Silas sighed. He knew that without his help, his friends would be in danger. "I'm going in," he told the other three. "Don't get involved unless we need you."
He glanced at Draven and gave a slight nod, a silent promise not to use any technique that would expose his true power. Then, he leaped to join Rhys and Jacob.
They were both only at levels 9 and 8, so Silas quickly laid out a plan. "I'll hit it with my lightning element. That should stun it for a few seconds."
He turned to Jacob. "You need to protect us from the venom with your water element. Create water balls to destroy its venom, and do some damage when you can." Jacob nodded, his gaze already fixed on the giant snake.
Silas looked at Rhys. "You'll be the main damage dealer. Among us, you're the only one who can face that snake head-on. Use your special sword technique to cut it in half." Rhys's eyes were focused. He nodded in firm agreement.
In seconds, Silas was near the snake. He concentrated lightning around his fist and hurled it forward.
Enraged, the snake immediately spat a huge glob of venom at him. But Jacob was ready. He launched massive water balls that intercepted and neutralized every drop of the venomous spray. The snake, feeling cornered, tried to lunge at Jacob, but at that exact moment, the lightning ball slammed into its body, stunning it.
Jacob immediately switched from defense to offense, creating four or five sharp water blades and sending them slicing into the giant snake. Each blade found its mark, leaving small cuts on its tough hide.
Just as the snake was about to recover, Silas hit it with another lightning ball, stunning it again.
Rhys had been waiting for this moment. He moved with precise footsteps, his sword glowing with a brilliant light. As he executed a beautiful, complex technique, a massive shadow of a sword formed in the air. With a single slash, he severed the snake's head from its body.
Kael, who had been watching the fight intently, frowned. "That sword technique…" he murmured. "I've seen it somewhere before."
Theron commented, "That's definitely not a sword style some commoner at level 9 can use."
Draven nodded in agreement. "Yes. As a commoner myself, I had to find my sword technique in an A-rank dungeon."
Kael now knew for sure. Just like Silas, Rhys was hiding a huge secret and it probably wasn't a simple one.
The snake's body vanished, and in its place, the loot appeared; snake venom sacks, snake leather, and a pair of snake fangs.
They collected the treasures in their space pouches. Silas gained some experience, but it wasn't enough to reach level 16. For Jacob and Rhys, however, it was a huge gain. Both of them leveled up, with Jacob hitting level 9 and Rhys reaching level 10.
Now it was time to find the treasure box. After about five minutes of searching, they found it.
Jacob opened the box, and his face lit up. It was full of coins; 400 gold, 643 silver, and 1231 bronze.
The moment they saw the amount, Silas and Rhys lost interest. For them, that much money was like pocket change.
"Rhys! We're gonna be rich! Hahaha!" Jacob said excitedly. But when he saw the disgusted looks on his friends' faces, he grew confused. Why didn't they like the treasure?
Rhys answered, "That small amount of money made you so excited? Jacob, just wait a few months. You'll probably feel disgusted by it soon, too."
Theron, who had been watching from the side, chuckled. "Actually, my reaction was the same as Jacob's when I first saw the amount in these treasure boxes."
Kael rolled his eyes. "As if you're any different now. You'd be the first one to jump if you saw a single gold coin."
Draven scratched his head in embarrassment. "It's normal for us commoners," he said. "We lack money, so..." Theron nodded in agreement.
Silas looked at the treasure box and sighed. "I've already lost interest in that box. Just take it, Jacob."
Confused, Jacob pointed to himself. "Me? No, I can't take the full amount! You both contributed..."
Before he could continue, Rhys took out a space pouch and threw it to him. Jacob caught it, confused. "What do you want..."
"Just check inside," Rhys said without looking at him, "and then tell me if I need any of the money from that box."
Jacob peered inside the space pouch. The next second, he froze. He saw millions upon millions of gold coins glittering within. He gulped, handed the pouch back to Rhys, and said, "Alright, I'll take this then. If you need it in the future, just ask me…"
"Tsk," Rhys said, annoyed. "Just treat us to a meal later."
After that, they left through the small exit vortex that appeared in the boss room. They found two more E-rank dungeons. This time, Silas barely helped, only stepping in when they fought a level 15 Shadow Wolf boss and a level 14 Giant Two-Horned Rabbit.
The experience paid off. Jacob reached level 11, and Rhys hit level 12. Their fighting ability had improved immensely; they could now move freely and even evade some of the monsters' attacks.
Silas suggested, "Why don't we try a D-rank dungeon?"
Draven nodded. "Now that they're at least level 11, they should be able to fight alongside us in a D-rank dungeon. And we'll be there to help if they need it."
Kael agreed. "I was going to suggest the same. They've gained enough experience to fight D-rank monsters."
But Theron frowned. Jacob was only level 11, the lowest among them. He couldn't stand the thought of his boyfriend getting hurt by those filthy monsters. "Why don't we wait for a few more E-rank runs?" he said. "Jacob is still at level 11. If he gets hurt..."
"Theron!" Jacob interrupted. "I can fight D-rank monsters. Even if I'm only level 11, I can fight opponents at a much higher level."
"But..." Theron started, still unwilling.
"No buts!" Jacob insisted. "Silas, Rhys, please! Let's go to a D-rank one."
Silas and Rhys both nodded. Draven and Kael began searching for the D-rank dungeons they had marked earlier to see if any were still active. Kael found one almost immediately, a low-level D-rank dungeon.
They all walked towards the entrance, a swirling blue vortex about fifteen feet tall.
"Why is the color different?" Jacob asked.
Theron answered, "The color changes for each rank. The height indicates the level of the dungeon. This one is a low-level D-rank. The colors range from purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, and finally red for the highest ranks."
Jacob looked at the huge vortex, waiting for the others to go in. One by one, Silas, Rhys, Draven, Kael, Jacob, and Theron all entered the dungeon.
Meanwhile, it was nighttime in the village, and finding rooms for all the villagers had proven difficult. The general had managed, but it meant cramming several people into a single room.
Aleric had discovered the arrangement and was displeased, but there was little he could do. The general had, of course, found him a much larger room. He was a noble, after all, and according to the general's logic, a noble could not possibly stay with commoners.
Leaving his room, Aleric found Torin sitting alone on a balcony, staring out into the night. He walked over and sat beside him. "Are you missing your village?" he asked softly.
Torin nodded, looking at Aleric for a few seconds before his gaze drifted back to the moon hanging high above them.
"Aleric," he said.
"Hm?" Aleric hummed, turning to him.
"Thank you for saving the villagers," Torin said, still not looking at him. "If... if they weren't safe, I don't think I could have ever forgiven myself."
Aleric placed a hand on Torin's shoulder. "Don't worry about that. How could I leave them to die, when they were the ones who saved me during my worst time?"
A small smile touched Torin's lips.
"Did you get a room for yourself?" Aleric asked.
Torin nodded. "Yes. David and the others are already asleep. I'll go back in a little while."
Aleric frowned. The thought of Torin sharing a room with David and the others irritated him more than he expected. Without thinking, he said, "Come with me to my room. You'll stay there tonight."
Torin stiffened at the offer, stammering, "How... how could I? Aleric, you are a noble. It's an extreme honor that I can even speak to you so freely when we're alone. But I can't in front of people. Only after arriving here did I learn about your family and your rank..."
Before he could finish, Aleric's frown deepened. "Didn't you help me when I was injured? Didn't we already spend days together in the same room? Just stop overthinking and come with me."
He took Torin's hand and led him into the private room that had been arranged for him.
Torin had no chance to refuse. Aleric was much stronger, and he simply dragged him inside the room.
The room was simple, as one would expect in an advanced village. It held a bed with proper bedding, a small table beside it with a magically infused lamp, but no sofas or other furniture.
Only then did Aleric realize the awkwardness of his own offer. He looked at the single bed and, pointing toward it, said, "Go on, sleep on the bed. I'll take the floor."
Torin immediately refused. "How can I sleep on the bed while you're on the floor? That's impossible. It's unacceptable."
Aleric frowned. "Didn't you let me sleep on the bed while you stayed on the floor back in Tiger Village? Are you going to reject my offer now?"
Torin's own brow furrowed. "Then you can sleep on the bed, too," he mumbled. "The bed is bigger than my entire room."
Aleric considered it for a moment, then nodded.
They both laid down on the bed, but the night was far from comfortable.
For Torin, something had changed. He didn't know what was happening, but his heart was beating like crazy. Sharing a bed with Aleric made him feel incredibly vulnerable.
Aleric couldn't sleep either. He stared at Torin's back, unable to tell if the other man was asleep. The atmosphere felt completely different from their time in Tiger Village. He didn't understand why he had insisted on bringing Torin to his room, or why the thought of Torin sharing a room with David had bothered him so much.
"Are you asleep?" Aleric asked into the silence.
No answer came. A minute passed, then two. Torin's heart pounded in his chest. He had heard Aleric the moment the words left his mouth, but he had no idea what to say.
After a full two minutes, he finally answered, his voice quiet. "I'm still awake."
Aleric smiled. "Then look at me."