"Right."
With that, Vihera, who had been clinging to Set's leg, dropped down onto the dungeon floor.
The interior of the cavern was reasonably wide, with enough space for Set to move around freely, but the ceiling was only about three meters high—not particularly tall.
With some effort, Set might be able to fly, but given the low ceiling, it wouldn't be able to build up enough speed for a diving attack.
Because of this, those who had been clinging to Set had practically leapt into the dungeon from outside.
"Hmm. From what I can see, there doesn't appear to be anything particularly abnormal. ...Of course, the very fact that a dungeon exists in the face of a cliff is clearly abnormal in itself."
Elena murmured as she surveyed their surroundings, faintly furrowing her brow at the sight of two Goblin corpses lying at the edge of the passage.
Vihera, brimming with anticipation at the possibility of facing a powerful foe, flashed a smile and spoke up.
"But this is still just the entrance, right? Then it's only natural that there's nothing out of the ordinary."
"The dungeon I challenged before got completely flooded the moment I stepped inside."
Reliu said this in response to Elena and Vihera's words, and those who imagined the scene grimaced.
Since they were taking on a dungeon, they had no intention of balking at something as trivial as getting wet.
Still, finding yourself in that kind of situation the instant you entered a dungeon was quite effective at sapping your motivation.
"Glad we don't have to deal with anything like that."
"Yeah. A dungeon on a cliff face is a bit strange, but once you're inside, it's not so bad. ...Not that I know what lies further ahead. So, Rei—what formation are we going with? You're the party leader, so I'll follow your orders."
"Alright. Byune takes the front."
"Mm."
At Rei's words, Byune nodded expressionlessly. Though it didn't show on her face, even Rei could tell she was raring to go.
"Next is Vihera."
Ordinarily, someone with Vihera's close-combat fighting style wouldn't be placed in a position like this.
However, Vihera was also the only one who could accurately interpret Byune's words.
Furthermore, Vihera's instantaneous movement speed was swift. Against an opponent wielding a weapon, she could slip inside their guard in an instant—right into her own attack range.
"Well, can't be helped. Leave it to me."
Since Vihera understood the situation with Byune, she accepted the role without complaint.
In practice, if Byune discovered a trap that required detailed explanation, someone would need to provide it. Whether they wanted to or not, in a dungeon, being able to do so in a critical moment could mean the difference between life and death.
"Then, Reliu behind her."
"Me? Honestly, I don't think having me in the middle would be much use."
"You've got that Wind Slash skill, right?"
When Rei mentioned the skill that resembled his own Flying Slash, Reliu gave a reluctant nod.
"If you say so, fine. ...Just keep in mind, I can use Wind Slash a few times in a row, but I can't spam it endlessly. Remember that."
"Got it. ...After Reliu, Set and Marina. Marina can provide support from the rear with Spirit Magic, and Set will keep an eye out for anything suspicious while guarding Marina."
"Gruu!"
"Understood."
The Spirit Magic Marina specialized in involved wind and water. In that sense, using Water Spirit Magic inside this dungeon would be difficult.
Even so, since the dungeon was located high up on a cliff face, a fair amount of wind made its way inside—which was a relief for Marina.
Of course, she could also use Earth Spirit Magic, though not as proficiently as wind or water.
"And Elena and I take the rear."
Honestly, Rei could handle most roles no matter where he was positioned. Naturally, he couldn't detect traps the way Byune could.
At long range and mid-range, he had magic, skills, and spear throwing. At close range, he could fight in melee without issue.
No one objected to Rei's arrangement.
"Alright, let's get moving. I don't expect us to conquer the entire dungeon in a single day, but I'd like to make some headway."
At Rei's words, the party nodded and began advancing into the dungeon.
Of course, since they had only just entered, there shouldn't be any major traps in place.
Monsters like Goblins and Cobolts did appear, but the party simply killed them, extracted only the Magic Stones, and left the corpses where they lay.
The only exception was Orcs—whenever they killed one, they stored the carcass inside the Misty Ring.
(Still, the fact that we're killing them here means the guys on the ground waiting for monsters to fall are going to be waiting in vain, huh? ...Well, that doesn't mean we can just let the monsters be.)
Even if left alone, the monsters would attack Rei and his party. The option of not killing them and letting themselves be attacked didn't exist in Rei's—or anyone else's—mind here.
"Mm!"
As they walked, Byune, leading the way, gave a small utterance. Vihera immediately explained what it meant.
"It's a trap."
Rei and the others had come to reasonably understand Byune's utterances. Even so, Vihera went out of her way to explain because, while they could grasp the gist, they still couldn't pick up on the details.
Inside a dungeon, you never knew what might happen.
The fact that Reliu, who had only just met Byune, was with them was also a significant factor. Unlike Rei and the others, Reliu could barely understand what Byune was trying to say, so Vihera's translation was essential.
"That floor. It sinks when you step on it, so be careful."
"...What happens if you step on it?"
"Who knows? If you want to try it, Reliu, go ahead. I think I'll pass, though."
Told that by Vihera, Reliu had no desire to test it himself. He silently shook his head and urged them forward.
They proceeded carefully, avoiding the spot Byune had indicated, and continued for several minutes. Eventually, they came upon a fork where the path split in two—a Y-junction.
"Which way do we go?"
"Hard to say. It's not like there's any clue..."
"Mm!"
As Rei mulled over Marina's words, Byune gave a small utterance while pointing at the ground.
"Monster footprints. Looking at them from here, there are more tracks in the right passage."
"...There are?"
If the ground were made of dirt or covered in dust, Rei would have been able to tell how many footprints there were. But since this was a dungeon formed in a cliff face, the floor was naturally solid rock.
From what Rei could see, he couldn't find any traces indicating how many footprints had been left.
"Can't tell just from a quick glance either. ...She's small, but her thief skills are reliable, huh."
At Reliu's impressed words, Byune gave off a faintly pleased air. In terms of combat ability, she was quite skilled even among thieves. But being a thief herself, there was no way she wouldn't be happy to have her thief techniques praised.
"Well, that's fine, but which way do we go in the end? The one with more monsters? Or the one with fewer?"
Rei mulled over Reliu's question but quickly made his decision.
"Let's go toward the one with more monsters. The fact that many monsters have passed through means there's probably a good chance it connects to somewhere else. Well, whether that's up or down, I don't know."
This dungeon was located roughly halfway up the cliff face. In other words, it could continue both upward and downward.
(If it leads upward, it wouldn't be strange for it to come out on top of the cliff. ...Assuming there's no spatial distortion or anything like that.)
The reason Rei couldn't help but think this way was likely due to the peculiarity of this dungeon existing on a cliff face rather than being an ordinary one.
After all, many of the dungeons Rei had challenged before contained areas that could only be described as spatially distorted. Places with a vast sky overhead despite being inside a dungeon, complete with a sun or moon, or places with an expansive desert inside a dungeon, complete with a scorching sun pouring down intense sunlight—and so on.
Considering all that, it was hard to imagine that a dungeon existing in such an unusual location would have no spatial anomalies whatsoever.
Of course, given that this dungeon had likely only recently formed, there was also the possibility that it simply wasn't that large yet.
"Then let's go right. ...I'm a little curious about what might be on the left, though."
Rei's heart wavered slightly at Marina's words. Among the games he had played back in Japan, dungeon exploration was a common theme in the genre known as RPGs.
In those games, dead ends often contained treasure chests and the like, so when Rei played RPGs, he made sure to explore every path as thoroughly as possible. Of course, if he were following a strategy guide, it would list where all the treasure chests were, so it wouldn't be that much trouble.
"Ah... There might be something important down there. How about we check out the left side first?"
It was a somewhat indecisive call on Rei's part, but since no one expected to conquer the dungeon in a single day anyway, the choice to go left was accepted without issue.
And so they proceeded down the left passage, which showed little sign of monsters passing through... but within ten minutes, they hit a dead end.
However, several objects that looked like plants made of rock were growing there.
Plants growing inside a cave were unusual but not entirely unheard of. But something resembling a plant made of rock—this was the first time Rei had ever seen one.
"Does anyone know what those are?"
Rei asked, hoping someone might recognize the rock plants, but unfortunately no one had an answer. Even Marina, a former Guild Master who had lived for a long time, didn't recognize them—so it was certain that the rock plants before them were a rarity.
"In that case, we should probably take these with us. No idea what kind of value they have, though."
"Probably. Still, plants made of rock, huh. ...The fact that they're in a place like this means they obviously aren't some kind of stone statue someone made."
Marina murmured as she looked again at the rock plants, but in the first place, Rei's party was the first to enter this dungeon.
At least, that was the official story.
...In reality, it wouldn't be strange—or illegal—even if some High-Rank Adventurer had entered before them. After all, there had been no orders or instructions from the Guild or the Local Deputy forbidding entry into the dungeon.
It was simply because the entrance was on a cliff face—a troublesome one at that, with sharp protrusions and slippery surfaces—that no one had been able to get inside. Anyone with the means to overcome that obstacle, like Rei's party, could enter the dungeon without issue.
It wouldn't be strange if such people had gone in ahead of them.
(Though, even if someone had entered before us, I have no idea why they wouldn't have shown interest in these rock plants. ...Because they're heavy?)
For Rei, who had the Misty Ring, weight was completely irrelevant when it came to carrying things. In that sense, finding these rock plants here was a stroke of luck.
"Byune, I have to ask—is there a trap?"
"Mm."
It would be troublesome if a trap triggered while he tried to collect the rock plants, so Rei asked. Byune shook her head.
Confirming this, Rei checked the surroundings once more for anything unusual—not just traps, but wondering if some kind of monster might be hiding somewhere—but there was truly nothing there.
"Alright, I'm going to store these. Keep watch around us."
Saying that, Rei approached the rock plants... and when he had gotten close enough, the leaves of the rock plants suddenly flew toward him.