Chapter 92: Raid Dungeon (9)

“Ugh...”

Cartman staggered to his feet, making Geinalt’s face light up in relief.

“You’re awake!” he shouted.

“Hey....” Cartman’s unfocused eyes slowly regained clarity. “What happened?”

“We managed to defeat the boss!”

“The boss?” Cartman looked puzzled.

Geinalt darted his gaze toward the side, where Ketal stood peering curiously at a treasure chest.

“I see what happened,” Cartman muttered, sounding as though he already knew the answer. Then, he shook off the lingering fog in his mind and approached Ketal.

“Oh, you’re up. How’s your injury?” Ketal asked.

“My ribs feel a bit cracked, but nothing major. Looks like you took down the boss,” Cartman said.

“Yeah, it was pretty fun,” Ketal replied, grinning broadly.

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Cartman could only let out a dry chuckle.

A boss in a AAA-Rank Dungeon...

It was a beast so strong that only Transcendent fighters could stand against it. Yet, Ketal had beaten it without even breaking a sweat.

He really is a monster,

Cartman thought. Then, he turned to Ketal. “Thank you. We owe you our lives.”

Ketal gave him a slightly awkward smile. Before Cartman lost consciousness, Ketal could have jumped in sooner but had chosen to watch the fight unfold. Although he knew the boss wasn’t truly trying to kill Cartman, he still felt a pang of guilt, especially now that Cartman was wounded.

“It’s nothing,” Ketal said. “I’m a mercenary, after all. I just did my job.”

“It’s a relief that you see it that way.” Cartman walked toward a small door at the back of the boss’s room. Opening it, he went inside and soon returned with a blue-glowing orb in his hand.

So that’s the Dungeon reward,

Ketal thought.

It was the final ingredient needed to craft a catalyst that would grant new insights into Myst.

Cartman carefully stowed the orb. As raid commander, he was obligated to bring the Dungeon’s spoils back to the Mercenary Guild.

“Geinalt,” Cartman called. “Wake everyone who’s still unconscious. We have to get ready to return.”

“Got it.” Geinalt hurried to rouse the others.

Cartman sat down with a grimace, rubbing at his aching ribs.

“Are you all right?” Ketal asked.

“My injury is fine. It’s the current situation that concerns me.” Cartman clicked his tongue.

An A-Rank Dungeon had suddenly transformed into AAA-Rank. It was unprecedented, and he needed to report it to the Mercenary Guild. There would no doubt be a massive uproar, and Cartman knew he’d be caught in a flurry of questions and obligations.

“For now, we will head back and let them know what happened. Would it be okay if I gave you a more formal thanks once the dust settles?” Cartman asked Ketal.

“Sure. So this is it, then?”

“Unless something else changes, it seems so.”

Ketal’s gaze drifted over to his party members, who were helping the unconscious mercenaries to their feet. One by one, they rose with pained groans.

“Well, that was fun,” Ketal said contentedly. Then, as though remembering something, he turned to Geinalt. “Right, Geinalt. Didn’t you have something you wanted to ask me earlier?”

“Huh? N-no! It was nothing!” Geinalt stammered, waving his hands frantically.

“Really?”

“Yes! Truly nothing at all. Nothing worth bothering you about!”

“If you say so...” Ketal didn’t push the matter further, and Geinalt breathed an inner sigh of relief.

I almost did something crazy,

Geinalt thought. He had been planning to invite Ketal to join his party, but just recalling how strong Ketal was—and how terrifying that was—gave him chills.

Thank goodness I waited until after the raid,

Geinalt thought.

Once everyone was awake, they all made their way out of the Dungeon. Still not entirely sure what had happened, the bewildered mercenaries followed Cartman back to the capital.

Ketal waved to his party members. “That was fun, let’s do it again sometime.”

“

Haha...

” They responded with dry laughter, silently resolving in their heart.

We’re not going near that Mercenary Guild for a while.

***

Cartman returned to the Mercenary Guild and reported what had happened. He said that the Raid Dungeon wasn’t actually A-Rank, but AAA-Rank, and that the Dungeon had disguised itself.

Naturally, the first reaction from the Guild was that he was spouting nonsense. If an ordinary mercenary had claimed such a thing, they would have been demoted on the spot for making up tall tales. However, this was Cartman they were dealing with—a rare A-Rank mercenary with an impeccable record—so the Mercenary Guild launched an investigation.

As a result, Cartman’s story became even more credible. It was truly a AAA-Rank Dungeon, not an A-Rank.

The Denian branch of the Mercenary Guild was turned on its head. It might have been a simple matter of mis-measuring from the start, but the idea that the Dungeon’s rank had changed afterward was unprecedented. They had come close to losing more than a dozen C and B-Rank mercenaries, as well as several valuable A-Rank ones. Naturally, it became a huge issue that even the national government couldn’t ignore.

To share these developments, Cartman went to see Ketal.

“Who is this guy?” Arkemis asked blankly, staring at Cartman.

Cartman looked rather uneasy as he replied, “So you’ve been staying with an alchemist, I see.”

“Oh? Do you know her?” Ketal asked.

“She’s famous enough that no mercenary could fail to notice,” Cartman said.

Arkemis was an alchemist who had traded even with the Empire. It was well known that she was staying in the capital of Denian, and mercenaries—who thrived on rumors—were bound to have heard of her.

Ketal spoke casually. “I’m learning alchemy from her. She’s a good teacher.”

“

Heh,

” Arkemis said, looking proud.

Cartman wore a baffled expression, as though he was witnessing something beyond comprehension—a barbarian and an elf chatting amicably like old friends.

Eventually, Cartman cleared his throat. “So, the reason you wanted the Dungeon rewards was for her, I take it?”

“Oh, did you bring it?” Arkemis asked, eyeing Cartman.

“Yes,” Cartman replied, taking out the blue-glowing orb from inside his jacket.

Arkemis’s eyes sparkled. “Oh! Is that the Dungeon’s reward? Are you sure it’s fine to just hand it over like that?”

“The Akasha family paid for it,” Cartman said.

“Milayna sure does things fast,” Arkemis mused, grabbing the orb and heading upstairs. “You two are going to talk about the recent raid, right? Feel free to chat while I get to work on the catalyst.”

“Thanks,” Ketal replied.

Cartman stood there, momentarily at a loss—like he was watching a lion and a rabbit happily prancing through a meadow. Finally, he remembered why he had come and cleared his throat again.

“Right, let me explain what’s going on. I told the Guild about how the Dungeon changed rank. They’ve confirmed it by sending out investigators, and now the questions won’t stop.” Cartman looked at Ketal. “The biggest question is how we managed to clear such a Dungeon.”

A AAA-Rank Dungeon couldn’t be cleared by anyone other than a Transcendent. Cartman himself was only an A-Rank—an Advanced mercenary. Even dozens of his level couldn’t have taken down a Transcendent foe. Naturally, Ketal’s existence came into question.

“I wasn’t sure what you might want to keep secret,” Cartman said, “so I just gave them the explanation you mentioned. I’m sorry if that wasn’t what you intended.”

Cartman wasn’t sure whether Ketal wanted to be in the spotlight or stay in the shadows. With the sudden investigation, Cartman hadn’t had the chance to ask him directly, so he had tried to conceal as many details as possible.

“It’s fine,” Ketal said. “I don’t care one way or the other. Don’t worry about it.”

Cartman looked relieved. Had Ketal been someone who cared about fame and recognition, Cartman would have committed a serious offense by hiding his involvement.

With that weight off his shoulders, Cartman continued, “I told them what you said—that the boss ended up destroying itself. It sounded odd, but the mercenaries who were still conscious confirmed the same thing, so I guess the Guild believes it. Still, did that really happen?”

“It did,” Ketal replied.

Cartman honestly found it hard to believe. No matter how strong their opponent was, a Dungeon monster would normally fight to the death, ignoring its own survival. For a Dungeon boss to self-destruct out of despair was unheard of. However, since Ketal insisted, Cartman couldn’t argue otherwise.

He changed the subject. “Anyway, the Dungeon’s rank changed. It seems like both the Mercenary Guild and the kingdom itself are going to take action.”

“There’s something I’m curious about,” Ketal said. “How do they assign a Dungeon’s rank? I know mercenaries or guards will explore to gauge the difficulty, but a Dungeon like that can’t be easy to test.”

“It isn’t,” Cartman answered. “Normally, you’re right—scouts or mercenaries go in to check. But if it’s too dangerous or shows signs of being unusual, they measure the Dungeon’s mana itself.”

“That’s possible?”

“A skilled mage can do it. I’m guessing she,” Cartman shot a glance upstairs, where Arkemis had disappeared and said, ”could manage as well.”

Ketal smiled. “I see.”

“They sense the amount and nature of mana, and from that, determine the rank. This one came out as A-Rank during the evaluation.”

“So, a rank change is extremely rare, I assume.”

“Not rare—

nonexistent

,” Cartman said, shaking his head.

A AAA-Rank Dungeon was something a Transcendent fighter or even an army from a large kingdom had to deal with. Such Dungeons were exceedingly rare, and whenever one emerged, it radiated mana so intense that even lesser mages or mercenaries could sense it.

However, this time, it had disguised itself as an A-Rank. Cartman frowned at the memory. “And aside from that, it was... strange in other ways.”

Dungeon monsters typically had about the intelligence of wild beasts. Even a boss was only slightly above that level. However, this boss taunted Cartman, mocking the humans who fell into its traps. It even refrained from killing anyone, suggesting it had actively held back its power—something no mere beast would do.

“And... that thing could

talk

,” Cartman added, recalling how the boss’s distorted, almost forced speech still carried a clear meaning.

The Dungeon had changed. No one could guarantee it wouldn’t happen again. Another such Dungeon could appear someday.

“I’m guessing the Mercenary Guild will start an investigation,” Cartman said. This wouldn’t be a local Denian branch effort; it would involve the Mercenary Guild as a whole—a massive collective responsible for mercenaries across many lands.

Ketal’s eyes glinted with interest. Once Cartman finished explaining, he took his leave, and Ketal, now alone, murmured thoughtfully, “A lot of things really are changing.”

He thought about the demon in the Barcan Estate. The world, as Elene had said, seemed to be undergoing some kind of shift.

Not that it has anything to do with me,

Ketal mused inwardly. The only thing that mattered to him was enjoying this fantasy world to the fullest—nothing more, nothing less.

I wonder how much progress she’s made,

he thought, a smile forming on his face as he headed upstairs to check on Arkemis’s catalyst work.

***

Ring, ring!

A shrill bell echoed through the room. A woman, clearly irritated by the sound, frowned. “Guild Master! Please take the call!”

“I’m busy!”

“Shut up and pick it up!”

“I

said

I’m busy!” A middle-aged man buried in a mountain of paperwork poked his head out and snarled, “Do you have any idea how much I have to get through? It’s triple the usual load—

triple!

When am I supposed to take calls? You pick it up!”

“

Ugh...

” Clicking her tongue, the woman said nothing more. She could see well enough that the pile of documents he was working on was massive. Finally, she stood up and spread her wings—she was a fairy.

Zipping above the papers with her small frame, barely a fifth the size of an adult man, she lifted a heavy communication device.

Watching her, the man flashed a smug grin. “Having a fairy for a secretary sure pays off. You hardly take up any space.”

“One day, I’m filing a complaint with the Racial Discrimination Board,” she retorted, then started the call.

A short while later, she hung up.

“So, what was that about?” the Guild Master asked her.

“It’s about the tasks you’re dealing with right now,” she replied.

“Again?” His face visibly aged at the news. “Who the hell said it was great to be Guild Master...?”

“That old man dumped the job on you and retired,” the fairy reminded him. “He’s just farming back in his hometown now.”

“I remember he smiled at me right before he left. Damn it.” The Guild Master fumed. “He tricked me by calling it the seat of power over all mercenaries in the continent. Meanwhile, I’m practically a slave!”

“Stop complaining and get back to work. You still have mountains of paperwork.”

“Yeah, yeah...” He sighed and scanned the documents again, clicking his tongue. “This too, huh.”

“Another report about strange Dungeon activity?” the fairy asked.

“Apparently an A-Rank Dungeon monster popped out into the open—no sign of piling up of Dungeons, it just suddenly appeared.” Looking downright sick of it all, the Guild Master tossed aside one piece of paper. “Dungeons everywhere are going crazy. We’re losing valuable mercenaries, and now they’re too scared to go back in. What the hell is going on?”

“This makes twelve incidents,” the fairy said. “And we still don’t know the cause, right?”

“I wish somebody would tell me,” the Guild Master sighed.

The fairy flipped through more files, her brow furrowing. “This one looks unusual.”

“Oh, great. Another anomaly—so this is the thirteenth, then.”

“Yes, but it’s a bit different. Look for yourself.” She tossed the thin file onto his desk with uncanny precision.

As he read, the Guild Master grimaced. “An anomaly in the Denian Kingdom: An A-Rank Dungeon turned into AAA-Rank? That must have killed everyone.”

“Look further down,” the fairy said.

Scanning the rest, the Guild Master’s eyes widened. “What? No one died? And they cleared it because the boss self-destructed? Are we really supposed to believe that?”

“I don’t know, but that’s what the report says. Maybe the boss had some internal issue, too, if the Dungeon itself was messed up.”

“No, that’s not it.” The Guild Master rubbed his chin, eyes growing sharper. “Looking at all twelve previous cases, even when everything happened out of the blue, it was pretty systematic—each incident seemed carefully orchestrated to be just difficult enough that we couldn’t respond easily.”

“Are you saying there’s some hidden plan behind it? But these are Dungeons. Maybe it’s just a coincidence,” the fairy suggested.

“It could be, but I have a feeling there’s more to it. I doubt a boss would really just kill itself, especially leaving all invaders alive,” he said, his face showing growing interest. He spotted the name of the raid’s commander. “Cartman... An A-Rank mercenary.”

The Guild Master knew of him—a seasoned fighter, with plenty of experience. But no matter how skilled, a AAA-Rank Dungeon should be impossible for an A-Rank mercenary to handle. One would need a Transcendent fighter at minimum.

Is there something else going on?

the Guild Master thought.

After mulling it over, he spoke. “Request more detailed information about this raid—everything. I want the Dungeon’s characteristics, the boss’s traits, and the full list of participants. Send it all to me.”

“Right away,” the fairy said.