Proofreader: Me! (Sorry for the singular upload instead of the two I usually deliver, I'll upload the next chapter within the next couple days, thanks for the patience.)

Immediately we were met with three passageways, tunnels which spiralled off into who knows where. 

“So?” Percy glared at me, “Where to?”

I ignored him and observed the cramped rocky walls. Touching what I could, getting a feel for the room.

“What are you doing?” Frennia crouched down next to me.

I smiled, “You’ll see.” 

“Oh, found it.” I ran my hands over a particular rock formation.

Alright, this layout meant it was a Type-C. Thus, it was furthest left for now. Within this dungeon the developers decided to create five different room types, A,B,C,D,E. Where each room had a specific rock formation that never changed, probably to help the dev team which players noticed.

“Hmmm?” She loomed over my shoulder, curiosity apparent on her face.

“Okay!” I grabbed everyone’s attention, except Carlos who was watching from the beginning. “I know the way out of here.”

I expected full agreement since I dealt with Percy.

“How do you know?” Weirdly enough, Kyle stepped up.

He wasn’t objecting to me, but rather curious, just as Frennia had been.

“The rock formation of the cave. If you did research into the structure of dungeons, it is possible to predict their paths to an extent.” I pointed out, lying as if it were breathing.

He nodded, seeming satisfied.

“Also, from what I’ve gotten, the path ahead is full of obstacles as well as monsters.”

“Then, we must be careful,” Beatrice added. “Is what I presume you’re trying to say?”

I agreed, “Exactly that! However, as the professor said, there are many factors to getting a higher score.”

“Such as monster hunting or items found,” Frennia murmured. “Then I’m perfect for the job.”

“Hmm?” I was intrigued by what she meant.

“Ah- you didn’t hear? I’m specialising in the scouting position,” She held a smug pose.

Scouting… Frennia… there was a faint tugging in my mind. It continued to remain there since we grouped up earlier, but there’s been no progress.

“In that case, you can take the lead. Carlos stays on vanguard and I’ll be the tank.”

“What about us?” Beatrice asked.

“Rear support, although, I don’t know what Kyle can do.”

It was obvious she was a mage of some speciality with her ‘unique’ wand, but Kyle held nothing. And Percy? Well… he’s just there, I doubt he’d use his support tech to help out.

“Then, you’ll be surprised!” Frennia exclaimed from beside me. “Kyle’s one of the best fighters around.”

“Isn’t he in C-Class?” I questioned the obvious.

“Well…” 

Kyle answered for himself, “The exam was a hassle.”

“Yeah, he’s a bit eccentric.”

I think I’m starting to remember this trio. Famous and Impregnable, one of the strongest adventurer parties of the [Enigmatic Academy]… the… the what? Blanks were floating around my mind. 

Their party name escaped me.

“Then, let me see it,” I gestured for them to follow despite my current questions.

We took the left path, descending further into these depths. 

-x-

Julia’s POV

Why? Why is she here!? Serina Rosemary!

This is the worst! At least put me with Luke or Uriel! To this day I still don’t know what kind of relationship she and Luke have!

I was on the verge of starting a tantrum but my family’s reputation teetered around the edges of my mind.

“Are you okay?” A hand reached for my shoulder.

I forced composure, “Of course.”

The senior smiled in relief, returning to lead our group through the dungeon. Unfortunately, a Rosemary and the number one student were there. 

“Could you employ your magic to search ahead of us?” I was asked by one of the group members.

“This noble self can easily do that,” I gloated.

I imagined my mana scouring the cave, picking up on all the surfaces. This sensation was magic searching, to spread one’s senses across an area. After confirming the absence of anything dangerous, I reported the information.

“There’s nothing ahead.”

“Too bad…” He murmured, “No points for us then.”

He began to whisper to his friend, but I was privy to everything. My ears had been trained to hear anything and everything around me.

“I’m happy to just be around the heavy hitters of the cohort.”

“But her… it’s too bad isn’t it?”

“Yeah, my father told me not to associate with her.”

“Isn’t her personality trash anyway?”

Such talks weren’t news, I’ve heard it all. That’s why Luke… I’m…

“Isn't that Luke commoner hanging out with her?” The one who asked me to do the mana scan talked.

“Probably the only noble low enough for the commoner to be ‘friends’ with!” The other burst out giggling.

“What an idiot, I wonder what the prince sees in him?” 

My fists clenched, with visions of rage boiling inside me. To mock me was fine, but to mock a friend? Incorrigible.

“You!-“

“Shut your mouths.”

““…””

A chilling aura radiated off Serina, her violet eyes now holding an intent to kill. Such a coldness did not fit her.

“Please, calm down!” The senior cut in between them.

Valier, the strongest, watched on without emotion.

Wait…

Was that for Luke's sake?

“Serina Rosemary.”

“Hmm?” She turned toward me with dead fish eyes, the rage nowhere to be seen.

I blurted out without thinking, “What is Luke to you?”

Serina paused, with an expression of contemplation. “An escape.” She turned away joining the now silent group.

I was nothing but a motionless robot, unable to make sense of her answer.

-x-

Holy… I didn’t expect him to be this flashy. While Frennia hounded the lost goblins, Kyle rammed his fists into the monsters with unmatched efficiency. It was as if he was flying through a sea of blood and gore, every punch breaking off flesh in the process.

Me, Percy, Beatrice, and Carlos, watched as the two demolished the horde of monsters.

Dangerous.

I was kind of scared, that’s for sure.

“Well, were you surprised?” Frennia innocently smiled, ignoring the gut trails on her face and hair.

I nodded, speechless in a sense.

“I will dismantle the corpses,” Carlos volunteered loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Then, let’s take a break,” I suggested.

Percy retorted, “We could split off and double the efficiency.”

“Ah, so you volunteer to go ahead?” Sarcasm laced my words. “Thanks, that’ll make life easier for us.”

“It- it was merely an idea!” He panicked.

“Heh,” A giggle escaped our scout.

They all engaged in conversation, with Percy forcefully dragged in during the process. While they were distracted, I could wonder off and find the ‘room.’ The quest line was lengthy, but allowed me to access a basic mini-map at the beginning.

“Hey,” Kyle called for me as I was inching away. “What are you doing?”

“Observing the rest of the path, what I did earlier basically.”

He seemed somewhat suspicious, but decided to leave me alone in the end. After all, my excuses were top tier. I doubt anyone could fault me on my lying.

Through the strangely illuminated darkness, I felt myself stumble ever so slightly. Mana had weird properties, that was for sure. Bit by bit, I traced my hand along the walls of the caves. Sensations passed through my body.

Rock. Rock. Rock. Weird rock.

And then finally, ‘rock.’

What made it different? Honestly, no idea. It just reveals a hidden entrance nearby. I mean… in the game the hidden quest line for the mini-map took half a year to find by the community. 

Well, who would have expected the devs to be sadistic enough to hide such a feature in the introductory phase of the game? Where there were no hints of its existence, it was literally a random rock.

Shiing! The ambience of war runs from a distance.

“Oh… shit.”

Nearby, other groups were making their way toward this location. Their battle cries and hard-fought battles echoed through the cave.

Fuck my RNG, I had to get in and out immediately.