Chapter 334: Alert Level 2
“What does it mean that we can see information about the Dungeon?”
Rio, having closed the portal that connected spaces, peered curiously at the tablet in my hand. We were just beyond the entrance of the Dungeon, right after crossing a pitfall. Since we could view information about the Dungeon, I figured it would be better to use it inside rather than outside.
“Let’s see…”
I examined the tablet closely. It was a thin, flat object, completely black on both sides. About ten inches in size, it was surprisingly light and slim. Upon closer inspection, I noticed some buttons on the side, so I pressed one.
“Oh, it turned on!”
Colors other than black appeared on the screen, and words began to materialize. The backlight was dim, making it somewhat hard to see, but the text was clear enough to read.
“Machina Raise?”
“I wonder what that is? Is it the name of this Dungeon?”
After a moment, the screen switched again. It seemed to display a menu where various information could be selected.
“Map, Monsters, Create, and Status?”
I decided to give it a try and tapped on the map option, causing a three-dimensional map of the Dungeon to appear on the screen.
“Wow, this is amazing!”
The map looked incredibly detailed, with layers listed on the left side, allowing us to choose from levels one to five.
“Dungeons are way more high-tech than I expected—”
Just as I reached out to select another layer, a monster suddenly appeared at the entrance, as if it had just come in from outside. A rush of adrenaline surged through me, and as I turned around, I quickly cast a barrier and jumped back to create some distance. Memories of my training in the Forest of Enchantment flooded back, and I felt myself switch into “combat mode” in an instant. The monster, however, stumbled forward and fell straight into the pitfall.
“Whoa! That scared me!”
Rio had also cast a barrier, clutching her chest with one hand as she stared at the hole where the monster had fallen.
“That was a bit too much of a shock…”
Peering into the pit together, we saw the monster impaled on several spears that had sprouted from the floor. It was a four-legged creature with impressive horns, likely a deer-like monster that roamed the area around these ruins. It seemed to be lifeless, not moving an inch.
“Oh right, I can’t sense presences from that side…”
I scratched the back of my head in regret. I usually never neglected presence detection, but I couldn’t sense anything from the other side of the dimensional barrier. Since the Dungeon had different dimensions for each layer, I needed to be cautious when entering or crossing layers.
“Still, it seems like monsters from outside can enter this Dungeon.”
“Looks that way. I only saw robotic monsters inside the Dungeon, and they didn’t seem to come out, but I never expected monsters from outside could come in…”
I had heard that Dungeons could grow over time. This one seemed to have remained hidden from everyone until now, but it must have a significant scale. It probably took many years to grow this large, feeding on the monsters from the Forest of Enchantment.
“Let’s find a calmer spot to investigate that tablet.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
With that, we decided to step outside the Dungeon for the time being. It appeared that only one monster had entered, and there were no others around.
“It seems to work fine outside too.”
“With this, we could even head home for a bit.”
“Let’s do that.”
After confirming that the tablet functioned normally outside the Dungeon, we decided to return home.
“Alright, I’ll go check on the monsters in the Forest.”
“Got it. I’ll see if those knights are around on my way back.”
“Leave it to me.”
I made it a point to check on the monsters whenever I entered the Forest of Enchantment. With the Stampede approaching, it was essential to stay vigilant. I teleported to various points set at equal intervals in the Forest, scanning for the presence of monsters. My exploration range had expanded recently, so the investigation was quick.
When I returned to the Forest near the northern gate, I began searching for presences again. Ivan and the others hadn’t returned yet, but Rio was waiting for me in front of the gate. She sent me a telepathic message saying there were no knights in sight, which eased my mind.
As I exited the Forest, I made my way to Rio.
“Sorry to keep you waiting.”
“You were quick. How did it go?”
“They’re getting closer, but today feels like they’re picking up the pace.”
As we spoke, we passed through the northern gate and entered the town. I could have teleported directly home, but since I was trying to avoid being noticed by the Councilor and the knights accompanying him, I decided to stick to the usual route. I made sure to enter through the gate properly.
We continued straight down the Main Street until we reached home, but I decided to stop by the Adventurer’s Guild with Rio. It was urgent to inform them about the approaching monsters from the Forest of Enchantment.
As usual, we entered the Guild Master’s office to report on today’s findings. The deep furrows in his brow deepened further as I spoke, and once I finished, he let out a heavy sigh, his expression softening as if he had resigned himself to the situation.
“They’ve already gotten that close in just one day?”
“Yes, there’s no doubt about it.”
“I see…”
He stared intently at the large map spread out before him, deep in thought, before finally lifting his gaze with a determined expression.
“From now on, we will raise the Stampede alert level… to 2.”
With that, he declared in a low, grave voice.