Chapter 116 - Again (2)

While having a lunch together, Clarissa asked Basil where Deacon was, as she couldn't see him. He explained that he couldn't bring Deacon with him, so he had left Deacon with Iliana.

After they finished their lunch, Basil, Whitney, and Cray gathered themselves inside the guest room. They were going to discuss about the upcoming Exploration.

Of course, Danzel and Clarissa were understanding enough to leave them alone.

"Although you have heard it, I will explain it once again, Basil." Whitney looked at Basil. "This exploration is a collaboration with a couple of Knights. There are six people in total, and we will be the only Mage in the party."

Basil hummed in acknowledgement.

"They are our clients. Therefore, we have to respect them the way they respect us."

Cray suddenly felt the need to chime in. "That means, if they are being a prick, you can kick their arse!" Whitney sighed at Cray's word.

"For once, I can't refute you, Cray. What you said is absolutely true. Although we call them 'clients', they haven't paid us yet. The pay will be given once we have fully explored the Dungeon. Therefore, if they are being a prick, we can also act like one."

Exploration was done to discover some valuable things inside the Dungeon. Therefore, anything found inside the Dungeon would be split among the party, according to their role.

"I think Basil already understands that part already. Why don't we go to the next topic?" Cray suggested.

"Right. I will talk about what to do and not to do in a Dungeon." Whitney paused to look at Basil's response.

Basil nodded his head lightly as a sign of agreement. "First thing first, you need to remember Exploration is a party thing. That means—"

"Going alone is a big no!" finished Cray.

Whitney's mouth turned into a thin line. "Why don't you just explain it in my stead?" He said that while smiling "amiably".

"O-oh, no, I'm good. You can assume your role, leader!" Cray gave Whitney a respectful salute nervously.

"Huuh... This guy is getting on my nerves," Whitney muttered lowly. "Kuhum! Second thing second, don't just touch anything inside the Dungeon, not even the wall. We don't know what kind of Trap Rune carved on it."

Basil already knew all of these things. However, he still gave Whitney the chance to explain. He wasn't actually listening, anyway. He was busy carving his fourth Circle on his heart.

"Last but not least, if you find a Monster inside the Dungeon, notify the others. Don't fight it by yourself! Dungeon Monsters don't live in solitude."

That means, Dungeon Monsters always traveled in group. They had a habit of luring people into their colony, before slaughtering them.

Basil looked at Whitney silently. At this point, none of them, aside from him, knew about another rule that needed to be remembered whenever one entered a Dungeon.

Be careful of Kinslayers!

Many people thought they had been completely exterminated by the time the Age of Chaos had ended. However, there was a truth that was hidden from the public.

At the start of year 1 ACE, some Dungeons had been reopened. The reason was simple. There was another batch of Kinslayers.

What is worse, all of them were either a Ninth Circle Mage or a Peak Stage Purple Knight. All of them had one thing in common. Their lifespan was extremely long.

Therefore, Kinslayers could survive in the Dungeon, despite living for a long time already.

In his past life, Basil had met two Kinslayers. Both of them were irrefutably a highly skilled Nine Circle Mage. Fighting them both at once had been pretty hard for him. Still, he had managed to slay them.

However, what made Basil categorize them as one of his important memories was not their skills, but the thing one of them had said in the brink of his death.

—We are eternal. None of us is dead!

Not long after their death, the other Kinslayers had emerged, evoking chaos in the world. Humanity had been baffled. Hundreds of high caliber Mages and Knights alike had taken the world by storm, and it hadn't been in a good meaning.

Needless to say, countless of lives had fallen victim.

"Why don't we talk about Death Howl Dungeon instead?" Basil suddenly said.

"Hm? Oh that?" Whitney nodded his head faintly. "Actually, other than a photograph, we have nothing to show you." Whitney took out his Photograph Talisman, and put it on the table.

He inserted Mana inside the Photograph Talisman, and Death Howl Dungeon was projected.

It looked like a cave made out of hardened red soil. The were a few stalactites hanging on the mouth of the cave, making it truly looked like a mouth of a monster.

Cray looked at the projection intently. "Hmm... I can't see anything, other than the mouth of the cave, I mean."

"Of course, you can't. The inside is totally dark, and the outside is too bright. Is this your first time doing an Exploration?"

Cray nodded his head. "Yup! All I ever go is Expedition and small-scale Subjugation."

Whitney scratched his head. "So, it means, there are two inexperienced guys I have to look for." Whitney sighed. "Ah, whatever. Just follow my lead later."

"I have an input for both of you." At Basil's word, everyone turned to him in surprise. "W-what? Are you experienced in this matter?" Cray asked.

"You can say so." Both of the two people nodded. They couldn't confirm whether Basil was lying or not. However, they would give him the chance to explain himself. "I will only suggest you one thing. Ignore the 'weird' feeling you got."

"The 'weird' feeling? What do you mean by that?" Cray was puzzled.

Whitney hummed to himself, before opening his mouth. "Are you referring to the feeling we got whenever we step inside a Dungeon?" Basil nodded in confirmation.

"Wait. What is this feeling?"

Whitney turned his attention to Cray. "Once you enter a Dungeon, you will definitely get goosebumps. You will feel your entire self being watched, scrutinized, and dissected."

"Huh? That doesn't sound fun."

"Indeed. But, you don't have to worry. It's normal. People attribute it to the tragedy that had happened inside every Dungeon."

"What tragedy, though?"

"Thousands of Kinslayers had been tortured and killed inside Dungeon. All of them were people whose prowess was comparable to our Emperor. Therefore, the remnants of their power affected by the suffering they had experienced remains in the Dungeon."

"Is that what makes our skin crawl?" Cray asked doubtfully.

Whitney nodded his head, then looked at Basil's direction. He was amazed once again by Basil's insight. Basil did know quite many things.

When he was about to say his thanks to Basil for reminding him about the thing earlier, he noticed Basil was lightly frowning.

"I didn't mean to say anything about that. You can leave behind a Mana signature. However, the soul of a Mage can't haunt people. The thing you have said earlier is nothing more than a myth."

Basil was speaking through his experience. He had died once. Therefore, he knew what ordinary people shouldn't know. Once one was dead, their soul would be sent to the Cycle of Reincarnation.

Therefore, the theory behind the Kinslayer's souls haunting Dungeons was false. He believed all of the high ranking people from the Empire already knew of it, and they were in a state of denial.

Whenever one entered a Dungeon, one would alert the Kinslayer staying inside. They would scan the intruder, and determined whether they were dangerous or not. It was the cause of the goosebumps one got.

Being scrutinized by someone with absolute power was a terrifying experience.

"You will get a stare once you step inside a Dungeon. Sometimes, you will meet or feel the one that gives you the stare." Basil looked at the two stoically. "If it happens to you, pretend you see or feel nothing."

Gulp.

The way Basil had said that truly made the two people gulp. Whitney, who had experienced it once, was sweating.

"Have you seen 'it' too?" He looked at Basil uncertainly. "I have," Basil answered simply.

Whitney's face darkened. "Do you also think that maybe they are...?"

"I will give you the benefit of the doubt." Basil stood up, and left the guest room.

Silence descended upon the room.

"Hey... He was messing with us, right? If he is not, it's not funny. There is only one thing I am afraid of, and that is ghost!" Cray shouted loudly.

Whitney shook his head. "Ghost is not real. What I am afraid of is the other 'ghost'. If they are real, I can't even think what will happen to the world."

Realization dawned upon Cray. His face quickly darkened. Basil had just basically implied Kinslayers still exist. He shook his head, before smiling brightly.

"Nah, he's just messing with us, right?"

Weirdly this time, Whitney didn't confirm him. The two of them looked into each other's eyes, then squirmed in their seat.

'Darn it, Basil! Now you are making us uncomfortable about entering Dungeon!' Both of them cursed in their mind.

However, as quick as it came, it went even quicker.

So what if that was real? They got to meet a Kinslayer anyway. They didn't mind dying after seeing a legendary figure. It would be worth it.

With that thought in mind, they renewed their resolve. As expected of the students from Rehearsal class, they were indeed different.

....

As the word goes, the waited time comes slowly, and the cherished time passes quickly. That way, the day where Basil spent his time with Danzel and Clarissa had quickly past.

It was 7 in the morning, and everyone was already in front of the hotel. They were ready to depart.

Surely, Danzel and Clarissa were also there to see Basil off.

"Young people really do love risking their lives, huh?" Danzel looked at Basil with a wry smile. "Life is full of risk. Deciding to not take any will give us nothing," Basil replied simply.

"Indeed." Danzel sighed. "So, you are going to that place... again. I don't know what kind of strange fate my sons have with that accursed place. But, I don't like it." Danzel went to hug Basil.

"Gosh, you are so big already." Danzel chuckled. Basil smiled faintly, and rubbed Danzel's back. Danzel let go of his hug, then patted Basil's shoulder. "May the fortune be with you. Come back safely, Basil."

Basil nodded, before turning to Clarissa. Without saying anything, Clarissa hugged him tightly. "I believe in you, so I won't say much. Be safe!" She let go of her hug, then smiled brightly at him.

Basil smiled faintly, and patted Clarissa's head.

"Mr. Danzel, thank you for hosting us. We enjoyed our stay very much." Whitney bowed at Danzel.

Danzel laughed amiably. "Hahaha. If you really enjoyed staying here, do visit us in the future." Whitney gave Danzel a small smile. "Of course, we will. As long as Basil allows us." Both of them chuckled.

"Miss Clarissa! I have fallen in love with your cake! Right after this Exploration is done, I will come back here to buy all of those cakes!" Cray shouted heatedly.

Clarissa laughed softly. "I will prepare many cakes for you to buy." Cray nodded enthusiastically.

With one last goodbye, Basil and his party got on the carriage.. The two Hexapod Horses neighed, before leaving the vicinity.