The group headed toward the dungeon's entrance as the clock rang midday, and Henry felt tired just by watching the waves of people coming in and out. Many were wounded, some were dead.
Henry wondered if he would end up like the former or the latter, maybe neither of them. He has been lucky so far but it's only a matter of time before his luck eventually run out.
He shook his head, shaking the unpleasant thoughts away. After confirming the identity of the hunters, a term for people venturing the other worlds, the security let them in.
Of course, Henry had to sign a Responsibility Clearance Agreement, clearing the responsibility in case he died.
The cold Winter breeze brushed past the tip of Henry's nose. He quietly wiped his nose with his index finger before stepping forward.
Going through the portal, the world twisted and their vision bent before they found themselves in a large underground hall.
Upon arriving, Henry felt his chest constricting as an ominous feeling rose within him. Although he had read enough novels to know that this kind of feeling isn't something to be ignored, he had no choice but to ignore it.
After all, he's too weak to do anything about it even if things go wrong. All he can do is hope that he's just imagining things and put his trust the hunters.
"Alright, everyone. Let's assume formation and tackle the first layer together. The first layer is filled with blood wolves, so we'll have no problem clearing it in two hours. Let's opt for a better time so we can have more time for conquering the third layer."
John explained, and the group moved about. Henry dashed toward the luggage, and he carried the two bags on his shoulders. They were heavy but it wasn't a problem for Henry since he gained some muscle after taking some jobs albeit his muscles weren't refined like an athlete.
His position was the middle of the formation while the others each assumed their assigned position. Alan took the vanguard position with his Axe and shield, a man that dwarfed Henry and the female warrior, known as Alan and Beatrice, took the upper flanks both on each side.
While the pale man and the petite wearing the robe, known as James and Ester, took the rear and Henry's side respectively.
"Advance!" Alan roared in an obvious attempt to lift their morales. The group followed behind and started heading toward the door of the first layer. It was a tall door with wield engravings all around causing one to feel dizzy just by looking at them.
The door would open every ten minutes, and only five people can enter at a time. The reason porters didn't count in that number is that they usually have no magical energy aka mana; therefore the dungeon wouldn't reject their presence in the group. That was also why being a porter was a risky job, as one of its main qualifications was being mana-less and non-awakener.
The group's turn arrived and the door opened with a usual hiss of a snake before they entered. The architecture of the first layer greeted them. Bricks lined the walls, and pillars linked the ceiling and the ground.
The walls had many engravings and words of an unknown language that gave the place an aesthetic yet ominous ambiance.
Henry was the only one shocked among the group since this was his first time entering a chaos dungeon while the others just kept a straight face.
As the group advanced, John kept his shield leveled with his chin and signaled their scout, James, to report if there was an enemy.
Henry found out during their meeting, that James' combat style focuses on using mana to elemental attacks and attack from afar. A Mage. Mages are more perceptive than others, and that's why they acted as scouts.
"Three blood wolves, two o'clock." James reported. The group took their stances and advanced toward two o'clock. As their view cleared of the giant central pillar, they saw a group of three blood wolves approaching.
With his head signaling Alan and Beatrice, John and the others started surrounding the monsters. The first battle of today commenced shortly after.
***
"Damnit! Just my Luck!"
Henry cursed as his breathing heaved as If it would stop at any moment. He held the deep gash in his stomach as his blood flowed profusely and he could even see his internal organs through it. A Cerberus had clawed him, a beast resembling a hell-dog. His head spun as he lost too much blood.
He realized why the pay was so good with few qualifications needed. Awakeners like the group would get a scratch at most from such a claw. He, a normal human, was fighting an intense battle with death. He could hear the others talking as they surrounded him after they took care of the other Cerberuses.
"Just leave him, he already knew about such dangers anyway." Alan coldly stated and Henry wanted to kick the bastard in the crotch a hundred times for spouting such things. He regretted rushing here like a fool due to his despair. He should have just taken another loan from someone he knew.
"But." John said clearly hesitant.
"Oh? What are you doing?" Beatrice voiced surprised. Henry felt someone slowly approaching and weakly opened his eyes. It was James who held a flask in his hand that contained a blue liquid. The liquid glowed magically as if it was alive.
"Are you really wasting such a high grade potion on a porter?" Alan shouted at James but the latter ignored Alan's barking and opened the flask. He then proceeded to gently open Henry's mouth and pour the potion in it.
Upon that, Henry felt a burning sensation in his body However, clarity was being brought back. After five minutes of resting, the wound was gone, and he was back to normal. He examined his body as if it was the first time he saw it.
"Are you alright?" James asked while the group was resting. He seemed genuinely worried about Henry's wellbeing, something the latter failed to understand the reason for. Therefore,
"Yeah, thanks to you. … I almost died. I can never repay enough." Henry voice cracked as he barely escaped the clutches of death.
"Don't worry about it, I did it because I felt like it was the right thing to do. Furthermore, that potion was useless to me. Why did you take the risk of becoming a porter?"
Henry then proceeded to explain his circumstances to James who nodded with a look of understanding. James sighed and patted his shoulder in a warm gesture of consolation. Henry felt a warm feeling at this unexpected friendliness, reminding him that there were still good people in the world.
Since James appeared to be older than him by at least five years, He wondered if this was what it feels like to have an older brother. He then remembered his younger sister at home and how Henry had neglected her due to work.
As the group was resting, a rumbling earthquake shook the ground and the whole dungeon.
"It seems to have started." John stated with a frown.
"What's happening?" Henry turned to James and asked with a questioning look.
"He's referring to the boss hunt that is happening at the sixth layer." James replied shortly. The dungeon had seven layers in total, with the boss residing in the sixth.
The seventh layer had the gate to the other world and creatures venturing from there unrestrained by rank.
"It seems the rumors about the White Tigers challenging the boss today are true." Henry thought.
The White Tigers were one of the best parties in the Union. They were hunters of high rank, making them an idolized party among the common masses.
Henry was in his own world of thoughts, however, this went unnoticed since the others were too busy with the earthquake.
The group resumed their hunting, and they arrived at the third layer after another two hours. The third layer had a passageway shaped structure allowing the group to ignore their rear defense. Thus, they told Henry to stay behind them and he gladly complied since it got dangerous.
As they advanced while fighting against the beasts of the third layer, Earth Golems. The group finally reached their goal in the third layer. the Regeneration Golem. It was a mutated type of Earth Golem that had a regenerative function.
Potion masters used its mana core to make regenerative potions, a medicine of higher grade than a healing potion.
"Battle Formation." John roared as the giant Golem dashed toward them. Each step sent shockwaves shaking the whole passageway, proving the enemy in front of them was no regular monster.