After our usual class, I went through my classes as usual, diligently taking notes and making sure I kept my promise. I couldn’t afford to disappoint everyone now. The day was almost normal: attending classes, taking notes, chatting with Kei. It was only after school hours that things got interesting.
“Kei, I’m heading out first. I’ll text you later about what happens,” I said, quickly packing my things and rushing out of the classroom.
“Uh, alright,” he replied, looking surprised by my enthusiasm.
I ran back home as fast as possible, changed into casual clothes, and grabbed my sword. This time, I didn't have to sneak out of the house.
"I'm going to the dungeon now!" I called out properly as I left the house.
As I exited, I remembered yesterday's event. "Maybe I should visit the adventurer's guild first. I don't even know what happened yesterday after Eva reported the situation," I thought as I ran to the guild. It was still tiring, but I made it somehow. Entering the building, I could feel all eyes on me once again.
"Hey, isn't that the Everett kid who recently registered?"
Ignoring the useless comments, I spotted Eva at the reception desk talking. I approached and asked, "What's wrong?"
They looked at me blankly until Eva suddenly remembered. "Ray, weren't you making the map? Can you show it to us?"
What was this about? Did they need to confirm something? I quickly pulled out the updated map from last night and showed it to them. Eva borrowed my phone, zoomed in on the area from yesterday, and said, "It was over here in this closed space where we found Adventurer Zack."
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
Hearing her, I realized the name. So his name was Zack... It was about yesterday's event. She was pinpointing the location where it happened.
The receptionist looked at the map and asked, "Ray, can you sell this map to the guild? We will pay you for it."
"Um... okay?" I replied, a bit taken aback. Are they really okay with a map made by a newly registered adventurer?
"Did you update the map yesterday? Wasn't it just a sketch?" Eva asked.
"Yeah, it looked cluttered, so I updated it last night," I replied.
The receptionist added, "Please keep updating the map as you explore deeper. We might need it."
Agreeing, I continued to ask other questions. "How far has anyone explored into the dungeon so far?"
"We found huge hobgoblins lair at the end of the first floor. Since we haven't defeated the hobgoblin, we're not sure how many floors there are," the receptionist replied.
Thinking about it, it made sense. Dungeons consist of several floors, with the dungeon core—or a huge magic crystal—at the center of the last floor. I wondered what type of monsters would be present on the other floors.
After sending a copy of the map, I headed out for the dungeon. Unfortunately, Eva had other business to attend to, so she couldn't accompany me. Well, it's alright. I don't mind exploring alone.
I went back near my school's front gate, and this time, they didn't ask to see my guild card.
"I'm back, dungeon. Today, I aim to explore twice as much as yesterday," I thought as I took out my flashlight and followed my map. Tracing my paths, I reached the spot from yesterday where Eva and I found Zack.
"What the...?" There was nothing there at all. I knew I am at the right place since the blood stains were still here, but there is no body in sight. Did they actually recover it? But wasn't Eva pinpointing the location just a moment ago?
"Now that I think about it, I didn't encounter any goblins. Just what is happening?" I wondered, feeling a growing sense of unease.