Rise of the Adventurer Series: Sea Dragon Nest Quest

Volume - 1 // Chapter - 11

"Let's go inside the dungeon, Everyone!"

A loud, excited gesture was made by Cassandra Smith in front of the anxious Misa Togo, who suddenly felt regret after agreeing to the said raid prepared by her.

It was a 3-man Dungeon quest party.

A rule of the Adventurers Party is that the third party (Not related nor Acquaintance with the raid/team leader) Adventurers cannot join nor interfere with the raids and runs along with the said party. It was a notorious and wise decision for the likes of the high-ranking Adventurers holding/starting a quest raid, not because of a certain misunderstanding with their unknown and unfamiliar members occurring during the raids, but because of the odds and equally shares of the item drops whenever the dungeon quest finished. However, the dangers that lie within it are inevitable because only 3 members or fewer than party members fighting along inside the said dungeon.

Thus, Cassandra Smith uses this kind of Adventurer method at the moment. Thinking that dealing with the quest rank that is seemingly far below her ranks will be easier for her to complete.

Thinking that the dungeon quest they accepted was slightly weaker than their actual Adventurers' rank. Misa, a B-rank fighter-class Adventurer with only a normal Awakener, already knew her limits of dealing with the quest that made her instincts tingle, proven that the place she's in is absolutely dangerous. She knows that dealing with the quest dungeon with a minimal number of participants will cause a lot of uncertain troubles, even the quest rank itself was seemingly feeble.

As the result, she cannot drop her guard down anytime whenever she went inside the dungeon after all.

Also, knowing the fact that one of her members couldn't even be managed to cast any single magic spells in his very existence, and having a party leader whose very fond and full of herself. She started to stress out thinking about their position and began to act like an older sister around them.

'This will be a huge problem for me....'

She began to ask Cassandra on lending her hand leading the raid this time.

She agreed with it instantly. Knowing the fact that she also felt uneasiness towards the dungeon quest they entered.

Cassandra in the meantime, with a full-pledged armor cloak and a book that uses her as a weapon. Started to chant a magic spell able to maximize their senses in a short period.

After getting affected by Cassandra's magic spell, a system notification started popping out inside Levi's head.

~Note: A group buff has activated

Time: 9 minutes, 40 seconds

Buff Type: Sensory Buff

Effect/s: Able to force the affected body senses into their maximum level.

Though, Levi was very new to the power he acquired. With the help and guidance made by the Unknown Being, he started to getting along with it and familiarize every piece of information that the system notification made. Knowing the fact that he once living in a modernized world where Video games and other games were created, that is relatable to the world he lives in. He easily managed on dealing with it like he used to play it.

But one thing for sure and not a single memory to forgot on his head.

'Dying is not an option...'

He is thankful for it after he receives the buff made by his teammates.

And so, they started to walk up inside the dungeon. Aware and cautious.

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After a few minutes of walking on the inside of the dungeon.

The three Adventurers are now felt aggravated as the magic beast and other creatures haven't even existed nor approaching them for the first 10 minutes of entering the dungeon.

Even the magic sensory buff they cast couldn't even sense their magic auras and their presence.

The only magic presence they felt was the magic crystals spurring around throughout the dungeon.

"My... My... what is happening?"

"Where are those magic beasts lurking in this place?... how are we supposed to complete this quest without hunting them?" Cassandra is flustered.

"I don't know, maybe they prepared something awful that made the Adventurers fluttered."

"Then, we must be ready for it."

Out of her fearful expression, Cassandra started to activate her 'Eye of the Awakener'. And scouted her vicinity for at least a few meters of her position.

Unfortunately, she cannot find a single trace of magic creatures around her.

"What is going on with this place?" She is already frustrated, knowing that she cannot earn money without completing the quest.

Levi Furiman on the other hand, was calm yet perplexed the whole time. Not showing any signs of dubious feelings around his teammates made them added to their worries about him. By mining, some magic crystals around the dungeon relieved his uneasy feeling for the first few minutes since he entered.

Knowing that the magic crystals might be a profit for someone like him by selling them outside the dungeon. He takes his opportunity to mine all magic crystals that the magic beast let unguarded.

Unfortunately, Cassandra stopped him.

Not because it was a waste of time mining the magic crystals alone, but because mining the lower dungeon ranks like the ones they entered cannot be profitable to the towns and villages due to its value and rarity, knowing that it was easier for the low ranking Adventurers to mine everything from it all by itself.

The harder and higher the dungeon ranks and gates they acquired, the value and rarity of magic crystals are higher.

But Levi still insisted on it, hoping that he will earn money by collecting magic crystals a lot more than they expected.

Until Cassandra agreed with it. Asking for him to not going too far from their presence, to avoid unnecessary troubles.

"We checking this place until the end, be sure to follow with us after you're done with that," Misa ordered Levi.

Levi simply nodded with it.

She and Misa left him in the middle of the dark, glowing only those magic crystals they found.

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*Clang* *Clang*

/Stoneaxe's sound shoving the magic crystal that Levi found./

After a few more minutes of mining;

Levi has finally done with his work.

Among all the magic crystals inside the dungeon that sprouting everywhere, only 30 pieces of it are capable of him picking up. Also, most of them are rare and seemingly valuable to sell.

He carefully chooses the right magic crystals for him to sell outside, As he saw different colors and kinds of them.

From Black, Blue, Red, Opal, White, Yellow, Green. All kinds of colors and shapes are different depending on their rarity and value.

Mostly, He picked up the Black and Redone.

With the help of his 'Eye of the Awakener' activated only on his right eye, he can easily generalize the quality and value of the magic crystals according to their rarity.

"Phew... I'm beat, I guess I go back to where they are."

He carefully packed his belongings and heading straight through to where Cassandra and Misa were located.

With an ecstatic and witty gesture made by him after he successfully harvesting some magic crystals with ease and carelessness, knowing that no other monsters lurking around him for the whole time of mining.

He even made himself thinking in a selfish way of becoming a businessman and forgetting his Adventurer's life by just selling some magic crystals to start his new family and to get rich.

"Wait... what the hell did I even think about that? becoming a selfish nobleman and abandoning the mission that the Balancer of Race given on me? Don't be ridiculous and quit abusing the power that just only lending on you... Hahahahaha!"

Evil thoughts and bad intuition coming from the past world he lives in had started to corrupt his ignorant mind. But with his determination of living and integrity, Levi finally realized about it, felt embarrassed and ingratitude afterward.

"More importantly... Where are they?" He asked himself and started to worried about them.

As time passes by, another set of minutes that Levi wasted by just running and searching for the presences emitted by Cassandra and Misa.

Until;

Levi got lost after he attempts to find their presence, even though his 'Eye of the Awakening' was constantly activated.

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On the other hand;

Cassandra and Misa finally found an enemy inside the dungeon for a half-hour of searching for it. After Misa heard an unwanted noise rumbling the place for at least 30 meters in front of them, causing her to be alert and ready for her battle stance against the approaching enemies.

She then asked Cassandra to prepare as well, knowing that her sense of hearing was infused by a 'Demi-being' power that made her intuition absolute.

She even saw a glimpse of their appearances within a 15 meter-range even though the surroundings they held in are completely dark and only a piece of magic crystals that slowly illuminating the place are the ones that only produced light.

With that ample enough time, they managed to prepare themselves until the enemy started to arrive right in front of them.

As they saw a parade of magic creatures taking their formation, ready to attack towards the approaching enemies. At least 20 regular-sized orcs, with their reddish eyes glazing over them and weapons already well-prepared, ready to kill someone who tried to invade their territory.

They had their minds on retreating at first.

However, Cassandra and Misa were already aware to take the risk of completing the quest. Knowing that there was no other reinforcement to come on saving them whenever the time they needed the most. Also, there was no other way to retreat since the dungeon they raid was doesn't have any route for escaping.

It was an all-out battle deadlock for them that losing is not an option.

Cassandra, the only one possessing the power of double Awakening, having a hard time activating it. Especially during the crisis something like her situation.

She couldn't focus on activating it, because the orcs had started to land an aerial attack that randomly aiming towards them.

She left nothing but to defend herself while exchanging blows towards the left side of the enemies, by firing consecutive fireballs and other fire spells against the orc enemies.

Misa on the other started attacking her own by anticipating the approaching orcs wanted to take them down on the right side of their formation.

Knowing that Misa couldn't rely on her magic spells due to the minimal amount of her mana pool --- A storage of mana inside a person's body. Without it, There's no way for them to cast even a small piece of magic spell they made. She chose to become a fighter class Adventurer as the result.

With her fruits of training and nearly non-stop practicing combat skills throughout her entire early life. She finally hones herself to become one of the best fighter classes in her village, and obtaining a high-level Adventurer rank with only an ordinary Awakening she possessed.

As a matter of fact, with the help of the 'Demi-being' race's 'Eye of the Awakening', she nearly impossible to cease, especially when she knew her life is at stake. Her 5 senses are already at their peak without receiving any sort of magic buff made by Cassandra, All strength and powers she has to fight against the enemies are coming to her brute strength and a keen sense from her 'Awakening power'.

Due to that, she easily read all movements of the orc monsters with ease yet carefully decided whether she attacked nor she defended.

! Sckaarr... Ssckaaarrr!!....!

A scream of agony was made by the orc monsters after receiving a fatal blow made by Misa, as she used a huge, narrow sword as her main and only weapon to raid.

"Raaaaaahh!"

A harsh battle howl made by Misa wanted to taunt the orc creatures to run away.

Fortunately, the orcs began running. She felt rejoice after an outcome that made her successful.

Unfortunately, as the first wave of her problem slowly perished, and started retreating. Another set of orc creatures swarming through the stead of Misa and Cassandra.

The two now started to feel uneasiness and worried for some reason. Not because they're afraid of the magic creatures lurking around them, but because of a certain person that seemingly missing in action the whole time since they fighting in. Hoping that he's not going into trouble, that causing them a hard time to deal with.

For them, that was their worst-case scenario.

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***To be Continued***