I select yes.

A new party member has joined your party, my NCI informs me.

Now, I can see her stats, level, and HP. She's about the same level as me and has the same HP, but as a wizard, she has a bigger Spell Inventory than me.

After finishing with introductions we are gathered to the main hall where the leader of the expedition gives us a detailed briefing. The leader, to my surprise, isn't an Emissary or any other type of Player, but an NPC with an artificer class. This must be some kind of rare class for this world as I haven't seen anyone else so far. On the other hand, I haven't been long enough in the real world and it's the first time that I visit such an enormous city, so I might be wrong.

The artificer demands the leaders of each party to come near him.

"Go!" Ambrosia orders me.

I'm surprised at her reaction. Does she actually want me to be the leader or is this some kind of mocking of my previous actions?

I get near the artificer and he presents us with a detailed map of the underground of Tlos, far more accurate than the one we had been given for our trial. He congratulates us on passing our trial run and for making our way safely back here. For my bad luck, Alexander is standing right beside me. I try to ignore him as much as I can. The guy I cannot ignore on the other hand is the Black Knight I saw earlier. He's so intimidating from up close. I hope I won't have to cross swords with this guy.

The artificer, named Cadmus, shows us the entry points and what creatures to expect depending on where we begin. It's a good thing that this optional quest has several options. Unfortunately, it's not up to me to decide. Our leader designates specific entrances and areas according to rank. Now it makes perfect sense to me why Ambrosia wanted me to lead the party. Being among the weakest of the leaders, I'm forced to raid the easiest part of the dungeon, Alexander being one amongst them.

It's not that I don't like playing easy, cheats are welcome as well, but I fear that we won't have the chance to find rare items and treasures that the high-level adventurers will. It makes sense after all, the higher the Threat Level, the higher the reward, although I can't be entirely certain about the mechanics of this world. I remind myself we're still in Alpha Release and bugs are to be expected. I take a long look at the detailed map and my NCI memorizes it. Also, several details of the briefing are recorded on my Adventurer's log.

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"That's it, lads," Cadmus says before shouting back at us with his harsh voice; "Hail victory to the city of Tlos!"

"Hail victory to the city of Tlos!" We shout back in unison.

Heading back to our teams, I exchange glimpses with Zoe, the girl I saved tonight. I know that she wants to be in our party, but after the event that followed a few moments ago, it's simply impossible. It's not that I'm not grateful that Elektra accepted to join us, but I would prefer to have both of them. I'm a bit worried about her to be honest, knowing that idiot, Alexander, is their leader. They might be wizards and might have been in this world since forever, but they aren't adept in battling as a team. If we win... correction! When we return victorious, I'll make sure she joins us.

****

We enter the dungeon in the middle of the night, holding torches over our hands. For Ambrosia and me it's unnecessary, because of our vampiric nature and our innate ability to have Dark Vision. Despite that, we don't want to draw unnecessary attention and we decide to play along, letting the others think we can't see in the darkness. The Black Knight and several other high-level adventurers and Emissaries take another path. They will penetrate the enemy forces from another entrance.

This differs completely from the trial run. The sewers are still layered, but we are deeper underground than I imagined. I can taste the stale air with every breath. The dust, the humidity, it's all very grim. I can't shake the feeling that I'm trespassing and it bothers me to no end. Ambrosia on the other hand seems very nonchalant about the whole thing.

We, being the weakest and newest among the adventurers, are assigned directly under the artificer’s commands, who decides to venture with us and coordinate our attacks for the same reason. The scouts are the first to enter the dungeon and after a couple of moments they return, all alive, but with some cuts and bruises. It's evident that they encountered some kind of resistance, but they took care of it. Probably rats like the large one we encountered earlier. Being among the weakest isn't as bad as I thought, because my team and Alexander's are the strongest among an army of twigs. This will give me the chance to level up quickly, earn glory, and undress Zoe and Elektra quicker.

We enter the tunnels and the first thing I hear is a long moan. Something is wrong, the moan doesn't belong to a human being. Angry and with a growing anxiety, I notice a shadow shuffler approaching us with eyes of cunningness and bloodlust. I cast Primal Savagery and at the same time I unsheathe Lush. I feel calmer knowing my avatar, adrenaline-filled, is prepared for the carnage to follow.

A cool breeze brings with it the stench of blood and decay. And here they come in numbers. The first monsters we encounter are just low-level zombies. The lonely shuffler that approaches me is a Threat Level 2 zombie with HP 15. Its jaw is dislocated and its teeth rotten. The stench of death and decay harasses my nostrils and I decide to put an end to its miserable existence. With a single slash of my sword, I behead the mischievous creature, giving it the peace it desires. The head rolls a couple of feet, stops, and to my surprise continues to stare at me with its dead eyes. Its mouth opens and closes, while its body continues marching towards me blindly.