At the same time that Gong Qiying and Sithran were adventuring.
Shuen, Aili, and Danya of the Morning Breeze Squad, who were waiting in the Swamp Area, encountered an incredibly awkward incident.
"Sorry, we're really sorry. We'll leave right away!"
At that moment, an unfamiliar adventurer squad was bowing to them in unison and apologizing.
"Alright, alright. You didn't do it on purpose, so I forgive you." Aili smiled a little awkwardly. The last time she had seen so many people bowing like this had been at a funeral, so it felt rather strange.
"We're truly sorry!"
The leader of the unfamiliar adventurer squad, Falling Hammer, was a seemingly feeble mage named Qilajie. He wore an utterly world-weary expression and had turned into a broken record that could only repeat "sorry."
As for what had happened in the first place—
"Our squad is made up entirely of newcomers. We haven't memorized the rules yet, and we didn't know we had to wait between entering the Teleportation Gate. We're very sorry for disturbing you."
This squad, consisting entirely of rookies, had happened to line up behind Sithran and the others when entering the dungeon's Teleportation Gate. They had forgotten that they needed to wait a few minutes before entering, and the result was the situation before them—they had collided with the Morning Breeze Squad.
It had been quite a coincidence. The interval between the two squads entering the dungeon had been less than two minutes, but the Morning Breeze Squad had taken a shortcut thanks to their experience from multiple explorations and had traveled far in the blink of an eye. Falling Hammer, exploring the dungeon for the first time and unfamiliar with the area, had immediately gotten lost in the vast swamp. With only a hundred seconds between them, the two squads had miraculously failed to encounter each other.
Later, Danya had heard Falling Hammer's screams as they were surrounded by monsters and had brought the others to rescue them.
Without Danya and the others, this novice squad would have ended up as food for Curse Frogs.
"The Teleportation Gate can automatically identify whether those entering are teammates. The probability of this kind of mishap is only two percent." Danya clicked his tongue twice. "I should go buy a lottery ticket."
"We're truly sorry."
"Alright, alright." Aili helped each member of Falling Hammer to their feet.
"Is this really alright?" Qilajie asked uneasily. Their squad had been in the wrong, while the other side consisted of Silver-rank seniors. If they didn't express their apology properly, what if they were subjected to Payback?
As he thought this, his waist trembled and he tried to bow again, but an iron hand pressed down on his shoulder.
When he looked up, he met Aili's dark expression.
This girl, who had always been known for her gentle and good-natured personality, now wore an expression that clearly said, If you bow to this old lady again, just wait until you go home and get bowed to by your parents. Although she was smiling, that smile was terrifying.
"Eek."
The frightened young mage immediately stood at attention.
"Captain." A timid little girl tugged at Qilajie's clothes and said bitterly, "Let's go."
Including Qilajie, Falling Hammer had four members in total: a timid little-girl Priest, a taciturn, bespectacled magic swordsman, a chubby heavy-armored Warrior, and the frail mage Qilajie. All of them were Bronze Rank, and every face carried the green awkwardness of newcomers just setting out.
They had to face Sain Underground City right after debuting. This really was—
They would probably shed their inexperience after just one night.
"Ah." Qilajie smiled sheepishly. "Then we'll take our leave first."
No one from the Morning Breeze Squad said anything, but just as Qilajie and the others turned around, Shuen spoke.
"Wait."
Sweat appeared on Qilajie's forehead. He asked, "Is there something you need?"
"Since you're already here, come with us."
Shuen's answer was completely unexpected.
"Huh?"
The entire Falling Hammer Squad was stunned. They looked back at the Morning Breeze Squad, but no one there showed any change in expression.
"After all, once you leave, you'll have to wait a long time before you can come back in. That would be a waste of time." Aili smiled. "You're all wearing Flowers of Victory on your chests. Let me guess—you bought them from the old lady selling flowers near the Teleportation Gate, right? She can tell at a glance who's exploring a dungeon for the first time, then rushes over to sell them Flowers of Victory, claiming that wearing one will make you invincible. Am I right?"
Qilajie's face flushed. She had guessed everything correctly.
"Only rookies get tricked into buying this stuff." Danya mocked them mercilessly, then changed his tone. "Still, only people without any passion or yearning for adventure wouldn't spend money on a good-luck charm. And you paid out of your own pocket to buy flowers for your companions. You must be a good captain. There's no harm in bringing you along."
"Eh?" Qilajie looked confused. He really had paid for the flowers, but how had the other party figured it out?
Did he even need to guess? Danya immediately saw the question in Qilajie's eyes and thought, Look at your companions. They're dressed plainly, even shabbily. It's obvious they don't have the money to buy flowers. You're the only one whose clothes, though worn, are accompanied by a decent magic staff.
No matter how puzzled they were, the members of Falling Hammer were moved to tears by their gratitude. They had never expected to meet such considerate seniors!
This was a precious opportunity. They could learn plenty by exploring alongside Silver-rank adventurers!
"Thank you very much!"
"Remember to buy me a lottery ticket after we get out. Consider it repayment for saving your lives." Danya waved his hand.
Aili let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully, Qilajie and the others had not bowed again.
Shuen said nothing, but the corners of his lips lifted slightly.
The two squads temporarily traveled together. They lit a fire and rested for a while, while also waiting for Sithran to return.
They waited the entire morning.
Sithran still had not returned, and Falling Hammer had also been forced to waste all that time for nothing. Shuen and the others could no longer stand it, so they decided on the spot to stop waiting.
Both squads were searching for the special ingredients that had appeared recently—in reality, they were looking for the area where those ingredients were produced.
The Morning Breeze Squad believed that area should be somewhere they had not yet explored, such as the Middle Level or Lower Level. The news that Sain Underground City contained a level filled with forests and another made entirely of ore was no longer a secret. Quite a few people had accidentally triggered Teleportation Traps and been sent to the Middle Level or Lower Level.
Other than the very few lucky people like Verde, the vast majority had been instantly killed by elite monsters guarding the Teleportation Traps, leaving them no time to explore.
Thus, adventurers knew that Sain Underground City had three levels, but whether there were more remained unknown.
However, when the Morning Breeze Squad decided to explore downward, Falling Hammer offered a different opinion.
"I bought this from the old man who sells special ingredients." Qilajie pulled out a dirty piece of wrapping cloth. It carried a strong seafood smell, something rarely found near Bed City, which was located inland.
It turned out that he had been the person who bought the wrapped package of ingredients from Jack that day!
Because of the Morning Breeze Squad's friendliness, he did not mind sharing this secret with them.
"You plan to use Tracking Magic?" Aili asked.
"Yes. I was originally worried that my magic power wouldn't be enough to sustain Tracking Magic for a long time." Qilajie looked at Aili. "If I can't keep it up, please take over for me."
He drew a magic circle on the ground and placed the magical materials on it. After chanting for a while, a faint glow spread across the surface of the wrapping cloth. It rose into the air and flew toward the swamp, leaving a visible trail behind it.
Unexpectedly, the wrapping cloth flew toward the outskirts of the Swamp Area!
Either the Tracking Magic had failed, or—
The true location of the Gourmet Area was much closer than they had imagined!
After following it for a short while, the wrapping cloth stopped in front of a mountain.
The entire Swamp Area was surrounded by high mountains, which served as the boundaries of the map. So far, no one had been bored enough to climb them.
"It's reached the end?" Qilajie looked around in confusion. The surroundings were all bare mountains. Where was the road?
Could it be that he was supposed to carve a hole through the mountain himself?
"I can't go on anymore."
The chubby heavy-armored Warrior let out a long sigh and leaned against the mountainside. However—
"Ah!"
He fell flat on his back.
"What happened?"
The commotion drew everyone's attention, and then they all froze.
"Ow, that hurt. Why did I suddenly fall?" The heavy-armored Warrior rubbed his head and sat up. "Huh? What's that wonderful smell?"
"Kruger, behind you—"
Qilajie said in disbelief:
"There's a huge hole behind you!"
Please invest in me! I'm only thirty people short of qualifying for a small recommendation. Please, I'm begging you. (kowtows)
Before you continue