Chapter 9 (1/2)

“Aren’t we going to wrong way?” Rudolph asked his entourage as he sat on Johann. “The wilderness is to the south.”

“Her Highness has asked us to escort you through an easy dungeon. The forest of bats in the northeast has a dungeon suitable for a beginner,” the driver of the carriage said. The group had one carriage and a dragon with a total of 5 people. Two were warriors, one was a thief, the driver was a beast tamer, and Johann was a novice.

“But, I was expecting adventure and excitement. Magical beasts and demon adventurers competing against us,” Rudolph said.

One of the warriors sighed. “We don’t have a proper healer and you want to go to the most dangerous region in the continent. All the dungeons there are purple and higher. The one we’re going to is barely yellow. It’s a perfect place for a greenhorn,” he said. “As long as you’re in my party, you have to follow my rules.”

Rudolph sighed and nodded. “Yes, sir,” he said. His father told him to follow orders closely and not be disrespectful. A rancid smell floated to his nose and he almost puked. “Wait, wait. I have to clear Johann’s poop bag; I can’t stand the smell,” he said.

The leader snorted. “If we stopped every time your dragon took a dump we’d never make it to Shaldor before nightfall. Keep going, that smell is pleasant compared to carnage on a battlefield,” he said.

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“How many dungeons have you cleared, Dustin?” Tafel looked up from her book and asked.

“Twenty seven and an eighth,” Dustin replied as he turned a page. “You should read that book; it’s important.”

Tafel frowned, but resumed reading. After a few minutes passed she raised her head again and asked, “How do you clear an eighth of a dungeon?”

Dustin sighed and put down the book he was reading. “It was a white ranked dungeon,” he began. “I was with four other SSS ranked adventurers. We thought it would be a breeze, the entrance to the valley was wide and white torches lined the tops of the mountains. Lots of space makes kiting easier, but we were swarmed by summons. Earth golems, water elementals, fire elementals, wind and ice spirits. It was terrible. We fought non-stop for two weeks before we reached a clearing. One of the adventurers, Doofus, died when he swallowed a water elemental hiding in his flask. At the clearing, a fairy was eating an apple and saw us. It came over and told us we did a good job and that there were only seven waves left before we got to see the dragons, but if we wanted to leave now it would resurrect Doofus. When we heard that we turned around and left.”

“Where’s Doofus now? Are white ranked dungeons really that hard?” Tafel asked with wide eyes.

“Doofus gave up on adventuring after that and became a teacher at the academy. Who knows, he might be teaching your brothers right now,” Dustin said with a smile. “As for white ranked dungeons; ah, if you see one, take a mental image then leave. It’s not worth the risk.”

“Why are dungeons ranked by color and not just levels?”

“Well, levels would be easier for people who’ve never been to a dungeon, but dungeon entranceways usually light up with a certain color depending on the strength of the mana source inside. So while a yellow dungeon is the equivalent of level one, it’s easier to say ‘that cave is glowing yellow, it’s a yellow dungeon.’ Right?”

Tafel nodded. “I guess that makes sense,” she said.

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“Is he sleeping?”

“I think he is.”

“What the hell?”

“Is he not afraid?”

“Go poke him.”

“Why don’t you poke him? He smells like a dragon, I ain’t touching that.”

“What’s the issue?” a pale woman wearing a red cloak said as she appeared behind the cluster of bats.

“Master! There’s a thing sleeping at the mini boss room,” one of the bats chirped.

“There’s two things!” another one said.