Ten hours later, we were crossing the ninth floor of the dungeon. In the second part of the first section of the dungeon, the earth skeletons, as they were called, began to show up in groups of six… soloing that place would be hard, but it would seem like a good challenge.
While I was thinking about that, I felt that sensation again and turned around and then looked at the maid. Her expression didn’t change, so that left me confused.
“Is there anything wrong?”
The blond dual swordswoman asked. I wanted to keep quiet, but I didn’t like having doubts creeping into my mind.
“I just have this weird feeling that someone is watching me… perhaps not me directly. I confused with hers, but her gaze is different since it is like daggers on my back.”
The maid squinted her eyes at me, but soon the blondie whispered something in her ears and her expression softened.
“What is wrong?”
The swordsman approached, already making an expression like I was causing trouble. I made a mental note to deny this kind of offer in the future… Working with these people is simply impossible.
“Captain, I would like to check that we aren't being followed before reaching the boss room. Can we take a short break to confirm it?”
“Our guards are waiting behind and we checked the dungeon in the last few days. This place is completely safe, my Lady.”
“This won't take more than five minutes.”
“... Very well. We will do it immediately.”
“That won't be necessary, Rose can do this.”
The maid nodded and then soon vanished out of thin air… everyone blinked in surprise. I wasn't that surprised, I had heard that some noble kids had some guards disguised, after all. I heard something about the mothers of my step sisters also hiring some for them when they joined the ladies' academy.
In any case, as if they couldn't try to look more suspicious about me than ever, the guards put themselves between me and the blondie. If they knew that I was practically allergic to nobles and their bullshit, they wouldn't have acted like that.
Regardless, after ten minutes, the maid returned and she had a difficult expression on her face. She whispered something in the blonde girl's ears.
“... It appears that we are indeed being followed. Rose wasn't able to pinpoint their location, but she can tell that the enemies are assassins.”
“My Lady… that is impossible. The group stationed outside are veterans that wouldn't go down that easily. Even if a battle would take place, the people in the city would take notice of it. Their fight wouldn't be that silent.”
The swordsman didn't look convinced… It looked like he was indeed a guard and an adventurer, but not a guard for this girl. I had assumed that she had some relation with the nobles of the region, but perhaps I was wrong.
“I don't doubt that, but if the enemies are assassins, then they could be taken down in a myriad of ways without making any noise… even more so if they had help from inside.”
The swordsman went silent and then looked at his allies. He had absolute trust in them, but he knew that aside from those two, others wouldn't be that loyal. They had known each other since they were kids, but the others were a different case.
“I won't ask your name, My Lady. However, I need to ask if some dangerous people would target your life… any group that comes particularly to mind?”
“... I have some relatives who might have caused some problems to the Kingdom of Talimor… they might also be involved in certain concerning war misdeeds.”
“The twilight brotherhood, then… still, for them to be able to do something here with this timing…”
“Yes, most likely… someone close to me either opened up their mouth or they actively wanted to see me dead.”
The town wasn't like Ironcliff city… people from inside could have sold themselves to the neighbors for one reason or the other. It looked like the girl also lived close to the border since she had relatives that worked there too… based on that, I could tell that she was part of a certain family that ruled the land further East. Beyond that, there was no more human land, it belonged to the Kingdom of Talimor.
I didn't do much research about nobles, but there were many books about that at home because the Dawnshield family had connections to the family in that territory… The head there was a viscount who was also the grandfather of Gerald. So, this girl was probably his cousin or Aunt if his grandfather couldn't keep it in his pants like Rayner.
‘Man, one-year avoiding trouble only for this to happen as soon as I decide to explore a dungeon… just how rotten my luck is.’
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As if that wasn't enough, I was close to someone who had ties with my family… she probably heard of me and a single mistake would be enough for her to connect the dots and tell who I was. Still, I could take advantage of the situation. The confusion would make her forget anything that isn't related to her survival.
“Are they too much for you, Rose?”
“Yes, my apologies, my Lady. These types will do anything to achieve their goals and they are used to sacrificing themselves to accomplish their missions. I believe that I can take five of them, by myself, but the others will use the chance to overwhelm me.”
“How many of them are there?”
“At least twenty.”
Assassins were always hard to deal with… they shouldn’t be that tough or have a lot of stamina, but they can be deadly in the first moment of lack of focus, and then the target would be disposed of.
“They will be waiting for us to get tired or when we decide to leave… the boss here won’t be a problem, so they won’t use that chance.”
The swordsman began to think with his head alongside his friends… Still, it didn’t look like they had experience with this kind of situation so no idea came to mind. The maid and the girl didn’t know what to do either. The maid seemed a bit calm and resolute… perhaps she had a trick up her sleeve, but she would only reveal it when she knew that she would kill all the enemies.
I wanted to stay clear from them, and not get involved in the least, but it looked like they had no idea of what they should do. I had one idea, but I was the most suspicious person in the party, it was only a matter of time before they began to look at me with suspicions, imagining that I could be one of those behind the whole thing.
“... Can’t we just wait here for reinforcements?”
Eventually, I got tired of staying quiet and said that. I didn’t know what kind of quest those three accepted, but the guild should be aware that we were only supposed to reach the tenth floor and then return. Eventually, they would come to check us.
“... What do you think, Rose?”
“This could work… they will get impatient and that will make them make some mistakes. The path until here has some good ambushing points, but I am not sure if there are any in the other sections of the dungeon. If they are attacked from both sides, then we will have better chances of disposing of them.”
The girl and her maid considered the option. I wondered what kind of experiences that maid have in order to know all those things. In any case, soon the swordsmen joined the conversation.
“The guild master is strong and a man of honor… he will definitely come to help us. The only issue is the problem with food and water. We don’t have enough for more than three days. However… there are some frozen lakes on the third section in which we can get food and water.”
I wondered if the fish of the frozen lake would work like the minerals of a mining spot in a dungeon… both of them should have been assimilated, after all. In any case, the mission was taking a weird turn… in order to escape from assassins, the three swordsmen and her maid had to take her to the third section of a dangerous dungeon. They could be taking her out of the frying pan, to the freezer.
“Let’s go then, we don’t have time to waste… the more we waste time thinking and hesitating, the more time we will be giving the enemies time to understand our plans.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
Once the group made up their mind, we began to move… We increased our pace as well in order to put some distance between us and make the assassins fight the monsters as well. Eventually, we reached the boss of the first section and then the three guards defeated it… it was a heavily armored skeleton armed with a stone hammer that made the ground shake.
‘I probably couldn’t take down that thing by myself… even though I worked hard this past year.’
You completed a trial. Please choose between the classes: Paladin, Sniper, and Enchanter.
You obtained the Enchanter class.
You improved the Mana Pool parameter.
You unlocked the Aptitude: Arcane Craftsmanship
You unlocked the skill: Enchanting Touch.
You unlocked the skill: Mystic Infusion.
Arcane Craftsmanship: Gain experience when making magical enchantments and crafting based on their quality. This can involve designing magical items, perfecting enchantment techniques, or studying rare magical materials.
Enchanting Touch: Channel your magical energy to temporarily imbue an object or weapon with a powerful enchantment. This skill can enhance an item’s abilities, such as increasing its damage, and durability, or adding magical effects for a certain duration. The enhancement's potency scales with your level in Enchanting.
Cost: 50 Mana per enchantment, the cost is halved if you use a mana core.
Mystic Infusion: Infuse a target with a surge of magical energy to amplify their capabilities or protect them from harm. This skill grants a 20% boost to the target’s offensive or defensive capabilities or provides a protective shield that absorbs a portion of incoming damage for 20 seconds. The effect's strength is determined by the skill level. Cost: 20 Mana.
I nodded in satisfaction, while the situation wasn’t the best, at least I was getting a bit stronger. Still, I soon found a problem with my parameters. My bow could receive three enchantments, but I only had mana to enchant it one time. I could use the same skill to enhance an enchantment if my skill level was higher, but I couldn’t put others after doing that once.
“Let’s get going.”
The blonde girl said and then the guards nodded… Still, we could only keep this pace for so long. Even if the guards were strong, they would eventually have to take a break. There was another option, but I wasn’t going to voice it. It would have been better if the girl had voiced that herself...
Despite the odds, the guards managed to fight for ten hours straight… The blond girl called for a stop when she saw them resting with their hands on their knees to support themselves. It couldn’t be helped… they had been fighting for a while against Frozen Wolves, after all… they also came in packs of three and could use ice magic.
Little by little as we got deeper into the dungeon, the walls began to be more covered in ice too and the temperature dropped…