Chapter 176 - Onwards To Conquer The Tomb III
After the talk with Dr. Happy…
Adrian is currently sleeping soundly in a very comfortable bed. To his right was his mother while his father occupied the left. Mina is sitting at Adrian's foot bench. They all looked clam now and are engaging in small talk.
"Mina…I think you should return to the house and guard it for us. There is currently no one there and it is already cramped enough for us in Adrian's hospital room." Adrian's father stated.
"I think I should come home with you as I need to prepare a meal when he wakes up. Dr. Happy did say that once he wakes up, we can already bring him home." Adrian's mother stated as she stood up.
"But I want to stay here. Look at his cute little face. He was cuter when he was a kid and now he looks like a lady killer. Thankfully, he is dense otherwise he would have already brought home a girl or something." Mina stated.
"You would not know this but do you remember when he was competing in a dance competition and won?" Adrian's mother stated as she was suddenly reminded of the event due to Mina's previous statement.
"Why? What happened? I suddenly got curious." Mina replied as her eyes sparkled.
"Well after he won, an agent from some company gave me a calling card and suggested Adrian to audition to become an idol." Adrian's mother said with a light chuckle.
"I mean idols have to sing right but his singing ability is very much average." Mina said as she pointed her index finger towards Adrian.
"Do not point your finger towards your brother. It is bad." Adrian's mother stated as she smacked the back of Mina's hand.
"So did you let him audition?" Mina said as she now used her lips to point towards Adrian.
"Nope, I did not. I guess thinking about it now, maybe I should have and the accident might have never occurred." Adrian's mother stated as she showed a sad smile.
"Okay then let us head home. I know that mom takes like three hours to cook one meal so we better get moving. I still have to help Adrian's friends anyway." Mina stated as she stood up to diffuse the sad atmosphere.
"Finally, I can have peace and quiet around here. I will call you guys if it is time to pick up Adrian." Adrian's father stated as he gave the car keys to his wife. He tried being funny and it worked but his wife is glaring at him though. Guess he is sleeping on the couch tonight.
Mina and Adrian's mother then exited the room as they head towards the car. They were still having slight gossips on the way which is expected of two women who know each other too well.
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"They were sturdier than I originally thought." Levin Cloud stated as he wiped the sweat in his forehead.
"They did have more undead energy circulating on their body after all. Also, I sense a great deal of undead energy seeping from the next room. It might be a mini-boss or something." Creepysoo stated.
"Already! We just passed by a few rooms and it is a mini-boss already. How big is this tomb anyway?" Peridot grumbled.
"Big sis is already on her way. We should wait for her. Are you okay Soleil? You should not push yourself too much. Enjoying the dungeon crawl will make you have a more chance of completing it. At least that is what I heard anyway." Levin Cloud stated.
"I am fine! I must do my best so that when big bro Equinox joins then I can actively join the fight. I just sat on the side lines last time when we were in a party." Soleil replied.
"It is nice to be energetic but too much energy is not good as it will lead you to make mistakes." Vayu stated as he rubbed his daughter's head.
A little while later footsteps can be heard from the previous room. Those in the room then turned their attention towards the door to the previous room as it might be an enemy. They were up in arms but what greeted them is actually a red haired beautiful woman that could enamor any man that glances upon her.
"Sorry that I just came back." Mina stated.
All of them wanted to ask if Equinox was okay but they could not muster up the words. Thankfully, Levin Cloud mustered the strength to voice out the question.
"Is Adrian okay?" Levin Cloud uttered Equinox' real name instead of his in-game name. It just goes to show that he was really worried for his best friend.
Those that have yet to hear Adrian's real name tilted their heads in confusion until Kabrakan explained to them that it is Equinox' real name. They could only react with an "Ahhh" before becoming serious and wait for Solstice's reply.
"You do not need to worry too much. Adrian's game pod just got an error and it glitched which made his game pod smoke a little. He was ejected before a major thing happened. The maintenance crew came and said that it would take more or less five hours to fix his game pod. You guys can relax." Mina said a believable lie.
Mina did not even stutter or did any weird reactions so that even Adrian's friend did not become suspicious. She honestly did not expect to be questioned until the end of the dungeon crawl but they really care for Adrian in the bottom of their hearts.
It warmed her heart a little but she knows as a businesswoman that people like them are more prone to produce failures or mistakes if bothered by something. She could only lie so that their performance will not drop and they fail. She is sorry that she has to hide this information from them but even closest friends must keep some secrets.
"If that were the case then why did he not contact us using his haloswatch?" Levin Cloud asked as he knows that you can contact another person using the haloswatch as it is connected to the game pod.
"Times like this is why I hate smart kids." Mina thought as her brain thought up of a reasonable excuse to give to them.
"It was actually his haloswatch that caught fire. Apparently some hacker managed to glitch it which also made the game pod glitch. Thankfully, the haloswatch was immediately cooldown using the safety protocols of the game pod." Mina replied with a believable tone.
"If that was the case then why did you not return earlier?" Creepysoo blurted out the question which he then felt some tingle on his spine like a wild animal wants to tear him apart.
"I really wanted to return but I was the one who had to go and send Adrian's haloswatch for repairs. I should have not gotten out of my game pod if I knew that would be my fate. To be a lackey that must adhere to the orders of those higher than me a.k.a. my parents." Mina replied and added a dramatic tone in the end like she was wronged or whatever.
"Okay then. Are you ready to proceed to the next room?" Levin Cloud asked Mina.
"Yeah. Thankfully you guys already alarmed me about the trap rooms or else I would have died a few times." Mina replied.
"How did you pass through to the trap rooms quickly anyway?" Vayu asked as he was curious.
"I just turned into a blood mist and whizzed right through. Vampires have that special ability. I can also transform into other creatures. I am still new to this whole vampire thing and they told me I was not ready for it so I did not bother to even learn it yet." Mina replied.
"Awesome! Can you show me?" Creepysoo said as he popped his head near Mina and showed his sparkling eyes.
"Maybe next time. That skill uses a lot of mana to use and can only be used out of combat." Mina said as he calmed down Creepysoo.
The group then decided to proceed to the next room when Mina recovered her mana. The room they entered is vastly different compared to the previous room. It looked like a big event hall as there was chandeliers and other caricatures fastened on the wall. It was vast that from their guess about two thousand people could fit inside.
Whoever built this tomb really outdone himself which made the whole party happy. It made them happy because a luxurious tomb means luxurious rewards. The other end of the room also contained the stairs that reflects brilliant light. It looked like the steps were made from a diamond like material.
The stairs look beautiful except for one thing that is currently standing on the middle of it. A hooded figure that is radiating this dirty black aura. Creepysoo who saw this could only utter one word as he knows what king of undead it was.
"Lich!"