"These reports are practically worthless."
Caiman frowned as he looked over the intelligence his subordinates had gathered from the fourth-floor station.
"Your subordinate is incompetent, sir."
The knight who had delivered the information lowered his head.
"It is not your fault."
Caiman tucked the reports away.
"This Zeno's trail is truly elusive."
"Are all elves like this? Elves have almost never appeared in the Northern Territory; it's impossible to grasp her abilities or her intentions."
The Northern Territory was predominantly human.
There were very few other races, with only a rare few orcs present.
However, elves from the south were virtually unheard of.
After all, the elf race lived far too far from the northern reaches of the Lanxi Kingdom. If an ordinary adventurer were to travel, it might take them over a decade, braving countless dangers, just to cross the distance between the Lanxi Kingdom and the elven lands.
"It is as if she suddenly appeared in the Northern Territory; there is no record of her before this."
"If such a powerful elf had appeared in the Northern Territory, it would be impossible for her to leave no trace."
Seeing the situation, the knight before Caiman spoke his mind.
"Indeed."
Even Caiman, the knight commander of the Grey family, felt a sense of trepidation at Zeno's strength.
Yet, such a powerful being had left no mark on the Northern Territory.
The earliest information about her presence was right here in this dungeon.
It was as if she had come specifically for this place.
"Could it be..."
Caiman rubbed his chin and lowered his head.
Perhaps she had traveled by sea from the south of the elven lands to reach the Northern Territory.
To the north of the Northern Territory lay the North Sea.
If that elf named Zeno had crossed the ocean and made landfall in the Northern Territory, it would be understandable.
The North Sea was frozen for most of the year.
It was highly likely she had landed on North Island and crossed the North Sea Strait when it was frozen to reach the continent.
Given her strength, the hidden dangers within the North Sea probably didn't amount to much.
"Never mind. Send the organized intelligence back up and continue the exploration."
"Our mission is to deal with Manfred. Focus on that task and do not cause any more unnecessary complications."
Caiman didn't want to get dragged into any more trouble over this.
This whole mess was Bishop Claude's problem, and Caiman had no interest in taking the blame for him.
However, they had lost a masterpiece grade magical artifact.
Every masterpiece grade magical artifact was a priceless treasure.
The Grey family would not let Claude off easily.
After organizing their supplies at the fourth-floor station, Caiman wasted no time leading the knight order deeper into the dungeon.
Meanwhile, Fete was also subjected to questioning by the Grey family.
However, Fete had already mentally prepared himself, and his heart was now entirely aligned with Zeno.
He simply brushed off the interrogators with vague answers, revealing nothing substantial about her.
As an alchemist with an alchemist certification from the Alchemist Association who could craft magical artifacts, even Knight Commander Caiman had no authority to formally interrogate him.
Their social standing was nearly equal, if not identical.
"...I'm just an alchemist. How did I get dragged into all this?"
After seeing off the knight squire who had come to question him, Fete couldn't help but mutter to himself.
Ever since he became an alchemist, nothing good had happened to him.
By all rights, his luck should have turned for the better.
Was it because becoming an alchemist had exhausted all his good fortune that he was now so consistently unlucky?
Sitting back in his chair, Fete let out a long sigh.
Then he thought of the water of life he had worked so hard to obtain, and his mood soured again.
"Oh, my water of life..."
Fete shook his head, trying to stop thinking about his misfortunes. He took out his materials, preparing to begin a session.
Thump.
A soft sound interrupted his preparations.
Fete quickly looked up; his nerves were so frayed that he was suspicious of everything now.
Other alchemists lived like royalty; how had he ended up living like this?
The paranoid Fete felt a wave of self-pity.
The sound was that of a door closing. Fete stood up in alarm, only to see a figure standing by the alchemy table.
He jumped in fright, falling back into his chair with a heavy thud.
"Ze—Zeno!!"
"No, Lady Zeno! Why are you here? I didn't betray you, I swear!"
Fete's mind raced.
Zeno was still in the dungeon!
One had to realize that the entire dungeon was currently hunting this woman. Under the might of the Grey family, the entire Northern Territory was searching for her.
And yet, she hadn't left the Well of Eternal Imprisonment at all! She was still right here!
And the knight order had just been here questioning him minutes ago!
This was insane!
No.
It was precisely because she was this insane that she could have snatched a treasure from the Grey family right inside the Church of the Goddess of Light.
Was she here to silence him now?
Was she worried he would talk and came to finish him off?
Goddess of Light above, he hadn't betrayed her at all!
My Goddess of Light, please protect your believer!
Zeno ignored Fete's internal panic. She didn't care whether he had betrayed her or not.
She had come to find him solely for a task.
"Do you still take alchemy commissions?"
"Alchemy commissions?"
Fete blinked, stunned.
This formidable lady had sought him out just for a commission? She wanted him to craft something?
My dear lady, do you have any idea that the whole Northern Territory is looking for you?
And here you are, casually lingering at the scene of the crime, asking for a commission...
"O—Of course."
"It would be my honor to serve you, Lady Zeno."
"You only need to provide the materials. I won't charge you any alchemy fees."
Fete didn't have the courage to lecture her. He spoke up quickly.
Despite being completely bankrupt after the theft of his water of life, he was willing to work for free just to serve Zeno.
It was a display of his profound respect!
Mostly, he was worried that if he wasn't respectful enough, he'd be wiped out by her vines.
"That won't be necessary. I will pay you."
"In return, you will provide me with your best and fastest service."
Zeno reached out, and two mandragoras, along with wooden branches, wood chips, green leaves, and algae, appeared on the floor.
Every single material radiated a dense aura of magic.
Fete's eyes lit up.
There were several materials here he had never even seen before. He knew of mandragora; it was a rare magic plant said to have an extremely low chance of appearing in the Forest Stratum. It was an incredibly precious herb.
Though he had always wanted to acquire a few for his research and crafting, he had never been able to find any for sale.
The wood branches and chips were materials dropped by wood soldiers and wood armor monsters.
But those green leaves and algae... he hadn't even seen them before. They seemed to be drops from some extremely rare monsters in the dungeon.
The green leaves were drops from the thief vine, while the algae came from the water lurker.
Because these two types of monsters were extremely rare and well-hidden, adventurers had yet to officially discover them; only vague legends circulated.
"Thank you for your trust, Lady Zeno," Fete said, his voice tinged with excitement.
To him, every unique monster material was an invaluable research subject and a means to improve his alchemy.
"If you insist on paying, then you only need to pay half the usual fee."
"It is a small token of my respect, and these materials are very precious to me as well."
Fete spoke with deep sincerity.
Rate on N.U.
