Amelie's eyes were still closed, her mind focused on finding the path to the 15th floor. She was able to see everywhere the wave of light went.

She scanned the various paths of the 16th-floor labyrinth, glanced at the stairs they had just come from, and noticed another group of adventurers. Her slightly strained facial expression relaxed as she finally saw the stairs to the 15th floor. She opened her eyes.

"You found it?" Noelle questioned, looking at Amelie.

"I did," Amelie nodded.

"We should get going then. You can take the lead," Erik said, looking at Amelie. Erik then glanced back to look at Rick, who was carrying Aron. "Do you need any help to carry him?"

Rick simply shook his head. "No, it's fine," he added in a stern voice.

Amelie tapped Erik's back. "Don't worry, he is rather physically strong," she added with a small smile as she started to walk forward.

Erik nodded and started walking behind Amelie. Noelle was walking side by side with Erik, while Amelie had taken the lead, with Rick trailing behind with Aron.

Amelie slowed her pace to catch up with Erik. She turned her head to look at him.

"Thanks for helping us, Erik," she said in a thankful tone, her yellow eyes downcast and looking slightly disappointed.

"It wasn't a big deal," Erik said nonchalantly.

His eyes then fell on Amelie's face, observing her expression. "Hmm, are you by any chance angry with yourself?" he asked, looking at Amelie.

Amelie was slightly taken aback by Erik's comment. She didn't outright say anything but nodded.

"I think I am, to a certain extent," she added with mild frustration.

"You shouldn't worry about it," Erik said, looking forward.

"I mean, you guys fought a five-headed serpent. They are tough to kill. You were taken by surprise… wait, what happened exactly? I'm curious now." Erik added with mild curiosity.

"I was the first to fall, so I'm not completely sure about what happened myself," Amelie said, she looked back and glanced at Noelle.

Noelle quickened her pace, now walking side by side with Erik and Amelie.

Erik looked at Noelle. She was about the same height as Amelie and came roughly to his shoulder. She wore red knight's armor, which looked costly, and her sword's sheath was a dark bluish color, with the sword's hilt a striking dark red. Her armor's color matched her eyes and hair as well.

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"After we defeated the five-headed serpent, Amelie was tired since she was maintaining the barrier during the whole fight," Noelle said in a serious tone.

"After defeating it, we decided to go back to the mainland. Aron walked towards the serpent's core, which was just beside one of the paths of the 17th floor interior that I destroyed."

"That's when strange things started happening. Aron stopped near the corner. I called out to him to ask what's up. But when he looked back, he had a weird look."

"Did his face not show any emotions at that time?" Erik questioned, guessing from his experience when he fought the possessed Aron.

"Yes," Noelle added as she nodded. "That's when Aron vanished from his position and stabbed Amelie, who was resting against the dungeon's wall, piercing her torso in the process. The next person he attacked was Rick, who was off guard, giving him a deep wound on his back."

"That must have been tough for you to see," Amelie added in a sorry, regretful voice.

Erik glanced at Amelie's face, noticing her eyes get slightly watery. She is getting emotional, he thought to himself as he looked back at Noelle.

"What happened next?" Erik asked, looking at Noelle with a serious tone.

"I was on guard. I knew what possession was," Noelle added.

"I could never win against a fully-powered Aron since he is faster and more skilled, but a possessed Aron… I could win from him, was what I thought."

"It wasn't usual possession, now was it?" Erik spoke aloud, catching Rick's and Amelie's attention.

"What do you mean?" Amelie asked.

"Aron was able to use his fire affinity while possessed. He was probably just as strong as he normally is," Noelle added.

"Wait, that means..." Amelie said, widening her eyes in fear.

"We met something else," Erik added. "A new type of monster, to be precise," he said in a serious tone.

The group continued to walk after that, with everyone having a serious look on their face. Finding new monsters was a huge deal.

In the Kingdom of Levilenia, the Dungeon of Death, located in the city of Duxelle, was the most recently discovered among all the dungeons. Until now, the dungeons shared a commonality in their monstrous inhabitants.

Creatures such as Minotaurs, drakes, goblins, slimes, dragons, nightwolves, griffins, and others had been encountered across all dungeons, albeit at varying depths.

Given that the older dungeons had been extensively explored, it was assumed that the creatures found in the Dungeon of Death would align with the known catalog of monsters.

However, the discovery of a unique monster capable of possessing individuals and utilizing their abilities has changed everything.

Erik, along with Amelie and her party, reached the gate of the 15th floor by following the path Amelie had seen. Upon reaching the gate, Erik began to think about the entire ordeal that had occurred that day and the problems it could cause.

Erik suddenly stopped in the non-barrier zone of the 15th floor.

Amelie and the others stopped, looking at him. "Did something happen?" Noelle asked curiously, looking at Erik.

"Could you all keep whatever happened today a secret and not spread the news of fighting some new kind of monster?" Erik asked, his facial expression and tone serious.

"Can it cause any issues?" Amelie asked curiously as she looked at him.

"It can certainly cause some serious problems for sure. I would like to handle this monster job by myself. And you all keeping this a secret is essential for it," Erik added.

Amelie glanced at Noelle, who simply nodded. She then looked at Rick, who did the same.

"No worries. We will not reveal any information about it," Amelie assured Erik as she tapped her chest.

"I'll be going then. I need to reach the surface," Erik said in a hurry. He looked at Noelle. "Can I have the mana potion you were previously offering? I might need it since I have to hurry," Erik added in a calm tone.