CH 24

Chapter 24: Self-Cleaning Mechanism

Watching the door to the C-Rank Dungeon fully close, the two adventurers groaned with pleasure.

They kept replaying Ellis’ very last expression on her face - it was priceless.

Finally...finally, they were able to avenge their companion!

Now their friend can finally rest in peace.

As they laughed, a heavy hand came to rest on their shoulder.

---Who is it?!

Being interrupted during their triumphant moment, they both turn around furiously.

But their anger quickly dissolves.

“Hey you two. You look like you’re having some fun.”

“M—Mr. Kratos?!”

There, the one known as the “Thousand Blades” Kratos, stood before them.

He was one of the most famous A-Rank Adventurers.

Currently, there are only 5 Adventurers designated as S-Rank.

He is clearing so many dungeons at such a high rate that there are rumors that he is the prime candidate to be chosen as the 6th S-Rank Adventurer.

Having the higher-rank Kratos grab onto their shoulder, the two couldn’t help but flinch and cower.

“G--good morning.”

Kratos: “Hey, do you two have time?”

“Huh?”

Kratos: “I was looking for Party Members just now.”

“Wha--?!”

Kratos was inviting them to his party.

A-Rank Adventurers typically only form parties with members equal to their rank.

They rarely invite outsiders into their groups.

It is because the newcomers would have to immediately adapt to the parties tactics and strategies flawlessly.

Interrupting such flows would lead to the party’s demise.

Hence, this is why A-Rankers would rarely invite outsiders to their party.

But that does not mean that they will not scout out for new members.

They will scout for new Clan members, and sometimes, they will scout to fill in vacant spots in their party.

But being lucky enough to be around when they are scouting is also equally rare.

That’s because the recruiting would end as soon as it started. New members flock to fill in those vacancies as soon as the opportunity opens.

All Adventurers want to join a strong Adventuring Party.

So this offer from Kratos was rarer than the rarest opportunities.

(We finally got our chance!)

The men were ecstatic.

“Of course, we have time right now!”

“Please let us join your party, Mr. Kratos!”

“Great! Then let’s head to a dungeon right now.”

“ “ YES!! “ “

The men follow right behind Kratos.

Kratos is a A-Rank Adventurer.

Thus, he’ll head to the 2nd farthest door in the Dungeon Generation room - to the A-Rank Dungeon Door.

For the men, it was the first time to enter a A-Rank Instant Dungeon or even join an A-Rank party.

In front of the door were the other members of Krato’s party.

They were all renown A-Rank veterans.

Nervously, the men thought, “This is incredible! We’re actually joining THIS party?!” and their excitement continued to increase.

Kratos: “Are you guys ready?”

“ “ Yes! Thank you for this opportunity! “ “

Kratos: “Alright, I’m opening the door.”

Then Kratos takes out a key that costs half a million gards and inserts it into the key hole.

With just one key like this, the men could play around and not have to work for a whole month.

The expensive key is used up and vanished, and they swallow hard watching the door.

Kratos: “Okay. Ready guys? Here’s the A-Rank Dungeon. Now get going.”

“ “ YES! …...huh? “ “

The way Kratos phrased that was strange.

As soon as they realized this…

They were thrown into the Dungeon Door through a massive strength that they could not resist.

“Wh—what?!”

“What’s going on?!”

Inside the Instant Dungeon, the men were confused.

The men thought that they were about to watch an A-Rank Party clear an Instant Dungeon.

They pictured what that scene might even look like and were looking forward to it.

But inside the Dungeon were just them.

In front of the door, Kratos and his party members remained, and not one tried to come through the door.

“......th—this is a joke, right? Mr. Kratos?”

“Y—you wouldn’t abandon us like this, would you?”

Kratos: “You think I’m just joking or playing around?”

Kratos sits down on a waiting bench and crosses his arms.

In his eyes was enough murderous fury to paralyze the men with a single glance.

Kratos: “Looking at trash adventurers like you makes me sick. You bastards, do you even undestand what you just did right now?”

“Th—that’s because one of our members was killed by her—”

Kratos: “—Quiet.”

A single, quiet word completely crushed the man’s excuses that were about to pour out.

Kratos: “If you don’t like a party member, take them out of your group. If they commit a crime, hand them over to the guards. If it’s just a typical fight, resolve it with your fists. But listen here, you little **** heads. You never, NEVER use the Dungeon for your own vengeance. That is the iron clad rule of all adventurers.”

You can commit various crimes using the Dungeon.

For example, murder. If you kill someone while inside the Dungeon, it will be difficult to know if they lost their life because of monsters or because of other causes.

For instance, using Instant Dungeons.

Yes, you can use how Instant Dungeons work to fake going into a Dungeon together and then abandon those members.

Of course, other crimes are also possible where the Oracle’s Laws of the Labyrinth City cannot reach.

But just because you can does not mean that you should because all actions will eventually come back to ALL of the adventurers.

People who entered the Instant Dungeon first were abandoned by their party.

If word got out, who in their right mind would think it would be safe to enter an Instant Dungeon with their party?

Everyone will fear being abandoned by everyone around them, and none would enter Instant Dungeons ever again.

What the two just did right now would eventually suffocate the entire way of life for all adventurers.

And of course, Kratos would not be immune to the consequences.

Kratos uses various equipment made from many types of materials.

For example, a Mithril equipment is not just made from pure Mithril. Other materials are used as well.

These materials are not only collected by Kratos but can be collected by Adventurers going into E and D-Rank Dungeons.

If those Adventurers feared betrayal and no longer challenged these Instant Dungeons, what would happen?

If the flow of materials gets interrupted, Kratos will not be able to obtain new weapons and equipment any more.

Because of these two adventurers, even the A-Rank Adventurers will fall victim to their careless folly.

Kratos: “—Do you understand now what you have done?!”

The work of Adventurers are founded on the silent rule of trust.

It takes many years to slowly build that foundation up, but it can easily disassemble in a flash.

That’s why as fellow adventurers, they could not sit back and do nothing.

If someone tries to wreck this foundation of trust, then what should you do?

By letting them experience their own folly, you can protect this rule of trust. It was necessary.

This is to also prevent others from even thinking about doing the same thing.

Around the A-Rank Dungeon door, it was not only Kratos’ party any more, but other adventurers gathered around as well.

All had icy cold eyes staring at the men standing inside the door.

The men cowered at the attention they got.

“P—please! I’ll do anything! Please save me!”

“I don’t want to die yet!”

Kratos: “Then why didn’t you save someone who said the exact same thing to you?”

“...........” “..........”

Kratos: “Looks like you found your answer.”

At this moment, a smile crept up across Kratos’ face.

(Maybe he’ll rescue us now?)

The men were hopeful that maybe their punishment was over but were soon kicked deeper into the pits of despair.

Kratos: “Be happy you guys. You get to sleep in a 500,000 gard coffin.”

The words they said now came back to haunt them through Kratos.

The men turn blueish white while they scream and beg for help.

But there was not one who would step forward to help the men.

Kratos: “If you don’t want to die, then just do your best and get out of there alive.”

——Well, it’s probably impossible for your guys anyway.

With those words, the Instant Dungeon Door closed shut.