"Are you sure the time's up?"
Gapar frowned as he spoke. Roger's earth-shattering howl had stunned him rigid for a full two seconds. That kid could scream louder than a Tigrex.
Those who practice the sword all pursue a certain state—unity between man and nature. It can also be called enlightenment. The fastest way to trigger enlightenment is meditation after battle.
Just moments ago, he had finally felt the faint stirrings of insight. It had been years since he'd experienced anything like that. And for some reason, here in the Sein Dungeon, the feeling had suddenly come to him.
It was probably because he had spent the entire day fighting wits with things he had never seen before, only to afterward sit beside a massive bonfire and feel a profound sense of security. The contrast between passion and safety had produced a strange reaction—he had almost grasped something.
Bonfire… fire…
The thing I'm about to comprehend should be named after fire. What should I call it? The Will of Fire?
And then Roger's scream blew that feeling clean away.
He practically wanted to slap the guy to death.
Tursey conjured an hourglass in midair. The sand in the upper chamber had already completely drained.
"If my timing magic hasn't malfunctioned," she said calmly, "then yes—it's already past the dungeon's closing time."
Could a professor of magic's spell malfunction? Especially something as simple as a timekeeping hourglass? The odds were minuscule.
Yet Gapar couldn't help but consider the possibility—they might truly be unable to leave.
Strange. While some dungeons operated nonstop, twenty-four hours a day, Sein had always been known for closing precisely on time. It never worked overtime.
So what was going on today? Was another mutation about to occur?
If Sein Dungeon really became open around the clock, that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. It would mean far more time to explore each time they entered.
But they were exhausted today. They had taken in too many new things—far too many.
They were tired.
Right now, the only comfort they longed for was a warm bedroom, a soft bed, and a full night's sleep.
"Can the transfer token still be used?"
Gapar took out the transfer token that led to the true magic classroom region. He infused it with mana.
Nothing happened.
Clearly, that wasn't going to work.
Tursey fell into thought. Generally speaking, there were three common ways to leave a dungeon:
1. Die and be teleported out.
2. Be forcibly expelled at closing time.
3. Exit through the original portal.
The first option was far too disgraceful for them.
The second was clearly no longer functioning.
Which left the third…
They had slipped past Moongram's seal to get here.
There was no portal.
"There must be some kind of exit hidden somewhere," Tursey said. "Perhaps another seal. Or maybe an undiscovered teleportation gate."
"Then let's search," Gapar proposed.
Search they must. None of them had any intention of spending the rest of their lives trapped inside Sein Dungeon.
But where should they even begin looking?
Why not ask someone?
"Oh, it's you—my regular customers. Welcome."
Kale greeted them in his usual routine tone.
Though… his voice seemed slightly more animated than before.
Tursey cautiously asked whether he knew of any way to reach the outside world.
Kale's reaction was strange.
He froze.
For a moment, it was as though something had glitched inside him—his body went completely still.
What's going on? Did I accidentally shatter this Remnant's worldview?
But the abnormality lasted only a few seconds before he responded.
"Ah, I see. You must have wandered into this research district by mistake. That would explain why you seem to know nothing about this place."
Maybe it was just their imagination, but Kale's tone now sounded noticeably livelier.
"The professors and students stopped leaving this place long ago. However… I have heard certain rumors about methods of escape."
Everyone immediately perked up.
"It's said that a mage who still longed for life outside secretly created a teleportation gate and hid it somewhere in Liurnia of the Lake. I have a rough guess about its location… but—"
"But?" Roger pressed.
"But there are several possible locations."
He pointed in the direction of Raya Lucaria Academy.
"It might be hidden somewhere inside the academy."
"Or atop the eastern mountain."
"Or deep within the lake to the northwest."
If this were a game, dialogue options would surely appear now, allowing the player to ask about each direction in detail.
But that would feel like padding the playtime. So "Kale" continued directly.
"I know nothing about the academy's interior. You'll have to explore it yourselves. Be careful not to alert the masses of mages."
"If you head toward the northwestern lake, go during the day. Sunlight suppresses many creatures born of the night."
"And if you intend to climb the eastern mountain, travel northeast from here. After some distance, you'll find a broken great bridge leading upward. Climbing from there is far easier than scaling the mountain directly."
The clues were laid out plainly.
Tursey tried asking more questions, but Kale had already reverted to repeating himself. Although his tone now carried more emotion than before, repetition was still repetition—duller than a blank-faced cat.
She shook her head.
That was all they were going to get.
To show her gratitude, she spent another batch of souls at his shop.
That was a professor's dignity.
"So where do we go first?" Roger asked.
"A teleportation gate to the outside world hidden inside the academy…" Tursey murmured. "Doesn't that sound a little strange?"
Wouldn't you normally hide something like that as far away from the academy as possible? Unless the creator was going for a "hidden in plain sight" strategy.
Then again, mages were notoriously inscrutable.
Most famous mages could easily qualify as hardcore lunatics.
In the end, they decided to head for Raya Lucaria Academy.
It had originally been tomorrow's objective anyway. If the teleportation gate really might be inside, they might as well explore it now.
Their footsteps gradually faded into the distance.
Kale remained seated in silence until he confirmed, through some unknown means, that they had truly left.
Only then did he stretch his stiff arms and mutter to himself.
"Design oversight. Forgot to leave them clues about the teleportation gate."
Wadd rolled his neck.
He had noticed the oversight earlier—that was why he had logged in midway and temporarily played the role of an NPC.
In truth, once the great safe zone of the Lake was established, a teleportation magic circle would appear in the town center, allowing people to return directly outside.
However, his construction list didn't include teleportation magic circles.
The actual method involved nesting teleport trap chests inside one another, eventually linking them to a real portal elsewhere in order to simulate the effect.
So why not simply place the portal directly in the safe zone?
There was a reason.
For the sake of stylistic consistency, each themed layer of the dungeon was connected by identical "teleportation magic circles."
However, only Liurnia—the first layer—could send adventurers back to the outside world.
All other layers could only transport players up or down one layer at a time.
Thus, if someone delved too deeply into the Val Dungeon, climbing back up would become increasingly difficult.
Each ascended layer would drain Mana. Ascending more than three layers within a short time would trigger certain events.
Descending, however, would grant dungeon rewards.
The true portal of Val Dungeon lay within the deep northwestern lake he had mentioned.
Realistically, only Gapar's group would use it this time. Later adventurers would simply enter and exit through the academy gate town as normal.
A difference in experience between pioneers and those who came after.
"Though it seems they went straight to the academy… not a problem."
"They can't get through the main gate anyway. They'll still have to head northwest to find the key."
"And if they can't get out after searching for a while, that's fine too. Let them experience what it's like to live inside a dungeon."
Wadd stood up, dispelled his disguise, reset a new Kale in place, and teleported back to the city lord's chamber.
Not long after he left, several somewhat familiar voices echoed through the academy gate town.
"Boss, look! There's someone over there—let's check it out!"
"Maru, don't shout so loud. I can hear you…"
A handsome blond young man and his companions arrived at Liurnia of the Lake for the second time.
(***)
Raya Lucaria Academy.
After all the previous buildup, it had already become irresistibly alluring.
And now that they beheld it in its full glory, no one could possibly feel disappointed.
Its architecture perfectly embodied every fantasy of a "magic academy"—fantastical, beautiful, mysterious.
Compared to it, even the headquarters of the Magic Association looked like a rustic backwater.
In its era, this place must have been a pilgrimage site for all students of magic.
But reaching it was anything but easy.
You had to evade the disguised Shrimp Lord and Crab Lord.
Avoid disturbing the balloon-borne puppet soldiers drifting overhead.
Resist laughing at the bizarre-faced Albinaurics.
Dodge swarms of spirits and spectral riders—while remaining wary of even more terrifying monstrosities that might appear.
If you survived all that, congratulations.
The academy was built atop a cliff.
Which meant you still had to climb.
The ascent was no easier.
Carian soldiers and flame chariots formed an impenetrable defensive line.
In the shadows lurked knights known as "Bloodhounds," ready to leap out and slash you apart at any moment.
Skipping class was not an option.
Trying to fly straight up the cliff?
The strangely out-of-place rat archers hidden above would unleash devastating volleys. In fact, you wouldn't even make it that far—the big-mouthed imps stationed before them would already teach any aspiring flyers a harsh lesson.
Tursey clutched her cannon-torn clothing, grinding her teeth in fury.
She never should have listened to Roger about using flight magic.
After enduring the baptism of cannons and arrows, most challengers would obediently face the Carian soldiers head-on—and soon discover that advancing step by step was actually the easiest route.
There might be hidden shortcuts that reduced the difficulty.
But none had been discovered yet.
After the dog finished licking—no, wait—after the discouraged brother drained his elemental flasks…
After the katana wielder successfully executed his Dragon Ascension…
After Soul Five completed his marathon sprint…
The group finally stood before the towering gates of the academy.
Touching the seal triggered a familiar message.
[You're not qualified. You're not qualified.]
Gapar's eyes reddened.
He drew his sword and slashed at it.
The blade rebounded instantly.
This was the second time.
The second time they had suffered such outrageous mockery.
"Wait—there's a map in this corpse's arms," Tursey suddenly said.