Discovered a Dungeon

Karina swiftly helped Natalia to her feet, supporting her with an arm around her neck.

"You fought well," Karina said, smirking at Natalia.

"You held back... why?" Natalia murmured slowly.

Before Karina could respond, Caspondis approached them, already in the zone, and pulled out two vials from his inventory.

"Here's a healing potion," he said, handing one vial to Natalia and the other to Karina.

"Th—thanks."

Natalia and Karina drank the vile potion. Its taste was horrid, reminiscent of blood. It brought back memories for Natalia and the other players of accidentally tasting their blood from childhood wounds. Despite the taste, the potion's concentration was bearable. Natalia's fatigue and injuries healed, significantly boosting her health and alleviating any lingering pain.

"Quite a battle you two had. I dare say you two are among the best players here today," Caspondis said with a smile.

Karina remained silent, but Natalia thanked him.

"I'd like to offer both of you a position within my clan. Would you be interested?"

The crowds were outraged, but remained calm. None dared to question the decision, as they had witnessed Karina and Natalia's hard work. Any clan would be lucky to have them.

Karina's expression brightened, mirroring Natalia's smile.

"I'll take that as a yes?" Caspondis replied, his smirk widening.

As the crowds slowly dispersed back to their daily routines and other players continued battling in different zones, Caspondis extended his hand for a handshake, introducing himself, "Nice to meet both of you. My name is Caspondis Ferinrirois, but you can call me Cas."

Natalia, puzzled by the handshake offer, hesitated, prompting Caspondis to realize his mistake. He lowered his arm and bowed respectfully instead.

"You're not Japanese," Natalia observed.

"No, I'm not. I've been living there for 5... no, 6 years now. It's one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen," Caspondis explained.

"I see," Natalia replied, reciprocating with a bow.

Karina, however, remained perplexed by the bowing gesture, finding it odd compared to the familiar handshake. She grasped the concept of a handshake but struggled to understand why bowing was both a form of introduction and apology.

"Japanese?" Karina wondered, glancing between Natalia and Caspondis.

"If you both don't mind, come with me. You both put on the best show today! As a thank you, food's on me!" Caspondis exclaimed, pointing his thumb at himself.

—

The Bleak Cork Tavern, hailed as the finest establishment within the city walls of Farris, was Caspondis's personal favorite. Biased or not, he adored the place for its flavors reminiscent of his home, and he had decided to treat Natalia and Karina to a meal there. Though the two women had barely exchanged words, they shared a sense of unease and awkwardness, having just met Caspondis. However, Caspondis's energetic and easygoing demeanor, always sporting a smile and brimming with enthusiasm, made them both accept his gratitude.

"This place has the best..." Caspondis began, his words momentarily interrupted by the sounds of his enthusiastic chewing. "Meat glazed with honey and seasoned with slight pepper flakes. It's the best I've ever had!"

Despite being the only one eating, Caspondis showed no discomfort. The table was adorned with vegetables, various meats, including seafood—a rare delicacy in this city.

"Take a look at this dish," he gestured, pulling a plate closer. "It's similar to my country's national dish, Lamb stew." Without further ado, he picked up his fork, clearly eager to dig in, his mouth watering. However, before he could indulge, someone approached from behind and playfully slapped the back of his head.

"How many times have I told you to wait for me to eat! Where are your manners? Look, neither of them has eaten yet!" scolded the female player, a beautiful woman with long white hair and fox ears, indicating she was a Kitsune.

"Ah, sorry, sorry, hehe. Have a seat," Caspondis chuckled, rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm sorry if he caused you any trouble," the woman apologized, bowing slightly.

"No, no worries," Natalia replied, while Karina remained silent.

"Nice to meet both of you. My name is Elizabeth, though that's not my real name. But I guess no one uses their real name," Elizabeth introduced herself.

"I'm Natalia."

"I'm Karina."

"I heard you both had an amazing fight! Sorry, I couldn't make it to the plaza to see the outcome, but from what I heard, it was the best one!" Elizabeth exclaimed upon approaching them.

"Excuse me, why did you bring us here?" Karina interjected, getting straight to the point. For her, this level of interaction with heroes was beyond her comfort zone, and she was growing tired of it.

Natalia, less desperate but curious nonetheless, wondered why she and Karina were the only players selected to meet Caspondis out of the 60 or so participants. It all seemed rather strange to her.

"Well, Caspondis should've explained that part, but it looks like he was busy chowing down," Elizabeth remarked, her anger evident. "But, before that, is it true that you are... from this world?" She directed her question at Karina.

"Yes, and what of it? Is that a problem?" Karina's anger emanated from her stare.

"No, not at all! I just wanted to ask because most of the time, this clan goes into dangerous situations, and we who aren't from this world could die and come back, but you guys... don't. So, I wanted to ask if that was something you are comfortable with," Elizabeth explained.

Karina nodded. "Yes, I already told my father that this is my life now, and if I die along the way, I died doing something with grace. I'm not afraid of dying," she boldly stated, crossing her arms.

Elizabeth smiled. "And you, Natalia?"

"Me?"

"Yes, are you okay with knowing that someone from this world is among your comrades in arms?" Elizabeth inquired.

Natalia contemplated her response. "She had a point... the fact that Karina was able to die changed a raid entirely. A mission would be planned out and made sure it was solid, but if Karina could die, that would mean they would have to retreat if the need arose. I mean, I don't want to die either, even if that means paying the penalty, which is far from comparable to what Karina puts on the line. But I would make sure to protect her if she was in my party," Natalia thought.

"It doesn't bother me in the slightest. If I must retreat in a situation in order to make sure Karina's life is spared, so be it."

Karina stared deeply at Natalia, locking eyes with her. She couldn't believe the words that came out of Natalia's mouth, how Natalia was willing to put her life above completing a task. Karina had always hated heroes, except for one, but she was starting to not hate Natalia. These words made her believe that not every hero was the same.

"Well, you pass. You see, before we actually accept any players into our clan, we make sure they are okay with dropping everything in order for someone from here to live. After all, every life matters, even theirs," Elizabeth said, smiling genuinely.

Karina was taken aback by the amount of kindness present among these heroes. She wondered why all heroes weren't like either of these two.

"In fact, we Clandestine Knights have a large number of comrades who are from this world! They are extremely skilled and even help with some of the training we offer. We can't have an arrogant player who only cares about himself within this clan, and your answer was genuine," Caspondis added.

"Another one?" Karina thought, mentally adding another hero to her list of good heroes.

"I thought all heroes were the same..." she pondered.

"I... had no idea" Natalia muttered.

"Yes, and to answer your question, Karina, we've brought you both here because we believe you can help us without having to go through our initial training," Elizabeth stated.

Both Natalia and Karina looked confused, unsure of what help they could possibly offer.

"You both impressed me today. Among the others in the plaza, you two stood out the most with your impressive displays of swordsmanship and experience," Caspondis added, crossing his arms.

"We are in need of people like you, people who can jump right into something without needing to be trained. Right now, we only have 10 of us who are experienced and highly skilled," Elizabeth explained.

"But what for?" Karina inquired.

"Because..." Elizabeth leaned in closer, whispering as she put her hands down on the table they sat at. The room was filled with players and people from this world, but the majority were players. Although the tavern was slightly noisy, their conversation was highly unlikely to be overheard.

"... we think we found a dungeon!" Elizabeth exclaimed in a hushed tone near both of their ears.

"A... What!" Natalia exclaimed, shocked by the revelation.

Karina appeared confused, and Elizabeth gave a smug smile.

"Yes, we believe we're the first to discover one... But shhhh!" Elizabeth finished by putting her index finger up to her lips.

Natalia knew all too well what that meant. She had heard rumors from other players that the game hadn't shown any sign of dungeons despite extensive searches. Many believed the game didn't have any.

"A dungeon can be many things... Either a scary or rewarding thing," Natalia thought.

"So, please keep this a secret because we plan to be the first to enter and collect any loot inside. Of course, for that, we need a trustworthy party!" Elizabeth said, still smiling and close to their ears.

"That's where you two come in. Are you interested?" Caspondis added.