Chapter 171 Two Doors
I apologize. Recently, I’ve been busy accompanying a distant relative on weekends and have been relying on my stored manuscripts. I didn’t notice that the chapter I updated didn’t correspond to the chapter number in my draft, so I accidentally duplicated a chapter.
Here’s a free chapter for everyone.
I do read the comment section. Due to being very busy, I usually check it once every two to three days.
I am truly sorry about this.
Please forgive Azai, considering I’ve written nearly 110,000 words this month, sob.
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For Will, who stood before Yamik City and finished reading this letter…
His mind was likely in as much chaos as Iaar’s, who wrote the letter.
This…
This letter…
It was enough to make him disregard all the strange things he had encountered today and crown it the strangest day.
What in the world is all this?!
Shuna didn’t apply for the position?
Then who is the “Protagonist” now?
Wait, does this have something to do with the name Shining Star not being “inherited” but self-chosen?
If that’s the case, then who is going to be kicked out of the team?
Liya and Treya have set off to find him?
That’s not right.
Why would they set off to find him?!
Hmm… Losing a captain does indeed warrant a search.
But… why do they seem to… seem to know where he’s going?
Did someone tell them?
No, no, no…
Even more confusing is…
Liya…
Liya might be…
Near him?
For some reason, the other descriptions, even the one about Shuna’s absence, only gave Will a sense of “wrongness” – a strange feeling. But…
Liya’s description sent a chill down his spine.
It even made his scalp tingle.
Why is this?
Liya…
Liya is coming because she cares about him… right?
If he meets her, he just needs to say a word, and he should… should be able to join their team and explore as Shining Star.
After all…
She should be a very kind teacher…
Right?
The mysteries are piling up.
Whether it’s the sudden appearance of the Green Ghost Stone, Shuna’s disappearance mentioned in the letter, the previously discovered “former Shining Star” who is now gone, or even Liya and Treya who are now chasing after him…
These are all “mysteries” that Will currently holds.
But these mysteries are far apart, with seemingly faint clues in between, yet he can’t grasp them.
The next clue closest to him is probably… probably…
Moonlit Ice Extreme?
“Little Will? How is it?”
Will’s gaze, fixed on the letter, was interrupted by Shuna’s hand.
Her open palm waved back and forth before his eyes.
“Your condition… isn’t quite right.”
Shuna is very perceptive. She immediately noticed Will’s abnormal state.
“How about we don’t set out today? On one hand, you’ve been very unlucky, and on the other… you seem a bit dazed after reading the letter?”
Will also began to think.
The strange occurrences since the start of the day seemed to be a warning from the “outside world” that something bad was about to happen.
But…
Will reflected on the first half of his life.
The time he was almost in mortal danger was when he was attacked by Liya.
The time he caused immense social embarrassment that led to a falling out with the entire Royal Family was when Treya canceled their engagement.
Even later, when he truly died, it contributed the most comedic scene in the entire book.
It’s obvious!
As a villain set up to be cannon fodder, the more dangerous it is, the more likely it is to trigger important plot points!
This is the biggest difference between him and the protagonist!
At this point, he needed to face the difficulties head-on to uncover the real clues!
He had an epiphany.
His bad luck today must be a divine omen. It’s telling him that today is the most suitable time to explore the Dungeon!
He’s going to die in a year anyway, so he definitely won’t die now.
“I’m fine, we’re setting out today! Something good is definitely going to happen today!”
Will flicked his hair and pushed up his glasses as he spoke.
“I feel like… in the last ten seconds, you’ve just had some sort of enlightenment?”
Shuna was so startled by his sudden assertiveness that she took two steps back.
“Alright. Then Shining Star—”
“We’re setting out today!”
Will finished her sentence.
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The exploration of the Dungeon went very smoothly, even too smoothly.
Floor 51…
Floor 57…
But perhaps this “smoothness” was another form of strangeness for Will.
“I feel like this Dungeon has some subtle changes compared to when we scouted it before,” Shuna said, standing at the entrance to Floor 58, her arms crossed. She didn’t open the door.
“Huh? What’s wrong? I feel like this is a very normal Dungeon, just like the ones I’ve encountered in my forty years,” the swordsman uncle said, stroking his beard.
“Exactly, exactly. I agree with this uncle’s opinion,” the Mage girl said, almost reaching out to open the door.
“It’s no big deal. We have Vice-Captain Shuna, after all,” the Shield Saint said dismissively.
“Mm,” the Archer nodded, seemingly agreeing with the previous three.
Shuna put her hand on her forehead, her expression conveying, “These four are truly hopeless.”
Then, she looked at Will.
Will met her gaze with an affirmative look.
In fact, they had obtained the walkthroughs written for clearing previous Dungeons, especially those leading up to the final BOSS. This walkthrough could be freely accessed at the Adventurer’s Guild.
The six of them had studied it all afternoon, ensuring they were thoroughly familiar with the monster distribution.
But…
“Something’s missing. On Floor 52, there should have been an Ice Elephant, a common defensive monster in this Dungeon. Because it’s missing, the fire attribute magic we prepared for the starboard side wasn’t used.”
Actually, only Will understood Shuna’s meaning.
“And it’s not just this one strangeness. On Floor 53, an Ice Pig was missing. On Floor 54, an Ice Whale was missing from the water…”
Strangely, only the “defensive” mass-produced monsters seemed to be missing.
This was also why the Dungeon exploration was smoother than expected. With reduced defenses, attacking became easy.
These mass-produced monsters, which looked like “ice sculptures” and lacked self-awareness, should have been directly under the command of the Ice Queen. For such a phenomenon to occur…
What did she do with these monsters? And were they all annihilated, so thoroughly that they weren’t replenished?
After Will’s statement, he understood the difference between Shuna and the other four in her eyes.
The other four were truly just “muscle” for freelance adventurers, completely unconcerned with how the Dungeon was cleared.
After Will’s analysis, the other four fell silent, and the atmosphere became heavy.
“Perhaps we should retreat,” the Mage girl said, raising her hand first. “Since you say it’s so dangerous, we’re just doing this for the money.”
“We still need to advance. The earliest retreat point is after clearing Floor 59, before the door to the BOSS floor,” Shuna said, resting her chin on her hand in thought.
“Right. Anyway, no one is injured, and our supplies are sufficient. Let’s continue,” Will said, glancing at Shuna.
As long as she was in good condition, the others didn’t matter.
“Alright, perk up, let’s go.”
— Until.
Before their eyes.
When they cleared Floor 58 and the “door” leading to Floor 59 should have appeared, what materialized before them was…
Two doors.
