Brave

Adventurer A's Report:

I'm Bronze Rank, but when it comes to dungeon exploration, I'm no worse than a Silver Rank adventurer. I entered Zane Dungeon out of curiosity this time, wanting to see what it had become. The result was truly unexpected. I'd encountered terrain like the Poisonous Swamp more than once, but I'd never seen poison this potent. Embarrassingly, I hadn't thought to prepare antidotes for my pets, so they died shortly after entering. My scouting ability was greatly diminished.

In my opinion, the terrain of the Swamp Area wasn't complicated. It could even be called simple. It only looked highly repetitive because identical scenery was piled up everywhere, making it easy for people with a poor sense of direction to lose their way. The terrain beneath the swamp was treacherous. You could step into a deep pit or onto a sharp trap at any moment. Their common trait was that they didn't deal much damage, but they could restrict your movement.

Once your movement was restricted, it was practically a death sentence here. The monsters lurking underwater would swarm over you. Unfortunately, I stepped into a deep pit and couldn't pull my leg free in time, so I was killed by the monsters.

Adventurer B's Report:

Fuck the swamp, fuck the Skeleton Monsters, fuck the Fishmen, fuck the Gargoyles, and fuck those huge rats!!!

I'm never coming back for the rest of my life! I'm going back to the countryside to farm! Good riddance!

Adventurer C's Report:

A monster scholar hired my party to investigate whether new species of monsters had emerged after the changes in Zane Dungeon. Since he paid generously, we brought more supplies than usual, and they proved to be a huge help.

The Levitation Spell scroll we bought for fun turned out to be incredibly useful. My companions and I never touched the swamp throughout the entire journey. The monsters had a severe lack of anti-air capabilities. Aside from the occasional archer that had emerged among the Skeleton Monsters, the other monsters could only throw mud at us like children. A low-tier magic barrier was enough to block everything. After our continued investigation, we really did discover a new monster. It was a creature with a very peculiar appearance, like an enlarged frog. More importantly, its ability—

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Adventurer D's Report:

Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit, that was way too exciting! There was a monster in there I'd never seen before. It looked like a frog, and those two huge eyeballs scared me half to death. It breathed on me once, and I died! That black smoke seemed capable of instantly killing people. It made no sense, hahaha! I'm going back to challenge it again.

Oh, right, right! My wife opened a treasure chest, and it actually exploded! Hahahaha, that was hilarious! Who would've thought there'd be a Flame Burst hidden inside a treasure chest? She got blown to death on the spot! Later, I saw a treasure chest too, so I threw a fireball at it from far away. Guess what happened? It was an ordinary treasure chest! I blew the treasure to pieces with my own hands! I got nothing!

Investigator's Note: This adventurer appears to have developed mental problems.

Report of adventurer E:

Fuck off.

Investigator's Note: This adventurer insulted a noble and has been detained by the guards.

Miner's Report:

Um, um, I didn't collect any Bloodstone today. You won't deduct my wages, right? You won't? Thank you, thank you! My whole family thanks you.

What? You asked what I saw in the dungeon? Hmm, let me think. There were wah-la-ga-ga monsters, hoo-ah-hoo-ah strong winds, jibber-jabber swamps, and clatter-clatter skeletons.

Investigator's Note: Completely incomprehensible.

A dungeon worker's Report:

The older people in my line of work get, the more they regret things. Over the years, I did many wrong things, disappointed many people, and lost many people. I no longer have the face to enter a dungeon. I'm just wandering around the area. Don't ask me anything.

Investigator's Note: This man provides sightseeing commentary on Zane Dungeon for out-of-town tourists. In other words, he is a guide.

Ka Rong's Report:

I'll submit a detailed report later, so stop bothering me for now. Where's Vierde? Why isn't he back yet?

Investigator's Note: Young Master Ka Rong appears to be in a very bad mood.

"How much have you seen, my friend? Do you have confidence in conquering this place?"

Sally brought over a pot of red tea and elegantly poured the girl a full cup of reddish-brown liquid. Its fragrant aroma immediately drew the girl's attention.

Two sugar cubes dropped into the tea. Sally smiled as he sat on the sofa opposite her and stirred the red tea, unconsciously pressing his legs together.

The girl stared at him for a long while before saying faintly, "I have a name."

"My mistake. Sorry, Elsa."

Sally seemed to realize that his posture was somewhat inappropriate, so he crossed his legs again and asked, "Do you remember our agreement? You help me take the position of family head, and I'll become your companion."

"Mm." Elsa nodded.

"If we can conquer the dungeon before my brothers do, it will undoubtedly add another weight to my claim. So, my frie—Elsa, please help me conquer this place."

As he watched the girl agree, Sally could barely conceal his smile.

After being away for a year, Elsa was his greatest gain!

A Brave who was all alone and longed for companions, and an innocent little girl at that—winning her trust had been far too easy!

Sally had merely set up a scheme. He hired a group of people to pose as bandits and rob him along Elsa's route. That way, after being robbed, he could naturally thank Elsa and approach her under the pretext of repaying her. Before long, he had dug up every detail of Elsa's identity.

She was an orphan. When demons slaughtered the orphanage, she awakened as a Brave. From then on, she embarked on the path of killing demons, with the Demon King's head as her ultimate goal.

In fairy tales, the Brave would always have a group of close companions at their side. Elsa had only read fairy tales, so she firmly believed that she had to find companions before setting out to defeat the Demon King.

Incidentally, a Brave was not unique. Anyone with hatred for demons, sufficient talent, and just the right sense of justice could become a Brave. According to historical records, there had once been as many as twenty-three Braves at the same time.

But only the one who successfully defeated the Demon King was qualified to be recorded in history and become a true Brave.

Sally clenched his fist, only to find his arm weak and sore. He couldn't even lift his hand.

This was the result of overtraining. As for why he had overtrained—

To become a Brave's companion, he had to have at least some strength, right?! So he, a man, a young master, had been training. Seriously training his body.

Though he was somewhat shrewd in certain regards, Sally was a man who kept his promises. And he believed Elsa truly could help him become the family head.

"I'll show you around and help you get familiar with the environment over the next couple of days. Once we have more information about the dungeon, we'll act. How does that sound?"

Elsa held the red tea and took small sips, nodding slightly.

Suddenly, she jerked her head up. Her little nose twitched, as though she had caught some scent.

"What is it?" Sally's attention was drawn by her strange behavior.

"There's a disgusting smell." Elsa frowned in distaste, then shook her head. "It's gone. I probably smelled it wrong."

Sally's face reddened because he had quietly farted just then.

He would have to use more perfume in the future.

In the corridor, a tall figure had just passed by their door, seemingly on his way out.

Under the light, his appearance could be seen clearly.

He was someone very familiar.

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