Dungeon of Pride, Laplace

Chapter 875- 90th Floor (3)

One of the seven kings and the supreme chief in charge of the attack on the dungeon stated that the end was near. Yet even after they cleared two more floors which were far more trickier and dangerous than the previous floors, no end of the dungeon could be seen in sight.

In fact, the deeper they went, the stifling the feeling of being choked got. It was unbearable and nerve wracking. However, since they have got so far and exchanged so much blood and sweat to reach this stage, they couldn't back down now. The only option they had was to proceed forward.

 Although the Ogre king tried to rally their morals with his heated speech and promise of a triumphant and beautiful future, it was clear that his words had less of an effect this time compared to the first time.

Fortunately for them, the upcoming floors— the 88th and 89th floors were far more mellow and easier to clear than compared to all the other floors they had cleared so far. It was so much so that the allied clans felt inadvertently more tense than they were on the other floors.

They couldn't be blamed for feeling like this, after all, the previous floors were harrowing enough for them to warrant the caution.

No mutated monsters, no tricky formations, magical traps, special areas, Afflictions or false environment for that case. The floors were so normal with normal monsters that for a long time, the allied clans couldn't come to terms with themselves that they were still inside the same dungeon.

The difference was that stark.

 Thanks to the severe drop in the danger levels, they were able to finally take a breather and compose their resolve and spirits once again. The floors had also provided the allied clans with a safe haven to recover from their exhaustion and the friction that was apparent among the clans.

It also provided them with time to think about their strategy and the abnormality displayed by the dungeon.

Of course, it was not without reason that the floors became far more easier to clear than before even though these floors were placed below the others. If one thought that it was easy to clear, then they would be gravely mistaken and fall for the trap laid by the demon, just like the allied clans did.

Simon looked at the invaders who had just cleared the 89th floor seemingly easily and grinned. The reason why the 88th and the 89th floors were designed to be so easy and had no complex designs and mechanisms like the other floors before it, was because the floors were designed by him to be like that.

The 88th and 89th floors had something in them that the other floors didn't. It was because of the existence of these things that he specifically barred anyone from his side from entering those floors.

The Forest Spring Sprits were denied access to these floors nor any mutated monster or special mechanism was placed here.

It was because it would simply be a waste of resources. The things that were on these floors, were incompatible with others and affected everything around them even things that originated from the dungeon itself.

The very fact that whatever that was inside these floors even affected things from the dungeon, meant that it didn't originate from the dungeon. And in fact, that was the case.

The things that were placed on these floors were although bought from the [Shop], were in fact originally something that could only be purchased from the [Shop] option of the Laplace menu.

That is to say, they were things that didn't belong to the dungeon. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

It was no wonder that it was incompatible with all the things around the dungeon and even affected everything around it. What's more, given the extreme inconspicuous nature of these things, the enemy had no idea that they had already fallen for his traps.

Their faces were excited and jubilant from thinking that the dungeon was finally out of resources to throw at them.

Little did they know that, it was only just the beginning. These floors were the only areas they could breathe in respite. The upcoming floors were far more challenging and dangerous than the ones they have experienced so far.

"Inform Melinda, it is finally time we expand this small chink that appeared on their armour"

Simon commanded. It was time he initiated the next part of his plans. Bea beside him nodded and left to execute his command.

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 89th floor… In front of a large rotating spherical monument, Gil-Garna and the other two kings stood as they observed the construct.

"Are you two sure? This thing does not look like an exit to me?"

The one to ask the question was Yverza. As someone from the race of Terraquake Rhinos who were gifted with strong physical bodies and no talent for magic, he was unable to spot anything special about the construct.

"We are not wrong, this thing is giving off a stable spatial fluctuation. There is no do doubt, it is our exit from this floor. What do you think Shasurna?" Gil-Garna mused and turned towards his fellow seven king beside him.

"I also feel the same. We have already searched the other areas of this floor completely and other than this unique construct, there is no other thing that looks like our ticket to the next floor" Shasurna agreed.

"But how is that thing going to lead us to the next floor? It does not even have stairs or an exit that we can use?" Yverza voiced his doubts.

 Up until now, they had used the stairs every time they descended to the next floor. This time however, things were different. There was no entrance or stairs leading to the next floor, instead, there was this thing that was rotating in a steady and mysterious manner.

 "Just as I thought this thing is indeed trying to pull us in. If I am not mistaken, the place where it wants to pull us in should be the next floor. The place might as well be where the dungeon core is located. It will definitely be guarded by that demon, his subordinates and Melinda. We need to be careful" Gil-Garna cautioned.

"Your race does not possess a shred of talent for magic, there is no way you can sense the vast spatial fluctuation coming off from this thing. Just wait and watch, this is our ticket to the next floor"

 Shasurna replied offhandedly. He then along with Gil-Garna started probing it with their mana and the next second, their eyes widened in surprise.

 "Just as I thought this thing is indeed trying to pull us in. If I am not mistaken, the place where it wants to pull us in should be the next floor. The place might as well be where the dungeon core is located. It will definitely be guarded by that demon, his subordinates and Melinda. We need to be careful" Gil-Garna cautioned.

 Just like they had thought, this unusual construct was none other than a teleportation gate that led to the next floor. Given that the exit was so special and different this time, it led him to believe that dungeon core was not far.

At his command, the allied clans started moving and preparing to descend to the next floor, their spirits high from the rest they just had.

Just as they were preparing to set off, Yverza who was unusually quiet, couldn't help but speak out.

 "Do the both of you also feel a little odd after coming out from that area?"

 He pointed at a network of mountainous caverns in the distance. Although that place was no special area, it was still windingly long with lots of monsters present. To get to the area they were currently in, one must either fly above it in which case they had to deal with aerial monsters or navigate through the cavern.

 He and the others chose to navigate through the winding tunnels and ever since coming out of it, he has been feeling a little odd. However, no matter how much he thought, he couldn't figure out where this feeling originated from.

"Now that you mentioned it, I also had a similar feeling after I cleared the mountainous region. At first, I thought it was just me. But since you are also saying that, there must be something odd" Gil-Garna added thinking things through.

"You guys are worrying too much. It might be the sense of exhilaration for being this close to conquering the dungeon that you are feeling" Shasurna laughed casually dismissing their worries.

The two kings looked at each other before nodding their heads. Shasurna might be right. They were the Seven Kings of this forest, there was hardly anything that could affect them.

And so, brushing off their odd feeling, they proceeded towards the next floor. On the instructions of the three kings, the allied clans roused their mana and probed the teleport gate.

Immediately, a suction force enveloped each and every one of them and with a flash of light, they disappeared from the area.

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Gil-Garna felt an unknown energy envelop every inch of his body before everything around him was covered in white.

How long had passed? When he came back to himself, he found himself inside some kind of chamber that was half flooded with water. Sounds of running streams and splashing water could heard from the distance, evidence that he was not alone.

There was no one beside him, the fellow kings, the ogre clan or the allied army. There was not even a trace of them that could be sensed here.

"Were we teleported randomly all around this floor?" Gil-Garna narrowed his eyes. His body moved at a breakneck speed and his hands erupted into infernal fire that dug into an alligator like monster that jumped at him.

SPLASH… there was a splash of blood and a few dying growls before the alligator like monster succumbed to its fate.