With the expedition over, the group made their way back to Kelsein.

Just like he had promised to trader Bill, William split the profits seventy-thirty. Although William got the short end of the stick, he was pleased with the outcome. The staff alone made the journey worth it and he wouldn’t give it up even if Trader Bill demanded it.

The mercenaries were also paid accordingly and his subordinates also got a few things for themselves. Surprisingly, the amount of artifacts was way less than William had initially estimated, prompting him to think that someone had already taken a large portion.

He was sure that the emperor was behind this, but he couldn’t comprehend why he wouldn’t simply get rid of the tyrant himself.

The tyrant might have been oppressive and a dictator, but he made the empire flourish despite his terrible image with nobles and commoners alike. Compared to the current Thelwedean empire, the empire he ruled was far more prosperous.

There had to be a larger scheme hidden, but William didn’t care about it. He might have gotten used like a tool, but he gained something worth the effort in the end.

“My Lord, should we return to the manor?”

At this moment Jerome asked, prompting William to ponder. He had a lot of things he wanted to do, especially since time was limited.

“There are some things I want to take care of.”

He replied, his eyes turning cold. He had finally made up his mind to start his plans, even though it was slightly earlier than he anticipated.

William reached into his pocket and pulled a small knife. Turning the knife towards his left hand, he slashed at a certain uneven spot, prompting blood to quickly pour out. Expressionless, he returned the knife to his pocket, reached out with his other hand, and pulled out a small bead inside his arm.

Clenching the bid tightly, he broke it, releasing a small amount of smoke into the air.

“Jerome, take the others and make them move everything through Pandora back home. Inform my family that I won’t be seeing them until a few days later. Don’t look for me, I’ll contact you guys once I’m done.”

William ordered, staring at the dust particles the bead released. He didn’t want to do this, but he had to. That bead was a tracking device he had installed on himself so that his subordinates could find him in case of an emergency.

The reason he had to destroy it instead of remove it was due to the unique signature it possessed. Once removed from his person, it would be automatically destroyed, alerting his subordinates that he was in danger.

“Yes, my Lord.”

Jerome responded without hesitation, bowing respectfully. With a deft motion, Jerome summoned a small portal, manifesting the staff acquired during the expedition.

William took the staff, feeling its power resonate with his own. Smiling, he addressed Jerome one last time.

“Take care of everything."

Jerome and the others nodded, swiftly moving to execute William's orders. As they departed, William stood alone, gripping the staff tightly.

“It begins…”

He muttered, his eyes narrowing to slits.

Moving the staff through the air, he began casting multiple enhancement spells on his body, as well as unique spells that weren’t widely known. The energy he was currently emitting wasn’t far off from the fourth rank, despite him entering the third rank not too long ago.

“Since my mana is still inadequate, I'll have to compromise.”

He muttered, casting one last spell on his body.

[Unique Spell: Encapsulate]

Encapsulate was the most important factor in his plans since it completely hid his identity.

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Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

Baryngoria, inside the ancient trail dungeon of the heroes.

The young hero group sat around a campfire and prepared their food portions, cooking the carcass of a few weirdly-shaped insects.

“Who would have thought that we would be eating giant mantis legs like this…”

Thoran said, removing the exoskeleton from the insect leg he was holding and biting on the meat. It tasted strangely savory and reminded him of seafood.

“I mean, at least we don’t have to eat Terramantra meat anymore. I swear, if I had to eat one bite of that thing, I would probably kill myself.”

Saria spoke, her face turning to disgust as she thought of the nightmarish meat.

The others nodded at her statement, shuddering at the thought. They had stayed inside the dungeon for far too long. They never expected it to be so deep. Right now they stood near the entrance of the 99th floor and they still weren’t sure if there was more.

“Just how long do we have to keep this up?”

Kothog complained, scratching his head in irritation. They were trapped inside the dungeon for months, surviving off anything they found inside.

Although their group had built up solid trust and coordination, their long stay was taking a toll on their mental state.

“I believe the 100th floor will be the boss room, so we just have to hold out a bit longer.”

Rasiel commented at this moment, his gaze falling onto the stairs leading to the 99th floor. Sighing deeply, he continued.

“Aegis and Gungnir told me that the original dungeon had only 10 levels, and the last heroes that came here fought to the 90th level. It is clear by this alone that this dungeon is different from all the others… It’s no wonder this has become our trial ground.”

Thoran’s brow furrowed as he chewed thoughtfully on the giant mantis leg.

“Great, just what we need—a dungeon that’s alive and kicking,” Thoran muttered, peeling off more exoskeleton. “Because fighting regular monsters wasn’t enough of a challenge.”

Rasiel chuckled, poking at the fire.

“Come on, Thoran, think of it as an adventure. Besides, we’ve made it this far, right?”

“Yeah, and we’re still alive. Barely,” Thoran replied, rolling his eyes. “But if this dungeon decides to change its mind and seal us in forever, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Nobile looked up from her cooking, her timid voice barely above a whisper.

“We’ll get through it. We always do. As long as we stick together.”

Kothog grunted, flexing his muscles.

“Strength will get us through. Just let me at whatever’s waiting on the 100th floor. I’ll smash it to bits.”

“Strength isn’t everything, Kothog,” Saria said calmly, giving him a sidelong glance. “We need strategy too. We need to stay calm and focused.”

Kothog shrugged, clearly not convinced.

“Whatever you say. But when it comes down to it, a good punch solves most problems.”

Segsbir, sitting silently with his eyes closed, finally opened them.

“A punch won’t solve everything. We need to conserve our energy. The real challenge is yet to come.”

Thoran snorted.

“Leave it to Segsbir to be the voice of doom. But he’s right. Let’s not get too cocky.”

Rasiel stood up, stretching his legs.

“All right, let’s get some rest. We’ll need all the strength and wits we’ve got for tomorrow. Who knows what surprises the 99th floor has in store for us?”

Nobile nodded, starting to tidy up.

“I’ll take the first watch. You all get some sleep.”

“Thanks, Nobile.”

Saria said, offering a small smile.

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"Seriously, why do I have to do this?"

Grumbled a hooded figure who was digging corpses from a graveyard.

The figure was covered from head to toe in robes, hiding his true appearance.

As soon as the figure was able to excavate the coffin that housed the corpse, he stopped digging and opened the coffin, revealing a somewhat intact body.

The body was that of a handsome man with pale white skin and short black hair. The man's wrinkles around the eyes and mouth were especially prevalent.

The hooded figure scanned the corpse's entire body, making sure that it was indeed the correct person. Two blue lights shone in an eerie light deep within its hood.

Lowering the hood slightly, the figure's actual appearance was revealed. It was Ellis White, the necromancer, who had initially captured Malcolm.

The blue flames inside the light blue lich's sockets seemed to be glowing brightly with excitement at the sight of the corpse in front of them.

"Ah, my dear departed friend, it seems we meet again!"

Ellis exclaimed dramatically, his voice echoing within the graveyard. He carefully adjusted the corpse's position as if it were a life-sized doll in need of proper posing.

"Look at you, all pale and still. Such a classic look! Very in vogue among the undead community, I must say."

He continued, patting the corpse's cheek affectionately.

"Don't worry, my friend; I'll make sure to put you to good use. The afterlife can be dreadfully dull, you know. But with a bit of necromantic magic, we'll have you up and about in no time!"

Ellis chuckled to himself, his eyes twinkling mischievously beneath his hood. He was known for his eccentricities, and his fascination with corpses was no secret. However, his skills as a necromancer and lich were unparalleled, making him a valuable asset to Grand Duchess Judy Rothsgomery.

With a flourish of his bony hands, Ellis conjured a small vial containing a shimmering green liquid. He carefully poured it over the corpse, watching intently as the magic took effect. Slowly but surely, the body began to twitch and stir, with a faint glow emanating from its eyes.

"Now, my dear friend, arise! Let's show the world what we can do together!"

Ellis exclaimed, barely able to contain his excitement.

As the reanimated corpse rose from its resting place, Ellis stepped back, watching with delight. The corpse stumbled around awkwardly, its movements jerky and uncoordinated.

"Oh, come now, my friend, you're not auditioning for a zombie dance troupe! Let's work on your coordination, shall we?"

Ellis laughed heartily, clapping his hands.

With a few more incantations and gentle guidance, Ellis managed to improve the corpse's movements, making it shuffle and sway in a somewhat more natural manner.

"You, my friend, are going to be the life of the party!"

Ellis declared proudly, patting the corpse on the back.

"Well, not really life, but close enough.”