Chapter 234

Chapter 234

So, the goal for today was dungeon spa exploration.

It was a hidden hot spring facility in the depths of Lake Kingdoms Zone 5.

For a moment, I thought about taking all the weary heroes from the last battle to relax and rejuvenate in the hot springs. However, considering that there would likely be battles along the way, I decided to proceed with just the initially chosen party of five.

"Strictly speaking, that hot spring facility is a part of Zone 5s dungeon."

Lake Kingdom Dungeon. Basecamp.

Today, the place was completely empty, with no NPCs in sight.

Before setting out on the exploration, I did some final preparations and briefly briefed my party members.

"But once you get rid of the monsters at the entrance, you can freely use the facility inside."

Kuilan, who was still shivering wrapped in a blanket, looked at me as if intrigued.

"How do you know about such a place?"

Hmm. It is a hidden dungeon, but

After playing the game around 742 times, you naturally learn the locations of even obscure dungeons.

Since I couldnt explain it that way, I fumbled for a simple answer.

"Thats because Im the Prince!"

In the Everblack Empire, theres nothing we dont know! Everblack is watching you!

"Damn, as expected of the Imperial Family... Your intelligence network is amazing..."

Kuilan was immediately convinced.

No, this is problematic. Just by dropping the Imperial Family card, everyone seems to buy it.

"Well have to walk a bit since its deeper into Zone 5. Lets proceed cautiously to avoid any ambushes."

I raised a blue flame torch above my head.

The other party members each took out their lanterns or torches. I grinned.

"Alright, lets go!"

We left the basecamp and first teleported to the safe point of Zone 4s dungeon [Great Park].

Dungeons that have been cleared once have active safe points near the exit, making them convenient for shortcuts.

We then proceeded directly to Zone 5.

We walked along the main streets of a city shrouded in darkness.

The dungeons depth serves as an indicator of how far we have penetrated into Lake Kingdom.

In other words, we were moving toward the more bustling and developed center of the city.

Zone 5 of Lake Kingdom was even more bustling than the previous zones, and most notably, signs of magical civilization became increasingly evident.

Intricate magical devices were scattered everywhere.

Although I could see various dungeons we could enter, I led the party toward our objectivethe hot spring facilitywhile skillfully avoiding them.

Come to think of it, I can see the Colosseum over there.

I glimpsed the shadow of the massive Colosseum erected in a distant corner of Zone 5.

Thats where I had obtained high-quality materials like [Dark Crystals] by exploiting a shortcut known as Path of the Overlord.

I wonder if that Jackal guy is alright...

Jackal, the Colosseum champion who wore a Jackal mask, known as Swordmaster Jackal, crossed my mind.

He had been attacked by a vampire legion as a consequence of helping us.

After that, the Path of the Overlord was sealed off, and both the safe point leading to the Colosseum and the teleport gates were closed. I had no way to check on his condition.

...Given how strong he is, Id like to think he survived.

As soon as the party members finish recuperating, Ill need to assemble a solid squad and scout out the Colosseum.

The other path presents its own set of challenges, but I need to get a lay of the land nonetheless.

Lost in thought, I navigated through the labyrinthine streets of the city when a faint mist began to appear before me.

Sniffing the air, Kuilan wrinkled his nose. "Is that... sulfur?"

The smell of sulfur meant hot springs were near. I nodded, thrusting my torch forward to illuminate the way.

"Were here."

True to my word, a massive public bathhouse loomed ahead, far bigger than any in Crossroad.

Well, Lake Kingdom was a much larger city compared to Crossroad, so it made sense that it had a higher population as well.

A facility of this size would be necessary to accommodate the large number of users.

However, in keeping with the eerie, dark atmosphere of the city, not a soul was in sight.

The entrance to the modern, expansive spa stood wide open, shrouded in darkness, emitting only a pale mist.

"Its the same everywhere in this city..."

Evangeline, who had been closely following me, muttered.

"Its creepy here too..."

"But its warm."

Seeing the remnants of a magical civilization move on their own, my party members stood agape. I grinned and gestured for them to follow.

"The facility should be similar to the public baths in Crossroad. Lets go refresh ourselves!"

Our current party consisted of four men, including myself, and Evangeline.

I was slightly worried about Evangeline. She was sick and wouldnt it be dangerous if she fainted alone in the hot spring?

"Are you okay bathing alone, Evangeline?"

However, Evangeline covered her mouth with her hand and gave me a sly smile. Whats she up to?

"Oh my~ Senior. You arent planning to come in with me under the guise of concern, are you~?"

"What are you talking about? Are you out of your mind?"

She seemed more disturbed than before.

"Hehe, Ill show off this Evangeline Crosss sexy-dynamite-hot body next time we go to the beach. Hold on till then."

I wasnt sure what nonsense this little girl was spouting, but I figured Id give her a pass since she wasnt feeling well.

Speaking of the beach.

Summer was almost over and I hadnt gotten to swim even once. I wasnt sure if there were any swimming spots around Crossroad.

Maybe I should look into it next year...

How much fun it would be to take a few days off and relax without worrying about monsters.

With those thoughts in mind, I quickly pushed Evangeline into the womens bath.

"Submerge yourself in the hot spring and regain your senses, junior."

"See you in a bit then...*cough* *hack*!"

Evangeline disappeared into the womens bath with a dramatic cough.

I looked around at the remaining party members and shrugged my shoulders.

"Lets take this time to bond by scrubbing each others backs."

Its an old tradition where men become fast friends by scrubbing each others backs in the bath. This place might not have that specific culture, but hey.

Just as I was about to head into the mens bath with the party, I noticed Kuilans expression harden.

"Whats the matter, Kuilan? Dont like baths?"

"Its not the baths that are the problem..."

Kuilan slowly squatted next to the fallen werewolf.

"...This is strange. It does feel oddly familiar."

Studying the corpse of the monster that seemed like a bipedal wolf, Kuilan swallowed hard.

"I dont know why this feels so familiar, but these werewolves... they seem strangely recognizable."

"Hmm."

Now that I thought about it, when we encountered these werewolf guys on top of Jormungandr, Kuilan had said the same thingthat they felt familiar.

Werewolves are also called lycanthropes.

And Kuilan has the blood of the Werebeasts mixed in him.

Werewolves. Werebeasts.

Is there some common denominator?

Their names seemed somewhat similar.

As I was tilting my head in thought, I turned to Lucas and asked,

"Do you also find these wolves oddly familiar?"

Lucas had a history of recklessly using his Beast Transformation skill, stepping into the realm of a beasthalf-dog or half-wolf or something. Although hes more stable now, his Beast Transformation levels are still significantly higher than an average persons.

Which means he also resides somewhere between humanity and beastliness, much like these werewolves.

"I cant say they feel familiar."

Lucas scanned the dead werewolves with cold eyes.

"But I do feel a stronger hostility toward them than other monsters. I dont know why."

"You feel more hostile...?"

I stroked my chin, deep in thought.

Hmm, could this be some form of inter-species animosity or something?

"Ah, screw it, who knows!"

Giving up on the dilemma, I pulled out something from my bag.

"Lets quickly wash up and eat this!"

It was...grilled eggs and cold beverages!

I had asked the chef to prepare these as soon as we decided to come to the hot spring.

I didnt get to eat enough the last time we were at the bath, so this time I brought plenty!

Upon seeing the food, the eyes of all the party members lit up at once. Kuilan nearly drooled but managed to swallow it back.

Ah, these ravenous fellows...