“So,” Cedric said, his voice nearly drowned by the roar of the crashing water, “this is the place?”

  Viktor nodded. “Yes, there’s a cave behind the falls. That’s where I found the coin.”

  He had used the same old trick, approaching Cedric’s group when no one was around, pretending to stumble, and dropping the gold coin to the ground for them to pick up.

  Cedric and Lucian were shocked that Viktor had something so valuable in his possession, but they failed to notice any deeper implication beyond that. Noi’ri, however, was different. As expected of a seasoned adventurer, he realized at once that it was not a coin minted by any known kingdom. Naturally, questions followed. Viktor feigned ignorance for a while, then told them about the cave after making them promise not to say a word to Claire.

  “There’s a tunnel,” he continued. “It leads to a place that looks like a maze. I found the coin lying near the entrance. I didn’t dare to go any further, so I just left.”

  Lucian’s eyes grew wide. “Must be a dungeon. A newly formed one.”

  “Can you believe it?” Cedric laughed. “We’ve just arrived, and already we’ve found a dungeon on our very first day. In a region where there haven’t been any dungeons for centuries, no less! It’s like everything has been willed by the Gods.”

  Or a Dungeon Master, Viktor thought, smirking to himself.

  “What are we waiting for?” Fiora asked, her eyes sparkling. Her auburn hair swayed as she reached for her crossbow and unslung it from her back. “Let’s get inside.” The girl used to be aloof and distant, but now she was the most eager to charge into the dungeon.

  “What’s your take on this, Noi’ri?” Cedric asked.

  The gnoll responded with a series of high-pitched cackles, which were then translated by Lucian. “He said that we can enter, but we must be careful.”

  Cedric nodded, turning to Viktor. “You stay here. We’ll come back soon.”

  Viktor watched as the party passed beyond the veil of falling water. Once they were completely out of sight, he walked over to the tree where he had sat the last time. He settled down, leaning back against the trunk as he closed his eyes and shifted his vision to the maze’s entry. Before long, he saw the four adventurers stepping into the labyrinth.

  “Wow, there really is a maze here!” Cedric exclaimed.

  Lucian seemed more cautious. “How are we going to proceed?” he asked, glancing at the corridors.

  Fiora shot him a glare that could strip the bark off a tree. “Have you forgotten all the lessons?” she said sharply. “We make a mark every time we reach a branching path so that we can keep track of which routes we’ve taken and which routes we’ve not. Is that correct, Noi’ri?”

  The gnoll nodded in approval.

  Actually, they don’t even need to do that, Viktor thought. Noi’ri had a keen sense of smell, so he could easily tell which way to go even without any markings.

  Yet, the gnoll made no move to help them. Instead, he just stepped back, observing the three kids with a watchful eye. The whole situation felt like a training session. The young adventurers had to figure everything out on their own, while their nanny was only there to make sure that they would be safe.

  With that, the party made their way through the maze. Fiora used her knife to make a mark on the wall every time they reached a split in the path. She paused occasionally, straining her ears to catch any suspicious sounds before letting the group continue their advance.

  At one point—

  “Something is coming,” she warned.

  It’s time for the first encounter.

  Celeste had sent some goblins to challenge the adventurers. Three from the front, two sneaking round the back. Viktor wondered whether Noi’ri would join the fight, or if he would let the kids handle the creatures themselves.

  Once the adventurers spotted the minions, they quickly took their positions. Cedric and Fiora moved forward to engage the three ahead, while Lucian turned to face the two behind. Noi’ri, on the other hand, remained in the middle, observing.

  Let’s see what kind of mage he is, Viktor thought, his gaze fixed on Lucian.

  Pyromancers were the most common among adventurers, of course. After all, it was flashy yet still practical. Straightforward to use, and capable of instantly dealing a lot of damage. Also, if one delved deeper into the art, they would discover more techniques that went beyond merely tossing fireballs. Lahmia morphing her flames into a phoenix and controlling it to attack her enemies was one example.

  Next came the Emerald Mages, whose healing abilities were invaluable in any party. However, since Lucian was going to fight the goblins alone, Viktor doubted he was a member of that Order. Not to mention the boy didn’t wear anything green.

  Then there were the aeromancers, who were also quite common, since their ability to manipulate wind offered remarkable flexibility. They could fly into the air, deflect incoming projectiles, or blast enemies away with a powerful gust.

  Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

  As Viktor watched the battle unfold, the two goblins charged at Lucian. The young mage stood his ground, pointing his finger at one of them. The goblin stopped mid-lunge, and then—

  It turned and stabbed its friend.

  What?

  The goblin kept stabbing with a frenzied intensity, each thrust plunging deeper into the flesh of its former comrade. It only stopped after the latter had been reduced to a lifeless, bloody mess. Then, it slit its own throat, and crumpled to the ground.

  Mind control, huh?

  Viktor had to admit it was a bit surprising. The Cabal of the Lidless Eye was one of the most mysterious and elusive mage organizations in the world, so he hadn’t expected to see one of their members here, least of all a boy who definitely didn’t look the part.

  Then, he turned his attention to the other fight, only to find it, too, was over. Two goblins lay dead, while the last one fled. Cedric and Fiora had emerged victorious.

  From just one single encounter, Viktor had come to a conclusion: this party was strong. Even without Noi’ri, they performed much better than Jake’s group.

  It made sense upon reflection. Lucian had mentioned that the gnoll was his father’s old partner, which meant his father was probably an accomplished adventurer as well. The trio must have been trained by the best. The only thing they lacked was experience, which had been covered for by their Silver-ranked mentor.

  “Good job, you three,” came a voice.

  “Who said that?” Cedric spun, his brow furrowed deep, eyes darting around in confusion, searching for the source of the unfamiliar voice.

  “What? It’s me.”

  Fiora stiffened, then she blinked. “Noi’ri? You can talk?”

  Oh yes, the automatic translation function. It seemed that it worked not only for Viktor’s monsters but also for everyone else in the dungeon.

  The trio was utterly bewildered by this unexpected development. Three sets of eyes were as wide as they could go, mouths hanging open. They looked at Noi’ri, and at each other, trying to talk at once and managing nothing but a tangled mess of noise. The gnoll, on the other hand, stayed silent, contemplating the situation. Then he said, “Now I recall the days I spent in the dungeon. I remember that everyone there can understand each other, even though we come from different worlds.”

  “So we can talk like this whenever we enter a dungeon?” Lucian shouted in excitement. “Dungeons are awesome!”

  Congratulations, Lucian! Your skill is even more useless now.

  But... wait a minute. Noi’ri had just said that he used to be in a dungeon? From the way he talked about it, it didn’t seem like he had been there as an adventurer but rather as a minion summoned by a Dungeon Core. In other words, he was a first-generation gnoll, not someone born in captivity.

  Hmm, this party is getting more and more interesting.

  After that fight, the four adventurers proceeded through the maze, engaging in several more encounters, while Viktor continued to observe them.

  There was one more thing that he had learned: Lucian was not only able to control goblins, but also spiders. One time, he took control of a Dread Spider and made it shoot a strand of silk, knocking out a goblin.

  It doesn’t make sense.

  Goblins were less intelligent and weaker-willed than humans, making them susceptible to mind control, so it might seem logical to assume spiders were even more vulnerable. But that was not how it worked. Turned out, the Cabalists couldn’t control animals at all, as their brains were fundamentally different, primal and reactive, too far removed from human thought. From the mages’ perspective, there was no mind to control to begin with. So... how did he pull that trick?

  Lucian and Noi’ri, huh? I think I’ll keep a closer eye on these two.

  While Viktor was mulling over the boy mage’s abilities, the party had reached the end of their expedition. Pushing open a wooden door, they entered a small room where they found the staircase leading to the second floor, and...

  A chest.

  “Wow, what is this?” Lucian shouted, rushing forward. But Fiora quickly grabbed his messy hair, and the boy’s face twisted in pain as he was pulled backward. “Ouch! What the hell?”

  “Let me check for traps first, idiot.”

  Lucian rubbed the back of his head, grimacing. He stared at the girl with irritation, but he didn’t argue.

  Fiora stepped forward cautiously, her entire body tense, as if she was expecting some deadly contraption. Her eyes narrowed as she scanned the chest up and down. She dropped to a knee, hands hesitating for a moment before finally making contact with the wooden box. She slowly moved her fingers along the edges, inspecting every corner.

  After a while, she stood up. “Looks clear.”

  Cedric moved to her side. He took a deep breath, then slowly lifted the lid of the chest. A dazzling light erupted, revealing the gleaming treasure within.

  The trio gasped.

  “Look at all this!” Fiora stared at the pile of gold.

  “I can’t believe we actually found treasure,” Cedric said, his eyes wide in disbelief.

  “We are rich!” Lucian yelled as he jumped into the air, unable to contain his excitement.

  All suspicion and wariness had disappeared. The three young adventurers grinned at each other as they scooped the gold coins into a bag before handing it to Noi’ri to carry.

  Cedric then glanced at the staircase. “What should we do now? Go back, or...?”

  “Should we check below?” Lucian asked the gnoll.

  His hairy companion nodded. “Yes. But be careful. We don’t know what’s down there.”

  Thus, they descended the stairs and arrived at the old Core Room, where a hulking Crocodilian loomed in the center.

  Viktor recalled the instructions he had given his Guardian: “Your job is to stop the adventurers from moving deeper into the dungeon. They’re supposed to take the gold and leave, not continue their venture.”

  “Understood, Master.”

  “And as I’ve told you, you will just scare them off,” he emphasized. “No killings.”

  “What if they insist on fighting me?” Sebekton asked.

  “If that’s the case,” Viktor replied with a smirk, “then there is no need to hold back.”

  This was the final test. The party had easily defeated his minions in all previous encounters, but now they were facing a truly powerful foe. What would be their decision?

  Cedric’s face went pale when he saw Sebekton. “What the hell is that?”

  “A Crocodilian,” Noi’ri replied. “They’re dangerous, so be careful.”

  “Can you try to control it?” Fiora asked Lucian.

  The blond-haired mage stood frozen for a moment, his eyes fixed on the towering Guardian ahead. “I’ll try,” he said, a trace of uncertainty in his voice. Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward and—

  “No.” The gnoll put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. “We go back.”

  Lucian turned around, and slowly nodded. “Understood.”

  Fiora looked a bit disappointed, but she didn’t protest. She pulled out a small, round object from one of her pouches and threw it into the space between the party and their opponent. An explosion followed, filling the room with a thick cloud of smoke. Without hesitation, the group retreated to the first floor.

  A smoke bomb, huh? It wasn’t really necessary, since Sebekton was not going to pursue them, but they didn’t know that, so their prudence was commendable.

  With that, the expedition had been concluded. Viktor opened his eyes, waiting for the adventurers to return from the cave.