Dungeon of Pride, Laplace

"You might not realise the gravity of the place that you have been to but those that do, won't leave you alone when they get to know about this. That is why you must tread with care, do not share this information carelessly".

The weight of her words and her tone, told him that the place they were teleported to, was anything but ordinary. Simon nodded his head and made a mental note to research more about these forbidden grounds.

After devouring all of the food that he had brought her, Adalinda got out of the room saying that she would lay down some array to capture her disciple.

The room immediately became silent after she left, Simon plopped down on his bed. Although he was not physically exhausted, he was mentally drained. Advanced tier Chronos magic- [Historia] was not just some illusion, it makes you feel the exact same emotions the characters in the memory are going through and make it seem like you are living in it.

Unable to simply sit still, Simon opened his status window and blankly stared at it. This journey to the forbidden trial grounds, turned out to be quite fruitful. His level increased by a total of ten and he got his hands on quite a few treasures.

Leaving aside the incredibly useful Stone Guard Bracelet, the Mythril ores and Grade [2] Mana Crystals were also quite the treasures. Mythril ores were used to make weapons and artifacts whereas a Mana Crystal is the purest and condensed form of mystical energy that when absorbed, allows one to increase their level.

The Mana crystals trees in his dungeon were at the stage where it only produced grade [1] of these crystals. In comparison to that, the grade [2] was a little bigger and more heavier.

                                                                  *****

A vast plain lay beyond the city of Mountmend marking the end of the territory of humans and the start of the Demon Continent. A huge forest could be seen between the boundaries of the two territories, line-up of wagons and people wearing different kinds of garbs came in and out of it.

The forest which was known to every kingdom and empire around the north-western region of the continent as the most dangerous land, was at this time flooded by humans.

Adventurers and merchants entered the forest, their destination, the newly emerged dungeon that was the talk of the town.

On the eastern region of the Ghastly winding Forest was a tall tower more than fifty meters in height. It stood tall and imposing and has long since become the landmark around this place.

A small town was set up around the tower with people busily entering and exiting the towers. Various shops and establishments were buying the different goods and items, the adventurers brought from the dungeon.

Around one of these shops, a group of men were currently in a heated discussion.

"Are you telling me that there are no potions available?" A man with a fiery temper, shouted at the clerk inside the shop.

"We are extremely sorry customer, all the potions have been bought this morning. We currently do not have any on stock" the clerk replied bowing his head in apology.

The shop sold elixirs and potions to those adventurers seeking to dive inside, it was a common knowledge to refill your stock of potions and other various items before entering a dungeon.

A potion was something that was an absolute must to have for an adventurer, not being able to get it would make it difficult for them to enter it after all, not every team had a light mage [Healer].

"What do you mean all the potions were bought? Are you fucking with me… ye punk?" the man with the fiery temper was about to grab the clerk with his collar when his teammates hurriedly stopped him.

"Stop it Bolan, it's not his fault. Every elixir shop is out of potion it seems… he is not lying". Bolan after being called out by his teammates, calmed down a little, but his face still showed how irritated he was.

Spitting on the ground, he asked "The fuck do you mean?".

His teammate sighed before pointing at a group of adventurers camping not far from the dungeon. From the insignia on their clothes and armours, all of them seemed to be from the same guild.  Even the quality of each of their gears was so high that Bolan had to widen his eyes in surprise.

Seeing the look in his eyes, Bolan's teammate smiled "They are the subsidiary attack team".

"What?!" the moment he heard those words, he couldn't help but shout out loud. Those people whose gears and even the individual strength were greater than his, were not the main attack team of a guild?

What kind of stupid concept was that? A group of that level was enough to clear multiple floors in a single day and come out without a single casualty. To be the subsidiary attack team… Bolan did not know what to think anymore.

A guild especially a moderately big one, divides its members into multiple teams so that they do not crowd the dungeon and create conflict with other guilds. A guild usually has its best members in its main attack team and other subsidiary teams are there to raid and aid the main attack team when necessary.

The Main attack team also shows how powerful the guild was and is responsible for maintaining its reputation and image. Usually, when a guild decides to do a big raid, the subsidiary teams are positioned as a backup and clear the upper floors so that the main attack team can conserve their energy and explore the lower floors.

A subsidiary attack team like the one in front of Bolan, could only be maintained by a top guild. Suddenly the realisation struck him and he asked his teammate that was more informed than him "Which guild do they belong to?".

His teammate looked at him as if he was some country bumpkin unaware of the custom and knowledge around here.

"Huh? what kind of question is that? Of course they are from the Burning Arrows Guild. They are also the reason why all of the potions around here are sold out".

Bolan looked slack-jawed, he thought that the insignia looked familiar but never could he have guessed that they were from the number one guild of Mountmend.

'A Big guild like the Blinding Arrow Guild… no wonder they were able to keep a team like this as a subsidiary attack team' he thought internally. To become a member of a big guild, one needs to be a talented adventurer or have accomplices that could allow you to get into one.

There are also many perks of joining one, such as large income, higher degree of safety during exploration and recognition that comes with joining an already well-reputed guild. Basically, joining a guild is like joining a big family which protects the safety of its members and interests and becomes a big shield for them.

For Bolan and his teammates who belonged to the lowest hierarchy of adventurers if there was any, could never hope to get into one. They who usually make a small team to dive inside the dungeon, usually loiter around the upper floors and kill those beasts that give them a handful sum of money.

"Why did they buy all of the potions around here? it couldn't be because they want to stop the other guilds from exploring right?" Bolan asked.

"I don't know but seeing that they have assembled the entirety of their members, I believe they want to unlock new floors or… conquer the dungeon".

                                                                        -----

Floor 10…

A crowd of adventurers consisting of more than thirty members divided into groups of three, tread forward. Whenever they stepped a squelching sound would come out and their feet would always sink in.

Floor 10 was a vast mud land filled with swamps and quicksands making it extremely difficult and slow to proceed forward.

Whoosh… sounds of wind being blown away rang out and three figures with a pair of illusory wings behind them could be seen flying forward. On the lead was a man with frizzy red hair that reached till his shoulders and wearing an armour that shined with a black gold radiance.

On his left was a woman whose outfit tightly accentuated her body and gave her a beautiful yet heroic look. Held tightly in her left hand was a staff which had two moderately big core stones imbued in the middle.

The last person was a man wearing clergy robes and holding a mallet. The man with the frizzy red hair stretched his hand and the group immediately came to a halt mid-air.

"What's wrong Blake?" the woman who seemed to be the mage asked.

Blake observed the swamp below him and narrowed his eyes "Enemies down below, their numbers in the hundreds. They are currently assembling in a spot... this is our chance to take them out before they pincer us from all directions".

"Frida, prepare a big spell while I distract them. Kody ready a light shield just in case any of them slips away from my skill".

Right after giving orders, Blake rushed towards the swamp and hovered just a few meters above it. Frida immediately started conjuring a spell, her lips chanting continuously. Mana like a flood, poured out of her and quickly took the form of fire.

The space around her started heating up from the incredible temperature and her surrounding became a glaring crimson.

Blake who was standing still on top of the swamp, smiled at this moment when he felt multiple presences swiftly approaching him from the bottom.