D'elben City, Mythesan Royal Palace
In a vast and quiet study, a man sat alone. His messy black hair was highlighted with a few streaks of blood red, and a thin scar ran across his left cheek. His sharp red eyes scanned line after line of a thick document before him.
As he read, the tips of his fingers tapped an impatient rhythm on the gold-plated surface of his desk. He wore a practical suit of all-black clothing, layered with a breastplate intricately carved with bronze lines, and a long cape draped behind his chair.
"Tch, no results." The man sighed, his voice heavy. His hand roughly flipped through the pages document in front of him. "stupid ass king. Leaving such troublesome work to me." The man scratched his head, his expression one of frustration.
Still, to think that old man is the one bearing the curse for summoning the hero... Well, I have to give him credit for that part, he grumbled internally.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
The sound at the door made him look up. "come in," he commanded.
The door opened, and a woman entered with a graceful yet firm military bearing. Her silver-blue hair was tied in a long braid that reached down her back. She wore a crisp, dark blue royal military uniform that fit her form, complete with golden epaulets on her shoulders and a red cape that fluttered behind her. She bowed respectfully.
The black-haired man raised his chin slightly. "Oooh, my love Shufa?"
Shufa returned to an upright position, her face remaining calm. "Reporting, Your Highness. The Adventurers' Association requests that you dispatch high-level adventurers or royal guardians to the Southern Dungeon."
The man narrowed his eyes. "Really? Why?"
Shufa nodded. "There has been a murder in the Southern Dungeon."
"Hah? A murder? Is that all?" the man replied in a flat tone, as if uninterested. To him, a murder inside a dungeon was a common occurrence. "Why there a need to send high-level adventurers?"
Shufa continued her report, "The adventurers who were murdered were high-level, Your Highness. They were all level forty."
"Level forty?! shiet!" The man's pupils widened. He shot up from his seat. "Explain in more detail."
Shufa then gave a complete report to the prince. At the end of her explanation, she added, "Currently, the association suspects the perpetrator's motive is for an instant level-up."
An instant level-up? This might be quite serious!. Four level forty adventurers killed by one person. The killer is undoubtedly strong. But is it really for a level-up? Something's strange. The condition is to kill an adventurer of a higher level. The ones killed were level forty, right? That means the killer is below level forty? How is that possible? Wait, why would level forty adventurers go to a level fifteen dungeon in the first place are they stupid? They wouldn't get any benefits. So, what's the motive? The man resumed tapping his fingers on the desk.
After a few seconds, he looked back at Shufa. "Send Xavier as the representative from the guardians. And offer a reward of twenty thousand gold coins for any high level adventurer willing to take this mission."
"As you command, Your Highness." Shufa bowed, then stood straight again. "Is there anything else you wish to convey?"
The man snapped his fingers. "Void." Instantly, the windows in the room turned pitch black, blocking all sunlight and sound from outside. The air around them grew colder. With this, no one can hear.
He sat back down. "Have you found any clues about the hero?"
Shufa bowed her head. "Forgive us, Your Highness, but we still haven't found any clues."
"hmm I see," the man responded simply. He glanced back at the thick document on his desk. "Have there been any signs of the hero summoning or the King's health leaking out?"
"None, Your Highness. As you commanded, all mages involved have been bound by a magical oath and will die if they leak it," Shufa answered loudly.
The black-haired man snapped his fingers again. Instantly, the room returned to normal as sunlight streamed back in through the windows. "Good," he said curtly.
"If there is nothing else you require, permit me to take my leave, Your Highness." Shufa bowed low, then turned to walk out of the room.
"Wait, my dearest Shufa."
"Y-Your Highness, you should probably stop using that name," Shufa said as she slowly turned back, a faint blush on her cheeks.
The prince gave a light cough. "After you're done relaying my orders... would you mind helping me with this paperwork?" He patted the stacks of documents on his desk. "Yeees, although I am charismatic, strong, and handsome, I am really terrible at math you know."
Shufa was silent for a moment. A faint smile then graced her face. "With pleasure, Your Highness."
The Southern Dungeon
For forty-five minutes, Fyar and his party continued their walk, occasionally pushed back by the monsters that appeared. Fortunately, they were all low-level, and Rasie, with her overflowing energy, was able to defeat them with ease.
"We've arrived." Zaefal pointed toward a large cave entrance about seven hundred meters from their location. The cave was formed from pinkish stone, with giant mushrooms growing on top of it. A bright yellow light was clearly visible from within the cave. However, the entrance was guarded by several floating, jellyfish-like monsters and a few Ygv, ready to kill anyone who approached.