Monster Swarm

As they crossed a narrow suspension bridge spanning a deep crevice, a cold draft rose from the abyss, fluttering their clothes.

Greg was the first to step onto the relatively stable rock platform on the other side. He stopped and waited for Vivian to cross safely. When she did, he turned around, his gaze falling on her still-calm face. A hint of awkwardness flickered in his amber eyes, and he scratched the back of his messy blonde hair.

"Uh... sorry about earlier. My tone... I think I got a bit too worked up."

It was for her own good, but looking back, he realized he might have overdone it.

Nightmare suddenly chimed in, figuratively wiping her mouth in his mind. "Heh, just admit it. You were panicked. Concern leads to chaos, doesn't it, my other half?"

"Shut up!" Greg snapped internally.

"See? Panicked again."

"I swear to...! If you interrupt me one more time, I'll teach you exactly what Hajimi brain rot feels like!"

While Greg was engaged in a silent, childish argument with Nightmare, Vivian had already stepped off the last few planks of the suspension bridge and onto the solid rock floor.

She shook her head slightly, her long ice-blue hair swaying with the movement. Her voice was calm, yet it carried a heavy weight that Greg didn't quite understand.

"It wasn't your fault."

She paused, her ice-blue eyes lifting to meet Greg's. They clearly reflected a complex and deep sense of guilt.

"The one in the wrong... has always been me."

Greg snapped back from his mental spat with Nightmare, his brain struggling to keep up. Wait, what do you mean the one in the wrong has always been you?

Wasn't it just a momentary lapse in concentration that led to a sneak attack?

Sure, it was dangerous, but everything turned out fine in the end, didn't it?

Isn't this level of guilt a bit excessive?

He couldn't possibly understand the complex emotions churning within Vivian's heart; he simply assumed she was still blaming herself too much for her earlier negligence.

"Ahem."

Greg cleared his throat.

"Well, it's not entirely your fault. If we're being honest, I bear some of the responsibility too."

He paused for a moment of mock-contemplation before continuing.

"How about this? Let's just turn the page on what happened. Neither of us will bring it up again. From now on, let's just focus on the present, okay? After all, the present and the future are what matter most."

Vivian looked into Greg's amber eyes, which remained bright even in the dim environment.

The heavy layer of guilt in her ice-blue eyes gradually dissipated, replaced by a renewed and more determined light.

She nodded softly, the corners of her lips turning up by the tiniest fraction.

"Mhm."

Her voice was quiet, but it carried a sense of relief—an affirmation that she was willing to walk by his side.

Seeing that they had finally moved past that incident, Greg secretly breathed a sigh of relief and refocused his attention on their surroundings.

They had left the relatively safe shallow and middle layers and officially entered the true deep zone, a place Greg had never set foot in before, even with Victoria and the others.

The air here was more stagnant, and the mana concentration had noticeably risen, bringing with it a stronger sense of oppression and a faint, lingering scent of danger.

Beneath their feet was rough, jagged black rock. More ruins were scattered around them, as if telling the story of an ancient civilization's collapse.

Standing at the edge of this relatively open cliff platform and looking as far as the eye could see, one could vaguely make out a massive, broken, and twisted temple-like structure. It stood silently at the end of their vision like the remains of a sleeping giant beast.

That was their final objective—the location of the second layer's Floor Boss.

Greg took a deep breath and checked the special reinforced waist pouch again. It was divided into many small compartments.

Dozens of alchemy potion bottles of various colors were neatly arranged inside.

These were custom-made by Chloe, specifically tailored to the weaknesses of the monsters that appeared in the second layer.

Until he was absolutely certain that Vivian was completely trustworthy, Greg wanted to avoid exposing his trump card—dark-attribute magic—in front of her as much as possible.

Even when facing the Floor Boss, he planned to have Vivian act as the primary attacker for the raid.

Thinking of Chloe, Greg felt a slight warmth in his heart.

When he had approached her with a long list of materials and required effects, Victoria—who had been haggling with her—was immediately shooed out of the shop. Chloe's eyes had lit up instantly, and she had accepted the commission without hesitation.

When Greg had offered to put it on tab, Chloe had simply shaken her head vigorously and said firmly, "I don't need payment. Being able to help Big Brother makes me happy enough!"

This unreserved trust and kindness gave Greg, who didn't consider himself a particularly good person, a sense of responsibility to repay her.

He had already worked out a plan for repayment in his mind; he would start as soon as this dungeon trip was over.

The thing he couldn't stand the most was owing someone for such pure kindness.

Additionally, while he felt a little bad for the gray-haired brat who had been suddenly kicked out of the shop, that obvious preferential treatment did give Greg a brief moment of satisfaction.

"ROAR—!!!"

A roar filled with savagery and hunger suddenly erupted from behind a pile of rubble not far ahead!

Immediately following that, the sound of heavy, dense footsteps and a chaotic mess of low growls drifted in from all directions!

The monsters had discovered the two intruders!

Judging by the sound, there were many of them, and they were quickly closing in!

Instead of feeling afraid, Greg felt his blood speed up slightly, and a spark of excitement for battle quietly rose within him.

He quickly stepped to the side, standing back-to-back with Vivian. His eyes scanned the direction of the sounds sharply as he grinned.

"Get ready!"

No sooner had Greg spoken—

"ROAR—!!!"

Another massive roar erupted, and then a swarm of monsters surged out from the shadows and cover in all directions!

On the left, three Rock-shell Shield Bugs were the first to strike.

They were as bulky as small bulls, their gray-brown rock carapaces gleaming with a cold, metallic hardness in the dim light.

Their thick limbs sent gravel flying as they ran, their low growls carrying the scent of earth and stone.

Their goal was clear: they moved in a fan shape to flank Vivian, attempting to crush her with brute force or tear her apart with teeth strong enough to bite through metal.

Almost simultaneously, several Shadow-stalker Spiders slid down silently from the crevices in the rock walls to the right and above.

They were slightly smaller, but their eight compound eyes flickered with a greedy, ghostly light. Their legs moved as fast as the wind, leaving blurred afterimages.

As their mouthparts opened and closed, drops of corrosive dark-green venom fell, burning wisps of smoke into the ground.

From behind, heavy footsteps rang out like muffled thunder.

Two Cave Trolls, standing three meters tall with bulging muscles, approached with earth-shaking strides, wielding thick stone pillars they had scavenged from somewhere as weapons.

In an instant, the two of them were surrounded from three directions by more than ten fierce monsters, ranging from level 35 to 38. Their path of retreat was also vaguely blocked. The situation was critical!