The initial taming was finished.
The objective was to instill the importance of cooperation.
I faced Velkist and Nerissa without holding back. It didn't matter whether it was 1-on-1 or 2-on-1. I maintained Berserk state constantly and struck them down the moment even a slight opening appeared. There were numerous occasions when one of the two was pushed to the brink of death.
"Isn't this a bit harsh?" Iolka asked worriedly.
"I'm just giving them what they want," I replied with a smile.
There was still some time left before the official climb. Amkena wasn't sending Party 1 out immediately either. It seemed she intended to give the new members time to adjust. I decided to utilize this time actively.
The duo's cooperation grew more refined with each passing day.
Velkist at close range, Nerissa at mid-to-long range. They began to learn how to leverage each other's strengths and cover their weaknesses. Of course, amidst all this, they never forgot to hurl insults at each other.
'This should be enough.'
I lowered my sword.
The two were collapsed in a corner of the training arena. They had lasted 3 minutes in this latest spar.
Considering they couldn't even last 30 seconds initially, it was remarkable growth.
"From the next spar, Jenna will join."
"What do you mean?" Velkist asked.
"Just like you form a team, we'll form a team too."
A visible stiffness came over the faces of the two newcomers.
I opened my mouth to speak.
"Relax. It's not like the members are fixed permanently. Me, Jenna, and you two. We'll fight mixing and matching amongst ourselves. Figure out the characteristics and personalities of the members and find points of cooperation."
"This is completely different from what I expected. I thought joining Party 1 meant fighting based primarily on individual abilities," Velkist said quietly.
"Floors 5, 10, 15... all highlighted your abilities, Senior. Honestly, the others didn't really stand out to me. What's the point of this kind of training?"
"Are your eyes just knotholes? I can't do anything alone."
Even if they watched the recordings of the clear, it's inevitably different from experiencing it directly. Or perhaps he only focused on me.
I continued, drawing from my own experience, "Individual ability is important. No matter how good the teamwork is, if individuals are weak, it's not enough. But the reverse is also true. If teamwork fails, even strong individuals will fail the mission."
"Is that all there is to it?"
"Of course, if someone possesses overwhelming power, they could finish the mission alone. But it seems no one here, including myself, possesses such ability. If you're done complaining, get up. We don't have much time."
"As Oppa said, I'm coming too." Jenna stormed into the training arena.
Velkist and Nerissa stumbled to their feet.
"Don't grumble too much. Once the foundations are somewhat set, you'll get sick of individual training," I assured them.
"I'll be waiting," Velkist replied, gripping his sword firmly.
'Not bad.'
The growth rate of the two.
And the current situation where we could conduct 2-on-2 spars.
I quite liked it. Until now, excluding Iolka, the numbers were always odd, so this type of training wasn't possible. Including members from Party 2 wasn't efficient for party-unit combat practice either.
"Let's go."
I aimed my sword and charged forward.
From behind, Jenna's arrow zipped past my side.
Training continued past evening and deep into the night.
Excluding the morning's basic training and some afternoon weapon drills, we spent all our time sparring. Each time a match concluded, we switched members. There was the side effect that the side I was on almost always won, but the two gradually started fitting into Party 1.
A week passed like that.
This time, we incorporated Iolka and began formation training.
Iolka's and Jenna's vulnerabilities. How to defend against them. How to utilize their strengths. While conducting formation training, I actively instructed Velkist and Nerissa on the methods of utilizing the two that I had analyzed.
"The more I learn, the more amazing it is. Every single tactic is precise and efficient," Nerissa remarked one evening after training, shaking her head as she looked at me.
"I can't even imagine what you did before coming here."
"Didn't I tell you I was a farmer?"
"You might want to change that lie."
"Is that so." I smiled wryly.
The next evening.
A considerable amount of time had passed since the tryouts ended.
[Party 1, assemble in the 1st Floor Plaza!]
Yisel's high-pitched voice echoed through the training center.
I wiped the wood shavings off my blade with a cloth and exited the personal training ground. The four members of Party 1 were gathered at the training center entrance, as if they had been waiting.
'The intention is obvious.'
There was no reason to go to the lower floors now.
Before joining Party 1, Velkist and Nerissa had cleared Floor 14.
Their senses were sharpened through realistic combat training.
All that remained was the climb.
"We've waited a long time," Velkist said, a smile touching his lips.
I sighed. "Do you enjoy fighting out there?"
"I think it's better than pointless squabbling or beating up wooden dummies."
"Anyway, assembly is on the 1st floor. You obviously know this isn't a pleasure trip. Prepare yourselves."
Before leaving the 2nd-floor training center, Aaron approached.
"Be safe, Hyung-nim."
"I will, even without you saying it." I waved my hand nonchalantly and headed down to the 1st floor.
The plaza was crowded with people. Most were strangers whose faces I'd never seen.
"What are these?" I muttered.
"They are those summoned after the floors were divided," Nerissa answered briefly.
'The third generation.'
The first generation heroes were Jenna, Edyth, and myself.
If Velkist and Nerissa, summoned after receiving the guide documents, were the second generation, then these people summoned after the floor division were the third. They watched us, particularly me, with gazes mixed half with wariness and half with fear.
"You might not know, but strange rumors have been spreading..." Nerissa started.
"I know that much."
Since returning from the Exploration Dungeon, I had barely gone down to the 1st floor.
There was simply no reason to. After the floor division, Amkena stopped sending the 2nd-floor combatants to the Daily Dungeons. It was a kind of segregation.
"... Arrogant bastard," someone muttered from the crowd.
Eyes filled with malice were directed at Velkist.
Velkist nonchalantly ignored the gazes and smirked. "Sounds like a dog barking somewhere. If you want to pick a fight, come forward."
"Don't provoke them," I warned, stopping Velkist from drawing his sword, and turned my gaze to the Rift of Time.
The gate was open, but people were blocking the path in the middle. Suddenly, an old man stepped forward in front of me.
"Excuse me, are you Han Yisrat-nim! I am Melcard, I arrived here four days ago. It's nothing much, but I have a request! I suffer from a severe chronic illness, and daily life is very difficult. Please, allow me onto the 2nd floor..."
"Move."
"Oof!"
I shoved the man aside.
He landed on his backside with a loud thud.
A few men dragged the fallen man away.
'Chronic illness.'
What utter bullshit.
The restorative power of the waiting room defies imagination. As long as one isn't dead, any injury or illness can be fully healed in seconds. Cancer, back pain – it would all revert instantly.
'About 10 days, huh.'
I calculated the time I hadn't been down to the 1st floor.
I'd been busy training the two newcomers and hadn't had time to check. Nor had I felt the need.
However, it felt like the atmosphere on the 1st floor had changed significantly in those 10 days. There were similar groups when we went to the Exploration Dungeon, but they hadn't been this forward.
[What are these guys doing gathering here? Don't block Party 1! The Master is waiting!]
As Yisel waved her hands dismissively, the men near the fountain stepped back.
As they dispersed, they cast strange glances at Velkist and Nerissa.
Anyway, we had a long way to go.
Along with the four others, I stepped into the Rift of Time.
The door slammed shut with a thud. I spoke to Nerissa, who was checking her dagger sheath. "When did it start getting like this?"
"The exact timing was after the floors were divided. Subtle signs began appearing then."
"Signs?" Iolka asked, blinking.
I gave a small smile and replied, "The side effects of dividing the floors, that's what."
"They were strange people, though," Jenna commented.
"Well, don't worry about it. The mission is more urgent right now."
I couldn't be certain yet.
All they did was come out to watch me.
Though it felt more like spying than simple spectating.
[Main Dungeon, current challenge floor is Floor 16.]
[The gate will open in 10 seconds. Prepare yourselves!]
A faint light leaked from the mirror on the left.
I rested my right hand on my scabbard.
"Once we enter the field, follow my instructions. Any objections?"
"None," said Velkist.
"None," Nerissa echoed.
I nodded.
The light flowing from the mirror enveloped the entire Rift of Time.
When I opened my closed eyes, an unfamiliar space awaited me.
Simultaneously, a message announcing the mission objective appeared.
[Floor 16.]
[Mission Type - Exploration]
[Objective - Search the designated location!]
Everyone's gaze focused on one point.
They were seeing the mission objective, just like me.
Velkist frowned. "Exploration? This is the first time I've had this kind of mission."
"I've done it exactly once. On Floor 6," Jenna recalled. "It wasn't a particularly difficult mission, right, Oppa?"
"This is different from Floor 6. We'll have to see."
I looked around.
'The field is an old castle. No, maybe a mansion?'
We stood on a carpet with luxurious patterns.
Behind us was a large door that appeared to be the entrance. The walls held various portraits and decorations, and a chandelier hung from the high ceiling. Ahead, a bifurcated staircase caught the eye. The top of the stairs connected to corridors on either side.
From a quick glance, it seemed like the entrance hall of a giant mansion.
"This place is..." Nerissa's brow furrowed in concern.
"Do you recognize it?"
"I can't be sure yet. I'll tell you when I'm certain."
"Alright."
The second exploration mission.
It meant a linked quest had been triggered.
I spoke in a low voice to the party members who were looking around.
"We'll search this place starting now. The exit to the next floor should be somewhere here. Obviously not that door, though."
I reached out to the large door behind me.
A transparent wall blocked my fingers from advancing.
"Nerissa, you go first. Scout ahead in stealth, and if you find anything unusual, come back and report."
"Yes."
"The rest of us advance in formation."
Shing.
I drew my sword and shield.
The sound of each person drawing their weapons echoed softly in the empty hall of the mansion.
'No one here.'
It wasn't an abandoned mansion.
It was properly cleaned.
"I'm going."
Nerissa nodded to me, then lowered her stance.
Her outline blurred – the effect of the basic stealth skill, Stealthy Movement. Nerissa silently climbed the stairs and disappeared into the left corridor.
"We're going left too. Search formation."
At my gesture, the members spread out front to back.
I took the lead, Jenna and Iolka in the middle, Velkist covering the rear. Maintaining formation, we climbed the stairs and entered the left corridor. Outside the windows was pitch black, but candles lit here and there kept the corridor from being too dark.
"It's a bit gloomy. Like a haunted mansion. Why isn't anyone here?" Jenna asked anxiously.
"We'll find out as we go."
As I walked down the corridor, I touched the doors we passed.
Invariably, a transparent wall blocked the way. No doors opened.
'Same exploration mission as Floor 6, but the circumstances are different.'
For starters, the scale of the field was different.
It had been 15 minutes since we entered the corridor. We were still walking down the same one.
Iolka clicked her tongue. "This place is huge, isn't it? We walk and walk, but there's no end."
"The structure is peculiar," Velkist observed. "The scale of the hall and the corridor don't match. Seen from outside, it would look like a strange shape."
"Surprisingly, you're smart," Iolka commented.
Velkist scowled. "Mage, what did you say?"
"Ah, nothing!"
"Quiet. Don't talk carelessly," I ordered.
The three fell silent.
After walking for another 5 minutes, the end of the corridor came into view.
The corridor split into three paths.
A normal mansion wouldn't have this kind of structure. There were no people, and outside the windows, rather than just dark, nothing could be seen at all. This was not a normal space.
'...A labyrinth?'
I sighed.
It seemed we'd gotten stuck with a troublesome mission.