-Grey Helaris Point of View.
"It's impossible."
"I thought the same thing, but... now this Mana Beast seems to be very fond of me."
Julian and Grey watched as the Mana Beast rubbed up against Emilia in a very affectionate manner.
Why would a mana beast act that way?
Normal mana beasts don't usually accept a new "Master" so easily, much less trust someone right away.
However, Emilia had tamed this mana beast.
The rules that taming mages knew seemed to have been broken.
Why?
Why are mana beasts not only unwilling to accept just anyone, but aggressive and savage, like monsters?
Of course, not all of them are, but the breed of this mana beast that Emilia had tamed is known to be aggressive and one of the most difficult to control.
Emilia had broken a known rule, and now everything would be a scandal.
When the tamers found out, they would go crazy.
"She's not even a tamer and doesn't know the basics," Grey thought for a moment.
Simply put: it was impossible to tame a mana beast that fast.
No matter how talented you are at taming beasts, it takes at least a month at the very least to tame a mana beast.
"So, what name will you give it?" asked Julian anxiously.
Because, if he gave it a name, the beast would officially be Emilia's pet, so to speak.
The race of this beast is known as "Griffin", a mana beast with the ability to "evolve" and incredibly fast growth.
It possesses abilities that no other mana beast has.
Those who manage to tame this breed are recognized worldwide, as it is the most difficult mana beast to tame and almost impossible to find.
However, the big question was:
"Why would a beast of this breed be found in this Dungeon?"
A grade 9 dungeon, with a semi grade 7 monster and even mana beasts.
Simply put: this information was not in the report.
Gloriana had gained entrance to this dungeon.
The report they received from dungeon management seemed complete before entering, but, once inside, the situation was different from what the report indicated.
Fortunately, they were lucky.
Because, if not for the mana beast, the Wraith King would have attacked them, and they wouldn't have managed to use the return stone in time.
"Mmm..."
Emilia remained thoughtful as she gently stroked the mana beast.
It had long since finished devouring the body of the wraith king, along with the remains of the other wraiths.
At first, everyone looked at the scene with disgust.
However, they didn't care.
Then, Emilia opened her mouth, having a name in mind.
"His color is white and he belongs to the Griffin race, so his name is..."
She paused, leaving Julian and Grey intrigued to know the name she would give him.
Emilia's next words left them both speechless.
"Boksil... You will be called Boksil."
What the hell...?
The name made no sense, meant nothing, or just sounded ridiculous.
They both looked at each other.
But with just their looks, they knew exactly what they were thinking.
"Emilia...," Grey spoke as he looked at her seriously, his face pale from the name he had given the mana beast.
"This name is... absurd."
"..."
"Eh...?"
"What did you say...?"
"..."
Emilia looked at him with sharp eyes, and Julian immediately intervened.
He knew what would happen if Emilia got really angry.
"Okay, okay, let's better not argue for the moment, okay?"
"Haa..."
Grey sighed as he watched Julian, who was waving his eyes at him.
He was hinting at him to avoid saying something like that in the future.
Grey nodded.
Although it bothered him, he didn't mind too much.
Her words always spoke the truth.
"By the way, you two... no partners?"
In fact, he had noticed it a few hours before entering the Dungeon.
Grey wasn't skeptical, he had already sensed it.
The way the two of them behaved, how close they stayed and how they talked to each other.
Of course, Grey would notice.
No matter if they tried to hide it, even so, Grey was quick to notice.
"Hehe... I don't know what you're talking about..."
"N-No... What do you mean?"
"..."
It was either because Emilia and Julian were trying to avoid him, or because they pretended not to want to tell the truth.
Soon, Grey spoke in an annoyed tone.
"They really are dating. Real couples don't hide their relationship."
"..."
"..."
There was silence afterwards.
They knew it was true, and Grey's words confirmed it.
However, he waited patiently until he heard their answers.
"Well, actually... we've been dating for a day now. That's why we wanted to keep it a secret."
Julian replied, and then Grey stared at him.
"If that's how you guys wanted it, it's wrong."
"Huh? Why?"
Emilia's eyes widened and she asked.
Grey proceeded to explain to them both.
"Maybe I've never been in a relationship, but I know quite a bit about this, and what they were doing was a little wrong."
Because they were hiding it.
However, while it was true that it was none of his business, in a sense, it was also true.
"I'm not saying they're not keeping it a secret, but if they hide it for too long, then their relationship won't look good in the future."
Julian and Emilia looked at each other for a moment.
They both nodded, knowing what they were going to say.
Grey then listened.
"We understand, but... we'll keep it a secret for a few months."
"Haaa..."
"Fine, suit yourselves."
The topic ended there, and then they surfaced, looking at the high walls of the labyrinth, wondering about the others.
Grey, who suddenly felt a shiver run through his body, guessed something.
However, he wasn't sure.
"I feel like something big is going to happen if we don't get out right away."
Whatever the danger was, with Bolsik's help, a mana beast of at least grade 7, or a semi grade 7, would be strong enough as Asher.
"I wonder who would win."
Because Asher was at least as strong as a semi grade 7 monster.
However, in a death match, one of the two would probably die.
Knowing and calculating the possible outcomes, Grey thought.
I guess it would be a draw.
Still, he wasn't sure.
Regardless, the chill continued.
He looked at the others and spoke.
"Let's be as close as possible. The Dungeon will change at any moment."
It was a few minutes before the Dungeon would change its structure, and the three of them might end up in a different place.
Suddenly, the atmosphere changed, and they appeared in another place.
The three of them looked at each other at the same time.
The place where they were now was different.
"This is... outside the labyrinth."
There was a forest with tall trees and a dense fog covering everything.
However, they wondered where they were.
It was then that Emilia, Julian and Grey opened their eyes.
They saw Gloriana on the ground, her eyes closed, as if she were passed out.
They quickly walked over.
"Hey, is she okay?"
"I'm not sure, but it looks like she's just unconscious."
Grey examined her carefully.
Then, he looked at the side of her neck.
"Looks like she was knocked out."
There was a mark on the back of Gloriana's neck, as if someone had attacked her on purpose, or she tried to avoid something.
Who was it, though?
The three looked around.
"Were the others here?"
They saw footprints everywhere heading into the fog.
However, who knocked Gloriana out?
It was as if she had tried to stop someone, or everyone, from coming in.
"It looks like... Freddy, Luna... or Asher knocked Gloriana out for some reason."
"..."
"..."
They kept silent.
Because that would be impossible.
Unless there was a cause, reason or circumstance that forced them to do that and knock Gloriana unconscious.
However, the question was: why did they do that? And what was it for?
"Let's go into the woods," Emilia said, looking in the direction of the forest.
But Grey felt a chill again.
"Wait... Emilia and I will go. Julian, you stay here and take care of Gloriana."
"I understand, but what will they do?"
"It seems that... something is happening inside the forest."
"Good, then I'll stay here."
Julian settled Gloriana in a more comfortable place while Grey and Emilia went deeper into the forest along with the mana beast.
"Emilia, I think we'll need your pet's help."
"Why do you say that?"
"See that concentration of mana?"
"Huh?"
Emilia looked ahead and noticed that a huge amount of mana was building up far away from where they were.
It was as if two monsters with great power were about to clash in one place.
They quickened their pace and, after a few minutes of running, something unexpected happened.
"What the hell...?"
They were not moving forward, and found themselves looking at the same place as always.
"What's going on?" thought Emilia, just as puzzled.
Grey looked around, and then it hit him.
"Emilia..."
"Mmm..."
"This is a serious problem... We're in an infinite loop, and getting out of here is going to be very difficult."
"W-What...? Then..."
"Yes."
Emilia looked straight ahead.
She felt the two mana sources begin to clash, as if they were triggering a battle of great magnitude.
Grey prepared to find the exit from the loop as quickly as possible.
Because, if they didn't make it out in time, they might witness something they really didn't want to see....