50 First Floor Cleared

"Ryan!"

Shesmu's cry alerted Leo and the duo who were fighting the Red Wolf King. This sudden distraction led to the team being swiped with the boss' massive claw, resulting in heavy damage.

Noticing the peril Leo was in, Shesmu was enraged. With one dash, he appeared in front of the wolf boss. He unsheathed his sword and initiated a flurry of attacks. Using his superior agility, Shesmu attacked the boss' joints, knees, and ankles. It was a dance of the death, and the reaper's eyes were cold. In preparation of the grand finale, Shesmu activated CrossSlash. Black and green energy melted together in Shesmu's sword before he swung it towards the beast's heart. The blood gushing out of the Red Wolf King was like petals of roses raining on the dance floor.

This performance left everyone in awe. Even the usually stoic and permanently annoyed Amaterasu let out a barely audible "Woah".

"Shesmu."

Leo's voice showed his worry. The look on Shesmu's face was one he never saw before; his eyes were dark and cold.

"Ryan," Shesmu muttered. "Ryan is unconscious."

Shesmu then looked at Leo in the eyes. "Leo, are you close to him in real life? Can you check up on him?"

Leo looked at Ryan's body before his face turned into one of surprise.

"What happened? Did some monster sneak up on him?!"

Shesmu shook his head left and right.

"No, he just fell unconscious as I was talking to him."

While Shesmu's mouth said those words, his heart clenched in guilt. No, I know why he fell unconscious. In fact, I knew all along-I was just too dumb to realize it. It happened before in the forest when I was suspecting Ryan of being a time traveler like me. And now, the same thing occurred. Why did I let my mouth run like that?!

As he was thinking, Shesmu kept looking down and bit his lips. Blood dripped from his mouth before hitting the white ground.

While Shesmu was in his guilt trip and Leo shocked at everything that just happened. Kazumi and Amaterasu were whispering among themselves.

"Amaterasu, Do you think that's what's happening. What the great mage told us?"

"I think so. I did feel the aura of the disturbance from DepressedRyan. So, it's a fact that he is the same as us—a time traveler."

"So, you think that some dissonance effect happened when the disturbance occurred? Maybe, that would explain his disproportionally good reflexes. But what about Leo?"

"That guy… I don't know. He doesn't have the same aura of disturbance as us, but I still feel that something is not right. The feeling is similar to us but different. I just don't understand."

"Hey, you guys. What are you doing there chit-chatting about?"

The duo was startled by Shesmu's question and for a moment didn't know how to respond.

"Eh! I-we were talking…"

For a moment, Kazumi couldn't form a proper sentence. In the end, he looked at Leo for a few seconds before gulping.

"Great Master, we weren't talking about anything important. We were just discussing how majestic you looked when you slew that Red Wolf King."

Shesmu knew that this was just a pile of crap. However, noticing the long look Kazumi gave to Leo, Shesmu decided to wait until they were alone to ask about what was going on

In the end, he just walked towards Kazumi and whispered in his ears.

"If the information you're hiding could save Ryan, and you don't share it with me this instant, consider yourself dead."

Kazumi was drenched with cold sweat. He immediately shook his head left and right as his mouth refused to even form a sentence.

"Hey, who do you think you are to talk to Kazumi like that?!"

Shesmu just glanced at Amaterasu, while Kazumi kept muttering incomplete words. In the end, Shesmu just sighed.

"Whatever, just remember to explain everything to me later." He then raised his voice for Leo to listen. "Anyway, there is nothing we can do about Ryan for now. Let's just enter the portal and continue with the exploration."

Shesmu then took hold of DepressedRyan's body and put it on his shoulder.

"Plus, knowing this numbskull, he would have found these floors boring anyway. We'll be doing him a favor by letting him skip them."

Shesmu's mildly witty joke lightened the atmosphere a bit. Leo's dark expression turned a bit more mellow.

"Hey, Shesmu. I have been wanting to say this since a while, but here goes nothing. In this trial, I'll prove myself to you, and to Ryan who is still sleeping over there, that I too am strong."

Hearing Leo's declaration, Shesmu just smiled. Even though this brother of his isn't the most talkative of the bunch, he was pure and straightforward. This was true even in his past life.

"I know you will."

There wasn't a need to talk much. With one sentence, Shesmu communicated his belief in Leo.

And, Leo didn't need anything more than those few words. All that was left was to put those words into action. Anything more would just be fluff.

After this exchange, the party entered the portal. Behind them, multiple players were still struggling against the red wolves. One of the players was especially eye-catching. His agility, reflexes, and grace let him deflect and dodge all of the monsters' attacks. He would then counter swiftly and decisively.

After fighting the monster that was in front of it, the figure looked at the portal.

"Oh, seems like this run will be interesting. The last one ended in the first floor."

Meanwhile, Shesmu and his party weren't aware of any of the happenings that occurred. They were more interested in the messages that appeared in front of them.

[Congratulation on reaching the second floor]

[Order and Chaos]

[The one who shall put an order in this world shall prevail]

[The heretics shall perish]