"Do you have everything you need? Might want to take some extra potions, just in case..."
Just like always, Arthur wouldn't stop worrying about me when we were going on a dive, something that unfortunately came naturally for him when we decided to start dating.
With me being the one to stand in the front, it was unavoidable that I would get hurt to some extent, but he still didn't like it.
Taking a step towards the man, I put my hand on his cheek, "Stop worrying so much. Even if I have fallen a bit behind you, I am still strong. Also, it's only a [D]-rank dungeon, so the monsters won't be a problem."
"Haa... I guess so. Still, it never hurts to be careful."
Although I tried my best to calm his nerves down a bit, there was still a part of me that felt like something was about to happen. Thankfully, my newly reawakened excitement was enough for me to just think of it as an enjoyable experience.
Having stuffed our inventories with everything that we might need during the dive, we were ready to meet up with the rest of our classmates.
****
[Sarah's Pov]
Having finished the final touches of our preparations, me and Anna were currently on our way out of the castle, ready to meet up with Sophie and Arthur to then make our way to the dungeon.
Sadly, my mind wasn't even remotely close to being in the right place after what had happened last night, the conversation I had with the woman called Ezral. Even worse was that I would have no time to even think about what I should do, as we had now arrived at our destination.
In front of the two teachers, there was a blue portal that had been set up to take us directly in front of the dungeon, so there was no need for us to traverse the snowy mountains to get there.
Mr. Brown looked as if he was the most nervous out of all of us, his forehead revealing some light sweats even in the cold of Kurat. "This is it, my dear students. As stated before, as it is a dual dungeon, the groups will enter two and two, both diving into one of the versions of the Labyrinth."
A dual dungeon was just like the name suggests a dungeon with two entrances. The Labyrinth, however, seemed to be special as it was also divided into two. That meant that there were even two dungeon bosses in it, one occupying one side each.
"The first two parties to enter will be Sebastian's team and Arthur's team, and the rest of us will wait outside until they are done. Now, let's go."
With that, he led the way through the portal. Following his lead, it didn't take long until we were standing at the base of a huge mountain, with two much bigger portals than the one we had just used in front of us.
Although Arthur took the lead and started talking about how we would proceed when we entered the dungeon, my mind was busy tormenting my soul, thinking about what I had done.
'Please Theia... please let this not be a mistake...'
The dice had already been cast, and I had already fulfilled my part of the contract I made with a demon. So now, there was nothing else that I could do, other than try my best to get the chaotic thoughts in my head to calm down.
Forcing myself to believe in the contract I signed with James, that as long as I followed his directions no one would die, I could find some relief. However, it still didn't stop the words of Ezral to repeat in my head.
'Do you want another chance to be together with him?'
****
[James's Pov]
"They are about to enter the dungeon now. I don't know what you are planning on doing, but are you sure that this is a good idea? Are you sure you want to show yourself to even more students?"
On the top of the mountain, I and Ezral were looking down upon the students below us, having already covered our existence in a thin cloud of mist, making sure that our mana signatures couldn't be felt.
'She is acting strange...'
Ezral had been acting differently for a couple of days now, and if it wasn't for the fact that I knew that she truly hated the allied races, I might even have thought that she had begun to enjoy my company.
So most likely, she was playing around with me for some reason, but somehow her body language told me she was genuine. 'Truly a masterful actor...'
Still, I didn't hate it, seeing her acting coy with her arms beneath her huge chest, speaking words of care and worry. Nevertheless, it didn't matter much to me, "I'm sure, but thank you for asking. Now, I'm going. See you later."
And with that, I jumped down the other side of the mountain, where there were two additional entrances to the dungeon, portals that only the king had known about until now. Knowing that Sarah had done her part, I knew that this was where the fun would start, where I would finally get to enjoy myself after a painful week.
So, with a smile on my face, I entered both of the dungeons with both of my bodies, allowing myself to feel excited for the entertainment that I was about to get.
'Finally, I get to forget about everything for a bit!'
****
[Ezral's Pov]
"Hmm... I wonder what his plan is..."
There was not a part of me that thought that this would be the end of the man known as James. He had already repeatedly shown that he wasn't someone who would create scenarios where he would walk away as the loser.
"Is this all for him to get close to that girl again? No... He already believes that it is impossible..."
A tinge of jealousy emerged inside of me when thinking of the princess, fully aware that if James had the chance, he would dismiss me in a heartbeat to be with her. Something that wasn't too surprising as we didn't actually have any kind of relationship, just a simple business arrangement.
"My lord... what should I do? Is it okay for me to feel this way about such a lowly creature?"
Although there was no one to answer me, I still felt in desperate need of direction, and the only one who could give me that was my lord. Even more so now that I had acted on an impulse, going as far as to meet up with the princess of the country that would ultimately become our strongest enemy.
But she was the only way I saw a future where I and James could be together, the only path to get him to come to my side. I wanted him so badly, not just for his body and company, but for all the things that he could accomplish for us.
To have him as an instrument and a tool for us demons would mean a huge increase of reach on Tella, where I didn't doubt that he could make entire countries fall if he felt like it.
Sadly, it was always dependent on what he felt like. From the months I had been around him, it seemed like he never did anything he didn't want to do, even when it looked like it would be beneficial to him.
If one didn't know him, one might have thought that he was always acting on impulses, never thinking about what he was doing, but this was not correct. It was true that he always acted as he wanted, no matter what, but his actions were always accompanied by a deep sense of planning.
He only did the things he enjoyed because those were the things he was able to do; That man would never attempt something he knew was impossible.
****
[Arthur's Pov]
"You may enter when you are ready!"
We had gotten permission to start our dive, our teachers standing on the side of the two portals, patiently waiting for the two first groups to enter.
Turning around, I looked at my party, all of them wearing different expressions. Anna looked nervous as she usually did when doing something new, but I had no doubts that it would pass this time as well.
Sophie's face was screaming excitement, with her still carrying the same smile from when she had gotten to write her own will. 'Haaa... I truly fell in love with a crazy woman...'
Lastly, we had Sarah, who looked unusually pale, almost as if she was scared to go for a dive, which was weird as she should be more than used to it by now. Still, as the unofficial leader of the group, I knew that I needed to act as support for the two nervous women, while at the same time acting as a brake for the dragon.
"Let's do this guys! Just like we have practiced!"
"Yes!"
"Sure..."
"Yes."
Although the reactions were mixed, I still took the first step toward the Labyrinth, knowing that my group would follow me with loyalty. After all, from our research, there was no creature inside the dungeon that would stand a chance against us.
However, what I didn't know was that there was indeed a real monster inside. A monster that only one of us expected to be there.