Dungeon, Middle Floors, 13th Floor.
After passing through a wide, stepped passage made of naturally stacked boulders, the view suddenly opened up.
Huge gray rocks lay scattered everywhere. Massive stone slabs formed the walls, floor, and ceiling, stretching out in all directions. The air was damp and heavy.
Looking at the scene, anyone who didn't know better might think this was a natural cave on a mountainside.
However, what appeared before Ronan and his companions was not natural scenery. This was the 13th Floor of the Dungeon, known as the Middle Floors, and the first real danger zone for adventurers.
The sight made the group, who were setting foot here for the first time, gasp in surprise.
"So this is the Middle Floors... the Dungeon really is hard to believe," Ronan whispered. His voice was clear in the empty passage.
"It's hard to believe. Is this really part of the Dungeon?" Jeanne added softly, her gaze serious.
"Even though the records describe the geography of the Middle Floors, reading about it and seeing it yourself are completely different."
Rose looked around, her brow slightly furrowed. "And didn't you notice? The light sources here are much thinner and dimmer than in the Upper Floors. Visibility is very limited."
"Hmm?"
Once Rose mentioned it, everyone realized she was right.
Indeed, the light in the Middle Floors was much weaker. It was dim and hazy, making the area harder to read.
Ronan tilted his hood back slightly. His eyes followed a single stone path carved into the massive rock, stretching straight into the darkness.
At that moment, the large group of adventurers was moving cautiously along the path.
It was the first time Ronan had seen such a long, straight passage. It was nothing but rock and darkness, going forward without any turns. Even as he looked as far as he could, the end of the passage was still hidden in the dark. This showed just how long it was.
"Ronan," Jeanne said calmly. "From here on, the passages connecting the rooms become very long. This means..."
Her tone became serious. "If we encounter monsters in a narrow passage, we will be in a very bad position. Especially since monsters like Hellhounds, which are good at long-range attacks, start appearing from the 13th Floor. If we get trapped in the middle, the result could be terrible."
When adventuring parties fought in the Dungeon, they usually preferred to face enemies in open rooms. The advantage was obvious. In a spacious hall, the team could use their numbers, work together, and do their own jobs to defeat the monsters.
After all, the point of a team was to use strengths and cover weaknesses. A fighting style that relied on numbers and teamwork was the core of party combat. Therefore, fighting inside a passage was always a last resort.
But the terrain of the Middle Floors changed that rule.
The long passages greatly increased the time the team was exposed to danger. It also made the chance of meeting monsters in a passage much higher.
Once they met in a narrow space, the limited room would restrict their movement. It would be hard for team members to coordinate properly, and their tactics could fall apart. They could easily be surrounded and separated by swarming monsters, or even trapped from both the front and back.
"The manual clearly states," Rose added in a gentle but clear voice, "that the defining feature of the 13th Floor is the unusually long passages between rooms. To stay safe, our first goal is to reach the first room ahead as quickly as possible."
Hearing this, Ronan, Lorie, and Aura all nodded. They took this point seriously.
"The Middle Floors really are different from the Upper Floors. The space is larger, but it's also much more deadly," Ronan summarized with a sigh.
He paused and looked at the long passage. "Anyway, starting a fight with monsters in a place like this is not a good idea."
While talking quietly with Jeanne and Rose, the group sped up. They followed the team ahead closely, each step careful, their nerves tight.
At that moment, Aura, who was walking behind Ronan, suddenly spoke.
"That's not all. Besides the terrain itself, the Middle Floors have even more dangerous traps. Look at that."
Following where she pointed, everyone's hearts tightened.
In the shadows of the rock walls on both sides of the passage, there were several vertical holes that looked like wells. They dropped straight down and seemed bottomless.
The group, who had already studied the Dungeon records, immediately recognized them.
Those were pitfall holes leading to even deeper floors.
Seeing those pits, the faces of many people in the group changed. The Amazon woman even moved away from the rock walls instinctively.
"This long passage is already enough trouble, and then there are these annoying traps hidden on both sides. The danger of the Middle Floors really can't be compared to the Upper Floors," Jeanne said. She bit her lip and tightened her grip on her spear.
Seeing Jeanne's serious expression, Ronan reached out and patted her shoulder. He reassured her in a steady voice.
"Don't be too nervous. We're just not used to it because we just arrived. After a few trips and some experience, we'll understand how the Middle Floors work."
...
Because the team was so large, they naturally moved slower than a small party.
But right now, no one complained. In the dangerous Middle Floors, the safety that came from moving with a large group was something a small party could not match.
Step, step, step.
The sound of boots and greaves crushing gravel echoed in the empty, silent passage, making the air feel even heavier.
Time passed quietly. Ronan habitually pulled out his brass pocket watch and glanced at it. Under his hood, his brow furrowed. Without realizing it, the team had been walking for over half an hour.
"Strange..." he whispered. A bad feeling rose in his chest.
"You feel it too?"
Jeanne stopped almost at the same time as him. She leaned in close and whispered in a very low voice.
"Yeah..."
Ronan replied in a low voice. Then, he quietly gave a series of simple and clear hand signals to Aura, Rose, and the others behind him.
The command was issued silently. The members of the Veyr Familia became alert. Their muscles tightened, and their hands gripped their weapons as they prepared for combat.
"..."
The strange mood spread through the group. One after another, the experienced adventurers noticed the silence.
After thirty minutes of marching, they hadn't encountered a single monster. This should have been a relief, but now it felt wrong.
The adventurers had strange expressions. Their eyes met quickly in silence. Without needing words, everyone became fully alert. The air tightened.
"Haha!"
Alise stood with her hands on her hips. She laughed loudly and cheerfully as usual, though it sounded out of place now.
"Has the Dungeon realized the power of our Astraea Familia? Are the monsters too scared to even appear? Oh ho ho, this trip has been incredibly smooth!"
Kaguya stopped walking and sighed while holding her forehead. "My Captain... can you not read the mood at all?"
Lyra's mouth curved into a playful smile. The short blade in her hand flipped and jumped between her fingers.
"That's just Alise. As the Captain, she only needs to focus on charging ahead and cutting through the path."
"As for analyzing the situation and predicting danger..." She dragged out her words mockingly, "we'll handle the boring work for her."
Listening to her friends, Ryuu, who was wearing a mask, bit her lip slightly. Her cold gaze was locked on Alise's relaxed back. She couldn't help but whisper.
"Alise, are you an idiot? Everyone has noticed the situation is abnormal. This silence... is clearly a sign that a Monster Party is about to break out."
"Huh? Ah?"
The red-haired swordswoman blinked blankly. Only then did she look back at the team. She even added instinctively:
"It wouldn't... really be a big one, right?"
Her question made the whole group tense.
Crack, crack!
As soon as she spoke, she saw that the entire team was already ready for a serious fight. Every adventurer, regardless of level, had quietly moved into a position suited to their role. Their weapons were ready, Magic was gathering, and their eyes scanned the rock walls on both sides of the passage. The air was tense and dangerous.
Any adventurer who could step into the Middle Floors, even a Level 1, was a battle-hardened veteran. They knew better than anyone that the rate and density of monsters appearing in the Middle Floors were much higher than in the Upper Floors. Such a long passage, such a long time, and everything was perfectly smooth? What kind of Orario joke was that? This wasn't luck. It was the silence before the Dungeon struck.
When something felt wrong in the Dungeon, there was usually a reason. And this kind of extreme quiet was one of the worst signs.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
As if responding to Alise's careless question and everyone's tense nerves, a series of cracks burst across the rock walls on both sides of the passage. The sounds overlapped, and the entire passage began to creak.
Dust spilled down from the ceiling. Pebbles rolled across the ground. Thin cracks spread like spiderwebs along the stone, then widened as something behind the walls pushed from the other side.
Standing at the back of the team, Ronan, who had already felt the danger coming, sighed helplessly.
"What I was afraid of is here."
Before he finished speaking, with Aura at the center, the Veyr Familia party instantly shifted into their combat formation. They stood ready.
At the same time, the other parties also showed their skill. Almost at the same moment, they finished their own formations. Their reaction speed and coordination showed the experience of true veterans.
"So this is what veteran adventurers look like," Jeanne said softly. Her worry about the hunt lessened a little.
At the front, where the Astraea Familia was.
Alise and the others looked at the countless cracks on the walls. Kaguya's calm expression broke.
"Alise, can't you just keep your big mouth shut!"