A while later the group of friends arrived on a plain between two of the city’s many hills. The scenery before them was completely different from the dense buildings elsewhere.

Here, a large forest was growing wildly. But for some reason it also gave one an orderly feel, as if everything fit perfectly together, giving of a harmonious image.

On second look one would see that this part of the city wasn’t unpopulated as well. Houses made from wood, leaves, and stalks, were everywhere, appearing like a part of nature, not conflicting with their surroundings.

A lot of people strolled through the forest on prepared paths, which almost dictated movements down to the placing of one’s footsteps.

Most inhabitants of the city would describe this district as gorgeous and peaceful, but in Tepo’s eyes it was forceful and eerie.

A chill ran down his spine as Yerive led them into the forest, asking them to follow the path without mistake.

On the way they encountered more and more groups, all of them obviously led by members of the Church of Guiding Nature.

Finally, the group of friends arrived in front of a dense network of trees and plants. They grew together, their dense canopies forming a closed roof.

The bussing of insects could be heard as they flew among colorful flowers surrounding the large building.

A few simple animals even roamed the place, not disturbed by the large gathering crowd. They calmly nibbled on the soft grass, but obviously avoided the sea of flowers.

“Guys, don’t step on the flowers, ok?

Those are the life flowers, a remembrance of the dead. Stepping on them will be one of the highest disrespects to the church.”

Like many other church members, Yerive reminded his dormmates in a whispering voice.

He was slightly relieved as he watched even Tepo nod in understanding.

But his worry was naturally unfounded. Tepo wouldn’t deliberately disrespect the dead even if they were followers of a religion.

Only Varei felt somewhat embarrassed. The little spirit came together with Tepo, forced to stay invisible all the while.

Thus, he was glad as he could mix in the crowd where no one paid attention to him, not deliberately staying close to Tepo.

But as he was alone, he was pushed to the side involuntarily, almost walking on some flowers.

Fortunately, someone grabbed him at the last second and pulled him away.

But this was only a small occurrence, drawing no one’s attention. The crowd waited for a few more minutes until some dense branches suddenly moved by themselves.

It looked like a door opening in the canopy not far away, revealing a team of six people.

They were four men and two women, one of the men non-human. But all of them looked incredibly attractive by human standards, with fair skin, smooth hair adorned with flowers, and colorful clothing.

One of the men stood at the front of the group. He surprisingly had a solid staff tied to his back, his upper body only barely covered by two long green stipes hanging from his shoulders, revealing a natural looking six-pack.

Some girls in the crowd had stars in their eyes as the man let out a gentle smile and spoke in a soft voice which was soothing to the ears:

“Welcome, friends. I am Tra, missionary of the Church of Guiding Nature and leader of team Hyacinth.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

It is my honor to see so many of you gathered here, willing to help our team in clearing the dungeon.

Let me explain the obstacle we are facing:

When you enter the dungeon, you will be met with a room filled with mirrors. Each of them leads to another room filled with mirrors, forming a complicated labyrinth.

We would like to ask you, friends, to help us map out the dungeon. If you can solve it, this will be great, but we are already thankful for every bit of information.

Tepo listened to the explanation with a calm expression. So far, nothing sounded unreasonable to him.

But the crowd had some concerns. A young woman Tepo had never seen before had an embarrassed face as she rose her hand timidly.

When Tra’s gaze fell on her she felt her heartbeat quicken:

“This maiden, do you have something to ask?”

“Y… yes, missionary Tra. I’m sorry. Can I ask if we can get a reward?”

Some in the crowd shot the woman looks of disdain, thinking that it was a noble cause to help, but most silently agreed with the question.

“Ok course. You can take anything you see from the dungeon. We are only interested in the artificial core.”

Many eyes lit up as Tra quickly encouraged another person to raise their question:

“Is there any danger in the dungeon?”

“Yes. As you explore the labyrinth you will come across a few rooms leading to a dark forest. I sincerely ask all our friends not to enter it!

The forest is teeming with fierce beasts of acolyte rank and higher. Exploring this part of the dungeon will be done by our church.”

Many helpers sighed in relief. Thy felt that the church was really considerate. Wasn’t this simply a case where they didn’t need to risk anything and could still pick up some valuables?

Looking at the crowd there weren’t many strong warriors. Those wouldn’t waste their time here if they could just go treasure hunting on their own.

“No more question?

Then I would suggest we begin, friends. Please follow out members in small groups. We don’t have much space up here.”

Tra let out a low chuckle before turning around and leaving with his team.

The crowd was confused for a moment before noticing a movement outside of the passage among the trees. Sturdy branches slowly lowered themselves, forming a short set of stairs towards the canopy above.

Under the lead of a church member the first team quickly split from the group, walking up the stairs and disappearing into the dense greenery.

It took some time until it was finally Yerive’s turn. With obvious familiarity he led his dormmates up the stairs.

Varei saw Tepo leaving, hastily used his [Spirit Form] and hurried after him.

Upstairs, Tepo was surprised as the tree branches formed a nearly perfect flooring. The sides were also loosely covered in greenery, a few openings allowing one to look at the peaceful nature below.

Only as an especially damp smell entered his nose did Tepo finally recognize these trees.

He had read about them before. Animris were spiritual trees which were beloved by wood spirits.

Tepo felt surprised as he used [Telepathic Communication] to ask his spirit friend:

“Do you know if the Church of Guiding Nature has something to do with wood spirits?”

“No idea. Wood spirits are a spirit race which is separated into two factions.

One of them lives in the World of Spirits and almost never leaves, while the other lives in other worlds and always never comes back.”

“Got it.”

Tepo stored the information somewhere at the back of his mind as they reached the end of the corridor.

A simple room appeared before them formed from tree branches. There was nothing in it except for a few guards, who hadn’t even taken out their weapons, and a quiet dungeon portal.

Yerive nodded at the guards before entering the portal without hesitation.

His dormmates followed right after.

The world changed, revealing a luxurious, large hall. Its floor was made from old but elegant looking dark wood, many spots covered by soft carpets showing complicated patterns.

The walls and ceiling were entirely white, shining brightly as fancy chandeliers illuminated them.

The wall to Tepo’s left was entirely covered in mirrors, each of them adorned by artful golden frames.

More mirrors were scattered throughout the room. There was no more furniture, but statues were seemingly randomly placed on the floor and paintings hung from the walls.

With a quick gaze it was obvious that the room had no doors, only the mirrors leading to other places.

Yerive waved at his friends to walk away from the portal. They gathered towards the side like a few others, discussing their plan.

“Ok guys. Missionary Tra already explained everything. I suggest we split up to cover more ground. J…”

Right at this moment the dormmates’ attention was drawn to the voice appearing in their minds.

[Salut Lord Endless Shore!]

“Ah. Right, that’s the quest.

We suspect this lord to be within this strange building. It makes more sense than the forest.”

Tepo nodded calmly as his eyes scanned the room.

“Is there a map with your progress? Have you already checked all the mirrors, paintings, and statues here?”

Yerive showed an awkward smile:

“Hmm, no. Team Blue Hyacinth were the only one’s exploring before asking for more helpers.”

“And they didn’t give you anything?”

Yerive stayed silent as he noticed a sharp tone mixing in Tepo’s voice.

The latter immediately felt his opinion validated, certain that the church was using others.

Even Shorey and Quordh felt somewhat displeased.

Noticing the awkward atmosphere Yerive meekly apologized:

“I’m sorry, guys. But look, we have so many people. The dungeon will be solved in no time. Let’s just do our part.”