Ch.101At the End of the Dungeon

The day after our fierce battle with the Minotaur, having finished breakfast, we resumed our dungeon exploration, leaving Ancestor and Peter waiting outside.

Yesterday was practically wasted recovering from the damage sustained in the fight with the Minotaur, and tomorrow the gate back would open at noon, meaning today was our only remaining day to focus fully on dungeon exploration.

Even if we had to give up on the mysterious building atop the cliff, I at least wanted to complete the dungeon map.

‘Ta-ta-tang!’

“Yaaah!”

‘Keeee-!!’

Three magical bullets left my revolver’s barrel, piercing the Rumbling Centipede’s head, and as Seti’s spear blade severed its head from its body, the creature collapsed without even having a chance to use its specialty earthquake magic.

“Hmm, this isn’t working as well as I thought.”

“Failed again?”

“Yeah, just a regular triple shot.”

Having performed an extraordinary six consecutive shots during the fight with the Minotaur, I was trying to recapture that sensation while exploring the dungeon today, but hadn’t achieved any notable results yet.

I was certain my reaction speed from drawing the gun from its holster to firing the first shot had improved.

I was confident it would register in the 0.1-second range if measured with a high-speed camera, but after experiencing yesterday’s six consecutive shots, that level no longer satisfied me.

That sight of firing six panning shots in literally an instant, and only after it was over did the first magical bullet leave the barrel.

How could I experience again that step into the realm of supernatural ability that couldn’t be explained by any talent?

“No need to be so impatient. It’s only been two days.”

“Jessica is right. Once an ability manifests, it doesn’t just disappear. You’ll eventually make it completely your own.”

“Yeah. Even beast-folk take over a year to learn how to imbue weapons with magical power.”

The words of encouragement from Jessica, Phyllis, and Seti helped ease my anxiety somewhat.

Even the longest journey begins with a single step, as they say. For now, I should be satisfied with sensing the potential for growth in my skill.

Having given up on skill verification, we focused on the dungeon exploration, quickly investigating the unmapped areas.

Our party’s exploration abilities—Mina’s keen eye for capturing the exact curves and slopes of passages, Seti’s sense of smell and hearing, and Phyllis’s night vision—proved increasingly valuable as time passed.

Accurate direction measurement, skilled trap disarmament, Black Slimes unable to ambush us, and Rumbling Centipedes detected early by Seti’s hearing of their footsteps.

As the map filled in, our movement speed increased and the number of monsters gradually decreased, accelerating our exploration pace.

After hours of mapping, defeating monsters, and discovering occasional secret rooms and traps, we finally reached a cylindrical room presumed to be the dungeon’s deepest point.

“This seems to be the final room of the dungeon.”

“Wow… the atmosphere is completely different.”

As Mina and Seti, who were leading, entered the room, the interior suddenly brightened, revealing what was inside.

The gleaming white marble-like floor was so polished it perfectly reflected our images, and the walls were made of a similar pristine white material without a single gap.

The cylindrical room stretched upward, as if trying to relieve the oppressive feeling we’d had until now.

“It’s incredibly high! Must be about 20 meters.”

“I wonder if beyond that ceiling connects to the white building we saw on the cliff. Or perhaps we’ve already climbed near it without realizing?”

“Hmm, I feel like we’ve only climbed about 5 meters from the dungeon entrance.”

“It’s good to be interested in what’s above, but what shall we do about that in front of us?”

While everyone’s attention was focused on the high ceiling, only Phyllis pointed to an elaborately decorated door displaying its grandeur on the opposite wall of the wide cylindrical room.

Though different in specific form from what we’d seen in the Disease Dungeon, it was easy to guess that the door led to this dungeon’s boss room.

“When you ask what to do… this mission had the condition that we shouldn’t defeat the boss or demolish the dungeon, right?”

“That’s right. If we need to defeat the boss to go up there, we’ll have to give up, unfortunately.”

“That’s not all Phyllis is asking about. There’s an arcane word right above that door.”

A mint-colored metal door with silver wave-like patterns.

Right above it was an arcane word that only Phyllis and I could see.

“‘Those who seek treasure, use the door; those who hold hope, use the stairs’… Where are the stairs?”

After I read the arcane word above the door aloud, a blue light leaked from a part of the white wall to the left of the door, and transparent panels that looked like glass or crystal appeared.

The transparent panels, appearing about 15-20 centimeters above the floor, gradually increased in number, filling the dungeon wall in a spiral pattern.

The arcane word above the boss room door had changed to a different phrase.

‘Gentlemen should ascend slowly, one step at a time. Allow the lady sufficient time for her preparations.’

Gentlemen and ladies.

While thinking these words seemed completely out of place in a dungeon roamed by bull-headed monsters, centipedes, and slimes, I took my first step onto the precarious-looking glass stairs.

“Are you really going up?”

“It looks like it might break with just a little weight. And there’s no railing…”

I completely agreed with Mina’s assessment, but these glass stairs seemed sturdier than they looked. No matter how much pressure I applied to my foot, they showed no signs of breaking, cracking, or even creaking.

“They seem much sturdier than they look, so let’s give it a try. It’s a mechanism set up with arcane words, so I doubt they’d make it so flimsy.”

“O-okay…”

One step, then another. Slowly, without rushing.

Matching the pace at which the stairs appeared ahead of us, we began to slowly ascend around the cylindrical room.

Because they were transparent like glass, looking down even slightly gave the illusion of being suspended in midair, making me feel like I might lose my balance.

Whenever that happened, I would reach out my right hand to steady myself against the wall. As we calmly climbed the stairs, part of the ceiling opened with a rumbling sound.

Continuing up the stairs and through the opening above the ceiling, we found a simple-looking bright wooden door.

“Phew… we made it.”

“L-let’s get inside quickly. I feel like I might faint if I look down.”

“Wait a moment. Since we’ve come all this way, we should observe proper etiquette.”

If the “lady” is preparing herself to receive us, we should maintain at least minimal manners.

Even if I don’t know about formal attire, etiquette, or dress codes, there’s one manner that must be observed when entering a woman’s room—knocking.

‘Knock knock knock’

“Enter.”

After knocking on the wooden door three times, a delicate female voice was heard from inside.

Jessica and Phyllis seemed startled to hear a human voice in the depths of this dungeon, but I simply shrugged my shoulders once before slowly opening the door and entering.

“Wow…”

“Amazing…”

“So beautiful…”

The scene that unfolded inside the door exceeded our imagination even further.

The glossy marble-like floor and pristine white walls were the same as in the cylindrical room below, but crystal-cut chandeliers and wall lamps created an elegant atmosphere.

The rug on the floor appeared to embody the fluffy texture reminiscent of clouds or cotton candy, and a princess-style canopy bed draped with thin silk displayed its graceful form.

Around the bed were a white wooden wardrobe adorned with gold decorations, a dressing table, and a full-length mirror, while the center of the room featured a glass table and chairs made of the same material as the stairs.

And in one of those chairs around the table sat a girl who appeared to be in her mid-teens, seemingly the owner of this room.

“It has been quite some time since I had visitors. Polite guests are always welcome.”

The girl, whose voice sounded like rolling jade beads, gave an overall impression of whiteness.

Her long white hair flowed like satin, her skin was even whiter than Phyllis’s but not pale, and she wore only a single flowing white dress.

Perhaps because of this coloration, she appeared delicate and pure overall, yet her purple eyes, which gazed directly at us, seemed strangely alluring.

“Who are you…?”

“Oh? You mean you did not come here knowing this was my chamber?”

The girl, who had widened her eyes in surprise, quickly gave a seductive smile and rose from her seat with elegant movements.

Though she wore neither shoes nor even socks on her legs extending below the dress, the girl’s movements appeared more disciplined and dignified than any noble in elaborate attire.

The girl lifted her skirt slightly with both hands, bent her knees in a typical lady’s curtsy, and revealed her name.

“My name is Anastasia Yuria Asmad. Queen of the Succubus race who rules over dreams, and mistress of this tower.”

Tower? Succubus? Queen?

Information beyond our imagination flashed through our minds, but at this moment, the most shocking and important information was something else.

“…Asmad!?”

Jessica put both hands to her mouth and widened her eyes in shock.

The rest of us, realizing the significance of that name, were momentarily speechless as well.

Anastasia Yuria Asmad.

Her last name was the same as that of the Great Sage Jessica had been searching for so desperately.