Chapter 148

Chapter 148

A grin starts to creep across my face as the words "Vice City Labyrinth" come out of the Director's mouth.

Every time this Labyrinth is brought up, everyone always makes it sound so exclusive and impossible to enter. All I need to do is get in one time, then I'll have unlimited access... Forever. Finally, there's a way in.

I reply, failing to hide the goofy grin on my face.

"Oh yeah? The labyrinth...?

Brutus nods, then sits back in his chair eyeing me up and down curiously.

"This week, there has been a rise in minor dungeon breaks near our county's northern border. They've begun to drift downward nearing the Vice Region. This exact same pattern occurs every single surge. Unfortunately, there has been less and less time between each surge. As I said earlier, we'll be sending a few teams out to the Dark Continent within 10 days to alleviate the excess mana build-up. I'd like for the 4 of you to be part of this expedition."

Silence fills the room once again as I think over all of this proposal the Director has thrown at me, then reply with another question.

"So... let me get all of this straight. You gave all the new recruits near-impossible tasks just to see who would be the best fit to join the other Elite squads on a Dark Continent raid mission? "

He nods confirming the answer as I continue.

"We passed your test, so this week, the 4 of us have been assigned to special individual training to prepare us for this raid?"

He nods again.

I smirk.

"Maybe you're not so bad, Mr. Director.... Is there anything I need to know about this Behemoth before taking it out?"

I pause, then jump back in for one last question.

"Oh... also... where is the Vice City Labyrinth...?"

The old man lets out a laugh.

"I hope I continue to grow on you. Your clearance for the Labyrinth has been updated. Ask any of the guards at the Dungeon Hub to scan your ID and they will show you the way in. The only reason I'm letting a new C-Class in unsupervised is because of your ability to handle Titans. The Behemoth may be at a similar or even greater difficulty level, so you must be entirely prepared before facing it."

I nod firmly as the Director continues.

"The Behemoth is the 20th-floor boss that separates regular hunters from the Elite. Less than 5% of hunters ever make it to a C-Class rank. Of that 5%, only 1% ever move on to the next stage. How many B-Class or higher-rated hunters have you seen? Not including me, or Rodrigo..."

I think to myself for a moment, then reply.

"None. I haven't thought about it much until now.... Everyone does seem to slow down after level 250 or so. Is it really that difficult to level up past C-Class?"

The old man nods slowly and clicks a small button on the side of his desk.

"Once you begin to climb the labyrinth, I believe you'll understand."

The wall slides open, and my teammates walk out followed by Samantha. The Director stands up and puts out his hand, I put out mind to shake it.

*Ding*

The elevator door opens and our meeting abruptly comes to an end as a few men in suits come walking in. Brutus gives me a smile as I turn to go.

"Hey! No... No collapsing of any dungeons right now."

The red glow of his [Mystic Grade] Plunderer skill dies down.

"Understood."

I let out a light sigh of relief, then grin.

"Tomorrow, I'll be heading into a Labyrinth. You'll be coming with me. We have some training to do."

Ember perks up, then gives me a toothy grin.

Over the last week, I've been thinking of a few ways to transport the 7-meter-long dragon. Letting him roam free in unoccupied dungeons is an option, but keeping him by my side would be much more beneficial to both of us.

I could use Dungeon Walker to bring him to the Labyrinth the moment I step foot in it, but there's been another potential option eating away at the back of my mind.

"Spacial Magic."

I activate my item storage ability, stretching out the white portal as far out as it can go. Within a matter of seconds, I stretch the entrance to the pocket dimension to around 4m in diameter. The perfect size to fit the mid-sized Dragon.

"I'd like to test something out. This is my very own pocket dimension, I believe it functions similarly to a Titan's Domain. Please, step inside. Let me know what you see in there."

Without hesitation the majestic creature moves forward, disappearing into the swirling white mass. I close my storage and wait in silence.

Letting the artificial dungeon sun beat down on the back of my neck, I wait around for 10 minutes or so.

Next, I open my item storage portal. The white mass of energy expands up to about 4m again and Ember falls out, gracefully landing on his feet. I could sense his presence in my storage, but there were no movements or signs of life until the moment he popped out in front of me.

The Dragon speaks through our link.

"Shall we begin?"

"..."

I smile.

"We're already done. It seems like my item storage really does bend reality similarly to my past experiences with a pocket dimension, just in the opposite way... Whatever I put in, isn't affected by the time moving forward in the outside world."

We stand in silence for a few seconds yet again, the Ember responds.

"Well, that's convenient."

I let out a chuckle.

"Yeah... I guess it is."

Opening up my item storage again, Ember steps in and we leave The Great Plains moments later.

With a smirk plastered across my face and the cool night air blowing through my hair, I walk back to the Vanguard Heights to get a good night of sleep.

My first day diving into the Vice City Labyrinth will begin bright and early tomorrow morning.