章 25: Surface

Under the bright, shining sun, a group of oddly-dressed individuals stood before a pulsating blue Gate. It was around noontime in the middle of a weekday, but strangely, the major intersection they stood in was completely vacant of cars. This was not abnormal, however—in fact, it was a nigh-frequent occurrence. Gates leading into Dungeons could appear anywhere, from a wild forest to someone's very own backyard. Naturally, the middle of a busy street was no exception.

Now, it had been a week since the Dungeon first opened, and the first responders—a party of Hunters consisting mainly of D and E-rank Hunters—had went in. Even after seven full days, however, the team did not return, and the Gate did not close. By standard association protocol, another Hunter team was to enter as a search and rescue party, as well as conquer the Dungeon once and for all before the Gate is fully mature and monsters can spill in from the other side by the two week mark.

"Is everyone ready?" A blond woman wearing fully-kitted armor asked, appearing to be the leader of the expedition. "Check your weapons, armor, and potions now. Once we are inside, there is no turning back."

"Yes, ma'am!" The other members of the party chanted in unison, like a group of well-trained soldiers. At this, the woman nodded in satisfaction, and turned around to face the Gate.

"Good. In that case, let us ente-"

Just as she was about to raise her sword into the air and announce the beginning of their expedition, however, from the blue portal emerged two figures.

One was a devilishly handsome tall man with black hair and long robes, while the other was what seemed to be a Dragon still in its child years. The beast had beautiful white scales with red horns and wings, graceful yet vicious. Both shared stunning ruby-like eyes, filled with caution and determination.

Clearly, they were not easy foes to mess with.

For a moment, the woman simply stared at the two in surprise, perhaps caught off-guard by the coincidental timing. After a few seconds, however, she finally snapped out of it, and cleared her throat as she formally addressed the two.

"You two are… Hunters, I take it?"

Zane gave a brisk nod. "Zane Silverdale. And you?"

At this, the woman's eyes widened a bit in surprise. "Zane Silverdale… as in, the Porter of Porters?"

She meant no hostility by those words, just raw shock. Zane, sensing this, didn't respond negatively either, and instead simply nodded once more. Noticing his indifferent reaction, the woman realized she'd said something offensive, and quickly corrected herself.

"I see… I am Leona Catherwell," the woman replied, holding out her hand. "Nice to meet you."

'Leona Catherwell… the Steel Maiden?' Zane thought. He'd heard of the name before, though he'd never been able to see her without her helmet on. She was younger than expected, given that she was an experienced A-Rank Hunter with a whole guild founded around her. Glancing down at the armored hand held out to him, Zane decided to shake it.

"Likewise. A pleasure."

"Mm. And this is…?"

She gestured towards the Dragon, and Zane patted the beast's head a few times to show their affection for one another.

"This is Scarlet," Zane replied. "My Familiar."

"Oh, is that so…" Leona mused, as Zane caught many Hunters amongst the crowd behind her eyeing him with jealousy. That was only natural, given how rare Familiars were to begin with—much less a Dragon one. In fact, the only other person known to have a Dragon Familiar was an S-Rank Hunter according to Zane's knowledge—one of the top in the world at that.

But while the crowd was busy glaring at Zane with jealousy, the Steel Maiden had other thoughts.

"A Dragon Familiar… how rare. If you don't mind me asking, where did you obtain it? Last I checked, a Catacombs-archetype Dungeon does not have any tamable beasts inside."

Immediately, Zane felt the atmosphere thicken. 'This woman… she's perceptive. How unlucky, running into her just as I was about to leave… tch.'

"It was… a party member's," Zane lied, hesitating a bit. "After they died, I became its new Master."

"Is that so? That makes… sense."

She said that, but all the while, her gaze were like two piercing daggers, staring straight into Zane's eyes. After their brisk yet firm handshake, Leona looked around as if trying to spot anyone else who'd come through the Gate behind the two, but could find no one.

"You are the only survivor?"

Zane nodded, but rather than feeling pity, Leona narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"Hm… I see. It must be hard—but while I can understand your feelings, I'm afraid I'll still have to take you in for a comprehensive Dungeon report. It is protocol, after all."

Reports—something that needed to happen after ever Dungeon Hunt. Usually, the party leader was supposed to submit one to the Hunter's Association after their Hunt ended, or in this case—the remaining survivors were to take on that task. But Leona, feeling that something was amiss here, decided to take matters into her own hands.

'Out of a party with multiple C and D-rank Hunters, an E-rank was the only survivor? And its the infamously weakest Hunter, the porter of porters, no less? No… something is wrong here. Something is definitely wrong. Whatever happened in that Dungeon changed this man—and I intend to find out what.'

Zane, however, did not let this daunt him.

"Unfortunately, I will have to decline, Ms. Catherwell. While submitting a report is indeed Association protocol, you are not the only person I can submit it to. The association branch is a five minute walk from here, and policies clearly state that reports should be priority delivered to official association staff if available, and not A-Rank Hunters or above unless necessary."

"There is no need for that," Leona replied, not backing down. "I am right here, after all. The association is most likely busy with other Hunters at the moment, so it is most convenient for you to just submit your report to me."

"Ah, but it is midday," Zane countered, smiling deviously as he knew she had no comeback after this. "Right now, most Hunters are already on a Hunt. The association is almost always near-empty during these hours."

But contrary to his expectations, Leona had one final card up her sleeve.

"Actually, I just remembered. Today is Easter Monday—the Hunter's Association is not open."

"…"

Now, it was Zane's turn to be stumped. Having been stuck in the Dungeon for so long, there was no way he would be able to know what day today was. In other words, even if Leona was lying—which he doubted—he had no comebacks.

Cautiously, he observed the crowd. There had to be at least two dozen Hunters here, ranging from E-Rank all the way to A-Rank. If he were to push this matter any further, things might escalate into a fight—and against these numbers, the chances of winning were slim, even with his current strength.

Sighing, he realized that there was no other choice. And so, glancing at Leona, he spread one of his arms invitingly.

"… Lead the way."