Chapter 100: Lies (3)

The gazes of my team members gravitated towards the tip of my finger.

Their eyes held a strange expression.

"Oh, Theo. Do you know something?"

"Travis, why would you question that? Hasn't Theo's advice always helped us? We just need to do our parts and trust Theo."

Travis and Monica bickered among themselves.

'I've always felt it, but they really do get along well.'

I wonder if they might develop feelings for each other.

I responded calmly with a nod.

"Right. We've run out of food and don't have a way to get more. But we do know the nature of this dungeon.”

"······Is that also from the ancient documents of the Waldeurk Family?"

Now Piel looked at me, not with resentment, but with a plain, straightforward gaze.

"······That's correct. Andrew, do you agree?"

"I will simply follow."

Andrew replied nonchalantly.

'The only one left is Piel.'

I turned my gaze solely towards Piel and asked.

"Piel, do you also agree?"

"······Yeah, I understand."

Piel, who had been hesitant for a moment, also responded.

"Then I take it we're all in agreement. Let's proceed."

With that, I moved towards the direction I had pointed.

"Okay! Understood, Theo."

"Let's go, let's go. I hope we find something to eat. ······Will we?"

Immediately, Travis and Monica followed behind me─

"······."

"······."

Silently, Andrew and Piel also trailed behind.

"Wow, I didn't know such a place existed!"

"Right? Canned food in a dungeon? That's unexpected. Who left it here? There's no sign anyone has been here... It's fascinating."

Travis and Monica looked in surprise at the cans placed on the altar ahead.

... It brings back memories.

I remember being surprised when I first saw canned food appear in the game.

It wasn't just my reaction, the game's users protested to the game company, asking why there was canned food in the dungeon.

The company's response was simple.

-Heat packs also appear in the game, so isn't it natural that there would be canned food? Our 'Kyren Zena Chronicles' includes various new elements that you may not have encountered in other games.

The users accepted the company's approach in time.

After all, the game did feature foods like cutlet and braised pork.

Also, if we consider modern history, canned food came before heat packs.

...Well, that's just my thought as a modern human.

The game characters who are my team members would think differently.

Andrew, who had been silent until now, widened his eyes and commented.

"Canned food in a dungeon. That's surprising... And there's such a variety."

"..."

Unlike Andrew, Piel remained composed, her mouth a tight line, only giving me a quick, unsettling glance.

...Why was she looking at me like that?

Is there something on my face?

I don't think it's because I'm handsome.

The dungeon shook as if there was an earthquake.

"What the, what's happening? Why, why is it shaking all of a sudden?"

"It's not, not collapsing, is it?"

Travis and Monica spoke anxiously.

It seemed it wasn't just me who felt it.

'... Is someone outside trying to bury us?'

I quickly tried to assess the situation.

And concluded,

'No.'

At this point, the only place that would pull off such a bold move would be 'Turning White'.

But their dispatched team likely doesn't even know about us.

And given that Rok and other instructors would've dealt with that team by now, it would be a stretch for them to pull off something like this.

It also seemed improbable that their headquarters had interfered with this uncharted dungeon.

'What on earth is happening...'

I stood still, lost in deep thought.

...After a while.

"Ah."

Suddenly, I recalled the patch notes of the original game that I had read just before I possessed Theo.

[··· We believe many users would have been surprised by this major update.

This update is something we even dare to call a 'new challenge' for us.

Simply put, this update is an online test version of the 'Kyren Zena Chronicles'.

It's a step towards online gaming beyond a single-player game.

The new shop system and a new storyline filled with various twists are also part of this test.

There will also be various other changes from what was previously available.]

A patch that blatantly showcased the intention of the game company, which had wanted to step out of the niche market targeting only hardcore fans, and into the mainstream.

As a veteran who had mastered every trivial content of the game, from chess to football, I welcomed the advent of a new source of enjoyment...

But I didn't expect it to unfold like this.

I quickly tried to grasp the current situation.

Given that the difficulty of the dungeon had increased, the power of the debuff magic that would be cast at the branching point would surely have increased as well.

...Eventually, when the dungeon's shaking came to a stop.

I turned around and looked at my team members clearly and said,

"...The fact that we need to go forward hasn't changed."

I made the decision.

Let's go in.

We can't afford to delay any longer.

We have to stick to the plan we had set up, even if we're forced to.

Today, I need to see the end of this dungeon, receive the clear reward, and then go find the divine beast.

Regardless of the reason, the future has already changed.

I will survive.

I will give it my all, no matter the circumstances.

Even before the future of this game changed, the chances of failure were high...

All I can do now is do my best to overcome this ordeal as well.

I don't want to lie down and wait for impending death.

Even if the moment of death comes, I will die with my head held high...

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