Following the orders of the Labyrinth Lord Labrynth, Allen safely passed through the sixth floor under the short-range escort of the maid Arianna and stepped onto the staircase leading to the fifth floor.
Upon entering the fifth floor, the pungent smell of rotting plants and sulfur assaulted his senses, with visible green miasma hanging in the air above the Crystal Fungus Swamp.
Allen trudged step by step through the sticky swamp, each footstep making a disgusting squelching sound.
He pressed his lips together, daring only to breathe in the smallest amounts, afraid of inhaling too much of the poisonous gas.
Ahead of him were the two ivory-white killing Dolls.
They moved with heavy yet steady strides, calmly clearing a path through the knee-deep mud, seemingly oblivious to the harsh surroundings.
This was the territory of the lord-level Monster, the Swamp Mud Dragon–a place fraught with danger.
He recalled how his Silver Blade Squad had risked their lives here multiple times, battling various poisonous creatures in search of an antidote for swamp toxins.
Suddenly, a series of foul-smelling bubbles gurgled up from a pitch-black mud pit nearby.
In the next moment, a Swamp Frog, as large as a small calf, burst out of the mud pit, its pus-covered skin appearing particularly grotesque under the dim light.
It opened its bloody maw, splattering foul-smelling saliva as it lunged straight at Allen!
With a glance from the corner of his eye, the combat instincts honed over the years as an adventurer took over his body.
He didn't even have time to think before Mana surged down his arm toward the tip of his Staff.
[Frost Spell]
With a low shout, refined Mana instantly transformed into frigid ice elements.
A visible wave of icy frost surged forth like a tide, instantly enveloping the Swamp Frog mid-air.
Crack–crackkk
A teeth-grating freezing sound echoed.
From the disgusting droplets on the frog monster's skin to the poisonous blood flowing in its veins, the bone-chilling cold seeped inward inch by inch.
In just one second, the ferocious frog monster turned into a lifelike ice sculpture, frozen in its pouncing posture before crashing to the ground and shattering into pieces.
The Swamp Frog was merely a low-tier existence in the fifth-floor swamp ecosystem, abundant in numbers, with its only value lying in its skin, which could be refined into specialized antidotes.
For adventurers capable of reaching this floor alone, killing them was nothing more than a trivial task.
Allen continued forward expressionlessly, not even bothering to glance at the pile of shattered ice.
However, right at that moment.
"Hey, could you hurry up? (￣^￣)"
A soft yet distinctly disdainful young girl's voice abruptly rang out deep within his mind.
The voice was as sweet as honey, but to Allen's ears, it was no less terrifying than the whispers of the most dreadful demon!
Allen shuddered, nearly stumbling and falling into a mud pit.
Telepathy?!
The color drained from his face, and cold sweat instantly broke out.
He had thought that once he left that terrifying Labyrinth, the Labyrinth Lord would no longer be able to monitor him, and he might even find a way to escape her control along the journey.
However, he never expected that she could engage in Remote Telepathic Communication!
In that instant, the faint flicker of hope that had just begun to form in his heart was extinguished, as if doused by a bucket of ice water.
"Yes, yes! I'll–"
He was terrified out of his wits. While frantically organizing respectful words in his mind, he desperately quickened his pace, nodding repeatedly in agreement, not even daring to take a deep breath.
Abruptly, before he could finish his plea for mercy, that sweet voice interrupted him again.
"Cross the fifth floor within half an hour, or else... hehe, not only will your code be gone, but you'll be thrown into the furnace along with it. (≧∇≦)"
Labrynth issued a bone-chilling threat in the cutest tone.
Allen felt a chill shoot straight from his tailbone to the crown of his head, and his back was instantly soaked with cold sweat.
He no longer dared to slack off in the slightest. Like a madman, he sprinted through the knee-deep swamp, wishing his parents had given him two more legs.
The black and muddy water splashed high from his frantic footsteps, spraying everywhere.
With the unstoppable path-clearing of the two Pure White Dolls, he eventually managed to cross this dangerous swamp swiftly, though not without a scare.
When he stepped onto the solid stone steps leading to the fourth floor, he collapsed to the ground as if drained, feeling half his life had slipped away.
"Hehe, not bad at all. You really crossed the fifth floor within half an hour."
Labrynth's amused voice echoed in his mind once more.
Allen's tightly wound nerves suddenly relaxed. Propping himself up against the cold stone wall of the steps with one hand and clutching his chest with the other, he gasped for breath like a dehydrated fish.
In the miasma-filled swamp, he couldn't breathe deeply, yet he had been forced by that little demon to sprint at his limit. He had relied on holding his breath the whole way, nearly suffocating himself to death.
After resting for a moment, Allen shakily stood up and entered the fourth floor, shrouded in thick fog and dark rivers–the Misty Water Vein.
The air here was extremely humid, as if it could be wrung out. Everything around was a blur of white, with visibility so frighteningly low that one couldn't distinguish people from animals beyond three meters.
Instinctively lowering his voice, Allen cautiously explained through the Mental Brand on his face:
"My Lord, this is the territory of the Deepwater Nagas. They are skilled at using songs to bewitch people."
Meanwhile, far away in the bedroom of the sixth-floor Ivory Labyrinth, Labrynth comfortably turned over on her velvet bed. The maid Arianna promptly and thoughtfully handed her a cup of milk squeezed from a Cow-type Monster.
"Oh? Deepwater Nagas? That sounds like fun."
She took small sips of milk while observing her surroundings with great interest through the Doll's vision.
Just then, from deep within the thick fog, a hauntingly ethereal lament drifted over.
The song was melodious and sorrowfully beautiful, unlike any sound from the mortal world. It seemed to pierce straight through one's soul, stirring up deep-seated sorrows and desires, making one irresistibly want to lose oneself in it and seek out the source of the singing.
The moment Allen heard the song, his eyes grew somewhat dazed.
He felt his consciousness being slowly drawn away by an invisible force. His body was out of control, and all he wanted was to stride toward the depths of the dark river where the song originated, to merge with the singer.
"Not good!"
As an experienced Silver Rank mage, Allen, in the last second before his consciousness fully succumbed, relied on his strong willpower to bite his own tongue hard!
A sharp pain, like an electric current, shot through his entire body, jolting him back to clarity.
The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth, sharpening his senses and leaving no room for relaxation.
Allen hastily raised his trembling hands, clamping them tightly over his ears.
Just then, a gentle breeze swept through, dispersing part of the dense fog ahead and suddenly clearing his view.
Not far ahead, seated on a moss-covered stone pillar, was a figure.
A breathtakingly beautiful humanoid monster, with a cascade of silver-gray, luxurious long curls that shimmered with an ethereal glow in the dim light.
Only one of her eyes was visible, a deep, icy blue like a frozen flower embedded in the sky, as brilliant as a gemstone.
A delicate silver-gray tiara adorned her head, her ears were pointed like an elf's, and she bore some fin-like features.
"This... this is..."
The moment Allen clearly saw the creature, his jaw nearly dropped in shock.
He rubbed his eyes vigorously, hardly believing what he was seeing, his breath catching in his throat.
What kind of monster is this?!
Allen screamed inwardly.
He would swear on his honor as a mage that in the fifty years the Adventurers' Guild of Blackedge Town had explored the Blackedge Dungeon, combing through all historical records, there had never been any mention of such a humanoid monster!
This was absolutely news that could shake the entire Blackedge Town!
Labrynth heard Allen's thoughts and grew intrigued.
"A hidden monster? Let me see. (o^▴^o)"
She set down her milk glass and leaned closer to the holographic projection with curiosity.
Through the emotionless vision of the Pure White Doll, she locked eyes with the mysterious humanoid monster from afar.
The monster seemed to have noticed the two uninvited guests as well, stopping her song.
She tilted her head, a flicker of confusion flashing in her clear, icy blue eyes as she curiously examined the two tall, pristine-white stone figures before her.
After a careful assessment, she realized that these two Pure White Dolls showed no signs of life–they were merely moving lumps of stone.
Faced with two lifeless objects, she seemed to lose all interest in an instant. With a light leap, she plunged into the dark river below with a soft splash, vanishing without a trace.
Although Labrynth found the monster beautiful and fascinating, she had more pressing matters at hand and temporarily shifted her focus.
"Stop staring. Keep moving forward."
Upon receiving the command, Allen dared not delay for even a moment. He immediately composed himself and followed closely behind the two Pure White Dolls as they continued their ascent.
Under the escort of the Pure White Dolls, whose physical defense and sheer combat prowess were nothing short of monstrous, Allen's journey became remarkably smooth. No monster could hinder their progress in the slightest.
They arrived at the third floor: the Weathered Canyon.
Here, howling winds filled the air, carrying invisible natural wind blades sharp enough to slice through metal; An ordinary Iron Rank adventurer, if careless, could be shredded to pieces before they realized.
Yet, the two Pure White Dolls strode boldly at the forefront, allowing the wind blades–capable of cutting through gold and stone–to strike their bodies.
Sparks flew as the blades met the hard Silver Citadel Stone, but not even a single white mark was left behind.
Overhead, several massive Storm Wyverns circled, intending to make a meal of the intruders. With piercing shrieks, they swooped down.
But when they saw one of the Pure White Dolls casually snap a roadside boulder weighing several tons in half as easily as breaking a biscuit,
These ferocious aerial overlords were scared out of their wits, shrieking and flapping their wings as they fled the canyon without looking back, not daring to challenge them.
Allen, hiding behind the broad backs of the Dolls, passed through the Weathered Canyon unscathed.
Next, they arrived at the second floor, the Gloomy Forest, where towering ancient trees blotted out the sky–the territory of the Goblin Tribe.
"Gibberish!"
A group of Goblins wielding crude bone clubs and rusty iron knives leaped out from the bushes, blocking their path with strange cries, appearing quite arrogant.
The Pure White Dolls showed no intention of stopping; they didn't even alter their stride. As they passed the Goblins, they merely swung their thick arms casually.
Thud. Thud. Thud–
Only a few dull, heart-stopping thuds were heard. The Goblins at the front didn't even have time to scream.
Their bodies were instantly crushed into pulp by that irresistible, immense force, splattering red and white everywhere in a gruesome scene.
The remaining Goblin squad was utterly terrified by this bloody and brutal sight.
Their weapons clattered to the ground, their green faces etched with extreme fear. They screamed and scattered in all directions, wishing they had more legs to run with.
Finally, they passed through the first floor, the Glimmer Mine.
With heavy footsteps, the Pure White Dolls crushed all the Low-Level Monsters daring to approach along the way, such as Slimes and Giant Worms, into debris on the ground.
Allen took a deep breath, watching the bright light at the end of the mine tunnel grow closer and closer, his heart pounding with excitement.
He quickened his pace, passing through the final stretch of the tunnel, even exchanging brief greetings with a few adventurers preparing to head deeper.
At last, after the routine inspection by the exit guards, Allen stepped onto the surface land as he had longed for.
He trembled with excitement, his eyes instantly reddening.
Alive… He had finally survived and walked out of that bone-grinding Dungeon, returning to the human world!
When the first warm ray of sunlight fell on his face, Allen's legs went weak, nearly buckling beneath him.
He spread his arms wide, greedily breathing in the fresh, grassy-scented surface air, feeling the gentle caress of the breeze.
This feeling of surviving a disaster felt unreal. He had once believed he would die in that sunless underground, becoming food for some Monster or being thrown into the furnace by that Demon Castle Lord.
However, just as Allen thought he had regained his freedom and was about to roar at the sky, Labrynth's clear and pleasant voice, tinged with undisguised mockery, timely echoed in his mind.
"Alright, cut out that foolish look. (￣▽￣)"
These words poured like a bucket of ice water over him from head to toe, shattering all his wishful thinking and yanking him from his heavenly dream back into the cold, harsh reality.
Allen's body stiffened abruptly, the ecstatic smile of survival on his face freezing.
He recalled the strange silver crack on his cheek, remembered the terrifying city lord seated upon the throne, and a chill that pierced to the bone sent shivers down his spine.
"Remember your mission.
"Disguise yourself as a survivor who narrowly escaped death, take your 'Alchemical Golem,' and knock on the doors of the Adventurers' Guild. (^ω^)"
Allen knew he had no right to refuse… his life was firmly in the hands of that demon.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm his fluctuating emotions.
He had to, and could only, flawlessly complete the task assigned by the city lord.
Otherwise, what awaited him would be endless torment far more terrifying than death.
Allen reached into his pocket, gripping the glowing Magic Crystal inside.
This was what Labrynth had given him–a crucial prop to disguise as an Alchemist Inheritance Token.
He slowly turned his head, looking at the two Pure White Dolls beside him, quickly adjusting his state, erasing all personal emotions from his face, and preparing to begin his performance.
Allen sighed in his heart. He took one last glance in the direction of Blackedge Town, his gaze gradually growing resolute, sorrowful, and complex.
He took the first step.
"Forgive me, for I must become a traitor to magic!"
...
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