Dante clenched his fists, prepared himself for a full power attack and turned around with a reflexive move!
He saw a blurry shadow two meters away. Taking a step forward, he punched it right in the head!
It was a blow no weaker than his previous one!
However, as his punch traveled in the air, Dante furrowed his brows. Something wasn't right in this situation.
The blurry figure was about the same height as himself. In this dungeon, there should be only pygmy skeletons, and they shouldn't be as tall as Dante. Otherwise, their name wouldn't be 'pygmy' skeletons.
Furthermore, for some unknown reason, the figure seemed like trembling and producing unclear human-like sounds.
"Uwwa-whaa! Uhh! Dd-dan..."
'Dan…?'
"Dante! Stop!"
He heard Ulfred's hurried voice.
He had already intended to stop his punch when he discovered the strangeness of the figure. However, it was too late.
He took back at least ninety percent of strength that his punch possessed, but it still landed on the head of the figure.
Dante felt like punching soft meat instead of serrated bones.
*Bam*
*Drop*
The first sound had come from the impact of the blow. The second sound was the sound of the figure falling to the ground.
The trio quickly flocked on the blurry figure.
When Dante saw the face of the figure, he clasped his face hard with a palm.
The blurry figure was none other than the clumsy blonde!
Currently, she was lying on the ground with a bleeding nose! Fainted!
Ulfred, "..."
Nathaniel, "..."
Dante, "Nat, this is your fault, so you'll be carrying her."
"Eh? Why me? Can't we just leave her here?"
"No, we can't. We won't!"
"Isn't this girl unknown to you? What happened to your previous words?"
"This is different! It's a matter of principles. And, why are you questioning your boss' decisions? Aren't you my henchman?"
"Ughh... Fine."
Ulfred, "Wha ha ha!"
Dante, "Stop laughing old man! It doesn't suit you!"
Dante had turned his back to the fire upon hearing Nathaniel's warning, so at that time, Ulfred had a better vision than him. Although he recognized the blonde girl and warned Dante, he had been too late.
It was just as Dante has guessed. The blonde girl became a total burden in the end.
...
"Before we start, I want to share my knowledge with you and ask some questions."
Dante and Ulfred were leading at the front while carrying bone torches on their hands, illuminating the cave.
The trio plus burden had just started to continue their exploration. They were roughly a hundred and fifty meters into the catacombs and had not yet encountered pygmy skeletons.
The corridor they have been walking on was getting narrower as they travel to the depths of the caverns.
When the surrounding miniature bones were ignored, the cavern was looking rather normal.
Its walls consisted of marcasite. There was also flint on them.
The nameless blonde was on Nathaniel's back.
"First of all, you need to know what is a dungeon. It is not just a place which monsters dwell." Dante started his lecture while looking ahead.
"Dungeons might be very cruel places, but they have their own rules. For example, we don't have Mana yet, so we need fire for illumination."
"Without the knowledge about marcasites, we would be like the bastards at the entrance and clearing this place would be hard for participants like us."
"What I am trying to say is, it is not by chance that marcasites are in this vicinity. [The Lower Catacombs] designed in this way."
"So you are saying, hardships inside of dungeons can be easily overcome if we have information about it," Ulfred asked.
"No, not just that. What you said is a part of the rules, and it is not true all the time."
"Every dungeon is designed in a different way. Some of them don't even have any rules. The key word is 'designed.'"
"Designed? What do you mean?" Nathaniel cut in this time.
"That means alongside with monsters traps are awaiting us, every kind of traps you can imagine. Even monsters that do not belong to this dungeon can appear here."
"System gave us the quest 'Clear [The Lower Catacombs].' However, clearing a dungeon is a giant lie. No one can truly clear a dungeon, no matter what level the dungeon or participant is."
"Why?" Ulfred asked.
"There are more than one reason. Every month, a new batch of amnesiacs step into the labyrinth. So many millions of people have come here until now. Considering this fact, then in this labyrinth, there shouldn't be a dungeon to clear. All the dungeons should have been cleared before our arrival."
"However, here we are, trying to clear a dungeon. The reason for this, with the start of every month, the dungeons of this world reset themselves. In other words, a new batch's arrival is equal to a new beginning in this world."
Nathaniel and Ulfred were shocked. Dante's words were unthinkable for them. If Dante didn't tell them the truths of the labyrinth, they would be unaware of these facts god knows how long of a time.
"H-how is that possible? A-are we in a dream or trapped in an illusion?" Ulfred was having a hard time to believe Dante.
"I asked a similar question to my source before. I assure you this is not an illusion or a dream. This world is real."
"Let me continue. Another reason is this world's name. Didn't you find it strange? Why is this world's name contain the word 'Labyrinth?'"
"Yes, if you think about it, it is pretty weird."
Dante continued. "In this place, dungeons are connected to each other. It might be through traps or hidden passageways. That means with a wrong step, you might find yourself in the middle of level hundred monsters, or even in another dungeon."
"Therefore, we must never consider a dungeon as 'cleared.' We must always keep an eye open while we are in a dungeon. If you want to live longer, never forget the rules."
"Then how will we clear this dungeon? You are saying it's impossible." Nathaniel asked. His breathing was a little hard.
"I don't know, but as long as we keep killing the monsters and continue exploration, we'll know the answer. The System will guide us."
"You said dungeons are 'designed.' Then it brings out the questions about 'Who?' and 'Why?'"
"That is the biggest riddle of this labyrinth. No one knows the answer, and the ones who know the answer are not in the labyrinth anymore. They left."
"However, I know how to find answers to these questions. All are hidden in our memories. As we found the fragments of our memories, the answers will come on their own. All the riddles will be resolved."
Dante's words brought another shock on them.
They heard very important things from Dante. Suddenly, they had a goal in their minds. Their existence gained meaning. Furthermore, a strong desire had come into surface in their hearts. They wanted to know who they really are.
"Finding our memory fragments will be our first goal in the labyrinth, and in order to do that, we must get stronger!"
Dante's determination filled voice fired their desire even further.
"Dante, you are saying some unimaginable things. Are you sure your source is right?" Ulfred couldn't help but ask.
"Yes, I'm sure. My source is foolproof." Dante said proudly.
At that moment, creeping and creaking sounds started to come from ahead. All three of them heard it clearly.
"Finally, some prey," Dante said with a low voice and turned to Nathaniel.
"Nat, leave the blonde in a corner and..." He said and immediately suffered from a little shock.
Nathaniel's face was red. Since he was a young man, Dante could understand why. He was carrying a young girl on his back, it was natural.
However, the clumsy blonde had long been awake! Her face wasn't just redder! It was even redder than a tomato!
With a palm, Dante clasped his face hard again. This time, his action even produced a slapping sound!
'How clumsy a girl can possibly be? You are obviously ashamed to death just from being carried by a man! Then why didn't you speak?'
'And you, Nat! So that's why you were breathing hard! You don't seem to know she's awake. I guess I'm going to torture you a little less than I would normally do in the future.'