Chapter: 307
Toby, who grew up in a mercenary group since birth, had a good instinct.
To be precise, he had no choice but to develop a good instinct.
If he couldn’t instinctively grasp the atmosphere around him, getting beaten up by the older members of the mercenary group was a daily occurrence, so he had to hone his talent in order to survive.
Even now, Toby felt a chill run down his spine from Lucy’s gaze, as if she were testing him.
Something was off.
He had touched something he shouldn’t have.
Toby wanted to turn back immediately, but it was already too late.
Once a carnivorous beast locks onto its prey, it won’t let go for anything.
The moment he entered the beast’s sight, all Toby could do was pray that those teeth wouldn’t pierce his throat.
“What are you doing? Are you a stupid golem? Did your language function break down or something?”
“Uh… Should I share my conjecture about the second room?”
“Pfft. You forgot what you just said and are asking again? You’re an even dumber hunk of junk than I thought.”
Hearing Lucy’s laughter made veins pop in Toby’s neck, but he desperately stifled his anger.
He had to endure. The moment he lost his temper here, it was obvious where his life would spiral down to.
“…The reasons I concluded that the wolf encountered in the second room was an illusion are numerous.”
First was the strangeness he felt when he directly clashed swords.
It wasn’t so much that the sword couldn’t pierce; it felt more like his hand wouldn’t move at all, which was not normal.
From that moment on, Toby had suspicions that this wolf was not an ordinary foe.
“Next is the oddity I sensed when I saw my companion being expelled.”
“Hey, you haven’t done the sloppy dungeon strategy at the academy, have you? If you’re in danger, you naturally get thrown outside.”
“That only applies if it’s a fatal injury. The second dungeon was different. My friend was forcibly expelled despite not having a deep enough wound to be thrown out.”
The mercenary groups tackling the dungeons usually took on the role of vanguards.
They had to enter the dungeon first to learn its characteristics and pinpoint its difficulty.
Even with thorough preparation, safety could never be guaranteed in an unknown dungeon.
Injuries and deaths were common occurrences in the mercenary groups.
Because of these experiences, Toby was able to distinguish between fatal and non-fatal injuries. In his opinion, the attack his friend suffered could not be classified as fatal.
Yet his friend had been expelled from the dungeon. Simply because of contact with the wolf’s teeth.
“From these two facts, I was sure that the wolf wasn’t an ordinary being, so I struggled to uncover its true identity.”
Desperately fighting to survive, even at the expense of his friends becoming the wolf’s prey, Toby successfully identified various anomalies within the dungeon.
He discovered several magic circles hidden throughout the dark cave.
He observed that the wolf, which had sprinted past quickly, left no fur behind.
He even noted that the large wolf’s footfalls were somewhat small.
He found several other peculiarities as well.
However, even after finding all these clues, Toby failed to conquer the dungeon. He had been caught by the wolf before he could reach the answer.
“Still, my efforts weren’t in vain. Thanks to finding several clues, I was able to arrive at an answer, even if late.”
If that massive wolf was indeed an illusion.
If it was merely an inflated fantasy based on a smaller wolf.
Then it could explain all the anomalies discovered in the dungeon.
The sensation of his hand not moving. The fact that his friend, who wasn’t even gravely wounded, was expelled. The traces that didn’t match the wolf’s appearance. All the various magic circles.
All of it.
“Hmph. Hey, you’ve already concluded that the crafty wolf is an illusion, haven’t you?”
“That’s correct.”
“Well, then you should go and conquer it yourself! Why aren’t you entering the dungeon? Are you afraid you’ll wet yourself when you face the wolf?”
“It’s just that my friends who were in the party didn’t want to enter the dungeon.”
Toby wanted to verify his theory himself. But since the situation was not favorable, he had no choice but to seek out Lucy.
He couldn’t conquer it, so he wanted at least to confirm whether his answer was right or wrong.
“I don’t know when I’ll be able to challenge the dungeon again. But I want to at least relieve the disappointment of not being able to enter an interesting dungeon like this.”
“…Interesting, you say?”
“Yes. Having grown up in a mercenary group and having tackled countless dungeons, it has been a long time since I’ve encountered a dungeon that provided such entertaining challenges. If I could, I’d love to be inside a dungeon right now.”
This part was not flattery, but Toby’s genuine feelings.
From naturally spawned dungeons to various dungeons that had been set as exams at the academy and dungeons crafted by various Dungeon Studies Professors, he had tackled them all, so Lucy’s designed dungeon was intriguing.
“Hmmm. I see. Alright, pervert golem. Once the exam is over, come see me. The very nice me will make sure to find you a party member.”
“…Huh? There’s no need for that.”
“Are you really going to refuse my goodwill? You, a perverted golem?”
The moment Toby saw Lucy’s slightly furrowed brow, he realized he had no choice.
If he shook his head here, he’d surely face the wrath of Lady Allen at the academy and get beaten half to death by his father during vacation.
That would be troublesome.
“…No. I’ll gratefully accept it.”
“Good, good.”
At this moment, Toby thought he had chosen the best option in the worst situation.
But that thought was shattered soon after.
“…Lady Allen, are you saying to take this commoner with you? I mean, you have other young ladies with you right now, so that’s…”
“Hmmm. Looks like you’ve grown bold enough to refuse my orders. Shoddy Young Lady? I see. If you’re going to do whatever you want, then I can too.”
“No! No! That’s not what I meant! Understood! Lady! I will embrace this commoner! …Ugh. Why do I have to suffer because of this damn commoner?”
The glare Avery Lumley gave him from behind felt as piercing as if it would bore a hole in his back.
It seemed he had become the target of both Lady Allen and Lady Lumley.
Getting on the bad side of two countess ladies with one mistake.
He could clearly see how his future academy life would unfold.
Even if he left the academy and returned home, he couldn’t be safe.
If his father found out that he had been marked by two countess ladies, he would surely…
…
Should he run away?
*
Arthur and his party, who omitted lunch to challenge the second room of the dungeon, returned with failure.
Unlike when they first encountered the wolf, they weren’t swept away completely, but they still couldn’t overcome the wolf.
Of course, it wasn’t like they gained nothing. During their struggle against the wolf, they found several clues.
The wolf’s fur wasn’t abnormally tough; it was just structured in a way that made it impossible to penetrate. They also noted that magic circles were installed throughout the cave.
“It would’ve been easier if we had succeeded in analyzing the magic circles.”
Arthur felt he was slowly approaching the truth of the second room, yet he wasn’t satisfied.
That wolf was merely a barrier of the second room.
If they were struggling this much here, how lost would they be trying to get through the third or fourth rooms?
At this rate, not only would he not be able to take revenge on Lucy Allen, but he could only envision a future filled with her smirks at the end of the final exam.
Tsk. Should he make a bet? Throw his life away to analyze the magic circles.
“Your Highness the Third Prince.”
Just as Arthur was nervously biting his nails, Phoebe, noticing his anxiety, approached him and spoke.
“Please don’t be too anxious. We are moving forward diligently, one step at a time.”
“…That’s true, but…”
“Sometimes, moving slowly can be faster.”
Hearing Phoebe’s gentle voice, Arthur felt the heat in his heart subside.
Truly, she was the Saintess of Jushin Church.
Just having that person beside him saying it was okay made him feel so calm.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, organizing the various information that had been swirling around in his head.
The recent failure had gathered clues. Now, he just needed to formulate a few assumptions and start verifying them.
If they steadily progressed, surely they would soon be able to overcome the second room.
After finishing his mental organization, Arthur opened his eyes again and bowed to Phoebe.
“Your words are correct, Saintess. There’s still plenty of time left, after all. There’s no need to be anxious.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“Let’s rest a bit more and prepare thoroughly, then we can…”
Just as Arthur was about to suggest entering the dungeon again, a commotion arose in the distance.
Curious about what was happening, Arthur turned his head and immediately recognized the source of the fuss.
A wooden board installed in the center of the Dungeon Studies Exam area, indicating who among the dungeon conquerors was leading, had changed.
[Avery Lumley Party: Conquering 3rd Floor]
“…What on earth happened?”
It wasn’t entirely surprising that the second room had been conquered.
After all, dungeons are made to be conquered by someone. Though the timing may differ, it was only natural that one day, someone would break through.
Even knowing this, Arthur was taken aback due to the name of the party that conquered the second room.
Avery Lumley.
The young lady of House Lumley.
With solid skills in the upper middle tier, she was someone worthy of being called a genius.
So were the people around her.
Not completely useless but also not really impressive; they were just average. That’s how Avery Lumley’s party was likely composed.
So how could such an average party snatch the lead over the various monsters and seniors of the third years, as well as himself?
While Arthur was flabbergasted, it seemed Avery’s party had failed to conquer the third floor and re-emerged, immediately drawing a crowd.
“Awesome, Young Lady!”
“Of course, Lady Lumley! I believed in you!”
“How on earth did you defeat that wolf?!”
“…Oh ho ho! That’s just my ability!”
As cheers and curiosity surrounded her, Arthur scrutinized the composition of that party.
The three young ladies, including Avery Lumley, were just average.
What caught attention was the male student with a stiff expression that didn’t fit there.
His name was definitely Toby.
He was the son of a mercenary group leader and had entered the academy specializing in martial arts alongside Frey, if he remembered correctly.
Arthur had matched weapons with him during a duel class, so he knew his skills.
He was rather talented, but he was far from the level of Frey or Lucy.
He wasn’t a genius capable of compensating for the averageness of those three.
In other words.
“There’s no need for brute force to conquer the second room.”
Simply by observing the party composition that came out victorious, Arthur gleaned an important clue and swallowed his lips, turning his head toward the party members.
He wanted nothing more than to rush into the dungeon immediately and explain his realization, but having just received the advice from the Saintess not to be anxious, he couldn’t do that.
It’s okay. It’s only the second room.
In the end, the one who crosses the finish line last will be the one who wins.
Don’t be hasty, Arthur Soladin.
“Everyone, look this way. I think I’ve gathered some rough ideas about how to conquer the second room, so let’s explain.”
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