We left the inn.
The boy tried to protest, saying he was busy, but I didn't let him go. At the very least, I needed guidance to make the gold coin worth it. After some insistent pressuring, the boy started leading the way, grumbling.
"This isn't right... I need to finish work by evening..."
"Do you think a few muttered words are worth a gold coin?"
The boy pouted and adjusted his satchel strap. I followed the boy walking briskly down the street. He passed the intersection where the inn was and headed towards the inner castle. Over the heads of the pedestrians, the walls of the inner castle appeared faintly white.
'...'
We were going inside the city, not outside. Two possibilities came to mind: this kid was trying to trick me, or the dungeon was inside the city. I would find out by going there myself.
The answer came five minutes later. The number of mercenaries increased as we moved deeper into the street. There was even a man being carried away on a stretcher, blood pouring freely from a severed leg. Seeing the injured man, the boy frowned.
"This is why I didn't want to come."
"So the dungeon is inside the city."
"To be precise, it's in the city center. Right next to the shrine. They say this dungeon appeared right after the Nelsa invasion ended." The boy passed through the gate into the inner castle.
Right ahead, a familiar building came into view. A tall tower made of bricks. It was the bell tower I had used for reconnaissance on the 10th floor. The cathedral to the right was also the same, though according to the boy, it seemed to be called a shrine.
'...That thing.' Between the bell tower and the shrine, an unfamiliar structure caught my eye. It was a massive staircase descending underground. A tall, sturdy wire mesh fence surrounded the stairs. At the entrance in the middle of the fence stood a knight clad in splendid silver armor. Near the fence, mercenaries, street vendors, and priests were scattered about.
"Those stairs are the dungeon entrance. Easy to spot, right?"
"Doesn't look like much."
"Come on. If it wasn't much, why would they guard it like that? Besides the stone I mentioned, all sorts of treasures pour out of that dungeon. Gold coins, gems, expensive equipment! It's literally a treasure mine. Well, if you mess up, you might not come back out."
A party consisting of two men and a woman tried to enter the stairs. The knight blocked their way. The man in the lead stepped forward and presented a silver shining token.
"The Church has monopolized ownership of the dungeon. They make a profit by selling passage permits like that. They also take a certain amount of treasure found inside. Pure gangsters, I tell you."
I nodded. It seemed entry wasn't free.
"Anyway, I think I've earned my gold coin's worth with this. Can I go back now?"
"Good work. You can go." I could have kept him around all day, but I decided against it. I had asked everything worth knowing. I could find out the rest myself.
"If you have any more questions, come find me. I'll do it as a service next time."
"How would I know where you are?"
"You'll have to figure that out yourself!" The boy grinned and quickly slipped away through the crowd of pedestrians.
I sat down on a tree stump some distance away from the stairs. I could buy a passage permit with gold coins. I could probably go check it out myself. But I had no intention of doing so. My party members had been sent off, and I didn't have the luxury to explore it properly.
The brief return time displayed at the top of my vision indicated 45 hours remaining. Observing the mercenaries entering the dungeon, they were all laden with baggage. Through the gaps in their open bags, cooking utensils were visible. This implied that conquering it wouldn't be a matter of a day or two.
Recalling the party members I had sent to rest didn't feel right either. Finding out about Priasis's situation and the existence of a dungeon yielding Advent Stones – these two pieces of information were sufficient gains.
I could come back later. After finding someone reliable to leave in charge of the waiting area when I was gone for extended periods.
With this, the rough information gathering was finished.
'Nothing to do.' I scratched my head. The work was done in less than a day. Asking nearby mercenaries about the dungeon might be an option, but I didn't feel like it. Besides, most mercenaries were just observing, hardly any were actually going in.
Those who can cross the wall and those who can't. Most were likely the latter. After about 30 minutes of observation, the ratio seemed less than 10 to 1. However, it appeared that if someone capable of passing went ahead, their companions could follow. Thus, they were here to hitch a ride, looking around for solo passersby.
I crossed my arms and sank into thought. I was certain I could cross it. There was time left anyway. Resting held no appeal.
'Should I gather a party and go in?' Nothing to lose. If something unexpected happened, I could just abandon them and leave.
Just as I made up my mind and stood up, someone tugged at my collar.
"Mister, you're still here!" It was the boy who had left me 30 minutes ago. He seemed oddly excited.
"What is it? Thought you went to work."
"Well, you see. I went to get the gold coin you gave me appraised at the jeweler's, and it seems it's worth more than I thought. Ancient gold coin or something."
"So?"
"I, well..."
"Can't give you more. Don't try to freeload off me, kid."
"That's not it!" The boy puffed his cheeks and raised his voice. "It's free, free. The service I mentioned earlier, don't you want it?"
"Not interested."
"You seemed interested in the witch, and there's a rumor I didn't tell you." The boy looked around and brought his mouth close to my ear. "Actually, that witch was framed by the Church..."
"I know. No need to say it."
"Ack! What? It took me ages to find that out!"
I stood up from my seat. I was just about to try exploring the dungeon, but this kid ruined the mood. The boy trotted after me.
"Don't follow me."
"Then I'll give you a city tour! I know all the tasty restaurants everywhere. I used to work as a guide."
"I said I don't need it, why are you being so annoying?" I shook off the boy and headed out of the inner castle. First, I needed to exchange the gold coin to use it properly. I intended to go to the jeweler's. The boy caught up beside me and spoke urgently.
"It's because you look like my younger brother!"
"Brother?"
"Black hair, black eyes! Mister, you're from the eastern minority, right? There's a kid like that among the ones I look after. Much younger, though."
I stopped walking. The scene during my promotion suddenly came to mind. The child the woman was soothing in the small room before I was summoned by him. That child also had black hair and black eyes.
'When I first arrived, Iseul told me I was from the Haim Peninsula.' The current exploration stage was the Haim Peninsula. Something felt off.
"I only spoke to you first because it was surprising. Haven't seen anyone else like him. His name is..."
"Don't say it."
"Huh?"
"Keep your mouth shut."
"It's not even a particularly special name..." I looked down at the boy. He shrank back and nodded.
'Not yet.' There were already more than enough things to think about. I didn't want to add another worry.
"Where's the jeweler's?" I asked, resuming my walk. The boy, who had frozen, beamed and started guiding me. Free, but not really free. I could tell from the boy's incessant chatter.
"Where did you get the ancient gold coin? I heard they only drop in high-level dungeons."
"Mister, you're a dungeon hunter, right? A really strong one, too. I can tell just by looking. Otherwise, why would you toss around treasure like that?"
"Did you not know the rumors because you spent a long time inside a dungeon?" I ignored the boy's questions completely.
At the jeweler's, I exchanged the gold coin for a large amount of copper coins. The owner was a stubborn-looking old man. The fact that he didn't grovel suggested I wouldn't get ripped off. When asked about the source, I simply said I received it.
"Where can I buy things from the dungeon?"
"Dungeon loot is handled by the Mercenary Guild. If you'd just listen to me..."
"Are you stupid? If I were a hunter, would I be asking you about the dungeon?"
"But..." The boy looked inexplicably desperate.
"Lead the way." On the second floor of the Mercenary Guild, there was a display case handling spoils. They didn't handle the core item, Advent Stones, but sold various other goods. The attendant said they sold various luxurious magical weapons excavated from the dungeon.
There, I reunited with Zena.
"Oh, Oppa. You went off alone." Her presence here meant she had figured out about the dungeon. Quick on the uptake as ever.
"That bow?" I asked. Zena was holding a large bow. Adorned with gold and silver, it looked high-quality at first glance.
"You mentioned before that a longbow was needed too. The clerk recommended it, so I chose it. Said it has magic enchantment, looks good, right? They say I can buy it with two gold coins."
'Appraise.'
[Ornate Longbow]
[Grade - D-]
[Magic!]
[Looks luxurious, but lacks effectiveness as a longbow.]
[Note - Enchanted with 'Durability Enhancement'.]
Grade D-minus. Usable, somehow, but with that grade, it was worse than the shortbow I gifted her.
"Trash."
"But they said it has magic. And I don't really have anything else to spend money on."
"Buy something more valuable with that money." I pointed to various stones displayed cheaply in a corner of the sales counter. It looked like they were trying to clear inventory since no one bought them. Zena's eyes sparkled.
"Those are... Elemental Stones!"
"The Master will be pleased if you bring them back. They're materials for Promotion Stones."
"Right? Then this longbow..."
"Trash it." Besides low-grade elemental stones, a few other items caught my eye. A noteworthy item was something called a Rebirth Stone. Rebirth Stones allow experiencing boss stages that were closed due to being cleared; although no experience is gained, the mission experience itself can be fully transferred to the Hero. It's a rare item, but luckily, a few were visible. They would be very useful for the new Heroes joining Party 1 and Party 2. I swept them up. I confiscated the money Zena lacked.
"Who's that kid?" Zena gestured with her head as we left after shopping. The boy was looking between me and Zena with an awkward expression.
"Don't mind him. Don't know him."
"N-no, we're not strangers! I'm this gentleman's exclusive guide. My name is Yoshu."
"Right, goodbye then." I had asked everything I needed to. It was getting late. I planned to head to an inn and stay there. And tomorrow, as promised, I had to hang out with Zena.
"I..."
"Do you owe me a debt or something?"
"Mister, listen! I have this secret investment plan..." Annoying. I could scare him off, but didn't feel like it.
I tossed the gold coin I got from Zena.
"Uh, that's..."
"You had one left, didn't you?"
"That's true." One gold coin. Enough to live comfortably without working, as long as it wasn't spent strangely.
Yoshu bowed subserviently and accepted the gold coin. "Thank you, mister! Ma'am!" If he had tried any half-baked backstabbing, I wouldn't have let him off. It felt a bit excessive, but it was a reward for guiding me diligently, in his own way.
"With this much..."
"With this much?"
"I can quit my job! Thank you for the investment!"
I let out a short laugh and said, "Investment? Planning to start a business?"
"The details are secret, investor! Can't let it be known. But I'll definitely repay the kindness. I swear!"
"No need to repay. It's not worth much to me."
"No, I can't live with debts. If there's anything you desire, please tell me. Ah, first, the benefactor's name..." Nothing much to expect.
I thought for a moment, then spoke. "That witch, help her if you get the chance."
"Huh?" Yoshu's eyes widened.
Leaving Yoshu standing there blankly, I headed out into the street. Zena caught up and asked, "What were you talking about just now? Who's the witch?"
"You know the kid we rescued. That's her." We chatted about various things as we headed towards the inn.
'Come to think of it, Aron isn't here.' I thought he'd be with Zena. When I asked, she said he left the city looking for a place to be alone.
I shook my head. He undoubtedly went off to train.
Once we returned to the waiting area, Party 1's rest period would end. Also, the final party member would be decided. Belkist or Nerisa, one of the two was likely. Or perhaps both.
I glanced back. Far down the street, Yoshu was visible, looking around.
It was a place I'd return to anyway, to get Advent Stones.
I continued walking.