It did not take long for word to spread throughout the city of Elizabeth's defeat. The news was unprecedented to them. One of the Ten Wands of Gaia, defeated, by an unknown wizard no less. To everyone in the city, this was headline news. To that unknown wizard; however...
"Good afternoon class, today we will explore a dungeon."
...he has no interest in the rumours spread about him and this extraordinary feat.
"As you all know, dungeons are areas where bountiful treasures can be found. They are maze-like structures with monsters defending these treasures. And today, we will be exploring one such dungeon."
Calliope raises her hand. "Professor? Will we be okay taking on a dungeon? Is this not a task we first do in our second year?"
"Yes, it is but lately the amount of dungeon breaks in the Sapphire Kingdom has been increasing. With the annual decrease in new adventurer recruits, the adventurer's guild has sought help from scholars. But we are a smaller group than the number of adventurers spread throughout the kingdom. So, the headmaster decided we would educate the first years in dungeon exploration to make up for the lack of numbers."
Well, that is one of the reasons why. If Azazel has partnered with one of my siblings and rallied the might of thousands of angels, I must prepare the humans for an inevitable war. Training in these dungeons will give my students experience in battling large groups.
"Professor?"
"Yes, Calliope?"
"What's a dungeon break?"
"A dungeon break is," he says, walking to the board. He picks up a chalk stick and starts drawing a crevice-like image. He shades the entrance of the fissure and continues, "When the barrier separating the Mortal Realm from the dungeon world cracks and monsters leak into this realm."
"The dungeon world?" asks Tyson. "Is that another realm? I thought you said there were three."
"The dungeon world is more a pocket dimension than a realm. The crevice acts as an intermediary between the pocket dimension and the Mortal Realm."
"So what exactly are dungeons?"
"As I said, they are pocket dimensions. At least, that's what you're taught down here in the Mortal Realm. But it's more factual to say that the dungeon world is The Beginning or The End."
"That means—"
"The dungeon acts as a gateway into these realms."
The class silently ponders this information, until Karren raises her hand. "So, the 'monsters' we fight are actually angels and demons?"
"Yes." The class becomes rowdy as the students start discussing amongst themselves. "Quiet!" yells Azrael. "Believe me, no one understands your concerns better than me. But this is not a time to concern yourself with morality. It's a kill-or-be-killed world you live in. Demons and angels will show you no mercy on the battlefield."
"You speak like you've experienced this before."
If only you knew half of it, thinks Azrael with a mourned expression.
After making their way to the nearest dungeon, Arthur pulls Azrael aside. "Do you think it was good to tell them that?"
"If they can't come to terms with killing, they will never be ready to fight a bloodthirsty army of angels." It's also not like they would be killing actual angels and demons. Kartara designed the dungeons to spawn fake monsters endlessly. Though they bleed and act like living creatures, that's only part of their design. But telling them this now wouldn't put them on edge as they are now.
"I guess you're right."
"Arthur, no matter what happens in this dungeon, you must not use your power, do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Good."
As Arthur joins the rest of the class, Azrael grabs everyone's attention. "This is the Dungeon of Creation—Goddess Kartara's dungeon. Inside will be monsters that will not hesitate to take your life. With that in mind, I've decided to split you all into eight groups of three."
"Eight groups of three? But there're twenty-five of us?"
"One group will have four students." Azrael glances at Amanda, who notices his glare and returns a gentle smile. "The groups are as follows:
Group 1:
SR 1 - Yukio Blaze
SR 9 - Karren Silverwood
SR 15 - Tokino Ixquic
Group 2:
SR 2 - Scarlett Flare
SR 22 - Brooke Underwood
SR 23 - Kai Underwood
Group 3:
SR 5 - Amira White
SR 24 - Simone Williams
SR 17 - Charlemagne Gordy
Group 4:
SR 13 - Adam Berg
SR 18 - Tai Strang
SR 21 - Clay Dion
Group 5:
SR 7 - Cessair Clotho
SR 8 - Chloe Hope
SR 19 - Rose Fiore
Group 6:
SR 6 - Josiah Jeremy
SR 10 - Liam Xander
SR 11 - Ethan Everett
Group 7:
SR 12 - Chari Akil
SR 14 - Alora Dream
SR 16 - Keefe Euan
Group 8:
SR 3 - Arthur Pendragon
SR 4 - Amanda Vlad
SR 20 - Tyson Fury
SR 25 - Calliope Nida
As for your objective—you all will be searching for the heart of this dungeon, that is, of course, the dungeon boss."
"Will there be a reward for the group who defeats the boss?" asks Scarlett.
"A reward?" Azrael thinks for a few seconds, then says, "How about a secret lesson from me."
"A secret lesson?"
"It's a way to boost your strength many levels above your current one."
"Neat!" Scarlett punches her palm and says, "I'll make sure to storm through this dungeon and snag that reward."
"As for punishment," he continues,
"Punishment?" she asks.
"Yes, if there's a reward there must be a penalty for the worst performing group, right? As I was saying, the final group to reach the dungeon's boss will have to spill their deepest, darkest secret to the class."
"Huh!" yells the class in unison.
"Um... Professor, you can't be serious," says Tyson glancing at Calliope.
"Yeah, there's no way I'm—"
"And with that said," interjects Azrael, "let the dungeon raid begin."
—Inside The Dungeon of Creation: Tenth floor - Group 8
"Garg!" yells a goblin as it dies from Tyson's punch.
He wipes the sweat from his brow with his arm and takes a deep breath. "We're making good progress."
"Yeah," confirms Arthur, "it's been just over thirty minutes since we entered. And with ten floors to go, we can make it to the boss room in the next thirty minutes." Knowing Tyson's personality, I was concerned Azrael mentioning the creatures being 'living' would make him hesitate. Arthur smiles, I guess my concerns were baseless.
"Will that be enough, though? Are you not concerned the other teams will reach the boss first?" asks Amanda.
Tyson gives her a dismissive glare. "What do you mean? It's not as if you've done anything to help the group."
"Well, I am the extra here, aren't I? We would have too much of an advantage if I fought." She smiles, saying slyly, "You three have been the most wondrous guides through the floors."
"You..."
Tyson walks closer to Amanda but Arthur stands before him. "That's enough, Tyson."
"But she—"
"Arthur's right," says Calliope. "We can't be fighting amongst ourselves. It's a waste of time and energy. Energy and time better used fighting monsters and descending the floors." Calliope glances at Amanda, who returns her glare with a smile.
Tyson backs away and clicks his teeth. "Fine. I'll back off for now."
Amanda smirks. So this is Amanda Vlad, thinks Arthur, directing his glare forward. Azrael said I need to keep a watchful eye on her. Does he suspect her for anything? She hasn't shown her magic yet and with that smile, I can't discern her true thoughts. What should I be looking for? I wish Azrael would tell me what to watch out for at times like these. He sighs.
"Something concerning you?" asks Amanda, inching closer to Arthur.
"N-no, it's nothing."
"I see." They walk side-by-side for the next few minutes in silence. Then she says, "What is your relationship with Professor Azrael?"
He looks over at her, sweat rolling down his cheek. "He's my professor. What should our relationship be?"
"Is that so? Well, I just thought it looked suspicious when you were speaking to Professor Azrael earlier."
She has a keen eye. I'll need to be wary of when I meet with Azrael.
Amanda keeps her eyes on Arthur and smirks.