I swiftly laid out a brief plan of action.
The tactic was uncomplicated. I would intentionally aggravate the Mimic, and when it swallowed , Damien would defeat the creature and rescue .
During this spectacle, Evangeline would surely find humor in my predicant.
Observing , the emperor, acting more foolishly than her slip on the oil, would surely ease her embarrassnt.
"Aha, I understand."
Damien imdiately gave a nod of approval.
"But, um..."
Soon after, he tilted his head in confusion.
"Why would you want to do this?"
"Huh?"
I paused, caught off guard.
"I get the reason, but is there any need for you, Your Highness, to belittle yourself like this?"
"..."
He was right, why indeed.
No one had tasked with this, nor would Evangeline side with just because I made a fool of myself.
After a monts consideration, I shrugged my shoulders and answered off the top of my head.
"Well... making soone laugh while Im ssing around is kind of my forte!"
Being a strear was my primary gig.
If I could induce laughter by bumbling around and suffering during a live broadcast, it was worth it. That was my mindset.
"..."
Damien cocked his head, seemingly unable to fully comprehend.
Grinning back at him, I mimicked his action and cocked my head too. Your guess is as good as mine, buddy.
***
My slapstick tactic was a triumphant success.
As soon as I made contact with the treasure chest, lanky arms and legs sprung out from the sides of the box and ensnared .
As the chest unhinged itself, a mouthful of razor-sharp teeth glistened from within.
"Woahhh! Shit!"
A lengthy tongue shot out from the box and slithered across my face. My shriek was genuine horror, not an act. This was not pleasant!
The Mimics elongated tongue unfurled like a frogs and coiled around my body.
Held aloft in mid-air, I was propelled straight into the gaping maw of the Mimic...
Toukang! Toukang-!
...but not quite.
Damien squeezed the trigger in rapid succession. The initial shot struck the Mimics tongue, the subsequent one lodged in the creatures body.
Kiieek!
The dying Mimic let out a final screech and fell silent.
My plumting body was intercepted by Damien. Thud!
"Ahh!"
"Ugh!"
Evidently, Damien wasnt a brute force type but a nimble sniper.
Unable to support my weight from the fall, he collapsed under , rolling onto the ground.
"Your Highness?!"
"Oh, dear, Your Highness! Are you alright?"
No sooner had I fallen, the other party mbers converged, only to fall silent at the sight of .
"Ouch, I had no idea it was a Mimic and tried to open the treasure chest, and it attacked... Wait, why are you all laughing?"
I gnashed my teeth at my companions who were struggling to suppress their laughter.
But not just Jupiter and Evangeline, even Lucas couldnt contain his chuckles.
Especially Lucas, who unlike the other two who were unabashedly laughing, was making a desperate attempt to stifle his laughter by jamming his fist into his mouth. Just go ahead and laugh...
Well, it was indeed hilarious.
Enveloped in the Mimics tongue and drenched from head to toe in the creatures saliva.
It was an utter spectacle, far from the decorum expected of a royal.
Damien pulled a towel from his bag and passed it to . As I roughly dried my hair, I muttered disgruntledly.
"Hey, hey. You lot. Dungeons are supposed to be like this! We screw up, we suffer, and all our failings are out in the open. Thats what Im saying. As long as were safe, damn it.
"Yeah, yeah. Ill rember this side of you, senior."
Evangeline, who had been chuckling all along, nodded vigorously.
"Really, youre nothing like I thought youd be."
Likewise, kid. Youre a far cry from the impeccable tank Evangeline I had pictured.
But its comforting to see her smile.
As I rubbed my damp hair with the towel, I exhaled a quiet sigh of relief.
If you, Evangeline, had been upset, guilt would have gnawed at . Keep living with joy, for your fathers sake if nothing else.
The incident eventually ca to a close, and from the gullet of the mimic, we retrieved a standard high-grade Magic Power Core(R).
We opted to take a brief pause, to gather the remaining items and for to recover from the shambles I had found myself in.
Perhaps feeling a sense of relief, Evangeline humd softly as she gathered items from the golems remains.
"..."
After toweling off and reaching for a water bottle, I felt a piercing gaze.
Turning, I found it was Damien. I returned a small smile.
"What is it, Damien? Still puzzled by ?"
"...Yes. I truly cant grasp what goes on in your mind, Your Highness."
Damien erupted in hearty laughter.
"But I can see that youre a good person."
"..."
I awkwardly took a swig from the water bottle. Just like that, one joke turned into the good guy, incredible.
***
We pressed on.
The citys back alleys, engulfed in shadows, were a labyrinth of confusion. But we had only one way to go.
The various alleys branching off the main path all led to dead ends.
Lucas even attempted to scale the towering stone walls blocking the alleys,
"Damn it!"
But the darkness wasnt having it.
The thick, gelatinous darkness retreated in the face of our light but balked when we tried to veer off the designated path.
Beyond the stone barrier, everything was shrouded in this darkness.
"It seems we cant deviate from the given route. Well have to follow this alley quietly."
Lucas, having just climbed down after trying to penetrate the darkness above the stone wall, concluded. Out of sheer curiosity, I inquired,
"Did you touch that darkness? What did it feel like?"
"Well, if I had to describe it..."
Lucas responded with a grimaced expression.
"It felt a lot like when I was a squire and got swallowed whole by a giant Sandworm monster. The sensation of being trapped in the monsters belly was pretty much the sa."
Evangeline shook her head in disbelief.
"I cant quite place it..."
Yet, for so reason, it felt familiar. Maybe because Id just been wrapped in a mimics tongue.
"Sticky, thick, and heavy, right?"
"Exactly, Your Highness! Thats spot on!"
"We should keep moving then..."
Evangelines complexion turned ashen. She must have visualized it.
Along the cobblestone path, scattered worn-out buildings stood.
A striking contrast to the dazzling city in the distance, most of these structures were tiworn and crumbling shacks.
But, we couldnt enter any of them.
"The door..."
Damien mumbled in front of the first shack we approached.
"The door... its sealed."
Both the door and windows were tightly fastened with iron plates and planks.
Lucas attempted to rip off the iron plate, but it didnt move an inch.
"It appears to have been treated with magic. re strength wont be able to open this door."
Jupiter noted, peering into the sealed window.
Damien tilted his head.
"Did they lock it to shield the house from sothing outside? What could it be?"
"No, Damien."
I pointed at the nails holding the iron plate and shook my head.
"This seal was put in place from the outside."
"...!"
"Theyre trying to keep sothing inside from getting out."
Damien, swallowing hard, questioned with a shaky voice.
"Then what might be inside this shack...?"
"Well, we dont need to concern ourselves with that now."
I turned from the shack and marched towards the path that lay ahead.
"Lets press on."
One by one, the party mbers followed suit. Damien, who had been peering into the shack until the very end, hastily caught up.
***
[Zone 2: Hidden Alley]
- Clear Progress: Normal Room 3/4 Boss Room 0/1
- Acquired Treasure Chest: 4/5
The strategy that unfolded was simple.
Each ti the narrow alley seed to broaden slightly, steam golems would charge.
But having discerned their pattern, they proved easy adversaries.
Evangeline blocked, Lucas restrained, Jupiter stripped the armor, and Damien took the shots.
The initially disjointed teamwork began to fall into place. By the third encounter, even when four steam golems sprang out, the party mbers managed to take them down without a single injury.
Lets check the loot weve gathered...
I opened my bag and peered inside.
Three grade R magic cores. Several magic stones. And several tal gloves of unknown origin.
The durability of the gloves far surpassed ordinary iron. I had collected a few to request analysis at the blacksmiths.
Not bad, but sowhat underwhelming.
The grade R magic cores were decent, but it was sowhat tedious for soone like who had hoped for a more sensational reward.
Maybe the boss room reward is sothing to look forward to...
As I mulled this over, the alley suddenly opened up into a small plaza.
"Next room."
Bracing myself for an imminent monster encounter, I readied my stance.
The rest of the party mbers also prepared themselves, stepping into the plaza with guarded strides.
At the heart of the plaza stood a barren fountain, at its center a statue of three individuals.
Each statue stood side by side.
For so strange reason, the figures to the left and right were missing their heads, leaving only the statue of the man in the center intact.
The man at the center, donning a crown, appeared to be the king of the Lake Kingdom.
"Why were the two statues at the sides damaged...?"
While contemplating this trivial puzzle,
"Ah!"
A startled cry escaped Damien.
Everyone turned their surprised glances towards Damien. He gestured towards the other side of the plaza.
"Look, over there!"
Following Damiens finger, my eyes widened.
The only sources of light in this place ca from our torches and lanterns.
But, where Damien pointed, at the far end of the plaza, a soft glow flickered. That ant...
"Theres, theres soone there!"
As the party mbers expressed their astonishnt, I kept my vigilance high.
"Lets move carefully. Ready your weapons."
In a city swarming with monsters, theres sothing even more terrifying than the creatures themselves.
People.
Theres no chance that soone encountered here could be ordinary.
Could it be a hostile NPC? Or perhaps a friendly one? Which?
I found myself recalling the hostile NPC, The Pied Piper, from the previous stage.
His unexpected interference almost sabotaged the level.
One wrong move and its over! I cannot afford to drop my guard.
We edged warily towards the flickering light on the far side of the plaza.
The scene gradually revealed itself as we drew closer.
"...!"
About half a dozen steam golems lay heavily damaged, so ablaze from the oil leaking from their bodies.
The light we had noticed originated from these fires.
And in front of this incandescent scene, a small figure crouched.
"Hm?"
Hearing our approach, the woman turned to look at us, acknowledged our presence, and offered a faint smile.
"Well, isnt it the lord of Crossroad and his party."
"...!"
The woman was shrouded in an aged, threadbare cloak, her hood drawn low, her hair as white as snow, and ard with an ancient sword.
Identifying the person before us, I murmured apprehensively.
"Naless?" (TL Note: Changed from No-na to Naless. Sounds better)
It was Naless, the NPC who had pointed us towards the Lake Kingdom during our last expedition.
Naless looked at us, her tone hinting at mild surprise.
"Youre taking this exploration rather seriously, arent you? To have ventured this deep."
"Why are you here, Naless?"
Despite our acquaintance, I didnt drop my guard.
This person is an NPC weve never crossed paths with in our prior 742 attempts. We have no way of knowing her alignnt.
Just because she guided us before, it doesnt make her an enemy. But it also offers no guarantee that shes an ally.
"Just taking a brief respite. Life in the Lake Kingdom can be quite exhausting."
Naless murmured, directing her gaze back towards us.
"But since youve ventured this far... I suppose I should recognize your effort and present this."
Naless plunged her hand into her ragged cloak.
All of us, my party mbers and I, instinctively tensed. We braced ourselves for a possible spell attack.
What Naless pulled out from her cloak and unfurled on the ground next was...
Thud!
...a traders blanket.
Subsequently, Naless began arranging various objects on the blanket, one after the other.
Led by , the party mbers and I could only watch in dumbfounded silence, unable to process the unexpected scene.
Having displayed her goods, Naless casually spread her arms and announced,
"Why not take advantage of your visit and make a purchase?"
"..."
"Ill provide you with my premium items at a fair price."
Stunned, I stared blankly at Naless before blurting out,
"Dont tell , youre a rchant NPC?!"
"NPC? Not sure what that ans, but yes, I am indeed a rchant."
Naless responded promptly, then added,
"Im currently running a buy one, get one free event."
"..."
"You also get a 30 percent discount on your first purchase."
"..."
"So, whatll it be? Are you going to let this incredible deal pass? This level of top-notch service doesnt co by every day."
I settled down in front of Nalesss blanket, let out a resigned chuckle, then asked in a quieter tone,
"So, what exactly are you selling?"
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