The moment has finally arrived. The new day has begun, as Freya wakes up the girls while Ace wakes up the guys. After making sure they have had enough rest for the dungeon, they immediately prepare their armour and weapons as soon as they can.

Ace entered his room to grab his leather armour, but he is surprised to feel a presence in the room. Suddenly, Razor appears out of nowhere.

"I forgot to give you something the other day," he says. Ace was shocked by his sudden appearance but listens as Razor continues. "Olivia pestered me about giving you better weaponry, so here. A dagger and a shortsword. They used to be mine, so don't worry about paying me back." Razor hands him the sheathed weapons.

"You didn't have to," Ace replied.

"It's better than the standard stuff they'll give you. I shouldn't worry too much, the dungeon isn't that hard until a certain point, and you'll have Ancel and Dave escorting you." Razor says with a shrug, walking closer to Ace.

"Thank you, really."

"Take care, and if you need me, you'll know where to find me." He patted Ace's shoulder and with that Razor vanished.

Ace looked around wondering, how Razor had disappeared. He sighed but gave off an impressed smile at his teacher's movement.

After taking a deep breath Ace began his preparation. He started to equip everything he needed for the dungeon, including the silver weaponry that Razor has gifted him. He also has a magic bag that can store more items using dimensional magic, inside are several potions.

When Ace stepped outside, he finds that everyone is already dressed in a variety of colours ready for the dungeon. They are all in their groups, discussing what will happen in the dungeon and other topics. However, someone is missing, Aria. Ace had an idea where she might be, and if he can't find her, he will leave her to her own business, knowing she'll eventually return.

"There you are, come on the Paladins are going to be here at any moment."

Aria was sitting in the garden, equipped with light armour and a spear behind her back. She turned her gaze towards Ace with a faint smile.

"Oh, is it that time already? The others were too rowdy and I was desperate for fresh air."

"I don't blame you."

"I can't help but worry," Aria said, gazing up at the sky. "After last night's talk, maybe we might not survive."

Ace flicked her forehead lightly, scolding her gently. "Lose the negativity, we won't get far with that kind of mindset. Unless you want me to flick your forehead again?" he joked.

Aria laughed. "'If we watch over each other, that's all it takes for us to survive,' right?" she quoted him.

"Exactly," Ace replied. "The Paladins will be here soon, so let's go back and join the others to plan for the dungeon."

'That being said, the people who came here before us. How many are still alive?'

When the Paladins arrived, Alan opened the door to find that their trainer, Ancel, was among them.

"Good, everyone is ready," Ancel said, taking a look at the group of heroes. "Alan, rally up your friends. I'll make announcements once we're there."

As they prepared to leave, Ace couldn't help but compare Ancel to Razor. Ancel exuded a sense of duty and sternness, and Alan and Glenn immediately stood up straight and saluted him. It was clear that Ancel had taught them some of the manners of a Paladin. His armour looked different from the Paladins he had seen in the throne room. It was adorned with ornaments on the helmet and shoulder pads, indicating a higher rank.

Ancel introduced himself and Dave to the group, explaining that they would be escorting the class through the first five floors of the dungeon to assess their abilities. As they walked through the royal gardens, the group realized that they had never been behind the castle before. It was a place reserved for nobles and their guards so no one was allowed to be in this area until now. Eventually, they reached the gate where the guards saw the group and immediately opened up the gate only to see the dungeon in the distance.

When they reached the gate, the guards opened it for them, revealing the dungeon in the distance.

"The dungeon is right there..." Aria's face showed a slight frown, a sign of her nervousness. Ace placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, bringing her attention back to him.

"Everyone's here behind you, so calm down," Ace said.

"Ah! Right..." Aria held onto her spear tightly as a way to release her nerves.

"Isn't someone having their moment?" Mia walked by and whispered to Aria, causing her to blush. She quickly walked over to Vella, leaving Mia behind.

Meanwhile, the guys in the group were whispering to each other about the situation.

"Quite a development there," Ryu said.

"Ace being smooth as always," Caspar added.

"Attractive people do attract other attractive people," Bryce chimed in.

"I should try that someday," Glenn said.

"Yeah, I get the point. But can you guys learn how to whisper? I can hear you from here," Ace said, turning to the group of guys.

Ace's friends laughed at the idea that he might make a move on Aria, but Ace was lost in thought, focusing on another train of thought. "Hey, don't zone out on us like that, Ace," Warren said, trying to snap him out of his thoughts.

"Sorry," Ace replied.

"Just be careful in the dungeon, okay?" Alan said in a concerned tone. "It's going to be our first time doing something like this."

"I know." Ace replied.

The rest of the class had caught up with the Paladins, who were already standing in front of the Sacred Dungeon. The entrance glowed with a gentle blue light, indicating that the dungeon accepted their presence

As Ancel led Group A through the dungeon, Alan asked why they were splitting into two groups. Ancel explained that it would be easier for everyone to get combat experience if there were fewer people in each group and that they would meet up on the fifth floor. The group nodded in understanding, and Ancel divided them into two teams: Group A and Group B.

Group A consisted of Ace, Alan, Aria, Bridget, Glenn, Freya, Emilia, Mia, Lucia, and Bryce. Whereas group B consisted of, Warren, Hubert, Caspar, Hilda, Ryu, Vella, Isabelle, Gin, Marcia and Soren

As Group A made their way through the dungeon, the glow stones embedded in the walls provided dim light gently emitting a path forward. The upper floors resembled an environment similar to a ruined castle, with the light from the glow stones illuminating the heroes' path.

Everyone took their positions and followed Ancel's lead, moving slowly through the dungeon. Despite the eerie atmosphere, everyone was focused and ready to face anything that came their way.

Ancel stopped at the entrance to the first floor and turned to the group. "We're approaching the first floor, the enemies here aren't too strong, but be careful. If something happens, I'll make sure everyone is protected."

He pointed to Alan and Glenn. "These two will be your main frontliners,"

Everyone nodded, ready for the challenge ahead. As they entered the first floor, they could sense the presence of enemies lurking in the darkness. It was time to put their training to the test.

"We'll do what we planned," Alan said. "Follow the formations and positioning, and we should be fine."

"Counting on you," Ace added.

Freya approached Ace and said, "Can you feel that, Ace? There are sources of life down there."

"I know," Ace replied. "You don't have to state the obvious. Are you going to be fine?" Ace looked away from Freya's direction with a tired expression. "What am I talking about, you're going to compare it to hunting again."

Both Ace and Freya could sense the presence of life forms in the dungeon, thanks to their former experience in hunting. Freya was especially sensitive to these changes in the atmosphere.

"It should be you two that we rely on, isn't it?" Bridget said, overhearing their conversation.

"It's strange to hear you guys talk about hunting and killing so casually," Bryce added. "You're a blank duo."

"Hmph, I'd rather be at school than here," Freya said.

"I didn't expect to hear those words come out of your mouth," Aria commented.

'It's because we joined a cycle of war and death.' Ace thought.

Heroes are summoned, Heroes will train, Heroes will die in the war and then be resummoned again. This was the thought process of the whole situation according to Ace's perspective.

"Quiet," Freya said suddenly. "They're very close, whatever these things are."

"Hmmm?" Ancel smiled seeming impressed by Freya's intuition. "The Archer's right, from here on out, there will be enemies around this floor, so be careful. I'll jump in if the situation gets out of control." Ace felt a stare sensing Ancel's observant gaze on his entire class. He quickly tilted his head towards the right raising his voice.

"Tch... Something's coming!" Ace shouted. "Alan, Glenn, shields up now! Bryce and Bridget, you better protect the backline! You know your positions, so make sure you hold it!"

Everyone looked ahead and saw a pack of giant wolves running towards them, followed by a group of smaller wolf cubs. Alan deployed his shield, imbuing it with mana to create a bright force field around it. The force field was larger than the shield itself, increasing its strength and size. Alan and Glenn used their shields to shove the wolves back.

Bridget and Bryce followed Ace's orders and stayed close to the backline to provide support. Emilia immediately casts a Fire Bolt spell, engulfing the wolves in intense heat.

Everyone knew their roles and executed them well. The frontliners made sure no enemies broke through, while the back liners focused on not letting the frontliners be overwhelmed.

"Aria, on your left!" Freya shouted, firing an arrow that struck the wolf that was attacking Aria.

"Thank you!" Aria said, strengthening her stance and swinging her spear with Mia's support. Mia's music from her lute inspired everyone to attack faster and stronger.

Freya showed no hesitation in taking down her targets, but Alan and Glenn looked overwhelmed by the feeling of flesh and bone under their weapons. This was true for most of the group, but Ace took on most of the burden.

Ace moved quickly from wolf to wolf, using whatever efficient method he could to kill or avoid getting injured. He made sure to support his classmates whenever they needed help, using his throwing knives or finishing off the wolves himself. Freya also contributed a lot to the group's success, as did Aria, who had hesitated at first but soon found her flow.

Ancel watched from a distance, impressed by the group's performance. He hadn't needed to intervene at all, and he realized that Alan wasn't the only leader in the group. Ace and Freya were just as capable.

'Amazing, they're a much higher quality than the last group.' Ancel couldn't help but hide a smirk behind his helmet.

"Well done, everyone," Ancel said, walking up to the group and clapping. "You performed even better than I was used to. There are more enemies ahead, so don't let your guard down."

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Despite their success, some of the students were shaking and scared. Lucia and Bridget dropped to their knees, overcome with fear.

"I'm sorry, I was so scared the whole time," Lucia said.

"My hands won't stop shaking," Bridget added.

"We have to suck it up," Ace said coldly. "When we fight in the war, the enemy won't wait for us to be ready. They'll be more different than a pack of wolves."

"Ace, don't be so negative," Freya said, trying to lecture him.

"I'm sorry, but everyone can't survive if we hesitate like this again," Ace replied.

"That's why I'll do my part to protect everyone," Alan said.

"Don't worry, we won't make the same mistake as last time," Ancel said. "We'll make sure this group of heroes is protected and escorted on the battlefield."

"You better keep your word," Ace said to Ancel in a low tone.

The first encounter for Group A had been a success, but there were still concerns about what would happen when they had to fight in the war. Nevertheless, the group continued their way through the dungeon.

A few hours went by as they encountered various monsters such as wolves, slimes, and small rock golems. With each battle, they could feel their bodies getting used to combat and their nerves slowly disappearing. As a result, their levels and stats increased.

"Come on, we're almost there," Ancel said. "Dave and his group are probably waiting for us by now."

Ace examined his updated status. "No wonder I feel even faster than before," he thought to himself.

Name: Ace

Human Male

Age: 17

Job(s): Rogue

Title(s):

Status Level: 15

Strength: 500

Vitality: 300

Magic: 100

Magic Resistance: 200

Agility: 600

'It really feels like a video game, killing enemies, growing stronger. I still find this a bit hard to believe.'

The group only had one floor left until they met up with Dave's group. There was a warp point at the end of the floor that would take them back to the entrance of the dungeon. In a typical dungeon, the warp point would act as a rest area for heroes and adventurers before they continued to the next floor. But this was a special dungeon, located near the king's castle and only accessible to approved individuals like the heroes.

As they made their way through the floor, the group talked about their experiences in battle. "Aria, great job covering for us," Alan said.

"You did a great job too, Alan. If it wasn't for you, I would have had a harder time," Aria replied.

"I think the real MVP was Ace," Glenn said. "Watching him dash around and kill enemies left and right made the waves much easier to deal with."

"Try not to hesitate next time, we can't afford to mess up for next time." Ace said, not looking impressed.

"Hey, I'm doing my best here," Glenn replied defensively.

"Don't worry, I think you did well, Ace here is just petty." Freya said, trying to smooth things over.

"Uh... thanks," Glenn said, freezing up as Freya approached him. Despite his attempts to act cool, Freya just stared at him with a blank expression.

After a few more moments of conversation, the group continued deeper into the dungeon. Everyone's morale was high after their first successful battle against the monsters that lived there. They were excited to meet up with Dave's group and see how they had fared.

Ancel, who was walking behind the group, carefully observed everyone's progress and reactions to the enemy. He was aware that this group was different from the last one and hoped that they would be as strong as the prodigy that had once been a part of the previous group of heroes.

The magic gems on the stairs shone brightly, illuminating the path ahead for the group as they descended into the dungeon. Suddenly, they stumbled upon Group B, reuniting the entire class. There was a warp point nearby where half of the class had been waiting, their faces brightened causing most of them to run up to greet their friends.

"I thought you guys would be here first," Warren said as he went up.

"Looks like things are going well on your end," Ace replied.

"We got used to the fighting after a few battles," Vella added. "Hopefully, we can apply the same to the war."

"That thought scares me," Aria said, holding onto her spear tightly.

"As long as we're all together, we'll be fine," Warren said confidently.

Alan approached Ancel after a brief conversation with their classmates. With the war looming, he wanted to make sure everyone was well-trained and experienced before moving on to the real battle.

"How long will we be training here, Ancel?" Alan asked.

"For a while, don't worry. No other kingdom has made any major moves yet, and our troops are stationed in strategic areas in case of an attack."

Ace overheard the conversation and chimed in.

"Aren't we going to die the moment these kingdoms attack?" Ace asked, his annoyance with Ancel clear in his tone.

"I know you were forced into this situation, but it's either the survival of our kingdom or our defeat. We've managed to survive because of the previous heroes. You don't have to forgive us, but if you want to survive, you'll need to comply," Ancel replied.

Ancel understood the perspective of Ace and his classmates, who were forced into this unknown world. He had experienced the fear and concerns that the previous heroes had faced, and ultimately, their fear of dying.

"We don't have a choice anyways."

"Thank you for understanding, Ace," Ancel said, bowing his head. "We're done in the dungeon for today. Everyone should rest up for the next floors tomorrow when we return. I'll teach you all about the features of this dungeon's warp system. Dave, if you would."

Dave walked up to a device at the centre of the floor, which was surrounded by a circle of various magical symbols. The device was a stone tablet with a large magic crystal that glowed a faint yellow. There was text on top of the crystal that read "Floor 5."

"This device detects the floors you've been to for a month or so until its effects wear off on you," Dave explained. "You'll see shortly. Everyone get inside the circle."

Everyone followed Dave's instructions and entered the circle. Dave then placed his hand on the magic crystal, pushing it like a button. The floor began to light up with symbols, slowly engulfing everyone in bright light. In just a few moments, everyone was back at the entrance of the Sacred Dungeon.

"What...?! We're here!" Caspar exclaimed.

"An actual teleportation device," Alan commented.

"And look over here. A similar, but larger device has emerged," Dave pointed out.

The stone tablet wasn't there the first time the class entered the dungeon. Now that everyone had used the warp system, they could use the device to their advantage and skip the previous rooms.

This device had 8 magical crystals, each with its own faded-out text that read:

➢ Floor 5

➢ Floor 10

➢ Floor 20

➢ Floor 35

➢ Floor 50

➢ Floor 70

➢ Floor 85

Ace went up to the device and noticed that the stone tablet reacted to his mana. Soon after, one of the crystals glowed with the same faint yellow colour they had seen on floor 5, and the text lit up.

"You can press the crystal to teleport everyone around the circle. Some Dungeons don't have this feature, but we're lucky to have such a system right behind the castle," Dave finished his explanation.

"Well, that's all for today. We'll escort you all back to your dorms," Ancel announced.

The next few hours were spent with everyone resting in their dorms, preparing for tomorrow's dungeon exploration. They talked about their experiences fighting against the dungeon's monsters. Some were relieved, some were confident, and some reminded everyone that they were still training for war and not to get ahead of themselves.

Ace was lying on one of the tree trunks by the garden. He stared up at the sky as he thought about the challenges that lay ahead. In order to return home, they needed to collect six dragon stones, but that would require them to fight in a war against multiple kingdoms. This will mean that they wouldn't be the only heroes. Other kingdoms might also have heroes from their world, which could make the task even more difficult.

"How many kingdoms do we have to fight?" Ace thought to himself. "And how many Heroes have died before us?"

The king had explained that the dragon stones were the key to powering the teleportation device that had brought them to this world. These powerful magic orbs were the only source of power capable of teleporting them back to their home world.

"Are we able to get even one? We're not the only heroes either; other kingdoms may have them and use people from the same world to fight us, it'd be too chaotic to recognise anyone too. How many are there? There must be countless stories of their deaths? Could any of the surviving ones be... " Ace sighed after continuing to think to himself. "Luna, are you still alive?"

Despite his concerns, all he could do was wait for the day when they would have to fight in the war.

"Ah, I knew you'd be around here," a voice interrupted his thoughts. Ace turned to see Aria standing nearby. "You haven't had dinner yet. Come on, we have a big day tomorrow; you wouldn't want to stay up late."

"Sorry, I'll join now," Ace said, sitting up.

"Nope, I brought it with me. I... wanted to eat with you. Food tastes better when you're eating with someone, after all," Aria said, mustering up the courage to express her true intentions. Ace realised this but didn't mind at all.

"Here, I brought it in a basket," Aria said, opening the basket to reveal Ace's meal.

"Thanks, you didn't have to,"

"I know... but you're always staring blankly towards the sky so I was worried you'd lose track of time."

"Oh. You're right." Ace just realised now that it was dark, he'd been staring at the sky for an hour straight thinking about multiple things at once.

They both started eating the food that Aria had brought. The atmosphere was quiet, but Aria cherished the moment, grateful for the opportunity to eat with Ace.

Aria had always had special moments with Ace. When Ace started living alone during high school, they would always walk in the same direction and stop at a bakery near Ace's house. They would often make a pitstop there to eat whatever Aria was in the mood for.

"I want to go back to those simpler times..." Aria said, breaking the silence. Ace knew what she was referring to.

"Yeah," Ace replied, though he was thinking of a different moment in time, a time before high school.

"Do you believe that everyone in our class will survive?" Aria asked, sounding worried.

"If we can keep up this momentum I do. I believe they will. We all have some sort of desire motivating us. If we hold onto it, we'll survive for sure," Ace said, thinking of Olivia's words.

"Are you referring to Olivia's words on winning?" Aria asked.

"Yeah." Ace answered. Despite his empty expression, Aria could sense the desperation in Ace's voice.

"Can you tell me about it? You're looking for someone, right?" Aria asked, prompting Ace to open up even more. Ace looked at Aria and smiled sadly before sighing.

"It's stupid... sigh I'm looking for a corpse." Ace said with sadness in his voice.

"This person is a girl, right? What if she's not dead?" Aria asked, trying to give Ace some hope.

"I'm sorry, Aria. I said too much to you last night. This is supposed to be my problem, I'll deal with it myself." Ace said, feeling regretful for opening up so much to her.

"Who is this mystery girl anyway...?" Aria asked, still curious.

Ace decided to stop hiding his secret and opened up to Aria completely.

"Her name was Luna. She was one of the students from class 2-3. I can't remember the names of her classmates, and no one in our class does either. That's why I want some relief knowing whether she's dead or alive. But, If she is alive, I'll be even more distracted. Ever since her disappearance, I haven't been the same, because I don't know how to act. Is she dead? Or possibly alive? I need to see or hear about her status with my own senses. Then I can move on..." Ace said, his voice filled with sadness and uncertainty.

"So... did you like her...?" Aria asked, wanting to know the truth. She didn't care if Ace had feelings for Luna or not, but she was driven by her curiosity about what Ace had to say.

"Ahahaha... right. I did, but she rejected me. We continued to be friends of course but shortly after that was when she disappeared." Ace answered with a slight smile. "But, I want to find her."

"Can you tell me more about Luna? If that's fine with you?" Aria asked, hoping that Ace would open up even more.

Ace's eyes widened in surprise. He didn't expect Aria to ask about Luna even more than she already had. He hesitated for a moment before answering.

"...You might be jealous," Ace said with a reminiscent smile.

"Ungh... very funny," Aria pouted, feeling a little embarrassed.

"Oh, don't worry. You're objectively prettier than her, if your shallow self was wondering." Ace said with a condescending tone, looking down on Aria for effect.

"Okay, I get it. I must be ugly personality-wise compared to this Luna," Aria replied, feeling a vein pop on her head.

"You lack the intelligent flair that she had too," Ace added, continuing his blunt statements.

'Are you trying to say I'm dumb?' Aria wanted to fire back but did not want to engage with Ace any further in case he fired another damaging comment at her.

"...Just tell me about Luna already. I want to hear what makes you drawn to her," Aria said, changing the subject.

"Right, I haven't told anyone, even Freya. To summarize, she was insightful, intelligent, and blunt. She was always strong and independent. We both had literary interests In fact, she's the reason why we had a disciplinary committee in the first place, despite her love for literature," Ace explained.

'So this is the kind of girl he's crushed on...' Aria thought to herself.

"So...are you going to try to find her in this world?" Aria asked.

"I will, she's my first best friend." Ace said, his eyes staring off into the distance as he reminisced about his memories with Luna. Aria watched as Ace's attention was completely elsewhere, focused on the past rather than the present. "If I have the opportunity, I'll search for her myself as soon as I hear about her whereabouts."

"Ace, if worst comes to worst-" Aria began, but was cut off by Ace.

"I know." Ace said, his tone distressed. "She helped turned my life around. When I heard about her disappearance, I silently fell apart. But, now that I'm here, there's a strong chance." Ace gripped his fist tightly.

"You do realize that she may end up fighting us by mistake," Aria pointed out.

"...I hope that doesn't happen. I'll be the one to stop her, I promise you that," Ace replied.

Aria looked down with a somewhat jealous expression.

"Haha, you worry too much. When this whole war is over, we can return to those simpler times. Eating at the bakery that we both love. But I need some closure about what's happened to her." Ace said, his expression determined.

'This is the first time I've seen Ace like this' Aria thought to herself.

"Luna is my problem to deal with. Right now, we have a war to focus on," Ace said.

"That's right...I still can't help but feel a little scared," Aria said sadly.

"It's only natural. I'll make sure to work hard to protect everyone." Ace reassured her.

Aria's heart raced and she smiled to herself. Despite learning about Ace's first love, she didn't feel swayed or lose hope in her feelings. She was loyal to her love for Ace, and the reason she was still alive was because of him, who gave her a reason to live.

"I like that part about you."

"What part?" Ace tilted his head.

"How you care for everyone."

Ace gave off a small chuckle. "That's because you guys are important to me." He ended his sentence with a sincere smile that caught Aria off guard. She could only blush to see such a rare expression from him.

'Ah... how rare... I want to see that same expression from him again.'

Aria expressed her thoughts with a smile as she looked away from the beaming Ace. Though, she's too shy to say this directly to Ace's face. She thought about what she would say next after such an expression, multiple things kept spiralling into Aria's thought process until she blurted out whatever came to mind.

"L-let's do our best to return home!"

'Maybe this was for the best... It might be too soon to say something else to him!'

Aria stuttered her words catching Ace in surprise.

"Of course." Ace continued with the same smile. "Thank you, Aria."

"H-huh? For what?" Aria had lost her balance for a split second from the sudden gratitude.

"Just for talking to me about this, I might've gone a bit insane if I kept bottling this about Luna."

"Oh-! No worries! You can talk to me about anything." Aria struck a stiff pose with her chest. Ace couldn't help but hold a small chuckle at the gesture.

"I'll keep that in mind. Come on, let's go inside it's getting very cold out here."

"Sure! Let's go." Aria held on to a brimming smile on her face.

'I'll take my chances another time.'

Aria made sure not to forget what Ace's smile look like that night.