“Ughhh… I’ve missed this city sooo much~”

  Mary’s voice spilled out the moment the skyline of Vanir came fully into view.

  The towering city walls still stood exactly as they always had.

  The cobblestone roads were still neatly laid out in orderly lines.

  And the scent of freshly baked bread drifting from the shops near the gate…

  Everything was the same.

  And that—more than anything—made Mary’s smile stretch even wider.

  

  “Hold on.”

  Rome turned toward her with the expression of someone who genuinely didn’t understand how the world worked.

  

  “We were gone for, what only a few days, weren’t we?”

  Mary turned back with a gentle, sweet smile—soft enough it looked like it could melt suspicion itself.

  

  “No matter how many days it is, I’ll always miss Vanir the most.”

  Rome’s face tightened like he’d just lost a major campaign.

  

  “Your love for the capital is… getting ridiculous.”

  

  “Ridiculous or not, I like it.”

  Mary shot back instantly, without even thinking.

  

  “This city is clean… and organized.”

  Rome fell silent for a moment.

  Their group passed through the city gate easily enough…

  …or at least, it should’ve been easy.

  Because Sight—staggering just slightly as he walked—narrowed his eyes.

  He wasn’t looking at the shops.

  Not at the people.

  Not at the fruit stands.

  He was watching the soldiers.

  There were more guards at the gate than usual.

  The line of troops stood straighter—more serious than usual.

  And along the road leading into the city… patrols were spaced out at intervals.

  Even though Vanir was normally so safe, you could practically take a nap in the middle of the street.

  Sight frowned slightly, then muttered to himself.

  

  “Hmm… weird… Eh… I’m probably imagining things.”

  He finished his sentence—then immediately turned around.

  Run.

  

  “My sweet booze! Your big bro is heeereeeee!”

  The shout rang out like a declaration of war against sobriety itself.

  And then the ranger vanished into the crowd, charging straight toward his favorite bar.

  Ace watched him go… and stayed silent for a moment, like someone who’d long since accepted this as normal human behavior.

  

  “Alright. I’ll head to the guild first.”

  Ace spoke with the calm confidence of a leader who always sounded like everything was under control.

  

  “Might be some interesting jobs posted.”

  

  “I’m coming too!”

  Lily shot her hand up immediately.

  

  “If there are announcements, I’ll read them with the Eyes of the Seven Elemental Observers!”

  

  “I’d rather not use the Eye of Chaos, you know!”

  Ace wore the exact face of someone who wanted to ask what the hell that was this time—

  but ultimately chose the safest path for his continued survival:

  He didn’t ask.

  

  “Then… let’s split up for now.”

  Mary said, then smoothed her clothes neatly—as if returning home meant she had to look perfect.

  Rome drew in a deep breath.

  

  “Good.”

  “I’m going to bathe first… to cleanse this forest air from my skin at last…”

  As everyone drifted off into their usual routines—in their usual city—

  there was one person who still stood completely still.

  Earp.

  His eyes followed the increased number of soldiers, just like Sight had a moment earlier.

  His expression remained calm as always, but that stillness…

  felt like he was listening to something no one else could hear.

  He felt it too.

  That today, in Vanir…

  something was wrong.

  Inside the royal palace, no matter how lively the city beyond its walls might be, this place felt unnervingly quiet—

  as if everyone was holding their breath at the same time.

  The corridors were wide and bright, elegant without trying to show off.

  The polished floors reflected the lamplight in long, flowing streaks.

  Guards stood at their posts in greater numbers than usual—many with straight backs and hands clenched tightly around their weapons.

  In the King’s grand hall, the meeting began beneath the tense expressions of nobles and high-ranking knights.

  King Odinir opened immediately.

  

  “So the elves of the Kingdom of Alf have sent word?”

  Gunnar, captain of the royal guard, stepped forward with precise discipline. He bowed his head before reporting.

  

  “Yes, Your Majesty.”

  “They claim they have found evidence pointing clearly to this: a new Demon Lord has begun to move.”

  The words new Demon Lord dropped the room’s temperature.

  Silence deepened, as if everyone stopped thinking at once.

  Leifel, a high noble and the head of the Ministry of Finance, quickly cut in.

  

  “How could that be, Captain Gunnar? The Demon Lord was defeated two thousand years ago. And since then, we’ve never once heard that a new Demon Lord was born. Now you’re telling us it has begun moving without us knowing anything beforehand?”

  To the side, Sigurd, deputy captain of the royal guard, stood tall and perfectly straight. He spoke next—his voice not loud, but unmistakably clear.

  

  “It’s not impossible, sir.”

  “Muspel is a land no one can enter. The last attempt was two thousand years ago, after all. And the Demon Lord has been repeated so often it’s become a legend. Most people don’t truly believe in it anymore.”

  King Odinir fell silent for a moment.

  His gaze moved from one face to the next, as if arranging his thoughts into order—then he spoke slowly.

  

  “Then what should we do?”

  

  “The safety of the royal family will be handled by myself and the royal guard,”

  Gunnar reported.

  

  “As for the citizens, that will be the duty of the standing knights.”

  “If evacuation becomes necessary, the gate troops will take primary responsibility along with cooperation from the Adventurers’ Guild.”

  “If an incident truly occurs, these will be the measures, Your Majesty.”

  His answer was so organized it left almost no space for interruption.

  Around the hall, nobles and elite knights nodded in quiet agreement—

  because at the very least, it was clear: if this happened, everyone knew exactly what they were responsible for.

  But Gunnar wasn’t finished.

  

  “However… I believe it would be wiser to wait for intelligence from our covert unit first,”

  he said carefully.

  

  “If we take action without sufficient confirmation, we’ll only create more chaos among the citizens.”

  He paused briefly, then continued.

  

  “Some of the townspeople have already begun to feel that something is… off. They’ve noticed the patrols increasing.”

  The room fell silent again.

  Everyone understood: security and panic often arrived hand in hand.

  And if they leaned too far in either direction… the entire city would pay the price.

  King Odinir leaned back slightly, as if sorting a list of priorities in his mind. Then he spoke, short and decisive.

  

  “Mm. Fine. Do that.”

  He turned toward Gunnar.

  

  “Gather as much information as possible. Prepare for the crisis that may be coming.”

  

  “As you command, Your Majesty.”

  Gunnar bowed at once.

  The moment the exchange ended, every gaze in the room seemed to snap into order.

  Nobles and elite knights rose, straightened their backs, and saluted in perfect unison—then dispersed to their respective duties.

  The meeting was over.

  But the weight in the air was not.

  Not long after, Odinir made his way to the palace library.

  It was spacious, silent—and colder than it had any right to be.

  Soft lamplight glowed in the corners, but the towering shelves still cast long shadows, like a second wall.

  He walked straight to the innermost row of bookshelves pressed against the far wall—

  the sort of place ordinary people rarely approached.

  Odinir stopped before one particular spine… and pressed it inward.

  Click...

  A faint mechanical sound answered. Slowly, the entire shelf shifted aside, revealing a narrow passage hidden behind it.

  He took a torch, lit it, and stepped inside without hesitation.

  The corridor was straight and long. The walls were cold and hard, like ancient stone that had endured countless generations.

  At the far end, it opened into a small chamber—sealed away as if the palace itself didn’t want anyone to remember it existed.

  In the center of the room sat an old treasure chest.

  A thin layer of dust clung to the metal edges and latch.

  Odinir set the torch down beside it… and opened the lid.

  Inside, there was no gold.

  No jeweled boxes.

  No sealed documents stamped with royal crests.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  There was only a single, ancient book—resting there as if it had been waiting for its true owner for a very long time.

  He lifted it carefully, brushing a hand across the cover in slow caution—

  as though afraid the thing inside might wake.

  

  “Please… let this not be true…”

  Odinir murmured to himself in the silence of the hidden room.

  The next day, at the Adventurers’ Guild in Vanir, the late-morning atmosphere felt exactly the same as always.

  The same wooden tables.

  The same noisy chatter.

  The same familiar faces—adventurers showing off scars, bragging about quests, and bragging to each other about how they almost died yesterday, with theatrical enthusiasm.

  In one corner of the guild, Ace’s party had gathered around a table—almost everyone present—to discuss their next job.

  Ace cleared his throat once, like a leader who was always convinced his own ideas were brilliant.

  

  “Dungeon exploration. This is what being an adventurer is all about.”

  

  “No. Absolutely not!”

  Mary fired back instantly, her voice so sharp the neighboring table turned to look.

  Ace froze like he’d been lightly slapped by reality.

  Valda rested a hand on the table, calm as ever.

  

  “But we haven’t gone into a dungeon in a while. We’re starting to run low on a lot of materials. I really don’t want to buy them from shops… the prices are ridiculous.”

  She spoke like she was genuinely calculating expenses in her head.

  Rome lifted his chin slightly.

  

  “I don’t have a problem with it. What kind of dungeon is it?”

  Ace nodded, relieved—like someone had finally said the right thing.

  

  “Word is, it’s an underground dungeon. The first survey team only made it through the first floor before they had to rush back out. From what they checked, the layout is complicated… and the monsters are pretty tough. They had to run for their lives on just the first floor. The deeper levels? Don’t even get me started.”

  

  “Sounds interesting.”

  Lily tilted her head slightly, eyes sparkling like someone who’d just caught the scent of adventure.

  

  “I’ve got some new spells I want to test, too. I still haven’t gotten to unleash the Eye of Chaos!”

  Ace snapped his head toward her.

  

  “That doesn’t exist. And cartoon spells don’t count.”

  

  “If it’s from a cartoon, that just means it can be used!”

  Lily shot back instantly, without thinking.

  

  “Even the protagonist uses it! I just haven’t trained enough yet, that’s all!”

  Ace wore the expression of a man who’d been tired for his entire life.

  

  “Sure. Sure… whatever makes you happy.”

  He cut the conversation off—the kind of retreat you make purely to protect your own mental health.

  Then Ace turned to the quietest person at the table.

  

  “Earp. What about you, interested?”

  Earp lifted his eyes slightly.

  

  “…I don’t mind either way.”

  Short. Finished. No extra weight, no explanation—

  like an answer he’d been born ready to give.

  Mary let out a long sigh.

  

  “Haaah… Fine. If everyone’s going, I’ll go too.”

  She immediately raised a finger—like she was adding a clause to a contract.

  

  “But I have to walk in the middle. Only the middle.”

  Rome nodded like someone who understood how the world should function.

  

  “Mm. Safest… and best for one’s image.”

  Then he remembered something and turned to Ace.

  

  “And what about Sight? What did he say?”

  Ace waved a hand, like swatting away a mosquito.

  

  “Don’t worry about him. Wherever we go, he goes. Always.”

  All six of them fell silent at the same time—

  then slowly turned their heads to the other side of the guild.

  Sight was clinking glasses with adventurers from another party, laughing loudly.

  One hand held a mug high, the other had an arm slung around someone’s shoulders like they’d been brothers-in-arms since some past life.

  He didn’t care who was watching.

  The whole table sighed together like they’d rehearsed it.

  Only Earp… let out a small smile.

  A new quest had been pinned prominently to the guild’s notice board:

  Dungeon Reconnaissance: Hidden Dungeon

  Difficulty: Unknown

  Recommended Rank: B and above

  Just reading it was enough to know something was up—

  because the guild rarely wrote unknown with a straight face.

  Once the quest was officially accepted, the six of them wasted no time. They split up immediately to prepare.

  Only Sight stayed behind, still drinking like tomorrow didn’t exist—

  even shouting after them that they’d meet later.

  In the end, the plan was simple:

  Meet at the edge of the forest outside the city.

  The next morning, the meeting point was the same as always—at the forest’s edge just outside Vanir.

  The air was cool and comfortable. Quieter than the city. A thin mist drifted near the bushes.

  There was only one thing that didn’t match the peaceful morning mood…

  Sight, already lying there.

  Not lying down like someone disciplined who arrived early—

  lying down like someone so drunk he couldn’t move.

  And judging from the state of him… there was no need to guess.

  He’d definitely kept drinking here alone last night.

  Ace, Mary, Rome, Lily, and Earp arrived together.

  But what made them all stop at once wasn’t the fog.

  Not the forest.

  Not the meeting point.

  It was Valda, standing next to Sight.

  Sight was still on the ground, but his face was visibly swollen—

  a perfect match for the giant hammer Valda held, like she’d measured the angle and distance beforehand.

  At the same time…

  Sight’s clothes were spotless.

  Spotless like they’d just come out of the wash—no stains, no dust, not a trace left of someone who’d spent the night hugging the dirt.

  Ace looked at Sight… then at Valda’s hammer.

  Then he went quiet for a beat—like he’d decided this was a question he absolutely should not ask.

  Mary swallowed hard.

  One look at that hammer, and she wasn’t sleepy anymore.

  Rome exhaled softly, almost relieved—

  as if thinking, at least the clothes are clean, even if the man himself looked miserable.

  Lily opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but the moment Valda’s eyes met hers… she shut it again on her own.

  Earp stared at the swelling on Sight’s face, then at the spotless clothes—

  and let out a faint smile, like he understood the entire situation without a single explanation.

  No one asked what happened.

  Because the answer was standing right there… holding a hammer.

  Not long after, the Rank S party of seven set off together, heading toward the newly discovered hidden dungeon deep in the forest.

  The dungeon’s entrance was farther into the woods than they expected.

  It wasn’t a cave mouth.

  Not a stone gate.

  Not a dramatic magic circle like the kind Lily loved to talk about.

  It was…

  a massive tree.

  The trunk was so thick you had to tilt your head back just to see how high it rose.

  Near the base, a flat panel was embedded flush against the wood—like a real door. Its edges were perfectly smooth, as if someone had built it to be opened, rather than it being some natural hollow.

  When Ace pushed it in, wood scraped softly against a hidden mechanism, and the interior revealed itself.

  Stone stairs descended immediately underground—

  and they bent at intervals, twisting out of sight. No matter how far you leaned forward, you could only see the next corner.

  Mary automatically shifted to the center of the group at once,

  as if her body remembered on its own that places like this were not meant to be faced from the edges.

  Rome swept his eyes down the stairwell once—then adjusted his cloak like he was about to walk a red carpet…

  even though the destination was a damp, slippery staircase.

  Lily looked like she was about to launch into one of her grand speeches again—

  but before she could get a single word out, Ace cut her off by raising a hand.

  

  “Okay Earp, you…”

  Ace turned toward Earp, clearly about to tell him to go down first and lead the way like usual.

  But the sentence never made it out.

  He froze—because Earp was already behind him.

  The kid stretched his arms, rolled his shoulders, and slowly turned his neck—

  like someone warming up before heavy work.

  His joints cracked in a steady rhythm.

  Crk… krk…

  Not rushed. Not dramatic.

  But somehow, just hearing it made you think: if that happened right next to your ear, you wouldn’t sleep tonight.

  His breath came out as a faint mist in the cold air.

  His body seemed to shift—quietly—out of normal mode and into work mode, little by little.

  Nothing flashy.

  And yet some invisible pressure in the air made everyone watching fall silent on their own.

  Ace stood there for a moment, as if he’d only just remembered—

  Right.

  This kid understood his job better than some party leaders.

  

  “…Uh. Fine. Do whatever you want.”

  Ace said it more softly—surrendering before the fight even started.

  Nearby, Sight leaned against a tree. He lifted his hip flask for a sip like he still wasn’t fully sober, and spoke without much interest.

  

  “Hey. Leave something for the rest of us to play with, will you?”

  Earp didn’t answer.

  He simply stepped to the stairwell and started down.

  One step at a time. Silent. No hesitation.

  Before long, his figure vanished around the bend—

  leaving the rest of the party standing at the dungeon entrance.

  Sight took another sip, then asked Ace like the thought had only just occurred to him.

  

  “Think he’ll be down there long?”

  Ace waved a hand, unconcerned.

  

  “Not long. He’ll be back in a bit. Depends on how deep the dungeon is, that’s all.”

  

  “So we don’t need to set up camp yet, right?”

  Rome asked immediately, like the most important thing in life wasn’t the dungeon—

  it was avoiding unnecessary camping.

  

  “Yeah. Not yet.”

  Ace nodded.

  

  “If we set up camp and he comes back right away, we’ll just have to pack everything again. That’ll waste time.”

  Everyone nodded along in quiet agreement—because on that point…

  no one could argue.

  Time passed.

  What was supposed to be a moment stretched into something strangely long—nearly three full hours.

  Normally, Earp would go down, scout, create the map, and return before anyone could even finish an argument.

  But this time, there was nothing.

  No footsteps. No sounds. Not even the faintest hint to guess by.

  Ace began to frown.

  

  “This is… taking a little too long.”

  He stared at the dungeon entrance like sheer intensity might force someone to reappear.

  

  “He usually comes back out in under ten minutes…”

  “He didn’t run into something dangerous, did he?”

  Lily, arms crossed beside him, made a face like she was annoyed at the wrong timing.

  

  “No way. He’s probably having fun wiping out monsters down there. Ugh, I’m jealous. I want to go down and blow the place up already.”

  Sight answered in an even tone.

  

  “Maybe. But remember what Ace said about the survey team. The monsters are strong. Even the first floor was already mid-tier.”

  That made the group fall silent for a beat.

  What was even stranger was—

  Sight remembered the details perfectly, as clearly as someone who’d been sitting in the meeting.

  Even though he’d been drunk off his face at the time—

  and he hadn’t even been part of the discussion.

  Ace glanced at the hip flask in Sight’s hand, as if accepting some uncomfortable truth about this man’s drunkenness, then let out a quiet sigh.

  Valda spoke calmly.

  

  “Let’s wait a little longer. If we go in together and miss him inside, we’ll just create chaos for no reason.”

  Mary nodded hard like she’d just been handed a lifeline.

  

  “Yes! Exactly. Let’s do what Valda says and wait a little longer!”

  No one argued.

  Because at this point—even if they weren’t afraid of getting lost…

  they were starting to fear that if they went in now, they’d have to deal with whatever Earp was doing alone down there.

  And then their doubts finally ended—

  when a silhouette slowly began to appear up the twisting stairway.

  Earp came back up without any hurry at all. He looked almost exactly the same as when he went down—

  no torn clothes, no dirt, no heavy breathing, no injuries.

  Like he’d just gone to browse the market… and gotten slightly lost.

  The moment his foot reached the ground above, questions flew at him all at once.

  

  “Why did you take so long?”

  Ace asked first—his face clearly a mix of worry and irritation.

  

  “Did you run into something dangerous?”

  Sight followed immediately.

  

  “Any treasure down there?”

  Rome didn’t wait his turn either.

  

  “Don’t tell me you already wiped out all the monsters.”

  Lily jumped in, like she was afraid good news might slip away.

  The four of them bombarded Earp with questions so fast there wasn’t even room for him to breathe, let alone answer.

  Earp went silent for a moment, like he was arranging his response into the shortest possible version—true to his nature.

  But before he could actually speak…

  Sight took a small sip from his flask and cut in again, his voice flat and calm.

  

  “Alright. Bottom line what’s in there?”

  Earp lowered his gaze to the ground in front of him.

  No argument. No sigh. No complaint about being interrogated.

  He simply crouched slightly… and placed a hand on the earth.

  The dirt and sand trembled.

  Then, slowly, it began to move—forming lines, angles, and layers, as if invisible hands were molding it into shape.

  Within moments, the outline became clearer.

  It was a massive structure buried underground, tapering inward floor by floor from a broad base to a sharp point.

  A pyramid.

  Not a normal cave.

  Not a natural hollow.

  Not the typical dungeon where you dig down and find random corridors.

  This was a pyramid—something that looked like it had been built intentionally from the beginning… then swallowed by earth over time.

  Earp lifted his head slightly and spoke, plain and direct.

  

  “That’s the structure inside.”

  He pointed to the tip.

  

  “And… it became a dungeon because mana particles have been accumulating in there for a very long time.”

  Everyone fell silent at once, without needing to coordinate.

  Because even for a Rank S party…

  the words underground pyramid didn’t sound like the kind of job you should find on a quest board that casually said:

  Difficulty: Unknown

  and Recommended Rank: B and above.