until the blade crackled with power.

She planted her foot and drove the weapon straight through the Chief Warden's chest. Kaboom! The explosion tore a hole through the monster's torso, ripping away one of its shoulders. The hulking jailer dropped to its knees and collapsed. Reika crouched beside the corpse and searched beneath its tattered cloak. A moment later, she pulled out what they had come for. It wasn't a metal key. Resting in her palm was a rectangular jade seal no longer than her hand.

Golden characters covered its polished surface, while a phoenix with folded wings was etched into its center. Yet instead of the vibrant green one would expect from jade, the seal was as black as obsidian. With the key item in hand, they left the chamber and began making their way back down. Sneaking past the roaming Ash Wardens once more, they eventually reached the end of the passage. Beyond it lay only darkness. Reika placed the black jade seal into a shallow recess carved into the stone platform.

It settled into place with a soft click. Lines carved into the stone lit up one after another as a deep rumble echoed from below. A circular stone platform rose from the darkness beneath them. Once it reached their level, the group stepped aboard, and it began descending.

"You think we can kill that phoenix?" Emma asked.

"Why not? We've got an A-rank and an S-rank with us," Ji-ho replied.

"Yeah, sure, but this thing's supposed to be borderline S-rank itself, and it's not like we've got a proper team," Andrei said, shooting Evan a look. Evan smiled back, even though his fist twitched with the urge to punch the annoying expression off Andrei's face. Instead, he reminded himself to be the adult and turned his attention back to Reika and Hiroto as they reviewed their plan.

"We'll need to be very careful around its fire. This time we'll have to rely more on Hiroto's Pocket Refuge to avoid its attacks," Evan said.

"Leave it to me," Hiroto replied.

"And I'll kill it," Reika said.

"The rest of you just need to make sure it doesn't stay airborne for too long. Fighting it in the air will be difficult."

"Yeah... we'll also need to see whether Andrei's petrification works on something like this," Evan muttered.

"As for me, I've still got a few water and ice crystals. They should come in handy against this oversized fire chicken." The platform slowed to a stop. An enormous cavern stretched out ahead. At its center stood a lone circular platform, connected to their side by nothing more than a narrow stone bridge. The six exchanged uneasy glances, then cautiously made their way across. They were relieved to find that, despite their earlier fears, the boss had indeed respawned and was waiting for them.

Contrary to Evan's expectations, the phoenix wasn't some colossal beast radiating an overwhelming aura. It was surprisingly small, barely larger than a person. Thick black chains bound its wings and limbs, disappearing into the surrounding darkness, while strange metallic rods had been driven into its body to hold it in place. Crimson flames clung weakly to its body, flickering like dying embers. The imprisoned creature remained motionless, seemingly asleep. Then, a familiar blue screen appeared before Evan.

[New Quest!] [Objective: Deliver judgment upon ■■■■■■] [Time Limit: 1 Hour] [Reward: ■■■■■■]