Chapter: 371
“Make sure to stop by the mansion later!”
After Isabel left, clearly disappointed that she had to go due to some urgent matters, Joy let out a sigh and wiped her face with her hand, staring blankly at her desperate figure.
“What on earth happened with Lady Allen that the iron-blooded merchant Count Arteia is acting so pathetic?”
I chose to ignore Joy’s question and moved my feet. I couldn’t convince her that the head of the Arteia family was a human living madly for the Divine.
Realizing I had no intention of answering, Joy looked around instead.
“There are many muscular-looking people here.”
“Well, this is an island for adventurers. The atmosphere is bound to be different from other territories.”
Arthur’s explanation was right. This area, a group of islands filled with reefs, has nominal rulers, but no one actually manages it if you don’t know the sea routes to enter.
To put it simply, it’s a place with no gains, so no one wants to touch it.
Farming is difficult, and you can’t find rare resources either; the medium-sized dungeons on each island are peculiar, but the materials from them can be acquired from other dungeons too.
With everyone judging it to yield less than managing all 14 islands and dungeons, this island technically belongs to the kingdom, but no noble of the kingdom manages it.
So, who does manage the inhabited island? The Adventurer’s Guild.
With 14 dungeons of suitable difficulty and unique characteristics, it became a decent place for adventurers to hone their skills. Lured by that, the Adventurer’s Guild offered to manage this place and pay taxes to the country, which was in a dilemma over the lack of interest in this island.
The kingdom gladly accepted, and thus, this island became known as the Adventurer’s Island.
“Thanks to that, it’s become famous as a must-visit place for adventurers.”
After providing the basic information about the island, Arthur continued with more details about the group of islands, like the island’s physiology and the characteristics of the dungeons on each one. Though there were slightly inaccurate details mixed in, I kept my mouth shut so as not to disrupt Arthur’s enthusiasm.
I wasn’t sure if he had been interested in the islands all along or if he felt a sense of urgency after hearing about my exam and desperately researched it, but I was impressed. After all, a spirit of improvement is what makes teaching worthwhile.
“But Third Prince, why is everyone so weak?”
Listening quietly to Arthur’s explanation, Frey threw out a sensitive question with an innocent and straightforward voice devoid of malice. Perhaps because her voice was a bit loud, nearby adventurers flinched.
Sigh. “Frey, you’re something else.”
“Why? It’s true, right? There are only fools here who don’t know proper martial arts.”
As Frey said, the level of adventurers on this island wasn’t that high.
As previously mentioned, it’s a tough place to survive but a lousy location for obtaining resources. Those remaining here call themselves adventurers but are mere drifters acting tough.
Actually skilled people prefer challenging large dungeons on the mainland or join mercenary bands for recognition.
Still, since we would be staying here for over a week, there was no need to stir up trouble with the adventurers. I observed the frustrated people around us who could only glare sharply due to the knights protecting us, and poked Frey in the side before she could start talking about how sloppy they were.
“I don’t think a sloppy swordsman who gets taken down by me every time should be talking!♡”
“…I’m not sloppy. You’re the fool swordsman.”
“Yeah, yeah. Sloppy swordsman!♡”
“I’m not sloppy!!”
“Isn’t it? Fool swordsman?♡”
“That doesn’t mean I’m a fool! I’m sloppy… sloppy? Um?”
Dragging the confused Frey along, I headed towards our lodging, planning to head directly to the dungeon after dropping off our things.
“As far as I know, there’s a procedure to follow before entering the dungeon, right?”
‘I’ve already taken care of that ahead of time.’
“Of course, I’ve prepared everything in advance. Don’t think I’m as ignorant as the Pitiful Prince stuck in the royal palace. It annoys me.”
I’ve already taken care of various procedures. Considering we’re a group entering the Adventurers Guild, which mostly comprises commoners and possibly a few noble titles like honorary barons, it was bound to be chaos.
That’s why I had asked Karia in advance to handle the paperwork. So we can focus solely on the dungeon strategy without worrying about anything else.
“Excuse me, Lady Allen, shall we head to the dungeon right away?”
‘Yes. You’ve rested enough on the boat, haven’t you?’
“Sleeping all day on the boat and you’re thinking of resting again? Foolish. You might just turn into a foolish pig at this rate.”
“That’s not going to happen!”
As we stepped out of the lodging prepared by Newman, I noticed another figure added to the group of knights accompanying us.
A man with a quiet demeanor was talking to the knights, but upon spotting us, he offered a greeting.
“Greetings, noble ones. I am Benber from Lias. You can just call me Benber.”
To anyone’s eyes, he looked like a man from a noble family, but I knew who was hidden beneath that guise.
The man introducing himself as Benber was Karia in disguise.
Everything from his voice, appearance, manner of speaking, and habits was different, but the dissipating energy of the Evil God from within him proved he was indeed her.
I was told someone would be sent to accompany us, but it turns out she came herself. No wonder Benedict easily allowed her to go to the islands; he probably thought there wouldn’t be any troubles since Karia would be following along.
“Let’s move quickly. We can’t afford any time wasted if we want to conquer two dungeons in a day.”
Following Karia’s guidance, we arrived at the first dungeon. Positioned by the seaside, it had a good yield compared to other dungeons, so adventurers flocked there continuously.
Unlike large dungeons, entry to a medium dungeon is limited, so you need to wait in line in front of the dungeon door. But we didn’t have to. Karia had secured our place before we arrived.
“No time to breathe; we’re going straight into dungeon raids!”
“This is fun. I hope it’s like this all the time…”
“You’re the only one having fun, Frey Kent.”
As the three of us bickered and entered the dungeon, my friends’ gazes turned towards me immediately. They expected me to take charge, just like usual.
Of course, I had the ability to meet their expectations. Given my current specs, I could break through this dungeon before an hour even passes, right?
But instead of explaining what needed to be done, I just stared at Arthur.
“Pitiful Prince, I trust you’ve memorized the perfect script I prepared for you?♡ You seemed so confident, but you haven’t gone through it yet, have you?♡”
“Why are you asking that?”
“Did you not?♡ You said you could handle it, but it was all just haughty?♡ Hehehe♡ So typical of you, Pitiful Prince♡.”
“What do you mean? Of course, I’ve memorized it. I’m just curious about the intent behind asking me this right after entering the dungeon.”
“What do you think?♡ I’d expect a pitiful prince who’s incompetent and lacks force but is at least observant to catch on♡.”
“…Don’t tell me you’re asking me to lead the dungeon strategy?”
Seeing Arthur blink as I lifted my lips up into a grin.
“If you can’t get through this dungeon in under an hour, a huge punishment awaits. So do your best!♡ You can slack off if you want the punishment instead!♡”
To boost his morale, I poured out provocations, and instantly, Arthur’s face turned beet red.
“Sure, I’ll do it. I’ll clear the dungeon in that time. But if I succeed, you have to put your forehead on the line.”
“Are you really wanting to leave a mark on my pure forehead?♡ Such a perverted taste!♡ Disgusting!♡”
“…Tch.”
I chuckled at his clicking tongue and took out my mace and shield, stepping to the frontlines.
Hehe, now let’s see things from the perspective of an NPC instead of a player under Arthur’s command.
Joy knew Arthur’s abilities well. She had conquered dungeons with him several times before.
The presence of Lucy, an exceptional existence by his side, might overshadow it a bit, but Arthur, too, displayed composure and skill beyond his years.
“Lucy, don’t rush in; hold your ground.”
“Sending such a cute and delicate girl to the front? You’re a real scoundrel.”
“…Frey, take care of the two coming from behind.”
“Got it.”
“Come back quickly. Don’t go charging in alone.”
“…Tch.”
However, the abilities Arthur was displaying were far beyond just being better than his peers.
His command skills had developed so dramatically compared to when we had the final exam; it was already bringing to mind the image of a seasoned knight.
Even though it was his first time in the dungeon, he effortlessly navigated through. Dealing with monsters rushing in, responding to various traps, and even tackling the boss on the intermediary level—he was clearly in a vastly improved state compared to before.
I remembered he mentioned wanting to learn dungeon strategies from Lady Allen. But how had he managed to improve so much in just about a month or two since then, despite not having adequate study time?
Was the Third Prince’s talent extraordinary, or was the book gifted by Lady Allen remarkable?
“Joy, stop daydreaming and get your magic ready.”
“I’ve already set it up.”
Joy snapped back from her thoughts and manifested nine magic circles she had completed in advance. Ice arrows shot forth, piercing through the monsters’ shells.
Before long, one could hear the sound of frost forming within their shells, and the monsters shattered like fragments, sprawled on the ground.
Realistic and efficient magic use. Arthur, who didn’t expect to clear things up so quickly, broke into a cold sweat, while Joy seemed completely unfazed.
“Foolish Young Lady, your magic has become fierce, huh? Did losing to me annoy you that much?”
“Not at all. It just felt unnecessary for magic to be flashy after all our duels, so I made some changes.”
Arthur looked at Joy, astonished. Although she carried the blood of the Partlan family, her magical talent was beyond conventional standards.
Perhaps next in line to carry the Partlan legacy wouldn’t be Jeff Partlan, but Joy instead.
“…Kyaah?!”
Arthur’s amazement vanished the moment he saw Joy slip on the ice she had created.
“Ahahaha! Foolish is truly foolish!”
“Don’t laugh and help me up! Quickly!”
Cancel that. I wonder what disaster would occur if that girl succeeded in the Partlan legacy.
Seeing Joy’s face blushing bright red, Arthur let out a sigh, glancing at the now-returned Frey.
He sensed quite a number of presences behind him, yet they had already dealt with them?
“Everyone was weak. It was boring.”
“…Yeah, that’s quite a disappointment.”
…At this rate, it’s likely. I might win the bet I panic-accepted.
Faced with such monstrous talents, Arthur clenched his fist and kept his mind racing, all to avoid the punishment imposed by Lucy Allen.
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