Kael couldn't help but smile with excitement upon hearing Martyn's words.
Only two hunters were going to explore a dungeon, something rarely seen. Once inside a dungeon, you can only leave with a special key or by defeating the active boss.
But in contrast, there was the matter of the reward: if Martyn and Kael managed to clear the entire dungeon, they wouldn't have to share the achievements with anyone.
It was the most dangerous 50/50 gamble one could take!
"Good, buddy, that's what I like! Even if you didn't accept, I was going to kill you; I couldn't let you take this information and come back with your friends to clear it," Kael explained with a grin.
For Martyn, this wasn't strange at all, knowing the boy's attitude, but friends? Martyn only had one friend he could tell about this.
And I don't think Victor would be much help!
("Was he so confident he could kill me?") Martyn's attention shifted to something more important.
Even though he had launched a large mana blast at him, Kael didn't seem hurt anywhere, as if he had never been damaged.
At this moment, Martyn couldn't escape.
The best option was to cooperate with Kael and explore the dungeon. He wasn't sure if he could beat him in a fight if it came down to that.
"Got it, but how do we enter?" Making his decision, Martyn began feeling the ground beneath him.
"Hey, don't ask me like I'd know. I've never entered a dungeon before."
Kael started exploring. At first glance, everything looked the same: seawater following its natural course.
It would be impossible to find the entrance to the dungeon if they couldn't see it; it would take a lot of luck.
"What if it's underwater? How would we get there?"
Martyn had his doubts. He had walked a bit around the area but didn't feel anything—no structure. The dungeon was well hidden.
"Underwater? I think I can manage that," Kael said, immediately diving into the water.
Martyn was surprised right away and quickly went to check if the boy hadn't drowned.
He was amazed when he saw the white-haired boy diving deep into the sea.
A few seconds later, Kael stopped and signaled Martyn with his hands.
He had found something!
After descending deep enough, Kael noticed a large concentration of energy coming from a specific point.
Kael wasted no time following his instincts, which told him that what he was looking for was there. He began digging with his claws until he hit a piece of metal.
("Great, I was running out of air, let's see what this is.")
As he got closer, Kael saw a kind of cylinder with several drawings on it. He grabbed it and, with some effort, managed to pull it out.
"Rrr."
"What's going on?"
Martyn, who was above, saw the surface beneath his feet start to tremble.
Did Kael cause a disaster?
But his focus shifted when he felt a different texture under his feet; it no longer seemed like a solid, smooth surface.
It felt more like stairs.
"Yes, no doubt about it, I'm feeling stairs right now." Though he couldn't see them, Martyn was sure.
"Hey... something happened!"
Kael emerged minutes later, breathing heavily. It seemed he couldn't breathe underwater after all.
"Yeah, come over here," Martyn called the boy, who approached without complaint.
Kael spent several minutes feeling the texture with his foot. After confirming it, he spoke:
"It's stairs, no doubt about it. Let's go down!"
The boy said excitedly, taking a step down.
Martyn began to follow him. It was mostly strange—they were descending into the sea, but neither felt the water's pressure.
"This dungeon was well hidden. Don't you think it's going to be really powerful?"
Martyn's question made sense. A lot of mana was needed for something like this. It was likely a Blessed-rank dungeon, or maybe even Celestial-rank.
"Shut up, don't be a wimp. I had to get soaked for this," Kael responded, not even having time to dry his clothes.
For Kael, the danger didn't matter. He was only thinking about the reward he'd find inside.
After a few minutes of nonstop descending, the duo reached the bottom. Kael placed his hand on the surface, excited, and began to speak:
"This must be the dungeon's door. Help me open it."
("This still seems like a bad idea, but maybe it's what I need. Maybe I'll find a weapon strong enough inside.")
Martyn had decided to enter. At the moment, he couldn't use his stat points. It was an opportunity they couldn't waste.
He approached the other side and placed his hands on the surface. Just as Kael had said, it felt like a door.
"Alright, let's push together," Martyn said, and with Kael's help, they started pushing.
Little by little, they felt the structure in front of them begin to slide until it was fully open.
With that, the entire invisible structure began to reveal itself. The stairs they had descended started to show their form.
The dungeon had been discovered!
"Alright, we're ready. Let's go in!" Kael, excited, took the first step, but Martyn stopped him.
"What? Don't tell me you're scared now."
Martyn looked seriously at Kael before speaking these words:
"How are we splitting the rewards?"
Kael couldn't help but be surprised to hear that question. They had completely forgotten about something so important.
"Well... isn't it obvious? 90% me, 10% you."
Kael answered with a confident and arrogant tone, and it seemed like he was serious with such foolish words.
"That doesn't seem fair. Why don't you explore the dungeon on your own?"
The psychological game had just begun. Martyn knew Kael was arrogant, but he wasn't stupid; he wouldn't explore a dungeon by himself.
"You think I'll let you get away, pretty boy?" Kael immediately went on the offensive.
"Yeah, I thought so too."
But to his surprise, Martyn raised his dagger in front of his chest, infused with a bit of mana.
"Want me to send you flying again?"
Martyn was just bluffing. He only charged a little mana into his dagger so Kael wouldn't detect it.
But Kael didn't know that. The Greenflare dagger shone the same no matter how much mana it had.
"...Fine, you win. 50/50," Kael, fearing Martyn might claim the dungeon for himself, reluctantly agreed.
"Alright, let's go in," said Martyn, starting to walk.
"Hey, wait for me!" Kael followed after him.
[Congratulations]
[You have entered a dungeon]