READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 107
After the master and the witch aide left, Cecilia began to sigh more frequently.
I’d guess the count had exceeded ten times easily.
“Isabelak, what are you doing with your eyes closed?”
“Ah, please! Can’t you see I’m meditating?!”
“Kirik? Why on earth would you do something like that?”
“No, how many times do I have to say it? It’s a kind of training!”
“Training means moving the body. Isabelak, you’re just sitting there with your eyes closed.”
“That’s your opinion! Mine is that mental cultivation is my top priority since I specialize in blood techniques!”
*Slap!*
Insect dashed off, taunting with a “catch me if you can” after delivering a solid hit to the vampire.
“Kiiiiiiriiik!”
“Ah! That bug is really driving me nuts!”
The vampire retaliated, getting all worked up in response.
Cecilia, unable to handle it anymore, buried her head in her hands and sighed heavily.
This was what they called The Seven Lairs? It was such a trivial sight that it didn’t match the image at all.
…Perhaps the Mausoleum of Faith was like that because of the singular presence of her master.
Among them, the Insect named Balutak was the biggest issue.
Though somewhat strong for an Insect, it still had that usual dim-wittedness.
Cecilia recalled the memories from the war.
When she fought the second-in-command of the Corruption Cave, Balutak nearly died.
Maybe she should have let him die back then.
*Pat, pat.* The sensation on her back made Cecilia whip her head around.
“I understand how you feel. Just looking at it makes you sigh, right? I feel the same. It’s really something that those kinds of people are executives of The Seven Lairs.”
It was absurd that such a little kid was trying to console someone.
To Cecilia, Estizel was no different from those two.
Whenever the rankings went up, she made a big fuss—
“Whoa! Ranking up! Everyone! I’m now 35th!”
Right, like that.
“Kirik? What’s going on?”
“35th? Did something happen suddenly?”
“Yes! I think something bad happened to the previous 35th! Thanks to that, I’ve achieved 35th for free!”
“Uh… Should I be happy about this? It’s still someone else’s misfortune.”
“I know who that 35th is. It’s the guy who looked down on me for being half-breed at the meeting.”
“Double celebration, then!”
“Kirik! Good news!”
During a time when she was soaked in a sense of superiority, she threw herself in with them and even started to dance joyfully, while the other two applauded in celebration.
“What’s everyone doing?”
From upstairs, Selina returned with the witch children in tow.
She was the witch aunt of aide Charlotte, a gardener who cultivates the higher-class labyrinth plants, and unlike the trio, she fulfilled her responsibilities.
“It’s a big celebration! Estizel’s ranking went up again!”
“Kirik! It’s a celebration!”
“Hehe…”
Estizel shyly rubbed the back of her head.
“Ahaha… Congratulations. I need to put the kids to bed, so I’ll be on my way.”
Selina awkwardly smiled and gave a nod before going on her way.
Though she hated to admit it, among the executives, Charlotte and Selina were the only normal ones. Their failure to blend in with the buffoons was clear evidence of that.
In contrast, the three idiots felt entirely mismatched with the weight of The Seven Lairs.
The thought of “How on earth are they executives?” crossed her mind without her even realizing.
How on earth did those three end up in the same place?
She heard they were all recruited by her master, which felt rather unfortunate.
In terms of raw power, their perceptiveness was decent, but in terms of mentality, they were practically children.
“…How did it come to this?”
Just a little while ago, she was revered as the Empire’s hero, and now she had become not just a member of The Seven Lairs but an executive.
It was her own choice, and she had no regrets.
And not only that, she was satisfied to be able to reunite with her master and stay by her side.
It couldn’t be better compared to the days when she was desperate for revenge.
“That witch…”
On the other hand, there was something nagging in her heart.
She wondered if her master was doing something strange when they were alone.
***
The split entity impersonating the chieftain vanished, leaving the remaining lizardmen standing still, paralyzed by indecision.
They neither fled nor attacked; they simply trembled in fear.
‘Well, this works out nicely.’
The way to find Hermit’s Dungeon is as follows.
Follow the guidance of a guide (lizardman native) to find the landmark (a large, decayed, blue tree).
Even without a guide, I have a rough idea of the location, but that’s only in games.
Now that it’s a reality, there are bound to be differences. A guide was necessary.
“I mean you no harm. I have no intention of causing you trouble; I simply have business here.”
I sheathed my sword to show it through my actions.
As intended, the black color around my level slightly faded.
*Ploop.* One lizardman took a step forward.
“If you have business, what is it?”
“Guide me to the location.”
His response seemed to catch him off guard as he tilted his head.
Since the boss, the Hermit, had intentionally secluded himself, even the 7th dungeon was hidden from view.
In a sense, it shared a similar essence to the Ancient Dungeon.
No matter how hard one tried to find it, there were aspects that made it difficult.
“Is there a large, decayed, blue tree nearby?”
“…How do you know that?”
“You only need to lead me there. Then I will not bring you harm.”
They probably knew better than anyone that they had no choice.
They must have keenly felt the gap between us.
If they didn’t follow, I could simply use force to make them guide me.
“…Understood.”
Fortunately, it didn’t come to using force.
After that, the lizardmen began to guide me willingly.
*Ploop, ploop.*
The swampy area was unpleasant with each step.
After about 20 minutes of walking, the leading lizardman pointed somewhere.
“Is that it?”
Following the tip of his finger, I saw a decayed blue tree.
This was definitely it. There wasn’t much difference from what I’d seen in the game.
I subtly glanced around, noticing the lizardmen were keeping an eye on me.
They looked restless, eager to leave at any moment.
Thanks to them, my goal had been accomplished.
“Go ahead.”
“Really? Is that alright?”
Instead of words, I waved my hand dismissively.
The lizardmen exchanged puzzled looks with each other.
I found their uncertainty amusing.
I’m letting them go peacefully, so what could be the issue? Did they think I would harm them?
‘Do they still believe I killed their chieftain?’
If they did, their intelligence was definitely worse than Balutak’s.
After quite a while, the lizardman group finally turned to leave.
They occasionally glanced back, clearly not trusting me, but I didn’t mind.
I exhaled a sigh that felt like cold air and turned around.
I later realized that Charlotte was surprisingly standing with her back to me.
She was intently examining a handheld mirror, delicately fixing her hair.
[Lv. 92]
Seeing the intense pink level, there was no way I couldn’t figure out what she was doing.
She must be wanting to impress me.
Just as I was about to turn around, Charlotte’s shoulder flinched.
Realizing something, she quickly shoved the mirror into her cloak.
Then she turned to face me with wide, trembling eyes.
“Let’s move.”
Reacting casually was a considerate gesture.
After a brief moment of shock, Charlotte nodded her head as if bowing.
***
Upon closer inspection, the decayed tree had uniquely arrow-shaped branches pointing in one direction.
That direction led to the silent, monochrome area where Hermit’s Dungeon was located.
The arrow branch pointed east-west.
I led the way first, and Charlotte followed like a shadow.
Eventually, we arrived at a large pit.
At first glance, it looked no different from a regular pit, but in reality, it was the entrance to the dungeon.
“It seems there’s magical processing here.”
Charlotte observed as she peered down into the pit.
As she said, there was indeed magical processing involved, and the entry trigger ended up being rather humorous.
There’s an old-school gaming tale that “Entering a dungeon requires jumping.”
Hermit’s Dungeon was a product that actively utilized that meme by the creators.
“Charlotte, try jumping in place.”
“….”
*Hop, hop.*
Though she could have inquired why, she followed the instruction without complaint.
After exactly five jumps,
“You can stop now.”
Only after my command did Charlotte’s feet firmly meet the ground again.
“Brigagon.”
The Brigagon perched on my shoulder also jumped in place five times.
I copied them and jumped in place five times as well.
After that, I grabbed Charlotte’s wrist and prepared to jump into the pit.
“We need to jump together.”
“….”
Her expression showed confusion despite her nodding.
I wasn’t entirely sure what I was doing either, but there wasn’t much choice.
This was the only way to enter the dungeon, so what could I do?
We leaped together into the pit as if jumping.
Just before our feet hit the ground, the surrounding space abruptly twisted.