It was a sunny afternoon.
A sea of people still crowded before the Teleportation Gate of Sain Underground City. If they did not increase the number of Teleportation Gates soon, all the hard-won foot traffic would go to waste.
People were constantly entering and leaving. Most of those who came out carried strange animals or plants, all brought back from the Gourmet Area.
Hunting for treasure in Food Paradise had become part of many people's daily lives.
As long as they knew the route, they only needed to pay the price of dying three or four times to successfully enter Food Paradise once. The gains from that one trip were enough to cover every expense caused by their previous deaths, with a considerable surplus left over!
"Food Hunters"—that was what people called those who made a living exploring Food Paradise for treasure.
The adventurers waiting in line suddenly stirred, and everyone's gaze turned toward one particular group.
"Hey, look! Isn't that the Strategy Group? I heard they came back from their last attempt in utter defeat."
"Heh. They were always bragging about how amazing they were, but they'd secretly entered the dungeon behind everyone's backs. Shameless."
"Come to think of it, why did no one notice when they snuck into the dungeon? Did they use some kind of disguise magic?"
Amid the crowd's chatter, the members of the Strategy Group strode forward with imposing momentum: "Lion" Leon, "Gutsy" Tel, "Silver Cat" Maru, and "Rock" Dru.
Expressionless, they walked up to the Teleportation Gate. One adventurer ahead of them had already stepped inside with one foot, but the moment he saw them, he shuddered and forcefully pulled his leg back, letting them go first.
The entire place fell silent. Only after the Strategy Group had entered did the noise resume.
"Was